Five comfort food places to warm your soul

Ever have times where all you want is a good cheap meal after a bad day? Perhaps you didn’t do well for an exam or maybe the stress from work is just getting to you. 

For days like these, here is our list of wholesome, hearty meals to help get your mind off things.

In Bishan’s Kim San Leng Coffee Shop, crowds often flock to the famous Ming Kee Chicken Rice store. For those unfamiliar, perhaps you may have heard of the coffee shop as “the one opposite the Community Club”.  

Apart from the chicken rice, the coffee shop houses yet another gem in Yu Kee Duck Rice.

While some complain that the standard of service has declined over the years, its food still brings back moments of nostalgia for me. Sometimes, a sip of their herbal soup or a mouthful or their braised duck rice is enough to briefly transport me back to simpler times, when all I had to worry about was finishing my homework.

At the low cost of four dollars, you can purchase their signature dish, the Happy Duck Rice, which contains braised egg, tofu, peanuts, deliciously tender duck meat and of course the rice itself. 

The duck is thinly sliced and bursting with flavour while the peanuts provide a nice crunch to the meal. To finish it off, the entire plate is topped with a generous drizzle of thick sauce that coats the rice.

You can find Yu Kee Duck rice at 511 Bishan Street 13, Singapore 570511, or at any of their many other outlets across Singapore.

Whenever I return from an overseas trip, one of the first things I do is find myself a bowl of minced meat noodles to eat. So it comes as no surprise to me, that one of the foods that brings me the most comfort is a big bowl of minced meat noodles.

The best place to get a bowl of noodles in my opinion is from Ming Fa Fishball Noodles along the stretch of eateries at Upper Thomson Road. Having made its home there for longer than I can remember, the place is consistently filled up with customers even into the wee hours of the morning.

A staple dish at Ming Fa’s is their mushroom minced meat noodles. While the normal version costs only $4.50, you can get the premium version which comes with prawns and fishballs for $7.30 instead.

Cooked in a mixture of vinegar and chilli, the noodles do have quite a kick. If you want to spice up your order even more, you can even request them to add ketchup into the mix. 

However the noodles and meatballs are where it really shines for me. The noodles are springy and don’t taste overly like eggs while the meatballs are bouncy and full of flavour.

You can find Ming Fa Fishball Noodles at 246b Upper Thomson Road (Singapore 574370), or at any of their many other outlets.

A recipient of many food awards throughout the years, Casuarina Curry has made a name for itself in Singapore’s prata world. Be it an early morning breakfast with family or a late night supper with friends, Casuarina Curry has you covered.

While they have an extremely diverse menu ranging from ice-cream prata to pineapple-cheese prata, I often find myself opting for the classic kosong and egg combo. I also find their mutton murtabak delicious, so I sometimes opt for that if I feel like I have the calories to spare.

You can find Casuarina Curry at 136, 138 Casuarina Road (Off Upper Thomson) Singapore 579524

We all know how merciless the Singaporean sun can be and at times, the heat can sap our energy and leaves us dried out and easily irritable.

My personal cure for this lethargy is to get myself a nice cold bowl of tau huay or tofu pudding, as the cooling sensation from the cold soya bean tofu never fails to leave me relaxed.

My favourite place to get my tau huay fix is from Selegie Soya Bean. Although I have found places which serve better Soya Bean dishes, I have yet to find one that has been able to beat the taste and texture of Selegie Soya Bean’s tau huay.

I’m not sure how they do it but the tofu used is soft and silky and the syrup has just the right amount of sweetness. It’s clear many others feel the same way as lines often stretch far outside of its shops even late into the night.

You can find Selegie Soya Bean at 247 Jalan Kayu or at their other outlets.

Sometimes the most comforting food of all can be found right at home, sitting in a drawer and waiting to be cooked.

Instant noodles are something everyone has enjoyed while growing up. While we may have initially craved its taste when we were younger, many of us now only see it as a last resort when we are either lazy or trying to save money.

But that’s precisely why it’s so comforting to me. I can eat guilt-free, knowing that I’m saving money and a trip to the coffee shop as well. 

With each pack only costing a few cents, you can cook and eat as many as you want without fearing judgement from others. 

Enjoy it in moderation of course, as having it too often may cause you to grow bored of it.