27 May 2012

Fat Bird Express Hainanese Chicken Rice ~ Singaporean/Malaysian - Dixon House Food Court, Chinatown [CLOSED]


We're all clucky about Fat Bird Express Hainanese Chicken Rice in Dixon House Food Court.

[CLOSED FEB\MARCH 2013]




Fat Bird Express opened recently in place of the sadly missed Kisaragi Ramen in Dixon House Food Court, Chinatown. As big chicken rice fans we're very happy to see somebody specialising in it.



The Hainanese chicken rice set is only $7, add $1 if you prefer the thigh (recommended). The fixin's are all good: the rice has nice chicken stock flavours, chili sauce is fine and kecap manis (black sweet soy sauce) is always a winner with us. Even the soup is okay, nice and chicken-y, food court side soups are often like dishwater.



The chook is clean, wet and quite generous in portion, especially for the price. Highly recommended. Our only complaint is that now we have to decide between Fat Bird and Singapore Shiok when we want need a chicken rice fix.



Curry puff - $2.50. A nice thick crust with a lightly spiced chicken and potato filling - yum! Singapore foodblog superstar Dr Leslie Tan says the Singaporean curry puff is a Chinese version of a Malay version of an Indian version of and English snack. Interestingly he also says the Singaporean curry puff has a thick shortcust pastry such as this, while the Malay version, also called epok epok has a thin crispy crust.



Singapore Hainanese Chicken Chop Rice - $7.80. a deep fried slab of chicken served with the same chicken flavoured rice, soup and sauces. We're not so much into fried chicken but it's fun to try.



The chicken chop is sliced and served with a drizzle of mayo and bbq sauce A lazy bit of googling suggests that Singaporean chicken chop is a western fusion food, sometimes even served with chips or baked beans, such as this one. But we wonder if this version is based more on the popular Taiwanese chicken chop, especially with that Japanese style touch of mayo and bbq sauce. Dunno.

BACK AGAIN SEPTEMBER 2012...



Had to come back again to see if the Hainanese Chicken Rice is as good as we remember, and it is. Wet and tender with some lovely subtle ginger and sesame flavours. Yummo.


BACK AGAIN DECEMBER 2012...



Lately we've noticed lots of folks digging into Fat Bird's Chicken Soup ($7.50) as of late so we gave it a shot. A generous serve of Hainan chicken in a chicken-y broth that reminds us of a Western chicken soup, it's quite nice. The soups washes out the subtleties in the chicken though and it tastes very plain.  The chicken works much better on rice in our humble opinion.



Also on the menu is chicken chop, pork chop and fish chop rice.

If you're a chicken rice nerd like us then you should try Fat Bird Express. You can never tell how long food courts stalls are going to be around, it's a fickle business with long hours and slim margins, so we recommend giving it a try sooner rather than later, just in case.

Fat Bird Express is at Shop B04 Dixon House, 413-415 Sussex Street, Sydney. Phone 02 9212 2236.


Fat Bird Express on Urbanspoon

21 comments:

  1. Hahaha...you guys beat me to it! I have so busy getting ready to go home I forgot to give this place a go. Good to know that now I have got choices when I miss chicken rice!

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    1. As soon as Shawn knew this place was opened he was out the door. Grab some Tian Tian for us in Singapore.

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    2. I've got chicken chop on the brain now...

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  2. Whoa, Hainanese chicken = the money shot!

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  3. Nice shot of the Hainanese chicken! can't believe it is only 7 bucks! that's dirt cheap!

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  4. Just had the chicken rice set for lunch after read your blog. Unlike other place, this shop also included one plate of vegetable in oyster sauce in the set. I paid total $11.30 including soap +rice + chicken + vegetable. I think chicken is juicier in Petaling Street.

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    1. Different styles suit different people. Any juicier and I think it would still be clucking.

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  5. i'll have to check it out to compare to Singapore Shiok now too :-)

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  6. Have you guys tried the Hainan Chicken at David's Kitchen, in the ?Telstra? Building food court - 320 Pitt Street. Huge serving of chicken and you can have it with laksa too for double the health factor!!!

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    1. Thanks for the tip - so many birds, so little time. We'll have to try and get there on a weekday, that food court seems closed up on weekends.

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    2. I did some recon today, that place looks great - thanks for the tip!

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  7. Bird nerds unite! :) shame about the ramen place though, I think I preferred it to Gumshara

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    1. hey flapflap, glad to hear you liked that ramen place better than Gumshara. It's a hearty style of ramen, we prefer a lighter touch as well. Ryo's is one of our favourites.

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  8. Been there, tried it and went back for many times! One of the best Hainan Chicken i had in Sydney. Suprise from a food court stall. The soup tasted like made from real chicken with no MSG added because dont have the feeling of thirst afterwards like most MSG soup.

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  9. you are right.tasted so good you will want more! becoming a regular now.

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  10. Where is Fat Bird now?! Lights on but nobody home!!

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  11. They were closed again yesterday, fingers crossed...

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  12. Hate to tell you guys, but i'm sitting in front of Fat Bird and theres a for lease sign.

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  13. So heartbroken. Fat bird was my go-to place for a hainan chook fix. =(

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Thanks for your comment joy - please keep your musings happy - if you want to complain about a restaurant please do it on a restaurant review site (or your own blog) - we're all about celebrating cultural diversity and the great eats that come along with it :-)

Our ethics: We pay for all our own meals and travel (though sometimes Mum shouts us).