Xin Xiang Gang Congee Centre Traditional Claypot

This is a review of a solo dinner at Xin Xiang Gang Congee Centre Traditional Claypot. This is stall #01−55 at Albert Centre Food Market.
Throughout the day, I’ve been helping a friend. She wasn’t hungry. So, I fluffed up her pillow and headed out for a quick forage.
It is Saturday. So, Albert Centre is in full effect.
I walked back through the rows of stalls and was pretty much thinking not that, no not that, oh and not that one. Then I spotted Xin Xiang Gang Congee Centre Traditional Claypot. I have no idea why I had never noticed this stall before but I hadn’t.
It seemed to strike my fancy.
The stall was relatively neat and clean.
There are some things that folks in Singapore are very good at. One is pressing the close elevator door button and another is queuing. Every once in awhile, this breaks down. This was one of these cases. Everyone was just kind of milling around in a big semi-​circle thinking pick me, pick me. Well, I finally got picked. I was then told I needed to give her a table #. That answered my inner question on what had she been scribbling down on the piece of paper. I wasn’t sure why though. No other stalls at Albert do this. It became clear later.
So, I headed out to find a table to snare. My choping skills were going to be put to the test. Each time I spotted an open table, a ninja-​like auntie would beat me to it. But I finally found one. My tissue packet went down. It was mine, or so I thought. As I walked away, I looked back. There was a cleaning person and my tissue packet was gone. He had watched me place it there. I went to speak to him. He would not look at me and just kept doing what he was doing. I walked away. I decided to peek back again. What do you know? My tissue packet had reappeared. It’s magic!
I returned to the stall and provided her with my table number. I headed back to my table. I then decided to grab a drink. So, I went to one of the nearby drinks stall. When I returned. there was a young guy sitting there. I pointed to my tissue packet. He shrugged and tried to explain that he had friends coming. I tried to explain that I had provided the table number for my food. He went into I do not understand you mode. I just sat down. He didn’t seem too happy. But he kept eating his food.
Soon after, my food came out. It was very clear why they have their system. The claypot was blistering hot.
Chicken Rice Claypot — As I said, it was freshly prepared and piping hot. It packed some spicy heat also. I liked that. it is always good to cry in public. This is especially true if you are a 6ft 4in, 290 lb, middle-​aged white guy in a overflowing hawker centre in Asia. The chicken was tender but there were a lot of bones to tend with. My big complaint though is the chicken tasted like fish. Don’t get me wrong. It was definitely chicken. I am sure that it was simply cooked on the same surface as some fish. There was some bacon though. Bacon is always a plus. I ate it but it certainly wasn’t the best of dinners.
As claypots go, I would say this was a tad on the small side.
I finished up and said goodbye to my new friend. He seemed pretty happy I was leaving.
The cost: $ 4.00
Overall — They could organize their ordering system a little better. The stall was clean. The guy who brought out my food was friendly. I wouldn’t go back because I like my chicken to taste like chicken. I am pretty much a stickler on that. But, if you like your chicken to taste like fish, give them a try or I guess you could just order fish.
(note #1 — this was a milestone meal for me. it completed my Singapore restaurant alphabet. i didn’t know if i was every going to check off the «x»!)
(note #2 — Albert Centre can be a bit of a gong show. By any standard, this is a large food centre. There are over 100 stalls. It is not particularly well-​known for any of them. There are a lot of very affordable options though. The floors are often wet and slippery. During busy times be ready to wrestle with aunties for tables. Plus, in very busy times, the cleaning crew can’t keep up with things and many tables will be cluttered with trays and left-​overs. In slower times, it can be quite pleasant.)