East Coast Road has never been short of interesting food options — new to the neighbourhood is Cheeky BeeHoon 麒记 刺激米粉, a new eatery that has recently opened taking over the former premises of Ma La Ma La Tang 马辣麻辣烫; some folks whom have been following the local F&B scene for long enough would probably know the same shophouse previously also housed the now-defunct Holqa Cafe, as well as the now-defunct Meet & Meat as well. Cheeky BeeHoon is quite a peculiar addition to the Katong neighbourhood, considering how the recent F&B additions to the neighbourhood are pretty specialty coffee-centric. Turns out, Cheeky BeeHoon is a concept that is run by Chef Darwin Wong — a chef whom has clinched multiple awards and had previously worked in notable establishments such as Jaan, and is also the Chef-Owner of Jidai Restaurant at Circular Road. Taking over a rather small shophouse unit as compared to that of the shophouse units that are occupied by their neighbours, Cheeky BeeHoon was decked in a decor theme that screams of nostalgia — one could definitely find the rustic wooden furnishings along with old photographs and poster hung on the walls; there is also an old-school payphone that takes the space towards the end of the space. As what one would have expected from its namesake, Cheeky BeeHoon’s primary offerings would be their Bee Hoon dishes — there are only three to choose from here; two of them being dry noodle dishes whilst only one is a soup-based dish. Apart from the Bee Hoon items, one can also opt for a variety of sides to share around the table as well.

Being folks whom generals do not have a liking with soup dishes, we would usually have went for the dry noodle options whilst visiting such establishments. For pretty much reasons unknown, we decided to go for the Cheeky Bee Hoon (Soup) instead — a move that we would not really see ourselves going for. Nonetheless, we were especially surprised with the Cheeky Bee Hoon (Soup). It turns out that the Cheeky Bee Hoon (Soup) listed on their “Mains” section of the menu is actually slightly different from the Signature Cheeky Bee Hoon (Soup) that is listed in the “Signatures” section of the menu. The Signature Cheeky Bee Hoon (Soup) comes with elements such as cabbage, pork slices, clams, fried shallots, spring onions and Goji Berry — all accompanying their soup and the Bee Hoon; the Signature Cheeky Bee Hoon (Soup) comes with all that is already included in the Cheeky Bee Hoon (Soup), plus the addition of pork balls and minced pork. Having the first sip of the soup and we are already pretty much sold by what they have to offer — the soup was quite broth-like; there is a certain richness which gave it a rather clean starting note. That being said, it slowly transits into a umami base note, followed by a peppery kick towards the end; the broth being one that feels especially layered with its contrast of flavours. When enjoyed together with the pork slices and the bee hoon itself, there seems to be quite an evident hint of wok-hei going on with the Cheeky Bee Hoon (Soup); we especially liked how the bee hoon was able to maintain its springiness despite being soaked in the broth for an extended period of time — the pork slices also free from any undesirable porky stench and was easy to chew. Meanwhile, the clams were fresh and meaty, while the elements such as the cabbage carried a natural sweetness and a crunch; the Goji Berries provided a soft bite that bursts of yet another dimension of subtle sweetness as one chews on it. Overall, a very different Bee Hoon dish that felt different from what we have been exposed to thus far.

We were actually really impressed with how the Cheeky Bee Hoon (Soup) turned out to be. For someone who does not necessarily like soupy items, the Cheeky Bee Hoon (Soup) came with a broth that we absolutely loved — we did find ourselves sipping on the broth even when there was no other elements left in the broth itself. There is just so much that is happening in the broth that made it so good on its own; all this can only be made possible by the efforts of the chef in experimenting the different ingredients that should go into the broth, whilst also taking into account the proportion of the ingredients that should be used in the preparation process — we could imagine the level of effort that was being placed in the R&D of the recipe of its various offerings here, with the end product being a combination of chef’s knowledge on the produce as well as his cooking techniques. Apart from having a stellar broth, the entire bowl is boosted with the use of premium ingredients with great execution — all these coming up to a bowl of bee hoon soup that is quite unlike any other that we had tried thus far. The folks behind the establishment, including Chef Darwin himself, was actively engaging with their patrons during the lull time — not just simply gathering feedback on the food served at Cheeky BeeHoon, but also answering any queries as well as explaining the concept behind Cheeky BeeHoon. It is needless to say that Cheeky BeeHoon is a product of a lot thought, with some meticulous attention to detail — lots of time and effort poured in just for their patrons to have a taste of their very best. Prices of the various Mains can be said as somewhat affordable being priced at $8.80, while the Signature Cheeky Bee Hoon comes at $11.80 as an ala-carte item; we would say it is reasonable considering how they seem to have done many of the elements from scratch. It is needless to say that we are looking forward to return to Cheeky BeeHoon to probably give their Cheeky Bee Hoon (Dry) a try some day — definitely an interesting option that is outside the realm of specialty coffee to go for at Katong; a name to keep a look out for as well!