NO.5 Bukit Timah Live Bull Frog Claypot Porridge

We visited at around 6pm as a family of four—2 adults and 2 toddlers. The restaurant was not busy at the time, with plenty of empty tables, and we could see some of the waitresses standing around chatting. As our little ones don’t eat much, we initially wanted to order the smaller 3 free 2 frog set together with an omelette, which we felt would have been more than enough for our family. However, the waitress was quite persistent and insisted twice that we should order the larger 4 free 3 set instead. She then continued to suggest that we order another vegetable or additional dish. We eventually gave in and ordered a tofu dish as well. Our frogs, rice and porridge arrived first, and we started our meal. While eating, we noticed that other tables were receiving their omelettes and other side dishes first, even before their main frog dishes arrived. Meanwhile, our omelette and tofu were still nowhere to be seen. By the time we were about 80% done with our meal, the two dishes still had not arrived. Considering that the restaurant wasn’t particularly busy at 6pm and some of the waitresses were standing around chatting, we couldn’t understand why no one had noticed that two of our dishes had not been served. Since we were practically finished eating, we told the waitress that we wanted to cancel the omelette and tofu. She said she would check and quickly went down to the kitchen. About 10 minutes later, both dishes suddenly arrived piping hot. Given how long we had already waited, what we observed at the other tables, and how the dishes only appeared after we asked to cancel them, it certainly gave us the impression that our order had been forgotten. We decided not to make an issue out of it and ate the omelette and tofu on their own, even though we had already finished our rice and porridge. This was especially frustrating considering these were the additional dishes we had been encouraged to order in the first place. We also ordered 2 glasses of honey lemon at $4 each, which were disappointing. They arrived warm with only a few ice cubes and weren’t pleasant to drink. We didn’t even finish them. Our final bill came to $76, which we felt was quite pricey for what we had. We wouldn’t have minded paying that amount if the food, drinks and service had made the overall experience worthwhile, but unfortunately that wasn’t the case. What bothered us most was being repeatedly encouraged to order more despite explaining that we had two toddlers who don’t eat much, only for those additional dishes to arrive when we had practically finished eating. If you are going to be so persistent in getting customers to order more, then at the very least, those dishes should be served in a timely manner. For $76, coupled with the pushy ordering, poorly coordinated service and disappointing drinks, we left feeling that it simply wasn’t worth the price.

Appalling bad service. We've been patronising this store for quite a few years but after this experience, we will not be coming back. We had ordered 5 frogs, instead if the usual 3 frogs, for the 2 of us as we are rather large eaters. However, the waitress had still tried to hardsell us more food, and had insisted we didn't have enough food and needed to buy more. They then asked us to buy drinks as well, and after we said that we didn't want drinks, they told us that we were not allowed to drink our own water, and pointed to our water bottles. Hope the management understands that earning a bit more isn't worth losing customers for.

Food was decent, but the pushy sales tactics and questionable practices left a bad taste in our mouths. First, the wet tissues cost $0.90 each, which is about double what most places charge. If you’re not comfortable with that, do not use them and remember to return them after the meal. When the staff member took our order, she repeatedly tried to push us to order more food, particularly the expensive dishes like fish. We had already ordered more than enough food for four people, so it wasn’t as if we were under-ordering. After failing to force us to order more drinks, she informed us that we weren’t allowed to drink plain water from our own bottles, which felt unreasonable. Lastly, we ordered fried chicken skin, but what arrived didn’t quite match what we expected. The pieces were unusually large, thin and crumpled, and lacked the small feather follicles typical of chicken skin. We suspected it might have been frog skin served as chicken skin. When we raised this with the staff, they defended it and offered to show us the raw chicken skin. However, even if we had seen it, it’d be hard to verify if that was what was served to us, so we declined. The food wasn’t even good enough to justify the bad experience. There are better places to satisfy your frog porridge cravings. I personally recommend the one at Chinatown.

We came here for lunch for two pax and ordered quite a spread, including the [1] Claypot Spicy Frog Leg (2 free 1 promo), [2] Claypot Porridge, [3] Sambal Kang Kong, [4] Pepper Bai Fan Yu, [5] Honey Lemon Cold, and [6] Lime Juice with Sour Plum. Our favorites were definitely the [1] Claypot Spicy Frog Leg (2 free 1 promo) and [2] Claypot Porridge. The porridge was very comforting and warm, while the frog leg was flavorful and satisfying. It’s clear why these are their popular dishes. The rest were okay but could be better. The [3] Sambal Kang Kong felt a bit 'old?' and was slightly hard. It was a bit too much to swallow, although the portion was very generous. The [4] Pepper Bai Fan Yu felt like it was more suitable for 3–4 pax due to the large portion. We found it a little gelatinous after a while because of the strong salty taste. The drinks were decent, nothing too outstanding but enjoyable. Overall, we would definitely come back for the spicy claypot frog leg and porridge. A very comforting meal and especially perfect for rainy days! Note: 9% GST applies, and wet tissues are charged at $0.45 each. — Claypot Spicy Frog Leg – 2 free 1 promo ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Claypot Porridge ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Sambal Kang Kong ⭐ Pepper Bai Fan Yu ⭐⭐ Honey Lemon Cold ⭐⭐⭐⭐ Lime Juice with Sour Plum) ⭐⭐⭐

Overall taste is ok, the gong bao bull frog does not seems to be as spicy as before, less kick now. The price has increased over time. Owner please work on the hygiene more, often have like dirty table cloth unpleasant smell. Service staff are mostly friendly.

The frog was fresh and the vegetables were decent. However, the service of the Chinese lady was horrible. She gave us a black face when we didn’t order the special expensive dishes she recommended. She kept forcing us to order more as well, which was so awkward. Furthermore, she also forced my mother to buy a drink even though we already bought two. Even at a restaurant to relax and eat, you need to face sales tactics. I would much rather go to another stall than come here again.

The porridge was smooth and comforting, and the frog claypot was tender and flavourful. The fried tofu was surprisingly tasty too, crispy and well-seasoned. The ice jelly was refreshing, and the sour plum lime juice was nicely balanced. Overall, a satisfying and comforting spot 👍

The service was absolutely terrible; they didn't even offer an apology for the problem. The female employee sounded completely helpless. Please, there was plastic in your food! You acted like you were accusing us. Boss, please check CCTV on the second floor from 16:00-16:30 on February 28th.