Chicken Run Review: Customisable Clay Pot Laksa At $10.90+ At Paya Lebar Square

Watching my dad balance the hot pot with crimson flames peeking through the ‘chimney’ was a highly anticipated part of those meals. Eating at Chicken Run evokes some of that childhood nostalgia with clay pots that are kept bubbling over a steady flame. Chicken Run - Customisable Clay Pot Laksa At Paya Lebar Food at Chicken Run Customisable options and a long list of add-ons available mean you can have a unique order every time you visit Chicken Run.

Different clay pot sizes makes eating here good for both solo adventures and group outings, and the restaurant caters to different tolerances for heat with three levels of spiciness. We decided to try their signature Chicken Pot ($15.90+/$21.90+/$30.90+) at level one spiciness. We took advantage of their lunch special , which got us the Chicken Pot as well as a bowl of rice at $9.90+ .

The chicken pot had chunks of bone-in chicken stewed in a dark brown sauce, along with pieces of green capsicum and sliced onions. The spiciness was a creeping heat – the back of my throat got under way to tingle just when I commented, “This isn’t that spicy.” Using bone-in chicken made for succulent meat that broke apart easily with a few bites. The chicken absorbed the flavour of the gravy and was very tasty.

You can zhng your clay pot dishes with add-ons such as fried beancurd ($1.90+) and pork belly ($2.90+) , which will be served raw so you can cook it hot pot-style in the bubbling clay pot. Their Laksa Pot ($17.90+/$23.90+/$32.90+) was the real star in our eyes.

We chose to have this at level three spiciness, and the dish turned out to be full-flavoured and numbing but enjoyable for us spicy food lovers. The laksa pot does not come with laksa noodles but you can have that as an add-on at $1.90+ . Besides chicken chunks, there were tau pok and pieces of beancurd skin in the pot.

Remember to keep an eye on the meat if you leave it in the bubbling clay pot, as the chicken chunks in our laksa got a little tough after a while. We went with potato noodles ($1.90+) , crab sticks ($2.90+), broccoli ($2.90+), oyster mushroom ($2.90+) , and pork collar shabu shabu ($3.90) in a bean paste stir-fry ($5+) .

We found the stir-fry a little too dry and was lacking a distinct taste, though our choice of dense and chewy potato noodles might have had something to do with it. We received quick service from the staff, and they in addition refilled our clay pot with gravy from time to time, so we had no complaints about the service charge.

The verdict We liked the customisable food options and add-ons available at Chicken Run. Since food was served in a clay pot and placed over a flame, our food remained hot throughout our meal – though sometimes scaldingly so. Their lunch special menu is available daily from 11:30am to 5pm, so we recommend making a visit during that time for a value-for-money meal.