Sliced fish thick bee hoon soup — loaded fish bowl ($8)!
Tanjong Pagar hawker — sliced fish thick bee hoon soup loaded with 8+ slices of batang fish, thick bee hoon, greens, fried garlic, coriander. $8.
Lunch — sliced fish thick bee hoon soup at $8 in Tanjong Pagar. Generous fish bowl. 😋
What was in the bowl ($8):
- A green plastic bowl loaded with:
- 8+ slices of fresh sliced fish (looks like batang/Spanish mackerel) covering the entire surface.
- Thick bee hoon (laksa-thick rice noodles) hidden underneath.
- Clear / light milky broth as the base.
- Stir-fried greens (kang kong / xiao bai cai) tucked in the corners.
- Fried garlic + chopped coriander piled in the centre — the dish’s aromatic finish.
- A side dish of chilli + soya dipping sauce (top).
The slice-count test for fish bee hoon soup — most $5-6 versions give 3-5 slices, $7-9 versions give 6-8+. This bowl had 8+ slices = the premium-portion stall at the price point.
Sliced fish (鱼片) = the fresh white fish slices — most commonly batang (Spanish mackerel) in SG, sometimes toman (snakehead) for the premium version. The slices are dropped into boiling broth at the last moment so the fish cooks just from the heat (not boiled) — texture stays tender + flaky.
Thick bee hoon vs thin bee hoon: thick is the laksa-thick variant (~3-4mm diameter), holds the broth better + has more bite. Different chew profile from thin bee hoon.
Broth style = looks like the lighter clear-style here, not the heavy milky version. Some stalls offer both — clear is cleaner-tasting + lighter, milky is richer + creamier (made by boiling with evaporated milk + extra fish bones).
Fried garlic + coriander pile = the dish’s signature aromatic finish. The fried garlic adds the nutty-savoury crunch + the coriander gives the herbal lift. Without these, the fish soup goes flat.
Greens (kang kong looks like) = the leafy contrast — adds the green colour + slight bitterness against the rich fish broth.
Chilli + soya dipping sauce on the side = the SG fish soup standard — for dipping the fish slices for extra flavour, or pouring into the broth for a sharper hit.
$8 = premium hawker tier for fish bee hoon soup. The portion (8+ slices) justifies it.
Total: $8.
Overall: 4.4 / 5. Generous fish portion was the standout (most stalls cheat on slice count), fish slices stayed tender + sweet, thick bee hoon held the broth well, fried garlic gave the right aromatic finish. Will reorder. 😋👍🏼
