Dancing Crab has a new outlet at Punggol’s Northshore Plaza II and it just opened a couple of days ago (on 5th May, 5pm – so auspicious ah!) My darling and I popped by for lunch today – Mother’s Day – to soak in the atmosphere and also enjoy the $88++ (usual $112++) Live Crab Combo promotion. Instead of being a seafood restaurant only, this place also features their Slappy Cakes brand. So it’s like half the unit is for Slappy Cakes and the other half for Dancing Crab. The pancake concept seemed WAYYYY more popular today – almost full house when we reached at about 11.30am – while diners for the Dancing Crab side of the house streamed in slowly. By the time we left, there was at least one table available. That said, we spotted big groups of diners – at least 2 groups had 10+ people each.
Here’s the promo – you can find it on Dancing Crab’s FB page and website:
The Dancing Crab Live Crab Combo features one live Sri Lankan Crab (approx. 700g) <- keyword here is approximately, 350g Prawns, 350g live clams, corn and chicken sausage. We waited about 15 minutes for the food to be prepared. I’d also ordered their Gyokuro Green Tea when I spotted it on the (digital) ordering form. I vaguely recall doing a blogpost a long time ago about Gyokuro green tea and how it’s among the best grades of green tea you can get. I can’t say I’m raving about Dancing Crab’s version as I believe I’ve tasted better in a masterclass before. But the great thing about this green tea is that it does not taste bitter whether taken at the start of your meal or at the end.
OK… now here’s the disappointing bit: I’m always looking forward to meaty crab pincers and I can only pray and hope the crabs are fresh, meaty, and haven’t been left to starve for a couple of days before being cooked. Alas! As you can see in the picture below, the flesh has obviously shrunk maybe 30-40%? Sad…
That said, this particular pincer was not the crab’s dominant one. So the other pincer was slightly bigger. And my darling let me have them both. *happy tears* So I guess all is well. Since they ‘shrunk’ the price ($112 -> $88), you WILL have to manage your expectations too. Even when one of the staff came by to ask how’s our meal, we simply smiled and said it was OK. Felt paiseh to tell him that the crab’s so small, since obviously everyone knows the combo is on offer. 
Next time we’ll pay full price and send the crab back if it’s of this standard! Ha!
Also, the dude commented on our seafood formation on the table. XD At the start, I thought it’ll make it easier to count the number of prawns, etc. Then towards the end I gave up ‘cos there were just wayyyy too many clams. I’m so sick of clams now. I don’t think I can eat another clam in the next 6 weeks.
SO… for the now-discounted Live Crab Combo ($88++), you get a small crab, about 11 prawns (fresh and plump), one corn cut into six pieces, a crazy amount of clams, and chicken sausage (which obviously did not have any remains left to display).
As this outlet is still very new, expect some teething issues, for instance:
- New staff / part-timers being uninformed about the combo pricing. It’s not stated as $88 on the ordering form but the discount will be factored in when you go make payment after your meal.
- No one will ask whether you’d like some iced water. You’ll have to request for it.
- Some tables have tissue dispensers and some don’t.
- The food might take a while to be served, especially if it’s almost a full house.
I’m glad we popped by for lunch instead of dinner. XD I suppose there’ll be a queue outside the restaurant tonight.
Dancing Crab / Slappy Cakes is located at Northshore Plaza II, #01-11, 418 Northshore Dr, Singapore 820418.
* Actually, I’m surprised that Dancing Crab did not offer anything special to mothers today though it’s Mother’s Day and quite obviously, those big groups of diners came by to celebrate the occasion. Even a stalk of some flower would have been appreciated, I think. But… nothing.
** The al fresco dining area outside would be more attractive once the hoarding is removed so you can have a nice view of the waterfront. For now, I believe all diners will be seated indoors. Not much of a sea view. But you can see people hanging out their laundry at an HDB block nearby (from certain seats), and there are tanks of live seafood to keep young children entertained. Also, you can even see what’s happening in the kitchen. 