Marble House Eatery

Okay, I'm a little late to the party here with my post on Marble House Eatery...  All the hype and social media posts were on full display many months ago, but I was too busy to make it out there.  So for those who do not know, Marble House Eatery took over Top Gun Hot Pot in Crystal Mall.  They still have a reasonably-priced AYCE hot pot while also retaining Dim Sum service during the daytime.  Furthermore, they have been advertising their BBQ duck, in particular, one to takeout for a discounted price of $20.00.

So we gathered up the family, including the grandparents, to check the place out.  As such we ordered plenty of food including the Steamed Chicken Feet in sweet bean sauce.  These were fairly large in size and plump.  They were fried and then braised properly where the skin was tender while the fat/cartilage underneath was soft.  The flavour was indeed sweet, but also balanced off with enough savouriness as well as ample diced garlic.

As always, we also got the Steamed Garlic Spare Ribs with black beans.  As evidenced clearly in the picture, most pieces were the desirable bone portions.  Hence, there was very little fat and cartilage.  The meat was the right texture having a rebound with natural meatiness.  Seasoning was on point with enough saltiness for impact while the black beans and garlic came through.

So we ended up selecting 2 different Steamed Rice Noodle Rolls including shrimp and Chinese donut.  Although the rice noodle was torn with the shrimp, it was delicate, thin and soft.  It could've used a bit more elasticity, but it was fine.  The shrimp was medium-sized and were cold-water crunchy.  As for the donut, it was not really all that crispy anymore, but it was not dense.  Decent amount of dried pork floss on top.

Now onto the most important dish in any Dim Sum service, we had the Ha Gau (Steamed Shrimp Dumplings).  These were on the smaller side and featured a medium-thick dumpling skin.  It was full of elasticity and ate much better than it appeared.  Inside, the shrimp filling was quite good being sweet with enough seasoning (including background sesame oil).  Texturally, the shrimp had a moist snap.

The other dish that is a standard in Dim Sum is the Truffle Pork & Shrimp Siu Mai.  Well, maybe not the truffle, as it is more of recent trend, but the dumpling itself is a classic.  These were quite good where there was an equal amount of shrimp and pork.  The pork itself had a nice rebound texture while the shrimp had a buttery snap.  There was minimal amount of pork fat, yet the dumpling was still tender and juicy.  Seasoning was mild, but the ample truffle was impactful.

Normally, I would order some form of tripe, but I noticed on the menu there was a Beef Offal Hot Pot.  Yes, of course I had to get that!  This consisted of honeycomb tripe, spleen, lung, tendon and brisket with daikon.  I found this to be a bit bland, but I guess dipping the offal into hot sauce or hot oil was expected anyways.  Things were tender where the tripe still had a bite.  Brisket was a bit chewy, even though it was cooked enough.

There was no doubt we'd get the Shrimp Spring Rolls since the kids love them.  These were pretty good with a crunchy exterior that wasn't overly greasy.  Inside, the shrimp filling was in large chunks that were buttery with a snap texture.  They were seasoned well where the saltiness balanced the sweetness.  I liked how the shrimp weren't packed too tight while still not falling apart either.

One of the things here is that they cook certain dishes table side.  One of which is the Beef & Fish Congee.  So the ingredients were raw, so it did actually cook in the congee itself.  It was a little unnerving watching it because the staff were pretty busy.  I really wanted to stir it myself as it looked to be cooking quite rapidly.  In the end, they finished it off and it was not bad.  I thought the thickness was there and the seasoning was a bit light.  Fish and beef were tender.

Another item heated up table side was the Beef Brisket Noodles.  Since the items in this dish were already cooked, this was all about heating it up.  I thought this way, the noodles were a little overdone.  Soup was piping hot, but needed a bit more seasoning in my opinion.  There was ample brisket hidden underneath the noodles, but similar to the offal hot pot, I found it to be on the chewier side.

So the Salted Fish & Chicken Hot Pot Rice was also prepared on the dining room floor as well, just not at our table.  It was also on a butane burner and came out hot.  There was somewhat of a socarrat stuck to the bottom of the pot that was nutty and crunchy.  The rest of the rice was dry enough to have some nuttiness of its own.  I thought there could've been more chicken on top though.  It was tender and the salted fish added all the flavour that was needed.

One of my favourite Dim Sum dishes is the Bean Curd Skin Roll.  The one here was everything that I like about it.  First of all, the fried bean curd skin was chewy, yet tender at the same time.  Second, the filling was full of succulent and bouncy pork.  Lastly, the sauce was thick enough to adhere to the rolls (didn't get watered down by the steaming).  The flavour was just salty enough for impact.  Didn't matter though, I dipped it into Worcestershire.

Interestingly, the Beef Meatballs were in a certain shade of bright brown rather than the usual dull grey colour.  Maybe they used more dark soy?  Anyways, that didn't change the flavour much as it was still mild with a touch of sweetness.  Texturally, the meatballs were buttery soft with some firmness.  I liked how they didn't add too much green onion, so it wasn't overwhelming.

Onto dessert, we had the Egg Tarts as well as the Steamed Sponge Cake.  I found the egg tarts to be "okay".  The filling was good being silky, yet a bit too sweet.  However, the shell was a bit pale looking.  It was still flaky, but could've done with more colour.  Sponge cake was soft and fluffy while being only semi-sweet.  This was the better of the 2 desserts.  In the end, the Dim Sum was quite good with a few things that could've been better.  Service was friendly even though they were running around (probably hard to get a enough staff).  I would come back.

The Good:
- Decent Dim Sum
- Spacious seating
- Novelty of things cooked at your table

The Bad:
- Some refinement needed in particular dishes