Sergeant grabs attention

For chicken rice lovers, Beijing is a fowl haven. While I still struggle to find a decent plate of char kway teow here, there is no lack of yummy Hainanese chicken rice. I have blogged about the bizarrely good plate at Hard Rock Cafe and there have been other decent offerings in the Chinese capital. But this latest entry into the crowded scene has been getting rave reviews from Singaporeans.

Sergeant's Chicken Rice is reportedly set up by one of the original Mandarin Hotel Chatterbox chefs - the same dudes who somehow managed to convince a generation of Singaporeans to pay S$20 for a plate of room-temperature chicken and rice. I know it is good, but I could never understand those willing to pay obscene money for hawker food.


Anyway, Sergeant seems very much like the Siamese twin of Food Republic, following the food court brand rather faithfully - even to Beijing. Food Republic has an outlet here at Viva Plaza （富丽广场） and not surprisingly, the military chicken brand came along. In no time, Singaporeans here have been calling it the "Best Chicken Rice in Beijing". And no one consulted me??? Basket.


Whatever lah, all these self-styled food critics. They don't even have like a proper food blog. Hmph! Sulk. (Ok ok, I have not been blogging very frequently, but hey, this blog is still active, alive and it did take me 15 minutes to set it up). Bloody hell.

Well, after weeks of hearing good things about the Sergeant from those non-qualified critics, I checked it out earlier today. After getting past the dumbass food court system of paying for a prepaid card before you could order food, I managed to get my hands on a nicely put-together plate of chicken rice. The presentation would be familiar to most Singaporeans, an arrangement which I believe came from Chatterbox.


Now for the verdict. It was good. But the best in Beijing? I would withold that honour, for now. I believe the plate at Prima Taste Kitchen gives it a good fight. While the chicken was tender and nicely drenched in soya sauce, it was a tad too cold for me. The meat was supposed to be in room temperature, but not cold. The rice was fragrant and the chilli - possibly the most important part of the chicken rice for me - was sour and slightly pungent with excessive garlic, as it should be.

But the biggest winner? Its price. At only 25 yuan (S$5), it is possibly the cheapest plate of Hainanese chicken rice in a city where Singapore hawker fare is regarded as expat food. Prima charges more than 50 yuan, for example. Good on the stomach, easy on the wallet. Looks like I will be back. Maybe tomorrow.

Hard Rock chicken

There are only five types of people who still go to the Hard Rock Cafe in Beijing.


1) Losers who still think that Hard Rock T-shirts are cool.

2) Clueless tourists staying at the adjacent Sheraton who have no idea where to grab a decent bite in Beijing.

3) Prostitutes.

4) Men looking for prostitutes.

5) Singaporeans.

Yes, I am not kidding. There really are a lot of prostitutes in the Beijing Hard Rock. In fact, it is a well-known fact of the city. Need hookers? Go Hard Rock - at night, preferably after 10pm. A reliable source told me that there are so many ladies of the night that the restaurant should be renamed Hard Cock Cafe.


As for Singaporeans, that is the other weird bit about the Beijing HRC, and the reason why I was there earlier this evening (contrary to what you may think, I do not belong to Category 4). Besides being well-known for its hookers and mud pie, the Hard Rock here is also famous for its Hainanese Chicken Rice. It is the most bizarre of things, I know. But not long after arriving in Beijing and hunting desperately for good Singapore hawker fare, someone told me that the Hard Rock Cafe is the place to go for chicken rice. I went: "What? Hard Rock? Chicken Rice? Don't bluff." But veteran Singaporeans here verified it and since then whenever I told other Singapore friends of this chickadee nugget, they went: "What? Hard Rock? Chicken Rice? Don't bluff."


Apparently, when the Beijing Hard Rock was opened in 1994, they had a Singaporean chef and he introduced Hainanese Chicken Rice, Singapore style, to the rockers. I had to find out if the dish still sits there in the Dynasty of Rock and so tonight, I gathered two Singapore friends and headed down memory lane.


I was there early and quickly checked the menu. Holy chickens, there it was! Right next to Seafood Spaghetti and sharing pride of place with New York Strip Steak was the Hainanese Chicken Rice! My goodness, maybe Elvis really is alive.

And although the poor waiter shot us funny looks because we asked for metal forks and spoons, it really was quite an enjoyable meal. Presented like the "high-end" chicken rice served in Singapore hotels at 10 times the price of hawker centres, it came as a set, with a soup, a tray of chicken and even a tray of fried bean curd. The wait staff even asked beforehand if we wanted breast or leg meat. They have obviously been well trained on the finer points of Hainanese Chicken Rice.


The meat was rather tender, although if you compare it to the Kees of Singapore (you know, Boon Tong Kee, Wee Nam Kee et al), then of course, it was at least a notch below. But the rice was fragrant and not soggy like how most Beijing rice is served. The chilli was also authentic, although I would have preferred it to be a little spicier. At 79 yuan, it was expensive. But it beats the other chicken rice I have tried so far in the Chinese capital.


It was, as my friend Pat said, a rather "surreal" experience to be eating Hainanese Chicken Rice in a Hard Rock. Glance up from the table and there was Janet Jackson's blue silk blouse. The music videos showed Patty Smyth and New Order. The band played Creedence's Susie Q. It was time to leave. We had finished our chicken rice. And the hookers were about to take over their turf.

The laksa dynasty

The conquerors of Beijing had always come in a pair - the Manchus Dorgon and Shunzhi; the communists Mao Zedong and Zhu De; and Kublai Khan and his Mongolian BBQ. So it is perhaps no surprise that the latest invaders of this former imperial city are also a duo - Laksa and Mee Siam. It may be hard to believe, but this pair of spicy Singapore favourite noodle dishes are actually taking Beijing by storm.

On New Year's Day, after climbing the Western Hills' Badachu on feet and descending on a horse, I thought it would be nice to eat like one too. And when you are in sub-zero temperature and smelling like a beast, you want something safe, predictable and super spicy. TK suggested Toastbox at Xidan for its laksa and mee siam and the rest of us neighed in agreement.


Most Singaporeans would be very familiar with homegrown Toastbox - a retro cafe chain serving Singapore-style beverages and snacks. But in Beijing, it is not that well-known. While its buns brother Breadtalk is all over town, there are only two Toastbox outlets (in Xidan's Joy City Basement 1, 010-59716268). Judging by the sight that greeted us, maybe it is time they open up a few more.


There was a persistent line at the cashier and the 30-odd seats were almost all taken. But the biggest shocker was that at almost every table, there was a bowl of laksa or mee siam. I had assumed that most of the Chinese would be there for the pork floss toast and other bakery stuff. But the spicy stufff with weird names? No way!

Curiosity got the better of me and I chatted up this sweet young thing sitting next to me, who was attacking her mee siam like how Kublai used to beat up her ancestors. Let's just call her Mixian, since that is how the Chinese pronounce "mee siam".

Me: Hi, I am from Singapore and I am just wondering if you like what you are eating?

Mixian: It's wonderful! There are no noodles like this in Beijing! I have no idea what is its name or what goes into it, but this is really good.

Me: Have you tried the laksa (pointing at my empty bowl)?

Mixian: I had that the last time and it was fabulous too. I didn't want to go for the same thing this time, so I decided to try this (gesturing at her half-empty plate). If this place is at my office building, I would be having it every day!

By the way, the above conversation is true. I didn't make it up. Mixian really loved the mee siam, and laksa. And she was really quite sweet-looking.

Her appraisal wasn't that far off too. The laksa gravy did not come with too much coconut milk and was not dripping with chili oil too. The noodles were springy and the topping of fish cake and tiny sliced prawn did not clutter the bowl. It allowed me to focus on the most important components of laksa - the noodles and the gravy.


I didn't have a chance to try the mee siam. But I trust Mixian. Beijing, bow to your new conquerors: Emperor Laksa and Empress Mee Siam.