Today I was meeting an old friend for beers. He has a lot of free time on his hands since the government scheduled renovations for the hawker centre where his shop is located. He suggested we meet at Kaki Bukit 511 food centre, close to his house, and incidently one of my favourite pre-COVID supper places in Singapore. As we were working on the bucket of beers, I decided to get some snacks, and being lazy choose something from the closest stall. I went with the lala, one of my all-time favourite drinking dishes, even if it is always overpriced. Little individual portions so it keeps the conversation going, and enough spice to keep the beers flowing. The advertised lala dish was very descriptive, adding to the intrigue.

This was a style I first tried in Malacca from a street vendor off Jonker St. I instantly fell in love with the flavour, ordering it whenever I see it. The combination of the curry leaves, fried garlic, and chili, combined with the slight saltiness of the lala is a truly destination flavour. Luckily this dish was no exception, in fact I’d go as far as saying it was the best sauce of this kind I have had outside of that street vendor in Malacca. I should caveat I was a couple of Carlsbergs in while eating this dish. The lala were cooked perfectly, the texture chewy but not rubbery. A dish definitely worth trying if you find yourself at the 511 market as I did.

Price: $10.00

Hawker centre: Kaki Bukit 511 Market & Food Centre
Address: Blk 511 Bedok North Street 3
Hours: 5pm - late