For those of you who have been following my blog, you probably figured out that I am a huge fan of crabs. I grew up in Singapore and to this day, I would say we serve the best crabs in terms of quality, variety and cooking styles. The Black Pepper Crabs at Long Beach and Jumbo, White Pepper Crabs and Salted Egg Yolk Crabs from Long Beach, Salted Egg Yolk and Curry Crab from No.3 Crab Delicacy…just to name a few. And of course the Black Pepper Crabs from Joo Chiat Road…Living in HK has been great except I really miss my Singaporean local delights (hawker food!) and my crabby indulgences. SO, needless to say, I have been on a hunt, looking for something close to satisfy my crab cravings. The one commonly recommended was Under the Bridge Spicy Crab – their specialty? Fried Crab with Crispy Garlic and Chilli which has varying levels of spice depending on your capacity.
I came with high hopes and left sorely disappointed. In fact, I gave it at least 3 chances, coming with 3 different Singaporeans and we all left dissatisfied. Perhaps it’s the Singaporean palate that has been spoilt with flavour and the availability of large Sri Langkan crabs with succulent meat, but this just didn’t cut it for me. Still, many flock here to try their famous spicy crabs and if you didn’t know better, I guess it suffices.
Crabs in HK are generally more expensive than Singapore in my opinion, given the size and crab quality. A 1.2kg crab could cost you about 500HKD-600HKD (~90-100 SGD) yet of poorer quality than what you will get in SG. I know that in some places in SG, your would get 1.3kg for the same or less.
So the first problem for me, was the crab size. They were not big. You could request for a larger crab, but you would be paying through your nose for that.
Crab quality – the meat just wasn’t succulent and sometimes it didn’t taste entirely fresh. The meat would stick to the shells and often times the pincers were not full. The shells were also very difficult to crack unless the Sri Langkan ones in Singapore I was used to. I would wager that these are probably mud crabs for the price of Sri Langkan ones.
In terms of preparation, I do like this Garlic and Chilli preparation however the one at this particular restaurant is way too salty for my liking. And for those who know me, I like flavour and salt is my thing. However even by my standard this is a tad too salty.
I have found another place, a “da-pai-dang” as they call it here that serves decent quality crabs with good flavour in their cooking styles. They serve this preparation as well and they do it so much better. You can taste the garlic and spice, both of which infuse perfectly with the crab. Will write about this place soon. Watch this space…
Under the Bridge Spicy Crab
G/F-3/F, Ascot Mansion, 421-425 Lockhart Road, Wan Chai, HK Tel: 852) 2893 1289 / 2834 6818 (Exit C, Causeway Bay Station)
Food Gossip with Germaine 