There is plenty of good food in Farrer Park, you just have to know where to find it. During the past few years of living in the area, I have found some real foodie gems in and around Farrer Park, from authentic Chinese dumplings and sautéed eggplant to dukkah sprinkled avocado on toast and hand-pulled Muslim noodles. Please enjoy my foodie roundup and top places to eat good food in Farrer Park.
Scaled by Ah Hua Kelong
Scaled seafood restaurant is a newish edition to the Farrer Park neighbourhood. This place is funky – and I mean it in a good way. Their menu is a sumptuous celebration of the farm to table concept. Almost everything is sourced locally (except the prawns) from Ah Hua Kelong fishing farm. Also, be prepared for a lot of creativity and fun with a menu that fuses typical Western dishes and South-East Asian flavours. Popular dishes are the grilled prawns with kelp, curry mussel pasta, and – my favourite – fried squid with Thai pesto.
If you enjoy plenty of spice, aroma, and the freshest of seafood, then you will love Scaled restaurant. For more photos and menu recommendations, read my full review of Scaled by Ah Hua Keong.
Scaled by Ah Hua Kelong
8 Hamilton Road
Singapore 209179
Hand in Hand
Hand in Hand is my favourite Chinese restaurant in all of Singapore. It never ceases to amaze me how few people know about Hand in Hand. It’s half-hidden under a shophouse along Jalan Besar road and they boast more than 20 different varieties of dumpling on the menu including steamed, boiled and fried dim sum. The pork filling in their traditional xiao long bao is made according to a special recipe that is closely guarded by the restaurant owners! However, I particularly recommend trying the squid-ink dumplings with cuttlefish and the pan-fried pork and leek dumplings.
Hand in Hand also serve other Northern Chinese dishes such as home-made tofu and steamed flower grouper. But in all honesty, it’s the amazing dumplings – and dumplings alone – that keep me coming back for more. Important to note is they also have free corkage so you can bring your own booze! For more photos, check out my detailed review of Hand in Hand restaurant.
Hand in Hand
143 Jalan Besar
Singapore 208859
Mizuya Omakase
For a special night-out, I recommend dinner at Mizuya Omakase. This is a wonderful Japanese gem specialising in sushi and sashimi omakase. Chef Kenny is the creative force behind Mizuya Omakase restaurant and he does a wonderful job of making you feel at home. In true Japanese-style, you can expect to sit facing the kitchen – a privileged position from which to see everything chef Kenny is preparing.
Highlights here include the fatty-fried foie gras sushi as well as the flounder sperm, fatty tuna and sweet prawn sashimi. But everything is truly fantastic and prepared using top-notch ingredients. A full-course omakase menu with whisky pairing is $188 dollars per person. For more mouth-watering pictures click here.
Mizuya Omakase Restaurant
11, #01-04 Cavan Road
Singapore 209848
Bruno’s Pizzeria & Grill
Thank god there is a decent Italian restaurant in the area. The pizza at Bruno’s is world-class. I’m talking about a paper-thin base, quality toppings, and just the right amount of melted cheese. Delicious! I recommend the prosciutto and rocket pizza, which is my absolute favourite. It goes nicely with a portion of their zesty tomato bruschetta drizzled with balsamic cream and served on crusty Italian bread. Add a glass of red wine and you’ve got the perfect Friday night.
The pizzas and pasta at Bruno’s average between $20-30 dollars, which is reasonable. You would pay the same for a crappy large pizza at Dominos. Plus Bruno’s has a wonderful ambience that resembles a rustic trattoria. You could almost believe you are somewhere in Rome, far away from hot and humid Singapore. Did I mention they also make a mean mushroom risotto? For more photos of Bruno’s yummy food, click here.
Bruno’s Italian on Serangoon Road
544 Serangoon Road
Singapore 218166
SUK’s Thai Kitchen
Are you a chronic prawn head? If yes, then head to SUK’s! They have a delicious Thai menu featuring many dishes with jumbo-sized prawns. My favourite is the wok-fried glass noodles with prawns, served in a mini wok and seasoned with plenty of salt and pepper. The clear tom yum soup with prawn is also a classic. For something really different, and special, I also recommend the seafood tom yum rice. This bad boy is super spicy, you’ll be sweating tears, but also super delicious! And it laden with fresh seafood.
SUK’s Thai Kitchen can stand on its own two feet. Meaning, not only is it a great place to grab a bite in Farrer Park, but it is also one of the best reasonably priced Thai restaurants in all of Singapore. Besides prawns, they have many meaty items on the menu and they cook up a mean curry too. You can read my full review here.
SUK’s Thai Kitchen
136 Tessensohn Road
Singapore 217699
Reunion BBQ
I had walked by Reunion BBQ numerous times before I finally worked up the courage to eat my first meal here. I must admit, the gaudy red seat covers had put me off. But, I was proven wrong. The food at Reunion BBQ is authentic, tasty and great value for money. As the name suggests, Reunion BBQ specialises in Northern Chinese barbecue. They serve a variety of barbecued meats and seafood cooked on the skewer. The cuttlefish with chilli is simply divine. Everything is barbequed over hot coals, rather than over open flames, and seasoned in over 100 different herbs and spices (apparently)! Reunion BBQ also has a large selection of hot pots and stews. I ordered the beef with Sichuan chilli and tofu skin in chilli oil that was served in a large wok. It was very flavourful and the portion size was generous. Although I felt guilty eating it as it was also very oily.
Reunion BBQ do really good vegetable dishes. Both the string beans with pork mince and the sautéed eggplant with green chilli are amazing. Corkage here is $40 a bottle but they also serve red and white wine, although it is pretty bad. The menu is predominately written in Chinese and most of the staff don’t speak fluent English. However, the communication hurdles are well-worth the delicious and inexpensive food.
BBQ Reunion
298 Jalan Besar #01-01, Allenby House
Singapore 208959
Mash
Mash is a relative newcomer to Farrer Park located about ten minutes away from the MRT along Owen Road. When I stepped into Mash for the first time I felt like I was in a time warp, back to a rough and tumble burger shack I once visited in Harlem, New York and where I had one of the best burgers of my life.
Well, I wouldn’t go so far as to say the burgers at Mash are the best, but they are incredible value for money. A traditional cheeseburger is $10 and their delicious hot chicken burger is $12. All burgers come with fries and they have an extensive range of sodas, coffees and teas. This is a great little joint for a quick and easy bite to eat.
Mash
44 Owen Road #01-315,
Singapore 210044
Old Hen Kitchen
I fell in love with Old Hen Kitchen when I first moved to Singapore and the love affair still ain’t over. Old Hen mostly attracts a late-morning brunch crowd however their lunchtime food options can also stand on their own two feet.
The menu is influenced by Western and Japanese cuisines so expect a wild fusion of flavours. Some of my favourite dishes include avocado on sourdough, which is served with a sprinkling of pumpkin seeds and dukkah and a soft boiled egg (I usually ask for my egg to be fried). They also make a unique mochi pancake stack that is sugar laden yet delicious with ice cream and fresh berries. I also recommend the pork belly rice bowl, which is served with rice berry, apple chive salad and pine nuts. Old Hen also serve burgers as well as several pasta dishes. You can read my full reivew of Old Hen Kitchen with more pictures here.
Old Hen Kitchen
127 Owen Road
Singapore 218931
Yi Zun Noodle
If you haven’t tried the hand-pulled halal beef noodles at Yi Zun yet then you are a fool! The la mien here are made on-site by a Muslim chef from mainland China. They are the silkiest hand-pulled noodle in Farrer Park. The signature dish at Yi Zun is the beef noodle, which has a highly aromatic soup base that is seasoned with coriander and clove with beef stock. It costs $8 for a bowl which is considered on the more expensive side. However, the ingredients are of good quality, the portion of meat is generous, and I can unreservedly claim it is the best beef soup in the neighbourhood.
The roasted chicken is also worth trying here. Whilst the chicken tends to be on the boney side (what do you expect at $12 for a quarter chicken), the flesh is tasty and the skin is cooked to a crispy, golden hue. It makes for a great starter. Whilst I have tried the other soups on Yi Zun’s limited menu, they haven’t impressed me as much as their signature beef noodles. You can read my full review of Yi Zun for more photos.
Yi Zun Noodle
45 Sam Leong Road
Singapore 207935
Xiang Yuan Ji
Xiang Yuan Ji is a no-frills establishment along Jalan Besar that serve wonderful Shanghai pan-fried dumplings. The dumplings are have a thick, oily white dough that is slightly dimpled and they are packed full of soupy and delicious pork mince.
Xiang Yuan Ji also make la mien on-premise and their menu boasts several soup noodle dishes. However, I love the braised eggplant in brown sauce. Admittedly, I’m a huge eggplant addict, but Xiang Yuan Ji make the nicest eggplant I’ve tried in the area and, I’m happy to report, they are not shy on the chilli! Check out my full blog about Xiang Yuan Ji as well as more photos here.
Xiang Yuan Ji
405 Jalan Besar Road
Singapore 209011
Ramen Hitoyoshi
I never thought a restaurant from City Square Mall would feature on the Bossy Flossie blog. I hate the food at City Square Mall with a passion! However, when Ramen Hitoyoshi opened up less than six months ago it was a pleasant surprise. You can actually spot real Japanese people dining here too! The Ramen shop is located on level three of City Square Mall and is a great place to stop for a pre-cinema meal. Their speciality is the Chashu Tonkotsu, which comes with a hearty, peppery soup base and thick slices of succulent pork with soft noodle. You can add egg, seaweed and fungus to the ramen to complete your meal. The gyoza are also a highlight from the menu.
Ramen Hitoyoshi
#03-21/22 City Square Mall, 180 Kitchener Road
Singapore 208539
88 Hong Kong Roast Meat Specialist
For the best-roasted meats in Farrer Park look no further than 88 Hong Kong Roast Meat Specialist. The roasted pork belly is just the right balance of succulence and fattiness with a deliciously dry, crispy skin. The owners spend over two hours braising, drying and roasting the sio bak in order to get it just right. They also have char siew, which is barbecue pork cooked in the Singapore style with a sticky, sweet and darkish coating, as well as roasted duck.
I usually order a roasted meat plate on its own without any soup, noodles or rice, which costs me around $15. It is a generous portion that can be shared with two or three people and is a great late-night supper after a few drinks at the Druggist bar across the road. For lunch, a bowl of wet wanton meet really hits the spot! Check-out more photos of the succulent meats at 88 Hong Kong.
88 Hong Kong Roast Meat Specialist
153 Tyrwhitt Road
Singapore 207566
Red Eye Smokehouse
The Red Eye Smokehouse is a MUST for fans of Southern American comfort food, as well as those who are not afraid of having a heart attack. We’re talking slabs of meat with fatty sides and lots of beer! The USDA Angus Beef Brisket, smoked for 10 hours, is the house specialty and tastes soooo good. Soft, brown, and, well, beefy but without that nasty metallic taste some slow-cooked cuts can assume. The smoked pork belly is another worthy dish. Think firm, pinkish slices of pork with thin stripes of white fat.
However, my very favourite thing to order at the Red Eye Smokehouse is their special cornbread. I haven’t had cornbread for years! What’s better than soaking up beef fat with a hunk of cornbread and dash of honey butter? Mmmmmm. Happy hour here is 6pm-8pm daily where you can get 1:1 deals on beers.
Red Eye Smokehouse
1 Cavan Road
Singapore 209842
Punjabi Tandoor
If you have late-night cravings for rich and spicy food, then this is your place. The food here is heavy and unhealthy and I feel disgusted with myself whenever I eat it. But, it tastes good! I believe this is the best butter chicken in all of Little India and Farrer Park. The chicken is tender and the sauce is rich and creamy. The butter chicken goes particularly well with the soft garlic naan bread they also serve. People also queue up for the chicken tandoori.
Punjabi Tandoor is located in the dingy hawker located on the corner, opposite City Square Mall. It is usually full of old men drinking cheap beer until the wee hours of the morning because of the several TVs streaming sports. The good thing about Punjabi Tandoor is that it is open until late and the food is cheaply priced.
There is a lot of good food in Farrer Park. If you live in the area, you might also be interested in my reviews on the best places to drink alcohol in Farrer Park and the best places to drink coffee and eat brunch in Farrer Park.
One reply on “Best Places for Delicious Food in and Around Farrer Park”
As someone who also lives in the neighborhood, I do agree with you on a few places listed. Hand in hand definitely will make it into my top 10 along with Old Hen, Yizun noodle. Ramen hitoyoshi in the shopping mall was a good surprise as I had very low expectation when i first tried it considering it’s located in an area with few Japanese expats.