Soon Lee (Bedok Corner): Fried Carrot Cake and Fried Oyster

In the past, the only place that I could eat Fried Carrot Cake aka Chai Tau Kway was at home.
My Dad would fry it up (always the 'black' version) and we would promptly devour it because it's the bomb.
But now with more and more different types of cuisine getting certified Halal, you can get Fried Carrot Cake at any one of a number of places these days.

Many many years ago, I stumbled upon a stall at Bedok Corner selling Fried Carrot Cake, Fried Oyster and Char Kway Teow. And best of all - it was Halal! And plenty of people seemed to be flocking towards it so I guess they had to be doing something right.

So we hadn't visited Bedok Corner in quite awhile and one day, I grabbed the opportunity to get my Chai Tau Kway fix. And that's where the mystery began... (Watch out for the twist later)

Fried Carrot Cake (Black) ($3.00)

Definitely my preferred of the two versions is the 'Black' Fried Carrot Cake which is fried with thick sweet sauce to give it a nice sweet and soggy perfection. Comfort food and very tasty!!

Carrot cake pieces are mixed in with the sweet sauce and egg and it sounds so simple but it takes real skill to dish out a nice serving of Fried Carrot Cake (as like most other dishes). And for $3.00, you have to admit that Soon Lee definitely dishes out a very generous serving. That's enough for 2 people!

Only one problem though - the Chai Poh (Salted Radish) was missing!!

Fried Carrot Cake (White) ($3.00)

Very very very very seldom do I order the 'White' version. In fact, I think this might be only the 3rd time I'm doing so in my entire life!! I'm not saying it's bad (maybe just a bit boring) but I guess it's just individual preference.

The 'White' version as you can see is a lot less messy than it's sweet sauce counterpart. I guess this means you will get a more 'original' taste when you tuck into the fried carrot cake which has a nice semi-crispy omelette to top it off. You will definitely get a strong peppery taste.

One of the things I notice about both versions at Soon Lee is that it is not too oily which is a plus.
But again - no Chai Poh!! I'm not sure about you guys but that minced up pickled radish is a must for me in Fried Carrot Cake... Kinda lacks a certain kick without it. Anyone feel the same?

Fried Oyster ($5.00)

The best Fried Oyster we've reviewed (so far) was at the now-closed Mr Teh Tarik in Changi Village.
Could this version match up??

Definitely (again) and very generous portion for the price you pay and plenty of oysters for you to tuck into if you're a fan. But I think most of you go for the egg and flour part right? Admit it!!
Well the texture of the egg/rice flour part was quite crispy in some parts but definitely lacking a nice gooey texture overall.

On top of that, the sambal was actually quite disappointing. You can see from the picture that it's a bit watery and didn't have quite as much kick as you'd expect from the sambal.

But like I said - you oyster lovers should be happy :)
Pity about the rest of the dish though... I always remembered it being much nicer than this leh...
Oh well I guess the search continues...

AND HERE COMES THE TWIST!!!
The whole time I was eating, I was thinking to myself "How come the staff at the stall was different?". I'd ordered from that same stall location for many years and it was pretty much the same people all the time (aka a Chinese lady and the 2-3 cooks insides), This time, it was a Malay guy and one Chinese cook.

At first I thought maybe they were still on CNY break or something.
But then - we saw it.... Another stall behind us with the name 'Green Sky' and guess what - I saw the Chinese lady from the original stall there with the cooks!!

NO WONDER LAH!! It seems like the original people shifted to a different stall location. Soon Lee's signage looks similar to the old one so I guess it would be easy to overlook since the location of the stall is what most people would remember (kinda like the Internation vs Mizzy Nasi Lemak at Changi Village).

Adam's Verdict:
Fried Carrot Cake (Black) 3.5/5 -- Fried Carrot Cake (White) 2.5/5 -- Fried Oyster 2/5

Maryah's Verdict:
Fried Carrot Cake (Black) 3/5 -- Fried Carrot Cake (White) 3/5 -- Fried Oyster 3.5/5
Well, whatever happened there I am not sure. But I'm pretty sure we'll be visiting again soon to try out the 'original' stall at its new location and maybe even a Makan vs Makan??

Soon Lee (Bedok Corner)

Bedok Food Centre (Near Bedok Camp)
#01-02

Operating Hours:
10.30am til 9.30pm Daily
Closed on Mondays

McDonald's - Sunrise Rolls

From the first time I saw the promo video play on FB, I knew I wanted to have it.
The way the egg looked nice and wet and runny with the cheese. And the thick slices of chicken ham and all their salty goodness. What a delicious sight!

And even thought in my heart that it would not look like the picture, I simply had to try it ASAP.
So I woke up a little bit earlier one morning and headed down to McDonalds.

Sunrise Roll Chicken Ham ($2.95 ala carte)

Compare that with the pictures and the video?
Hmmm... close enough!

The scrambled eggs are the type you'd get when you order your Big Breakfast and it's laid out on a nice slice of cheese which has pretty much melted into gooey goodness for your dining pleasure. On top of that, you have two half-slices of chicken ham. Sounds like quite a treat if you ask me!

The eggs were pretty much the standard you'd get at Macs and the cheese seems to have done us all a favour by melting like that. The chicken ham was really delicious because you get that slightly salty kick when you bite down.

I'd like to say I wanna complain about how thin the chicken ham slices were compared to the video but I won't because they're actually thicker than I expected them to be in real life.

Hmmm... let's see. How can put this into context for you. Okay I've got it.
You know the Turkey Ham slices you get at Burger King right? Well this is thick like 3 slices of that.
Get the picture?

Sunrise Roll Sausage ($3.45 ala carte)

That's the sausage version. The cheese looks a lot less melted so I guess it seems that it depends on your luck on whether you cheese melts.

The chicken sausage is the same one you'll get from your Sausage McMuffin so I wasn't really too crazy about it. I guess i'm kinda bored from having it so many times in pretty much most of their breakfast items.

I have to say that these Sunrise Rolls (especially the chicken ham one) are really quite tasty. It's a nice hearty bite in the morning which I'm pretty sure most people won't have a problem with.
But here comes the biggest (SHOCKER) debating point.

Galaxy Note 2 vs Sunshine Rolls

Some of our readers commented on our FB post and said that the rolls were really small.
And I thought to myself... "Can't be that bad lah".

Well as you can see, the rolls are bloody small lah!
That's my Samsung Galaxy Note II flanked by Sunshine Roll Sausage and Sunshine Roll Chicken Ham.
That's right! The Sunshine Roll Chicken Ham is just about half the size of my Note 2!

As delicious as the roll was, the questions now lie before us.
1. Is it worth the price for something so small?
2. Even if you're willing to pay the price, how many do you need to be satisfied?

I had the Chicken Ham one plus a Hashbrown and and Iced Milo and was still hungry. I finished off the Sausage one before I could say I was pretty full up. But that's just me! Reader @FirhasBizar says he "needs 4 or 5 of those baru cukup!".

You can buy the meal at $4.00 for the Chicken Ham or $4.50 for the Sausage and it comes with a Hashbrown and a drink. Or if you're really hungry or buying for the kids maybe then you have the choice of getting the Sunrise Roll Breakfast Bundle which comes with one of each Sunrise Roll plus a Hashbrown and a drink for $7.45.

So what do you think? Worth the price?

Adam's Verdict:
Sunshine Roll Chicken Ham 3.5/5 -- Sunshine Roll Sausage 2/5

Well I guess some will like it and some will not and some will wait for someone to buy it for them.
Whatever the case, take my advice - eat them while they're hot because not so nice when they're cold!

 McDonald's

120 outlets islandwide
www.mcdonalds.com.sg
Delivery Hotline - 6777 3777

Operating Hours: Varies depending on outlet

Pondok Jawa Timur - Tahu Telor

Okay okay so I know it's weird.
When you try out some place new for the first time, you normally go for their main dishes or at least the dishes which are supposed to be the star attraction.

But this is not the case today...

Two of our avid readers, @Siti Zulfie, messaged us on FB one day to update us that Pondok Jawa Timur was finally certified Halal. We first visited Pondok Jawa Timur when we were doing the EpiKebabs review but they informed us that they were not yet certified Halal. Well, I guess they fixed that problem!

Tahu Telor ($9.90)

That's right. We started with a side dish. And that's all we had.
Truth be told, we were just killing time before a movie and thought this would be a nice snack.
And what better snack than some fried stuff right?

First things first - this is a huge serving. Definitely enough to share between 4-5 people.

Second things second - It's actually quite tasty. The peanut sauce is quite nice and not too think or too watery. Gives a nice oomph to the dish especially when the deep fired egg soaks up the gravy and you take a nice big soggy bite. Nice big pieces of tahu mixed in there too.

Third things third -

I don't know if this is an Indo thing but there was a hidden treasure beneath the tahu and the telor.
Potatoes and lontong! It was as if there was a golden blanket covering these little morsels!
Anyways it wasn't much. Just some extra filler-uppers I guess.

Another thing you might want to take note of is the sambal on the side.
This is some spicy stuff so beware if you're not a fan of fiery mouths.

And they also had some pickled cucumber on the side which is always welcome in my books.

Es Kelapa Muda Gula Jawa ($4.50) & Es Soda Gembira ($3.50)

Well just because we had only a side dish doesn't mean we didn't need to wash it down.

I had my usual choice of Soda Gembira.
Unfortunately it wasn't good and was pretty tasteless actually. Can't beat the #1 Soda Gembira in my books.
And it was a little pricey too.

My darling wife had the  Es Kelapa Muda Gula Jawa.
It's not Gula Melaka okay.. it's Gula Jawa! Which was actually a very nice touch to the coconut juice but unfortunately they were a little stingy on the coconut itself. Not worth the price.

Adam's Rating:
Tahu Telor 3/5 -- Es Soda Gembira 1/5

Maryah's Rating:
Tahu Telor 2.5/5 -- Es Kelapa Muda Gula Jawa 3.5/5

Maybe next time we will get a chance to try out the mains.
@Siti Zulfie recommended a few like Nasi Kuning Komplit, Nasi Campur Surabaya, Ayam Bakar Kecap and Gado-Gado! We have a favourite haunt for Indo food but seeing as to how the dishes at Pondok Jawa Timur are quite similar, I guess it's time to do a comparison!

Pondok Jawa Timur

Wilkie Edge
8 Wilkie Road #01-21

Tel: 6884 5853

Operating Hours:
11.30am til 10.00pm Daily

Abdul Basith - Mee Kuah

Here's another one from my lunchtime adventures in Chai Chee.

So I've tried the Mutton Steak and the Mutton Chop from this stall (and officially reviewed it) so here's the next installment - Mee Kuah.

I know a lot of people are very particular about how they like their Mee Kuah to be.
Some expect it to be spicy or a certain consistency. Some expect a special kind of flavour to be present with every mouthful of noodles and that fiery gravy.

I've heard stories about some really nice ones but I've only had a few different versions and only officially reviewed one - Saffron's Mee Kuah. So here's the Abdul Basith version.

Mee Kuah ($3.50)

Now that doesn't look that bad right? Well it doesn't taste that bad either!

A nice consistency for the gravy. Not too watery and definitely full of flavour.
I understand that Mee Kuah is basically a peppery spice soup and this definitely lives up to that reputation. And in this case, I even asked for extra spicy so it definitely packed a punch.

Adam's Verdict:
Mee Kuah 3.5/5

But as always, the problem with the food at Abdul Basith is the consistency.
Had this three times at this stall to be honest and it was different every single time.
A general tip - it's gonna be good if the Mamak Mullet is the one cooking.

Who's the Mamak Mullet? Well, look for the mullet. You'll know what I mean.

Abdul Basith

FOODHUB @ Chai Chee aka T1
Blk 26A Chai Chee Road

Operating Hours:
5.30am - 10pm Daily

Singgah Selalu

There's makan place near our home in JB in Taman university. It wasn't there when we first moved in but soon after it opened, a lot of our neighbours were talking about it. But we all know that sometimes, what people say may end up not really being the same cup of tea for someone else. Am I right?

When my Mum and Dad visited with some friends, they returned with mixed feeling.
Well, I guess there was only one way to find out - visit for ourselves!

So the menu at Singgah Selalu actually offers quite a lot of stuff. Mostly Malay-Chinese-Thai style cuisine but that alone means that you can expect one particular dish (i.e. beef, fish, veggies etc) being cooked in a large number of styles (i.e. black pepper, tiga rasa etc).

Nasi Goreng Cina (RM9.00 for 3 pax)

The main dish was a toss-up between rice and noodles. We ended up settling on Nasi Goreng Cina.

We ordered it because it sounded like a really simple dish that would go well with the other dishes we were planning to order. What didn't expect was to get a dish that was pretty much filling on its own!

Firstly, the serving for 3 pax could easily feed 4-5 pax even without any side dishes.
And if that's not enough, this dish was PACKO with all kinds of goodies!
Chicken! Seafood like squid and prawns! Egg! Vegetables! Mushrooms! You really get your money's worth!

And if you're thinking that they're putting a lot of stuff to mask the lack of taste well you'd be wrong.
This was actually really really tasty if you ask me. I'm not sure how any other choices would have turned out but I think we struck a winner with this one!

Daging Rusa Lada Hitam (RM16.50)

So we thought we'd be a little extravagant and have some venison aka daging rusa.
It's not something we have very often for 2 reasons - 1) it's bloody expensive and 2) it's difficult to find a place that knows how to cook it well. And since we were in Malaysia, we decided to take a chance.

KWANG KWANG KWANG....
Sorry kiddies wrong choice here. From the pic above alone you can probably see how oily the dish is.
And the meat was really tough to chew! They serve it on a hotplate which probably overcooked the meat.
I's still eatable (after a lot or chewing) but we'd recommend you either order a different meat like chicken/beef or maybe try a different style of daging rusa instead of black pepper.

Sup Ekor Goreng (RM12.50 small)

Aha! At least there was a saving grace!

I'd actually only just had Buntut Goreng Special for the first time recently at IndoChili and was so impressed that I simply had to try it here and I was not disappointed at all! Meat and collagen oh my!

The meat was not as tender as at IndoChili but hey that's not too bad. This was actually really really tasty and that's a big deal because I'm the guy who didn't fancy Sup Ekor at all just a few weeks ago!
I didn't really care for the soup here though. It wasn't really tasty so I just whacked the meat!

But fair warning - this one packs a really spicy kick. You can see from the picture how generous they are with the chillies right? Chilli lovers rejoice! Everyone else - order more water!

Actually, this was the only dish my parents recommended after their visit and I can see why!

Telur Bistik (RM8.80 small)

We've gotta have an egg dish right? So I chose the Telur Bistik.
There's something about eggs and veggies coated in a sweet-spicy gravy am I right?

And it's not just eggs and veggies... More goodies like chicken await!
As you can probably guess, I ended up eating most of this one.

Asparagus Goreng Belachan (RM9.40 small)

For our vegetable dish, we chose another one that's not really considered normal I guess.

Asparagus??? Yes!! Memang sedap!
And you don't have to worry - the belachan taste is not overly strong. Just right and very tasty!
Definitely went well with the other dishes we ordered.

And how to prove the asparagus was yummy?
Well, my darling wife is so not the asparagus-lover kind of person and even she said it was tasty!
We have another winner I'd say.

Adam's Verdict:
Nasi Goreng Cina 3/5 -- Daging Rusa Lada Hitam 1/5 -- Sup Ekor Goreng 4.5/5
Telur Bistik 5/5 -- Asparagus Goreng Belachan 4/5

Maryah's Verdict:
Nasi Goreng Cina 4/5 -- Daging Rusa Lada Hitam 0.5/5 -- Sup Ekor Goreng 2.5/5
Telur Bistik 3/5 -- Asparagus Goreng Belachan 5/5
In case you were wondering, Singgah Selalu actually has a few different branches located in Danga Bay, Kip Mart, Kota Tinggi, Kotaraya and (this location) U Mall in Taman U. No idea if all of them cook at the same standards though...

I guess the reason we love eating in Malaysia because it's cheap and you have such a wide variety to choose from. When you find that place that rocks, you'll probably go back again. I guess there are a few things at Singgah Selalu I wouldn't mind going back for...

Singgah Selalu

U-Mall
Jalan Pulai, Taman U,
Skudai, Johor, Malaysia

Operating Hours:
11.00am til 10.00pm Daily

Phuket Power! Part 3: Amena Burger (aka Soi Sansabai Burger)

Finally - the post all of you have been waiting for...
(And by 'all of you' i mean 'my brother')

So my brother headed to Phuket back in May 2012 and he came back raving about some burger that was apparently supposed to be very nice. "Soi Sansabai Burger aka SSSBB" he would keep saying.
He even went as far as to say - it was the best burger he'd ever had.

Some mighty claims to make for a burger eh.
Apparently he wasn't the only one who thought this burger was the bomb. Apparently it's so popular that they even have a fan page on FB! Hmmmm....

So we had to wait almost a year before we would have the chance.
It was actually quite irritating to heard my Brother keep repeating how much he was craving for the "SSSBB" month after month after month.

And finally, we made the trip to Phuket in March 2013.
This had better be worth it...

The very first night we were there, we started the walk to what was supposed to be the best burger in the world... But then something weird happened.

Apparently they had opened another stall which happened to be on the way to the original stall.
And it was a good thing we spotted it to.

So it's called Amena Burger and that's the entire menu.
And if you noticed - the sell BURGERS!

So since we were going to be there for a few days, we decided to try out the new outlet that just opened and go to the original stall later on.

So what did we decide to have?
Pretty much everything lah.

That's a picture of delicious proportions I tell you.

If you get the Beef Burger, it's a giant patty of beef.
If you get the Chicken Burger, it's strip of tender chicken.
All this in between a crisp bun with fresh veggies and sauces.

How can this possible get any better??
Oh wait. It can.

CHEESE!!!

Cheese Beef Burger (฿80)

This is one helluva beef patty.

It's seasoned just nicely and when they grill it, they leave a nice crispy char on the outside so you get a nice juicy bite with a little crunch.

The lettuce, onions and tomato are fresh so you get a nice serving of your veggies as well.

And of course, cheese is always welcome in my burgers.

One thing I actually really like is the bun.

It's not your average Gardenia or Ramly burger bun. I'm not sure if they make it themselves but this bun is perfect because it's got a nice crisp to it and it doesn't get soggy like other buns once the sauces hit it.

And believe you me, this is a big plus when you're eating a burger loaded with mayonnaise, chilli sauce and ketchup on the sidewalk in Phuket.

Chicken Burger (฿80)

For those expecting some minced chicken meat patty, think again.

Amena's Chicken Burger is made up of tender chicken breast strips.
It's grilled just nicely and of course you get all the usual trimmings like veggies and cheese.
The bun still rocks so go ahead and add in your sauces.

Some might say this is more of a sandwich and not a burger since there's no patty.
Well, call it what you want - it's still THE BOMB!

And for those egg lovers out there, you can add a little egg-wrapper ala Ramly burger style if you like!

Oh and by the way. Please don't let the photos fool you.
The images you see do not fairly depict the actual size of the burger you get...

Yep it's THAT big.

So order one first and then order a 2nd if you're still hungry.
Don't go and order 2 at one go and then later cannot finish because this is a monster burger that will definitely fill you up!!

If it's just the extra patty you're after, order a Double Burger for an extra ฿40!!

Chicken Hotdog (฿80)

Not in the mood for burgers?
Well you're in luck! They also have hot dogs!

It's a chicken sausage in the same type of bread as the burgers (but obviously shaped accordingly) and with all the usual veggies and sauces as well.

It's very filling and quite nice but I think that after I had the burger, all I could think about was another burger!

If you're stopping at the 2nd outlet, look out for these 2.
They're going to cook you up a storm of yummy burgers and they're very cool people!
If they're not too busy, strike up a chat with them!

If you head down to the original stall at Soi San Sabai, look out for this guy who is usually there with the Head Boss, Amena.

We headed down there the next few nights and had some burgers and they were bloody delicious I tell you.

One advantage of heading down to the original stall is that they set up some tables and chairs so that if you're eating there, you have a place to sit down and enjoy your burger.

The 2nd stall only has some chairs at the side of the sidewalk which means you're going to face a bit of a challenge trying not to look like a weirdo when you tuck into your burger.

And one important thing to note it that the stall only open in the might hours so I'm afraid you need to head out after the sut has set in order to enjoy the burgers.. but it's definitely worth it!



Adam's Verdict:
Beef Burger 4.5/5 -- Chicken Burger 3.5/5 -- Hot Dog 2.5/5

Azlan's Verdict:
Beef Burger 5/5 (He actually gave 6/5) -- Chicken Burger 5/5

Raffiq's Verdict:
Beef Burger 4.5/5 -- Chicken Burger 5/5 

John's Verdict:
Beef Burger 4/5 -- Chicken Burger 4/5

So was my Brother exaggerating when he said it was The Best Burger In The World?
Well, it's definitely the best burger that I have ever had.

And if you have any problems finding the burgers, just ask around.
I guarantee you someone will be able to point you in the right direction!

That's (the actual) Amena by the way

Updated 30 October 2014

Amena Burger (Original)

Yorkshire Hotel
Soi Sansabai
Kathu, Patong, Phuket, Thailand

 www.facebook.com/groups/106970172677113/

Operating Hours:
Between 12.00am til 7.00am 

Amena Burger (Moved)

Soi Sansabai (Beside Rock City)
Kathu, Patong, Phuket, Thailand

www.facebook.com/groups/106970172677113/

Operating Hours:
Between 12.00am til 7.00am

Kacang Pool Special

I love Kacang Pool.

But because it can be.. well.. a little on the unhealthy side (with all the ghee and the egg and the what-nots), it's best eaten in moderation. So that means that it'd better be a damn nice serving.

When I was a kid growing up in Eunos, the original Eunos market had some of the best food ever.
There was this one stall that sold only 2 things - Rojak Buah and Kacang Pool.
But it was for some reason, closed most of the time.

Well that stall stuck it out after the fire at the old marketplace and shifted to the new Eunos Market.

Kacang Pool ($3.00)

Well the stall sells a few more than 2 things now but Kacang Pools seems to remain a firm favourite.

Along with your piping hot kacang pool (made up of mashed fava or broad beans), you get a fried egg (which has a slightly runny yolk) and of course the usual garnishes like chilli and onions plus some bread.

A lot of people have a lot of differing preferences when it comes to their Kacang Pool I'm sure.

Some people like theirs to be on the chunky side which means the beans are not mashed or blended too finely. You'll still have a pretty thick consistency that way.

On the other hand, you have the people who like theirs to be runny and smooth. This means the beans are blended till extremely fine and I guess you say a little more of a fluid consistency.

For me - not fussy when it comes to this.
Thick or fluid I'm still gonna whack until finish.

And as you can see from the picture on the left, this stall has it just in the middle. You can scoop it up or soak it up with the french loaf that comes with it or you can just have it with the egg and garnishes. It's gonna be delicious either way. Oh, and you'll still a few whole beans that missed the blender.

Salt and Lime for additional seasoning

This stall goes the healthy route and does not seem to include any ghee.
There's definitely a good dose of oil but not much or no ghee and minimal additives.

They'll give you some salt and lime to add as you please.

Now that's what I call comfort food.
And when that runny yolk breaks and starts running all over the place, grab some bread, mop it up and shove it in your mouth and go "Mmmmm".

And for the record, I cleaned the plate. Literally. (I used the bread)

Adam's Verdict:
Kacang Pool 4.5/5

My old neighbourhood market may have relocated but some of the old stalls definitely followed suit and I'm so happy that they did and this stall is one fine example.

Kacang Pool Special

Eunos Crescent Food Market & Food Centre
Blk 4A Eunos Crescent #01-03

Operating Hours:
7.00am til 9.30pm (or til the food finishes)
Closed on Wednesdays

Epok Epok Central

I grew up in the Eunos Crescent neighbourhood.
Back then, the Eunos Crescent Market was in full swing and the adjoining food centre was just as popular.
From early morning breakfast til evening dinner. Everyone cam to get something.

And there was something for everyone too.
There were two whole sections of Chinese (Non-Halal) hawkers and only one section of Malay/Indian (Halal) hawkers. But that one section alone has so many treasures. And there was something for everyone.

Abu Bakar stall was famous for its Nasi Jenganan and Nasi Rawan.
Ali Baba stall famous for Roti Prata. Arifin stall for its Chicken Rice. Then there was the 'no sign' Kacang Pool' stall which also sold a pretty mean Rojak Buah. Then there was 'Mee Kak Tik'.
And so many more I can hardly remember.

The old market burned down some years ago and it took awhile for the new one to be built.
In that time, some of the hawkers probably moved on and decided not to wait for the new market to be built. But some of them returned to the old neighbourhood with a brand new market place.

One of those that was a staple back in the day and still stayed on - Epok Epok Central.

People would queue up for the fresh and hot epok-epok which seemed to come out in endless batches.
If there was one place for epok-epok then Epok Epok Central was it.

Potato, Sardine & Egg Epok-Epok

Just like before, you can get 3 types of epok-epok.
There's the default Potato & Sardine epok-epok ($0.40 each) and there's the Egg epok-epok ($0.60).
The Egg epok-epok has some potato filling in it as well.

The first thing I have to pint out is that I don't remember the epok-epok being so expensive in the past.
Of course, we are talking about the 90s when I was a kid so definitely the prices were lower back then.
But even in today's modern times, I'm guessing a few people would raise an eyebrow or two when the hear the price of $0.40 or $0.60 for an epok-epok.

What's that you say? The price seems reasonable?
Well, that depends on how you relate the price to the size of the product.

Yes that is my hand. And yes that is the epok-epok.
Now do you see what I was talking about when I mentioned the size?

The epok-epok is definitely bite-sized which I'm guessing some people (like my Mum) will appreciate.
Because this means that the pastry will be nice a crispy. Which it definitely is. Love that crisp!
The pastry has a nice bite to it and is not oily at all. They have definitely mastered the art of frying the epok-epok to ensure that it's a nice crispy golden brown.

The filling itself is also quite tasty. But....

(From left to right) Potato, Sardine, Egg

For those of you whole love your filling, then there might be some issue.

The filling itself is very tasty. The taste of the potato filling is especially tasty to me.
However, the sardine epok-epok seemed to have more onions than anything else. And that is simply something that I despise in my Sardine epok-epok.

Why call it Sardine if you're just going to pack it with onions? If you're worried about your sardine mixture being fishy then work on your mixture instead of taking the short-cut of piling on the onions I say.

To be honest the potato mixture also had its fair share of onions but at least I could get some potato chunks.
For the Egg version, you get about 1/5 of an egg stuffed in with the potato mixture.

Adam's Verdict:
Potato 3/5 -- Sardine 2/5 -- Egg 3.5/5

Epok Epok Central remains a familiar name when it comes to the tasty snack we all love.
Nowadays with places like Old Chang Kee offering fat oily currypuffs at a bargain price of $1.20, I guess it's easy to see how old-school places like this are on the losing end.

In fact, the long queue at the stall when I went was actually for the Nasi Lemak which they also seem to sell.
The old stall used to sell just epok-epok. Nothing else.
Maybe the Nasi Lemak is damn nice? I might check it out next time.

Maybe it's just me. Maybe Epok Epok Central's standards have really dropped.
But I'll never forget the excitement as a kid when Mum & Dad brought home some epok-epok.

 Epok Epok Central

Eunos Crescent Food Market & Food Centre
Blk 4A Eunos Crescent #01-09

Operating Hours:
9am -10pm Tuesday til Sunday
Closed on Monday