Garuda Padang Cuisine
Tung Lok's new venture


On a recent venture into non-chinese cusine, tung Lok brings in a new Indonesian chain restaurant. Breaking into the ever-common local nasi padang cuisne, Garuda draws a clear definition of it with its trueblue indonesian-styled dishes. Chefs are specially sent here from Indonesia to whip up the wide selection offered, and they strike with great differences from Singapore's variety. It may be the authentic cuisine, but it was somehow risky in scoring with the local palate- you either love it or hate it.


Dominated with stark white furniture, it wasn't hard to identify it was a Tung Lok eatery. The place is simple, yet boasting with classyness. The elegance simply adds much bliss to the dining experience.


All their dishes are neatly laid out and labelled at the display section, where you can take your pick. Being spoilt for choices, it was difficult not to be tempted to select dishes in excess.


For 3 persons, we ended up with 6 dishes.

After settling into the allocated table, a man lugging a pot approached and meticulously spooned 2
scoops of rice onto each of our plates.

Nasi (freeflow at $2)


The steamed rice here actually surprised with a chewy and substantial texture.

Sambal Teri Tempe ($6)
"Fried Anchovies, Peanuts & Fermented Bean Cake"


This dish beared a spicy and lightly sweet flavour but was just not sufficiently crunchy.

Sambal Cumi Cumi ($7)
"Sambal Squid with Petai"


Obviously my pick, this was the first dish i tasted. But my heart instantly sank with my first bite, which brought in a sharp sting of chilli into my throat. The lacklustre squid pieces were obviously overcooked with its tough and rigid texture- it just didn't make the cut.

Tumis Kachang Buncis ($6)
"Stir-fried French Beans"


The prawns in it were not too bad but the french beans boasted a spicy and saltish aftertaste.

Assam Ikan ($6)


Submerged in a watery gravy, the fish was mushy (a indication of the unfreshness) and tasted a tad too salty.

Gulai Ayam ($4.80)
"Chicken Curry"


Again, another dish which didnt work too well with me. The meat had so well absorbed the curry that it spreads a powerful coconut flavour once it enters the mouth. Lemak overload, i feel - but ut should be quite a delectable dish for coconut lovers.

Kampung Cabe Hijau ($4.80)
"Braised Kampung Chicken w/ Green Chilli Sauce"


Instead, i was rather pleased with this variation of chicken. This green curry chicken came with a decent mild flavour without being too overwhelming i taste. It particularly appealed the most to me.

Overall: Although the food may not be my thing, I was rather pleased with the service. The smartly-dressed staff refilled my glass of water regularly without any request- i absolutely needed that.

Garuda Padang Cuisine
Cairnhill Place #02-01 (Ground Level)
15 Cairnhill Road
11.30am to 3pm, 6 to 10.30pm