Ayam Penyet Ria - Known For Serving The Best Ayam Penyet In Singapore

Ayam Penyet Ria is a popular restaurant with 5 outlets in Singapore, serving a wide array of authentic Indonesian cuisine. As the namesake suggest, their specialty is the Ayam Penyet, a common dish found in Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore.

Ayam Penyet is a direct translation to S mashed Fried chicken, where the fried chicken is smashed with the pestle against mortar to tenderize it. Common accompaniment are sambal, slices of cucumbers, fried tofu and tempeh.

Unfortunately during my visit to the Far East Plaza outlet at around 4pm, most of the food items were already unavailable which was quite ridiculous for a restaurant that opens till 10pm. Thus, I was not able to try out their Lele Penyet (Smashed Catfish and rice), Gado Gado, Avocado Juice, Kepiting Penyet (Smashed Softshell crab and rice) and Spicy Kangkong.

Ayam Penyet & Nasi ($7.90)

The ayam penyet set consists of a deep fried chicken leg, fried beancurd, tempeh and sambal belachan on a piece of cabbage, but sadly I was missing the kangkong as it was sold out despite paying for the same price.

The fried chicken didn't appeared to be technically "smashed", but it was undoubtedly crispy and succulent that goes well with the crispy bits on top. The fried tempeh was a unique dish that surprisingly resembles heavily in terms of both texture and taste to a chicken nugget!

However what attracts diners to return has to be their sambal belachan. A numbing spiciness infused with the flavors of shrimp paste, garlic, shallots, chili and many more. This unique blend compliments well with their dishes, which makes people keep wanting more.

The food served here may be decent and affordable considering the location, but unfortunately the lack of professionalism and details is upsetting.