When it comes to seafood, one inevitably thinks of Clarke Quay or the East Coast. But here’s one seafood restaurant with a more unusual and less crowded location. Situated at the Grassroots’ Club in Yio Chu Kang, Naked Fish Shoppe is a local Western restaurant that serves a delectable range of fish and seafood. It’s halal too.

Despite the uniqueness of the location, it was the name that made me do a double take at first. The kinky-sounding “naked fish” is bound to stick!

While the ocean-themed restaurant may not boast a sea view, it does offer a nice garden view and a tantalising spread of fish. At very decent prices too! Halibut, flounder, snapper, barramundi and rainbow trout are just some of the fishies you can get here.

Grilled Norwegian salmon

Grilled Norwegian salmon
S$14.50++
Rating:

One fish that has won me over is the Grilled Norwegian salmon. Just looking at the sheer size of the fillet on my plate made me so happy :) the inner flesh is moist and has a nice shade of pink. It is accompanied by some boiled vegetables and a wonderful creamy herb remoulade sauce. The cream sauce tastes really good and literally makes this dish the cream of the crop.

You may think that the fish alone isn’t enough to feed a grown adult. But trust me, the portion is really generous and filling, and at the same time gives you a healthy dose of omega-3!

Stingray

Spicy Stingray
S$9.50++
Rating:

What a surprise find the sambal stingray is. Western restaurants rarely have it on their menu. I was a little sceptical initially as this is a dish normally eaten at hawker centres, best shared with 2 or 3 friends, then washed down with a tall glass of sugarcane juice.

Over here the stingray is wrapped in banana leaf and baked. The second surprise is that the sambal is actually good! It is also no-holds-barred spicy and gives quite a kick!

Broiled Australian barramundi

Broiled Australian barramundi
S$13.50++
Rating:

For those with milder palates, go for the broiled Australian barramundi. It is very fresh and lightly flavoured, so you can taste the natural flavour of the fish. No worries – there’s no fishy stench.


Aside from the largely Western menu, there are also Asian-style seafood like crayfish horfun and the aforementioned sambal stingray. If, for some reason, you aren’t too keen on the fish and seafood, you would also find a number of non-seafood dishes such as chicken wings and sirloin steak.

For all main courses you can top up $3.50 for a soup, small dessert (we got a teeny fruit pie) and coffee. Alternatively top up $5.50 to get an even better dessert – a yummy black forest ice cream sundae. The latter does offer quite good value for money. I would go for that.

Naked Fish Shoppe

The restaurant sports an ocean-themed decor with walls painted in ocean blue and ornaments that have been carefully picked out to match. These include the many life buoys affixed to railings and overhead lamps in the shape of boats. Plastic models of various fish species adorn the walls, clearly labeled as though to educate diners.

There’s even a replica of the Merlion at the entrance, which diners should find pleasantly familiar. I appreciate the fact that the restaurant tries to recreate an oceanic ambience. Such small touches of detail help to complete the whole seafood dining experience, don’t you think?

Naked Fish Shoppe ( Halal certified)
The Grassroots’ Club
190 Ang Mo Kio Avenue 8 #01-02
Singapore 568046
Tel: +65 6457 8223 | Website
Service:

Bus services: 13, 45, 70, 72, 76, 86, 162, 825, 851, 852, 853, 70X, 162X, 853C
Nearest MRT: Yio Chu Kang

Opening hours: 11am – 10pm daily