Guide to Woodleigh Village Hawker Centre: International cuisines and local hawker heroes

There’s something incredibly comforting and nostalgic about a warm bowl of starchy tau suan ($2.20) topped with fluffy, golden brown you tiao. This mung bean dessert is a perennial favourite, and the one here is a healthier version which includes more mung beans for extra texture and nutrition, and less sugar. Another popular item at this stall is the banana balls ($2) which are deep-fried with a fragrant sesame batter and a sweet, gooey banana centre. These were sold out at 10.30am on a Wednesday and the stall owners were already preparing a second batch, so if you do happen to spot this, make sure to call dibs before it runs out. Other must-tries are the fried carrot cake sticks ($2) and goreng pisang ($1.30). 

While the idea of eating vegetarian food at a hawker centre can be unappealing to some, give this a shot and you’ll find out that it’s seriously delicious. Origanics is run by 31-year-old Darryl Tong who set out to introduce traditional vegetarian and vegan food to the hawker scene with his first stall at Buangkok Hawker Centre. You won’t miss its storefront, which is splashed out in green. On the menu are meat-free versions of local dishes – think kolo mee, bee hoon soup, lor mee, kway chap, braised ‘duck’ rice, buttermilk ‘chicken’ and more (from $4). But our favourite has got to be the economic bee hoon option (from $3.20). Customise your plate with toppings like glazed soy nuggets, crispy spring rolls, vegetarian ‘otah’, vegetable curry. And top it off with zai er (crispy fried soy skin), the crowning glory of every plate of bee hoon.

Rickshaw noodles, known today as white lor mee, gets its name from the rickshaw pullers who were often seen slurping up these bowls along the streets after a hard day’s work. A staple in Putian or Henghua cuisine, this dish is hard to come by in Singapore, but one place still does it well – Ming Chung Restaurant. The restaurant has since opened two hawker stalls, serving their signature white lor mee ($6.50) among other specialties like stir-fried flower clams ($12) and prawn rolls ($5). Each bowl comes piping hot, with silky strands of white noodles, shrimp, clams, squid, vegetables, and yam in a thick, savoury stock. Our favourite bits are the fried yam slices which go well with the housemade tangy chilli sauce. And to truly enjoy the broth, a dash of white pepper goes a long way.

Liu Kou Shui, which literally translates to ‘drooling’, serves up mouthwatering Japanese fusion don or rice bowls. The nine options on the menu range from mentaiko chicken katsu ($7), to Angus beef sukiyaki ($8), and even unagi ($9). Japanese rice bowls aside, there are also local flavours like the green chilli chicken ($5.50) and salted egg chicken ($5.50). The latter is one of the stall’s most popular items, which sees tender fried chicken slices doused in a creamy and savoury salted egg sauce and topped off with an onsen egg and steamed bok choy. Portions are decent enough to fill you up, but if you’re still feeling peckish, they offer eight types of snacks you can choose from including deep-fried soft-shell crab ($4.50), fried king oyster mushrooms ($4.50), and mentaiko fries ($4.50).

Style Palate, run by 25-year-old Shi Long, is the only Western food stall you’ll find in this market. But don’t expect to see your typical Western hawker fare of pork chop with baked beans and coleslaw. Instead, after having worked at several Michelin-star restaurants, he now wants to bring European cuisine to the masses at wallet-friendly prices. You’ll find dishes here that you might expect to see in a restaurant instead. Think chilled angel hair pasta tossed in truffle oil and topped with tobiko for $6. Or duck confit – a French staple – which features slow-cooked duck and creamy mashed potatoes for $12. There’s also the English big breakfast for $8, as well as other pastas, mains, and sides on the menu.

Much has already been said about Eng Kee. It’s one of the few remaining places that still fry up chicken wings the traditional way, with a thin and light batter. And its nine outlets islandwide are a testament to its popularity. These wings hit the spot every time. You can get them on their own at a reasonable $1.70 a piece. Crispy, juicy, and oh-so-moreish, they are best enjoyed dunked into the housemade chilli sauce for a spicy kick. But for something more filling, have the chicken wings together with economic bee hoon (from $1.20). Pick your toppings – cabbage, a sunny-side-up, and spam are our go-to – and you’ll have a simple but hefty meal to sustain you through the day. 

This hawker chain went viral online for selling Singapore’s first halal min jiang kueh (apam balik) back in 2016 when it was still a humble stall in Yishun. Now, Munchi Pancakes is all over the island, bringing the traditional peanut pancake snack back to the hawker scene. They aren’t stingy on the fillings here, and each pancake is stuffed to the brim with generous spreads of red bean ($1.60), kaya ($1.80), black sesame ($2), and Biscoff ($2.50). While the brand used to only sell peanut and coconut crusts, it now has green tea and charcoal-flavoured crusts. One reason why folks keep coming back is the texture of these pancakes – they’re satisfyingly crisp on the outside, yet retain a warm, moist and chewy middle. The stall also sells Mini Munchies (from $4.90 for six) which are a more bite-sized, snackable version of their signature pancakes.