Fong Seng Fast Food Nasi Lemak

Fong Seng Nasi Lemak… Just the sound of it is nostalgic.
Having lived around this area all my life, Fong Seng has been a staple supper source ever since I was 17 (omg. I’ve been eating here for 15 years!!!)
I’ll be honest… The food’s worth a 3 to 3.5 * but nostalgia and longevity counts for something right?
Now… Where do I start… I’ll try making this review as objectively as I can without being bias.
Fong Seng has stood the test of time… Feeding generations of NUS students and the fact that it’s still the most crowded food outlet along this stretch (Niqqi’s has cut their shop space by half, teochew BKT, ice-​cream store have since closed an even Joo Chiat’s famous Tian Tian Wanton Mee, who opened an outlet here, only bring in ¹⁄₁₀^th of Fong Sengs crowd at 12.30 in the morning), and still serves a pretty decent plate of Nasi Lemak.
The rice here tends to be a bit subjective but more often than not, it has a lighter coconut fragrance but makes up for it with light fluffy rice, different from the drier variation that most places sell.
Add-on’s variety wise, Fong Seng is up there with the typical Chinese ran Nasi Lemak stalls. Come for supper and you’d be spoilt for choice with the different varieties available. The fish luncheon (yes… Fish) is worth trying, the chicken wings are good and I love the fact that they didn’t fry their hashbrowns to death.
Come during the day and you’ll be greeted with even more variety, with the likes of chicken curry and curry vegetables available.
The chilli, which most people feel is one of the most important key components of a Nasi Lemak, is pretty good too!
Overall, Fong Seng is still a good Nasi Lemak joint, and at $ 3.80 for a plate with Luncheon meat, fried egg, fish cake and hashbrown, it still is decently priced and is still (as far as I know) the only 24 hours Nasi Lemak store that opens anywhere from Clementi to Redhill.
Oh yes… And for Muslims, it’s halal too.

3.5 stars. Very decent nasi lemak at very decent prices. The fried chicken, fried fish and ikan bilis here are delicious. I found the other dishes like curry vegetables, bean sprouts and kang kong quite average. The chilli here is really good and I can never have enough of it.

I ordered a rice, ikan bilis and chicken wings for a price of $ 2.80. Quite reasonable price at this location though.
The rice tasted normal and I have tasted much better at other places. The chicken wing also tasted normal. But then, taste of chicken wing couldn’t deviate too much and also couldn’t go wrong most of the times. The sambal chili tasted very good. This enhanced the overall normal taste and made this Nasi lemak delicious. Make sure you ask them for extra chilli. In addition, the ikan bilis was also crispy and tasted just right.
All in all, this is a good place to have above average nasi lemak at reasonable price. Will have no doubt in recommending my friends about this place!

Yes, as other reviewers have clearly pointed out, the food here is pedestrian by any standard. Sure, I’ve ranted about how any place that serves food should be judged only on the food on offer and everything else is irrelevant, but humans are complex creatures and full of quirky contradictions. That’s my story and I’m sticking to it.
I first visited Fong Seng in the early 90s before I was due to leave Singapore to expand my vocabulary, and my army buddies being firmly ensconced in NUS insisted that I visit for a final injection of local culture to vaccinate me against the viral West. Being barely coherent at 4am after mahjong, Tigers and Johnny Jalan, I remember little else about that day save for the following that endures in some primal portion of my brain and is strangely still as fresh as if it happened yesterday:
The piquancy of the house nasi lemak chili sauce, the sting of fresh chills, the umami comfort of MSG and the tang of ketchup. Hints of garlic and carmelized shallots still linger.
The salt of fried local anchovies (ikan bilis) emboldening and enriching the buttery flavor of fried peanuts.
The grease and yolk of a deep fried egg to bring it all together.
All this at a garishly lit table crammed with my buddies and burning my tongue on a scalding kopi o kosong.
These are poignant postcards from my pons that still color each and every visit to Fong Seng at all hours of the day and, yes, night. So if you come armed with a palate ready for sterile dissection of the fare on offer at Fong Seng, you will come away unimpressed. Honestly, this place deserves 3 stars at best. My hindbrain made me mouse over and click on the 4^th.
Practical tips:
Parking is streetside for the brave. Please do this only if you’re young and stupid or too tired or piss-​drunk (in which case you shouldn’t be driving anyway) to care. You get tickets lickety-​split here. Public carparks are down the street.
I’ve never had any stomach trouble here. Although I haven’t had everything on the menu every time I’ve been here… you can’t?! I’ve actually had an $ 11 plate of nasi lemak here before consisting of 20% of the menu of the day. Most of what’s on offer is very local and very quotidian, it’s working-man’s fare. Don’t ask for truffle oil unless you need a caning.
My recommendations: ikan bilis with peanuts. fishcake, sotong balls, fried chicken wing, otah, fried egg, chili (more please…). Washed down with Teh Gao (watch out for the spoon).

This may not be the best nasi lemak you’ll taste, but it’s still one of the most popular ones around especially if you’re an NUS student. It’s also open 24 hours, so if you’re staying late on campus to do some work it’s a great place to hop by for some fuel.
The food is pretty standard. You order a plate of rice, whether lemak or not, and pick out the dishes that you want, from deep fried sinful stuff to sambal vegetables.
I’m not exactly sure how long they leave the food out on the display shelf, so I would advise against ordering the fried eggs or vegetables when you visit late in the night.

Tucked right behind a student dormitory of NUS is the infamous Fong Seng Nasi Lemak that has served hungry varsity students since time immemorial.
My memories of this place are now tinged with a slight hue of nostalgia as I learn to grapple with not having the energy to make it out for supper because of 8 – 10 induced fatigue. To be fair, the food isn’t all that exceptional but it is worth a pit-​stop if you are in the area at ungodly hours and need a supper pronto. They offer the standard coconut infused rice accompanied by a myriad of side dishes you can choose from. Fried chicken wings, stir-​fried bean sprouts, fish curry — you are pretty much spoilt for choice unless you arrive half an before the shutters fall.
Parking can be quite a hassle though as there are limited spaces before the shop-​front and the parking warden springs a surprise visit all too often.