The last time we were in the area, while on the walk back to our respective cars, we came across Hawker Chan. The thing that caught my eye was this ….

Having been to several Michelin star restaurants myself – in Macau, Barcelona and Paris, almost all of them are subtle in their displaying of awards and winnings but not Hawker Chan though. Here, they go all out to let people know. I suppose it is understandable. It isn’t everyday that a hawker stall gets awarded a Michelin star, right? Also, not many winners from this side of the continent and so, a full out ‘brag’ is necessary if one does end up winning. I would have done the same if it was my restaurant 🙂

I was impressed. Singapore’s ‘Cheapest Michelin-Starred Meal in The World’ is here in Petaling Street. Being a food blogger, I had to give it a go.

However, my experience here started off on a negative note. Here, the first thing to do is to head to the counter, look through the menu, order and pay. I would usually ask ‘what’s popular here’, before deciding on what to order. This is because when you go and cover/review a restaurant – you’d want to taste the most popular dish, right?? It was no different here. The lady at the counter though was rude and started getting philosophical about the damn thing. In her words ‘there is nothing popular here, you decide what you want’. Seriously???Why so rude? ??? It is a restaurant, what I asked is not an uncommon question.

Then, when we eventually decided on the two dishes we wanted, we informed her but halfway through, I changed my mind and told her to cancel one dish because I didn’t want to spend more time here than necessary, sharing one dish sounded good enough. My partner and I got into a discussion real quick, barely a few seconds to decide. The counter lady was not having it though, she headed to the place where she would convey our orders to the chef, turned around and said ‘So, yes or no??’ in a rude manner, indirectly pressuring us to order fast. What the hell, lady??? The order line/que was empty at that point, the shop itself was half empty when we arrived. It wasn’t as if we were hogging the line. Why are you rushing us for??? Singapore PM coming down for a visit, huh??? Come onlah, do not ruin a customers experience before he or she even taste the food, it isn’t nice. Smile a lil and try to be helpful. Being a smart ass doesn’t get you far in life.

Anyways, the pressure got to us and we ended up paying for the 2 dishes anyways instead of canceling one. First impression is everything and I am sure you can guess what my impression of Hawker Chan was.

Chicken Rice, 8.80 ringit + Char Siew Rice, 9.80 ringgit + Taugeh, 5 ringgit

The food arrived rather quickly, we didn’t have to wait long. Upon tasting the food, it was quite decent. The chicken meat was juicy and tender. They provided large pieces of meat, which I liked. The char siew was okay, I think what makes char siew good or bad is a matter of individual preference, I generally like the outer side layer to be crispy, with little fat and more meat … which was not the case here. The rice was a lil lumpy, not the usual chicken rice texture. Both dishes were decent, not bad but definitely not the best out there.

If I was in the area and for some reason, I am desperately craving for these dishes, I wouldn’t mind heading to Hawker Chan but considering my negative customer service experience here, I am not returning.