Rickshaw noodle is the staple of the poor in the early days of Singapore. As its name suggest, it is so called because it was the popular food of rickshaw pullers half a century ago. The noodles are cheap and consist of variety of vegetables, meat and noodles cooked in a big pot. Today, it is rarely found in the rich metropolis in Singapore but it represents a past of which our island state is built upon.While it's not the most presentable looking dish around, it is wholesome goodness in a pot. When I first chanced upon the China Street Rickshaw Noodles stall at Maxwell Market, I was rather taken aback. The noodles look rather dubious. It was ran by little old ladies who may not look like the best chefs on earth.

But as the saying goes, do not judge a book by its covers. This is one of the best breakfast places and comfort food that I have ever eaten. Once tried, forever hooked! I am only glad I work near it and it's the best breakfast every day. The stall only opens in the morning and sells out just as lunch starts. It is also closed every Friday.The Rickshaw Noodles comes in 2 options - mee sua and broad yellow noodles. My personal favourite is the mee sua and it's just 70 cents a bowl! Yes, just 70 cents! On top of that, you can pick a variety of ingredients to eat with your noodles, from deep fried tofu, mini spring rolls and ngoh hiong amongst others. You could also order a small plate of fried bee hoon to go along with your mee sua soup and dishes. And all that cost nothing over $2! Where can you still find that in CBD? The tradition of cheap wholesome stomach filling food still continues today.Unfortunately, as the auntie at the stall complained randomly to me one day, young people these days seems not be able to look past its simple facade and unpresentable food. Well, I too was one of them and I never looked back once I tried it! This is old school flavour that deserves to be savoured! I hope that the stall can continue to sustain in this age of rapid changes. Let's hope it doesn't disappear anytime soon!

Again, another long queue guaranteed stall at the Chinatown Complex market. I only recently got to know of it through a friend who is a "local" at tanjong pagar. Having grew up in the neighborhood, she's been eating at Heng Ji since she was a little girl.When we first visited the stall, there was a long queue but it was worth the wait. The rice is unique, using broken rice cooked in chicken brooth (naturally), the rice taste almost like quinoa (a south american cereal). Yes, it does not taste like rice. It's smooth and easy to swallow. With hearty serving of oil on the chicken and rice (which you can ask for less), it's amazing that it does not leave an oily aftertaste at all! The chicken is soft and not tough and the chilli is not your usual chicken rice chilli variety. A standard plate of chicken rice is just $2.50. Great value for money, no inflated prices here for this famous stall!

Do take note that they only open at 3pm and by 9pm they'll be sold out! They are also closed on Sundays. There were several times my attempt to cure my craving for Heng Ji was thwarted because of their popularity and opening hours! So do remember!

If you've watched the Mediacorp Channel U reality tv game show "Buzzing Cashiers" (抢滩大行动), you'll most likely recognise the owners of Bee Garden. From what I understand, they were the winners of one of the season of the show! At least that was what propelled my mom to check out the stall. But unfortunately they only open in the afternoon and she finally got her wish after 3 tries! 3rd time lucky! So remember not to go too early!

This stall is not new at the Commonwealth Crescent Market. They were around even when the stall was still at the old market, prior to its upgrading. The family business has gone through quite a tough patch but the mother and son team can be cranky but they do make fantastic dessert! My personal favourite is also their best selling dessert - its ice mango pomelo dessert! The pomelo is fresh and each one burst its juice with every bite. The mango too is sweet and a perfect contrast with the slightly sour bites of pomelo. My mom also didn't resist trying the durian penyet! But they are definitely better eaten on the spot as the shaved ice are smooth and soft and wouldn't survive well with travelling or refreezing.We also tried the ice bo bo char char which uses melted gula melaka dressing on the ice shaving. The dessert of yam and sweet potato is usually eaten hot but the hubby does love this cold as well! They are one of the few place I've seen that offers this. And you bet, it's yummy!

Did I mention that the hot desserts are under $1?! Definitely cheap and value for money too!

Not many people know but there is a heavenly supper store nestled in the hills of Telok Blangah, at the foot of Mount Faber. Welcome to Fei Lou Porridge, located at the Telok Blangah Crescent Market. It has one of the best porridge and boneless chicken wing in Singapore. It opens only in the evening and will sell out by about 11pm or so.

Of course with great food comes great attitude. Speak cantonese to the owner if you hope for any semblance of service! But trust me, it will be totally worth suffering the attitude to get a taste of the delicious porridge and sides. There are many flavours of congee and in pure cantonese style, you will not be able to see a whole rice grain in your porridge as everything is smooth like baby food. Soft, smooth and just the right amount of flavour. The mixed pork porridge has ingredients that are not overcooked.

What almost every one orders is the wonderful boneless chicken wings. It's beautifully stuffed and, wait for it..., NO BONES! Perfect crisp, not too oily. A MUST TRY.

The hubby grew up eating at Fei Lou since his teenage days, meeting his friends at Fei Lou for supper. To date, he never fails to order the deep-fried fish skin that fei lou also serves up as an excellent side dish for an ice cold beer for supper!

Of course at hawker prices, this is definite value for money. Only downside you might find is the difficulty to find parking at the market. So drivers beware!

My first introduction to sheng jian bao was from Luo Chun Ge. It has everything that I could ask for, meat, bun and a bit of fried delight that everybody loves. Not forgetting soup in dough is just a fantastic sensation. If you've never had sheng jian bao before, I'll definitely recommend this. I like to get the set which comes with dessert. The most recent dessert I had was a chrysanthemum and wolfberry jelly! Not only was it delicious but it is also healthy!