Had been told about Tai Zi 太子 at Blk 122 Ang Mo Kio Avenue 3 by a friend who resides in the area — the folks behind the stall had also recently opened another at Bishan recently. The stall focuses on their braised pork offerings here, with their signature items being their Braised Pork Belly 东坡肉 and Black Sweet Vinegar Pork Knuckle 猪脚醋.

Whilst the actual presentation wildly differed from the illustration (was looking forward to getting a square slab of meat instead of braised pork belly slices served atop a bed of rice), the item still proved to be beyond my expectations. The plating does somewhat remind me of certain Roast Beef Dons that one may get from some Japanese establishments — the braised pork belly slices, whilst not a lot, comes layered over the rice; what caught me here was how the rice gets generously drenched in their braised sauce throughout, which many other places seem to sometimes scrimp on for a dish like that. Digging right into the braised pork belly slices, one will be taken away by how incredibly tender the meat was — the meat being all melt-in-the-mouth and gelatinous; sufficiently fatty as it effortlessly disintegrates when one chews on the meat. One could also taste the effort placed behind the braising process not just from the texture of the meat, but also through the flavours itself — the pork belly being all savoury without any unpleasant porky stench, whilst the flavours of the braised sauce runs deep here throughout. The generous drenching of the braised sauce over the rice also makes the portion of short-grain rice incredibly easy to finish for one that usually struggles to finish an individual portion of rice — I particularly like how their braised sauce isn’t the type that is overly salty, but just delightfully savoury with evident notes of the spices being used. The stalks of greens included adds a crunch, whilst taking away the heavier notes of the braised sauce which makes for a good break in between spoonfuls of the braised pork belly and rice.

Whilst Tai Zi’s offerings aren’t those that one will be craving for and to be had on a everyday basis, I was truly impressed by how they seemed to have pretty much nailed the braising process of their meats — something that could only be done with a lot of effort and trial-and-error during the R&D process. Was also pretty impressed with how they also equipped their stall with an order tracking system typical of fast food chains; seemingly delivering a promise to their patrons for a seamless and efficient process when buying from them — pretty rare of a coffeeshop stall. There is no doubt that I would be thinking about Tai Zi as a dining option if I am around any of their outlets; they also seem to carry certain items such as the Tai Zi Noodle and Nagoya Drumlets which I am looking forward to try during my next visit!