Rating: 4/5
So what makes a Teochew pau special? Well, many things it seems! The Teochew ah hia here takes liberties with what we know as ‘pau’ and gives it his own Teochew twist.
Firstly, the paus here are tiny. Why are they tiny? Well, the boss told me that they are small because the skin is very thin. Their philosophy is to make food for enjoyment and not to fill the tummy, it seems. The most popular pau here is the braised pork (kong bak) pau. If you want to eat this pau, you should ring up to reserve for some before you visit the stall because it is usually sold out by noon time. Yes, you might see baskets of it lying around, but they are usually reserved for other customers.
The kong bak pau was tasty, though I found it slightly dry. Rather than having braised pork belly, they use lean meat which is healthier. It was very nice and you can finish it in two mouthfuls. Apparently they are also famous for their char siew pau but I didn't really think much about it. It was good but pretty much like many other char siew pau and lacked a charred flavour. On the other hand, their big pau was good, though not fantastic or super juicy. But it had a very different flavour from the typical big pau and definitely worth trying if you like big pau.
Char siew pau and siew mai
Of all the items I tasted that day, the best one for me was the siew mai. I liked it not because it was the best siew mai I have ever tasted, but for its novelty. The difference lies in the fact that they used fish in place of prawns in the filling and rather than having a bit of crab roe, the orange coating came from carrots. So it was delightful because the taste was unique and yummy.
Other than the char siew pau, all the items here are quite unique to this stall. If you are looking for something novel in a pau, this is the stall to visit.
Toa Payoh Lor 1 Blk 127, #02-02
Tel: 62542053
Opening hours: 6am to 2pm Mon-Sat & 6am to 12 noon on Sun
Also check out two other hawker food recommendations by Dr Leslie Tay!
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Better than restaurant xiao long bao? Where to get restaurant quality xiao long bao at great prices? |
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Find out how Glory catering’s popiah is different from the rest. |
