I finally got my chance a few days back when, at a gathering for a friend who recently came back from overseas, my friends and I headed to Suntec City and, on a whim, decided to try out the Astons Specialties branch there. Boy, was I glad I went. To put it simply, the food we had there was good, economically priced and served in generous portions.
Astons Specialties is a cosy restaurant with warm, inviting Western-styled decor located at the basement of Suntec City (where, if memory serves me right, a Chinese soup restaurant used to be). The first thing one would notice upon perusing the menu would be the low prices for the main courses, placed way below the usual restaurant range. The prices vary from below $10 for several favourites (like the chicken chops) to slightly above for the steaks and more premium dishes, which is only a tad pricier than the coffeeshop counterparts.
Similarly, the quality of the food, too, was slightly above the coffeeshop versions (which were, as mentioned, already of decent standard) and easily better many mid-range chains like Swensons and Cafe Cartel.
I had a sirloin steak (apparently one of their titular “Specialties”) with pasta salad and coleslaw as my sides. Unlike many restaurants which usually foul up a medium-rare order, the steak served at Astons came in just the right proportion, with enough chewy tenderness and redness to satisfy the carnivore in me without being so raw that I feel like I just slaughtered the cow and bit into it straight. While it might not have the textural oomph that Jack’s Place steaks (and presumably other more expensive restaurants) offer but, for its price (a mere $11.90), tasty dressing and generous serving size, I was more than satisfied with what I was given.
The pasta salad and coleslaw were also generously served and both were done great, with the pasta springy and solid and the coleslaw cold and crunchy.
Both my friends who went with me ordered different chicken dishes, all of which were done well. The chicken slices were thick and, again, large and were just the right texture for a good bite. The sauces and dressings provided good complements without overwhelming the overall taste and the sides were adequately tasty and filling.
Like I mentioned, the prices at Astons Specialties are, reasonably, priced slightly higher than the coffeeshop Astons Express line (and even then, they’re not much higher and are still lower than other similar competitors) and, considering the quality of the food, definitely a bang for the buck. A must go, for all fans of Western food.
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
Astons Specialties
3 Temasek Boulevard
Suntec City Mall
#B1-043/044 Singapore 038983
Tel: 6884 8816
Operating Hours: 11.30am -10pm Daily
