Sinful But Shiok Chicken Cutlet & Ikea-Style Wings At Woodlands Hawker Stall By Former Chef, 26
At first glance, one-month-old hawker stall Toi looks like it sells Japanese food. Its name – which means “ask” in Japanese and “you” in French, signifies an emphasis on heeding customer feedback – is emblazoned on a monochrome Zen-like signboard. The menu, featuring abstract illustrations of dishes, feature mostly “traditional kopitiam-style Western” nosh such as chicken chop, steak and pasta, but jazzed up with restaurant-style fusion flourishes including a grilled miso-glazed pork belly doused in apple sauce, and fries with truffle oil. It stands out within the dingy, cavernous Woodlands industrial canteen frequented by a mix of blue-collared and office workers. Toi is manned by a young team of hawkers. Darren Seet (below, left), 26, helms the kitchen here. He has spent more than three years cooking part-time at various restaurants in Grand Hyatt Singapore hotel, starting out as commis chef and progressing to chef de partie. Helping him are his girlfriend Shanesca Low, 23, and her brother Charlesce (right), 22.
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Hawker dreams
Though armed with a diploma in Electrical Engineering from Singapore Polytechnic, Darren confesses that he never had any intention of pursuing a career in that field. “Why did I study engineering? ’Cos my mum asked me to lor,” he tells us with a laugh.
Instead, the cheery millennial says that he had an early interest in F&B “watching [his] ah ma and aunt cooking at home”, resolving to one day open a place of his own. To realise that dream, he found a part-time job at Grand Hyatt Singapore, working on weekends and during school holidays for three years while studying at the poly. “The idea was to build knowledge and experience, as well as get to know the trade,” explains Darren, who was rostered around the hotel’s various eateries including buffet restaurant Straits Kitchen and Italian joint Pete’s Place.
He later plunged full-time into the F&B trade after completing national service, working as a chef at Western cafe Miami Bistro in Punggol for two years.
Invested “life savings” into Toi
It was only this year as the pandemic situation improved that Darren decided to strike it out on his own and open a hawker stall. He was confident in his cooking abilities despite never pursuing a formal culinary education: “I never really thought about going to culinary school. I’d already spent quite a few years in restaurant kitchens. You learn on the job fast when you get thrown into the deep end.”
The hawker leant on his experience in Western food kitchens, sinking around $32K into getting Toi started. Most of that money came from his part-time earnings – around $20K, which he described as his “life savings”. He shrugs when we ask if he was worried about his business turning belly-up, saying: “Now is the right time to start as I’m still young. I have no commitments and no family to provide for yet – if I lose everything, I can still restart or fall back on my engineering diploma.”
The rest of the money came from his mum as well as his girlfriend Shanesca (the latter doesn’t have a share in the biz, though). Darren candidly shares that his mother’s investment only “came in at the very last minute. She told me if I wanted to open a hawker stall to go ahead, but she wouldn’t give me a single cent. But when I needed [the cash], she helped me out in the end. To me, it was less about the money and more that she accepted my decision [to become a hawker].”
Shanesca quit her job as a nurse to help Darren “achieve his dream”. Her brother Charlesce, fresh out of national service, helps in the kitchen, having previously worked as a cook at noodle chain Ajisen Ramen and a Ponggol Nasi Lemak outlet.
The canteen becomes buzzier in the evenings
The industrial estate canteen is quiet during our mid-afternoon visit – we spot a stallholder taking a nap on two chairs, surgical mask comically draped over his eyes. However, a stage and speaker setup (blasting Mandopop off YouTube in lieu of getai-style live singers that were once hosted here pre-pandemic) flanked by cartons of beer point to a much livelier crowd in the evenings. This, combined with a good office crowd and nearby residential areas within delivery range, were part of the reason why Darren decided to set up shop in this industrial area – he currently sells around 70 plates of food a day.
“The idea is to build a legacy that can support future generations. We’re looking to expand for sure, if we make it,” says Darren resolutely.
The menu
Toi’s menu is centered around hawker-style Western grub like chicken cutlet or fish and chips alongside modern influences such as a slab of grilled pork belly slathered in miso-apple sauce or a spicy ginger-garlic chilli. Sides feature your standard baked beans and plain rice set against more atas offerings like roasted pumpkin, deep-fried broccoli or fries spiked with truffle oil.
Plates start at $7.90 for a main course with your choice of two sides and one sauce. Pastas like carbonara or prawn aglio olio are also sold, starting from $6.90; as are sharing plates like wings and popcorn chicken.
Chicken Cutlet, $7.90 (8 DAYS Pick!)
A classic chicken cutlet that ticks all the boxes. Chicken thigh is breaded and deep-fried to order, yielding a resoundingly crispy coat around tender, succulent chook. The cutlet is rich, but not greasy; perked up by the delish and not-so-traditional Hainan Chilli Emulsion (add $0.50), as the fiery chilli sauce brimming with ginger and garlic helps cut some of the richness. A worthy sauce alternative is the shiok black pepper sauce (complimentary, pictured below), a mix of peppercorns and packaged demi-glace (a robust meaty brown sauce used in French cuisine).
We try the broccoli and pumpkin sides. The former is deep-fried and dusted in parmesan cheese – not bad, as the cruciferous veg gets a nice burst of flavour from the salty-savoury parm. However, some of the florets could’ve been better drained of grease — we enjoy the unfussy, sweetish pumpkin chunks more.
Grilled Pork Belly, $8.90 (8 DAYS Pick!)
Pork and apples are a classic pairing, though the combo isn’t commonly found in local Western fare. Toi’s version comes with a slab of miso-marinated pork belly, griddle-seared then doused in an apple-miso sauce. It’s pretty tasty – we like the light smokiness of the tender pork belly, which is moreish with an edge of umami earthiness from the miso.
The applesauce (extra $0.50), on the other hand, is a little too sweet. It would’ve been a decent foil to the fatty pork if it were applied in more restrained amounts — not liberally doused all over the meat. We’ll ask for it to be served on the side next time.
There’s a pleasant balance between tangy and sweet in the accompanying crunchy honey mayo coleslaw, but the house-made mashed potatoes lack richness, though the brown sauce on it helps somewhat.
Carbonara, $6.90
A humble coffeeshop version of the Italian classic, featuring parmesan, cream, bacon, onions and mushrooms. The cream sauce is suitably velvety, sticking nicely to the al dente spaghetti – even if it is a bit bland otherwise. Stick with the yummier meat dishes.
Chicken Wings, $4.90 for three pcs; $8.90 for six pcs
The wings are marinated overnight in a simple blend of soy sauce “and a few other secret ingredients”, which give it an appetising reddish-brown sheen. According to Darren, some customers have remarked that they resemble the popular version sold at Ikea, though he says the similarity was inadvertent.
Nonetheless, Toi’s version is crispy skinned, juicy and well-seasoned – much yummier than the disappointing wings we had on our last visit to the furniture giant’s Alexandra restaurant. Both are similarly priced – $8.90 for six pieces if you’re dining in at Ikea’s Swedish restaurant. We’d rather spend our money (and calories) at this hawker stall.
Bottom line
Toi serves Western hawker fare that’s largely well-executed with some chef-like touches that point to its young towkay’s restaurant experience, give or take some minor hiccups. The prices are slightly steep for the stall’s ulu locale, but not unreasonable given the overall food quality and more atas side dishes. We recommend the yummy chicken cutlet and grilled pork belly (but ask for the accompanying apple sauce on the side). The better-than-Ikea restaurant’s wings are also worth a try.
The details
Toi is at Eden Food Mall, 10 Marsiling Industrial Estate Rd 1, S739276. Tel: 8666-2938. Open Mon – Thu 11.30am – 7pm; Fri & Sat 11.30am – 9.30pm. More info via Facebook and Instagram. Delivery via Grabfood.
Photos: Aik Chen
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