[New] Zichar restaurant in United Square

When one thinks of zichar, images of dingy, non-airconditioned eateries, efficiently churning out dish after dish with wokhei, often come to mind. Crown Prince Kitchnette, a new restaurant in United Square, aims to debunk that stereotype by offering zichar dishes in a comfortable environment. It's opened by a Singaporean, but dishes out Msian-style zichar.

Look out for the giant words "太子" which means "Crown Prince" in Mandarin

Stepping into the restaurant, I immediately felt a sense of déjà vu, as though I had been here before, but obviously it could not be as it's a new restaurant. My suspicions were later confirmed by my dining partner – that this space was formerly occupied by Duckland.

the layout of the restaurant appeared familiar to me as this unit was previously occupied by Duckland

Although little had changed by way of layout, the interior was decked out in the style of a modern Chinese restaurant, with Chinese calligraphy plastered across the walls.

little had changed by way of layout, though the decor is now that of a modern Chinese restaurant

The first dish to arrive was "Chao Ta" Beehoon – a very quintessential JB dish. "Chao Ta" means "charred" in Hokkien/Teochew, and is a nod to the charred surface of the dish that has been in contact with high heat for some time to produce that wokhei. Crown Prince's version may be a misnomer as it was not charred at all (a good thing as charred = carcinogenic), but do not be deceived by that lack of char, for the beehoon was imbued with that distinctive wokhei, and was bursting with so much flavour from the seafood "zhap" which had been fully infused into the beehoon. Bonus marks for being not overly oily or loaded with MSG. Having tried several renditions of this dish both locally and in JB, I dare say that Crown Prince's version ranks right up there in my charts, and would recommend this dish as a must-try should you visit this restaurant.

Signature Crispy "Chao Ta" Beehoon with Seafood (S$10.80++)

Next up was Golden Prawns with Popcorn (S$16.80++). I was half-expecting a dish resembling "Popcorn chicken" except with the use of prawns instead of chicken, but no, it was literally prawns, and popcorn! The prawns were deepfried to perfection and coated evenly in a rich salted eggyolk sauce, which paired with the basil leaves in a classic combination. While I enjoy eating popcorn on its own, I'm unsure what value-add does the popcorn bring to this dish which is already rather complete on its own. If I may borrow the Chinese idiom "画蛇添足", this popcorn is like an "extra" piece of a ingredient which is not crucial and perhaps even a distraction to the core part of the dish, unless it was a deliberate intent by the creator to interpret "popcorn" in a very literal manner.

Golden Prawns with Popcorn (S$16.80++)

Next up was the Homemade Tofu with Crab (S$10.80++). Four pieces of fried beancurd was bathed in a glistening sauce thickened by corn starch, flanked by some boiled broccoli to serve as a contrast. While the portion of this dish was just nice for two pax, a larger group might find themselves having to contend with at most one piece of beancurd for each pax.

Homemade Tofu with Crab (S$10.80++)

The last dish, 石斑 (seasonal price), took substantially longer than the rest to arrive. One of the staff translated it as "Coral Trout" but when I googled it, it actually translates to "Grouper". Nomenclature aside, the staff recommended that we order this fish steamed either HK style or Nyonya style, as it was freshly delivered from the fishing port, and having it deepfried would not do justice to its freshness. We opted for the Nyonya style which is much less common. It turned out to be a good choice, for the gravy was thick and rich. It resembles Assam most closely, though having tried Assam fish before, this Nyonya sauce tasted somewhat different from Assam.

Steamed Grouper in Nyonya Sauce (S$37.40++ for 550g)

Crown Prince Kitchenette is relatively quiet during weekday lunches. My hunch is that office workers do not typically eat zichar for lunch, and this restaurant might see larger crowds after work, or during weekends. But do not be put off by the apparent lack of crowds, for the food quality here is of high standards, especially the "Chao Ta" Beehoon.

Crown Prince Kitchenette is relatively quiet during weekday lunchtime

Crown Prince Kitchenette

United Square #B1-09/64/65

Daily 11am-3pm, 5-10pm