First up was a neatly presented plate of perfectly golden roast pork belly. I thought the skin was a wee bit soggy but still a competent offering overall.
Fishcake was, well, fishcake.
And then the true star of the day was this little crock of abalone soup made from double boiling chicken, pork, abalone, dried scallops and fish maw and then topping off with a few ladles white Chinese stock (白汤) when ready to serve. The secret of the urn was finally revealed when the soup was brought to us. It is charcoal fired from the bottom and within the urn there are shelves where individual soup crocks, filled with the ingredients and a little water, are stacked.
Anyone who says abalone is tasteless will be silenced by the umami that dominate the broth. The milky stock, already very tasty on its own, was able to stand its own ground against the abalone, resulting in a harmonious overlap. The scant abalone cubes in the soup were quite good, tasting almost sweet.
Their noodles was no slouch too, especially their zingy chilli sauce and a liberal sprinkling of lard. The whole piece of dried fish was a unique touch.
Ah Lam certainly warrants repeated visits.
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