Flavours from NORTH SOUTH EAST WEST
Located in the heart of Marine Parade, NORTH SOUTH EAST WEST is one of the few fusion vegetarian cuisine restaurants located in the East. Though some dishes are unavailable (possibly for the time being), there is still quite a decent choice of dishes categorised under the sections of Rice, Noodles, Western and Side Dishes on the menu.
One highly commendable dish is the Herbal Mee Sua Soup. Served in a hot pot, the soup is flavourful and fragrant, thanks to the good quality herbs which they used to brew the soup. To top it off, the Mee Sua (vermicelli) is smooth and silky – you barely need to chew before it vanishes in your mouth!
Next up is the Fo Tiao Qiang (Buddha jumps over the wall). Personally, I’m not a fan of this creative dish that is well-known among Chinese Emperors in the past. But, to have it vegetarian-styled pretty much appeals to me, so I decided to order it and see what goes inside.
Ha and yes, all the types of seafood that are supposed to go into a non-vegetarian Fo Tiao Qiang, go into this one too. You can find mock abalone, sea cucumber and scallops in it. The soup is starchy and yummy. For those who are concerned with the amount of MSG (or ajinomoto) used in it, you can be rest assured. They believe in taking your health a step better, so MSG is off-limits.
One ingredient which I often see in the soup dishes served at NORTH SOUTH EAST WEST is Wolfberry, a traditional Chinese herb known for its nutritious values and antioxidant qualities. So ladies, trot down the restaurant for some tasty treats good for your complexion!
To take my vegetarian experience at NORTH SOUTH EAST WEST a bit further, I went on to try two side dishes: Crispy Mushroom and Thai-style Crispy Beancurd.
Dressed with mayonnaise, the Crispy Mushroom is served piping hot, and cute. You can expect bits of oil (which I’m sure is healthy too) splattering onto your tongue at the first bite. Take a look inside and it’s a button mushroom peeking out coyly at you. The taste is both heavy (comes from the fried outer layer) and light (comes from the boiled button mushroom).
After all the thumbs-up, it’s a bit disappointing that the Thai-style Crispy Beancurd isn’t a wow. But it’s interesting to find garlic chilli sauce that you commonly use for Chicken Rice generously spread over the beancurd. It’s fairly good but perhaps, not a must-have.
Behold, the sweets are on the line after the savoury! I tried Sweet Osmanthus Plum Tea and Eight Treasures Qing Tang. After a sip of the hot Osmanthus Plum Tea, I’m totally bowled over. It resembles any cup of black coffee, but this sweet and sour tea now proudly sits on my must-have drinks list whenever I need a quench!
The cooling Eight Treasures Qing Tang is great for those who are looking for a refreshing and sugary charge. It is not too heavy for dessert lovers who are worried about the extra inches on the waist. In fact, it is nutritious, with longans and other crunchy ingredients to munch.
The best news is, all in all, my meal costs only slightly over $25! The average price of each dish falls comfortably between S$4 and S$10, so feel free to get more dishes on your table.
NORTH SOUTH EAST WEST is located at Blk 89 Marine Parade Central, #01-750, Singapore 440089 (Near Parkway Parade).
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