They have pedigree, alongside Swee Guan (one of my favourites), as inheritors of a charcoal-fried legacy — and it seems some magic from that legacy remains.
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I was immediately floored by an overload of umami from the stock, and a supremely fragrant profile due to some very tangible garlic notes and the inclusion of pork lard. The sambal was similarly very fragrant and complex, adding a different layer of umami which elevated the flavour profile further. Alas, whilst the flavour-bomb was stimulating, it was a precarious hair away from plummeting into over-saltiness.
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Their pedigree naturally made me expect wok hei, and it's a good amount but not close to their geylang cousin's insanely smokey rendition. The texture is the wet type that feels a bit goopy and some of the noodles were slightly mushy, maybe from over-frying.
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The prawns were sizeable, but didn't feel particularly fresh and crunchy, though honestly I don't care about freshness of prawns in hokkien mee. Overall, it's definitely extremely enjoyable despite some small flaws, and any hokkien mee lover should try this.
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📍 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗕𝘂𝗹𝗹𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗛𝗮𝘄𝗸𝗲𝗿𝗕𝗮𝗿, 𝟯𝟵𝟲 𝗘 𝗖𝗼𝗮𝘀𝘁 𝗥𝗱, 𝗦𝗶𝗻𝗴𝗮𝗽𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝟰𝟮𝟴𝟵𝟵𝟰
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