Top 5 affordable eats in the CBD area

#5: Asia Square Manna Korea Restaurant, Budae JJigae

Fans of Korean food do not despair! I found this full pot of pork sausages, ham, kimchi and tofu in a flavourful beef stock, served in a smoking hot clay pot for just $8.50. This dish is called the ‘Budae Jjigae’ in Korean and it is served with a bowl of rice and 3 sides, mainly kimchi, ikan bilis (small fish) and white carrot. But if you don’t like spicy food, you may want to avoid this dish! Asia Square is less than 10 minutes’ walk from the Deloitte office.

Address: 8 Marina View, Asia Square Tower 1, #02–17, Singapore 018960
Opening Hours: Mon – Fri: 0800h – 2100h, closed on Sat & Sun 

#4: Golden Bridge Roasted Meat, Kway Tiao Noodles

This dish is from the Shenton Way Golden Bridge roasted meat stall where they serve noodles like ‘Hor Fun’ and ‘Sheng Mian’. The dishes are tasty as the sauce complimented the texture well. The meat consists of slices of juicy tender crispy chicken and roast pork that crackles when you bite. For this generous amount of food you see in the picture, I paid only $4.00! In CBD terms, this is a real bargain! On another occasion, I ordered a delicious duck drumstick with sweet char siew and crispy roasted pork meat for only $6.00. And did I mention that it is free to add rice? This is definitely delightful news for big eaters like myself. The nearest train station is Raffles Place MRT. For Deloitte staff, we are just one MRT stop away from the fragrant jasmine rice topped with meats of your choice. Take the Downtown line from Downtown MRT station and you can alight at Telok Ayer station before taking a 5-10 mins walk.

Address: 17 Phillip Street, Thye Hong Café, Singapore 048693
Opening Hours: Morning till 1700h (Note: Lunch time is packed!) 

#3: Saravanaa Bhavan, Indian Restaurant

This is a vegetarian and Indian food lovers’ paradise. I chanced upon this place while looking for another restaurant that I actually had in mind: the place was packed with people and sharing a table with a total stranger was pretty normal… but that’s a good way to get to know people in different trades. I ordered the special combo called the ‘Set Lunch B’: consisting of vegetable gurama, chickpea daal, chappathi, onion raita, biryani rice and a pappadam. The exotic taste of the different mix is a treat for curry lovers, but the biryani rice was a little spicy. Free flow of water is given and I paid a total of $7.50 for the meal. This restaurant is located inside of the AXA Tower in the basement level and it is just a 7 minutes’ walk from the Deloitte office at OUE Downtown 2.

Address: 8 Shenton Way, #B1-22, Singapore 068811
Opening Hours: 0900h – 2100h

#2: Toast Box @ Singapore Conference Hall

Following my father’s dialect, we Hainanese people love to eat chicken rice. Be it steamed, roasted, grilled or fried, we love to eat it with rice, cooked using the essence of the chicken. This set lunch is the “Hainanese Chicken Chop Rice Set” that comes with a hot beverage for $8.30 or you can change to a cold beverage for an additional $0.20. I give it a 10/10 for the ambience – despite having no air conditioning – because once you are seated here, you will immediately feel a sense of calm and serenity. This place is located opposite the Deloitte office in the OUE Downtown 2 building, right outside the Singapore Conference Hall and less than 5 minutes’ walk from office.

Address: 7 Shenton Way, Singapore 068810
Opening Hours: Mon - Fri: 0800h - 1730h, closed on Sat, Sun & Public Holidays.

#1: Amoy Food Centre, Bismillah Muslim Food (Mee Goreng)

This plate of mee goreng was definitely worth the wait. It is from a corner Muslim stall and I think it was the fragrance that attracted me compared to the many others around. The noodle was tasty, spicy and to top it off, the egg was cooked to perfection. When I apply minimum pressure on the egg, the golden yellow yoke oozed out, coating the noodles to make my mee goreng so much yummier. I ordered the ‘Teh Chino Ice’ from the drink stall beside this Muslim stall for $1.50 and together with the mee goreng which costs $4.00, I spent $5.50 in total. This is one of the locations our Muslim friends who are in search of cheap and good halal food should try. The Amoy Food Centre is less than 10 minutes’ walk from the Deloitte office.

Address: 7 Maxwell Road, #01-63, Singapore 069111
Opening Hours: Mon to Sun: 0800h – 2000h

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