Hong Kong Soya Sauce Chicken Rice and Noodles

Under the recommendation from my friend Mr Quantity (let's just say that he values quantity more than anything else), we head out to the market over at Smith Street in Chinatown to try the famous Hong Kong Soya Sauce Chicken Noodles.

The boss taking orders

It was lunch time and the queue was snaking around the tables. Mr Quantity commented that it's not that there's a lot of people, it's just simply that the service was very slow that's all. Well, if the food is really that good, then I wouldn't mind queuing for it.

My friend's words were true, the damn queue took close to 45 minutes before it got to us.... The boss was outside the stall taking orders and occasionally helping out inside. True to his name, Mr Quantity wanted to order a whole chicken since there were about 3 of us but we decided against it since we wanted to eat something else after this as well.



One thing I must say about this soya sauce chicken noodles is that the sauce tasted very sweet. I had tasted the other Chew Kee and Chiew Kee soya sauce noodles located over at Upper Cross Street but this tasted the best! Although the quantity wasn't very much but Mr Quantity agrees with me and it's definitely big value for money since it's only $2.50.

Verdict:
If you can stand the long queue go for this. You won't regret it.


Hong Kong Soya Sauce Chicken Rice and Noodles
Smith St Food Centre #02-127
Closed on Wed
11am to 8pm

Keisuke Tokyo

Keisuke Tokyo Ramen: Ramen King in Japan. "Keisuke Takeda officially crowned Ramen King in TV Tokyo's Ramen Champion Series!" Apparently that's what it's said on one of the posters. Keisuke Takeda the founder chef of Keisuke Tokyo: this long haired guy is the Ramen King. Makan Boy and his friends came to this particular ramen outlet under the recommendation of one of the friends who knew someone who worked as a waitress over there.

Just how fantastic and amazing is their ramen that they can be called Ramen King over in Tokyo? They used to have a prawn stock ramen but they removed it apparently due to the under-appreciation of it by singaporeans who reckon it to prawn noodles. What a pity I couldn't taste it... Instead they have a special crab version. Another of the newspaper clippings on the noticeboard said that they initially limited the bowls of crab stock ramen to 50-60 bowls each day BUT they now removed the limit on the bowls served each day. Wow, this must be some awesome stuff huh.

So, my friends and I got different versions of the ramen. I personally got the crab stock ramen. You also get to choose the texture of your noodles much like Ippudo although you can make more choices such as taste of soup. We all decided against being too adventurous and opted normal for all options lest we spoil our meal.

Shio Ramen with Egg ($13)

Tonkotsu Ramen with Egg ($13)

Shoyu Ramen with Egg ($13)

Only one chashu each ramen

So was I impressed with their ramen? No. Was I disappointed? Yes, definitely. I mean the title Ramen King raised the bar pretty high even before my tongue touched the ramen. In the end, I only like the Shio ramen which is the better out of everyone else with a more pleasant soup stock. The rest were simply average. In my opinion, the crab stock ramen was too thick and yet did not carry much crab fragrance. The eggs was nice though, qualifying since they were runny.

Yaki Gyoza ($6)

Oh since our last mishap with Yaki Gyoza over at Ramen Champion, we still decided to go ahead with them over here (since we all have balls). Now, they really didn't disappoint us over here which is quite a good ending to the experience over here. Besides they even gave vouchers for eggs when you do come again next time (if there's a next time that is).

Verdict:
Definitely not the Ramen King I would expect. Enough said. There's another ramen stall beside them called Nantsuttei. I might give them a go someday.

Keisuke Ramen 
9 Raffles Boulevard  

Parco Marina Bay Millenia Walk 

#P3-02 Singapore 039596
http://www.keisuke.com.sg/

Shen Ji Seafood Garden XO Crab Bee Hoon

In the very same coffeeshop that I did a review a while back for Char Grill Bar, there's also another heavenly cuisine that although is expensive but a must-try. With a such a huge signboard outside the coffeeshop, it's almost impossible to miss the XO Crab Bee Hoon by Shen Ji Seafood Garden. 

For the price of $24, the size of the crab they gave me was quite satisfying for me. I mean, look at the size of those pincers! Pardon me, for I'm a huge fan of pincer meat. The XO infused with the thick bee hoon was damn good as well. The fragrance was thick and sweet exciting my taste buds. I didn't leave any bit of the soup hanging around after I was done. 

Verdict:
Holy cow, go try it already! Look at the pincer meat! My personal favourite part of a crab. You will definitely not be disappointed by the strong XO fragrance and the thick bee hoon makes a killer combination.

Shen Ji Seafood XO Crab Bee Hoon
Blk 491 Jurong West Ave 1 Singapore 640491

Hainan Fried Hokkien Prawn Mee

There it is: Hainan Fried Hokkien Prawn Mee. The famed hokkien prawn mee that everybody praised about. What's so special about this hokkien prawn mee is the fact that it's unlike any other hokkien prawn mee and it's much dryer than the others (much much dryer).

When I first got a look at it, I never thought that it would be this dry. Seriously, it's almost as if there's no gravy. I had always like the wetter hokkien prawn mee version. BUT, this hokkien prawn mee did not fail to impress me. It's very fragrant even though there's almost no gravy. All the gravy had most probably been absorbed by the mee and thus eluding the incredible fragrance. Oh, and there's only two tiny prawns and two slices of sotong... If not for the fact that the mee was fragrant, I would be cursing till the cows come home (then again, I did cursed about the amazingly... few ingredients when I ate it). The auntie even told me that $3 is for a serving for one person. Do I need to say that she's damn right?

Hainan Fried Hokkien Prawn Mee ($3)

Verdict:
Definitely recommended. Mainly because I'm a fan of hokkien prawn regardless whichever version. If you are a fan of the wetter version, do still try it. It might change your mind and open you to the world of the dry version of hokkien prawn mee (don't worry, I have no idea what I am talking about either).

Hainan Fried Hokkien Prawn Mee
Golden Mile Food Centre
505 Beach Road #01-34
Singapore 199583
11am to 9pm (Closed on Wednesdays)

Lao Fu Zi Fried Kway Teow

The Old Airport Road food centre has always been a congregation of some of the tastiest hawker food in Singapore. The Lao Fu Zi Fried Kway Teow ($3) is also not excluded.

However, for me this is not the best char kway teow that I have tasted. Maybe it's because it's not the sweet kind which I preferred. Just opposite this stall is one called Lucky Char Kway Tiao. I have tried it and it tasted not too bad as well. Hmm. I will be writing about that stall in my next post.

Verdict:
Not as good as I expected. But if you do drop by Old Airport Road Food Centre, do try it and let me know what you think!

Lao Fu Zi Fried Kway Teow

Mon–Fri: 11.30am – 12am 
Sat–Sun: 10.30am – 12am 
(Closed on Wed)

Boon Lay Fried Carrot Cake and Fried Kway Teow

There you have it! Another stall that serves good food over at Boon Lay Food Market! These time around it's one that serves fried kway teow and fried carrot cake. So if you ever get tired of the nasi lemak over at Boon Lay Food Market, this is one option that you can try.

The stall sells both fried kway teow and fried carrot cake so Makan Boy had to try out both! Well, their fried kway teow ($2.50) is quite special actually. This is the first time I seen pork floss with char kway teow. Even the stall uncle claims that they are the first and only to complement their char kway teow with pork floss. I must say this combination is not a bad idea and the char kway teow tasted really sweet. Just right for my taste buds! Oh yeah, they also have a big share of vegetables to go with it.

In order to try both the black and white version, the mixed black and white carrot cake ($3) was ordered. Overall, their carrot cake really didn't taste up to standard. It was too dry and not flavorful enough.

Verdict:
This is definitely a great place to try out their fried kway teow when you do drop by Boon Lay Food Market. You might want to give their carrot cake a miss though. Even though their stall closes at 11.30pm, sometimes they open a little bit beyond that time when there are more customers so do try your luck!


Boon Lay Fried Carrot Cake and Fried Kway Teow
Block 221B, Boon Lay Place, #01-125 S640221
Mon to Sat 6pm - 11.30pm

Allauddin's Briyani

Over at Tekka Food Centre, there are quite a number of briyani stalls that sometimes one would be spoilt for choice. However, there's one supposedly very famous briyani stall that commands long queues during meal hours (or so I read in reviews). 

Introducing the self-claimed briyani specialist: Allauddin's Briyani. Now, there are actually two stall-fronts located opposite to each other. Their business must be really thriving... 

Anyway their briyani rice are stored in their large aluminium pots and they will scoop out the rice on to the plate first then the meat and then the rice again on top to cover the meat. Most probably to allow the flavour of the meat to be absorbed into the rice. In my case, I bought the mutton briyani ($4.50).

 
I think the mutton was really quite tender and the curry was not too spicy. The rice was a tad too wet and soggy for my liking. It was not loosely separated enough.

Verdict:
Overall, I think there was nothing really too special about this briyani specialist. The mutton was not bad but the rice failed to impress me. I tried their chicken tandoori and it was not bad as well. Anyway, if you do drop by Tekka Food Centre, maybe you can give it a try and drop me a comment how you think it fares?

Allauddin's Briyani Pte Ltd
Blk 665 Buffalo Road #01-232/239 S210665
Tekka Food Centre
10am to 7pm (it depends whether they still have food left. I went there at around 10pm once on a Sat and it still opened)

Wen Dao Shi

And so the story goes.. After the pretty average food experience at Yong He with his friends, Makan Boy suggested to patronise Wen Dao Shi. This is not the first time I have been here and it's definitely quite a popular spot for supper for many people. 

My friends were already quite full by this time so we decided to order just a bit to try out. The Kong Ba Bao 扣肉包 ($3.20) were really good. It was not your average Kong Ba Bao where the bun itself is much thicker not to mention the shape is different. In this case, the bun or rather skin (?) is very thin and barely covers the meat. The meat is different too and carries a bit of herbal taste. But it's still quite good although I think the normal Kong Ba Bao is good enough for me.

Kong Ba Bao 扣肉包 ($3.20) 

Siew Mai ($2.50) is another standard dim sum we have to try at any dim sum place. Sadly, their dim sum didn't really impress us at all. 

Siew Mai ($2.50)

Now, comes the star of the night: Char Siew Chee Cheong Fun ($3.50)! One bite of it and I can already feel that this was really something special. I looked at my friends and I knew what was on their minds even though they speak a word. It amazingly silky! Smooth as well! Again, it was not like the usual chee cheong fun. The sauce is quite different but this is one of the best chee cheong fun I had!

Char Siew Chee Cheong Fun ($3.50)

Verdict:

This is a really great place for people to hang out for supper. I would definitely come back again just for the chee cheong fun. The last time I came here, I remembered that their porridge is quite good too. There's a lot of other stuff on their menu so I might try those next time. Something really quite queer I noticed was that they actually sell crab meat (those processed crab meat that we all love) and called it 红白. I can't help but wonder if anyone would actually order thsi. And lo and behold, I did actually saw someone ordered it not on this visit but on my previous visit. Oh well, maybe there was something heavenly about their particular crab meat that I'm missing out. Perhaps..

!!!!?????

Wen Dao Shi 揾到食
126 Sims Ave S387449
24 daily

Yong He Eating House

This Yong He eating house was introduced by my friend who said that the tau hway and youtiao are not bad. But the last time he ate there was a few years back and it was located over at Geylang Lor 9 back then. It has since shifted to its new location at Lor 27A and after reading the online reviews we were not really sure whether their standards are still up there. 

Apparently, they have quite a bit of history going back to the 90's and I even read somewhere that they used to have the biggest youtiao in Singapore (that's why the name is youtiao king 油条大王 I guess).

Reviews online also complained that some of the staff had some attitude going on. And yes, we did met one auntie who gave us the black face but there was another auntie who was quite nice. So, there's always a mix of rotten and good apples I believe. Anyway back to the focus of the day, the tau hway with or without peanuts (both cost $1.70) was really not bad. I especially like the one with peanuts because it was a tad sweeter. As for the youtiao ($1.10), it so oily that my friend hesitated to dip it into his tau nee (soya bean drink). Otherwise, it's crispy enough.

Our hot tau nee was served in a bowl and the cold one served in a cup. Hmm why the difference I wonder? Both cost $1.30 as well. I think Mr Bean's tau nee tastes better. Simply because the tau nee here tasted like plain water. What? It was that bland and diluted!

Verdict:
I think that their tau hway and tau nee cannot be compared to the Rochor Beancurd which is also in the vincinity. So if I do ever come to Geylang again, I don't think I would pay Yong He eating house a visit again.

Yong He Eating House
517 Geylang Road Lor 27A S389473
Opens 24 hrs daily

Prata Planet

Prata is one of my favourite foods and I am continually on the search for one of the best pratas in Singapore. And I can tell you that there's not really much outlets that sell good prata. So it just so happened that Makan Boy and Makan Girl were around Clementi and we decided to check out this particular Prata Planet.

It was about 10 plus but there were still quite a bunch of people over there so I guess this place is quite popular among the residents here. As its name has already said it's a restaurant so the staff will come and take your orders and deliver your food to your table. I had thought before going there it will be like Prata Wala where it is self service of sorts. 

Mysore Mutton

They have 3 mutton choices but in the end we chose Mysore Mutton ($3.50). Mutton is often the first choice of meat for me in any indian muslim eating place. Mysore is actually a place in India so I'm putting my money that this recipe originated in Mysore. Anyway, the mutton didn't really taste any good to me. It wasn't flavorful enough. 

Plain Prata

Next up, the plain prata ($0.90). Again, this prata failed to compare up to my standards, It wasn't crispy enough for me. Maybe I should try their other variations of prata some other day since there are quite a lot of them on their menu (see pics below).

Garlic Thosai

Finally, something that actually made my taste buds happy: Garlic Thosai ($2.00). The thosai was not actually really big but the paring with garlic was really awesome! Maybe it's because I just like garlic? Oh, whatever. Do try it if you are there!

Milo Godzilla

Something else on the menu caught my eye too. I had drunk Milo dinosaur before but I had never drink Milo Godzilla ($3.50). Yeah, so you can call me a frog in a well (it's a chinese phrase by the way). Boy, I regret buying their Milo Godzilla. I would rather stick with milo dinosaur. It's just a scoop of ice-cream on top. And it's vanilla ice-cream. A kid could tell you the pairing is weird. 

Verdict:

I don't think that they have one of the best pratas in Singapore. But if you are in the vincinity and have a craving for pratas then why not? Their prices are not over the roof and it's a nice place to have supper with your buddies. 

P.S.

I have read a substantial amount of reviews online raving about their pratas. Hmm, perhaps I missed out on something? I might go back again to investigate the rest of the prata variations. And apparently, Prata Planet belongs to a chain that have other outlets with names of planets such as Mercury and Mars. It's also related to Mr Prata since I saw one of their posters on the wall which says Mr Prata. Mr Prata is another prata house for in info. Interesting....

Prata Planet 

Blk 320 Clementi Ave 4, #01-37 S120320

6.30am to 11pm