Chui Huay Lim Restaurant: Teochew Muay Set Menu $49.90 For 2 Pax

We had been to Chui Huay Lim Restaurant in the Newton area several times before, but not recently. Located within the prestigious clubhouse of the Chui Huay Lim Club, it is no surprise that it is often regarded as one of the top Teochew restaurants of Singapore. On this visit we tried the Teochew muay set menu priced at $49.90++ for two persons.

Teochew Restaurant Near Newton Circus

The Chui Huay Lim Club is located along Keng Lee Road, a narrow that runs almost parallel to Newton Road. It is quite easy to turn off Newton Circus into the wrong road as the narrower road is quite inconspicuous. Quite a few things have changed since our last visit there several years ago. A gleaming tall condo has sprouted across the road, replacing an older development. Within the Club and the restaurant, we also observed some changes to the interior.

Chui Huay Lim restaurant is located on the ground floor of the Chui Huay Lim Club. The club has a 180 year history and is a place for prominent Teochew families to interact. Bearing the name of the club, the restaurant is actually run by the JUMBO restaurant group. Classic Teochew dishes are on the menu.

Known for their seafood restaurants, the Jumbo group also seems to be able to run good Teochew restaurants in Singapore. In addition to Chui Huay Lim, their Zui Yu Xuan Teochew restaurant which is housed in a restored heritage building in the historic Far East Square area is also very good.

The reception area near the entrance to the restaurant seems to have been refreshed. The large space seems more polished and inviting.

The Chui Huay Lim restaurant layout had also been reconfigured. The large wine display is now the first thing we see as we enter. The dining area was once a large open area. Now it is divided into three smaller sections. It is a positive change as the place looks less crowded and the noise level has improved.

Chui Huay Lim Restaurant Menu

Here are pictures of some sample pages from the a la carte menu and a page from the Chui Huay Lim wine list.

Chui Huay Lim Teochew Muay Set Menu

For this visit, our main attention was on the Chui Huay Lim Teochew porridge set menu which is available during weekday lunch. It is a Teochew muay lunch with three dishes, a couple of condiments and free flow of porridge.

Teochew Muay Lunch

Lunch started with the traditional Teochew restaurant serving of concentrated Chinese tea. In this instance, the tea was not as strong as the usual very robust type we were expecting to start the meal. The fish at the bottom of the cup perhaps signalled a modern interpretation of this practice.

Two types of condiments were served to go with the porridge – spicy ground dried shrimp paste (hae bee hiam) and fermented beancurd. The latter was our pick from an options list of a few types of fermented pickles. We did so as it is a dish that is not often seen in Teochew restaurants these days. Both of these were very good – they have heavy flavours that perfectly accompany the plain watery Teochew porridge. In the old days when Teochew porridge meals were not so luxurious as they can get these days, porridge with such simple condiments could be all there is to make up a meal.

The next item served was meatballs made of pork mixed with fried salted fish. Embedded inside each ball was a scallop. Only two balls were served – i.e. one for each person. They were very good but small. Quality over quantity I suppose.

For the meat dish there was a choice between chicken and cod fish (which attracted a $10 surcharge). We were pleased with our choice of the Teochew Puning fermented bean chicken which was tasty and tender.

As for the vegetables course, there was a choice of beancurd or kai lan. We picked the latter. It was a very well prepared kai lan dish. Cooked just right with stem still crunchy but still easy to eat.

Porridge was served in small heat-retaining receptacles, each containing about three full bowls of porridge. These were refillable on request.

Speaking of requests, the provision of call buttons on each table is a good idea. We found service at Chui Huay Lim restaurant to be improved from previous visits. Our calls via this call button were attended to promptly.

Lunch at Chui Huay Lim Restaurant – Braised Duck

As the serving size of the dishes was on the small side, we ordered another dish to supplement the meal. We selected the braised duck with beancurd ($20++). The duck was expertly cooked – tender and very flavourful. The slices are quite thin and there was no danger of overeating with this serving size.

Ratings:
Food: 4
Service: 4
Value: 3
Atmosphere: 4
Overall Rating: 4 TOPs 

Chui Huay Lim Teochew Cuisine
190 Keng Lee Road #01-02,
Chui Huay Lim Club
Singapore (308409)

OPENING HOURS

Lunch:
11.30am – 2.30pm
(last order at 2.00pm)

Dinner:
5.30pm – 11.00pm
(last order at 10.15pm)