Istimewa Kitchen – Affordable Nasi Padang in Bedok Industrial Park

A good friend of mine does wedding styling in Singapore. I met up with her over lunch recently and she was telling me one of her clients owns a nasi padang stall in Bedok industrial estate. “This bride-to-be is very chio, I can’t believe she wakes up early every morning to pack rice at the stall,” she said.

A chio bu selling nasi padang? This is something. So we met for lunch (again) the following week, at Bedok Industrial Park. I arrived before lunch and there was already a short queue in front of Istimewa Kitchen. Started 3 years ago by Sara and her fiancé Kenneth, they wanted to venture into F&B and thought nasi padang was a “niche market”. Roping in a family friend who is a chef, Sara then left her job as a underwriter and set up Istimewa Kitchen.

27-year-old Sara stood behind the counter to take orders. The wide array of food displayed behind the glass counter is enough to whet one’s appetite. Their signature mutton rendang, being a favourite among many, goes easy on your palates as it is moderately spicy with coconut, and spices helped to bring out its aroma. The lean pieces of mutton has been braised for at least 2 hours to ensure that it deliciously melts in your mouth. Indeed, the meat was tender and had no gamey taste at all, making it a pleasure to savour.

Another hot favourite is the assam fish which has been infused with tamarind sauce and red chilli, served with a variety of vegetables such as lady fingers, tomatoes and brinjal. It was almost sold out during my visit, so I only managed to try a small piece. But it’s good enough to know that the sauce has a perfect balance of tanginess and spiciness.

I was craving for fried chicken wings that day hence I just had to order them. The batter was ordinary but I paired it with their sambal belacan imbued with tangy limau kasturi and an assortment of chilies. Ahhh… all these food talk is making me hungry.

A complete Nasi Padang meal usually includes a balance of vegetables and variety of meat. Check out the curry vegetables, a yellow creamy dish. The spices are finely blended before cooking. Coconut milk is slowly added to ensure a creamy texture.

So happy to find a decent nasi padang stall in an industrial estate (not because Sara is chio of course). They may be moving out soon so be sure to check their Facebook page before heading down!