Fi Woodfire Thai – A Modern Thai Culinary Concept with A Woodfire Twist [MEDIA INVITE]

Fi Woodfire Thai (“Fi”) Restaurant showcases a modern Thai culinary concept through the dynamic use of fire and curated for the local palate. To deliver a deep smoky richness, Fi uses a double-insulated wood-fire oven with Bincho-tan charcoal for longevity and heat stability, complemented by aromatic lychee wood.

Entrance - From Inside Robertson Walk

Entrance - From Outside Robertson Walk

Located at Robertson Walk, Fi is a cosy establishment that seats 40 guests. The restaurant is minimally decorated, merging simplicity and warmth. The main dining area is filled with high tables and chairs for a group of four or six. Meanwhile, the centrepiece of the restaurant is the long bar that double-up as a dining table that can seat up to a dozen of guests.

The Bar

We started our adventure at Fi with drinks. Thai Ice Lemon Tea [$8] and Sabai [$20]. The Thai Ice Lemon Tea is potent, thick and strong. I initially asked for no sugar, luckily the service staff recommended a bit of sugar, to remove the bitterness from the tea. A good recommendation.

Thai Iced Lemon Tea

LD choose a cocktail, Sabai. Sabai mean “to relax” in Thai, this cocktail mixes Mekong rum with a squeeze of lemon, simple syrup, and fresh basil leaves for a refreshing mid-day tipple. LD says it is refreshing and the bartender is very generous with the splashes of rum as well.

Sabai (Front)

Charred Corn Som Tum [$14]. Traditional Thai Som Tum complete with its ingredients Shredded Papaya, Cherry Tomato, Long Bean, Dried Shrimp, Onions, Chilli Padi, Garlic, Fish Sauce, Lime Juice and Peanuts. The salad is refreshing with a touch of spiciness and the grilled corn is absolutely delicious. Smoky, charred, sweet and juicy. A good start to the meal.

Charred Corn Som Tum 

Basil Minced Pork on Charred Eggplant [$18]. I usually don’t eat basil minced pork in a Thai restaurant, because it is usually very spicy. The version here is mild in spiciness, aromatic, sweet and packed with flavour. I also make an exception for the eggplant, the texture is smooth, crunchy with a nice smoky flavour and a nice grilled mark on the inner part. It provided an excellent base for stir-fried basil minced pork.

Basil Minced Pork on Charred Eggplant

French Poulet [$28] - Grilled Half Gg French Poulet, Chicken Liver, Jaew Sauce. The refined version of grilled Thai Chicken (Kai Yang). The French Poulet is juicy, succulent and the marinate penetrated to the bone. The meat from the breast and thigh are equally juicy. The marinated sauce is a bit sweet initially, but after a squeeze of lime, the citrus flavour just brings the overall flavours to life. It is best to be eaten with the raw salad.

French Poulet

“Moo Ping” Smoked Pork Ribs (500g Bone In) [$42]. Absolutely, ridiculously, super yummy. The pork ribs’ texture is fork tender, juicy, succulent, well-marinated with a lovely charred crust. It can feel a bit “Jelak” (Overwhelming), but it can easily be fixed with a squeeze of lime or dipping sauce. It is heavenly and finger licking good. #OinkOink #Porkgasm

Moo Ping

The Bones

Seafood Pad Thai [$18] - Shrimp, Squid, Egg, Tofu, Sprouts, Chives, Rice Noodle, Crushed Peanuts. This version here is Pad Thai which you get in restaurants / hotels in Thailand. It uses juicy big prawns. I find the taste of the pad thai is too bold for my liking, especially the sweetness level. Although it has a nice smoky flavour at the beginning, it dissipates from the dish after the second bite.

Seafood Pad Thai

Thai Milk Tea Panna Cotta [$12] - Thai Milk Tea Pudding Served with Coconut Ice Cream and Tea Jelly. A well-plated and well-constructed dessert. The milk tea pudding is dense and creamy. The tea jelly delivers a bold thick flavour of Thai tea, while the coconut ice cream binds all the ingredients nicely.

Thai Milk Tea Panna Cotta 

For spicy food lovers, please inform the service staff when you order the food. The kitchen can adjust the spiciness level for the Som Tum, Basil Minced Pork and Tom Yum. They can also serve cut chilli if needed.

Overall, we enjoy the food at Fi. Don’t expect a traditional street food in Thailand, be open minded to the modern interpretation of Thai Food here that are suitable to pair with their cocktails and drinks. Don’t miss out on their amazing French Poulet & Moo Ping. Chiyo!! Cheers!!

Thank you very much Protegie Consultancy and Team Fi Woodfire Thai for hosting us.

Food & Drink: 8/10

Value: 7.5/10

Service: N/A (Tasting Invitation)

Ambiance: 7.5/10

Budget per Person: $26 - $50; $51 - $80

Fi Woodfire Thai

11 Unity Street

#01-07, Robertson Walk

Singapore 237995

T: +65 8776 1569

W: https://www.fi-woodfire.com/

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

IG: @Fi.woodfire

OH:

Wed – Sun: 11.30 – 15.00, 17.00 – 22.00

Closed on Mondays & Tuesdays

[CLOSED] Central Thai ECP –Thai Food with An Awesome View [MEDIA INVITE]

Central Thai at East Coast Park (‘CT’) is a Halal Thai restaurant located within a short walking distance from East Coast Park Area F. If you are coming from the city direction toward the airport, it is at end of East Coast Park. It is not even close to the East Coast Lagoon or the East Coast Seafood Park.

Central Thai Entrance - Early Evening

Centra Thai Entrance - Evening

The “secluded” location offers a great view of the Singapore Straits. The crowd is minimum and the parking is also free, almost like your own private beachfront. Occupying a sole property, CT offers indoor and al-fresco dining settings. To avoid the hot scorching weather in the early evening, LD and I decided on air-conditioned indoor seating. However, once the sun set, I suggest you choose the al-fresco seating area to enjoy the cool breeze.

The View - Early Evening

We started the meal with Thai Prawn Cake ($9 for 2 pcs, $17 for 4 pcs). They are huge and each one of them is about as big and as thick as my palm. The exterior is crispy, while the interior is bouncy. The seasoning is sufficient, LD and I did not even dip it in the sweet chilli sauce provided.

Thai Prawn Cake

Thai Prawn Cake

Thai Prawn Cake

Clear Tom Yum Prawn Soup ($18 for Regular, $25 for Large). We have the regular size. The broth is robust and tangy but not overly spicy. The prawns, sliced fish and mushrooms are fresh. LD feels that the soup can be spicier and more sour, however, I like this mild version. It is acceptable to those who can’t take too much heat.

Clear Tom Yum Prawn Soup

Thai Spicy Basil with Minced Chicken ($16 for Regular, $21 for Large). At first, the dish looks super spicy, especially with the bright red colour covering the chicken. However, LD assured me that it is not the case. The minced chicken is juicy, while the heat is more of a sambal-like. Not that full-blown spiciness like in other Thai restaurants. It can do with a bit more basil though.

Thai Spicy Basil with Minced Chicken

Steamed Seabass with Spicy Lemon Sauce ($34 fresh, $42 Live). When this dish reaches our table, it just looks very appetizing. Once it reached our table, the smoke just keeps coming out from the boiling broth, giving this dish a mystical arrival and the WOW factor.

Steamed Seabass with Spicy Lemon Sauce 

The fish is so fresh, and the flesh is soft and velvety, while the broth is aromatic, tangy and acceptable spiciness for me. Basically, both of us devour the whole fish and left it with bones only. A complement to the chef!

The Flesh

Stir-fry Four Heavenly Kings ($16 for Regular, $20 for Large). Lady fingers, eggplant, petai and long bean, cooked with onion, capsicum and prawn paste sambal. It is aromatic, LD like it but I don’t like any of those vegetables.

Stir-fry Four Heavenly Kings 

Pineapple Fried Rice ($14). It was one of the best dishes of the night. The rice is al-dente, fragrant and evenly coated with the fried eggs. The diced pineapple is evenly spread, while the cashew nuts and prawns added different crunchy textures to the dish. A must-order dish here. LD commented that it is a childhood type of must-eat Thai dish when she is young and it has been a while since she had a decent one like Central Thai’s.

Pineapple Fried Rice

Pineapple Fried Rice

Pineapple Fried Rice

Our dessert is Mango Sticky Rice ($8.50). It is served with pandan-flavoured sticky rice. The mango is sweet and bursting with flavour. While the pandan sticky rice is a touch too soft (like being overheated in a microwave). The mango and sticky rice taste good with coconut milk.

Mango Sticky Rice

Mango Sticky Rice

For the drinks, I have the Iced Thai Milk Tea ($4.60) and LD ordered Thai Lemon Grass ($4.60). We ask for our drinks to be less sweet and they acceded to our request. Both the drinks tasted very solid and the portion is very big. If you come in a big group, you should order the drinks in a tower.

Thai Lemon Grass & Thai Milk Tea

The décor of the restaurant is simple, functional and Thai-inspired. I like the natural light entering the indoor dining area during the day.

Indoor Dining Area

Al Fresco Dining Area

Overall, we like the food at Central Thai. They are tasty and delicious. However, for those who like their Thai Food bold and super spicy, you need to inform the service staff when you ordered. The current spiciness level is targeted towards a family-friendly level. Our picks are Thai Prawn Cake, Steamed Seabass with Spicy Lemon Sauce and Pineapple Fried Rice. Cheers!

Evening Atmosphere

Thank you very much, Parveen for the invite and Central Thai team for hosting us.

Food & Drink: 7.5/10

Value: 7/10

Service: N/A (Tasting Invitation)

Ambiance: 7/10

Budget per Person: $11 - $25; $26 - $50

Central Thai – East Coast Park

1300 East Coast Parkway

East Coast Park Area F

Singapore 468964

T: +65 6443 5510

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

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

IG: @Centralthai

OH: Daily, 11.30 – 22.30

Menu Available here

Thai Village – Thai Teochew Cuisine

Thai Village is a Chinese restaurant in Singapore serving Thai Teochew Cuisine. Those frequent visitors to Bangkok will be very familiar with the Chinese cuisine served in Yaowarat (Chinatown in Bangkok) or any Chinese restaurants in Bangkok. There are 3 branches of Thai Village in Singapore, this one is located in the Goodwood Park Hotel Estate.

Thai Village Restaurant @Goodwood Park Hotel

Since we (plus 2 other “makan kakis”) are having a staycation at Goodwood Park Hotel, we decided to visit Thai Village for late dinner. We came in about 8+ and the restaurant is packed.

We kicked off the dinner with the signature dish of Thai Village. Braised Superior Shark’s Fin with Crab Meat ($68 for small). Basically, a shark’s fin is almost tasteless or likely to be fishy, with a chewy and crunchy texture. It requires a superb and robust stock to infuse the flavour into the fin and overall dish. In Thai Village, their stock is just absolutely amazing. It is thick, robust, filled with collagen and delivers the ultimate umami flavour. The crab meat added a touch of natural sweetness to the dish. Although the portion is small, it is good for 2 pax.

Braised Superior Shark’s Fin with Crab Meat

The shark’s fin soup is served with beansprout, Chinese parsley and black vinegar.

Beansprout & Chinese Parsley

Braised Superior Shark’s Fin with Crab Meat
with Beansprout and Chinese Parsley

If you are not a shark’s fin fan, you can order the fish maw soup instead. They still use the same stock base, delivering the superb and umami fish maw. I can attest to eat as I tried it at their Singapore Indoor Stadium Branch.

Crispy Beancurd in Thai Style ($18). Deep-fried egg tofu, topped with julienne young mango, chopped big shallots and Thai sweet chilli sauce. The beancurd has a crisp exterior followed by a smooth and silky interior. The young mango is crunchy and tangy, paired with spicy shallot and sweet chilli sauce. A nice dish to balance the heavy soup at the start.

Crispy Beancurd in Thai Style 

Baked Duck Web ($20). The original version of this dish is supposed to be braised goose web. However, due to the restriction of goose meat in Singapore, duck webs are used as a substitute. Presentation-wise, it does not look very appetising. However, do not judge the dish by the look. It packs of flavours and has a resilient texture. The duck web is gelatinous but not as good as the goose web.

Baked Duck Web

Salt Baked Chicken Drumsticks ($20). Kind of reminds me of the dish called 3 cups chicken. Tender and succulent chicken meat, with a nice charred aroma and flavour. You can taste the salt seasoning in the skin and the flesh. The strong flavour of this dish together with the gravy is best enjoyed with a bowl of white rice ($1.20). A perfect “rice thief” dish.

Salt Baked Chicken Drumsticks

Baked King Prawns with Vermicelli ($34 for small). A dish that I will normally order in a Thai Restaurant. The vermicelli is silky and bouncy, while the prawns are fresh and crunchy. Although this dish also comes in the crab version, I always prefer the prawns as they give a better umami flavour.

Baked King Prawns with Vermicelli

The décor of the place is outdated, seems like it is stuck in the 1990s. However, the ambience and the service staff bring this restaurant to life. Good service from the captain and service crew, friendly and with motherly care.

The Wine Chiller

Overall, a great place to satisfy your cravings for luxurious Thai Teochew Cuisine. Their Braised Shark’s Fin Soup / Fish Maw soup or anything that is cooked with their Golden stock is a must-order here. The price is on the high side, but you are paying for quality. Cheers!!

Food & Drink: 8/10

Value: 6.5/10

Service: 7.25/10

Ambiance: 6.75/10

Budget per Person: $51 - $80; $81 & Above

Thai Village

22 Scotts Road

Goodwood Park Hotel

Singapore 228221

T: +65 6440 8251

W: https://thaivillagerestaurant.com.sg/

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

IG: @Thaivillagerestaurantsg

OH: Daily 11.30 – 15.00; 18.00 – 22.00

For Other Branches, click here.