[New] Taiwanese eatery in The Star Vista🍜

The past year has seen the proliferation of Taiwanese eateries in SG such as True Breakfast, +886 Bistro, and Want Food, just to name a few. The latest entrant to the burgeoning Taiwanese eatery scene is Monki at The Star Vista. Monki's moniker is a play on its Chinese name 猴吃. Individually, the character 猴 means "Monkey" while the character 吃 means "Eat", but when 猴 is pronounced "Hou2" in Mandarin and 吃 is pronounced "Jiak4" in Hokkien, the combination "Hou2 Jiak4" takes on a totally different meaning of "delicious".

Monki — located on the periphery of The Star Vista

Monki is not the easiest of places to locate as it is situated on the periphery of the mall rather than within the mall. But once within line-of-sight, it stands out with its bright yellow theme and colourful mural art.

Bright yellow theme and colourful mural

Monki appeared to be empty when we arrived at 12pm, but the office crowd started streaming in soon after, and by the time we left at 1pm it was not only full-house but there was a Q outside waiting to enter.

Do not be deceived the empty interior — seats fill up very quickly during lunchtime

Come early to snag what is arguably the most instagrammable spot in the house — the cosy round seats at the end with a monkey figurine and a nearby neon sign bearing the eatery's name.

The round seats with the Monkey figurine is arguably the most instagrammable table in the house

Compared to other Taiwanese eateries, Monki's menu is considered rather extensive with 30-40 items. However many items were not available when we visited — marked out with a cross. Too ravenous to delve into a debate about whether this scarcity was brought about the pandemic or the Russo-Ukrainian war, we dived right into ordering the items which were available.

No self-respecting Taiwanese eatery is complete without the Holy Trinity of Luroufan, Oyster Meesua, and Egg Roll. Monki not only offers all three, but several varieties of each category. For example, it offers a choice of either rice or noodles for the Luroufan, at the same price to boot.

Metallic bowls and utensils are reminiscent of a Korean eatery rather than a Taiwanese one

Curious about how the Luroufan would taste with noodles instead of rice, we ordered the Braised Pork Dry Noodles (S$9) which is essentially the noodles version of Luroufan. While $9 may seem a tad pricey for a Luroufan, considering that the portion has been amped up to be on par with a ramen rather than served in the usual small bowl, the price tag is actually justifiable. Juicy morsels of stewed pork belly were slathered generously over a bed of springy noodles. Topped with a hard-boiled egg and five types of vegetables, it was a complete meal ticking off all rungs of a Healthy Eating Pyramid.

Braised Pork Dry Noodles (S$9)

Customers who prefer chicken over pork have the option of the Chiayi Chicken Dry Noodles (S$9). This dish is best describes as Taiwan's answer to Ipoh's 鸡丝河粉 as its protein comes in the form of shredded chicken breast.

Chiayi Chicken Dry Noodles (S$9)

To top off the meal, we ordered a Crispy Floss Egg Roll (S$7) to share. Unlike True Breakfast's version which is flat like a chee cheong fun, Monki's version is cylindrical like a poh piah. A crispy exterior encasing a juicy interior, this killer dish is what I would order from Monki if I were down to my last seven bucks in my pocket, never mind if its dimunitive portion meant it was hardly share-friendly as it could be polished off single-handedly.

Crispy Floss Egg Roll (S$7)

Despite its cheery ambience which is kid-friendly, there is certainly no Monki business when it comes to ensuring that its chow is 猴吃 (Hou2 Jiak4), and it is easy to comprehend why this eatery attracts a steady stream of office workers during lunchtime.

A filling meal for two pax

Monki The Star Vista

#01-41, 1 Vista Exchange Green, S(138617)

Mon-Fri 10.30am-9pm, Sat-Sun 10.30am-9.30pm