Yàn Restaurant Review: Super Traditional Cantonese Food By Ex-Crystal Jade Group Executive Chef

Here, dishes are all artfully plated into individual portions by the lovely waiters, so you never have to worry! Now, before you go thinking, “Ah, yet another modern Cantonese restaurant”, you will be glad to know that the dishes served at Yàn are far from this.

Take for instance the Baked Crab Shell with Crab Meat with Onion ($18++ per serving) . Staying true to the original method he learnt back in the early ‘80s, the dish is a painstaking one to make.

First, it has to be steamed, before the flower crab’s flesh is removed and sautéed in bechamel sauce, chopped onions and fresh mushrooms. It was a decadent treat, though I did find that the bechamel sauce took too much spotlight away from the sweetness of the crab. Another nostalgic dish on their menu is their House Special Baked Pork Ribs with Black Olives ($13.80++ per serving) .

The sauce, which is made from Teochew preserved pitted black olives, plum sauce and honey, gave the dish a welcoming saltiness, while the red onions and shallots added a sharp bite. And my colleague and I had the pleasure to try their Yan Peking Roast Duck served with Homemade Crepe and Traditional Garnishes ($45++ for half, $90++ for whole) .

What really made this dish special was the tantalising plum sauce, with its deep fruity note that was sweet and slightly tangy. For an additional $10++ , you can request for any leftover duck to be stir-fried into fried rice or noodles. While it looked simple, the Steamed Kampong Chicken with Ginger Spring Onion ($25++ for half, $50++ for whole) was actually a really tasty dish!

This was thanks to the accompanying chopped ginger and spring onion that were fried in scallion and peanut oil. The savoury garnishes elevated the taste of the tender steamed chicken, and the spicy tang from the ginger made it even more appetising.

We rounded up our meal with their Braised ‘Mee Po’ with Fresh Mushroom and XO Sauce ($22++ for small, $33++ for medium, $44++ for large) . Thoroughly coated in their house-made XO sauce, which apparently comprises more than 20 ingredients such as dried scallops and shrimp, salted fish, ‘Jing Hua’ ham, prawn roe and chilli, slurping up the al dente noodles left a delightful warm feeling that did not leave our tongues burning.

Desserts are kept simple, with items such as Chilled Mango Cream with Sago and Fresh Pomelo ($8++) and Hot Walnut Cream ($8++) . As it’s tucked away on the fifth floor of National Gallery Singapore, you can expect the interior to boast hints of artistic elements.

For instance, partitions separating the cosy booth seats are inspired by silkweaving, and hanging off the ceiling where I was seated were 400 hand-blown glass pieces. The verdict The Cantonese dishes were not over the top, and made me feel like I was eating food cooked from the heart.

It’s more affordable if you come for their lunch special – it’s $38++ per person (minimum two to dine) and comes with five courses.