[CLOSED] Ye Shang Hai Teochew Porridge

spotted him by coincidence at the hawker centre and spoke to him only to find out that he lost his store name and had to shift! so do support him if you can and spread the word :) the food is still really good and affordable and the standard still remains the same! do look out for the old uncle at the store ◡̈

Ran out of places to eat late at night and decided to give this a try. They are located under a HDB block selling very affordable and good Teochew porridge till wee hours. We ordered 2 bowls of porridge with minced pork patty, bitter gourd, lala and peanut to feed two bellies and we were surprised at how cheap our total bill ($6) was. They also provide condiments like tau cheo (salted fermented soybeans), chilli and braised sauce. Not the best tasting Teochew porridge but I will still come back for the affordable price paid for such quality.

I like to ordered braised duck, lala, salted egg, preserve vegetables when i eat teochew porridge.
This round i tried the pork liver, surprisingly its good, tender and flavorful.
💰$20
📍Ye Shang Hai Teo Chew Porridge.
Blk 107 Jalan Bukit merah,#01-1826.

Relocating (again) just a few days ago to Block 107 Jalan Bukit Merah S(160107), Ye Shang Hai is well-known for dishing out high quality food at economical prices till the wee hours of the morning. It is no wonder then that the restaurant is even more sought after by taxi drivers. ⁣
Opening Hours:⁣
𝟭𝟬𝟬𝟬-𝟬𝟯𝟬𝟬 𝗗𝗮𝗶𝗹𝘆⁣
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Not to be confused with 夜来香 which has since occupied one of their previous locations at Bukit Merah View with a very similar facade, Ye Shang Hai is widely known for its (apparently) 97-year-old boss who consistently spots a hip and swanky fashion style and tongue-in-cheek humour. ⁣
See video by ourgrandfatherstory:
https://youtu.be/MMsiUHeBZpQ
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Having tried other Teochew porridge restaurants in the past, I didn't think much about it even as online reviews raved about it. Honestly, how good can Teochew porridge get right? And so, while it was on my wishlist I certainly did not go out of my way to patronise the restaurant. Thankfully for all of us that day though, we happened to be in the area.⁣
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I was genuinely shocked by the quality and value of all of the food we had, leading us to a second order shortly after. Their 卤三层肉 (Braised Pork Belly), 大肠 (Large Intestines) and 蒸肉球 (Steamed Meatballs) deserves special mention. ⁣While the braised pork belly was outright tough, its sweet umami glaze was addictive enough to convert me. The large intestines were mind-blowingly good as it spotted a juicy and fleshy texture and had absolutely no stench at all, easily the best intestines I've ever eaten. I learnt that the fleshy texture here was no accident as Chefs who are more devoted to their craft would spend time stuffing intestines within each other to artificially make them more plump. While I did find their meatballs decent, it was not something that caught my tastebuds. Nonetheless, my dining companions were pretty unanimous that it was one of the best meatballs they've had. To be sure, the bulk of the dishes were too saltish on their own, but it's due to this over-seasoning that makes them exceptional accompaniments to the otherwise neutral tasting porridge.⁣
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Currently, they are offering an 𝗼𝗽𝗲𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗺𝗼𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗮𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗶𝗿 𝗻𝗲𝘄 𝗼𝘂𝘁𝗹𝗲𝘁 𝘄𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝗿𝗶𝗰𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗽𝗼𝗿𝗿𝗶𝗱𝗴𝗲 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗶𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘆 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗮𝗻 𝗼𝗿𝗱𝗲𝗿 𝗼𝗳 𝟯 𝗱𝗶𝘀𝗵𝗲𝘀. Ordering about 10 dishes that day, the total cost came up to $39 for 5 of us and already, it seemed like we were having a buffet. 𝗜𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗶𝘀 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝗵𝗶𝗴𝗵 𝗾𝘂𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗳𝗼𝗼𝗱 𝗮𝘁 𝗮𝗻 𝗮𝗳𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗱𝗮𝗯𝗹𝗲 𝗽𝗿𝗶𝗰𝗲, 𝗜 𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝗻𝗼 𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗮 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗶𝘀.
Price: 10/10
Taste: 8.5/10
Ambience: 7.5/10
Overall: 9/10

Both Ye Shang Hai & Ye Lai Xiang are in the business of peddling tasty, tantalizing Teochew porridge, they’re in the same approximate post code, and they’ve even got similar names! So of course, comparisons will be drawn, and blood will be shed-yeah, maybe not the blood part.

I’m just gonna come out right now and say it: Ye Lai Xiang’s dishes are better. The texture of Ye Shanghai’s meatballs were a bit odd and a bit too loose, and there was less flavor in those balls. The braised intestines were a touch too salty, and the pig liver was overcooked. However, the curry vegetables were insanely indulgent and seriously sumptuous, and of course, one can never go wrong with chye poh omelette.

But the one department that Ye Shanghai has Ye Lai Xiang utterly vanquished was in the wallet department. You see this spread of six dishes with two bowls of porridge right here? Ten bucks. That’s right, one red Yusof Ishak covered the cost of this dinner. I’m gonna be honest here, I did a double take when the cashier told me the price of the meal. Thrice.

So, the final verdict on Ye Shanghai! Good? Eh, a little debatable but I’m going with a yes. Cheap? Oh hell yeah.

PRICE: $14 incl. of 2 bowls of porridge, 1 bowl of rice
Good enough for two adults

WAITING TIME: 2nd in queue when we reached at 9pm on a Tuesday. Ordered and collected around less than 5 minutes later.

REMARKS:
Every dish we ordered was good. Nothing to complain.