SIN: Warung Surabaya

Sweet, nicely caramelised grilled fish!

My recent craving for authentic Indonesian cuisine had compelled me to give Warung Surabaya a try when I was at Orchard. It was a scorching day, so I'd been hoping that the food I was about to eat wouldn't be too spicy. Apparently, I had to take out quite a lot of tissue paper. Haha...

Ayam Penyet Surabaya S$6.50

Taste: 7/10

The tender smashed chicken was apparently lightly breaded before fried. While the aroma of turmeric perked me up, it was a pity that neither the chicken nor the fried batter bits were crispy enough. The chili was pretty powerful, but it could be a little bit sweeter. 

Ikan Bakar Resto S$13.00

Taste: 8/10

Enough to share among two or three people, the grilled fish was lipsmackingly good. The sweet soy sauce was caramalised well, exuding intense smoky aroma from the grilling process. The fish, unbeknown to me, was adequately fresh, though I'm sure they could definitely get an even fresher one.

Rawon S$7.50

Taste: 6.5/10

The dark soup infused with buah keluak, which are black nuts native to Southeast Asia, was piquant enough with six or so chunks of beef. I've always enjoyed the dish which originated from East Java, but I found Warung Surabaya's version to be a bit too salty. The beef was no doubt succulent though.

Sayur Asam S$3.50

Taste: 5/10

Literally means 'sour vegetables', the soup suited for vegetarians didn't live up to its name, simply because there wasn't enough tamarind used. In fact, it was uniformly sweet. Besides, it was actually my first time having one with so strong an aroma of garlic that left me wondering if they were trying to expel Count Dracula.

Es Soda Gembira S$2.50

Taste: 7/10

To beat the hot and humid weather, I ordered a glass of 'iced happy soda' which colour might bear resemblance to that of bandung (Malay drink of rose syrup with condensed milk). The cherry soda drink with condensed milk wasn't fizzy enough, but not overly sweet. I'd prefer one with more oomph.

Melon's Rating

Taste: 6.5/10

Ambience: 6/10

Service: 7/10

Overall: 6.5/10

By and large, I doubt I'll be interested to come back to the restaurant anytime soon. The grilled fish is definitely worth it though. Pika's advice: Only at the end of the meal did I see a poster which shows that ikan bandeng (lit. milk fish) is their specialty. You may want to give it a try!

Warung Surabaya

14 Scotts Road

#05-26/26A Far East Plaza

Singapore
(Opening hours unknown - Anyone knows?)

*Prices quoted are nett prices.

Have a nice meal,

Cliff(y)