The Place I first visited Choon Hoy Parlor (CHP) when it was at its Beach Road location in 2024 and the restaurant by Singaporean Chef-Owner Dylan Ong has just relocated to Arcade @ The Capitol Kempinski. It is now Choon Hoy Parlor 2.0 with its new bigger space, a duplex interior with a mix of chairs and banquettes and communal tables with a heritage inspired design. 

For the uninitiated, the name Choon Hoy Parlor (CHP) was named after Chef Dylan’s beloved mother as a tribute, and a key addition to version 2.0 is a cocktail bar with the largest Baijiu collection in Asia, outside of China. 

The Food It is an expanded menu at their new location with the focus on Singapore Soul Food, a multi-cultural cuisine concept showcasing heirloom recipes and hawker classics, presented by Chef Dylan and Head Chef Benji Chew. 

Choose from the la carte dishes or value-packed set menus, where the a la carte menu ranges from cold and hot appetisers (from S$3) to house-brewed soups (from S$10.9); rice (from S$3); vegetable, meat and seafood dishes (from S$15.9); and desserts (from S$10.9). 

On weekdays, the weekday Local-style Set Lunch offers a 3-course option (S$18.9, 2 starters + 1 main) and 4- course option (S$24.9, 3 starters + 1 main). For groups of three or more, the Communal Menu (S$59.9/pax, minimum 3 pax) offers a curated selection of highlights from the a la carte menu, available for lunch and dinner. 

For a start for appetiser, I had the new Singapore Local Breakfast (S$8.9), which is lavishly topped with lumpfish caviar smoked with CHP’s fragrant xiang ge ge tea. The. Rad used is local bread from a bakery in Dylan’s childhood neighbourhood of Whampoa, spread with local coffee butter and a house- made salted egg kaya. 

A refreshing cold starter to have is the Marinated Kingfish (S$19.9), a ‘yusheng’ inspired dish where the Kingfish sashimi is dabbed with soy sauce then tossed in a sauce made with chilli oil, radish, lemon balm, She De Baijiu, and calamansi juice.

Another interesting take on something familiar is the new Oriental Charcuterie Board (S$25.9) where traditional Western charcuterie gets an Asian spin. Think house-cured XO pork lap cheong, duck liver sausage, waxed duck with apricot, and kampot pepper duck sausage, paired with crispy house-made you tiao (dough fritter) and tempeh. It is also served with sides like pickled mango with belachan, achar, and fu ru (fermented bean curd) and labneh yoghurt. 

The new Same Same But Different Pork Satay (S$16.9/1 to 2pax) (S$31.9/3 to 4Pax) presents satay a little differently from the varied types of accompaniments — crisp cucumbers, onions, fresh herbs like mint, coriander, and ulam, a sweet house-made pineapple jam, and punchy peanut sauce. 

You can have it any way you wish – pick the crepe skin and add the sauce and condiments along with the pork like a wrap!

For Consommé, try the new Morel Silkie Chicken (S$14.9/pax), a comforting bowl of chicken herbal soup where silkie chicken is double-boiled with morel mushrooms, cordyceps, honey dates, and dried scallops. 

The Mocha Prime Pork Rib (S$25.9) is an inventive take Singaporean tze char dish coffee pork ribs where the ribs here are char-grilled and glazed with a coffee glaze. The dish is finished with an airy egg coffee espuma inspired by the delightful Vietnamese egg coffee, as well as crushed pistachios, cocoa nibs, and sesame seeds. 

One of my new favourite dishes is the Assam Stingray (S$39.9) where the stingray is simmered in a Malay-style assam gravy made with tamarind, ginger, lemongrass, and lime juice. I love this gravy which is flavourful yet not too spicy. Overall, a light yet delicious stingray taste complemented with brinjal, okra, tomato, and pineapple. 

The new Buah Keluak Typhoon Soft Shell Crab (S$25.9) is also an easy dish to share which comes with crisp soft-shell crab tossed with an aromatic medley of garlic, shallots, dried shrimps, chillies, buah keluak, and breadcrumbs. 

For vegetables, the Chye Ber AKA Vegetable Ends (S$16.9) is a mix of offcuts of the day, green mustard, tamarind and tomato. The sauce goes particularly well with rice too.

For carbs, the Triple L Rice – A Lil Lard, A Lil Soy, A Lil Love (S$4) is a signature dish here where the short-grain rice is drizzled with soy sauce and topped with crispy fried pork lard bits. 

Alternatively, the other carb dish good for sharing is the Claypot Dry Laksa (S$18.9/2 pax) cooked in a claypot for added smokiness with their house-made laksa rempah. Served alongside beansprouts, fishcake, shrimp, and fresh cockles, and finished with laksa leaves, this version of dry laksa is delicious. 

For desserts, the new Trio of Orh Ni (S$12.9) is a trio of yam, sweet potato, and purple potato made with brown butter and maple syrup. This version sees coconut ice cream, taro balls, ginkgo nuts, and a pork lard tuille. 

The other more unique dessert option here is the Baijiu & Lychee (S$13.9) which features a cinnamon-spiced pineapple chutney infused with Baijiu as bedfellow to lychee flesh, lychee salsa, and a light lychee foam. A duo of pineapple and perilla sorbet and coconut ice cream are added too. 

Rants While I embrace the idea of reimagining flavours, some dishes work better for me than others in terms of trying to offer a different take from the traditional.

Will I Return Again? It is always nice to see Singaporean flavours elevated in a different way, and the new space of Choon Hoy Parlor is a nice addition to Cityhall if you are looking for a casual restaurant. It is great that prices are still kept accessible alongside the varied menu.

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

Choon Hoy Parlor 
15 Stamford Road, #01-84A, 
Arcade @ The Capitol Kempinski
Singapore 178905 
Tel: + 65 6266 0061 

Opening Hours 
Restaurant: 
Monday to Sunday: 11:30am to 3pm; 5:30pm to 9:30pm  
 
Bar: 
Sunday to Thursday: 11:30am to 11pm  
Friday to Saturday: 11:30am to 11:45pm  

Ranted by The Ranter