Yan Kee Noodle House at BK Eating House

I have heard about a noodle stall in a coffeeshop at Circular road which specialises in Dry Mee Sua. This is unique to me as Fishball Noodles and Bak Chor Mee (mee pok or mee kia) nearly always take the limelight in any noodle stall, not mee sua.

The stall is called Yan Kee Noodle House at BK Eating House located at the junction of South Bridge Road and Circular Road. Another factor which makes it so unique is that the stall is open 24 hours and is only closed on Sundays.

When I visited on a weekday noon, the eating house was surprisingly empty. There were only a handful customers. There was also no queue at Yan Kee Noodle House.

Needless to say, I ordered their Speciality Dry Mee Sua, made payment and waited for the food to be served to my table.

Speciality Dry Mee Sua $3.50

The Speciality Dry Mee Sua cost $3.50.

Speciality Dry Mee Sua $3.50

Speciality Dry Mee Sua $3.50

The Speciality Dry Mee Sua was served with fishballs, meatballs, minced meat, lean meat, a whole mushroom, ikan bilis and pork lard. What stood out was that the mee sua which was amazingly springy, not soggy. In addition, each strand of mee sua when well mixed was well coated with the chilli and vingear sauce which is bounded to entice your taste buds. The two handmade fishballs, bigger than what you get else where also deserved a mention. They were bouncy and firm with no fishy taste. The smaller things to note which made this such a wonderful dish was the crunchy ikan bilis and pork lard which gave an additional dimension to the texture and oomph of the dish.

For just $3.50, they were so generous with the ingredients. Value for money and yummy! 

Yan Kee Noodle House at BK Eating House 
BK Eating House
21 South Bridge Rd (Junction of South Bridge Rd & Circular Rd)
Opening Hours: Mon to Sat 24 hrs
                         Closed on Sun

View FoodieFC's Singapore Food Map in a larger map

Liang Court Wednesdays' Food Tasting Trails: Tamoya, Shakey's Pizza and Dulcet & Studio

Continue on with my previous post on Liang Court Wednesdays' Food Tasting Trails, I made 2 trips down to Liang Court on the last day of the food trail for both lunch and dinner. 

Tamoya Udon

For lunch, I visited Tamoya Udon which is a Japanese restaurant that specialises in handmade Udon.

Tamoya Udon

With the Liang Court's Wednesdays' Food Trail Coupon, I was able to try the large Curry Udon (U.P $10.80) with Prawn Tempura (U.P $2.50), Fried Chicken (U.P $1.50) and Chikuwa Tempura (U.P $1). 

Curry Udon

The Curry Udon was delicious. The Udon handmade using three types of flour was the highlight. It was chewy yet soft and smooth. The curry with lots of onions added to it complemented the udon well. 

Prawn Tempura, Chikuwa Tempura and Fried Chicken

The Fried Chicken was decent, while the Prawn and Chikuwa Tempura were disappointing. Both the tempura were cold, hard and no longer crisp. They were also coated with too much batter.

For dinner, the Partner and I went for Shakey's Pizza.

The Liang Court's Wednesdays' Food Trail Coupon provided us with several choices:
(a) Slim Trim Caesar Salad (U.P $5) and Spaghetti Carbonara (U.P $13.80)
(b) Shakey's Baby Back Ribs (Full Slab) (U.P $19.80)
(c) Oishi Wasabi Premium Pizza (90-inch) (U.P $19.80) or;
     Hula Hawaiian Classic Pizza (9-inch)(U.P $18.80)

We went for option (a) and (c). 

Slim Trim Caesar Salad and Spaghetti Carbonara

We ordered the Slim Trim Caesar Salad and Spaghetti Carbonara.

Slim Trim Caesar Salad 

The Slim Trim Caesar Salad consisted of lettuce, egg, parmesan cheese, bacon bits and garlic bread was quite good. Considering the fact that we seldom take salad, we finish this entire dish!

Spaghetti Carbonara

The Spaghetti Carbonara served with bacon and mushrooms with creamy egg sauce may not be the best, but it as certainly quite decently executed.

Oishi Wasabi Premium Pizza 

As we wanted to try something different we decided to order Oishi Wasabi Premium Pizza which consisted of shrimps, scallops, pineapples and wasabi sauce topped with lots of bonito flakes. Surprisingly, the wasabi sauce did not overwhelm the taste and complemented this dish well. We both felt that the shrimps and scallops did not match up to this pizza. Both ingredients were not exactly fresh. What a waste.

Dulcet & Studio

After dinner we walked round the shopping centre and also visited Mediya, the Japanese supermarket while waiting for our food to digest. Before, we headed back home, we stopped over at Dulcet & Studio for its cakes.

The food trail coupon enabled us to order two pieces of cakes and also a cup of regular coffee. As we visited at close to 9pm, most of the more popular cakes had already been sold out. We were just left with three choices. =(

We chose the Rose Chiffon Cake (U.P. $7) and Macha Marble Chiffon Cake (U.P. $4)  with a cup of regular coffee.

Macha Marble Chiffon Cake

The Macha Marble Chiffon Cake was just average. It was soft and fluffy but too dry.  The macha flavour could have been stronger.

Rose Chiffon Cake

The Rose Chiffon Cake fared better. It was soft, fluffy and had a stronger rose fragrant.

The coffee was a huge disappointment. We took just two sips and left it untouched.

That's all for the Liang Court Wednesdays' Food Tasting Trails. I wonder if they will hold this again next year. It's so value for money!

Liang Court Wednesdays' Food Tasting Trails: Tamoya, Shakey's Pizza and Dulcet & Studio
Liang Court, 177 River Valley Road
Singapore 179030
Website
Facebook

View FoodieFC's Singapore Food Map in a larger map

Liang Court Wednesdays' Food Tasting Trails: Marutama Ramen and Saizeriya

Liang Court is currently having an event called Wednesdays' Food Tasting Trails which will be held till 7 August 2013. Diners can purchase the Food Trail Coupon for $30 at the Customer Service Counter and get to enjoy 3 different set meals from 3 different restaurants in Liang Court and also a free beer. 

Wednesdays' Food Tasting Trails Coupon & Food Trail Guide

The first restaurant  has been pre-selected, diners can choose their second and third stops from  any of the remaining 11 participating F&B shops. I received a copy of the Food Trail Guide and two complimentary Wednesdays' Food Tasting Trails Coupons. As shown above, the coupon shows that my first restaurant (pre-selected) is Tamoya. 

Marutama Ramen

Looking through all the set meals in the Guide, I decide to try Marutama Ramen first (there is no need to utilise the coupon in sequence). 

Marutama Ramen

The Liang Court's Wednesdays' Food Trail Coupon allowed me to try the Zenbu-nose (U.P. $18). It was essentially the signature Marutama Ramen with all toppings! The toppings are the Kakuni (Stewed Pork Belly), Sliced Roasted Pork, Aosa (Seaweed), Negi (Spring Onions) and Half-Boiled Seasoned Egg. 

Those who frequent Marutama Ramen would know that the signature Marutama Ramen (without toppings) would have cost $12 and an addition $6 is required if all toppings were added. 

Zenbu-nose

 The Zenbu-nose; with all toppings added!

Roasted Pork (Char Siew)

Three big pieces of Sliced Roasted Pork (Char Siew) were given. The roasted pork had quite a good balance of lean meat and fat ratio. So much so that it was tender.

Kakuni (Stewed Pork Belly)

The Kakuni (Stewed Pork Belly) as it should be had a higher proportion of fats to lean meat compared to the Char Siew.

Half-boiled Seasoned Egg

The Half-boiled Seasoned Egg would have been perfect if its yolk was runny as they had got the marination right. It was a pity that it was slightly overcooked and the yolk was not runny.

Zenbu-nose

This bowl of Zenbu-nose ramen came with lots of ingredients like how it should be. If you were to take the cost of the Food Trail Coupon (i.e. $30) and divide by 3 restaurants, it means that essentially, you are paying for $10 per restaurant (do not forget, there's a free beer too).

Chew on this: Having this bowl of Zenbu-nose ramen would have covered more than 50% of your purchase of the coupon. 

The Italian Restaurant Saizeriya is one of the 12 participating restaurants.

Diners with Liang Court's Wednesdays' Food Trail Coupon can get to try the US Sirlion Steak (U.P. $11.90) with Salad and Free-flow Drink Bar (U.P. $3.90).

US Sirloin Steak

The amount of food served with this coupon was astonishing. So generous! There was even a plate of rice!

Salad

 The salad which was served almost immediately after I had ordered the food.

US Sirloin Steak

The US Sirloin Steak was average. It was the most expensive on Saizeriya's menu. I felt that the steak was a tad too dry and hard. The portion of the serving was big considering the price.

So far I have tried the set meals at two participating outlets. I am impressed by the portions. I would have expected that the servings would likely be 'downsized'. But well, I was wrong. I am glad that the serving was the same as what a normal customer (without coupon) would have been served. Kudos to Liang Court and participating restaurants! The little things that matters.

I must say, this Wednesdays' Food Trail Coupon is value for money. If you had not bought it and are interested in buying this coupon, its not too late. You can still utilise the vouchers on 31st July and 7 August 2013! I am definitely going back to try the other restaurants on 7 Aug!

Thank you Kase  from AsiaMalls Management for the two coupons. 

Liang Court Wednesdays' Food Tasting Trails: Marutama Ramen and Saizeriya
Liang Court, 177 River Valley Road
Singapore 179030
Website
Facebook

View FoodieFC's Singapore Food Map in a larger map

Tampopo Restaurant (Liang Court)

Tampopo Restaurant is one of my favourite restaurant when it comes satisfying my ramen craving. It has been around for sometime, starting off with an outlet in Liang Court. Today, it is a restaurant chain serving Japanese Cuisine and has expanded to Takashimaya and also opened the Tampopo Deli at the basement of Liang Court. Tampopo is popular for its black pig ramen and first started in Liang Court.

We arrived at the restaurant at 1130am on a weekday. We were their first customer that day. Before long, the 2nd and third group of customers arrived. We were able to place our orders fairly quickly as we knew what to order before hand. We were served the green tea and the ramen without much delay.

Original Kyushu Ramen $13.50

Original Kyushu Ramen $13.50

The partner ordered the Original Kyushu Ramen. Besides the Kyushu ramen which was thin and hard, the bowl of ramen was served with tamago, black fungus, fish roe, soy sauce pork slice (char siew) and spring onions The Char Siew with a decent fat to lean meat ratio provided a melt in the mouth sensation.

The pork broth which required two days to made was made from pork bone! The pork broth was light, milky and tasty. I felt that it was a tad too salty. Nevertheless, it was still one of the better Japanese ramen around and at $13.50, it was value for money!

Deluxe Tampopo Black Pig Shabu Ramen $16.30

Deluxe Tampopo Black Pig Shabu Ramen $16.30

I ordered the Deluxe Tampopo Black Pig Shabu Ramen which was served with tampopo, corns, bamboo shoots, slices of black pig and lettuce. It was topped with lots of chilli flakes and some spring onions. The flavour of the chilli flakes did not overwhelm the taste of the pork bone broth. The broth was tasty yet forgiving. Compared to the broth from the Original Kyushu Ramen, I thought that this was more flavourful. The ramen was well cooked, retained its springiness and was not hard. It was a joy slurping the ramen along with the broth.

As the name black pig shabu suggests, the black pig was sliced thinly (paper thin) with little or no marination so that one can taste the original taste of the meat. Each piece had the right balance of fats and meat and was so soft and tender that they provided a melt in the mouth sensation. If only they gave more slices of the black pig shabu. Oishii!!!  Black Pig aka Berkshire Pig is the oldest breed of pig known originating from  Reading-Berkshire in England. It is the highest prized pork in Japan and regarded as the best quality of pork in the world. 

The Tamago (Japanese half boiled egg) was excellent. A firm and nice consistent dark brown colour on the outside. On the inside, it was soft and the egg yolk was runny - just the way a Tamago should be like. If you are keen to make your very own Tamago, you can click here for the recipe.

Overall, I felt that Tampopo's ramen was as good as Santouka's! Besides the dishes mentioned in this post, the Tonkatsu Ramen, Scoop Cake and Matcha Chiffon Cake are worth a try too. Service wise, the staff were prompt in refilling the green tea and the food got served pretty fast. To be fair, I should add that as we arrived at 1130am on a weekday, there was virtually no crowd in the restaurant. 

Tampopo Restaurant (Liang Court) 

177 River Valley Road

#01-23/24 Liang Court

Tel: 6338 3186

Opening Hours: Mon to Sat 1130am - 1030pm (last order 10pm)

                        Sunday and Public Holidays 11am - 1030pm (last order 10pm)

Facebook

Location

Tampopo Restaurant (Takashimaya) 

B2-33 Takashimaya Shopping Centre

Tel: 6235 2318

Opening Hours: Daily 11am to 10pm

Song Fa Bak Kut Teh 松發肉骨茶 (New Bridge Road)

Song Fa Bak Kut Teh 松發肉骨茶 has been serving Teochew style Bak Kut Teh (pork ribs soup) to its customers since 1969. Today, they have 3 outlets. Two of which are located a few units away from each other along New Bridge Road, directly opposite Clarke Quay MRT station. 

Upon stepping into Song Fa Bak Kut Teh, I could feel a sense of nostalgic with its wooden ceiling, stools and tables that were used in the past and also the decoration with black and white photos of the olden days. What was most pleasant was that it was neat, clean and air-conditioned. 

Bak Kut Teh was invented by Chinese immigrants in Malaya in the 19th century. In those days, the immigrants were manual workers who were poor. As their job require lots of energy, they had to find ways to boost their energy. As such, they used cheap pork ribs and herbs like coriander, cloves, star anise and pepper to cook soup. Besides being able to drink the nutritious soup, they were also able to enjoy the meat on ribs. Satisfying their hunger pangs and the need to replenish their energy. As a result, the Teochew style Bak Kut Teh  (as what we know today) unlike the Klang version is peppery and clear. Personally, I prefer the Teochew Style Bak Kut Teh (I am a Teochew). 

Menu

They offer several many other dishes such as Pork Liver Soup, Pork Stomach Soup as well as Braised Pig Trotter to complement the peppery Bak Kut Teh as shown in the Menu above.

Pork Ribs Soup $6.50, Rice $0.60, You Tiao (油条) $1

I ordered the Pork Ribs Soup (Bak Kut Teh) along with a bowl of rice and You Tiao.

Pork Ribs Soup $6.50

Three pieces of pork ribs was served in the Pork Ribs Soup (Bak Kut Teh). The meat on the pork rib was quite tough; not as tender as I hope it would be. Fortunately, the soup saved the day. Clear, tasty and peppery. Full  garlic and star anise flavour, so aromatic. The soup was refillable and I refilled it three times in total! 

You Tiao (油条) $1

I could not resist ordering the You Tiao (油条) aka Dough Fritters to go along with the Bak Kut Teh. The best way to savour this is to dip it into the soup to allow it to soak up all the soup. Shiok! 

Overall, a decent bowl of Bak Kut Teh. Certainly not the best. In terms of price, it was affordable considering that the place was air conditioned and there was no service charge (the service in terms of ordering, serving, refilling of soup was prompt and efficient). 

Song Fa Bak Kut Teh 松發肉骨茶 (New Bridge Road)

17 New Bridge Road #01-01

Tel: 6438 2858

Opening Hours: Tue to Sun 11am to 10pm
                          Closed on Sun
Website
Facbook

Location

Songfa Bak Kut Teh (New Bridge Road) - a few units away

11 New Bridge Road #01-01

Tel: 6533 6128
Opening Hours: Tue to Sun 7am to 10pm
                          Closed on Sun

Songfa Bak Kut Teh
UE BizHub East (North Tower Office)
#01-38, 6 Changi Business Park Ave 1
Tel: 6694 8098
Opening Hours: Daily 1030am to 930pm

Yayoiken Japanese Restaurant (Bugis+)

Yayoiken a well-known Japanese restaurant chain specialises in serving Japanese-Western cuisine. The Japanese restaurant has come a long way with its first stall opened in Kayabacho, Tokyo more than 125 years ago! At that time, western cuisine was rare in Japan. Today, Yayoiken has 180 restaurants in Japan and 60 in Thailand. In Singapore, Yayoiken has two outlets. The first was opened Liang Court in December 2011 while it's second outlet is at Bugis+ which was opened in May 2012. 

Miso Katsu Set $13.90

Ordered the Miso Katsu Set which consisted of rice and soup along with a main dish (Miso Katsu) and two side dishes (Pickles and Beancurd). Yayoiken follows the traditional culinary concept called 'ichiju-sansai' which literally means 'one soup and three sides'. This refers to a three dishes (one main and two sides) along with rice and miso soup.

Miso Katsu Set - Pickles

Free flow of pickles, every table has a bottle full of 'tsukemono' pickles placed at the side.

Miso Katsu Set - Miso Katsu

The Miso Katsu, pork cutlet simmered with miso paste (sauce) was served with potato and an egg. The Miso Katsu was well flavoured but too tough for my liking. In addition, the miso paste made the crust of the katsu soggy. I should have have realised that before ordering. The upside was that the the miso paste complemented well with rice. 

Service wise, had a hard time getting the attention of the service staff. They seemed to be under-staff and unable to cope with the crowd.

Yayoiken Japanese Restaurant (Bugis+)
201 Victoria Street
#01-08 Bugis+ (former Iluma)
Tel: 6636 5448
Opening Hours: Daily 10am to 10pm 
Website
Location

Yayoiken Japanese Restaurant (Liang Court)
117 River Valley Road
#B1-50 Meidi-Ya Supermarket, Liang Court
Tel: 6338 7170
Opening Hours: Daily 10am to 10pm

View FoodieFC's Singapore Food Map in a larger map