Hey Hive!
Now that a lot of people here have already gotten vaccinated, I'm very happy to hear that Singapore is now allowing in-house dining again but obviously you have to be vaccinated. But since there aren't any restrictions this allows us to try out different food places again!
Back during New Years Eve 2022, we had some of our overseas friends come visit us here in Singapore! One of them came here from Vietnam to visit family, while the other came down from Malaysia to come hang out with us too! It'd been a while since the group of us hung out together in person so this was a long time coming, and we had a lot of fun!
After we went bowling one night we decided to go for supper and the common options for supper places here in Singapore are either roti prata or dim sum. The was a famous prata place that we've been wanting to try so we decided to head there!
If you're unfamiliar, roti prata is a South Indian flatbread dish that is believed to be evolved from original pancake recipes from Punjab. Although since Malaysians call it roti canai (pronounced cha-nai) it might have come from Chennai instead. Either way, the flat bread is made by frying stretched dough flavoured with ghee (Indian clarified butter), it is usually served with fish or mutton curry.
Source: hellosingaporetours
Anyway, the place we were going to is called The Roti Prata House and apparently they are famous for their Crispy Prata! So much so that they actually declared on their signboard that they have The Best Crispy Prata! While most roti prata is not normally crispy but soft and stretchy, Sean and I really like crispy prata so we were intrigued when we saw the sign.
I couldn't find much information about the history of this place unfortunately, but it's been around since 1996 and is one of Upper Thomson’s longest-standing eateries. It probably made this area famous for being a supper place especially since they close at 2 am.
So when we went there at 1 am we were pretty sure it'll be safe but we were skeptical of the crowds, especially since it was the New Years weekend. Thankfully they have plenty of tables so we didn't even have to wait when we arrived.
There were tables both inside and outside the restaurant and the restaurant itself was pretty big too, with plenty of seats and the kitchen/prep area at the back.
Just like classic roti prata places this restaurant wasn't air-conditioned so it was pretty warm in there so we tried to get a table under one of the ceiling fans.
After we sat down we took a look at the menu which had a variety of flavours of roti prata from savoury to sweet, and a number of cooked dishes and drinks as well.
We decided to get a few different prata to try but we weren't super hungry so we went with something more simple, and of course a few cold drinks since it was really warm.
We ended up ordering a few of their signature Crispy-Plain prata, as well as a Plain Paper prata (which I only knew as roti tisu). Roti Tisu is a thinner, crispier version of the normal roti prata and is commonly sweeter since it's coated with sugar.
Our drinks arrived first of course. Sean and I shared a bandung (rose syrup with condensed milk), while our friends got a lime juice and Milo Dinosaur, which is a common drink made with Milo powder and extra Milo piled on top. The cold drinks helped with the heat and we tried not to make ourselves too full before our prata arrived.
After about 10-15 minutes, our order arrived! The crispy prata definitely did not disappoint! I tried it first without dipping in the curry and the dough did taste a little different compared to other roti prata I've tried, but still really tasty! But the curry really enhanced the flavour of the prata after I dipped it.
It was so good and we were amazed how they could get it so crispy and yet still maintain the doughy thickness. They definitely lived up to their title as The Best Crispy Prata!
The paper prata was a little too plain though, I was expecting sugar on it like regular roti tisu but was disappointed to find that it was really just plain. It didn't taste as good as the roti prata either and was more like a thin biscuit cracker.
Since we were craving something sweet after all the plain prata and curry, we decided to share one more prata Bomb, which typically comes with condensed milk or sugar. This one definitely hit the spot; it was still super crispy on the outside but was nice and fluffy and sweet on the inside with some melted sugar.
It was so delicious and we were glad our international friends like it as well! Although they might be used to a different type of prata they said this one was really good and they enjoyed it a lot too. It was also a first time for Sean and I since we're hardly in the area so I'd say this was a really good experience!
After we finished eating we left the restaurant and felt so satisfied with full bellies! It was also a relief to leave the warm restaurant and feel the relatively cool air outside.
Turns out The Roti Prata House is open everyday from 7am to 2am, but close at 4am on Fridays, Saturdays and eve of Public Holidays. So that's why there were so many people around even at 1:30am then.
If you're ever in the area or have a hankering for some delicious supper, I'd highly recommend checking out this place if you can! Now that there's an Upper Thomson train station right across from The Roti Prata House, it's a lot more convenient to come here so we'll definitely come back again the next time we crave some prata.
Thanks so much for reading!
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