Local Faves

Nestled at the corner of the revamped Raffles City Food Republic, this store was oft talked about by news, bloggers, and food influencers alike. Of course, I had to try it when I popped by after work for dinner.

Surprisingly enough, most of the menu items were listed as 'Unavailable' at around 7.30pm, so I settled for the Charsiew Scrambled Egg Rice ($8.50). Slices of lean charsiew were strewn about the layer of scrambled egg atop white rice, with this sweet-savoury sauce ladled over the entire dish. The lean charsiew would excite those who don't favour the usual fattiness, but not me. The scrambled egg layer was thin and firm, and I would have preferred it to be runnier. The sauce helped to give some flavour to the entire package, and I also do recommend asking for their chilli for an additional kick.

Overall, a decent meal but not really worth its hype and price tag. The layout of the store is also strange - you'll have to squeeze through the queue to collect your food and the utensils. Would I return to try their other offerings? Perhaps...but I won't be in a rush to.

Apparently one of the more popular Bak Kut Teh establishments in Singapore and thus there were quite a few tourists in the queue. Ambience was bright and comfortable, suitable for a casual dinner in town.

We got the Superior Spare Ribs Soup ($11.80), with Ngoh Hiang ($10.80) and Braised Tau Kee ($4.80) as sides, and Rice ($1.50) and Mee Sua ($4.80) as carbs. Main complaint is that the spare ribs were too tough, I expect fall-off-the-bone tender for a good bak kut teh. Broth was good though - this version is leans more towards the garlicky and peppery side (as compared to the Malaysian sweet-savoury herbal version) and I would recommend to make full use of the free refills so that the broth is kept piping hot. Ngoh Hiang was bad, with the fillings very obviously made from meat paste instead of the traditional minced meat, but I did appreciate the addition of water chestnuts and coriander. Tau Kee was alright, as is the Mee Sua (though it was served room temperature).

Came by for the Grab DineOut 15% deal and got the Mee Siam (u.p. $8.80) Portion was alright, gravy was tangy, peanutty, and chunky with a hint of spice, served with a hard-boiled egg, 2 prawns, and a begedil. Tasted pretty good but felt the price was a little steep.

Small place under a block in the Tampines heartlands. Came by on a Sunday lunch and there was a line of people queueing up, though for a group of 5 we waited maybe 20min which I would say is pretty quick.

Food-wise, they serve a wide variety of local favourites, with options for toasts, individual plates of nasi lemak / indomie, as well as zichar-style dishes. We tried the Chicken Leg Berempah Indomie ($12.90) which had a nicely-spiced chicken leg with a perfectly cooked indomie. They also give the standard cucumber, ikan bilis, peanuts, fried egg, and also onion rings which were deliciously crisp. Also got the Pork Curry Nasi Lemak ($13.90) but the pork curry wasn't really well-received by the table - curry was kind of bland and the pork belly was too tough with too muh fats. However, the shoutout to the rice which was so fluffy with an intense coconut aroma, which went so well with the amazing sambal. Delicious! We also loved the Laksa ($14.90), especially the rich, flavourful, and thick laksa broth. Seriously couldn't get enough. Lastly, the Crispy Hor Fun ($14.90) piqued our interest so we had to order it - imagine thick hor fun deep-fried to a crisp, and soaked in a delicious egg gravy. Interesting, and we really loved the gravy. There were also a multitude of pork slices, veges, clams, squids and prawns.

Overall, really enjoyed our meal here and can definitely see ourselves returning regularly!

Hotel buffet featuring Penang favourites like Penang Laksa, Prawn Mee, Char Kuay Teow, and even Ban Chang Kueh and Nyonya Kueh. While the buffet space might be small, there are plenty of options for you to choose from and we had a satisfying meal here. Special shoutout to the Ban Chang Kueh lady who was so friendly and kindly too!

Bustling atmosphere at a very quiet industrial area with mostly tourists, but as a local I can say that the food here is really top tier. They do the classic zichar dishes, but the taste is really better than what you can find in your usual neighbourhood cofeeshops. These were what we got:
- Fried meesua ($8.80 for small). Portion is unexpectedly big and really filling, enough for 2 pax to share. They also don't skimp on the ingredients, and taste was good too.
- Fuyong Egg ($10.80 for small). Basically fried egg with sliced veges within (e.g., onions, cabbages, carrots). Pretty standard but was delicious too.
- Sliced fish soup ($10.80 for small). SO SO GOOD! Their fish soup leans towards the milky side with a strong huadiao wine flavour - damn slurpable! Fresh fish slices too but the star is really the soup. MUST TRY!
- Cereal prawns ($27.80 for small). 7 pieces of large prawns submerged in cereal bits. Prawns were fresh and had a nice bounce, and the cereal bits lent a nice, sweet crunch to every bite. But felt it was too dry after a few bites and nothing really special about it. Can skip.
- Three egg spinach ($15.80 for small). Their rendition of the classic chinese dish was surprisingly delicious, with the gravy leaning towards the stickier side. This was excellent. Recommended.

Service was quick and friendly, and some of the staff are able to speak in English to cater to tourists. However, a turn-off was the multitude of birds roaming around the outdoor area, as the disposal bins were placed right beside the tables. Perhaps the location of these bins could be looked into, so that diners would not be so bothered by those pests. Otherwise, great food and still at a largely-affordable price, perfect for gatherings!

Note: Don't forget to make a reservation in advance! We just strolled right to our tables. Don't just walk-in during peak dinner period, you'll have a higher likelihood of being told to wait for 30min or more.

As expected of a Lala-focussed store, their clams were really fresh, plump, and deliciously briney. Would recommend the Clam Noodles with Chinese Wine with its delicious broth with a hint of wine, but the Vongole was also pretty decent with an addictive cream sauce. Overall, pretty value for money.

Mixed beehoon and noodles, with curry veges + taiwan sausage + chicken wing. Total $5.70. Noodles were great, but the beehoon was soaked in the curry gravy so I regret choosing the curry, though the curry vege itself was delicious. Sausage and chicken wing was normal. Quite overpriced I would say, and nothing outstanding.

Was fortunate enough to come by back when they were having their opening promotion in Feb - 50% off their dishes! We had the Curry Chicken ($8.90) and the Steamed Egg ($6.90). Both dishes were hearty and yummy, and we would return to try the other zichar-style claypot offerings next time we're back at T2! Even without the discount, they are still super affordable and value-for-money.

Grew up pestering my parents for this every other week. Cost might have increased and taste might have changed but this was still comfort soup for the soul. This was the medium bowl for $10.30 - prawns were fresh, minced meat still had that unique bite, and they are still so stingy with their rich broth. Love it!

Bustling on a Saturday lunchtime period, but the place quickly empties out at a certain time (I'm guessing it's when the kids' afternoon enrichment classes start). They do a variety of local SG favourites - we tried the curry chicken cutlet rice, fried beehoon, prawn mee, and prawn mee sua. Prawn mee broth was delicious, with tons of ingredients within, although i preferred the beehoon instead of the mee sua. The 2 bowls of prawn mee plus a hot milo and teh c ice only came up to $18.40. Pretty worth it. Ambience was also clean and bright, perfect for weekend chat sessions.

One of the few stores open on a Monday night. Got the Mixed Beef Noodles (Soup) at the $6 portion, and was pleasantly surprised by the generous servings of meat. The rice noodles were also springy with a firm bite, couldn't help but slurp it up until I finished the noodles before the meat! Broth leans towards Chinese-style, might try the dry version next time.