99 Thai Story Kitchen, Bishan: “It’s a pity I had to share this humble portion with my partner”

With our borders still limiting leisure travel, there’s one country that I’ve been hearing that people are missing the most: Thailand.

Known to many Singaporeans as a place for cheap shopping, Insta-worthy cafes, and delectable Thai seafood, it’s highly likely going to be one of the top South-East Asian destinations that Singaporeans are eagerly waiting to travel to once travel restrictions ease.

In the meantime, there’s 99 Thai Story Kitchen at Bishan, dishing out affordable and mouth-watering Thai dishes that’ll tide your cravings till you hop over to the ‘Land of Smiles’ for real.

What I tried

To start, you can’t go wrong with a generous bite of Homemade Thai Seafood Cakes (S$12 for four pieces). These thick, mini doughnut-shaped snacks are a great accompaniment to your meal and aren’t simply all breading and no filling.

The insides were full of mixed seafood meat—although I’m unsure which seafood they used—and the breading was still crisp, even after the commute from the restaurant to my doorstep.

Continuing with crunchy sides, they also serve Crispy Pork With Garlic (S$8). I loved how they were both crunchy and chewy, so there was plenty of textural pleasure coming from a single, simple dish. Also, the garlic notes weren’t overpowering, which is something I wish it carried more of, but that’s just my personal preference. Overall, I didn’t find this appetiser impressive.

Their Creamy Butter Chicken (S$10), on the other hand, was superb. It was satisfyingly juicy, creamy, and had a lip-smacking fattiness that made me want more. Besides being as buttery as its name promises, it also carried a sweetness that was unexpected but welcoming.

I could easily imagine myself ordering this and enjoying it with warm rice, a fried egg and a healthy drizzle of soya sauce.

Their Thai-style Claypot Prawn With Vermicelli (S$16) was a fragrant, garlicky number that I wish I could’ve enjoyed more. I reckon if I were dining in at 99 Thai Kitchen Story, I would’ve been able to since I assume that the time it took to travel to my home dried out the noodles slightly.

Nevertheless, the noodles remained springy, with heady notes of garlic that I thoroughly enjoyed. There could’ve been more prawns, but considering this would be a dish you’d order in addition to others, I was still satisfied with it.

I have to say, their Tom Yum Red With Seafood (S$8) was a doozy; it left a fiery tingle and would certainly satisfy every spicy lover’s penchant for pleasurable pain while sipping on bright orange tom yum. For its price point, it is a steal, especially given the ingredients that the soup kept so well hidden beneath.

Even though my tolerance for spicy food isn’t the best, I still kept going back for more sips because it was such a robust soup. I could taste the lemongrass, chillies, and seafood sweetness all in a single slurp.

The main star of the show was definitely the Thai-style Claypot Crab With Vermicelli (S$32). The vermicelli is packed separately from the crab and broth, which I really appreciated. The broth was buttery (almost creamy!), silky and had a nice sweet finish, which amplified the crabmeat’s natural sweetness.

For its price point, there’s absolutely nothing to be critical of, given that there was at least an entire crab served—I forgot to count how many claws there were as I was busy enjoying every last morsel.

The crabmeat peeled off the shell effortlessly, signalling utmost freshness. My recommendation is to keep the excess broth and use it for another noodle dish the next day; the crab’s sweetness really came through the second time enjoying it, and I would highly recommend this dish!

Let’s not kid ourselves with trying to stay away from dessert, especially since Mango Sticky Rice (S$5) is a must-order when digging into Thai cuisine. I must say, it’s one of the few things that I miss while being unable to travel to Bangkok, but this really helped keep my cravings in check!

The glutinous rice was satisfyingly sticky without being too tough, and the mango was mildly overripe so its saccharine sweetness was punchy and delightful.

It’s a pity I had to share this humble portion with my partner, as I could’ve easily scoffed this down alone. With that said, you may want to order a few of these if you’re planning to cater to the entire family; everyone will want their own, I guarantee.

Final thoughts

The food from 99 Thai Kitchen Story was honest and delicious, and sometimes that’s all you need from a restaurant to be a hit. With its numerous family sets, it also makes feeding the family a breeze and there’s sure to be something for every palate.

Be sure to keep checking their Facebook page for the latest delivery promotions such as their latest S$88 promotional set (U.P S$128) (for four pax), where you can savour some of their premium signature dishes such as Crab Bee Hoon Soup (500g), Stir Fry Prawn Salad, Fried Pork Belly with Garlic, and plenty more. On top of that, they’re also currently giving away one portion of Seabass with Lemon Garlic with every order of the promotional set.

Expected damage: S$10 – S$30 per person