WHEN I first visited Seafood Paradise three years ago, it was a no-frills eatery in a Defu Lane industrial canteen.

It has since grown to more than double its size and includes an adjoining air-conditioned dining room.

But that is nothing compared to the second outlet of the seafood restaurant which opened at the Singapore Flyer last month.

Called Seafood Paradise @Flyer, it is a swanky restaurant that boasts a $2-million renovation.

A labour of love for owner Eldwin Chua, 31, the design includes motifs denoting the four seasons on the walls, private rooms with specially designed crystal chandeliers and a panel of fish tanks fitted with glass which does not frost up so that diners can view the fish clearly.

And yet, for all that, Seafood Paradise is still not an expensive restaurant. You can easily find dishes priced at $10 for a small serving, and the most expensive shark's fin item is at $28 per person.

And while it offers ubiquitous local seafood dishes such as chilli crab and live drunken prawn, the menu also includes items unique to the restaurant.

For this, credit goes to Chua, who also owns the acclaimed Taste Paradise, a modern Chinese restaurant in Mosque Street.

The young man's strategy of staying ahead of the competition is to come up with recipes that are different from those of other restaurants. So even for a common dish such as lobster baked with salted egg yolk, the sauce is much smoother and lighter than the norm.

The result is that you don't get a gritty sauce and the taste of the yolk is not overwhelming. And at $88 for a pretty meaty lobster, it does not cost the earth either.

EATS WITH A TWIST: Owner Eldwin Chua serves up food that is done differently at Seafood Paradise, such as the lobster baked with salted egg (above) which comes with a deliciously smooth, light sauce.

The steamed star grouper ($9 per 100g), too, comes with a twist. It is pan-fried briefly before being steamed with soya sauce, a method which has been called 'steamed in Paradise style'.

The purpose of frying is to give the fish a fragrance you don't get with normal steaming. And yet, the fish is not overcooked, and its meat remains smooth and sweet.

Then, there is the prawn dish with spicy-mayo dressing ($16). Other restaurants fry the prawns in wasabi-mayonnaise; here, curry leaves instead of wasabi are used instead.

The curry leaves give the dish a twist, and a very nice one too.

The sauce for the chilli crab ($3.60 per 100g) is also carefully blended by Chua and his chefs to balance the sweetness favoured by Westerners and the spiciness that Singaporeans like. The result is something that is less ketchupy and more fragrant with spice.

But there is something missing though, which I couldn't quite put my finger on initially. I had first thought it was chilli fire but it dawned on me later: What was lacking was acidity.

Most restaurants add a bit of vinegar, but a dash of orange juice may be what this dish needs to lift the flavours without them becoming too sharp.

Another great thing about Seafood Paradise is that the cheap dishes are delicious as well.

There is the yummy chef's omelette ($12), fluffy and topped with a delicious seafood gravy. And spice lovers will get a kick from the fragrant beancurd with Szechuan mince-meat sauce ($12), which boasts a silky beancurd made inhouse.

There has been no lack of local seafood restaurants opening branches in town, but most have not managed to keep up the standard of the original outlets.

Long Beach at Dempsey, which boasts both great food and an accessible location, is a notable exception. Now, add Seafood Paradise@Flyer to that list.

SEAFOOD PARADISE@FLYER
30 Raffles Avenue 01-01, Singapore Flyer, Tel: 6336-5101

Open: 11.30am to 10.45pm daily
Food: ****
Service: *** 1/2
Ambience: ****
Price: Budget from $60 per person

This article was first published in The Sunday Times on Mar 16, 2008.

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