Irvin's Live Seafood House @ Upper Thomson Road

Irvin's Live Seafood House was formerly known as Irvin's Seafood Cze Char and was located along the stretch of shophouses at the junction of Zion Road and River Valley Road. It has been relocated and reopened at No 4, Jalan Leban, Upper Thomson Road on 1st Decemeber 2011. By the way, LeBan HK Cafe next door is owned by the same boss.

The new place is more spacious and air-conditioned now!. With the bigger space, now they have a live aquariums at the back of the restaurant to accommodate the crabs and fishes.

The new location also has 2 VIP rooms for those who prefer to have a cosy area to themselves. Reservation are preferred for VIP Rooms (8pax or more).

Salted Egg Yam Chips 4.2/5

The thinly sliced yam coated with rich salted egg sauce was so addictive. The Salted Egg Yam Chips ($9.80) has a firmer texture compared to using potato. It gave that shiok crackling crisp sound with each bite into it. For the extra punch, chilli padi and curry leaves were added.

Balachan Crab 3.8/5

I asked for the Balachan Crab ($19.90 small, $29.90 medium, $48/kg for large) as I have not seen this cooking style on the menu before. The dried style balachan crab came with lots of fried shallots and some curry leaves. It has an unique spicy and salty combination which was good but not fantastic.

Salted Egg Crab 4.5/5

This is a must try, the Salted Egg Crab ($23.90 small, $33.90 medium, $48/kg for large). This is Irvin's specialty with Chef Yap's special recipe. I liked the fact that curry leaves are added to give the sauce the extra kick and fragrant. The crab was basically swimming in the generous amount of salted egg sauce. The salted egg sauce is so well received by the customers that they are selling it at $12 per box, freshly made upon order. Maybe I should get a box for my nacho.

Damn Good Pork 4.2/5

The Butter Pork Ribs ($12.80 small, $18.80 large) is the owner's favourite dish at the restaurant. He loves it so much that he named it as Damn Good Pork on the menu. The crispy pork coated with the savoury butter sauce. Again chilli padi and curry leaves were added to give the extra punch.

Butter Chicken 4/5

If you don't like pork, you can ask for the alternative Butter Chicken ($15.80 small, $20.80 large). The crispy exterior was lovely with the same butter sauce, chilli padi and curry leaves as the butter pork ribs.

Hot Plate Tofu with Special Minced Pork 4/5

The Hot Plate Tofu with Special Minced Pork ($12.80) came with egg tofu and a special sweet and spicy sauce with minced pork. Customer can ask for non spicy tofu but it will come with chicken.

Red Tilapia with Special Sauce 4.2/5

The Red Tilapia with Special Sauce ($32) is not listed in the menu, you have to ask the waiter/waitress for it. The fresh red tilapia was cooked in the chef's special chilli bean paste sauce. The sweet and spicy flavours gave life to the delicious fish.

Claypot Pumpkin Prawns 4/5

Our palates were kind of tired and confused with all the salted egg and butter sauce dishes. When the Claypot Pumpkin Prawns ($13.80 small, $22.80 large) was served, we needed to reconfirm with the kitchen that they have not used the salted egg sauce instead. It tasted very similar to the salted egg sauce except that the texture was smoother. Same technique of using chilli padi and curry leaves to lift the flavours. Even the colour looked exactly the same. The pumpkin sauce was very good but I really could not taste the distinct pumpkin flavour.

Salted French Beans 4/5

Finally some greens after all the rich and creamy dishes. I like how the Salted French Beans ($10.80 small, $15.80 large) still had the crunchiness texture. The chilli padi, dried shrimps and fried shallots completed the flavours making it a light and delectable dish.

Irvin's will be giving out 10% discount to our blog readers from now till 31 July 2012! Simply quote "Singapore's Most Handsome Restaurant" before making payment and you will be entitle to the discount.

You may wonder why the Most Handsome Restaurant? The owner comes from Indonesia and he is a foodie. Whenever he comes across delicious food, he will describle it as "ganteng" in Bahasan which literally means handsome.

Once again I would like to thank Stephenie for having us and Cheryl for asking me along.


Irvin's Live Seafood House
No.4 Jalan Leban
Upper Thomson Road
Singapore 577548
Tel: +65 68365020
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/irvinseafood
Website: http://www.irvins.com.sg
Nearest MRT: Marymount (CC line)

Opening Hours:
Daily: 11am - 11pm

Direction:
1) Alight at Marymount MRT station. Take Exit A. Walk to Upper Thomson Road towards SPC Petrol Kiosk direction. Take bus number 163, 167, 855 or 980 across the road (Stop ID B53021). Alight 7 stops later. Walk to destination across the road. Journey time about 15 minutes.

LeBan HK Cafe @ Upper Thomson Road

LeBan HK Cafe is the new kid on the block at Jalan Leban along Upper Thomson Road. The 1 month old cafe serves a wide range of Hong Kong inspired food.

LeBan HK Cafe has a youthful ambience with its contempoary colorful interior with walls painted in purple and white, red chairs and black tables. Even the lightings are in rainbow colours.

Chili Cheese Fries 3.5/5

The Chili Cheese Fries ($6.50) is topped with Chef's special chili and oven baked. I was confused as I did not taste any spiciness. The dish is a bit old school in my own opinion. I would prefer the cheese to be more liquid or even lava form.

Seafood Baked Rice in Cream Sauce 3.5/5

The Seafood Baked Rice in Cream Sauce ($9.80) came with fresh and big succulent seafood such as prawn, squid and mussel hidden inside a bed of baked cheese. It comes in either cream or tomato sauce. I felt that the dish did not have a body to gel all the wonderful flavours together.

Crispy Butter Bun with Condensed Milk 4.5/5

The Crispy Butter Bun with Condensed Milk ($4) brough back my childhood memories. I love having my bread with condensed milk. The toasted buns with the condensed milk spread was simple, sinful but yummy!

Savoury French Toast Bites with Ice Cream 4.5/5

I will definitely return for the Savoury French Toast Bites with Ice cream ($4.90). The deep fried breaded cubes comes with a scoop of New Zealand Natural ice cream. They are a total of 7 flavours to choose from currently. Bite into the breaded cubes and there is a little surprise. The french toast had peanut butter in it! LeBan definitely knows my weakness...we have condensed milk and now peanut butter.

Sizzling Crispy Noodles with Jumbo Prawns 3.5/5

I applauded the concept but not the dish. The noodles of the Sizzling Crispy Noodles with Jumbo Prawns ($8.50) had an unique crisp and crunchy texture. It reminded me of Mamee Monster Noodle Snack. The sauce which tasted like sweet and sour sauce was too sweet and overpowering.

Potato with Corned Beef Hash & Egg 3.5/5

When the Potato with Corned Beef Hash & Egg ($5.50) was served, I thought it was carrot cake with scrambled egg. Corned beef is salt-cured product hence the dish was a tad salty. An enjoyable dish but nothing fancy about it.

Sun Fried Ice Cream 4.2/5

Sun Fried Ice Cream with Green Tea flavour 4.2/5

The huge ball shaped Sun Fried Ice Cream ($4) is a must try. The ice cream is breaded, deep fried and topped with chocolate rice. Good quality New Zealand Natural ice cream is used with a choice of flavours. The hot and cold combination will leave your taste buds delighted.

Affagoto 4.8/5

Being a coffee addict and ice cream lover, the Affagoto ($4.80) is the mix from heaven that satisfied my weakness for them. A scoop of vanilla ice cream was dropped into a shot of freshly brew espresso. The coffee and the ice cream combination was so good that I selfishly finished the glass all by myself.

LeBan's is giving out 10% discount to our blog readers from now till 31 July 2012! Simply quote "Funky Food" before making payment and you will be entitle to the discount.

I would like to thank Stephenie for having us and Cheryl for asking me along.


LeBan HK Cafe
No.2 Jalan Leban
Upper Thomson Road
Singapore 577547
Tel: +65 62578801
Website: http://lebanhkcafe.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lebanhkcafe
Nearest MRT: Marymount (CC Line)

Opening Hours:
Daily: 4pm - 2am

Direction:
1) Alight at Marymount MRT station. Take Exit A. Walk to Upper Thomson Road towards SPC Petrol Kiosk direction. Take bus number 163, 167, 855 or 980 across the road (Stop ID B53021). Alight 7 stops later. Walk to destination across the road. Journey time about 15 minutes.