Mouth Restaurant @ SAFRA Toa Payoh: "Good Chinese Fare, But Where's the Ambience?" Singapore Restaurant Tip by DarkRay

Mouth Restaurant claims to be the oldest Chinese teahouse in Singapore, and while I do not know if that is really true or not, they certainly belong to the class of "very traditional" Chinese restaurants in Singapore. They have 2 branches, one in Chinatown Point, and another in SAFRA Toa Payoh.

Usually I like to go to the branch at Chinatown Point, but it is usually very crowded and quite difficult to get a table on weekends, especially on short notice or during holidays (i.e. long weekends). So I went to the less known branch in SAFRA Toa Payoh on a Sunday, and surprisingly, it was very crowded as well - so crowded that I actually got the last available table in the house.

While the outlet at Chinatown Point looked every bit like your typical Chinese Restaurant, I was actually taken aback at the interior decoration, or rather the lack of it, at their SAFRA Toa Payoh outlet. It was pretty obvious that the restaurant was converted from an unused multi-purpose room or hall and the restaurant did not bother to spruce the place up at all. It was terribly plain looking and was just barely functional, which is my way of saying that it was ugly and has zero ambience. But despite that, the place was packed, so I guess that gives you an idea of how good the food was.

Do note that usually, the spending per person in Mouth Restaurant is less than S$40 per person when you order from the normal set menu, or from the a-la-carte menu. I ordered from some fancy special set for this review and with drinks and additional dishes like the Stir-Fried Seasonal Vegetables with Scallops (S$28++), it actually cost about S$60+ per person, which is not usual. Just want to clarify this first.

All prices on the menu are subjected to 10% service charge followed by another 5% GST. There is a compulsory tea, towel and prickle (appetizing side dish) charge of about S$2 per person.

Favorite Dish: The branch of Chinese food served in Mouth Restaurant is Cantonese. For the purpose of this review, I ordered one of their special set (S$48.80++ per person), which included the following dishes:

1. Doubled Boiled Shark's Fin Soup with Yellow Melon

This was the only item which disappointed me from this set. It was absolutely tasteless and I never liked whole Shark's Fin anyway - I much prefer the cheaper shredded type infused with a chicken or seafood broth.

2. Poached Live Prawn

This was deliciously fresh! Extremely tasty with a hint of fragrant Chinese wine.

3. Braised Abalone with Assorted Dry Seafood

The abalone was tiny, but they sure threw every type of dried seafood and other stuff (there was a piece of braised chicken and a price of fried duck - go figure). For Western dishes, putting so many ingredients together is a big no no since the purity of flavours is important. But as a Chinese dish, the complex flavours actually worked very well with each other to create this very rich tasting dish.

4. Duo Fish Combination - Deep Fried Fish Fillet / Stir-Fried Salted Egg, Hashma with Fresh Milk

A little oily due to the deep frying involved for both items, but this was a very creative dish that was surprisingly well-executed. I loved it.

5. Fried Rice with Fresh Crabmeat & Scallop

Typical, but delicious nevertheless.

6. Chilled Kiwi Fruit

Actually your run-of-the-mill kiwi smoothie without the milk. Very refreshing and luckily, not disgustingly sour.

Address: 293 Lorong 6 Toa Payoh, SAFRA Toa Payoh
Comparison: about average
Directions: It is within the compounds of SAFRA Toa Payoh. Head towards the main entrance of the club, but head right just before you reach it, and you should see Mouth Restaurant.
Phone: +65 6259 8891
Price: US$21-30
Rating: 4
Theme: Chinese/Dim Sum
Website: http://www.mouth.com.sg