The Place Located at The Warehouse Hotel in Robertson Quay, it was my first time to Po Restaurant at The Warehouse Hotel recently, a modern Peranakan restaurant in Singapore which has been opened for almost a decade. The restaurant is located in a preserved 1895 heritage building as with the hotel, and it is a modern Peranakan restaurant today led by Head Chef Fredric Goh. 

Expect a dimly lit dining ambience for dinner at Po, where the space is not too big but cosy enough for couples or small dining groups. 

The Food Po just introduced a renewed menu as it focuses on modern Peranakan cuisine. 

My meal started with Po’s Classic Popiah (S$32), one of the signature dishes here. The idea of this dish is to make your own popish, so the condiments and ingredients are all laid out beautifully for diners to assemble themselves.

Prepared fresh daily, the popiah’s filling is hand-cut before being slowly stewed and caramelised over four hours, where the refreshed version has introduced crispy pork lard and sakura ebi. 

An interesting fact about Bakwan Kepiting With Abalone (S$15) is that it is a soup dish traditionally reserved for Peranakan wedding banquets and Chinese New Year reunions. Prepared from bone broth along with hand-rolled pork and crab meatballs, it is a comforting soup with minced pork, snow crab and prawn filling housed in crab shell, topped with abalone in a light double boiled broth with bamboo shoots. 

The Buah Keluak Pork Jowl (S$36) features tender iberico pork jowl braised in a rich fermented black nut and hand ground spice paste, served with fried dough fritters. 

For a vegetable dish, the Jantung Pisang (S$24) is quite a unique one as it is a banana flower which is slow simmered in a spicy coconut broth, then finished with tiger prawn and crispy popiah skin. It is quite spicy for me, though the flavours are good. 

One of the new signature dishes is Nasi Ulam (S$28), a Peranakan classic that is laborious to prepare. This dish requires 15 varieties of herbs, spices and savoury toppings where each ingredient must be individually sourced and painstakingly prepared before being folded through blue pea coconut rice. I must say this version is quite good, and a fun fact: it is also Chef Fredric’s favourite dish where he loved it so much that he tattooed the ingredients on his arm. This is passion to the next level. 

For desserts, expect the likes of Kueh Salat Ice Cream Sandwich (S$12 for 2 pieces), one of the three new desserts introduced on the refreshed menu where kueh salat is transformed into pandan ice cream folded with glutinous rice before sandwiching it between charcoal-grilled coconut love letter wafers. 

Alternatively, there are also options like Chempadak Crème Brûlée (S$14), a tropical twist on the French classic, and the Pandan Panna Cotta with Coconut Brittle (S$14). I generally find the desserts too sweet for me.

Rants Very limited on-site parking, and I do find the restaurant too dim for me. 

Will I Return Again? I think Po serves pretty decent modern Peranakan food if you are looking for a comfortable spot to dine in. The team does a modern take on Peranakan flavours, so if you like creative touches to traditional dishes, this is one spot to try. 

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

Po 
The Warehouse Hotel 
320 Havelock Road 
Singapore 169628 
Tel: +65 8971 3968 

Opening Hours 
Daily: 7am to 10.30am; 12pm to 10pm

Ranted by The Ranter