Chinese New Year Part I | Part II | Part III | Part IV | Buffet | Takeaway

Tian Fu Tea Room at Parkroyal Reunion Imperial High Tea

Adjacent to the Si Chuan Dou Hua Restaurant, Tian Fu Tea Room carries the distinction of being the first teahouse within a restaurant in Singapore.   

This zen looking place is serving a high tea set menu that provides families an alternative way to celebrate the new year.  Comprising of eight handcrafted dim sum items, the menu includes yusheng that can be customised to the party size.

Choose from a wide variety of teas such as West Lake Long Jing Green Tea (西湖龙井茶), Ginseng Oolong tea (参须乌龙茶), High Grade Pu-er Tea (普洱茶) or Bai Hao Silver Tea (包好银针茶).  There is certainly something for everyone. In particular, my favourite is the West Lake Long Jing Green Tea as it is light and refreshing. There is a tea master by the side to explain the benefits of each tea and to teach you how to brew your own cup of tea.

To bring in the year of the rat, the chefs decided to create a steamed dumpling with diced abalone and minced meat (像生吉鼠) in the shape of a rat.  Unfortunately, the taste was a letdown as the outer skin was a tad too thick.

This steamed pumpkin with yam cake (南瓜香芋三色糕) was much better – the pumpkin and yam was very smooth, topped off with the radish that gives the dish its savoury taste, one of the highlights of the afternoon tea.

This steamed siew mai with scallop is a staple at most dimsum places, and this was done well.

Carving the dumpling into the shape of a goose (天鹅莲藕酥), this dish was aesthetically pleasing, but the taste was somewhat disappointing as the foie gras flavour did not come through and tasted simply like a creamy lotus pastry.

The meal ended on a high note as the desserts were better than the savouries.  This “instagram-worthy” deep-fried sticky rice dumpling (紫薯像生年糕) is dyed in a lovely purple hue with natural colours of purple sweet potato is a creation of Master Dim Sum Chef Peng Yi Chun.  Made less sweet for the health-conscious, the soft mochi-like nian gao is suitable for both the young and old.

Accompanying the nian gao was also glutinous rice dumpling with ginger soup (雨花姜汁汤丸) which signifies “reunion”. 

We also managed to try the bi-coloured prosperity new year cake (富贵双色年糕) which is a combination of traditional nian gao and fragrant pandan nian gao, available for both dine-in or takeaway.  Seen above are two ways of preparing the nian gao – pan-fried or steamed. I prefer the former as it gives a slight caramelised taste and brings out the pandan taste more strongly. 

Do note that the menu at the top of UOB plaza and Beach Road restaurants are slightly different.  The former would serve the high tea menu with a beautiful pink-hued cocktail that is concocted with homemade rose syrup (S$50++ per person), while the latter includes a refreshing mocktail (S$40++ per person).

Tian Fu Tea Room at Parkroyal Reunion Imperial High Tea is reviewed by Hannah.

Famous Kitchen

The culinary group at Famous Kitchen has curated prosperous set and individually menus to bring back memories of Nanyang manifestations with your friends and family. You can also see some of the live seafood in the display tanks outside of the restaurant.

The oven baked chicken gets a coating of Chinese wine, then lit on the spot at the diner’s table. The skin renders leaving golden crisp goodness while the tender meat is cooked to our liking.

Advance order required for Oven Baked Volcano Chicken.

These briny deep-fried prawns are nicely coated with caramel with a lovely robust sweet and savoury flavour. Also, enjoyed some poppings from the rice crackers. The caramel sauce gets pretty addictive.

It’s a marvelous steamed fish dish served on a hot plate. This fish dish boasts the silky flesh and being very appetising to our palate while the sauce acts to enhance the traditional steamed fresh fish. There are also slices of pork belly accompany to this fish dish.

The sea cucumber is braised with a flavourful sauce with a slippery and gelatinous texture, accompanied with broccoli and mushroom.

Some of the featured dishes like steamed fish with preserved vegetables and oven baked volcano chicken are available on a la carte menu.