It’s been a while since I’ve added a review to the Chinatown series, with the last one being Nasi Padang Mami Fita. We’ve got nasi again, but this time it comes in the form of heaping plates of egg fried rice. Number 100 got its name from being the 100th hawker stall in Chinatown Complex, and if you’ve navigated the maze of stalls successfully, it’s time to dig into a simple yet egg-cellent plate of fried rice—complete with wok hei, pork chops, and more.
The menu here is kept fairly straightforward and simple—every plate comes with Number 100’s signature egg fried rice, and you can either opt to have it plain or topped with a variety of ingredients. Maybe some egg puns on the side?
What I tried
I’m sure none of us is unfamiliar with Din Tai Fung’s fried rice topped with pork chops, and I immediately ordered the Pork Chop Fried Rice (S6) to see if it could match up in standard and taste.
The short answer is yes. Every pre-sliced piece of pork chop is tender and juicy without being overly slick and marinated in a combination of spices. I can promise you that the smell of the wok hei will hit you when you’re walking back to the table with your steaming plate in hand—it’s a defining quality that demarcates a solid plate of fried rice, and Number 100 captured this essence perfectly.
Speaking of solid fried rice, I think these will win over Uncle Roger himself—the rice is fried in a wok over high heat, and houses a generous serving of eggs. It’s a simple dish that’s no-frills, no-fuss; just pure egg-cellence.
We also gave their Prawn Egg Fried Rice (S$5) a shot, another recurrent lunch order in my polytechnic days. The mountainous portion of rice gives you a truly good bang for your buck, especially if you’re a seafood lover. I mixed in their house-made chilli sauce for an extra burst of flavour, though it wasn’t as aggressively fiery as I would’ve liked, it’d do just fine even if you don’t have a high tolerance for spicy food.
Their latest menu additions include a Black Pepper Chicken Fried Rice (S$6). I’ll admit that I didn’t immediately taste ‘black pepper chicken’ when I took my first bite but this ended up growing on me. There’s a fragrant, garlicky aroma that borders on a light sweetness—it complements the savoury smokiness of the egg fried rice; it goes without saying that the folks at Number 100 did an egg-ceptional job with this.
They’ve already wowed me with their wok hei, and even the chicken packed such a good, flavour-filled punch. It’s got the perfect crispy sauce-coated skin, yet boasts of a deliciously tender bite. I always tell myself to try new things at Chinatown since the options are plenty, but this is something I would be down to revisit in a heartbeat.
I’ve saved the best for last, and today that award goes to Number 100’s Salted Egg Yolk Chicken Fried Rice (S$6), which is another one of their new menu additions. This golden brown star is coated generously with the salted egg beloved by Singaporeans everywhere and boasts of the same crispy tenderness as its black pepper coated counterpart.
My main gripe with salted egg chicken is that most stalls use an artificial salted egg sauce that often tastes like plastic, but here at Number 100, it’s all authenticity and vibrant flavours; make sure your egg-spectations are high because every bite will prove more satisfying and addictive than the last. If there was one thing I could change about my experience at Number 100, it would be an upsized order of this.
Fried rice has always been one of my favourite comfort foods, and especially so when it’s done well with a perfect wok hei flavour. You can find that at Number 100, eggs-pecially with their egg-on-egg combination. It makes getting lost and walking aimlessly in circles for a good 15 minutes so worth it.
Final thoughts
We’ve got a lot of good fried rice recommendations here at SETHLUI.com, and now there’s another one to join that list. Chinatown’s reputation for having a sizeable array of absolutely delicious food is clearly well-earned, and if you’re planning to make a trip down for some good ol’ egg fried rice, make sure you order an extra serving of that salted egg yolk chicken for me, okay?
Egg-spected damage: S$5 – S$6 per pax
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Price: $
Our Rating: 4 / 5
Number 100
335 Smith Street, Chinatown Complex Market & Food Centre, #02-100, Singapore 050335
Number 100
335 Smith Street, Chinatown Complex Market & Food Centre, #02-100, Singapore 050335