Worth the queue @ Telok Blangah Food Centre
We relied on the wisdom of the crowd to identify which stalls offer the tastiest lunch at this beloved hawker centre. How did we do? Read on to find out!
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In the months since Telok Blangah Division became a part of Tanjong Pagar Town, we’ve explored it enthusiastically and discovered some amazing gems – including a great meal.
But we know Telok Blangah has plenty more to offer besides food. So in a move that surprises absolutely no one, we continued our exploration of this neighbourhood with yet another food hunt. 😉 😋
This time, we went to Telok Blangah Food Centre around noon on a Monday, planning to let the queues guide us to good eats. This crowdsourcing strategy was pretty solid, except there were too many queues and we didn’t bring enough stomach capacity. 😅
This is probably foreshadowing a possible Part 2 down the road. But for now, let’s check out what we got for lunch.
28 Cooked Food
The friendly couple running this stall look like they could be grandparents. And indeed, their food tasted like it’s made with love at home for their own grandkids.
At some of these economy noodle stalls, the focus is on the side dishes. But here, the noodles took centre stage. Completely infused with sweet-salty, caramelised dark soy sauce, they were surprisingly flavourful and dangerously addictive.
The side dishes showed the same level of generosity and care. The luncheon meat and chicken cutlet were both thick and meaty, with a nice crunch on the cutlet. The egg was fresh and not dry at all.
Shi Wei Hong Kong Soy Sauce Chicken
The signature soy sauce chicken was tender and silky, with gentle flavours that were echoed by the thick brown sauce ladled over everything. A punchy, vinegar-forward chilli sauce provided a sharp accent and balanced out each bite.
Of special note were the mala wantons, which were well-made and generously filled, with a nice bouncy texture. Despite the reddish hue, the dominant flavour here was that of black vinegar, nicely rounded off by a pronounced sweetness. A generous sprinkling of fried garlic brought nuttiness, savouriness and just the perfect hint of bitterness.
However, we barely detected any of the mala taste that the name promised. While it’s still delicious, you should expect a very kid-friendly level of numbing spice. 👶🌶
Chen Ji Hainanese Chicken Rice
Chicken rice enthusiasts know that the rice is the most important part of the dish. And the rice from this stall did not disappoint. It was moist but not too oily, with distinct grains and a pleasantly chewy texture. Its flavour was savoury but delicate – so we’d advise against covering it with dark soy sauce.
The chicken was cooked perfectly, and we particularly appreciate that the ginger sauce was nice and thick, not watery.
We added on a chicken feet & peanut soup. The chicken feet were fall-apart tender and the peanuts filled nearly a third of the massive bowl. The addition of dried orange peel and longan gave their version an interesting and distinct flavour.
Hong Ji Mian Shi Jia
This wanton mee is Comfort Food 101. The flavours are on-point; the wantons and shui jiao have decent amounts of juicy, meaty filling; and the noodles are springy yet soft and easy to slurp down.
When faced with the usual problem of not being able to decide what to get for lunch, this is probably the go-to choice that’s sure to deliver a satisfying meal for many people. It’s also something they’d likely crave if they haven’t had it for a while. Not surprising, then, that this stall has one of the longest queues.
Thank you, Telok Blangah!
We’d like to thank the residents, workers and visitors at Telok Blangah Food Centre who ‘guided’ us to a great lunch experience that day. And of course, to the hardworking hawkers who prepared our delicious meal.
We look forward to sharing more Tanjong Pagar Town food discoveries with you in our next issue. Till then, we hope you eat well, live well, and treat each other with kindness. 👋😊
