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Jia Chen, a Malaysian PR I met while covering his former Ipoh yee mian stall at Ang Mo Kio, had invited me to visit his kopitiam stall called He He Fish (pronounced as ‘her’). I gasped when I found out that it was located at 504 Jurong West Street 51. “Wah, all the way to the West, the fish better be worth the journey!” I thought to myself.
Upon arriving at 504 Food Place, a long line of about 8 people had formed in front of one single stall. It turned out that they were all queueing for He He Fish — its popularity was impressive.
With the help of his friend who owns a fish farm in Johor Bahru, Jia Chen gets a constant supply of fresh red tilapia and seabass daily. Once the fish arrives, his staff wastes no time in processing it.
The stall serves 2 types of steamed fish in 3 styles, along with boiled prawns and minced meat sets. Three cheers for variety!
What I tried at He He Fish
The HK Style Steamed Red Tilapia Fish Set Meal (S$6.50) graced us with its presence, complemented by white rice and steamed lady’s finger.
If there were such a thing as the tenderloin of a fish, this red tilapia would fit the bill — supremely delicate, meltingly soft. In fact, the texture was so perfect that it almost didn’t seem real.
For those who avoid whole fish for fear of that ‘fishy’ taste, this might just change your mind — it’s that good!
Paired with the aromatic fried garlic bits and flavourful soy-based gravy below, the fish in every spoonful over plain rice was a trip to paradise — 2 thumbs up!
The pieces of okra were tender and, thankfully, free of any unpleasant fibrous skin. They soaked up the savoury soy gravy and flavourful garlic like a sponge.
Since seabass is notoriously known for its sandy flavour (based on past experiences from Chinese weddings), I decided to go for the Steamed Seabass w/ Assam Sauce Set Meal (S$7.80) instead.
I went straight for the flesh, wanting to savour its true flavour before it got overshadowed by the gravy. To my pleasant surprise, the fish’s pillowy flesh was sweet and had no sandy taste.
The orangey-red assam gravy was robust yet light, with a great balance of spices to mellow down the assam‘s tartness. Once again, it contrasted perfectly with the blank canvas of the plain white rice.
To prevent us from getting fish overload, we switched things up and tried the Prawn w/ Chinese Herbs Set Meal (S$8.80). There were 5 whole prawns drenched in a herbal gravy with red dates, wolfberries and other herbs.
Like the fish, these prawns are also sourced directly from the same fish farm owned by Jia Chen’s friend.
Being the resident prawn peeler, I deshelled all 5 prawns in a jiffy. The flesh was firm and sweet, and the herbal gravy wasn’t overly bitter.
Final thoughts
Was the arduous journey — 14 MRT stations and 2 bus stops — worth it for the steamed fish and prawns at He He Fish? Absolutely! S$6.50 for a steamed fish meal complete with rice and vegetables is definitely a steal. Even the assam and soy bean sauce versions at S$7.80 doesn’t sound too bad!
It’s a real shame I don’t live in Jurong West. If I did, I’d likely be braving the long queues and enjoying their steamed fish several times a week. Do swing by and let me know if it suits your taste.
Expected damage: S$6.50 – S$8.80 per pax
