Seafood Paradise Restaurant (Defu Lane)

After some good navigation skills, we finally located Seafood Paradise, right smack among the factory buildings.

And be prepared to make a reservation when you wish to visit this place as Singaporeans really travel for their food - the place was fully packed on a weekend, and some even had to wait for a table even though they make a booking.

To satisfy our hunger, we started with the Salted Fish with Fried Rice and what a great start it was! Each grain was coated evenly with eggs and fried thoroughly, such that no grain sticks to another. The flavour of the salted fish also brings out the best in this dish. My only fuss is that the rice was pretty oily and a bigger serving would probably kill the appetite for what is to come.

The only dish that we wished we did not order that night was the Frog Legs with Chicken Essence. It was a pretty straightforward steamed frog legs with the chicken essence poured over it – plain and pretty tasteless. This is the only dish we did not finish that night.

One of the original dishes we tried that night was the Broccoli with Scallops topped with Sunny-side-up. At first I have doubts about this combination but the twist of the egg white really did bring out a totally different savoury experience to this normal dish.

A must have dish for every visit has to be the Homemade Tofu with Assorted Seafood. The tofu is so smooth and silky and the pork floss combination heightens the dish. You will also be wooed by the prawns and diced sea cucumber found in the pool of sticky gravy with every dip of your tablespoon!

The Fried Beef was pretty flavoursome but I am not a big fan of tenderised beef. My take is that all good food should come in natural texture and “fake” tender beef is just taking the easy way out to achieve a standard.

The Cereal Prawns definitely beat those served from Mellben – it did not come as dry and each delightful spoon of cereal was scrumptious. The prawns are also not over-fried as the shell peel off cleanly – a sign that the prawns are fresh!

Saving the best for last is the signature Creamy Butter Crabs, served with delectable deep-fried man tous to mop up the gravy. The man tous in itself is another winner - so good that you can eat it on its own.

The gravy was richer and not as sweet compared to Mellben, and topped with fried coconut bits, another original rendition from them (although some disputed that it is topped with fried crab roe, or crunchy oat bits instead), this dish was definitely the highlight for the night.

The crab is also fresh and its flesh does not stick to the shell – another sign of a well workout crustacean.

Other signature dishes that you might indulged in are the Crab in Superior Stock with Vermicelli, as well as the Baby-back Ribs in Honey-pepper Sauce. This place is highly recommended!

You can view the photos and other reviews @ His Food Blog.