Pu Tien Restaurant 莆田菜馆 (Jurong Point SC)

The family and I came here for our bi-weekly restaurant-touring. We entered this spanking new joint after being greeted by a tall China national lady who had a heck of a loud voice. "Ni hao, ni chi le ma?" (Hello, have you eaten?) I found this very pleasant. It reminded me of my elderly boss who never fails to ask me this question each morning I went to work at the kitchen. 'Hang (my kitchen name), ni chi le ma?'. It never fails to put a smile on my face.

This new kid on the block is one sleek kid. Black, white and dark brown. Pale jade-green tinted glass accented the walls. The whole place screams casual zen. The elevated open-concept kitchen is a mighty smart idea. It allows a peek of where the magic happens, at the same time obscure what ever unhygienic habits the cooks have. The only puzzling thing was why one row of tables was angles diagonally. It didn't serve much aesthetically, neither did it serve and practical reasons. If you do plan to go, reserve a seat further in the restaurant. Jurong Point is unbelievably noisy.

Waiting staff were confident and well trained. I told them I was on a post operation diet that didn't allow me to have high-cholesterol. So with her help, we decided to have these:

Century egg and salted egg spinach:
I recommend this vegetable dish to everyone. The balance of century egg and salted egg used was perfect. They complimented one another without one being overpowering. It appealed to my brother who doesn't fancy century eggs. I loved this largely because it was cooked with skill. The taste of the wok came through in the sauce. The taste that could only be achieved by a seasoned wok and skills that equivalent to my grandmother. Yes, it tasted like it was made with the same attention my grandma puts into her food. I only wished they used regular spinach rather than round spinach. I prefer the meatier leafier spinach.

Home-made Tofu:
This was a little disappointing. It was decent, yes, but it doesn't come close to the ones by Xiao Hong Lou (Little Red House at ECP Seafood Centre). It tasted like any other tofu. The sauce ran a little thin as well. Taste wise, it didn't stand out at all. I have a strong feeling that the cook who did the tofu wasn't the same as the one who cooked our spinach. Shame.

Deep Fried Fish:
I forgot what this was called. The bass was boneless! The flesh was scored and flowered when deep fried in a light crispy batter. The tomato-ketchup sauce that went over it was accompanied by a deceptive mix of pine nuts, green capsicum and carrots. From afar I thought they were so daring as to use frozen vege mix. The fish was beautiful. Light and fresh, without any fishy taste. The combination of the wonderfully fired fish, tangy sauce and the garnish burned a lasting impression in my mind. The pine nuts really did it. It must be the nuts. I must try if you're willing to splurge a little. This fish is a little pricey.

Duck in Yam:
This was the dish that tilted the balance of the meal. I think we were quite full by the time this came. But we judge better when we're not hungry. The duck breast wrapped in the yam was not dry at all. Quite the opposite in fact. It was still pink! I maybe biased here because I love duck! But I truly enjoyed the duck. However, the proportion of yam to duck was a not quite balanced. The dish had too much yam. Which I think was a little under seasoned. I found myself dipping it into the chilli sauce quite a number of times. If I didn't like duck, I wouldn't order this again. It's incredibly filling.


For desserts, we had these:

Orh-nee (Yam paste):
This one didn't stand out at all. The paste was smooth without texture. And the portions were miserable. And they were stingy with the ginko nuts! Not worth it for one who enjoys authentic orh-nee, but if you must have it after meals, it can be considered.

Pumpkin cream:
This was an utter disappointment. There was a total lack of pumpkin taste. No lack of colour though. The dessert was very pretty. Bright vibrant orange cream with roughed up round dollop of vanilla ice-cream with a petite sprig of mint on the top. Unfortunately, feasting with my eyes was all this dessert allowed me. I tasted only half and half in the cream. It was a let down.

Putien is a good place for casual dining. Maybe for a family dinner, business meal, or a small gathering. Not very conducive for a large gathering. The food's good, though desserts aren't their strength, and the service is prompt and friendly. A nice place to hang around and digest the heavy meal while sipping pu'er cha and making good conversation. If there's a reason to celebrate, say striking 4D or a small bonus, Putien will definitely be one of the considered locations.