Soon Heng Rojak at Toa Payoh HDB Hub

I never knew how handy the ieat hawker app was until recently, when I was at Toa Payoh HUB and thinking that there won't be any good food around, seeing there was only a basement food court.

And quite frankly, how many food courts in Singapore can boast of a fairly famous and popular hawker stall that will get queues the likes of Tian Tian Chicken Rice in Maxwell Market? Not many, I guess.

Well, guess what? Gourmet Paradise food court, which is situated in the basement of the Toa Payoh HUB has just one such stall when I was there, and thanks to the iphone app, pointed me to one of the best rojak I have had in years.

Speaking of rojak, I was never a fan of this local delicacy until I met my wife, Pauline. And that was because, I always thought it was such a messy dish, and with so many different ingredients, it would be something that would not be focused and specific.

Pauline then got me to try a few one night and, despite the fact that I still think it is messy, at least I have gotten around to the fact that it is a unique "salad" dish that tries to blend different flavors and textures together.

The Long Queues

And if you notice, you cannot find rojak so easily in most hawker centres or food courts. So, nowadays, when I do find one,  I will endeavor to ta pau back for Pauline. And I must say, over time, I have gotten to like this dish more and more.

So, back to Soon Heng. As you can see from the picture above, the queue for this was just amazing. At least a dozen people were in front of me when I first reach the place, and the waiting time amounted to almost 45 minutes before I could get packet of rojak! Was it really that good? And worth the wait?

The Best Rojak

Well, I had my first plate and I was totally won over. The prawn paste was thick and sweet, and had the ability to throughly coat all the ingredients within, which was not the case with most watery rojaks that I have eaten.

The peanut shavings were generous and plentiful, and gave a nice crunch to the entire dish. The you tiao were also generous, and were very well coated, which was also above the norm. And the turnips, pineapples and cucumbers all tasted fresh and the pineapples had just enough acidity to counter the sweetness of the prawn paste.

Pauline's verdict was equally positive, and had her total seal of approval. We loved it so much we did not even leave any remnants of the sauce behind, and basically used a spoon to finish every drop of it. 

Best rojak? You bet.

Soon Heng Rojak

480 Lorong 6 Toa Payoh

#B1-23 Gourmet Paradise