10 Best Hawker Stalls Opened by Ex-Hotel Chefs in Singapore!

It’s no secret that Singapore’s hawker centres are home to award-winning stalls. But as the never-ending pandemic continues to strike heavy blows to the F&B industry, the future of hawkers seemed bleak. Yet, amidst that uncertainty, numerous former hotel chefs decided to open up their very own hawker stalls.

These ex-hotel chefs bring with them years of expertise and are dishing out affordable and delicious meals that have been extremely well received! Here’s ten hawker stalls by ex-hotel chefs that we really highly recommend!

Chef Wang Fried Rice

Chef Wang Fried Rice, started by Wang Jingjun, who has worked at Shangri-La Singapore’s Shang Palace for three years, and Din Tai Fung for a year, gained popularity very quickly. After working at restaurants for long periods, Chef Wang decided to venture into the hawker scene with his version of fried rice on 17 May 2021 at Beo Crescent Market & Food Centre.

Prices start from $4 for its basic egg fried rice, with three different toppings available (Pork Chop, Shrimp, and Abalone). You can also opt for sambal fried rice(+ 50 cents). The Pork Chop Egg Fried Rice ($6.50) comprises fluffy Taiwanese pearl rice grains, strong wok hei, and tender pieces of black pepper marinated pork chop. On the pricier side, the Abalone Sambal Fried Rice ($10) consists of small plump abalones, and flavourful sambal rice. I added Sichuan chilli sauce to it for an extra kick. A friendly tip for the elderly : the stall offers a 50-cent discount on every plate to senior citizens.

梁师傅肠粉 Chef Leung’s Authentic Hand-milled Rice Noodle Rolls

梁师傅肠粉 Chef Leung’s Authentic Hand-milled Rice Noodle Rolls was started by Leung Tze Cham, a  Hong Kong Native who moved to Singapore in 1991 to work at Raffles Hotel where he spent almost 30 years working as a dim sum shifu. Shortly after leaving his job in 2019, Chef Leung lived in China and ran a prawn farm. However, the pandemic caused him to give up on that venture and return to Singapore where he opened his hawker stall with his family on 1 July 2021.

Chef Leung makes each chee cheong fun dish by hand. He uses a house-milled rice batter which takes approximately three hours to churn out, and high-quality ingredients and sauces in his creations.

The Original Rice Noodle Roll($2) comes with stuffings such as Prawn, Char Siew and Tuna. I loved the Prawn Rice Noodle Roll ($4.50) which saw fresh, crunchy prawns encased in silky, springy rice folds, and topped off with the stall’s house-made peanut and sesame sauce which coated each roll perfectly. If you like congee, go for the Pork and Century Eggs Congee ($4.50) that’s topped with century eggs, a prawn ball, pork ribs, and fried crackers.

廣東 炖汤•蒸鱼 Canton Delicacies

Helmed by Chef Ericson Ng, previously from Singapore Marriott Tang Plaza Hotel, 廣東炖汤•蒸鱼 Canton Delicacies serves Cantonese-style steamed dishes, soups and curry fish head at Geylang Bahru Food Centre.

Malaysian-born Chef Ericsson starting working in restaurants in Ipoh since he was 13. He relocated to Singapore after securing a job at Wan Hao Chinese Restaurant. It was there that he gained 11 years of experience and climbed the ranks to become a junior sous chef. After a meeting with a Hong Kong-born hawker, whom Chef Ericson dubs as his ‘shifu’, Chef Ericson decided to learn under him for three years and eventually set out to run his own hawker stall in 2020.

The stall has a wide selection of items on its menu — steamed dishes, double-boiled soups, and fish head dishes.

One of their cheapest and most popular dishes is the Salted Egg Pork Patties Steamed Rice ($3.30) which comes with a thick minced pork patty comprising a 80-20 meat-to-fat ratio, salted egg, and a bed of fluffy rice. The patty was then drizzled with dark soya sauce and other secret ingredients. The patty was juicy and tender and the sauce delivered sweetness and savouriness. The stall also has fresh seafood such as Steamed Garlic Prawn with Vermicelli ($8) and Steamed Garlic Lala ($8).

Volk

Going for a healthier option? You might want to visit Volk which was opened by former Grand Hyatt chef Eldad Tan on 3 November 2020. Chef Eldad interned at the Shangri-La hotel when he was in school, and proceeded to work at the Grand Hyatt for two years after graduation from Shatec.

His experience as a manager at Poké Theory for two and a half years spurred him to set up a stall to sell healthier grain bowls and quality skewers made with locally-sourced ingredients.

The stall sells 13 types of skewers that Chef Eldad grills over an electric grill before flame torching each stick. I recommend the juicy Chicken Thigh ($1.80), the crunchy Bacon Enoki ($2), and the thick Pork Belly ($1.80). The stall also offers the option to craft a grain bowl with your choice of skewers(+$4). The Sous Vide Salmon Bowl ($9.90) sees a large piece of tender salmon sitting on a bed of white rice, accompanied with sweet pineapple, edamame, cucumbers, cherry tomatoes, and seaweed salad. You can also change the white rice to brown rice, soba, or mixed greens at no extra charge.

CK Cuisine

CK Cuisine, opened by Chef Calvin Koh, serves homey boat noodles and traditional Soy Pork Rice. Chef Calvin had years of experience working as an executive chef in several hotels. Unfortunately, he was one of those affected by COVID-19 and made a brief switch to a FoodPanda delivery rider at the beginning of the pandemic. Despite the tough times, jovial Chef Calvin decided to channel his love for Thai food into setting up his own stall, which he single-handedly runs.

The Thai Pork Soup Noodle ($5/$7) is an ensemble of rice noodles, pork balls, sliced pork, bean sprouts, cilantro, and a heady soup base. The small meatballs were well seasoned. Although the thick pork slices required some effort to bite through, they tasted great with the tangy chilli on the side! The broth had a prominent peanut taste and slight notes of sweetness. The Nanyang Soy Pork Rice ($5/$7) features quail eggs, indulgent pieces of pork belly, and crisp lettuce in a thick, savoury soy sauce. If you’re looking for pork belly with a wonderful meat-to-fat ratio, this dish is made for you.

5-Star Dim Sum @ Mei Ling Street

5-Star Dim Sum @ Mei Ling Street is a Hong Kong-style stall started by Chef Yiu Wah Tai, who has over 30 years of culinary experience making dim sum in established restaurants such as Jiang-Nan Chun at Four Seasons Hotel and Shang Palace at Shangri-La Hotel.

Everything on the menu is made by hand daily, and you’ll find an extensive number of steamed, fried and baked goods to choose from! Our top picks have to be the Spicy Dumplings ($3.50 for four pieces), Prawn Roll Chee Cheong Fun ($5), Salad Prawn Dumplings ($4), and Egg Tarts ($3.50 for three pieces).

The Spicy Dumplings with a savoury-sweet stuffing, were plump and juicy, and doused in a chilli oil-vinegar sauce mixture. The Prawn Roll Chee Cheong Fun had silky rice sheets wrapped around a crispy prawn roll, and a prawn-and-veggie filling. Looking for something crunchy? The popular Salad Prawn Dumplings won’t disappoint with each dumpling well-stuffed with crunchy prawns coated in a slightly tangy and sweet dressing. The Egg Tarts featuring a crumbly buttery crust and smooth custard filling that was fairly creamy and not too sweet, are a must-try too.

Yanan Ban Mian Noodle 亚男扳面, 面粉粿

Yanan Ban Mian Noodle 亚男扳面, 面粉粿 was started by Chefs John and Yanan, and offers different types of ban mian noodles and dumplings.

John used to work at luxury hotels such as St.Regis and The Westin Singapore, but he left in March 2021 amidst the pandemic. Now, he runs his hawker stall with Yanan, a lamian and dumpling chef from China.

I loved the Seafood Combo Premium Soya Sauce Toss Noodle ($5.50), which features prawns, fried fish slices, handmade meatballs, ikan billis and noodles in an addictive spicy shrimp sauce. The fresh prawns were sweet and crunchy, and the fried fish was coated in a thin batter. The fried dumplings with pork filling were delightful as well. The stall also offers healthy options such as Handmade Pork Meat Ball Brown Rice Beehoon Soup ($3.50) and dumplings like the Chive and Pork Dumplings (8pc) ($5).

Cheong Fan Paradise

Another chee cheong fun stall on our list is Cheong Fan Paradise! The stall was opened in the first half of 2020 by Chef Kerene Cheng, who has 30 years of culinary experience working in upscale restaurants.

Chef Kerene first rose to the role of head dim sum chef after a 15-year stint at Hong Kong restaurant Lei Garden Restaurant. She then moved on to fine-dining restaurant Peach Blossoms at PARKROYAL COLLECTION Marina Bay before settling in at Shang Palace at Shangri-La Hotel, where she was the first woman to ever head the dim sum kitchen. Talk about #girlboss.

Now, Chef Kerene has her own hawker stall in an Ang Mo Kio industrial coffee shop selling a variety of chee cheong fun and other traditional Cantonese dishes. I recommend getting the Prawn Chee Cheong Fun ($4) and Cai Pu Chee Cheong Fun ($3). The silky smooth rice rolls soaked up the sauce nicely, and came with a house-made belachan chilli that had a delightful sweet-spicy kick. The Prawn Chee Cheong Fun was stuffed with fresh, meaty prawns and topped with fried shallots. The more unusual Cai Pu Chee Cheong Fun was made with factory-made rice rolls, which made it slightly firmer than the handmade version. Nevertheless, the rolls paired well with the chye poh (preserved radish). The sweet, dark sauce was mixed with chilli oil, making this dish a fantastic harmony of savoury, sweet and spicy notes.

Yuan Lang Soy Sauce Chicken Master

Ever tried a Hong-Kong style rendition of our unofficial national dish? Yuan Lang Soy Sauce Chicken Master serves delicious poached and soy sauce chicken in Chinatown Complex! The stall is helmed by native Hong Konger Chef Wong Keung, who has worked in Hong Kong and Indonesia. Chef Wong previously worked as a barbecue Chef at the five-star hotel The Mulia, Mulia Resort and Villas in Nusa Dua Bali for three years before setting up his own shop in 2018.

Chef Wong sells a unique yellow poached chicken. The stall only uses kampung chicken(firmer and leaner meat) which is poached in a unique broth, consisting of dried scallops and octopus, that’s boiled for five hours every day. The Kampong Chicken Thigh Rice ($5.50) came with a good amount of thick chicken slices and a side of chilli. The moist poached chicken had an excellent texture and was imbued with the rich flavours of the broth. The rice still couldn’t compete with our local Hainanese chicken rice, though. The stall also sells Soy Sauce Chicken Rice ($4), which is a less savoury option as compared to the poached versions.

Papa Jones BBQ and Grill

Papa Jones BBQ and Grill, which has relocated to Ang Mo Kio, serves a variety of Western meals!

The Rib Eye Steak (200g) with Garlic Merlot Butter Sauce ($17.90) was done justice with a perfect medium rare doneness. Most of the steak was lusciously tender and succulent. The Laksa Prawn Spaghetti ($8.90) had al dente noodles and three large prawns that were mostly de-shelled for convenience.

Enjoy restaurant-quality dishes without breaking the bank at these stalls! if you have any recommendations, do share them with us!

MissTamChiak.com made anonymous visits and paid its own meals at the stalls featured here.

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