Dining Out 2 minutes 10 December 2017

Breakfast Club: For the Early Morning Economic Bee Hoon

A brown packet of economic bee hoon and fried chicken is a breakfast we can get behind.

While cornflakes swimming in a pool of milk may be the breakfast choice of some, a loaded plate of fried bee hoon (rice vermicelli) piled high with items such as fish cakes, pork cutlets and fried chicken is a breakfast sight familiar to many Singaporeans.

Here are five spots that dish up a good breakfast of fried noodles. Some open as early as 5am and wrap up before noon. So if you're looking to snag a plate, we suggest setting your alarm clocks the night before.

Holland V Fried Bee Hoon
Holland Village Food Centre, 1 Lorong Mambong
Opening hours: 6.30am to 1.30pm, daily.

The dish may be known as economic bee hoon but most stalls serve a selection of noodles. Holland V Fried Bee Hoon is no different. Customers can choose from a base of fried bee hoon, alkaline egg noodles, kway teow (flat rice noodles), a mix of two or all three before deciding on the accompanying dishes. Fried eggs, luncheon meat slices and stir-fried cabbage are safe options but they've also got ngoh hiang (deep-fried meat roll) and crunchy chicken cutlets.
San Hup Economic Bee Hoon
Block 742A, Tampines Street 72
Opening hours: 7am to 9pm, daily.

Housed in an unassuming coffee shop at the foot of a residential block in Tampines, San Hup is a well-kept secret. They get a steady stream of customers throughout the day but the lines really form during mealtimes. The noodles served at San Hup are fried first and then cooked in a rich stock so they pack a ton of flavour. But the real draw is the quality of the accompanying dishes; the chicken is fried to a lovely crisp without coming across oily and their homemade otak (grilled spiced fish cake wrapped in banana leaves), spicy, aromatic and tasty.

327 Fried Bee Hoon
Blk 327 Hougang Ave 5 #01-156
Opening hours: 5am to 11am, daily.

Here's one for the early-risers (or late-sleepers). Hougang's 327 Fried Bee Hoon starts hawking its economic fried bee hoon as early as 5am. The noodles here are tasty, well-seasoned and comes with a nice bite. But the star of the dish has to be its fried chicken wings, which is equal parts crispy, moist and flavourful. And if you're feeling particularly ravenous, their nasi lemak is worth ordering too.
Hup Lee Fried Bee Hoon
Chong Pang City, 101 Yishun Avenue 5, #01-03
Opening hours: 7am to 10am, daily.

There are several economic bee hoon stalls peppered around the country bearing the Hup Lee name but the stall housed in Yishun's Chong Pang City is the one you want to visit. They're only open from 7am to 10am so you want to plan your trip early to make sure you snag a plate. There have been gripes among the customers about the inflation of prices but it doesn't seem to deter the queue much. The noodles are springy, the fried food items crisp and the sambal chili, spicy, sweet and singing of hae bi (dried shrimp).

Hougang Hainanese Curry Rice/ Economic Bee Hoon
Kovan Hougang Market and Food Centre, 209 Hougang Street 21 #01-25
Opening hours: 8am to 10pm, daily.

Here's a spot customers can patronise for all three meals. The stall at Kovan's market and food centre specialises in two dishes - curry rice and economic bee hoon - and they're both good. We say make the best of both worlds and order your plate of bee hoon with a ladleful of curry slopped over.

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