Gu Ma Jia (姑妈家)

Are you celebrating Chinese New Year (CNY) in advance?
Are you still looking for a place for CNY reunion lunch/dinner?
Or are you thinking of where to eat since you have foreseen yourself experiencing post-CNY syndrome like me?

Let me propose Gu Ma Jia (姑妈家)...

For those who are celebrating early - Gu Ma Jia is offering 10% discount until 29 January when you dine in at the restaurant.

For those who are still deciding where to have your CNY reunion lunch/dinner on 30 January (Thursday) - Gu Ma Jia has CNY 2014 Set Menu Promotions with four timings to choose from: 12.00 pm – 2.00 pm, 2.15pm – 4.15pm, 6.00 pm – 7.45 pm, and 8.00pm – 9.45 pm.

The restaurant will be closed on 31 January (Friday) and 1 February (Saturday) but operations will resume on 2 February (Sunday) - a great day to makan before starting work on Monday, if you have to work on Monday. Check out the restaurant's menu.

(*FYI: There is no GST and no service charge at Gu Ma Jia.)

As for me, I'm planning to pay a visit to the restaurant again post-CNY! Lemme share some of the unforgettable food I had previously.

Gu Ma Jia is famously known for its signature dish - Assam Fish Head ($28). Many bloggers have praised the delicacy and even celebrities have visited the restaurant to have a taste of this delicious dish. YES! I bet you can finish two bowls of rice with just the gravy. The gravy wins hands down by having the balance of 4S. It was sweet, spicy, savory and sour.

The sweetness of the gravy was very "fishy"... in a good way! I later found out that the natural sweetness of the gravy came from the fish! The fish was cooked in the gravy to perfection with its meat still moist and tender. (FYI: Many places steam the fish head and then pour the gravy over it.) *Apologies for the absence of photograph.

Some people travel all the way here just for its Assam Fish Head. But Gu Ma Jia offers many other good delicious dishes.

You can see how steaming hot these Kyoto Pork Ribs ($20) were! I was so fascinated that I didn't had time to react and take a snap of what happened. When this dish was served, the pork ribs were covered and wrapped with aluminium foil, placed on a hot plate. The fascinating thing was - it was on fire! Wow... they actually had sprinkled some rose wine over it then lit it up so that the fragrance of the rose wine will be infused in the pork ribs.

Cheers for the dual effect, making the dish tasty with visual impact! See.. they could do that in the kitchen but to do it in front of customers... Besides visually pleasing, it attracts attention of other tables. Well, I think one or two tables ordered this after they saw my dish on fire. Haha...

I loved everything about this dish to the max. The pork ribs were really tender, moist and soft. There were not much fats and the cuts were really generous. What perfected the dish was the tasty and savory sauce. It is a dish that will make you order another bowl of rice!

I can't help but to order Cereal Sotong with Curry Leaves ($16/$24/$30) because I'm a fan of cereal and a seafood lover. How good was it? I could finish the $16 portion (photo above) just on my own!! The batter was very thin and crisp. The best thing was that it was not oily. Also, the batter does not start peeling off from the sotong which shows how well the batter was done.

Sotong was not overcooked at all and if you are a sotong fan, you would know that sotong itself does not have too much flavour. Hence, you might have realized that sotong needs many other condiments or spices to bring out its flavour. In this dish, the restaurant uses curry leaves and chilli padi. Very very well-done dish. We even finished the cereal!

I was surprised by the size of the prawns when Prawns with Salted Egg Yolk ($20/$30/$38) was served. The prawns were really big, fresh, juicy, sweet, and springy. They were so well-fried and so evenly covered in the tastily irresistible savory salted egg yolk sauce that I ate the prawns with the shells. My only regret was that I did not have a bottomless pit to eat more!

I believe many have tried Spinach with Assorted Eggs in many Chinese restaurants but Gu Ma Jia offers Spinach Soup with Assorted Eggs ($12/$20). Yes, you read correctly. It's a soup-based dish. Unlike the usual vegetable dish that is covered with the thick sauce of the assorted eggs. This tasted healthily yummilicious. The eggy taste of century eggs, salted egg yolks and chicken eggs were less prominent. The soup was light and sweet with the fragrance of the spinach. It was great that I ordered this because it kind of cleanse our palates after all those strong flavoured dishes.

For those who are making plans for a visit, please do call in advance to reserve a table!


Gu Ma Jia
Address: 45 Tai Thong Crescent, Sennett Estate, Singapore 347866
Tel: 62852023
Opening hours: (Daily) 11.00am - 10.00pm
Break time: (Mon - Fri) 3.30pm - 5.30pm
Website: http://gumajia.com.sg/


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Imperial Treasure Super Peking Duck Restaurant (Paragon)

Chinese New Year is around the corner. An occasion for family to get together and feast! Have you decided what to have for reunion dinner? For those who have a budget of more than $80 per pax, you get to enjoy a feast of 山珍海味 at Imperial Treasure Super Peking Duck Restaurant (Paragon). View the CNY 2014 menu here!

Alternatively, if you want to keep your budget within the wallet-friendly category, visit the restaurant for its Peking Duck and dim sum on days that do not fall within the CNY dining days.

If you wish to enjoy the renowned Peking Duck that placed Imperial Treasure Super Peking Duck Restaurant at 49th in Asia's 50 Best Restaurants in 2013, it is highly recommended to call and reserve a table and the Peking Duck about 3 days in advance.

I am not afraid to hide my kiasu-ism. If I am bringing my family to a restaurant for CNY dinner, I would do some tasting sessions to sample the restaurant's standard and check out the restaurant's ambiance. And I did. Now, let's feast and eat!

While I was deciding what to order, I was munching away these Cashew Nuts Glazed with Honey and Sesame (self-made name). Gosh.. I'm not a nutty fan and I hardly eat the snacks offered at Chinese restaurants but these were so good that it slowed down my mental processes to decide what to order.

Winter Melon Soup with Crabmeat and Conpoy ($10/pax) was so rich and flavorful! The natural sweetness from winter melon and crabmeat was so addictive. I just kept drinking it.

And look at the generous conpoy (dried scallop)! No wonder the soup was so tasty. Seriously, we just bottoms up the soup.

(Click on image to enlarge)
Well, I was given the dim sum order sheet. I just find dim sum irresistible and I had to order some!

(Note: There were some discrepancies between the prices stated on the dim sum order sheet and the actual prices. Prices for some dishes had increased.)

Steamed Rice Roll with Prawns ($6) was served with big chunky juicylicious prawns. I thought that the rice roll could be thinner though...

One of the usual favorites would be Siew Mai ($5). It was normal and decent. I like that the pork inside was still moist and sweet but there was no wow factor.

Another usual favourite would be Har Gau ($5) but it was... complicated. Hahahaa.. Hear me out. It was good that the skin did not stick to the paper and did not tear and break open when I picked it up. The prawn inside was juicy and chunky. But! I found the skin too floury and thick.

Deep Fried Beancurd Skin Roll with Prawns ($5) was over-fried. I like that the skin was fried to crisp but over-frying them made the beancurd skin loses its flavor. -_- That being said, the prawns were still moist and springy inside. The prawns saved the dish.

Deep Fried Prawn Dumpling ($5) was fried to its optimal crunchiness on the outside and the prawns were kept juicy and moist on the inside. Dipping it into the salad sauce provided on the side clears some of its greasiness. (^o^)

Steamed Custard Buns ($4.50) was good but I've had better ones. The bun was not fluffy enough and the custard was not tasty enough. It is comparable to the ones at Cryst*l J*de but I still prefer the ones at Bosses Restaurant (Vivocity)...

Now comes the main highlight! The Peking Duck ($68)!! The chef was very swift and quick in cutting the thin crust of skin and placing the slices onto the plate. The chef would then cut some of the meat from various parts of the duck and place them neatly on the plates (shown below). I like the cute duck plates.

How to eat?

1. Eat the skin first! Dip the skin in sugar and sweet bean sauce and enjoy its crispiness.
2. Start the spreading and wrapping. Spread sweet bean sauce and sprinkle some sugar on the steamed flour crepe.
3. Place spring onions and cucumbers (as many as you want) onto the steamed flour crepe.

4. Top up with the tenderlicious duck meat, how much you like, onto the steamed flour crepe.
5. Wrap it up and make sure it could still fit your mouth! Hahahaaa...

You can decide what to do with the rest of the duck (additional charges applied). Stir-fry duck with vegetables, Duck soup, Fried Rice with Duck meat, E-fu noodles with Duck meat and etc.

My recommendation: E-fu Noodles with Duck Meat ($10). Verrrrrrry good! I was surprised to find mui choy (sweet preserved vegetables) in it. After stir-frying the duck meat with mui choy, it enhances the flavor of the duck meat and brings out its sweetness. The noodles then absorbed all the fragrances and essences of the duck meat and mui choy. Hou hou sek (delicious in Cantonese)!!

Let me apologise for the lack for photos on the wraps and noodles because my hands were full! I was so occupied with prepping my Peking Duck wraps and slurping the noodles that I forgot to snap pictures. Nonetheless, let me assure you, the Peking Duck is really worth the money, the trip and the wait (to book in advance). It is also a good place to consider for CNY!


Imperial Treasure Super Peking Duck Restaurant (Paragon)
290 Orchard Road, #05-42/45, Singapore 238859
Email: paragon@imperialtreasure.com
Website: http://imperialtreasure.com/en/super-peking-duck
Tel: 6732 7838

Opening hours
Monday to Friday
Lunch: 11.30am to 2.45pm
Dinner: 6.00pm to 10.00pm

Saturday
Lunch: 11.00am to 2.45pm
Dinner: 6.00pm to 10.00pm

Sunday
Lunch: 10.30am to 2.45pm
Dinner: 6.00pm to 10.00pm