Crab Factory was very intriguing when I read about the concept of crab boil (a spicy mixture in which seafood is cooked in) and being a seafood lover, I just had to try it!
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I'd admit, the prices are quite intimidating but I was prepared to splurge, just this one time.
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The lunch pastas are not cheap either.
We decided on a Cajun fried calamari, Cajun fried chicken wings, 500 g of prawns with chicken sausage and potatoes (you get to choose 2 sides FOC with your seafood of choice) with O'ly Crab sauce and 2 meat crabs with corn and button mushrooms in the same sauce.
The eating will get messy, I assure you so put on your bib and make full use of that stack of serviettes. Also, whack the seafood with all your might, nobody will care as they're busy killing some seafood themselves.
The Cajun Calamari came first - warm and heavily battered. The cajun seasoning was rather uneven and we couldn't shake off the seasoning of pieces with too much powder. I was also not fond of the heavy, crumbly batter. The calamari drowned under all that seasoning and batter. I was crossing my fingers that the chicken wings would fare better.
To my disappointment, the chicken wings was drenched in the same batter and more batter crumbled onto the table than in my mouth. The chicken wings were well done on the inside but my un-fondness for the batter ruined them for me.
The large prawns came in steam-filled bags which needed some cooling down before digging in. The prawns were quite fresh sans the odd soft prawn or two. The chicken sausage went very well with the spicy garlicky sauce and the potatoes were soft and fluffy. However, the prawns lacked sweetness, probably due to the manner it has been cooked. The O'ly Crab sauce was short on seasoning but was spicy and garlicky. Your lips will burn slightly and your stomach will be warm for a long time. I wished there was a little more salt and lemon in the sauce though.
The crab fared better. The meat was firm and fresh and I loved the taste of the corn in the sauce. After awhile, the richness of the sauce (too much garlic and too much spice) got to us and I had to request for some lemon wedges which we gladly squeezed onto the seafood. The freshness of the lemon made everything better and I regretted not ordering them sooner. A word of advice would be not to be silly like me and order the same sauce for both dishes. The mushrooms were swimming in the oil of the sauce and was a turn-off. I sadly abandoned them because of the oil and because I was too full.
The aftermath.
It was definitely a unique dining experience - hands-on and fun! However, the prices are steep and because the seafood is only cooked in one way (boiled), it loses the subtle flavors and textures of fine, delicate seafood. LC commented that he'd rather go to an all-rounder restaurant like Unique Seafood and I couldn't agree more.