Song Fa Ba Kut Teh - Clarke Quay [Singapore]

Posted by thefoodgrapher September 26, 2016

Song Fa Ba Kut Teh - Clarke Quay [Singapore]

The Original 肉骨茶 (Ba Kut Teh)

Tahun lalu banyak sekali resto waralaba baru yang menyajikan Ba Kut Teh, beberapa di antaranya Sing Ba Kut Teh dan Old Town Ba Kut Teh.
Kali ini saya berkesempatan mencoba hidangan ini, saat makan siang bersama klien. Sempat penasaran juga bagaimana rasa Ba Kut Teh di tempat yang menjadi salah satu asal muasal hidangan tersebut, Singapura

Last year in my home town, Surabaya, there's plenty of new eatery / restaurant chain, serving Ba Kut Teh. Some of them are Sing Ba Kut Teh and Old Town.
Today I'm lucky enough to get to try this food during business lunch with a client, in the Ba Kut Teh's motherland, Singapore.

Ba Kut Teh sendiri adalah hidangan daging babi yang dibawa oleh keturunan Hokian dan Tio Ciu, banyak ditemui di Singapura, Sumatra (Medan dkk) dan Thailand Selatan

Arti harafiahnya adalah "Daging Bertulang dengan Teh". Walau demikian, kuahnya sebetulnya bukan teh, tapi campuran kaldu yang dimasak dengan beragam rempah masakan cina seperti pekak / bunga lawang, kayu manis, cengkeh dan banyak lagi.

Ba Kut Teh is a famous Singaporean dish, which were originally brought by Chinese descendants of Hokian and Teo Chew origin. It's a native dish throughout Singapore, Medan and some other city along Sumatra islands, and Southern Thailand

Literately speaking, Ba Kut Teh means Meat and bone in Tea, despite that, no tea were used in the making of Ba Kut Teh, the tea simply used to describe the rich broth which looks similar to Oolong tea.

Song Fa Ba Kut Teh - Pork Ribs Soup (S$7)

Sejarah berdirinya resto satu ini sudah cukup lama, sejak 1969. Saya sebelumnya sudah sering ke Singapura sejak jaman baheula tahun 1990 an, tapi tidak pernah tertarik mencicipi Ba Kut Teh sebelumnya, karena keluarga saya lebih senang makanan yang tidak terlalu berat, hidangan-hidangan favorit semasa kecil biasanya lebih banyak di sekitar Orchard dan Marina, dan biasanya tidak jauh-jauh dari Chicken Rice.

This restaurant have actually in business from 1969. But until today, I haven't got the chance to try them. My family often takes me to Singapore on a holiday, since way back in 1990s, but we somehow managed to not try any Ba Kut Teh here, preferring the lighter Chicken Rice and other Singaporean dishes

Song Fa - Cakue / Dough Fritter (S$ 1.2 / 2.2 / 3.2)

Untuk selera saya, hidangan di sini termasuk standard saja rasanya, tidak terlalu terasa istimewanya di mana. Kemungkinan karena memang tidak terbiasa dengan hidangan satu ini. Masakan babi favorit saya dahulu ada juga yang daging babi, tapi bukan Ba Kut Teh, melainkan Bai Kut Goreng :D

For my taste-bud, I found that this place serves a so-so tasting dish, was expecting something more savory and bold tasting. Probably the fact that I've never tried this dish as a child, making me having 0 nostalgia for this dish. I do have a favorite pork dish, but instead of Ba Kut Teh, it's fried Bai Kut :D

Song Fa Ba Kut Teh - Premium Ribs Soup (S$9)

Di Surabaya saya hanya pernah mencoba Old Town Ba Kut Teh, dan rasanya lebih cocok dengan model demikian. Kemungkinan besar yang Old Town Ba Kut Teh sudah menyesuaikan dengan lidah Surabaya dan memakai banyak saus / condiment untuk menunjang rasa sedangkan Song Fa ini lebih otentik. Secara umum memang selera saya lebih cocok dengan masakan yang rasanya 'nendang' seperti di Malaysia dan Indonesia dibandingkan Singapura yang kadang lebih anyepan.

In Surabaya, I've only tried the Old Town Ba Kut Teh, and I found it to be more suitable for my liking. The Old Town dish probably caters to Surabaya's taste more, while this Song Fa is closer to the original recipes. Apart from that the Old Town Ba Kut Teh have so many condiments to pick on, which allow me to change the soup taste more to my liking.
I usually likes the bolder tastes of foods in Indonesia and Malaysia, compared to Singapore that felt a bit more bland, probably to cater to a more broader taste-buds.