Nestled in the middle of the Toa Payoh heartlands is Soi 47 Thai Food, a small modest Thai eatery headed by the owner Mr Ang and his team of Thai staff. Homey and unpretentious are the words to describe what we felt when we were there. The decor was simple with wooden tables and benches and a small garden outside to add to the homely Thai atmosphere. The owner Mr Ang ‘s laid-back and easy-going character was apparent when he shared with us about their dishes and plans for Soi 47.
Soi 47 Thai Food offers a large variety of dishes of good portions at very affordable prices. One thing that makes Soi 47 different is that they do not use MSG in their dishes. As such, there will not be that overly salty feeling left on your tongue after eating. In addition to that, their seafood are all sourced from a local kelong (offshore fish farm).
First off, we started our meal with appetizers:
Homemade Breaded Prawn Cake (4pcs – $6)
Although it was fried, it was not too oily or over fried such that bouncy texture of the prawns of still retained as you bite through the cake. The breaded layer also added a nice crust to the dish.
Stuffed Chicken Wing with Minced Chicken (3pcs – $6.80)
Minced chicken and prawn paste was stuffed into the chicken wing before frying. The chicken wing itself was fragrant and tender where it was easy to bite off the meat. The minced chicken made the dish more interesting with added texture and flavor.
Homemade Thai Fish Cake (4pcs – $5.50)
Shaped like a typical round fish cake, a bouncy, chewy texture was expected when biting into it and the taste and texture tasted a lot like Otak-Otak. (Grilled Fish Cake)
Homemade Pandan Chicken (4pcs – $6)
Unlike many other Thai eateries, Soi 47’s version of the pandan chicken was very tender where as you bite into it, the pieces of chicken just fall apart in your mouth and you can taste the spices used to marinate it. While the flavor is not as strong, the fragrance of the meat really entices and starts up an appetite.
Moving on to the side dishes, we had the stir-fried beef with garlic, papaya salad and deep fried chicken with home made sweet lime sauce.
Papaya Salad ($3.80)
The shreds of papaya were indeed refreshing to have amidst the heavier flavours of the other meat dishes. It surprisingly has a subtle spicy kick to it with the cut chili tossed in the salad and it is finally topped off with grated peanuts.
For the soupy dishes, we ordered the green curry seafood and tom tam seafood (clear) soup.
Green Curry Seafood
Soi 47’s green curry was surprisingly on the milky and sweet side due to the strong coconut cream used, which made it a relatively thicker consistency.
Tom Yam Seafood (Clear)
Perfect for those who love spicy food, the unassuming broth had a good kick to it that gets spicier the more you drink it. Though spicy, it was really addictive that will make you keep coming back for more. The broth was also filled with generous amounts of seafood like prawns, squid and mussel, along with onions and tomato.
We then went on to try their recommended and popular dishes that their loyal customers come back for each time:
Claypot Tang Hoon with Prawns ($10) – Recommended
The chewy tang hoon had a charred wok taste to it that made it tremendously addictive satisfying to eat together with the green curry or tom yam seafood broth as it was it a little on the dry side. It also came with generous servings of prawns as well.
Steamed Seabass with Thai Lime Sauce ($19)
So addictive. Topped with lime and garlic, the lime sauce was fully absorbed into the perfectly cooked tender fish meat and gave the dish a refreshing citrusy aroma and fragrance. The zesty and subtly spicy taste of the sauce was absolutely delicious that made us keep drinking the broth as if it was soup. At $19, the large size of the fish definitely made this dish worth every cent. Definitely a must try.
Stir Fry Mussels with Basil Leaves ($10)
At $10, this dish definitely value for money with the generous amounts of mussels, stir fried perfectly with basil leaves and brown sauce that gave it a satisfying savoury aromatic taste to it. The mussels were extremely fresh and had little to no sandy bite in any of it. A surprisingly addictive and savoury dish.
Rice dishes we ordered were the olive rice and the fried ‘belachan’ rice with seafood.
Fried Olive Rice ($6)
While typically olive rice tends to be on the oilier side, Soi 47’s is slightly on the drier side and the fragrant aroma and texture went well when eaten together with the soups and broths.
Fried Belachan Rice with Seafood ($6)
Not to be confused with the sambal belacan, ‘belacan’ – fermented shrimp paste was fried together with the rice, along with fried egg and seafood. It had a more chewy texture and addictive bite to it as compared to the olive rice. The chewy fried egg aroma complemented the tangy strong flavor of the shrimp paste.
To finish up, we had the must-have Thai desserts, Mango Sticky Rice, as well as the Red Ruby.
Mango Sticky Rice ($5)
The sweetness of the ripe mango and the warm chewy consistency of the coconut cream infused sticky rice complemented each other perfectly. A refreshing and comfortable dish to end off your meal.
Red Ruby ($3)
Soi 47’s version of the red ruby was not overly sweet and had a good balance between the coconut milk, sugar syrup and ice. There was also a generous amount of crunchy sweet red rubies (water chestnut coated in syrup) together with slices of jackfruit on top as a refreshing taste to prevent sweetness of the coconute milk from becoming too overwelming.
To go along with the whole meal, we had Iced Thai Milk Tea ($3) and Iced Lemongrass Drink($2.50) for drinks.
While the food at Soi 47 Thai Food was delicious, generous and tasty, what really stood out was the warm, down-to-earth and homely environment of the eatery that made the experience so comforting. Head down for yourselves to have a try wide range of offerings and soak in the authentic casual Thai experience!
Directions:
Nearest MRT Station: Braddell (NS18) | Toa Payoh (NS19)
Bus: 57 | 231, 232, 235
Address: 47 Lor 6 Toa Payoh
#01-130, Singapore 310047
Opening Hours:
2PM – 2.30PM, 5.30PM – 10PM
Wednesday – Monday (Closed on Tuesday)
Contact: +65 6266 4747
Facebook: https://web.facebook.com/soi47thaifood/?_rdc=1&_rdr
Things To Do This Weekend (17th – 19th November 2017)
