Hakka Thunder Tea Rice @ Tanglin Halt Food Centre

Update: Hakka Thunder Tea Rice has relocated. The new address has been updated at the bottom of this post.

The thunder tea rice stall at Tanglin Halt Food Centre is one of the more popular options that draw a perpetual queue during lunch hour.

When I was there, customers were already crowding in front of the stall waiting for them to open for business at 11am.

As the opening hour neared, the crowd automatically formed a line in a orderly manner. While standing in the queue, I observed that the stall owner is working inside the stall without switching on the lights.

Makes one wonder how does he see in the dark?

Ruyi Yuan Vegetarian Bee Hoon @ Blk 46-1 Tanglin Halt

Update: Ruyi Yuan Vegetarian has relocated. The new address has been updated at the bottom of this post.

Ruyi Yuan Vegetarian is well-known for her snaking queue which can extend all the way out of the coffeeshop. I decided to visit the stall at 6.30am on a Saturday morning to avoid the crowd because with lesser people around, I feel less stressful about taking photos.

When I arrived, there is no line at all. I marched right up to the stall and ordered two sets; one to have there and one for takeaway.

Over here, you have the option to add "lor" (gravy) to your bee hoon. I love having lor in my bee hoon but not many places offer this. I am grateful this is one of the very few places that did. For the takeaway pack, the lady even gave me a big packet of lor packed separately.

Tanglin Halt Roti Prata @ Blk 49 Tanglin Halt

What caught my attention at this prata stall was the coffeeshop's name "Peking Room" which sounded a lot more like a nightspot than a coffeeshop to me. The prata stall itself is called Tanglin Halt Roti Prata though part of its name was obscured by a piece of newspaper cutting.

When I arrived on a Saturday morning, the chilly breeze and crisp air makes it most comfortable to be seated on the outdoor alfresco area under the canopy. With no queue in sight, I approached the stall and ordered two plain pratas for myself.

There was already a stack of made-in-advanced pratas behind the glass window and the staff picked two pieces onto my plate. I requested for a saucer of fish curry to go with my breakfast.

Tian Xiang Wanton Noodle @ Tanglin Halt Food Centre

Update: Tian Xiang Wanton Noodle has relocated. The new address has been updated at the bottom of this post.

Apart from the drinks stalls at Tanglin Halt Food Centre, Tian Xiang Wanton Noodle is one of the earliest stalls to open for business every morning.

I have read numerous good reviews about their wanton noodle so I decided to give them a try. I arrived just slightly after 7am - their stipulated opening hour and there is just one customer before me.

The stall offers both wanton and sui kow noodle at the same price of $3 and $3.50.

Tong Kee Chicken Rice @ Tanglin Halt Food Centre

Update: Tong Kee Chicken Rice has relocated. The new address has been updated at the bottom of this post.

While researching about the food available in the Tanglin Halt area near Commonwealth MRT Station, the names - Tanglin Halt Market and Tanglin Halt Food Centre constantly turn up and I was left confused, wondering if they were referring to the same place?

Only after paying a visit to the neighborhood did I realize that Tanglin Halt Market and Tanglin Halt Food Centre are two different hawker centres barely a minute's walk from each other.

The confusion arise because some reviewers from burpple have wrongly geo-tagged the food stalls from the market under the food centre.

To add on to the initial confusion, the address for the food centre varies from 1A to 3A Commonwealth Drive.

As it turns out, the food centre is comprised of three octagonal buildings hence each building will have its own block number and so does the food stalls under each block.

Compared to Tanglin Halt Market, Tanglin Halt Food Centre is considerably quieter as the stalls here open for business much later. The air-circulation is good here due to the high ceiling and proximity between the tables are quite spacious.

The first stall I am going to visit here is Tong Kee Chiken Rice which is previously from Margaret Drive. This stall specializes in roasted chicken so you will not be able to find the poached variety here.

Tanglin Halt Delicious Duck Noodle @ Tanglin Halt Market

While queuing for Wei Yi Laksa, I noticed that Tanglin Halt Delicious Duck Noodle two units down is another one of the stalls here that open for business during the wee hours at Tanglin Halt Market.

By "wee hours", I really meant 5.30am! One can only wonder how early our hawkers have to be at their stall to prepare everything just so we could have breakfast the moment we opened our eyes. Their dedication to their craft is what makes them truly deserving of our respect!

Just like the queue at Wei Yi Laksa, a comparable line has also formed in front of the duck noodle stall. Unfortunately, there is only so much food I could fill my stomach with so I have to make a return trip for the duck noodle on another day.

Due to the Lunar New Year, I could only make my way down after the festivities have ended. This time, I arrived much later than the previous visit but there is still a snaking queue in front of the stall at 10am. Fortunately, the queue cleared quite fast.

I ordered a large bowl of dry duck noodle ($3/$4/$5). Unlike other Teochew braised duck noodle stalls that offer only bee hoon, yellow noodle and kway teow, this stall also have mee kia and mee pok.

Wei Yi Laksa @ Tanglin Halt Market

This week, I am checking out Tanglin Halt Market where a row of hawker stalls share the same building as the wet market.

Some of the hawker stalls here open for business as early as 5am and Wei Yi Laksa & Prawn Noodle is one of them. I thought that there would not be much of a crowd when I arrived at 6 in the morning however, there are already a number of retirees starting their day over a cup of coffee and laksa.

At that ungodly hour, a line has already formed in front of the stall and I am number six in the queue.

As its name suggests, the stall sells both laksa and prawn noodle although they are more popular for the former. For the laksa, you can select from six different combinations of chicken, prawns, cockles and tau pok.

Too bad there isn't any option without tau pok since I am not too fond of it.

I decided to go for option number 5 ($5) that consisted of everything they have but, there was a mixed up and I received option number 6 which came without prawns.