Sunday, August 26, 2018

Hong Heng Fried Sotong Prawn Mee : just so so

Manfred Lim, 40s, is the 3rd generation hawker that took over the stall from his mother when he was 27 years old. His mother took over the stall from a relative. This decades-old stall has been award Michelin Bib Gourmand in 2016, 2017 and 2018. Though they are not amongst the famous Fried Hokkien Mee around, they have been around for a long time. 

I was there on a Saturday, there were just a few people in the queue. The queue was much longer at Tiong Bahru Hainanese Chicken Rice which is also awarded the Michelin Bib Gourmand. There are the $3, $4 and also $5 portions available and I decided to go with the $4. The assistant was taking the order the moment when I joined the queue. It is cooked in batches and added in the pre-cooked ingredients later. 


Their version is wetter and not quite flavorful, no hint of wok flavor and not serving with fried lard. It was served with ingredients like prawns, squid, slices of pork belly and fish cake with sambal chilli by the side. My dining companion said, "It is not bad but not exceptionally impressive and I do not think they deserved the Michelin Bib Gourmand. How good can a Fried Hokkien Mee be if without wok flavor and fried lard?"

I think the inspectors from Michelin did not get to taste enough of the other Fried Hokkien Mee for a comparison. Tiong Bahru Yi Sheng Fried Hokkien Mee at ABC Brickworks Food Centre that has been awarded the Michelin Bib Gourmand this year is definitely more deserving. What do these foreign inspectors actually know about our hawker food? 


HONG HENG FRIED SOTONG PRAWN MEE
30 Seng Poh Road #02-01 Tiong Bahru Food Centre SINGAPORE 168898
Operating Hours: 11.00 am to 8.00 pm (Closed on Mondays)

4 comments:

  1. Good HKM doesn't exists anymore. Its distinctive aroma is lost forever. I guess they took out lard during the frying process, that's why.

    Even the Old Airport Nan Xing has lost its touch. The Simon Road stall in Hougang still has a bit of the aroma but the young fella is always rushing, HKM takes time to build up the flavor.

    Ah Hock at Chomp Chomp is still old school but he seems to have lost touch also.

    This dish is pretty extinct here already, the existing ones are lousy clones.

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  2. Forgot to mention, the first and last time I patronize this stall, I took two mouths and return the plate to the return station. The aunty look at me, shake her head and told her colleague, that I finished already. How to eat? so terrible tasting.

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  3. You were right to say that good Fried Hokkien Mee is no longer in existence.

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  4. I think the best I've tasted were during those days when they fry it from push carts outside Chinese temples during festivities.

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