Fu Ji - Minced Meat Noodle @ Blk 491 Jurong West Ave 1

After my dental appointment at the nearby Polyclinic, I visited this noodle stall named Fu Ji which is located inside Fu Chan Coffee Shop at Blk 491 Jurong West Ave 1. 

I learned about the minced meat noodle here weeks prior my appointment from a Instagram friend so I planned a visit to check it out.

Business was sluggish upon my arrival with only Fu Ji and a chicken rice stall opened. At a glance, there are less than five customers in the coffee shop.

As it is my first time here, I am not sure if it is due to the dine-in restrictions or competition from across the road at Jurong Central Plaza where there are more coffee shops and therefore more choices.

Tai Wah Pork Noodle @ Hong Lim Market & Food Centre

Mention Hong Lim Market & Food Centre and chances are, Tai Wah Pork Noodle would come to mind.

It is one of the more popular stalls here evident by the line of customers it serve everyday. I have long wanted to give it a try but was intimidated by the waiting time.

Imagine my surprise when I visited the food centre on a particular morning to see only five people in the queue. I did not go there specifically for the pork noodle but since such an opportunity does not come easy, I wasted no time in joining them although it still took about thirty minutes for me to receive my bowl.

58 Minced Meat Noodle @ Taman Jurong Market & Food Centre

58 Minced Meat Noodle is undoubtedly one of the more popular stalls evident by its daily snaking queue. Located on the third floor of Taman Jurong Market & Food Centre, the line often stretched to the nearby escalator, blocking the path of the people coming up.

With a history spanning 47 years, the stall is now succeeded by Deon Ang, the second generation who has been helping his father out at the stall since his teenage years when they were still at their previous location.

On the day of my visit, Deon was there at the helm, cooking bowl after bowls of minced meat noodle at lightning speed while assisted by a lady helper.

51 Noodle House - Japanese Fusion Bak Chor Mee @ Yishun Park Hawker Centre

During my previous visit to Yishun Park Hawker Centre, I went to the wrong bak chor mee stall therefore, I am back again to look for the correct one called 51 Noodle House.

51 Noodle House is the collaboration between two young hawkers who already have their own respective food stalls at the food centre.

Rather than being business rivals, the two - Henry Yap from Ipoh Curry Noodle (#01-36) and Darren  Teo from Seafood Pirates (#01-35) - teamed up to open another stall offering fusion bak chor mee with a Japanese element to it.

Da San Yuan - Bak Chor Mee @ Yishun Park Hawker Centre

The purpose of this trip to Yishun Park Hawker Centre is to check out the bak chor mee.

Upon my arrival, I realized that I had forgotten the unit number and name of the stall. I began looking around at the signboards, searching for one that offers the dish. It did not take me long to find it and I promptly ordered a bowl.

After taking a few pictures, I began to dig in eagerly. However, a few mouthfuls later, I started questioning myself the reason for including this stall on my list. Do not get me wrong; the taste is decent but the ingredients are hardly rave-worthy for me.

I took out my list to verify only to discover that... I had actually gone to the wrong stall!

I am supposed to go to 51 Minced Meat Noodle but I had mistaken Da San Yuan for it instead. Well, my bad. I had not expected that there would be more than one bak chor mee stall at the food centre.

Apart from bak chor mee, Da San Yuan also sell fish ball noodle, mini pot noodle and laksa.

Huang Da Fu Minced Meat Noodle @ Commonwealth Crescent Market & Food Centre

Huang Da Fu is one of the more popular noodle stall at Commonwealth Crescent Market & Food Centre. 

Run by a young couple, the stall serves minced meat noodle (bak chor mee) that come in three sizes ($2.70/$3.50/$4.50).

Their cheapest bowl, at $2.70, is the most affordable I have ever seen. I think bak chor mee at most places starts from $3. I decided to go for the medium bowl and the lady who took my order suggests adding on their delicious fish dumplings (4 pieces for $1).

After collecting payment, the guy immediately gets to work; blanching the noodles and putting the bowl together.

Ah Hoe Mee Pok @ Blk 501 West Coast Drive

Ever since the new location of the old Bukit Purmei Lor Mee was discovered, I have gone to have my favorite bowl of Lor Mee (Braised Noodles) four times.

Each time while queuing for my Lor Mee, I cannot help but notice that the Bak Chor Mee (Minced Meat Noodles) stall next door is also doing a very brisk business. A quick google on the stall name Ah Hoe Mee Pok revealed that stall owner, Eric Chia made news recently by teaching a Japanese man the skills to cook his mee pok.

After learning from Eric for six months, the Japanese - Naoji-san - took over the stall at Blk 710 Clementi West Street 2 with his daughter to sell this dish. They had a second stall manned by his wife and son further away at Blk 713. According to their Facebook, they are currently looking for a third stall.

What happened to Eric then? Well, he moved to set up his stall at the current location at Blk 501 West Coast Drive.

吊桥头大华猪肉粿条面 Hill Street Tai Hwa Pork Noodle @ Crawford Lane

I have long heard about this famous "Hill Street Tai Hwa Pork Noodle" which have been hailed as the best Bak Chor Mee (Minced Meat Noodle) in Singapore by its fans.

That claim sure arouse my interest but I only got to try it last week when I went to collect my new passport from the ICA (Immigration & Checkpoint Authority of Singapore) beside Lavender MRT.

The stall in question is located at Blk 466 Crawford Lane, which is right behind the ICA building.

Even though I was there at 11am, a queue of 6 people had already formed in front of the stall. The queue is very slow moving; by the time it reached my turn, twenty minutes have passed.

Of course, I know twenty minutes is not a very long time to wait considering that the queue can sometimes stretch beyond the perimeter of the coffee shop during peak hours (which literally translates to at least 60 minutes of wait)!

I really take my hat off to these people who bothered to queue so long just to have a bowl of noodles.