That doesn't look like much above, but it was one of the best things that I've eaten in a long time. See, I originally came to this shop (18 Foch Road, 9632-6039) because they did Vietnamese barbecue. But one item on the menu stopped me in my tracks: the "sauteed squid teeth with butter and baguette" above. OMG, that sounded amazing enough that I dropped all thoughts of the BBQ and went straight for that instead.
It was awesome. Not only was it rich and savory, but they added just the right touch of spiciness, all of which fueled bread intake. Beer helped cut through the richness, which incidentally also came from little bits of pork lard interspersed among the bits of squid (presumably they were cuttlefish mouths). This was the perfect accompaniment for beer.
I'm really surprised that such a glorious dish isn't better known. Granted, all of that sodium, fat, cholesterol, and alcohol wasn't very heart-friendly, but it reminded me of LA's Killer Shrimp in the sense that it was done so deliciously savory, rich, and spicy that it just kept fueling carb consumption. BTW, they have chả cá Lã Vọng on the menu here too, so I still don't know if I'm ever going to get around to trying their BBQ.
Epilogue: I went back the next day to find that the chả cá Lã Vọng was unavailable, and the BBQ is pre-cooked for you if you're a solo diner (it was also a bit sweet). Sigh.
Thien Long vietnamese cuisine at Geylang Lorong 37 has an amazing deep-fried periwinkle dish where the mollusc is fried with heapings of lard and butter. I think it's "Winkle with butter and garlic" in the menu
ReplyDeleteThey also serve this squid teeth as well