Welcome to another restaurant review. This time my father and I chose Rempapa in Paya Lebar. The reason is because my father has been there before, and I happen to know that the owner is none other than Master Chef Singapore judge, Chef Damian D’Silva. Opened in December 2021, it serves you some of Singapore’s long-forgotten dishes like Kai Fan and he also serves you some dishes called Singapore New Heritage like Pork Chop Curry Rice. It is called Rempapa because he is called the “Papa of heritage cuisine” and the word rempah is the spice paste all Singapore ethnicities use in their food.
Food
We ordered the Heritage Nasi Lemak. There are two major differences between the normal Nasi Lemak and the Heritage Nasi Lemak. First, there is no protein (like chicken or fish) in the Heritage Nasi Lemak. Second, the coconut rice in the Heritage Nasi Lemak is wrapped in banana leaf and steamed so the flavor of the banana leaf is transferred to the rice.
The nasi lemak was excellent. The rice is first soaked in coconut milk overnight before it is cooked and instead of the traditional Ikan Bilis (aka dried anchovy) the restaurant uses silverfish. I could taste the coconut rice and the egg yolk, and the silverfish added the crunch. The egg, though hard-boiled, had a runny yolk, and the rice became silky. But the sambal was too spicy for me.
Next, we had Kai Fan. In the 1960s, Chef Damien’s grandpa went to the hawkers to bring samples to Chef Damian. One of the dishes was Kai Fan. Chef Daimen’s version is an homage to his grandfather. The rice that absorbed the soup was really good. The combination of crunchy vegetables, char siew, and Chinese sausage was like ambrosia.
Another main we ordered was the Sri Lankan Chicken Curry with String Hoppers and Tomato Chutney. String hoppers are noodles dishes from South India made out of rice flour. When you have it plain, does not have much flavor on its own. But with the curry, it was delicious. The chicken was tender.
I was still a little hungry so we ordered Ayam Bakar. Ayam Bakar is a chicken dish cooked in coconut milk and spices before being charred. The grilled chicken with chili was delectable with a aftertaste of the spices. My father said this grilled chicken will go well with beer and that it was a perfect bar snack!
For dessert, we had Assorted Kueh. There were 6 different types of kueh available today. They were (clockwise from bottom right) - Kueh Ku, Sago Ubi, Pulut Bingka, Lapis Pulut, Talam Pandan, and Talam Ke Ladi. Overall I enjoyed the different tastes and flavors of each kueh. The Pulut Bingka was crumbly in the mouth. Talam Pandan was also divine., I did not like the taste of the gula melaka in the Talam Pandan when I put it into my mouth at first, but then the aftertaste was flavorsome.
Ambiance
Being a brand new restaurant, everything was shiny and new. The tables were spread apart so we could enjoy our conversation without hearing chatter from other tables. The waiters were very attentive and took the time to explain the dishes to me. We ate indoors, but there was outdoor seating also. Today was particularly hot but I think if it was cooler or at night, it might be fun to have the meal outdoors also. Maybe we can come again with my mother and little brother.
Verdict
This restaurant was one of the best restaurants I have been to. No flaw anywhere. I give this restaurant a 5/5! The reason is that I enjoyed tasting the different Singapore heritage foods. I think I have never had these types of dishes before and it was really eye-opening. I don’t know what dish I can try to DUPE, please stay tuned!
Located in: Park Place Residences at Paya Lebar Quarters
Address: 2 Paya Lebar Road 01-01/02/03, Singapore 409053
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