Singapore Hainan Chicken Rice @ Jalan Kepong

While driving past Jalan Kepong we noticed a rather new chicken rice restaurant that only opens at night. I guess business must be great judging by the number of steamed chickens they hung at the stall. It was quite an impressive and unusual sight so we popped by one evening for dinner.

When the steamed chicken arrived we were surprised to find that it looked different from the usual. It was served bare without any dressing of soya sauce or sesame oil. Then I looked at the signboard again and realized they are serving Singapore style Hainan Chicken rice which explained everything. As soon as the rice came and the unmistakeable chicken stock aroma immediately hit your senses. Although the rice was not as well-cooked as those in Singapore, the flavour was certainly there and you could really enjoy it on its own.

The steamed chicken tasted like home cooked – the meat was nowhere as soft as those prepared according to Ipoh bean sprout style. It might even taste bland for some considering the chicken was only served with its natural juices without any additional condiments.
But with everything said, the chicken rice was still quite good and tasted natural. For a more satisfying experience, add a dash of sweet dark soya sauce to the rice and enjoy the chicken with their well-made chilli sauce. The pork meat balls were delicious and the soup tasted natural as well, in the sense that you know they did not really relied on MSG to boost the flavour.

The total bill came to a total of RM28.5, RM13 for the chicken (2 pax portion) alone while the rest was for rice, herbal drinks, pork meat balls and bean sprouts.

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