The ultimate fish soup for the soul can be found at the oldest fish head steamboat establishment in Singapore, Nan Hwa Chong Fishboat. This 88-year old restaurant travels far and wide only by word of mouth, providing charcoal-fired steamboats which gives soups that full-bodied flavour that is of a different league altogether.

Nan Hwa Chong Fishboat's soup base is made of original recipes, born out of 5-hours of preparation and simmering with the essence of fish bones and other ingredients that remained hush-hush (well, trade secrets!)... what I can assure you is that this umami fish soup is very comforting, delicious and addictive. I couldn't stop refilling the soup, bowl after bowl. At the end, I only wished I had a bigger appetite to eat more. It is well worth it to simply go and try the fishboat itself for a fulfilling dinner.

A fresh new entry into its traditional menu, the Alaskan Codfish, sure shakes things up a little, with its silky smooth and tender texture. It is definitely significantly better than your usual fish in the normal steamboats - simply 'shabu' it for 30 seconds in the tasty fishboat broth and then pop it into your mouth to enjoy this treat. The amount of satisfaction got me wondering if I were a cat in my past life.

As one of the most family-friendly Chinese restaurants around, Nan Hwa Chong Fishboat has tze char on its menu as well.  While the fishboat was quite spectacular, the tze char selection is varied. Taste-wise, it is generally rather average, so don't expect the same level of wonderment you will get from the fishboat. They sure serve as good side dishes while you enjoy the soup though. I love how the entire atmosphere is so nostalgic.. sure brings back family dinner memories of ten years ago.