Yong Heng Fried Baby Squid Prawn Mee @ Blk 155 Bukit Batok Street 11

Just a few stalls down from Tiong Bahru Lor Mee, located within the same coffee shop is Yong Heng Fried Baby Squid Prawn Mee.

I was actually looking for the lor mee stall when I chanced upon this stall selling Hokkien mee. The sight of the three whole squids atop the plate of fried Hokkien mee on the signboard (refer to the last photo below) prompted me to order a medium ($4/$6/$8) plate to try.

When my order was ready, I took a look at my plate longingly but the three squids were no where to be seen. There are only squid rings and if you piece them all together, does not even form the half of one squid, not to mention three.

Oh no.

Have I been taken for a ride? Is this yet another case of "photos are for illustration only"?

When will I stop being gullible?

Yang Zhou Fried Hokkien Mee @ Blk 127 Bukit Merah Lane 1

For the last 30 years, the owners of Yang Zhou Fried Hokkien Mee have been frying their noodles over a charcoal stove inside a coffee shop at Beo Crescent, effectively drawing long queue of customers everyday.

Two years ago, they relocated to another coffee shop called KPT Coffee Shop at Blk 127 Bukit Merah Lane 1 which, unfortunately, does not allow them to use charcoal anymore.

I am a old school foodie and I am game for anything cooked over a charcoal stove. Although they no longer uses it, I am still tempted to give them a try thanks to the glowing reviews online.

I visited the stall at about ten on a weekday morning with no queue in sight. The stall owner - Uncle Lim - was busy at the back while his wife is seated at the front with the newspapers spread in front of her. I walked up to her and placed an order for a $5 plate.

Xie Kee Hokkien Mee @ Bukit Timah Market & Food Centre

After Dad's hospital appointment on a Monday, we decided to drop by Bukit Timah Market & Food Centre for dinner since we are traveling by the downtown line.

We initially wanted to have the white bee hoon but the stall was closed. Instead, I was surprised to see Xie Kee Hokkien Mee opened for business because according to Burpple, Monday is their off day.

The uncle is sitting outside of his stall all alone without a single customer in sight. My immediate thought is how lucky we are, to be the first in queue thus we do not have to wait for long. I immediately placed an order for two $3 plates of Hokkien mee and took a seat beside the stall.