I usually go hiking in Bukit Timah Nature Reserve and will have lunch at Beauty World Food Centre after the hike. Due to the COVID-19 situation for almost two years, some of the stalls at the food court had closed and new ones have emerged.
Most of the food in the food centre are nice but I can't list all of them here. So, I will highlight the stalls that I frequent most and some new stalls. Do try the other stalls of your choice when you are there.
1. Hong Kong Soya Sauce Chicken Noodle Rice (香港玫瑰油鸡面饭)
This soya sauce chicken noodle rice stall is lesser known to many people but for people who have tried it, they will definitely go back again — including me. During lunch time, this stall is never without a queue, so either go early or expect to queue.
I always ordered the soya sauce chicken noodle added with barbecue pork. Both the chicken and barbecue pork are tender and juicy. The springy noodle is accompanied by soya sauce that has a distinctive rose flavour.
Another of my favourite here is the shrimp dumplings noodle or soup (usually with 3 pieces of big shrimp dumplings). Wrapped in each dumpling is generous number of whole shrimps with minced meat. Savour the crunchiness on each bite!
Location: #04-48
Operating Hours: 12pm to 7pm | Closed on Wednesday
2. Wei Ji Cooked Food (伟记熟食) - CLOSED
It is not very often that I get to eat at Wei Ji Cooked Food stall as it is always closed on Saturdays — the day that I usually go for hiking. Only once in a while when it rains on a Saturday and I postpone my hiking to Sunday, do I get to eat Wei Ji's Teochew porridge.
Wei Ji's dishes are inexpensive. I like the steamed fishes even though they may cost a little more. One small whole fish, one veggie and one meat sides and a bowl of porridge will cost around $5.40. And when eating with friends, I will usually order more dishes to try.
3. Blanco Court Fresh Fish Soup (白兰阁鲜鱼汤)
This is a new stall in Beauty World Food Centre. Blanco Court fresh fish soup is rather well-known to fish soup lovers and has a main setup in Beach Road. But I am not sure if this stall is a new branch or have moved here from Beach Road.
It took me two tries to fully appreciate their fried fish bee hoon soup added with milk. On the first try, I actually took a piece of fried salted fish — thinking it was a fried fish fritter — and popped it into my mouth. The saltiness caught me off-guard and the milky soup was a little bland since I ate the salted fish. But the fried fresh fish was really good.
On the second try, I let the fried fish slices, fried bean skins and anything that was fried soaked fully in the soup for a short while before eating. And the soup tasted better.
Location: #04-21
Operating Hours: 10am - 8pm daily
4. Penang Home-Made Beef Ball (槟城自制牛肉丸) - CLOSED
I have eaten at this stall several times, trying each of its different styles of beef noodle. Other than its homemade beef balls noodle, I have also tried the mixed beef noodle, braised beef hor fun (white flat noodle) and beef fried rice.
My usual pick is the braised beef brisket and tendons noodle. The soft tendons have became a must-have for me at the stall ever since I tried it the first time. For those who love collagen-rich food, go for the tendons.
Location: #04-43
Operating Hours: 10am - 7pm | Closed on Thursdays
5. NoodleFellas by KopiFellas - CLOSED
NoodleFellas is another new setup selling several types of noodle dish. There are lor mee, laksa, minced meat noodle, fishball noodle/soup and sliced abalone noodle. I tried the sliced abalone noodle.
At $5 a bowl, the portion of the noodle dish is quite large with lots of ingredients, such as minced meat, sliced meat, meat ball, slices of fishcakes, mushrooms, beansprouts, fried pork lard and, of course, slices of abalone. The noodle is springy with a tint of sourness from vinegar. This noodle dish is really nice.
NoodleFellas is owned by KopiFellas, which has another stall in one corner of the food court selling beverages and breakfast toast set.
Location: #04-49
Operating Hours: ?
6. Feng Ji Shu Shi Char Kway Teow (豐記熟食炒粿條)
Traditional char kway teow with cockles has always been my soft spot and Feng Ji Shu Shi (or Feng Ji Cooked Food) is one of the few char kway teow outlets that I usually go to when I have cravings for fried noodle.
Feng Ji char kway teow is surprisingly not oily and the sweetness is just nice. The cockles are usually slightly cooked to make it less raw although I will like it slightly raw. To be on the safe side of food safety, it is always better to serve the cockles slightly cooked.
Location: #04-45
Operating Hours: 12pm - 7:30pm | Closed on Mondays
7. Jin Li Satay Bee Hoon (锦利沙爹米粉) - CLOSED
Jin Li Satay Bee Hoon stall is a new stall of few months in Beauty World Centre but has attracted attention of diners who frequent the food court. Always eager to try new stuff, I tried their signature satay bee hoon with pieces of fresh cuttlefish and prawns. The peanut sauce is not too thick, not oily and just right without the overpowering peanut flavour.
Jin Li serves laksa dish too. As laksa is also one of my favourite, I went for it several times. The laksa noodle is topped with tau pok (tofu puff), prawn, half a hard-boiled egg and slices of fish cake. I like the smooth coconut-curry gravy that does not induce choking when drinking it. Laksa is available on weekends only.
8. Hong Wen Mutton Soup (红炆羊肉汤）
For many years, Beauty World Food Centre is one of those few places to look for good Chinese mutton soup to warm the body. Today, Hong Wen is the only stall in the food centre that sells it. And fortunately, it does not disappoint. I have eaten the mutton soup here for more times than I can remember.
I will usually order mutton soup although I will go for a mix of mutton and lamb stomach for more textures on some occasions. The mutton is tender and the stomach is chewy. And I just love the herbal soup. It is not oily as compared to Indian-Muslim's sup kambing.
Location: #04-20
Operating Hours: 11am - 8pm | Closed on Mondays
9. Victory Thai Boat Noodle
Apart from the food centre on the 4th floor, there is also a Thai food shop on the first floor that we visited several times since it started operations. Victory Thai Boat Noodle is a nice place to go for Thai boat noodles and other Thai food at reasonable prices.
Victory's signature dishes are beef or pork boat noodles. Other Thai dishes include varieties of rice dishes, salads, curry dishes, etc, and also desserts like mango glutinous rice and iced red ruby. I like the beef boat noodle and have ordered it almost every time I visited the shop.
Location:
#01-09
Operating Hours:
11:30am ~ 3pm, 4pm ~ 8:30pm | Daily
Try more local food in Chinatown:
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