Kim Keat Hokkien Mee & Ocean Fish Head Curry (Toa Payoh)
A more apt title for this post would be Toa Payoh Blk 92 Coffee Shop (10-15 mins walk from Braddel MRT) because we are going to review two stalls! The famous Kim Keat Hokkien Mee and Ocean Fish Head Curry. We had particularly high expectations for the former because we've been seeing so many Instagram videos of this hokkien mee bubbling contently in their rustic claypots. There were six of us, so we ordered two servings ($5 each, small). Unfortunately, despite all the hype, this hokkien mee did not live up to our expectations. Yes the seafood was fresh but the noodles were horribly overcooked, and the gravy wasn't particularly tasty -- overall it was average at best.
Since we were next to the Ocean, we decided to get ourselves some Claypot Fish Head Curry ($36). We were given a pretty big fish head (ang goli), and with it a generous portion of lady's fingers, brinjal, tomatoes and onions. The curry seemed a tad watered down, but was still tasty enough.
For those of you who have been to Ocean, you'd also know that it sells other dishes besides fish head curry. Not made-to-order tse char mind you, it's more of a glorified cai fan stall. And it doesn't come cheap -- this plate of chye sim set us back $4.
Their Sotong ($8) was surprisingly good though. Tender and glazed with some yummy soya sauce / teriyaki sauce, it tasted as good as the ones you'd find at those Takashimaya Hokkaido Fairs.
We also had a go at their Salted Egg Yolk Prawns ($8). It was still warm and quite tasty... but you can't help but feel that freshly cooked would have been so much better.
Looking up from our meal, we found the coffee shop to be outrageously packed. People stood around us, eyeing our every bite, waiting for the moment where we would stand up and they would get their long awaited seat. Lots of people were also dabao-ing cai fan from Ocean. Apparently, some people don't mind paying tse char prices for cai fan.
Kim Keat Hokkien Mee
Address: Toa Payoh Lor 4, Blk 92, #01-264, Singapore 31009
Opening Hours: 11:00 – 22:00pm (Wed-Mon), Closed Tues
Damage: $5
Ocean Curry Fish Head Curry
Address: Toa Payoh Lor 4, Blk 92, #01-264, Singapore 31009
Opening Hours: 11:00 – 21:00pm (Wed-Mon), Closed Alternate Tues
Damage: $5-$20
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