Hawker Chan Restaurant, by One-Michelin starred Liao Fan Soya Sauce Chicken, opens in Tai Seng

Queue for Liao Fan Soya Sauce Chicken at Chinatown Complex

Liao Fan Hong Kong Soya Chicken Rice & Noodles is a popular stall in Chinatown Food Complex run by Chef Chan Hon Meng. Since the stall became known as the “World’s cheapest Michelin-starred eatery”, the snaking queue at the stall has become almost unmanageable. To bring the famed soya sauce chicken to more people, Chef Chan teamed up with Hersing Culinary to open a chain of quick service restaurants under the name “Liao Fan Hawker Chan”. The first restaurant was opened in November 2016 at 78 Smith Street. A new Hawker Chan Restaurant has just opened in 18 Tai Seng.

Hawker Chan Restaurant at Tai Seng occupies a prime spot on the ground level of the new retail and F&B mall named “18 Tai Seng”. Hawker Chan Tai Seng is a functional and unpretentious self-service place. It is not unlike a small food court. The cashier’s counter is in front of the kitchen. Order can be placed with the cashier or by using an electronic ordering machine. When your receipt number is flashed, you collect the food from the counter.

Hawker Chan Menu

Hawker Chan’s menu is a simple affair. Essentially, there are Soya Sauce Chicken, Char Siew, Roasted Pork and Pork Ribs. You can combine any of the meats with Rice, Noodle or Hor Fun. There a few side dishes and beverages, including Tiger beer.

Lunch at Hawker Chan Tai Seng

We went to Hawker Chan Tai Seng for lunch, arriving there just before noon hoping to beat the crowd. Many must have had the same idea as the queue at the restaurant was quite long. It took about 10 minutes for us to reach the front of the queue. We ordered the Char Siew Noodles ($5) and the Soya Sauce Chicken Rice ($3.80). A cup of cold rosella tea was $2. There was no other additional add-on charges or GST. The wait for the food was about 15 minutes.

The Char Siew Noodles came in quite a substantial portion. There was a reasonably generous cut of char siew and the amount of noodles was more than we would typically expect. We liked the noodles which had a bouncy texture. The chilli provided was more sweet than spicy but went well with the noodles. The chunky char siew had a mix of fatty and lean parts. It was rich and aromatic. Overall, the char siew noodles was a very tasty and enjoyable dish.

The famed soya sauce chicken rice did not look very impressive. The rice was drenched with a dark sauce that had a slightly sweet herbal taste. The chicken was well cooked and was tender with just a hint of oiliness. Chewing it slowly would release new aroma and taste layers. It was a nice plate of chicken rice at a very reasonable price of $3.80.

Liao Fan Hong Kong Soya Chicken Rice sells for $2 in Chinatown Complex so $3.80 is a substantial markup. However, considering the much shorter queuing time and the comfortable air-conditioned setting, the price of the delectable chicken rice with Michelin star pedigree is still a great bargain. The char siew noodles are slightly more expensive than the chicken rice. However, we actually liked the noodles more than the chicken rice. Overall, Liao Fan Hawker Chan is a simple eatery with value for money tasty food. We are happy that there is Hawker Chan Restaurant in Tai Seng and we will be heading to 18 Tai Seng more often.

Ratings:
Food: 4
Service : 3
Value: 5
Atmosphere: 3
Overall Rating: 4 TOPs