I am pretty sure that most people know Katong is where they should head for Laksa and Changi is where they should head for Nasi Lemak. So do you know what you should head to Hougang for?

The Teochews, Hokkiens and Hakkas had arrived in Singapore much earlier therefore they were well entrenched in all kind of trades while the Hainanese being one of the ‘late arrivals’ here due to the ‘late opening’ of Hainan Island to foreign trade, were restricted to the food and beverage business and had to take up jobs like cooks or coffee boy.

Being so involved in that environment, it’s not surprising that some went on to become expert in that field. For those who don’t know, the inventor of the cocktail, “The Singapore Sling” is a Hainanese and of course famous coffee place like Killiney kopitiam, Yakun Toast, even Hans Cafe were all founded by Hainanese. And the Hainanese are widely regarded as the influencing force behind the coffeeshop culture in Singapore.

There are only a few places in Singapore where the Hainanese community occupied and one of it is Hougang. Infact the Hainanese enclaves of Hougang is the reason why there are a few Hainanese Curry Rice today that tries to associate themselves with that area.

Unfortunately there is only one authentic Hainanese Curry Rice standing today at Hougang and it is Sin Chie Toke Huan. This stall opens at 6pm sharp everyday and one of the most extraordinary thing you can see here is that once it’s opened, people will start appearing from no where(some from their cars parked by the roadside) to form a queue in a jiffy. I’ve been to this place quite a few times and every single time I get to witness the “queue forming” scene at 6pm sharp.

I must say that this Hainanese Curry Rice didn’t score very well in the past for me. Somehow I just find the flavours of the food here a little on the bland side with no distinct Hainanese flavour that I’m familiar with though I have say that in the past I’ve always packed and go, so this time I’m just going to see if dining in can give me any surprises.

Hainanese pork chop: 6.5/10  

The pork chops here are breadcrumbed. It’s quite thinly sliced and it’s quite tough actually. I just wish the flavours had more punch. This is pretty ordinary for me and maybe a bit of fatty bits in it can get it going.

Pork belly: 7/10  

Hainanese stewed cabbage: 7/10  

The lor bak here is pretty good. The fats practically melt in my mouth and texture of the meat was right, though I must say that it was also a little on the bland side in the flavours. Infact the gravy tasted so common that it look like they used nothing more than soya sauce in it. The stewed cabbage had very good ‘doneness’ and I quite like it though I must say that it’s quite bland as well. It just seems to me that unique Hainanese flavours are seriously missing here. The same goes for the minced pork, which I thought had very good texture, alas you can even see from the photo that it’s swimming in some gravy that look like nothing more than some clear soup. And lastly I thought chilli shark meat can provide some consolation but it didn’t. The chilli gravy was so diluted that any mee siam soup can replace it and give me more shiokness.

FMinced pork: 6.5/10  

Food: 6.5/10  

So you see, I’m no kidding here. This is really one of the ‘blandest’ Hainanese Curry Rice I’ve ever eaten. Even the curry on my rice had smell that was pretty weak.

Curry on rice: 6/10  

I’m not exactly sure what brings the crowd. But what this is definitely not the best Hainanese Curry Rice in town for me and maybe for the health conscious this is useful. This would probably be the last place I want to go to for my Hainanese Curry Rice fix.

Price: $5.50

Recommendation: Minced pork

Conclusion: The taste of the food is all blandness through and through so the long queues I see everytime is quite hard to fathom. If you care about eating healthy but still want a Hainanese curry meal, this will be the one.

Likes: Healthy food.

Dislikes: Not delicious enough.

Address		Overall Rating
Sin Chie Toke Huan 1018 Upper Serangoon Road 6pm to 5am		Food: 6.5/10   Value: 7/10   Authenticity: 6/10   Service: 7/10   Ambience: 7/10   Cleanliness: 7/10   Overall: 6.75/10