Soft-shell Crab With Chilli Sauce @ Treasure Kiosk – Chinatown, Singapore

Treasure Kiosk recently opened its own permanent store in Chinatown Point. They had previously experienced great success with their pop-up outlets during various food fairs like Food Fiesta and River Hongbao and were encouraged but also humbled. As such, they have opted not to be overly ambitious and the new store is, as its name indicates, just a cozy stall that serves much coveted street food fare. The store has no space available to accommodate diners; food must be taken to go.

Treasure Kiosk’s menu revolves around chilli crab. However, the crustacean of choice is deep fried soft-shell crab rather than the conventionally carapaced ones. This is both for ease of eating to suit the store’s street food format and because they believe it can absorb the chilli crab sauce better.

One distinguishing feature of Treasure Kiosk’s delectable chilli crab sauce is that while the sauce traditionally contains peanuts which have been grinded into powder, Treasure Kiosk have chosen to leave them as sizeable bits within their sauce, giving it an extra crunch.

In the case of the Treasure Burger, the sauce is slathered over a whole soft-shell crab between 2 lightly toasted buns.

Treasure Kiosk insists on keeping the spaghetti in their Treasure Bowl al dente, so as to give it a firmer bite. Chunks of steamed crab meat are added alongside the ubiquitous soft-shell crab.

But in my opinion, nothing beats the classic. While the bread served in their Treasure Cup (or Treasure Bucket, if you fancy a bigger serving) is a baguette rather than fried mantou, it still tastes most satisfying after being dipped in the chilli crab sauce. Getting to eat the crab on its own with the sauce also still feels the purest way to enjoy this Singaporean favourite.

All dishes except the pasta come with some potato wedges, which can also be dipped in the sauce. I don’t think it adds much to the experience. But the wedges taste alright and ultimately gives more bang for your buck.

1-For-1 Promotion

From 25 July to 15 August 2019, Treasure’s Kiosk is offering a 1-for-1 promotion on its Treasure Bucket, Treasure Cup, Treasure Bowl and Treasure Burger items.

NAHMJ Verdict

You can’t go wrong with chilli crab sauce, and it goes beautifully with the soft-shell crab. At prices ranging from $8 to $18, the 1-for-1 promotion is very good value indeed and definitely worth a try.

Treasure Kiosk

133 New Bridge Road, Chinatown Point #B1-41, Singapore 059413

FB: https://www.facebook.com/treasurekiosk/

Opening Hours

Mon-Sun 11.30am – 8.30pm

Getting There

By MRT:

  • Downtown line or Northeast line – Chinatown station
  • East West line – Outram station

By Bus:

  • New Bridge Road bus stop   2, 12, 33, 54, 63, 80, 124, 143, 147, 190, 851, 961, 970, CT8, CT18, CT28
  • South Bridge Road bus stop   61, 80, 145, 166, 197
  • People’s Park Complex along Eu Tong Seng Street   2, 12, 33, 61, 63, 143, 197, 961, 970, CT8, CT18, CT28
  • People’s Park Center along Eu Tong Seng Street   54, 124, 145, 147, 166, 190, 851
  • Downtown line & Northeast line – Chinatown

Rating: 7/10