Singabites Support your local food hero series will be championing the local food heroes of Singapore during these difficult times. Please support your local food heroes as much as you can. Without them life would be tasteless.
Today we visited Ratu Lemper in Arab Street. We first found this shop a few years back when we were doing some research for another food tour. The owner is a lovely lady called Aliya. Aliya is originally from Indonesia which is where Lemper originates.
What is Lemper?
The best way to describe lemper is like a sandwich where instead of bread you have coconut sticky rice. The filling is a savoury floss, usually chicken or beef. The snack is then wrapped up in banana leaf and steamed.
The lempers at Ratu Lemper are made in house. When we first met Aliya (a few years ago) she was concentrating mostly on producing lemper but now the shop sells a variety of Indonesian and Malay goodies. Her ondeh ondeh was a standout when we tried it today.
What’s the story?
When Aliya was just 12 she and her family moved from Indonesia to Singapore. Lemper was always a favourite snack for Aliya but she could never find a place that did it the way she liked. Over time she perfected her own recipe and in 2015 she started to take orders from her facebook page. In less than a year she had her own shop in Singapore’s colourful Arab street area. Today you can visit the shop at 31 Arab street. Try the extra spicy rendang version, we loved it.
Do you want to learn more about Singapore’s amazing food scene? Would you like to meet food heroes like Aliya and try their dishes fresh from the kitchen? Book your spot on Singapore’s best food tour today. Go to www.singabites.com
