[New] Indonesian restaurant in Collyer Quay

Indonesian restaurant openings have been few and far between, with the last notable one being Tok Tok Indonesian Restaurant which opened on Joo Chiat Rd in Jul 2021. I was thus stoked to learn of Nusa Indonesian Grill's recent opening in Customs House. Nusa is actually the "modernised" offshoot of Tambuah Mas, which has been thriving for four decades. Not having tried Tambuah Mas before and thus not having any prior expectations, I was able to approach Nusa with fresh, untainted lenses. Prior to arriving though, a quick Google search revealed a jaw-dropping rating of 5.0* over 90 reviews, so to say that I came with no expectations at all would be a lie.

Nusa is located in a building called Customs House which may not ring a bell to most, though CBD workers would probably be familiar with the popular Kinki Rooftop Bar with whom Nusa happens to be neighbours.

Nusa offers a choice of either alfresco or air-conditioned seating. The former provides scenic vistas of Marina Bay, though perhaps due to the rain, the latter was clearly the preferred choice for diners on the day of our visit.

Nusa's interior gives off "hipster cafe" vibes rather than that of a dowdy Indon restaurant which has been around for four decades. This refreshed look would probably appeal to the yuppie clientele in the CBD.

the beautiful bar display fronted by Balinese lights

A sprightly waiter in suit, with a personality as bright as the murals on the wall, came to take our order sans notepad or iPad. I was worried for him, as I was about to place quite a long order. Sensing my doubt, he pointed assuredly to his head with a smirk. As touted, he was able to recite my order back to me accurately, and even deliberately "missed out" an order just to "test" me. Such audacity! But props for his remarkable memory and sheer confidence.

A brightly-coloured mural, rivalled only by the personality of one of its waiters.

The food was served in quick succession – their beautiful plating and large portions eliciting oohs and aahs from around the table. For starters, chicken satay was served. Indon satay is usually alot leaner and drier than its SG cousin, but from four decades of experience, the owners of Nusa probably knew that this would not sit well with SG diners, so its version was far plumper and juicier than the usual Indon versions, resembling more a yakitori than a satay (in a positive manner).

The next starter to grace our palates was the highly-anticipated Tahu Telur (S$15++). A gigantic, glorious mound of tahu was served, interspersed with deep-fried egg in a lattice-like structure. Having been raised on an excellent rendition of Tahu Telur from the legendary HjH Maimunah in Joo Chiat, I was curious, perhaps even a tad doubtful, whether Nusa's version could at least match that very high bar set by Maimunah. Believe it or not, Nusa's version turned out to be even better than Maimunah's! If I were a Chemistry teacher trying to explain to my students what the hell a lattice structure was, I swear it'd stick with them for life once they sank their teeth into this slice of heaven. It was THAT sublime. To relegate this to a mere "side" dish in the menu does no justice to this dish – it could easily knock out many of the "mains".

Moving on to the mains. First up was the Ayam Bakar Taliwang (S$17++) – a juicy half-poulet glazed with a sweet sauce. A tangy green chilli sauce was served on the side to balance out the sweetness of the chicken glaze,. This dish was certainly decent on its own accord, but to be served right after the sublime Tahu Talur was like introducing Lee So-E after Shin Seul-Ki and Park Se Jeong on Singles Inferno S2E1, if you get the drift.

The Grilled Squid (S$22++) was not a dish that we had ordered initially, because Straits Times' review had commented on the squid being overcooked and tough. Our initial order of grilled scallops had the waiter returning to inform us that it had sold out, thus we went for the grilled squid as an alternative seafood. Perhaps Nusa had taken Straits Times' review seriously and had since improved on it, because the squid that we tried turned out to be far from Straits Times' description – every part of the squid was grilled to perfection, retaining the characteristic chewiness of squid but certainly not overcooked or tough. I'm glad to have given Nusa's grilled squid a chance instead of dismissing it simply based on Straits Times' review.

The next main was a very impressive-looking Ikan Bakar Jimbaran (S$32++). A whole fish was grilled and served in a medley of colours comprising chickpeas, pomegranate, tomato and lime. It also came with a cincalok-like dipping sauce. I like how well-grilled all of Nusa's dishes were – each and every one grilled to the perfect degree, neither undercooked nor charred. If I were a detective attempting to dig info out of a suspect, I'd just send the fella to Nusa for some grilling wahaha!

After we were done with the meats, next up came the carbs. The first carb was a rice dish called Udok Bakar (S$5++ each). This dish wasn't on the menu but recommended by the waiter. Each serving of yellow rice (presumably nasi kunyit?) was served wrapped up in pandan leaves, topped with quail eggs and coconut shavings. The presentation had a rather "cute" appearance, perhaps because it's a self-contained dish wrapped in a small packaging. Anyways, the rice was fragrant enough to be consumed on its own, but also went well with the grilled dishes.

The next carb is a quintessential Indon dish – Mee Goreng Special (S$20++). For the unitiated, Mee Goreng in the Indonesian context always refers to instant noodles, much like Ramyeon in the Korean context. Nusa's rendition of Mee Goreng was the most luxurious I've come across – the humble instant noodles was elevated by a smorgasbord of sunny side-up, keropok, satay, pickled lettuce and huge-ass tiger prawns. It was indeed a dish worthy of its "Special" suffix, a dish that would make any Indon makcik grin in approval.

To round off our meal was a dessert – Es Krim Cendol Nangka (S$9.50++). While a normal cendol is made of shaved ice drizzled with coconut milk, Nusa's version replaces the shaved ice & coconut milk with coconut ice cream. Simple but brilliant. The coconut ice-cream went perfectly with the nangka strips. Probably the priciest cendol I've ever ordered, but also the most satisfying.

After the meal, I could understand why this restaurant was rated 5.0* on Google. Every dish was executed to perfection, service was professional & brisk, and ambience was pleasing. Price did not appear cheap at the point of ordering, but once the food arrived it was clear that it was worth what we were paying for. If I had to cherry-pick, it'd be that the tables were spaced too closely for my liking. But with food this good, no sooner had I started tucking in did my proximity to the neighbouring table dissipate from my consciousness.

Nusa Indonesian Grill

Customs House #01-03

Daily 11.30am-10pm

ChewAndChill

[New] Indonesian restaurant in Collyer Quay

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