Alley Wei: Experience halal Taiwan street foods like beef beancurd and scallion pancake

In my 24 years of being alive, I don’t think I’ve had proper Taiwanese street food, unless you count those shoddy shark fin soup stalls in pasar malams. It’s not like I’m against that idea, but it’s difficult to find a Muslim-friendly stall that serves them. That was until I patronised Alley Wei located in Northpoint City, which serves halal Taiwanese street food.

Situated at the basement level, Alley Wei certainly plays on its Taiwanese influence with wooden tables and stools that are far too narrow for their own good. The lack of a backrest also meant that my video game binges and consistent slouching over the years has finally bitten back. But I’m all for it if this was how they have it back in Taiwan.

There was also a clear window for you to observe staff pounding away on the flour and dough before slowly massaging them, forming the skin of a dumpling like well-oiled machines. It makes for a perfect time killer while waiting for your meal—until they stare back, of course.

What I tried at Alley Wei

Surprisingly, Alley Wei had a relatively clean menu despite being inspired by Taiwanese street food. There wasn’t any fried mantou with slices of bak kwa in between, or youtiao topped with an obscene amount of Nutella and marshmallows which, to be honest, sounds pretty good. 

You have your set of unsweetened Beancurd with options like Beancurd with Peanut (S$3.20), Beancurd with Soymilk (S$2.80) and even savoury ones such as Beef Beancurd (S$6.80) which was what I got. I also had an order of Pan-Fried Chicken Dumplings (S$6.80) and Steamed Chicken Dumplings (S$4.80).

There were more familiar noodle options like Noodles with Chicken Soup (S$5.80) and Beef Noodles (S$8.80). I also had the Scallion Pancake (S$4.20) which came in other flavours such as Chicken Pancake (S$4.30). Of course not forgetting, the Youtiao (S$1.80).

To wash all of that down, I opted for the Soybean Milk (S$2.20), but you could also get Almond Soybean Milk (S$2.6) and Chin Chow Drink (S$2.60). Mind you that some of the soybean milk drinks are served in a bowl, however, straws were available.

I started off with something familiar, the Beef Noodles. Admittedly, the clear broth already told me that it’s going to be a bland experience. And I was right: it wasn’t the most flavorful beef noodles I’ve had, but at least it wasn’t the worst.

It was a really light-tasting broth with only hints of savouriness and sweetness. To its credit, it wasn’t overly salty or oily, which somewhat makes up for it. Similarly, the other elements, like the noodles, beef slices and radish were all well-cooked. I particularly liked the addition of scallions which freshened up the entire bowl.

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Up next was the Beef Beancurd and it was the one thing that I couldn’t wait to try when I first found out about Alley Wei. Turns out, I should have waited. The already neutral tasting beancurd just didn’t go well with the same broth from the Beef Noodles.

And its soft and jelly-like texture tested the resolve of my gag reflex to the maximum. It didn’t help that my mind was fine-tuned in anticipating the taste of sweet syrup, which never came.

My partner however, enjoyed the interesting textural combination of beef slices and beancurd, which left no doubt on who finished the bowl.

I had to take a breather from the beancurd experience and found the Soybean Milk to be refreshing and milky. Thankfully, it was barely sweet so you can fully appreciate its creaminess. 

Continuing the meal, I went for the Pan-Fried Chicken Dumplings and Steamed Chicken Dumplings. The former was easily the best thing I ordered. It still had a decently crispy exterior with a soft and chewy inside. The chicken filling was really flavorful with hints of soy sauce and again, scallions. 

The Steamed Chicken Dumplings, however, were a letdown. They used a different type of chicken meat which had a slimy texture, but perhaps it might’ve been because of the soup that accompanied it. 

Another letdown was their Scallion Pancake. My partner and I joked that it looked like roti prata, which was actually sort of true as it tasted similar. It was overly doughy with no semblance of a strong scallion taste unlike the Pan-Fried Chicken Dumplings and Beef Noodles.

Lastly was the Youtiao. Tastewise, it’s really similar to what you’d get anywhere else, with its signature slightly salty interior. However, this rendition was much crispier and less oily as compared to other youtiao.

Final thoughts 

I can’t say I enjoyed everything that I had at Alley Wei, but I’m glad I experienced it in the first place. I’d definitely recommend the Pan-Fried Chicken Dumplings and Soybean Milk for first-timers. 

Ultimately, what won me over wasn’t necessarily the food, but how relatively affordable and filling it was. Have I mentioned that it’s GST-free?

Expected damage: S$2.20 – S$14.30 per pax

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