Swee Choon Dim Sum Restaurant (Jalan Besar)

Swee Choon Dim Sum Restaurant in operation for more than 50 years is a well-known dim sum restaurant which is extremely popular among Singaporeans and tourist. It has been featured on many newspapers, magazines as well as food shows. Unlike most other dim sum restaurants, Swee Choon's operating hours are from 6pm to 6am catering ensuring that Singaporeans have an extra option for supper and are well-fed throughout the night. Lucky for us, now we can all have dim sum even at midnight or in the wee hours of the morning! 

Swee Choon located at Jalan Besar opposite Berseh Food Centre is so popular that it occupy 5 units of shophouses along this stretch of road. It is in the between both Farrer Park and Lavendar MRT stations, a good 10 to 15 minutes walk away from either stations.

Occupying 5 units, Swee Choon offers both alfresco dining and air-conditioned (indoor) dining. In addition, it has a unit which cater only to walk-in customers who order takeaways. 

As we already knew that there would be a long queue if we arrived late, we made it a point to arrive at 630pm on a Friday for dinner. Luckily for us, we got the last available table at the indoor (air-conditioned) dining area. 

Menu

Menu

Menu

The menu with the prices. As you can see, Swee Choon offers a wide variety of Hong Kong and Shanghai dim sum, and local zi char dishes. 

Chrysantheum Tea $1.30 per pax

For drinks, we ordered their Chrysantheum Tea which cost $1.30 per pax. It was served in a metal pot and is refillable. They mixed the tea bags themselves. The Chrysantheum Tea was quite good as it was light, refreshing, fragrant and help to wash down the grease. 

Century Egg Porridge $2.50

The Century Egg Porridge $2.50 was served in a small bowl. It was decent, but not the best. There were chunks of century egg and chicken meat in it. 

Mee Suah Kueh $2

Swee Choon's signature Mee Suah Kueh $2; deep-fried vermicelli cake (mee sua) which can only be found at Swee Choon. Show this kueh to anyone and they would associate it with Swee Choon. Almost every table ordered this. I thought that this was unique and not bad. But  I will not rate it as a die die must try as the standard seemed to be inconsistent and it was a little too greasy. One of the kueh could have been fried a little longer. The texture was unique. Crisp, rough texture on the outside while the interior was moist. 

Fried Golden Doufu (Tofu) $3.50

This Fried Golden Doufu (Tofu) $3.50 was surprisingly good. Despite the simplicity, it was well executed. The tofu was fried till it was crispy on the outside. The addition of the pork floss at the top was the icing on the cake.

Carrot Cake $2

The Carrot Cake $2 was not bad too. There were a good mix of radish, dried shrimps and chinese sauages in it. It was also a little too greasy. 

Pan Fried Pork Dumpling $4

The Pan Fried Pork Dumpling $4 was pan fried till it was so crispy. In addition, they were so generous fillings. Dipping it into the vinegar along with slices of ginger made this just so delectable. 

Beancurd Prawn Roll $2.80

The Beancurd Prawn Roll $2.80 with minced meat and prawns in it was ordinary.

Steamed Pork Ribs $2.50

The Steamed Pork Ribs $2.50 was a let down. The part of the pork served was not pork rib and it was either too fatty or was all bones.

Overall, Swee Choon Dim Sum Restaurant is worth a try. There were hits and misses in the dishes we ordered. Service wise, despite the restaurant being full, the staff were efficient. It was easy getting the attention of the staff. Do note that this restaurant only accepts cash or nets. They do not accept credit card. Also, they do not take any reservation. 

As we left Swee Choon Dim Sum Restaurant at close to 8pm, we saw a queue! It was very thoughtful of the restaurant owner to provide chairs outside. If you are planning to visit this restaurant during dinner time, do remember to come early. 

Swee Choon Dim Sum Restaurant (Jalan Besar)
183/ 185/ 187/ 189/ 191 Jalan Besar
Singapore 208882
Tel: 62257788
Opening Hours: Monday to Sunday 6 pm - 6 am 
                          Close on Tuesday
Website

View FoodieFC's Singapore Food Map in a larger map

Ah Kow Mushroom Minced Pork Mee 亚九香菇肉脞麺 (Hong Lim Food Centre) - CLOSED

*edited - stall has closed down

 I am a huge fan of Teochew Style Bak Chor Mee (Minced Pork Noodles) and have always visited Hill Street Tai Hwa Pork Noodle (Lavendar) located at Crawford Lane to satisfy my craving.

Ah Kow Mushroom Minced Pork Mee 亚九香菇肉脞麺 located at Hong Lim Food Centre has been in operation for more than 60 years, like Hill Street Tai Hwa it also specialises in Teochew Style Bak Chor Mee. I have been eyeing this stall for sometime and took the opportunity to try this on a Saturday afternoon. 

I arrived slightly after 1pm and saw a long line of people queuing in front of the stall. There was more than 10 people in the queue in front of me. I contemplated patronising some other stalls as I was starving. But in the end, my desire to try this won the battle and I found myself queuing at this stall.

Other than the long queue, the only tell tale sign that this stall is famous/popular is the Singapore Hawker Legends Makansutra signboard showcased at the left of the shop front. 

Ah Kow Mushroom Minced Pork Mee offers just two items; Mushroom Minced Meat Noodle and Teochew Dumpling Soup which comes in 3 difference prices (again similar to Hill Street Tai Hwa). It also offers 6 types of noodles and the prices for adding extra ingredients were clearly stated on the menu pasted in front of the stall. 

The queue was extremely slow moving and I only got my food after queuing for 40 minutes! While I was in the queue, the greedy side of me decided on getting a Mushroom Minced Meat Noodle (Mee Pok) $4 and Teochew Dumpling Soup $4. After all, I had come down just for this and since I had to spent so much time queuing I may as well kill two birds with one stone and try both! Logical? 

Mushroom with Minced Meat Mee Pok $4

As with all authentic Teochew Style Bak Chor Mee, vinegar (an essential sauce) imported from China was added into the Mushroom Minced Meat Noodle (Mee Pok) $4. The ingredients which included minced meat, meat slices, braised mushrooms, dumplings and fried crispy flat fish (扁鱼) were fresh. I particularly liked the fact that they were generous with their fried crispy flat fish and braised mushrooms. However, the dumplings were disappointing as it lacked in terms of flavour and bite. Luckily, the special chilli sauce complement well with the vinegar (I requested for more vinegar). 

Teochew Dumpling Soup $4

The Teochew Dumpling Soup $4 reminded me of Xing Ji Rou Cuo Mian 兴记肉脞面 at Bedok 85 as it looked cloudy with minced meat floating in it.

Teochew Dumpling Soup $4

Teochew Dumpling Soup $4

The Teochew Dumpling Soup $4 consisted of 8 pieces of dumplings, minced meat, braised mushrooms, fried crispy flat fish (扁鱼), seaweed and Garland Chrysanthemum (Tang O).

It was a terrible mistake ordering this. The dumplings as mentioned earlier was disappointing. To add on to this, the soup was bland although it looks so flavourful in the photos above.. 

Overall, the Bak Chor Mee was a decent. It was better than most other stalls, but not a die die must try. Moreover, Hill Street Tai Hwa's version was much better. As for the Teochew Dumpling Soup? My advice would be to give it a skip.

Ah Kow Mushroom Minced Pork Mee 亚九香菇肉脞麺 (Hong Lim Food Centre)

#02-42 Hong Lim Food Centre

531A, Upper Cross Street

Opening Hours: Thurs to Sun 8am to 5pm

                         Close from Mon to Wed

View FoodieFC's Singapore Food Map in a larger map

58 Prawn Noodles, Minced Meat Noodle (Bedok Reservoir Road)

58 Prawn Noodles, Minced Meat Noodle is located along Bedok Reservoir Road under Blk 704 at See Beh Ho Eating House. What a name for a coffeeshop! See Beh Ho a Hokkien dialect means 'Very good'.

The stall owners are very sensitive to the camera! 

They sell just 2 items; Prawn Noodle and Minced Meat Noodle (Bak Chor Mee). I have no idea what is nice at this coffeeshop, but a quick observation shows that most people order from this stall. Hence, I decided to order from this stall.

I waited at least 15minutes before my Minced Meat Noodle (Bak Chor Mee) was served. The good news is that all you need to do is order and go back to your seat and wait for it to be delivered to you. 

Minced Meat Noodle (dry with chilli) $3.00

Lets start off with the noodles shall we? I ordered Mee Kia (thin noodle). It arrived topped with a very generous amount of crispy deep fried shallots. The Mee Kia was well cooked and springy. The chilli sauce and the shallots complemented the noodles adding on an extra oomph to the taste.

Soup

This bowl of soup is a star dish on its own. The taste of it reminds me of the soup from Hill Street Tai Hwa Pork Noodle. I have no idea what they used to cook this bowl of soup, but was visible was minced pork, dumplings, spring onions, fried shallots and fried garlic. The soup was so tasty that I drank all of it and did not feel thirsty after that.

I must also highlight two other ingredients in the soup. The minced meat was super soft! Yes, soft! How can it be right? The dumplings are unique too.

To sum this up, I am very impressed by this the Minced Meat Noodle I had. I like everything that I ate, from the noodle, the sauce, the minced meat to the soup. This type of Minced Meat Noodle is vastly different from the Hill Street Tai Hwa Pork Noodle's Bak Chor Mee. Hence, I will not compare it. 

Try this place out when you are in the area and let me know what you think.

58 Prawn Noodles, Minced Meat Noodle (Bedok Reservoir Road)
Blk 704 Bedok Reservoir Road
See Beh Ho Eating House 
Opening Hours: Daily 6am - 4pm 
                         Close on alternate Mondays 
Location

View FoodieFC's Singapore Food Map in a larger map

Fei Fei Wanton Mee 飞飞云吞面 (Joo Chiat)

I have heard so much about Fei Fei Wanton Mee and have always wanted to try it. There has been so much raves about it being the best wanton noodle in Singapore. When I happen to be in Joo Chiat, I had to detour to Fei Fei Wanton Mee and try this for myself! There are two Fei Fei Wanton located just a stone throw away from each other.

I visited Fei Fei Wanton Mee at 72 Joo Chiat Place. In this coffee shop, there is only Fei Fei Wanton Mee and it is open 24 hours daily.

We ordered 2 bowls of Wanton Mee (dry) and a bowl of Dumpling Soup. It was served to us within 10 minutes. Fei Fei Wanton Mee does not come with soup unless you order a bowl of Dumpling or Wanton Soup. 

Wanton Mee (dry) with Chilli

It looks like this bowl of Wanton Mee has nothing, except noodles!

After mixing the ingredients with the chilli

Ingredients such as char siew, wantons and vegetables are hidden underneath the noodles.

So what is so special about the wanton mee? The difference is the noodle / mee kia and wantons! Each strand of mee kia is smooth, thin with fragrant of egg flavour. It was cooked under high heat to ensure that the noodles are soft, yet spring without breaking apart. The spicy chilli sauce added flavour to the noodle. I really enjoyed the noodles! (now I know why everyone is raving about this) The wantons are filled with minced pork seasoned with whitebait, pepper and sesame oil. The down side is that the wantons are too small.

Dumpling Soup

We made the right decision ordering the Dumpling Soup. 6 pieces of big dumplings. Each piece was filled with minced pork seasoned with whitebait, pepper and sesame oil, prawn and spring onions! The skin of the dumplings were smooth and thin! The dumplings were delicious!

Overall, I like my Fei Fei Wanton Mee experience. The noodles / mee kia and the dumplings are fantastic! Wish that they open one at the north instead of having both outlets side by side along Joo Chiat Place.

Fei Fei Wanton Mee 飞飞云吞面 (Joo Chiat)
72 Joo Chiat Place
Tel: 6440 5013
Opening Hours: Daily 24 hours 
                          Closed on Thurs
Location 


Fei Fei Wanton Mee 飞飞云吞面
62 Joo Chiat Place
Tel: 6345 7515
Opening Hours: Mon to Sat 645am - 10pm
                         Sun 645am - 9pm

View FoodieFC's Singapore Food Map in a larger map

Alex Eating House (Beach Road)

In my previous blog, I did a post on Alex Eating House. Will add on to the post.

Prior to my post on Alex Eating House, I have not heard of this place. It was only when I googled this place online, then did I know that Alex Eating House is famous. It is known for its char siew and sio bak(roasted pork) [some have mentioned that the char siew is the best in Singapore]. Well, enough say about track record or what is being said, here’s my post.

Alex’s Eating Place is located at Beach Road, opposite Shaw Towers. The eatery was packed during lunch time. Full house, every single table was occupied and there were other people waiting. It can be hard to grab the attention of any of them to take your order or to even ask for the bill.

Roasted Duck and Char Siew Rice

Ordered Roasted Duck and Char Siew Rice. It cost either $3.50 or $4.00. The Char Siew was not bad, however it was a bit too dry and as can be seen, each piece was way too thick. The Roasted Duck had the same problem, each piece was ‘huge’. Moreover, there was little meat with lots of fat. Rice was hard. At the side of the plate there is cabbage which was so so. Really nothing fantastic. Well it was value for money. Oh, my friend ordered lotus soup, it cost just $1.50! cheap!

Char Siew Dumpling Noodle $4.00

The Char Siew Dumpling Noodle was much better. The noodle was well cooked, springy and has absorbed all the sauce. This time, the Char Siew was much better but could have been softer. The dumpling was good. Its skin was soft and thin. The filling inside though small was delicious. 

Soup

MSG ladened soup.

Will not be back anytime soon as the food is average. If I do come back, I will go for the Roasted Pork (sio bak). 

Alex’s Eating House (Beach Road)
87 Beach Road, #01-01
Chye Sing Building 
Tel: 6334 0268
Opening Hours: Daily  9am – 6pm (or until sold out)
Location

View FoodieFC's Singapore Food Map in a larger map

Mak's Noodle 麥奀雲吞麵世家 (Hong Kong)

Mak's Noodle 麥奀雲吞麵世家 has been around for a long time since 1968 and pride itself with having been awarded with a Michelin guide recommendation. (it is also one of the World's cheapest Michelin starred restaurant) In addition, it has a reputation for specialising in serving one of the best wantons noodles in Hong Kong.

Today, Mak's Noodle has several outlets in Hong Kong and Macau. We visited the outlet at The Peak. It is located just on the ground floor of The Peak Galleria.

Since there's 6 of us, we ordered 3 "Sets for 2's (A)". Each Set of "Sets for 2's (A)" cost HK$125 (S$20.83) consist of 2 Wonton with Nooodles in Soup, 1 Pork & Shrimp Dumpling in Soup and 1 Vegetable with Oyster Sauce.

Wanton Noodles

sidenote: the chilli at the top left background is delicious

Mak's Noodle Wanton Noodles are served in standard rice bowl. This is to prevent the noodles from absorbing all the broth and becoming soggy. (I doubt the theory) The noodles were springy and seemed to be entangled together. Moreover, it is quite different from those in Singapore. The broth was unique. It was clear and very tasty. Most likely have been cooked using pork bones and shrimps.  Each wanton contained 1 piece of prawn that was very fresh and crunchy. Moreover, it was wrapped in a very thin wanton skin that enhanced the crunchness.

The portion is small if you are hungry, one bowl will not be enough. As a result, I ordered 1 more bowl of Wonton Noodle from the a la carte menu which cost HK$33 (S$5.50)

Pork & Shrimp Dumpling in Soup

Pork & Shrimp Dumpling in Soup was delicious. The broth is is similar to the one in the wanton noodles. The dumplings contained mined pork, shrimp, bamboo shoots and water chestnut. The dumpling was well marinated, very flavourful and crunchy.

Vegetable with Oyster Sauce

Vegetable with Oyster Sauce was a simple dish. Steamed vegetable that was cooked just right with oyster sauce. Again, the big stems was an unpleasant sight at first. But after trying it, I find that I like it! Very crunchy and fresh! A simple dish yet so delicious! I am starting to feel the difference between the vegetables we eat in Singapore and Hong Kong/China. Hong Kong and China's vegetables are just so big and fresh.

Overall, the food at Mak's Noodle was delicious! But the portion of the wanton noodle is really way to small for a guy. Ordering an a la carte bowl of wanton noodle is quite expensive considering the small portion. With the set, it is more value for money. I will definitely be back if I am in Hong Kong again, quite like the vegetables and dumplings.

Mak's Noodle 麥奀雲吞麵世家 (Hong Kong)
Shop, 1 G/F, The Peak Galleria
118 Peak Road
Opening Hours: Daily 11am to 8pm
Location

View FoodieFC's Hong Kong & Macau Map in a larger map