Leong Yeow : the famous Waterloo Street Hainanse Chicken Rice

This chicken rice that has been around for more than 4 decades might not be listed in the Bib Gourmand and it might not be the best chicken rice but it is a personal favorite. It has been handed down from the mother to the son. And, I have been eating there for more than a decade. I was there often for lunch when I worked temporarily near there. Though I do not get to eat it often these days, I will still make an effort to drop by whenever I am in the vicinity.

I was excited when there was no queue at 11.40 pm on a weekday as the queue is usually long during lunch or even after lunch. The queue started to form when I finished and about to leave. The mother, who is likely to be in her 80s, was there. She took my order, I wanted the mixture of poached and roasted chicken with rice. She asked, "For 1 person?" I nodded my head. She said, "That will be $6." 

The poached and the roasted chicken are equally good though I prefer the latter a little more. The rice is grainy with a light fragrance of chicken stock and not too greasy. The chilli is spicy, not quite diluted with a slight garlicky taste. The portion is good and not "slightly insufficient for its price" as described in a certain blog.

This is, in my humble opinion, better than the other chicken rice that is listed in the Bib Gourmand. It is my comfort food. This is one of the affordable choices if you happen to be near City Hall MRT or Dhoby Ghaut MRT. 

LEONG YEOW 

FAMOUS WATERLOO ST HAINANESE CHICKEN RICE

Block 261 Waterloo Street SINGAPORE 180261

Operating Hours: 11.30 am to 8.30 pm 

My Encounter with THE FAT ELVIS, the Burger.

I was there before attending a movie event nearby on a Wednesday evening. Though my favourite Chicken Rice is located in the same coffee shop but my purpose is for that humble looking stall that supposedly served one of the yummiest burgers in town. I was there for a few times but no luck since their relocation in August 2013 from Bestway Building near Shenton Way to this coffee shop at Waterloo Street.

It must be my lucky day on that day. I could not quite describe the overwhelming excitement then. It was the first time when i chanced upon them when the shutter of the stall is not down. No one was there at that moment. I spent a bit of time to study their menu board and decided what to eat. I waited for a few moments then i spotted a tall chap waving his hand while walking towards us.

That tall chap is the owner cum chef of this stall named Keith. He greeted us then to take down our orders. We decided to go with THE FAT ELVIS ($11) and BACON CHEESE BURGER ($9.50). We decided to upgrade the fries for one of the sets to Truffle Fries for a difference of $2 paid. We were informed that only 2 slices of pork bacon were left for the day. He offered to use the Turkey Bacon for one of the burgers and took out $1 from the price. We were asked for the expected done-ness for the patties of both burgers. We decided to have it at medium and medium-well respectively.

That man was working all alone. I offered to make the payment first but was told to do it later. I was not quite sure whether self-service is expected so we decided to sit at the table right in front of the stall.

The waiting time was about 15 minutes or so. He approached our table with THE FAT ELVIS ($11) first. It is a tall burger nicely stacked with all the ingredients in between the buns held together by a satay stick. I was a little skeptical at first when i read the description of the burger stated on the menu.

This is their best selling burger and listed as one of the 5 fave artisanal burgers by Makansutra. It is actually a beef burger loaded with Peanut Butter, Crispy Bacon and the least expected Tempura Banana.

I honestly do not know what to expect from the combination of Peanut Butter with Tempura Banana. The taste of both is actually 2 extremes. I was skeptical. I quickly picked up my camera and shooting it. When seeing me doing so, Keith approached our table with a spray bottle consisting the truffle oil to spray a few times on the fries as he said the taste might not be too intense if the fries were left for a little too long. Such effort is commendable. I could feel his passion in presenting the best possible taste to his customers.

I continued to shoot another few pictures before deciding to take a bite of the fries. I could distinctly taste the flavor derived from the truffle oil. It still tasted good even after it turned soggy. The portion of the fries served was definitely generous.

I was eager to have my first mouthful with great anticipation. I decided to have it cut into halves to share it with my dinner partner. I tasted the peanut butter coated crispy bacon first. I totally never quite expect the sweet taste of the creamy peanut butter to complement the crispiness and the taste of bacon so completely. The harmonious combination further amazed me when i took a bite of it with slices of tempura banana. It just went well. The sweetness of the banana blended in perfectly. The patty was done nicely at medium as requested. It was still beautifully pink right within. It was grilled delightfully to give it the desired flavor and the texture. The freshly baked brioche buns tasted impressively soft with an amazing fluffiness.

The overall taste was quite uniquely unforgettable.

The BACON CHEESE BURGER is actually the upgraded version from their basic burger. The nicely grilled 120 grams all beef patty though requested to be done at Medium-well but it still has a pretty pinkishness in it. It was not overly done but still retained the expected tenderness and juiciness. A piece of melted cheese was laid on it before topped with strips of crispy bacon in between the freshly baked brioche buns.

The overall taste made this a worthy burger under $10. It definitely tasted good though not quite outstanding.

While eating, Keith came over to chat. He happened to visit Hong Kong in last December too so we started sharing our food experiences and some of those eateries worth visiting there.

I attempted to compare his burgers to another burger outlet located in a coffee shop at Bukit Merah. And, we actually enjoyed his burgers much more at a lower price range.

We were told to come back to try the BBQ PORK next round as it is one of the creations nicely crafted to give it the perfect taste. And, the next burger that i want to try is THE MUSHROOM burger.

We requested Keith to post for a picture and he spontaneously obliged. So, here is the handsome and passionate Owner cum Chef of meat packing district that served one of the better burgers in town.

UPDATE: It's rather sad to know that decision has been made to close Meat Packing District as announced by Keith on their facebook on 27 January 2014. 

MEAT PACKING DISTRICT

Block 261 Waterloo Steet Food Summons Coffee Shop SINGAPORE 180261.

Not quite the same.

This famous indian rojak is located right beside my favourite chicken rice in a coffee shop along Waterloo Street within walking distance from Bras Basah MRT Station. 

They have been in this coffee shop for more than a decade long. I used to come by regularly when i worked in bugis area a long time ago. Their relative has got another stall at Albert Street Food Centre selling indian rojak too. This other stall is famous for their prawn fritter too.

That day, i was in the area looking for lunch and decided to come by for the indian rojak. There was a few people waiting to order right in front of the stall. I waited for 10 minutes to order. I selected the usual favourite items like prawn fritters, the potato and other fried items. 

Perhaps my expectation was set a little higher as the taste this time seemed a little disappointing. It did not taste as nice as i used to remember. The items selected were re-fried before served. The items still got its sight crispiness but most items were pretty oily including my used to be favourite prawn fritters. It was served with slices of cucumber, green chilli and onion. I paid a total of $5.60 for it.

The sauce was served warm. It got a slight sweetness with a little sourness and zero level of spiciness. It complemented and enhanced the flavor of the fried items rather well.

It was a pleasant lunch but i am not likely to be back soon. 

The standard is not quite the same any longer. 

SABEENA'S INDIAN CUISINE

261 Waterloo Street

#01-28 Waterloo Centre

SINGAPORE 180261.

My all-time favourite chicken rice.

When everyone is talking about Tian Tian Chicken Rice, there is a really good chicken rice tucked away in a coffee shop along Waterloo Street. I started eating their chicken rice more than a decade ago and they are still my favourite chicken rice through the years. I have eaten from different stalls including those famous ones but this is still the best to me.

How is a good hainanese chicken rice to be judged?

The chicken is expected to be succulent and juicy. The rice is expected to be aromatic with fragrance, it has to be grainy and not overly greasy. The chilli is expected to have a certain level of spiciness with a well-balanced garlic and lime taste.

This is one of the stalls that met the above mentioned factors with a consistent standard.

My usual preference is the roasted chicken. Half of the roasted chicken is $13. I have only tasted the roasted chicken so i could not say much about their white chicken. Their roasted chicken is probably the best that i have eaten so far.

The chicken used is a plump and meaty one. The well seasoned chicken is always fried well to give its skin a slight crisp and awesome flavor. The texture of meat is desirably succulent, juicy and flavorsome.

Their rice is one of the best if it is not the best. The texture is grainy with nice chicken broth flavor and not overly oily. It still tasted really good even if is left for hours. Their chilli is the better one that i ever tasted too.  It has got a good level of spiciness that derived from the chilli padi and further enhanced by the right amount of garlic and lime added.

To me, the chilli is definitely the most important factor to determine the worthiness of a particular hainanese chicken rice.

This stall is manned by the elderly auntie and her sons. The auntie is mostly the one chopping up the chickens. The chicken is drizzled with their special soya sauce before served. The soya sauce enhanced the taste of chicken further with just the right level of saltiness. The taste is not overpowering even when the chicken is left to have it later.

Their service is always prompt and systematic even during the peak period.

The chicken rice has been reported and recommended by the Media, too.

There is always a queue even during the off-peak hours.

It has always been a joy to enjoy their chicken rice, again and again. 

LEONG YEOW FAMOUS WATERLOO ST CHICKEN RICE

261 Waterloo Street 

#01-29 Waterloo Centre

SINGAPORE 180261.

Leong Yeow Famous Waterloo Street Chicken Rice.

It probably the best chicken rice in town. It has always been my prefer choice if i am craving for a good fix of chicken rice in this area. This has been a part of my memories, the familiar taste brought upon remembrances of the good old times.

I used to be at this coffee shop a few times per week when i worked in this area. And, there was a coffee boy that always served the canned Sasi to my table every time i was there.

Did you see someone familiar in the picture? If you are a supporter of Worker Party then you would have the answer.

LEONG YEOW FAMOUS WATERLOO STREET CHICKEN RICE

261 Waterloo Street #01-29 Waterloo Centre SINGAPORE 180261

Operating Hours: 10:30 am to 20: 30 pm (daily)