Tan Yu – Delicious Mala Grilled Fish at 313@Somerset, Now With Islandwide Delivery

We sat at our table in Tan Yu, waiting patiently for our grilled “Limbo Fish” to arrive. A while later, it arrived steaming and in all its chili glory. Yes I love spicy food, but I wasn’t sure if my stomach was going to survive this one. I decided to bite the bullet and put a (small) piece of fish in my mouth. Update (16 May 2020): For this period, Tan Yu is providing islandwide delivery! You can order via this link: https://inline.app/order/Tanyu

Tan Yu – Grilled Fish Restaurant from China

Tan Yu (探鱼) is a new restaurant at 313 Somerset that specialises in mala grilled fish dishes. The restaurant originated from Shenzhen and has over 170 outlets in China. The 313 branch is its first branch in Singapore.

Tan Yu is currently extremely popular in Singapore. We were given a queue number upon arrival and had to wait for about one hour before entering the restaurant.

After finally sitting down and placing our orders, we had to wait for another 20 minutes before the food was served.

Luckily we were not very hungry. Perhaps if we had ordered earlier while queuing, the food would have been served faster.

Service and Ambience

The restaurant was spacious with good ventilation, so we didn’t leave the restaurant smelling like grilled fish.

Service was decent but not the best. Most of the staff were quite polite, but upon sitting down we realised that there were no spoons on our table.

We asked one staff for assistance and he simply plonked a pair of spoons in my bowl without a word.

This was a slight turn-off but it was the only unpleasant incident we encountered during our meal.

Tan Yu Menu (Click to enlarge)

How to Order

Tan Yu’s menu was slightly confusing at first but soon I understood how to order.

First, we had to choose the fish type. We chose Limbo Fish ($45.90) as it is touted by the restaurant to be the “Juiciest, Most Tender and Flavourful”.

Next, we had to choose our preferred flavour. There are 12 types of flavours, with the popular ones being Green Pepper, Soy Sauce and Mixed Chillies. However, we decided to go with the Spicy Sauce because it was supposed to be slightly less spicy than the other spicy sauces.

Finally, we had to pick our side dishes. We ordered the Golden Combination ($12.90) which consists of Golden Mushrooms, Potato, Lotus Root, and Crab Sticks. These are cooked together with the grilled fish.

Limbo Fish with Spicy Sauce

After a long wait, our Limbo Fish with Spicy Sauce ($45.90) finally arrived! Our jaws dropped when we first saw the grilled fish- it was covered from head to tail (literally) with red chili.

It was not even possible to spot the fish beneath the chili. I wondered if we had made the wrong choice ordering the “Spicy Sauce” flavour.

Nonetheless, I scraped away the chili, and dug up a piece of fish meat to put into my mouth.

Luckily, the limbo fish was not nearly as spicy as it looked. It was really tender and juicy, though I felt that the flavour could be stronger.

The spicy sauce was the highlight for me, with a “mala” flavour distinctive of Szechuan cuisine that was very tasty and satisfying.

The side ingredients were decent – you can’t really go wrong with crab sticks and mala spicy sauce. And I also happily discovered that potato slices went perfectly with mala sauce.

Maw & Bullfrog with Green Pepper (泡泡蛙)

We went back to Tan Yu again recently and found out that they had added a new item to their menu! The Maw & Bullfrog with Green Pepper ($49.90) is a sumptuous dish that comprises a generous portion of bullfrog legs, fish maw, green beans, and green pepper.

We ordered this dish and it arrived very shortly. Having tried bullfrog dishes from various other restaurants, I was curious to see how Tan Yu would fare. As usual, it did not disappoint!

The bullfrog legs were super tender and juicy, complemented perfectly by the spicy-savoury gravy. And I liked that the gravy was feisty but wasn’t TOO spicy.

The green beans had nice bite and provided a nice balance to the dish. The fish maw was an interesting addition – it had the distinctive spongy texture and tasted nice with the savoury gravy.

Grilled Fish With Green Pepper (Limbo Fish) – MUST TRY!

We also tried the signature Grilled Fish With Green Pepper, Limbo Fish ($45.90). This is currently our favourite dish at Tan Yu!

We loved the green pepper spicy sauce which was feisty but not overwhelming. It had a wonderful savoury flavour that went perfectly with the fish.

The limbo fish was delicious too. It was sweet and tender, with a lovely smooth texture.

All in all, this signature dish boasts a perfect balance of savoury and spicy flavours. It’s great for people who enjoy eating spicy food but can’t take too much spiciness.

Golden Fried Bun

The Golden Fried Bun ($2.80) was a pleasant side dish. It was hot and slightly crunchy, with a buttery texture. The condensed milk was a nice dipping sauce, but it was a lot more satisfying to eat the fried buns with the mala fish sauce!

Conclusion

I would definitely recommend anyone who enjoys spicy food to give Tan Yu a try, because the mala grilled fish was delicious and we have never seen such a concept in Singapore before. The restaurant is currently extremely popular so make sure you go during non-peak hours or make reservations to avoid queuing for a long time. You can call their phone number below to make reservations. Update 17 Jul 2019: Tan Yu has opened a second branch at Westgate mall!

Tan Yu
Address: 313@Somerset B3-30/31/32, Singapore 238895
Phone Number: +65 6509 8887
Opening Hours: | Mon to Fri: 11.30am – 3pm, 5.30pm -10pm | Sat & Sun: 11.30am – 10pm |