Makanista – Hip New Food Court Serving Innovative Eats!

Derived from the words ‘makan’ and ‘fashionista’, Makanista offers fun and trendy interpretations of familiar dishes. Located in Tampines Mall, Makanista opened its doors in April this year and currently houses four stalls — Prata & Desserts, Western, Chicken Rice and Yong Tau Foo. Makanista is in the midst of applying for Halal certification.

Prata & Desserts

This prata stall serves both traditional and speciality pratas.

We tried the Japanese-inspired Okonomiyaki prata ($7) which comprises shredded carrots and cabbage encased in a cheese and egg prata. The mix of mayonnaise, okonomiyaki sauce and bonito flakes was a winning combination. It closely resembled the actual savoury pancake. The fillings were generous, albeit a tad sweet from the mix of sauces, and the eye-catching presentation makes the prata extremely Instagram-worthy. This is arguably the only place on the island that sells such an interesting flavour of prata, truly reinventing the Japanese pancake to give it a unique identity.

We also tried the Mutton Prata Burger ($8.50), a hybrid between the all-time favourite Ramly burger and local murtabak. The mutton patty is seasoned with masala spice, curry powder and fresh cilantro, and wrapped together with sauteed onions and fried egg inside the crispy prata. The ensemble is then drizzled with mayonnaise and black pepper sauce. Despite their innovative efforts, the prata tasted no different from the conventional mutton prata. This is a safe choice for those who prefer familiar flavours. Due to its thin prata skin, the texture is more one-dimensional as compared to the usual pan-fried prata which is more doughy.

Other inventive pratas include Chicken Luncheon & Floss ($8.50), Special Tandoori Chicken ($8.50) and Peanut Butter and Jam ($2.80). The stall is also currently having a Prata Breakfast promotion from 8am to 11am where Prata Set 1 (2 plain prata and 1 drink) retails at $3.50 (UP. $4.30) and Prata Set 2 (1 plain prata, 1 egg and 1 drink) retails at $3.90 (UP. $5.60).

Western

The signature Beef Hamburg & Fries ($10.90) combines hamburg steak, poutine (a Canadian dish consisting of fries and cheese chunks topped with brown gravy), fried egg, black pepper, and truffle cheese sauce together. This dish gives you the best of both worlds — a thick beef patty for a more substantial meal, and lightly salted fries with sinful cheese sauce for the perfect snack. Atas fries usually comes in just one sauce, and we all know how tough it can be to choose, so the fries here are great for the indecisive. The fried egg atop the patty is just the icing on the cake. Cut open the egg and let its runny yolk run all over the beef patty and fries. Mix everything together and prepare yourself for an explosion of flavours in your mouth!

Chicken Rice

We are all familiar with our national dish, chicken rice. Apart from having Hainanese Chicken Rice ($5.50) and Signature Roasted Chicken Rice ($5.50), this stall delivers a wicked twist to the humble rice with their Mala Chicken Rice ($5.80). The chef attempts to mimic the mala taste by concocting a thick red spicy paste made from chilli, garlic, black vinegar, oil and house-made sweet sauce. The chilli paste is then laid on a sizeable but dry portion of poached chicken. Be warned, ash the chef as very successfully captured the intense mala spiciness and the chilli is capable of setting your tongue on fire. However, the numbness and fragrance of mala was missing due to the absence of Sichuan peppercorn. Unless you are a fervent mala fan who requires potent doses of spiciness, I’ll say that the traditional Hainanese Chicken Rice is what you should go for.

Yong Tau Foo

Nothing evokes comfort food like pieces of tau kwa, fried fritters and vegetables in a bowl of soothing hot soup. What differentiates this stall from the typical Yong Tau Foo stalls is their use of unusual soup bases such as Soto Ayam, Mee Siam, Satay and Curry ($7.50 each). My personal favourite would be the Mee Siam as it brought a sweet spicy tang to the Yong Tau Foo and made it delightfully appetising. It came as a pleasant surprise that Yong Tau Foo and Mee Siam would be a perfect match! The aromatic Curry carried a fragrant coconut hint while the ground peanuts in the Satay added a grainy texture and addictive indulgence to the otherwise clear tasting soup. I felt that the Soto Ayam was the weakest of the three, with the broth having little flavour apart from mere saltiness. This stall promises a refreshing change from the normal Yong Tau Foo!

Overall, Makanista is a strong entrant to the local F&B scene. Its concept of livening up well-known hawker fare is certainly exciting and bound to attract the hipster younger crowd.

Note: This is an invited tasting.

Let’s build a food community that helps to update the food news in Singapore! Simply comment below if there’s any changes or additional info to Makanista. We will verify and update from our side. Thanks in advance!

For more food videos, check out our official YouTube channel! You may also want to check out our article on Raimah Eating House, a great hideout for halal western food in Kembangan!