Malaysia
Singapore
Thailand
Singaporeans, specifically curry fish head enthusiasts who regularly cross the Causeway, have probably dined or passed by Kam Long. This 42-year-old Malaysian business at Jalan Wong Ah Fook remains popular till this day, specialising in various parts of the fish doused in curry and served bubbling hot in a claypot. A second-generation member of the family has decided to push boundaries further by bringing his family’s recipe to Singapore.
Yang, 34, is sharing a stall space with Chef Long of Ocean Cartel at Food Tyrant kopitiam at Ubi Avenue 3. Ocean Cartel is operated by Lian Huat Seafood, which regularly does Facebook Live streams from Jurong Fishery Port. Since their seafood supply is guaranteed fresh, Yang felt that it resonated with his branding, as his family business also collaborates with the fishing ports in JB.
Yang worked for his father at Kam Long Ah Zai for 28 years before opening his own stall, Uncle Yang Curry House, which is still operating to this day. His other siblings have taken over the business and are running the show in Malaysia.
But hold on, some of you may be asking — how about the now-defunct Ah Fook Street Kam Long Curry Fish Head that opened in Yishun previously? “Oh, they just took our brand’s frozen curry packs to do the cooking,” Yang shared with me.
Since Food Tyrant kopitiam already has a fish head stall, Yang decided not to be rivals with them and sells a variety of other dishes instead.
The menu here isn’t fixed as Yang takes whatever fish and seafood available on the day. You can call it a seafood ‘blind box’ if you like. Varieties include White Snapper (S$8 for 300g), Flower Grouper (S$9.50 for 300g), and more.
We started off with the Curry Stingray Pot (S$20.90 for 2 pax), which was loaded with stingray chunks, long beans, cabbage, beancurd skin, tomato, and okra.
The curry was rich and robust, yet pleasantly palatable — the kind you wouldn’t mind slathering generously over plain rice. The stingray itself was fluffy and I was blown away by its freshness.
The Curry Fish Pot (S$20.90 for 2 pax) was just as satisfying, and featured fresh and pillowy pieces of sea bass with the same accompaniments as the Curry Stingray Pot.
Why not try some of Chef Long’s dishes, too? We were amazed by the Steam Stingray with Homemade Nyonya Sauce (S$8). The vibrancy and robust spices of the Nyonya sauce was refreshing and boasted strong notes of rojak flower, perfectly complementing the clean-tasting stingray. Just S$8 for this portion size? What a steal!
The Seafood Platter (S$7) was steamed in a Teochew style, filled with prawns, lala, and squid. The quality and freshness of the seafood here deserve a truckload of praise. The prawns were very plump and firm, and the lala, thankfully, didn’t contain annoying bits of ‘crunchy’ sand (if you know what I mean).
Don’t forget to help yourself to the homemade green chilli sauce that Chef Long specially makes to pair with the seafood — it tastes just like the solid ones from Thailand. I highly recommend it!
If you enjoy fresh fish and seafood or want to savour Yang’s various curry claypot dishes, head down to Ocean Cartel today!
Curry Cafe: Secluded HDB void deck eatery with over 60 dishes like curry chicken & $1.20 prata
