Saturday, November 13, 2010

Claypot Laksa @ Depot Road Zhen Shan Mei (德普路真善美砂煲叻沙)

Claypot Laksa
@ Depot Road Zhen Shan Mei
(德普路真善美砂煲叻沙)

The Gang of Four always have difficulties for a common understanding when it comes to selecting a dining place. 

Kon likes good food, regardless of the price
Van likes good food, preferably with a soup dish and aircon
Alex likes junk food or anything that is cheap
Cavin likes good and cheap food

Again, we were having a dilemma in Queensway area (near Ikea) on what to have for  dinner (very early dinner at 4pm) when Kon mentioned that he had a very famous and nice claypot laksa along depot road when he was younger.

It did not take us too long to find out that the stall has moved to another location nearer to where we were! Convenience plays a very important part in our consensus (for a place to dine) and within long, we were comfortably seated in the deserted coffeeshop.

Now, i am not really a laksa person (though i have my favourites in yishun and katong laksa) and I am usually very suspicious when it comes to supposedly delicious laksa with high compliments. Most of the times, i find them too spicy.

Claypot laksa sounds good though, as the use of claypot usually retain and enhance the flavour of a dish.

Sipping the 'soup' of this claypot laksa initially revealed a pretty bland curry gravy. The spiciness was manageable but a flavourful gravy is key to a good and tasty bowl of laksa.

Oh, i forgot an essential step; stirring!

Trying a scoopful for the second time, it was a well combined spiciness, sweetness, saltiness and creaminess flavour! It was getting spicier with each additional sip but it was the shiok type!! I hate the tongue numbing type!

The 'liao' (ingredients) included strips of chicken meat and prawns (one pathetic prawn)! It was disappointing when i could not find any hard-boiled egg!!! The egg yolk will usually make the curry taste better.

As you can see from the picture above, this claypot laksa had no yellow noodles (besides no cockles, no special preference was indicated)! Because of mum, i have taken to a preference for no-yellow noodles laksa.

What i especially like about Zhen Shan Mei claypot laksa are the QQ white noodles (粗米粉) which perfectly oaked up the essence of the curry.

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I would have loved to finish the sinful gravy if not for my protesting stomach!

Location
Fine Taste Eating House, Block 119,
Bukit Merah Lane 1, #01-75.

(Right besides Alexandra Village Hawker Centre and opened daily from 9am to 4pm. Closed on Sunday)
  
Price
S$3.50 for a small claypot.


2 comments:

  1. laksa lover1:02 PM

    this was my former fav laksa, when it was operated by their parents at depot road...

    it seems that the new bosses (their children i suppose) are concentrating on profits now...
    the food is not as good as before and a smaller portion as well

    sighz

    ReplyDelete
  2. that's really sad and i bet this would be an increasing occurrence when the current batch of hawkers retire. :(

    ReplyDelete