The rumours are true, Min Jiang at One-North has shifted to Dempsey! Not sure about the former space but the current space is really very pretty. Oh yes , I like that the fact that it is located in this heritage venue that is so near to town and has ample of FREE parking!
https://flic.kr/p/2g2mxiE
Once you walk into Min Jiang at Dempsey, there is a bar area whereby one can have a few pre-dinner drinks. As we venture further in, there is where the dining area as well as the private rooms area are. The high ceiling as well as contemporary chinoiserie is really different from the usual interior of a chinese restaurant. While it is modern, the space is presentable for any gathering as well as business luncheon. With a new location, Master Chef Goh Chee Kong has also crafted a new menu to showcase the intricacies of Cantonese and Sichuan cuisines and to compliment the chic and sophisticated deco.
Can you believe that this Steamed ‘Goldfish’ Prawn Dumpling is $4.80? The house-made crystal dumpling skin is shaped like a gold fish and has a whole prawn enveloped in it. Paired with the tobiko and the sauce made with egg white, chicken stock and chinese ham, this is like a pure pleasure for the palate.
Dim Sum lovers can order the Deluxe Dim Sum Platter ($38) which consists of 4 different very exquisite dim sum. Shaped like a sting ray, the white prawns are hand chopped and combined with fresh Sri Lankan crabmeat, diced carrots, chopped spinach, turnip, celery and salt before wrapping in a house-made crystal dumpling skin to make into a steamed crabmeat, prawn and vegetable dumpling. Using blue pea flowers as a natural blue colouring for the crystal dumpling skin, the steamed blue pea truffle vegetable dumpling are wrapped with cooked mung bean noodles, diced carrots, chopped shiitake mushrooms, turnip, celery and truffle oil are combined to form the filling. One of my favourite, the steamed scallop dumpling, is made with hand chopped white prawns and scallops and topped with dried scallop and tobiko. The golden pumpkin is one item that won the hearts of 2 of my dining partners with its subtle sweetness as well as texture. As it is a dim sum with steamed glutinous rice that is mixed with chinese sausage, dried shrimps and salt to form the filling and wrapped with a glutinous rice flour dough before being deep fried.
I cannot resist hot soup. The Braised Sea Treasure Soup in Pomegranate Egg White Parcel accompanied with Prawn Spring Roll ($$48++ per person) is seriously irresistible!! Served in a hot stone bowl, there is no pomegranate in the soup. But what you find is an almost scalding (in a good way) collagen rich thick crabmeat broth that is made using chicken bones, chicken feet, pork that are cooked for more than 4 hours to extract the essence of the ingredients. The fresh Sri Lankan crabmeat is then simmered in the superior stock for that final touch of seafood sweetness. Accompanying the soup is a parcel with an egg white crepe enveloping shreds of Australian abalone, chopped bamboo pith and dried scallop and topped with tobiko and served with a hand chopped prawns and chicken meat crispy spring roll skin. You can tell that in term of the soup temperature, texture and flavour, this is one huge winner as there was a complete silent after the soup was served and everyone was busy tucking into their soup.
Originated from Hong Kong, the recipe was created by the fishermen who would whip up a seafood dish with all the dried aromatics found in their refudge shelter during the storm. Typhoon Shelter Squid and Soft Shell Crab ($32) includes huge amount of finely chopped garlic and shallots as well as dried chilli flakes, almond flakes, dried shrimp and bread crumbs are deep fried till golden brown. The deep-fried squid and soft shell crab are first added to a fried mixture of fragrant oil, curry leaves, dried chilli, housemade chilli sauce, salt and a little stock before serving with the aromatics.
Although one of my dining partner commented that Chicken and ‘Kai Lan’ served with Ginger Paste ($34) is a tad pricey, this is also one of my favourite item on the new menu. Chef Goh is very precise to use only local chicken of approximately 1.2kg to ensure the skin is of preferred thickness. The whole chicken is prepared in absolute precision to ensure that the meat is tender and the skin is silky soft. Oh yes, the ginger paste is to live for. Made using a 80-20 ratio, the ginger is blended with spring onions with sesame oil, fragrant oil and salt added later. This compliments the chicken really well and in fact, the ginger paste tastes super delicious on its own too. I wish that the restaurant would sell it in the near future so that I can share this awesome sauce with my oversea friends.
For those who are looking to add some greens to your diet, the Stir-Fried Three Treasure Vegetables with Crispy Golden Mushrooms ($28) allows you to enjoy 3 different flavoursome vegetables (Australian Baby Spinach, Nai Bai, Baby Chinese Cabbage) at one go. This is a good option for people who enjoy variety. =)
A lot of effort and hard work are put into this unassuming serving of Iberico Pork Fried Rice served in Mini Pumpkin accompanied with XO Sauce ($18 per person). The Iberico pork ‘char siu’ is made by first marinating the pork with seafood sauce, rock sugar and dark soya sauce, then roasted for 12 hours. After roasting, the meat is covered with malt sugar and hung till perfectly glazed. And this char siew can only be found on this particular dish, chopped and stir fried with prawns, diced broccoli stems, spring onions, egg, steamed rice, salt and light soya sauce. If you are one person who enjoy your rice, this is one dish that you should try at least once. I like how flavourful the fried rice is and each grain is well separated from each other without being too hard. The homemade XO sauce also added another layer of gastronomical enjoyment.
To end the night on a sweeter note, we had a refreshing and beautiful dessert, Chilled Blue Pea Lemongrass Jelly with Lime Sorbet and Malay Cake with Salted Egg Custard ($12 per person).
Occupying a ‘black and white’ bungalow in dempsey, Min Jiang now has a bigger space surrounded with lush greenery and free parking. Not only can one delights in well-loved signatures and specialities, such as the Legendary Wood-Fired Beijing Duck, the new items are also delicately prepared and suitable for all occasions.
MIN JIANG AT DEMPSEY
7A and 7B Dempsey Road, Singapore 249684
Tel: +65 6774 0122
Email: mjdempsey@goodwoodparkhotel.com
Operating Hours: Daily, 11.30am – 2.30pm | 6.30pm – 10.30pm