Crystal Jade Prestige: Affordable Chinese Fine Dining in MBFC

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When one door closes, another opens. So goes the trend for the restaurant closures and openings. I must confess to being rather heartbroken once I realized that my media tasting destination was the opulent Paradise Pavilion which delicious renditions of custard bao and fried carrot cake, I had taken so fondly upon during my last visit. However, upon setting foot onto familiar territory, it was a wee bit comforting knowing that decor subtleties had barely changed and the space still had the same rigour and newfangled swishes of gold, charged up by transparent glass windows for that contemporary feel in contrast to the old-school purple heavy velvet get up usually spotted.

We kick off the menu with a hefty golden ingot on an even heavier black slate. Deep Fried Scallop with salted egg yolk and chilled organic tomato served with avocado sauce ($20) pleases both the purists and the new explorers. Hokkaido scallops are encrusted in salted egg yolk batter and served alongside refreshingly sweet tomatoes and a dollop of avocado cream. The tanginess of the salsa pile creating a lovely juxtaposition to the sinful albeit appetizing scallop fritter. Roughly the size of an A4 paper folded neatly into quarters, the value is unquestionable and I would happily dig into two portions if my pockets ran deeper and my cholesterol on the dangerously low side.


The star of the show, the Tea Smoked Roasted Duck ($78/whole) captures our attention from start to finish. Fastidiously worked for 30 hours, during the duck is imbued from skin to bone with a tantalizing smoky flavor and fragrance - even the masterfully crisp skin carries light touches of aromatic Pu-er tea leaves. Enjoy the creme de la creme with sugar and then proceed to eat the rest of the fowl, the moist thigh meat and tender breast meat wrapped in soft crepes with smidgens of sweet hoisin sauce and strips of cucumber.


The Roasted Baby Suckling Pig with black truffle pearl rice ($20/pcs, $160/half, $328/whole) qualifies as the most refined suckling pig I've had up to date. A solid column of crispy skinned pig stuffed with pearl rice infused with truffle and abalone stock. Superb, if you just ignore the price tag. Another modern dish it the Lobster and Seafood Tomato thick soup served in coconut ($28) - avoid this if like me, you can never resist hollowing out the insides of the coconut till the last bit because the red smudged broth may impose quite a challenge, particularly precarious if dealing with a more stern and formal meal setting. That being said, the broth, teeming with briny crustacean flavor and blessed with succulent chunks of lobster and fresh scallop is good and will fill you up pretty quickly.


Other innovative offerings include the Pan-fried Beancurd with Black Truffle Sauce ($8.80) - where the lonely strand of chive makes it appearance again. Garnish choices definitely could use a bit of enlightening here. But where the real deal is concerned, the soft beancurd worked in perfect conjunction with the salty, heady scented truffle mushroom sauce. It's intriguing shade of grey, an outcome of incorporating squid ink during the making - leaving a slight sea-worthy tang in the mouth.

As illustrious as it seems,  the Pan-fried Minced Fish Noodle with Scallop ($12) comes across as the best and most creative dish of the night. Stealing praises all across the table despite the filled bellies. Since the noodles are made from fish paste and tossed in umamified prawn stock, the result is a cumulation of QQ textures; boosted with the glorified presence of perfectly seared scallops. Delicious.


Desserts don't fall in the same category of greatness and proves to be a minor letdown with less than original dessert ideas, presented in the most conventional styles. The Chilled Black Sesame with Coconut Milk ($6.50) stands out the most, it's gelatinous agar like quality pushing diners to give the dessert a mighty stir-up before partaking.

Current promotions running at the new Crystal Jade Prestige are
  • 25% off Tea Smoked Roasted Duck and Dim Sum on weekends till 3 30pm
  • 15% off dinner food bill Daily
Make your reservations at 6509 9493 today!


Crystal Jade Prestige
Marina Bay Link Mall
8A Marine Boulevard
Ground Plaza
#02-01/02
t: 6509 9493

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