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Perfectly Peranakan!

by Evelyn Chen

inSing.com - 28 November 2011 3:57 PM | Updated 29 Nov 2011

Signature four-hour stewed beef rib

In my years of writing about food, I’ve graced many Peranakan dining establishments: Guan Hoe Soon, Blue Ginger, Peramakan, you name it. But till today, none has come close to my endearing experience at Casa Bom Vento.

Not least because this wood-swathed restaurant with a mix-mesh of marble and wooden tables feels decidedly boutique. Service by the affable and youthful-looking chef-owner, Baba Lionel Chee, is warm without being imposing, and most certainly engaging.

As we discovered over dinner on a relatively quiet Wednesday dinner service, Chee got into the restaurant business when he bought Casa Bom Vento from a group of Eurasian partners in 1995. While business at the Eurasian restaurant suffered during the first two years, it took a turn for the better when the menu evolved to integrate Peranakan cuisine, thanks to Chee’s mother, Mrs Chee. In 2005, Casa Bom Vento moved to Seah Street but closed a year later with the passing of Mrs Chee. After a four-year hiatus, Chee re-launched the restaurant in late 2010 at the original Joo Chiat neighbourhood.

Helming the kitchen at the reincarnated Casa Bon Vento is Chee himself and judging by those plates of lush C and mostly tongue searing C Peranakan dishes, Chee seems to have mastered the soul of Nonya cookery, with some creativity thrown in for good measure.

Ayam buah keluak

Mrs Chee’s ayam buah keluak ($11.50) aptly named for inspiration from the late Mrs Chee, is served deconstructed C with the chicken pieces completely coated by the earthy goodness of the Indonesian black nut. While the blanket of soil may not be much of a visual feast, the chicken enveloped in buah keluak is a savoury treat for the palate.

To stand out from other Peranakan eateries, Chee gives a twist to the classic sambal sotong dish by infusing it with a beautiful, if addictive, assam sauce spiked with red cut chilies and thin discs of vinegar-cooked sliced belimbing or star fruit ($15).

Sambal sotong

Not surprisingly, Chee also gives the traditional sambal stingray a makeover. Here, he grills the little hunks of sting ray ($16.80) until slightly charred, stir-fries them with in crushed black peppercorn and chilies, then serves them with aromatic deep-fried curry leaves. On a scale of 1 to 10, the spice level from the peppers and chilies hits a good 8-point rating here. This dish is clearly not for the faint-hearted.

Grilled sting ray

Chee’s beef creations are aplenty. There’s beef smor or, if you can stomach extreme spiciness, the Eurasian debal curry flavoured with candlenuts, galangal, vinegar and various species of chilies. As well intentioned as we were to experience Chee’s Eurasian creations, we chickened out in favour of Chee’s signature four-hour stewed beef rib ($20), utterly tender beef ribs coated in a thick layer of tomato-infused rempah (spice paste) that is, surprisingly, nil on heat.

Just as we were raring to go with Chee’s sweet creations C perhaps a deconstructed chendol, our hopes were brutally plundered when Chee apologetically announced that there were no desserts that evening.

“We are introducing a new chendol dessert,” smiles Chee.

Casa Bom Vento's interior

Not that this appeased us; but we were humbled and ready to accept the only flaw in our near-perfect dinner. The talented Chee has surprised us with not one but a parade of homey and lip smacking dishes that, quite frankly, exceeded my expectations.

“When we were young, my mother would explain each dish that she cooked in great detail,” said Chee as he personally served us our order, “I was the only one who listened and absorbed everything that she said.”

On hindsight, I bet Chee has no regrets about tuning in to Mrs Chee.

Ratings: Food: 4/5; Service: 4/5; Ambience: 4/5; Value: 4/5

Casa Bom Vento

477 Joo Chiat Road

Tel: 6440 0196