EVERY so often, I head to Chinatown for a lazy Sunday breakfast or brunch.

WHAT A SPREAD: A typical breakfast for our columnist (and friends) at his favorite corner of the food centre, overlooking the Chinatown buzz below. PICTURE: MAKANSUTRA

Last Sunday, after a long while, I visited this food centre at Block 335 off Smith Street.

One quick look-see showed the usual suspects still attracting long multi-generation queues.

I had to get in line and back in touch for this show-and-tell.

I first had their rough-grained yet soft and very comforting porridge almost 20 years ago.

Their toppings were generous and there was always a steady stream of patient regulars who would first buy a stick of you tiao (dough fritters) and wait to dunk it in their mixed pork porridge.

It was no Cantonese-style creamy congee (which is good if your teeth and gums can no longer handle regular porridge) and their ingredients were fresh and well-marinated and tenderised.

But honestly, last Sunday was a bit of a letdown for me.

It was still appealing overall, but somehow that bowl of fish porridge had lost what The Tipping Point author Malcolm Gladwell calls the 'blink' - it could not win me over in those first indescribable 10 seconds.

The fish was not properly thawed. It came in a well-cooked lump buried under the still rough yet smooth porridge, but those in the queue weren't complaining.

Strangely, neither our makanmatas (food cops) nor I had come across this stall all these years.

But this time, I went up close and personal, and the aunty gawked at me when I asked one more question than I should.

Their stewed duck was one of the prettiest I've seen for a while. It was smooth and pimply, with the skin taut but not torn.

The oldest aunty 'chopper' was responsible for the long queue - she chopped the ducks calmly, steadily and not as fast as she should have.

She even tenderised the ducks with the cleaver so she need not shock the wrist joints when cutting them.

The meat was tender and moist and the 'lor' (stew) had the usual five spices and hints of cloves with a good grade soy sauce. But none of the spices stood out. It was perfectly balanced.

If, like me, you adore the duck necks, place your order quickly, as they go fast. They even leave the head in with a bit of the brain and the tongue intact. The soft smooth neck was one of the best I've ever had.

Edwin Tan left his bakery job in a five-star hotel and tossed his family's Nonya makan secrets into a wok here.

I believe he is the first true Baba hawker touting real Nonya food since Jeffrey of Bongs Nonya Restaurant gave up his Balestier Road coffee shop stall some years ago.

You can tell Mr Tan's true-blue heritage by what he sells - the satay ayam stew, the Nonya chap chai and even a black sambal sotong, stuff you won't usually find in a lookalike nasi padang stall.

His ikan assam pedas came as it should - sour, spicy and just rich enough.

I hate it when some gentrify the dish with a pinch of sugar.

I noticed he did not offer the anthem ayam or babi buah keluak, and he came back with some unfathomable answer about customers in Chinatown not being used to it.

If you happen to show up at his stall, go tell him that he can't earn his Baba makan stripes if he's not offering buah keluak or even itek sio (coriander seed stewed duck).

Makansutra, founded by K F Seetoh, is a company that celebrates Asian food culture and lifestyle. It publishes food guides in and around the region, produces a food television series, develops interactive mobile content and services, operates food courts and eateries, organises food tours and events, and consults on culinary concepts.

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