Golden Charcoal @ Bedok North Street 1 - Zichar By An Indian Head Chef Fluent In Mandarin

Golden Charcoal, located at Bedok North Street 1 is a new Zichar stall by two young partners. Justin, the owner, used to work in the finance industry while his head chef, David (小黑), worked for a zichar stall in the Thomson area. Currently, they are having promotions offering two crabs for $60.

Mala Chicken 3/5

My friend who has dined here a few times is in charge of ordering some of her favourite dishes. We started with Mala Chicken, whereby the tender chicken is tossed in fragrant mala sauce. While the mala is pungent, I thought it was a bit heavy with the sodium chloride.

Prawn Paste Chicken 3.8/5

I think children will love the Prawn Paste Chicken here. Not only is it juicy, but it is also incredibly crispy. However, I prefer the prawn paste flavour to be more distinct.

Sambal Kang Kong 4/5

Sometimes, the most simple dish is the best way to show the chef's culinary skill behind the wok. The Sambal Kang Kong is one of the best I tried. The sambal is fragrant and with the greens still having a nice crunch.

Assam Fish Head 4/5

Another beautiful dish on the menu is the Assam Fish Head. The fresh fish head is complemented by the pungent assam, which is incredibly delicious. I could not help drenching my plate of rice with the flavoursome sauce.

Cereal Fried Rice

For some carbo intakes, diners can go for the Cereal Fried Rice or Moonlight Hor Fun. Children will enjoy the Cereal Fried Rice. The topping of the sweet and crispy cereal brightens up the fluffy fried rice. 

Moonlight Hor Fun 3.8/5

For the Moonlight Hor Fun, I can't help comparing it to my favourite at KEK Seafood. The style here is the savoury type packed with wok hei. Give the egg a good toss to give the noodles an enjoyment coat of creaminess. 

Chilli Crab 4.2/5

Diners should not miss the current two crabs for $60 promotion. We have it cooked with chilli crab sauce. The sauce is legit, and it is one of the best I have eaten. Best is to order some mantou to wipe up the yummy chilli crab sauce. I heard their mala crab and black pepper crab are as good too.

Note: This is an invited tasting.


Golden Charcoal Seafood
Blk 204 Bedok North Street 1
#01-435
Singapore 460204
Tel: +65 97304808
Facebook
Website
Nearest MRT: Bedok (EW Line)

Opening Hours:
Daily: 1130am - 230pm, 530pm - 1030pm

Direction:
1) Alight at Bedok MRT station. Take Exit B. Turn left to the pathway between Bedok Mall and Bedok Interchange hawker centre. Walk to the end. Walk to block 204. Walk to the coffeeshop facing the park. Journey time about 4 minutes. [Map]

Sin Ho @ Bedok North Street 1 Market and Food Centre - Serving One Of The Best Har Cheong Kai In Singapore

So I have heard about this zi char stall at Bedok North Street 1 Market and Food Centre that serves one of the best Prawn Paste Chicken (Har Cheong Kai) in Singapore, and they are sold out pretty fast. The gang arrived as early as 5pm at Sin Ho zi char stall for dinner, so that we manage to have the so-called legendary prawn paste chicken which even MissTamChiak has to made several trips to eat it. The stall sells fish soup in the day, and at night it is turned into a zi char stall offering hearty and comforting cooked dishes.

Prawn Paste Chicken 4.5/5

The sight of the Prawn Paste Chicken ($8 for 6pc/ $12 for 9pc / $16 for 12pc) with its reddish exterior is already a sign of what is good to come. In fact, I could even smell the fermented shrimp paste fragrant when the dish is served. Crispy on the exterior, yet juicy inside flavoured with the distinct fermented shrimp paste, no wonder this dish is so popular with the diners here. In fact, almost all the tables ordered the prawn paste chicken.

Crayfish Seafood Soup 3.5/5

The Crayfish Seafood Soup ($15) is light and sweet. You can find crayfish, clams, tofu, prawns, cabbage and more items in it. I suspect the soup base is what they used for their fish stall, as they also offer the normal Batang Soup on their dinner menu. Though the portion is generous, it lacked that crustacean robustness in the soup.

Prawn Omelette 4/5

The Prawn Omelette ($6) may look like a simple dish, but it is executed to perfection. It has a nice wok hei aroma with a fluffy interior and comes with big juicy prawn in it.

Sambal La La 3.8/5

Last but not least, we had the Sambal La La ($15) with plump and juicy flesh. I personally prefer it to be spicier, but for those that can't take too spicy, this will be just nice.

While most of the stalls are closed for the night, the hawker centre is buzzing with Sin Ho's diners. As it is in a hawker centre, the table seating may not be suitable for large families. And do remember to go early if you want to try the prawn paste chicken, or else prepared to be disappointed.


Sin Ho
Blk 216 Bedok North Street 1
#01-75
Singapore 460216
Nearest MRT: Bedok (EW Line)

Opening Hours:
Wed-Sun: 5pm - 9pm
(Closed on Mon-Tue)

Direction: 
1) Alight at Bedok MRT station. Take Exit B. Cut through the housing estate and walk to destination. Journey time about 8 minutes. [Map]

House of Happiness @ Simpang Bedok - The Heart Attack Pork Lard With Bacon, Furikake And Onsen Egg Claypot Rice Is To Die For

House of Happiness located at Simpang Bedok is a modernized claypot rice concept by the folks behind Mr Lor Bak. Realising that the number of claypot rice stalls were dwindling and customers are not willing to wait for more than 30 minutes for the rice to be cooked from scratch, House of Happiness has developed an unique method to shorten the cooking process as well as doing a part in preserving Singapore's heritage through their interpretation of  claypot rice dishes.

Lor Bak with Onsen Egg 4/5

It's inevitable that the signature Lor Bak has to be featured in their claypot rice. This is what made them famous. The Lor Bak with Onsen Egg ($7) is served in an individual claypot which is good for one pax consumption. Having tried their lor bak back at the Ubi outlet, I am glad to say the consistency is still there. For those that have not tried Mr Lor Bak's lor bak before, the braising sauce has a stronger herbal taste with a slight bitterness.

Assorted Mushrooms with Baby Bok Choy 4/5

The thoughtful eatery even offers a vegetarian claypot rice in the Assorted Mushrooms with Baby Bok Choy ($7). The natural sweetness from the oyster and shimeji mushrooms, together with the dark sauce made from red bean, shaoxing wine and garlic pairs excellently together with the cooked rice.

16 Hour Slow Cooked Teriyaki Pork Jowl 4.2/5

A crowd favourite is the 16 Hour Slow Cooked Teriyaki Pork Jowl ($7) which comes with pork cheek slices that have been sous vide for 16 hours, marinated in teriyaki sauce and pan seared. What I enjoyed is the tender pork jowl that comes with a delightful crunchy bite.

Pork Lard with Bacon, Furikake and Onsen Egg 4.5/5

My favourite is the Pork Lard with Bacon, Furikake and Onsen Egg Claypot Rice ($7). The sight of pork lard crowning the claypot rice already made me drool. Every mouthful of this has many beautiful flavours and textures at play which is irresistible not to go back for more.

Onsen Egg with Ikura and Toriko 3.8/5

Influenced by the Japanese cuisine is the Onsen Egg with Ikura and Toriko ($11). Besides the vibrant colour and its popping surprises with each mouthful of rice, I find the seafood flavours of the ikura and toriko kind of distorted the balance in flavours. The hipster diners may like it but this is my less favourite.

12 Hour Braised Pork Trotter 4.2/5

Besides the claypot rice, you may want to order some extra dishes to go along with it. I tried the 12 Hour Braised Pork Trotter ($8) which was both fatty and tender, absorbing the delicious braising sauce. The braising sauce is lighter and sweeter compare to the lor bak.

I like the claypot rice concept by House of Happiness. I think they have injected something new to a heritage dish, giving it a new lease of life to capture the appetite of the new generation as well as giving the old generation something new to try but not forgetting the fundamental of a good pot of rice.

Note: This is an invited tasting.


House of Happiness
Simpang Bedok
294 Bedok Road
Singapore 469450
Tel: +65 62412648
Facebook
Nearest MRT: Tanah Merah (EW Line)

Opening Hours:
Mon, Wed-Sun: 12pm - 10pm
(Closed on Tue)

Direction:
1) Alight at Tanah Merah MRT station. Take Exit B. Walk to bus stop at Tanah Merah MRT station (Stop ID). Take bus number 2, 9 or 48. Alight 2 stops later. Cross the road. Walk to destination. Journey time about 8 minutes. [Map]

Eng's Char Siew Wanton Mee @ East Village - The Claypot Rice Is More Popular Than The Wanton Mee

This may sounds a bit weird but I am at Eng's Char Siew Wanton Mee for claypot rice and not wanton mee. Yes, the East Village outlet sells claypot rice and some zichar dishes on top of their signature wanton mee with hot fiery chilli sauce. The outlet at East Village is franchised by Ah Ching the ex-chef of Geylang Claypot Rice. Hence the used of the name Eng's Char Siew Wanton Mee, selling wanton mee alongside his claypot rice. This is the only place where you can get both wanton mee and claypot rice.

Charcoal Cooked Claypot Rice 4/5

The Charcoal Cooked Claypot Rice ($7/$13/$23) uses old grains here. It is cooked from scratch, first over the gas stove for the rice grains to dry up and then transfer over to the charcoal stove, cooking for another 25 minutes together with the ingredients and sauce. The whole cooking process takes about 45 minutes. Hence be prepared to wait if you did not pre-order before turning up at the outlet.

During my visit, almost every table was having the claypot rice. Two things stood out for me in the claypot rice. First the chicken is very tender and the portion is quite substantial. Most of the time when I visit other claypot rice stalls, I have to request to any more chicken but I do not need to do so here. Second is the crispy brown rice grains at the bottom of the claypot. Ah Ching has developed a technique that allows him to get that crispy consistency at the bottom. While I enjoyed the claypot rice, I felt it somewhat lacked the robust flavours compared to other well known claypot places. Maybe the savoury dark sauce is not fragrant enough or it needs a further boast in flavours such as addition of salted fish or more flavourful Chinese sausages.

French Beans 4/5

As there is basically no vegetable in the claypot rice, we decided to order a plate of French Beans ($7/$9) to go along with the rice. It is simple but well executed with a delightful crunch.

Claypot Pork Knuckles 4/5

Besides the claypot rice, we also had the Claypot Pork Knuckles which was the special of the day. The pork knuckles which has absorbed the essence of the braising sauce, was fatty and juicy. Perfect to go along with my claypot rice.

If you are planning to try the claypot rice here, I would recommend calling the outlet to pre-order the clayot rice first. If not, you must be prepared to wait for around 45 minutes as the claypot rice needs to be cooked from scratch. While waiting you may want to have a plate of wanton mee then.


Eng's Char Siew Wanton Mee
East Village
430 Upper Changi Road
#01-09
Singapore 487048
Tel: +65 98680934
Nearest MRT: Tanah Merah (EW Line)

Opening Hours:
Daily: 8am - 10pm

Direction:
1) Alight at Tanah Merah MRT station. Take Exit B. Walk to bus stop at Tanah Merah MRT station (Stop ID). Take bus number 2, 9 or 48. Alight 2 stops later. Walk to destination. Journey time about 8 minutes. [Map]

Bai Nian Niang Dou Fu (百年酿豆腐) @ Viva Business Park - Handmade Yong Tau Foo That Always Has A Long Queue

Bai Nian Niang Dou Fu (百年酿豆腐) which has its flagship stall at Albert Centre Food Centre has extended its business and opened branches at People's Park Food Centre and Viva Business Park in Chai Chee. The queue at their flagship stall has always been long, hence it is good that they have expanded their business allowing many patrons to try their handmade Niang Dou Fu. During my visit to the Viva Business Park branch, there was already a queue when I reached there.

Niang Dou Fu Soup 4.2/5

A bowl of the Niang Dou Fu Soup ($5.50) comes with 7 different pieces of bite size Niang Dou Fu and noodles. In it, you can find prawn ball, pork ball, bitter gourd, beancurd, white, black and gold beancurd rolls stuffed with pork, fish, prawn and squid filling. All these are freshly made and cooked on the spot. The highlight among the various ingredients is actually the prawn roll that is made from tiger prawn flesh. It has an enjoyable bouncy texture. The soup itself is light and tasty.

Niang Dou Fu Dry 4/5

Besides the soup version, the stall also offers the dry version. Similar to the soup version, the dry version comes with the 7 different handmade niang dou fu. Replacing the soup, is the sweet sauce and chilli sauce. Personally I prefer the soup version as the sweetness of the sauce kind of masked the appreciation of the ingredients.

Chicken Wing 3.5/5

You can complete your meal with the Chicken Wing ($6 for 4pc). I like the honesty that I get 4 drumette and 4 wingette. Some stalls probably only get you 2 of each, which is actually only 2 chicken wings. Over here, you get the 4 whole chicken wings for $6. The wings are big and juicy too. I can taste five spices in the crispy batter, which is quite flavourful. However the crust from the batter is a bit too tough.

Bai Nian (百年) Niang Dou Fu
Viva Business Park
750 Chai Chee Road
#01-25
Singapore 469000
Facebook
Nearest MRT: Bedok (EW Line), Kembangan (EW Line)

Opening Hours:
Daily: 730am - 9pm

Direction:
1) Alight at Bedok MRT station. Take Exit A. Walk to bus stop at Bedok MRT station (Stop ID 84039). Take bus number 222. Alight 2 stops later. Walk to destination. Journey time about 6 minutes [Map]

2) Alight at Kembangan MRT station. Take Exit A. Walk to bus stop at Kembangan MRT station (Stop ID 83062). Take bus number 2, 7, 24, 25, 26, 28, 30, 33, 67 and 854. Alight 3 stops later. Walk to destination. Journey time about 10 minutes. [Map]

FatFuku @ Upper East Coast Road - Private Dining By Singapore-based Food Writer, Annette Tan

Private dining has been one of the latest trends in Singapore. After my visit to Lucky House Cantonese Private Kitchen, together with a couple of foodies, we made a booking at FatFuku which we waited for about a month for our reservation. For $95 per pax, you get about 7/8 dishes.

Keropok with Green Chilli Ikar

While we wait for the rest of the group to turn up, Annette from FatFuku offer us some Keropok with Green Chilli Ikar to snack on.

Devil Curry Pie 4/5

I have to say I was not expected to be served the Devil Curry Pie as it is an Eurasian dish and not a Peranakan dish. Nevertheless, the recipe comes with generous filling (chicken, sausages, mushrooms and carrots) in a buttery pastry.

FatFuku Mee Siam 4.2/5

The signature dish at FatFuku which almost everyone is talking about has to be her Dry Mee Siam. As we have the full view of the kitchen, I can see her pan fried the mee siam to get that crispiness. It is then topped with prawns and quail eggs. I like the idea that she has more of the tangy sauce at the side, allowing the mee siam to remain crispy while those that prefer to have it more saucy can help themselves to it.

Pork Belly Buah Keluak 4.5/5

We all went wow when the Pork Belly Buah Keluak is served. On top of the fragrant buah keluak fried rice is huge pieces of wobbly and tender pork belly cooked in buah keluak. I usually have ayam buah keluak and it usually turned out rather dry. This is a good change from the usual.

Ayam Tempra 4.5/5

A simple and hearty Peranakan dish cooked to perfection is the Ayam Tempra. Besides the tender chicken, the highlight foris the braised onions with their sweetness complementing the poultry.

Beef Cheek Rendang 5/5

This is probably the best Beef Cheek Rendang I have ever eaten. The aroma of the rempah and the melted in the mouth beef cheek, just come together like a beautiful note in a song, that just keeping sounding over and over in my head.

Nanka Lemak 4/5

Do you know that the whole jackfruit can be eaten? Using unripe jackfruit, this is made into the Nanka Lemak. The texture of the nanka is quite similar to artichoke. The whole experience is like have a bowl of vegetable curry.

Kueh Bingka Ubi 4.8/5

Not to be missed is the Kueh Bingka Ubi. a favourite nyonya tea time treat. The baked tapioca cake so soft and delicious. We even asked for second serving.

Dulce de Leche Ice Cream 4.5/5

Wrapping up the dinner, Annette made us some Dulce de Leche Ice Cream and Cookies. She even offered us coffee and tea.

Cookies 4.5/5

Reservation at FatFuku takes about a month. If I am not wrong, Annette is not doing this full time, she only hosts dinner up to 3 times a week. Annette is a well known food writers and she is still contributing to many publications as well as conducting cooking classes. If you ever getting a seating at her private dining, you will be assure that you will be in for a tummy good time.


FatFuku
451 Upper East Coast Road
Singapore 466499
Facebook
Website
Nearest MRT: Bedok (EW Line)

Direction: 
1) Alight at Bedok MRT station. Take Exit A. Walk to Bus Stop at Bedok MRT station (Stop ID 84039). Take bus number 137. Alight 6 stops later. Walk to destination. Journey time about 15 minutes. [Map]

Lucky House Cantonese Private Kitchen (陶然居) @ Upper East Coast Road - A Wonderful 8-Course Private Dining By Self Taught Chef

Together with 10 other foodie friends and after waiting for a good 2 months, we finally get to check out Lucky House Cantonese Private Kitchen (陶然居) at Upper East Coast Road. The venue of the private dining is actually at Chef Sam Wong's home. It opens on weekday and every night he can only accept two table of guests. We paid $80 per pax for a 8-course meal.

There are 2 rooms at Chef Sam Wong's home. We are seated at the bigger room which can sit up to 16 guests. The small room sits around 8-10 pax. Don't worry, it is air-conditioned, so you can dine in comfort.

Chef Wong does welcome his guests to step into his kitchen. This is probably the kitchen where one's grandmother used to cook in. At Lucky House, this is where Chef Wong works his magic.

Charcoal Boiled Pork Shoulder, Arrow Root and Peanut Soup 3.5/5

Our first dish is the Charcoal Boiled Pork Shoulder, Arrow Root and Peanut Soup. This has been slow cooked over charcoal fire for hours. Accordingly to Chef Wong, he used 3 batches of charcoal to cook this pot of soup. No salt is used either. For some, this may taste a little bland but I actually enjoyed the natural flavours extracted from the different ingredients and herbs.

Steamed Wild Caught Red Garoupa 4.2/5

I noticed Chef Wong was frying the shallots before drizzling them over the the Steamed Wild Caught Red Garoupa. It gives the fish a beautiful aroma, complementing the freshness of the wild caught fish.

Concubine Chicken 4.5/5

I not sure why the dish is called Concubine Chicken but the sight of it just makes me want to sink my teeth into them. The flavoursome chicken was tender and juicy. One of my favourite dishes of the night.

Fried Prawn with Rose Liqueur 4/5

The Fried Prawn with Rose Liqueur was plump, huge and crunchy. I find the seasoning a bit heavy for this dish but it goes well with a bowl of plain rice.

Lucky House Roasted Duck 4.5/5

A signature is the Lucky House Roasted Duck. The duck is marinated in fish sauce and soy sauce for 2 days and air dried. It is then charcoal grilled in his hand-built oven. The result is smokiness, crispy skin and tender meat.

Fried Organic Vegetable 4.8/5

Chef Wong doesn't like to use salt and garlic in his cooking. Hence we are surprised how sweet the Fried Organic Vegetable tasted. He shared that he uses fish sauce in placed of salt. On top of that, these vegetables are freshly harvested from a local farm.

Crayfish Omelette 5/5

The dining group's favourite dish has to be the Crayfish Omelette. I think we all have the initial thought that it is just a simple egg omelette dish. Never did we expect that the fluffy egg cooked to golden brown with chunky crayfish meat is such a perfect match. It has brought my love of egg omelette to a whole new level.

Shandong Peanuts and Kidney Beans Soup 4/5

Wrapping up our dining is the Shandong Peanuts and Kidney Beans Soup. Mildly sweetened with the used of rock sugar, I enjoyed the nutty soup which is quite refreshing after all the richness from the previous dishes. It is like have a cup of tea after a great meal.

For those that is hoping to dine at Lucky House Cantonese Private Kitchen, you have to be patient as the reservation is up to a good 2-3 months now. For those driving, parking is very limited. You have to park around Evergeen Gardens private estate. You are also welcome to bring your own wine as there are no corkage here.


Lucky House Cantonese Private Kitchen (陶然居)
267 Upper East Coast Road
Singapore 466413
Tel: +65 98237268
Facebook
Nearest MRT: Bedok (EW Line)

Opening Hours:
Mon-Fri: 630pm - 10pm

Direction: 
1) Alight at Bedok MRT station. Take Exit A. Walk to Bus Stop at Bedok MRT station (Stop ID 84039). Take bus number 137. Alight 4 stops later. Walk to destination. Journey time about 15 minutes. [Map]