Nom Nom Monster: Wallet-friendly Western food from $7.90 with tater tots & fried chicken waffles at Chai Chee

One of the perks of being a food writer at SethLui.com is discovering hidden food gems, and I might’ve just found my personal kryptonite. Nestled in ESR BizPark at Chai Chee is Nom Nom Monster, a coffee shop stall that serves up affordable Western food in large portions.

How affordable, you ask? Their prices start from S$7.90, and they even have breakfast options such as fried chicken and waffles!

ESR BisPark, the business park at Chai Chee (formerly known as Viva Business Park), is most well known for Decathalon, a sports megastore that spans a whopping 3,5000sqm.

To locate Nom Nom Monster, simply head to the building behind Decathalon where most of the F&B shops are located, and find the only food court in the building. Nom Nom Monster is the only Western stall in the food court— it’s situated right next to the drinks stall in the corner.

What I tried at Nom Nom Monster

Nom Nom Monster’s menu is as extensive as it gets, with close to 30 main dishes ranging from the classic Grilled Chicken Chop (S$8.90) to Crispy Pork Cutlet (S$9.90). These come with the chef’s Specialty Sauce and your choice of 2 side dishes.

Depending on how hungry you are, there are also Monster Pasta options like Aglio Olio (Chicken/Fish/Pork) (S$7.90) (which is notably the cheapest item on its menu), as well as Monster Combos which come with your choice of meat and fixed sides (garden salad and aglio olio), like the Grilled Chicken and Dory (S$9.90).

I started the ball rolling with a Monster Combo – Grilled Chicken and Pork (S$10.90).

For S$10.90, this was a real steal. I received large slabs of grilled chicken and grilled pork chop, both of which were slathered in what looked like barbecue sauce, and fixed sides such as garden salad and aglio olio.

I know how notorious pork chop is— due to the lean nature of the meat as compared to other fattier cuts like chicken and beef, it’s incredibly easy to overcook.

To my pleasant surprise, Nom Nom Monster’s pork chop wasn’t overcooked at all— in fact, I found it perfectly done, and each bite was delectably tender, meaty and juicy.

My initial guess was right— Nom Nom Monster’s “Chef’s Specialty Sauce” turned out to be barbecue sauce, but this tasted like homemade barbecue sauce at its finest.

I could taste a sweet tanginess from the ketchup, lovely savoury notes from the added juices from the chicken, as well as slight garlicky undertones from the deep-fried garlic chips that had been sprinkled on top.

I loved Nom Nom Monster’s grilled chicken, and this easily became the highlight of my entire meal.

The grilled chicken I had received was thiccc, resulting in large, sizeable and incredibly juicy pieces of chicken that were cooked wonderfully.

Perhaps the next time I’m back, I’ll go straight for the Grilled Chicken Chop so I can enjoy this delicious dish all on its own.

The Monster Combo – Grilled Chicken and Pork came with default sides such as aglio olio and garden salad.

Though the aglio olio looked like a small pile when it first arrived, unpacking it revealed a generous amount of spaghetti that had been tossed lightly in olive oil, spices and herbs, which made each strand of pasta slurp-worthy with a slight kick of spice.

As a comparison, I also ordered Nom Nom Monster’s Classic Fish & Chips (S$8.90), and chose Tater Tots and Mac & Cheese for my sides.

Rather than the British-style fish and chips that feature an entire dory fish deep-fried in a flour-based batter, Nom Nom Monster’s Classic Fish & Chips reminded me of breaded fish fillets, thanks to its crumbly breadcrumb-like crust.

From the way the piping hot breading broke apart in my mouth with audible crunches, I could tell that these were freshly deep fried. I loved the way the flaky and soft fish meat gently disintegrated too, making this a real joy to slowly devour.

It’s quite uncommon to see Western stalls in kopitiams offering such a wide variety of sides, including Tater Tots, as most only have classic options like fries and coleslaw.

The Tater Tots were sizeable, addictive nuggets of grated potatoes, and went well with the Mac & Cheese, which was milky and creamy. I also loved the attention to detail, and noticed that they had sprinkled some bacon bits on the top of the Mac & Cheese, which added that slight salty crunch.

Final thoughts

While I was dining at Nom Nom Monster, I couldn’t help but notice that there was a laminated sign at their storefront which stated that every dish was prepared fresh on the spot.

It read: “We do not precook our meats and pastas, everything sold here are grilled/cooked fresh and raw. We seek your understanding if the waiting time is longer than usual.”

Knowing that every item had been prepared on the spot made it all the more worth it. And that’s not even including the fact that each dish was very affordably priced, averaging out at S$9.90, and you get decent portions too.

Affordable, filling and delicious— there’s really nothing better than this, isn’t it?

Expected damage: S$7.90 – S$15 per pax

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