东方美食饭店 (Oriental Chinese Restaurant) - So Popular; It Has a Few Branches Within Chinatown @ Singapore

Ever since I started covering the lunar new year bazaar at Chinatown, an eatery, serving North-eastern Chinese cuisine and located beside Lim Chee Guan bak kwa never failed to amaze me; there were always a lot of customers and I did wonder then that if its prime location helped. 

Turns out 东方美食饭店 (Oriental Chinese Restaurant) is a darn popular restaurant and a few of my friends gave pretty good reviews on the food. Since I am having my birthday staycation at Parkroyal Collection Pickering; I guess I might as well take the opportunity to check out the food.

I went before the lunch peak at noon but the place, which started operations since 2005, was already packed. We were instead brought over to another branch that was just a few minutes' walk away, along the adjacent Mosque Street.

It's the one right in the middle; red windows with white frame.

Air-conditioned seating area on level two. Well, it's good to have on a hot and sunny day as I did note that the original shop was more exposed to the weather elements, despite the existence of fans and what appeared to be air curtains, conditioners etc.

Nothing much about the decoration even though I was scratching my head on the fake birds and flowers dangling from the ceiling. For a lazy person like me who likes practical stuff, they were just perfect hosts for dust.

Even though I already had a few signature North-eastern Chinese dishes to order, the menu displaying the exhaustive list of grilled skewers was so tempting! I caved in; it's my birthday and I honestly shouldn't stop myself. A decision I would live to regret shortly.

What's the best beverage for a hot day? Master Kang's snow pear drink! Introduced by the Great Kon, it's a drink I would always order whenever I am at an establishment serving North-eastern Chinese cuisine; this specific cuisine has gained quite a strong foothold in Singapore over the past ten years.

Sautéed Potato Green Pepper - the direct Chinese translation is the three freshness from the ground and refers to potato, brinjal and capsicums. This wasn't the best 地三鲜 but won over Alex's heart for tasting like it was home-cooked, without being overly savoury. For me, I prefer the one from in Pin Xiang Yan (品香筵餐馆) at Jurong East MRT Station.

Fried Egg with Shrimp Meat - from its pale appearance, I was thinking this would likely be another letdown. I was proven wrong upon taking a bite; it tasted great with a light wok hei aroma and insides that remained moist.  

Crispy Boneless Fish with Sweet and Sour Sauce - it's weird that I would order a fish since I am not a huge fan, unlike my mom. But my purpose of this visit was also to check out a suitable dining area for future family meals, and I was craving for fried fish. 

Perfect balance of both sweetness and sourness; meaty yet with enveloped with a light, crispy batter that was an absolute addiction! A pity there were just two of us and Alex is not known to be a big eater. p.s. he did eat a lot though and that was already a surprise. 

My grilled stuff arrived around 10 to 15 minutes later! 

Grilled Brinjal - Ma Ma Spin Pot had a darn mean one and I was expecting nothing less from the above. Sadly, this was overly salty with too much garlic. I think this would be better if accompanied with a bowl of plain, white rice.

Grilled Bread - minimum order was two pieces yet I barely wanted to give it a try after the superb one from BBQ Box. Not as superb but still one of the better ones with the sprinkling of sugar for the sweetness that complemented well with the charred toast, butter and the Chinese spices. 

To be frank, the Chinese spices used for the grilled food are usually the same and what matters most to me would be the freshness, the doneness as they affect both the texture and the taste. 

In short, the quail eggs were nothing impressive, the prawns were not bad but I prefer them without the spices. Lamb was a bit of a disappointment as it was spicier and the meat wasn't as tender. Prefer the pork belly with enoki mushrooms even though the mushrooms were the most enjoyable; they were grilled just right and still managed to secrete earthy juice when I bit through. 

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As expected, I over-ordered and the quantity would be better suited for a family of four adults instead. Pricing was pretty reasonable at about S$77.90. While most of the skewers didn't impress me, I would likely bring my parents for a meal there; the fish would be a must-order! 

Address

7 Mosque St, Singapore 059487

Map

As above.

Other Branches

As above. If I am not wrong, the branches were all side by side along New Bridge Road, except for this one at Mosque Street I was brought to. 

Order List

As above. 

Pricing

Sautéed Potato Green Pepper - S$8.00

Fried Egg with Shrimp Meat - S$8.00

Crispy Boneless Fish with Sweet and Sour Sauce - S$25.80

Grilled Brinjal - S$5.00 

Grilled Bread - S$1.00 per slice 

Grilled Lamb - S$1.20 a skewer

Grilled Pork Belly with Enoki Mushrooms - S$2.50 a skewer

Grilled Mushrooms - S$1.00 a skewer

Grilled Quail Eggs - S$2.00 a skewer

Grilled Prawns - S$1.00 a skewer

(Total: S$77.90; forgot to take receipt so I am unsure if GST or service charge were included)