Welcome to Upper Bukit Timah.

Old-timers around the local F&B scene would probably find this name pretty familiar — established in 1997, Chilli Padi is a dining establishment that is first founded at Kim Tian Road. The brand has come a long way since; whilst their Kim Tian Road location has since ceased operations a long time back, Chilli Padi has continued to make its mark in the Singapore F&B scene with the operations of their Chili Padi Nonya Restaurant in Joo Chiat all these years — there is also the now-defunct Chilli Padi Nonya Cafe that used to operate within National University of Singapore’s campus at Heng Mui Keng Terrace that had shuttered in February 2026. With the closure of Chilli Padi Nonya Cafe, Chilli Padi has found new digs within The Rail Mall for its latest concept named Chilli Padi Tok Panjang — they occupy the same space that was once occupied by the now-defunct Yoshi Yakiniku and Hitoyoshi Mart there. Focusing on Peranakan fare like how the brand has always been, Chilli Padi Tok Panjang is all about communal dining with traditional Nonya flavours — the menu being segmented into sections dedicated to Appetisers, Soups, Meat Specialty, Ocean Catch, Vegetables, Signature Staple and Sweet Delight. These folks also do serve up a Lunch Exclusive Heritage Signatures menu from 11am to 2pm that would work well for individual diners as well.

We dropped by Chilli Padi Tok Panjang on a weekday afternoon and found ourselves ordering the Stir-Fried Mee Siam from the Lunch Exclusive Heritage Signatures menu — Chilli Padi Tok Panjang does serve up a portion size of the dish that is more suited for communal dining as well in the Signature Staple section of its own menu; the version in the Lunch Exclusive Heritage Signatures menu is one that is individually-portioned for a single diner. Based on the description provided for the dish in the Signature Staple section of the menu, the Stir-Fried Mee Siam features elements such as stir-fried vermicelli, Taucheo (i.e. salted, fermented soybean paste), Assam and home-made sambal. Going straight for the Stir-Fried Mee Siam, we definitely enjoyed the saltish and umami notes from the Taucheo that provided a contrast of flavours of the sour tang from the Assam; the stir-fried vermicelli carrying a consistent note of both flavours all the way throughout the entire portion of the dish. Amidst those flavours would be the spiciness coming from the home-made sambal that came at a level of spiciness that should be comfortable for those whom are tolerable to lower levels of spiciness. Coming along with the dish would be some bits of beancurd puffs that provided a textural contrast, fried hard-boiled egg and prawns; the prawns being pretty fresh and carrying a naturally sweet note typical of crustaceans on its own as well.

($10.90) its quite not that salty but the tofu serving was quite less compared a lot of kimchi inside.

($12) its one of her best selling flavour for kimbap. but i wanted to try their tuna previously. but tuna mayo was quite thick texture tbh.

($7.50) i legit forgot to write reviews for a year but their lei cha sauce was quite thick and not that creamy. But the ingredients was quite fresh made daily.

Chicken is fresh and crispy. Yummy

Typical pasta and salmon

I don't usually trust cheap mac & cheese, but gave Timbre a chance. Unsurprisingly, it's basic, but not awful lah.

It's sentimental to stumble upon this again. Memories of university days. The first fusion pizza I knew. Here it's a convenient size.

The muffin is nice and not too sweet

There has been much talk about the new tenants that had recently moved into the food centre situated at the top level of Beauty World Plaza for quite a while such as the likes of Basil King, Xiang Xiang Ji and Berempah Bros — that being said, there had been little talk about a stall named Donburico. Donburico is neighbours with the outlet of KOPIFELLAS and Berempah Bros there — these folks are not new to the local F&B scene however; they were previously located within the Broadway Food Centre coffeeshop in an industrial building in Woodlands named E9 Premium previously. Being a stall that serves up Japanese fare, the menu at Donburico maintains the same with its move to Beauty World — the menu featuring categories dedicated to the likes of Udon, Sets, Sides, Rice Bowls and Curry.

We went with the Tori Karaage Curry during our visit to Donburico and found that the portion size of the dish is actually fairly generous here — the Tori Karaage Curry does feature deep-fried chicken chunks, Japanese curry gravy, and shredded cabbage served with Japanese short-grain rice. For those whom want more helpings of the Japanese curry gravy, Donburico does make it available as an option for one to return to the stall to ask for more mid-meal. The chunks of fried chicken here are especially well-sized; these does provide a good chunky and meaty bite, while the meat itself comes tender and juicy — we liked how Donburico’s Tori Karaage chunks also does come with chicken skin on for an extra element of crunch. The Japanese Curry here is also especially flavoursome; we liked how they are pretty generous with the curry gravy where there was definitely more than enough to go with the rice and shredded cabbage while it also came with root vegetables such as potatoes and carrots that were stewed to a soft consistency. Was also pretty surprised by how the dish came with a hard-boiled egg with a deep-fried batter; a bit of a difference from the usual as well. A pretty well-executed version of a Tori Karaage Curry from a stall in the hawker centre setting that is affordably-priced at $7.80 that is pretty much worth going for!

Has been quite a while since we had heard about Jin Yu Man Tang Dessert 金玉满堂甜品 expanding their operations — it seems that these folks had recently opened the doors of their new location at The Linq @ Beauty World. This would be the new mixed-use development that is situated within walking distance and directly connected via an underground linkway to Beauty World MRT Station along the Downtown Line; they are located along the same stretch of shops where one can find Offsite, and are neighbours with the outlet of MIXUE Ice Cream & Tea there. Their The Linq @ Beauty World location is their smallest location thus far though it does feature a mix of indoor and outdoor seating given how the shop units at The Linq @ Beauty World are designed to be. As with what they had been offering thus far at their Katong and Chinatown locations, Jin Yu Man Tang Dessert’s menu is segmented into sections dedicated to Double Layered Milk Pudding Series, Ginger Milk Pudding Series, Peach Gum Series, Gum Tragacanth Series, Fried Custard Series, Sago Milk Series, Local Desserts Series, Chinese Herbal Jelly Series, Taro Ball & Jelly Series, Mango with Mini Rice Ball Series, Milk with Clear Jelly Series, and Snacks.

One of the items that we had not recalled seeing during our previous visits to Jin Yu Man Tang Dessert’s locations at Katong and Chinatown would be their Flower Double Layer Milk Pudding; this would be an item that is listed in the Double Layered Milk Pudding Series section of the menu. Whilst the Flower Double Layer Milk Pudding does come with a pinkish aesthetic, there is a Matcha Double Layer Milk Pudding that comes with a similar look with a green aesthetic instead. Served chilled, the Flower Double Layer Milk Pudding features its usual Double Layer Milk Pudding with an infusion of a pinkish liquid that sits atop the pudding; it also features a carving of coconut flesh in the form of a flower that sits atop the pudding. The Double Layer Milk Pudding is pretty much what one would expect here; a smooth curd that is almost liquid — soft and nearly molten and glides down the throat pretty easily, whilst carrying a slight eggy note without being particularly sweet. It is interesting that the floral infusion of flavours does come rather light-handed whilst coming with a saltish note — perhaps to introduce a different dimension of flavours to the Double Layer Milk Pudding while the coconut flesh atop comes chilled almost to the point of frozen; likely to keep things fresh whilst preserving the shape of the carving as well.

Was going around the Beauty World neighbourhood one day and got to learn about the existence of the new Sakeshi that is located along Lorong Kilat — these folks can be found along the same stretch of shops where one can find an outlet of Chicken House as well; Sakeshi takes over the former premises of what used to be Kim’s Family Food Korean Restaurant. For those whom are unaware, Sakeshi is a concept by the same folks behind Goro Japanese Cuisine that is situated along Holland Drive, though it does seem that Sakeshi is quite a different concept to what Goro Japanese Cuisine is all about. The menu at Sakeshi varies during different times of the day — available in the mornings would be the Morning Set that one can grab from 9:30am to 11:30am, while the Lunch Set runs from 11:00am to 5:00pm; the Recommended section of the menu is available from 12 noon onwards till closing, while items in the Sweet Bites and Side Dishes categories are available all day long.

The Volcano Salmon Mentai Aburi Don is an item that is listed in the Recommended section of the menu — this is an item that is described to come with elements such as Mentai, Sushi Rice, Cucumber, Onsen Egg, Ikura and Salmon Soup; the Salmon Soup being a highlight itself at Sakeshi where it is pretty much central to the entire dining concept, while patrons do have the choice to opt for spicy Mentai or non-spicy Mentai. For our order of the Volcano Salmon Mentai Aburi Don, we went with the former. This does turn out to be quite a decent bowl of Salmon Mentai Aburi Don that came with a good portion of flame-torched salmon sitting atop the bed of rice. Coming with spicy Mentai being drizzled over the top, the spicy Mentai carried an umami note with a slight hint of spiciness to tickle the tastebuds; the level of spiciness being pretty mild. The salmon slices do come fresh and melt-in-the-mouth, while the inclusion of the Onsen egg adds a smooth and creamy texture with a molten egg yolk to the Donburi. The diced cucumbers does add an element of crunch that also helped to make the entire bowl quite refreshing to have, while the inclusion of Ikura gives a popping sensation and another dimension of umami whilst being at it.