Lavarock Grill House @ Serangoon

Special thanks to James, Joan and their team for the kind hospitality!

Once upon a time history was rewritten – restaurant food sold at hawker prices. I always look forward to new joints that price themselves that way, who does not love a good deal? It could have been the number of outlets that have mushroomed that caused a dent on quality of food served over time and at the same time brought down the trust that value and quality of food will be maintained. Nonetheless, I was interested to check out Lava Rock Grill. They used to have a outlets at East Coast Road and Tanjong Katong Road – both have since closed because of the higher prices due to rent as compared to their more humble beginnings – where the heartlanders go.



Nested in Guan Hock Tiong Eating House.



Spot the banner!



Sweet treats start at lunch.

The thick menu that was ready to confuse and tempt.

Corkage waived!



Birthday love!



Ready to be fed.



Breaded Fresh Oysters ($5.90)



Tartare sauce for dunking.



Breaded oysters fried so crisp, it was a great way to start the meal - loved the fresh oysters too!



Classic Cream of Mushroom Soup ($2.50)

Made from scratch in their central kitchen, this is definitely a must try! Homely broth with such a generous portion of mushroom chunks, one definitely needs to be a mushroom lover to enjoy this fully. I only wish there was garlic toast to mop up the delectable broth.

Each order of mains gets two choices for sides and I had a field day eating them!

Fries

Fries hardly disappoint as long as they are not soggy nor over salted.

Pasta Salad

The sour dressing made it appetizing but the pasta was a tad overcooked.

Creamy Pasta

Somehow lacking in flavour.

Potato Salad –



Butter Potato



Glazed Carrot - I usually shy away from carrots as a side dish, mainly because frozen carrots or baby carrots are used and it is hardly appetizing. These look like papaya slices but that aside, these juice and sweet carrot wedges are terribly addictive.




Fragrant Herb Butter Rice

Actually lacking in fragrance, this was rather normal for me.



Creamy Coleslaw

On the sweet side, it could do with lesser cream sauce.



Garden Salad

For the diehard health nuts.




Creamy Potato

We had a good time guessing what this was tossed in - tasted quite like tuna with a fruity fragrance.



Mash Potato Salad

Just like the instant mixes.



BBQ Baked Beans

Nothing to fault.

Tex Mex Pork Chops ($7.90)

The tex mex influence in this dish was evident through the use of pineapples - a useful tenderizer. Lovely chargrilled meat but it was slightly sweet.



Rosemary Peppered Pork Chops ($7.90)

Comparatively stronger in flavour, personal preference for this since the flavours were well balanced.



Sizzling Hot Plate Black Pepper Lamb Chops ($9.90)



It took quite a long while before the plate stopped sizzling. One notable feature is their lamb chops are hardly gamey, absolutely tender and well, I am sold. So glad mint jelly is not over-used as an accompaniment.



NZ Chargrilled Prime Sirloin ($11.90)
Black pepper sauce



Dousing the chunk.

Seared to a perfect pink.

Australia Marble Beef ($28.90)
mushroom sauce



The pasta was a tad sweet.

The star of the dish.

We had a go at both their American and Australian steaks. While I favoured the Australian cut better, both steaks were cooked to perfect – well seared and succulent. Melt in my mouth quality, drooliciously awesome!

Herbed Norwegian Salmon ($13.90)

Unfortunately, this was overcooked rendering the generous chunk tough and somewhat fishy. The accompanying tomato based pasta was rather ordinary as well.

Herbed Garlic Fish ($7.90)

Grade A Dory fish used for this! Despite that, a slight metallic taste in the soft fish. Did I mention I particularly loved the herbed crust?

Sesame Teriyaki Chicken ($6.90)



Prawn Aglio Olio ($7.90)

Very flavourful blend of spices and seasoning to conjure up this appetizing pasta dish.

Vongole Aglio Olio with Abalone Clams ($6.90)

They possibly saved the best for the last - classified a Lava Rock Special. Pasta cooked al dente and flavours so well executed. They relied on the simple seafood ingredients to bring this supposedly simple dish to greater heights – once again, restaurant standard achieved! If only I had more stomach space, I definitely would have ordered seconds just for myself!

Plating that deserves some mention. 

Really affordable food with restaurant quality to match. Portions are reasonable as well. Sure enough there are hits and misses but the variety they have up for choice is mind boggling enough. Started by an ex-teacher with a passion for food and unsatiable appetite for deliciosity, I wish Lava Rock all the best in spreading this love. The boss, Mr James Ng, is particularly spot on with his marinate skills, quite a talent infact! What started out as a regular chef at his family gatherings became more than a passion when one of his friends challenged him to turn this dream into reality. Made with heart, the food is. Lots of thought goes through understanding the palette of his customers and truly, one of the up and coming eateries worth the while. The only disadvantage for them is the locations of their eateries which makes it a slight challenge for the city dwellers but then again, what is distance when we can wait hours for good food? I would have loved for them to include a portion for dessert but on a personal note, I am raring to be back!

Lavarock Grill
Blk 153 Serangoon North Ave 1
#01-512 Guan Hock Tiong Coffeeshop

A complete listing of their other outlets

1) Blk 681 Hougang Ave8 #01-853

2) Blk 449 Clementi Ave3 #01-211 (NEW!)

3) Blk 713 Ang Mo Kio Ave6 #01-4032 (NEW!)

4) Blk 147 Potong Pasir Ave1 #01-93 (NEW!)

5) Blk 530 Ang Mo Kio Ave10 #01-2379 (NEW!)