Justin Lim, 26, comes from a family who is in a totally different industry but has always wanted to open a F&B outlet. Armed with a great passion for food, this humble stall will be the 1st of many to come.
His endeavors are aided by Chef Albert Tan, 29, who was an assistant chef at Pasta Mania and Outback Steakhouse, and a global trainer for Chili’s, going to different places to train cooks.
Unlike chain Western food stalls like Tender Fresh, or Char Grill, Fish & Chicks differentiates itself in various ways. They try to stay clear of processed food when possible, and make dips and mushroom soup from scratch. As implied in the shop name, they serve only fish and chicken, with no pork, no lard, aiming for a halal certification, so that all friends regardless of religion can sit down and eat together.
The most unique feature of Fish & Chicks is that they attempt to combine Singaporean flavors with Western Food. For instance, they drizzle chilli crab sauce or salted egg yolk sauce on fish & chips (pictured above). And since they make the sauces by hand from scratch daily, there are only 15-20 portions a day.
My favorite dish here is indubitably the salted egg yolk fish & chips ($9.90). The fish & chips ($6.90) itself is very good, thinly battered, and very crunchy. When I bite into the fish burger ($6.90, above)—using the same fish—the crunch could be heard from the other side of the kopitiam.
Hawaiian chicken ($7.90)
But when the crispy fish is doused in salted egg yolk sauce, it lifts the entire dish. The salted egg yolk is the gao kind, so you can definitely taste the salted egg yolk with a tinge of sweetness. But surprisingly, despite the heaviness of the sauce, you can still taste the delicate taste of the fish.
The rest of the items are good too. The fish burger ($6.90) is at once crunchy and refreshing with lettuce, and it’s rare to see such a good bun being used. Lemon butter grilled fish ($7.90, above) is the bestseller, great for the health-conscious. Hawaiian chicken ($7.90) is basically the Hawaiian pizza topping on chicken—fun. No complaints about the deep-fried spring chicken ($5.90 half/ $9.90 whole, below).
One great thing about Fish & Chicks is that they don’t neglect even the smallest details. For hawker Western food stalls, the sides can be really rubbish, such as a few leaves of lettuce.
But Fish & Chicks gives good quality sides. The chunky fries are sprinkled with their own blend of Cajun-tasting herbs and spices, and remain crispy even when left for some time. And they come with a choice of homemade dips, such as truffle mayo or wasabi mayo. For sides, there are also potato salad, cheese pasta, tom yam fried rice, etc.
You can tell how much effort and hard work Justin and Albert put in to design a menu, elegant enough to give a variety to return often, and fun enough for both teenagers and adults. We are so lucky to enjoy these delicious food at affordable prices. I’ll return for the salted egg yolk fish & chips, and the fish burger.
Fish & Chicks
Blk 531, Ang Mo Kio Ave 10, Happy Hawkers 喜多福, Singapore 560531
T: +65 9828 3490
11am-2pm, 5pm-10pm, opens daily
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Written by A. Nathanael Ho.
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