Diamond Kitchen Seafood Restaurant (钻石小厨) @ Laguna Park

Located within Laguna Park condominium at Marine Parade, Diamond Kitchen Seafood Restaurant (钻石小厨) is a newly opened, down-to-earth Chinese restaurant with an affordable zi-char priced menu.

The restaurant is the brainchild of two young entrepreneurs, Josh Chou, 30, and Lambert Chen, 27. As foodies themselves, the cousins wanted a restaurant which focused on the fundamentals, ensuring high food quality at reasonable prices.

“The nature of our food and ambience is very heartfelt, unpretentious and welcoming. The location – nestled within this established Marine Parade estate with is neighbourly charm – was the perfect choice for us.” Said Chou.

Working closely with their head chef, Chef Kevin Lau, who has over 25 years of culinary experience, the duo conceived signature dishes like their Champagne Pork Ribs, Salted Egg Sotong, Sauna Prawns, Crab in Gan Xiang style, Pumpkin Bean Curd and Superior Stock Clam Bee Hoon.

Here are the dishes I tried:

啦啦米粉 Superior Stock Clam Bee Hoon - S: $12, M: $18, L: $24 — 啦啦米粉 Superior Stock Clam Bee Hoon – S: $12, M: $18, L: $24

竹桶虾 Sauna Prawn - S: $24, M: $36, L: $48 — 竹桶虾 Sauna Prawn – S: $24, M: $36, L: $48

Heated rocks on which the prawns were steamed in a “sauna”

金瓜豆腐 Pumpkin Bean Curd - S: $12, M: $18, L: $24 — 金瓜豆腐 Pumpkin Bean Curd – S: $12, M: $18, L: $24

香槟排骨 Champagne Pork Ribs - S: $12, M: $18, L: $24 — 香槟排骨 Champagne Pork Ribs – S: $12, M: $18, L: $24

麦片鸡 Golden Cereal Chicken - S: $12, M: $18, L: $24 — 麦片鸡 Golden Cereal Chicken – S: $12, M: $18, L: $24

咸蛋苏东 Salted Egg Sotong - S: $12, M: $18, L: $24 — 咸蛋苏东 Salted Egg Sotong – S: $12, M: $18, L: $24

Gan Xiang Fried Rice - S: $12, M: $18, L: $24 — Gan Xiang Fried Rice – S: $12, M: $18, L: $24

Gan Xiang Crab (market price - estimated at $55 per kg) — Gan Xiang Crab (market price – estimated at $55 per kg)

金瓜/ 白果芋泥 Pumpkin/ Ginko Yam Paste - S: $12, M: $24 — 金瓜/ 白果芋泥 Pumpkin/ Ginko Yam Paste – S: $12, M: $24

I enjoyed the food at Diamond Kitchen very much. Particularly memorable was their Salted Egg Sotong, Gan Xiang Fried Rice and Superior Stock Clam Bee Hoon. The latter is like a thick-stock version of the Heng Hwa noodle which I enjoy, from Fujian, Putien.

Fresh squid and salted egg batter works well together. This is a must-try.

The Gan Xiang Fried Rice is a little spicy and tangy. It tastes like sambal fried rice, but with an oriental slant from the seasonings used. The Gan Xiang homemade sauce used in this dish is the same as the sauce used to prepare the Gan Xiang Crab dish, bringing different results.

What I really like about Diamond Kitchen is the reasonable price and fuss-free environment where you can enjoy your food in a comfortable, homely setting. Parking is also plentiful and cheap. I only paid S$1 for per entry parking on a weekday night!