Ting Heng @ Tiong Bahru (Blacklist)

This is an old and famous Teochew fish head hotpot in Singapore. Ting Heng Seafood Restaurant has been operating here since 1986, and our favourite place for fish head hotpot 鱼头炉 for many years.

I had many fond memories of eating here with my friends after our Friday drinking sessions. The warm soup and super fresh fish always were a great end to an enjoyable evening. I have not come here for over 6 year since the cluster of clubs nearby closed and Covid struck.

We ordered a small portion of their signature pomfret steamboat which came in a clear broth with watercress, seaweed, diced yams, and Chinese cabbage. We know we would be adding more stuff.

We held our breath in anticipation when the hotpot was served, but when the cover was removed I was rather disappointed by how much stuff was in there.

There were only 8 slices of pomfret filets for $50! Talking about inflation, but what matters most was the taste, right? Wrong again; the soup was murky, the quintessential yam pieces were not fried before putting into the pot, causing them to disintegrate.

When the beef came, we were skeptical about the freshness of the beef.

Only the daisy crown, commonly known as Tang-O was fresh and did not succumb to inflation.

They recommended their salt-baked kampong chicken which was another bad choice. The chicken was dry and seemed to have been left in the fridge for some time. The sauce that came was also badly mixed.

We ordered a refill of the red grouper, which was a 700g fish. It was very fresh but the way they have slaughtered the fish, every piece was full of bones. What a waste of a good fish.

So in conclusion, the standard has dropped, the service level was below par, and really not worth the money. Would not go even for nostalgia.

Ting Heng Seafood Restaurant
82 Tiong Poh Road #01-03 Singapore 160082

Visited Nov 2022