Plum Village – The Last Hakka Restaurant in Singapore

Plum Village Hakka Restaurant (“Plum Village”) is the only Hakka Restaurant remaining in Singapore. It is owned and operated by Mr Lai Fak Nian. Plum Village is nestled comfortably in a two-story shop house at the old estate in Jalan Leban, off Thomson Road between Ang Mo Kio Ave 1 and Yio Chu Kang Road.

The menu of Plum Village is the size of A4 paper and contains about 18 dishes, representing Hakka people from different provinces in China. Each dish is painstakingly created from scratch and some of the items are subject to availability. We decided to order the recommended set meal for 4 pax priced at $56 plus the Beancurd Skin Pork Stomach Soup ($10).

The Menu

The first dish to arrive is Salted Chicken. Plum uses Kampong chicken for this dish, providing a stiffer texture for the breast meat, but delivering a better wholesome flavour of the chicken. True to its name, the dish is on the salty side, however, the sauce is filled with the essence of the chicken and what a flavour bomb.

Salted Chicken

Hakka Yam Abacus is a well-known dish representing Hakka food in Singapore. The yam abacus has a lovely chewy texture, but the ingredients that infuse the flavour are dried shrimp, dried cuttlefish, Chinese mushroom, minced pork and fish sauce. Awesome.

Hakka Yam Abacus

Pork with Preserved Vegetables. As a Hakka, I know this dish very well. My family version is the pork belly is braised with sweet mei cai. However, I find the versions in Singapore and Malaysia, most of them used salty mei cai. The version at Plum Village is of a very good standard. The pork belly has a good ratio of meat and fats, absorbs the flavour of the mei cai and soy sauce, and cooked to the point of fork tender. Even though the set menu included a noodle dish, we still decided to order two bowls of white rice to share. What a “rice thief” dish.

Hakka Yam Abacus

Stuffed Yong Tau Foo. For Hakka Yong Tau Foo, the tofu is stuffed with minced pork instead of fish paste. The tofu base used is firm, while the minced pork is fatty and gives this dish a nice meaty flavour.

Stuffed Yong Tau Foo

Complimentary Fried Hakka Noodles. The thin egg noodles are similar to e-fu noodles, bouncy and lightly fried with mushroom and minced pork. Don’t expect any wok hei, but the flavour remains robust and delicious.

Complimentary Fried Hakka Noodles

We also ordered Beancurd Skin Pork Stomach Soup ($10). The pig’s stomach is clean and absent of any foul smell. The broth is robust with a touch of pepper. Good to start the meal.

Beancurd Skin Pork Stomach Soup 

At the end of the meal, we were served complimentary dessert of red bean soup.

Red Bean Soup

The décor of this place is stuck in the 1980s. The tables are covered with white plastic table cloth, while the lights are dim and yellowish. Really brought out the nostalgic vibe. Service is no fuss and friendly.

Overall, Plum Village is the place to go if you want to experience Hakka food in Singapore. The food is tasty, pocket friendly but cooked with heart. We enjoy all the dishes here and we hope to dine here again before they close. Cheers!!

Food & Drink: 7.5/10

Value: 8/10

Service: 6/10

Ambiance: 6/10

Budget per Person: $11 - 25

Plum Village Hakka Restaurant

16 Jln Leban

Singapore 577554

T: +65 6458 9005

F: https://www.facebook.com/PlumvillageHakkafood/

OH:

Mon, Tue, Thu – Sat: 11.00 – 14.00; 17.30 – 21.00

Sun: 12.00 – 14.00; 17.30 – 21.00

Closed on Wednesday.

Yummy Palace – Authentic Chinese Cuisine

Yummy Palace is an Authentic Chinese Cuisine, hidden in Defu Industrial Area. LD and I visited this restaurant during the Chinese New Year and we enjoyed the CNY dishes very much. Therefore, this round, we suggested to our friends for our “makan session”.

Yummy Palace

Instead of a set menu, this round we ordered a la carte. Started with Crispy Fried Fish Skin Coated with Salted Egg Yolk ($13.80). The crispy fried fish skin is coated with salted egg sauce and pork floss. It is crispy, crunchy followed by a mix of savoury, umami salted egg yolk and sweet pork floss plus a bit of kick from the chilli padi. A crowd pleaser dish.

Crispy Fried Fish Skin Coated with Salted Egg Yolk 

Ice-Vegetable Salad with Japanese Sesame Sauce ($12.80). One of LD’s favourite vegetables. The ice vegetables are crunchy and refreshing, the creamy and fragrant sesame dressing works nicely in the salad together with the juicy tomato.

Ice-Vegetable Salad with Japanese Sesame Sauce

Crispy Roast Pork Cube ($13) – served with mustard. The roast pork skin is crispy and crumbly, while the flesh is moist and tasty. The peanut adds another crispy texture to the dish.

Crispy Roast Pork Cube 

Crispy Roasted Duck ½ ($30). Crispy skin followed by juicy and succulent flesh. The duck is very tasty and well marinated, thus the plum sauce that is served with the duck seems unnecessary.

Crispy Roasted Duck - Half

Yummy’s Signature Chicken Stuffed in Pig Stomach Soup ($68). It is served in a whole pot. At the table side, the service staff cuts the pig stomach and portions the soup. The broth tasted creamy, robust, peppery and infused with the flavour of the chicken and pig stomach. The pig stomach and the chicken are fork-tender. The portion is enough for 10 pax, so most of us get a second serving of the soup. It is recommended to order this dish in advance.

Yummy’s Signature Chicken Stuffed in Pig Stomach Soup 

The Chicken in Pig Stomach

Braised Home-Made Beancurd with Golden Mushroom & Fresh Crab Meat in Pumpkin Sauce ($18). The exterior of the homemade beancurd is slightly chewy as it was deep fried, while the interior is smooth and silky. However, the star of this dish is the rich pumpkin gravy. It is sweet and packed with lots of umami flavour. I like the golden mushroom and the fresh crab meat in it. A “rice thief” dish for me.

Braised Home-Made Beancurd with Golden Mushroom & Fresh Crab Meat in Pumpkin Sauce 

Stir-Fried Scallops with Asparagus in XO Sauce ($28). The scallops are plump and juicy, complimenting the crunchy asparagus. The flavour comes from the XO sauce; however, it lacks the OMPH factor.

Stir-Fried Scallops with Asparagus in XO Sauce 

Crispy Sweet & Sour Pork Served on Ice Cubes ($36, Medium). When this dish was served, our first reaction was, WOW, this looks cool. The cube of fatty pork is coated with a thick batter and deep-fried before it is tossed with the sweet and sour sauce. Usually, the batter can become a bit soggy due to the sauce and lose its crispiness. By serving it with ice, the batter remains crispy while it soaks up the sauce. There is a stand with holes on the plate, to segregate the melted ice and keep the crunchiness of the pork. The diced cucumber, pineapple and cherry tomatoes added different texture and flavour to this dish. Yummy.

Crispy Sweet & Sour Pork Served on Ice Cubes 

Sea Prawn cooked in Superior Soy Sauce ($48, $8 /100g). This style of cooking is not on the menu. We tried it during CNY and we decided to order this dish again. The prawns are initially deep-fried and then coated with Superior Soy Sauce. They are fresh and crunchy. The soy sauce is filled with umami and nicely paired with the prawn; however, I find the taste not as good as during the CNY. Missing the “kick” that brings this dish to another level.

Sea Prawn cooked in Superior Soy Sauce 

Sauteed E-Fu Noodle with Fresh Crab Meat ($26). The E-Fu Noodle is infused with robust umami stock. Each slurp of the noodle is like an explosion of flavour and you can’t just wait for that next slurp. The crab meat and mushroom add a delicate sweetness and a touch of al-dente in the noodle. One of the tastiest E-Fu Noodles I ever tried. Yum!!

Sauteed E-Fu Noodle with Fresh Crab Meat

For desserts, we ordered Crispy Fried Pan-Cake with Red Bean Paste ($12) and Steamed Mashed Taro with Ginko Nuts & Pumpkin / Orh Nee ($20). The red bean paste pancake is disappointing. Although it was crispy externally, the skin tasted doughy. A longer time in the wok should solve this issue.

Crispy Fried Pan-Cake with Red Bean Paste

Meanwhile, the Orh Nee is just awesome. It is thick, dense, a bit rough yet packed with a solid yam taste. Usually, I will give the ginko to LD, but the taste is well hidden by the yam. Although the top part of the Orh Nee is covered with sugar syrup, the sweetness is just right.

Steamed Mashed Taro with Ginko Nuts & Pumpkin / Orh Nee 

When you arrive at the restaurant, you will be welcomed by the traditional look of a Chinese restaurant, complete with a big Chinese signboard. In the dining area, different types of lanterns are used for the lighting and the wall is decorated with Chinese paintings and Chinese antiques or collections. The tables and chairs followed the traditional style of furniture, big round table for big groups (table for 8 or more) with lazy susan, complete with the yoke back chair. For smaller groups, they use square tables with yoke back chairs.

Part of Dining Area

Part of Dining Area

We went on a weekday and the restaurant was not crowded. Service was friendly and attentive.

Small Dish & Sauce

Overall, we enjoy the food, service and ambiance of the place. We recommend the Yummy’s Signature Chicken Stuffed in Pig Stomach Soup, Crispy Sweet & Sour Pork Served on Ice Cubes, Braised Home-Made Beancurd with Golden Mushroom & Fresh Crab Meat in Pumpkin Sauce, Sauteed E-Fu Noodle with Fresh Crab Meat and Steamed Mashed Taro with Ginko Nuts & Pumpkin. Cheers!!

Food & Drink: 8.25/10

Value: 7/10

Service: 7.75/10

Ambiance: 8/10

Budget per Person: $51 – $80

Yummy Palace

87 Defu Lane 10

#02-01

Singapore 539219

T: +65 6343 1818 / 9735 0048

W: https://www.yummypalace.com.sg/

F: https://www.facebook.com/yummypalacerestaurant

IG: @Yummypalace

OH: Daily 11.00 – 15.00; 18.00 – 23.00

Ah Seng Braised Duck Rice – Enjoyable Braised Duck

Ah Seng Braised Duck Rice

One of the places to go for my quick meal is Serangoon Garden Market. Reasons being that parking is a breeze and the standards of the stalls here is just above average.

Recently, I keep returning to Ah Seng Braised Duck Rice ('Ah Seng'), the one near the Bakery for lunch. It is also one of the stall that always have a queue. A quick research before writing this review, divulge that Ah Seng has been around from more than 20 years. So some of the regulars have been eating the braised duck since their childhood (including my wife). Amazing.

The Braised Duck

So what is good here. Of course the braised duck (One person serving with rice from $3.50). Braised in superior soya sauce, the braising gravy has a water consistency instead of thick gooey version. In short, Ah Seng follow the Teochew style of braised duck. The duck is well braised as you can feel the soya sauce infused in the meat. It is also lean and meaty, almost absent of any fats. Those who like their duck plump and juicy, this might not be the version for you.

Serving for One plus Pig's Ear and Tongue

Normally, I will order the braised pork belly ($2/3/4) with my duck. Like the duck, the pork belly can be consider lean however it remain tender and succulent. For me, the braised pork belly is to offset the duck meat that is devoid of fats.

Serving for One plus Braised Pork Belly