Madam Tyrant Review: Rainbow Mee Hoon Kueh, Hakka Pork Belly And More

Madam Tyrant has rainbow ban mian in Bendemeer

We all know Serangoon or Jurong East to have many great eats. But little do you know, Bendemeer is a secret hub for many delicious eats as well. There’s the famous Golden Mile Thai Supermarket in Aperia Mall, Prince Noodles, and Xiao Di Charcoal Roasted Delights, just to name a few. The newest entrant is Madam Tyrant, located in the same coffee shop right beside the well-known 88 Hong Kong Roast Meat.

I believe we can all relate to the name, Madam Tyrant, or “霸婆” (bà pó), which translates to overbearing grandma in English. It accurately describes how grandmothers can sometimes be━grumpy. Fun fact: the noodles here are inspired by the owner’s very own grandma! This stall is new, but stands out from other handmade noodle stalls with their super unique rainbow mee hoon kueh (MHK), which has gained traction online for being both pretty and tasty.

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Food at Madam Tyrant

We had to start with the dish that’s been the talk of the town: their Happy Bowl ($6.50). This bowl comprises their rainbow MHK with the usual minced pork, spinach, ikan bilis, and a raw egg in a sumptuous broth.

Their rainbow MHK consists of five different coloured hand-torn noodles: white (original), yellow (pumpkin), green (spinach), purple (sweet potato), and red (beetroot). Texture-wise, the MHK was sufficiently soft but I found it to be a little too floury. While the colours were visually appealing, the flavours lacked distinction. That was fine, though, because the noodles went well with the broth.

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The broth was an easy highlight for me, made by simmering pork bones and other ingredients overnight. It’s also enhanced with chicken feet for an extra thick and collagen-rich texture that’s hearty and comforting.

The minced pork came in huge chunks, but my only gripe was that it could do with more seasoning. 

Nevertheless, you can easily remedy this by dipping it into soya sauce with sliced chilli for more flavour.

The spicy Dry Ban Mian ($5.30) is also worth a try! You can get this with your choice of noodles, with options including MHK, ban mian, you mian, sheng mian, and Koka noodles.

Each serving comes with a small portion of the same moreish broth! 

We were pleasantly surprised by the Ajitama egg, which had a runny consistency and a pronounced soya sauce flavour. Mixing it with the ban mian noodles added an extra creamy texture which elevated the dish too.

Noodles-wise, I preferred the ban mian to the MHK. The ban mian noodles had a satisfying springiness and an ideal, uniform thickness thanks to the noodle rolling machine.

 I loved how the savoury sauce mix clung to every strand of ban mian, so each bite was extremely flavourful.

In contrast to the under-seasoned minced pork in the soup, the minced pork here came in smaller bits, infused with a rich flavour from the dark soya sauce. Admittedly, the dark sauce does get quite jelak, but it’s nothing a few dashes of soup can’t solve.

Their house-made chilli is prepared fresh weekly, incorporating all the essential components of hei bee, garlic, fresh and dried chilli and more. Fair warning though, the spice here packs quite a punch.

A side dish for sharing that I was excited to try was their Hakka Pork Belly ($5), which I hadn’t come across before.

Sadly, I wasn’t too fond of the slightly powdery crumb, which could be attributed to the five-spice powder in its marinade. 

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We also tried their Handmade Meatballs ($4), which came in four sizeable pieces.

Taste-wise, we found that they closely resembled ngoh hiang, although the meat was a bit dry.

This shouldn’t be an issue if you enjoy it with the ban mian, though. P.S.: If you’re a fan of ngoh hiang, stay tuned because they’re looking to launch that soon too!

Ambience at Madam Tyrant

Madam Tyrant is easily accessible from two different MRT stations: a seven-minute walk from Bendemeer MRT Station, and a nine-minute stroll from Lavender MRT Station. The coffee shop is also spacious, offering plenty of seats, so you won’t have to worry about finding a spot.

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The verdict

The rainbow MHK is worth a try for the aesthetics, but I’ll go for the ban mian soup on my next visit instead because I really enjoyed the noodles and the broth. I personally would skip the side dishes, but there’s still room for improvement since they’re relatively new.

For more great ban mian, check out our guide to the best ban mian stalls in Singapore! Otherwise, for more food nearby, don’t miss out on Xiao Di Charcoal Roasted Delights which has delicious charcoal-roasted meats run by a young hawker.

Address: 153 Tyrwhitt Road, Singapore 207566
Opening hours: Daily 11am to 8pm
Website
Madam Tyrant is not a halal-certified eatery.

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Photos taken by Kaedynce Chew.
This was an independent visit by Eatbook.sg