Crabs in the Park, Singapore

How better to end a day in Singapore than a stroll along the water, looking at the trees, the sunset, listening to the sound of seagulls and cracking crabs...

ok..ok... Cheesy I know... We went to East Coast Park for our requisite seafood dinner. There are lots of other places to go in Singapore for the famous chilli and/or black pepper crabs, but East Coast has the ambience... see...







First up, vegetables. First to the table in only 5 minutes! We waste no time in Singapore.


Kangkong Belacan, or kangkong stir-fried in spicy shrimp paste.

Typical Singapore/Malaysian dish. I wasn't a fan of this when I was younger. Now I wonder what was wrong with me! (Don't answer that...)

Less than 2 minutes after (look at the photo, the vegetable is untouched in the background), the next dish came.


Steamed Prawns

Shrimp they were not... These were definitely prawns. Big meaty prawns, perfectly cooked. Sweet and juicy all by themselves, though they came with thick soy sauce for dipping. Wasn't a fan of these either when I was young... but then I wasn't a really smart kid back then...

Two minutes later...

Steamed Razor Clams

One of the best dishes I had on this trip. Perfectly steamed, the clams were not at all rubbery. Sweet and juicy, and the garlic chips on top made the clams something special. I was ready to order another order when the next dish came... (Note the vegetable still remains untouched in the background, and my brother just started on the shrimp)


Chilli Crab!

Sri Lankan crabs drenched in a spicy tomatoey sauce, with fried Chinese buns (man tou) for dipping. What can I say... What you see above is just 1 crab. Why 1? Because we were joined by its cousin in...


Black Pepper Crab!

Why have 1, when you can have 2! My personal preference lies with the Chili Crab. I like the slow burn of chilli crab... You have your first piece and you feel fine. By the time you've had your 3rd or 4th piece, your lips start tingling. Black Pepper Crab is more aggressive. One piece and you will feel the heat. I left the Black Pepper Crab to my brother.

One more beauty shot...





Next up, Shrimp Paste Stuffed Chinese Fritters. Simple chinese fritters (you tiao stuffed with shrimp paste, and coated with sesame seeds are deep fried to golden deliciousness. Somewhat bland after the assertiveness of the crabs, but I dipped them in the chilli gravy anyways.

Mr Vegetable is not having a good day...



To finish up, deep fried fish in a thickish soy based sauce. After everything else, this was a simple end to a great meal.



All in all, a great meal where everyone was stuffed. The damage? SGD$180 (approx USD$120) for 4 very happy diners. After dinner, a nice stroll in the park before heading off home was a perfect end to the day.

Wow! Everything looks so yummy! I can't wait to go home (which is Indonesia) and then pop over to SG for a few days of decadent gastronomic trip! I soooo miss curry puff! Did you have those? And the thought of the Jalan Kayu roti prata is making me salivate. Of course, durian ice cream on a stick would provide a perfect ending *YUMZ*

marias23 wrote:I soooo miss curry puff! Did you have those?

You mean this??

marias23 wrote:And the thought of the Jalan Kayu roti prata is making me salivate.

The top one is Roti Plaster (roti prata with an egg on top, not inside), bottom one is a plain Roti Prata...

CrazyC wrote:One more beauty shot...

CrazyC,

I'm actually weeping with both green eyed envy and the sheer beauty of the crab.

~sigh~

Enjoy,
Gary

*sob* *sob* you guys sure are cruel! it'll be at least another 3 months before i'm going home so that i can take revenge *sob* *sob*

CrazyC wrote:How better to end a day in Singapore than a stroll along the water, looking at the trees, the sunset, listening to the sound of seagulls and cracking crabs...

ok..ok... Cheesy I know... We went to East Coast Park for our requisite seafood dinner. There are lots of other places to go in Singapore for the famous chilli and/or black pepper crabs, but East Coast has the ambience... see....

Cheesy perhaps, but I too love the view at night from East Coast Park, the plethora of ships and their lights on the water is beautiful.

No Signboard seafood serves white pepper crabs for those who feel the black pepper is too strong.

Heading back in Jan '07 for my 10th trip to Singapore, ALWAYS get a meal of chili and pepper crabs.