Cai Ji Wanton Mee : old-school delight

I was there for lunch on a weekday. This coffee shop was not as crowded as it is nestled in a neighborhood estate and most of the diners are the residents staying in the vicinity. A friend recommended this particular Wanton Mee that has been around for more than 30 years. The current owner took over when the original owner wanted to retire, using the same recipes to keep it going since then. 

Their signature Wanton Mee ($3) is the most popular item so I ordered it. There was no more mee pok so I went with the mee kia. I decided to add extra wanton. The Uncle asked, "The fried or the soup one?" I replied, "Both. I came all the way from Ang Mo Kio so have to make this trip worth it." He replied, "I also stay in Ang Mo Kio, next to AMK Hub." I asked, "Why did you not open a stall in Ang Mo Kio?" He said, "I am only a worker." He then asked, "Do you eat chicken feet?" I nodded. He placed a piece on the plate and said, "Give you eat". 

Everything was placed neatly on the tray and I bought it to the table. The next moment, I saw the Uncle walking quickly towards us. He said, "Sorry. I left out the char siew." He picked up the plate then walked away and came back in a bit. This time, the noodles were topped with slices of char siew, leafy greens. 

My dining companion took the first mouthful after tossed it well and said, "Not bad, quite nice actually." The noodles were slightly thicker and springier in the concoction of only chilli and ketchup that gave it a rather clean old school taste.

My dining companion that usually like the fried wanton, said, "I do not find the fried wanton to be nice. The skin was slightly too hard with very little filling." He added, "In fact, I find the soup ones to be nicer." He took a bite and shown it to me, said, "See! It has more of those well-seasoned filling. I could actually taste the white pepper and sesame oil in it." He also said, "The soup is light but flavorful."

Those wantons though smaller but quite plump. He continued to say, "Those slices of char siew are dry and quite tasteless." He picked up a piece of the fried lard and said, "This is tasty. I left the bigger piece there for you." 

Such a simple lunch can be quite enjoyable.

CAI JI WANTON MEE

Block 112 Bishan Street 12 KF78 SINGAPORE

Operating Hours: 6.30 am to 2.30 pm (Closed on Thursdays)

112 Economic Bee Hoon : another breakfast choice

I walked over to a coffee shop at Block 112 after having breakfast at Block 120 Bishan Street 12. I was told by a friend to try the Fried Horfun from this stall that serves economic bee hoon. I was there at about 11 am but there was no sight of the Fried Horfun so I asked, "Do you have the 炒河粉?" The friendly stall assistant replied, "Finished already. We usually have that at this time but it sold out early today." I said, "I was told that the 炒河粉 is special and nice, particularly so when it was freshly out of the wok." She smiled and replied, "That is quite popular amongst our customers as there seem to be no other stall is serving it." 

I decided to go with the Fried Bee Hoon, there were the white and the dark version for selection and I went with the dark. I added a piece of Fried Chicken Wing and a Fried Egg for $3.20. The lady asked, "Do you want chili?" She also asked, "Do you want to have some curry gravy over it?" I nodded.

The texture of the Fried Bee Hoon was a little softer as compared to the one in the other coffee shop at Block 120. It was probably so after soaked in the curry gravy. Though the Fried Chicken Wing was not particularly impressive, it was tastier than the one that I had earlier. The curry gravy was quite thick and aromatic, it actually went really well with the Fried Bee Hoon. I also prefer the chilli here, it was slightly sweeter with bits of ikan belis in it, it tasted like the chili for Nasi Lemak. 

I was told by the same friend that I should also try the Wanton Mee from the same coffee shop. I should make a trip there soon to do so. 

112 ECONOMIC BEE HOON

Block 112 Bishan Street 12 SINGAPORE 570112

Bishan 120 Economic Bee Hoon : a breakfast choice

A friend told me about this stall, this was the only stall that opened in the quiet coffee shop when I went for an early lunch. I decided to have Fried Bee Hoon with Fried Chicken Wing and Ngor Hiang. I requested to have extra chilli to go along. The Fried Bee Hoon was nicely executed, flavorful and not too greasy, simple yet tasty. Fried bee hoon has always been a beloved local choice for breakfast. This humble noodle dish that consists of stir-fried vermicelli, commonly known as bee hoon as its main ingredient, is seemingly simple, it still requires the right cooking technique to cook it well. The Ngor Hiang was forgettable though and the Fried Chicken Wing failed to impress.

I left the plate on the table and walked over to the drink counter to order an Iced Coffee.  There was an Uncle stood beside the table when I returned. He said, in English, "There was a bird trying to eat your bee hoon and I came over to chase it away." I smiled and said, "Thank you." He then walked away and joined his friends at a table nearly. 

BISHAN 120 ECONOMIC BEE HOON

Block 120 Bishan Street 12 SINGAPORE 570120

食香阁 Shi Xiang Ge : La Mian & Shaved Noodle

Mr Liu Yi Zhong that started this stall used to be working with Crystal Jade as La Mian Director. He has a total of 28 years of experiences in making la mian, including the 10 years in China before moving to Singapore in 2000. This stall is located in a coffee shop above Bishan Bus Interchange. It is specialized in Shanxi cuisine, serving dishes like Beef La Mian ($5), Minced Meat La Mian ($5), Hot & Spicy Intestine Shaved Noodle ($5), Poached Szechuan Dumpling in Spicy Sauce ($5), Pork & Vegetable Dumplings ($5), Meat Bun ($3.50) etc. The noodles and dumplings are all handmade at the stall.

There was a long queue when we were there for lunch on a Sunday. We ordered the Beef Shaved Noodle, Minced Meat La Mian and also the Pork & Vegetable Dumplings.  My dining companion has the Beef Shaved Noodle. He took a sip of the soup followed by a mouthful of the noodles and said, "好吃". He continued to say, "The soup was lightly flavored and the small chunks of beef are quite tender. I wish there are more though. It is quite a big bowl and definitely value for money."

The shaved noodle is known as 刀削面 in Chinese, it means knife-sliced noodles. There was a man behind the stall, holding a big piece of dough with his left hand, supporting using its shoulder and using his right hand to hold a knife and repeatedly shaving pieces of noodles out of that dough. The texture of noodles was just right, not lumpy nor clumpy and not too thick. It is served with a mixture of nicely cooked meat and tendons, garnished with coriander. The soup base is made using beef bones and meat. 

The Minced Meat La Mian is known as 杂酱拉面 in Chinese on their signboard, the La Mian is referred to hand-pulled noodles. This is another popular dish that most of their customers are ordering. It is served with a handful of minced meat with pieces of beancurd then garnished with shredded cucumber. What left an impression is not the taste but the texture of the noodles, it was springy and bouncy and is amongst the best that I have eaten. 

We agreed that the Pork & Vegetable Dumplings were just average. The poached dumplings tasted a little bland and uninteresting, its filling was mainly minced meat with a bit of vegetable. The Szechuan Dumpling in Spicy Sauce might be a better option and it seems to a much more popular choice as most customers order that. 

I would definitely come back for their Szechuan Dumpling in Spicy Sauce and I might even try the Hot & Spicy Intestine Shaved Noodle if I am feeling adventurous. 

食香阁 SHI XIANG GE

Block 514 Bishan Street 13 Bishan Bus Interchange Level 2 SINGAPORE 570514

Operating Hours: 11.00 am to 9.00 pm (Closed on Tuesdays)

Serangoon Nasi Padang : a Chinese Nasi Padang stall

Mr and Mrs Tan, the owners, have been selling nasi padang since 1983 when they started their first stall in Serangoon and that very much explained why it is called "Serangoon Nasi Padang" when they are actually located in Bishan. Mr Tan used to help out in those Malay weddings and that is how he learned to cook nasi padang. This is one of those stalls manned by Chinese that is not quite common 

All the dishes are prepared using the freshest ingredients and that including the freshly squeezed coconut cream. Most than 30 dishes are prepared each day and some of the popular choices are curry fish, fried chicken, grilled sotong, grilled fish and so on. These dishes are prepared in small batches to serve warm and also to ensure its freshness. The queue was long when we were there for lunch on a Sunday. While queuing, we were eyeing the last few pieces of the egg omelette on the display shelf but did not get to order as the last piece was taken by the customer in front of us. 

We ordered 2 plates with different dishes. We were asked whether we want it with gravy and chilli. The first plate consists of Ayam Goreng, Sambal Goreng, and Sambal Kangkong. Ayam Goreng, a Malay-style fried chicken dish, is the must-order right here. The best part would have to be the chicken leg. It was well-marinated and fried to perfection to achieve the desired crispiness on the outside but still juicy within. This is one of the most sought-after dishes here as almost every of the customer ordered it. The Sambal Goreng was nice too, it comprises of french bean, fried beancurd and tempe, stir-fried with Sambal Chilli, the spiciness was rather mild. The Sambal Kangkong was not too bad as well.

The second plate consists of Curry Fish, Curry Vegetable, and Sambal Ladyfinger, a request was made for the tail part of the fish. The Curry Fish was nicely cooked and it retained a firm texture with a robust savory flavor, the spiciness of the curry was rather mild. The Curry Vegetable and Sambal Ladyfinger have a very homely taste.

We paid $11.20 for both plates. The best timing to be there would be before noon as most dishes would still available at that time and also to avoid the long queue. 

SERANGOON NASI PADANG
Block 150A Bishan Street 11 SINGAPORE 570150
Operating Hours: 10.00 am to 3.00 pm (Closed on Tuesdays)

Dynasty Ipoh Seafood : Fried Porridge and other interesting dishes

Dynasty Ipoh Seafood, formerly known as Royal J's Premium Taste is famous for their signature fried porridge, started by chef John Ng, the owner. It used to be a hawker stall at Macpherson before moving to a coffee shop at Foch Road in Jalan Besar. He then opened a shop in Bishan but closed it down after a little while then moved to this stall at the coffee shop just next to the shop. Apparently, the stall at Foch Road is still around there but under the charge of his cousin who is also from Ipoh but somehow both stalls are not related.

We were there during their soft launch for dinner. Fried Porridge is still one of their signature items on the menu together with some interesting Cze Cha dishes like Cheesy Prawn, Baby Lamb Chop and Crab Tang Hoon. We decided to go with Fried Porridge ($6), Penang -style Fried Hor Fun ($4) and also Signature Fried Garden Chicken ($12). 

The Fried Porridge came first. It is a common dish in Penang but hardly seems in Singapore though, this might just the only place serving such a dish. The cooked porridge is stir-fried in a wok over a relatively high fire using a ladle to keep tossing it in a fast motion repeatedly and quickly. It is then served in a claypot to keep warm. 

I first tasted in May 2016 when they were still at Foch Road. I was very impressed then but not so much this time. It just seemed something is missing, it just did not taste as good as it used to be. I could taste the diced yam, dried cuttlefish, dried shrimps and crispy lard bits in it though not too much flavor from the dried shrimps this time, it was garnished with fried shallots and a handful of chopped chives to serve. 

Signature Fried Garden Chicken came next. It was a fried chicken dish served with strips of fried ginger. A ginger lover, just like my dining companion, would have loved it and he actually finished eating all of those fried ginger strips that I did not like. Those pieces of chicken were fried well though certain pieces were a bit over-fried, it was basically alright though not too impressive. 

The Penang-style Fried Hor Fun was an absolute disappointment. That was clearly the name stated on their menu but no part of this dish resembled the Penang-style fried kway teow that I have tasted, though they called it hor fun, it was the same thin rice noodles that are usually used for the fried kway teow. It tasted just like the lousy version of a normal fried kway teow with no wok flavor. I even left a feedback on their Facebook page, telling them how bad this dish was. 

I wonder how would they compete against Ong Yong Lee Seafood,  the popular Cze Cha stall just next door that is known for its affordable and tasty dishes? 

DYNASTY IPOH SEAFOOD

Block 151 Bishan Street 11 #01-195 SINGAPORE 570151

Operating Hours: 8.30 am to 2.00 pm / 5.00 pm to 10.00 pm (Daily)

Song Kee Fishball Noodle at Bishan

I received a comment on my post on Ong Yong Lee Seafood, it was mentioned that the Song Kee Fishball Noodle there is run by the Uncle of the other Song Kee Fishball Noodle at Tembling Road in Joo Chiat and they usually sold out at noon. I was there at about 12.30 pm on a Sunday and I was told that they have sold out. When I was about to walk off, the friendly Uncle said, "We left only meatballs. Do you want it?". I nodded. He asked, "$4 portion?" Again, I nodded. It was cooked by the younger guy. As it is self-service, I waited there for it to be ready. While waiting, I asked, "I was told that you are the Uncle of the other Song Kee at Joo Chiat?".  He nodded and said, "Sometimes, I was there to help out too."

I said, "There are many outlets of Song Kee but not all are as good. I did not particularly like that one at Serangoon." The Uncle replied, "We are not related. That one is from the same boss of the other Song Kee at Toa Payoh Lorong 5. They even announced on their Facebook page that they are not directly related to that particular outlet and also the new outlet at Thomson Plaza that is under the same boss.

Here, we are using the same recipe as the one at Joo Chiat. Everything is handmade right here."  I said, "I was a regular when they were still at Serangoon and I really love the fish dumplings. I did not go as often after they moved to Joo Chiat. But now, I can come here for fish dumplings instead." When I was taking pictures of the stall, the Auntie told me that their off day is on Friday. The younger guy said, "Then, it is better for you to come during weekends as we might not have it on weekdays and even if we do have it, it is usually run out before 10 am."

My dining companion tasted the meatball and he commented, "The taste is similar to the one from the other Song Kee at Joo Chiat." The meepok was cooked just right with the desired springiness and nicely coated with the tasty sambal chilli. Though simple but quite enjoyable. I will definitely come back for their fish dumplings soon. 

SONG KEE FISHBALL NOODLE

Block 151 Bishan Street 11 Ong Yong Lee Eating House SINGAPORE 570151

Operating Hours: 7.00 am to 1.00 pm (Closed on Fridays)

Ong Yong Lee Seafood : the hidden gem

We stumbled upon this Cze Cha stall when going to the other coffee shop for dinner. Almost all their tables were take up during dinner. This prompted us to return the next day to check it out. We were there slightly after 7 pm and again, most of the tables were occupied and left just a big table. We went to sit at that table but was told to move to a smaller table, right at the corner. The elderly Uncle pointed to that table and said, "I will get you another chair." 

He then attempted to take our orders. I decided to go with their signature Double Treasure Dry Hor Fun, Salted Egg Chicken and Prawn Paste Chicken. Uncle said, "All chicken dishes?" which I replied, "We prefer to eat chicken." Uncle then said, "Then you should try the 麦芽鸡 (Maltose Chicken). I said, "We will try next time." Uncle replied, "We have it just for today and it is not on the menu." He continued to say, "It is a small chicken, just nice for 2 to share."  We decided to go with his recommendation then.

We waited for about 45 minutes before the first dish was served. It was delivered by the same Uncle to our table. Uncle apologetically said, "The waiting time is usually long during weekends. You will have to come early or come late to avoid such waiting time."

The Salted Egg Chicken came first. My dining companion enjoyed it, he said, "This is very nice particularly those pieces of thinly sliced deep-fried taro." Those pieces of fried chicken were evenly coated with salted egg sauce with bits of the salted egg on it. 

Next, it came the 麦芽鸡, the same Uncle delivered it. He said, "This is my recommendation. Have a try to see whether you like it or not". Then, he asked, "Any more dishes?" I said, "We are still waiting for the Double Treasure Dry Hor Fun." 

The 麦芽鸡 is actually tasted like the usual roasted chicken. The skin was paper thin and rather crispy with a slight sweetness derived from the marinade that is using malt sugar as its main ingredient. Though plainish, it was quite tasty and kind of special, we enjoyed it.

Apparently, the Double Treasure Dry Hor Fun did not come. I went to the counter for payment and I said, "The Double Treasure Dry Hor Fun did not serve. Can I have it take away?" The same Uncle overheard it, he asked, "So, you did not get the hor fun? I am so sorry about it." He then asked, "How was the 麦芽鸡?" He said, "You can eat Prawn Paste Chicken anytime but not this."I said, "It was very nice, a bit like the roasted chicken." Uncle said, "It is actually better than the normal roasted chicken", which I agreed. The total bill came to $33, which is much cheaper than we expected. 

All in all, the standard, which is, well, very impressive and I am eager to return for their other dishes. 

ONG YONG LEE SEAFOOD

Block 151 Bishan Street 11 #01-207 Ong Yong Lee Eating House SINGAPORE 570151

Operating Hours: 5.00 pm to 11.00 pm (Daily)

Ding Ji Mushroom Minced Meat Noodle : Average, not Recommended

The hype of this particular Mushroom Minced Meat Noodle started when a particular blogger claimed that she has found a very good Bak Chor Mee with Fish Maw Soup and excellent noodles. Though taste is very much subjective but making such a claim after tasting it for just once can be quite irresponsible. There were many negative comments left at her post, a particular comment stated, 'Wake up people. Fei Xiong has 11 brands and 107 outlets islandwide. Ding Ji is one of its brands. Ding Ji alone has 39 outlets. Many of those outlets are manned by foreigners. Quality of food ranges from average to bad. It is pure soul-less food. Large F & B group wins a stall, bulk purchase to keep prices low, hire cheap foreigners to keep profits high, run 24-hours to maximise cost of rental, poor training and quality control and you get varying qualities of food and service. As a foodie, i will never recommend anything from Fei Xiong. Not even if i am paid to do so.'

Back to that blogger, she claimed 'the rich soup base is simmered overnight to get all the goodness from the pork bones. There is generous amounts of sliced pork, pork liver, dried sole fish (teepo), a spoonful of minced meat and egg served in the aromatic soup, with springy noodles tossed in chilli sauce. The fish maw they use are of better quality so you won't get that oily smell like those cheapo ones.'

Apparently, it did not taste like it when i was there on a Saturday.

There was just a few people lining up in front of the stall. There was 2 queues actually, one is for ordering and other is for collecting it. I decided to go with their set 5 which consists of a bowl of fish maw soup with noodles for $8.00. As i observed, the ingredients were already pre-cooked to cut short their cooking time, they just added in to the pot of soup and boiled it for a bit, then served. That, somewhat explained why the soup was not as flavorful. The fish maw soup consists of ingredients like a few pieces of fish maw, meatball, fishball, sliced meat and a teochew dumpling. The bowl of noodles was served with a handful of braised mushroom.

I started by comparing it to Seng Kee Mushroom Minced Pork Noodles at Serangoon Garden Food Centre as they do serve Fish Maw Soup with noodles at $9.00, which is slightly more expansive as the same set is $1 lesser at Ding Ji with more ingredients given.

The soup lacked depth of flavor, in fact, it was quite bland. I could taste a great amount of MSG added as i was left feeling thirsty later on. Every mouthful is not bursting with umami flavor like just how that blogger described it. They probably use a better grade of fish maw as it was more dense and no rancid taste i the soup. Pig liver was done well and the teochew dumpling was not too bad though i could not say the same about the meatball and fishball.

Do try if you happen to be in vicinity else not worth the effort to travel all the way there, and worst, not worth queuing at all. So, who does it better if i am going to compare? Without a doubt, I would definitely go back to Seng Kee, and paying that $1 extra to have a more satisfying option is just worth it.

DING JI MUSHROOM MINCED MEAT NOODLE

Block 284 Bishan Street 22 SINGAPORE 570284

Operating Hours: 24 Hours

Wasai-Ya Japanese Mixed Rice : Not quite Japanese and so so taste

Wasai-Ya, which means The House of Japanese Cuisine, is the first Japanese mixed rice concept in Singapore. They are located in the food court at Junction 8 in Bishan, just next to the Bishan MRT station. It mentioned on their Facebook page that 'we serve authentic Japanese cuisine the Singaporean way.' It also mentioned right there that their menu is created by Executive Chef Sahashi that has over 27 years of experience preparing traditional Japanese food. It has also indicated there that such a dining concept is by Dining Innovation Pte Ltd which also manages Sumire Yakitori & Izakaya and Shaburi. 

There is a poster which stated Set Menu and clearly listed out Set A at $3.90 (2 green dots), Set B at $4.90 (1 green dot and 1 red dot), Set C at $5.90 (3 green dots), Set D at $6.90 (1 red dot and 2 green dots) and Set E at $7.90 (2 red dots and 1 green dot). Each set menu is served with Miso Soup and rice. I did ask what is the difference between red dot and green dot? The server pointed to those dishes displayed and said, every dish has either a red dot or a green dot to indicate its value. I decided to go with Set E, which means i could choose 2 dishes that has a red dot and 1 dish with a green dot.

There is also a Curry Promotion for Pork Katsu & Vege Curry Don at $4.90, Beef Suki Cheese Curry Don at $6.90 and Crispy Chicken Katsu Curry Don at $5.90. 

The 2 red dot dishes that i have selected were fried cereal chicken and dory fish with spicy sweet sauce. As for the green dot dish, i went for chicken with egg and onion. I did not bother to remember those Japanese sounding names for these dishes. I was asked whether to have it with curry sauce. The overall presentation reminded me of the Hainanese curry rice. 

The dory fish with sweet sauce did not manage to impress. The texture of the fish was quite soft after soaked in the curry sauce for a bit and it did not have much taste of the spicy sweet sauce that it supposed to have. 

The chicken with egg and onion tasted equally ordinary, it was nicely cooked with a slight sweetness likely from the mirin. 

The fried cereal chicken tasted just like those that are commonly available at those economical mixed rice stalls, though still have a slight crispiness but the skin was a bit too dark and a little tough.

I am absolutely not convinced that this is Japanese style mixed rice as i did not taste much of the Japanese factor in it. I would rather go to a usual economical mixed rice stall that offers better dishes at a cheaper price. The menu may has been designed by some experienced chef but if it is not nicely executed, it would not deliver the supposedly authentic flavor after all. This is probably the case here.

WASAI-YA JAPANESE MIXED RICE

Junction 8 Food Junction Stall #MR4 SINGAPORE

Operating Hours: 10.00 am to 11.00 pm

The French Love

SAYBONS - THE FRENCH FACTORY

9 Bishan Place #02-27A Junction 8 SINGAPORE 579837.