Is Original Better? Inside The Katong Laksa And Hill Street Bak Chor Mee Food Feuds - Free Websites, Share News And Posts Publicly

Good morning.

Singapore’s hawker fare is a national treasure; it’s no wonder a battle for bragging rights has erupted among some iconic names. In our Food Feud series, we uncover their stories, and question if original always means better.

When it comes to this brothy treat, the name Katong Laksa sets the gold standard. In fact, the brand is so coveted that a stretch of East Coast Road became the battleground for the ‘Katong Laksa war’ of the 1990s, with each rival seller claiming to serve the original version.

It’s no big secret that Janggut was the originator of Katong Laksa – but our team discovered he’d given his secret recipe to two friends. So, which other stalls are still serving up the original Katong Laksa recipe?

Then there’s bak chor mee. Hill Street Tai Hwa Pork Noodles, Singapore’s only Michelin-starred hawker, threw down the gauntlet when 13 stalls popped up operating under the almost identically-named High Street Tai Wah Pork Noodles (which, adding to the confusion, holds a Michelin Bib Gourmand Award).

Our team put the noodles of several of these rival stalls to a taste test, to find out if the Michelin-starred hawker has reason to worry for his reputation.

Also in a drama of mistaken identities is popular ang ku kueh shop Ji Xiang Confectionery. When unrelated stores bearing the Ji Xiang name appeared islandwide, customer confusion caused simmering tensions to spill over into a public row.

As it turns out, they belong to the other son of the Ji Xiang founder. We sat the two brothers down for an honest chat about the rivalry and put the two Ji Xiang ang ku kueh to a taste test.

I hope you enjoy the Food Feud series as much as these local treats!

June Lee

Executive Producer, On The Red Dot

P.S. For more on our favourite foods, check out another new series that spans the region – Southeast Asia On A Plate. Links below!

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