Chomp Chomp

It’s a much smaller restaurant than I imagined with a nice bar and open kitchen. The bartender made some nice cocktails. I read good reviews about Chomp Chomp so my expectation was high. The most noted dish Or Luak was disappointing as it did not contain the sweet potato starch element that you would get in Singapore. However, the egg part was cooked to a nice perfect crisp with lightly cooked oysters. The main flavors were there but just not the same. The shrimps with cereal coating was well executed and had a really good sauce. The fried carrot cake was ok but a really good one would have started with a softer carrot cake base, nice touch with the pickled crunchy chye bo. The char kway teow was better in flavors and two types of noodles. The kangkong was chopped in smaller bites and had a good sambal flavor. The bubur chacha was similar in consistency, it was a thick and sweet homecooked version. It was like what I used to have as a child. However I had grown to like the lighter fresher coconut flavor of a similar dish at a Lao place — it improved the dish I thought.

Unbelievable, I drove all the way from Staten Island with my family to this restaurant and they were having a wedding thete…
Will not be returning here.

as part of the grieving process (after losing café asean on 10^th street), i felt obligated to visit the chef’s new restaurant chomp chomp. upon arrival, first noticed the beautiful space and the $ 5 sangria special (served with a fresh lychee). so far, so good. my group opted to try the soft shell crab special, hainanese chicken, lamb rendang, and asam fish with a side of jasmine rice. all dishes were good– my favorites probably being the lamb rendang and crab special. overall, my heart still belongs to café asean but a solid option when craving fusion asian in the area.

Chomp chomp tastes like a watered down version of Singapore food.
However despite lacking the bold strong flavors of authentic Singaporean cuisine. The food was still pretty tasty.
The best dish was the kang Kong .
Chicken wings were pretty decent too.
Soft shell crabs were just ok and so was the sambal stingray
I’m still waiting for the day in nyc where a restaurant will open up and serve authentic Singaporean cuisine .
Judging by the number of very authentic spicy Thai restaurants. (Some even serving pigs blood soup and other exotic dishes …)which have been popping up everywhere in Nyc I believe New Yorkers are ready for the bold flavors which come from Singapore !

Ok lah not bad.
Quite ex but whatever.
Sambal stingray is on point
How’s my Singlish? can pass one right?

My review will not be overly positive, but keep in mind i don’t eat meat, with the exception of seafood/​fish.
I was little put off by the chairs which are reminiscent of grade school varierty, tiny and largely loosely fitted. The menu has an interesting array of street style dishes which is fun. The staff was courteous and prompt, albeit a bit too much so, as the restaurant was not busy but they we anxious to remove our plates and drinks prior to us being finished, a quarter of my $ 13 cocktail was whooshed away before i could call the waitress back… that made me a little sad.
The seafood dishes were a little too fishy for me, but one man’s sour is another’s sweet so your milage may vary. The oyster omelet was good and overall the dishes were surprisingly large, especially for the snacks section.
For me, this prices and didnt equal the quality, but i would imagine for those who have find these dishes to be comfort food are likely to be right at home.
I left unfilled and enjoyed a $ 4 taco a few doors down…

You get 5 stars because I seriously love this place and hope to work my way through the menu. When I walk in, I instantly am transported across the world. And also, asking about gluten free/​dairy free options was easy. And I really appreciate that. The staff is very nice. And they brought me a birthday drink, which I also appreciate.
Here’s my 1 request so far. I had the yummy crab vermicelli special. They did say it was a whole cracked crab and tossed together. But here’s the thing. It was seriously impossible to eat for 2 reasons, 1: they didn’t take any of the meat out of the shell, and they only gave me a cracker, but not a pick. So I can’t get the meat out even after cracking it. and 2) no exaggeration, every single bite had a tiny piece of shell in it. After every bite I had to take part of it out of my mouth. Not very dainty. I ate some, and took the rest home. Day 2, I first spent about 20 minutes with a cracker and pick trying to get all the shell out and crab out, and I STILL had shell in every single bite. It tasted good, but I would definitely never order that again. That’s OK. So much more to try…

Give it a C -!!, My wife interested me in trying this little restaurant, lost on Cornelia street, in the Village.“Chomp Chomp” a Singaporean hawker food place” Well after a check for $ 100. in noodles, appetizers and a couple of glasses of wine. It was pretty steep, considering that the food was OK to average. I lived in the old chinese section and in Arab street and other parts of S’pore and worked a few years there in the 80’s when the place was becoming an international bustling city state. So I had million of opportunities to try hawker’s food in south east Asia. Well the verdict is that Chomp Chomp was disappointing. You can find better food in china town and Manhattan if you know where to look for. Yes, the atmosphere is very convivial, and the place inviting, mind you, kind of cramped with tables, we ate at the kitchen counter. We decided to start with their special of the day, pork belly crispy! well it was fried ! Not the kind, Hokkien people enjoy in Malaysia or S’pore. It is supposed to be roasted crispy, but that takes time. Imagine Pig’s belly fat, fried in cooking oil. Then we tried Pasembur the salad was tasty, but they do not give you real Sambal, I guessed a lot of customers would be put off by the strong fishy taste of the shrimp paste that goes everywhere in Nonya and hokkien and malay Bumiputra cooking. Lobak was done right and tasty. But when came my favorite fried hokkien mee, it was a far cry from street hawker food one would experienced in S’pore, like the one, found at NEWTON CIRCUS the popular night food market in S’pore, where most tourists go. Their hokkien mee was watery from too much use of chinese broccoli, it was also a lot of noodles some cuttle fish, 2 large shrimps!, (the real deal is made of small shrimps not large), some fried eggs (a few), I had to ask for some peanut sauce and mixed it up with sambal, so it would have some flavor. We had nasi Lemak, with was not bad, the krupuk was small, and the lamb rendang dry with a large piece of curry chicken, again asked for extra curry sauce. Missing on the desert menu was Ice Kacang a classic in S’pore.
Overall the service was very good and friendly, nice décor, rustic and warm, but the food a distant cry from real Hawker fare, And between $ 55. for the food and 30 for the drink, it was $$$ for hawking food. In spore back then it would set you back $ 4 – 5. Yes it is more welcoming than neon lights in downtown Chinatown malay, chinese restaurants, however in these small dives the price is right for what you eat. But I am sorry to say Chomp food cuisine is not up to par to Real S’pore hawking and very expensive for the quality of its dishes.
I did not try the oyster omelet Oh luak. So I would have to come back and try Char Kway Teow as well.
HAWKER’S FOOD MEANS HAWKER’S PRICE not restaurant price! It is a misnomer in this case. However if you plan to fly to S’pore, wait till you get there it will be the real taste and be way cheaper.

This place is a winner. I wanted to eat BBQ stingray ever since I saw it on Gordon Ramsey’s show (the F word) so I am bias!
The moment you walk in, you smell incense and its warmly lit, orange lighting. The smell of incense fades out and the smell of deliciousness settles in after 2 minutes. Nice décor and feels comfortable. We sat at the bar with a hilarious and awesome bartender serving. The host was super accommodating and I felt like his daughter for 5 minutes while I was waiting for my BF. Awesome family like feel.
Drinks: We came in the coldest day of winter and I was served up an alcoholic piña colada + herbal jelly combination. Fantastic! It did need a little bit more body like you would find in a piña colada but it was light and refreshing. Probably would be better on a hot summer day. (⁹⁄₁₀)
Some red drink: very good, light and refreshing (⁸⁄₁₀)
Food:
Shrimp Paste Chicken Wings: These were delicious! It had the lightest faintest taste of shrimp paste which doesn’t overwhelm. I’ve never had shrimp paste so this was a great introduction. The price though…$ 8 for 4 wings is a little steep but it was a good intro! (⁸⁄₁₀)
OYSTER OMLETTE: I had to come back for an edit; this is BOMBDIGGITY. Crispy, light, nice fat oysters in there and delicious (¹⁰⁄₁₀)!! Pick this over the chicken wings if you have to pick. Absolutely perfection, I should have ordered two of these…
BBQ Stingray with chicken stock rice: This. Is. It! It was hands down the best fish-​type item I’ve had at a restaurant in a really long time. The stingray is presented on a banana leaf, topped with spices and magic. Every single bite pulls off the bone in the most satisfying slow-​mo perfection. The meat is silky and really reminds me of crab with zero work! It’s PERFECT. Don’t ever change. Lifeprotip, you can pull the banana leaf back and there’s another perfect side of stingray on the other side! (¹⁰⁰⁄₁₀)
Lamb Rendang with chicken stock rice: BF ordered this to feed his lamb addiction. It’s quite good, very rich and lamby, not dry at all. He enjoyed this immensely.
Overall the best (best, best best, best) dish on the table was the BBQ stingray as a consensus. We will definitely be back for more :) see you soon Chomp Chomp.

I’ve always wanted to try Singaporean food my whole life and hope to one day visit the country. When friend and I decided to search for a place here in NYC and came across Chomp Chomp.
The décor is beautifully filled with lanterns and dimmed lights to make it feel relaxing.
The place is quite tight though. That’s the downfall to me. Tables are so pushed together.
Food-​wise: my friend and I shared the popiah and it tasted good. My friend ordered the nasi lemak and I ordered the curry mee (laksa). We both enjoyed our meal. It tasted great.

Pretty interesting space on a block that’s chockablock with packed joints nearly every night. Given the Singaporean «hawker» situation, they do make an attempt to fold in a number of different cuisines, with a heavy Malaysian bent. The question is, are they making Malaysian food as good as your general Malaysian place, your Thai stuff as good as a regular Thai joint, etc? GEE LET’S FIND OUT.
The cocktails were ok interpretations of kinda classic 1970s «asian» cocktails, with higher grade ingredients. The problem is, their Singapore «Fling» is nowhere nearly as strong or joyful in a kitschy way as a normal Singapore Sling that you can still find in some Thai and Chinese places that don’t do «upscale.» And the Long Shore had like 5 ingredients… none of which I could taste. I switched to beer, and that’s probably the best move for this place.
Oh Luak — somewhat bland, but saved by outstanding and plentiful oysters. Which brings to mind a strong weakness this place has — they don’t give you enough sauce for any single dish. They either need to season their dishes more, or provide more DIP. SEASON OR DIP, CHOMP CHOMP, YOU CHOOSE. But… choose wisely…
Murtabek — This was a pretty decent rendition of the Malaysian version of scallion pancakes, filled with minced beef and large quantities of egg. Required more spices. This is like, a «kinda sorta» order, and it really should be a «get 3 orders for the table.» Again, barely enough sauce for 4 pieces. Barely enough sauce for 2.
Hokkein Mee — This was the strongest dish here, both in flavor and in composition. I enormously enjoyed the two types of noodles, which is something I can’t say I’ve seen often. The seafood was utterly tender, with bits of crab and calamari sprinkled through. Given the price, I think more shrimp are warranted (there were two involved).
Hainanese Chicken Rice — This was probably the biggest disappointment of the joint. Arguably the national dish, and it is nothing even close to resembling traditional Chicken Rice. No dark soy, no broth, only the chili sambal. And the chicken was roasted, not steamed or poached. I get that this place isn’t a one item chicken rice joint like Eim Khao Mun Kai, but it actually might have been easier to go the traditional route here, especially in a city with few Singaporean places.
BBQ Stingray — Not sure why the menu changed from skate to stingray. Or why it’s called BBQ. But this was probably the only dish that was properly seasoned, with a nice smoky sambal that complemented the fish.
This kinda sounds like a 3 star review, I know. But given the location, proximity to the subway station, the more relaxed vibe compared to other places on the block, and the casual and well-​priced options, as well as the lack of any similar joints in the area, I’d definitely consider coming back. I just may avoid the dishes that I would consider standard (murtabek, chicken rice), and range a little farther afield.

Really busy newly opened restaurant esp during weekends. Singaporean friends loved this place, and they brought us here. Worth a try and wait.

KenScale: 8.0÷10
Sometimes, it takes a bit of tweaks to make things work for the better. I had visited chef Simpson Wong’s eponymous restaurant, Wong, several years ago, and wasn’t quite on board with its pan-​Asian fusion dishes. My impression back then was that the restaurant was trying to play too cute without offering the rich diversity of flavor and texture that Asian cuisine can offer. Since then, chef Wong has changed the concept of restaurant and called it Chomp Chomp, focusing on Singaporean hawker food that you can see in various market stalls throughout the food-​crazed city country. I had visited Singapore last spring and was very fond of the diversity of influences that go into Singaporean cuisine, from China to Malaysia to India. And such diversity combined to make something very special that you can often witness in one of the hawker centers. Chomp Chomp aims to deliver such hawker food tradition to the New York dining scene, and overall they were pretty successful on my recent visit for dinner.
Any meal at the restaurant needs to start with oh lauk, oyster omelet with garlic chives and chili vinegar sauce. I was deeply impressed with the balance of flavor and texture of this dish; it has the hearty feel yet wasn’t overpowering. No wonder this dish made New York Times’ top 10 dishes from last year. Murtabak (roti filled with minced beef to dip on vegetarian curry dip) wasn’t too bad, either, but suffice to say it didn’t make the lasting impression that oh lauk had made. Singaporean food has a lot of curry-​based dishes. so it was only natural that we try a couple. Curry mee which had seafood, tofu puffs and egg noodles on light coconut broth was quite aromatic and was a perfect recipe for a cold winter night. Asam fish consisting of hake, okra and tomatoes cooked in tamarind coconut sauce was quite delicious as well. Overall, I found the broth from both dishes to be on the more moderate side without overpowering spicy kick. Sometimes, adding spice enriches a dish, but other times, moderation makes more sense, and in this instance, the kitchen clearly executed on the latter side with great effect. For dessert, definitely try goring pisang (banana fritters with vanilla ice cream), which was quite delightful without the banana being over-​fried.
The restaurant doesn’t take reservations so make an effort to show up early (although the turnover seems to be relatively quick). There are some Asian-​inspired cocktails and pedestrian wine selections. The dining space has that trendy vibe of West Village that could make it a good place for dinner before night outs with friends or casual dates. I’m glad that Chomp Chomp has decided to evolve in a way where simplicity from the past has actually improved the quality of food coming out from the kitchen. Yes, that oyster omelet dish will linger for quite some time in my memory, too.

Pretty cozy yet filled up restaurant that has some unique touches to it. We had the char kway teow and murtabak, both of which were just alright. Since I had the murtabak on the streets of Singapore I wanted to try it out here, but it wasn’t as good or fresh. Boo.

It’s a potty I could not eat what I ordered but take it back home this night.
The wings are very good and Sonia the large crispy shrimp. I also liked the Asian spinach which was a bit salty though.
Next time, I will go back to order other things and eat it in.

(Photographers beware: Don’t bother. The restaurant is one of those «cool» joints that is lit by a candle and nothing else. Even if you are using a 5DMk4 and crank your iso to 6k, you won’t be able to get a good shot once the sun is down. So put down the camera and enjoy the food.)
Second of all, I want to set the correct level of expectations here: If you’ve been to Singapore and have eaten at Hawker Centers, this will taste kinda like the real thing. But do note that it only tastes «kinda» like it, not «exactly», because the chefs here haven’t been cooking it for tens of years like the hawker stall owners.
Third of all, it won’t be cheap. Singaporeans might be used to 3 dollar plates of Hill Street Char Kuay Teow or 8 dollars for a full plate of Har Cheong Gai at any of the Zi Char joints, but this unfortunately is New York priced.
Now let’s talk about the dishes one by one.
1. Har Cheong Gai. What was once the most potent fried chicken on the Singaporean island has been rendered almost forgettable when it landed here. The most important flavor, shrimp paste, was barely there. Heck, I’m not even sure if I was hallucinating when I tasted the faint hint of shrimp paste. I understand you must adjust the flavors for the people not used to it but come on, this is a sad excuse of a Har Cheong Gai.
2. Or Luak. Not bad, but a bit too soggy. I like my Or Luak crispier but it was pretty decent nonetheless.
4. Char Kuay Teow. I can tell the chef really tried, I mean, there was even little bits of fried pork fat like how they do it in Singapore. But sadly the taste is not quite there. It’s a bit light on the sauce, light on the wok hei, and the noodles were overcooked for some reason. If Hill Street Char Kuay Teow was a 10/​10, I would give this a ⁵⁄₁₀.
That being said, I plan on going back for the other dishes, to see if they are authentic. Now if you have never been to Singapore, definitely come check out the restaurant because the food is pretty good when you don’t have to compare it to the perfect renditions in its native country.
PS: The whole joint smells like incense, so if you aren’t into that then you probably should get takeout.

Came here on a whim because of a NYT Pete wells review. Initially having mixed feelings about this restaurant. When I first walked in, I was literally standing there for 3 minutes without anyone’s acknowledgment and what frustrated me more was the fact that a server that was passing by just looked at me and my friend, still not acknowledging us. Finally, a bartender/​server came to seat us.
There were only two seats left in the house and it was at the bar. My friend and I didn’t mind, due to our eagerness to try this restaurant. My friend is half Singaporean, however this would have been my first time at a strictly Singaporean restaurant.
I ordered the Char Kway Teow (originally made with seafood, but asked for mixed vegetables) and the Popiah (originally with shrimp, but asked for vegetarian version). I really enjoyed both dishes in the end. The Char Kway Teow tastes very similar to Pad see ew (Thai drunken noddles, which is my fave) and the Popiah was very delicious. It didn’t taste like your common Vietnamese summer roll. There was a Singaporean twist to it and I loved it. It was moist, but not too moist inside where the roll would fall apart. The insides were drenched with sauce and not made dry like the viet kind.
I will definitely be making my way back because of the food. The food deserves 4 stars! However, the servers might need a little more training on hospitality, even if it’s a super busy night.

My party arrived at 7:30pm to find a crowd of people waiting outside for a table. The hostess at the door said it would be about a 30 – 40 minute wait for 3 people. We decided to wait, and that was a huge mistake. We kept being assured by the hostess that we would soon be seated, but that was a lie. Over an hour and a half later, we were seated. If it wasn’t for my out-​of-​town friend who wanted to try this place, I would have long been gone.
When we were seated, we were seated right by the door where the wind was blowing into the restaurant. We asked to switch to a table that cleared up, but the hostess said the owner and his friends would take that space. I found that quite rude not to accommodate customers. Moreover, we were offered nothing to compensate us for the ridiculous wait time. It was a busy Thursday night, and the chef owner just sat down chatting away to his guests and couldn’t give a care for his customers.
Next came the food which was also a disappointment. My Singaporean friend ordered all the food: murtabak, bbq stingray, hokkien mee, carrot cake, and kangkun belachan. When the dishes came out, boy were the dishes tiny! The portions were tapa sized and much overpriced for the portion. The average entrée price was $ 15. My party spent over $ 60 and weren’t the least bit full. The amount of food felt like an appetizer to whet the palate. The taste was okay, but nothing spectacular.
Head on over to Chinatown to get some of these dishes for a better taste, more bang for your buck, and minimal lines. I would never come here again given the owner’s behavior and the lackluster food.

Of all the Singaporean/​Malaysian restaurants I’ve tried in the city so far, I can safely say that Chomp Chomp is one of the most authentic. I went with a group of 10 and we were honestly not expecting too much because there really aren’t many restaurants serving good Singaporean/​Malaysian cuisine in NYC. We were therefore pleasantly surprised by the quality of some of the dishes here!
My friends and I unanimously enjoyed the Char Kway Teow (wok fried rice noodles), Chye Tao Kueh (fried radish cake), and Hah Zheung Gai (shrimp paste chicken wings). All tasted legit, flavorful and very well made — Definitely a must try when you’re there! I also enjoyed the Fried Hokkien Mee (stir fried noodles with seafood and yu choy in seafood stock), although some friends felt that it was too watery and had a different consistency from what you’d normally get in Singapore. The Hainanese Chicken Rice was just alright in my opinion. Very disappointed that the rice from the Chicken Rice did not taste that much different from normal rice! The DIY Prima Taste chicken rice packets taste better. Sadly, I still have yet to find good authentic Chicken Rice in the city so please holler at me if you have any recommendations!
My friends and I were very impressed with the service here. A few of my non-​Singaporean friends had food allergies (e.g. soy, gluten), and our waitress was very knowledgeable about the menu and able to tell us which food had or did not have certain ingredients in it. She also recommended dishes that they would be able to prepare without those ingredients while still maintaining the authentic feel. I would say that Singaporean food in general is quite «unfriendly» to people with allergies or non-​meat diets, but the kitchen was very willing to make accommodations for my friends.
I’ll definitely be back again whenever I need to satisfy my cravings for Singaporean food!

As a Singaporean living in the US for the past 5 years, one of the things I miss about home is definitely traditional Singaporean cuisine, so when I heard about Chomp Chomp, I absolutely had to give it a try! Chomp Chomp menu definitely contains a lot of traditional Singaporean food although if you’re missing chicken rice, you might be a little disappointed. Chomp Chomp seems to focus more on hawker food and «xiao chi» more than anything else.
I had the nasi lemak and the sambal kangkong. the sambal kangkong was definitely a stand out dish for me — the kangkong was seasoned perfectly and the sambal definitely was spicy and delicious. The nasi lemak… wasn’t really what I was used to, but it definitely wasn’t bad. It didn’t remind me of home at all, but the rice was very fragrant.
All in all, eating at Chomp Chomp felt more like eating at a nice Asian restaurant rather than having Singaporean food. That being said, I can definitely see myself coming back to have that sambal kangkong again.