The Fu Zai Special ($6/$8 nett a bowl) lives up to its name, as you don’t find bei tai mak (also known as silver needle noodles in some places) fried up like char kway teow that often. @fuzaienterprise throws a lot of bei tai mak noodles are tossed into a superheated wok with plump prawns, sliced fishcake, sliced lean pork and lots of egg. It’s fried hard and fast, and it hits your hunger hard & goes down fast too.⠀
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The Special is amply seasoned and each mouthful is relatively redolent, and the noodles are slick but not greasy. I did find it slightly wanting when it came to the wok hei, as the expected smokiness was slightly on the weaker side. Still, there’s no arguing that it’s still pretty palatable, plus there’s a fair portion of fresh plump prawns, lean pork slices and egg-citingly eggy bits to ensure that this meal can hit your protein.⠀
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As is the case with the Hokkien mee, there’s a good bit of luscious lard tossed atop the pile of noodles. The lard adds even more flavour, a little extravagance, and some much needed crunch to this otherwise soft affair. And of course, you can add as much of that fiery chili as you want to really spice up your noods. The Fu Zai Special may be simple, but it’s an effective hunger buster.⠀
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Thanks for the invite, @fuzaienterprise & @eatwithkeat!⠀

If you’re a Hokkien mee aficionado and you’ve been wondering where the fairly famous You Fu Hokkien mee has disappeared to, wonder no more, for they have rebranded as @fuzaienterprise . They have introduced a few other dishes that aren’t Hokkien mee onto the menu, but fret not, for they still fry up their claim to fame.⠀
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At six bucks flat for the Fried Hokkien Mee, you’re getting a hearty helping of pork & squid bits and fairly fresh prawns along with a generous pile of thin vermicelli & thicker yellow egg noodles. Fu Zai’s Hokkien mee is of the drier variety so don’t expect much in the way of sauciness, but it is still pretty piquant. The noodles have absorbed most of the umami prawn broth that they have been wok fried in, and most of the savouriness is in the noodles.⠀
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Two crucial components of a good Hokkien mee are the chili and the fried pork lard, and Fu Zai pass both checks easily. The chili is intensely incendiary, and just like that one song, one kiss is all it takes to set your mouth ablaze. As for the pork lard, it was fried expertly, rendering out most of the grease and leaving behind a crispy cube of pure deliciousness. The lard would’ve been much more satisfying if they cut it into larger cubes though, as the tiny bits didn’t produce the crunch & satisfaction desired.⠀

Salad bars take me back to the glory days of Ponderosa & Sizzler, and they were one of the best inventions of the 20th century. Call it nostalgia, call it gluttony, but there’s no denying that salad bars are utterly brilliant. So when I heard that @xwwesterngrill unique selling point was that purchasing any entrée gave you full access to the salad bar, I knew I had to give it a go for old times sake.⠀
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During the date of my visit, XW Western Grill had a limited time special of Mentaiko Aburi Chicken Chop ($15.90++). It sounds sophisticated, but it really is quite simple. A juicy cut of chicken thigh fillet is grilled till it acquires a captivating char, and then a deluge of mentaiko mayo is applied on top and blowtorched. The mentaiko mayonnaise was slightly too creamy & not quite umami enough, but the sublime chicken chop more than makes up for it. The skin has become crisp, and the char adds extra smokiness to the already stunningly savoury chicken chop. It’s served with a side of fries, but I left most of it behind as I had the salad bar to explore.⠀
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The salad bar doesn’t just have salad and other delicious, must-have veggie items like coleslaw, creamed spinach, charred broccoli & carrots, and sautéed cherry tomatoes, they have sides too. Think sautéed mushrooms, potato salad, onion rings, sweet potato fries, aglio olio pasta and a couple of other carb options. All these carb & veg options in conjunction with the decently proportioned proteins make for a bulking brother’s dream, and good lord what wouldn’t I give to have XW Western Grill open up a restaurant in one of the three malls in Paya Lebar.⠀
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If any of y’all at @xwwesterngrill are reading this, this is a sign to take the plunge & open a new outlet with a full salad bar in one of the three malls surrounding Paya Lebar MRT. Thank me later.

I haven’t had mookata in a long time, and @yakkinmookata.sg brings back memories of my army days when we would stumble out of Thai discos dead drunk at four in the morning. However, I certainly don’t remember those mookata suppers being as delicious as Yak Kin Mookata.⠀
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Yak Kin Mookata’s Mookata Platter costs an astoundingly affordable thirty eight dollars, and features a classic lineup of marinated chicken, pork collar, pork belly, hotdogs, smoked duck, scallops, tiger prawns, crabsticks, fishballs, and some veg for health. The tiger prawns are simply sublime in terms of freshness and size, and they were certainly the highlight of the meal along with the equally fresh scallops. The pork & chicken were simply yet sufficiently marinated, and those meats were quite magnificent especially when dipped into the sweet & spicy Thai chili on the side. The broth was no slouch either, as it was akin to chicken stock on steroids. It’s more luscious & slightly more tasty, that’s for sure. ⠀
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If that bountiful bevy ain’t enough to settle your rumbling tummy, Yak Kin will leave you spoilt for choice with their extensive selection of add ons. From truffle chicken to the moo ping ($7.90, 3 sticks), to Thai fish sausages to the majestically marbled Premium Beef Steak ($20.90 nett), you’re definitely gonna find some meat you’ll love to meet. The moo ping was strikingly juicy and tender, and it was subtly yet sufficiently marinated for maximum deliciousness. Meanwhile, the Premium Beef Steak was so majestically marbled with fat that it could rival wagyu when it comes to the eye test.⠀
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The most unique item we had are the Bak Kwa Fries ($5.80). They are exactly what they say they are, but I certainly wasn’t expecting them to be this delectable. It’s sweet, salty and smoky, the traditional flavour profile that only bak kwa could have, but chopped up and compressed into sticks. Grill up these meat tubes, and you have yourself some phenomenally tasty meat sticks.⠀
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Once you’re done boozing along Keong Saik Road, head on down to Yak Kin Mookata for a sensationally sizzling supper. Thanks for the invite @scalecollab.sg & @yakkinmookata.sg!

Unfortunately good things come to an end, but at least we ended it on a sweet note at @sugarhallsg. They have two cocktails that could be considered to be dessert-like, especially the Dirty Chocolatini. All cocktails are $26++ which is about the market average price for a cocktail, but these concoctions are far from average.⠀⠀
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The Dirty Chocolatini is a concoction built on a base of Monkey Shoulder Whisky, Merlet Amerisse, a bitter blackcurrant aperitif, chocolate, white cocoa, raspberry and lime. I already knew that chocolate & whisky were quite a good pairing, but I didn’t realise just how good it could be. The Dirty Chocolatini tastes & feels like a melted down chocolate gelato, and then the Merlet Amerisse & raspberry pop in to turn this cocktail into a crazily chocolatey black forest cake. The amalgamation of fantastic flavours conceal the whisky well, and it’s definitely a dangerous dessert cocktail. Especially when you’re already a few cocktails deep.⠀
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The Souffle Espresso Martini is less of a dessert cocktail and more in line with the post meal espresso. Santa Teresa Rum and Mr Black Coffee Liqueur are complemented by the addition of cold brew coffee & macadamia, right before the espresso elixir gets topped with dalgona foam. The sweetness and smoothness of the rum & coffee liqueur neutralise the acidity of the cold brew coffee and make it even smoother. However, I couldn’t really pick out any extra nuttiness from the macadamia, but the simultaneous alcohol & caffeine punch was more than enough to satisfy. Mixing booze & espresso might leave you with the Forrest Whittaker, but it will definitely give you enough of a jolt to stumble out of Sugarhall.⠀
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Thank you so much for the invite, @sugarhallsg!

While the Peach Smash & the Passionfruit Daiquiri from @sugarhallsg were equally exceptional, we finally have a winner that just managed to edge it over the previous duo. Honestly we may have done the second cocktail a disservice though, as it is still a charming cocktail, it just had the misfortune of getting ordered alongside the winner.⠀
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The Melon Rum Sour (all single serve cocktails are $26++) reminded me of the melon ramune drink, thanks to the honeydew & Charentais melon which is a type of cantaloupe. Besides the sweet melons, Havana Club 3 year old rum, absinthe, lemon & thyme are mixed into this fruit forward cocktail, and the booze hits pretty hard here thanks to the absinthe. However, the melon flavours in the Melon Rum Sour did taste a little artificial, especially on the aftertaste.⠀
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And now for the what was arguably the winning cocktail of the night, the brilliant Banana Highball. The use of discarded Banana Peel Rum was a 300 IQ move by Sugarhall’s mixologists, and the pleasant banana flavours held up robustly against the Amontillado sherry, green apple & black walnut bitters. At first sniff, it smells like delicious banana bread, and then notes of caramel start to arise. The flavour, on the other hand, was nearly purely caramel. It strongly reminded me of a Werther’s Original caramel sweet with the velvety caramel notes, with just a hint of banana at the end of every sip. Incredibly delicious, and the Banana Highball has us going bananas.⠀
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Thank you so much for the invite, @sugarhallsg!

We started off fairly well at @sugarhallsg with the noteworthy opening cocktails, but the next pair were a couple of levels above. The Passionfruit Daiquiri and the Peach Smash (both $26++) were fabulously fruity & flavourful cocktails that concealed a potent punch. I’d call it a dead tie between both, as I absolutely adore the uniquely delicious quirks of each.⠀
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The Passionfruit Daiquiri is a mix of 4 year old Bacardi rum, green tea, passionfruit and lime, and garnished with a gummy bear couple. Despite the rum being the sole spirit here, the daiquiri is still pretty powerful, although the green tea quells most of the alcoholic burn from the young rum. The sweetness of the passionfruit juice is kept in check by the spritz of lime, and is then evenly mixed into the green tea & rum concoction. The daiquiri is smooth, sweet and somehow tremendously thirst quenching, and the urge to just chug it all down is nigh unbearable. As for the little gummy bear couple that I eventually ate…I’m sorry, little ones.⠀
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The Peach Smash was a truly smashing cocktail and is another single spirit drink, comprised of Woodford Reserve Bourbon, peach, rhubarb & lemon. This isn’t quite as quaff-able as the Daiquiri, but it’s definitely a stellar sipper. The velvety rich sweetness of the bourbon composes most of the drink’s weighty body, and it adds a delightful oak & smoke aroma to the cocktail. The peach is ripe & sweet, but kept in check by the sourness of the lemon & rhubarb. I can’t place my finger on why, but I am fairly certain that I tasted pear in there.⠀
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Sugarhall’s cocktails are all sublime, but when it comes to the Passionfruit Daiquiri & the Peach Smash, I’d be like the Hulk and passionately smash, smash, suh-MASH! Thank you so much for the hospitality, @sugarhallsg!

Even if you can’t make it onto a sunny summer beach, you can still feel like you’re relaxing on one with a charming cocktail in hand at @sugarhallsg . A mojito is usually the first cocktail that comes to mind when anyone says “beach bar”, so naturally Sugarhall’s version had to be our first drink.⠀
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The Iced Mojito ($26 before 10% service charge) is Sugarhall hitting the upgrade button on the standard mojito. Diplomático Planas Rum is muddled with mint and lime, but the usual soda water & simple syrup is substituted for crème de menthe & sugarcane ice. That’s right, Sugarhall froze sugarcane juice & turned it into ice! The mint from the crème de menthe and the muddled mint should be incredibly overpowering, but the sweetness from the crème and the sugarcane ice negated the pungency of the mint. The result is an extraordinarily easy to guzzle drink that’s satisfyingly sweet and refreshing, and it’s the ideal standard of a beach cocktail.⠀
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The blue one is unsurprisingly named the Blue Lagoon (also $26+service charge), and the ingredient list on this one makes for interesting reading. Chardonnay vodka from @discardedspirits is mixed with coconut blue curaçao, cachaça and homemade lemonade, making for a mildly zesty drink that leaves an intriguing aftertaste of bubblegum. One thing I particularly enjoyed about both cocktails is how they manage to be tastefully sweet & delicious, but never cloying. Definitely a dangerous cocktail, but I do enjoy living on the edge from time to time.⠀
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Thank you so much for the invite, Sugarhall!

Pizza, Filipino AND Korean food from the same hawker stall? And in the weirdest of locations too? Well, that’s the story of @mommaspizza_sg, which is in a coffeeshop close to Aljunied MRT, and decided to be the Mr Worldwide of cuisine. While their pizzas were mighty tempting, Filipino food is much rarer and I settled on a plate of Toci-Silog at seven dollars.⠀
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Toci-Silog is a portmanteau of Pork Tocino, a sweet cured pork, and Silog, which is garlic fried rice and a sunny side up egg. I’ve never had pork tocino before, so it was a surprise to find out that this dish was sweet and savoury with emphasis on the sweet. Despite what you may think, the sweetness & saltiness were strong yet never forceful, and they made the pork incredibly scrumptious. It was rather oily from the stir frying though, so this is definitely not a diet dish.⠀
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Unfortunately the silog, which I was eagerly anticipating, was quite disheartening. The garlic flavours were mild and muted, and the rice was a touch too wet and cold. I have no idea how fried rice could be served cold, but it happened. As for the random corn kernels & diced tomatoes on the side, I reckon they could’ve tossed that and fried it up with the silog for a more cohesive dish.⠀
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Honestly I like how unique Momma’s Pizza & Rice Meal is, but unless they improve quickly, I’ll be getting my Filipino fix elsewhere.

Japanese rice bowl merchants are a dime a dozen, but it’s nigh impossible to say no to a nice bowl of Japanese rice, soft boiled egg and some meat or fish. @hatsumi_donburi is a new Japanese donburi specialist in a sea of Japanese donburi merchant, but the ace up their sleeve is that they’re a healthy donburi option. This here Miso Halibut with Sous Vide Egg is $13.90 nett, and you have the option of adding an extra $2.90 to make it a full meal complete with miso soup and a drink.⠀
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It’s not every day that you get halibut in a rice bowl, but Hatsumi’s halibut is quite excellent. It’s moist, flaky and sports a nice crisp skin, but it was a little bit bland due to the lack of miso sauce on it. The egg was delightfully runny and sous vide just right, while the seaweed bits added pops of crunch along with extra salinity to the deep rice bowl.⠀
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Oddly enough, I was most impressed by the Charred Broccoli with Ponzu Dressing in the background, going for five bucks flat a pop. The charring of the broccoli caused the veg to be incredibly savoury & smoky, while the savoury & sweet ponzu glaze was absolutely addictive. I even found myself scraping up said ponzu glaze to apply to the halibut, that’s how glorious the glaze is.⠀
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Hatsumi certainly isn’t reinventing the wheel, and it isn’t going to utterly awe anyone, but it is superbly satisfying & fairly healthy at a very reasonable price point. The Truffle Shoyu Angus Ribeye Don caught my eye the last time, and I’m just looking for an excuse to go back to @hatsumi_donburi and eat that.

The newest stall in Chomp Chomp is Irama, which has a menu that could be best described as ‘curiously all over the place’. They have Ramly burgers, Hokkien popiah, baked oysters, baked prawns and bingsu (Korean shaved ice dessert). Like I said, all over the place.⠀
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While Ramly burgers are nice, my eyes were firmly fixed upon the Baked Cheese Japanese Oysters, which were rather reasonable at twelve dollars flat for four. It may not be easily visible under the bountiful blanket of melted cheese, but these oysters are of sizeable stature and they are flawlessly fresh. They are baked just right and retain most of their size, and the melted cheese adds extra saltiness & richness to the already umami oysters. Irama had the foresight to add some spring onions to the oysters to add some vibrancy to the deeply umami cheese & oysters, which does keep the richness under control.⠀
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While Irama has a eclectic menu, the menu certainly suits the demands of the crowd at Chomp Chomp, and I’ll eventually get around to trying the rest of the menu.

Beef Wellingtons are seen as posh, upper crust cuisine and rightfully so, but @meet_4_meat have been whipping wellies out of a coffeeshop since 2018. There aren’t that many individual portioned beef wellies in Singapore, and Meet4Meat is possibly the most affordable one at twenty eight dollars flat. Simply served with a baked potato and some mixed leaves, the pressure is on the Wellington to shine.⠀
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Meet4Meat’s Wellington is wonderfully delicious, and even though it was lacking the customary sauce you’d expect with a Beef Wellington, it certainly wasn’t lacking when it came to flavour. Everything from the 180 grams of tenderloin to the puff pastry was superbly salted, and your tastebuds will certainly be plenty pleased. Even the baked potato was stupendously sumptuous thanks to the inclusion of a generous pat of compound butter. I suspect it was a paprika infused compound butter, as it had a little bit of heat & smokiness to really jazz up the remarkably roasted spud. ⠀
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However, the cross section of the tenderloin revealed that it was alarmingly close to medium well instead of medium rare which is the Meet4Meat default. It had the grey band that indicated too much time spent on the grill, and it could be considered unevenly cooked as Wellingtons are supposed to be finished at their desired doneness in the oven. The pastry shell was also sadly soggy at the bottom, as the exquisite mushroom duxelles was still too moist for the puff pastry. It definitely required extra time in the pan to render out even more moisture.⠀
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To be fair to Meet4Meat, their Beef Wellington is aptly ambrosial, it’s just that they tripped up when it came to the overall composition. Still, I hold out hope that it was just a lone, lamentable lapse in standards, and I believe it will be even more excellent on my return visit.