Peranakan

My favourite of the lot! Braised in tamarind sauce, the pork belly packs a strong tangy punch. Loved the sweet sour glistening sauce, which went perfectly with warm white rice.

A mix of minced pork and prawn wrapped in a thin, crispy shell. I found it a tad underseasoned and dry, although I loved the generous amount of water chestnuts used here. Not a big fan of the mild black dipping sauce as well.

It's not easy to find sambal sweet potato leaves in Singapore, and this one was pretty good although I would have preferred it to be spicier. Came with several pieces of fresh shrimp to add some texture to the dish.

Flavourful pork-and-prawn broth with loads of julienned bamboo shoots and three pieces of crab meatballs. Love the briny flavour of the broth so much so that I wiped the bowl clean. The soup may get cold quickly, so finish it fast.

Rasapura just introduced Good Ol' Taste to boast Singaporean dishes in a foodcourt setting. The 10-course meal comprises of Ng Sio Ah's Bak Kut Teh, Tong Fong Fatt's Hainanese Boneless Chicken Rice, Thye Hong's Hokkien Mee and Carrot Cake, Laksa, Huat Huat BBQ's Popiah and Satay, Song of India's Prata and Nasi Briyani, and Ice Kachang. It also comes with a choice of bottled water / tea / coffee. Of all the different dishes, I like the bak kut teh and the carrot cake the most, while the prata is rather underwhelming for my tastebuds. They put really a lot of effort into the details — servers dressed in the Peranakan attire, old-school biscuits available for sale while waiting for our food, and the Peranakan-style disposable bowls. Locals might be rather skeptical about the food standard, but imo the flavours is pretty good and authentic. That being said, this is probably the only place that can give you an experience of having an authentic taste in a modern setting without being too heavy on the pocket.
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Monday - Friday 2-5pm
Wanting to try this but the timing puts you off? Do call them at 6506 0161 to make a reservation.

To be honest, I was surprised to find out that nasi ulam is a peranakan dish because I was so used to eating this in my school canteen back in Jakarta. And I would say their rendition of nasi ulam here was really good! The preparation of this seemingly simple rice takes hours with loads of herbs and ingredients: shallots, lemongrass, basil leaves (Thai and Vietnamese ones), kaffir lime leaves, toasted coconut (aka serundeng), salted fish, and many more. It's definitely that one dish that I can have even when I have no appetite simply because of its umami goodness.

This was the dish that got me really excited! It's so difficult to find peranakan food, let alone ayam buah keluak, so when this appeared on our table, I couldn't hide the joy within me. The chicken was unquestionably tender and flavourful, as a result of being marinated with the buah keluak for hours. But the most enjoyable part was definitely scraping the buah keluak off their shells. The acquired nutty hint is probably not for everyone, but I'm addicted to it!