Golden Mile Food Centre is close to many Singaporean hearts and stomachs. I come here regularly since my National Service days in the late 70s. I used to come here to stock up on Army supplies but now it is the many good food stalls that draw me here regularly.
The Army market upstairs is a mere shadow of its heydays because our soldiers are so well supplied nowadays. But, the food centre below have thrived to a level I have not seen before. These are the most popular and famous food stalls at Golden Mile Food Centre.
91 Fried Kway Teow Mee stall #01-91 serve a char kway teow with no pork, no lard. Many CKT purists feel no pork, no lard char kway teow should be banned ๐ but 91 Fried Kway Teow Mee is doing very well, going by the constant long queue at the stall. Their CKT comes with cockles, fried whitebait, the coveted toasty taste of wok hei, and smothered under a green blanket of chye sim. You can see these green hatted char kway teow scattered here and there all over the hawker centre.
Do you think "heathy choice" char kway teow should be banned? ๐ค
Zhao An Granny Grass Jelly stall #01-58 serve chin chow (literally green grass). The light, soft, smooth jelly is made with a leafy herb - it tastes refreshing and subtly bitter which can be addictive once you acquired a taste for it. Served hot or cold with various optional toppings like attap seed, longan, sea coconut etc. There's always room for a cooling grass jelly, especially without toppings.
One Prawn Noodle stall #01-93 serve prawn and noodles in a kick butt robust crustacean umami savoury, full body soup. Comes with good size fresh prawn with options for more prawns and also prawn balls. This stall is a must for prawn mee enthusiasts. I haven't tried the dry version yet, so it's next on the eat-list.
You Fu Fried Hokkien Prawn Mee stall #01-57 serve Hokkien mee which is well infused with seafood umami savouriness and wok hei. The seafood stock flavours are infused into the yellow noodles by stir frying, so the dish is the "dry type" of Hokkien mee which is becoming the norm in Singapore (as opposed to the traditional drippy simmered type).
Yew Chuan Claypot Rice stall #01-73 serve rice with chunks of succulent chicken, Cantonese sausage slices, salted fish, and some greens cooked in a claypot. Their house blended dark soy sauce add savoury sweet flavours to the dish. Remember to scrape the crunchy rice crust off the side and bottom of the pot, and fold it into the fluffy grains for the best mix of textures. Prices start at $14 for a minimum serving for two persons.
Choon Kee Roasted Delights stall #01-74 serve the Cantonese roast trinity of pork belly, char siew and duck. The siew yok (roast pork belly) is savoury tender and juicy with crackly crisp skin. The tender char siew has a good fat to meat ratio which tastes savoury sweet. The next thing I have to try is their roast duck which looks very promisingly golden brown outside.
Keng Heng Whampoa Teochew Lor Mee stall #01-63 serve yellow noodles in a flavoursome savoury gooey sauce topped with fried pork roll (ngoh hiang), fried wanton, fried fish nugget, fried fish skin, braised pork slices etc. The obligatory chopped garlic, black vinegar, and chili sauce pile in additional layers of spicy heat and tanginess to make this a gorgeous winner. Their chili sauce especially, packs a punch. They also have cut chili padi, if that is not enough for you ๐คฆ
Ashes Burnnit stall B1-24 serve Halal gourmet burgers with beef, chicken and fish patties. I say go straight for their hearty best seller Truffle Mushroom Burger. Get the double beef patty done medium rare stacked with cheese, sautรฉed mushroom and truffle cream all sandwiched between a black charcoal bun. The burger looks dangerously like bursting open but the only thing that explodes is the flourish of savoury, beefy, sweet flavours in the mouth. All burgers come with thick cut fries, making it a hefty meal.
Hainan Fried Hokkien Mee stall #B1-34 is the other "dry" type fried Hokkien mee in Golden Mile Food Centre with a loyal following. This stall offers the option of cut chili padi besides sambal chili. I prefer cut chili as it doesn't change the umami savoury-sweet taste profile of the dish (unlike sambal chili). This stall which have been here for four decades is one of the stalwarts of this hawker centre.
Hainanese Boneless Chicken Rice stall #B1-35 serve poached and fried chicken which are deboned. The chicken meat is tender and juicy, and comes splashed with a savoury-sweet aromatic sauce. The savoury-sweet sauce does not overpower the subtle natural sweetness of the chicken meat. The not too greasy rice is tender-firm, nutty and well infused with chicken, spice and savoury flavours.
Charlie's Peranakan Food stall #B1-30 is the go to place for Peranakan cuisine in a hawker centre. Charlie is a stickler for tradition so you are assured of authenticity in Peranakan classics like babi pongteh, itek sio, toh hay, asam fish, ayam buah keluak etc. Also get Charlie's signature lo kai yik which is a traditional Cantonese dish of chicken stewed in nam yue (fermented bean curd). Charlie makes the best lo kai yik in a hawker centre in Singapore. Period.
Wen Kang Ji stall #B1-29 serve a soupy sauce type of wanton mee with "aeroplane meat" also known as "bu chien tien" char siew. The flavoursome soupy sauce together with the house made chili sauce envelope every strand of the soft al dente noodles. The sweet savoury, tender juicy char siew is a winner. The new kid on the block opened in Mar 2021 is already winning a strong following judging by the fast growing queue.
The Vadai Shop stall #B1-32 serve crisp outside spongy chewy vadai with various fillings, with the classic prawn being the most popular. It tastes savoury sweet with embedded aromatic spices. I always eat my vadai with raw green chili for their juicy crunch and sharp spicy hot kick. The Vadai Shop also have turmeric flavoured crispy fried chicken skin which is a must for fanatic foodies.
Mr. Baguette stall B1-51 serve freshly baked, small cup size baguette with sweet or savoury fillings. Sweet fillings include chocolate lava, hazelnut lava, red velvet lava, cheese, etc. The baguette cup is crisp and crackly, and the molten sweet filling are rich and saccharine. The molten lava bursts from the baguette and always find its way between my fingers ๐ Be prepared to lick your fingers and standby some tissue paper. Mr. Baguette also have savoury fillings like macaroni and cheese but I have not tried them yet.
Chef Choo Signature stall #B1-45 is run by a former Pete's Place (Grand Hyatt) chef. Chef Choo offers restaurant grade Caesar salad, spaghetti, seafood dishes, chicken chop etc at hawker prices. For the price of the a plate of char kway teow, we get a restaurant quality spaghetti aglio olio - why not right?
Kopi More stall #B1-49 is the first hawker stall in Singapore to serve Nanyang coffee brewed in a gleaming espresso machine. Kopi More's blend is more robust and full bodied - a big leap over sock brewed kopi. Espresso style Nanyang kopi has sprouted in hawker centres around Singapore but Kopi More still does it best in my humble opinion.
Ah Xiao Braised Duck stall #B1-43 serve Teochew style braised duck that has a watery savoury salty sauce. The duck is skilfully sliced and deboned. The meat is tender and well infused with the braising stock's savoury flavour. Ah Xiao's braised duck is not herbal and does not have ducky gamey taste. Comes with two freshly made garlicky sourish spicy hot chili sauces in true Teochew fashion.
Beyond Golden Mile Food Centre, just steps away you might want to check out:
Koothurar briyani ๐ click
Heap Seng Leong for gu yu kopi ๐ click
I missed out your favourite stall(s)? ๐
My bad ๐
Don't get mad at me. Let me know your favourites in the comments. I promise you that I will go try your recommendation(s).
I may add them to this list. If not, at the very least, I will reply to you in the comments.
Thank you for helping me make this guide more useful ๐
Claypot rice - $14 for 2 you mean. Price list is in the pic.
ReplyDeleteYes my mistake. Thanks for pointing out.
Deleteneed to add Chung Cheng Chilli Meeๅดๆญฃ่พฃๆค้ข
ReplyDeleteYes yes I have to taste it and add it to the list
DeleteHi Tony, with reference to your statement "... the "dry type" of Hokkien mee which is becoming the norm in Singapore (as opposed to the traditional drippy simmered type)", I actually have the opposite impression: dry type was traditional, but wet type (a.k.a. braised hokkien mee) is the norm these days.
ReplyDeleteThe origins of wet and dry hokkien mee could perhaps be something for you to investigate and write about in a future post?
Thanks. Yes I need to gather the facts to substantiate the impressions. Appreciate your suggestion much :-)
DeleteI was disappointed with the prices after the renovation. A bowl of chicken curry use to be $4.00 before renovation and now have to pay $5.00. Thanks to our government.
ReplyDeleteYou should review Kheng Fatt Hainanese Beef Noodles. It has a long history and have one of the better tasting beef soup in Singapore
ReplyDeleteYes yes I will do that as soon as possible. Thank you for your suggestion.
DeleteI understand that Golden Mile Food Centre is closed for renovation. When are they scheduled to open for business. Thank you.
ReplyDeleteThey are now fully opened for business (since 1 Mar 2021)
Delete