Dong Bei Ren Jia 东北人家 came into my life through my husband, who’d been sneaking off there with his colleagues for Chinese dishes and beer sessions. He’d bring home takeaways from this spot, and honestly, I was hooked from the first bite. After checking out from our weekend staycation at Mercure ICON Singapore City Centre, we swung by Dong Bei Ren Jia for a proper sit-down lunch before heading home.
Quick heads up: just several units down the same street, there’s another spot called Dong Bei Xiao Chu 东北小厨. Different restaurant entirely. Don’t mix them up.
The Menu
Even if you can’t read Chinese, you’re sorted. The staff communicate in English without issues. Beyond the standard Dong Bei dishes, they’ve got BBQ items too. There’s a separate menu folder with pictures and English names, so you can browse, pick what catches your fancy, tick the boxes on the order sheet, and hand it over. Simple as that.
The Space and Service
Air-conditioned comfort. Nothing fancy, but clean and comfortable. The sort of place where you focus on the food, not the décor. Dishes came out pretty quickly too, which is always appreciated when you’re hungry.
What We Ordered at Dong Bei Ren Jia
Homemade Cold Dish (家常凉菜) – $8
This looked like the usual cold vegetables from Chinese buns and dishes stalls, but turned out to be a proper mixed salad situation. Baiye tofu, black fungus, cucumber, carrots, coriander, peanuts, dried chillies, all thinly shredded and tossed in a tangy dressing.
The textures were brilliant. The vinegar gave it this piquant, appetising kick that made you want to keep going back for more. Great starter.
Shredded Pork with Beijing Sauce (京酱肉丝) – $12
Been eyeing this dish after seeing it on Chinese travel vlogs. Those wonton-skin looking wraps? Actually sheets of baiye tofu. You eat it like Peking duck rolls: pile the shredded pork, cucumber, coriander and scallions on a tofu sheet, roll it up, bite.
The pork is cooked with sweet bean sauce, giving it this sweet and savoury thing going on. Really enjoyed it. Bonus: this makes an excellent low carb option if that’s your preference.
Home-Style Braised Tofu (老式烧豆腐) – $10
Wasn’t expecting fireworks from a tofu dish. Wrong. This was really good. They use something like firm tofu or tau kwa, but it tasted better, like it was pre-seasoned somehow. The tofu gets fried first before being cooked with vegetables in a savoury sauce.
Pairs brilliantly with rice. The kind of dish that disappears quickly from the table.
Crispy Sweet & Sour Pork (锅包肉) – $14
One of our absolute favourites from Dong Bei Ren Jia. Fried till properly crispy outside. The meat inside has a bit of chew but nothing that requires effort. They probably used potato or sweet potato starch for the batter, which gives it that slight chew in texture that I really enjoyed.
It’s basically like tangsuyuk from Korean-Chinese restaurants, same style. The fried pork comes coated in sweet sour sauce. Doesn’t feel overly oily despite being deep fried. Super addictive stuff.
The Damage and Final Thoughts
Total cost came to $52.30 for everything, including two portions of rice ($1 each) and one Coke Zero ($2), with GST. No service charge added.
I haven’t eaten at many Dong Bei restaurants in Singapore, so I can’t claim this is definitively the best. But this was a really darn good meal. Prices are very reasonable. Portions are generous, more than enough for two. We left with happy, satisfied bellies.
Trust me when I say we’ll be back whenever the cravings strike. There are actually other dishes I spotted on the menu that I want to try. Dong Bei Ren Jia delivers honest, hearty Northeastern Chinese cooking without pretension or inflated prices. Sometimes that’s exactly what you need. 😉