Joo Heng: Comfort food for the soul
It looks like any other plain ol’ coffeeshop in Singapore, but the food at Joo Heng is so good that my parents always request to come here when we organise their birthday dinners. So did I, one year, for my own birthday dinner.
This is Cantonese comfort food at its best!
All its dishes have the classic “wok hei” that is so important in Cantonese cooking. My dad always reminds us that it takes a skilled and experienced chef to control the fire and master his wok in order to impart this smoky flavour to his dishes.
Here are some must-order dishes:
Sauteed tofu with prawns
This might be the silkiest sauteed tofu dish you have ever eaten. The prawns are fresh, firm and juicy. I can eat two bowls of rice with this alone – if I let myself!
Prawn paste fried chicken
This is chicken wings fried after being marinated in shrimp paste. Very umami-tasting, it is always a favourite among children and the young-at-heart. Hell, adults like it just as much too! (However, being a white meat-lover, it would be nice if they introduce a breast meat version of this.)
Spicy sambal belacan potato leaves
Garlicky and spicy, this dish is good enough on its own. Sambal belacan is a chilli and shrimp paste. It may smell pungent to some but it is VERY YUMMY!
Other dishes we had were pork ribs with bittergourd slices in a black bean sauce, and steamed fish head with another type of bean sauce (and garlic!).
Don’t forget to order their lotus root soup too, if you’re there. Taste just like mama’s home-cooking.
*****
- The uncle who owns the shop may be over 70-years-old, but he’s an accomplished long-distance runner, having completed the adidas Sundown Ultra-Marathon in Singapore and the Great Wall Marathon in China. Here’s a picture of him scooping rice:
Runner uncle who owns Joo Heng
- Admittedly, Joo Heng is now more well-known that I would have liked. I think part of the credit for its higher profile should go to the younger generation in the family. This uncle’s grandson even set-up a blog for Joo Heng. And his son, who I’ve heard also cooks in the kitchen, renovated a part of the eatery and it now has fancy booth seating and air-conditioning!
- Joo Heng Restaurant is located at 360 Joo Chiat Road. Tel: 6345 1503.
*****
Esther
