Lao Beijing 24 Sep 2009

Had lunch at Lao Beijing (Novena Square)

Was a bit late for lunch and a bit too early for the hi-tea. So, settled for a la carte lunch.

Anyway, the beef noodle was nice. Not too spicy and yet, the broth was very tasty. I like the "la mein" noodle... nice texture and perfectly "al dente". The "seow long pau" was a bit disappointing though. The meat is somehow quite tasteless... I still prefer the "Ding Tai Fung" dumplings. I know some people may disagree with me on that. 

 

Also ordered the Mao braised pork with "man tou", 

trademark  dish. Unfortunately, the dish was really disappointing. The pork was fried before braising... so the meat and the skin becomes a bit too tough for my liking.

The sauce was plum sauce which could mean that the pork was cooked separately and the sauce was just poured over. Hence, you can't really taste the flavor from the pork. If braised well, the pork should be really soft and full of flavor... the sauce should have the pork flavor together with whatever spices the use to marinate it. This version really didn't hit it with me.

Anyway, the brinjal and calamari however saved the day. I think this dish is probably quite common but Lao beijing did an exceptional job here. The calamari was fried a la tempura style topping the fried brinjal. While the brinjal was crispy on the outside, it was nice and soft on the inside. The dish is laced with a light broth which complemented the dish very well.

The dessert was average. I ordered the mango pomelo sago which was decent and the coconut mango roll. The latter was interesting but since I am not a big fan of grated coconut on my dessert (except for onde onde melaka), it was just ok for me.

This is my second visit to Lao Beijing, the first was to the Plaza Singapura branch for hi-tea. Too bad, we were a bit late. The hi-tea is quite reasonably priced. I think it was $10.50 for adult. Well. for this visit, I am giving it 2 cili padi...