No. 1 Western Food (Closed)

Visit www.umakemehungry.com for more reviews.Getting bored with many western food from the hipster cafes nowadays? Be glad when you visit No. 1 Western Food in Tanglin Halt as they still have the traditional kind of Western Food to make you feel nostalgic. Chicken Cutlet was served uniquely in a metal plate which I dont remember having such presentation from any other Western Food Stall. The slab of chicken cutlet was deep fried to golden brown perfection with crispy texture on its exterior by the breadcrumbs. As we bite that down, the meat was very tender and extremely juicy without retaining any excessive grease. Beside the presentation, it was all in the sauce that make this Western Food No.1. Ingredients of the sauce was a trade secret, home made by themselves. It tasted tangy filled of tomatoes with a good mix of BBQ Sauce, slightly on a sweet side but a great compliment to all items on plate including the ubiquitous baked beans, sliced cucumbers, tomatoes and frozen cut fries.Chicken Chop on the other hand was served on a usual blue plate with similar sides. The special Sauce used here were the same and the only difference was that the chicken was served grilled. For all that taste was pretty standard, there were no slightest taste of frozen meat which I got from other Western Food Stall. Likewise, the meat was fork tender without being too greasy. Having seen lesser and lesser of such Western Food Stall around, I began to appreciate such traditional food that come close to heart. They may not have the fanciful presentation like what we had in cafe nowadays but deep down I know such food are still greatly missed once in a while. continue reading

No. 1 Western Food 驰名西餐 is a popular stall which serves Chinese old-school style western food. This stall is located at Tanglin Halt Food Centre, a relatively ulu place (for me). I did not know about this stall until I read it about it on The Hungry Bunny, who highly recommend this stall (Thanks for the recommendation!).No. 1 Western Food is operated by Mr Ong Choon Chiang, who is now 68 years old, with his wife (it is no mean feat to stand for hours and cook at the age of 68 in front of the hot grills and wok of oil). He first started selling western food more than 40 years ago before the days of McDonald's and Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC). In 1981, he shifted to Tanglin Halt Food Centre and has continued to ply his trade at this food centre till today. No. 1 Western Food is one of the more popular stall in this food centre and is well-known among residents in Tanglin Halt for its crispy Chicken Cutlets. A key differentiation / USP (unique selling point) is his very own special (secret) sauce which I shall elaborate on further below.Special SauceThis unique tomato-based barbecue special sauce, whipped by Mr Ong is added onto all the food served. Whether it is Chicken Cutlet, Chicken Chop, Pork Chop, Lamp Chop, Beef Steak or Fish & Chips, this special sauce is added on top! This special sauce is what made it stand out among other western stalls. It is no surprise that the recipe for this sauce remains a secret (During past interviews with The Straits Times interview, Mr Ong did not divulge any details of the ingredients other than the fact that it was made of tomato.).Pork Chop and Chicken ChopOn certain days, they can sell as many as 100 plates of Chicken Cutlet. This explains why there are so many pieces of Pork Chop and Chicken Chop at the side of the gas griddle.I ordered Pork Chop and Chicken Cutlet on two different occasions. In the photo above, you can see that my pork chops are being cooked on the gas griddle.After a while, taken out from the gas griddle and grilled over an electric grill before being served.Pork Chop $5The Pork Chop $5 consisted of 2 pieces of pork chop served with baked beans, slices of cucumber and tomato, and fries. The special sauce was added on top of the pork chop.Pork Chop $5Pork Chop $5Although the two slices of Pork Chop were quite thin, they were quite well executed. The exterior of the pork chop was slightly crisp and had a slight hint of smokey aroma (probably both were achieved because the pork chops were put onto the electric grill just before being served). The pork chop was not tough and was well marinated (you have to try the part of the pork chop without the sauce to taste the original flavour).As for the special sauce, it was addictive and well...special. It had a fine balance of delicately sweet and salty with a hint of tomato flavour. It made a whole world of difference to the taste if you were to add it on the pork chop. The sauce goes very well with the fries and cucumber too! I had a great time dipping them into the sauce.The Pork Chop was quite decent and worth a try.On another occasion, I ordered the famous Chicken Cutlet. My chicken cutlet was deep fried in the wok filled with oil at the extreme right of the above photo.Chicken Cutlet $5The Chicken Cutlet $5 consisted of a piece of crispy breaded chicken cutlet served with baked beans, slices of cucumber and tomato, and fries. The special sauce was added at the side. I was greedy and requested for more sauce.Chicken Cutlet $5Look at how thick the Chicken Cutlet is!Chicken Cutlet $5The Chicken Cutlet coated with a thin layer of bread crumbs on the outside was so crispy. The interior was incredibly juicy, tender and tasty (even without the special sauce)! I tried hard to recall, but can't remember when was the last time I tasted such a tasty chicken chop. The Chicken Cutlet was perfectly executed; the flavours and moisture were all locked in! I must emphasis that I have not eaten such a delicious piece of Chicken Cutlet before and this is really out of this world, in a league of its own. I was glad that the special sauce was not added on top of the Chicken Cutlet as it allowed me to savour the original flavour of this piece of Chicken Cutlet. This Chicken Cutlet is the best I ever had in a hawker centre! It is a must order! As for the sauce, it did not go wasted as I dipped all my fries into it! Shiok!I can't believe that I have not heard of this stall before (so much for being a foodie. But well, its never too late!). Price wise, it was reasonable! If you have not tried this, I would highly recommend for you to try this soon. Do note, unlike most western stalls, this one is self-service. During peak hours, you can expect to wait (queue) for more than half an hour. During my visits, I noticed that some customers would order and come back later to collect their food.ps: Tanglin Halt Food Centre is about 10 minutes walk away from Commonwealth MRT station.http://foodiefc.blogspot.sg/2013/09/no-1-western-food-tanglin-halt-food.html continue reading