The closure of the Lavender Food Square along with old Eminent Plaza signalled the demise of one of Jalan Besar’s most beloved food centres. Though not overly extensive in its arsenal of hawker stalls, it had a few notable ones that kept crowds coming back.
Taking up residence where the former landmarks once stood is ARC 380, an office building with retail units below & Wanton Fu is one of ARC 380’s very first occupants.
It is a slightly more upmarket wanton noodle stall that serves humble, hearty wanton mee and some other Chinese dishes. For you nocturnal lot, you’ll be pleased to know that these folks operate until 2:00 AM on weekends.
From its outward appearance to the look of their Signature Wanton Fu Noodles itself—not to mention their overly hyped homemade spicy chilli sauce… One can’t help but draw distinct similarities to the famous Eng’s Wantan Noodle.
To bring matters to light, Wanton Fu was actually opened by a former employee at Eng’s, who honed his craft there and left to start his own business. Did the owner live up to Eng’s time-honoured recipe, let alone improve on it, or did he flunk? We paid a visit to find out.
Signature Wanton Fu Noodles
Not veering that far off from Eng’s signature style of wanton noodles in terms of how it’s presented—save for the colour bowl, their Signature Wanton Fu Noodles (S$4.80) has both good and bad points.
The noodles, though springy and adequately seasoned, seemed to lack in terms of flavour, needing lots of help by means of their homemade chilli sauce. We doused quite a fair bit over ours and boy, did we regret it. It’s not spicy, it’s hellish so douse away at your own discretion. That said, it did provide our wanton noodles with the kick and flavour boost it needed.
Not much can be said about their char siew slices. They tasted exactly the way they looked, lacklustre. It possessed neither a roasted depth of flavour nor a meaty chew. If anything, it was just sweet.
Fried Wanton
Great for sharing or to substantiate your meal, their Fried Wanton (S$3.50) works up quite a treat. Stuffed with a decent amount of pork filling and deep-fried till crispy and golden, they were like little nuggets of salty awesomeness—a great accompaniment to our fiery wanton noodles. The fact that it wasn’t overly greasy made it all the more enjoyable.
Ngoh Hiang
Another crispy side dish alternative you can opt for that comes highly recommended is their Ngoh Hiang (S$6). Crispy from edge to edge with a deliciously spiced meaty centre, there’s not much one can complain about. The five-spice powder gave the Ngoh Hiang a pleasant fragrance and the copious amounts of finely-diced water chestnuts lent each morsel a nice, refreshing crunch.
To be fair, we were sceptical at first but overall, we were rather satisfied with our experience. The wanton noodles were not life-changing per se, but they weren’t horrible either. For those who live in/near Jalan Besar, Wanton Fu is a good option to curb your wanton mee cravings. They open till 2AM on weekends!
Address: ARC 380, 380 Jln Besar, #01-09 ARC380, Singapore 209000
Opening Hours: 11AM – 10PM (Sun to Thu), 11AM – 2AM (Fri & Sat)
Contact: +65 6935 3072
Nearest MRT Station: Lavender
Disclaimer: Uncover Asia made an anonymous visit and paid for their own meal.
Read our guide to late-night wanton mee in Singapore.
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