When my Punggol neighbour and friend Smith posted earlier this week that he wanted to try out the famous 545 Whampoa Prawn Noodles since they recently opened a new branch at Tekka Market, I was all game. Tekka Market/Food Centre is just next to Little India MRT station (Exit C) and is super accessible for Punggol folks like us.
I’ve been a fan of 545 since a few years back when Ruifang first invited us to try out her dad’s prawn noodles (xia mian, 虾面 not 下面) . However, Whampoa is just completely out of the way for me, so I’ve only eaten it a few times. Early this month, when they opened a branch at Tekka (run and managed primarily by 545 uncle’s daughter, Ruifang), Nicholas and I quickly headed there to get our fix!
But you can never get enough of prawn noodles, really. So this morning, Smith made his virgin trip to try out these noodles, and I got to enjoy his company for a few hours over my favourite prawn noodles and some good coffee. But then this Smith totally broke my heart when he went home and blogged about the prawn noodles, giving the dry version a rating of 9 stars out of 10, and the soup noodles a measly 6.5 out of 10!
Look at this beautiful bowl of prawn noodles. It makes my mouth water just thinking about it. Smith says that the nature of this dish itself is a shortcoming – that the soup base gets thicker as the day goes by, so if you visit early in the morning, the taste will be different from when you visit it later in the day, at lunch time.
I completely disagree that it is a shortcoming, and I have to defend my favourite version of the 545 Prawn Noodles!
The soup version is something that is ever-changing (dynamic, if you will, hae hae hae) that is always comforting and pleasing. As someone who likes her daily food plain and simple but still delicious, this soup embodies everything a good soup base should be: a familiar taste, yet hearty, full of flavour, and always presenting surprises with every spoonful, every visit. Its supposed “shortcoming”, as Smith puts it, is to me, a plus point! The soup doesn’t overpower, and you can still taste the goodness of the pork lard, lean pork, and the refreshing crunchy bite of the bean sprouts. Regardless of the hour you visit, I believe that this soup version will be like a warm embrace, reminding you of the simple things in life that are good.
As you can see, I’m a really lousy food blogger, but you really have to visit this stall and decide for yourself which version you like best. I stand by my soup version.
545 Whampoa Prawn Noodles
Tekka Branch
665 Buffalo Road #01-326, Tekka Food Centre
Original Stall
91 Whampoa Drive #01-39, Whampoa Drive Makan Place
Disclaimer: I really haven’t tried the dry version in all these years, because it has chilli in it and I’m just not a fan of chilli. I just wanted to defend my favourite soup version!
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From Facebook
This hawker stall is helmed by a young woman, Ruifang, spurred on by the need to carry her dad’s prawn noodles recipe into a new generation.
The roots of prawn noodles in Ruifang’s family go as far back into the 1940s when her grandfather started selling it along the streets of Whampoa before it was even named so. In 1973, Whampoa Market was built. As her grandfather fell ill, Ruifang’s Dad and Grandmother took a stall, and has been selling prawn noodles since then. The current stall at Whampoa Market is run by Ruifang’s Dad, his sisters and his wife.
With the guidance of her dad, Ruifang is bringing bowls of tradition and history to Tekka Food Centre.