If you head over to the north-east.. along Upper Serangoon Road, just after Simon Road, you’ll come across a perpetual queue.. what are they queuing for?
Supposedly one of the best nasi lemak in Singapore. Punggol Nasi Lemak Centre (it’s actually a stall)
Seriously folks… “one of the best”?? If it’s considered “one of the best”, then I mourn for Singapore’s status as a food paradise.
I’ve read many reviews/blogs about this place. most will rave about the fried chicken wing, fragrant rice and sambal.
if you haven’t been there before, it’s more of a nasi kandar/nasi padang style.. with a variety of dishes/sides to choose from..
the sad thing is that i see a lot of people who walk off happily with their plates with either a small dollop of sambal or even worse.. NO sambal!!! (Oh the travesty!)
come on folks.. nasi lemak in it’s simplest form is sambal AND good quality rice (cooked in coconut milk infused with pandan leaves and flavoured with a dash of salt).. everything else is considered additional sides/garnish/whacamacallit.
good quality rice + crap sambal = CRAP nasi lemak.
crap quality rice + good sambal = CRAP nasi lemak.
crap quality rice + crap sambal = 99% of all nasi lemak in Singapore
here’s where Punggol Nasi Lemak fails miserably (like many of the popular joints)
Dark Sweet Sambal.. there.. i’ve said it.. the one thing that kills a good nasi lemak.. Dark.Sweet.Sambal.
Like many other Singaporean-styled hawker dishes.. Dark.Sweet.Whatever
Char Kuey Teow.. Dark.Sweet.Soya.Sauce
Chai Tau Kuey (Carrot cake).. Dark.Sweet.Soya.Sauce
Hainanese Chicken Rice.. Dark.Sweet.Soya.Sauce
shall i go on? so the sambal also seemed to have gone the same way.. Dark and Sweet. (luckily no soya sauce!)
Sad.. so very sad..
why am i this way? Nasi Lemak tops the list as my favourite dish of all time.
Not at all sorry to say this… I think Chinese people should just stop making Nasi Lemak.
Best Nasi Lemak in Singapore? Thus far.. it’s a pre-packed one from Tanglin Halt Food Centre
