Enjoy Eating House & Bar: Hearty Local Dishes With Strong ‘Wok-Hei’ At Restaurant-Bar In Jalan Besar

If you like your meals with a good dose of nostalgia, Enjoy Eating House And Bar within Kam Leng Hotel is the place for you.

This resto-bar in Jalan Besar serves up homely local dishes that are sure to bring back memories of comforting meals with your family.

Chef Joel Ong carefully curates the menu here, creating dishes with the aim of bringing a smile to diners’ faces. He wanted to return to his Singaporean roots after a previous stint in a Thai restaurant.

And what’s more iconic than the distinctive wok hei flavour we find in many zi char dishes? He wanted to keep traditions alive, by bringing this familiar aroma and cooking technique to the restaurant.

One of the famous dishes at Enjoy Eating House And Bar is Chef J’s “Te Kar” Bee Hoon (S$14). Inspired by the huge pot of te kar (braised pig’s trotters) that his grandma used to make, I’d recommend slowly savouring this comforting dish.

Made with home-made tender braised pig’s trotters atop a plate of wok-fried bee hoon, this dish is one of their four signature dishes (also known affectionately as 四大天王).

Chef Joel reduced the strong flavours in this dish to appeal to his customers at Enjoy Eating House And Bar, as not everyone would be comfortable with overly bold or heavy notes.

Each bite of pork was so soft that it simply fell apart in my mouth. I particularly enjoyed the fatty layer which melted without much chewing.

The bee hoon had a really intense wok hei aroma that I could smell even before digging in. I liked how each strand was springy and not too dry, a sign of it being stir-fried to perfection.

The chilli crab is an iconic Singaporean dish, but eating it is a messy affair. Chef Joel came up with the idea of Singapore Style Chilli Prawns (S$24, + S$2 for four mini mantous) for a twist on chilli crab that’s easier to eat.

This dish comes with juicy pan-seared prawns, making it a fuss-free version of chilli crab. With a chilli sauce made from Chef Joel’s own recipe, the Singapore Style Chilli Prawns packed a flavourful punch.

I would’ve preferred the sauce to be slightly spicier, but that’s just a personal preference for all things mouth-numbingly hot. I liked how these huge and succulent prawns were partially deshelled to make consuming it even easier.

If you’re craving something warm and soupy on a rainy day, Chef J’s Signature Brandy White Fish Soup (S$10) is sure to perk you up.

This bowl of smooth collagen-rich fish soup achieves its milky consistency after hours of boiling fried fish bones. Can you believe there’s actually no milk added? Chef Joel uses local fishes for this soup and adds a shot of brandy for extra oomph.

I really loved how creamy and rich the broth was, with a generous portion of soft and flaky fish chunks. The brandy wasn’t overwhelming, giving the soup a slightly spiced aftertaste.

For those who want something with more bite, Chef J’s BBQ Pork (S$19) will satisfy your meat cravings. The pork slices are grilled till slightly charred while still staying juicy and tender. Each bite released a burst of juices and a lingering smokiness on my tongue — no wonder it’s a crowd favourite!

Don’t forget to dip the pork slices into the special sauce, which includes over 20 ingredients. This chilli sauce has a sweet tamarind base, which went really well with the savoury and fatty pork slices.

If you’re here with a bigger group, order the Crispy Fish With Chef J’s Red Curry Sauce (S$42 for a whole seabass, S$24 for a filleted catch of the day). This is another Thai-inspired dish, and we had it with the whole seabass.

Fried to crispy perfection, the seabass was flaky and buttery with a firm texture. I really liked how I could just spear a chunk and pop it into my mouth, crispy fish skin and all.

The red curry sauce was also fragrant and rich, with enough spicy kick to set my taste buds tingling. I’d definitely recommend this for all your spice fiends out there.

My mother always reminds me to eat my greens, which is why we also tried Chef J’s Ugly Cabbage In Fish Sauce (S$14).

This simple vegetable dish may look “ugly”, but I really enjoyed it. Refreshing and healthy, each bite was crunchy and slightly sweet. A great accompaniment to the rich flavours from the other dishes!

No meal is complete without dessert, so we tried a traditional bowl of Teochew “Orh Ni”(S$5). Made with sweet yam paste, coconut milk and pumpkin paste, the orh nee had gingko nuts scattered within as well.

Unlike most renditions of this Teochew dessert that gets too jelak after a few spoonfuls, this version from Enjoy Eating House And Bar was rather refreshing. I even managed to finish the entire bowl by myself!

If you’re looking for something more unique, why not try the Chendol Panna Cotta (S$8)? This Italian twist on the classic Singaporean dessert comes with pandan jelly noodles and fragrant gula melaka atop sweet coconut cream pudding.

I liked this as well, though the pandan jelly noodles were a little chewier than I expected.

Dining at Enjoy Eating House And Bar feels like coming home to a comforting warm meal. Carefully created and skilfully prepared, the homely dishes are great for sharing with friends and family.

For those who are looking for a little excitement in the evenings, this restaurant even screens live football matches! With S$10 pints during Happy Hour until 1am, you can gather your football kakis for late-night suppers and a match.

Expected Damage: S$10 – S$30 per pax