Introduction

As much as I enjoy chicken rice, somehow it’s a dish that I hardly get excited over -- until I had had soy sauce chicken at Lee Fun Nam Kee. Now at the mere mention of it, my eyes light up and saliva glands go into overdrive. Different from most chicken that you get in Singapore that are either white (boiled) or brown (roasted), soy sauce chicken is served lightly braised in a soy sauce mixture. It’s a fairly recent discovery for me as I seldom venture into the Toa Payoh district.

Moist roast pork that is not fatty.

Ambience/Location (6.5 out of 10)

The shop, started in 1968, now occupies a relatively spacious space that holds about 20 tables. Located in Toa Payoh suburbs, the restaurant is situated on the ground floor underneath a HDB block and is partially hidden by a multi-storey car park. If you’re travelling by public transport, I’d suggest alighting at Braddell MRT station and continue on foot; you should reach the place within 10 minutes.

Don’t expect lavish furnishings here: Decor looks dated with heavy wrought iron chairs and wood paneling on the walls that look like they’ve been installed since the 1980s.

Service (8 out of 10)

This restaurant is popular so you might have to wait a while if you visit on weekends. The owner is a burly old man and his loud booming voice might seem intimidating initially but he’s actually quite nice and approachable.

Service is zippy and you don’t have to wait too long for orders to be delivered to your table.

Food (8 out of 10)

What makes the food here such a winner is the heavenly soy sauce chicken. Tender, succulent and smooth, the chicken is served with a thick black and -- slightly -- sweet sauce that goes too well with the fowl. You’ll not get any answers as to how the “secret sauce” is created so forget about asking the owner.

Noodles are an interesting change from the usual rice.

You can emjoy the chicken with either rice or noodles, all of which are excellent. Personally, I prefer the rice variant as each grain is cooked perfectly, not mushy and neither too oily nor salty while being full of flavour. The portion of rice served is rather small so don’t be shy to ask for an extra bowl!.

Alternatively, you could also have the noodles (or hor fun). Served with kailan (Chinese kale) and swimming in the delicious sweet and savoury sauce, the noodles have a nice bite to them and the hor fun is just so smooth you might be tempted to swallow it with minimal chewing.

The other component with that is important in chicken rice is of course the chilli sauce. The one served here does not really stand out, but that is fine as it does not overpower the flavourful chicken.

Other dishes you can have with your meal are the roast belly pork and char siew, both drizzled with dark soy sauce. There’s surprisingly little fat on the meat, probably rendered off during the cooking process. The dumpling soup, another popular dish with diners here is decent but not outstanding.

A regular meal for one person of just chicken rice will cost $3.50, while soy sauce chicken for two costs $10, very reasonable when you compare it with lacklustre chicken rice from the food courts that go for about the same price. A meal with extras sides costs an average of $15 per person. Generally good value as they are generous with the chicken portions here.