Famous NTU Food
(& Personal Faves)
Keen to try NTU's famous mala tang? Want to eat the best cai fan (mixed veg rice) on campus? Desperate to get your ba chor mee (minced meat noodles) fix?
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Well, look no further: Here's the All Things NTU guide to NTU foodie satisfaction 101 - complete with both crowd favourites & hidden gems
Pictured above: A Hot Hideout NTU
Whether you're looking to try something all your friends have been raving about, or are just looking for genuinely good food, we've got you covered. Use the side menu (pun intended) to check out the different highlights here!
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NONE OF THIS CONTENT IS SPONSORED. THIS IS ALL ADMIN'S PERSONAL VIEWS.
A HOT HIDEOUT (AHH/HHO) @ NH Halls
This famous NTU eatery is famous for a reason (many reasons, actually). Creamy scrambled eggs, deep-fried, thinly sliced, crispy lotus root & potato, springy noodles, all swimming in a delicious broth that hits the spot. This is A HOT HIDEOUT (aka AHH/HHO/HH).
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Think you know mala tang (mala soup)? Think again. At AHH, their mala tang is quite different from any you'll find in a hotpot. Creamy, rich, and surprisingly, doesn't give you much trouble downstairs (iykyk). Rain or shine, this soup hits the spot. While AHH also offers dry mala, Admin's personal view is to strongly recommend the mala tang for a completely different and amazing experience.
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Here, you can choose your own ingredients & quantity. Price is charged by the weight of the items. If you aren't a spice lover, fear not! AHH also offers a few other broth options - Admin's personal non-mala fave is the Tomato Soup. Many people love the Collagen Soup too.
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However, be prepared for LONG queues & waiting times. Try going at off-peak hours if you can! The bigger your group, the better, as prices can get quite steep here too.
Take Five's Thai milk tea is also sold at AHH - and is worth every cent. Refreshing, thick and not overly sweet, it's surprising how a mala restaurant has amazing Thai milk tea. Great for washing down!
CAN 11 CAI FAN (Economic/Mixed Veg Rice)
Craving some variety? Or looking to spend less but eat awesome food? Look no further than the Cai Fan stall at Canteen 11.
Cai Fan stalls are where you can pick your own cooked dishes to pair with rice or porridge. And Can 11 cai fan, according to one NTU senior, can "slap the whole of Singapore".
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Vegetables are always expertly cooked at this stall - still crunchy, no funny aftertaste, and often even bringing a smile with a wok hei (a smokey, charred-in-the-best-way-possible) flavour.
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The other options are no different - each dish tastes good on its own - be it fried crispy pork cutlets, spicy tofu or braised chicken. When combined, you have a GREAT and FAST meal - even the long queues at peak hour move reasonably fast. All this comes relatively affordably - 1 meat & 2 veg with rice & takeaway costs about $3.90 these days.
FISH SOUP/BAN MIAN @ NIE CANTEEN
It's CRAZY how good (& relatively cheap!) the food at NIE Canteen is!! A few stores from there will be featured here, but let's start with a crowd pleaser: the Fish Soup/Ban Mian stall.
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Admin's personal favourite from this stall would be the TOM YAM FRIED FISH SOUP with thick beehoon (pictured above). Rich, tangy & hot in more ways than one, this dish is an absolute standout. It's definitely as good and even better than many "non-school food" fish soup stalls out there. Plus, the portions are HUGE (the bowl is filled to the brim) and will absolutely satisfy your hunger.
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In fact, this stall is so good and popular, that the fried fish & minced meat for the ban mian actually runs out before 1PM often. They're usually only left with sliced fish by then, and even then will likely close up by 1.40PM. (In fact, NIE Canteen is generally closed by around 2PM)
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While there's almost always a queue, it along fast enough. The special chilli paste from this stall is also very tasty and adds even more punch to whichever dish you're eating.
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Whether you like fish soup or ban mian, this stall is a MUST-TRY & will definitely hit the spot. And if you don't like either of those things, maybe this stall is so good it will change your mind HAHA :D
PASTA EXPRESS @ NS
This stall might make many Italian grandmas angry, but it will make you SO happy. Trust us.
For less than $6, you can get a hot, totally customised and reliably yummy bowl of pasta. Whether you just need something different, or some comfort from a stressful crunch week, Pasta Express is like a trusted friend. This stall is basically a Build-Your-Own-Bowl pasta version, with organic spaghetti.
You get to choose from 3 sauces - cream, tomato & aglio olio (no sauce basically, just garlic & olive oil). You also get to make ANY of these sauces spicy by adding red cut chillis (free of charge - not counted as an ingredient). If you think spicy cream pasta is weird, don't knock it till you've tried it! (clearly Admin's bias is spicy cream pasta)
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From there, you can add either meat ($1.20) or veg ($0.60) toppings to your bowl. With a minimum of 3 toppings, a bowl of 1 meat & 2 veg comes up to $5.80.
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Most people LOVE the sous vide egg (pictured above) here, which is always perfectly cooked - not raw but still runny, & adds body to the sauce.
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Admin's go-to order is the spicy cream pasta with spinach, chicken breast & a sous vide egg. Trust that the chicken breast is NOT dry or bland - it's tasty, and comes in generous portions of succulent (but admittedly not juicy) thick cubes.
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However, be warned that this is a massively popular store!! At lunch & dinner times, the ordering queue is insane, and the waiting time is also long as well. Best to go when your class ends at a weird time. & yes, portions are NOT huge - so if you are big eater, you might find yourself ordering many toppings and stacking up the $$$.
DUCK RICE/KWAY CHAP @ SS Fine Foods
This is one of the most popular stalls in SS Fine Foods food court & for good reason too. It's (RELATIVELY) cheap, good & fast.
With tender, flavourful braised duck, amazing spicy chilli sauce & savoury chap (a thicker sauce) poured over rice (plus GOOD soup to top it off), the duck rice from this stall has a lot of bang for its buck. Plus, with a bit more $, you can get Item No. 6 - the upgraded duck rice set, complete with tasty tau kua (firm tofu), half an egg & pickled vegetables.
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If duck RICE is not your thing, this stall also offers yummy dry noodles & decently good kway chap.
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However, be warned that the queue can get pretty long - at 1230, it usually snakes around half the food court. It's not uncommon to stand in line for 40 minutes when the queue is that crowded.
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This stall has such nice braised duck rice that Admin ate it (at least) once a week for an entire semester
KOREAN FOOD @ Tama Canteen
Craving the food from your favourite K-Drama? Well, Tamarind canteen has the solution for you: An authentic Korean food stall!!
On any rainy day, the soondubu jjigae (soft tofu stew) is BOUND to bring some much needed comfort. Or if you've just woken up feeling a little under the weather (perhaps from a night of too much alcohol...?), while there's no Hangover Soup here, the Samyetang (Ginseng Chicken Soup) will hit all the right spots. At less than $7, you'll get half a chicken, a bowl of short grain rice, and tasty, energising soup that will soothe discomfort away. If not, there's always good ol' ramyun!
If soup is not what you're looking for, there's also kimchi fried rice, gimbap & much more on the menu! Owned & operated by Koreans, it's a highlight of Tamarind canteen, & worth checking out. While there is often a moderate queue and waiting time, they do churn the orders out reasonably fast. Do note that some items can get somewhat pricy (especially anything involving cheese/adding cheese)!
JUNE'S BREATH CAFE @ LKCSOM EMB
If you're looking for a nice, quiet, air-conditioned place with GOOD food & coffee that WON'T burn a hole in your wallet, this is the place for you.
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Found on Level 3 of the Experimental Medicine Building (Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine), this is a little hidden gem is SO good.
A very cute Aunty & Uncle run this place together, and offer many amazing treats on their menu!
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From pick-me-ups like AMAZING flaky pastries (the chocolate danish, cinamon roll & apple turnover in particular are good), muffins oozing chocolate like lave cakes, to lagsana & a build-your-own bowl station, in terms of food, this stall has it all.
Admin's recommendation is the bowls, because at $5.50, you can select 1 base, 1 meat, 3 veg & 1 sauce. There are VEGETARIAN friendly options, such as mock fish meat, & the most amazing mock mutton in delightful curry sauce. The bowl can be as western or as asian as you'd like - your base can be pasta, salad leaves, brown rice or olive rice, & the topping choices are plentiful.
For drinks, the menu is also wide - "Nanyang Coffee/Tea" is your classic kopi/teh variations, all at $1.50 for a hot cup. However, there is also a selection of western coffee options, like Admin's favourite hazelnut latte, priced from $4.50 (hot) to $6.00 (iced). The coffee is NICE & strong (Admin had jitters once & Admin drinks kopi o kosong frequently).
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Even better, you can enjoy all of this in the comfort of the quiet EMB building (but hogging the seats & studying during peak hours is not allowed! It is allowed outside stipulated hours though) with stunning floor-to-ceiling windows!
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In the mornings, don't miss the delightful fried Samosas when they are still HOT & crisp! (Once, sleep-deprived Admin nearly cried from how good it was while eating that for breakfast before class)
BA CHOR MEE @ NIE Canteen
Need to get your BCM (minced meat noodles) fix? Here's another legend from the jewel that is the NIE Canteen.
Crispy fried dumplings, umami-packed mushrooms & springy noodles combine together with minced meat in a delightful dry noodle sauce. This is just ONE of the options at this extremely popular BCM stall. Here, you can also eat laksa & more!
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Priced very much on the lower end of NTU food costs, a large bowl will not set you back more than $4.00. The queues are, predictably, LONG - & don't forget that NIE canteen closes by around 2PM! Try to go during off-peak hours (aka earlier in the morning) if you can.
DRY BAN MIAN @ Can 14/TAMA Canteen
Admin only has a picture of a takeaway version, but rest assured this dry ban mian is like nothing you've had before. It's so good that they have TWO stalls in NTU - one at Can 14 & one at Tama Canteen.
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While this stall also sells nice & comforting soup ban mian, it's really the dry ban mian that they are known for. You even get to decide how much chilli oil to add to your noodles - & while the sauce may seem simple, it is MAGIC. There's just something about the special flavoured oil, dark sauce and the CHILLI OIL mixture that transforms this into something way above "school food" level. Admin personally hasn't had better dry ban mian outside NTU, actually. The chilli oil definitely brings a lot of flavour (without too much heat) to the table though, so if you have no spice tolerance at all, this MIGHT be a lesser experience for you.
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The best part is how relatively cheap it is - a bowl of dry ban mian costs $3.50!! It is nice and satisfying.
JAPANESE FOOD @ Can 11
It might not even be stretch to say that the dry ramen with crispy chicken katsu is one of the best dishes in the whole of NTU.
Perfect jammy eggs, ACTUALLY AUDIBLY crispy chicken fried to perfection, & spring "QQ" ramen noodles combine with a savoury & tasty paste to make a dish that will bring a smile to your face for less than $6.50.
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The Japenese food stall is another highlight in Can 11, which is basically packed with good food. Besides the iconic dry ramen, the stall also offers soup ramen, donburi (rice bowls) & more! However, waiting times can get long even when the queue seems short! This stall uses an electronic ordering & numbering system, so even if you see only a short queue at the kiosk, your order may take 30-45 minutes to come out at the peak of peak hours (dinner time, basically). When they're not crowded, they are really fast though! Just goes to show how beloved this stall is.
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You can also add on vegetables & more to your dishes if you feel like you need more nutrients!
THAI FOOD/MOOKATA @ CresPion Canteen
There are a few mookata spots to choose from on campus, like Can 13 & Tama Canteen, but if you're on the south side of school, a popular and long-standing spot is at CresPion canteen!
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This is your classic mookata, but the stall that sells these sets also sells WONDERFUL ala carte thai dishes! All your classics like Green Curry, Basil Minced Pork Rice & more are up for grabs & are quite yummy!
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The mookata grill can take quite a long time to get sizzling hot, but other than that, the pricing & ingredients are quite decent! It's definitely a fun spot to hit with your friends & destress from school.
PAO FAN (Poached Rice) @ NIE Canteen
Yes, it's ANOTHER great (& cheap!!!) option from NIE Canteen!
Have you ever eaten the slightly scorched, crispy rice scraped from the bottom of a pan or claypot? A popular dish, Pao Fan, uses the unique smoky flavour of this rice to elevate an already tasty soup!
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This is not porridge, or just rice put in soup. It's somewhere in between, & if you're confused, all you need to know is that it's delicious and costs less than $5.00. If rice is not your thing, you can also choose from a few options of noodles! as for the soup, there are 3 exciting options: the classic, clear broth (pictured above), a tangy & delightful tomato soup, & even a mala soup option!
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As for the ingredients in your soup, there are many choices too - smoked duck (Admin's recommendation), fried fish, prawns, & more.
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This is the ultimate comfort food, especially on any rainy day!
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Plus, even if there's a queue, it moves SO fast, & the waiting time is quite reasonable & short too. The aunty operating the counter is very nice!
CLAYPOT/REVERSE MOOKATA @ Tama Canteen
For something that REALLY hits the spot, & for a quick & really yummy complete meal - this is the stall for you. With hot, FANTASTIC soup, plenty of vegetables, a half egg & tender MEAT of choice, the claypot options from this stall are the whole package. There are only soup claypots here, & almost all of the options use the same soup base - so the choices from the claypot section come down the type of meat you'd like to have!
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From fall off the bone tender & tasty beef brisket, to pork ribs, lamb, chicken & even pork intestines, you'll be spoilt for choice. You can also control how spicy your soup is, and all the claypots are even available in a small size for individual portions! (Pictured above: a small & a medium)
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If you're on a budget, you can even get the crispy pork meat claypot for yourself at $4.50! It's also really fun to share with friends & always a soothing choice any day.
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But if you're looking for something different & even more fun to experience with your friend group, you can talk & dine over this stall's reverse mookata sets!! These really pack a big bang for your buck - you'll be surprised how generous the portions are!!
However, do note that this is SUPER different from your typical Thai mookata! The soup is flavourful, the meats are marinated & stacked in a giant mountain on a big plate, & the pot & grill positions are swapped (hence the "reverse" in "reversed mookata". It is not for everyone - if you're set on having a typical mookata experience & flavours. However, Admin holds that if you just want GOOD food & fun, it's even better (very subjective personal view).
SI CHUAN FOOD @ Can 11
Looking to spice it up? Once again, it's Can 11 for the win
Craving some si chuan food? Want to share a variety of dishes with your friends? Smoky, colourful and packing in ALL the flavour, it's the Si Chuan food stall from Can 11! With the aroma of wok hei in almost every dish, this trip to flavourtown is bound to leave you wanting more.
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And if you want an individual portion, this stall also sells a few tasty choices of single person rice sets. Waiting times can get a little long during peak hours, as each order is prepared ala minute.