Singapore Eat: Song Fa Bak Kut Teh (松发肉骨茶) @ Clarke Quay

I was on my way to Marina Bay for some photoshoots at the new Apple store that sits on water and decided to drop by Song Fa Bak Kut Teh near Clarke Quay for lunch.

It was my first-time at the New Bridge Road outlet that was opposite Clarke Quay Central. Unlike the other outlets, which were mostly located in shopping malls, this outlet, located in a post-war shophouse, had a rustic Chinatown feel about it.

It was just after 12pm when I reached Song Fa and I thought I was in for a long wait, but there was no queue. I was lucky because the queue started forming 20 minutes later. Since I was alone, I opted for a small table outside the shop and took a peek at the rustic decorations inside.

I ordered their set lunch promotion with pork ribs soup (of course), fried dough fritters and preserved vegetables (the other option was groundnuts). The set meal was completed with a bowl of rice, a pack of dark soya sauce, sliced chilli and a drink.

The Teochew-style bak kut teh had clear and peppery broth with garlic flavour. There were three pieces of pork ribs in each bowl. Topping up of the soup was free-flow. The staff would come by and ask to top up the soup without having me to call for them.

Eating pork ribs with the sweet dark soya sauce was supposedly complementary but, as a local, I would say it's a must. The well-simmered pork ribs were tender and easy to separate the meat from the bones. I could not stop drinking the flavourful hot soup and made the staff top-up the soup no less than 5 times.

The usual way of eating the dough fritters (油条) would be to soak them in the soup. Let the fritters absorbed the soup before eating. The soup would add peppery and garlic flavour to the fried fritters. This would be another quick way to drink the soup and had more top-ups.

Other than pork ribs, soup and fritters, I also ate the garlic, which was non-spicy after long hours of boiling. It was meant to be eaten, otherwise, it would not be served with the soup.

Apart from going for the set meal at Song Fa, individual dishes could also be ordered a la carte style to try different Teochew dishes, especially when in a group.

Although Song Fa has many outlets throughout Singapore, my personal preference is the New Bridge Road outlet.

Address:

11 New Bridge Road, #01-01

Opening Hours:

10am to 9pm | Daily

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