The Dead Cockroach: Uncle Neo Western - Chicken Chop @ 253 Choa Chu Kang Ave 1

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Since the beginning of the pandemic, I have heard of this Uncle Neo Western at 253 Choa Chu Kang Ave 1 numerous times.

It is located inside this coffee shop named 85°C Cafe at Keat Hong Shopping Centre near to the wet market.

According to the people who tried it, they have nothing but good things to say about this old school western food stall managed by an elderly Chinese couple.

I finally found the chance to visit this neighborhood coffee shop yesterday evening.

A short queue had already formed when I reach around 6pm. While waiting for my turn, I look around and realized that the coffee shop is pretty small with only a drinks stall, a Chinese mixed rice stall, a roasted meat stall, a Muslim food stall, a tze char stall and this western food stall.

When I got to the front of the queue, I ordered the classic chicken chop ($7.80) which took about 10 minutes to be ready.

My chicken chop came with the usual sides of French fries, coleslaw, baked beans and deep fried bun.

Portions were reasonable for the price. My only grouse is with the chicken chop which is made up of several smaller pieces. I do not like getting smaller pieces of anything if it is supposed to be one large piece. Feels like I am getting the scraps but maybe it is just me.

The stall uses shoestring fries that I prefer over the crinkle-cut variety. They are freshly fried to a beautiful golden brown and served lightly salted, crisp and fluffy. I dislike cold fries that have been re-fried for a second time. They tend to shrivel and become dehydrated.

I believe the coleslaw here are handmade by the stall owners themselves. The cabbage are crunchy and refreshing to have.

The baked beans came straight out of the can and therefore needs no further introduction.

Oh, how I miss the deep fried bun that I dedicated two paragraphs for it! I remember the western food from my childhood all come with deep fried buns. It is the quintessential item that makes old school western food... old school.

I wonder why many places do not serve deep fried buns anymore? They have now been replaced by buttered toast or garlic bread which is simply not the same.

The bun is good on its own but I like to use it to mop up the remaining sauces.

In terms of taste, some may find this plate of chicken chop on the lighter side particularly the chicken and fries so those who are watching their sodium intake, this is for you.

Uncle Neo Western is Halal-certified which explains why they are sharing the space with the Muslim food stall.