A Southeast Asian Feast at Portman's Restaurant

Sponsored by The Portman Ritz-Carlton, Shanghai

Southeast Asian food at Portman's Restaurant—curried lamb shanks, saucy chili crab, heaving bowls of wok-fried noodles and durian dessert on the menu.

Southeast Asian Food at Portman's Restaurant

The “Naturally Southeast Asian” menu pays tribute to the origins of The Portman Ritz-Carlton’s team, led by Singaporean Executive Sous Chef Chia Jue Xian. It’s a fresh new take from their previous dinner offerings, focusing on Singaporean, Malaysian, Thai, Indonesian and Chinese dishes.

As a Malaysian, I can attest to the authenticity of the wok-fried Mee Goreng Mamak, noodles with shrimp and chicken, and the tangy Ikan Assam Pedas fish curry. And if you love durian as much as I do, you’ll fall head over heels for the ultra-rich durian crème brûlée.

Hainanese Chicken Rice

It's a sizeable menu! There are also crowd favorites of tom yum goong, satay, rendang (short rib), Hainanese chicken rice and laksa.

The Food: Curries, Noodles & Seafood

Sambal King Prawns (¥198) – Australian king prawns with sambal. These are jumbo sized prawns—you get three pieces. The way to fully enjoy this dish is to polish off every last morsel of the spicy onion chili sauce with a bowl of rice.

Ikan Assam Pedas (¥208) – Fillets of Australian barramundi cooked in a spicy, tangy tamarind gravy, served with okra and tomato.

Malaysian Lamb Curry (¥188) – Fork tender lamb shank drenched in a thick curry with cubed potatoes. A cumin-rich curry, also great with rice.

Mee Goreng Mamak (¥58) – Wok-fried egg noodles with chicken, prawn, cabbage, carrot, greens, beansprouts, potatoes and tomato, a street food staple. This is a heaving plate of noodles and the best value dish on the menu! I would come here just for this.

Singapore Classic Laksa (¥118) – Prawns, fish cake, quail eggs, beansprouts and thick vermicelli noodles in a light coconut curry broth. Laksa preference is subjective and this particular one doesn't quite hit the spot, but it might do it for others!

Singapore Chili Crab (¥408) – A whole crab in a tangy chili and tomato egg sauce with deep-fried mantou to dip. Worth the work for the meaty crab.

Pandan Mousse Dome (¥88) – Gula Melaka palm sugar caramel macadamia nuts and candy floss with a pandan mousse.

Durian Overload (¥88) – A durian crème brulee with Musang King custard and durian ice cream. Oh lord, this is so good. It's the best durian dessert I've ever had. The custard is so thick and creamy its almost like eating the actual fruit. Portion is large, good for two to share.

As for drinks, they have a few Southeast Asian-inclined beverages, including teh tarik (pulled tea) and calamansi plum drink, as well as cocktails.

Favorite dishes / will order again: Sambal King Prawns, Assam Pedas Fish, Lamb Curry, Mee Goreng Mamak, durian dessert.

They also have a couple of set menus, five dishes for two to share for ¥398 or eight dishes for four to share for ¥898. I've added one a Nomfluence set menu below, which include all my favorite dishes listed above.

Nomfluence Readers Deals

The deals below are valid from now until February 28, 2021 for Nomfluence readers.

• Nomfluence set ¥650 for 2-3 people (includes all my favorite dishes, worth ¥740)
• 10% off your bill

All prices listed are net.

Click here to BOOK your table now!

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Portman's Restaurant*
Address: The Portman Ritz-Carlton, Shanghai Centre, 1376 Nanjing Xi Lu, near Xikang Lu 南京西路1376号, 上海波特曼丽思卡尔顿酒店, 近西康路
Tel: 62797166
Hours: 5:30pm-10:30pm*