Shukor's Roti John ...... a forgotten taste rediscovered.

I have seen many Muslim food stall selling Roti John but I haven't tried anything close to THE Roti John I had during my formative teen years (Secondary School Days). One of my basketball kakis used to live in the apartment along Cluny Road and we usually visit his place after school to hang out. This was when I had my first taste of Shukor's Roti John. The hawker centre that houses Shukor's stall used to be near the junction of Napier and Taman Serasi Road (right across the gates of Botanical Gardens).

Years have gone by, the hawker centre at Teman Serasi long gone. Time left me without the least bit of memory for the taste of the original Shukor's Roti John that I took for granted before. I only remembered I had good Roti John there but I cannot tell what's special about it. A friend staying in the neighbourhood told me in passing about the good Roti John at the Serangoon Garden Food Centre. I went to try and realized that I'm back at Shukor's stall again, Shukor Stall Makanan Istimewa. Although Mr Shukor is not there to create my Roti John, her daughter who now runs the stall still got the skill passed on by her father. Flavors from a mouthful of this onion egg omelette in french loaf made me reach out deep into memories of old. Suddenly, memories of me in my school uniform wearing my favorite Converse basketball shoes and hanging out with the rest of my basketball buddies became clear. This is one nostalgic food .......

Shukor's Original Flavor Roti John (S$3)

French loaf onion egg omelette as filling. Different meat are added

to the original to add different flavors to cater for different taste buds.

Adding meat cost more. Dipping the roti into the sweet

chilli sauce add more fragrance and spiciness.

My food kakis may not have thought much about the simple looking Roti John that's laid out on the table. There may not be a queue forming up right in front of this relocated Shukor's Roti John stall. But to me, this humble looking dish was a satisfying, endearing taste that encompassed memories of my formative years that I lost and found back again.

Just for the record, I finished the Roti John all by myself despite finishing a full meal before this. I thought it was good old sincere food.

Cost : S$3~4 depending on the the meat added to the original flavor.

Address : 49A Serangoon Garden Way, Stall 30, Serangoon Garden Market and Food Centre

Opening Hours : 10am - 9pm Closed on Thursday

Country : Singapore