SENTOSA (Singaporean Chinese Restaurant)

I was reading a popuar forum site and I chanced upon a posting from a fellow member. The topic was about Restaurants in the Timog-Tomas Morato area and he made mention of a resto named SENTOSA..... Curious as to what this new resto has to offer (though in the back of my mind, I had a good idea) I nonetheless inquired about the type of food offerings. Unfortunately, I did not get any reply. Oh well, I guess its sometimes safe to assume that the poster was just there to increase his post count and wasn’t all that serious in sharing his new find.

So it was one sunday morning that me and my parents were to have our weekly eatout that I suggested we try the new resto of which my parents readily agreed...... Getting there is quite simple (if you’re familiar with the timog-tomas morato area). From the Timog-T. Morato Rotunda, go into the direction of E. Rodriguez using Tomas Morato. You will come to an intersection with a stoplight (this is Roces Ave). Just pass the stoplight is a McDonalds burger outlet to your left and you should see the signage for SENTOSA to your right.

While the resto does offer chinese inspired dishes like dimsum, chinese short orders and hainanese chicken. Also included in their menu are a mixture of Malaysian, Thai and Indian dishes. (pretty much like going to singapore). Given that it was just the three of us dining on that particular morning, we could only order a few items on their menu (though the Roti and Chili Crabs were quite tempting)

PORK SHU MAI
 

In my silent quest to find the best pork shu mai this side of town, I ordered this one to see how it fared. I wasn’t really disappointed since it was a good piece of shu mai to beging with ....... there was no taste of extenders, it was served steaming hot, the shu mai itself was scrumptious and the size was just right in that you can easily pop it in your mouth.

This is just my personal opinion, but I kinda disliked the addition of a very small piece of mushroom on top of the shu mai. (for some strange reason, there are certain types of mushrooms that I don’t like) But my parents really enjoyed it.

SINGAPORE LAKSA NOODLE SOUP

A very flavorful soup if I may so (an order could serve 3 to 4 people) ...... nice balance with the sweetness from the coconut milk, the spiciness from the chilis and the saltiness from the assorted seafoods. The noodles were nice and firm too.

I guess my minor issue was that the bowl that we were served with were quite small that they’d be more appropriate used as containers for dipping sauces. I asked the server if they have a bigger bowl and their reply was in the negative. (by da way, your order for plain rice is also served in this small bowl)

FRIED RADISH CAKE in XO SAUCE
 

Normally in other dimsum eateries, the fried radish cake is served in larger (usually rectangular shaped) slices and the dipping sauce is either hoisin sauce or a soy-vinegar mixture. For this particuklar dish, the radish cake is cut into cubes which makes it very easyo pick up with a chopstick or fork and you can just pop it in your mouth.

The XO sauce does taste a bit much like hoisin but it comes with an added smokey flavor. I also like it that they added some toasted garlic bits on top (I like the flavor of garlic). The radish cake itself is slightly crispy on the outside and almost melt-in-your-mouth on the insides.

FRIED RICE with SALTED FISH and CHICKEN
 

Just your usual rice fried alongside some eggs, assorted veggies, chicken and supposedly salted fish. It’s actually not bad for a fried rice dish, though not really spectacular. At least its not overly salty (though I didn’t get much of the salted fish taste) or overly oily.

SAUTEED ASPARAGUS with SCALLOP in THAI CHILI PASTE

 

 The asparagus were nicely cooked, quite easy to chew on yet still retaining a little bit of crunch. The small scallops were delicious especially when you accompany that with their sweet spicy sauce. (oh waiter, plain rice please)

BONELESS HAINANESE CHICKEN 

This one was the order of my dad and it basically looks like steamed chicken.

Accompanied by some soy sauce, minced ginger and chili sauce.
 

Most of the meat were still very pink so I did not even bother to taste the chicken. (eventually mom asked the server to have it cooked/steamed a little more)

MALAY CAKE

Another one of my dad’s order ....... I’m not really very fond of cake, but I nonetheless took a bite. It pretty much tastes like an ordinary icing-less cake. In fairness it wasn’t overly sweet and I think would go great with a hot cup of coffee.

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There are still a lot of other dishes that seemed worth trying. And from the looks of the number of diners that particular morning, I guess its safe to say that for those who do not want to travel all the way to Makati or Malate for a decent Singaporean meal, there is already one in the Quezon City area.