Timbre+ Eastside – a Sustainable Food Park offering mala soup made with secret recipe and more

Found just outside expo hall 5 and a 3 minute walk from expo mrt station, Timbre+ eastside is an open air, industrial style food hub that is incredibly spacious. Not only do they offer food but they do so sustainably. The electricity used comes from solar energy, there are plants being grown in the area and they work with the East Coast GRC to recycle reusable bags donated by the public. Furthermore, there are plans to have a food “digesting” section which is essentially composting food waste!

There’s even a mini play area for kids as well as a section for books which are on a “take one leave one” basis. This said, there has been more being taken than left so feel free to add to the depleting supply there, especially if you have books that you don’t want anymore. Just by the book section are the top up kiosks for the timbre+ app that grants you 10% off your purchases there and other perks as well. This is similar to Tuck Shop at Yishun Hawker Centre and other concepts under Timbre Group.

We got a taste of brand new stores not found anywhere else in Singapore as well as some of the more well known stores.

First we got the D’penyetz Ayam Penyet ($7.50) from D’penyetz which came with a chicken thigh and tempeh as well as chilli that comes in 6 levels of spiciness. Even at level 1, the spice was much more intense than the mala we had later on. The chicken was well marinated and tender and the portion was pretty big. They have other meat options as well too and they are halal certified. In fact, about 30% of the stalls are halal certified!

For mala lovers, this Mala (price by mass of ingredients) is probably the first of its kind. The soup base used is a secret recipe that even the owner keeps hidden from Timbre Group marketing staff, and for good reason, this mala soup base tastes like no other, it is extremely rich and flavourful. They have a huge variety of ingredients but the dough fritters are addictively crunchy, and remain crunchy despite being in the soup! We were told this was xiao la, which is the lowest spice level, but it definitely numbed the tongue from the fiery spice.

Sedap Mala is currently waiting for their halal certification but they do not use pork or lard and their subsidiary is actually Lao Huo Tang.

Featured on many other media sites, 456 Mian Fen Guo offers some of the chewiest mee hoon kueh, which they call Mian Fen Guo Dry Version ($5). Slathered in dark soy sauce, each individual mee hoon kueh holds onto the flavours well and the generosity of ingredients like ikan bilis only serves to make this dish more flavourful. They offer many other noodle options from ban mian to bee hoon, all hand made! The dry version comes with a small bowl of the savoury broth that has notes of fried shallots which I find would make the soup version delicious.

We also got to try GoPizza’s Korean Bulgogi Pizza ($10.90). A crispy crust, meat and cheese is always a spectacular combination, the sweet yet salty beef slices and savoury cheese were a great match especially with the capsicum and onions and would be great for anyone who likes korean food. Topped with some sweet sauce and mayo, this korean italian fusion is wholesome and filling and perfect for sharing. Most of the items they offer come with a korean twist  but they do offer classic pizzas like hawaiian and pepperoni.

Lastly, to end of the meal, we had a drink from D’Cendol. Usually cendol has shaved ice but this is essentially a cendol made into a drink. There’s gula melaka at the bottom, a coconut milk base and is tipped with red bean and green cendol strands. When mixed together, it becomes the perfect elixir for Singapore’s unrelenting hot weather. The fragrance from this itself is already refreshing so if you like cendol, this is a must try.

Timbre+ eastside prides themselves in being a sustainable food hub from the use of renewable energy and 3R efforts that come from the book sharing and donation of recycling bags. Still, the air conditioning is turned on when it gets too hot for even the huge fans to cool down the place but for the most part, it is turned off. Moreover, with the advancing technology, Timbre+ has even incoporated a mechanical cocktail shaker in Bottle Shop which sells alcohol.

Despite covid restrictions, Timbre+ eastside’s spacious seating area allows for the tables to be all 5 seaters which makes it very family oriented. There is even an area for functions which is open for seating when it gets crowded so waiting for seats usually won’t be too long. That said, due to covid restrictions, Timbre+ is unable to host performances as they once did in the first Timbre food hub. Still, there is a designated area for the eventual stage to be placed. More of Timbre+ Eastside can be found here.

Timbre+ Eastside

Address: 1 Expo Dr, Singapore 486150