Cha-Char-Ch叉r: Pork belly that melts in your mouth!

There's been a lot of buzz surrounding Char ever since it opened its doors a few months ago, so a couple of friends and I decided to go see what the fuss is about.

We arrived on a Tuesday night at 7:30pm to a packed restaurant, but luckily, we made a reservation. Before going to Char, not only do you have to reserve a table, you have to reserve your portions of meats as they sell out very quickly. We saw people walk-in hoping they could get a table but were told to come back later!

We shared the Chicken & Salted Fish Fried Rice ($11), garlic spinach ($10) and three types of meat (I'll get to it later) between three of us. The fried rice had that umami flavour, thanks to the salted fish. I'm still not over how tasty it was. The spinach, however, was nothing to shout about. It's just a regular garlic stir fried spinach that your mum cooks at home. It's not worth $10 and we'd have skipped that if not for the need to balance our meat feast with some veggies.

Look at the glistening signature Special Char Siew ($15 for 300g), obviously is the star of the table. I'm not sure what spices they use to marinate the pork, but there was a perfect balance of smoky, sweet and savoury. The meat was generously thick and melt-in-your-mouth soft, with a strip of fat running down the middle. I've never been a fan of char siew because of the lean, tough, red coloured paper-thin slices of char siew we get from hawker stalls and I still won't eat it, unless I'm at Char.

The Double Roast ($18 for 100g of roast pork and 100g of roast duck) wasn't as outstanding as the char siew. While the flavour wasn't that different from the Chinese roasts anywhere else, the crackling on the pork was crispy, and there was a mustard dip to go with the meat. The skin of the duck was also roasted to crisp perfection, but its flavour, just like the roast pork, was forgettable.

If you need something to quench your thirst, they serve a few different soups of the day, beers, soft drinks, and juices. 

This restaurant brands itself as Cantonese Casual Dining and that's exactly what it is. It's pricier than the roast meats we get from hawker stalls, but less harsh on the wallet than upscale Chinese restaurants. The decor isn't try-hard hipster, nor is it trying to appeal to a younger, westernised crowd. Apart from some art hanging on the wall, the interior is pretty non-descript. We saw families of three generations enjoying a meal. One thing great about their menu - apart from the offerings - is that there are Chinese words - probably for the older generation who can't read English - which I felt was a thoughtful touch. I'll be bringing my parents there next time!

Ch叉r
393 Guillemard Road, Singapore 399790
Tel: 6842 7759
Email: info@char.com.sg