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It’s human nature to hate being proven wrong, but I think I speak for everyone here at SETHLUI.com when I say the one exception we’ll make is when we take on the “worst-rated” series. This month’s contender is a dish that’s arguably hard to bungle: yong tau foo, and the spot under fire is none other than My Favourite Cafe at Lucky Plaza.
Funny name for an entry to this series, don’t you think?
Well, colour me surprised. Not only did the eatery sport a queue at nearly 2pm in the afternoon when I arrived, it was buzzing and packed (surprisingly more so than the famed Fiie’s Cafe right across the way). It’s easy to understand why, actually. Scoring a sub-S$10 meal in the Orchard area is no small feat, but My Favourite Cafe does the trick with its S$7 yong tau foo. Affordable and healthy — that’s basically catnip for office folk.
So, why’s it even in the running for “worst-rated”? In all fairness, its rating of 3.3 stars across 263 Google reviews (at the time of writing) is far from abysmal. The real eyebrow-raiser is what people are actually saying.
Many recent 1-star reviews slam the place for shoddy service and, more alarmingly, its hygiene standards. You’ll find horror stories about food poisoning and questionable practices; one diner even unearthed a cockroach in their bowl.
All I could do was cross my fingers and hope I wasn’t that “lucky”.
What I tried at My Favourite Cafe
Right off the bat, I was relieved to be proven wrong about the service-related cautionary tales. Ordering and seating here turned out to be simple — organised, even.
The process is straightforward: you’ll start by grabbing your ingredients from the counter to build your bowl of yong tau foo. For S$7, you get 6 pieces with Noodles/Rice, or 7 pieces if you go carb-free. Once that’s done, let the staff know your choice of carb and whether you’d like yours dry or in soup. They’ll tally the bill, collect your cash and usher you to a seat.
My order of two bowls — one soup and one dry, both with kway teow — landed on my table quicker than I could say “My Favourite Cafe Yong Tau Foo”. The staff sure move at lightning pace, which honestly works out great when all you’re after is a fuss-free meal.
Unlike most other stalls that tempt with curry, laksa and tom yum, My Favourite Cafe keeps it simple with just one option: good ol’ soybean soup. As someone with a heavier palate, I must confess that the idea barely thrilled me. Yong tau foo, to me, has always fallen into the “eat to live” category anyway. So yes, I’ll admit I strapped on my harshest critic helmet for this one (not helped by those scathing reviews).
But lo and behold, my cynicism was quashed yet again. My eyes widened the moment I took a sip of that broth — it was smooth and clean, with a full-bodied natural sweetness rounded out by notes of pepper. I never once reached for water too, which told me there wasn’t a speck of MSG in sight.
Is that the sound of a changing mind? Yes, I can definitely get behind clear broth now.
The one item I couldn’t wait to get to was none other than their fabled Fried Meatball, which seems to sneak its way into nearly every bowl entering and leaving the kitchen. This hefty morsel was about the size of a golf ball, sporting an ultra-crispy crust that gave way to a substantial core of flaky, well-seasoned minced meat. The savoury punch and textural contrast alone were enough to seal the deal, though I did wish it had been served piping hot.
The Fried Wanton earned a similar verdict: I found myself having to dock points for its lukewarm presentation, but c’mon, that crispy golden skin wrapped around a chunk of savoury meat was hard not to enjoy.
Then came the fish paste-stuffed items, which were a far better showcase of My Favourite Cafe’s kung fu.
The stuffed red chilli easily stole the spotlight, its crisp skin carrying a sharp heat that cut through and complemented the savoury fish paste. The tau pok and tau kwa weren’t shabby either — the former porous and fluffy, playing well against the supple filling; the latter dense and creamy, with a mild nuttiness that made for a heartier finish.
I shan’t forget to give the dry-tossed kway teow a well-deserved shout, too. I was initially a tad thrown off by the lack of sauce coating these silky tendrils, in its place just a dash of shallot oil. Thankfully, it more than held its own: lightly fragrant and slurpable, pairing well with the soft sheets of Chinese cabbage. I later learnt that diners can help themselves to chilli and sweet sauce, but I’m honestly glad I didn’t — and I doubt I’ll need to on my next visit.
I moved back to the bowl of kway teow soup, where I’d added a few more ingredients my dry-tossed bowl had missed.
I’d already been well acquainted with the fish paste by then, so it was no surprise that the stuffed tau kee hit the spot — the savoury filling snugly enveloped by the chewy, slightly bouncy sheet. The fishball was a joy too, springy and snapping satisfyingly as I bit down, while the fish roll delivered a rich umami hit, dotted with bits of carrot and spring onion that lent an extra oomph.
The sheet of seaweed I included was a welcome touch, its dark slivers weaving through the noodles and lending a subtle brine to the flavourful soup.
Overall, there was little to gripe about the fare itself. One thing did, however, stand out: the portion undeniably leaned on the small side. Granted, S$7 a bowl is commendably affordable, but I’m not entirely convinced it’s fully justified. Although, all things considered, the yong tau foo fared well above my expectations.
Final thoughts
I’m writing this review a day later, and I feel great. Not exactly what you’d expect from a spot labelled “worst-rated”, but I couldn’t be happier it turned out this way.
Objectively, I wouldn’t go as far as saying My Favourite Cafe’s yong tau foo was life-changing. Nonetheless, the delectable fish paste-stuffed items, crisp fried highlights and clean, fragrant broth more than made up for my gripe about the small portions. At S$7 a bowl in Orchard, this is fuss-free, satisfying yong tau foo that easily outshines its harsh online reputation.
Expected damage: S$7 – S$8 per pax
