Simple Food - Ubi

Simple Food is a brand most people in Singapore know - But the first question one might ask when referring to Simple Food is 'where are they now?'.  It is safe to say Simple Food move around a lot, in fact, over the last few years they have moved at least three times to my knowledge.  Previously having two branches at Pasir Ris and Tampines.  They subsequently merged into one and reopened in Bedok North, only to close down again and move to their current (I wonder for how long) location in Ubi industrial area.  This location is by far the most remote, with only office workers realistically being able to visit there.








Simple Food Vegetarian
Location: 50 Kaki Bukit Place #01-02, Jean Yip Building
Contact: 67440207
Opening Hours: Daily 11.00am-10.00pm 


The new location of Simple Food is in the Ubi industrial area, at the Jean Yip building.  Unless you drive, you are going to have to go through hell to get to this location.  But from what I saw, the eatery does seem to be popular with the office workers in the area.
I've always felt that Simple Foods shortcomings were never with chef James Teo, I am a great fan of his, and do believe he is one of the best vegetarian chefs in Singapore.  Unfortunately, poor location choices and universally negative feedback about staff have blighted the success of this eatery over the years.
In addition to the Simple Food menu, James also released many packaged vegetarian foods, which can be purchased at the eatery. My personal favourite is their bak kut teh.
I started the meal off with Japanese Veggie Curry Potato.  This dish had a lot of positives and only one negative.  The positives were the curry sauce was exceptional, packed with flavour and not too sweet.  The cauliflower and broccoli were cooked well and I loved the creamy melt-in-your-mouth mashed potato croquette on top.  The only negative was the sliced potatoes in the curry were not cooked long enough, and were almost raw.  But overall this was an excellent dish.

Price: $7.50.     8/10


Next I went with one of the many Western dishes, which was the Fish & Chips.  This dish was veganised by my request, but by default it will come dressed in non-vegan mayo.  The mock fish fillet was crunchy and juicy, and overall one of the best I have tried.  The salad was nicely chopped and fresh, but really needed some kind of dressing.

Price: $8.80.     7/10 


The last dish was Bacon Bolognese.  This dish was ultimately the worst of the meal.  Based on what I have tried, I have come to the grim conclusion that Chinese chefs (no matter how talented) don't seem to be able to grasp the fundamental flavours of Italian cuisine.  Instead, opting to turn it into some kind of Asian-Western fusion dish.  To make a good bolognese there needs to be a meat substitute (usually TVP is used) in order to really even justify calling it 'bolognese'.  Without that, it is merely just a tomato sauce spaghetti.  The ingredients inside were cooked well, but all the ingredients used were out of place, and belong more in a Chinese stir fry than an Italian pasta dish.  The sauce was also a little too watered down for my liking, and lacking any punch.

Price: $6.80.     4/10




Conclusion - I almost feel it is a shame that the new Simple Food is in such a remote location, as I truly believe that James' food deserves to be enjoyed by the masses.  I would especially recommend his Japanese curry potato, and I recall from my previous visit to their old Bedok outlet the monkey mee sua is incredible (unfortunately it was not available when I visited).  In addition to these two, I am sure there are many more excellent dishes on the menu - Just stay away from the pastas.

Overall Rating
Food - 7/10
Ambiance- 6/10
Service - 7/10
Value - 7/10