Ang Mo Kio Central Market & Food Centre, 724 Ang Mo Kio Ave 6

How we stumbled upon this underrated but outstanding hawker centre was fortuitous.

So, I've been hankering for soupy braised duck noodles (yes, there's such a thing!) recently; it's been yonks since I last had it (also, yes, I do have the most random cravings). It's not a dish widely available or easily found anywhere, but a little research turned up this little gem of a braised duck + kway chap stall in Ang Mo Kio Central Market & Food Centre.

So, post-duck noodles, we waddled around said hawker centre, which led to the discovery of a treasure trove of hawker offerings. My picks are listed in descending preference as follows.

Braised Duck

A must-try, the Duck Noodle Soup ($4) at Ban Chuan was exceptional. Supplemented with a soy braised hard-boiled egg ($0.60), the broth was robust and brimming with the richness of stewed duck bones, but not at all cloying with herbal accents which typically hit me with a "heaty" headache. The duck, too, was sublime, smooth and juicy with nary a whiff of game.  

The Dry Duck Noodles ($4), also topped up with a soy egg ($0.60) didn't fare too badly either. The flat rice noodle-yellow egg noodle mix, slicked in a gravy emulsion of soy, oyster sauce tossed with chilli and spices, was scrumptious.

The store front for reference. Methinks that the base flavour notes of the kway chap offered at this store plays a large part of how delicious the soup base of the duck noodles are. I may not have eaten a lot of soupy duck noodles in my life, but I know a good thing when I see it; in my view, these are the best duck noodles on the island.

Ban Chuan
#01-19
Open daily from 11.30am to 8.30pm

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Yong Tau Foo

Another must-try was the Yong Tau Foo Soup ($3) at Yi Xiang Feng. I've eaten A LOT of yong tau foo in my life, but this was one-of-a-kind. At first glance, you'd see that the soup stock appears remarkably dusky. There are distinct notes of dried sole fish and fried ikan bilis blended into the yellow bean base, lending a toasty accent to the soup. We licked this clean.

The stall front for reference.

Yi Xiang Feng
#01-23
Tel: 9455 1641 / 9635 3203
Open Mondays to Saturdays from 7am to 7pm; closed on Sundays

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Satay Bee Hoon

For a relatively small hawker centre, AMK Central Food Centre has a good number of hard-to-find, or unique, offerings. Satay bee hoon is one hawker food that's dying out, and I seldom see this noodle dish being offered. But this hawker centre, despite its relatively small size, has 2 satay bee hoon stalls!

Centre Satay Bee Hoon ($3.50) caught our eye with its numerous writeups, and turned out to be one of the best renditions of the beloved noodle dish. The satay sauce was smooth, almost velvety, and punchy without being too oily. The cockles were fat and fresh, the pork slices were tender, and the prawns were sweet, all of which were fresh.

The stall front for reference.

Centre Satay Bee Hoon
#01-12
Tel: 6505 9554
Open Wednesdays to Mondays from 11am to 8pm; Closed on Tuesdays

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Minced Meat Noodles

You know how people say that beauty isn't just skin-deep? Well, here at Hup Hup, you'll find the epitome of "beauty is skin deep". I don't expect good service at a hawker centre, but the woman manning this stall, whose attitude is as ugly as her appearance, was memorably grumpy. I'm not the sort to judge one by their looks, but I say, in this case, judge away. (sidenote: apparently, I'm not the only one to have made this assessment....there are multiple reports of her foul nature)

That said, I'd still recommend the minced meat noodles here. The woman isn't offensive enough (interaction with her is very brief anyway) to warrant passing on the noodles.

The Mee Kia ($3), topped with stewed mushrooms, oodles of minced pork, and a couple of fried wanton discs, was stellar. There's no vinegar added to this, but the chilli sauce was extraordinary, bold and balanced. Even the soup served on the side stood out, with its meaty depth of flavour.

The stall front for reference. A tip is to look over that list on the left of the stall, below that red poster, and have your order at the ready, "mee kia" or "mee pok", "large $4" or "small $3", "chilli" or "no chilli", and "eat here" or "takeaway".

Hup Hup Minced Meat Noodles
#01-39

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Minced Meat Noodles

There's another noodle stall also hawking the same wares. Ru Yi whips up a mean bowl of fishball noodles, but it also serves mushroom minced meat noodles, which more traditional style passed muster but less of a standout like Hup Hup.

We supplemented the Mushroom Minced Meat Noodles ($3) with an extra serving of Fishballs ($1). This may be so-so compared to Hup Hup, but it boasted wonderfully comforting flavours.

The stall front for reference.

Ru Yi
#01-17

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Chicken Rice

Another stall here that sported a bit of a queue was the Chicken Rice ($3) at Seng Bee. The soup, sweetened with cabbage and aromatic with stewed peanuts, was noteworthy, but the chicken, rice, and chilli were decent, albeit pedestrian.

The stall front for reference.

Seng Bee
#01-31
Tel: 6458 2556
Open Wednesdays to Mondays from 8am to 8.30pm

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Carrot Cake

Lim Hai Sheng was heralded by multiple publications as frying up a top-notch plate of White Carrot Cake ($2) but we didn't think it was that great. There was that bit of charring on the edges, but there was no smoky fragrance, and the radish pudding could be a smidge softer and chewier. That being said, the chilli paste was extraordinary, and helped give this middling dish a lift.

The stall front for reference. I suppose we should have known it wasn't as good as the accolades claim, the stall was frequently devoid of customers, who mostly flocked to the aforementioned stalls above.

Lim Hai Sheng Cooked Food
#01-09
Tel: 9003 5259
Open daily from 8am to 10pm

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Cheng Teng

The sweltering weather calls for Iced Cheng Teng ($2), my favourite local dessert. The one at Four Seasons was a half-and-half. The ingredients were forgettable, but the herbal soup was awesomesauce, nuanced, refreshing and harmonious.

The stall front for reference.

Four Seasons Cheng Teng
#01-34
Open daily from 10.30am to 8pm

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Ang Mo Kio Central Market & Food Centre
724 Ang Mo Kio Ave 6

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