The Adventures Of A Singaporean Bon Vivant

The Best Beef Noodles In The World: Hock Lam Beef

I am not kidding you when I say that Hock Lam Beef Noodles is by far the BEST beef noodles I have ever tasted. In the world. And trust me, I have tried many different types (including the Vietnamese Pho). But nothing…NOTHING can compare to Hock Lam’s! No wonder the founder’s daughter, Ms Tina Tan quit her high-paying banking job to run the business. This businesswoman has expanded the business to 4 outlets island-wide now. We sincerely hope she’d be able to expand her operations worldwide because the rest of the world really needs to try just how rad this dish is.

My foreigner friend rated this dish: 9/10! He was simply blown away by the beef noodles. I asked him “have you tried beef noodles before?”. His reply “No. This is really the best noodles I have ever tasted”. And he doesn’t lie.

Seriously, you guys need to check it out for yourself.

————————————————————————————————————————————

Here is an article which appeared in THE BUSINESS TIMES
- written by Tan Teck Heng | Tue Oct 2 2012:

You cannot deny that a recipe that has been around for 101 years has staying power.

Throw in fourth-generation owner Tina Tan’s branding savvy to the tried-and-tested Hock Lam beef noodles, and you get a winning formula.

The flagship stall in China Street has the look of hawker fare given a 2.0 upgrade, joining the ranks of Ya Kun; google the Hock Lam Beef name and you will be pointed to a put-together website, complete with YouTube video marking its centennial.

Ms Tan, who ditched a high-paying banking career to take over the stall in 2005, said: “My father took a year to pass me the recipe, and there’s no recording of it as he doesn’t want to leak it.”

Spurred to make the career switch because her father’s failing health would have meant the end of a legacy, she went from a desk job to 16-hour-days preparing ingredients - she slices up 60kg of beef herself - and managing the daily operations. She has no regrets.

The manpower issue continues to dog her. The prep work is brutally labour intensive: the chilli, for instance, takes five days’ work because of the addition of blue ginger, which has to be hand-shredded, squeezed, then sun-dried and de-veined with scissors.

She adamantly refuses to cut corners on this, saying it is part of educating the younger generation of customers so a heritage is not lost.

But the chilli definitely complements the beef slices, which are briefly scalded so they remain deliciously pink and tender.

Going for the noodles in soup is a good choice. The broth is characteristically Teochew with a mild, simple herbal flavour.

If you still prefer the dry version, add some pickled vegetable garnish. It is juicy and a tad too salty, but does the job to moderate the thick sauce so it does not get too heavy.

Despite staffing problems, Ms Tan has expanded to a total of four outlets; a new branch at Alexandra Retail Centre offers an extended menu which will be rolled out to other branches soon.

Her brother Ken has joined the business.

To those who gripe that $6.50 to $8.50 for a Hock Lam original is too steep, Ms Tan has this snappy comeback: “Why is one more willing to pay more than $15 for a bowl of ramen with three thin slices of pork?”

Fine, she’s got us there.

** End of Article **
————————————————————————————————————————————

We dined at the Alexandra Retail Centre (ARC) outlet. This is possibly the most upmarket of all the outlets. For 2 pax, it can cost almost S$60.00 to dine here if you choose 2 set meals with 1-2 additional dishes e.g. vegetables like what we ordered.

Per set meal comprising of 1 bowl of Beef Noodles, 1 side dish and 1 drink costs about S$15.00.

But hey, for such wonderful food, we don’t mind paying a little bit more!

Above: Long Beans with Chye Poh (Pickled Vegetables). Their signature dish. Highly recommended. It is truly delish!

Above: Spicy Chicken Nuggets. This comes as part of the Set Meal. Really succulent yet, so crispy!

Above: Coleslaw. This also comes as part of a Set Meal. You have an option to choose either Spicy Chicken Nuggets or Coleslaw as your side dish.

Above: Fried Pumpkin. My friend apparently loves this!

Official Website: http://www.hocklambeef.com/blog/

Food Rating: 5/5 (yes, I am serious)

HOCK LAM BEEF

Outlets:
Far East Square:
22 China Street, #01-01, Far East Square
Tel: +65 6220 9290

Operating Hours:
Monday to Sunday & PH: 10.00am – 9.00pm

Upper Serangoon:
949 Upper Serangoon Road
Tel: 6285 6119

Operating Hours:
Monday: Closed | Tuesday to Friday: 5.00pm to 11.00pm | Saturday, Sunday & PH: 10.00am – 11.00pm

Seah Street:
38 Seah Street
Tel: +65 6339 9641
Nearest MRT station: Esplanade, City Hall

ARC:
Alexandra Retail Center #02-24
460 Alexandra road
Singapore 119963

Where can you find the best Fried Hokkien Noodles in the East Coast of Singapore?

There used to be a very good stall near where I live - Ah Liang’s Fried Hokkien Noodles at the Marine Parade Food Centre. It was so popular that it is common to queue up for 45 minutes to get a whiff of this esteemed dish. After Ah Liang (who could not take the pressure of managing a super-successful stall) left to set up another business in Batam (Indonesia), disillusioned Fried Hokkien Noodle lovers like moi (ahem) had to start scouring every nook and cranny in the Eastern part of Singapore for this mouthwatering dish.

So readers, if you know where I can get superb Fried Hokkien Noodles, please DO drop me a note here on my food blog!

THYE HONG FRIED PRAWN NOODLE:
Let’s start with two discoveries I’ve made recently. Lots of food bloggers online have been raving about the Thye Hong Fried Prawn Noodle at Food Republic @112 Katong Mall. So, based on their writings, I went to check out this place. To put it mildly, ALL these online bloggers either:

(a) have NOT eaten here and just faked their food reviews (!!) OR
(b) they must have been paid by the owners of Thye Hong to write a glowing review!!

The ingredients were so few; I shook my head in disbelief. 2-3 small prawns (with shells & everything else still attached!). 3-4 pieces of squid and that’s it! Seriously, the Fried Hokkien Noodle (S$4.50) here is SO BAD and tasted so bland and horrid that I am sure (even with my NON-EXISTENT cooking skills), I can cook better than the cooks at Thye Hong! Don’t believe me? Check it out yourself! The worst thing a food blogger can do is to fake their food reviews. I’ll let you readers be the judge.

Food Rating: 1.5/5

Address:
Thye Hong Fried Prawn Noodle
Food Republic @ 112 Katong
#04-01, 112 Katong
112 East Coast Road
Singapore 428802

Operating Hours:
10am to 10pm (Mon– Thurs, Sun and Public Holiday)
10am to 11pm (Fri, Sat and Eve of Public Holiday)

YONG HUAT @ALI BABA EATING HOUSE
Just across the street from 112 Katong Mall is the Ali Baba Eating House. One of its anchor tenants, Yong Huat sells some pretty tasty dishes - from Char Kway Teow (Fried Noodles with Cockles) to Fried Hokkien Mee!! See pic. Ladies and gentlemen, I would like to HIGHLY recommend the Fried Hokkien Noodles at Yong Huat. They are so generous with their ingredients and it cost only S$3.50 per dish! PLUS, the prawns served in the dish have their shells removed!! You do not need to dirty your fingers/hands by peeling them off.

I know the stall owners pretty well because they have seen me growing up in the neighborhood for over 25 years! ;-) So I always get extra special treatment here. But joke aside, the food at Yong Huat is beyond excellent. You can google online and check the reviews for yourself.

Food Rating: 4.5/5

Address:
125/127 East Coast Road
Ali Baba Eating House
Singapore
Tel: +65 9630 1370

Opening Hours:
8am to 8pm daily

There are basically 3 ways of eating Yong Tao Foo (or Yong ToFu) here in Singapore. With Soup, Dry (with Chilli) or Deep Fried.

FuLin Fried Yong ToFu does it the Deep Fried way. Not the healthiest way of eating it but…! Anyway, it’s really delish!

If you are a foreigner, where do you start? And how do you order it? You wonder.

Well, firstly, you choose your favorite varieties. Be aware that each piece you choose (and depending on the places you are dining in) can cost anything from 50 cents to S$1.00 per piece. The varieties you can choose from include the different types of vegetables (Kang Kong, Bak Choy), Chilli with fish paste, ToFu with Fish Paste, Ladies Finger with Fish Paste, Egg Plant with Fish Paste, Mushrooms with Fish Paste et al.

Don’t let the word “Fish Paste” scare you off. It is actually plain old fish cake. Have you tasted fish cake or fishballs before? It is not like the Japanese fish paste. The Japanese ones taste rubbery! But, the Chinese style is super yummy and crunchy. Trust me on this ;-)

Once you’ve made your choice/selection, you give it to the cook to do their deep frying job. Then tell them you want it to be served with their Minced Chicken Mushroom Gravy with Noodles (see pic). And voila! You’d be served with this delicious dish in no time at all.

My dish costs S$8.50! It’s actually not cheap for a food court.

If you wish to read up more about Yong Tau Foo a delicious dish you can find in Singapore/ Malaysia and its origins, here’s the link on Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yong_Tau_Foo

Food Rating: 4.5/5

FULIN FRIED YONG TOFU
Address:
112 East Coast Road, #04-01
112 Katong Mall
Singapore 428802

Opening Hours:
Monday - Thursday, Sunday and Public Holiday: 10am to 10pm
Friday, Saturday and Eve of Public Holiday: 10am to 11pm

I was pleasantly surprised to find the famous Cho Kee Wanton Noodles stall here at 112 Katong Mall. The original stall is still at Old Airport Road Food Centre.

We were overjoyed (see what good food can do to a person?!) and immediately ordered one of their set meals consisting of Wanton Noodles (Dry/ with Chilli) and a bowl of 12 huge Wantons. The set meal costs S$6.50 and a plate of Vegetables in Oyster Sauce (S$3.00). It is totally worth it if you observe how huge each wanton is!

The Mushroom Noodles is also a MUST-Try! My friend had that with an additional S$2.00 worth of wantons (8 pieces). See Photo above. It was delish! ;-)

If you ask me, I think the Cho Kee outlet here at 112 Katong is even better than the one at Old Airport Road Food Centre! Seriously.

What’s unique at this branch of Cho Kee is their kewl “colored noodles” - exclusively created for Food Republic consisting of Spinach, Carrot and Seaweed flavored noodles! I will be trying each type of noodles on my subsequent visits and will definitely post more pictures to this blog. Watch this space! ;-)

Food Rating: 4.5/5

CHO KEE WANTON NOODLES
Food Republic @ 112 Katong
112 East Coast Road #04-01
Singapore 428802

Open:
Mon - Thur, Sun and Public Holiday: 10am - 10pm
Fri, Sat and eve of Public Holiday: 10am - 11pm

{EAV:b741f644d93a9b20}
DAIKOKUYA RAMEN DINING @ PARAGON:

This is strictly for Japanese Ramen fans.

Daikokuya, which means ‘God of Wealth’ in Japanese, is a modern version of a ramen-ya that offers a variety of regional ramen specialties such as Sapporo, Tokyo & Kyushu-style ramen in a contemporary and relaxing atmosphere.

This exciting eaterie located inside the upmarket Paragon mall serves the most extensive menu of ramens that I have ever seen! I reckoned there are more than 20 different varieties of ramens alone! You’ll never be bored again.

The food here is above average; and prices are reasonable. It’s not cheap though. Expect to pay about S$14.00 per bowl of ramen (average cost). For your side dishes, you can choose from a variety of Sashimi, Gyoza to Tempura et al. Each dish costs about S$10.00 (average).

For fuss-free dining, I’d recommend this place.

I was also pleased with the service extended. I remembered telling the waitress that I was not happy with my Japanese Ocha because it was way too diluted. They promptly changed my tea to a thicker version - which was better than the diluted version.

Would I recommend this Ramen eaterie to you? Hell yeah! Go check it out, people!

Food Rating: 3.5/5

DAIKOKUYA RAMEN DINING

Address:
290 Orchard Road, #B1-47
Paragon Shopping Centre
Singapore

URL: http://www.daikokuya.com.sg

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DaikokuyaSingapore

Check out Dakokuya’s Photo Gallery: http://www.daikokuya.com.sg/gallery.html

Opening Hours
Daily: 11.30am – 10.30pm

If you love eating fishballs (like me!), then I’d like to highly recommend you to try one of the best fishball noodles here in Singapore:

Li Xin Chao Zhou Fish Ball Noodles is one of the BEST fishball noodles stalls that I’ve tasted thus far. The secret lies in their chilli sauce! What did they put in there that’s so addictive and yummilicious?!

The owner/founder, Mr Lim Lee Seng uses only YellowTail Fish for his fishballs and they are freshly made. Daily. You can choose the type of noodles that you’d like it to go with - from MeePok (flat yellow Fettuccine-like noodles) to Yu-Mee (looks like Angel-Hair Pasta) or Kway Teow (flat white Fettuccine-like noodles) or even Bee Hoon (vermicelli). And you can choose to take it Dry or with Soup.

My advice: Take it dry…because that’s where you’d be able to taste their secret chilli sauce! The soup is normal. Nothing spectacular, ya know?

Each bowl costs only S$5.00 nett. Totally worth it for a place like ION Orchard!

Oh and last but not least…do TRY to avoid the peak lunch and dinner time crowds. Go during off-peak hours.

Li Xin Chao Zhou Fish Ball Noodles
Food Opera Food Court
2 Orchard Turn,
ION Orchard Shopping Mall
Basement 4
Singapore

Opening hours:
8am to 10pm Monday - Thursday;
8am to 11pm Friday, Saturday, Eve of Public Holidays;
10am to 10pm Sunday

Nearest MRT: Orchard

Worthy of Mention:
Another great place to eat fishball noodles is the one at Marine Parade.

132 Mee Pok Kway Teow

Address:
Blk 59 Marine Terrace
MP 59 Food House #01-05
Singapore

Opening Hours:
7am to 3.30pm;
Closed on Mon and 1st & 3rd Sun of the month

** I will be giving a short write-up of this eaterie shortly! Stay tuned. **

For delicious fuss-free Chinese cuisine, C-Jade Express is a good bet to visit. ALWAYS crowded/ long queue. So, do try to come slightly early before lunch time like I always do i.e. come before 12 noon or just after 1.30pm. If you can’t… then you must be prepared to wait for a table.

If you don’t mind a noisy environment with waiters/ waitresses who are sometimes too busy to notice you waving your arms frantically to grab their attention, then this is good place to feast on your Mini-Pot Rice, Noodles and Dim Sum!

Some of my favorites include: The Mini-Pot Rice with Chicken and Mushroom (S$6.50) per dish and it comes piping HOT with slices of cut Chilli. Yum! Another winner is the Shanghai Shrimp Dumplings Noodle (you can order it - with Soup or Dry). S$6.50. Singaporeans (ahem!) who love spicy food will eat it dry ie with chilli sauce in it. Mind you, this isn’t your Mexican-type of Chilli sauce! Chinese Chilli sauces will put those Mexican sauces to shame! The Chinese chilli sauces contain quite a few tantalizing ingredients in it. Don’t believe me? Check ‘em out yourself. For side dishes, I highly recommend ordering their Seasonal Vegetables in Oyster Sauce. Sometimes their “Seasonal Vegetables” is Lettuce. This time when we went there for lunch, it’s Choi Sum. I especially enjoyed their Beijing Wanton Dumplings in Chilli/Vinegar Sauce. Ooh la la! One very interesting dish is called the Rickshaw Noodles! Apparently, it is the noodle of choice for the rickshaw drivers in the 1930s to 1960s! My Taiwanese colleague had this; I didn’t try it. She said it was good. ;-)

Generally speaking, the food here is relatively inexpensive. A dish cost an average of S$6.50. Each variety/ dish of Dim Sum costs approximately S$2.50. Reasonable!

So this is where I come for lunch (with my colleagues) at least once a week!

Food Rating: 4/5

Address:
C-Jade Express
10 Pasir Panjang Road
Mapletree Business City
Singapore 117439
Phone: (65) 6570 1787

Opening Hours:
Mondays to Saturdays 08:00-20:00
Sundays - Closed

I don’t actively spend my time searching for the BEST food in Singapore. BUT I am indeed fortunate enough to be staying in Singapore’s Food Paradise ie Katong.

It was one of those days that a friend casually mentioned “Hey, let’s go check out this rad eaterie along East Coast Road… Just a stone’s throw away from Al Forno Italian Restaurant”. And I have not looked back since. Ladies and Gentlemen - this is indeed one of the BEST Prawn Noodles I have ever tasted. Period.

Note: There is another rad eaterie that I go to - Blanco Court Prawn Noodles located along Beach Road. Equally awesome.

Firstly, when we arrived at 11.30am, there was already a LONG queue. Whoa! So, this is what I’ve discovered. TRY not to go during peak lunch hours. What is considered peak lunch hours? From 11.30am to 2.00pm! On one of my morning walks some months ago, I discovered that this eaterie is opened for business as early as 9.00am!

It’s not cheap to eat here. I think the cheapest bowl of Prawn Noodles cost S$5.50. They give you 1 small SHRIMP sliced into 2. Now you know why I never bothered to order the “cheapest” bowl, huh? I usually order their largest (and best) portion which cost slightly over S$10.00. The portion is NOT large but they give you 2 tiger prawns (see pic above). And I like it “dry” ie with chilli! The Prawn Soup will be served to you separately in a small bowl. Once, I asked them to remove the shells of the prawns before serving me. They told me “No problem” and promptly charged me S$2.00 for this “additional” service! I decided to peel my own prawn shell the next time AND used wet wipes to clean my fingers after that. Sigh.

Which brings me to the next interesting titbit. I read in the newspapers some time ago that the owner of this small eaterie (coffeeshop) earns (hold on to your heart, people) US$110,000 PER MONTH in sales!!! This is not a joke. It was published in the local newspapers!

Food rating: 4.9/5!!

Address:
Beach Road Prawn Mee Eating House
370 East Coast Road
Singapore 428981
Tel: +65 63457196

Opening Hours:
8am-4pm daily

Closed on Tuesdays

Very delicious Satay Bee Hoon that I’ve tasted. It’s not the best but… it’s good enough! This dish cost S$5.00 and has ingredients like Pork, Liver, Cockles, Vegetable (Kang Kong), Cuttlefish, Tao Pok (Fried/Dry Bean Curd) and topped with delicious Satay (Spicy Peanut Sauce) Gravy.

If you want to try the best Satay Bee Hoon, go to the stall at East Coast Lagoon Food Village! And be prepared to queue for it!

Food Rating: 3.5/5

Where To Find It?
Hock Leng Satay Bee Hoon
51 Old Airport Road #01-141
Old Airport Road Food Centre
Singapore 390051

** Note: It’s a few stalls away from the famous Lao Fu Zi Char Kway Teow #01-12

Other places where you can find very good Satay Bee Hoon are:

Meng Kee Satay Bee Hoon
1220 East Coast Parkway #01-17
East Coast Lagoon Food Village
Singapore 468960

Food Rating: 4.5/5

Ang Mo Kio Centre Satay Bee Hoon (near AMK Hub)
Blk 724 Ang Mo Kio Avenue 6 #01-12
Ang Mo Kio Food Centre
Singapore 560724

Food Rating: 4/5

** This is the food center near Ang Mo Kio Hub

Recipe: Sliced Fish Noodles Soup With XO

I must admit that I am not a good cook. To be honest, I can’t cook. At all. I was kicked out of Domestic Science Class (read: Cooking Class) in school when the cake I was baking caught on fire. It really wasn’t my fault! Really.

Many years later, I wanted to impress a guy I was dating with my (non-existent) cooking skills. Tried to whip up some fancy Fried Noodles (like those that I’ve tasted in some rad Chinese restaurants, ya know?). Heated up the wok for about 3 minutes, then poured in some cooking oil onto the wok. BUT - lo and behold, and to cut a long story short, my kitchen caught on fire! Sigh. Thank God for circuit breakers and prayers! Yup, I almost burned down my whole place. Now, THAT was a very traumatic experience.

Hence, I gave up cooking… and decided to eat out! Oh, what pure joy! Being able to taste the best food in Singapore! So, here’s a recipe of one of my favorite all-time Singaporean dishes. If you can cook a mean dish of Fried Fish Noodles with XO, pleeeeaaaaasssse DO invite me over for a meal! ;-D When it comes to good food and great wine, I am NOT shy! ;-)

Ingredients

Sliced fish
意面 (Fried Noodles), enough for 1
Dried Cuttle Fish
1/3 Cup Evaporated Milk
Green Vegetables (Chai Sim, or ANY Green Vegetables e.g. Lettuce)
1 Cup of Water
A Few Slices of Ginger
Oil, for Greasing
1 tbsp of XO Wine (To Be Added Last)
Salt (Seasoning A)
Sugar (Seasoning A)
Sesame Oil (Seasoning A)
1 tsp Light Soy Sauce (Seasoning B)
1/2 tsp of White Pepper (Seasoning B)
1/2 tsp of Sugar (Seasoning B)
1 tsp Salt (Seasoning B)
1 tbsp Shaoxing Jiu 邵兴酒 aka Chinese Cooking Wine (Seasoning B)

How to make XO Sliced Fish Noodle Soup

Marinate sliced fish with seasoning B for at least 30 minutes (You can marinate it for one whole night to get the full flavour);
Heat oil in wok.
Fry ginger and fish until 50% cooked.
Pour in water and bring to boil.
Add in noodles, evaporated milk, cuttle fish and seasoning A.
Cook for 3 minutes or until the noodle gets soft.
Add in green vegetables and,
Cook for 30 seconds.
Remove from heat.
Add in 1 tbsp of XO wine and stir well before serving. (This is optional)

Note: The evaporated milk is used to get rid of the fishy smell, and make it tastier.

Introducing some of the BEST dishes you can try here in Singapore!

First up: Fried Fish Noodles Soup (added with a dash of either XO Cognac or Rice Wine). Needless to add, I’d choose the Cognac XO version any day! Expect to pay about S$10.00 (US$8.00) for this dish.

The places where I’ve tasted the best thus far:

(1) Hong Kong Hock Kee Seafood Restaurant outlets in Singapore.

(2) A food center in Telok Kurau/Joo Chiat Place.

I’ll list down more places soon!