Shades of Hong Kong-style dining at Pi Food

NEW RESTAURANTPi Food

9 Penang Road #01-18 Singapore 238459 Tel: 8923 0632 Open daily 11am to 10pm

IF Pavlov's dog has its bell, Singaporeans have cha chaan teng. All it takes is a restaurant to install a chef with a Hong Kong passport, drop key words like "milk tea", "bolo bun" and "travel bubble", and we're off like salivating hounds before anyone can finish saying "...teng!"

Having skipped the Joy Luck and Tsui Wah craze, and the many iterations in between, we know we're late to the fried egg sandwich bandwagon. But we didn't realise how late until we stepped into the newly opened Pi Food. Imagine falling asleep in a cha chaan teng of the past and waking up in a futuristic canteen, being served wonton noodles by a tray-carrying robot who greets you with a perky "Hello, dear guest!" in a voice that's a cross between an automated voice machine and Chucky the killer doll.

Then again, Pi Food is named after the mathematical formula, and lives up to it with a decor that aims for industrial chic but ends up in stone cold indifference. Instead, it's up to the friendly servers to do what they can to lend a bit of warmth and entertainment as they run after the robot to ensure it doesn't douse anyone with hot milk tea in its manufactured exuberance.

Despite having many things that don't remind us of Hong Kong, there are some vague traces of it in the food, that appear like fuzzy fragments of memories in an amnesiac's mind.

Shrimp wonton noodles (S$10.80) bear a fleeting resemblance to Mak's Noodles - good because the noodles don't reek of lye and the soup isn't loaded with MSG; not so good because the noodles lack the springy bite and the soup is bland. But the wonton seem to know they need to compensate and offer enough bounce to satisfy.

The restaurant's main attraction appears to be its chef who hails from Hong Kong and claims pedigree as an ex sous chef of the original Lei Garden. The roast meats are a mixed bag. A combination platter (S$25.80) lets you taste three - iberico char siew that veers from juicy to dry; roast pork belly that is consistently dry but saved by a light crisp skin; and roast duck that exudes a delicate herbal fragrance and is juicy mainly near the bone.

A safe bet is stir-fried beef hor fun (S$13.80) which boasts some wok hei and the familiar tingle of sodium bicarbonate that's worked its way into the beef slices to tenderise and defy the laws of natural meat texture, and comforting dark-tinged noodles.

In fact, beef seems to be Pi's strong point with both the beef brisket (S$12.80) and five spice beef tripe (S$12.80) noodles offering a pleasant bounce which may not necessarily be natural but we like the texture anyway. Both share the same broth even if served separately, and the pieces of beef brisket and thick tripe require a bit of chewing, but are quite acceptable as a fuss-free snack.

Scrambled eggs, however, are its forte, and its nondescript sounding luncheon meat and egg sandwich (S$4.80) makes you wonder why you can't replicate the same creamy-runny eggs and salty luncheon meat served piping hot between slices of fluffy crustless bread at home.

It's a race against time to eat it before the restaurant's icy cold airconditioning blasts the warmth out of it.

Also fun to eat is the French toast (S$5.80) which features squares of egg-coated bread slicked with a thin layer of peanut butter and deep fried into crisp-fluffy bites to be dipped into golden syrup.

Dining in the restaurant itself is a no-frills and not the most engaging experience, but they do surprisingly good takeaway. Scrambled egg and char siew on rice with homemade XO sauce (S$16.80) travels very well, with the char siew retaining succulence and bite thanks to the rice which protects it from the elements.

Add the fluffy scrambled egg and a shoddy XO sauce with a grainy texture that is lacking in any real scallops or dried shrimp, and it's a fun TV dinner.

Same with the baked rice with curry chicken and cheese (S$16.80) where a potential clash of cultures ends up as a united nations of savoury, salty comfort.

While it's nothing to write home about, and certainly no love letter to Hong Kong, Pi food could use a lot more in ambience and hospitality to really be considered a restaurant of any ilk. With much of the charm of a cha chaan teng lost, it's up to the food to shine. It does hit home on occasion but it doesn't take mathematician to know that satisfaction wise, it doesn't really add up.

Rating: 6

WHAT OUR RATINGS MEAN

10: The ultimate dining experience 9-9.5: Sublime 8-8.5: Excellent 7-7.5: Good to very good 6-6.5: Promising 5-5.5: Average

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