10 Places That Will Change Your Mind About Thunder Tea Rice
July 30, 2019
Thunder tea rice (lei cha fan) is much like the pineapple-on-pizza — people either love it or hate it. This is largely due to the green, almost strange-looking soup that comes with the dish. Not going to lie, when I was first introduced to it a few years back, I was turned off by just the appearance of the soup. However, I am now a big fan of this wholesome meal. The dish has Hakka origins, and key ingredients that make up the soup are ground green tea, nuts or seeds, basil and mint. Thunder tea rice is definitely an acquired taste, but it is packed with health benefits. Here are eight places that serve great thunder tea rice.
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Thunder Tree
Thunder Tree may be one of the pricier stalls on the list ($7.80), but they use mainly organic ingredients, and the portions are huge. On top of that, they do not use any MSG and artificial flavouring or colouring in their dishes. What I like about Thunder Tree is the fried beancurd, which comes with some hijiki seaweed, and the fried black-eyed peas. Don’t forget to ask for some of their chilli paste if you like spicy food!
The soup is creamy, without being too herby or bitter, making it a good option if you’ve just been introduced to lei cha fan. Other than the rice, Thunder Tree also serves a variety of dishes such as kolo mee and handmade spring rolls. We visited the newer outlet in Raffles Hospital, but they also have one at People’s Park Centre!
擂茶树 Thunder Tree (North Bridge Road)
Address: 585 North Bridge Road, Raffles Hospital, Specialist Centre Basement 1, Singapore 188770
Phone: 9839 6008
Website: http://thundertree.sg
Opening Hours: Monday to Saturday:11am to 7.30pm. Closed on Sunday.
擂茶树 Thunder Tree (People's Park Centre)
Address: 101 Upper Cross St., People's Park Centre #B1-06 Singapore 058357
Phone: 9839 6008
Website: http://thundertree.sg
Opening Hours: Monday to Saturday:11am to 7.30pm. Closed on Sunday.
Sunny Choice Cafe
Hands down my top, or second top choice on this list, Sunny Choice is a fully vegetarian cafe that was established in 2007. Run by five sisters, Sunny Choice currently has three different outlets in the west. At $9.50 a bowl, Sunny Choice’s thunder tea rice is the most expensive, but it also has more premium ingredients.
Fried enoki mushrooms replace ikan bilis, cashew nuts are used instead of peanuts, and they also have mani chye. You hardly see mani chye being used now because of the hard work that goes into preparing the vegetable — it requires a lot of careful washing, squeezing and storage. Instead, most places replace mani chye with cai xin. The rice itself was flavourful, but what really made them stand out was the lei cha.
The lei cha was a lot darker than what I’m used to seeing, and I was told that the lady boss created her own secret recipe after a lot of trial and error. She uses ten ingredients (most places use five to seven), including cashew which gives the soup a nice creaminess. Slightly sweet and savoury, this was the most fragrant lei cha I’ve tasted!
Sunny Choice Cafe (Bukit Timah)
Address: 434 Upper Bukit Timah Road, The Rail Mall, Spore 678060
Phone: 6892 2383
Website: https://sunnychoice.com.sg/
Opening Hours: 10.30am to 9pm daily.
Sunny Choice Cafe (Bukit Batok)
Address: Blk 630 Bukit Batok Central #01-154, Spore 650630
Phone: 6892 2383
Website: https://sunnychoice.com.sg/
Opening Hours: 10.30am to 9pm daily.
Sunny Choice Cafe (Bukit Merah)
Address: Blk 125 Bukit Merah Lane 1 #01-158, Spore 150125
Phone: 6892 2383
Website: https://sunnychoice.com.sg/
Opening Hours: Monday to Saturday: 10am to 3pm. Closed on Sunday & Public Holidays.
Pine Tree Cafe
Pine Tree Cafe’s rendition definitely holds a spot in the top three thunder tea rice on my list. The soup was slightly savoury, and was one of the most flavourful soups on the list. For those who love drinking the lei cha, you’ll be happy to know that they serve a huge bowl here! Aromatic, without being bitter, the soup is great for mixing into the rice!
My order ($7) came with a large portion of brown rice, green beans, cai xin, fried beancurd, peanuts and dried cai po. Although the vegetables were on the blander side, it balanced out well with the saltiness of the cai po. I would’ve preferred a higher ratio of vegetables to rice but this was still a very satisfying meal, and I’ll go back for their lei cha for sure!
Pine Tree Cafe
Address: 190 Middle Rd, #02-09/13, Fortune Centre, Singapore 188979
Phone: 9681 5457
Website: http://pinetreecafe.getz.co/
Opening Hours: Monday to Saturday: 10am to 3pm. Closed on Sunday & Public Holidays.
Tea Square
Located near the popular Albert Centre Market, Tea Square serves a yummy and classic bowl of lei cha fan. Unlike many stalls, the vegetables here are more seasoned and had more distinct flavours which I liked. I especially enjoyed the mani chye which had notes of sweetness. They also top the bowl off with some cilantro which added a refreshing burst of flavour.
Some lei cha fan can be a little dry or flavourless without the soup, but the rice here was just right. Note that this bowl is not suitable for vegetarians as the vegetable is fried with dried shrimp. They also have other dishes such as braised pork leg with vinegar which is said to be really good as well!
Tea Square
Address: 180 Bencoolen Street #01-06 THE BENCOOLEN, Singapore 189646
Phone: 9681 5457
Opening Hours: 8am to 8pm daily.
客家佬擂茶 Hakka Thunder Tea Rice
Competing with Sunny Choice for first place on my list is Hakka Thunder Tea Rice at Tanglin Halt Food Centre. When I’d arrived, there was a line of five to six people. A bowl is priced at $3.50(white rice), or $4(brown rice). Despite the extremely affordable pricing, each bowl was still topped with a liberal amount of ingredients.
The cai po here is fried beforehand, and I was blown away by the amount of umami and smokiness. I’m not exaggerating when I say the cai po elevated the rice. Their brown rice option is also unique as it looks more like a bowl of red rice, a supposedly even healthier grain.
Another ingredient that I enjoyed was the fried leeks. Its mild sweetness balanced out the umami of the ikan bilis. As the tofu was not as fried and crispy, the ikan bilis and peanuts added a nice contrast in terms of texture.
The soup was also deliciously creamy and I could understand why there was such a long queue! I would ask for less ikan bilis the next time as I prefer tasting more of the vegetables.
客家佬擂茶 Hakka Thunder Tea Rice
Address: 1A Commonwealth Dr, #01-31, Singapore 141001
Phone: 8189 9676
Opening Hours: Tuesday to Friday: 11am to 7pm. Saturday & Sunday: 11am to 3pm.
Living Wholesome Vegetarian
The stall owner of Living Wholesome Vegetarian is indeed living his best life. Watching him prepare my food was such an experience. After all, it’s not every day you see a hawker jamming to rock and pop music while preparing food. Observing him cook was like watching a performance, and his every action was done with a flourish.
Each bowl($6) comes with brown rice, cai xin, cabbage, fried tofu, black-eyed peas, cai po, peanuts and sesame seeds. It was, overall, a pretty tasty bowl, and my favourite parts were the beans and fried tofu. The tofu was seasoned with some salt, and was the crispiest tofu on this list. I would’ve preferred the soup to have a stronger basil and mint taste but it was still pretty decent.
Living Wholesome Vegetarian
Address: Bukit Timah Food and Market Centre, 51 Upper Bukit Timah Road #02-188 Singapore 588172
Phone: 9087 5982
Opening Hours: Tuesday to Sunday: 11am to 2pm. Reopens 6pm to 8pm except on Wednesday. Closed Monday.
Thunder Tea Rice
Probably the largest chain serving lei cha fan, Thunder Tea Rice has four outlets. I went to the one at Toa Payoh HDB Hub and was met with a queue. This was actually where I was introduced to lei cha fan.
Although I’ve had the one at Lau Pa Sat not too long ago, it’s been a while since I visited this outlet at Toa Payoh. My bowl came exactly as I remembered, with all the regular toppings and ikan bilis.
I still believe that Thunder Tea Rice is one of the places that serve better lei cha fan, but I was somewhat disappointed by the soup on this visit. It had a more refreshing taste than the others, but was slightly too bitter and not as creamy as I remembered.
Strangely, the outlet at Lau Pa Sat serves a soup that’s a lot better and stronger-tasting. If you get the chance to visit both outlets, do let us know what you think!
Thunder Tea Rice Pte Ltd (Toa Payoh)
Address: BLK 480 Toa Payoh Lorong 6, HDB Hub, Gourmet Paradise, Stall 4, Singapore 3104880
Phone: 6397 2880
Website: http://www.thundertearice.com.sg/
Opening Hours: 9am to 10pm daily.
Thunder Tea Rice Pte Ltd (Joo Chiat)
Address: 328 Joo Chiat Rd, #01- 04, Singapore 427585
Phone: 6342 0223
Website: http://www.thundertearice.com.sg/
Opening Hours: 9am to 10pm daily.
Thunderbolt Tea by Boon Lay Traditional Hakka Lui Cha
Thunderbolt Tea is set up by the team behind the popular Boon Lay Traditional Hakka Lui Cha. The original stall is helmed by the father, while Thunderbolt Tea in Tai Seng is taken care of by the son.
The two stalls follow a recipe that’s withstood the test of time, and I can see why. Their version is filled with leeks, white cabbage, long beans, mani chye, fried beancurd, cai po and dried shrimps ($4.50 for brown rice, $4 for white). The vegetables were crunchy and went very well with the fluffy rice!
The lei cha was fragrant and slightly creamy with hints of peanut and sesame. I would’ve preferred it to be less savoury so the herbs could stand out more but it was still good! If you’ll like to treat yourself a little, do try the fried pork belly as well ($1.50).
Thunderbolt Tea by Boon Lay Traditional Hakka Lui Cha
Address: 81 Ubi Ave 4, #01-07, Singapore, 408830
Phone: 9339 8979
Website: https://www.thunderbolt.sg/
Opening Hours: Monday to Friday, Sunday: 9:30am to 1:30pm.
Traditional Hakka Lui Cha
This stall has been open for more than 10 years and the storefront proudly advertises its food to contain less oil, less salt and no MSG. The lei cha soup here contained bits of ground peanuts, which added a nice crunch. It also imparted a nutty aroma and flavour without overpowering the herbs used in the soup. I was expecting the soup to taste bitter and overly herbaceous, but the flavours of mint and basil were delicate and subtle.
After trying both the white ($3.50) and brown rice ($4) version, we preferred the brown! The brown rice added a more substantial bite and chew, which complemented the variety of vegetables that were mixed in with the rice.
Just when I thought that the dish was a tad too bland, the salty and intensely savoury chye poh helped lift the flavour of the dish immensely.Traditional Hakka Lui Cha
Address: Blk 505 #01-12 Jurong West 52, Singapore 640505
Phone: 8126 8080
Opening Hours: 6am to 2:30pm daily, closed on Monday.
Traditional Hakka Rice (河婆客家擂茶)
At Traditional Hakka Rice, we met Chris, who helps his mother out full-time at this thunder rice stall. Chris’ mother has been selling thunder tea rice since 2011, and puts a strong emphasis on freshness. Every morning, she pounds a mixture of fresh green herbs such as basil and peppermint with Chinese tea leaves and peanuts in a large bowl to make a nourishing lei cha soup.
Each bowl of lei cha($3.50) comprises steamed rice, dainty cubes of tofu, mustard greens, kai lan, long beans, peanuts, dried shrimps, pickled radish and more. Brown rice is available at a top up of $0.50. I loved the generous portions served despite the affordable price. While some lei cha soup may be too bitter or harsh-tasting, this bowl of minty soup was not as overwhelming, despite being incredibly piquant and rich. If you’re someone trying lei cha fan for the first time you’ll enjoy this! We also recommend getting some of their handmade Hakka delights while you’re there.
Traditional Hakka Rice (河婆客家擂茶)
Address: 6 Tanjong Pagar Plaza, Tanjong Pagar Plaza Market & Food Centre #02-21, Singapore 081006
Phone: 8126 8080
Opening Hours: Monday to Friday: 9.30am to 2pm, Saturday: 9:30am to 2pm. Closed on Sundays
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/tradhakkarice/
Some might disagree with the names on this list, but these are just a few of my favourite thunder tea rice stalls! If you have a recommendation, please share it with us!
MissTamChiak.com made anonymous visits and paid its own meals at the stalls featured here.
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