Samy’s Curry

Although the place was a bit hard to find, the food and service was very good! Part if the place has air con and part of it doesn’t. The night I went was busy so unfortunately we had to dine without the leisure of air conditioning. As for the food– naan was great, difficult to mess that up. They also brought us little chips and came around with a giant serving bowl of rice and curry. The curry that I ordered was around S$ 10, but they gave me a bowl smaller than my hand. I would come back again, but I wouldn’t say this is my first choice when I’m feeling like Indian food.

Quick and nice outdoor seating. Basically, everything tastes like rubber and like it has been sitting around for hours.

Great masala chicken!
My all time favourite.
They also have very good chicken liver but it is very very spicy.
The only other thing I eat at Samy’s is the fish head curry which is also good.
But for today it is masala chicken with briyani rice because they ran out of roti prata.

Excellent Indian food! Some of the best I have had here in Singapore. Serving it on a banana leaf is a nice touch as well. Highly recommend the briyani rice with with either chicken or fish curry. Butter chicken and chicken tikka were nice as well, and the butter naan was good enough for us to order a second round.
If you find yourself on Dempsey Hill looking for lunch, Samy’s should be in the discussion.

Old school style Indian curry fish head.
Decent parking space, and not air-​conditioned, but the wind flows through so you never feel hot (except from the spicy food). You get the food served on banana leaves, so it’s a novel place to bring your more adventurous guests.

I thought the food was incredible, the best curry I’ve had outside of India! The banana leaf really adds to the flavour

Its been years since I last came here. Years. The last time I had it, (pre-​Yelp days), I recalled it being just spicy and salty, and I honestly didn’t quite enjoy the experience. This time tho’…
Oh boy, where should I start? The banana leaf of course. The rice comes out, and they serve you the daal, and with your first whiff, then taste, even before the main dishes come out, you know you’re in a for a good day.
The lamb was to die for, the chicken 65 brought back memories of my days in Hyderabad, the black sotong, wow, what was in that sauce man?! Believe me when I tell you, the fish head curry was probably the most ‘disappointing’ dish of the day, and even that gets a 7.5÷10. Washed down with a mango lassi (just right, not overpoweringly sweet) and a lime juice after. I’m satiated.

A Singapore landmark since 1960, this place still has it. A charming location on Dempsey Hill, and a classic menu with all the South Indian hits. The fish head curry is a must try, you haven’t tasted curry in Singapore if you skip this one.

Honestly, the food could have been better-​but the ambiance was everything. Authentic cuisine served family style on banana leaves. Delicious Marsala-​fish or chicken. Great naan-​amazing young coconut. I loved all of the little sides that came with the meal. Overall an excellent ex-​pat Indian experience.

We came here on the recommendation of a Singapore resident who said it would be one of the best curry’s we’ve ever had… he wasn’t wrong :-)
Samy’s was just fabulous… if you are looking for a fine dining, five star, high end dining experience, this is not it ;-) but if you just want authentic Indian food and some of the best you’ve ever had, then you are in the right place…
The food is served on banana leaves and is very simple, but delicious… we tried about 6 different dishes (a bit overkill but we wanted to try so many things on the menu!)…
We absolutely loved Samy’s and will be back here in a heartbeat…

Not exactly what I was expecting, The restaurant seating is sort of communal, the food was good but overall was underwhelmed.

Been once and won’t go again! Ordered a number of differing curry’s and only enjoyed one, the chicken tikka! The worst was the mutton curry. The sauce was from a jar and not a good jar.
Only gets one star for it’s fish head curry sauce, but it ain’t worth the trip that’s for sure.

This is one of my favorite Indian restaurants anywhere. I like pretty much everything I’ve tried here, but I think the butter chicken is my favorite. It’s not always on the menu though… they only make it certain days of the week (i forget which). I’ve been trying to find it’s equal since I’ve left Singapore, but I’ve been unsuccessful. Every time I went there I left feeling extremely full, and extremely happy.

top notch indian!
the fish head curry is huge, i would recommend ordering the small, which is still more than enough to feed 6+ people. the fish head is tender, and the curry is very flavorful.
their other dishes are also excellent. they have this potato & fish puff thing that is fried heaven. their mutton is also flavorful and very tender. tandoori prawns were well prepared, although i’ve had better in London. the only thing I regret ordering is the masala chicken, which was a bit dry and not as flavorful as I like.

Samy’s is a great place to go when you’re looking for some Indian Banana Leaf action around the area. Although it isn’t the fanciest spot to bring a hot date, the proprietors have don’t a lot in making sure the place is clean while having efficient service.
They’re a fish head curry restaurant, but whatever you do, don’t order the fish head curry. I’m a simple man with simple needs, so I only order the Masala Chicken, a potato & fish puff (begedil), and the occasional vegetable curry. Pair that with briyani rice and the million free sides they give you, and you’re set for the night.
If you’re looking to cool down, they have huge pints of lime juice or fresh coconuts available.

Dempsey, an area obviously developed without any consideration for the needs of those without cars, has an uppity vibe that I’m not fond of. Which is why the interior of Samy’s — well ventilated and unpretentious — came as a surprise. A quick scan of the menu revealed that prices were reasonable, so that gave us free rein to do that overordering thing. The two of us opted for briyani over white rice (duh), one fish head curry turned into three protein-​based dishes, and of course we had to get a coconut each to quell the spicy.
Briyani Rice, $ 3.60 — The chickpea-​laden basmati rice, tinted yellow and orange with saffron, was fluffy and smelt of star anise and lemongrass. It was good, especially with the creamy dal and lightly spiced fried potatoes, but just shy of brilliant. Still, I was glad I had it on hand to combat the eye-​watering spiciness of the fish head curry.
Fish Head Curry, $ 20.00 for a small portion — A concoction of chilli powder, tamarind, mustard seeds and other spices, the spiciness of this powdery curry was of the eye-​watering, airway-​clogging variety. Tomatoes were used for thickening the consistency of the gravy and gave it a slight tang. The curry also contained hints of the sweetness of angkoli (the colloquial term in this region for red snapper) used.
As the dish was served steaming hot and the curry had numbed my tongue, I wasn’t sure how the fish actually tasted at first. Having been cooked together with the curry, the fish head here was less tender than what one would find in a typical Chinese fish head curry, where the fish head is steamed first before ladling the curry on top. It was only when the curry had cooled down to near-​room temperature that we detected a slightly fishy odour when eating the flesh, which indicated that the angkoli used here wasn’t all that fresh.
Mysore Mutton (dry), $ 10 for small portion — Although it shouldn’t be a good thing, we were quite relieved when the serving of Mysore mutton turned out to be tiny. Our opinions on this dish were divided. My friend complained that the mutton was dry and tough. I have to agree that the meat could be more tender, but I really enjoyed the aromatic dry curry paste that the mutton had been cloaked in. Consisting of mutton stock fried with (what else but) a whole load of spices and herbs, including powdered turmeric, coriander, fenugreek seeds, cardamom and chilli, the marinade was intense and permeated the mutton thoroughly, and the meat bore no trace of its signature gamey smell. Now I’m curious to try the wet version of this dish — perhaps that would solve the dryness problem?
Masala Chicken, $ 5.00 a piece — What we could agree on was that the masala chicken here was outstanding. Marinated with — you guessed it — too many spices to list, the chicken here was moist and flavourful. There were notes of paprika, garlic, ginger, tomato, cumin, and curry leaves. Flavourful might be putting it lightly; this was a flavour-​bomb and an absolute marvel. We threw caution (along with our distended bellies) to the wind and scraped all the meat off the bones.
Judging from the numerous tourists we saw in the restaurant, Samy’s Curry is the place to go if you’re looking to give your foreign friends a 101 on Indian cuisine. Service is quick without being brusque, and the food’s above average. You can pop by one of the neighbouring establishments for after-​meal drinks as well.

This time I followed the advice of the Lovely Planet guidebook.
I was looking at visiting Dempsey Hill but was not tempted by most of the place. The Guidebook however was citing Samy’s as an old simple indian restaurant, with cheap but good food.
And that’s indeed what I found :-)
The place is a little bit less visible than most restaurants in the area, but has a small terrace and a huge indoor place, with lots of long tables and a few round tables.
You enter, and a waiter takes you through the menu (most is already prepared and ready to be put on a plate for you) A huge choice available, also including crabs and others.
Service is very quick and efficient. A big leaf is put in front of you, and you are being served what you ordered on this leaf, and waiters come and offer you different vegetables, curry sauces for the rice, nan bread, etc… My tip: add the pumpkin :-)

I wanted this to be a 4-​star review. I really did.
But a 4-​star review, possibly even 5, would be based on my dining experience last year and unfortunately my experience last week just didn’t compare.
Despite the restaurant being only half full, we were seated by the toilets… and despite asking to move inside, we were dissuaded from doing so (apparently booked out? Hmmm I’m unconvinced).
Okay then.
The good… the tandoori chicken, the potato-​fish cake, and the beef vindaloo. The roe and baked fish so-​so. The fish-​head was better than Muthus, I’ll grant it that.
Once again, my bug bear. Luke warm dishes. How is it so hard to get steaming hot food?!
I thought service was as luke warm as the food.
I dunno, just wasn’t wowed this time. Maybe my expectations were too high, but unfortunately the food just didn’t live up to the memory. I would go back, just wouldn’t go out of my way.

Nice casual place for authentic Indian food. This place reminds me of Muthu’s Curry 20 years ago before it became what it is today. Nice to know that there are still some Indian restaurants in Singapore serving the food on banana leaves.

I’ve learnt not to order the prawns here. They really make your bill higher than it should be.
Other than that, it’s really like a high-​end coffee shop to be honest. Perhaps due to the fact they were one of the first tenants in Dempsey, there is no pressure for them to renovate.
The food is really good, the curries all have a strong kick and you know it is freshly made. I find dining on the banana leaves quite appetizing as it just adds to the visual attractiveness of the meal