Review - Galley by the Straits

Not too many words, following pictures were taken at a dinner hosted by Jimmy Sim, Managing Director of Galley by the Straits restaurant. 


Located inside the Sembawang SAF Yacht Club, 43 Admiralty Rd West, it is open to the general public, and a really good place to head to for a nice family dinner by the beach. Especially since it is but 4km from my home in Woodlands :p 


Prices also not bad, close to regular hdb void deck zi char price, maybe 20% higher, but you pay the premium for the lovely location (live piano music every saturday evening. Pianist played 3 hrs non stop okay....) Also, did i mention, parking is easily available and free?

Lovely sunset view just off the pier

double boiled seafood soup in a fresh coconut ($14 each)
It was really lovely soup. However I've had a soup really double-boiled in a coconut before and there is a difference. This one there is a subtle coconut scent when the soup is placed before you, but the coconut fragrance dissipates after awhile. The large dried scallop in the soup was very generous, but then it was still a little hard. Perhaps a little more double boiling could have brought this dish up a higher notch. A good start to the evening however.

large prawn, fresh and dried scallop, mushrooms

salmon dip with garlic toast ($18) - sounds ordinary, but it was a really pleasant surprise when the dip turned out to be... warm! It tasted really good and was flavourful without being all gloopy or sticky (or worse... freezer burned!) like some versions you might find. A good twist on a simple dish. Yummy!

Just a little one, pity coz i would have had more :p

Really yummy smoked salmon sashimi platter (large one $36). It was huge and impressive, and I was really excited to taste it because I could smell the smokiness but somehow it didn't look smoked. I have to say I wished the vegetables were arranged fresh though, because they were a little wilted. The salmon would have been really good wrapped in super fresh crisp lettuce...

How'd it taste? Like a really fresh sashimi, with a lovely smoky scent. Another coup for the restaurant for everyone seemed to really enjoy this course. The lovely thick slices disappeared really fast.

oooh.... yum....

Maybe i'm an odd one but I didn't like this course that much. The prawns might actually have been a little too big, the flesh was tough because it had to be fried for a little longer. Also, the combination was a little on the greasy side. The wasabi flavour of the prawn on the right was also a little muted... I guess this is for those who like large meaty prawns and less spice in their seasoning. (Yuen Yang Prawns $7/100gms)

Everyone thought it was some kind of yam ring, but it was a sweet potato ring. The flavours were good, but perhaps it is the nature of sweet potato, but it had a slightly gummy texture. Maybe mixing in some regular potato or yam might improve the mouth-feel. I liked the natural taste of the sweet potato though... hmm...

Juicy mango cubes and tender sea scallops were great though... even better if the broccoli was also added in so the colors and textures would contrast out more...

This dish was intriguing, presented in a very chinese restaurant style, turns out it was a spinach tofu in the center. I really liked it, it was smooth and silky and the fried skin a little chewy after being soaked in sauce... delectable texture and flavour.

Fish head curry was served in a claypot, the fish head really fresh and meaty. The curry, thick and rich, chinese style, was almost a velvet cream texture. The spice burned after the initial flavours sank in so you could really taste the balance. I would have happily have had just that and rice... I'm definitely taking my mum back for some.

Of course the meal had to have some crab. My favourite crustacean! I'm not a great fan of chilli crab because many versions tend to be too sweet, masking the taste of the crab. This sauce however was very well seasoned and tasted very good. It was mopped up very well by the fried mantou :)

This beautiful pepper crab was served at the same time as the chilli crab and wawwww... did it beckon... and of course, being the klutz that I am I had to have one fly out of my hands and land on my dress... I love crab and the crabs were good. Pity I was there with a bunch of strangers so i had to have some table manners. Next time, I'm bringing my family and i'm gonna dig in with both hands! promise!

PS. there was also dessert, but by then I was so full, operating my camera was beyond me... but i really liked the yam paste with coconut ice cream... yup... yam paste with coconut ice cream ok! droolzzzzz