my, that’s one bold statement to make, and i make it with utmost confidence. ayam is chicken of course.
in yesterday’s post regarding indonesian food, i had raved about a certain indonesian bbq stall at the plaza singapura food court. i was sure i had already reviewed it at some point, but a search through my entire blog revealed nothing.
well i happened to be at plaza singapura today, and as always, i paid a visit to the stall. its full name is “riverside indonesian bbq”. does anyone know if it has any relation with the riverside indonesian restaurant at clarke quay?
this stall is located at the innermost corner of the food court. it has been positioned at the worst possible spot in the entire food court. yet at any one time, it also has the longest queue of customers. doesn’t that say a lot? today, i had to queue behind a dozen people before i finally got my ayam panggang (grilled chicken).
Price: $4.30 (includes soup)
Dish rating:
if you’re thinking “whoa! that’s one sinful looking plate of calories”, well you are absolutely right! most of the people seated in the 20-meter radius of the stall would be eating out of a green banana leaf lookalike plate from this stall and 90 percent of them would tend to be men. but really, this dish is so good that it is totally worth every calorie and every gram of saturated fat!
for just $4.30, you get the rice, a bowl of soup, a triangular slab of omelette, and a large, juicy chicken thigh. to be honest, the rice, soup and omelette are just meh. but the chicken thigh is one of the best things ever! if there was a kingdom of food, this chicken would be wearing a crown (or a tiara).
you get the option of whether you would like to have curry ladled over the rice. i always say no, and ask for more black sauce instead. the black sauce is a sweet concoction that tastes so perfect i can find no fault with it. believe me, i’ve tried! and for the past 5 to 6 years, not once have i been disappointed. in fact, the consistently awesome plates of grilled chicken is one of the very few constants in my life. (whoa!)
of course, all this wouldn’t be complete without a good chili sauce. you get to scoop as much of it as you would like out of a large metal tin. it is extremely tasty and has just the right amount of spice!
this indonesian bbq stall is so popular, i think most of you have already been there. but each time i go there with a different person, i would realise that he or she has never heard of this place before. that’s what this glowing review is here for: to make sure that none of you (those in singapore at least) would miss out on this delicious goodness anymore!
by the by, it’s not just grilled chicken that you would find here. there are also other dishes such as curry chicken, breaded prawns, chicken satay (meat skewers), calamari, et cetera. but obviously the grilled chicken is the bestseller, and for good reasons too.
also in this series
May 17, 2007: Riverside Indonesian Restaurant - BBQ Extravaganza
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goes by the name veron (english) or wanting (chinese). a definitive leo born august 1, 1984. a solo traveler. loves cats, coffee, sensual music, yummy food and technology. when she's not at her job as an IS developer for the government, she's likely to be out dining, or visiting an interesting art gallery or event.
i agree that it’s suuuupppperrr delicious :D View all comments by sylv
NUS Engineering canteen serves the same food at much better prices. If I’m right, they were set up a few months before the PS stall. View all comments by G
Same kind of food, different kind of standards. Case closed. View all comments by Veron
i think the PS outlet is a branch of the restaurant. you should try the riverside indo restaurant someday. they have some sort of a alacarte dinner buffet for 6pax and above. and of course, some dishes good some dishes average. but the grilled chicken still rules supreme. View all comments by denise
I walk past the restaurant all the time but have not realised it’s actually related to this stall. I will definitely check it out. Thanks! View all comments by Veron
ooh Ive tried this too! sinful is right! especially that caramelized, charred bit on the top. Its not terribly glamorous, but dear me, its fantastic! The cues usually put me off, but i have been known to exercise patience, just to indulge in something this yummy! Im always amazed at how daring and open minded you are, to all kinds of food. Good on ya mate! View all comments by Fernando
Oh my goodness, I’ve visited the restaurant itself, and the chicken is absolutely Sedap! The skin itself is crunchy, and with the soy sauce slipping down the back of your throat with the thick, sweet taste, you’d be begging for NOTHING else!
And all that is if you can get past the calmari. It’s that good! Gosh, I’m fantasising about it right now even as I type! Wheeeee for good food!!! View all comments by pkchukiss
I see the pasyon and ferocity someone has in defending a stall that she has frequented for 5-6 years! Insist on Eng’s stall being better and soon you will feel her black and sweet sauce wrath! View all comments by Aristocrat
hi Veron,
i came across your blog a few days ago.i must say that u are really amazing and talented.lolx i guess u seen lots of compliments like this.i really luv ur blog.hope to see more of your artistic charms etc….really appreciate that u put in so much hard work to keep updating despite of being so bz.cheers all the best to u!! View all comments by Glittery
I am dying of Hunger!!!!
I need to go back to Singaport one of these days. I have not been to Singapore for more than 15 years.
For Food..I must go! Thanks for wetting my appretite in the middle of the nite half way across the Ocean! View all comments by Milton
I’ve tried before :) And yes, it’s really what you had described. I don’t think it’s related to riverside indonesian restaurant? But have you tried the food there? It’s really nice :) View all comments by Jacelyn
I used to eat the ayam panggang at PS so often that I just got sick of it after a while :P
Lesson I learnt: Dont overdo things hehe View all comments by mervkwok
at $4.30, what a bargain that is for such a delicious sinful fix. a wonderful grilled spiced tender chicken… once I discovered this gem in P.S., that’s the only dish I’ll go for if I am dining at P.S. foodcourt. you’ll need to try it to die without regret! View all comments by lucas
Hello!
Reading your blog all the way from China right now.
I miss the food in Singapore. Especially this stall in PS! It’s like a must for me everytime I go there. The sauce is superb!
Try the squid one. The sauce is the same as the chicken one if I’m not wrong. Both are just as nice.
oh man, I miss that stall a lot. View all comments by Jasmine
Awesome! I’m so, so glad I’m not the only die-hard fan that goes for this one dish whenever I’m at PS!
Jasmine: You’re in China! I sure hope you would be able to come back soon to enjoy all the Singapore food! View all comments by Veron
Yeah.. i gonna admit that the food is always the same since i tried it bout 3yrs back. Newly open branch is at wisma atria food republic. Can go try, standard almost the same bah.. View all comments by lucifer81
It was huge and I couldn’t finish it lol. View all comments by Mag
I had this again today! Usually I would finish the chicken and leave the rice almost completely untouched. View all comments by Veron
Hi! remember me? Its been long…the same occasion again. i was looking for food to dine with my family…and came across your site again! Its hard to find great halal food around…In the end, I ended up eating at “Mad Jack’s”. Its along Bukit Timah Rd somewhere. Its not that great, but considering its Australian meal size…how can I resist. Reminds me of when I visited Adelaide. Now, it has been our family dinner spot. Its unhealthy…but as you always did…excercise and dieting would help!
About the neckless I bought from u…she kept it somewhere as I predicted…Argh!!! Love your new upgrading, gal! U rock! View all comments by lancelot
lol doooood, I was wondering where you’ve been all this while! Mad Jack Cafe sounds groovy. I should probably check it out when I drop by the area! View all comments by Veron
Any idea if this ayam panggang has got the same taste as the one at Fork and Spoon in Toa Payoh HDB Hub? There’s one shop selling some Stingray Panggang, Sotong Panggang and Ayam Panggang. I love that shop. I think they cost around $3.50 to $4.50. Reminds me of Padang, Indonesia… View all comments by lancelot
I tried the ayam panggang from that stall at Fork and Spoon a couple of months back. It was just okay and didn’t really leave me with a deep impression. Maybe I’m too conditioned to the taste of the one at Riverside Indonesian BBQ! View all comments by Veron
That means it must be great! I should try it then…My wife always leave it to me to bring us for dinner…sometimes stressing me out because when I’m late at deciding where to go, she’ll just show me her sour face and forget the whole idea…Errgghh!!! That’s when I tried to surf the net and found ur site…again! Lol! Thanks Veron! For quite sometime now, we’ve been patronising the same cycle of eateries. I’m tired of them all now. View all comments by lancelot
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