Popular Home-Based Dry Laksa Biz By 28-Year-Old Upgrades To Retro-Chic Eatery At VivoCity

Home-based food delivery business Jelebu Dry Laksa got its start when owner Renee Tang Eyrn, 28, developed the titular dish after leaving her job as an executive assistant at a venture capital firm in 2018. “When I quit my job, I wanted to move to LA and start a food truck to introduce Singaporean flavours [to the market]. Dry laksa was one of the dishes that suited the mobility of a food truck. The plan failed after I realised it was hard to get a visa there,” shares Renee. 

In 2020, the millennial decided to pivot to a home-based food delivery biz instead, whipping up laksa from her home kitchen at Jelebu Road in Bukit Panjang (which her brand is named after). After much acclaim, Renee has teamed up with Tipsy Collective to launch her first brick and mortar eatery at VivoCity. The Singapore-based F&B group runs several concepts including beach-themed bar Tipsy Flamingo at Raffles City, co-owned by actor Pierre Png and his wife Andrea De Cruz. We popped by Jelebu Dry Laksa, which Renee co-owns, ahead of its official opening on October 3.

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Trained at a French-Japanese restaurant

After scrapping her food truck plan, Renee apprenticed at now-defunct French-Japanese restaurant Le Binchotan for a year in 2019. Prior to this, the entrepreneur had no formal culinary training. “I considered enrolling at the Culinary Institute of America in New York, but it was too expensive,” she says.

When the restaurant took a hit during the pandemic, she felt that it was time to launch a home-based biz on her own. “I wanted to make dry laksa my signature dish. During Circuit Breaker, I cooked it for my family and friends and the recipe was good to go.” In 2020, Jelebu Dry Laksa started offering elevated takes on the dish with premium ingredients like Boston lobster and tiger prawn.

Fearless personality

Renee cites her “go big or go home” personality as the driving force behind Jelebu Dry Laksa’s leap from a home-based biz to a full-fledged eatery. “I didn’t have worries [about opening an eatery]. I’ve had experience working at restaurants and I know that I have a team of people supporting me. I don’t think there’s really a ‘ready’ time. If you always hesitate, you’ll never do it.” 

Renee came to partner Tipsy Collective after being acquainted with the group’s general manager. “He used to help me deliver my food during Circuit Breaker, and [after he was employed at Tipsy in 2021] I got to know one of the bosses,” she says. When the collective approached her for a partnership last year, both parties agreed on a trial run first. “We did an eight-month pop-up at Takeshi Noodle Bar [a now-defunct ramen restaurant at Teck Lim Road owned by the group] – we didn’t want to jump into it right away. We wanted to see if people would be receptive and if we would work well together,” she says. The pop-up was a success. In June this year, Renee started developing a menu for her first physical outlet. 

More outlets to come

The rise of Jelebu Dry Laksa continues apace – Renee shares that the team is looking at “opening more outlets soon”. For now, the chef-owner says she will “stick in the kitchen” at their VivoCity outlet, where she leads a team of four. “I have to learn to train someone to lead the team here while I focus on the next step [of expansion].”

Ahead of its official opening, the eatery – which had its soft launch two weeks ago – is already enjoying fanfare. “On our first day of soft launch, I received a lot of gifts from regulars,” she shares happily. “It’s very heartwarming – many of them have supported me from the start. There are a few [customers] that come to every single event. I’ve grown close to them and I know I can count on them for honest feedback.”

Retro & chic

The colourful and spacious full-service 70-seater is outfitted with retro touches like Peranakan floor tiling, antique mirrors and vintage knick-knacks that remind us of a heritage shophouse. A wall adorned with an illustration of street vendors in the past – including a touching tribute to Renee’s late godpa, who used to run a home-based otak biz. The team declined to share how much they’ve invested into the chic eatery.

The menu

Renee says her menu draws inspiration from her childhood memories and favourite dishes while employing techniques she honed at Le Binchotan. Despite its Peranakan-influenced decor, the menu is not exclusively tied to the cuisine. “In terms of flavours, it’s more diverse than what I used to offer. I’d describe the food here as Southeast Asian fusion.”

Expect refined takes on homespun creations like pan-seared barramundi in assam curry sauce and Teochew braised duck risotto on top of the signature dry laksa. Prices are what you’d expect from a casual restaurant: the entry-level ‘kosong’ laksa with sakura ebi is $12, while other mains range from $15 for a vegetarian soba dish to $42 for a grilled hanger steak.

There’s also a small dessert selection and – befitting of the Tipsy brand – a comprehensive beverage menu including cocktails like a gin-based bandung concoction as well as beers, wines and homemade herbal teas.

Grilled Tiger Prawn Dry Laksa, $18 (8 DAYS Pick!)

Instead of stir-frying the noodles with rempah, Renee simmers the springy, thin rice noodles (with a texture similar to thick bee hoon) in a concentrated house-made prawn-based laksa broth, which makes the dish a bit saucy like Hokkien mee. It has a robust coconutty and crustacean fragrance without being too jelak. Thanks to the addition of crispy sakura ebi and grilled tiger prawn, the otherwise faithful take on traditional dry laksa has a stronger-than-usual umami kick that we enjoyed. Torched before serving, the tiger prawns had a pleasant smokiness, though the flesh was not as succulent and sweet as we’d liked. Other garnishes like taupok, bean sprouts, fish cake and cockles (previously not featured in the HBB version, which used to cost the same price) complete the punchy, modern take on dry laksa.

Duck Confit Teochew Braised Risotto, $26 (8 DAYS Pick!)

The chef combines her grandma’s braised duck recipe with French confit technique gleaned from her Le Binchotan stint for this inventive take on a traditional Teochew dish. Notes of five spice feature prominently in the fork-tender duck leg meat and sticky risotto, which has been slow-cooked with braising liquid. Make sure you stir the silky onsen egg into the rice for added creaminess. We liked how the heady flavours are balanced with tangy chilli-vinegar sauce (similar to what you get at braised duck stalls). Taste-wise, the dish reminds us of a thicker, richer and more sophisticated version of Teochew braised duck porridge. Yum.

Assam Barramundi Fillet, $32

The tangy assam curry – embellished with tomato, eggplant and okra – adds a tasty richness to the moist slab of crispy-skinned barramundi fillet. We also enjoyed the thoughtful garnishes like the crunchy deep-fried tau pok and julienned ginger flower, which perfumed the dish with vibrant, citrusy aroma. A hearty, appetising dish that’s good for sharing.

Larb Moo on Perilla Leaf, $18 for three pcs

An elegant interpretation of the popular Thai salad. Renee’s version features minced pork, pickled cherry, shallot and pork crackling in a perilla leaf wrap. The flavours are light, bright and refreshing, making it a good appetiser that complements the richer flavours of the eatery’s main dishes.

Burnt Cauliflower, $18

Though it’s listed in the small plate section, we think this generous starter can work as a main too. Three thick slabs of cauliflower steak are enticingly rubbed with turmeric, paprika and cumin before roasting (we would have preferred a stronger char) and doused with calamansi yogurt. While the citrusy, creamy dressing was yummy, its assertive tanginess made it harder for us to discern other elements in the dish, like spring onion pesto and Japanese chilli oil.

Scallop & Otah Pillow, $18 for three pcs

Plump, sweet and beautifully torched Hokkaido scallops paired with house-made otak mousse and nori cracker, finished with avruga caviar (an affordable caviar substitute that contains herring instead of fish roe). For its price, we expected more from this starter and found the flavours to be pretty forgettable – go for the other options instead.

Soya Bean & Grass Jelly, $8

Familiar flavours of soya bean milk and grass jelly are showcased in this simple but well-executed dessert. The house-made soya ice cream is especially tasty – better than the likes of Mr Bean – and pairs well with the slippery, mildly herbal jelly. The crunchy you tiao and chopped peanut round off the satisfying dessert with a lovely textural contrast.

Ice Homemade Drinks, from $5

Our favourite brew was Renee’s Infusion, which features a refreshing, gently floral blend of chrysanthemum and osmanthus tea, topped with a sweet, herbal shot of Jia Jia Liang Teh.

Bottom line

Jelebu’s tasteful old-school decor and elegantly-plated, flavour-packed contemporary Southeast Asian-inflected creations remind us a little of Violet Oon’s National Kitchen — albeit a more casual version with gentler prices. The punchy, complex dry laksa here is worth a try, as are the fusion interpretations of Teochew braised duck and Thai larb moo. We hope the standard of cooking remains consistent once the young chef turns her attention to opening new outlets.

The details 

Jelebu Dry Laksa is at #02-48 VivoCity, 1 HarbourFront Walk, S098585. Open daily 11.30am - 10pm. More info via Facebook & Instagram.

Photos: Aik Chen

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