Local Hero Singapore Doncaster — Restaurant in Melbourne

⚡️Marvel-lous experience at @localherosingapore.au ⚡️ . (Praying I don’t get sued for the pun…)

Hainanese chicken rice & BBQ (char siew) rice ($17.9) is the perfect way to try both quite frankly amazingly well done proteins and great for when you’re indecisive (been there, done that). The rice 🍚 is incredibly fragrant, and you can just tell that it’s been steeping in that good good chicken broth/oil 💯 Couldn’t recommend the BBQ pork enough, and we really hit the jackpot today by getting the end pieces because that’s where it’s at! There’s that crisp char that contrasts the soft fatty parts of the pork perfectly. The cut of the pork is very well chosen with a great blend of fatty and lean meat, which means succulence is turned up to the max. As for the chicken, it’s cooked to perfection, oh-so-tender and is in a very happy marriage with the rice.

Soft shell crab laksa ($17.9) is a winner. The broth is full-bodied and rich with that classic briny flavor you’d expect in top-tier laksa. The chilli paste on top packs a bit of a punch but it isn’t overwhelming at all, since the coconutty aspect of the broth tempers it. It comes with noodles, fish cakes, and dry tofu that soaks up the broth to become flavor bombs in your mouth. The soft shell crab is a wonderful addition, offering a crunchy texture, and it’s thoughtfully served on the side to be placed when ready so there’s none of that sogginess ✨

Signature pork and prawn dumpling soup ($9.9) is actually a bit of a misnomer since these are wontons, but the fact remains that they’re among the best wontons I’ve had in Melbourne. The filling is silky, well seasoned with a bit of that classic ginger twinge, and there are noticeable chunks of prawn too, which is everything that I love ❤️ and I’m so happy to find somewhere that serves such authentic wontons!

Ultimate Chendol ($15.9) has an impressive assembly of all the classics: durian, jackfruit, red bean paste, and herbal jelly. Even the ice underneath is well flavored with coconut milk and herbal jelly! It’s a textural masterpiece that keeps you munching away and marvelling at the flavor profile. Even after we’d finished most of it, my friend couldn’t help but drink down all the melted parts because it’s just. that. good. It’s actually also my first encounter with jackfruit!! So I was pretty excited to be trying something new.

We really appreciated the #invite and would like to thank the team at Local SG for their hospitality and spot on customer service even with the store as busy as it was!

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Local Hero was aesthetically really bright and inviting, which bearded strong resemblance to how hawker food stalls look like back in Singapore.

I really thought this was a good food court dinner! The chicken rice was presented well - with a trifecta of ginger, chilli and sweet soy sauce (fun fact, that’s the Singaporean way of eating chicken rice). The chicken rice chilli was both tangy and spicy - I encourage you to ask for more chilli when you pick up your order because the standard amount they give isn’t sufficient if you love your chilli like me.

The chicken slices were tender and cooked well. I generally prefer the rice (in a chicken rice dish) to be oilier, fluffier and have a distinct ginger taste. Local hero made brave attempts to recreate this, but still falls short of the high Singapore chicken rice standards.

As for the laksa, I really appreciated that local hero recreated the sandy texture of Singapore laksa - the taste of dried prawn was really strong and went well with the spicy sambal chilli. I was hopeful for more fish cake slices (because I love fish cakes in my noodle soup) but otherwise equally enjoyed this dish. My partner loved dipping the fried fish in the curry sauce, but I found it a bit odd to eat fish fingers with a curry noodle soup. Will go for hainanese chicken rice and soft shell crab next time.

I think using plastic spoons diminishes the experience of enjoying a solid dinner, so I’m hopeful that we will use proper cutlery when having these meals one day. All in all, very excited to come back and sample the other dishes and also thankful that this place opened up!! Keep going guys!!

A few caveats to this review - As a Malaysian who has not sampled any of these brand names in Singapore, I am unable to compare these dishes to the original version. I have also not tried Katong Laksa, just because other Singaporean dishes (bak chor mee and frog led porridge) always take precedence during my short...

@localherosingapore.au Is the first restaurant in Australia to host two Michelin brands under one roof. All the dishes are authentic Singaporean street cuisines that are multi Michelin award winners and are truly exceptional in taste, quality, texture as well as in quantity even.

The Michelin dishes are:

Tiong Bahru Hainanese Boneless Chicken Rice, the simplicity of this dish is simply mind blowing and so perfect. Chicken can be this tender, and juicy I never knew before and with that flavorful rice, the combo becomes next level of deliciousness. Comes with a soup and three types of sauces and fresh cucumber. Quanity wise, it's perfect for sharing between two.

A Noodle Story, the spicy ramen noodles with juicy pork belly, dumplings, soy egg, fried potato strings prawn, is a divine combination that will leave you craving for another plate of it. The flavors are addictive thereby its immensely tasty and fantastic.

Katong Laksa, with prawns and seafood like fish balls and fish cakes with a egg is simply mesmerizing and so comforting to eat. This soupy noodle is absolutely delectable and the soup is so mouth melting and cooked to such perfection.

Punggol Nasi Lemak, with fried chicken, sambal paste, fried peanuts and anchovies and a thick omelette, this dish is incredibly yummy and flavorsome. That sambal paste is truly something that you're never gonna forget as it's so awesome.

Dessert:

Iced Chendol, a refreshing, sweet dessert with chendol and red bean paste, that's completely irresistible to eat after a filling meal.

So guys checkout @localherosingapore.au at @westfielddoncaster to taste the brilliant Michelin starred dishes straight from...