(Photos by missuschewy, words by misterchewy)

For the benefit of all readers, the direct translation for Gu Ma Jia (姑妈家) is “aunt’s place”. In this context, it should be “First aunt’s place” because Gu Ma, the owner of the restaurant, is the eldest among six siblings and has numerous nephews and nieces calling her “Gu Ma”. Gu Ma likes to cook, and on a regular basis, she would invite her siblings, nieces and nephews over for her homecooked meals. Prior to setting up this casual restaurant, Gu Ma has over ten years of experience in selling chicken rice and wanton noodles!

Gu Ma is a very jovial and hospitable woman who sat down and chatted with us while we were eating. I believe everybody would be curious as to why she came up with the name “Gu Ma Jia”. Initially, Gu Ma wanted to call her restaurant “我家” (My Place). However, it was not available for registration. Since her nieces and nephews called her Gu Ma, she decided to go ahead with Gu Ma Jia in the end.

Gu Ma told us that she selects her ingredients and seafood from the wet market daily to ensure that she picks only the best. Dedication, passion and her ability to whip up yummy dishes won her an award at the Singapore Food Festival 2010.

Figuring that we wouldn’t be able to finish so much food on our own, missuschewy got her bff to join us and also give some comments about the food at the same time 🙂

There are a number of drinks available but I would strongly recommend the Ice Jelly with Lime.

The drink was cool, refreshing and sweet with a tinge of sourness. You have to order this if you intend to try the Assam Fish Head, which you really have to order as well. The tadpole-like agar agar gives you something to chew.

When the first dish was served, we were a little surprised that the aluminium foil came enveloped in flames. No, not to worry! This is actually a highlight of the dish 🙂

At Gu Ma Jia, the Kyoto Pork Ribs ($20) are wrapped in aluminium foil and sprayed with a good amount of rose wine before being lit. The strong sweet aroma is then emitted as a result of the chemical reaction. That made us salivate and dug into it straight. It was actually my first time eating such tender soft and juicy pork ribs! A word of advice is to have it while it is will hot as it will stick to the aluminium foil after it is left to cool. We revisted Gu Ma Jia just last week with my family and we ordered this again.

Crispy Bean-jal ($12) is a unique dish in my opinion. The brinjals were thinly sliced and deep fried to crisp before coating with a layer of sweet sauce. It tasted so good that I couldn’t believe I was having brinjals. Similarly, please consume the fried brinjals while it is hot else it will lose its crispness.

Special Made Tofu with Lingzhi Mushroom ($12) is one of my favourite dish over at Gu Ma Jia. The homemade tofu had a crispy skin and silky texture. There were hints of egg in the tofu that enhanced its taste. We also ordered this during our revisit.

If you ask me what’s the signature dish of Gu Ma Jia, it is definitely the Assam Fish Head ($25, half head). The first thing that hit us was the fragrant smell of the Assam gravy. It is Gu Ma’s special recipe and consists of 13 different spices. The assam fish head is really spicy and slightly sour. This is where the ice jelly drink comes in. A must order at Gu Ma Jia.

Gu Ma’s daughter, Gwen, recommended the Cereal Sotong with Curry Flavour ($20). Since young, I have always loved the smell and taste of fried cereals. This time round, this dish did not let me down. The sotong was slightly battered such that I could taste the tenderness, and the curry flavour lingered on the tip of my tongue.

Eat this with Gu Ma’s special belachan which really stank in a good way. Would order this again and again.

Prior our revist with my family, my MIL headed to Gu Ma Jia with her mother and sisters for lunch and they like the food too! Best of all, there’s no service charge and GST. Also, if you check-in to Gu Ma Jia on Facebook on weekdays, you can get $20 off your total bill with a minimum spending of $100. Do check with the waitresses upon placing your order.

Thanks Gu Ma and Gwen for playing wonderful hosts to us.

Gu Ma Jia Food Pot (姑妈家)
45 Tai Thong Crescent
Sennett Estate
Singapore 347866
Tel: 6285 2023

Opening Hours
Daily
11am – 10pm (Closed 3.30pm – 5.00pm)