Food Review: The Famous Kitchen At Sembawang | Sister Restaurant Of Capitol Piazza’s Famous Treasure

Posted on January 2, 2020 by theRantingPanda in Food

The Place Located along Sembawang Road, Famous Kitchen was featured on local television with many local celebrities rating this amongst their favourite Chinese restaurant in Singapore. Having recently visited and enjoyed my dining experience at its sister restaurant, Famous Treasure, I thought it would be interesting to make a visit to the original restaurant.

I was not surprised to find the restaurant’s setting being more modest considering it has been around for the past decade. Parking does not seem to be sufficient though, as the restaurant is located at the ground floor of a walk-up apartment development. There is valet parking service on offer, though I did not see any staff manning the counter during our visit.

The Food I was informed that the main highlights here at Famous Kitchen are their seafood selections, and unlike Famous Treasure, do expect less of the roast meats options. The menu is still very extensive, including couple of items which are unique to Famous Kitchen. One of the most instagrammable dish here is definitely the Oven-baked Volcano Chicken (S$58) which is served with rum and lit up, giving diners a visual show to complement the equally satisfying tender roast chicken.

A relatively new item on their menu, the Salted Egg Yolk Prawn with Italian Sauce (Seasonal Price) is light on the salted egg though. While the prawns are crunchy and fresh, I was not certain what exactly is an Italian sauce – though it definitely taste more like a mayonnaise-based sauce.

Tried this dish back at Famous Treasure, and was excited to have it again, the Steamed Fish with Preserved Vegetables on Hot Plate (Seasonal Price) is amongst the best dish I had here as well. Having said that, the sauce was a tad too sweet, and lacked the saltiness of the version I had back at Treasures.

You cannot go that wrong with Singapore’s favourite seafood Chilli Crab (Seasonal Price). The rendition here is competent, with the crispy mantou always going well with the chilli sauce.

A speciality here, the Crispy Leaves Kai Lan (S$16) makes a good choice if you need your greens.

Bee Hoon always does well when it comes to soaking in the broth, elevating the dish for the diners. Here at Famous Kitchen, they do it with the Lobster Braised with Bee Hoon (Seasonal Price). The bee hoon gets soaked in the lobster broth, and you get to enjoy this with fresh lobsters. This is my favourite dish from my meal here.

Rants The service here was not on a par with that of its sister restaurant, as the service crew were not as attentive and come across as weary. The pace of the dishes being served was rather slow, despite the restaurant not running at full capacity during my visit.

Will I Return Again? I heard raved reviews of Famous Kitchen prior to my visit, and perhaps that explained the high expectations of the restaurant. While it does fall short on some aspects, it is still a competent local zi char restaurant. For a better experience, Famous Treasures ranks above Famous Kitchen for sure.

This was an invited tasting, though all opinions expressed are our own.

Make your reservations instantly at The Famous Kitchen here. Discount dining vouchers available here.

TheRantingPanda says:
Taste bud: 3.5/5
Hole in the pocket: 4/5
Ambience: 2/5
Overall Experience: 3.5/5