The gf excitedly told us about Shin Yeh and truth be told, I am not a huge fan of dining in chinese restaurants, save for dimsum. As such, her bubbling excitement hardly rubbed off me.
The "zen" entrance with bamboo.
The gorgeous night view was a draw but at the expense of glaring bright lights. We opted for a table nearer the entrance with warmer lighting.
Somewhat ready to fill the tum!
The appetizers are different everyday, for the gf who went 3 days in a row, she was lemming for the sauteed bittergourd which was not available.
In return, we were served this plain looking appetizer which is really quite "Boomz". Think plum sauce drizzled over young papaya slices. It tastes like a cross of apple and guava, refreshing and tantalizing. For once, I was so glued onto the appetizer.
Cooling sliced cucumbers!
Beancurd in XO Sauce ($18)
A veg is a must hence this order. Strips of fried beancurd with straw mushrooms and a measly portion of veg. It's one pricey vegetable dish.
Wok Seared Pig's Liver with Coriander ($14) *
I'm no fan of liver but was egged on to try. No regrets. Sliced to an ideal thickness, they resembled stir fried beef slices. It melts in your mouth like foie gras should without the rancid intestinal aftertaste certain liver dishes have. Paired with raisins, the lovely combination of sweet and savoury was plain good.. this dish was polished off in no time.
Crisp Fried Fresh Oysters with Dip ($16)
Doesn't this resemble KFC's Popcorn Chicken or the famous Taiwanese street delight; 鹽 酥雞?
Balls of crispy batter with a curled up oyster nested within, loved the crunch of this dish.
Panfried Turnip Cake ($10) *
Just chye poh egg, nothing to shout about.
Sauteed Prawns with Pineapple ($22) *
A different interpretation of Wasabi Prawns, with pineapple. The absurdly fresh and crunchy prawns that was not doused in bicarbonate, tossed in pineapple sauce and pineapple cubes. Lastly, black and white sesame seeds to finish. It would have been better if the pineapples were sweeter. Nonetheless, a stunning one here!
Steamed Pork Petites topped with Egg Yolk ($12) *
I wonder where the plurality of 'Petites' came about when it was a pork patty in chunk form. Certainly was a jawdropper in terms of portions. Well minced meat marinated in spices and the salted egg did much to spice this dish nicely. It's a good to try, not must try.
All the dishes were eaten with sweet potato porridge ($1.50) without a trace of sweet potato. I found it just ordinary white porridge. Even when eaten without porridge, these dishes were not overly salty.
Taiwan Taro Paste ($5) *
The portion of this was well, small. Fits a bowl nicely and a spoon and a half each. Smooth yam paste with osmanthus flower buds strewn into the sweet gravy. I wish they took this further with the sin-factor, coconut milk, pumpkin or even lard if need be!
Glutinous Rice Ball coated with Ground Peanuts ($0.80/pc)
Every table received this complimentary. One per diner. I'd say the main delight came from the ground peanut powder, so fine and melt in your mouth. The muah chee was really just all dense and slightly bland. Was expecting it to be stuffed with red beans though.
Taiwan-style Baked Yam Pastry ($4.50/3 pcs) *
The description failed me. Basically just yam dough wrapped around red bean paste and fried. Icing sugar or even condensed milk would have done the trick.
Taiwan-style Mango and Milk Shaved Ice ($7) *
The story behind this last minute addition came about because a certain waiter paraded it in such jest to the table next to us, under the warm lighting the dessert glistened. It could have been fantasy playing up but when we were served, the portion seemed to have shrunk (not considerably) and appeared less appetizing. True enough, it was just shaved ice (not even the snow ice tendency, closer to ice kachang) with condensed milk and barely ripe mangoes.
* denotes signature.
Quality food you'll find in Shin Yeh, I left surprised that I actually enjoyed the meal despite the misses. There's no issue of promptness of the food served here in Shin Yeh, in fact the dishes are served so quickly, it barely leaves you enough time between dishes to slowly savour the food. The plates are also cleared with such promptness, it leaves you wondering what's the haste?
Shin Yeh
Liang Court #02-19
Comments
Post a Comment