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Aliff Nasi Lemak resides within Serangoon Garden Market and Food Centre, close to the ever-popular Chomp Chomp Food Centre that’s just a few minutes’ walk away.
Serangoon Garden has always been a food enclave, and I enjoy making the journey there via an obscure underpass that lies directly underneath the CTE expressway from Ang Mo Kio— not many know about this unless you stay around the area.
It’s been a really long time since I came to this hawker centre, and my jaw dropped to the ground when I saw the crowd situation— a vast difference from the last time I was here. All the sheltered seats within the hawker centre were taken up, and all that was left were the centre round seats with an umbrella to shield me from the scorching sun. Oh well, at least the lighting here would be better for my pictures— only my colleagues would get this!
What I tried at Aliff Nasi Lemak
I headed to Aliff Nasi Lemak and was faced with a long snaking queue in front of the stall. There were at least 7 people in front of me, and more came behind shortly after. “Wow, this nasi lemak should be good, I guess?” I thought to myself as I patiently waited for my turn.
There were 6 sets available on the stall’s menu from A to F. It was already 11am, and this was just my first meal of the day. I chose Set E (S$6), which was the priciest option, along with Set C. It consisted of a generous serving of basmati coconut rice, one whole piece of fried chicken wing, one otah, a sunny side up, a pile of fried ikan bilis, one slice of cucumber and a generous pouring of sambal on the side.
As I was hungry, I topped up my nasi lemak meal with a piece of Tahu (S$1) and a piece of Begedel (S$1).
As a chef, I used to cook nasi lemak on a daily basis. So naturally, I dived in straight for the nasi taste test. I was impressed at how each individual basmati grain was fluffy and so well-cooked.
Usually, coconut rice would give off strong notes of pandan and coconut. Would you like to guess what additional flavour profile I picked up from Aliff Nasi Lemak’s nasi? The answer is ginger! It made the rice less ‘jelak’ and enhanced the overall aroma. The sambal had the perfect balance of sweet and spicy— the perfect accompaniment to the nasi.
I moved on to the chicken wing, which had a really crispy skin. I could taste the spices that were used to marinate it, but my dining partner and I felt that the skin was a little on the salty side. Strangely, when we got to the meat underneath, it was rather bland— probably not marinated for long enough.
The otah was rather normal and nothing to shout about. Fortunately, the texture was soft, and there was a subtle spice to it. The fish to flour ratio was probably lower compared to other places where the fish taste is more prominent and flavourful.
I enjoy my nasi lemak with some peanuts, which are usually paired up with the ikan bilis, so you can imagine my displeasure when the peanuts were missing. Surprisingly, the moment the first spoonful of fried anchovies entered my mouth, all traces of my disappointment vanished into thin air.
The texture was similar to fried silver fish— super light and crispy. I had to second-guess whether they were ikan bilis or silver fish. If only I had a bowl of congee with me at that time, those lovely fried anchovies would have gone so well with it!
Final thoughts
There were some hits and misses for me at Aliff Nasi Lemak. The rice had the perfect texture, and the sambal was great. I was so tempted to get a whole box of fried ikan bilis— that’s how good they were!
If I were in the vicinity, I’d drop by again to have their nasi lemak, but I wouldn’t travel all the way here just for this.
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