A Field Guide To The Hawkers at Spencer Village Food Court

Things are getting heated on table B4.

It’s just before midday on a Wednesday and the group of four middle-aged Asian men – if I was in Singapore, these gents would be referred to as “uncles” – around the table are in a fervent, far-reaching discussion that touches on everything from the English Premier League (it’s two Arsenal fans against a Manchester City diehard and an undecided) to the best places for buying fish (NP Supermarket Carousel in Cannington) to arguments, Seinfeld -style, about nothing.

“ Cannot, lah,” bellows one of the gents. (A common phrase in Singapore and Malaysia translating to “no, it's not possible”). I’m not sure where the conversation is at, but his refrain is one I’ll hear a couple more times while I’m waiting in line to order my lunch. Scenes like this are common at the Spencer Village Food Court.

For as long as I’ve lived in Perth, Spencer Village has been a go-to for the city’s Asian community. Alongside Canning Vale Markets and Coventry Village shopping centre in Morley, the food court at Spencer Village does a more-than-passable impression of a Singaporean, Malaysian, Thai or Indonesian hawker centre: passable enough, at least, to sate pangs of homesickness among immigrants, as well as cure sudden break outs of wanderlust among grounded travellers. The aesthetic is basic, the tables are communal (coded and numbered so you can tell hawkers where to deliver cooked dishes when you order) and the crowd is seriously diverse.

That the roster of vendors (12 at last count) has stayed relatively steady suggests a venue and clientele disinterested in trends. Still, that’s not to say we don’t pine for some of the vendors and hawkers that have been – operators such as Fazara, a charming Indonesian stall where you could score Madura-style chicken noodle soup, Yogyakarta-style jackfruit curry and other regional specialties from the archipelago, or Mama Chedeng, a Filipino stall that offered excellent flan pudding and lechon (roast pork). (After Mama’s departure, the Royal’s crew, appropriately enough, opened a Filipino grilled chicken shop in the same space, now also closed).

Not every closure has been cause for tears, though. Without really aiming to do so, Spencer Village has served as an incubator where operators test-drive concepts before biting the bullet and opening their own place. Willetton favourite Taurus Hawker Foods got its start here before moving into its own space on Collins Road, while David Wijaya, the owner of Ah Beng Kopi Tiam, set up a stall called Wonder Bowl to road-test and fine-tune his handmade halal ramen before permanently adding it to Ah Beng’s menu.

The following is by no means a comprehensive guide to what’s on offer at Spencer Village, but rather a primer on who does what throughout the food court, written by someone who’s been eating here since his primary-school days in the early ’90s. I’ve eaten at all the stalls, but haven’t – as dictated by medical advice and an ever-slowing metabolism – eaten all the foods at all the stalls, so there’s a chance I’ve missed something, especially if it’s a special or off-menu item. I’ll openly admit this and have mentally prepared myself for readers to tell me directly and explicitly about my oversight. I’m ready. Spencer Village, after all, is a place that generates vigorous discussion.

Panda Cafe
Every hawker centre needs a good drinks stall. The friendly uncles here dispense all the Southeast Asian classics including teh tarik (a sweet, creamy tea that’s “pulled” by being poured from one jug to another) and iced cendol, a sweet, calorific potion of coconut milk, squiggles of jelly and palm sugar: ideal fire-fighting equipment against some of the food court’s spicier dishes.

Praw Thai Food
After working the Canning Vale Markets, this family-run Thai food stall doubled down with its first permanent location. Although Praw offers standards such as green curry, red curry and pad thai, the menu also includes lesser-seen dishes such as rad na (stir-fried rice noodles in gravy) and hoi jor (deep-fried pork and crab meat balls). The som tum (papaya salad) leans spicy and the mu ping (barbequed pork skewers, one of the best versions in Perth) are sweet, fatty and thick in all the right places.

Suzie’s Prata House
Singaporean-Indian food is the name of the game, and Suzie’s exhaustive menu ensures all of us are winners. Pulled and cooked to order, the namesake roti prata are “clapped” to produce a flaky, buttery bread perfect for swiping through gravies. The on-the-bone goat curry is rock-solid good while murtabaks (filled flatbreads), tissue pratas (ultra-thin flatbreads) and tosais (lentil pancakes) are also available. Be warned, Suzie’s often sells out of roti on weekends.

Fook Kee
Have you really eaten a meal at Spencer Village if there isn’t at least one plate from Fook Kee in your spread? The snack game at this long-time favourite is strong – perfect for satiating cravings and upsizing lunches and dinners. The pork roll is a crisp-fried, five-spiced wonder; the big buns’ fluffy exteriors hint little at the hefty minced chicken and hard-boiled egg payload within; and the stall is one of the few places in Perth to stir-fry chai tow kway (radish cake with bean sprouts and chilli) to order.

Izyan Malay Cuisine
The sprawling halal menu at Izyan is a deep dive into the cuisines of Malaysia, Indonesia and Singapore (with the occasional outlier, such as chicken tandoori and deep-fried lemon chicken). You can get mee goreng mamak (Indian-influenced) or pattaya (wrapped in a thin egg omelette) while mee rebus (noodles in a thick, spicy gravy) is an instant flashback to Southeast Asian breakfasts.

Waroeng Jakarta
Homesick Indonesians are frequently found queuing at this temple to Indonesian comfort eating. While a bain-marie is on hand for choose-your-own dining, many of the stall’s best moments are on the à la carte menu. Iga penyet (grilled beef rib with chilli) is a highlight, while ayam kremes is a crunch-on-crunch delight starring fried chicken pieces topped with flakes of fried potato. The sambal ijo (green chilli) booms with heat and flavour and is a worthy addition to any order.

Penang Cuisine
I could stare at Penang Cuisine’s 80s-era lightbox menu all day. Many regard the Malaysian state of Penang to be home to the country’s best street food, and the menu here references many of the hawker world’s more Chinese-influenced dishes: think kway teow (rice noodle) soups and char siu wonton mee (roast pork noodles). Penang Cuisine is also, surprisingly, the only stall that offers chicken rice: a heaped plate of fragrant rice spiked with garlic, ginger and schmaltz, served with thick-cut hunks of juicy bird.

Shun Japanese Cuisine
Behind the noren curtain at this buzzing stall, team Shun keeps itself busy repping fun Japanese dining. The classics are all present and accounted for, from crisp katsu floating in a glossy Japanese-style curry sauce, to teriyaki-grilled proteins and thick udon. Beyond the greatest hits of Japanese cooking, a chalkboard menu offers specials such as takoyaki (grilled balls filled with octopus meat) and shimmering cheesecake.

Ong’s Kitchen
A relatively recent addition to Spencer Village’s ranks, Ong’s Kitchen serves a diverse array of dishes ranging from the lesser-known – a spicy Sichuan-style beef noodle soup – to more westernised numbers such as honey-soy chicken. My own forays have been limited to the fried snacks in the bain-marie – and they’re impressive. The golden curry puffs feature excellent lamination and the hum jin pang (round dough fritters) are great to have on hand for mopping up plates.

Badoyell Beef Noodles
Badoyell is one of Perth’s few purveyors of Taiwanese-style beef noodle soup. The eatery’s namesake dish is a good introduction: tender chunks of beef (there’s the option of tripe and tendon for those who like texture) and toothsome noodles lolling in a spiced broth that’s best described as beefy and fatty. The noodles also come in an extra-spicy version, and pork belly and pan-fried dumplings are available too.

Ya Kwang
“Singapore’s favourite hawker food”, reads the sign above the stall. It’s a big promise to live up to, but Ya Kwang delivers. A chef friend says the laksa here (which is heavy on shrimp paste and coconut cream) is one of the city’s best examples of the richer, Singaporean style, and he’s on the money. Ya Kwang is also one of the few places I’ve seen bak chor mee – a Singaporean classic featuring minced pork and optional pork liver, although the version here leans heavily on the vinegar.

Spencer Village Food Court
200 Spencer Road, Thornlie
Hours:
Wed to Sat 11am–9pm
Sun 10am–9pm

This article was originally published on 4 November 2020. It has been updated to reflect new information.