IN LINE with the recent trend of establishing fine restaurants in museums, the Asian Civilisations Museum on Armenian Street - which is dedicated to Straits Chinese, or Peranakan, history and culture - has gotten its 'own' restaurant with corresponding cuisine.
The museum, currently closed for renovations, won't be open until April, but True Blue has already opened to usher in the Chinese New Year business.
That would be True Blue of Katong fame, well-known among Peranakan food fans who've enjoyed not only the food that Daisy Seah and her son, Benjamin Seck, make but also Mr Seck's lovingly collected heirlooms and antiques.
Now that True Blue has moved to a place four times bigger than its former space, it is supplementing the soon-to-open museum not just in food, but in exhibits, as it is practically a mini museum-in-a-restaurant itself - that's how lavishly Mr Seck has decorated the place with his personal collection of Peranakan artefacts, from kebaya to porcelain ware.
The new Armenian Street outlet, for example, has a room with a traditional 'tok panjang' long table which can seat up to 20 diners, while moving up the corporate chain, it has two private dining rooms for six each, where menus cost $800 and above. One's full of textile handiwork such as kebaya embroidery and beadwork pieces, while the other, antique 'intan' jewellery.
Finally, here's a place where authentic cuisine meets original decor, as Mr Seck has elevated homely Peranakan dining into the fine art of dining. A lot of it has to do with the ambience and the care with which the dishes are served, but this restaurant does Peranakan cuisine justice, even if you're one of those who can boast of a Peranakan mother or grandmother, aunt or grand-aunt who made incomparable Peranakan food at home.
Peranakan food, is of course, a fusion of Chinese and Malay cuisines, which came into its own in the 19th century. True Blue's slight departure from authenticity is that its fare doesn't have pork in it, so that it's more inclusive.
One of its trademark, must-have dishes is its robust ayam buah keluak curry ($18, buah keluak is a wild nut harvested from Indonesia that's not unlike brazil nut) which is one of the stronger-tasting versions around. The nuts are so thoroughly boiled in the curry so that its black, inky constituency infuses the curry. Tamarind is used to balance the earthy, slightly bitter flavour, so that at the end, the curry packs a spicy, full-bodied punch with a tangy edge.
The beef rendang ($16) is another rich dish, with the spices and a few squeezes of coconut milk simmered down to a thickish paste, coating the beef pieces. A touch of coconut also enriches the ladies' fingers, fried in sambal.
True Blue's chap chye dish ($12) is still one of the best examples of the Peranakan assorted vegetables dish, which sees the essential use of fermented soya bean paste and lily bulbs giving the Straits Chinese version its distinctive flavour - which is much more interesting than the simple Chinese mix of cabbage, carrots, black fungus and vermicelli.
For those looking for milder dishes, the ayam pongteh ($16) with chicken in fermented bean paste is like a comforting stew, lacking the sweeter flavour of babi pongteh which is cooked with pork. Soups like bakwan soup are also clear and light, with handmade chicken meatballs, but tasty.
A dish which is probably a personal recipe is the telor goreng sireh kadok, or egg omelette with wild pepper leaves ($20). Those who like the herbal flavour of kadok leaves will enjoy this, as it sees the omelette completely covered on one side with shredded pepper leaves.
Mr Seck's mom is still the main mover in the kitchen, while Mr Seck personally handles the wok when his mother takes a break. 'But my regulars know when I cook the food. The recipes might be the same, but the touch is different,' he says. It's a fact that's both a bane and a blessing in the nature of Peranakan cuisine, which is why it's rare to find 'good' Peranakan restaurants .
If you can't wait for the Peranakan museum to re-open, then drop by True Blue first. It'll be a mouthwatering experience, infused with a lot of cultural nostalgia.
True Blue
Finally, here's a place where authentic cuisine meets original decor, as Mr Seck has elevated homely Peranakan dining into the fine art of dining. A lot of it has to do with the ambience and the care with which the dishes are served, but this restaurant does Peranakan cuisine justice, even if you're one of those who can boast of a Peranakan mother or grandmother, aunt or grand-aunt who made incomparable Peranakan food at home.
