Being a Chicken Corden Bleu lover, I have been looking high and low around restaurants, coffeeshops and hawker centres for the dish; so one could only imagine the excitement that I had when I passed by Ah Wah Western Food within the Foodpark coffeeshop at Blk 43 Cambridge Road recently, and made a mental note to return just for the item.

Whilst the name of the item here may sound like an innocent typo on first look being Chicken Golden Bleu rather than Chicken Corden Bleu, perhaps the naming seems more to be on purpose considering how their rendition of the Chicken Corden Bleu comes relatively thin and flat — almost like a cutlet instead of the usual variant, which comes rather thick considering how this dish features ham and cheese layered atop chicken breast, which is then usually rolled and battered with Panko crumbs and deep-fried.

Staying true to the old-school Western food stalls of the past, I liked how the chicken here has been brined and tenderised to achieve a savoury note and is pretty tender; rather than usual Panko crumbs for the batter, they seemingly have used biscuit crumbs instead — something that is less commonly used these days which really brought back a sense of nostalgia for the Chicken Golden Bleu here, which gave the batter a smoother texture aesthetically, but provided quite an addictive crunch and also some flavour as opposed to the Panko crumbs that is usually lighter and crispier though also somewhat bland in comparison. While there isn’t much of stringy cheese to talk about here, the Béchamel sauce(?) does ooze a little as one cuts through the Chicken Golden Bleu — does helps to enhance the texture of the dish, whilst also providing a contrasting note along with the ham and sliced processed cheese that is stuffed within. Ah Wah Western Stall seems to get the nostalgia factor right here; criss-cut fries which comes just so ever lightly crisp on the outside, but still retains its soft, fluffiness with the potato within and just lightly seasoned with salt, while the coleslaws comes served chilled being just sufficiently creamy but not too milky, yet retaining the crunch of the vegetables while the baked beans do come out of a can using a brand that most old-school western stalls used in the past — one that is rather balanced and does not quite leave a nasty aftertaste lingering. The garlic toast here was also fairly decent; carries a slight whiff of garlicky fragrance and sprinkled with a dash of pepper; light roasted for a slight crisp. all of these may sound a little dated for hipsters to probably appreciate when most other modern-day Western establishments allow one to pick and choose between several sides, but that’s how previous generations would probably enjoy their occasional splurge on a Western stall for something different back then.

Ah Wah Western Food is one of those Western stalls from the past which has survived over time; there is a black and white photo of the stall hanging just below the menu board — they are also one of the very few Western stalls that also packs their takeaway orders in paper boxes lined with sheet of waxed plastic wrap; even orders are taken down on a jotter book by hand for accounting purposes. Some may argue that there are better Western cuisine stalls out there — a fact which I don’t deny, but there is something about its rustic charm and flair from its food to its operations that I find interesting, not to mention how this place also feels like a humble, down-to-earth establishment given how low-profile and out-of-the-radar they are. If one is interested in local Western cuisine with an old-world charm, Ah Wah Western Food is a stall that one should check out.