For a taste of home, Singaporeans can cough out S$5 for a single Curry’O in London. Or in local parlance, about three quid.
In its European debut, home-grown snack chain Old Chang Kee has launched its first British outpost at 15A New Row in the atas district of Covent Garden this week. To be honest, we’re a little disappointed that they didn’t style themselves as “Ye Olde Chang Kee”.
Famous for its signature curry puff — a pastry parcel filled with potatoes, spices, meat, and egg — Londoners have long awaited for a permanent stall after the street food brand opened a phenomenally popular pop-up stall in Kentish Town last year. 1,200 puffs sold out within four hours at the two-day event.
Fun fact: the curry paste, made from a secret recipe of spices here, are shipped to London. If everything goes well, other UK cities like Manchester and Birmingham could also be welcoming the curry puff chain in the near future.
Other the iconic potato puffs and the chicken and mushroom iteration — which go for £2.80 each — seasonal favorites such as the chili crab puff (£3.20) and black pepper tuna puff (£2.90) will also be sold. Curry being such a British favorite (there’s an actual National Curry Week), patrons will also get to try the likes of Singapore chicken curry (£6.80 with rice; £7.10 with sliced baguette) and the mixed vegetable curry (£6.30 with rice; £6.60 with sliced baguette).
Other local classics include Nasi Lemak and Laksa, which go for £8 and £8.50 respectively. Hella expensive compared to the ones you can find here, but hey, anything for a taste of home.
Old Chang Kee has been around since 1956, with its first outlet open at Little India’s Rex Cinema, and the brand has made great strides over the decades with over 90 outlets across Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia and Australia today. The best spot to get the full Old Chang Kee experience would be right across its original stall at Mackenzie Road, where its first flagship coffee house now stands, offering an expanded menu of no-frills comfort food.
