JtheJon: Bak Kut Teh

Food Review: Ya Hua Bak Kut Teh

Since 1973, Founder Madam Gwee Peck Hua has lived and breathed pork ribs soup. Together with her sister, Gwee Guek Hua, both sisters worked tirelessly to perfecting the recipe for the finest bowl of Teochew-style Bak Kut Teh, at a stall in River Valley Road.

Ya Hua Bak Kut Teh has its humble beginnings in Outram Park estate, one of the first HDB estates in Singapore. When the land was reacquired by the government in 1995, Ya Hua Bak Kut Teh shifted to its current premises at Havelock Road. In 2006, due to overwhelming demand, Madam Gwee and her sister Guek Hua opened another branch at Keppel Road.

I went to try out their kovan outlet with my family.

Chinese Tea -

Pork Ribs Soup -

The broth was light and flavorful. But it wasn't peppery enough. The pork meat wasn't tender enough too as we find it was a little bit too dry.

Pig Liver and Kidney soup -

The liver and kidney was cooked still soft and chewy. The broth taste slightly different from the pork ribs soup as the liver and kidney enhanced the pork ribs soup taste.

Pork Trotters -

The gravy wasn't flavorful too, it was lacking of flavor and spies. We feel that the gravy was on the bland side. The meat wasn't tender enough too. It should boil longer.

Food: 0.25/5
Ambiance: 1/5
Service: 1/5

My Verdict:
This bak kut teh restaurant we will only try once and definitely won't be back again!! We still prefer "Song Fa Bak Kut Teh".

Ya Hua Bak Kut Teh (Kovan)

Heartland Mall, 205 Hougang Street 21, Singapore 530205

Opening Hours: Daily: 11am - 10pm (Last Order 915pm)

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#jthejoneat

5 Best Bak Kut Teh in Singapore

Bak-kut-teh is a meat dish cooked in broth popularly served in Malaysia and Singapore, where there is a predominant Hoklo and Teochew community, and also in neighbouring areas like the Sumatra, Indonesia and Southern Thailand.

The name literally translates as "meat bone tea", and at its simplest, consists of meaty pork ribs simmered in a complex broth of herbs and spices (including star anise, cinnamon, cloves, dang gui, fennel seeds and garlic) for hours. Despite its name, there is in fact no tea in the dish itself; the name refers to a strong oolong Chinese tea which is usually served alongside the soup in the belief that it dilutes or dissolves the copious amount of fat consumed in this pork-laden dish.

Everybody love it, so here's my list of top 5 bak kut teh stalls in Singapore.

1. Song Fa Bak Kut Teh.

Everyone top favourite bak kut teh place. The meat was very tender as the meat will just falls off the bone when you pick it up. The peppery broth is the main reason why everyone fall for it. You will get addicted once you tried it.

Price: $4 onwards

#01-01, 11 New Bridge Road, Singapore 059383
Opening Hours: 9am - 915pm (Tuesday - Sunday)

Closed on Monday

website: http://www.songfa.com.sg/

2. Outram Park Ya Hua Bak Kut Teh

All the night owls/ taxi uncles favourite bak kut teh stall. Outram Park Ya Hua Bak Kut Teh is my favourite supper place too as they open till 4am. You can see lots of crowd during wee hours. Their peppery and aromatic broth is the reason everyone keep coming back. Try their braised pig intestine too as it was the second hot stuff here.

Price: $4 onwards

#01-05/07 Tanjong Pagar Complex, 7 Keppel Road, Singapore 089053

Opening Hours: 7am - 4am (Tuesday - Sunday)

Closed on Monday

3. Ng Ah Sio Bak Kut Teh.

The elderly favourite bak kut teh stall. The broth was peppery and it has a mild herbal taste. I guess this is the reason why those elderly is attracted to them.

Price: $5 onwards

208 Rangoon Road, Hong Building Singapore 218453

Opening Hours: 7am - 10pm (Tuesday - Sunday)

Closed on Monday

4. Leong Kee Bak Kut Teh.

My favourite place to have herbal style bak kut teh. The broth was so much thicker than the typical Singapore style BKT, and less peppery in nature too, but more pungent in terms of herbal flavours. I can’t say which style is better. Both are unique in their own ways, and as a Singaporean, i must admit i’m starting to love the Malaysian style as much too!

Price: $5 onwards

251 Geylang Road, Singapore 389309

Opening Hours: 11:30am - 3pm, 5:30pm - 9:30pm (Wednesday - Monday)

Closed on Tuesday

5. Founder Bak Kut Teh.

(Photo Credit: https://www.burpple.com/@pagoda44)

This stall forever having long queue at balestier outlet. Founder Bak Kut Teh is too famous that even Asian celebrities come here and eat. My personal taste: i think the broth was just average. You can go for their pork trotter and pig intestine as it was good.

Price: $5 onwards

347 Balestier Road, Singapore 329777

Opening Hours: 9am - 1030pm (Thursday - Tuesday)

Closed on Wednesday

Let me know in the comments below if you have any undiscovered gem in Singapore!

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Jthejon

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Asian

Local Food Hunt: Bak Kut Teh 肉骨茶: Ng Ah Sio Bak Kut Teh 黄亚细肉骨茶, Old Street Bak Kut Teh, 333 Bak Kut Teh, 小陳故事 Bak Kut Teh, Da Shu Xia Bak Kut Teh 大树下肉骨茶

Jthejon food hunting continue!!
I'll be hunting for Bak Kut Teh 肉骨茶 for this entry.
Will be hunting around the Singapore for the best Bak Kut Teh!!

First stop, Ng Ah Sio Bak Kut Teh 黄亚细肉骨茶.

Mr Ng Siak Hai’s(Nickname: Ng Ah Sio’s) father – Mr Ng Mui Song, began plying the pork-based, peppery herbal soup cooked in a distinct Teochew style in the 1950s at he current River Valley and Hill Street vicinity. These early servings of the Bak Kut Teh was accompanied by Chinese doughnuts (You Tiao) and a strong brew of Chinese tea and there was no chilli and soya sauce dips

On 1 December 1977, with an initial crew of seven workers. Mr Ng Siak Hai took over from his father at his retirement and began serving the crowds at New World Amusement Park (Current Kitchener Road) with an improved recipe that further enhanced the aroma of pepper in the soup, which is more robust than the original, while retaining many of the hall-mark use of fresh pork ribs, garlic and a secret blend of herbs. He named his soup Ng Ah Sio pork Ribs Soup Eating House.

Since moving to Rangoon Road on 15 March 1988, over a million bowls of this classic heritage dish have been served. Ng Ah Sio as a brand has since become synonymous with the dish.

Dark soya sauce with chili padi is best dip for pork ribs.

Signature Pork Ribs Soup - $8.90

It was pretty good. The broth has a unique aroma, blend of herbs and pepper mixture. It's the broth that attracted both the locals and tourists back often. The pork ribs was fresh and tender.

Braised Duck - $10 Per Portion

It was bad. The braised duck wasn't that fantastic. The meat was a little bit tough and tasteless. The sauce was a bit bland and watery. It was a disappointing dish.

Braised Pig Trotter - $14.80

It was quite disappointing. The braised pig trotter was a little bit raw, it was under cook. The meat as tough and got the weird smell.

Braised Pig Intestine ($8.80) and Braised Egg ($0.60)

It was normal. The sauce wasn't good enough, it was lacking of some taste. The pig intestine was clean, fresh, chewy but it was lack of some taste.

Braised Tou Pok and Tofu - $1/each

Preserved Vegetable - $2.50

It wasn't that good, it was quite tasteless.

Youtiao - $1

The "YouTiao" was soggy and cold.

Food: 3/5
Ambiance: 3/5
Service: 2.5/5

Overall, the pork ribs soup was the best at Ng Ah Sio Bak Kut Teh. The rest of the dishes wasn't that great. But it was worth it. The broth was really addictive.

Ng Ah Sio Pork Ribs Eating House

Rangoon Road

Address: 208 Rangoon Road, Hong Building Singapore 218453
Telephone: +65 6291 4537

Operating Hours: Tuesday to Sundays: 7am – 10pm. Closed on Mondays

Marina Bay Sands
Address: 2 Bayfront Avenue, #B2-50, Stall 11
The Shoppes at Marina Bay Sands, Singapore 018972

Operating Hours: 10am to 11pm daily

Tanjong Katong Road
Address: No. 248 Tanjong Katong Road, Singapore 437036
Telephone: +65 6344 4537

Operating Hours: Tuesday to Sundays: 11am – 11pm. Closed on Mondays.

Chui Huay Lim Club
Address: 190 Keng Lee Rd #01-03, Singapore 308409
Telephone: +65 6250 4537

Operating Hours: Mondays to Sundays: 8:30am to 8:30pm

Website: http://www.ngahsiobkt.com/

Second Stop, Old Street Bak Kut Teh.

The name literally translates as "meat bone tea", and at its simplest, consists of meaty pork ribs simmered in a complex broth of herbs and spices (including star anise, cinnamon, cloves, dang gui, fennel seeds and garlic) for hours. Despite its name, there is in fact no tea in the dish itself, the name refers to a strong oolong Chinese tea which is usually served alongside the soup in the belief that it dilutes or dissolves the copious amount of fat consumed in this pork-laden dish

Pork Ribs Soup - $7.80

The broth was quite disappointing. it was a bit bland and lack of some flavor. The pork ribs was a little bit tough too. It should be soft and tender.

Braised Pig Intestine - $8.80

The sauce was flavorful enough and it was a little bit too watery. But the pig intestine was clean and fresh but just not soft and flavorful enough.

Beancurd - $2

Pretty normal beancurd.

YouTiao - $2

It was cold and soggy.

Food: 0.5/5
Ambiance: 2.5/5
Service: 2/5

Overall, the food wasn't good enough. Definitely won't be back again!!

Old Street Bak Kut Teh
Paya Lebar Outlet:
129 Upper Paya Lebar Road, Singapore 534840
9:30am to 11:00pm (Weekdays)
8:00am to 11:00pm (Weekends)

Westgate Outlet:
#B1-25 Westgate, 3 Gateway Drive, Singapore 608532
10:00am to 10:00pm daily

Funan Digitalife Mall Outlet:
#01-15 Fuanan Digitalife Mall, 109 North Bridge Road, Singapore 179097
9:00am to 9:00pm daily

Kallang Wave Mall Outlet:
#01-22, Kallang Wave Mall at Sports Hub

Sun Plaza Outlet:
#01-23/24, Sun Plaza, 30 Sembawang Drive

Third stop, 333 Bak Kut Teh.

333 Bak Kut Teh is one of the supper place that night owl will go. It was quite crowed during the wee hours.

Pork Ribs Soup - $7.80

It was not bad but it wasn't good enough. The broth was peppery and rich but it was lack of some spices. Not flavorful enough. The pork ribs was a little bit tough too.

Braised Pig Intestine - $6.80

One word BAD!!

Food: 1/5
Ambiance: 1/5
Service: 1/5

Overall, the food wasn't good enough. Guess i won't be back again. Next time i would rather queue and wait for founder than come over here.

333 Bak Kut Teh

Address	333 Balestier Road., Singapore 329765 Singapore 329765
Phone	8186 1518

Fourth stop, 小陳故事 Bak Kut Teh.

(Photo source by http://xiaochengushi.com/)

In the early days of the Singapore River, when traders came to Clarke Quay to unload their wares and trade for other goods, the “coolies” were the back bone keeping things going. Manual hard labour was the norm as these hardy men carried heavy sacks of rice, beans, dried foods and many other goods.

After a hard day work, with their meagre income, they would boil spare ribs, spiced with pepper, ginger and other spices. These nutritious soup supplemented their rice staple and gave them energy.

Today, bak kut teh is enjoyed by many in Singapore and Malaysia as the goodness of this simple soup continues to be treasured.

小陳故事 has also expanded its menu to include the very popular Hainanese Chicken Rice.

Pork Ribs Soup - $9.80

The broth was just alright. The broth was flavorful, rich but it was lacking of some spices/flavor. The pork ribs wasn't soft enough too.

Braised Pig Intestine - $8.80

For some, this is the ultimate delicacy. For some, it is an acquired taste. But for me it was thumbs up!! It was good, the braised pig intestine was well braised, it was clean, fresh and flavorful.

Braised Sliced Pork Belly - $7.80

The pork belly was good. The pork belly was flavorful, soft, tender and the fat of the pork belly you won't feel sick after having a few pieces. It was well braised too. The sauce was good, it was flavorful and fragrant.

Braised Peanuts - $2

Normal.

Sorry for low quality of the photos, it was taken by friend phone samsung S2.

Food: 2.5/5
Ambiance: 2/5
Service: 2.5/5
Overall, the food was still alright. It was a good place to have supper for those party animals or those drinkers at clarke quay.

小陳故事 Bak Kut Teh
Address: Block 3E River Valley Road #01-08
Tel: 65-63360939

Fifth stop, Da Shu Xia Bak Kut Teh 大树下肉骨茶.

It was a new bak kut teh restaurant opened at rivervale plaza. The interior was pretty nice and cozy. But we was surprised that during busy lunch hours, the restaurant was still quite empty.

Pork Ribs Soup - $6.50

The broth was alright, It wasn't flavorful enough and it was lacking of spices. The broth taste changed after the stuff refilled the soup. The soup became tasteless and sour.