Five Ten – Affordable Taiwanese Comfort Food for $5 or $10!

Five Ten is the latest eatery to hit the streets of Chinatown. Having lamented the lack of time to savour more scrumptious Taiwanese food during my holiday in Taiwan just last month, I was excited to discover this one-week old restaurant offering fusion Taiwanese cuisine. Five Ten’s selection of humble Taiwanese fare is priced at either $5 or $10.

Pop by in the evening and you’ll be greeted by a chic interior that is dimly lit, with single bulbs dangling from the ceiling. “The ethos of the restaurant is to provide comfort Taiwanese food. Nothing too fancy, really. We’re here to provide food that we were raised on”, general manager, Christian, shared. Shawn and Nickii Kishore, the founders of Five Ten, were very inspired by their visit to Taiwan and decided to open up Five Ten.

The menu boasts a modest selection of Taiwanese cuisine carefully curated by Shawn and his team.  We ordered a couple of dishes to share. The Lu Rou ($10) features pork belly braised in housemade soy sauce. The flavourful meat was wonderfully tender and melted oh so slowly in my mouth. The soy sauce was slightly salty, but we had a serving of rice to balance out the saltiness. Five Ten also offers free flow of rice if one bowl isn’t enough for you!

The Steak with Pickles ($10) is a gem. You get several slices of seared sirloin lying on a bed of pickled Chinese cabbage. Done medium, the steak is firm yet tender. The sour pickled Chinese cabbage lends a stark contrast to the savoury steak. I preferred to eat my steak and cabbage separately, as the taste is more discernible. The garlic crisps on each piece of sirloin adds a hint of nuttiness and sweetness  to the sirloin.

Don’t forget to spice up your meal with a touch of greens. We had the Brussel Sprouts ($5) which comprise fried brussel sprouts, sautéed shiitake and chilli padi. The brussel sprouts were nicely caramelised and armed with a good char. The shiitake was equally flavourful, albeit a tad oily.

If you like a snack to pair with your alcoholic beverage, you can grab the Fried Chicken ($5) – a simple ensemble of fried chicken seasoned with sesame and soy, and nori mayonnaise. The seasoning on the chicken is very savoury, and dipping it into the seaweed dip makes it even more addictive!

Since we were driving, we skipped the alcoholic beverages and opted for an Ice Chocolate ($5) and Cold Brew Soda ($5). The iced chocolate was mediocre but the cold brew soda was interesting! The cold brew soda is served in a cup, and the taste of the sweet soda hits you first before a light acidity from the cold brew does. The drink is very refreshing and definitely perfect for light coffee drinkers like me.

Unfortunately, we missed out on the Rice Bowls, which are only available until 5.30pm. We witnessed a couple of hits and misses here at Five Ten, but I’ll definitely return for its Steak and Pickles as well as their Cold Brew Soda. In the upcoming weeks, do look out for the launch of their new brunch menu. I’m glad they brought to the table a part of a country that I truly love. 

MissTamChiak.com made anonymous visit and paid its own meal at the stall featured here.

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