Fishball Story at Yishun Park Hawker Centre

My first visit to Fishball Story was in April 2015 when Douglas Ng, 26, just started it at Golden Mile Food Centre. I remember it well that every bowl of noodles then was diligently cooked by him. This stall was closed later when a new one was opened at the University Town in National University of Singapore (NUS) and expanded to include another stall at Timbre+ in Ayer Rajah Crescent. After he closed the stall at NUS, he went into partnership with Char Grill Bar and 818 Seafood, they bought a coffee shop in Geylang and named it Hungry Bee, he started another stall there. 

The newest stall is at the recently opened Yishun Park Hawker Centre, their first franchised stall. It was announced on their Facebook page and I commented on the same post, I wrote, "Hope the quality is the same." and gotten a reply, "Do not worry. He has been training with us for more than a month." I visited their stall at Timbre+ a few months back and was disappointed with the standard then. They received the Bib Gourmand award by Michelin in 2016 but it was dropped from the list in 2017. 

I visited their stall at Yishun Park Hawker Centre on the first Sunday after their opening. The queue was still long even it was already past 2 pm. I waited for about 15 minutes to order. I went for the Premium Fishball Noodle ($6.50), the first item on their menu board. A basic bowl is priced at $3.50 with only the fishball and fishcake. Joe, the franchisee, was a bit slow in the cooking process. Apparently, a month of training did not seem to be quite adequate for him but hopefully he will do better in time to come. 

The Premium Fishball Noodle consists of a good portion of nicely cooked mee pok tossed with sambal chili and lard bits, with 3 pieces of handmade fishballs and a few slices of their handmade fishcake with 2 pieces of fried fish skin and a piece of fried beancurd with stuffed fish paste. Those fishballs are made from using yellowtail fish and no flour is added at their central kitchen, its texture is firmer and springier as compared to most of the others. 

It was still good but somehow, it did not taste as good as my first time tasted it, something is just missing somewhat and it just did not taste quite the same. I felt the additional fried fish skin did not actually go too well with the noodle. The likely reason for doing so is to justify a higher price.

FISHBALL STORY

51 Yishun Avenue 11 #01-27 Yishun Park Hawker Centre SINGAPORE 768867

Operating Hours: 6.00 am to 10.00 pm (Closed on Wednesdays)

China Street Fritters : Hokkien-style Ngor Hiong & Guan Chang

This stall was started by the late Mr Ng Eng Tuan before World War II as a zinc-roofed hawker stall by the roadside at China Street, where the China Square Central is now. The stall is then taken over by Mr Ng Kok Eng and Mr Ng Kok Hua with his wife. This stall has been awarded the Heritage Hawker Stall award that recognized stalls that have been serving good hawker fare for more than 50 years. They serve Hokkien-style Ngor Hiong as opposed to the Ngor Hiang, which is in Cantonese. Ngor Hiong is actually a minced pork roll seasoned with 5-spice powder which the dish is named after and rolled over a beancurd skin. It is always served together with Guan Chang, the Chinese sausage made by squeezing the lean pork into the pig's intestines. It is a must-have with the Ngor Hiong, that is exactly what 五香贯肠 means on their signboard. It is also often seen on the signboard of the other stalls that are serving it.

Mr Ng Kok Eng was situated outside the stall to take the orders before handed it to Mr Ng Kok Hua to gather the items, deep-fried it then chopped it up and presented them on the plate before his wife took over. She will be serving it to the customers by placing them on the tray and collecting the payment.

Mr Ng Kok Eng, he pointed to the book that was left open on the page where their stall was featured and said, "Our 4 key items are egg slice, guan chang, ter kwa roll (pork liver roll) and ngor hiong. The century egg, deep-fried beancurd and fried homemade fishball are the additional items." They are still handmade these items using the decades' old recipe unlike most of the other stalls that are serving those made by the machine. 

I decided to go with just the signature items with a plate of bee hoon. He asked, "Do you want the century egg, tau kwa and fishball too?" He then continued, "Since there are 2 of you, do you want 2 pieces of each item?" I replied, "No. We already had something to eat earlier so a bit too full now." Uncle just marked down those items that we ordered on the order chit and handed a number to me. He then attended to the next customer right after me. I asked for the permission to take some pictures, he replied, "Just feel free to take. Many tourists are taking pictures or videos of our stall."

The Pork Liver Roll is a personal favorite, it had a unique texture which I liked. The Ngor Hiong was surprisingly tasty with a well-balanced 5-spice flavor and fried to a perfect crispiness. The Guan Chang did not have any surprises but was much softer than some of those that I had eaten. The egg slice is the highlight, this is something that you do not usually get it elsewhere. It is chopped into smaller pieces then deep-fried to the desired crispiness.

Their bee hoon is fried in Hokkien-style with just bean sprouts and dark soya sauce. 

It was served with 2 different sauces, the gooey sweet potato flour dipping sauce with its light and sweet flavor as well as the plain chili sauce made with chili powder, vinegar, and salt. 

It is good to just focus on quality than on the quantity, though they offer just a few items, those are amongst the better ones that I had tasted. Eat it while you can as there is likely no one to take over the stall when they retired, just like many of those older hawkers. There is also another stall in the same food centre serving the traditional Hokkien-style Ngor Hiong, Guan Chang and an assortment of fried fritters.

CHINA STREET FRITTERS

1 Kadayanallur Street #01-64 Maxwell Food Centre SINGAPORE 069184

Operating Hours: 12.00 pm to 8.00 pm (Closed on Mondays)

Midas Every Touch Is Gold at Yishun Park Hawker Centre

Sax Choa, the owner, named its stall after King Midas in Greek mythology which possessed a special power to turn everything that he touches into gold. He used to be an Operations Director with more than 25 years of experience in the Food & Beverage and hospitality industries. He wanted to recreate and share the curry experience when he started this stall at Jalan Kukoh Food Centre before moving to Yishun Park Hawker Centre. 

I was there on 23 September 2017, the opening day of the food centre. I was told that they ran out of curry. Sax suggested that I should try the Baked Croissant Murtabak Sardine Puff ($3.00) as it just came out of the oven which I agreed. You could also choose to go with Corn Beef as filling for $4.00 in a piece of oven-baked prata that resembled the texture of the croissant. I did not like it as much after I took my first bite, the filling consists of bits of sardine with too many corns and peas. 

I was there again on 26 September 2017 for dinner and this was one of those stalls with no queue at that time. I decided to go with the Set B on the menu, which is Master Touch Chicken Curry ($5.00) to go with a plain prata ($1.00) and a spring onion prata ($1.50). The prata is different, it is not pan-fried but baked in an oven with right temperature controls. This is the healthier version as it is less greasy but crispier and flakier in texture. The plain prata and the spring onion prata actually tasted quite alike. My dining companion commented that he would not pay the extra $0.50 for the spring onion prata and would just go with the plain one. 

The curry is different from the usual Chinese-style curry, it is thicker and rather creamery with a strong hint of spices, it tasted a little closer to the Indian-style curry. Mustard seed, lemongrass, and onions are some of the ingredients added to make it tastes differently. The level of spiciness is well-balanced, it is good even for my dining companion that has little tolerance towards spiciness. It consists of a boneless chicken thigh, potatoes, and a hard-boiled egg. 

I was curious enough to ask Sax on one of his posts on Facebook. I asked why did he choose to add a hard-boiled egg to his curry which he replied, "Egg itself goes well with curry more so when you break it and mix with the curry, the yolk enhances it and is extraordinary flavorsome." I could sense the amount of pride that he has in serving it this way.

If you are wondering what to eat in this recently opened hawker centre, I would suggest giving this stall a try, for something different. 

MIDAS EVERY TOUCH IS GOLD

51 Yishun Avenue 11 #01-31 Yishun Park Hawker Centre SINGAPORE 768867

Operating Hours: 12.00 pm to 8.00 pm (Closed on Mondays & Thursdays)

Ah Tan Wings at Yishun Park Hawker Centre : Har Cheong Gai - must-try

Tan Yu Yan, 28, started this stall with her brother, Tan Wee Yang, 25 and they are one of the 25 recipients of Tiger Beer Street Food Support Fund. Their menu consists of mainly Har Cheong Gai (Prawn Paste Chicken) based on a recipe that they have spent more than a year in perfecting it. And, that was after experimented up to 800 variations of the recipe which demonstrated great dedication. Though the process was rather challenging but fruitful, it was a journey that filled with many ups and downs. They used to be at different pop-up events while hunting for a permanent location. They kept on improving their recipe and doing online marketing at the same time before finally settling at Yishun Park Hawker Centre. The entire process was quite a struggle.  Their vision is simple, they want to introduce a shatteringly-crispy Har Cheong Gai that you will never forget. 

We were there at about 6 pm when they just opened but there was already a short queue in front of the stall with some customers waiting for their takeaway orders. Other than Har Cheong Gai, there is also Okonomiyaki (Japanese pancake) on their menu. I was told to wait for a little while for my order to be taken as the gentleman at the counter was trying to clear some of the earlier orders. We decided to go with Ah Tan Atas Cutlet ($7.00) and Okonomiyaki ($8.50), an extra $1.00 is added as tray deposit. After payment, I was told to come back in about 10 to 15 minutes to collect it. It was ready and waited at the counter when I went back at about 15 minutes. I was asked even offered an extra saucer of chili.

The Ah Tan Atas Cutlet consists of 2 pieces of prawn paste chicken cutlets serving with shaker fries and salad. They marinated those chicken pieces in the har cheong gai paste for 2 days and coated in their specially made batter before deep-frying. How they managed in resulting such a crispy crust has remained to be their secret. The unparalleled crispy skin and the deep satisfaction when you crunch down on those chicken cutlets were just so unforgettable. 

The Okonomiyaki is not commonly found in Singapore and I was glad that they served it too. It is grilled Japanese pancakes embedded with prawn and bacon then topped with bonito flakes and oko sauce. There is an option to add Tobiko (flying roe) and oozing torched cheese for $1.50. It was nice though not particularly memorable. I would rather skip this and go for the Har Cheong Gai.

They are currently short-handed and their operating hours will be from 6.00 pm till sold out for the time being. I asked about their operating hours on their Facebook which they replied and I did not quite expect to receive their private message to inform me of the changes. I was amazed by such personal touch.

They are doing their part to be a part of the street food culture in Singapore and hawker centre is where it started and where they will belong.

AH TAN WINGS

51 Yishun Avenue 11 #01-40 Yishun Park Hawker Centre SINGAPORE 768867

Operating Hours: 6.00 pm to 9.00 pm (Closed on Wednesdays)

Chef Ron : homely food prepared with love

This is an interesting stall manned by Ronnie Ng, also known as Chef Ron and his mother-in-law serving a certain selection of Ipoh specialties. Despite naming the stall after him but the actual chef is his mother-in-law. Nonetheless, Ronnie is the chef in the midst of training, he is locally born and bred but his mother-in-law is from Ipoh and they started this stall about 5 months ago. 

I asked for a recommendation as I could not decide between having Ipoh Curry Noodle and Ipoh Dry Curry Noodle. The friendly Auntie said, "If you like some soup to drink then Curry Noodle is nice if not then would be Dry Curry Noodle". I decided to go with the Dry Curry Noodle as this dish is not commonly found in Singapore. Both are priced at just $4.00, which I think it is of pretty good value.

I was telling Ronnie that it is difficult to find a good Ipoh Curry Noodle in Singapore after trying the existing few and none has met my expectations. He suggested I should considering visiting Ipoh as they are many street foods to try.

This was my first time eating the Dry Curry Noodle so there would not be any prior comparison. I was asked to choose between the yellow noodle and bee hoon but Auntie recommended a mixture of both for textural contrast. It consists of the handmade charsiew, sio bak, chicken and added the homemade curry sauce then garnished with fresh mint leaves that they have grown it themselves.

Their secret ingredient that contributed to the authenticity of this dish is the black soy sauce from Ipoh which giving it a rather home-cooked feel particularly to those Malaysian living in Singapore. Most of the items are homemade.

The gravy did not taste like the usual Chinese curry but slightly thicker and less coconut flavor, even so, it was aromatic with a mild spiciness. 

I was offered a small bowl of Braised Pork with White Radish for tasting purpose. I would guess pineapple is part of their ingredients in this dish as I could taste the combination of sweetness and a little sour zestiness amidst the savory notes and a mild level of spiciness. The flavor-rich white radish was a nice accompaniment. 

Other than Curry Mee, there are also Malaysian-style Nasi Lemak, Assam Laksa, Curry Chicken with Rice, Superior Soya Sauce Chicken with Rice, Superior Soya Sauce Pork at $4 each and also Bak Chang. If you are looking for homely food prepared with love, give this stall a try.

CHEF RON

1 Kadayanallur Street #01-03 Maxwell Food Centre SINGAPORE 069184

Operating Hours: 9.00 am to 7.30 pm (Closed on Sundays)

Tow Kwar Pop : it has been around for 50 years and counting

It started by 2 brothers in 1965 and it has been around for more than 50 years since then. This stall serves Rojak set at $4.00 and $5.00.  It consists of their signature Tow Kear Pop, Cuttlefish, Fried Dough Fritter, Pineapple, Turnip, Green Papaya and also slices of Apple. It was served with 2 types of sauces separately in the saucers, the dark sweet sauce that tasted a little sourish and a rich and fragrant Shrimp Paste. I enjoyed dipping those pieces of the Rojak into the sauces. I could decide the amount of sauce that I liked in such a way and by serving the sauces separately, the Tow Kwar Pop and Cuttlefish would not get soaked in it and it will remain crisp to the last bite. 

An extra portion of sauce is chargeable at $3.00 as well as for other ingredients like Tow Pok ($1), You Tiao ($1), Dried Fish Fillet ($2) and Cuttlefish ($5) are available at different prices. It was sprinkled with some ground peanuts for a rich nutty flavor. 

The Tow Kwar Pops were freshly toasted over the charcoal, it was meticulously grilled by flipping around to make sure every side was toasted to a slight crisp in a traditional way before cutting it up and adding in to be part of the Rojak. Each Tow Kwar Pop was stuffed with blanched bean sprouts and shredded cucumber. 

The portion is good for a light snack or to go in between meals. This is definitely amongst one of the best Rojak and is a must-try if you are at Tiong Bahru Food Centre. 

TOW KWAR POP

30 Seng Poh Road #02-06 Tiong Bahru Food Centre SINGAPORE 168898

Operating Hours: 12.00 pm to 8.00 pm (Closed on Mondays)

Ang Mo Kio Lor Mee . Laksa : a part of my growing up memories

This stall has been a part of my growing up memories. When my mother was still around, she usually brought me here for the Laksa, she would just ordered a bowl to share with me but I was too young to really appreciate the taste. After she left, I did not get to visit this stall as often though I still followed my late Grandpa to this food centre and we usually eat at Chia Keng Kway Teow Mee. I visited again a few years ago but the taste was not quite memorable. This stall serves only Lor Mee and Laksa at $3.00 and $4.00. I was here with a friend on a Sunday, the queue was still long even though it has already past the lunch hour. We decided to order the small portion of Laksa and Lor Mee to share. 

I went for the Laksa first. It tasted quite simple with a slightly diluted gravy and ingredients like tau pok, fish cake, cockles and hard-boiled egg together with a handful of bean sprouts then garnished with laksa leaves and sambal chilli. Somehow, it seemed to taste much nicer when I had it with my mother. 

The Lor Mee served with a few slices of braised meat, fish cake, ngor hiang, hard-boiled egg and bean sprouts garnished with chopped coriander, minced garlic and sambal chilli to serve. They used to serve with fried wanton but they have stopped making it. The gravy was slightly too watery to my liking and I did not like it as much as there are other better choices for Lor Mee around. 

I could not quite understand the persistent long queue right in front of this stall, the Laksa and Lor Mee are not amongst the best ever tasted but I guess, it is the familiarity and comforts of the dishes that kept the customer to keep coming back. 

ANG MO KIO LOR MEE . LAKSA

Block 453A Ang Mo Kio Avenue 10 #01-17 Chong Boon Food Centre SINGAPORE 560453
Operating Hours: 6.00 am to 2.30 pm (Closed on Wednesdays)

Kok Sen Restaurant : awarded Bib Gourmand by Michelin for 2016 & 2017

Kok Sen Restaurant has been awarded the Bib Gourmand by Michelin for 2016 and 2017. It is an old-school Cantonese-style Cze Char that has been around for more than 37 years and is popular amongst the local, passing down from Kau Kee, the founder to Kok Sen, his son and now to the third generation. 

We were there on a Thursday for dinner and it was still early, there was no queue yet. We decided to go with their signature dishes like Big Prawn Horfun, Claypot Yong Tau Fu and Prawn Paste Chicken. 

Their most popular dish has to be their Big Prawn Horfun, starting from $16 for the smallest portion to $32 for a medium portion and $48 for the largest portion.  You could taste the distinctive wok flavor amidst those nicely charred rice noodles. The gravy was a bit too spicy for my dining companion as he has little tolerance towards spicy food. Those big prawns tasted relatively fresh and we liked it. The portion is good enough to be shared amongst 2 people. 

Though their Prawn Paste Chicken ($12 / $18 / $24) might not be as popular as the other dishes that we ordered, it was quite good though and easily one of the better Prawn Paste Chicken that We have tasted. I liked it enough to want to go back for it. They do not use chicken wings but different parts of the chicken for this dish. It was perfectly fried to crispiness with an intense prawn paste flavor. 

The Claypot Yong Tau Fu ($14 / $21 / $28) is also a recommended dish to order. It consists of assorted pieces of Yong Tau Fu like the beancurd skin, brinjal, chilli and all these came stuffed with fish and prawn paste. I enjoyed the homely taste but my dining companion did not like it as much.

The queue is usually quite long if you come during lunch or dinner and to avoid such a long waiting time, you might consider making a reservation. 

KOK SEN RESTAURANT
30 Keong Saik Road SINGAPORE 089137
Operating Hours: 12.00 to 2.00 pm / 5.00 pm to 11.00 pm (Closed on Alternate Mondays)

Tiong Bahru Lor Mee : a comforting choice

There are 2 stalls serving Lor Mee in this food centre and both are equally popular. This one is serving a traditional Lor Mee with the usual ingredients and the other is focusing more on fried shark fish nuggets. Apparently, both stalls are not the original stalls from the Seng Poh Road Market that was demolished in 2004. The 2 original stalls that used to be there were moved out, one of them is currently at Bukit Batok and the other has already ceased operation. 

It was a Saturday when I went for lunch. This was the only option as the other stall was closed on that day. It was located at the corner and you might not get to see the queue from far. There are 3 sizes available, the smallest one at $3 then followed by $4 and the largest portion is at $5. I told the Auntie, "The $4 portion with extra ingredients." She replied, "so the $5 portion la." 

It came with a substantial portion of flat yellow noodles in flavorful gooey gravy with ingredients like slices of fishcake and ngor hiang, fried fish nuggets, stewed pork belly and braised egg, serving with sambal chill, red/green chopped chillies, and minced garlic. Overall, it was not too bad though not amongst my top 3 choices. 

TIONG BAHRU LOR MEE

30 Seng Poh Road #02-80 Tiong Bahru Food Centre SINGAPORE 168898

Operating Hours: 7.00 am to 8.00 pm (Daily)

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)