Food Review: Ah Dong Teh House

Do you live in the North-east area? Lo and behold, for there is a pretty new Cha Chaan Teng (tea restaurant) in our vicinity!

Located next to the Punggol Park Connector which is where I usually hangout to cycle or to exercise. Visiting the park connector at different times of the day brings about different feelings. When you are there for a late night supper, you can feel how tranquil and serene the place is.

With a pitch dark forest staring back at you, and all you hear is gentle breeze howling at your ears. I really enjoy night walks there, but always be alert as there may be stray dogs around. If they do appear, just remain calm and walk away - do not show your teeth and do not show signs of anxiety (such as quickened foot steps). Why? Because all those actions are provoking and threatening to them, and that will land you into deep trouble...

After a long day of work, I would visit small cafes and restaurants to unwind. Not all the time, but whenever I feel a little hungry, yet a full meal is going to be waaay too much for me.

I have visited this tea restaurant twice, and managed to try out their chef recommended foods and their toasts. Just so I could provide a more wholesome review with a variety of food. ^^

AH DONG TEH HOUSE

10 Tebing Lane, #01-03/-04

Singapore 8288836

Tel: 6241 0309

Here's a snap shot of their menu, introducing their tea restaurant.

CURRY RAMEN

Here's Ah Dong's recommended dish, the Curry Ramen.

 Let me tell you honestly, I was very disappointed with this dish.
1. The curry was diluted. As if they wanted to save curry for another bowl of ramen.
2. It was not spicy despite being labelled as spicy
3. The potato was "lan" - overcooked, and it literally tasted like mash potatoes

This costs below $10 (can't remember the exact price anymore), and it is something I would never order again because it didn't taste good at all. I would recommend you to go to the Hong Kong Cafe to have their curry ramen, it is thick and delicious.

Overall: 0/5

FISH & CHEESE

I apologise for the odd angle, haha. I would say this is the best dish out of everything I have eaten thus far. The salad tastes very refreshing with the raisins. The fries were crispy and golden. Lastly, the cheese (tasted like nachooos) was delicious!! Although I found the fish a tad too soft - although I liked the golden crusts.

Decent fish and chips, but there's definitely better ones out there~

Overall: 3/5

ICED MILK TEA
What's a Cha Chaan Teng without milk tea? So I ordered a cuppa ice milk tea.

It did smell like the real deal, however it was still lacking in flavour. Tea bags when over soaked will produce a very "siap" taste - a sub-taste of bitter. So... it's pretty normal.

Overall: 2/5

HOT MILK TEA

During the second visit, I ordered hot milk tea instead, which came along with the toast set (to be introduced shortly after). This had the same bitter aftertaste which was irksome, and I didn't finish it. Sad, because this is a cafe and restaurant, they should not be re-using their teabags for toooo long.

Stains on teaspoon

Not only was the milk tea bitter, I feel that they could improve on their cleanliness. See the stains left on the teaspoon, I've never see such a dirty spoon from a regular coffee shop, but why am I seeing this at the cafe. Furthermore, the staff were throwing the used utensils into their trolleys with a loud THUD! Cafes should have a higher standard of cleanliness and appearance - they should be doing this behind closed doors... aren't they. Feels like I am just in a regular coffee shop with all these "noise" going around...

Overall: 0/5

TOAST SET
(Includes 2 half-boiled eggs, 1 drink and 2 slices of toasts)

The half-boiled eggs are pretty decent, however I felt one of the egg was slightly too raw for my liking. Well, everyone has their own preference - runny eggs or more cooked eggs.

The toast was very good, it is thinly sliced and crispy! The kaya had a very nice gritty texture, and the thick butter is chilled yet soft when you bite into the toast. (I am not the best at describing food huh). I really would recommend having this if you come here, just the toast hehe.

Overall: 3.5/5

BUFFALO WINGS

This is probably the most disappointing dish. I expected this to be spicy, however the sauce was more sweet than anything else. I feel that the sauce used was a regular BBQ sauce, which I feel so cheated *bleh*

Overall: 0/5

Are you a OCBC card holder? If you charge this meal to your credit/debit card, you would get 10% off ala carte items AND receive a $5 VOUCHER for your next visit with no minimum spending. Because of this, I will be going back just to have my toast. Hee...

If you are interested to read more about Hong Kong style cafes in Singapore, check out my other posts: Sheng Kee Dessert and Hong Kong Cafe