Lion Dance Cafe

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Lion Dance Cafe

The Lion Dance Cafe Cookbook is out now! To connect, follow us on IG or visit our website.

Michelin & James Beard celebrated "Authentic not Traditional" produce-centric cuisine, recently relocated from California to Singapore.

09/02/2026

Riz au Lait de Coco, from our most recent pop up at DRUGGISTS .
Short grain rice gets cooked risotto-style with fresh coconut milk, coconut cream, a toasted pandan knot, a dash of cinnamon, and an entire bottle of dark rum that we infuse with vanilla beans. We stop the cooking when the texture is nice and creamy but the rice is still a touch al dente. This time we topped it with roasted pisang and gula melaka caramel sauce, seasoned with soy sauce for added depth, and a crunchy peanut and love letter nougatine finished with fresh lime zest and salt.

We didn’t start putting rice pudds on the menu until somewhat recently (last year or two?) because we weren’t sure how well they would sell. Turns out they flew off the kitchen pass, so they’ve been in the semi-regular rotation since. Never underestimate the comforting power of the humble (and very boozy) rice pudd.

08/31/2026

One more down! As always big thanks to Corrine, Lincoln, Peng Chuan, Elex and Waddy DRUGGISTS as well as to everyone who came out last night. A couple parties even joined us for their sweet celebrations, happy birthday -you know who you are 🎂

We’re doing it on the last Sunday ag*in in September and we’re stoked to tease that Aleksandar | Wine in Singapore will be working out some very special wine pairings!

Reservations will open early-ish in the month via DRUGGISTS , stay tuned.

Singapore curry fries
Thrice cooked potatoes, curry leaf, tempered curry spice blend, fresh herbs, sambal aioli, calamansi. When three inauthentically-named dishes walk into a bar, something authentically delicious happens.

Three layer dan dan lasagna
Our fresh handmade pasta, rich smoked seitan and Píxiàn dòubànjiàng ragù, prickly ash besciamella, sesame, pickled screw pepper-oncino. Sizzled to order in the pizza oven (thank u for your patience 🌹 look how crispy puffy they got!)

lasagnas on deck

Our shaobing (sesame crusted four-day fermented sourdough focaccia) baked fresh for your sandwich enjoyment before sunrise

hauling around all the things

fresh handmade alkaline pasta sheets for the lasagna

good bread day

menus -shout out to Elex and DRUGGISTS team for putting together these awesome cocktails

3pm to 10pm non stop!

curry oil getting fried up with backyard curry leaves

smoked seitan dan dan ragù stewing

green and red sichuan peps

08/27/2026

BAR CAESAR with its creamy umami-bomb dressing coated in salty toasty crunchy stuff, and finger-friendly wedge format, eats more like a fried bar snack than a salad.
The crunchy stuff itself, a mix of our toasted sesame sourdough breadcrumbs, roasted seaweed, crisped capers, garlic, fried shallots, nooch, and lots of freshly cracked black pepper, is good enough to eat on its own by the spoonful.

We first put a Caesar-type dish on the menu maybe 12? years ago and every time it’s a little different as it evolves with us. There’s even a version in our cookbook, based on a customer favorite from the restaurant days. Eating your veggies should be fun and salads should be joyful.

We’re bringing this updated Bar Caesar to DRUGGISTS on Sunday, see you there 🥬

08/24/2026

SHAOBING SANDWICH NO.75: The Maitake Quarter Pounder.
Coming to our kitchen takeover of DRUGGISTS this Sunday. Each one starts with at least a quarter pound of glorious hen of the woods mushrooms, marinated with our own dòuchǐ (preserved black soybeans), good evoo and lots of cracked black pepper then pressed down and roasted on high heat until meaty.
The shrooms then get dressed with Chicago style hot giardiniera -a classic Italian American relish where assorted pickled vegetables and chilies are cooked down in olive oil, our starts with lactofermented pasar veggies- , creamy mustard aioli, lots of fresh dill and coriander leaves and stems (just as much flavor and added texture), and sandwiched in our freshly baked sesame-crusted sourdough focaccia.

It first appeared on our menu years ago but kept coming back by popular demand, so much so that the recipe made it into our cookbook (available at the link in bio). Come experience it for yourself!

08/21/2026

PICKLED FRIED GREEN TOMATOES
We start with selecting tomatoes that are “green”, as in unripe, some already starting to turn varying shades of orangeish-red but retaining that fresh crunch. We lactoferment them (a natural fermentation style, nothing to do with dairy -think sour g*i choy, dill pickles, sauerkraut etc) until seasoned through, briny, still pleasantly firm. We dredge them with cornmeal and fry them to golden perfection to order.

Two of our favorite fried snacks -fried green tomatoes and fried pickles- happily unite to make you order another drink, then another plate, and so on.
Complemented with our creamy, tangy pink roselle flower and cultured buttermilk ranch, roselle pickled onions, and fresh juicy vine tomato marinated with roselle chili oil, this is summer on a plate.

Sunday Aug 30 at DRUGGISTS from 3pm til 10pm (or sold out)! Reserve at the link in their bio, or take a chance -a few tables are always set aside for walk ups, space allowing. We look forward to cooking for ya!

No music on this post so that you can hear that sizzle and crunch.

08/19/2026

ICYMI we are back at DRUGGISTS on Sunday August 30! Come snack, eat, drink, eat and drink more from 3pm til 10pm.
We’ll be cooking up a storm in the kitchen with this combo of LDC faves and new creations, stay tuned as we zero in more closely onto each dish between now and then.
On the bar side, our hosts with the most will be creating a special cocktail menu pairing just for the occasion.

Reserve now via DRUGGISTS to play it safe or just walk up.
And since the first edition sold out so fast, we’re hoping to have some fresh cookbooks back in stock for everyone who’s been asking but 🤞🤞🤞

08/05/2026

Old school brined tofu scramble (the soft creamy kind, not the hard seared kind where the tofu’s been pressed to death), blistered koji fermented tomatoes, smoked bacon’d bǎiyè, toasted garlic-rubbed sourdough, pickled things and hot sauce (guess which one). Guava because a brunch plate isn’t complete without fruit touching everything (and you’re clearing out the fridge).

Tofu scramble is one of these eggless cooking 101 methods, and as such, we sure have opinions on it. It’s not that serious -this came together in 15 minutes or less but that’s easy when you have the right stuff on hand and are only cooking for two, versus scaling for a restaurant service. Been meaning to put scrambled tofu thoughts in a zine or something but the list is so long. Maybe it needs to be on a diner / brunch (at night) special menu someday.

08/04/2026

Eggplant with Sambal has been a staple at home and on our menus for so long, that when the time came to write our cookbook, the question wasn’t “will it be included?” but “which version?”.

In Singapore, we can make it anytime (maybe a future pop up even!). In the Bay, it was highly seasonal. As soon as the first chilies and plump eggplants (especially those from Kay Lee Farms, as you can see we had fun highlighting those brilliant purples when shooting the recipe) would start to show face at our local farmers’ markets every summer, we had to combine them. We’ve done eggplant with taupok and green sambal, eggplant with our own tempeh, and then using tempeh from our friends at Reculture Foods as shown in the cookbook, which is also the summeriest iteration.

The recipe is on page 158 and it’s been a hit with our readers all summer long. No wonder given how quickly it comes together -especially if you’ve already made the Sambal Tomat, which can turn anything into a mouthwatering meal, even just rice.

Keep sharing your creations and tagging us plus using , we love to see it!
Still need to get a copy? Head to liondancecafe.com/cookbook (linked in bio). Tip: if your local bookstore doesn’t stock it, request it from them!

Eggplant with Sambal has been a staple at home and on our menus for so long, that when the time came to write our cookbook, the question wasn’t “will it be included?” but “which version?”.

In Singapore, we can make it anytime (maybe a future pop up even!). In the Bay, it was highly seasonal. As soon as the first chilies and plump eggplants (especially those from Kay Lee Farms, as you can see we had fun highlighting those brilliant purples when shooting the recipe) would start to show face at our local farmers’ markets every summer, we had to combine them. We’ve done eggplant with taupok and green sambal, eggplant with our own tempeh, and then using tempeh from our friends at Reculture Foods as shown in the cookbook, which is also the summeriest iteration.

The recipe is on page 158 and it’s been a hit with our readers all summer long. No wonder given how quickly it comes together -especially if you’ve already made the Samb

07/29/2026

KOPI BUDINO
Lam Yeo coffee infused into a silky smooth pudding, buttery candied pistachio and kaya toast crumble, gula melaka and soy sauce caramel, Campari whip and orange zest. Like breakfast (minus the aperitivo, though who are we to judge) in dessert form.

The dessert from our recent pop up at clubstreetlaundry . Except for signature dishes, we don’t typically do a ton of menu repeats as pop ups are a way for us to experiment with new recipes, but when something hits it sticks. This one might become a regular in the menu rotation. ☕️

07/25/2026

Pickled Cucumber, tomorrow at our pop up at DRUGGISTS . Swipe for the whole menu!

A crunchy refreshing cucumber on roasted sesame fūrū cream, topped with crisp sweet pear, keropok (to make perfect little canapés with everything in between bites of just cucumber paired with our other dishes) and to tie it all together, our six treasure chili crisp.
Not too spicy but made for texture fiends in mind, with bits of sweet potato chip, corn tortilla chip, garlic, shallot, sesame and peanut.

See you tomorrow 3pm to close at DRUGGISTS , check out our current stories for more food pics and tell your friends.

Address

Oakland, CA

Website

http://liondancecafe.com/

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