How much durian can one eat within an hour? 8days.sg was about to find out when we pulled up to the Giant Hypermart in Tampines on Vesak Day. We were there for the Durian Buffet Party, a seasonal shindig for the king of fruits that the supermarket chain was holding from Jun 2 to 4.

For an admission fee starting from $38 (early bird price), one can gorge on unlimited helpings of durians. We have seen some durian stalls offering buffets during peak season (from now till August), but it is pretty rare for a supermarket to host one.

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Tentage set up for the buffet

A dedicated carnival-style tent had been set up beside the carpark for the buffet. Getting in was easy; we had registered for a slot earlier on Giant’s microsite for the buffet, and were given a tag by the pleasant staff to make payment in person at the cashier set up beside the tent.

The pricing 

The buffet has a one-hour time slot, at 3-4pm, 5-6pm, 6.30-7.30pm and 8-9pm. Each slot has a maximum capacity of 100 pax.

The entrance fee is cheaper if you book in advance; walk-ins are possible for an extra $10. At the time of publication, the early bird slots are fully booked, so we will just tell you about the walk-in prices.

There are two types of tickets for the buffet, a $48 Normal package that gets you 100g of Mao Shan Wang, 100g of Black Gold and free-flow varietals, mainly D13, Red Prawn, Golden Phoenix and D101. There is also a $78 Premium package with unlimited access to all durians.

What went down

Although we registered early, we only managed to get a 6.30pm slot. We arrived on time, but the tent looked rather deserted. The outdoor area was well-ventilated, with at least 12 hardworking fans scattered around. Given the ulu location, it didn’t even feel like Singapore. It was like we were eating durians in... Johor Bahru.

We got ourselves a table, which was very clean despite an earlier session having taken place just half an hour before. It was stocked with a box of tissues and some plastic gloves. After paying, we were also given a bottle of water from the company’s Meadows house brand.

Customers with different packages were allowed to sit together at the same table, so a durian fiend with a $78 ticket can also bring a less enthusiastic friend who only wants to shell out $48. Everyone is given a colour paper wristband to indicate their type of package, black for premium and red for normal.

A durian ‘buffet table’ — presided over by a durian seller — is set up in the corner for customers to get their own free-flow durians, so the wristband determines what we could scurry off with. Huge baskets of durians lined the back of the tent, waiting to be dehusked.

The durian supplier is Geylang durian purveyor Deluxe Durians, a very large fruit stall along Sims Avenue that apparently also supplies fruits to a number of local supermarkets including Giant.

At 6.30pm, a girl at the entrance hyped up the event by hollering into a microphone that the buffet had started. She was not the only one keeping time. Out of nowhere, like a ninja invasion, a long line of excited customers suddenly formed at the buffet corner. Were they hiding behind the giant baskets of durians? We will never know.

But the queue was orderly and civilised, and everyone got their durians quickly. The deshelled fruits were placed on disposable plastic trays, with about three to four seeds of premium durians per tray, and five to eight seeds for non-premium varietals.

The durian quality 

Since we had a black tag, we went for more Black Gold and Mao Shan Wang. The BG durians were good — rich, creamy bittersweet flesh with small seeds. But we find most of the MSW dry, despite their golden yellow, plump and promising appearance. 

Within 20 minutes, we had eaten our ticket price’s worth of Black Gold. But we noticed that the people around us all went for the normal package, which gets them 100g — or two trays’ worth — each of BG and MSW durians.

But the Golden Phoenix was very disappointing, with bland, watery flesh. The Red Prawn was much better, luscious with its distinctively sticky texture and intensely sweet flavour. We were not allowed to tapow leftover durians (naturally), but we had to abandon our inedible tray of Golden Phoenix.

As the number of customers per session was limited, there was no messy scrum at the buffet corner and we could get our durians immediately when we went back for more.

Still, we wondered if folks with the Normal package would get their money’s worth. This was swiftly addressed when a man next to us, who had walked in midway through the buffet with a red wristband, confidently wolfed down over 20 trays of durians.

We saw our table neighbours all making quick work of their fruits; finishing their trays and going for more helpings. We overheard the durian seller grumbling to his assistant: “Wah, I didn’t expect this but I chop until buay hu (Hokkien for ‘can’t keep up’).”

It appeared that this was no buffet for amateurs; we were in the presence of black belt durian heavyweights. Some customers even left before the one hour was up, after putting away a considerable amount of durians.

Worth going or not?

Simply put, this Durian Buffet Party is more for people who value quantity over quality, especially if you are going for the Normal package. Those who are very particular about their durians would find the quality of the fruits here not as good as the ones you pick yourself from a trusted seller.

But we find it reasonable given the ticket price, which is lower than other durian buffets we have been to with better durians, but cost almost twice as much.

That said, the basic appeal of a buffet is getting to eat what you like in unlimited portions, and we find Giant’s setup pretty well done. The seats are comfortable, the tent well-lit and ventilated, and everything you need for eating durians like gloves, drinking water and a sink for washing hands are provided. We just wish they were more generous with the beverages.

More durians upstairs 

If you are still not sick of durians after the buffet, Deluxe Durians has set up another ad-hoc stall upstairs selling durians from $2. We didn’t see any of the $2 durians (according to a poster it is available from 12pm to 10pm at varying time slots), but there were plenty of $5 ones. No deshelling and boxing service is provided, so be prepared to lug your own spiky durians home.

Giant Tampines Hypermarket’s Durian Buffet Party is happening from Jun 2-4 at the hypermarket’s carpark, 21 Tampines North Drive 2, S528765. Staggered time slots at at 3-4pm, 5-6pm, 6.30-7.30pm and 8-9pm. Walk-ins only, $48 for Normal package, $78 for Premium package. www.giantevents.sg.

Photos: Yip Jieying

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