Shuang Yuan

Okay... this place was absolutely delicious. A warning: my 'must try' list is going to be a little long, but trust me, they are ALL must-try!

This is a cute little restaurant tucked into a side of Liang Seah St, but can be hard to spot because of all the other small eateries and businesses there. To find: get to the T-junction corner of Liang Siah and Beach Road. Walk down Liang Seah away from Beach Road (i.e. with Shaw Towers behind you) and it's about four or five establishments down on your left.

Mm... this is going to be a bit of a gushy post. Be warned!

Food

We ordered most of their specialties, and the first one I tried was the "Lu Rou" rice - honestly, one bite into that dish and I was sold, because it was the very first time that, in a commercial eater, I have ever tasted something that remotely resembles my grand-aunty's cooking. The restaurant's philosophy is to make home-cooked meals for those who don't have the time or energy to cook, but who don't want to eat out too often because it's unhealthy - which I would say they're succeeding at!

The other dishes didn't disappoint either - the Shuang Yuan noodles had that satisfying springy texture, and came with the-most-amazing-meatballs-ever. Shuang Yuan prides itself on its home-made, flour-less, additive-less 100% pork balls, and they should be proud - I highly, highly recommend getting a dish where these pork balls feature. You won't regret it.

Other winners of the night: the hot spring egg, which is a lightly poached egg served cold, in a bowl with a tapered corner to make it all-the-easier to slurp - think Japanese version of soft boiled egg, but much subtler in flavour. Another great find: the unagi - we ordered a side dish of it, and I couldn't believe how tender it was! Melt-in-your-mouth soft and I couldn't feel the bones at all. You can also have it over rice as a main, but do note that they serve it over their usual rice, not the Japanese sticky kind you might be used to. Not an issue for me though - that was some seriously mindblowing unagi.

I was surprised that I liked the fresh spring rolls, because usually I'm not a fan of the dish at all. I usually find that they have too much of a raw veggie bland taste. But that wasn't the case here - the restaurant used some home-made condiments to spice it up, and it turned out to be very yummy and really refreshing. Best thing was that they were very measured with condiment use - just a bit more and it might have been too sauce-y, but they got it just right.

The best thing about all this was that the deliciousness was guilt free! The lovely owner, Dilys, was talking to us and explained how her focus was on creating healthy, tasty food. She doesn't use MSG in any dish, and even all the soups are boiled for 4-5 hours to create flavour without additives! Her promise rang true - I ate myself silly and could barely walk from the table, but didn't have that gelat gross feeling afterwards, which I usually have when overeating at a restaurant thanks to the oil and MSG in the food. What we ate seemed grease-free and naturally flavourful.

Also definitely try the ice jelly drink! It's not actually jelly (i.e. sugary/unhealthy) at all - it's named for the jelly-like nature of the natural tree seeds that they use in the drink, and it's delicious and refreshing. Plus, Dilys says it's good for your skin. Hey, any excuse to consume something yummy right?

Service
No complaints here - service was prompt and polite. I was loitering outside for a while waiting for my companions to arrive, and the waiter invited me to sit in the cooler interior for a while, regardless of whether I was going to eat there or not. That's service! Also, Dilys - the owner - is absolutely lovely, and is willing to chat to her customers and explain the philosophy behind her food.

Value
Very reasonably priced. Most of the mains will set you back about $6-10, and side dishes about $4-5, if I remember right. Best thing about the affordability is that you can order lots and lots of things. Which, trust me, you want to do at this place.


All in all, this place serves tasty food with good service and great value. That already makes it a winner in my book, but when you consider that it's also healthy, and in the home-cooked style... That makes this place an all-time favourite. Can't wait to return.

Liang Street这里最近开了一间新店，名叫“双圆”。他们卖的是以台湾、越南、日本混合的风味美食。因为老板娘Dilys是混合这三个国家的品种，具体地怎么混，我也摸不透。

那天就和Hungrygowhere的朋友们一起到这里享用晚餐。

为什么叫“双圆”呢？原来店里的招牌的猪肉丸，而且是又大又圆的猪肉丸。在烹煮招牌菜“双圆面”时，厨师会加入两粒猪肉丸，象征“双双对对”，好兆头！

这家店面以前是糖水茶餐厅，现在换了新样貌，以鲜艳的橙白色系为主，感觉比较轻松快乐！

“双圆”的三位厨师，都是从一间高级日本餐厅来的，他们烹调手法讲究，注重每份材料的重量和烹调时间，绝不马虎！

·卤肉饭($6.90)是Dilys的独门秘方，采用的是Shabu Shabu猪肉。因为曾在台湾居住，所以她巧妙地把传统卤肉饭改编一下，没有那么油腻，味道香甜。

·店里另外一道招牌菜“双圆面-干”($6.90)，辣椒酱是自己制作的，喜欢吃辣的你一定要尝尝。

·看到那又大又圆又肥又多汁的猪肉丸了吧？Dilys说，在农历新年期间，还有很多顾客会要求购买这些猪肉丸回家煮火锅，简直供不应求。

·酥炸鲜蚝”($6.90)，端上桌是热腾腾的，肥美多汁，我喜欢。

·小巧的Kueh Pie Ti上有鲜虾，里头有茄子，这是“茄子金黄虾”($6.90)，本身觉得茄子烹调的味道过重，不过虾倒是非常新鲜。

·“冷春卷”($5.90）的灵感来自越南春卷吧。里头有黄瓜、萝卜、猪肉，淋上的是带有点甜辣味的酱，吃了很开胃。

·加入苹果醋的“双圆沙拉”（$4.90），撒上香脆的炸云吞皮，面相和华人的捞鱼生有点相似。

·不喜欢吃猪肉的朋友可以尝这“酱烧鳗鱼”（$6.90），高档的烹调手法，但在这里价格又是那么合理，保证你爱不释手！

“双圆”的菜肴很廉价，我觉得他们每一道菜肴都做的很细心，努力把一道普通的菜肴变得有一点与众不同，这是值得赞扬的。周末他们开放到凌晨1点，年轻朋友们可以来这里吃夜宵！

更多详情，可阅读Miss Tam Chiak Food Blog

 

 

 

I went with a friend a few months ago not long after the restaurant opened. A review wasn't written at the time because Shuang Yuan was not listed on HGW then. We ordered the pork balls on dry noodles (lady boss sang its praises, saying that it was 100%pork without additives) and stewed pork on rice.  The pork balls were unremarkable in texture and rather bland in taste. The noodles was also unremarkable in texture.  The stewed pork on rice itself rather passe and pointless. I'd rather eat this in a Taiwanese or Chinese eatery. We also tried some hard boiled egg (The Japanese ramen shops do this better), crochette and some fried chicken wings (going with the lady boss's recommendation as there were two choices) which were both mediocre. This is the kind of fusion food that one should not bother with.  We thought the food was boring and expensive considering the quality of items. We were tempted to try it out was because they had some dessert promotion at the time. But the food was so abysmal that we decided to cut our losses and went to our favourite dessert place, Ji De Chi, instead. Anyway a wait staff who served us was a young teenager who was quite earnest, wanted to know what we thought of the place. I asked him if he really wanted to know the truth. He said it didn't matter to him, he is just drawing a salary. After we paid at the counter, I decided to be honest with the waiter and went up to whisper to him that we would never ever be back.Towards the end of our meal, the vivacious lady boss did come and ask what we thought of the food but I declined to bother telling her. What is the point of wasting my breath and appear ungracious in front of my dining companion (even though we both agreed during the meal that the food was unimpressive)? In the months since we tried it out, I have continued to go to Ji De Chi in the evenings for dessert. Most of the time, I notice that Shuang Yuan was quite devoid of customers while most other eateries along the same street were  bustling.

Located at the convenience of Bugis Junction and National Library (which I frequent), Liang Seah Street is one definite answer whenever my carving for simple comfort food calls. It was a Friday afternoon the day of our visit, we had dry Shuang Yuan Noodle, Katsu Rice and shishamo as side dish. My noodle was well cooked, didn't fall onto the mushy nor clumpy side. It came with 3 marbled pork slices and 2 pork balls. Made from the freshest lean pork, these 2 meat balls were springy and full of flavours. Quote 'HungryGoWhere' to get your second main at 50% off. Other promotions include $1 can drink during lunch hours. All the prices you see on the menu are nett, meaning no GST and service charge. As told by the friendly owner Janinta that their menu was undergoing a revamp, I shall be back for more once the new dishes are up. For a fuller write-up and clearer photos, please feel free to visit me at Amasou-Umasou.

for nice simple taiwanese dishes, that's what my friend told me. Apparently lu rou fans go for like 2-3 sgd in Taiwan, but at Shuang Yuan it is $6.90! However, since i've never been to Taiwan, I can't complain. The restaurant itself is nice, airy and bright, with cheerful staff. As for the food, they are not like phenomenally amazing, but are more of the home-cooked, authentic flavour. 
Now, if only they would reduce the prices just a little. I would love to add the stewed egg for an extra dollar instead of 1.90, which is more expensive than some Japanese ramen houses! But they do have the drink promo at $1 for each meal and there is no GST, so that's another plus.
Overall, its a pretty good meal.

My first food tasting with hungrygowhere food critics. As you have seen from other food critics, they basically scoped you away with the food served by Dilys. I shall summarize those food tried.

We ordered:

-         -  ‘Lu Rou’ Rice (My favourite – they do away with 3-layers pork and incorporated Shabu-Shabu pork instead. Though it lacked that 口感 with the former, it still tastes as good. Minced pork and Shabu-Shabu pork have a unique distinct taste; cook differently).

-          - Pork ball noodle (Particularly, I like the soup version which contained “no MSG,” proclaimed Dilys. Noodle lacked the Q-Q-ness from the dry version. Pork ball was not “100% pork” because the texture was totally different when boiling minced pork ball home. Nevertheless, one can taste the口感. Pork belly stewed just right.

-          - Spring roll (Refreshing but the sauce was too much that was over empowering. Perhaps, they can set aside the sauce and dip to our liking.)

-          - Deep-fried pumpkin (There are bite-size pumpkin in it as oppose to those you can get from the outside)

-          - Deep-fried oyster (Norm. I am not a fan of deep-fried items)

-          - 双圆salad (Norm)

-          - Unagi (Sauce was overwhelming and fishy)

 

-          - 双圆with vanilla ice cream (a hot and cold dish. 2 deep-fried balls; green sweet potato and pumpkin. I felt it was too starchy but I quite like it.)

-          - Tempura ice cream (have an in-between layer of red bean which “cannot really find it in Singapore,” claimed Dilys. It was unique but not to my liking.)

This place served reasonable price dish. In fact, they do not charge service charge and GST.

 

meL

‘Food itself is very personal; do not be affected by what I have written. Try it instead and tell me.’

 

*Please see other reviewers for pictures.

 

Okay... this place was absolutely delicious. A warning: my 'must try' list is going to be a little long, but trust me, they are ALL must-try!

This is a cute little restaurant tucked into a side of Liang Seah St, but can be hard to spot because of all the other small eateries and businesses there. To find: get to the T-junction corner of Liang Siah and Beach Road. Walk down Liang Seah away from Beach Road (i.e. with Shaw Towers behind you) and it's about four or five establishments down on your left.

Mm... this is going to be a bit of a gushy post. Be warned!

Food

We ordered most of their specialties, and the first one I tried was the "Lu Rou" rice - honestly, one bite into that dish and I was sold, because it was the very first time that, in a commercial eater, I have ever tasted something that remotely resembles my grand-aunty's cooking. The restaurant's philosophy is to make home-cooked meals for those who don't have the time or energy to cook, but who don't want to eat out too often because it's unhealthy - which I would say they're succeeding at!

The other dishes didn't disappoint either - the Shuang Yuan noodles had that satisfying springy texture, and came with the-most-amazing-meatballs-ever. Shuang Yuan prides itself on its home-made, flour-less, additive-less 100% pork balls, and they should be proud - I highly, highly recommend getting a dish where these pork balls feature. You won't regret it.

Other winners of the night: the hot spring egg, which is a lightly poached egg served cold, in a bowl with a tapered corner to make it all-the-easier to slurp - think Japanese version of soft boiled egg, but much subtler in flavour. Another great find: the unagi - we ordered a side dish of it, and I couldn't believe how tender it was! Melt-in-your-mouth soft and I couldn't feel the bones at all. You can also have it over rice as a main, but do note that they serve it over their usual rice, not the Japanese sticky kind you might be used to. Not an issue for me though - that was some seriously mindblowing unagi.

I was surprised that I liked the fresh spring rolls, because usually I'm not a fan of the dish at all. I usually find that they have too much of a raw veggie bland taste. But that wasn't the case here - the restaurant used some home-made condiments to spice it up, and it turned out to be very yummy and really refreshing. Best thing was that they were very measured with condiment use - just a bit more and it might have been too sauce-y, but they got it just right.

The best thing about all this was that the deliciousness was guilt free! The lovely owner, Dilys, was talking to us and explained how her focus was on creating healthy, tasty food. She doesn't use MSG in any dish, and even all the soups are boiled for 4-5 hours to create flavour without additives! Her promise rang true - I ate myself silly and could barely walk from the table, but didn't have that gelat gross feeling afterwards, which I usually have when overeating at a restaurant thanks to the oil and MSG in the food. What we ate seemed grease-free and naturally flavourful.

Also definitely try the ice jelly drink! It's not actually jelly (i.e. sugary/unhealthy) at all - it's named for the jelly-like nature of the natural tree seeds that they use in the drink, and it's delicious and refreshing. Plus, Dilys says it's good for your skin. Hey, any excuse to consume something yummy right?

Service
No complaints here - service was prompt and polite. I was loitering outside for a while waiting for my companions to arrive, and the waiter invited me to sit in the cooler interior for a while, regardless of whether I was going to eat there or not. That's service! Also, Dilys - the owner - is absolutely lovely, and is willing to chat to her customers and explain the philosophy behind her food.

Value
Very reasonably priced. Most of the mains will set you back about $6-10, and side dishes about $4-5, if I remember right. Best thing about the affordability is that you can order lots and lots of things. Which, trust me, you want to do at this place.


All in all, this place serves tasty food with good service and great value. That already makes it a winner in my book, but when you consider that it's also healthy, and in the home-cooked style... That makes this place an all-time favourite. Can't wait to return.

Been a while since I've been first to review a new joint and i take great pleasure to be the first to give a big thumbs up to Shuang Yuan!
Had a wonderful dinner with the HGW gang over dinner at Shuang Yuan which was very kindly hosted by the very hospitable lady boss - Dilys who made sure we were all very well fed. (Thank you!)

When Hoongy mentioned that dinner was going to be at a new joint serving (in his words) "taiwanese japanese comfort food"....I drew a complete blank as to what that might look/taste like. Fairly intrigued, I approached Shuang Yuan with a slight apprehension, wondering if its gonna be a fusion/confusion thing.

I was put at ease upon entering the simple yet tastefully decked out joint. The brightly lit premises with predominantly white furnishings, accented by a splash of cheery orange was almost a instant mood lifter. 

First to arrive, I surveyed the menu with interest and mentally ticked off at least half of the 30+ items on the menu as a "must try!".  Dilys shared very passionately and openly about the origins of Shuang Yuan - which loosely translated means Double Rounds...referring to their home-made pork balls which are the size of ping pong balls! The pork balls are Dilys' own home-made recipe made with 100% pork meat with no flour or preservatives added. Its so good that they were selling it by the dozens over CNY in take-away packs for CNY steamboat dinners! And mind you, they have only been in operation for a month.

Having lived and travelled across many countries, Dilys brought together a taste of some of her favourite cuisines together, culminating in what is Shuang Yuan now. The menu is largely Taiwanese, Vietnamese and Japanese influenced, with Dilys and her chefs using the best quality ingredients to create simple comfort food to satisfy the taste bud and nourish the soul.

We sampled over 15 dishes off the menu, most I would have happily polished off the whole portion if I could stomach all that food! Portion sizes were generous, in particularly the noodle and rice bowls.

- Lu Rou Rice: A popular taiwanese dish which has been given a leaner cut at Shuang Yuan. Thin slices of pork cooked shabu shabu style served over a bowl of fragrant steaming rice. Each serving is made to order to ensure freshness and to maintain a high standard of food quality and taste.

- Shuang Yuan Noodles (Dry and Soup): Each bowl of noodle come with 2 large Shuang Yuan pork balls which were absolutely scrumptious! Even the soup base is prepared from scratch daily and stewed 4-5 hours with no msg added. 

- Eggs: I love how they've offered just eggs as a side order on the menu. I love eggs and i could never have enough of it. Special stewed eggs or Hot Spring eggs....the former warm and the latter cold....you just have to try both!

- Fresh spring roll with spicy pork: A twist to the traditional vietnamese spring roll, this refreshing roll offers fresh julienne vegetables with a home-made sweet/spicy sauce drizzled over the top. Makes a nice light meal if you're not up for anything too heavy.

- Unagi: The same Unagi that you'll get from some of the top japanese restaurants in Singapore at one-fifth the price! A yummilicious steal!

- Golden creamy prawn: This was THE dish I was looking forward to and it completely surprised me. Served in a pie tie cup, the prawn coated in salted egg yolk sits atop a creamy concoction of egg plant. Slightly rich yet deliciously sinful.

- Shuang Yuan Salad: Piqued my interest when Dilys shared that the salad is tossed in apple sauce. A refreshing mix of julienne vegetables with fried wanton skin to top it off.

- Crispy Chicken Wing: Who can resist chicken wings?? The lightly battered wings were tender and juicy and I could be very happy with just wings and some beer on the side.

And on to dessert:

- Matcha cheese cake: Dense in texture yet light and refreshing in taste. The 3 layered cake consisted of a green tea mouse  followed by a red bean centre, topped with a light cheese mousse.

- Shuang Yuan with Vanilla Ice cream :  The sweetness of the cold ice cream, in contract to the smooth and creamy fried Yam ball + Sweet Potato ball makes an interesting combination.

- Tempura Ice cream: I must say that I've always been apprehensive about fried ice cream. They really don't do much for me. But this I actually enjoyed. Frozen vanilla ice cream coated in a layer of red bean and then deep fried in tempura batter. The red bean i think gave it a lot more flavour.

- Ice Jelly drink: I think this is definitely under-rated as i wouldn't have ordered this if not for Dilys' recommendation. The Jelly is made from plant seeds imported from the highlands and contains high level of nutrients beneficial for good complexion. Ladies...this is a must!

Shuang Yuan's great for a simple no fuss meal and I'm already looking forward to going back for more pork balls! I only manage to sink my teeth into 1 today...I need to go back for the other! 

It was a last minute invite for the tasting session tonight but I am glad I made it. Formerly a dessert outlet, it now house this makan place serving taiwanese food with japanese and vietnamese influences. I find that its more inclined towards the japanese influence, with jap style cooking and of cos the supply of ingredients from Japan. Also not forgetting the emphasis of presentation per dish where simplicity is key.

At first glance, one may easily brush this place off as a run-of-the-mill kind of place that serves mediocore or sometimes really non-delish Taiwanese street food in a simple white and orange cheerful theme. Thank god the food served was anything but.

Ambience wise: Very casual, nothing gaudy nor atas. A place where one can be in the most casual wear and will not feel out of place. Ironically, we were told that the customised furniture from Italy sure don't come cheap. :)

As usual, it was a HUGE spread of food and I have to admit that I am unable to eat as much as I used to. Blame it on the decreasing metabolic rate. :/ Anyway, we all had the following:

1) 'Lu Rou' Rice 滷肉饭 $6.90

- The serving was generous, I would say. The mix of minced pork and shabu-style thinly sliced pork was just nice and well-infused with the 'lor' (gravy). The 'lor' was salty enough for me to befit the name of 滷肉饭. I only took a sampling portion for taste so I am unable to review the entire after taste & feeling had I finish the entire bowl.

2) Shuang Yuan Noodles (Dry) 雙圓麵(干）$6.90

- The serving of the noodles was generous. Not very sure what noodles was used but its like mee kia to me. Then again, the noodles was handled well, so there is no clumpy parts or mushy parts. Q enough and well mixed with the sauce. The 'Shuang Yuan' that signifies the giant pork balls (handmade) were bouncy and full of porky flavour to the bite. It doesn't have the more-flour-than-meat taste. And the most shiok part is to take a big bite of the pork ball.

- The chilli (made inhouse) served is pretty spicy and this is coming from a spice queen. Its sweet initially and the spice kick only surface after a delay of few seconds. So those who can't take spice, may want to go easy on this or skip this altogether.

3) Shuang Yuan Noodles (Soup) 雙圓麵(湯）$6.90

- I did not try this.

4) Special Stewed Egg 糖心蛋 $1.90

- Hmmm. This is somewhat like the smoked 3/4 cooked egg, jap style that we are perhaps more familar with. The egg here was not that bad, just that I personally prefer the yolk to be bit runny. So I guess this is primarily up to the individual preference.

5) Hot Spring Egg 温泉蛋（冷）$1.90

- This item will not be alien to ppl who are familiar with japanese food. Even more familiar to ppl who love their half-boiled eggs ala traditional kopitiam style. Serving style is very japanese and oh yes, I like this.

6) Butter Corn 奶油玉米 $2.90

- Typical street snack. Remember the corn cups one often see at pasar malam snack stalls and the likes? This is it. I just had to specially order this to try as this is my soft spot. LOL! I was already stuffed by the time I ordered this but I still polished it off!

7) Batter Fried Oysters (3pcs) 酥炸鲜蚝 $6.90

- Nothing spectacular but good as finger food item.

8) Crispy Chicken Wing (4pcs) 香炸鸡翼 $5.90

- The batter can be a bit more crispy but otherwise this also serves as a good finger food item. Especially so when the aroma of wine (chinese wine?) hits the nose with the first bite. Meat juices was nicely packed within the crisp batter and the meat was seasoned well.

9) Fresh Spring Roll with Spicy Pork 冷春卷 $5.90

- Vietnamese style spring roll with thinly sliced blanched pork and strips of other veg rolled up with lettuce. Nice crunch from the fresh veg goes well with the pork and the sauces drizzled over the roll.

10) Pumpkin Croquette 土豆可樂餅 $3.90

- One of my favourites. Japanese pumpkin (expensive stuff) mashed with the fibrous bits removed and shaped into a medallion for deep frying. Sweet!

11) Unagi 酱燒鳗鱼 $6.90

- One of the favourites around the table. Good quality stuff! Generous to boot. Soft and smooth to the bite. Not overly sweet. Unagi craving can be settled at an affordable price here. :)

12) Shuang Yuan Salad 雙圓沙拉 $2.90

- I did not try this.

13) Macha Cheese Cake 緑茶芝士蛋糕 $4.90

- Made inhouse. 2 main layers form the cake, namely the green tea layer at the bottom and the cheese layer on top. Small dollops of mashed red beans are placed strategically on top of the cheese layer. The cheese is very light and is meant to be so to complement the after meal dessert concept. At the same time, the light cheese goes pretty well with the green tea portion as the sweetness from the cheese layer balances the green tea bitterness. Understood that the red beans are sourced from Japan for their texture.

14) Tempura Ice Cream 天婦羅雪糕 $4.90

- Not a personal favourite of mine all along but the idea of coating the ice cream with mashed red beans prior to dipping in batter for the deep frying is something new.

15) Shuang Yuan with Vanilla Ice Cream 雙圓+雪糕 $4.90

- One of my favourites, not so much for the ice-cream but for the 'Shuang Yuan' in this item, namely, sweet potato ball and yam ball. The sweet potato ball was made from Japanese sweet potato and care was taken to remove the fibrous bits so as not to affect the texture during consumption. Nice. The yam ball was akin to 'orh nee', just not sweet as the balls were meant to be eaten with the ice-cream. I don't like yam per se but I LOVE 'orh nee'. LOL!

16) Golden Creamy Prawn 茄子黄金蝦 $6.90

- This is essentially kueh pie tee but filled with fresh bouncy prawn and eggplant coated with salted egg yolk cream sauce. Yums!

Overall, I am happy that there is such a place where I can R&R with my friends over yummy finger food and affordable prices till late. Fridays and Saturdays are open till 1am. Asahi and Hoegarden are available too to complement the food should one has craving for some beer. Baby chairs are also available for couples with young kids, so its a family friendly place. Reservations are also allowed to be made.

The lady boss, former private banker turned training consultant cum F&B owner, is very nice to chat with and her story on this place was started truly gives full meaning to "timing is key". In mandarin, 真的应验了“天时地利人和”这句话。Budding entrepreneurs can perhaps learn a thing or 2 from her experience too! :)