Ya Hua Bak Kut Teh @ Havelock Road

Ya Hua Bak Kut Teh @ Havelock Road was the place for our Singapore BKT brunch recently. Convenient location, great pork ribs and fresh steamed fish made this one of the more enjoyable bak kut teh places we have tried recently.

Outram Park Ya Hua Rou Gu Cha

Outram Park Ya Hua Bak Kut Teh (Outram Park Ya Hua Rou Gu Cha) first opened in the ’70s at the bottom of the Housing and Development Board flats at Outram Park. When the complex was demolished in the 90s, they moved to Havelock Road, retaining the Outram Park Ya Hua Rou Gu Cha name (欧南园亚华肉骨茶).

Currently, they have 3 outlets in Singapore, but none are at Outram. There was once an outlet at Raffles City but that has since closed down.

Isetan Office Building Bak Kut Teh

Ya Hua Bak Kut Teh @ Havelock Road is located on the ground floor of Isetan Office building. This is a small building 4-storey which has retail outlets on the ground floor. Why is there an Isetan building at Havelock Road? My guess is that this would be a useful place for an office location as there used to be a Singapore flagship Isetan store at the old Apollo Hotel which is just around the corner. Apart from Ya Hua, there is a Korean food store and cafe known as The Butcher’s Dining. This space used to be occupied by a Japanese convenience store and cafe known as EVERY Havelock.

The Ya Hua Bak Kut Teh @ Havelock Road restaurant has a squarish shape. The layout is neat and simple. It is air-conditioned and the tables are reasonably far apart from each other. There are some roadside parking lots near the restaurant.

Ya Hua Bak Kut Teh Havelock Road Menu

Here are pictures of some portions from the Ya Hua Bak Kut Teh Havelock Road Menu.

In addition to the different types of pork ribs, they also serve a variety of pork organs and other side dishes.

Like several other BKT places in Singapore such as Heng Heng BKT and Legendary BKT, Ya Hua BKT Havelock Road also offers steamed fish items.

Our BKT Lunch at Ya Hua Bak Kut Teh Havelock Road

In addition to the usual pork ribs soup and rice we also decided to have some you tiao, tung or soup and Teochew steamed threadfin fish.

Prime Cut Ribs Soup and You Tiao

The prime cut ribs ($14.30) were rather pricey but the quality were very good. The texture of meat was soft enough to fall off the bone easily yet retaining a nice bouncy texture. The soup was Teochew style – clear and peppery.

You tiao is an ingredient that goes well with BKT soup. The dough sticks ($2.80) at Ya Hua is probably the best that we have come across at a BKT restaurant. They were fresh and crisp and could even be eaten on its own, as if newly bought at a market stall. A light dip into the soup to create some softness, but not spoiling the crispness was the perfect way to enjoy you tiao with bak kut teh soup.

Tang Or Soup and Teochew Steamed Fish

We picked the tang or soup ($6.30) as it is a type of vegetable that is not often found at restaurants these days. The unique flavour of this vegetable provided a nice break from the pork ribs.

Teochew steamed threadfin is a “market price” dish. Our steamed fish dish cost $35 that day. It was not a large piece of fish but it was very fresh. Overall a nice compact Teochew steamed fish dish that can be shared by 2 pax.

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

Ya Hua Bak Kut Teh
593 Havelock Road #01-01/02
Isetan Office Building
Singapore 169641

Tel:  +65 6235 7716

Opening Hours:
Fri & Sat: 11 am – 11 pm
Tue to Thu & Sun: 11 am – 10 pm
Closed on Monday

Nearby MRT Station: Havelock

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The Ordinary Patrons | Real Dining Experience of Ordinary People
an independent Singapore food blog