One of my favorite lunch spots in the Ang Mo Kio area will be the Lor Mee and Laksa store at Chong Boon Market along Avenue 10 . This hawker store had old beginnings being in the business for over a decade, or at least since I first tried their dishes in the late nineties. Their trademark dish is what as said on the tin, authentic Singapore Lor Mee served with crispy fritters as a topping. Their typical standard dish comes in “bee hoon mee” configuration impregnated with their signature gooey brown paste which has both a consistency well-balanced between watery and starchiness. The Lor Mee can be quite salty, but the small bowl portions does not overload you or make you excessively thirsty thereafter. It is garnished with pounded white radish and chili paste by the side.
Their Laska is flavorful, you get the usual fare of cockles, fish cake slices, bean sprouts and tao pok served with a brimming bowl of laska gravy which is surprising not spicy at all, making it suitable to all or even children who detest spicy food. For the adventurous, you can control the spiciness levels with topping up your gravy with additional chili to your liking.
The store used to start out at now Teck Ghee market also along Ang Mo Kio Ave 10, where you can recognize the store by the always-long queues snaking out of the hawker center, where they will often sell out past lunchtime. Following some disputes, they temporarily moved to the Old airport road hawker center, where I was told on my patronage there that business was not as good. It was not long where the store moved back to Ang Mo Kio, bringing the legendary Lor Mee and laksa along with them to a new store location at nearby Chong Boon Market (453A Ang Mo Kio Ave 10).
However, over the years, I noticed the food portions are getting lesser and lesser over the years, despite able to keep to their pricing of $2.50 to $3 a bowl. You get half an egg as to a full egg five years ago and the noodle portions are considerable lesser now. The thing which is still retained is the their trademark Lor Mee and laska gravy, which I believe is their trump card.
For me a typical meal there will be both a bowl of Lor Mee and Laska for lunch (yes, that is how much their portions had shrunk). I found the store now lacks much of it allure, already also considering many other viable options now. Still, if you happen to be around the Chong Boon area, it’s one dish still worthy of a taste.
