Beef Up : Halal-certified Taiwanese food

This stall is started by Jeremy, Ronald, and Rohaizzatd using a recipe from Jeremy's mother who is a Taiwanese. This is probably the only halal-certified Taiwanese food in Singapore. It is located at Grains & Hops Food Court Bistro in the industrial area of Toa Payoh North. I ordered the Beef Noodle ($6.50/$8.00) and I was asked to choose between the 2 different types of handmade noodles, the thinner type and the broader type like those noodles at the ban mian stalls. I also ordered Chicken Cutlet Rice Set ($7.00) and Chicken Bits ($3.00). I was asked to choose between Black Pepper, Seaweed and Plum which I opted for Seaweed. I am not adventurous enough to try their Braised Chicken Lu Rou Fan, which is different from the traditional Lu Rou Fan that is using the pork belly.

I was not informed that I will have to look out for the number on LED panel and match it against the number on the receipt for collection. I actually waited at the counter for a bit before realizing it. I waited for close to 25 minutes before the Beef Noodle was ready. I was told to come back later for the Chicken Cutlet Bento and the Chicken Bits. I waited for another 10 minutes or so and it is still not ready. I chatted with another customer that has also waited quite long for her order. There was only 2 of them manning the stall, one was doing the cooking and the other was attending to the customers. 

Those beef chunks were a bit too lean thus it did not taste as soft as I liked it. My dining companion used to work in Taiwan and he felt that the Beef Noodle has a certain resemblance to what he used to eat there. He said, "It is quite nice. It would be even nicer if the beef is slightly fattier." 

The Chicken Cutlet Rice Set was quite disappointing. The chicken cutlet tasted quite bland. My dining companion, said, "I would expect them to sprinkle some chilli powder like how it usually served the chicken cutlet in Taiwan." He also said, "They are using the normal rice and not the more expensive pearl rice." It was served with pieces of carrot and cucumber together with preserved radish that did not have much taste. 

The Chicken Bits have already turned cold when it was served. It tasted equally bland as I could not taste the seaweed seasoning that it was supposed to have.

I do not think I liked it enough to come back again soon.

BEEF UP
Block 978 Toa Payoh North #02-01 SINGAPORE 319001
Operating Hours: 11.00 am to 8.00 pm (Closed on Sundays)

Hock Lam Street Popular Beef Kway Teow

This beef kway teow originated from Hock Lam Street and it has a long history. It has indicated on their signboard that they have been around since 1921. They are still using the century-old recipe to serve the Teochew style beef kway teow. It is still a well-known name after all these years though they were at a few different places before resurfacing at this food centre.

I asked, "So, this is the original beef kway teow from the Hock Lam Street?" The auntie replied, "This is the one." I added, "How about the other stall at Far East Square?" She said, "My niece used to run that outlet but it has closed down last year." She continued to say, "She learned from us too." I asked, "Who is that elderly Uncle that was pictured at this stall?" She replied, "He is my husband."

After considering those choices, I said, "I only want sliced beef and meatballs." She asked, "What type of noodles? $5 or the $6?" and she continued, "The $6 will come with more ingredients." There are chilli and chincalok available for self-service at the counter. I asked, "Should I add the chincalok to the chilli sauce?" She answered, "Most people do that but some prefer to have it separately."

It consists of a good portion of thick bee hoon with slices of beef and meatballs, garnished with chopped coriander and grounded peanuts. It did not have salted vegetables though. Those sliced beef were too thinly sliced and those meatballs were just average tasting. The gravy was not as thick and starchy. Somehow, I did not like it as much. 

HOCK LAM STREET POPULAR BEEF KWAY TEOW

51 Old Airport Road #01-22 Old Airport Road Food Centre SINGAPORE 390051

Operating Hours: 10.30 am to 8.30 pm (Closed on Mondays)

Gin Sen : authentic Thai noodles

Tanya, 36 started this stall with Candy, 36, both of them came from Thailand but moving to Singapore after marriage. Gin Sen" means "eating noodle" in the Thai language, a rather common word used amongst friends and families in Thailand which symbolizes a form of bonding over food. Tanya and Cindy decided that the best way to spread their love for Thai food is to share it with the locals by cooking it themselves.  Though their main focus is to preserve the original Thai recipes, the adjustment is made to further suit the taste buds of locals. Their signature dishes include Thai Bak Mee ($4/$5), Tom Yum Bak Mee ($4/$5), Thai Beef Soup Noodle ($5/$7), Thai Claypot Basil Beef Rice ($6.50), Thai Green Mango Salad ($5), Thai Fish Cakes ($5) and Thai Fried Mid Wings ($5).

Tanya was there when I went for lunch on a Saturday. She greeted me with a warm smile and started to introduce some of their signature dishes. I pointed to the Thai beef Soup Noodle on the menu board and said, "This." I was contemplating between ordering this and the Thai Bak Mee earlier. She pointed to the different types of the noodles on the menu board and asked, "What types of noodles do you want?" I asked, "What do you recommend?" And, she said, "Most of the customers would go for egg noodles or flat rice noodles but for a more authentic taste, I will recommend glass noodles." I also ordered Thai Fried Mid Wings at $5.00. I paid a total of $10.50 for both.

While waiting, I asked, "Where is your friend?" She smiled and replied, "We are working on shifts and she will be here later."

The Thai Beef Noodle was ready first. There are some condiments for self-service but I did not go for any. I waited for another few minutes for the Thai Fried Mid Wings to be ready. Tanya actually asked where do I sit and when she knew that I would not be sitting near the stall, she suggested that I might want to come back later to collect it.

Thai Beef Soup Noodle is quite similar to our local soup version of Beef Noodle but the broth was lighter flavor with a tinge of peppery taste. It came with beef balls and a few chunks of beef. The soup was served lukewarm, it would be better if it was served hot. 

Thai Fried Chicken Mid Wings consists of 8 pieces of battered chicken wings. Those middle wings were cut in half then coated with a light batter and deep-fried to the perfect texture, it was served along with sweet Thai chilli. 

GIN SEN

51 Old Airport Road #01-65 Old Airport Road Food Centre SINGAPORE 390051

Operating Hours: 11.00 am to 3.00 pm / 5.30 pm to 9.00 pm (Mon to Fri) /

10.00 am to 8.00 pm (Sat & Sun)

Blanco Court Beef Noodles : relocated to Greenwich V, Seletar

They have been around since 1979 though not at the same location, they started at Blanco Court then moved to North Bridge Road and then to Guilemard Road before moving to the food court in Greenwich V at Seletar Road. It is currently manned by Uncle Max, the original chef. Their previous shop at Guilemard was opened by 24 years old Mike Loh who gave up pursuing a career related to his Diploma in Sports Science to carry on the family business but what exactly happened later on that led to the sudden closure of that shop?

I was there on a weekday near lunch and I was their only customer at that time. I wanted to order a bowl of Beef Ball Soup ($5/$7/$9) and Mixed Beef Vermicelli (Dry) ($7/$9). That Uncle asked, "Do you want it with Bee Hoon?" I was a little confused and I thought he was referring to my order of Mixed Beef Vermicelli which I specially requested to have it with the sliced beef. I answered, "Yeah". I was served a bowl of Beef Ball Soup with bee hoon. I think Uncle did not get my second order so I repeated it. I waited for another 5 minutes for it to be ready. I asked whether am I supposed to add the cincalok to the chilli and I was told to do so.

The Beef Noodle is still good and satisfying. It is getting difficult to find good Hainanese style beef noodles these days. Their broth and thick gooey sauce are done using a 'secret" recipe that has been handed down and is using beef marrow as part of its main ingredients. Those sliced beef were cooked just right. It was garnished with a handful of grounded peanuts with salted vegetable and a piece of calamansi. To start, squeeze the calamansi then mixed it well with other ingredients and a better than average bowl of beef noodle awaits. 

I went for the Beef Ball Soup next. There were a few slices of beef and a handful of salted vegetable added to it, too. The soup was a little too light with a slight beefy taste. I was not quite impressed with those beef balls as I thought it could be better. 

BLANCO COURT BEEF NOODLES

1 Seletar Road Greenwich V SINGAPORE 807011

Operating Hours: 10.00 am to 10.00 pm (Daily)

Cuppage Beef Noodle : so forgettable

I was there near lunch, the food court was unexpectedly quiet and most of the stalls there has no queue. After walking around, I decided to go with the beef noodle. I only wanted sliced meat with beef balls and it costs $6.50. Though slightly pricier, but this is well-expected when dining in an air-conditioned food court particularly in the central part of Singapore. The portion was quite substantial though just that did not expect those slices of beef were really small and thin that I could hardly taste it. The braising sauce was gooey, rather thick and quite tasty, the bowl of soup that served along was quite flavorful, too. The beef balls in the soup tasted like those of the machine-made and were not too memorable, it was served with salted vegetables. 

I was recently at Bull Market Noodle Bar in Lucky Plaza, they serve the same set with a drink for the same price and it came with bigger pieces of beef, which is more value for money.

Apparently, I am not even sure this is one of the original beef noodle stalls that used to be from Cuppage Centre. It claimed that they have been around for 15 years as indicated on a poster displayed at their stall. There are 2 of the other stalls that were from there too, one of them is Hai Nan Xing Zhou Beef Noodle at Kim Keat Palm Food Centre at Toa Payoh Lorong 7 and the other is Hong Kee Beef Noodle that is at Amoy Street Food Centre, both are of equally good standard. How many Beef Noodle stalls were there at Cuppage Centre?

Toa Payoh Hwa Heng Beef Noodles is another noteworthy beef noodle at Bendemeer Food Centre, it usually has a queue and the waiting time is at least 15 minutes or even longer, but it is worth queuing. 

CUPPAGE BEEF NOODLE

313 Orchard Road #05-01 Food Republic 313@Somerset SINGAPORE 238895

Operating Hours: 10.00 am to 10.00 pm (Daily)

Bull Market Noodle Bar : Traditional Beef Noodle at Lucky Plaza

I was their only customer at 11.30 am. The owner was there with his wife and their sons, it is not difficult to tell that he is a family-oriented man. I was telling him that I got to know about his shop on Facebook. I said, "It seems not too many know about your shop." He said, "Only people like you will get to know about." It is, in fact, a little unusual to find such a shop amidst of the others in Lucky Plaza. And, I asked, "Why did you choose to set up a shop in Lucky Plaza?" He said, "The rental here is the cheapest in the whole of Orchard Road."

As it mentioned on their website that their recipe is created by a veteran chef Daniel Tan and it has been handed down from generation to generation since the 1970s, it is in the good hands of the third generation now.

I decided to go with the Bull Market value meal. I did not know the actual name of this value meal at that time. I was telling the friendly owner that I want the set that is with sliced beef and beef balls. I was asked to take a seat.

There are 3 different value meals for selection: Triple Bull ($8.50) with stewed beef shanks, beef tripes and beef tendons, Bull Market ($9.50) with Beef Steak, Bulletto ($8.50) with beef balls and The Big Bull ($16.00) with stewed beef, beef tripes, beef tendons, beef steak and beef brisket. There is a current promotion and these value meals are served at a reduced prices, Triple Bull at $6.50, Bull Market at $7.50, Bulletto at $6.50 and The Big Bull at $12.50. Each value meal is served along with a bowl of soup that consists of 3 pieces of beef balls with a choice of drink from the dispenser.

It consists of a good portion of thick bee hoon served in groovy braised sauce with a few slices of lightly blanched beef that were slightly overcooked thus its texture was a little too chewy for my liking. Those sliced beef are referred to as 'beef steak' in the description on their menu, though slightly too thin but it was quite big pieces. Those beef balls which are likely to be factory made did not taste too memorable but the soup has a distinct beefy flavour.

When I was done eating, Enoch, 4, the oldest of his boys approached me and asked, "Have you finished?" I nodded. He then started to clear the bowls and brought them to the counter. Before I left, I asked, "Your beef balls are handmade or factory made?" And, he replied, "The volume is too big so it is not possible to handmade." Then I said, "Your price is comparable to the Cuppage Beef Noodle but they serve it with very small pieces of beef that I could hardly taste it, unlike those that are served in your beef noodle." Then, I said, "The meat was slightly tough though." He nodded then said, "Do come back more often." He was preparing the orders for delivery at that time. 

BULL MARKET NOODLE BAR

304 Orchard Road #02-54 Lucky Plaza SINGAPORE 268863

Operating Hours: 10.00 am to 8.00 pm (Daily)

J & J Special Beef Noodle

Check out my article on MAKANSUTRA for Wagyu Beef Rice Bowl, Special Beef Noodle and Beef Brisket Noodle at Old Airport Road Food Centre.

J & J SPECIAL BEEF NOODLE

Block 51 Old Airport Road Food Centre #01-162 Singapore 390051.

Operating Hours: 10.30 am to 9.00 pm (Closed on Mondays)

Hai Nan Xing Zhou Beef Noodles

This is one of the famous stalls in this food centre, they used to be at Cuppage Hawker Centre but moved here for years now. There is always a constant queue even during the off-peak hours and many of these customers are their regular supporters. I tasted years ago, it was quite good then though not amongst the best in my list. I joined in the queue and waited for about 15 minutes this time for my regular order which is Sliced Beef with Beef Balls for $5. 

The texture of sliced beef was quite disappointing, it was overcooked thus it ended up to be quite tough.  Those beef balls tasted just decent. The thick starchy sauce was good though with a nice beefy taste. It was garnished with bits of salted vegetable and chopped spring onions to serve. 

Overall, it was good though not quite worth the time to queue as it was moving rather slowly.

HAI NAN XING ZHOU BEEF NOODLES

Block 22 Toa Payoh Lorong 7 #01-06 Kim Keat Palm Food Centre SINGAPORE 310051

Operating Hours: 8 am to 7 pm (Closed on Monday)

LeNu Taiwan Beef Noodle Bar 樂牛 by Paradise Group

I have always been looking forward to having an authentic bowl of Taiwanese style Beef Noodle as good as those i used to eat in Taiwan. 

I have tried many and disappointed as many times too. I was lucky to be selected amongst the food tasters from the facebook of Paradise Group Holdings to be invited for a food tasting session. After submitted the personal particulars, we were given the flexibility to drop by any time within a given period. I was there during lunch though there were quite a few tables occupied but it was not as crowded as expected. 

A particular waiting staff was rather friendly. She explained on what to order though she did not tell us that we were required to order it at the counter. That gotten us to wait for quite a while before i decided to walk to the counter and check it out. I presented my NRIC for them to do a quick verification then followed by presenting the already filled up order chit. 

I was not told that i have to collect the side dishes from the station so i waited again, i did not get it even after the 2 bowls of beef noodles were served. I got to walk to the counter and asked again then picked it up from the station just right next to it.

Our choices of side dishes were Century Egg served with Chilled Tofu and Preserved Cucumber. Both tasted quite good.

We selected Braised Fresh Beef Noodle ($8.90) and Braised Beef Brisket Noodle ($10.90). There are a total of 3 types of noodles: Thin Noodles, Broad Noodles and Rice Noodles for selection. We opted the broad noodles for both spicy and non-spicy version. The spicy version did not taste as spicy as expected, it might have adjusted to better suit the taste bud of locals as its spiciness is actually quite mild. 

We were asked to fill up a set of questionnaire at the end of the session.

It was generally a good experience as we enjoyed the authentic tasting Taiwanese beef noodle. A special thanks to Paradise Group Holdings for the invitation.

LeNu Taiwan Beef Noodle Bar 樂牛
1 Harbourfront Walk #02-91/92/93 Vivo City SINGAPORE 098585

Mr Wong Seremban Beef Noodles at Marine Parade Food Centre

I was told this is a MUST TRY Beef Noodle if i happen to be in this food cetnre. I was there just before lunch so no queue is spotted. I wanted the smallest portion of beef noodle for just $3.50. The lady manning the stall was all by herself to take order, to cook then served it, and collected the payment. It happened so quick. 

Never really a fan of Beef Noodle and so i did not have much expectation.

The taste was generally alright. The thick noodle was cooked to the right texture then served with the thick braised sauce. It then topped with the poached sliced beef and the salted vegetable, roasted peanuts and chopped spring onion to serve. Bits of sesame seeds were sprinkled to add flavor. 

After a good mix, every strand of thick noodle was nicely coated with the braised sauce and ready to eat.

It was nice though not exceptionally outstanding. I might just eat it again if i happen to be here and there is no queue.

MR WONG SEREMBAN BEEF NOODLES

Block 84 Marine Parade Central #01-184 Marine Parade Food Centre SINGAPORE 440084.

Dinner at Lavender Food Square

It was a rainy evening. I was right at this food centre for a quick dinner before proceed to a meeting. I wanted something hot so this claypot prawn noodle is definitely a good choice. Serving it in the Claypot is a good way to retain its heat and to keep the noodle soup hot. 

There was a short queue of a few people when i was there. I decided to go with the $5 portion of big prawn noodle listed as the number 1 item on their menu. A substantial portion of the yellow noodle served with 4 pieces of medium sized halved prawns in rather tasty prawn broth.

The prawn was of a reasonable size and tasted rather fresh with natural sweetness detected. 

The noodle was cooked to the right texture to give it the desired chewiness. A handful of bean sprouts were added to give it the delightful texture. 

Some big prawns displayed in the water tanks. 

The Uncle passionately cooked every bowl of noodle before served. 

A queue was still there even after i done eating. This may not be the best tasting prawn noodle that i ever tasted but it is definitely amongst one of the above average stalls. 

ALBERT STREET PRAWN NOODLE

Block 380 Jalan Besar Lavender Food Square #01-42 SINGAPORE 209000.

This stall replaced the original beef noodle stall right at this location in the food centre. I heard the owner of that particular stall has already retired. No queue spotted when i was there for dinner. I still decided to go ahead to try it. I ordered the $5 portion with just pieces of sliced beef and nothing else. 

The substantial portion of thick bee hoon served in the thick gooey sauce then topped with salted vegetable and sesame seeds to serve. 

The first mouthful did not manage to amaze me. The taste did not even come close to the previous stall. It tasted rather average as compared to some of the betters one that i ever eaten. There were quite a few slices of nicely cooked beef in it. The thickness of these sliced beef was just right to give it the desirable chewiness. 

The salted vegetable with little saltish taste. It did not help to enhance the overall taste any further. 

This is definitely not my top choice when i am craving for beef noodle. 

CHINATOWN BEEF NOODLE

Block 380 Jalan Besar Lavender Food Square #01-28 SINGAPORE 209000.