90-Year-Old Hawker Runs This Prawn Mee Stall With Zero Google Reviews: How Does It Fare?

Pork Rib Prawn Mee is a hae mee stall in Toa Payoh

Having lived in Joo Chiat for most of my life, I practically grew up eating prawn mee at Beach Road Prawn Noodle House. So, my standards for prawn mee are pretty high and clear-cut: springy noodles loaded with big, fresh prawns in a heady, umami-rich broth. When I heard about Pork Rib Prawn Mee, a hidden hawker stall tucked under an HDB block in Toa Payoh with zero Google reviews at the point of writing, I was curious if it could live up to my expectations.

This stall is a one-man show run by a 90-year-old uncle who handles everything: taking orders, cooking, and cashiering.

Despite the lunch rush, he’s still energetic and smiley, whipping up our bowl of prawn mee in less than three minutes.

Food at Pork Rib Prawn Mee

The menu is no-frills, with only five items available. The ordering process is pretty simple: just tell the uncle the dish you want, and whether you want it with soup or dry.

We went for their signature Prawn Mee Soup, priced reasonably at $5. It came with QQ yellow mee, garnished with three prawns, pork slices, house-made fishcakes, and fresh spinach and bean sprouts. Though I typically prefer my noodles to be a mix of yellow mee and thin beehoon for some textural contrast, I appreciated that the yellow mee lacked the alkaline taste that can turn people away. It was well-cooked as well—al dente with a nice bite.

My dining companions and I agreed the broth was addictively good: it had a clean, straightforward briny taste with natural sweetness from simmering prawn heads and shells. It also wasn’t too overpowering or oily, a quality that some prawn mee stalls struggle with.

The toppings were your standard prawn mee ingredients. The prawns were fresh, meaty, and cooked well. They were also deshelled, which made them much easier to eat. My only gripe was that they were slightly smaller than what I would have liked.

The pork slices were tender, though admittedly quite small too. Nonetheless, I enjoyed how they soaked up the prawn essence from the broth. The house-made fishcakes were a nice addition too; they were QQ, with noticeable flecks of scallions and chilli. There were also spinach leaves and bean sprouts in our bowl. They were nothing to shout about, though they did provide a nice crunch.

As an avid fan of chilli pan mee and all things dry noodles-related, I ordered the Pork Rib Mee Dry ($6) as well. It came with yellow mee and pork ribs tossed in a savoury chilli sauce, garnished with bean sprouts and fried pork lard. It also came with a small bowl of prawn broth on the side.

Don’t underestimate the chilli sauce. Unlike the usual spicy-sweet sauce that most dry prawn mee is served in, this one was spicier and more savoury. It still coated the noodles well, though, so every bite was equally flavourful. However, the noodles got too dry after sitting out for a while, so you’ll probably have to eat it quickly or mix in some soup.

The pork ribs were one of my highlights of the dish. They were tender and meaty, without being cloyingly fatty, and quite big as well. However, I was disappointed by the pork lard, which was stale and lacked the satisfying crunch it was supposed to give.

Surprisingly, the complimentary bowl of soup was a standout. It was a more savoury rendition of the prawn broth served in the soup prawn mee, but with a more peppery taste similar to bak kut teh.

Ambience at Pork Rib Prawn Mee

Pork Rib Prawn Mee is found at your average neighbourhood coffeeshop. There are enough seats to go around, the overhead lights keep things bright, and the fans do a decent job of keeping the heat at bay. Though a line may form during lunch hour, you don’t need to worry about waiting too long for your food.

Pork Rib Prawn Mee is a four-minute walk away from Toa Payoh MRT Station, with the route being somewhat shaded.

Pork Rib Prawn Mee—Eatbook Review

As a prawn mee snob, I consider Pork Rib Prawn Mee’s prawn mee decent for a quick weekday lunch if you’re in the area. Personally, the soup version was a better pick of the two because of its prawn broth, though you should also go for their Pork Ribs Prawn Mee Soup, which features their delicious pork ribs as well.

If you’re craving a drink to go along with your prawn mee, just a two-minute walk away is MT Coffee, an under-HDB matcha stand that accepts CDC vouchers. Otherwise, our guide to the best prawn mee can be useful in finding your next neighbourhood lunch spot.

Address: 183 Toa Payoh Central, Singapore 310183
Opening hours: TBD
Pork Ribs Prawn Mee is not halal-certified.

Photos taken by Marcus Neo
This was an independent review by Eatbook.sg.