If I told you that you could get legit Korean & Taiwanese food such as oden, tteokbokki and lu rou fan at a hawker stall, and that majority is affordably priced below S$5, would you believe me? I headed to NiuNiu Tea & DuDu Rice at Whampoa Food Centre to check it out for myself.
Whampoa Food Centre, also commonly known as Whampoa Makan Place, is broken up into 3 blocks: the wet market is at block 92, while the hawker centre occupies 2 blocks at 90 and 91.
The food here is aplenty and covers most bases: Teochew porridge, chicken rice, nasi lemak and more, but if you’re craving something unique, I urge you to find NiuNiu Tea & DuDu Rice at block 90.
Adorably named after their 2 children, NiuNiu Tea & DuDu Rice is run by 37-year-old Ryan Tan and his Chinese-Korean wife, Liu.
Ryan has Taiwanese parents, and this explains the odd mish-mash of menu items that span from Taiwanese classics to Korean staples.
What I tried at NiuNiu Tea & DuDu Rice
When you’re placing your orders at the front of the store, you’ll notice several trays containing oden and tteokbokki, almost resembling how Korean street snacks stalls would dole out these comfort foods by the side of the road.
I went ahead to order the QQ Cheesy Tteokbokki (S$3.30), and to my surprise, Liu told me: “There’s a secret menu hack— add Ramen for S$1.50 and you’ll get yourself a bowl of Rabokki.”
Lo and behold— an off-the-menu bowl of Rabokki that only cost me S$4.80!
One single glance at this had got me falling in love. I absolutely adored how loaded the bowl looked, with plenty of handmade tteokbokki, a generous amount of kimchi, spring onions, and sprinklings of cheese.
This was such a glorious bowl of Rabokki that my dining companions, Rachel and Ansel, were fighting to grab a bite.
Cheesy, mildly sweet and incredibly addictive, this bowl of Rabokki rendered me speechless at my first bite. All I could do was continue eating. I loved how the ramyeon had soaked up all that delicious creamy goodness, such that all you could really do was slurp it all up.
The kimchi and gochugaru added a well-needed kick of tangy spice, while the chewy textures from the melted cheese and tteokbokki gelled everything together.
As if I hadn’t been already won over by the entire bowl of Rabokki, one thing I must point out is NiuNiu Tea & DuDu Rice’s handmade tteokbokki, which was cooked perfectly right— these rice cakes were springy and chewy, but at the same time, they didn’t require a lot of jaw work to get through.
Located at the front of NiuNiu Tea & DuDu Rice’s stall is a tray of oden, comprising popular choices such as assorted eomuk (fish cake), sausages, balls, daikon and konjac.
Here’s the interesting part— you get to pick your oden yourself! A real experience, I must say, which the kids will definitely love. 3 pieces of Oden cost S$1.50, so I went ahead to grab 6 pieces for a total of S$3.
I picked character-themed eomuk like Hello Kitty and Minions, as well as some sausages and other fish cakes, which made me feel like a kid all over again.
Savoury and appetising, the broth tasted like a thicker version of dashi broth, and I liked how it was packed with a tiny pinch of pepper and soy sauce.
Admittedly, the eomuk wasn’t anything special— after all, it really is just fish cakes— but I loved the entire concept, as well as the cute themed eomuk which made the entire experience more special.
Eagle-eyed fans of NiuNiu Tea & DuDu Rice will know of another hidden menu item— Kimbap.
These rice rolls are made by Liu, and are only available after 4.30pm as it’s made fresh daily. The flavour of the day is also rotated, so you’ve got to head to their Instagram account and keep your eyes peeled for their Instagram Stories, which will announce the kimbap flavour of the day. Prices will also depend on the flavour of the kimbap.
On the day that we visited, we managed to snag a couple of Kimbap rolls. These came in two flavours: Spicy Pork and Beef Bulgolgi (S$5.80 each).
Though it might look simple, kimbap is actually really hard to perfect— you’ve got to have the right balance of everything. NiuNiu Tea & DuDu Rice’s kimbap hit the nail on the head as it had the perfect ratio of rice to ingredients, and I enjoyed the good mix of textures, as it had the crunch from the carrots, softness from the eggs, and juiciness from the meat.
The Spicy Pork packed more savoury heat while the Beef Bulgolgi was a classic. Both rolls were hearty and addictive, and I couldn’t stop popping each roll in my mouth.
Now, onto the Taiwanese side of the menu. NiuNiu Tea & DuDu Rice offers Braised Pork Rice (S$4.70), which comes with braised pork belly and lean meat, a braised egg and pearl rice.
If I could describe NiuNiu Tea & DuDu Rice’s Braised Pork Rice in one word, it’d be comfort.
This was hearty, fragrant and really yummy. I loved how the star anise from the braised meat came through strongly, adding that aromatic touch, while the braised meat was lip-smackingly delicious.
We also managed to try NiuNiu Tea & DuDu Rice’s Taiwanese MeeSua with Shredded Chicken & Oyster (S$4.70). I loved their presentation— super neat, with each ingredient aesthetically placed.
Featuring silky rice vermicelli swimming in a strong bonito-based stock, this bowl of mee sua was simple and hearty. I loved how the flavours of the bonito and mee sua weren’t too strong— in fact, I’d say they veered on the lighter side of things.
Above all, the ingredients were the main gems. I loved how generous they had been with the plump oysters (I must’ve counted about 4 or 5), as well as the chicken meat, which had been shredded so finely that it resembled fine string.
Final thoughts
All 3 of us agreed that our favourite dish of the day was the Rabokki. There was just something about the cheese-laden bowl of tteokbokki and maggi noodles that satiated our appetite, and despite it looking extremely heavy thanks to the overload of carbs and cheese, we ended up polishing it off.
Even after we had finished our meal, our entire dining party was still in disbelief that all these authentic Korean and Taiwanese food had come from a humble hawker stall. These could’ve very easily come from a restaurant or cafe, or even a street side stall in Korea or Taiwan— it was that good.
Not to mention, everything is so reasonably priced too, with a good majority of its dishes costing S$5 and below. This is one hawker stall you definitely must try while you’re in the Whampoa area, and you can bet I’ll be back one day!
Expected damage: S$3.30 – S$5.50 per pax
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Price: $
Our Rating: 5 / 5
NiuNiu Tea & DuDu Rice
90 Whampoa Drive, Whampoa Food Centre, #01-82, Singapore 320090
NiuNiu Tea & DuDu Rice
90 Whampoa Drive, Whampoa Food Centre, #01-82, Singapore 320090