#Hawkerhopping

Besides the fancy restaurants and cafes along Singapore’s shopping strip, there are a few food gems that you should try and one of them is the fried chicken rice at Fiie’s Cafe, located in Lucky Plaza. The fragrant rice paired with the freshly deep fried chicken is totally worth the wait. Sambal is of the spicier side with a mild sweetness, a perfect condiment to the entire dish.

Many years back, everyone was talking about salted egg as it was one of the trendiest flavours to have been introduced into our diet. Will it go away? Probably not. The trend now might not hit the highest of highs as compared to the past but how I see it is that salted egg has become a staple in many of our dishes be it in zichar or western fusion, and many of us will subconsciously order it for a flavour that is familiar and comforting.

It is uncommon to find such noodles in Singapore so I am surprised to find it inside the Tampines Mall Kopitiam food court. The noodles are pulled and cooked with a precise timing control, which resulted in the most amazing QQ texture that you would want for such a noodle dish. The Xi’ A Signature Noodles come with a variety of condiments such as tomato egg, braised pork and vegetables. Mix them well and what is great about these flat and wide noodles is that the garlic chilli sauce mixture is able to latch onto it well, ensuring you get the most flavour out of every bite. The flavour might be unfamiliar to many in the beginning but the more you eat the more you will enjoy it.

Finally, you can get dinner at Minang as the restaurant launches their set meals such as the popular Ayam Goreng Set and my recommended Ikan Belado Hijau Set, the latter comes with a thick cut of fish paired with a spicy green chilli sauce. Besides the set meals, there are also the all-day breakfast favourites and popular tahu goreng.

It was just only recently when fried porridge was trending in Singapore and one of the OGs to popularise it was Old World. Stir-fried on high heat to give it a nice wok hei aroma, there is fried beancurd and pork slices to accompany the porridge. Finished with spring onions, fried shallots and a dash of pepper, this is as comforting as it sounds.

Opened by an ex-Les Amis chef, Hokkien Man Hokkien Mee serves a single item in the menu, and there is none other than the fried hokkien mee. The pictured $10 comes with a decent amount of yellow noodle-thick bee hoon combination, squid rings, pork belly slices and fresh prawns (hidden away in the photo). The generous quantity of eggs used gives it a nice eggy aroma, with a slight wok hei charred flavour. Sambal chilli was on the sweeter side but the star of the show has got to be the slurpy noodles.

Mine was sharing kaya butter toast, sugared donut, claypot and a kopi peng sui dai with the wifey on this cool and rainy new year day. Also, seeing the 9% GST on the receipt has reminded us that 2024 is truly here.

Sometimes all you need is a bowl of instant noodles with the simplest of ingredients to warm the heart and soul. If there is a tom yum version, do not hesitate to go for it as well.

The basement of Cineleisure has undergone a revamp recently with the introduction of TaiWan Night Markets offering an entire area of popular Taiwanese street food. From 滷肉飯 to 炸雞扒, the food and ambiance will transport you back to Taiwan momentarily. How I’ve missed Taiwanese street food and this will curb the cravings for now.

Located outside of Hougang Mall, you can get this cutesy and delish pork chop bun from Seng Huat Coffee House. The soft and fluffy bun is shaped in a pig’s face and sandwiched between it is a well marinated juicy pork chop, cheese and keypie mayo. Get the bun set at $5.80 which comes with 2 soft boiled eggs and a cup of kopi.

Once a month whenever I am near the area for my haircut appointment, I usually will go over to Kangkar Mall’s Kopitiam for Zi Jia Yong Tau Foo. There are quite a few items that are handmade on the spot and if you take those items that are fried, they will heat it up before serving. If you opt for the dry noodles, it will be tossed in a garlic oil mixture which is aromatic and flavourful, though not exactly as healthy as the usual yong tau foo out there. However, I am a live-to-eat person, so long it is tasty I will eat it in moderation.

There is no other country/city quite like the multicultural nation of Singapore, to the point that we are described as the rojak culture. Some might view it negatively, but to me, it’s bloody damn tasty when all the ingredients come together in this ugly delicious dish.