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| - Lion City is located on Central Parkway West facing an open field at the gate that is more southern further away from Burnhamthorpe.
Lion City has a dining area that's sort of cut down the middle. While there aren't many large tables, there are a good number of 4 and 2 seat tables. The table we had was able to fit about 8 comfortably was the largest table in the place (round). That being said a group is probably the best way to enjoy this place because family style ordering with many different variety of dishes is the way to go.
The extent of my knowledge of Singapore is only what I've seen on a screen like Anthony Bourdain's No Reservations. I learned that Singaporean cuisine is primarily made of up of dishes and ingredients from neighbors like Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand as well as India. Thanks to my fellow diners David and Marianne who are both Singapore natives, their knowledge of the food as well as their experience with this particular place make them basically the best possible couple to dine with that I know personally.
Our table consisted of six diners which is an advantage because we can now try many different dishes since there are enough of us to experience a variety while ordering family style. All the dishes are new to me with the exception of the Hainanese chicken rice dish which is a pretty well known dish. I had this at at Gourmet Malaysia last year. Lion City however had the rice in bowls already on the side as the chicken itself is served separately. One of the true advantages to eating with experienced regulars is that they can explain everything and what goes with what (side sauces or garnishes) or how something is typically eaten right down to what utensils to use.
We started with mango salad and a fried tofu with cucumber and peanut sauce. Both had peanuts and both were great tasting as starters. The slices of both mango and cucumber were crisp and fresh and a nice mix of textures whether it was the rich and savory peanut sauce with the tofu or the crunchy peanut topping on the mango salad.
The rest of the dishes just kept on coming. Beef Randang which is a stewed beef with curry was served with side bowls of steamed rice. This dish was very tasty and was not overly strong but a milder curry with a very robust flavor. The meat was in chunks and was slightly oily but had a very tender texture, fall off the bone type of pieces.
Next, the Oh Luak is an omelette with oyster cooked with tapioca topped with basil. The egg being mixed with the other ingredients had a bit of a crunch texture to it almost like melted and skirted cheese. Ngoh Hiang was next. It was a style of fried pork on top of fried noodles. This pork had a very unusual texture and taste. Some bits were crunchy while others were soft. The closest thing I can compare it to is probably Spam.
We however were only half way through the amount of dishes coming our way. The Hainanese chicken rice which came with a generous serving of cuts of chicken was accompanied with the chicken broth rice in bowls on the side along with all the side servings of sauces and dressing. The chicken rice experience is just that, it's a dish that although seems quite basic, takes time and care to be done properly for it to appear and tasted to be made the authentic way.
The largest platter was the Wat Tan Hor Fun, flat rice noodles, bok choy, chicken, squid and shrimps. Almost a soup like consistency, the noodles have that familiar flat rice noodle texture and flavor along with the side of what appear to be serrano peppers, this seafood and noodles dish was my favorite of the evening.
The spiciest dish was Lontong which is a curry soup. The color is a give away as it's a bright orange oil on yellow broth with bits of cabbage, green beans and tofu. There's a very different version of rice served in this dish as well that is, they appear to look like chunks of potato but actually they're compressed rice in the shape of cut potatoes. The texture is unmistakably rice however as well as the taste. This dish packs a punch so be prepared to get that kick of heat and taste at once.
One of the final dishes we had was Hokkien Mee which is noodles cooked in a dark sauce with the sour taste of tamarind. It was topped with green onion and tofu. IMO the sourness of tamarind are an acquired taste. This dish was very different from the rest. There was one more dish I didn't get the name of but it too was quite unusual from what you'd find in say Cantonese cuisine.
Overall my experience was top notch not only because I dined with experts of Singaporean cuisine but because there was a wide variety of flavors, textures and tastes from hot to sour to savory we had a true variety from 10 different dishes. After tax and tip the feast split among 6 diners was barely 25 dollars each. Lion City serves up a wide variety of flavors of authentic Singaporean and it's also a great value for the money.
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