In the last few years, the Upper East Coast/Siglap stretch has gone through some interesting developments. There has been the invasion of coffee conglomerate Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf, who had the hindsight to set up shop in this well-heeled neighbourhood, followed by independent ’mom and pop’ restaurants and eateries.

Big Fish is a good example of the latter. The restaurant, as its name already suggests, is based on the fish and chips concept that is much popularised in countries such as Australia and UK. The concept was adopted by owners Rosaline Loi and Lim Juat Kin, ex-bankers who are also foodies. "We decided that fish and chips will be a good idea during one of our road chips in Thailand, and we stopped by a stall which had a spread of fresh seafood," shared Loi. With an interior dominated by pinewood (often stained in different colours), the restaurant is a cosy hangout place for friends and family.

Here’s a tip before you order from the menu - check with the restaurant what are the dishes of the day. These are your best bet for freshness, and variety. I started with homemade seafood chowder, which had generous portions of plump prawns, scallop and clams. The lobster bisque, however, was the favourite around the table. Served piping hot, the sweet, intense seafood flavours was proof that this is freshly made in-house, and not frozen. Next on the list were the fresh Australian black mussels and NZ littleneck clams. There is a choice of the more Asian spicy lemongrass sauce, which can pack a punch with the addition of chilli padi, or the more traditional garlic and wine sauce. There was something heartening as we mopped the sauce off with the fresh, thick slices of bread in the basket.

Next came the spicy seafood cioppino, a traditional stew that had a homemade tomato base, and (once again) spicy hints, thanks to the sambal chilli that had been added. The tomato sauce gave the sauce a pleasant sweet touch, and there was nothing heartier than digging into the mussels with plump meat. For those who love eating family-style, the grilled hot seafood platter will please. The variety was jaw dropping - the jumbo plate was filled with skewers of grilled Australian Queen scallops, morton bay bugs, fish skewers, barbecued squid, New Zealand mussels and char grilled prawns. And this is not all. Beneath the seafood feast was a bed of addictive butter rice, with moist al dente texture. Thick French fries, which had a nice bite, was served on the side, with homemade Thai sweet, sour and spicy sauce, as well as tartar sauce on the side. Where it may be sacrilegious to ask for meat dishes in a seafood restaurant, the owners and chef had also provided for those with carnivorous preferences. The braised lamb shank was done well, with the meat almost falling off the bone.

Where the desserts on the menu were mostly straightforward, with the usual offerings such as ice cream, crispy banana fritters and brownies, what we loved was the warm chocolate soufflé, which had walnuts at the base, and added an unusual nutty flavour to the whole dish.