This week’s Tried & Tested on tang yuan 汤圆 uncovers a couple of gems: a classic Teochew ah balling as well as an explosive modern twist on this traditional dessert. Click here to read the full story!

Level 2 of this open three-storey building is the place to go for camping equipment and supplies. That’s where you’ll see swarms of army guys and students. Hawker stalls occupy the first and basement levels. That’s where you’ll find hungry foodies checking out the various good and cheap eats.

Fried Hokkien prawn noodles (SGD$3.00).

From one of the Makansutra forum threads, I read that the fried Hokkien prawn noodles at the basement was recommended. There was only one fried Hokkien mee stall I found at the basement — Fried Hokkien Prawn Mee.

Theirs is the old-style kind, which uses thin bee hoon (rice vermicelli) instead of the thick type. It was too dry for my liking. I like my fried Hokkien mee to be very “wet”. They also stinged on the ingredients, so overall, this wasn’t so great.

Curry chicken (SGD$3.00), French loaf (SGD$0.50).

R’s choice — curry chicken from Fragrant House. This is the localized Chinese version, and eaten with local-style French loaf as many folks here do. As with the Hokkien mee, this was nothing spectacular. We didn’t think the curry was fragrant enough. There was, however, quite a lot of chicken.

Fresh sugar cane juice (SGD$1.00 per cup).

Question: What’s the perfect thirst quencher on a sweltering day? Ermm, ice-cold beer? Nuh uh, too early for a swig. Ice-cold, freshly squeezed sugar cane juice will do just nicely. Refreshing and “cooling”, it’s excellent for washing down all that fried, spicy food. I never fail to order sugar cane juice when eating at a hawker centre.

Stuffed glutinous rice flour dumplings (SGD$1.50 for a bowl of 4).

R and I saved some space in our tummies to make room for dessert — tang yuan (stuffed glutinous rice flour dumplings) from Ah Balling Peanut Soup. There are five kinds of stuffing to choose from: crushed peanut, crushed black sesame, red bean paste, mashed taro, and green tea. My favorites are the peanut and sesame.

You can also pick a soup base of sweetened peanut soup or ginger broth. I was already quite full, so I requested the plain sweetened broth.

The Hokkien mee and curry were a bit of a letdown, but the tang yuan is worth a try. Still, at a grand total of SGD$11.50 for two persons, it was a cheap lunch by local standards.

On previous visits, I’ve also tried the guiltless char kway teow, goreng pisang, Teochew soon kueh, and claypot rice. The claypot rice is excellent. They open only for dinner, though, and be prepared to wait at least 20 minutes, because they cook upon order. Wait longer if business is brisk, which is the norm. The Teochew soon kueh was also superb, but they seem to have moved. Sob!

Golden Mile Food Centre
505 Beach Road
Singapore 199583

Featured stalls:

Fried Hokkien Prawn Mee
#B1-34

Fragrance House
#B1-51

Ah Balling Peanut Soup
#01-75

cheers!