As soon as you turn off from the main road and into Tiong Bahru estate, you are literally hit by a plethora of delicious food aromas
Tiong Bahru estate is an enclave renowned for its unique architecture, which hails from pre-war Singapore.
Walking around Tiong Bahru is an interesting experience as the aesthetically beautiful 1930s architecture of the flats are reminiscent of olden Singapore, yet the high concentration of hipster cafes, shops and restaurants make it a cool neighbourhood to dine and to people-watch.
There are a number of treasures in Tiong Bahru, and we recommend more than ten of them here.
1. Ah Chiang’s Porridge
Ah Chiang’s Porridge dwells in an old-style coffee shop at 65 Tiong Poh Road. The porridge is smooth and creamy while the ingredients are fresh.
Start off with the raw fish with shredded ginger, red chilli, spring onion and sesame oil. The fish is very fresh and its flavours naturally stand out because of the neutral seasoning.
2. Tiong Bahru Food Market & Hawker Centre
The local food heaven is at Tiong Bahru Food Market & Hawker Centre (30 Seng Poh Road). Here you can find some of the best local food in Singapore.
The most popular stalls include 178 Lor Mee (#02-23), Pork Ribs Prawn Noodle (#02-31), Koh Brothers Pig Organ Soup (#02-29), Wanton Noodles (#02-30), Tiong Bahru Chwee Kueh (#02-62) and Tiong Bahru Lee Hong Kee Cantonese Roasted (#02-60).
There is, of course, much more here that makes Tiong Bahru deserve to stand out as a treasure trove.
3. Tiong Bahru Lee Hong Kee Cantonese Roasted
The char siew, roasted duck and roasted pork with crackling that is brittle-y crispy make queuing up at Tiong Bahru Lee Hong Kee Cantonese Roasted stall worth your while.
The duck is tender and moist with well-charred skin that is crispy with depth of flavour from the spice rub and charcoal roasting. This is not to be missed!
4. 178 Lor Mee
The famous lor mee combines fish that is extremely fresh and good stock that is heavy because of reduction rather than too much starch.
There’s the old-fashioned combination of yellow mee, boiled egg, pork belly, beansprouts, fish fritters and sticky gravy that is timeless.
5. Other Heavenly Delights
More old-style local food can be found at Por Kee Eating House (69 Seng Poh Lane), for good, inexpensive zi char dishes such as steamed fish, hot plate tofu and champagne pork ribs; Ting Heng Seafood Restaurant (82 Tiong Poh Road), an open-air restaurant with good fresh steamboat items and fried dishes; and Old Tiong Bahru Bak Kut Teh (58 Seng Poh Road), a perennial favourite that serves tender pork ribs in a fragrant broth that is rich, garlicky and packs a peppery punch.
Look out for Part 2 soon!
By Freda Saunders
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