兄弟 ('Xiong Di') Rojak

By Darren Lee

Having lived in Clementi for practically my whole life, there are two foods (or snacks if you’d prefer) which I think that you HAVE to eat in Clementi.

Both of them are famous and have been in Clementi for decades. This will be separated into two parts*, and right here we have Part 1!

Background

'Xiong Di' (meaning 'brother(s)' in Chinese) Fruit Rojak is popular and has been on various food programmes broadcasted on television for around 13 years now.

For those of you who do not know what Fruit Rojak is, it is a dish that typically consists of cucumber, pineapple, bean sprouts, ‘Tau Pok’ (deep fried tofu), fried dough fritters (or 'You Tiao' in Chinese) and dried cuttlefish mixed with a special sauce that is usually prepared by mixing water, shrimp paste, sugar, chili and lime juice.

Price

‘Xiong Di’ Rojak serves its rojak in different sizes with prices ranging from $3 to $8.

Taste & Texture

To start with the pineapple, I would say that it’s really fresh and its juice oozed out with every bite I took. The same goes with the cucumber; it has a nice crunchy texture and complements the dressing very well.

However, the beansprouts were rather soggy (probably because they were left out after boiling the whole day)

Fortunately for me, the ‘Tau Pok’ and the fried dough fritters I was served had come straight from the grill, so they were both crispy and had very nice centres- fluffy for the fried dough fritters and soft for the ‘Tau Pok’.

Waiting Time

The queues can take a while (10-15 minutes) at peak hours but on normal days you would only have to wait 5 minutes at most

Getting There

On average, the walking distance to the coffee shop takes less than five minutes from the Clementi MRT station.

Rating

兄弟 ('Xiong Di') Rojak

See Lam Hern Coffee Shop

Block 449, Clementi Avenue 3

*: Stay tuned to my post next week, which will feature ‘Jin It Thai San’ Popiah at the very same coffee shop!