The Traveling Hungryboy

Another hot pot chain from China has opened up in Singapore, with this one from Chengdu (3C River Valley Road #01-11, 6250-9969). It was rather promising at first, with not just a very pretty interior but also a spicy mala broth that was delightfully punchy without overdoing it. They also had these fragrant little red cans of sesame oil sitting at the condiment bar, making our fish, veggies, and sliced lamb go down with ease.

But then it crumbled apart, particularly with just a simple bowl of rice, which was almost as if it were some dried out leftovers from the night before. We also got some surimi crab sticks that were of such lousy quality that it looked like someone painted the red coloring on with spray paint. Of course, for many low-end hot pot places this would be expected, but we were paying through the nose at this rather high-end restaurant. It's too bad, since this place almost could've been better than Hai Di Lao.

Either way, what an interesting little cluster of Chinese hot pot restaurants have opened up within a five minute walk of each other, eh? It's not just Hai Di Lao but also Lafu Huoguo across the bridge at Riverside Point and Tanyoto over at Liang Court. And up until recently, Faigo could've joined them too, except it seems that it has since shut down.

from The Traveling Hungryboy http://ift.tt/2jhsBib
Da Miao Hot Pot at Clarke Quay in Singapore-The Traveling Hungryboy