T&K Seafood at Chinatown (Thailand, Bangkok)

A trip to Bangkok is not complete without a stopover at Chinatown (also known as Yaowarat) for a meal. The best time to visit Chinatown is at night; between evening to midnight. This is the period where the area comes alive with many eateries setting up shop along the side of the road, and tourist and locals start flocking into the area to savour the delicious delicacies such as bird nest, sharkfins and seafood.

T&K Seafood (highlighted in red)

The most highly raved about eatery at Chinatown is T&K Seafood, a roadside eatery renowned for the cheap and good seafood. T&K Seafood is located at along the main road (Yaowarat Road) that cuts across the chinatown. There are two such eateries located opposite each other. One of the ways to differentiate them is through the colour of the polo tee the staff are wearing. Staff at T&K Seafood wear green polo tee while their competitor wear red polo tee.

Tip: There are several zebra crossings located along the main road. If you are going to cross the road, it is advisable to use these zebra crossings. Kudos to the Thai Authorities, I remember several years back, there were no such zebra crossings. 

We arrived just after 6pm (on a weekday); their opening time as we did not want to queue. As it was raining before that, the staff were still setting up chairs and tables when we arrived. And surprisingly, it was already three quarter full.

The setup included placing placing fans above the makeshift shelter to ensure that it was well ventilated.

ps: They have an air-condition restaurant just beside this makeshift setup. We choose alfresco dining (outdoors - next to the road side).

Menu Cover

The menu was well categorized, in English and prices were stated clearly.

The biggest mistake we made were ordering these bottled drinks. Way too sweet, tasted like syrup drinks.

Condiments 

Steamed White snapper in Spicy Garlic Lime Juice Soup

The Steamed White snapper in Spicy Garlic Lime Juice Soup (Baht 300, S$12.50) is a Thai-style steamed fish. This was a tasty dish rich with different flavours such as spicy, sweet yet sour. The fish was fresh and cooked just right such that its meat was so soft. A must order! 

Tom Yum Soup

Tom Yum Soup

The Tom Yum Soup - seafood lemongrass soup with milk (150 Baht, S$6.25) did not disappoint. It had the right balance in taste with none of them overwhelming the other. Although it was spicy, it was addictive - you would be digging for more after each mouthful. The ingredients in it include squid, prawns, fish slices and button mushrooms. 

Stir Fried Water Cress 

Stir Fried Water Cress (80 Baht, S$3.33) was average with nothing much to shout about. We had to order some greens to make this a more balanced meal. 

Fried Stuff Crab with Crab Meat and Glass Noodle

Fried Stuff Crab with Crab Meat and Glass Noodle

Fried Stuff Crab with Crab Meat and Glass Noodle (50 Baht, S$2.08 per piece) consisted of a mixture of crab meat, chicken meat and vermicelli. It was unique but in terms of taste was average. I felt that the flavours of the ingredients were not brought out. Not really a must order, but worth a try if you have not eaten such an item before.

Stir Fried Squid with Yellow Curry Powder

Stir Fried Squid with Yellow Curry Powder

Stir Fried Squid with Yellow Curry Powder (150 Baht, S$6.25) is another Thai-style curry dish. They have a similar variation with crab. However, as we had ordered too many crab dishes, we decided to order squid instead. 

This was superbly executed - utterly delicious. The squids were cooked in curry pasta mixed with egg. The key to this dish was not the squid, instead it was the curry pasta with the egg. It was rich in flavour (due to the blend of curry powder), fragrant and not overly spicy. The sauce was irresistible and complement perfectly with rice. This was so good that it stole the show from the squid which to its credit was fresh and cooked to perfection (not overcooked). I am sure this dish would taste great with crabs or any other ingredients as long as the sauce is executed correctly. A must order!

Steamed Meat Crab with Glass Noodle in Claypot

Steamed Meat Crab with Glass Noodle in Claypot

Steamed Meat Crab with Glass Noodle in Claypot (350 Baht, S$14.58) was out of the world! Easily one of the better ones I have eaten. The glass noodle (vermicelli) was moist and incredibly flavourful with a slight spicy kick due to the peppercorns. The essence of all the juices (including the sweetness from the crab) in this dish was all captured in the glass noodle. It was so good that it stole the limelight from the crab. Yummy! Another must order!

The Steamed Meat Crab with Glass Noodle in Claypot reminded me of The Cheers Beer commercial which my Marketing lecturer showed us (watch from 1.05 onwards) when I was still studying. The execution, exaggeration, expression, humor and a simple tagline made this one of the most highly rated and popular beer commercials of all times. And just like the feelings shown on the video, this was what I felt after eating the Steamed Meat Crab with Glass Noodle in Claypot! So.. to every little good things in life... CHEERS! 

As we were leaving, we noticed a large crowd standing outside waiting for their turn to be seated. The crowd had literally spilled out to the road. It is advisable to come early.

What a sumptuous meal! Cheap and good! Well worth the trip down to Chinatown. If only we can get such food at such prices back home in Singapore.

T&K Seafood at Chinatown (Thailand, Bangkok)

49-51 Soi Phadung Dao, Yaowarat Road

Chinatown, Bangkok 10100, Thailand

Tel: +66 2 223 4519

Opening Hours: Daily 6pm to 2am

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Mata Thai (Bishan) 2nd Post

Mata Thai is a Thai restaurant located at Bishan Street 11 near Bishan MRT station. This is my second post on Mata Thai. My first post can be found here. 

Signature Curry Fish Head Promotion

Mata Thai have been constantly having this promotion selling their Curry Fish Head at $10 instead of $18.

Signature Curry Fish Head $10

The Signature Curry Fish Head which every table has. It was served in a claypot, consisting of half a fish head cooked in curry. The fish was fresh and the curry was flavourful and robust. In terms of spiciness, it was just nice and complement perfectly with plain rice. At $10, its quite value for money.

Omelette $6

The omelette was well executed; fluffy, soft and delicious. 

Roasted Chicken $12

Roasted Chicken $12

The Thai Style Roasted Chicken was also well executed. It was crispy on the outside and tasty. The only downside was that it was a tad too dry on the inside. At $12, it was value for money as half a chicken was served. Much better compared to the Pandan Chicken

Thai Style Fried Baby Kai Lan $6

As for the Fried Baby Kai Lan, it was decent. Lightly flavoured and still crunchy.

Overall, an affordable and value for money meal.

Mata Thai (Bishan) 

Blk 508 Bishan Street 11 #01-390

Tel: 9276 2629

Opening Hours: 11am to 1030pm

Location

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Bei Sheng Seafood Restaurant 北腾泰国小食 (Yishun)

Bei Sheng Seafood Restaurant 北腾泰国小食 located at Yishun Avenue 5 has been operating for quite a long time. The restaurant specialises in serving Thai cuisine. I used to patronise the restaurant frequently a long time ago (7 years ago), however after that I stopped going there as it started getting ridiculously crowded. Back then the restaurant used to be called 'Bei Sheng Lou'

The restaurant has both indoors and outdoors seating. Indoor is air-conditioned and frequently packed. Outdoor is quite well-ventilated and easier to get seats. 

This post will be a consolidation of pictures and reviews from several visits.

Menu Cover Page

Menu (a)

Menu (b)

Bei Sheng Seafood Restaurant's menu (excluded the drinks menu).

The indoor environment.

Outdoor environment.

Once you have ordered, normally, you do not need to wait too long even though there is a full house. They serve the dishes very fast!

Pineapple Fried Rice

A better closed up from a recent trip

The Pineapple Fried Rice was delicious. Very well fried; fragrance of pineapple was evenly mixed in the rice. Moreover, there chinese sausage was added to enhanced the taste of the dish. It was topped with pork floss that added flavour and also a crunchy twist to the dish.

Fried Tang Hoon

Give the Fried Tang Hoon a skip, not worth ordering.

Deep Fried Cuttlefish 

Deep Fried Cuttlefish was average, nothing great about it. But kudos to them that this dish arrived piping hot, was crispy and not greasy.

Thai Deep Fried Fish Delight

The Thai Deep Fried Fish Delight is a dish that I order every time I visit Bei Sheng Seafood Restaurant. The fish was deep fried till it was very crispy yet not oily. Dipping it into the sour and spicy sauce heightens the oomph of this dish to  a whole new level. A dish that I would recommend!

Chicken with Dried Chilli

The Chicken with Dried Chilli was another dish that I did not like, did not suit my taste bud.

Fried Chilli Beancurd

The Fried Chilli Beancurd was a dish recommended to us by the staff. It was disappointing, I did not like this dish one bit. The different flavours of the ingredients did not get infused together. It was as if each ingredient was cooked separately and then added on the hot plate just before serving.

Baby Kai Lan  with Oyster Sauce

The Baby Kai Lan with Oyster Sauce was very well cooked and still crunchy. The only downside is that it was slightly on the salty end.

Vegetable with Abalone Mushroom

The Vegetable with Abalone Mushroom was well cooked too. This dish suits my palate (most likely due to the abalone mushroom added).

Sambal Kang Kong

The Sambal Kang Kong was great. Well fried, retained the crunchiness of the vegetable. The sambal chilli used in it was irresistible.

Tom Yum Soup

Most Thai restaurants are well-known for their Tom Yum Soup. But in this case I would beg to differ. The Tom Yum Soup was lousy. It was sour and salty, not spicy. Give this a skip.

Lime Juice

Refreshing Lime Juice.

Overall, Bei Sheng Seafood Restaurant has a mixture of hits and misses. It is very affordable (wallet-friendly) and one of the cheapest Thai restaurant around. Order the right dishes, you will find this very value for money and a great meal.

I do believe it is because of its very affordable price, that is why they are able to pull in such a big crowd. If you live nearby, give this place a try (my guess is you would have probably heard of this place if you stay nearby). 

Ps: When the bill comes do, not be surprised if the person collecting the money tell you (in chinese) 'the meal cost $31, $30 will be sufficient.' This happens quite frequently. Regulars will know what I meant. Whatever, the intend of this is, from a customer perspective, this is a nice gesture.

Bei Sheng Seafood Restaurant 北腾泰国小食 (Yishun)
Blk 701A Yishun Avenue 5 #01-01
Singapore 761701
Tel: 6756 4883
Opening Hours: Daily 11am to 2pm, 530pm to 10pm
Location

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Sawadee Thai Cuisine (Sembawang Road)

Sawadee Thai Cuisine is located along Jalan Legundi (opposite Sembawang Shopping Centre). In fact, it is just opposite Sembawang White Bee Hoon and next to Sum's Kitchen & Hong Kong Roasted Meat.

Pictures of celebrities and their latest promotion - Thai Style Steam Fish at $13.80 Nett (usual price $25). 

Quite and homely ambience.

Menu (a)

Menu (b)

Menu (c)

Sawadee Thai Cuisine Menu along with prices.

As there were not a lot of customers, we were served our food within 10 minutes of ordering.

Hot & Spicy Seafood Soup (Tom Yam Talay) $8

The Hot & Spicy Seafood Soup (Tom Yam Talay) was served in a claypot.

Hot & Spicy Seafood Soup (Tom Yum Talay) $8

The waitress served the Tom Yam Soup into small bowls. Nice gesture of good customer service.

The soup was clear, slightly cloudy and did not look spicy. It was not fiery red in colour nor was there any chilli oil. But upon tasting it, it was indeed spicy and sour with lemon-grass and galangal fragrant. Ingredients include prawns, fish and mushrooms. The prawns were firm and fresh! 

Pineapple Rice (Khao Ob Sup Pa Rot) $8

When this dish arrived, I was not convinced that it was the Pineapple Rice I ordered as it was different from the picture displayed in the menu. Had to ask the waitress twice to confirmed that it was Pineapple Rice. 

The Pineapple Rice (Khao Ob Sup Pa Rot) was fried with eggs and diced pineapples. After which, it was served with Pork Floss and Prawns. Prawns were again very fresh; bright pink and firm meat. There were very few pieces of diced pineapples, as a result the pineapple flavour was lacking. Despite that, I like this dish. It was well fried! It should be renamed fried rice =)

Rice Noodle Fried Thai Style with Seafood (Kuay Teow Phad Thai) $10

This is actually Phad Thai, Thai version of fried kway teow. It was fried with egg, bean sprouts, dried tuakwa and prawns. It was served with chilli powder, grounded peanut bits and lime. Tasty and fragrant dish. I suspect that they used salted fish and preserved vegetables as their ingredients too.

Pandan Chicken (Kai Hor Bai Toey) $7.50

After having tried the Pandan Chicken at Ah Loy Thai, I was determined to order it over here.

The Pandan Chicken cost $2.50 each. Sawadee's version had its chicken mixed with corn and spices wrapped in pandan leaves and deep fried. I was disappointed as it was not as tasty as I hope. The chicken was not well marinated and the pandan flavour was not infused in the chicken. '

Overall, Sawadee Thai Cuisine serves quite good Thai Cuisine items. Moreover, the items are quite affordable (other than pandan chicken). In terms of ambience, it is quiet and cozy. Suitable for gatherings when one has craving for Thai food.

*Edited on Apr 2014*
Sawadee Thai Cuisine (Bugis)
9, Tan Quee Lan Street #01-01
Singapore 188098
Tel: 6238 6833
Opening Hours: Daily 11am to 230pm 
                                  6pm to 1030pm

Sawadee Thai Cuisine (Sembawang Road)
5 Jalan Legundi (opposite Sembawang Shopping Centre)
Tel: 6756 2369
Opening Hours: Daily 1130am to 230pm
                                  530pm to 10pm

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