Hey everyone!
Recently, a lot of blog posts on food recommendations have surfaced on Facebook. Although organised geographically, these posts merely cover areas which are alreadyknown to have good food and they are typically located in the Eastern side of Singapore which is so far away from where I live (but no doubt there are really nice food in the East coz I really love both Bar Chor Mee stalls at Bedok 85).
Places in the west are seldom mentioned and it’s really, really sad. But does that mean my hometown, Bukit Batok, has nothing nice to eat? As a resident of Bukit Batok for 23 years (I have already moved FYI 😦 but I still return on a weekly basis for work!), I can vouch for the falsity of this statement. There are great food in this area and if you don’t know where to find them, then you’ve come to the right place.
In this post, I’ll be taking you through the list of top food finds in this neglected part of Singapore with additional input from my cabby Dad (because taxi drivers are also food experts right?). Bukit Batok, for the record, also includes Bukit Gombak (one of the 8 sub-zones of Bukit Batok).
Let’s begin!
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1. Alif Restaurant (previously Thohirah Restaurant)
This Muslim-Indian eating place formally known as Alif needs no introduction (edit: it has been renamed to Alif again). Even though it has been bought over (or so I’ve heard) by Thohirah (which has a pretty famous outlet at Jalan Kayu), it still remains as one of the supper hotspots in Bukit Batok. Highly raved by food bloggers and celebrities (e.g. Taufik Batisah in the 2005 Coffee Talk and Hawker Woks) alike, it is also very popular among youngsters who need a place to chill with their friends. I’d say it’s a landmark of Bukit Gombak apart from the driving centre (BBDC) because everyone who has been to the area would have seen it before.
Thohirah Bukit Gombak
Thohirah occupies two separate units (both beside McDonald’s). I frequent the one directly beside McDonald’s more because that’s where you can buy their famous Roti Prata. They are very generous with the cheese slices in their Cheese Prata to ensure that every part it would have some traces of cheese. Thirsty? Forget about Bandung or canned drinks which are readily available anywhere. Order a cup of hot, fragrant and well-pulled Teh Tarik instead. If you’re not a tea drinker, get yourself a cup of Milo Dinosaur. It comes in a relatively large cup with lots of Milo powder on it. So sinful but oh-so-good.
Teh Tarik (source)
Egg prata (source)
Chicken Murtabak (source)
The other unit serves noodle and rice dishes like Mee Goreng (which I’m a huge fan of), Mee Rebus and Nasi Briyani, so if you’re a big eater, you could dine there instead.
And the best part? Thohirah has free Wi-Fi (Wireless@SG), thanks to their neighbour McDonald’s. Of course, the signal strength depends on where you are seated.
374 Bukit Batok St. 31
#01-204
Singapore 650374
Tel: 6564 6324
Operating hours: 24 hours
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