So you see, authenticity in food is clearly not only a unit of “similarity of taste compared to the past” but must also has a relevance to your preference of taste. After tasted many authentic Muslim food in Jakarta, I still prefer the “non-authentic” Muslim food I can find in Singapore.

Therefore being authentic sometimes doesn’t really mean anything and it can’t really up the ante especially when you’ve already grew accustomed to another particular “authenticity”. Heck even if Singaporeans were to go to China and eat the really authentic Lor Mee or Hokkien Mee, I don’t think many would shout shiokadodo and give it more marks than Singapore’s version. So like many other things, authenticity is not an absolute but relative term.

As far google.com is concerned, there is only 1 food that Beo Crescent is famous for. You can try and type Beo Crescent in google and the key word “curry rice” will rise to the no 1 position for the most searched results(not ranked but the assisted words that pop up). And for those who don’t know, this Hainanese Curry Rice at Beo Crescent is also often referred to as Havelock Road Hainanese Curry Rice.

At lunch time, the coffee was full and the queue at the stall was pretty long. Stewed cabbage, pork belly and pork chops were ordered and it came with generous amount, so the cost of $5 was justifiable.

Hainanese curry on rice at Beo Crescent: 6/10  

Hainanese pork chop: 8/10  

The Hainanese pork chop here tasted exactly the same as how it is at Havelock Hainanese Curry Rice at Sims Place. Well these 2 stalls are obviously connected so the similiarity must be expected. Again it’s all pork lard being coated with some special ‘goreng’ and deep fried. I would say this is one of the best Hainanese style pork chop for authenticity but yet it’s one of those things that can seriously make you feel ‘jerlad’, so though this can make you shiok but be prepared for the bad aftertaste ok?

Hainanese pork belly: 6/10  

Hainanese stewed cabbage: 6/10  

The stewed cabbage is seriously stewed and tasted something like cooked to death with no ‘crunchiness’ whatsoever. The flavour is quite ok though not exactly fantastic. I still prefer my cabbage to come in great volume that’s been boiled first instead of fried or stewed to squishy.

The lor bak is quite a let down for me. It was literally lor(gravy) and bak(meat) with lots of garlic minced and is quite salty. Not soft enough. Didn’t possess that ‘melt in your mouth’ effect. This is definitely something that don’t worth your time and money if you’re looking to eat lor bak that tasted like jelly in your mouth. I would avoid this if ever I come back here.

The curry on the rice is very different from the Havelock Hainanese Curry Rice in Sims Place. Infact the smell is so strange for me that I could only finish half of it. The curry was very thick and tasted somewhere between rendang and tom yum. It looked more like an Indian curry instead of the gooey Hainanese ones. Very very different from the Hainanese curry I know.

Not sure how authentic this Hainanese curry rice is for some but it is unfortunately very different from the authenticity I know. I think they have other items that can do better like curry sotong, curry sliced pork or prawn cutlet. But for a $5 meal, only the pork chop is worth my money here, the rest can be eaten somewhere else like at Traditional Hainanese Curry Rice at Old Airport Road which is infact nearer, cheaper and better for me.

Price: $5

Recommendation: Hainanese Pork Chop.

Conclusion: Didn’t quite do it for me. Flavour is very strong especially the curry and lor bak but it’s so “not hainanese” at the same time. This must be authentic for some I’m sure since the queue is long. Or maybe I ordered the wrong items.

Likes: Pork Chop is crispy.

Dislikes: Cabbage too squishy(not very hainanese). Lor bak too much garlic flavour and hard. Curry isn’t the Hainanese flavour I know.

Address		Overall Rating
Beo Crescent’s Hainanese Curry Rice Blk 40 Beo Crescent 7am to 3pm Off: Wed		Food: 7/10   Value: 7/10   Authenticity: 8/10   Service: 7/10   Ambience: 7/10   Cleanliness: 7/10   Overall: 7.25/10