The Hawker Legends
Garden Street Kway Chap
Stall 21, Serangoon Garden Market
Opens: 8am to 3pm, closed on Mondays
After arching over his chopping board for half a century, 67-year-old Koh Ah Soon is now
hunchbacked.
He started selling kway chap with his father when he was just 12, in the now non-existent
Garden Street in the Beach Road area. After he moved the stall to Blanco Court in 1980, it
became commonly, but erroneously, called 'Blanco Court kway chap'. It attracted 30-
minute queues and spawned copycat stalls.
Many have tried, but few have achieved, his cleaning and stewing techniques. Pork innards
are stripped of their offensive odour and coaxed into a super smooth and tender
consistency.
He took a short hiatus in 2002 and re-opened in Serangoon Gardens food centre in 2003.
His son, Jason, 32, helps out.
Nam Sing Hokkien Fried Mee
Block 51 Old Airport Road, #01-155J
Opens: 11.30am to 8pm daily
Ng Hock Wah learnt his skills from his father when he was 12 and
set up his own stall in Hougang when he was 17.
Now 58, he says the secret to his noodle dish is the
attention he pays to the stock and his control over the
fire.
Ingredients like prawn shells, ikan bilis, clams and garlic
are added one by one at accorded times. The result is a
taste so rich that he does not need lard, the short cut
used by lesser hawkers.
Ah Chuan Oyster Omelette
TWO IN ONE: Ah Chuan Oyster Omelette boasts both crispy and
mushy textures in one fabulous dish -- PHOTOS: MAKANSUTRA and
DESMOND FOO
Block 22 Toa Payoh 7 #01-25
Opens: 3 to 9pm, closed on Tuesdays
Tan Hun Chua, 59, is the hawker whom other oyster omelette sellers
admit is the one to beat.
Since learning the recipe from his brother more than 30
years ago, he has perfected a dish that boasts both crispy
and mushy textures in one fabulous dish.
He laces his sweet potato flour mixture with a secret
ingredient. He also uses only fat, juicy Korean oysters, and
makes his own chilli sauce.
Hai Sing Ah Balling
Block 335 Smith Street, #02-90
Opens: Noon to 6pm, closed on Sundays
Loh Yeow Seng, 59, started helping at his father's stall in the nowdemo-
lished Ellenborough market, near Clarke Quay, more than 30
years ago.
The average waiting time was one hour because every glutinous rice
ball was hand-made upon each order.
Eschewing machine-made convenience, he still makes them by hand
today, and the difference is clear. The texture of the rice ball is so
smooth that your lips could clamp down on one and it wouldn't stick
to you.
Ah Kow Mushroom Minced Pork Mee
Block 531A Upper Cross Street, #02-43
Opens: 9am to 7pm daily
Cher Hang Peng, 59, has helped his
father dish out this Teochew recipe
since he was 10.
His expertise in noodle-blanching is
awe- inspiring. It's so perfectly cooked that even if you let
the bowl sit for a few minutes, the noodles would not
clump up. Dig them up with your chopsticks and they will
unravel beautifully.
Unlike other stalls that go heavy with the vinegar, he dashes just enough - he uses the
same brand from China's Tianjin which his father used - for a balanced taste of savoury,
spicy and sour.
Haji Kadir & M Baharudeen Sup Tulang
#B1-13/15 Golden Mile Food Centre
Opens: 12.30pm to 1.30am , closed on
alternate Wednesdays
The father of 44-year-old Mohd Iqbal is said
to have invented sup tulang - mutton bone
with marrow stewed in an explosive sauce of
chillies, tomatoes and mutton stock - in the
early 1950s.
In those days, his father threw in a free mutton bone with every
order of mee kuah (spicy noodles). Slowly, customers started
asking for only the mutton bone - and the dish was born.
This Indian-Muslim stall stands out from other tulang vendors for serving
big bones packed with marrow and meat.
Hill Street Fried Kway Teow
Block 16 Bedok South Road, #01-187
Opens: 10.30am to 7.30pm, closed on Mondays
Along with his sister, Ng Chang Siang, 60, helped his father run
the stall when he was 16.
After moving from Hill Street hawker centre to Bedok South a few
years ago, he still draws huge crowds every day with delicious noodles that boast an
impeccable consistency that is neither too moist nor too dry.
It is achieved through his mastery over the flame. Using
a custom-made flat wok which distributes heat evenly
to the noodles, he is able to inject all the flavours of
Chinese sausages, lard and chives into the noodles.
Leng Heng BBQ Seafood & Claypot Deluxe
Stall 6, East Coast Food Village
Opens: 2pm to 1am, closed on alternate Thursdays
Started in 1979, this stall has done what many consider impossible -
offer over 100 items of restaurant-quality
dishes from a tiny hawker unit.
Lee Jim Kim, 55, counts among his signature dishes the duck
and salted vegetable soup ($8 or $16). Stewed for at least 45
minutes, the duck meat practically falls off the bone.
Mattar Road Seafood Barbecue (chairman’s favourite)
Block 51 Old Airport Road, #01-131G
Opens: 3 to 11pm, closed on Tuesdays and Wednesdays
Ng Hung Leng, 58, started out 14
years ago in Mattar Road, the
location that spawned another
famous chilli crab name - No
Signboard Seafood.
But while the latter had gone on
to open swanky restaurants in the
city, he has stayed put in a
hawker centre, selling his
deliciously robust chilli crabs at
$28 per kg.(good and cheap)
(PHOTOS: MAKANSUTRA)
He takes two days off - Tuesdays and Wednesdays - just to make his own chilli paste, a
fiery concoction of chillies, dried shrimps, garlic and shallots.
Meng Kee Satay Bee Hoon
KEE’s SECRET: Meng Kee's satay bee hoon boasts more than 30 herbs and spices.
Stall 17 East Coast Food Village
Opens: 6 to 11.30pm, closed on Tuesdays
Ng Siaw Meng, 57, and his brother
took over a business which their father
founded in 1961.
No other stall comes close to offering a satay gravy that is as smooth or
tasty - it boasts more than 30 herbs and spices and takes three hours
to cook.
Accompanying ingredients like pork, prawns, cuttlefish, kangkong and
beansprouts are also perfectly prepared and presented.
To locate this stall in East Coast Food Village, just look out for the perpetually long queue.
Lau Hong Ser Rojak
#02-14 Dunman Food Centre
Opens: 4.30pm to 1.30am, closed on Sundays
Expect to wait for at least 30 minutes for your dish to be ready.
Lim Khai Ngee, 45, who started learning his
craft from his father 32 years ago,
painstakingly prepares every ingredient upon
each order.
This includes cutting vegetables, grilling taupok and cuttlefish and
mixing the gravy with top-grade shrimp paste from Penang.
Nothing is prepared beforehand.
Shukor Stall
Stall 30, Serangoon Garden Market
Opens: 9.30am to 9.30pm, closed once a month on Thursday
Norhayati Shukor's father invented roti john in 1975 when the stall
was located in Taman Serasi hawker centre, opposite the Botanic
Gardens.
The idea was to attract expatriates who lived in the nearby Cluny
Road area, by pan-frying slices of French loaf with eggs and
onions. But locals grew to love it instead.
Since then, Norhayati, 37, and her brother have introduced
chicken, beef and cheese to the dish to make it a more satisfying
bite.
Tian Tian Hainanese Chicken Rice
Stall 10, Maxwell Food Centre
Opens: 11am to 8pm, closed on Mondays
This is the stall that had American TV chef Anthony Bourdain and
Australian celebrity chef Tetsuya Wakuda raving.
Madam Foo Kui Lian, 56, learnt to cook from
her late brother, a hawker who had perfected
the recipe over many years.
She is fussy about the type of grain she uses,
insisting on the same grade and batch of Thai
fragrant rice every time. As a result, her rice is plump, velvety and
not too oily.
She only uses chickens heavier than 2kg, to ensure the texture is
smooth and tender.
Inspirasi Stall
Block 207 New Upper Changi Road, #01-11
Opens: 12.30 to 9pm daily
Sermi Karjiwalawi, 75, has been
selling soto ayam for several
decades, using her late
husband's Indonesian-style
recipe.
There is no stinting of
ingredients. The deliciously rich soup is made with bones,
coconut milk and secret spices. The chicken pieces are hand-shredded - not cut - to retain
their juicy texture. And the sambal chilli is made fresh at the stall.
Every day, a queue forms at her stall even before she raises the shutters at 12.30pm.
The Hawker Legends
Printed by chairman@rzbaustria.com
Garden Street Kway Chap
Stall 21, Serangoon Garden Market
Opens: 8am to 3pm, closed on Mondays
After arching over his chopping board for half a century, 67-year-old Koh Ah Soon is now
hunchbacked.
He started selling kway chap with his father when he was just 12, in the now non-existent
Garden Street in the Beach Road area. After he moved the stall to Blanco Court in 1980, it
became commonly, but erroneously, called 'Blanco Court kway chap'. It attracted 30-
minute queues and spawned copycat stalls.
Many have tried, but few have achieved, his cleaning and stewing techniques. Pork innards
are stripped of their offensive odour and coaxed into a super smooth and tender
consistency.
He took a short hiatus in 2002 and re-opened in Serangoon Gardens food centre in 2003.
His son, Jason, 32, helps out.
Nam Sing Hokkien Fried Mee
Block 51 Old Airport Road, #01-155J
Opens: 11.30am to 8pm daily
Ng Hock Wah learnt his skills from his father when he was 12 and
set up his own stall in Hougang when he was 17.
Now 58, he says the secret to his noodle dish is the
attention he pays to the stock and his control over the
fire.
Ingredients like prawn shells, ikan bilis, clams and garlic
are added one by one at accorded times. The result is a
taste so rich that he does not need lard, the short cut
used by lesser hawkers.
Ah Chuan Oyster Omelette
TWO IN ONE: Ah Chuan Oyster Omelette boasts both crispy and
mushy textures in one fabulous dish -- PHOTOS: MAKANSUTRA and
DESMOND FOO
Block 22 Toa Payoh 7 #01-25
Opens: 3 to 9pm, closed on Tuesdays
Tan Hun Chua, 59, is the hawker whom other oyster omelette sellers
admit is the one to beat.
Since learning the recipe from his brother more than 30
years ago, he has perfected a dish that boasts both crispy
and mushy textures in one fabulous dish.
He laces his sweet potato flour mixture with a secret
ingredient. He also uses only fat, juicy Korean oysters, and
makes his own chilli sauce.
Hai Sing Ah Balling
Block 335 Smith Street, #02-90
Opens: Noon to 6pm, closed on Sundays
Loh Yeow Seng, 59, started helping at his father's stall in the nowdemo-
lished Ellenborough market, near Clarke Quay, more than 30
years ago.
The average waiting time was one hour because every glutinous rice
ball was hand-made upon each order.
Eschewing machine-made convenience, he still makes them by hand
today, and the difference is clear. The texture of the rice ball is so
smooth that your lips could clamp down on one and it wouldn't stick
to you.
Ah Kow Mushroom Minced Pork Mee
Block 531A Upper Cross Street, #02-43
Opens: 9am to 7pm daily
Cher Hang Peng, 59, has helped his
father dish out this Teochew recipe
since he was 10.
His expertise in noodle-blanching is
awe- inspiring. It's so perfectly cooked that even if you let
the bowl sit for a few minutes, the noodles would not
clump up. Dig them up with your chopsticks and they will
unravel beautifully.
Unlike other stalls that go heavy with the vinegar, he dashes just enough - he uses the
same brand from China's Tianjin which his father used - for a balanced taste of savoury,
spicy and sour.
Haji Kadir & M Baharudeen Sup Tulang
#B1-13/15 Golden Mile Food Centre
Opens: 12.30pm to 1.30am , closed on
alternate Wednesdays
The father of 44-year-old Mohd Iqbal is said
to have invented sup tulang - mutton bone
with marrow stewed in an explosive sauce of
chillies, tomatoes and mutton stock - in the
early 1950s.
In those days, his father threw in a free mutton bone with every
order of mee kuah (spicy noodles). Slowly, customers started
asking for only the mutton bone - and the dish was born.
This Indian-Muslim stall stands out from other tulang vendors for serving
big bones packed with marrow and meat.
Hill Street Fried Kway Teow
Block 16 Bedok South Road, #01-187
Opens: 10.30am to 7.30pm, closed on Mondays
Along with his sister, Ng Chang Siang, 60, helped his father run
the stall when he was 16.
After moving from Hill Street hawker centre to Bedok South a few
years ago, he still draws huge crowds every day with delicious noodles that boast an
impeccable consistency that is neither too moist nor too dry.
It is achieved through his mastery over the flame. Using
a custom-made flat wok which distributes heat evenly
to the noodles, he is able to inject all the flavours of
Chinese sausages, lard and chives into the noodles.
Leng Heng BBQ Seafood & Claypot Deluxe
Stall 6, East Coast Food Village
Opens: 2pm to 1am, closed on alternate Thursdays
Started in 1979, this stall has done what many consider impossible -
offer over 100 items of restaurant-quality
dishes from a tiny hawker unit.
Lee Jim Kim, 55, counts among his signature dishes the duck
and salted vegetable soup ($8 or $16). Stewed for at least 45
minutes, the duck meat practically falls off the bone.
Mattar Road Seafood Barbecue (chairman’s favourite)
Block 51 Old Airport Road, #01-131G
Opens: 3 to 11pm, closed on Tuesdays and Wednesdays
Ng Hung Leng, 58, started out 14
years ago in Mattar Road, the
location that spawned another
famous chilli crab name - No
Signboard Seafood.
But while the latter had gone on
to open swanky restaurants in the
city, he has stayed put in a
hawker centre, selling his
deliciously robust chilli crabs at
$28 per kg.(good and cheap)
(PHOTOS: MAKANSUTRA)
He takes two days off - Tuesdays and Wednesdays - just to make his own chilli paste, a
fiery concoction of chillies, dried shrimps, garlic and shallots.
Meng Kee Satay Bee Hoon
KEE’s SECRET: Meng Kee's satay bee hoon boasts more than 30 herbs and spices.
Stall 17 East Coast Food Village
Opens: 6 to 11.30pm, closed on Tuesdays
Ng Siaw Meng, 57, and his brother
took over a business which their father
founded in 1961.
No other stall comes close to offering a satay gravy that is as smooth or
tasty - it boasts more than 30 herbs and spices and takes three hours
to cook.
Accompanying ingredients like pork, prawns, cuttlefish, kangkong and
beansprouts are also perfectly prepared and presented.
To locate this stall in East Coast Food Village, just look out for the perpetually long queue.
Lau Hong Ser Rojak
#02-14 Dunman Food Centre
Opens: 4.30pm to 1.30am, closed on Sundays
Expect to wait for at least 30 minutes for your dish to be ready.
Lim Khai Ngee, 45, who started learning his
craft from his father 32 years ago,
painstakingly prepares every ingredient upon
each order.
This includes cutting vegetables, grilling taupok and cuttlefish and
mixing the gravy with top-grade shrimp paste from Penang.
Nothing is prepared beforehand.
Shukor Stall
Stall 30, Serangoon Garden Market
Opens: 9.30am to 9.30pm, closed once a month on Thursday
Norhayati Shukor's father invented roti john in 1975 when the stall
was located in Taman Serasi hawker centre, opposite the Botanic
Gardens.
The idea was to attract expatriates who lived in the nearby Cluny
Road area, by pan-frying slices of French loaf with eggs and
onions. But locals grew to love it instead.
Since then, Norhayati, 37, and her brother have introduced
chicken, beef and cheese to the dish to make it a more satisfying
bite.
Tian Tian Hainanese Chicken Rice
Stall 10, Maxwell Food Centre
Opens: 11am to 8pm, closed on Mondays
This is the stall that had American TV chef Anthony Bourdain and
Australian celebrity chef Tetsuya Wakuda raving.
Madam Foo Kui Lian, 56, learnt to cook from
her late brother, a hawker who had perfected
the recipe over many years.
She is fussy about the type of grain she uses,
insisting on the same grade and batch of Thai
fragrant rice every time. As a result, her rice is plump, velvety and
not too oily.
She only uses chickens heavier than 2kg, to ensure the texture is
smooth and tender.
Inspirasi Stall
Block 207 New Upper Changi Road, #01-11
Opens: 12.30 to 9pm daily
Sermi Karjiwalawi, 75, has been
selling soto ayam for several
decades, using her late
husband's Indonesian-style
recipe.
There is no stinting of
ingredients. The deliciously rich soup is made with bones,
coconut milk and secret spices. The chicken pieces are hand-shredded - not cut - to retain
their juicy texture. And the sambal chilli is made fresh at the stall.
Every day, a queue forms at her stall even before she raises the shutters at 12.30pm.
The Hawker Legends
Printed by chairman@rzbaustria.com
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