Shanghai Ren Jia 上海人家
Located at the corner of Blk 151 Ang Mo Kio ave 5, this little shop serve limited number of seats (like 7 tables in total). The food here are make to order, so be expected to wait for quite a while for your food. But i can assure that the food served are pipping hot. Please note that Shanghai Ren Jia don’t charge service fee and tax but charges a table fee of $1.20 per pax.
Chrysanthemum tea - no sugar in it, pure chrysanthemum and hot water
Xiao Long Bao (小笼包) $6 for 5 pcs
The skin of the Xiao Long Bao is thick on the top but thin at the bottom which cause the soup from the pork filling to flow out. In addition, they do not serve vinegar and ginger unless you ask for it, but only vinegar is available. The pork is fresh hence no "pork after taste", but overall i think i can find better Xiao Long Bao elsewhere.
Mei Cai Pork Belly Bun (梅菜扣肉包) – $11.50 for 5 pcs
This is a highly recommended dish from the staff. The pork belly are thinly sliced and marinated with picked (Mei Cai) and dark sauce. The after products are sort of sweet and salty taste, as the meat are thinly sliced, i do not really have the taste of the meat as compare to our local Pork Belly dish. Very disappointed in this dish. But, the taste is still not bad when you eat it with the bun.
Drunken Chicken ($12)
This is a cold dish, strong taste of wine when you chew on the meat. The chicken is soft and tender, guess its because it had been soaking in Shao Xing Jiu for too long. Overall quite good in terms of taste and smell.
Handmade Noodle with braised Pork Ribs (排骨鸡丁葱油面) – $6
One of the best Chinese-style handmade noodle that I had tried. The noodle is full of shallot oil and the braised pork rib gravy with a small portion of beancurd cubes. The noodle is smooth and yet surprising springy. I guess this is because the noodle is handmade hence it can be made into this kind of texture. Nothing fantastic about the pork rib, the outer layer was braised that all.
Handmade Beef Noodle (红燒牛肉麵) - $8
The type of noodle i guess is the same as the pork rib noodle, all are handmade. The soup of this beef noodle is clear and yet tasty. Side ingredients include potato and carrot. Beef meat is tender but portion is abit small, i dont feel satisfied after eating this noodle. If the chuck of beef can be bigger and more quantity then it will be great.
Pan Fried Meat Bun (生煎包) – $8.40 for 6 pcs
Pan Fried Meat Bun is a must-order dish to have here. It is made up of mini pork filling in the bun that is pan-fried till half of the bun turned golden brown and the exterior fried to crisp. Fluffy bun and delicious tasting meat in it.
Juicy Juicy!!
Popiah (薄饼) – $7.20 for 6 pcs
Netizen had been raving about this popiah. Instead of using turnip like our local popiah, here uses cabbage. The skin is the same as the others, but the fillings are special. It is filled with pipping hot gravy. The gravy is so thick that it will burn you if you are not careful. Beside cabbage, there are other filling like meat and carrot slices combined together, forming this tasty dish. Try this when you are here and judge it yourself.
Operating hours: 11.30am to 3pm, 6pm to 10pm, closed on Monday
Verdict: 3.5/5
Price: $15 per pax
I like the food served here, delicious and freshly made. Maybe the downside lies on the service, limited serving personnel as this is a home run business and a fierce and impatient auntie taking down orders. Whenever i asking for service she will just portray frustration, other than that, the boss and other staffs are quite friendly. The boss are very friendly and will talk to customer.
This place may be an ideal place to visit with a small group of friends to spend your time having Shanghai-style dim sum, not for time rushing people.
I will find time to revisit here again if i am nearby Ang Mo Kio craving for shanghainese food and I am not in a rush.
