Hua Yu Wee Review : Value for money Old School Seafood Restaurant

Let's go to an Old Place to eat.

Hua Yu Wee is a restaurant along Upper East Coast Road. Nestled between an apartment and terrace houses, you would notice this old-school facade. It is housed in a Single Story colonial house that will bring you back to the early years when East Coast Road was a beachfront estate before the reclamation.

 

Hua Yu Wee has a history dating back to the 1950s. An award-winning restaurant, it provides familiar Singapore 'zi char' style dishes and seafood on the menu. While the seafront Seafood Restaurants are often packed with tourists, the locals make up most of the clientele. It is no doubt that Hua Yu Yee is a local secret. 

Hua Yu Wee Indoor Dining

The restaurant is usually packed to the brim, and making a reservation is a must if you want to dine in. You can opt for indoor or outdoor dining. We recommend having a meal outdoors, as the space's openness adds to the meal's charm.

Hua Yu Wee Outdoor Dining

Set D: $399++

We were served by an elderly waitress in kebaya ala Singapore airlines. It was an exciting sight, given the surrounding. For our meal, we took the set meal as we are having a meal for 10. There are various set meal options for 2 up to 10 pax. We opted for Set D, which serves 7-8 pax and 2 other dishes. This set was chosen as it includes 2 crabs on the menu. For $399++, it is worth it. Similar meals at East Coast Park seafood restaurant could easily cost 1.5 to 2 times more. 

Fish Maw w Crab Meat Soup

Hau Yu Wee Fish Maw Crab Meat 

The fish maw's texture is just right; you can taste bits of crab meat there. For other sets, they serve Sharkfin soup, but given how it is made, we would prefer this option.

Seafood Roll w Mayo

Hau Yu Wee Seafood Roll

The Seafood roll is palatable. While it may not be outstanding, it is a good stomach filler.

Poached Prawns with Hua Diao Wine

Hau Yu Wee Poached Prawns

Prawns were fresh, chewy and big. The Hua Diao Wine taste was subtle. There are about 2 prawns per pax based on 8 pax. 

Deep Fried Chicken with Prawn Cracker

Hau Yu Wee Deep Fried Chicken

The chicken was well-fried, and the meat was pretty easy. The skin was pretty crispy too. The only downside is that there is no special chilli sauce that comes with it.

Coffee Rib

Hau Yu Wee Coffee Ribs

The ribs were soft, and the intense coffee flavour came through in each bite. Great for coffee lovers! 

Fish Steamed in HK Style

Hau Yu Wee Steamed Fish

The Seabass was well-cooked and fresh.  Dip it in the sauce to add the extra oomph. 

Crab ( Option of Black Pepper/ Ketchup Chilli / Steamed)

Hau Yu Wee Chilli Crab

We choose the Ketchup Chilli Crab Option. It comes with fried Mantou for the dish. 

The Chilli Crab was big, given that it is a set. We reckoned that it is at least 800g to 1kg. If you get these on their own, it will be about $74.5 /800g. Getting it as part of a set will be worth it.

Fried Rice

Hau Yu Wee Fried Rice

The set comes with Silver Fish Fried Rice, but we replaced it with Egg Fried Rice. 

Extra DISHEs

Deep Fried Baby Squid

Hau Yu Wee Deep Fried Baby Squid

We ordered this as a starter dish. It is crunchy and sweet to taste.

Sliced Beef with Ginger and Spring Onion

Hau Yu Wee Sliced Beef

At first, we thought we had been given venison instead of beef. The beef was very tender and tasty.

Verdict

Hua Yu Yee does not charge service charges for the meal. If you consider that, the prices are lower compared to other establishments. The service was fast, with each dish coming at fast intervals without much waiting. Only towards the end, when the restaurant was packed, that service slowed down. 

As for the food, it did not disappoint. Each dish was delightful, with strong flavours and texture. In terms of serving size, while we ordered the 8 pax portion for 10 people, it is sufficient even without the extra dishes. The crabs were bigger than average even though it was a set meal, which really impressed us. The best part is the ambience. We love the old-school kampong feel of Hua Yu Yee. While parking is limited, valvet parking will be available on site.

With the future developments slated for Bayshore area, we do hope that Hua Yu Yee will continue unscathed and remain as it is. It is a place for those who want to keep a bit of Singapore's history intact and to be able to revisit it when the chance arises.

Ranking Disclaimer The views on this post are based on personal experiences and opinions. The ranking is based on 5 stars. Rankings are based on personal experience and may not reflect the same as what others may have experienced.TWD is not liable for any experience by the reader at the establishment. #notsponsored