Simply Peranakan

We needed a quick dinner before watching “Chicago”. We walked past this Peranakan restaurant at level two of Esplanade and there was no queue. It was 5.45pm and we were the only customers in the restaurant. There was another couple; they were waiting for their take-away. I was slightly surprised when I saw the menu. Although the name of the restaurant is "Simply Peranakan", they also have other cuisines like Thai pineapple fried rice and cereal prawns. Are these dishes considered Peranakan? The waitress did not give us any recommendations and she looked dazed. We ordered the Peranakan fried rice, Nyonya Ngo Hiang and sambal prawns. This serves well for two persons.  

We gave a thumbs up for the ambience and exquisite decor.

The crackers were deep fried and a tad too oily!

Peranakan fried rice - The two of us only managed to finish 75% of it.

Costs : SGD 12/-

Nyonya Ngo Hiang - dried beancurd skin filled with minced pork, prawns, carrot and big chunks of water chestnuts. This goes well with the sweet sauce.

Costs : SGD8.80

Sambal Prawn - de~shelled prawns stir-fried with chilli, lemon grass, ginger bud and sambal sauce.

Costs : SGD20/- for 4 medium sized prawns. (* "Medium-sized" is defined as one big mouthful or two bites). Given the high rental rates in the city, perhaps some of you may feel this price is reasonable. But we felt that this is over priced because the taste was only average.

I will recommend this restaurant to those who are looking for a quick meal. We did not have to wait long for the food to be served. We finished our dinner at about 6.30pm and the restaurant was then only 70% filled.