Crystal Jade Golden Palace @ Paragon

Crispy Peking duck skin pancakes

My mum was visiting us in Singapore recently and it coincided with my parents 45th anniversary. With dad not being able to come because of his work schedule (boooo), we took mum out to celebrate at Crystal Jade Golden Palace.

We’d been here several times before and always loved it but for some reason it was this time I seemed to really notice just how good this place is.

Perhaps it was because we ordered our usual favourite dishes – Peking duck and roast pork – and that simply gives the opportunity to compare. I’m not saying other places we’ve been to were at all bad, just that Crystal Jade was really very very good.

The Peking duck was presented to us whole before it was taken to a side table for the skin to be deftly sliced off in impressively uniform rectangles, then served to us in delicate, thin handmade floury crepes, with a slice of spring onion and cucumber and a smear (that doesn’t sound too appetising but I really can’t think of a better description) of hoisin sauce. I’ve raved about how much I love this dish before and this evening it just seemed so wonderfully delicious and light I wished they never ran out – I could have just carried on eating them all night.

We asked for the second course of the Peking duck – where the duck meat from the whole duck is cooked with noodles – to use rice noodles instead of the usual flour noodles, and again, this was just spectacular. Served with a drizzle of vinegar to cut through the richness of the duck, this was another dish where I would go back to the restaurant and just order this one dish.

Perfect three layer Chinese roast pork

Of course there had to be space for the roast pork. Similar to other restaurants, it comes as a square of three layer pork (crispy skin, thin layer of tender fat and meat) and they must have really selected the best quality pork where the fat was nicely layered so it left the meat juicy and tasty, while maintaining that all-important crispy skin. Dipped into the hot mustard that was dotted on the plate each mouthful was a delight of porky goodness.

Just go prepared with some warm clothes – it’s so cold there the restaurant offers patrons blankets !

Crystal Jade Golden Palace
290 Orchard Road
#05-22 The Paragon
Tel: 6734 6866

Open:
Mon-Fri 11.30a, – 3.00pm, 6.00pm – 11.00pm
Sat:  11.00am – 3.00pm, 6.00pm – 11.00pm
Sun and public holidays:  10.30am – 3.00pm, 6.00pm – 11.00pm

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Yum cha at Crystal Jade Golden Palace (Paragon)

In the seemingly never-ending search for good yum cha in Singapore, I think we finally hit the jackpot at Crystal Jade on the weekend.  When I say “good”, I have to admit that my search is to find the best replica for Sydney yum chas, so perhaps my idea of perfection is a tad skewed.

Yum cha is definitely better enjoyed with more than two people.  D and I have tried to go a few times (just the two of us) and it just means you don’t get to order the variety of food that makes yum cha so perfect for people like he and I who cannot make up their mind and basically want a bit of everything.

The restaurant is airconditioned to Arctic temperatures, which I never understand in Chinese restaurants (maybe they want you to eat faster so the turnover is high ?  Then again, this doesn’t look like the sort of place that relies on turnover, so who knows) and the menu limited, but consists of firm favourites – har gau, siu mai, carrot cake – and each one is done to Sydney-grade perfection.  My only comment was that the other yum cha staple – char siew pau – was a bit doughy and the char siew a tad too sweet.

The firm favourite for both D and I was the roast pork.  A small, delicate perfect square of 9 crispy pieces, not too fatty, not too dry.  Delicious by itself or dipped into the accompanying mustard.

All in all, I’d be happy to back there again and again each time the urge for yum cha hits me (which is pretty often, actually).  Hurrah !

#05-22, 290 Orchard Road S(238859), Paragon Shopping Centre
Tel: 6734 6866