Taiwan is one of my all-time favourite countries to visit, and when I started searching for ways to experience Taiwan in Singapore, food was a major part of my itinerary as it is one of the easiest ways to feel like you’re overseas, just for a bit. Since travel is difficult in these times, I decided to take my taste buds abroad by searching out some of the best Taiwanese food in Singapore and collating them into this list so you can plan your own Taiwanese food journey.
A note that this list is based off my personal tastes and experiences and while this post is sponsored by the Taiwan Tourism Bureau of Singapore, none of the food was sponsored and I collated the list through my own research and visited + ate at all these spots. Also, I chose to focus more on highlighting smaller indie eateries as far as possible vs concept eateries under larger brand names.
Last Updated on 5 July, 2024
UPDATES: New eatery Breakfast Hola added
What is Taiwanese food in Singapore like?
What we consider classic Taiwanese food in Singapore generally boils down to Taiwanese xiaochi 小吃 or snacks, quick prep food you can typically find in Taiwanese night markets or in the neighbourhood. I ate a lot of Taiwanese food in the research of this piece and found that a typical menu for Taiwanese food in Singapore eateries usually includes the following items:
- Braised pork rice aka lu rou fan 滷肉飯 – I never realised this but there are different styles of lu rou fan, but my favourite ‘Taiwanese style’ is where the meat is minced/cubed into smallish chunks and the rice is soaked with a savoury gravy
- Salted chicken 鹽酥雞 and/or fried chicken cutlet like the ones you get at night markets
- Oyster/Intestine mee sua, though some also offer mee sua with just chicken
- Bubble milk tea or brown sugar milk tea
Bonus items that can also be found:
- San bei chicken 三杯鸡
- Beef noodles
- Tofu with Century Egg
- Wintermelon tea
Ultimately the places that resonated with me and that I’ve included in this Taiwanese food in Singapore list served up good grub that took me back to Taiwan through my tastebuds. You have no idea how much lu rou fan and milk tea I imbibed for this list (all in the name of research!).
This list is not exhaustive, and there are a surprising number of Taiwanese food stalls in Singapore which I have yet to finish exploring! I divided the list up by general area so you can see what’s close to you.
[googlemaps https://www.google.com/maps/d/u/0/embed?mid=1Wqy37IoQsfoX2FLV2vhU4Y-_SELxTLOQ&w=640&h=480]North
8 Degrees Taiwanese Bistro 8度空間
Upper Serangoon
8 Degrees is a little eatery along Upper Serangoon Road that’s been around since 2012 and apparently named for a Jay Chou album and quite a well-known spot for Taiwanese food in Singapore.
Location: They’ve opened a second outlet at Foch Road in Jalan Besar, but I headed down to the original branch, a small but bright and modern eatery housed in a row of shophouses – the location isn’t the most convenient as it’s kinda smack between Serangoon and Kovan MRT.
Food: I dined in the restaurant and decided to order the mee sua as I had already had a lot of lu rou fan that day. I like that they offered different variations for the mee sua because I’m a fan of neither intestines or oyster which are the classic complements, so I just got a plain mee sua which I thought paired well with the tasty and plump salted chicken, washing it down with a cold honey yuzu drink.
I did takeaway on a separate day for the family to try more food. Lu rou fan is one of their signature dishes and comes in 2 sizes. It’s decent but I thought there wasn’t enough meat compared to the rice and the meat was more shredded than minced. The fried Shitake mushrooms were pretty sizeable and I loved the tasty dipping sauce and the dan bing had a pretty generous serving of pork floss.
Verdict: Overall good Taiwanese food, and good for those who like choices as the 8 Degrees food and drinks menu is actually pretty extensive, including lots of drink and dessert options as well. I’m curious to see how the scallion chicken rice and prawn omelette will fare.
Location: 37 Teck Chye Terrace, Singapore 545734 (10 min walk from Serangoon MRT Station)
Opening Hours: 11am – 230pm, 5pm – 9pm (weekdays), 11am – 9pm (weekends)
[Website] [Delivery/Pick Up Order Here]
Second outlet at Jalan Besar
Nan Tai Eating House 南台卤肉饭
Whampoa
Nan Tai Eating House is a pretty old-school eatery that really reminds me of those hole-in-the-wall type of eateries you can find in Taiwanese neighbourhoods. Located in a row of old shophouses along Kim Keat Road not too far from Whampoa Market, sliding that glass door open felt a bit like stepping back in time without any fancy decor, classic metal tins of utensils on the tables and stacks of can drinks piled up in the corner.
Location: It’s not the easiest place to get to because Balestier and Whampoa which are just not anywhere near the MRT so it’s either take the bus or drive, but if you are exploring these areas or perhaps headed to the Sun Yat Sen Nanyang Memorial Hall in the same area for more Taiwanese immersion, it’s a great place to stopover for a simple lunch.
Food: I dined solo that day so I opted to try the house special lu rou fan which had that simple home-cooked flavour, and came with a braised egg and some cabbage. I have to say the portion here is quite sizeable, so it was a good thing I was pretty hungry. My rice came with a complimentary bowl of egg drop and tomato soup.
There is a small kitchen where they cook up some other Taiwanese xiaochi classics like Tempura (tian bu la), fried chicken, pork belly and mee sua as well.
Verdict: A little inconveniently located, but great for lu rou fan lovers if you like home-cooked flavours and larger portions. Have to come back again to try more of their food.
Address: 18 Kim Keat Road #01-01, Singapore 328846 (off Balestier Road, short 5min walk from Whampoa Food centre)
Opening Hours: 1130pm – 9pm (close at 10pm on Saturdays, closed full day on Sundays)
[Facebook]
Fong Sheng Hao 豐盛號
Serangoon
Fong Sheng Hao is a Taiwanese brand that started out in the famous Shilin Night Market in 2013 and now has 2 stalls in Taipei. The Singapore franchise started up in 2019 and serves up their signature Taiwanese breakfast food, namely charcoal grilled sandwiches and delicious tea.
Location: There are 3 outlets in Singapore, the first opening at PLQ in Paya Lebar, then NEX in Serangoon and most recently for the westies in Jurong East’s Westgate. I pop into the outlet at NEX fairly frequently because it’s convenient for me, located at B2 which connects to the HDB carpark nearby, and I’ve actually never eaten in store even though the decor is quite cute – I usually do takeout here because it’s en route home for me.
Food: The menu is small but they are very good at what they do. There are a handful of savoury sandwiches, and my favourite is the Pork and Egg Cheese sandwich which is exactly what it says it is, no extra (unnecessary to me) vegetables unless you order them with your sandwich! There is Taiwanese sausage patty as well if you like your meat a little sweeter, or a spicy version for those who like it hot. For traditional flavours, go for the Pork Floss sandwich which has a very generous serving of floss.
There are sweet sandwiches with condensed milk, strawberry jam, nutella and peanut butter as well.
The Singapore branches also have 2 rice bowls available for lunch: classic lu rou fan is a pretty yummy meal which I prefer to the popcorn chicken bowl. The lu rou fan is quite a sizeable portion, covered in flavourful finely cubed minced pork and gravy and accompanied by a braised egg and some cucumber slices.It does have that Taiwanese feel and flavour, pretty good stuff all around.
In particular I do love the drinks here. The signature milk tea here actually has quite a distinct taste and is made with fresh milk. It’s a little pricey but very yummy, and their cane sugar black tea is also quite stellar.
Verdict: Skip the McMuffins and have some Taiwanese toast for breakfast instead! Rice lovers will appreciate the lu rou fan as it does have that Taiwan flavour. Overall prices are not the cheapest and there aren’t that many options, but I love a focused menu and think the quality of their food is pretty good.
Address: 23 Serangoon Central, NEX, #B2-15, Singapore 556083 (closest MRT: Serangoon)
Opening Hours: 8am – 830pm
Other outlets at Paya Lebar (PLQ), Jurong East (Westgate) and Jewel Changi Airport (coming soon)
South
+886 Taiwanese Bistro 八八六
Jalan Besar
Named for Taiwan’s international calling code, +886 is a little bistro in Jalan Besar that’s very new, and it serves up your typical Taiwanese xiaochi. This area has a cool mix of industrial shops and hip cafes, and +886 has a clean modern vibe with its white and blue colour scheme.
Location: Right at the junction of busy Jalan Besar and Balestier Road, the bistro is a short walk from both Lavender MRT and Farrer Park MRT. It’s got that hipster vibe, sandwiched in a shophouse row alongside auto workshops and other cafes.
Food: I visited solo at an odd time in the afternoon on the weekend so it was pretty quiet and my food was served very quickly. I ordered the Ah Bao Braised Pork Rice which I thought was pretty good. The portion was Taiwanese-small in a little bowl, and the rice was bit sticky so I could eat with just my chopsticks. The lu rou on top was quite fatty and tender, and slightly sweet and reminiscent of glutinous rice fillings.
The small serving left me enough room to order an extra side so I opted for another signature dish, the Imperial Pork Chop which turned out to be absolutely massive: 2 pieces of pork chop was definitely way too much for lil ‘ol me and I had to pack the remainder back for dinner. The pork chop was quite lean and really crispy and covered quite liberally with that powder you usually find on all the fried food at night markets.
I visited a second time and this time I ordered the Chicken Meesua and Honey Glazed Chicken Chop to try. I actually enjoyed this mee sua quite a lot. Besides a pretty generous portion of shredded chicken, the meesua was tasty and not too watered down, and there were mushrooms in it as well.
The Honey Glazed Crispy Chicken is another of their signatures and is also a giant portion covered quite liberally with sesame seeds. I should have asked them to cut it up for me to make it a bit easier to eat (they do give you a knife). Still it was really crispy, and the slightly sweet skin went quite nicely with the savoury chicken.
Verdict: Nice modern decor and pretty decent food that does hit some of those Taiwanese flavours. I definitely need to come back and check out some of their other specials like the Scallion Chicken Rice. The Yam Milk is also quite a popular choice if you like that sort of thing.
Address: 407 Jalan Besar Road, #01-01, Singapore 209012 (10-15 min walk from Farrer Park MRT or Lavender MRT)
Opening Hours: 11.30am – 9pm (Sun-Thur), 11.30am – 2.30am (Fri-Sat).
True Breakfast 初早餐
Somerset
One of my favourite Taiwanese breakfasts is the Taiwanese omelette or dan bing 蛋餅 and while researching for good Taiwanese breakfast spots in Singapore, I saw a lot of great reviews about True Breakfast 初早餐 so I was pretty stoked about checking it out. It turns out that this place gets crowded very quickly – it’s quite small with just 7 tables, but I actually had to visit twice because the first time around the queue was just too long for my liking. Be prepared to wait as everything is made fresh as you order.
Location: True Breakfast is located in a slightly unexpected location in the basement of Cuppage Plaza, which is already quite hidden behind Orchard Point and Centrepoint along the Orchard Road Stretch. I popped in on a Sunday morning and not much else was open in this building, though this place was bustling. 9.06am and I just managed to snag the last table without having to wait in line, and it took about 20 minutes to order and receive my food.
On another Sunday morning I arrived to pick up a takeaway order at about 10amish and there were 10+ tables in the queue, so definitely go early, or check it out on a weekday morning where I’ve heard it’s just not as crowded then.
Food: Their menu is quite extensive, but the danbing is one of their star dishes, so lots of filling options available. I picked pork chop and my danbing was served piping hot and fresh with nice thin skin that’s just the slightest bit crispy, definitely 10/10,. It made me wish I ordered more food but I was just one person and didn’t want to overdo it, and also I could see the queue outside growing… The milk tea was chilled and served without ice but I thought it was a little bland.
I also tried the pork floss and cheese danbing – my favourite is still the pork chop which is nice and lean!
Verdict: Probably my favourite Taiwanese breakfast spot for danbing and I definitely want to go back again and try their breakfast sandwiches, thick toast and other snacks in future. They also serve rice and noodle bowls during lunch time.
Address: 5 Koek Road, Cuppage Plaza B1-19/20, Singapore 228796 (closest MRT: Somerset)
Opening Hours: 9am – 2pm (closed on Tuesdays)
Breakfast Hola 早餐好了
Chinatown
Breakfast Hola 早餐好了 is one the newer Taiwanese restaurants to pop up in Singapore in mid 2022. As per their name, they specialise in Taiwanese breakfast: Taiwanese toast, sandwiches and omelette, as well as a handful of noodle and rice dishes for anyone who needs something a little more.
Location: Breakfast Hola is located along South Bridge Road in the shophouses right next to the Buddha Tooth Relic Temple. It’s a small narrow ground floor shophouse space with about 11-12 tables and was surprisingly crowded on a Wednesday morning when I visited.
Food: I was there around brunch time so I ordered a grilled pork danbing, a small portion of braised pork rice and the Good Morning Milk Tea – something about the milk or the tea that I found overly sweet, might need to try the black tea milk option in future to see.
Interestingly enough, the danbing came before the rice – usually the meat is pre-prepped and just added to rice while the danbing is freshly cooked. The danbing was decent, with 2 strips of grilled pork within and fluffy with a slight crispy on the outside. They poured the sweet sauce on top, so if you don’t like that you might want to tell them to add it on the side. You also have the option to upgrade at extra cost to a wholewheat crepe or a scallion oil pancake, I thought the original was good enough.
Naturally I also had to try the lu rou fan – I ordered a small portion which was basically meat on rice with a bit of cucumber on the side, but if you order the large portion you’ll get a fried egg and more ingredients. The gravy was ok, a little on the bland side but otherwise a decent small portion so you have room for some of the other snacks.
Verdict: Decent food in a cute cafe that’s conveniently located in Chinatown for anyone with a Taiwanese breakfast craving. I probably want to come back and try the thick toast options.
Address: 280 South Bridge Road, Singapore 058829 (closest MRT: Chinatown / Maxwell)
Opening Hours: 830am – 530pm (closed on Tuesdays)
[website]
Eat 3 Bowls Station 呷三碗車站
Pasir Panjang
I had several recommendations on places to eat Taiwanese food in Singapore, and Eat 3 Bowls had pretty stellar reviews all around. Their Crawford Lane outlet was closed, so I headed down to Pasir Panjang and absolutely adore their Taiwan Rail themed outlet. From train schedules to TRA signage on the walls, and even some fake train windows with Taiwan scenery and a train mural, it had such a fun vibe while the wooden tables and stools bring to mind traditional hole in the wall Taiwanese eateries.
Location: Most people know their first outlet at Crawford Lane in the Lavender area better, but it’s temporarily closed because of maintenance. The Eat 3 Bowls Station outlet is in a row of shophouses with some other eateries along the Pasir Panjang port area, in between Pasir Panjang MRT Station and Mapletree Business City, with a small public carpark nearby for drivers.
Food: I heard it could get crowded so I went a little earlier in the evening on the weekend, and the crowd probably started streaming in after 7pm. I ordered lu rou fan and salted chicken and a milk tea and it was all served very quickly. That little bowl of lu rou fan definitely transported me back to Taiwan. It’s a small bowl of white rice topped with lots of delicious gravy and minced braised meat, exactly how I love it. The salted chicken chunks were plump and served in a little basket with some bits of fried green veg and I washed it all down with some bubble milk tea with some nice chewy pearls.
Verdict: One of my top choices of this entire Taiwanese food list! I do want to go back again in future and try more food, in particular the 3 Bowls Set that includes lu rou fan, shredded chicken rice and oyster mee sua, perfect for indecisive me.
Address: 103 Pasir Panjang Road, Singapore 118531 (Closest MRT: Pasir Panjang)
Opening Hours: 11am – 9pm (Closed on Tuesdays)
Other outlet at Lavender
East
Isshin Machi 一心一町
East Coast Road
The Japanese sounding name of Isshin Machi might not make you think of it as a Taiwanese restaurant at first, but this cute casual eatery withthe blue and white decor serves up a wide array of yummy Taiwanese street food.
Location: Isshin Machi is located along East Coast Road, which is always a bit of a pain to get to because it’s not near the MRT though that will change in 2024 when the Thomson East Coast Line comes up, but for now your best options are the bus or to take a shuttle bus to the closest malls Parkway Parade, Katong V or I12 (closed for renovation). This area does have some really nice eateries though.
Food: I had lunch in the East Coast outlet with a friend so I had the chance to order a bit more food and settled on the classic lu rou fan. The Isshin Machi lu rou fan comes in a small bowl slathered with braised meat and cucumber, pickled vegetables and a braised egg. Nice and fatty meat with a properly savoury sauce, this did remind me of Taiwan and I enjoyed the dish.
I also wanted to try their pork chop, but instead of pairing it with fried rice, I opted to pair it with Guanmiao noodles, which is the speciality of a district in Tainan and is basically hand-cut, sun-dried noodles similar to ban mian. The pork chop was yummy and tender, and the broth of the soup noodles was light but still tasty. A very filling option though!
We did order one more dish – the moon prawn cake, which I’m not showing you here because honestly I found it a tad underwhelming so I’d skip this for the future. It reminded me of just normal fishcake.
Verdict: Overall I like the casual modern ambience of this eatery, and the menu has a lot of different options so I think it will be perfect for groups of people who like a wide variety of food.
Address: 224 East Coast Road, Singapore 428921 (Close to Katong Square and I12)
Opening Hours: 11am – 9.30pm
Other outlets at Selegie, Holland Village, Greenwood Avenue (Hillcrest), Serangoon Gardens and Punggol
5 Little Bears 五只小熊
Paya Lebar
I read about 5 Little Bears online and was surprised that it’s actually been serving Taiwanese food in Singapore since the late 00’s. I was also tickled by the cute name which is apparently a reference to the owner’s 5 kids.
Location: 5 Little Bears is located in the basement of Paya Lebar Square (NOT PLQ though it’s right next door), and it’s got a bit of an alleyway izakaya feel with the many red lanterns and narrow space. Right next to the food outlet is a linked shop called Bear’s Cafe that sells Taiwanese pastries and imported snacks.
Food: The menu at 5 Little Bears is quite simple, but does cover the basic Taiwanese xiaochi and feels like the sort of food you’d get in a canteen or small eatery. The lu rou fan has a very homestyle feel to it and is great but in my opinion has too much vegetables. Salted chicken and fried mushrooms were crispy, salty and one interesting thing they do is put the spice powder on the side so you can mix it in to your own liking.
I also tried the oyster mee sua which I personally didn’t find too remarkable, and I preferred the XL chicken chop to the salted chicken because it was a bit more tender. They did have other noodle and rice dishes, but apparently I was there on a pretty busy weekend night so they said those dishes would take 20-30mins to prep, whereas these were already prepped and quick to serve.
I bought some of the snacks from Bear’s Cafe next door – the original and sesame eggrolls are pretty damn crispy and quite long, also impossible to eat neatly because they’re so flaky! Quite good if you enjoy eggrolls. The handmade nougat cracker is a bit of a head scratcher for me though – it literally is some nougat slapped between 2 square crackers.
Verdict: Prices here are cheap and if you want simple, fuss-free homestyle Taiwanese food, this is a pretty good option. Also next door is Bear’s Cafe that sells imported Taiwanese snacks and freshly made favourites like handmade egg roll, pineapple tarts and nougat crackers if you want to bring a bit of Taiwan home.
Address: 60 Paya Lebar Road, Paya Lebar Square, #B1-09, Singapore 409051 (Closest MRT: Paya Lebar)
Opening Hours: 1130am – 830pm
West
Lee’s Taiwanese 李记
Clementi
Lee’s Taiwanese is a pretty under-the-radar Taiwanese food spot, a homely little diner hidden in a residential estate in the Clementi area. I had never even heard of this area, only learning about it from some recs that it was pretty authentic Taiwanese fare so I headed out west to check it out.
Location: Faber Drive is located deep within a private housing estate, on the first level of Faber Hills Apartments, with the closest bus stop along the AYE opposite Infiniti. There are some other F&B outlets here like Baker & Cook and Gelato Lab as well. I visited for lunch on a Sunday at noon and it usually gets crowded earlier, though it rained that day so the crowd came in closer to 1pm.
Food: I had the Lee’s Signature 招牌雙拼飯 which is a pretty good choice if you’re hungry and indecisive: you can both the braised pork rice and salted chicken in one dish along with some salted veg, braised egg and tau kee. I washed it all down with some red milk tea, though the drinks and desserts menu is pretty limited (basically just red bean soup for dessert). Interestingly enough there is also some western food like spaghetti and burgers on the menu because the restaurant is related to Blooies.
The meat of the lu rou fan seemed a bit chunkier than usual, but it’s nice and melt-in-your-mouth fatty and really brought me back to Taiwan with that one mouthful, though I wish they could have added just a bit more gravy to really soak the rice. Salted chicken was tasty and tender and a nice complement to the lu rou fan. Decent milk tea.
I went back again on a separate evening to try their beef noodle soup and crispy chicken chop. The beef noodles are pretty filling because they use the thicker sort of noodle. The broth is utterly drinkable and savoury, and the green chilli adds a nice spicy kick without being too much. The beef shank portion was quite substantial and fatty to boot. This is their most expensive dish on the menu at $13.80 though.
I was feeling greedy and also opted to try their crispy chicken chop, a nice side to add some crunch to this meal. Enjoyable and tasty without being too oily. Also sliced up so make it easier to eat which is always a plus.
Verdict: This place is apparently considered quite legit by Taiwanese people, so a great find for westies and I like the vibe of this area. I definitely want to go back and try their railway bento sets because I love a good biandang! Am also curious about their noodles here after seeing someone tabao a whole lot of beef noodles.
Abundance
Redhill
Abundance is quite a cool little cafe that was named because it specialises in gua bao 割包, or what we know locally as kong bak bao 扣肉包. They also serve up lots of other Taiwanese dishes like fried rice, noodles and side dishes, as well as have their own beer counter, so I was definitely intrigued.
Location: Abundance has a rather unexpected location on the ground floor of a Lengkok Bahru HDB flat, a very short walk from Redhill MRT and not far from Leng Kee and all the auto showrooms. It’s a pretty cute little cafe though rather small, so you might have to queue if you come at peak hour.
Food: I knew I wanted to try their signature bao, so I got myself the gua bao. It’s a pretty sizeable slab of pork belly sandwiched in a steamed bun, liberally covered with roasted peanuts, pickles and cilantro. There’s no real way to eat this neatly because everything is just falling out everywhere, but it is yummy.
I also ordered the Darkplings, which are basically meat dumplings in scallion oil and dark sauce, though they do have a spicy version as well. Each portion comes with 5 bite sized dumplings that are suitably plump and tasty.
I had a little room left for dessert and I definitely wanted to get the cilantro peanut ice cream roll, modelled after the one sold in Taiwan night markets. This was basically peanut ice cream wrapped in crushed peanuts, cilantro and a thin skin. Very yummy, hate the crunch of the cilantro so will ask them to leave that out next time!
I returned on a separate night with a friend and made a reservation just in case (it was a Thursday night). There were still some seats available in the outside area (there is one fan, can get a bit warm but if you’re nervous about COVID this might work better for you) and decided to get some craft beer (the drinks change pretty quickly in about a week or so depending on how fast the kegs get finished – I had a really good milk stout) and try the other bao on the menu.
If you thought the gua bao portion was large, let me just say the crispy chicken bao (cheekily named the CCB) is EVEN larger. It’s a whole chicken cutlet squeezed into a pretty sizeable steamed bao and covered quite liberally with mango slaw and a thai peanut sauce. A really great combo, but it does take awhile to eat so the bun (and your hands) do get a tad sticky and soggy but very worth its money.
Another stellar choice was the Golden Egg, which is really century egg hidden inside a crackling thin and crispy wanton skin covered with bonito flakes, onions and a sweet and spicy sauce. This was pretty unique and damn tasty, and apparently inspiration from some Taiwanese night market snacks. Definitely unlike any other century egg snack I’ve seen in Singapore.
Verdict: I love their fun food and definitely want to return with friends so I can try their fried rice (the chefs are apparently ex-din tai fung!). Also I’ll leave some room for craft beer, they have such interesting options available. Their staff were also pretty friendly and nice in making their recommendations on what to eat, definitely worth checking out.
Address: 63A Lengkok Bahru, #01-378, Singapore 151063 (Closest MRT: Redhill)
Opening Hours: 11am – 3pm, 5pm – 9pm (Tues-Fri), 11am – 10pm (Sat, closed at 9pm on Sun) closed on Mondays)
爺 YEAH Taiwanese Street Food
Ayer Rajah
YEAH Taiwanese is a small shop focused on rice bowls and other typical Taiwanese night market fried street food. The first time I visited, they had actually sold out of rice on a weekday evening! So I was definitely curious to see what their food was like.
Location: YEAH Taiwanese is a stall in Timbre+ located at the JTC Launchpad at One North. It’s quite distinct from the rest of the stalls, housed in a red food-truck like caravan.
Food: On my first visit, I tried their mee sua paired with their famous chicken steak ($7.60), and washed that down with some bubble milk tea. The mee sua was a bit more like clear soup than the usual thick starchy consistency, and mine was not piping hot compared to the yummy chicken steak which was crispy and well-seasoned, and remained crunchy even after soaking in a bit of the soup. I also liked that there are more options for the mee sua pairings as most other places usually only have oyster and intestines to go with the mee sua.
Their bubble tea ($3.80) was decent with nice pearls that are chewy but not overly so, though I found the portion a tad small.
I visited on a separate afternoon and decided to try out their triple-up bowl ($12.60) – they were still prepping the fried chicken steak at that point so I couldn’t get the No Mercy / 4-meat bowl. The Triple-Up bowl came with san bei chicken, fried pork chop and braised pork in my rice bowl and by golly this portion was humongous! It also came loaded with an egg, tau kwa, cucumber and Taiwanese sausage, I definitely wouldn’t order this again because this is just way too much food for me, but if you like a variety of protein, it’s not a bad option.
Verdict: I should probably just try their standard lu rou fan some day, but so far I’m a fan of the fried chicken steak. The rice bowls I’d stick to Double-Up if I’m super hungry but anything more needs a much bigger appetite than mine.
Address: 73A Ayer Rajah Crescent, Timbre+, #01-04/05, Singapore 139957 (Closest MRT: One-North)
Opening Hours: 11am – 9pm (Closed on Sundays)
[website] [delivery WhatsApp: 98428885, Grab, Foodpanda, Deliveroo]
MONKI 台灣小吃部
Buona Vista
MONKI was a cafe I’d been wanting to try, but during the original week that I undertook this Taiwanese food project, the shop was in the process of moving locations, so I only got a chance to visit in early 2022.
Location: MONKI used to be located in Holland but has since relocated to The Star Vista. Their entrance is actually outside the mall facing the dropoff point on level 1.
Food: I visited on a weekday a little before the lunch crowd before noon so it wasn’t very crowded. Their menu is surprisingly broad, besides the usual Taiwanese food on it, they do have some more unusual options like Bittergourd Pineapple Chicken Soup and other dishes that hail from Taichung. They even have shaved ice here, but I was a little too full to indulge, so for another day! I definitely need to try those at some point, but on my first visit here I decided to stick to the standard lu rou fan and popcorn chicken, along with a Monki milk tea.
The food was served in metal bowls with metal cutlery. The lu rou fan ($9) came out very quickly and was quite a big portion, covered with a pretty scrumptious looking gravy of minced pork on top. The bowl also came with a braised egg, beancurd some pickled veggies and a big slice of lettuce. Nice soft and fatty meat, savoury gravy with a hint of sweetness, overall a pleasant meal.
The Monki Milk Tea ($5) was pretty normal but I realised I didn’t stir it well enough because the syrup was at the bottom of my cup. It’s a tad expensive though in my opinion.
I also added on a portion of salted fried chicken aka popcorn chicken ($6) on the side. It’s not a very large portion but if you’re eating a couple of dishes it’s not too bad. Crispy, salty and freshly cooked, it’s a nice side dish.
Verdict: It’s a cute space and pretty good food, I definitely want to come back and try some of their more unusual Taiwanese food offerings, and maybe get a snow ice too.
Address: 1 Vista Exchange Green, #01-41, The Star Vista, Sinagpore 138617 (Closest MRT: Buona Vista)
Opening Hours: 1030am – 9pm daily
[website]
Other Taiwanese eateries to check out
I intend to keep updating this list as time goes on, here are some spots that I am looking to try, or have tried and need to do a little more research on. If you have any new recs I should know about, please drop them here in the comments so I can add them to this list.
Need to try more:
- Big Mouth Eat: this little shop at the basement of Havelock 2 in Chinatown and had their pork chop danbing – personally found the danbing a bit too thick/fluffy for my liking, so have to go back again to try their other food for a better review
- Lai Lai Taiwan Casual Dining: had the signature beef noodles at this family restaurant in City Square Mall and it was a really generous portion! I do want to try their other food before giving a verdict
To Try:
- Tai Feng Wei: their fried rice is supposed to be quite good, especially the fish roe fried rice
- Alley Wei: I was going to check this eatery in Northpoint (Yishun) for my Taiwanese breakfast post, but I didn’t include them cause they only open from 11am onwards, so it’s another spot for my to-review list
- Feng Food: Another Taiwanese food place in Northpoint that apparently does great fried rice too
I reviewed most of these eateries in 2021 but some have since closed down or stopped operations. Have kept the reviews in the dropdown below for posterity.
GATAO Taiwan Breakfast Shop 角頭台灣早餐店
Chinatown
Note: apparently they’re closing on Oct 30th due to some personnel issues? hopefully it’s not permanent
Here’s something funny: I somehow had the impression that ‘Gatao’ was the name of a place in Taiwan given the chinese characters, but google surprised me with the fact that Gatao really is the slang name for Taiwanese triads (and also quite a popular Taiwanese movie franchise)! However, there’s nothing unsavoury about this little stall in People’s Park Centre that serves up Taiwanese breakfast and other Taiwanese food for later in the day as well.
Location: People’s Park Centre is the rather old building at the major Chinatown junction which is often overlooked by the fancier Chinatown Complex next to it. GATAO is a stall located within the very brightly lit FoodCity food court on level 1 – don’t get distracted by the very prominent Ya Kun just outside.
They apparently have an outlet at Chin Swee though that got closed due to COVID, no idea if it’s reopened again.
Food: I visited this place twice – the first time on my own to eat breakfast, and a second time with a friend to try their lunch food. For breakfast I was a little ambitious and ordered a set meal on my own which was probably a bit too much for me to finish! I had a pork chop danbing with the traditional sweet sauce which I thought was quite savoury and tasty. The hashbrown omelette was interesting, and topped with nacho cheese so a bit of an odd combi though it keeps it from being too similar to the danbing.
For lunch I got to try some of their other foods. I enjoyed the lu rou fan which was tender and tasty and paired with an egg and some veg. The mee sua with oyster and crab wasn’t really to my liking – it didn’t really pique my interest at all. There are many danbing filling options, but we wente with traditional pork floss danbing which had some mayo lining the inside and was quite savoury.
Verdict: Good danbing and lu rou fan are worth checking out the next time you’re in the Chinatown area. Also great that it opens earlier for breakfast because many of these other spots tend to open only around lunch time.
Address: 101 Upper Cross Street, People’s Park Centre, #01-04A/05A/05B (inside FoodCity), Singapore 058034. (Closest MRT: Chinatown)
Opening Hours: 8am – 6pm (Closed on Sundays)
Xiang Xiang Traditional Taiwanese Cuisine since 1916 香香百年台湾味
Bedok
Note: their last day of operations at Bedok Point is 28 December. No news yet on what happens next.
Xiang Xiang is apparently a hidden gem in the east side which some online folk recommend I check out – while they haven’t actually been around from 1916, they are apparently using recipes that have been handed down through the generations and also don’t use MSG. I haven’t had the chance to make it down there because it’s a tad out of the way for me, but I did order delivery to my house.
Location: This shop is located in Bedok Point at Bedok Town Centre which is convenient for the easties, though unfortunately it looks like they will be moving out by end of 2021.
Food: The menu is quite simple – I had some friends over so I ordered the large lu rou fan and chicken strip mee sua, and topped up my meals with the meatball soup and drinks. The delivery was a little delayed due to traffic, but the store was quite good in updating me know about the delay.
The lu rou fan was good, home-style simple flavours though something about the seasoning reminded me of mei cai kou rou (steamed pork belly with reserved mustard vegetables) than the typical Taiwanese lu rou fan. There is a small portion available as well if you’d rather just have a nibble.
The mee sua I personally thought was a bit on the watery side, so not really to my liking. The crispy chicken it came with I thought was ok though probably would have been better if I’d eaten it when freshly served.
Verdict: Decent home-cooked Taiwanese food, though honestly I wouldn’t travel out of my way to have it if I’m not in the vicinity as there are other options in this list closer to my home that are equivalent.
Address: 799 New Upper Changi Road, #01-04 Bedok Point, Singapore 467351
Opening Hours: 11am – 830pm
This post was sponsored by The Taiwan Tourism Bureau of Singapore, but all food was paid for by myself and all opinions are my own.
Itching for a trip to Taiwan but can’t go overseas? Check out my guide to experiencing Taiwan in Singapore with lots of ideas on things to do and eat.
Also, I have plenty of guides to Taiwan for you to plan your trip, especially for solo travellers or folk looking for more unusual things to do in Taiwan:
