In this second edition, I would like to share with you good and value-for-money ban mian, a popular Chinese handmade noodle dish.

My first recommendation of ban mian is sold by the stall in a coffee shop near  Courts at Toa Payoh Central. They have both the soup and dry versions. Each bowl of ban mian with minced pork costs $4.00. My usual order of sliced fish ban mian costs $4.50 a bowl and it comes with a big serving of ban mian, thick fish slices, vegetables, an egg, crispy anchovies and cut chilli in soya sauce. If you order the dry version, it is served with dark soya sauce which is poured over the noodles. It’s a pity that they don’t have chilli sauce for the noodles, so I make do with the cut chilli from the dip. They give an egg for the fish ban mian unlike many other stalls and when you order takeaway, they separate the noodles from the soup without you having to ask for it and there is no additional charge for the containers. They are also flexible as they willingly accommodate my request for less noodles and more vegetables. They also sell ban mian with prawns as well as sliced fish soup. The stall is closed on Sundays and public holidays.

The other recommendation of ban mian or ban mee as it is called in Malaysia is sold at the Malaysia Boleh! food court in Ang Mo Kio Hub. It sells only the dry version. For $4.00 a bowl, you get a decent serving of ban mee, stir-fried minced pork, braised mushrooms, spinach, a soft-boiled egg and anchovies. For me, the highlight of the dish here is the chilli paste and I like the inclusion of spinach, making it a balanced meal. I usually ask for “no oil and no minced pork” as the oil and minced pork oil is just too much for me. There is only one level of spiciness for the chilli paste here, whereas you have a choice of five levels of spiciness at another ban mee stall in a different food court. The other stall sells their ban mee for $5.90 a bowl but it is a smaller portion and without spinach. Compared with the other noodle dishes offered at the Malaysia Boleh! food court, the ban mee stands out for its taste and value for money.

Watch this space for more good and value-for-money eats such as double-boiled soup and mala hotpot!