Rolina Traditional Hainanese Curry Puff – New Michelin Bib Gourmand Entrant!

Yun Xin Chong
Yun Xin Chong
July 19, 2018

On 18th July, the 2018 Michelin Bib Gourmand list of awardees were released. Rolina Traditional Hainanese Curry Puff at Tanjong Pagar Plaza Market earned this highly coveted distinction for the first time. We rushed to Tanjong Pagar to get a taste of their curry puffs firsthand before the crowds started rolling in!

Rolina Traditional Hainanese Curry Puff wrapping 1
Rolina Traditional Hainanese Curry Puff wrapping 2
Rolina Traditional Hainanese Curry Puff curry puffs_1
Rolina Traditional Hainanese Curry Puff curry puffs_2
Bren Tham is the second-generation owner of Rolina Traditional Hainanese Curry Puff. The business was started by his father, who obtained and learnt the curry puff recipe from a Hainanese sailor in the late 1950s. Mr Tham officially took over the reins from his father around ten years ago, but he has been helping out at the stall since he was a young boy.

Rolina rempah
So, what makes Hainanese curry puffs special? Mr Tham shared with us that Hainanese curry puff uses rempah chilli paste, or as he calls it, ‘Baba-style’ chilli paste, in its filling. The rempah used at Rolina is made fresh every day, and cooked using a variety of spices and chilli for two hours. Another key difference lies in the dough skin of the curry puff. Mr Tham explained that the skin of Hainanese curry puffs are thinner, as the focus is on the filling. He believes that it is ultimately the filling that is the heart and soul of the curry puff.

Preparation starts at 5am every morning, and the curry puffs are usually ready for sale around 7am. Only two traditional flavours are available at Rolina Traditional Hainanese Curry Puff — Curry Chicken & Egg ($1.50), and Sardine ($1.50). Mr Tham believes in ensuring quality over having a greater variety of puff flavours.

Rolina Traditional Hainanese Curry Puff group shot
Rolina Traditional Hainanese Curry Puff curry chicken fillings
Rolina Traditional Hainanese Curry Puff sardine fillings
The crispy curry puffs are fried to a beautiful brown, with around twenty intricate folds made at the top to contain the filling. Due to the thinness of the skin, do be careful when breaking the puff as it crumbles quite easily. The puffs came piping hot with a generous filling. The rempah coated potato cubes and chicken chunks in the Curry Chicken & Egg was spicy and aromatic. I preferred the sardine puff more as it was oh-so-moist! Usually, sardine puffs are on the drier side, but because of how fresh the puffs from Rolina are, the natural moisture of the filling is retained. It was so delicious that I bought two more sardine puffs on the spot for lunch!

When asked about their thoughts on receiving the Michelin Bib Gourmand award, Mr Tham chuckled and shared how surprised he was, as he did not expect the stall to receive such an accolade. Nonetheless, he is deeply honoured at the recognition accorded.

Rolina Traditional Hainanese Curry Puff has come a long way since its humble beginnings as a roadside hawker stall in front of Novena Church. Today, the stall sees a steady stream of customers who return for their curry puffs that are made from the heart.

Rolina Traditional Hainanese Curry Puff

Address: 6 Tanjong Pagar Plaza, Tanjong Pagar Plaza Market and Food Centre, #02-15, Singapore 081006

Opening Hours: 7am to 4pm daily. Closed on Mondays.

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pg/RolinaSingaporeTraditionalHainaneseCurryPuffs/about/?ref=page_internal

MissTamChiak.com made an anonymous visit and paid its own meal at the stall featured here.

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