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1] Cold Dish
- Can only say I was so hungry I fought with everyone else on the table to try to grab as much as I could......although have to admit not really inspiring.
2] Scallops with Broccoli - Scallop under cooked and whole dish was a little cold.
Beginning to have a little concern about the food quality....but....
3] Steamed Fish
Very good. The fish is fresh, the meat is firm ( and some people like to describe "white white"). The slightly sweet heavily scallion scented sauce goes very well w the fish. It is interesting too is they used prompfret instead of other fish usually use like soon hock or grouper. Highly recommended.
4] Special Toufu
Anything with pork lard surely win many points before eating liao.
. The pork lard, mince meat gravy is a little on the salty side, but the tofu is well fried with browned skin and soft center. Good but can be better.
5] Cereal Prawns
Prawns is fresh and well fried - crispy till can eat the whole thing with shell on. Honestly as good as the better one ever eaten, nothing too surprising, nothing disappointing as well ( of cos, the bigger the prawn the better lah
....but the size is decent lah). Only if you like such style, somehow, I think they can possibly to a better Gon Jin Har Lok.
6] Claypot Chicken Rice
If you were to ask me what I would come back for. This certainly will be my first reason. The rice is well cooked to the right smokiness and "burnt" over slow buring charcoal ember ( we actually watch them doing it) instead of those big fire many claypot rice places like to do. The tiny bits or salted eggs and salted fish, make each bite of the rice interesting. It is not overwhelming, but that elusive flavor lingers in the mouth really make this dish rather "seductive" that you want to have another bowl, to really find out what's in it. Not oily too! And the chicken is not overly marinated and as Umami put it, "no starchy" too. Highly recommended
7] Braised Pig Trotter
Interesting as it is braised together with some pig tendon. Taste wise nothing really different from many braised pig trotter, but the addition of the tendon, somehow, give the dish a more "collagen" feel. BTW..it goes well with the belachan chilli. Very good (some people did not think it was fantastic, but maybe becos I might have had a little to much to drink)
8] Sip Chuan Herbal Duck Soup
Eh....although the stall is kind of named after this style of making herbal soup, could only say I wish the taste can be more robust and rich. It is herbal no doubt, but I would have like it to have some meat flavor in it. A little too liberal use of liquorice or tong sum making it a little too sweet. Anyway is it potent? I got sore throat and horny the next day
9] Venison on Hotplate
Meat over tenderize, might as well use beef. BUT the gravy is very very yummy with lots of onion browned till caramelized, spring onion, ginger which were so well fried in the oyster base sauce I was practically scooping up every drop of the gravy. If you can forgive them for the over tenderized meat ( but some people actually like it, but this one so tenderize taste more like chicken - maybe should order chicken), this dish is actually quite tasty.
10] KL Noodles
Lots of pork lard...score first already. Not as sweet as the original version. Somehow the noodle did not absorb the gravy flavor well enough, but quite good to satisfy my craving for it already. There is something seems to be missing and I was thinking about it and Eslim's friend from KL said there is not enough MSG
and I remembered now that in KL, one of the ingredients is clam ( la-la) which when cook, gives the stock a very rich umami and heavier flavor and this I think is what is missing here. Ok lah.
11) Stir fried fallopian tube (Shang Cheong)
This is complimentary after seeing the picture on the wall, the manageress so obligingly fried one plate with complimentary just to let us try try. Very good, crunchy, QQ and the very spicy gravy ( which almost shut my taste bud down) makes it a very good compliment to rice. Will test them out the next time using this with bean sprouts or ginger w spring onion. Highly recommended
Going by the experience this time, there are some hits and some misses. Spoke with the chef Jimmy and he meekly admitted this is the first time he had such a big group coming at the same time and he felt he did not show his best and he was rather embarrassed about it. I appreciate that than he gave some excuses.
This place really reminded me of the older days Cai Guan, the early aircon cze cha place, if they have some fishes, vegetables and meat hanging outside the stall in glass chiller, it would have completed the look.
Is the food great? Not necessary the greatest, but I am very satisfied with the rustic enviroment and very tasty street food kind of cooking that satisfy my cze cha craving tremendously.
Another Eslim's Great Food Discovery!!
