Singapore's Best Nasi Briyani

We all have had Nasi Briyani before, the Nasi Briyani is a common traditional Indian Muslim rice dish. Many are good at making a decently good Nasi Briyani, but to find a really good one that you can claim the Best in Singapore, is not an easy task. Then again, taste is always subjective and hence what I believe to be the best might not be the best for you. The only way to put it as the best is based on the number of recommendations and reviews. I believe to have found one, thanks to many recommendations from friends and the ST Foodies Club.

Allauddin's BriyaniBriyani SpecialistS$4 (Chicken/Mutton) S$3.50 (Fish)Located at Tekka Market at Buffalo Street and the start of Serangoon Road, the Tekka Market is where one can find many Indian Muslim hawker stalls selling similar stuff. But it is not hard to identify a famous one by looking at the queue. However, whenever there is something popular around, there is always competition. Apparantly there is another stall which has a long queue in front of their stall with billboards of newspaper cuttings. Allauddin's Briyani stall is less extravagant and is just a plain and simple stall. A feature to identify Allauddin is the huge aluminium pots from where the rice is served from. I had to queue for at least 30 minutes to get my order, as there were a lot of people buying in 'bulk' take-away orders.
Nasi Briyani with Chicken
S$4Unlike other briyani, the rice at Allauddin's is of a uniform yellow colour flavoured with tumeric and saffron. The rice is served on a styrofoam plate and the curry chicken is then added later. I was wondering where were my cucumbers and archar. The rice is smooth, moist and fragrant. The taste is no doubt one of the best I have had! The chicken is also soft and tender. There is no need to struggle with the meat with the plastic cultery. The nasi briyani dish is served with a bowl of tasty daal curry.

Nasi Briyani with MuttonS$4The mutton rendang is fragrant and not too spicy for the general public. The meat is tender and juicy despite being 'well-done'. With a portion of mutton that might seem too little to finish with the rice, you will be surprised how much flavour a small chunk of the mutton can give to go with a spoonful of fragrant briyani rice.

What better way to complete my nasi briyani ayam but with a cup of teh halia (ginger milk tea)!


Sky Lab Vadai with Prawns
50cents each Just diagonally opposite to Allauddin's Briyani, is Sky Lab. An interesting name for a simple indian food stall that specializes and probably serves the best Vadai at Tekka Market! Despite being in the 'display', these lovely Vadai are crispy on the outside, soft on the inside. Some Vadai tend to be very plain, but Sky Lab's Vadai are tasty and goes well with a stalk of raw green chilli. They have plain vadai and vadai with prawn. Sky Lab is even recommended in Lonely Planet!


Verdict
Allauddin's Briyani definitely tops the notch in their nasi briyani. It is no wonder foodies from around Singapore and even overseas tourists, queue for a taste of the best briyani that they will ever have in Singapore. Allauddin's Briyani definitely deserves a recommendation in any travel guides for Singapore. No matter how much archar is given, how big the meat is, how colourful the rice is, other nasi briyani all just pales in comparison to the simple-looking but mean plate of Allauddin's Briyani! A DIE DIE MUST TRY!
At the mean time, remember to try the nearby Sky Lab Vadai. As I have mentioned, they have probably the best Vadai around! After trying out Sky Lab Vadai, you will never touch those from pasar malam anymore!
Good Food, Best Price! What can you still ask for?

Getting there
There are plenty of buses that connects to Tekka Centre along Serangoon Road or Bukit Timah Road. The easiest is to take an MRT train along the North-East Line (NEL; purple coloured line).

Allauddin's Briyani
Block 665 Buffalo Road #01-297 Tekka Centre
10am - 6pm daily (while 'rice' lasts)

Sky Lab Vadai
Block 665 Buffalo Road #01-293 Tekka Centre


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Singapore Food Allauddin Allauddin's briyani Indian cuisine nasi briyani Sky Lab Lonely Planet recommended food Vadai Hawker food Tekka Centre Tekka Market Buffalo Road Serangoon Road Little India