Yishun Life Seafood - Without the Crabs @ 1018 Sembawang Road

It's an embarrassment whenever someone who doesn't live in the North asks if i have been to one of two supposedly famous seafood coffee shops located at Sembawang area!

Enough said; i dragged my friends for a visit after catching the latest Jurassic World blockbuster at Yishun Ten. With two to choose from along the same stretch of shophouses, we opted for Yishun Life Seafood as it had more customers and it was coming to 10pm.

Crabs were said to be a must-have but we didn't expect the payment to be solely cash form! With only about a hundred bucks among the three of us, we decided to forgo the crabs which were marketed at S$60 a kilogram... :( 

We went with most of the chef's recommendations instead, except for Curry Fish Head and Sambal Chilli Kang Kong as our dear Alex doesn't enjoy spicy stuff. Let's now feast! 

Fried Egg with Oyster

大蚝煎蛋

First bite told me this would suffice as a simple fried egg and we could have savings from the omission of oysters. Nonetheless, the oysters tasted quite delicious without the strong fishiness and it was one of the rare occasions that i enjoyed them. 

Sweet & Sour Pork

咕噜肉

Simple and traditional; the way they were the very first time i had them. Not exceptional but in the spirit of nostalgia; comfortable enough.

Butter Sotong

奶油苏东

I had so much expectation for this dish; turned out the butteriness wasn't as fragrant, as strong and as sinful. They could do with a bit more seasoning as well. 

Fried Pork with Preserved Bean Curd

南乳炸肉

The English translation of this dish was so misleading; i honestly thought it was a bean curd dish until after i happily ordered it with the waitress! Texture was quite good with much loved juiciness; as with all nan ru stuff (known at times as Chinese cheese), the taste was acceptable yet not exactly my cup of tea.

Herbal Drunken Prawn 

药材醉虾

Didn't expect the broth to be so dark although in my opinion, the darker it is, the stronger the herb content and hence, the more nutritional it is! 

In the cool weather with a slight drizzle, the herbal soup was a godsend and i can taste the intense flavour of dang-gui! Prawns (six in total) were fresh even though they could not match the ones from No Signboard.

Signature Teochew Prawn Balls

招牌潮州虾枣

Guess we have to give this a try as it was indicated first on the chef recommendations and had the key word; signature. With nine golden nuggets, i was thinking they would likely be a disappointment.

Drenched it with a sweet sauce before popping it into my mouth; aside from being scalding hot, i must say the insides were very tender!

And it's not common to see bits of prawns in commercial hae chor! The only thing lacking, which could be good or bad depending on which side you are on, was that the beancurd skin surrounding the meat paste wasn't salty enough, 

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Would be back to check out the crabs! Joyce, if you are reading this, would you love to check out Yishun Life Seafood (or its nearby competitor) for your birthday meal? :) 

Location

1018 Sembawang Road

Map

As above. Despite having the word Yishun in its name, the non air-conditioned restaurant wasn't located within Yishun town and even from the map, would be nearer to Sembawang MRT station and the upcoming Canberra MRT station. 

Reservation

Call 6752-2655

Menu (Partial)

As above! Didn't manage to take more as there were so many pages!

Price

Fried Egg with Oyster - S$8

Sweet & Sour Pork - S$8

Butter Sotong - S$12

Fried Pork with Preserved Bean Curd - S$10

Herbal Drunken Prawn - S$16

Signature Teochew Prawn Balls - S$8

[No GST & No Service Charge]

Additional Information

For motorists, there was a private car park for your vehicle. Do drive carefully as the road leading to the car park was literally one way and there could be cars coming in / out from the opposite direction.