Hakka Thunder Tea Rice: Largest mounds of Hakka YTF paste I’ve ever seen

“Not okay still need to be okay.”

Despite devastating heartbreak, Mrs Ang has continued the legacy of Hakka Thunder Tea Rice at Margaret Drive Hawker Centre. Yes, never without a queue, it is that same lei cha stall situated at the former Tanglin Halt Food Centre. 

Started with her husband, the first-generation stall has been around for the past 13 years. Unfortunately, after a brave fight with pancreatic cancer, Mr Ang passed away in May 2024. His health had already begun to decline in Aug 2023, which led to several halts in operations. 

Now spearheading the stall alone, Mrs Ang is back for good after a well-deserved break. Specialising in authentic Hakka Thunder Tea with solid Hakka Yong Tau Foo, they were invited to serve their signature Thunder Tea Rice at the 2018 National Day Rally.

As someone who has shamefully not tried lei cha before, I made their stall a priority in my first step to trying something new. 

What I tried at Hakka Thunder Tea Rice 

Call me biased, but I have not seen a lei cha stall with a long queue. Hakka Thunder Tea Rice proved me wholly wrong. I am not exaggerating here but their line of customers was longer than all other stalls at Level 2 combined! 

“我一个人做不来 (I can’t do it alone),” she said softly. Aside from Mrs Ang herself, the stall is now staffed by 3 other relatives. However, all ingredients are solely prepared by the towkay. Mad respect. 

After a surprising 30-minute wait, I settled on a share of the famous Hakka Thunder Tea with Brown Rice (S$5.50) and 4 types of Home Made Hakka Yong Tau Foo (S$1.30 each) – Tau Kee, Tau Pok, Brinjal and Bitter gourd. FYI, if you are not in the mood for lei cha, you may opt for a standalone bowl of White Rice/Brown Rice (S$1) too.

Staring at the green bowls of unfamiliarity in front of me, I gulped with apprehension. There is a first time for everything, right? Being the cautious person that I am though, my game plan was to eat the rice with and without the lei cha. Of course, I wanted to save the best (Yong Tau Foo) for last. 

The brown rice was adorned with lush toppings of mani cai, chye poh, xia mi, long beans, radish, cabbage, leek, peanuts and tofu.

According to Mrs Ang, these ingredients are fried separately before they are served. “We also have anchovies last time… but my husband told me to not add them for now,” she continued. This is because her late husband feared that her workload would be made more difficult.

Back to what I came here for, the carb itself was really satisfying. 

Combined with earthy undertones from the assorted vegetables and savoury touches from the preserved garnishing, the Brown Rice packed a vibrant explosion of flavours. As a sucker for contrasting textures, I particularly enjoyed pairing the rice with soft cubes of tofu and crunchy peanuts. So simple, yet so good. 

Wait, the lei cha! Stopping myself from shovelling down the entire garden-like rice, I needed to try that enigmatic green broth that The Office Chef has grown to love. Will I experience the same sentiments on the first try?

Drinking the broth on its own was a bad idea HAHAH. 

Strongly perfumed with notes of basil, mint leaves and other herbs, the cha was bitter but not as much as I thought it would be. Phew, I felt like I had been transported to Veggie Topia. Slurping it with the brown rice was the experience though, and I continued with my ‘shovelling’ spree. 

After some experimentation, my favourite combination of ingredients with the lei cha was some chye poh and long beans (actually, the more the merrier). The reason is that their saltiness helps to balance out the herbaceous taste of the lei cha. 

At this point, I think there were lots of vegetables stuck between my teeth but whatever. If you know me, I am a devoted yong tau foo eater. Therefore, the sight of Mrs Ang’s Home Made Hakka Yong Tau Foo made my jaw drop. It boasted the biggest mound of paste, I have ever seen. 

Okay, the pictures did not do justice here. 

Hakka Thunder Tea Rice has 10 types of handmade Yong Tau Foo including “Tofu, Bitter gourd, Brinjal, Wanton, Mushroom, Meatball, Tau Pok, Tau Kee, Lady Finger and Chilli.” The 4 variations that I tried had a consistent amount of velvety paste that was mixed with pork meat and salted fish. 

Notably, it was lightly fried and not too oily. While I savoured every bite of the Tau Kee and Tau Pok, I was hesitant to try the Brinjal and Bitter gourd. Fortunately, the generous portion of paste distracted me from the bitterness and mushy texture of my chosen vegetables respectively.

There was another star of the show: the sweet sauce. Perfectly complementing every dish, it almost had me getting up for seconds as my saucer was running empty! 

Final Thoughts

My virgin lei cha experience fared exceedingly well. 

After I expressed my good wishes to her, the towkay kindly gave me a signature Meatball on the house. And a signature it was. The Meatball was loaded with the same savoury-sweet paste and deep-fried to yield a crispy exterior.

Although the sun was beating fiercely down on me, I committed to munching down the equally piping-hot yong tau foo. Worth it. 

My heart still breaks for Mrs Ang at the loss of her significant other. I cannot imagine how hard it must have been to helm a stall that held the memories of what they have created, together. 

Stepping aside from sentiments, I wholeheartedly recommend Hakka Thunder Tea Rice if you are a first-timer like me. Safe to say, I think that this is the only lei cha stall I will genuinely go back to. If not, those handmade yong tau foo would suffice as well. 

Expected damage: S$3.60 to S$7 per pax

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