Singapore-style dry wanton noodles with lots of chili! My favourite sort. (Am not a fan of the Hong Kong and Malaysia versions.)
It has been a very long while since I visited this stall in the Joo Chiat neighborhood. The last time I was there, the original owner was still in the business and there was an awfully long queue due to the stall’s popularity. The long waiting time put me off going back again.
We dropped by the shop, which has since changed hands, for breakfast last Sunday morning. When the original owner retired, several of her long-time customers bought over the business and recipe so that they could continue to enjoy the noodles. It is a good story.
This time round, I enjoyed the noodles much better than the last time I ate there. I like the taste and texture of the noodles (which resemble Hakata ramen). They are not the eggy sort and more importantly, does not have the ammonia (or kansu) taste that most wanton noodles have. The sauce was tasty and the bite-size wantons were scrumptious. Unlike many places which serve slivers of barely visible char-siew, Hong Mao’s wanton noodles came with a generous helping of thick and tender slices of char-siew. Not the best char-siew around but good enough for a plate of wanton noodles. All for only $3.50 a bowl. It is a super good deal, in my view.
I was so happy eating my plate of noodles.
