When I first heard of The Sampan, I couldn’t help but think of the song Dayung Sampan. This newly opened restaurant is situated along boat quay, which I thought is a rather appropriate name given they are located right next to the river. Founded by former Ku De Ta manager, Steve Collinson, the cuisine focuses mainly on Asian ingredients which we are familiar with. The restaurant wasn’t very crowded while we were there possibly cos they were only opened for a month. And cos I reached earlier than the friends, I was staring into space and they kept asking if everything is okay. I was rather amused, though I have to say their service is rather thoughtful

Mango & Chilli Smash $18

One of their recommended drinks, it tasted rather interesting with a little spiciness in it. Happy hours end at 7pm, which I told them that’s not happy hour at all. Well, apparently they are still getting their operations sorted so lets hope eventually the hours are happy to come

Pork and Chicken Choi Bao with Water Chestnuts & Lap Cheong $4

I have to say it wasn’t what we expected. We were expecting a form of white bun so imagine our surprise when we saw something green appearing. And then it occured to us, oh that’s why it’s called a 菜包! Sorry, that took awhile. It tasted appetising and the fragrance of the lap cheong comes through the protein though the friend found it a little salty

Szechuan Pepper Chicken Spare Ribs with Spring Onion Salad $12

We really like their spare ribs. The meat was juicy and tender and the skin so crisp and fragrant

Semolina Dusted Baby Calamari with Green Chilli & Coriander Mayo $12

Quite a forgettable dish I have to say. It’s okay, but nothing wow

Oysters with Chilli Lime Dressing (left) and Ponzu Sauce & Salmon Roe $4/pc

Suggest to give this a miss

Sesame Crusted Tuna Loin w Coconut & Tumeric Caramel, Fennel, Wakame $16

Thought the sauce shined more than the tuna itself. Felt like they could do more to the tuna to make the dish stand out

Blue Swimmer Crab & Pomelo Salad w Sweet & Sour Chilli Dressing $14

This salad was refreshing and reminded us of what you will find in Thai salad. Definitely a good starter to kick off the meal

Crispy Chilli Beef & Mango Salad w Crispy Noodles $18

This dish will probably garner more points if not for the beef that was overly salty. Otherwise the flavours generally come through quite well on the plate

Chicken & Vegetable Pot Sticker Dumplings w Spiced Black Vinegar $9

Easily one of our favourite dishes of the night. The dumpling skin was chewy without being too thick and had the right amount of filling in it. Love the crispiness of the skin that goes well with the vinegar

Whole Baby Chicken w Eggplant & Tomato Sambal $26

The chicken was well executed though I felt like they could do more with the sambal. It felt rather underwhelming when we tasted the eggplant

Garlic Fried Rice

I wanted to order the curry vegetables that comes with the garlic fried rice but they thought I wanted the garlic fried rice which was strange given there was no ala carte order of garlic fried rice on the menu. In any case, the garlic fried rice was nothing to rave about

Organic Soba Noodles, Confit Salmon & Ginger Dressing $18

I thought everything tasted quite delicious except the salmon. Perhaps they could retain this on their lunch menu but do something different for dinner, like perhaps, a grilled salmon instead

300gm Angus Grass-Fed Sirloin Steak w Sambal Green Beans & Pho Herbs $49

One of their house favourites, we decided to order this as well even though I felt like we have over ordered. I thought the steak was quite well executed though there might be a little too much sauce to go along. I felt that steaks tasted best on its own, with sauce on the side to add

Mango Pudding w Coconut Sago, Mango Sorbet $12

Valrhona Chocolate & Tofu Mousse w Chai Spiced Shortbread, Passion Fruit Curd $12

Moving on to desserts, we much preferred the mango pudding to their valrhona chocolate. The mango pudding was refreshing, the chocolate on the other hand felt like it didn’t quite go together though the tofu mousse was enjoyable on its own

Generally, the food here was decent. Perhaps with a little bit more of details to iron out, I think they have quite an impressive menu to offer. Well, an option for those working nearby, regardless if it’s for lunch or dinner

The Sampan

63 Boat Quay, Singapore 049851