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It has been slightly over a year since we last saw any updates of Miss Tam Chiak’s food venture. However, just a few days back, the renowned food blogger was back at it with the opening of her fourth coffeeshop, Maxim Tam Chiak Kopitiam. Easties, it has landed in your hood — 666 Tampines Street 64.
Located just a couple of streets away from IKEA Tampines and Tampines Giant Hypermarket, the 10-stall makan spot is at its soft-launch phase and isn’t fully operational at the moment. Since my colleague, Rachel and I had travelled all the way there, we shall give a little preview on what the Easties can expect when it’s fully ready in a week (or two).
If you enjoy the bold flavours of Malay cuisine, then Boolatzkitchenz has you covered with comforting dishes like lontong, nasi padang, gado gado and bubur kampung. This stall is also involved in popular fairs like the Geylang Serai Ramadan Bazaar.
We went ahead and gave the Nasi Ambeng (S$7) a go, which had rice topped with beef rendang, sambal goreng, fried paru (beef lung), bergedil, a piece of fried tempeh, all generously sprinkled with serundeng (spiced grated coconut). The flavour of each element was on point, but I wished that the beef rendang was slightly more tender. The stall also sells a few varieties of Kueh (S$2 each) like the colourful kueh lapis, kueh salat, just to name a few.
Since I haven’t had roasted meats for a while, checking out 出名Famous HK Style Charcoal Roasted Delight seemed like the ideal choice. This stall offers Char Siew & Roasted Pork Rice (S$4.50), Roasted Chicken Rice (S$5), and Char Siew Wanton Noodle (S$4.80).
My Signature Dang Gui Roasted Duck Noodle (S$5) may not look like much, but it was great. Since I requested for chilli, the stall owners didn’t hold back on the spice. The noodles with mini bits of pork lard packed a fiery punch that jolted my senses even more than my regular cup of coffee. However, as spicy as it was, it (thankfully) didn’t overpower the overall taste. The duck was also tender and had a mild herbal taste at the end that was decently strong without putting me off with its bitterness.
You can also have your kaya toast and half-boiled eggs at Yeo Yeo Huat with the signature Breakfast Set (S$3.80) that comes with a cup of hot kopi or teh. To beat Singapore’s constant hot weather, the drink stall also serves refreshing beverages like Lychee Tea (S$2.80), Green Thai Milk Tea (S$2.50), Iced Bandung (S$2.20), and Sour Plum (S$2.50).
For Western food fans, Deli Delight Hainan Western leaves you spoilt for choice with over 40 selections for you to choose from. Feast on Bacon Carbonara (S$7.50), Lemon Butter Grill Fish (S$7.90), Grill Salmon Fried Rice (S$12), or the Hainan Pork Chop (S$8.50) that comes with 3 side dishes. To get your quintessential plate of mixed rice, 666 Cai Fan has your back with options like 1 Meat 2 Veg (S$3.70) and 2 Meat 2 Veg (S$5).
The stalls that are still non-operational for the moment include Vege Bear (vegetarian yong tau foo stall), Steams Variety, Mohamed Waseef (Indian Muslim Food), Chaoyuan Noodle 潮源面家 (opening 15 Oct), and Ipoh Tuck Kee.
Tampines residents, if you’re sick and tired of the same nearby food options, you can take a little adventure down to Maxim Tam Chiak Kopitiam in a few days’ time to have a better dining experience than us.
11 must-try hawker stalls at Tekka Centre whenever you visit Little India
