Dragon Bowl, Marina Square
Let me tell you guys a little about my all-time favourite Chinese restaurant here in Singapore, Dragon Bowl.
Being from a Cantonese background, I tend to always gravitate towards Cantonese-style cuisines and Dragon Bowl definitely serves it up amazingly.
I would always come here for some comforting food when I’m feeling down or when I want to celebrate my birthday. The great thing about Dragon Bowl is that it’s an all-time friendly place that’s also perfect for those family dinners.
This time, we’re over at the Marina Square outlet, which has an exclusive 30% off ALL DIM SUM during lunch EVERYDAY (11am to 2.30pm)! But this offer is only until the end of the month (31 December).
Let’s take a look at some of their dim sum they have here. You’d be so spoiled for choice with over 33 different dimsums to choose from! But alas out tummies can only take in so much. So here are a few that we sampled.
Every dimsum meal is never complete without a Steamed Siew Mai with Fish Roe ($5.30). I would say that this is only of the best siew mais I’ve had in Singapore. The meat was nicely marinated and wasn’t chopped too finely such that there were still chunks of meat in it along with the sweet water chestnut!
Another popular must-have dimsum dish that goes hand in hand with siew mai is the Steamed Shrimp Dumpling ($5.50) or as the Chinese would say har gao. Kudos for the fresh ingredients used!
Add some greens into your dimsum lunch with the Steamed Jade Garlic Chives Dumpling ($4.30). I personally love chives and enjoyed this jade-lookalike dimsum. But in terms of flavour, it’s milder compared to the siew mai. So, I would suggest to have the vegetable dimsums before starting on the meaty ones.
Another vegetable dimsum is the outstanding Steamed Violet Vegetable Dumpling ($4.30). This purple dish comes with a filling of various vegetables wrapped in a violet crystal skin. Similar to the previous vegetable dimsum, it didn’t have as strong as a flavour compared to the meaty ones.
Next, we had the Crispy BBQ Pork Pastry ($4.50). I loved that the pastry was super flaky and the BBQ pork filling (char siew) wasn’t too sweet. But I did find that the yolk wash on top of the flaky pastry did give out quite a strong “yolky” flavour. Nonetheless, I quite enjoyed it.
If you’re looking for something spicy, you absolutely must-try the Poached Northern Mala Dumpling ($4.30). I thought the dumplings were pretty tasty but the magic is in the sauce. It doesn’t taste like your typical mala with all the peppercorn. Instead, this is filled with chilli and has a vinegar-based sauce. My lips were throbbing from the spiciness but I was still reaching for more.
Here’s another popular dimsum dish – Stir Fried Carrot Cake with XO Sauce ($6.50). In Dragon Bowl’s menu, this dish is supposedly spicy, but it wasn’t the least bit spicy in my opinion. Definitely nothing compared to the Mala Dumplings. But the carrot cake was cooked well and had a distinctive “wok hei” flavour that everyone loves.
Chee Cheong Fun is also commonly ordered during a dimsum meal, but Dragon Bowl one-upped this traditional dish and introduced the Fried Shrimp Rolls Wrapped in “Cheong Fun” ($6.50). This was just amazing. Think: soft “Cheong Fun” skin on the outside and crispy rolls in the inside. I was shocked and pleasantly surprised with this play of textures.
I'm personally not a fan of yam or taro in general because of its texture, but the Claypot Taro Cake with Preserved Meat ($4.30) was pretty good. I liked that the preserved meat gave it a stronger and more fragrant flavour.
Here’s a new addition to Dragon Bowl’s menu – Crab Roe Live Lobster Golden Porridge ($38). This dish comes in a pot that’s good to serve about 6-8 people. I especially loved how the lobster was so fresh! Plus, there’s a good amount of crab roe in the porridge!
For some entertainment during your meal, the Flaming Chicken ($19.90) is a must! Only available for the month of December, the name of this dish is a word play for the word “turkey” in Chinese.
Fair warning though, this chicken is doused with LOTS of alcohol and set on fire. Indeed a very boozy chicken dish.
For a limited time only! DBS and POSB card members will get to enjoy the Flaming Chicken at only $1 until 31 December 2017 when you spend a minimum of $80 in a single receipt.
Don't forget about the 30% off dimsum during lunch (11am to 2.30pm) too!
So, what’re you still doing there?! Make you way down to Dragon Bowl NOW!
Dragon Bowl #03-129A Marina Square, 6 Raffles Boulevard, Singapore 039594 Tel: +65 6858 1588
Opening hours: Mon to Fri – 10.30am to 10pm Sat to Sun – 10am to 10pm
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