Have long been interested in Chuan Chinese at Market Square. Ever since they opened, all I ever see is a completely packed restaurant every time I walk past. For the several instances I've tried to get a table, I've been knocked back without having a reservation. Phoning up to make a reservation, I've been told that they only take 5.30pm and 7.30pm bookings. As a result of this, we finally decided to try it out early in the week to avoid the crowds.
We grabbed one of the only remaining tables and were seated comfortably outside the restaurant (but still inside the shopping centre). Paper menus were provided although ordering is done via QR code on the table. Interestingly enough, English was only available on the paper menu, so any non Chinese literate customers might have difficulty ordering without relying on photos alone. As for the contents on the menu, as far as I could tell, it was fairly standard for Sichuan cuisine with a selection of main dishes focusing on spice.
Some companions who had arrived earlier ordered a serve of spring rolls to start, these were freshly fried, crispy and I liked the mix of meat and veggies that it was filled with.
We probably over ordered, but the first three dishes we chose came out exceptionally quickly after putting it in the system.
First up was the pickled veggies with beef stew. The portion size was absolutely massive and the plate was even bigger. We chose mild spice for it and I found it to be challenging to my spice tolerance. There was a generous amount of beef and pickled veggies in the stew and although it was spicy, the sourness and savouriness of the dish still shone through. It went particularly well with rice. Would definitely order this again.
Next up was the "saliva" chicken, named not because it is made of saliva but because the thought of it makes people salivate. It was a good serving for the price and the chicken was extremely tender and flavoursome without being dry.
We also had a serve of spicy beef offals (tongue and stomach) as well as wasabi fungus. Both were very spicy, but the offal dish was more of a hot spice whereas the fungus had a cooling spice that you would get with mustard. Both dishes were delicious and had a variety of very enjoyable textures, special mention would have to be made for the tripe which was very well done, elastic and tender, absorbing a lot of the spicy numbing goodness.
We had two non spicy dishes that evening. First was the signature braised pork belly which offered some much needed reprieve from the spice. The pork was very soft and melted in our mouth whilst being drenched with a rich soy/oyster sauce concoction that was very homey. Again, one that goes well with rice.
Our final dish, which came roughly half an hour after the rest of our food was the steamed egg with pipis. Silky smooth, it was like an egg infused tofu with a light seafood taste. Although mum makes this very frequently at home, this was undoubtedly more silky than the home made variety, making it a worthwhile dish to order when visiting.
Overall we had a fantastic time at Chuan Chinese, although it was spicy, the food was of a high standard, each dish was a flavour bomb and I would definitely not hesitate to come back. Also there is a 10% cash discount, so for a large group, it would be worth bringing cash to take advantage of the deal.
Taste: 8/10
Value: 8/10
Service: 8/10
Environment: 7/10
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