I seldom return to a place twice. The world is too big, and there are too many dishes I have yet to try. But sometimes, a dish makes an impression that pulls you back.
A month ago, I was at TungLok Seafood at Orchard Central for a buffet. Buffets are usually a compromise. Quality is often sacrificed for quantity. But the food was good enough to make me curious. It earned a second visit.
I found myself in the Somerset area on a weekday. I called the restaurant. There was space. When I arrived, the large room was quiet. Of twenty tables, maybe four were occupied. It was a calm, almost empty space in the middle of a busy district.
Let’s not waste time. Here’s what’s actually good.
We started with the fish skin with salted egg. Some dishes don’t wait for permission. They announce themselves from the first bite. This was one of them. The fish skin was still warm, clearly fried just a minute ago. It was coated in a rich, sandy salted egg sauce. It was a bit salty, yes, but the texture was perfect. Crisp, light, and intensely savory. It’s one of the best versions of this dish I have had anywhere.
The waitress recommended the Garoupa fish slices. The dish arrived as a soup, with celery and black fungus. The broth was herbaceous and clean. Most surprisingly, it was not salty. So many Chinese restaurants lean on salt as a crutch. This broth was confident in its own flavour. The fish was fresh and cooked gently. For about $30, it was excellent value.
The seafood mee goreng had a proper wok hei. The smoky aroma hit before the plate even settled. The noodles had a good chew, and the seafood was cooked correctly. A simple, satisfying dish.
Not everything was perfect. The stir-fried broccoli was too soft. The texture collapsed too quickly.
The herbal prawns were mid. The broth was decent, but the prawns themselves tasted faintly of the tank. Perhaps my palate is too accustomed to the clean taste of high-grade, wild-caught shrimp from omakase meals. This dish did not meet that standard.
The quiet environment was a bonus, though it was briefly interrupted by a loud “lou-hei” at the next table. But that is the nature of a Chinese restaurant.
The prices were decent, especially for this part of town, rare for central Singapore and reminiscent of East Ocean Teochew Restaurant, a long-standing Teochew stalwart I recently bid farewell to. This is Somerset, where you usually pay a premium for the address. Here, the bill felt fair.
I came back for the food, and two dishes, in particular, made the trip worthwhile. The fish skin and the garoupa broth. They were dishes with clean flavours and clear intention.
I’ll be back.
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