mala

the bowl of ingredients were flavourfully incorporated with a mala fragrance that balanced salty and spicy. however, i was disappointed with the kind of noodles they used which were the indomie noodles because they aren’t as thick and curly as maggi noodles which hold alot more flavour and absorb more sauce. hence, this dish was not as satisfying as i would have liked it to be even though its flavour carried potential.

rating: 6.5/10

for a food court in town, i think the price tag was pretty reasonable given that we had 2 maggis and 2 bowls of rice. we got da la and the bowl came dotted with countless cut chilis and chili padi, so the spice factor was certainly there. though the ingredients were generally well incorporated with the mala fragrance, the noodles were slightly overcooked and soggy which reduced the satisfaction of eating it.

rating: 6/10

found a hidden gem in the food court (now called Food Scholar instead of KOPI seletar) of greenwich!! this newly opened mala stall serves extremely affordable mala hotpots that give you a bang for your buck. ingredients here are charged at $1.99/100g for everything and the weight and price of your bowl is shown on the scale so the pricing is suuper transparent!

the pictured bowl consisting of chicken and pork belly slices for 2 people, along with luncheon meat and two maggis + two bowls of rice amounted to only $8.60!! how value is that 🥳 the pot of ingredients were fragrant while being numb and spicy which hit all the standards of an honest, good bowl of mala. though there are of course better contenders out there, it’s become a frequent mala spot for me as it’s near my house.

found this mala stall hidden in an obscure Kopitiam in sengkang. i’d say im one who can handle her spice but this stall’s 中辣 (medium spicy) surprised me as the ingredients i’d chosen had been seasoned and cooked to pack a substantial punch! not only was it satisfyingly spicy, i could tell that they did not just stop at the basic spices as there was substantial depth to the numbness and fragrance of the dish.

furthermore, the prices of the ingredients are pretty affordable and reasonable, with meats going at $2.30/100g and vegetables at $1.30/100g.

overall, their selection of ingredients are fresh and huuuge and i enjoyed picking from the variety. i definitely see myself on return visits if i’m in the area!

rating: 3.8/5