While exploring the newly opened Thomson East Line brings me to Ah Five Hainanese Chicken Rice near Mayflower MRT station Exit 3. What caught my attention was a petite young lady behind the chopping board. It is a rare sight in the hawker scene. The stall, run by a sister and brother team, is inside a coffeeshop at block 158 Ang Mo Kio Ave 4. They are the children of Mr Lee Tai Keng, the founder of Five Star Chicken Rice.
The petite young lady is Natalie, who has just finished her Master in Intellectual Property. Instead of joining the corporate world, she decided to open Ah Five Hainanese Chicken Rice to continue her dad's legacy. Her dad, Mr Lee, founded Five Star Chicken Rice at 224 East Coast Road. He later entered into a partnership with Mr Yeo Ban Seng to open the current Five Star Chicken Rice at 191 East Coast Road. Mr Lee has since sold his share of the business and is no longer associated with the present Five Star Chicken Rice.
So how does Ah Five Hainanese Chicken Rice fare? I visited the stall twice with two different groups of friends, and they both enjoyed it. The stall uses kampong chicken which is leaner but tastier than the broiler. The poached chicken is tender with a sinful but yet so delicious layer of fatty skin. We have the Half Chicken priced at $15.
If half a chicken is too much for you, you can go for the 1 Person Set priced at $5. I like how Natalie chopped the poached chicken into chunky pieces. However, the rice was not as fragrant on my second visit. Maybe there is some consistency issue which I hope they can get it sorted. An essential element for a good plate of chicken rice is the chilli sauce. The spicy and tangy chilli sauce complements the chicken rice excellently, zesting up the whole experience.
Besides the poached chicken, the stall offers Shredded Chicken Porridge ($3) and Special Chicken Fried Rice ($5). The porridge and fried rice are cooked by her brother, Lex. The fried rice fried a la minute comes with the poached chicken too.
Ah Five Hainanese Chicken Rice is an unexpected discovery. It is another good chicken rice stall I will recommend. I am glad to see Natalie and Lex, willing to continue Mr Lee's legacy, learning from the Master himself. They have spent months learning and perfecting their skills before opening the stall a month ago in August 2021. If you are in the area, do support them.
Ah Five Hainanese Chicken Rice
Blk 158 Ang Mo Kio Ave 4
Singapore 560158
Nearest MRT: Mayflower (TE Line)
Opening Hours:
Daily: 730 am - 230pm
Direction: Alight at Mayflower MRT station. Take Exit 3. Walk to destination. Journey time about 4 minutes. [Map]
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