Post by Chiefeater VK

This review is contributed by various participants in the Pfffffttt Makan Group who attended the Chinese New Year dinner at Elsie’s Kitchen. Not known to many people is Wan, the proprietor of the restaurant, actually runs a private dining option at night at the same location. Yes, they are not only famous for their chicken chop.

The minimum option starts at a table of 10 pax and he can take up to 3 tables maximum at the restaurant. Elsie’s Kitchen is a functional cafe. If you are looking for a place with plush seats and karaoke, this is not the place for you. If you want a place where you can have a night of food that is lovingly prepared with good friends in a casual environment, then this hits the mark.

On to the food. Here’s the menu.

The Food Review

We started of course with Yee Sang because this is the season to usher in fortune. Our fortune runneth over.

Then came the Three Special Combination Platter (三洋开泰万事兴). Each of us had items that we took a liking to. The one that Chiefeater Kim Lim and I liked was the fried prawn covered with mung bean vermicelli. Crispy and crunchy on the outside with a seafood sweetness as you bite into it. Chiefeater Kim Wan liked the Vietnamese style lemongrass chicken on a stick.

Double-boiled Agarics Blaze Mushroom Soup with Cordyceps Flower & Black Chicken. *The night we were there, Wan could not get hold of Black Chicken so he replaced it with Kampung Chicken. If you are watching the Last of Us now, please don’t get squeamish about consuming Cordyceps.

Roasted Chicken & Sesame Sauce Chicken with Cracker. This would be such a staple dish if not for the fact that it came in 2 flavours. The shredded chicken mixed with sesame sauce was a change I didn’t expect. Chiefeater Jon Besar said the roast chicken was moist and went well with the chili sauce. The skin of the chicken he had was still crispy despite it being soaked in chicken oil. He's the chicken connoisseur of the group so I will give his chicken comments extra weightage.

Seafood Section

Steamed Cod Fish with Ginger, Szechuan Vegetable & Vermicelli in Superior Soy Sauce. Again we had a slight change of fish. A Dragon Tiger Grouper instead of Cod. The fish was fresh and well seasoned.

Poached Tom Yam Prawn in Coconut. This was a winner for many. The tanginess of the tom yam complementing the sweetness of the prawns. We had so much prawns that some of us tapau it home. Chiefeater Heislyc brought the prawns home and his mother enjoyed it too!

Braised Abalone & Mushroom with Broccoli in Premium Oyster Sauce. Chiefeater Ashley said that the tenderness was just nice and the flavour infused into both mushroom and abalone in just the right proportion.

Getting to the End

Steamed Yam Rice with Long Bean, Pork Belly & Chinese Sausage. Chiefeater Sung found this to his liking. The crunch of the long beans and the meaty bite of diced sausages mixed into yam rice gave an interesting texture to the dish. This was coupled with a tasted of savouriness from the pork belly and the sweetness of the sausage to make this a dish he enjoyed.

The Chinese pastry was a fitting dish to end dinner. Chiefeater Miko describes it, "The red bean pancake was crispy and fresh, and I like the overall presentation with the Snow Skin Egg Custard (the cake-like dessert) is quite unique, not too sweet and it’s moist. Just nice!"

Prices are ++. The + is for a 10% service charge and a 6% SST.

Elsie's Kitchen does not charge corkage as long as you tip the chef with a glass of whatever liquor you are having.

Business Hours
Wednesday to Monday
11:00 am – 02:30 pm
05:00 pm – 09:00 pm

CLosed on Tuesday