Self-serve IKEA style & hawker meal options at SAF Cookhouses

Did I step into IKEA?

This was the first thought that came to mind as I entered the cookhouse at Changi Naval Base (CNB).

Gone are the aunties who stand behind the trays of food with a scoop in their hands, ready to fill up the hungry stomachs of servicemen and women.

In place now are shelves of plated food kept warm behind closed doors, a design closely resembling the food ordering stations at IKEA.

Most of the frontline service aunties have been moved to the kitchen, plating and putting out food to fill the shelves which are emptying fast.

Just like how you would take your smoked salmon salad and crunchy almond chocolate cake from the shelves in IKEA, Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) personnel can choose the meal of their choice using the same concept.

This is part of the Singapore Food Industry Manufacturing Pte Ltd's (SFIM's) Design-Equip-Operate (DEO) initiative to improve operational efficiency and cookhouse kitchen capability.

The benefits? Shorter food collection time and allowing personnel to select meal choices at a glance.

So far, 16 cookhouses have been revamped with this self-serve concept. The rest of the cookhouses are estimated to adopt the same change by 2028. 

Hawker food or homely cuisine?

Since 1997, the SAF started to offer personnel a choice between a hawker-style meal and the traditional “three dishes and one soup” meal. 

Hawker cuisines include laksa, fried fish noodle soup and bak kut teh, while the three dishes and one soup meal comprises nasi bryani and spaghetti aglio olio with chicken – just to name a few.

From the former, the first two are a hit with the personnel. Incidentally, the laksa broth is the same as the one served in-flight on Scoot airlines. 

“The creamy, spicy coconut broth adds a rich and luxurious texture to the laksa. It is paired with chicken, egg, and fish cake to enhance the flavour and make it a nutritious and hearty meal,” said Executive Sous Chef Desmond Ignatius Biswas. 

The 34-year-old from SAF Catering Operations (SCO), SFIM is in charge of the Supply Base West cookhouses. These include SAF camps in the west like Jurong Camp II and SAFTI Military Institute.  

SFIM, whose parent company is SATS, is one of the two contractors that the SAF employs for their cookhouses. The other is Foodfare Catering Pte Ltd, which is in charge of cookhouses in camps such as Pulau Tekong. 

Apart from designing the menu, Mr Biswas tastes the cookhouse food under his charge to ensure that it is palatable for personnel. 

Taste test – Changi Naval Base

We had the opportunity to sample both the laska and its “three dishes one soup” counterpart – the chimichurri chicken burger – at CNB’s cookhouse. 

True enough, the laksa broth, though creamy, was not jelak (Malay for overwhelmingly rich) at all. 

Much of its fragrance and taste came from the hae bee hiam (Hokkien for spicy dried shrimp sambal) and coconut milk, which was mixed in just the right ratio. In fact, I could have just the broth on its own. 

The dish came with thick rice noodles, a hard-boiled egg, a chicken wing, two squares of tau pok (Hokkien for fried beancurd skin) and a full fishcake roll. 

You can choose the amount of laksa broth, laksa leaves and sambal to add into your bowl. 

The chimichurri chicken burger set comprised a large piece of chicken thigh nestled between a burger. On the side is a second piece of thigh, wedges and a medley of stir-fried vegetables. 

The star of this dish was the chimichurri gravy that the chicken was doused in. Its smoky, tomato-y herb flavour was infused into the tender chicken thigh, which came apart easily when pulled. 

Military Expert (ME) 4A Johnson Phong, 21, felt that the chicken was well-marinated and the chimichurri flavour came through nicely, though the burger was a tad hard. 

“The chicken was tender and flavourful; and the portion was more than enough. The vegetables also provided a nice contrast to the dish,” said the engineer-in-training from the Naval Military Institute. 

Former naval chef ME3 Wong Kim Wei also enjoyed his laksa, which he described as “creamy and fragrant”. 

The 49-year-old is a senior ration supervisor from the Republic of Singapore Navy’s (RSN’s) Base Facility Service Centre. 

Both meals came with a side of mushroom soup – which was surprisingly good despite its unassuming appearance. From the generous chunks of mushrooms to the subtle herb flavour, the soup was creamy without being cloying. 

Taste test – Jurong Camp II

The next day, we headed to the Infantry Training Institute’s cookhouse at Jurong Camp II where we tried two other meals – nasi lemak and Chicago-style grilled chicken and tomato pasta. 

Oh my goodness, the nasi lemak was so good. 

Every mouthful of the warm rice was bursting with the fragrant flavour of coconut milk. When paired with the not-too-spicy sambal, it was simply sedap (Malay for delicious). 

It came with two large chunks of otah, a handful of ikan bilis and peanuts, as well as a large chicken thigh. It even had my favourite sayur lodeh (Malay for Indonesian vegetable stew in coconut milk)! 

The texture of the mackerel fish otah was firm to the bite – you could tell that it was fresh. This was my favourite part of the dish, after the rice and sambal. 

Unfortunately, the sayur lodeh fell short of my expectations – perhaps because I was one of the last to eat. 

I could barely scrape the last bits of tofu and cabbage from the serving tray (this was at a self-help station), and the lack of gravy meant it wasn’t as satisfying as I thought it would have been. 

Unfortunately (for me), the rest had already finished up everything. 

Still, I would give the nasi lemak a good 8 out of 10. 

Corporal (CPL) Kenneth Goh, 19, felt that the portion of nasi lemak had a good protein-to-carb ratio and nutritional value. 

“Cookhouse food is definitely more nutritious than outside food,” said the Supply Base West Assistant from Central Pool Jurong, who eats at the cookhouse every day. 

Fellow unit mate Lance Corporal (LCP) Marc S Marpaung, 20, felt that his Chicago-style grilled chicken and tomato pasta tasted a little like the cuisine at Saizeriya’s. 

This was also his first time trying the aglio olio spaghetti and smoky tomato-based chicken – he rated the meal as “nice” and a 6 out of 10. 

My favourite cookhouse food is…

Ask what their favourite cookhouse meal has been so far, and they replied immediately in unison: “Fish and chips!” 

“It’s really one of the best. The breaded fish is tender and flaky,” gushed CPL Goh. 

“If this fish and chips was sold outside, I’ll gladly pay for it,” added LCP Marpaung. 

As for ME4A Phong, he loves the mee soto – which he describes as a bowl of comfort food loaded with ingredients. 

On the other hand, ME3 Wong enjoys the bak kut teh. “The soup is peppery with a mild kick and the meat is really tender. I’ll give it a 9 out of 10.” 

All four servicemen also love the special Japanese saba fish set, which comes with a side of chawanmushi (Japanese steamed egg custard). 

To top it off, the saba fish is meticulously deboned, allowing the personnel to have a more enjoyable meal. 

Servicemen and women also get to enjoy the cookhouses’ occasional collaboration with food and beverage brands such as Killiney to serve local specialties like laksa, curry chicken and mee siam.  

This is part of the International or special menu that SFIM introduces to lift the spirits of servicemen. 

Currently, there are three months’ worth of menus that the cookhouse rotates, with a new item introduced every month. 

During festive seasons, the SFIM also plans festive meals for personnel. Just this year, they served up Baked Honey Glazed Chicken Set for Chinese New Year and Ayam Panggang Otah Otah for Hari Raya Puasa. 

Improving with feedback

The SFIM also constantly engages servicemen and women to fine-tune the menus based on their feedback. 

For instance, there was feedback from one of the camps to reduce the sweetness of the desserts such as bubur chacha and red bean sago. 

“To address this, we worked with our nutritionist and chefs to revise the recipe so that the desserts are less sweet, without compromising on the overall taste and flavour,” said Mr Biswas. 

Through consistent engagement, the various Executive Sous Chefs find out the diners’ preferences and plan the meals according to what the majority prefers – while still meeting their nutritional needs. 

Although personnel can now enjoy a wide array of hawker offerings, chicken is often the main protein used in most meals. 

Unfortunately, having the same protein a few times a week despite the different ways of cooking “can be quite boring”, said CPL Goh. 

“Honestly, I’d love to have more fish options”, said the full-time national serviceman, who’s a fan of the fish and chips meal. 

As for ME4A Phong, this self-professed noodle-lover hopes to see more noodle dishes in time to come. 

“Bak Chor Mee, fishball noodle and even Japanese ramen with soup would be good!”