Pondok Pantai Timur: Beautifully presented ayam penyet with sambal-filled plates in Ubi

While most ayam penyet stalls focus on the smashed fried chicken and the sambal is but a mere side-kick, I discovered a hidden gem at Ubi where the glorious homemade sambal is the main hero of the dish. At Pondok Pantai Timur, the sambal is smack in the middle of the plate— and I mean this literally, as it’s spread across the plate, like paint on a canvas.

Pondok Pantai Timur is a family-run Muslim stall and you can find them in 301 Ubi Food House, a short walk from Ubi MRT.

In fact, if not for a small one-liner that spells out their stall’s name, most folks might recognise this as “that ayam penyet Muslim stall”, as its header only says “Muslim Food”.

Despite its humble and unassuming exterior, Pondok Pantai Timur sells delicious Muslim food ranging from Surabaya-style ayam penyet to the classic nasi lemak, and even bee hoon soto.

What I tried at Pondok Pantai Timur

The minute my Ayam Penyet (S$7.50) was served, I audibly gasped.

This was most probably the most gorgeous ayam penyet I’ve feasted my eyes on. Sitting on a literal bed of housemade sambal was a large piece of smashed fried chicken, and accompanying everything were a couple of deep-fried tofu pieces, crispy batter bits and slices of cucumber.

In an odd way, the way the sambal had been spread across the plate reminded me of paint on a canvas, as if someone had taken a paintbrush and drawn swirls of sambal around the fried chicken.

The stall owners could’ve simply dumped a dollop of sambal on the plate, just like most ayam penyet places, but they chose to go the extra mile in ensuring that their dish was beautifully presented. What a literal piece of art!

Thanks to the fact that the fried chicken had been smashed prior to serving, I had no problems prying away the juicy pieces of flesh from the bones.

I absolutely loved how Pondok Pantai Timur seasoned their fried chicken. It was salty and savoury, with a paper-thin crispy skin that results in a wonderfully addictive crunch. It’s almost like biting into a piece of fried chicken, just with that extra fragrance from the spices and herbs, like turmeric.

My only gripe with this was that the particular piece of chicken I had been served was on the small side. If only I had been given a larger piece— that would’ve hit the spot.

I had assumed that because the sambal had been so liberally given, the spice level would’ve been on the milder side. Oh, was I wrong.

At first, all I could taste was sweetness. As I continued to bite, the sharp, bright spice followed through and took over my entire palate. Like a tsunami, the piercing heat hit me swiftly and viciously, and before I knew it, tiny beads of sweat had formed on my nose.

Despite being intensely spicy (and almost borderline painful), I loved how the sambal was well-balanced out by a good amount of sugar.

Though the plate of white rice looked innocently simple, this was in fact chicken rice! The fragrant, chicken-y notes really elevated this dish to a whole new level and I enjoyed pairing the lethal sambal with it.

All in all, this was a really decent plate of Ayam Penyet. The fried chicken was satisfying, albeit on the smaller side, but the clear winner of the entire dish was the sambal. Not only was it presented beautifully, oh man, does it pack a punch!

I also decided to try Pondok Pantai Timur’s Bee Hoon Soto (S$4.50) and decided to add a Bagedil (S$0.70).

While I usually like my Bagedil crispy, allowing it to soak in the deliciously savoury bee hoon soto broth completely changed it. It turned soft and mushy, and each yummy bite became such a delight. This was like mashed potatoes, but on steroids!

The bee hoon soto soup was amazing. Rich and full-bodied, I could taste plenty of herbs and spices, like fragrant lemongrass, cumin, turmeric, as well as a mellow sweetness from the chicken stock base. This was so comforting that I must’ve spent the first few minutes simply slurping the tasty soup up.

For S$4.50, this bowl of Bee Hoon Soto was absolutely worth every cent. Every single time I dug into my bowl, I scooped something different up— be it bee hoon, crunchy beansprouts, shredded chicken meat, or a whole chicken wing too!

Just a note of caution that the chilli that Pondok Pantai Timur uses for its Bee Hoon Soto is sambal kicap, which is a black soy sauce-based sambal that is positively spicy.

If you can’t handle spice or prefer to have your Bee Hoon Soto as it is, I’d advise you to request for no chilli.

Final thoughts

Pondok Pantai Timur is probably the only place that I’m aware of that serves its sambal in such an artistic manner. That in itself won plenty of brownie points, and the fact that its homemade sambal was spicy, delicious and addictive only sealed the deal. Plus, being served in such large amounts meant that I never ran out of sambal, so spice lovers will definitely be in for a treat.

If Pondok Pantai Timur’s Ayam Penyet was satisfyingly spicy, then its Bee Hoon Soto was equally satisfying, but in a more comforting sense. The full-bodied broth and ingredient-laden bowl is something that I’d come back for.

A definite must-try!

Expected damage: S$4.50 – S$7.50 per pax

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