klyeoh
December 25, 2023, 6:10am
9
Singapore does Hainanese chicken rice inestimably better than Malaysia. But you do get an idea of what the dish should taste like when you have it in Penang.
If you ever get to Singapore, try these ones:
Lunch at Ah Tai Hainanese Chicken Rice at Maxwell Food Centre. This under-rated Hainanese chicken rice spot is run by 64-year-old Wong Liang Tai @ Ah Tai, the former head chef at the more famous Tian Tian Hainanese Chicken Rice , hardly 10 paces away in the same food court.
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Ah Tai started his own chicken rice stall in April 2012 to rival that of his former employers of 20 years, when he was sacked after a huge row.
[Ah Tai vs Tian Tan]
Honestly, if you asked me, I can’…
Tian Tian Hainanese Chicken Rice may not have the best rendition of Singapore’s de facto national dish, but it’s certainly the best-known one - especially among foreign visitors.
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Current stall-owner, 74-year-old Hainanese matriarch, Foo Kui Lan, inherited the stall started by her older brother at Maxwell Food Centre back in 1987. Her family now runs the stall, plus a couple of branches around Singapore, with clockwork efficiency. Her daughter, Li Mei Yun , set up a central kitchen …
I know Cantonese chef, Maria Siew Pui Yin (萧佩英), since her Sin Nam Thong (新南唐) days back in the early 90s. Back then, she rejuvenated an old dim sum parlour, Nam Thong Pau (Est. 1926) run by her father into a small, bright outfit called Sin Nam Thong, specialising in roast meats (crisp-skinned roast pork, char siew BBQ pork, roast suckling pig), Cantonese noodle stir-fries, and her soysauce chicken. Her shop had the best plate lunch with roast meats then. Especially popular was her tasty soysau…
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