Deli Bak Chor Mee – The Indonesian-Style Bak Chor Mee is a Big Flavour Bomb

I always welcome bak chor mee into my tummy, whether it’s the good ol’ classic version we all know and love, or a fusion creation. Deli Bak Chor Mee falls under the latter, serving up bowls of bak chor mee modelled after popular Indonesian street food bakmi.

They might have only been in the bak chor mee biz since late last year, but that doesn’t mean they don’t have a wealth of cooking experience. The lovely auntie manning the stall told me that prior to settling down here in Golden Mile Food Centre, she had been at Raffles Place selling nasi padang and ayam penyet. 

She decided to retire from that and switch to bak chor mee because it was a lot easier in terms of workload. But don’t underestimate her; almost everything on the menu is hand-made, from the fish balls and meatballs to the sauce and condiments. 

The extensive menu brought out my indecisive self for a moment but after looking carefully, I realised most of the options are fairly similar — the only difference lies in the toppings. The Premium Minced Meat Noodle ($8.80) came with all the works – prawns, abalone and scallops – and was certainly tempting. 

For those with smaller appetites or are more thrifty when it comes to spending, you can opt for the regular-portioned Fishball Noodle ($4) that comes in both dry and soup versions, or Minced Meat Noodle ($4). There are even sides of chicken drumlets ($5.80) and fried wonton ($3.50) if you’re just after some nibbles.

After some hemming, hawing, and a little bantering with the chef and some of her regulars (it’s like one big, happy family), I picked the Sliced Abalone & Scallop Minced Meat Noodle ($6.80). The smell of fried shallots was very strong even before being tossed. 

The noodles were crowned with spring onions, coriander, nuggets of pork lard (the auntie even gave me extra because I happened to mention how much I love them) and of course, fried shallots. Also, coriander hating is not a trend so those who aren’t fans (like me) might find it a tad overwhelming. 

The springy noods had a wonderful bite and were thoroughly coated in the savoury Indonesian-style chilli sauce. The sweet, tangy and spicy notes brought out a new level of umami that was very addictive. 

The abalone slices were pretty thin, but sweet. I would have liked them to be slightly chunkier of course, but I guess I can’t be asking for much at this price point!

What came as a surprise to me was the accompanying soup for this dish. I was expecting a small bowl with a couple of fishballs bobbing around in a nondescript soup, but the bowl was HUGE. I had even thought I was given the wrong order. It was loaded with fishballs, meatballs, minced meat chunks and my missing scallops – definitely worth the price I paid. 

Pleasantly sweet and chewy, the scallop flesh was delightfully meaty. 

The QQ fishballs were nicely seasoned and flavourful, and so were the meatballs. 

I also ordered the Fishball Vermicelli Soup ($4). The entire dish was a lot milder in comparison to the flavour bomb I just had, but still heaped with a ton of ingredients. 

The meat slices and minced meat chunks had barely a lick of seasoning, but there sure was a good amount of them. Every scoop saw me fishing up a spoonful of protein. As for the broth, it was the same as the accompanying soup that came with my dry minced meat noodles. 

As someone who loves strong flavour profiles, I can’t help but gravitate towards the dry bak chor mee. The many topping variations aside, Deli Bak Chor Mee has a delicious sauce base that works super-duper well. It’s definitely worth checking out!

MissTamChiak.com made an anonymous visit and paid its own meal at the stall featured here.

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