House of Dimpas

It was days ago that D and myself went to try out House of Dimpas (HoD) at The Amara. We utilized a $20 off with a minimum spending of $40 coupon, which required that we make a reservation beforehand. The requirement for reservation was understandable. For a usually quiet business to suddenly have to cater to a large crowd of people who patronize solely because of the coupon discount, ingredients and perhaps staffing would need to be adjusted.

So I searched for the website where I might find a number to make the reservation. It was on the website that I saw a description along the lines of dim sum and tapas, which was a misunderstanding that would eventually spoil my evening at HoD.

In any case, I made the call to the mobile phone number, which was only picked up about 20 seconds into its ringing. My call was answered by an unenthusiastic man who said nothing till I asked if I had reached HoD and that I wished to make a reservation. That man merely commented that there would be a private event on the evening of my reservation. That was it. No apologies, no suggestion of alternative dates, nothing.

D eventually made a reservation a few days later. I was dismayed when I saw the menu. There was nothing that alluded to dim sum or tapas. It was just fanciful zi char, with portions that were smaller than it's price suggested.

The food ranged from decent, to pretty good. But the lighting was utterly dull. One with night blindness would probably not be able to see the food one was eating. The air conditioning was turned up a tad too strongly for a restaurant that seats about 30, but held just 2 patrons, 1 waiter, the boss, and perhaps 1 to 2 kitchen staff. The dishes were served shortly after each other and in the climate of that room, turned cold pretty quickly.

HoD probably had a strong focus on being a drinking hole. It had a range of beer, and a bar well equipped with various liquors. The televisions in the place were initially on Channel News Asia, but was later then switched to a video of HoD's liquor promotion.

The owner, a chubby man with a ponytail left the restaurant to smoke several times within my hour plus dine there. With myself witnessing 2 other tables occupied throughout my time there, I would say the coupon deal is a last attempt to drum up business before the bleeding is stemmed.

So in summary:

• Not so pleasant experience of reservation over the phone
• Attentive and friendly waiter (although his English isn't that good)
• Overall good food
• Not so good prices and portions
• Dimly lit
• Too strong an air conditioning (perhaps meant for when the restaurant is half full)