Eat 3 Bowls 呷三碗 (Boon Keng)

Used to be only at Arab St but now it's popping up everywhere. This the only brunch I've seen that's not crowded, guess not many knew bout this new location.
For someone who don't eat rice, I always ordered their 3 in 1 麻油鸡饭, 卤肉饭 and Oyster Mee Sua set. They might look plain n simple but 真的很够味. We also ordered some sides which was alright. We came ard 5pm on a weekday n there wasn't any other patrons at all. Price wise always very pocket-friendly.

The Crispy Fried Chicken was decent, lightly salted and not too oily so it’s perfect for sharing with your dining kakis. You can choose between spicy or non-spicy.

There's also nothing more comforting & satisfying than slurping up the silky smooth Oyster & Intestine Mee Sua with the rich & gloopy bonito-flavoured gravy. The decently sized oysters were plump and fresh (though I wish the portion was more generous), and the intestines were cleaned and braised well!

Happy to know there's a 呷三碗 [ Eat 3 Bowls ] @eat3bowls outlet with a retro-style night market theme at Bendemeer where I can satisfy my Taiwanese street food cravings! I might not have enough tummy space to eat 3 bowls, but I would absolutely wipe this bowl of authentic Lu Rou Fan clean! 🍚🍚🍚 As far as the OG goes, their braised pork rice never disappoints with their meat-to-rice ratio. The braised meat leans towards the chunkier and fattier side, but its melt-in-the-mouth texture goes super well with the short-grain rice. The portion size might seem small, but I felt it was just right after sharing some side dishes with friends.

Eat3Bowls is one of those names in the local F&B scene that really needs no introduction to most these days — also one of those F&B names which we had been following since their very early days when they had just first started out operations. For those whom are unaware, Eat3Bowls had actually started out with humble beginnings being an establishment that operated out of a stall located in Seah Im Food Centre; that was eventually before it had opened their very first independently-run store of its own at Crawford Lane. Since then, they had also opened another location in Pasir Panjang; the outlet being decked with a railway theme as opposed to the classroom theme at Crawford Lane — this is followed by their very first outlet situated at the mall in Compass One. Eat3Bowls have since closed down their long-standing Crawford Lane outlet in recent times; that being said, they seemed to have moved the operations of Crawford Lane into their new premises at 80 Bendemeer Road (i.e. the building formerly known as Hyflux Innovation Centre) near Boon Keng MRT Station. This outlet is decked to replicate the scenes of a Taiwan Night Market; fake graffiti on walls, Da Pai Dang 大排档-style mobile carts and an area replicating the entrance to a cinema can be found within the space — this is also their largest outlet as yet with high ceilings and well-spaced seats that is a departure from their slightly cramped seatings in their other outlets. Eat3Bowls have never detracted from serving up Braised Pork Rice, Shredded Chicken Rice and Oyster & Intestine Mee Sua — all these, along with the side dishes, fried dishes and a line-up of soup can be found in the food menu here. For beverages, one can expect a few tea-based and fresh milk-based beverages, as well as canned drinks and coffee; there are also alcoholic options available as well.

We really wanted to give their other items a go but we were visiting the Eat3Bowls outlet at Bendemeer Road with a dining partner whom has yet to check out any of the Eat3Bowls locations before. Since this was the case and considering how difficult it was for us to give some of their items a miss considering how far back our last visit to Eat3Bowls was, the Eat3Bowls Set was the item we went for. Patrons can also opt for the Eat3Bowls ala-carte; the ala-carte variant would see the Braised Pork Rice, Shredded Chicken Rice and Oyster & Intestine Mee Sua served in smaller bowls / tasting-size portions to allow the patron to give all three items a try in one seating — the set adds a drink of the patron’s choice to the “tasting platter”. Our choice of drinks would be the Cheese Foam Tea. We have written about the Eat3Bowls Set during our previous visits to Eat3Bowls’ other locations; that being said, we are really glad that these folks are able to withstand the test of time and have kept their quality of food consistent throughout all these years. We have always found it difficult to decide on which of the three bowls is the best one to order whenever we are here; all of them being quite integral to the establishment and what they are all about.

Starting off with the Shredded Chicken Rice, the Shredded Chicken Rice is simple and comforting — a dish that often comes with a lack of flavour in most other locations, we liked how the scallion oil provided so much flavour to the shredded chicken rice; there was also a consistent texture between the white rice and the shredded chicken, where the shredded chicken maintain its moisture and juiciness and went absolutely well with the white rice — the coriander cutting through all those savoury notes. When it came to the Oyster & Intestine Mee Sua — this was actually the very first item which we had tried from Eat3Bowls during their days at Seah Im Food Centre when they had first started business; the Oyster & Intestine Mee Sua is a little less viscous, sticky and dense as what we recalled it to be. That being said, it still remains especially flavourful; savoury with a tinge of “spiciness” from the grated ginger that gives it some zing — the Mee Sua being all soft while the intestines are cleaned well and free from any undesirable stench. Even the oyster used is fresh; free from any sharp brininess that would otherwise interfered with the flavours of the Mee Sua.

Of course, the last bowl is probably our favourite Braised Pork Rice of all time — their Braised Pork Rice had never disappointed with sweet ratio of braised pork to rice beneath. For one, there is enough braised liquid to flavour up the entire bowl — it really does not take long for us to just wipe the entire bowl clean as a result. The braised pork belly at Eat3Bowls are known to be a little chunkier than that of most Taiwanese eateries around the island; this resorts in a bowl where one can feel the meat, though the one here comes with a melt-in-the-mouth texture with a good mix of fatty parts against lean parts that doesn’t require much chewing to down. The braised pork also came having absorbed all of that savouriness from the braising liquid that it is stewed in; a consistent flavour runs throughout the whole bowl without the pork having carried a porky stench or being particularly meaty — something that makes their rendition of the Braised Pork Rice so appealing to us.

Where the Cheese Foam Tea is involved, we actually felt that they had made quite a good attempt in replicating what has been done by bubble tea establishments all across the island — we usually dislike the Cheese Foam from most bubble tea establishments where it feels overly aerated or flatly salty. Here, the Cheese Foam does have that touch of dairy but was also of the right density; there was also a choice to opt for “no sugar” for the tea itself — we did managed to taste that strong hint of tea. One thing that we note about the Eat3Bowls Set is how filling it actually is — despite it being three items served in tasting-sized potions, all three bowls are filled to the brim; almost as good as ordering a main. Eat3Bowls is one of those brands which has stuck to its roots and garnered a following for being consistent — while prices have increased since their days at Seah Im Food Centre, they have been known to serve up a slice of Taiwan without having one making the travel to Taiwan just to find that satisfaction to fix that craving. It is interesting to see how Eat3Bowls have grown over the years, being an establishment that is also well-recognised in the local F&B scene for doing what they do; we do like to congratulate them on the opening of the new outlet at 80 Bendemeer Road, and wishing them success in what is to come!