Cantonese Delights: Famous S$4 Curry Chicken Cutlet Rice With Insane Queues At Hong Lim

Popular hawker centres like Hong Lim Market and Food Centre need no introduction. Visit it during lunch hour and trust me, you’ll see crazy queues everywhere.

Cantonese Delights 0543

As I walked to the second floor of Hong Lim, I spotted an insane queue at Cantonese Delights, a cosy stall located at a corner selling wonton mee and curry fried chicken cutlet, and decided to check it out for myself.

Cantonese Delights 0548

The queue was so long that it snaked across the storefront, the side of the stall, and continued to extend past two other stalls!

Honestly, I was quite intimidated by the queue. Thankfully the line moved quite fast, so it only took me about 15 – 20 minutes to get my food.

Cantonese Delights 0555

The first dish that immediately caught my eye was the Curry Fried Chicken Cutlet (Rice) (S$4). Man, just look at the glistening gravy and the pile of fried chicken. It made me drool instantly!

You can also order it with noodles if you’d like.

Cantonese Delights 0642

This has got to be one of my favourite plates of curry rice ever.

The fried chicken cutlet was juicy, smoky, and soft, and I could taste that its thin crust was a little salty, as if it had been marinated in Japanese soy sauce.

Dip it in curry, pair it with the fluffy white rice, or eat it on its own—the fried chicken cutlet was so yummy that you can eat it any way you’d like and I promise it’ll still be as delicious.

Cantonese Delights 0652

The curry gravy wasn’t too watery or thick—it was just the right texture for plain white rice, and I was so glad I asked the aunty for extra curry so I could drench my entire plate of rice with it.

I could taste the sweet coconut milk, as well as a roasted fragrance from the rempah and other added spices. The one thing I enjoyed about Cantonese Delights’ curry gravy was that it was more aromatic than spicy, so those who can’t take spicy food can definitely give this a try.

Cantonese Delights 0549

Another classic dish is the Char Siew Wanton Noodles (Dry/Soup) (S$3.50). We got the dry version, which came with a pile of egg noodles, sliced char siew, a handful of dumplings, and vegetables.

Cantonese Delights 0578

Be sure to give the noodles a good mix before diving into it! Plus, you can also take as much pork lard as you want—it’s placed right next to the other condiments, like fried shallots and pepper.

Cantonese Delights 0585

The egg noodles were smooth and chewy—just the right texture so that it was springy when you bit into it, and not too soft that it’d break apart on its own.

Once each strand was coated with the soy sauce-based gravy, it was absolutely 100% slurp-worthy. I could taste a tinge of oyster sauce or sesame oil, which helped cut through the saltiness.

Cantonese Delights 0592

There wasn’t much fat on our char siew slices so it was a little dry—I could tell that it hadn’t been roasted but rather, boiled, which drew the moisture out from the meat. However, it was still sweet from the marinade it’d been coated in and it had a nice bite to it.

Cantonese Delights 0600

Now, onto the wontons. I loved that the dumplings were stuffed generously with springy and juicy minced meat, but my only gripe would be that the skin was too soft and broke apart easily.

In fact, it broke apart even when we were trying to lift the dumpling up with our chopsticks! Perhaps the skin was too thin or it had been boiled for too long?

Cantonese Delights 0562

For just S$3.50, I’ve got to say, Cantonese Delights is very generous with its Shredded Chicken Hor Fun. It came with a ton of shredded chicken meat, three large and juicy mushrooms, thin strands of translucent hor fun, and vegetables.

Cantonese Delights 0618

I’m an avid fan of beef hor fun because of its savoury, smoky and thick gravy. However, Cantonese Delights’  version of hor fun was on the lighter side, especially because its gravy wasn’t thickened by cornstarch. Instead, it was fluid and a little oily.

Cantonese Delights 0621

If you ate it by itself, the kway teow noodles had zero taste. It was bland and plain, but thankfully, it absorbed all the juices from the earthy mushrooms, as well as the soy sauce-based gravy.

Cantonese Delights 0634

The hero of the dish definitely had to be the shiitake mushrooms. Soaked beforehand, it was juicy, plump and soft. When I took my first bite of the mushrooms, I immediately let out an “mmmm” because of all the umami juices that oozed out.

Cantonese Delights 0614

As a whole, the Shredded Chicken Hor Fun was light on the flavours and would be something I’d have if I was feeling sick, or if it was raining and I was craving some comfort food.


There’s a reason why Cantonese Delights draws long queues no matter the day or time, and now I know why.

The Curry Fried Chicken Cutlet was absolutely delicious. It was fragrant, just the right balance between sweet, umami and salty, and wasn’t too spicy so I could drench my rice in it. It goes well with anything because it’s just so yummy—plain rice, noodles, or even by itself.

Needless to say, I polished my plate of Curry Fried Chicken Cutlet and I’m already looking forward to the next time I can go back.

Expected Damage: S$3.50 – S$4.50 per pax

Price: $

Our Rating: 4 / 5

Cantonese Delights

531A Upper Cross Street, #02-03, Hong Lim Market and Food Centre, Singapore 051531

Price
Our Rating 4/5

Cantonese Delights

531A Upper Cross Street, #02-03, Hong Lim Market and Food Centre, Singapore 051531

Operating Hours: 10.30am - 2pm (Sat - Thu), Closed on Fri

Operating Hours: 10.30am - 2pm (Sat - Thu), Closed on Fri

Newest