Inside the same corner coffeeshop at 354 Joo Chiat Road that houses “Da Dong Prawn Noodles” and “Mellvin Seafood” is an often overlooked stall that tries very hard.
The aunty who runs it, sells “bak kut teh”, fried beehoon and “ban mian”. She use to manage the drinks stall previously and to be honest, the reason I have been reticent to try her food is because she was very absent minded and often got our orders wrong. I was worried the same would apply to her cooking. But it’s been several months since she set up and she now has an elderly gentleman assisting her too. So I decided to give her a chance. The main reason is because I love “ban mian” and secondly, had spied “mani chye”, a vegetable I love, at her prep area.
The above bowl of dry style “mee hoon kway” was what I ordered and it didn’t disappoint. Cooked al dente, the pieces of noodles were very similar in texture and thickness to the famous stall at Geylang Lorong 32. The dark coloured sauce, thankfully, wasn’t as sweet as the other popular one in Whampoa Road Hawker Centre. It also had a pleasant fragrance of sesame oil and came topped with braised mushrooms, fried shallots and crispy ikan bilis. I had requested for extra vegetable and she’d kindly obliged, filling the accompanying bowl of soup to the brim with it. Also in there was an egg and some minced pork. So tasty!
I am glad I took a gamble and tried aunty’s food. It turned out to be much tastier than I had anticipated. Am planning to return for more soon.
Please note that some waiting is needed for orders to be ready as she takes time to prepare, so it would be better to visit her stall when you are not in a rush.