‘I Proclaim Our Herh Keow One Of The Best In S’pore’, Says Quirky Char Kway Teow Hawker Who Opens Mee Pok Stall
Fans of char kway teow might probably have heard of hawker stall Liang Ji that went viral in recent years for its cockle-laden “humful” char kway teow.
Run by hawker Dominic Neo, 51, known for his love for Pikachu and signature bright yellow outfits, Liang Ji relocated to Chinatown Complex Market & Food Centre on December 13, after he spent a year-and-a-half bidding for a unit.
Dominic has now taken the Liang Ji name beyond char kway teow. Just two days earlier, on December 11, he opened bak chor mee stall Liang Ji Mee Pok at a Toa Payoh Central coffeeshop with two partners.
“We sell Teochew-style bak chor mee. One of my partners used to be a fishball manufacturer. We handmake all our fishball, meatball, herh keow (fish dumpling) and prawn paste. Our fishballs are 100 per cent yellowtail fish,” he tells 8days.sg.
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Wants to grow Liang Ji brand
The move is part of Dominic’s ambition to grow Liang Ji into a brand known for more than just char kway teow. He has been selling char kway teow under the Liang Ji name for 26 years but admits it is a dish that is difficult to scale.
“It’s not easy to fry a good plate of char kway teow — it takes skill. You need to know how to control the fire,” he explains.
“Bak chor mee is different. As long as I give you the SOP and the ingredients, it’s not difficult to pick up.” The BCM stall is currently run by two staff.
“Bak chor mee is something you can eat daily, unlike char kway teow”
There’s also the matter of everyday appeal. Bak chor mee, he notes, is something you people can eat daily, unlike char kway teow.
“That’s why I hope one day you will see other food mixes under the Liang Ji brand, like cai png or Western food. But for char kway teow, there will only be one stall and that’s in Chinatown,” he says.
Even so, Dominic acknowledges the risk of expanding at a time when many F&B businesses are struggling. But he believes there is still a demand for affordable comfort food.
“Our USP (unique selling point) is our handmade fishball, meatball, fish dumpling and prawn paste,” says Dominic, sharing that these items are made fresh daily at a rented kitchen space in a licensed factory in Bedok.
Estranged from kids due to troubled past, including prison time
Asked why he didn’t wait for one business to stabilise before opening another, Dominic explains that he has partners managing the bak chor mee stall. “But I wanted to open my Chinatown char kway teow stall on December 13 because it’s my son’s birthday. The date is significant to me,” he says.
He adds that he’s estranged from his son and daughter, now 29 and 24, due to his troubled past. He had “gone to jail several times for fighting and extortion” and has not seen them for more than two decades.
Juggling two stalls
For now, expansion means longer hours and more hands-on work for Dominic. He runs his char kway teow stall until about 4pm, then heads to Toa Payoh to supervise — and often cook — at the bak chor mee stall. Even his off days, Wednesdays, are spent there.
Since relocating from Telok Blangah to Chinatown, Liang Ji’s business has improved by about 50 per cent, despite its shorter operating hours. Queues form before he opens, says Dominic, and the central location has made it easier for regulars to return.
Unfazed by online ‘haters’
The increase in sales comes despite online criticism and bad reviews that recently surfaced. Dominic brushes them off: “Not all reviews are real reviews. Some people are online haters. Some didn’t even eat and say the food is no good.”
He adds: “Maybe the standard dropped for one or two plates, but if 95 per cent of my customers finish everything on their plates, I don’t think the issue is with my food.”
Bak chor mee biz struggling to gain traction
The story is very different in Toa Payoh. The newly opened bak chor mee stall, which the partners spent $70K to set up, has struggled to gain traction, with daily takings falling “way below” their break-even point.
He attributes the slow start to year-end travel and quiet foot traffic. “I expected business at this location to be good because my rent is very high,” he says, declining to reveal the rental on record.
“I am very worried because my rent is a killer. But things should get better when I start marketing the stall in January.”
The menu
Liang Ji Mee Pok serves Teochew-style bak chor mee, available in both dry and soup versions, starting from $5. Besides BCM, there’s also liver mee sua ($5.50), yellowtail fish dumpling noodle soup ($7.50), prawn paste soup ($6) and Dominic’s popular orh luak ($6) which is currently only available when he’s at the stall on Wednesdays and during dinner service.
Add-ons such as braised pig trotter, handmade yellowtail fishball, fish maw and liver slices are available from $1.50. You can also purchase raw items like handmade fishballs ($10 for 20 pcs), yellowtail meatballs ($12 for 20 pcs), prawn paste ($20 per box, around 350g), and frozen herh keow ($13 for 10 pcs). Pre-orders can be made via WhatsApp at 9191 9469.
No.1 Noodle aka Bak Chor Mee (Soup), $5
We started with the most basic bowl, bak chor mee soup, topped with a handmade fishball, Teochew meatball, braised mushroom, liver and pork slices, and a generous serving of minced pork, fried ti poh (sole fish) and lard.
The mee pok has a good bite, while the slightly murky soup is robust and savoury, with a noticeable depth from pork bones, old hen, batang fish bones and fried ti poh. We like that it is finished with extra fried ti poh bits, which add a punchy, umami lift.
The liver slices are beautifully blanched, tender and free of gaminess and the oval-shaped fishball is bouncy and briny.
Our favourite topping is the Teochew meatball, which is made with 80 per cent yellowtail fish and 20 per cent minced meat. Soft and tender, the misshapen orb carries a subtle smokiness from the fried ti poh mixed into the paste.
Bestseller Noodle (Dry), $7 (8 DAYS Pick!)
We opted for the dry version with mee sua for their Bestseller Noodle. This is essentially the basic bak chor mee with extra trimmings like a handmade herh keow, a cube of prawn paste, and a large bowl of soup on the side.
The mee sua, lightly tossed in soy sauce blend with punchy sambal, is cooked just right, not soft or clumpy. The oddly-shaped prawn paste is slightly springy, reminiscent of the one at Sixth Avenue Porky Prawn Noodle.
Is the herh keow really that good?
The highlight is undoubtedly the good-sized herh keow. Made with yellowtail fish, the skin is slippery and chewy, encasing a juicy, ti poh infused pork filling that bursts with flavour.
Yellowtail Fish Dumpling Soup, $7 (8 DAYS Pick!)
We were so impressed with the herh keow, we ordered a separate bowl of fish dumpling soup which comes with four pieces of herh keow and minced meat. The dumplings are also available as add-ons at $1.50 a piece.
You might baulk at the price, but Dominic explains that production is tedious and time consuming.
“The skin is made with 100 per cent yellowtail fish, which per kilo costs $12 to $13. We have to blend the fish, roll it out to make the skin, then add the filling and wrap it. With one manpower, you can only make less than 60 pieces per hour,” he says.
“I proclaim our herh keow is one of the best in Singapore because of the thickness, chewiness, freshness and the filling,” he declares, adding that he picked up tips from one of the bosses of Song Kee, a personal friend.
While this writer can’t definitively say it’s the best in Singapore, having not tried every famous herh keow in town, but we did prefer Liang Ji’s fish dumpling to most garden-variety ones and would return for its juicier filling and chewier skin if we were in the area.
Bottom line
Liang Ji Mee Pok may still be finding its footing in Toa Payoh, but there’s little doubt that they have a winning combination with their tasty bak chor mee, from the handmade components like fishball and meatballs, to the robust soup and especially the shiok herh keow. Chewy and bursting with flavour, it’s something we’d gladly return for.
Liang Ji Mee Pok is at Kim San Leng Coffee Shop, #01-102, 177 Toa Payoh Central, S310177. Open daily from 9am to 9pm. WhatsApp 9191 9469 to pre-order.
Liang Ji (char kway teow) is #02-217 (Blue Zone), Chinatown Complex Market & Food Centre, 335 Smith St, S050335. Open daily except Wed 11am to 4pm, or until sold out. More info on Facebook and Instagram.
Photos: Kelvin Chia
No part of this story or photos can be reproduced without the permission from 8days.sg.
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