109 Teochew Yong Tau Foo Self-Service Soup Counter

109 Teochew Yong Tau Foo is a hawker style restaurant in Singapore specialising in fish balls and Teochew yong tau foo, which is tofu filled with fish paste and served in a fish soup. I had passed this place at lunch time many times and it always has a long queue, so I made a point of eating here for dinner when there were slightly less people around. It was my first time trying Yong Tau Foo in Singapore and I paid less than $5 for a filling meal.

Flossie’s rating: ★★★

109 Teochew Yong Tau Foo prides itself on having an original and authentic recipe handed down by generations. However the biggest appeal of this place to customers is that it is a self service soup counter. There is a large fridge that contains different seafood balls, dumplings and vegetables along with a stack of bowls. You can select a minimum of 6 ingredients using the tongs to put into your bowl and then you bring it to the counter to be cooked.

At the counter you can then choose if you would like your chosen ingredients served dry or in the Teochew fish soup and you have a choice of four different noodles to be added. Most of the yong tau foo is served deep fried and you can have this served in a separate plate or together in your soup bowl with the other ingredients. You then help yourself to chilli soy or chilli paste for taste.

I choose two types of Chinese green vegetables, fried aubergine, and three different yong tau foo in fish soup with flat rice noodle. The lady prepared my meal in less than 2 minutes and it cost me just under $5. The meal was very filling for one person and I particular enjoyed the fried yong tau foo, which are made from Yellow-Tail fish and are tasty and crunchy. However the fish soup was not to my liking as it tasted bland and when I mixed it with the complementary red paste it developed an unpleasant and sweet aftertaste that did not work well with the vegetables. Normally the red paste, which is typically sweet, is used for dipping the yong tau foo into. It was my mistake to add it to the soup, but the soup was so mild it needed something to give it a boost.

I recommend 109 Teochew Yong Tau Foo for the novelty of its self-service soup bar and great value for money. It is also conveniently located near the CBD and whilst lunchtimes are packed, you can easily get a table for dinner. However I am sure there is better Teochew yong tau foo to be found in Singapore.

109 Teochew Yong Tau Foo
90 Circular Rd
Singapore 049441