Heng Ji Chicken Rice: I waited three years to eat this Chicken Rice!

Well here is another stall that I waited three years to eat.

When I started the blog, Smith Street Food Centre had shifted to its temporary premises at Outram and Heng Ji decided to take a break rather than shift there. So the blog post for this very famous Chicken Rice was put on hold for a while. It is quite amazing that even with the number of chicken rice stalls at Smith Street Food Centre, this particular stall still stands out for many a foodie. I guess it might have something to do with their long history at the food centre and of course the standard of their chicken rice.



The lady boss who was chopping the chicken tells me that their chicken is special. Just how is it special, she did not say. But she just said to try it first and see if I also felt it was special. And indeed it was. Their chicken is not exceptionally large, perhaps around 1.6 kg only, but I felt the meat had a very nice savoury flavour about it which is missing in many a food court chicken rice. So the chicken gets a 4.5/5 from me.

However, the rice that day was a bit of a dissappointment. It certainly looked great, with that light tea colour and slightly broken grains but the flavour was only so so. Holydrummer commented that they used a lot of fried shallots which might explain the brown colour of the rice. It wasn't all that bad, it just wasn't up to expectations. 4/5



Their chilli is a bit of surprise and it is quite unique in that it is exceptionally sweet. Very unlike any chicken rice chilli I know and I am sure some people might not even consider it chicken rice chilli. This one will depend on your preference for sweet stuff. I personally like my food a little sweet, but not really when it comes to chicken rice. 3.5/5

Conclusion

I am sure there must be many fans of this chicken rice out there. I think it is good, but there are a lot of stalls nearer to me where I can get better ones. The chicken is perhaps the only thing that stands out for me.

Heng Ji Chicken Rice
Chinatown Smith St FC
#02-131
Open from 3pm till 9pm

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Nam Seng Wanton Mee: Is This Singapore's Oldest Hawker Legend?

Mdm Leong, 80, founder, owner and operator of Nam Seng

Usually I would put the photo of a dish as my first picture, but as I started to write this post, I began to feel that this story is more about Madam Leong rather than the Wanton Mee which she has been dishing out since 1959. At 80 years of age, I think she is the oldest working hawker that I have met. Amazingly, she still comes to the stall at 6am in the morning to prepare the ingredients for the day.

You might have heard about this stall, which is the famous Wanton Mee stall at the old National Library. You might also remember that SM Goh recounted his early dating days at the National Library. What you might not have heard is that according to Mdm Leong, besides using the National Library as a dating hotspot, he also went there to get his foodie fix back in the days when he was Minister for Trade and Industry. Aside from SM Goh, Mdm Leong also rattled off a few other Ministers and VIPs who had frequented her stall. I guess, you can say there she is quite a living legend in the hawker scene.

When they moved out of the National Library premises about 14 years ago, they relocated to Joo Chiat where they stayed for a while before being invited to open a stall at Far East Square. It turned out that one of the Directors there is also a fan of the stall and wanted to make sure that this stall's legacy lives on. So, as you can see there are a lot of VIPs who grew up as fans of the stall in their not-yet-so VIP days!


Wanton Mee $4

So if this stall has survived for 41 years, it must be good right?

Right!

If you are a Wanton Mee lover, then this is certainly one stall to add onto your list. Now, my taste for Wanton Mee has been evolving. When I was younger, the Char Siew was the main thing for me. As I got older, I am beginning to appreciate the noodles more and more. But I would say that there are several styles of Wanton Mee and each can be appreciated in its own right. You really cannot compare a KL style Wanton Mee with black sauce with a Singapore style Wanton Mee with tomato ketchup. I think each has its own merits and should be judged in its own category. But of course we can all have our own preference for a certain style.



This Wanton Mee is one where the noodles take centre stage. This is in the same style as the popular and controversial Kok Kee at Lavender Food Centre. When you look at the Wanton Mee, you will not be impressed because the noodles nook quite plain and the fluorescent red charsiew, dry and unappetising. However, when you take your first mouthful of the noodles, you would be rewarded with a great tasting noodle and a secret sauce which will make you stop and wonder. I tried very hard to find out more about her secret sauce, but only managed to guess correctly that there is some dried scallops in it. The noodles and sauce alone deserves a 4.6/5.

I have always rated Wanton Mee based on the whole package and quite often, stalls don't get a 4.5 unless their Char Siew and Wantons are also of a certain standard. The Char Siew here is not the juicy charred type which I like, but I think that traditionally, this type of dry fluorescent red char siew might resonate with some readers. The wontons are very good, but I have tasted better. However, despite the lack of good charsiew, I still find myself thinking of the noodles the day after I ate them and find myself wanting to go back again. So for that I feel that it is justified that they get a 4.5/5.


Venison Hor Fun $4

Besides Wanton Mee, there are two other dishes that are also very famous. The first being the Venison Hor Fun. Now, the sauce for this Hor Fun is really really good. It is quite addictive and very satisfying. However, I was less enthusiastic about the Hor Fun as it lacks the smoky Wok Hei flavour. I highlighted this to Madam Leong but was told that unfortunately, the landlords do not allow them to use a gas stove in the premises and so they have to use an electric hotplate to cook the Hor Fun. I can only imagine what it must have been like previously. Still, it is one of the tastiest Beef (in this case Venison) Hor Fun around. 4.25/5


Fried Rice

Since Madam Leong had been serving their fried rice since 1968, she wasn't going to let a small detail like not having a gas stove to stop her from serving the fried rice for her customers. I felt that the Hor Fun could still make it because the gravy did not really need a hot wok to cook. But for fried rice, a hot stove is essential. So for me the fried rice was quite ordinary. It was a bit dry and not something I would order again. 3.5/5

But, she still has fans who have been eating this rice for the last 50 years who would raise a ruckus if she stopped selling it. And remember what I said before? Some of these guys are now VIPs, so we won't want to dissappoint the VIPs would we?

Conclusion

I reckon Madam Leong is the oldest working hawker around. The 2nd oldest would probably be Mr Liang of Ah Hor Mee Pok Tar. But of course, those are the only ones I know. If you know of any older hawkers who are still selling the same dish for the last 40 or more years, do write in so that I can blog about them! Let's see if we can find Singapore's oldest living Hawker Legend.

Nam Seng Wanton Mee
25 China Street #01-01
Far East Square
Open 8am to 8pm
Closed on Sundays
www.namsengnoodles.com


What to do next:

Pop by next door to try another Hawker Legend: Hock Lam Beef Noodles
Then hop, skip and jump to Nanyang Cafe for some Kopi and Kaya Toast

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Serangoon Gardens Bakery and Confectionary: Good old Curry Buns!

Luncheon Meat Buns

As with many things in life, the simple things are often the best. When it comes to soft buns, we Singaporeans have been spoilt for choice since Breadtalk started the trend of the fancy soft buns years ago. Before that, we were all quite happy with our curry buns, hot dog buns, coconut buns and luncheon meat buns. Since then, we now have buns with seaweed, pork floss, walnuts and all sorts of exotic ingredients, a lot of which you will never come across in your friendly neighbourhood Aunty Lucy supermarket.(NTUC)

But you know, often I buy these fancy buns only to find that it looked better than it actually tastes. Just last week I discovered that my favourite Japanese Bakery chain, Yamazaki has now opened a store in Tampines One. I used to buy my breads from Yamazaki when I was living in Thailand and they have a big round soft bun which they slice up which was fantastic. Unfortunately they don't have this in Singapore. So I ended up buying some fancy apple and custard bun that cost $2. I brought it home and prepared my Teh Si Siu Dai with much anticipation only to find that the out of the $2 spent, $1.50 accounted for visual appeal. After discounting 30 cents for satiety, I think I only derived 20 cents of gustatory satisfaction. Aiyah, KFC -- Thailand better, Yamazaki -- Thailand also better. What is wrong with our franchise managers here?


Ham and Cheese Buns

Anyway, back to the simple soft bun. There is no secret to a satisfying soft bun experience. The buns have to be warm, velvety soft and sweet. When that is the case, a simple slice of Luncheon meat is all you need to put you into bread heaven. OK, that is a little too simple. You also need a cup of hot Teh Si or Kopi Si depending on your preference.


Curry Buns

There is no fancy stuff here at this traditional bakery which has been around for the last 30 years. You are still going to find your classic curry buns, red bean buns and sausage buns, not to mention custard puffs. Of special mention are the curry buns which are really quite generously packed with potato curry. They are all satisfyingly good and the continuous queue of people ensures that the buns are always fresh out of the oven and warm! The ham and cheese is another hot favourite here, but for me I can just buy a couple of luncheon meat buns and be really happy. Best of all they are all less than a dollar each. 4.25/5

Conclusion

At the end of the day, you don't really need some fancy name and ingredients to have a great bun experience. Give me a luncheon meat bun anyday but make sure its hot out of the oven! Agree?

Serangoon Garden Bakery & Confectionary
Serangoon Garden Way FC
Stall 45
Opened for breakfast till evenings or until sold out

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Yi Shi Jia Shu Shi: Do you like Wanton Mee with Tomato Ketchup?

You know, some people might frown upon the use of Tomato Ketchup in wonton mee, saying that authentic wonton mee should not have ketchup in it. I think what they are trying to say is that Hong Kong style Wontan mee should not have ketchup in it. But I actually know a lot of people who love wanton mee with tomato ketchup in it because they grew up eating it. So I really think that this form of Wanton Mee which is also what I grew up eating really is our very own version of the dish.

This stall in Kovan Food Centre prides itself in selling a Wanton Mee which is hot, sour, sweet and salty and they also want the world to know that they are still using the same SinSin brand of tomato ketchup since their father started the shop some 30 to 40 years ago.



The wanton mee is very old school. You still get a generous helping of crispy pork lard as well as the traditionally thin slivers of tasty char siew. The noodles are quite good quality and I am told by the Lao Ban Niang that they spend a little more money to procure a better quality egg noodle.



Undoubtedly, the star of the show for me was the Wanton. They were very tasty and one of the best that I have tasted. Overall, I would give this Wanton Mee a 4/25. I would have loved a juicier and thicker charsiew to go with it.


This is how we all learnt to eat Wanton Mee!

Conclusion

You should pay this stall a visit if you are looking for a simple, old school Wanton Mee. They are quite popular in Kovan Food Centre judging from the queue they had even at 2.30pm in the afternoon.

So tell us, how do you feel about Tomato Ketchup in Wanton Mee?

Yi Shi Jia Shu Shi
Stall 57, Kovan Food Centre
7.30am to 4.30pm
Closed Sundays
92957134

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Seng Hong Coffeeshop: A Blast from the Past

With Damien

Steamed Lohti with Peanut Butter 50 cents per slice

Nostalgia is a precious commodity in Singapore. In our fast paced society where "Land is Scarce" most places only have a limited lifespan. So you are not likely to find the old oak tree where grandpa was supposed to meet grandma and run away together. A lot of the significant spots that Amagada and I fondly remember from our dating days have either been renovated or demolished altogether. Heck, even SM Goh's old dating hotspot, the National Library, is no more.


Bread steaming over pot of boiling water

So when Damien mentioned this old coffeeshop which still steam their Lohti (traditional bread), I got really excited.

It gets better. Not only were they steaming their Lohti, they were still boiling water from an ancient pot which, I am told is at least 70 years old. Rest assured, they clean the pot and decant the water at the end of the day, so it is not one of those legendary braising sauce stories where the pots are never washed out and theoretically, you can still be eating the part of same sauce from great grandpa's days.

You hardly see steamed bread nowadays, but I tell you, it really is very shiok! I was literally transported back in time ala Anton Ego's flashback sequence from Ratatouille. Mom used to steam bread for Grandma who prefers it to toast as it is easier on her dentures. In those days I never really appreciated steamed bread. In fact, when Gardenia made its first appearance in our supermarket shelves, we were all awed by its "so good you can eat it on its own" tagline and we kids looked upon steamed Lohti as passe.

Needless to say, the steamed Lohti with peanut butter was one of the best things I have eaten. It's warm and it is superduper soft. No wonder Grandma could gum it without her dentures! It was so good, I had to order a second serving and I would have a third if not for the fact that we came here right after lunch. 4.5/5


Kopi 80 cents

The Kopi here is what it should be like. Thick, full bodied, creamy and fragrant. It's no wonder since they can trace their origins back to Tong Ya at Keong Saik Road. It happens that 40 years ago, the third son of the owner of Tong Ya left to open his own coffeeshop right here. Just like Tong Ya, the coffee tends to be a little on the bitter side but this can be fixed easily with the addition of evaporated milk if you don't like it too bitter. 4.25/5


Kaya Toast

The Kaya Toast is good here but would have been better if they made their own Kaya. With so many places making Kaya Toast nowadays, you really do need homemade kaya in order to stand out. 3.75/5


Mr Tan standing at the original counter brought over from Keong Saik Road

Conclusion

I wonder why not many other places serve steamed bread. It is really very very shiok and sitting in that old coffeeshop, sipping Kopi and eating soft lohti is just one of those things in life that are so simple and yet so enjoyable. And all for less than two bucks!

Seng Hong Coffeeshop
Blk 58 Lengkok Bahru
6am to 6pm
Closed alt Sundays

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Heritage Hawkers at the Big Eat Out

A big thank you to all readers who came down to support the inaugeral Heritage Hawkers' Fair which was jointly organized by Hungrygowhere and the National Heritage Board with the help of ieatishootipost.

During the fair, I met some members of the National Heritage Board and suggested that they should really make a concerted effort into trying to preserve some of these well known and well loved Hawker Names. I am sure we'd all love to be able to continue to taste the original recipes of our Heritage Hawker foods rather than just seeing them displayed in an exhibit somewhere! Hopefully something can be done to help preserve their recipes for future generations.

Thanks to all the hawkers who agreed to take part in this Charity event! If you missed them at the fair, don't worry, you can still visit them at their stalls!

Kway Guan Huat Poh Piah
Kwong's Satay
Hillstreet Char Kway Teow
Hock Lam Beef Kway Teow
Peramakan
Sabar Menanti II
Sajis Indian Food
Thye Hong Hokkien Mee

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Thye Hong Hokkien Mee: Have Hokkien Mee will Travel

With Cactuskit, Sumosumo and Wahcow

Hokkien Mee special big plate $10

One thing that I have observed about most of the Famous Hawkers around is the fact that they are famous not just because their food is good, but it also has a lot to do with their personality and PR skills.

Take for instance this Hokkien Mee uncle who was handpicked to represent Singapore Hokkien Mee in New York during the Singapore Day Festivities in April. Although I use the word "handpicked" it doesn't really mean that he fries the best Hokkien Mee in Singapore which is why he was "handpicked". But more like a combination of his Hokkien Mee frying expertise as well as enough EQ to understand the marketing potential of taking part in such an event. Why else would someone be persuaded to close the stall for 2 weeks in order to travel to New York?

So the fact is that a lot of the famous hawkers are famous because they understand the 4Ps of marketing, viz product, pricing, placement and promotion. A lot of the time, the thing that makes the difference between a great hawker and a famous one is his ability to promote himself.


Flambuoyant Frying Style coupled with Straw Hat and Colourful Shirt

And this is one Hokkien Mee man who is pretty savvy when it comes to marketing himself. You just can't walk past his stall without noticing his floral Hawaii shirt and his straw hat plus a photo of a San Francisco Trams on his signboard. That tram represented the time when he was part of a delegation to promote Singapore food in the Napa Valley in 2004. Whatever it is, I'd bet you will not be able to walk past the stall without having a second look.



Now, apart from the superficial differences, there was also differences in the actual preparation of the Hokkien Mee that caught my attention. He is the only Hokkien Mee man that I know of that adds uncooked prawns to fry together with the noodles. He explained that this imparts and extra sweetness to the noodles and also that the prawns are more tender because they have not been overcooked.

The final product was something to behold. The noodles were suitably untidy and the charred black bits in the gravy really gave the hint of a rustic and untamed Hokkien Mee harkening back to the days of pushcart hawkers. I wish I could tell you that the taste was phenomenal but alas after all that anticipation, we all felt that it looked better than it tasted. Still better than your average Hokkien Mee but on that night, the gravy just lacked that ooomph to make it taste as good as it looks. 4/5

Conclusion

Probably one of Singapore's most well travelled and well known hawkers. His stall at Republic Food Court at Wisma Atria has had some really good reviews, but strangly not many people talk about the original stall at Newton Food Centre. Perhaps he too is a victim of our prejudice against Newton Food Centre?

Thye Hong
Newton Food Centre
Stall 58
5 pm to 1am daily
96181221

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Heng Carrot Cake: Something in Newton worth going for

With Cactuskit, Wahcow and Sumosumo


Judging from the comments so far, it is quite clear that many of our readers regard Newton Food Centre as a place for tourists which was my perception as well. However, I must say that Newton Food Centre actually turned out to be better than we expected. Both Cactuskit and I
haven't been back here for awhile, but we both felt that there was quite an air of expectation about the whole place. I was interested to see just how bad the touting really is, but after trying to get myself touted for awhile, I would say that the touting problem is about the same as the Satay sellers at East Coast Lagoon. This place does indeed have Singapore's greatest concentration of BBQ seafood stalls though, which I guess is so because the hawkers want to cash in on high priced items.

However it would be unfair to say that all the hawkers there are out to make a quick buck from the tourists. In fact, I think the hawkers there know that they still have to cater to the locals in order to survive, especially those that are selling the less touristy items like Seafood BBQ.



Now, if you are one of those who shun Newton Food Centre then you might just miss out on this Carrot Cake which was surprisingly quite good. They have been there since Newton Food Centre was first built in 1971 and are still steaming their own Carrot Cake because they insist that home made carrot cake still tastes better.

Their efforts are quite evident in the white version. The texture of the carrot cake was just nice. It is softer and more "wobbly" than the commercial version and you can make out the strips of radish in it. It is fried till crispy on the outside but moist and soft on the inside and was very tasty. It definitely is not the best a carrot cake can get, since they avoid the use of lard, but it is certainly one of the best ones I have tasted. The black version is also very good and they managed to fry it till it is nice can caramalized. This might be one of the rare occasions where I find that both the white and black versions are just as good. 4.25/5

Conclusion

Very good homemade Carrot Cake and though it is in Newton, they still sell it at $3 per plate which I think is quite reasonable. It is certainly one stall which I would go to Newton Food Centre for.

Heng Carrot Cake
Newton Food Centre
Stall 28
Opened in the Evenings only

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Bee Heng Poh Piah: What is your opinion of Newton Food Centre?

With Wahcow, Sumosumo and Cactuskit


I know that a lot of Singaporeans avoid going to Newton Food Centre as it is often seen as a tourist trap. Furthermore, many foodies also lament the fact that the food there is not outstanding and that there are nicer hawker food elsewhere at lower prices. That's is a bit of a shame because I think that this is the most well known hawker centre amongst our tourists.

I must admit that I haven't been to Newton Food Centre for at least 18 years since I left to pursue my degree in Sydney. In those days I remembered Newton as a great place to eat. I wasn't really into documenting great eats then, so I can't really tell you which stall was good. It was still a tourist trap to be sure, but at least I remember that the food was good. When I got back, it seemed that Newton had become a place that is more well known for its touts and exorbitant prices which is why I haven't even thought of going there for a meal.

Well, I think that this blog will not be complete without the mention of our most famous Hawker Centre so I decided that I need at least give it a chance. Fortunately, it turns out that one of our regular kakis (Wahcow) was quite a regular at the place and had a few things which he felt could be recommended. I am sure there are many readers out there who have their own favourites at the food centre to recommend so I am going to start with a couple of stalls and see if there are other worthy mentionables to bring us back for a repeat visit.

Let's start with Bee Heng Poh Piah because it is the one facing the car park and it claims to have been around since 1930. First thing that caught my eye was the price: $1.80 each with minimum order of 2 rolls. Hmmm.... it is beginning to look like Newton is living up to its infamy.

The Poh Piah was pretty decent though, so it wasn't a complete waste of $3.60. The filling was pretty good and the crispy bits were quite nice. But for me, I like my Poh Piahs really turgid and looking like it is going to burst at the seams like the ones at Kway Guan Huat, so it wasn't something I would go out of my way to eat. But if you are at Newton, it is quite an acceptable side dish to order along with your other dishes. 4/5

Conclusion

So what do you all think of Newton Food Centre? With so many BBQ seafood stalls around, I am sure there must be one that is good and reasonably priced that can be recommended. Or do you all think that Newton Food Centre really is just a place which is set up specifically to cater to Tourists and that locals should avoid it?

Bee Heng Newton Food Centre
Stall 12 (Facing Car Park)
12am to 12pm
Closed Thursday

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Ah Hor Mee Pok Tah: Chilli and Giao Champion

With my Teochew Ah Di, Wahcow

Mee Pok Tah $3

Here's another one of those stalls that you better be quick to taste because the original hawker is already past 72 and even though he still looks like a "Lao Yankee", and behaves like one, he himself admits that at most he has 10 years of Mee Pok Tak left in him. Actually, he still looks quite good for a 72 year old. When I asked him why he wears a long sleeved shirt while he cooks his Mee Pok, he simply replied, "Cos I want to look good!"

Talking about the subject of aging, I know for most of our readers, hitting the eighth decade might still be quite a long time away. For us who are hitting middle age, it is like "Oh my, I am more than half way there, and the 2nd half is going to go quicker than the first half". I once heard a preacher (An Anglican Bishop in his 70's) say that every morning when he wakes up he goes, "Ay! I am still around!". It is almost as if after you cross the life expectancy age (78 for men, 82.8 for women), every day is a bonus. Are there anyone here that fall into this category?



Anyway, if you do have the fortune of passing the life expectancy age, then it really does give you the passport to do whatever you want, right? I mean, who cares if your Doctor tells you to stop smoking? "Ay, Doc, been smoking for 50 years and my bus still arrive at the interchange. You asking me to stop now?" Well, if you are in that category, then when it comes to food, I guess you can also just indulge in a bit of Mee Pok Tar which has a chilli made with good old Pork Lard.



Mr Liang proudly tells me that his chilli is made from Pork Lard, Buah Keluak, Hae Bee and Dried Chilli. For a person who always orders Mee Pok Tar mai Hiam (no chilli), I can tell you that this is one stall that I would ask for extra chilli. You see the main problem I have with Chilli is that most stalls just want to make their chilli hot hot. However, the chilli here is not overly spicy but the flavour is oh so addictive that you can just sit there and just pick on it with your chopsticks.

The other "champion" item is the Fish Dumplings (Her Giao) which Mr Liang still proudly makes himself. The slightly gooey texture of the meat filling is very good and it is one of the most memorable Her Giao that I have had.

Too bad the Mee Pok itself was not as QQ as I would like it to be. Otherwise it would have scored a higher rating. 4.25/5

Conclusion

Very good bowl of Mee Pok Tar and you get quite a big bowl for $3! Do yourself a favour and order a bowl of Giao Soup and try the chilli especially if you are the type who don't usually take chilli. It might just make you change your mind.


Mr Liang, 72 and still wants to look good!

Ah Hor Teochew Kway Teow Mee
12 Verdun Road
Bet Sam Leong and Syed Alwi Roads
7am to 4pm
Wed closed
81274249
Mr Liang
Recommended by ice. Read her review here

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Killiney Kopitiam: A Tale about an Old Hainanese Gentleman

Kopi $1.10

I was told that if you wanted the best cup of Kopi from Killiney Kopitiam, you still had to go back to the original shop at Killiney Road where the coffee is brewed by an old Hainanese gentleman who has been making the Kopi there for the longest time. Now, I have always enjoyed the Kopi and Teh from Killiney Kopitiam, but never really blogged them because, well, they are everywhere and everyone knows about them already. But when I heard about the old man, I decided that I must pay the original kopitiam a visit.


"Ah Gong"

As it turns out, I was a little late. Four years too late as a matter of fact. The old man in question, affectionately known as "Ah Gong", retired in 2004. (Now who was it in the forum that told me about him?) Anyway, I was unfortunate not to have ever tasted the Kopi from this legendary "Barista" who had spent 54 years of his life brewing Kopi in the very same shop till he retired. Such was his dedication that he never had time to start a family and thus on retirement, he did what a Salmon would do and went back to Hainan island. Unfortunately, "Ah Gong" died last year at the age of 86 after having served close to a million cups of Kopi. (Assuming he makes 500 cups a day for 54 years with 2 weeks break each year)

You don't get people like "Ah Gong" anymore, so here's a little tribute to him for his contribution to our Singapore food Heritage. I am very sure that some of our readers will remember him fondly. Do write in and let us know yeah?


Kaya Toast

According to the Singapore Book of Records, this original shop at 67 Killiney Road is Singapore's oldest existing Hainanese Coffeeshop, having been around since 1919. The shop used to be known as Qiong Xin He and was a typical Hainanese Coffeeshop which served really good Kopi and Kaya Toast. It was only in 1993 that the shop was bought over by Mr Woon who then changed the name to Killiney Kopitiam and started expanding its operations. Fortunately, when Mr Woon took over Killiney Kopitiam, he managed to persuade "Ah Gong" and two other Hainanese men to continue serving the Kopi and Kaya toast.

Now, I used to think that franchising and expansion was a bad thing for our Singapore food heritage. There are some franchises out there which I feel have deviated too far from the original recipe. However, with Killiney, somehow they managed to still preserve a part of our heritage that would have otherwise been lost back in 1993. Now at least, I can still get a good cup of Kopi accompanied by Kaya Toast that is made to a certain standard at several locations around Singapore.

Whether it is a placebo effect or not, both Amagada and I felt that the Kopi C that day was about the best cup of Hainanese style Kopi compared to the rest of the other Killiney stores that we frequent. It was smooth, aromatic and very fragrant with only a slight tinge of bitterness and acidity. 4.75/5


French Toast

This issue about vanishing Heritage Hawkers is something that we should be concerned about. The good old hawkers of yesteryear who, like "Ah Gong" consider their jobs their life's calling are getting very rare. For many Heritage Hawkers their craft ends the moment they retire because for a lot of them, their kids have been educated and are not willing to carry on the family business. Over the next 10 years, we will be seeing hawkers from the post war "Baby Boomer" generation dissappear from our food scene. I think something has to be done to preserve some of these famous names.

Now, if we can draw upon what we learn from Killiney Kopitiam, it would seem apparent to me that one of the ways to preserve some of these Heritage Hawkers is for their businesses to be acquired with plans for expansion. Purists may baulk at the notion, but it is either we do that or we can just enjoy them in their current state for the next few years before they fade into history. I think for a lot of these hawkers in their 60's who do not have an heir apparent, an attractive retirement plan might be a good way of getting them to part with their skills. I feel that if they have been building up their "Brand" for the last 40 years, that this brand as value and this value can be repackaged into a sort of pension for the hawker so that he can still have some steady income, go into semi retirement and act as consultant to ensure that their recipes and skills are passed onto the next generation. This idea is not new and there are some other people who have already taken on the task of preserving our Heritage Hawker Brands, but this needs to be accelerated over the next 10 years in order to preserve some of these famous stalls. I must admit that not all of them work out well, but for those that do, like in the case of Killiney, it is a piece of tradition that has been preserved for posterity.


Fresh Bread with Butter and Kaya

Here's a little something from the regular customers of the kopitiam which you might want to try. Rather than ordering the usual Kaya Toast, get there first thing in the morning and try their fresh bread with butter and their fragrant Kaya which incidentally is still hand made with freshly squeezed coconut milk. You will have to get there early in the morning because by the afternoon these traditional bread would have already become a little stale. If you think about it, the real reason for us to toast bread or make french toast is because stale bread doesn't taste good. But freshly sliced bread is super soft and you can really savour the taste of the butter and Kaya while you enjoy nibbling on the soft texture of the bread. 4.25/5

Conclusion

Great Kopi and Kaya Toast and a legacy of an old Hainanese man preserved for future generations to enjoy.

67 Killiney Road
Singapore 239525
Tel: 6734 9648 / 6734 3910
Mon, Wed to Sat - 6am to 11pm
Tues, Sun & PH - 6am to 6 pm




What to do next?

Check out the other stalls where you can get a great cup of kopi
See where else you can get traditional Hainanese food
Remember to vote for the dialect group you are in!

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Hock Lam Beef Kway Teow: Let's Raise the Bar on Beef Kway Teow!

Minipot Shabu Shabu sets starting from $15 (All proceeds donated to Operation Smile)

I recently complained to a TV producer that she should not continue to make TV shows that glamourise $2 hawker meals. I mean, do we really want to encourage more hawkers to compete just price rather than to focus on quality?


With food prices going up, our hawkers are all suffering from lower profit margins but at the same time still under pressure to provide meals at cheap cheap prices. Our friend Liverpool of
Good Morning Nanyang Cafe is still forced to sell his cup of Kopi for $1.10 just because he is selling "Kopi" (Ya Kun already increased to $1.50 btw) while the same people won't even blink an eye to pay $5 for a cup of cappuccino at a cafe.

What we need is to change our mentality and reward hawkers who are willing to give us quality stuff rather than cheap cheap stuff. Either we do that or we risk all the good hawkers not being able to pass down their skills to the next generation. In the end we will all lose out.

I have made it my personal mission to support hawkers who are opened to new ideas and to providing better quality hawker food for us all. The fact is that even if they increase their prices, it is still cheaper than eating at a restaurant, but you derive more shiokness out of it.

So I am very happy to announce that Tina from Hock Lam Beef Kway Teow and taken on my suggestion of introducing a Shabu Shabu style Beef Kway Teow which I hope will do for Beef Kway Teow what Big Prawns had done for Prawn Noodles.

The premise is very simple. We like Beef Kway Teow, we like good beef and we also like our beef not too well cooked. So the solution to this is to provide nice Sukiyaki Grade Beef with a Mini Hotpot of stewed beef tendon, balls, tripe and you can cook your sliced beef yourself!


How often have you eaten Beef Kway Teow and wished the beef could be better?

Needless to say, the longer you cook the soup, the more "Tok Kong" (addictive) it is going to get and the slices of beef that you cook yourself just melts in your mouth and is even more shiok with Hock Lam's famous chilli sauce! 4.5/5

I prefer the soup version to the original dry version here. But you should try Tina's new "Gorn Lor" Hor Fun which is fragrant and the kway teow just leaps into your mouth. 4/5

Hock Lam will be introducing their Minipot Beef set on their 97th anniversary which is on 1 Oct (Hari Raya). And to commemorate their anniversary, they will be donating all the proceeds of the day to Operation Smile which is a worldwide movement to fix cleft palates in kids. So that is an added incentive to go down and try this very special way of enjoying one of Singapore's truly heritage foods. And, if it is well received, they might even put it on their menu!

Conclusion

I have tried very hard to convince Tina that there will be a market for better quality beef, but she is worried that consumers might not want to pay for it. How do you all feel about it? Would you like to see Wagyu beef or Karubi on the menu? Or do you want to just stick to the traditional $4 Bowl of Beef Kway Teow?

Please Note:

This special dish is only available on 1 Oct 2008 to commemorate their anniversary. However, if the feedback is good, they might decide to put it on the menu.The ieat kakis will be going there for lunch at around 1.30pm, do come and join us and at the same time support Operation Smile!

They will be opening from 10am to 3pm on that day itself.

Hock Lam Street Beef Kway Teow
22 China St, #01-01
Far East Square
62209290
90180508 (Tina Tan)



What to do next:
Read what others have to say about Hock Lam Beef Kway Teow! Very heated indeed!
See which other kakis are coming in our Forum.

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