EATING OUT

POSH NOSH
Farm fresh and secret recipes

BY TAN DAWN WEI
Jan 27, 2002

VILLAGE WOK RESTAURANT

What: A new branch of the popular no-frills restaurant at Geylang (No 10, Lorong 3) that serves authentic cuisine from the Cantonese village of Xinhui.

Where: 301 Upper Thomson Road, #01-112 Thomson Plaza. Tel: 459-9989 (opening hours: 11am to 9.30pm daily).

Look: The same no-frills, unintimidating, functional setting with plastic sheets on table tops and plastic cutlery sets. But it's clean, comfortable and perfect for a Sunday family dinner out.

Hits: Those familiar with Village Wok's signature dishes would be heartened to know that they don't have to travel to Geylang to try more of the same goodness.

The Kongs, who run the two restaurants, have decided to keep the menu small, sticking to its specialty dishes, since diners are always ordering the usual.

One such example is the famous steamed live pa-ting (market price, but half a kilo usually costs about $23), which is reared on the family's own fish farm up in Kota Tinggi.

The flesh is nice and smooth, but the best part is the lovely sliver of fat underneath.

The cold crabs (market price) too, are not to be missed. Yellow roe aplenty, plus fresh, tasty meat accompanied by a special Zhejiang sauce, it's no wonder the dish is always sold out. So be sure to call and reserve those coveted crustaceans.

Indeed, the Kongs pride themselves on their no-MSG, no-artificial-flavour recipes handed down from two generations ago. In fact, so secret are the recipes for the sauces, they are all prepared in a central kitchen elsewhere.

Other dishes worth every penny include the village oyster noodles ($12 and $19), which comes with plump oysters and a thick, hearty gravy that's to die for; and the four seasons chicken wings ($7, $10) topped with a savoury sweet garlicy sauce.

For Chinese New Year, try their yusheng ($23), or raw fish salad, which uses a fruit-based sauce instead of the usual plum sauce over salmon or parang. The result is a refreshing mix without the sticky, cloying effect.

In short: More of the same humble, homecooked fare that tastes so good and priced so affordably, it's truly a blessing for Upper Thomson residents.