Grandma’s

When I’m in the Wild West (of Singapore), it usually means my partner in crime is involved in the meal — because the only reason I’d be this far at a corner is because he lives in the area. I miss the Grandma’s that are more centrally located — mostly the Suntec and Novena outlets that I frequent.
I found Grandma’s a few years ago because of cheap beer! Well, as cheap as it gets in Singapore when Happy Hour is not available — like, early in the afternoons or later at night. At Grandma’s, it’s always Happy Hour prices for Tiger, Kirin and Erdinger and at less than $ 5 /​$ 9 per pop, it’s definitely a good deal for me.
Grandma’s has a menu of generally Peranakan-​inspired dishes, mixed with Chinese and Malay dishes such as char kway teow and Nasi Lemak — all of which are decent as my take is that the dishes are mostly slightly too salty in general. My all-​time favorite dish here is the Sago Gula Melaka (but then again, I like SGM from anywhere) — paired with an ice cold Kirin.
We walked past Grandma’s in the afternoon and saw that they had some promotion for a main + drink + dessert that was reasonably priced ($ 6.90 — $ 12.90) and I got lucky because I was craving pasta, and there was one dish on the menu that fit that bill. I have to say that the pasta actually was decent! I am highly picky about my pasta, especially since I got back from Italy a few years ago — only one place in Singapore actually satisfies my craving for real, but that’s another review for another day. I definitely give Grandma’s pasta props when it comes to taste. I wouldn’t fault the pasta itself because they probably cooked it instant noodle style, but ohwow — the sauce was definitely yummy.
The dish came with a leg of chicken, and that was awesomely yummy too. Grandma’s chicken has always caught my sense of smell, but I’m never hungry enough to order a rice set that has one, and have never wanted to pay for a piece of that chicken a la carte because the cost logically doesn’t justify the smell (~$ 7/​piece if I’m not mistaken). It was definitely well marinated because the juicy chicken leg not only smelt good, it tasted the part too!
My little tip here would be to request for their sambal belachan instead of having the sambal chilli that’s served on every table — you definitely won’t regret it. My small gripe is that the belachan is a little too salty for my liking but I’ll take that over the chilli whenever I’m given the choice.
Overall, I think Grandma’s is good if you’re just there for beer and dessert, or lunch but it’s generally overpriced for the portions that you get ordering a la carte. The only exception might be their Nasi Lemak dishes, those look really huge in terms of serving size but, I’ve only ever seen them from far (ie. on other patron’s tables).

This spot is located among the basement restaurant row in the mall at the Boon Lay MRT/​bus station. It is small, crowded, and fast-​paced, as are the restaurants in this mall, but otherwise it is great. Flag down a roaming server to place your order and the food will arrive fast. This is a great place for home-​style regional dishes. The beef rendang was excellent, with the right amount of spices and herbs. The lor bak is good and flavored as expected, but comes with a non-​standard honey sauce. However, the three cup chicken is overpriced for the amount of chicken included and wasn’t phenomenal in terms of flavor. Watch out for the unwanted, but charged to the bill, side plates that they leave on your table as you arrive or, like some kind of Solid Snake, manage to sneak onto your table when you are not looking. You must vigorously deny them and protect your pocketbook. There is also some odd pricing with the dishes. Some full meals cost the same as vegetable sides, while other meals are half the price. It doesn’t make sense. So, get the beef rendang and be savvy about your other choices. You will have a great meal.