AH YAT Seafood Restaurant is no newcomer to the dining scene here, having been in Turf City in Bukit Timah since 2002.

But its somewhat hidden-away location in the former Turf Club building - which was turned into a shopping and dining destination when the races moved to the Singapore Turf Club in Kranji five years ago - meant it remained invisible for many folks who don't live in the area.

Chances are a lot more people will know about this Chinese seafood restaurant now. It opened a second branch in Shaw Towers in Beach Road more than two weeks ago.

Taking over the former foodcourt on the ground floor, it is very visible from Nicoll Highway with its brightly lit signboard calling out like a beacon to passing traffic and pedestrians on the overhead bridge from Suntec City.

If the Ah Yat name sounds familiar to you, that's because it is owned by the same Ah Yat of abalone fame, the renowned Hong Kong chef Yeung Koon Yat.

So it's no surprise that you do find canned abalone from places like Australia and Mexico on the new restaurant's menu, but the focus here is on live seafood.

SHELL WE DINE?: An Alaskan king crab being fished out for the table (above) and a stir-fried Australian lobster cooked in butter and pumpkin sauce (main picture).

To make sure that idea sinks in, rows and rows of tanks placed on tiers on one side of the dining room are filled with a variety of live seafood ranging from garoupas to geoduck clams to oysters to Alaskan king crabs.

You order your seafood straight from the tank and then decide with the waitress how best to have it cooked. Or you can just refer to the menu, which also lists non-seafood dishes.

For the sea mantis ($7.80 per 100g), which looks like a swimming bug, the best way is to have it fried with salt and pepper.

The dish that appeared on my dinner table last week was lovely with the aroma of garlic and pepper heralding its arrival. The crustaceans had a delicate sweetness that could have come only from absolutely fresh seafood.

You need about three fairly large ones to feed a table of four, and my order weighed in at 0.8kg.

That would have cost a hefty sum of $62.40 (there is no cooking charge), except that Ah Yat offers a 50 per cent discount on its live seafood on weekdays and 30 per cent on weekends.

It's a good sales gimmick that the restaurant can afford because it imports the seafood direct from overseas without going through a local middleman.

A jumbo oyster from Canada, for example, costs just $3.25 (down from $6.50) each on weekdays, a good deal that you should certainly take advantage of.

I had mine baked with cheese and potato and it was yummy with the creamy, cheesy mash blanketing the luscious oyster.

At lunch the following day, I had a stir-fried Australian lobster with butter and pumpkin sauce ($10.80 per 100g) that was very nice too. The pumpkin worked well in the sauce, thickening it and, at the same time, giving it a slight sweetness that was not cloying.

Fish lovers should also check if the restaurant is serving estuary garoupa when they visit. This is a giant garoupa which is not always available.

Different parts of the fish are used in different dishes. I tried a soup made with its bones and Chinese herbs ($12.80 per person) that boasted a fresh sweetness, as well as an unusual dish of fish skin steamed with Chinese ham and mushroom ($8 per person).

I was initially a bit wary of the latter, which looked like a slice of black rubber on the plate. But a bite of it immediately won me over.

Not only was it not fishy, but the bits of meat stuck to the underside were sweet and soft while the skin itself had a gelatinous texture that reminded me of a well-cooked sea cucumber.

Not all the restaurant's dishes were successes, however. During dinner, I had a disappointing sambal fried kangkong ($12) which was overly sweet. And the fried horfun with seafood and egg ($16) tasted bland.

Deep-fried frog's legs with ginger slices ($7 a frog) turned out decent, though.

The dimsum I tried at a third visit was passable, but I have tasted better. They are also sold at half price on weekdays and 30 per cent off on weekends.

The restaurant stays open the whole day but dimsum stops at 4.30pm. From 2.30 to 4.30pm every day, it also serves a high tea menu comprising Hong Kong cafe items like toast and milk tea.

Seafood, however, is available throughout. So if you should ever be in the mood for some black pepper crab in the middle of the afternoon, you now know where to go.

AH YAT SEAFOOD RESTAURANT
100 Beach Road 01-26/38 Shaw Leisure Gallery, Shaw Tower, Tel: 6299-3773
Open: 11.30am to 10.30pm
Food: ***
Service: ***
Ambience: ** 1/2
Price: Budget from $40 per person on weekdays, more on weekends

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