Song Fa Bak Kut Teh at Bukit Panjang Plaza brings over 50 years of culinary heritage to Singapore's western region, serving authentic Teochew-style bak kut teh since 1969. This Michelin Guide Bib Gourmand awarded restaurant has earned recognition for maintaining the traditional preparation methods and original recipes that have made it a beloved institution in Singapore's food scene. With its commitment to quality and authenticity, Song Fa offers diners an opportunity to experience genuine Teochew bak kut teh in a nostalgic 1960s dining atmosphere.
The restaurant's signature dish features high-quality pork ribs carefully simmered with garlic and white pepper to create the trademark clear, peppery soup that defines authentic Teochew-style bak kut teh. Unlike the darker, herb-heavy versions found elsewhere, Song Fa's preparation emphasizes the natural sweetness of premium pork ribs enhanced by the aromatic heat of white pepper and garlic. The tender, fall-off-the-bone ribs are traditionally paired with braised dishes, pickled vegetables, and the ceremonial Kung Fu tea service that completes the authentic dining experience.
Located in Bukit Panjang Plaza, Song Fa operates Monday through Thursday from 11:00 AM to 9:00 PM, with extended hours on weekends (10:30 AM to 9:30 PM Saturday, 10:30 AM to 9:00 PM Sunday). The restaurant offers both dine-in service where guests can enjoy the full traditional experience and convenient delivery through FoodPanda for those who want to savor this Michelin-recognized bak kut teh at home. With its authentic preparation and heritage recipes, Song Fa continues to set the standard for traditional Teochew bak kut teh in Singapore.
Hi,
I would like to share my recent experience at your outlet in Bukit Panjang Plaza, which I foun
d quite disappointing.
During the payment process, I explained multiple times to the staff member in the black shirt that I do not have a PIN for my card, and that usually, other staff would assist by pressing the option to send me an OTP instead. Unfortunately, she did not acknowledge what I was saying and continued conversing with her colleagues instead of attending to my request.
When she eventually responded, she spoke to me in a rude and impolite manner and even accused me of not informing her earlier. I reminded her that I had, in fact, told her several times, but she had been too distracted by her conversation to listen.
I believe that customer service should always be a priority, especially during payment interactions. Staff who are inattentive and disrespectful not only create a poor customer experience but also damage your company’s reputation.
I sincerely hope that this feedback will be taken seriously and that proper training will be provided to ensure all frontline staff understand the importance of professionalism and attentive service.
Thank you for your attention.
Francis Oh
The ribs is very stiff. Both the long gu and the normal ribs.... Elderly should avoid.
The vegetarian skin not peeled. The soup too salty.
Frank Oh
The ribs are very stiff, both the long gu and the normal ribs. The elderly should avoid.
The vegetarian skin was not peeled. The soup was too salty.
Khoon
Hi,
I would like to share my recent experience at your outlet in Bukit Panjang Plaza, which I found quite disappointing.
During the payment process, I explained multiple times to the staff member in the black shirt that I do not have a PIN for my card, and that usually, other staff would assist by pressing the option to send me an OTP instead. Unfortunately, she did not acknowledge what I was saying and continued conversing with her colleagues instead of attending to my request.
When she eventually responded, she spoke to me in a rude and impolite manner and even accused me of not informing her earlier. I reminded her that I had, in fact, told her several times, but she had been too distracted by her conversation to listen.
I believe that customer service should always be a priority, especially during payment interactions. Staff who are inattentive and disrespectful not only create a poor customer experience but also damage your company’s reputation.
I sincerely hope that this feedback will be taken seriously and that proper training will be provided to ensure all frontline staff understand the importance of professionalism and attentive service.
Thank you for your attention.
Positive Reviews
bearythots
Great value lunch set for bak ku teh pork ribs at $13.80 before service charge and GST. The normal small peppery soup dish is already $8.80, excluding rice $1.40, groundnuts $2.70, dough fritters $2.30, and Chinsse tea with honey $2.50. Good relief for my sinuses.
Janette Neo
Service is superb! I was wowed by how courteous the staff are. They will make their rounds regularly at each table asking if we want to top up the soup, i do not have to flag the staff to get their attention. They are attentive and efficient, definitely will come back again.
Food wise, the meat is not tender enough in my opinion. Other than that, the food are fresh, service is good!
Chee Ling Chai
I visited this restaurant with my cousin sister and her partner. We ordered bak kut teh as the main dish, accompanied by a few side dishes. The meat in the bak kut teh was incredibly tender—fall-off-the-bone kind of good. The soup had a deep, aromatic flavour that was rich without being overpowering. The waitresses kept topping up the soup! It felt like endless comfort in a bowl. Overall, it was a warm, hearty experience that I’d definitely go back for.
Jessica
Visited with my mom on a weekday dinner at 5pm. Food standard is good as usual and staff were attentive with topping up of soup for guests.
No issue with food at all except one tiny problem which is a china female staff speaking extremely loudly about the orders to her colleagues. So noisy! Please consider using a walkie talkie/earpiece to communicate. Don’t shout across like that.
Su Ann
Visited the branch on a weekday dinner time. There was no queue around 6pm+ and we were seated right away. One of the waitress came to cover our bags with piece of cloth which is very thoughtful. Order was done via QR code.
We had the pork rib soup (big) which has around 6 pcs of pork ribs. The soup was good with nice peppery taste.
We also ordered braised dishes and I have to say the chicken feet were very good. They have minced garlic and chili padi as well but they are not placed on the table. You just have to request it from the waitress.
They will also fill the soup whenever they see that it is almost empty. The service is prompt and attentive. Overall, a pleasant place to dine in.
Kim Leong Chong
Review: 4-Star
06 Oct 2024 Saturday: 1234 - 1337: S$29.38 - Song Fa Bak Kut Teh 松發肉骨茶: 2 Adults.
(1) Lunch dine in. Queue started after we seated.
(2) Items served promptly after order placed, good.
(3) Pork ribs soup taste fair, on personal preference meat 80% to 90% done is good, but can only feel about 70% cooked, so much struggle trying to detach the meat from the bone.
Plenty of black pepper, can be seen from the empty bowl, that makes it taste better, but feel more garlic would be much better.
(4) Table for four split into two groups separated by cutlery tray and sauce sharing with another couple sitting next to us, feels a bit awkward though we do not mind.
(5) Noticed two couples, one young and the other old, quickly finished their meals and left while we were still enjoying the free flow of tasty soup. It doesn't help much even with a spare stool in between us for placing our bags.
(6) A bit pricey, not for food but the 19% or S$4.88 in GST and service charge.
(7) Staff too busy clearing tables, have to wait for a few minutes to ask for refill of soup. Avoid lunch or dinner crowd next time.
Good business compromised poor service attendance and dining experience.
CKL
06/10/2024 Sunday 1440 Singapore
Melanne T
I've eaten here a few times and the food is good and service fast.
I only wish they served the braised pork rice (lu rou fan)😅
I decided to write a review after my most recent visit. I had recently had surgery and my arm was in a sling. One of the servers (Xiang) noticed this and took the initiative to bring me an extra plate with fork and spoon, saying it would be easier for me to eat with..and even provided an extra bowl of soup as well.
This was a very kind gesture and I just wanted to acknowledge this great service by her.
Jun
Very tasty bak kut teh, rich peppery broth, the cuts of meat are of good quality. Service staff were also very attentive and they will automatically come and top up your soup. But the price, is quite eye watering. The you tiao was $2+ and you'll probably get like half a stick of the regular you tiao, the ngo hiang is almost a dollar a piece, and they weren't big. I think overall the food's good, but some of these prices are slightly out of control.
Berry Thong
Great value Bak Kut Teh pork ribs lunch set at $13.80 before service charge and GST. The normal small peppery soup dish is already $8.80, excluding rice $1.40, groundnuts $2.70, dough fritters $2.30, and Chinese tea with honey $2.50. Good relief for my sinuses.
Joon
The *bak kut teh* was very tasty, with a rich, peppery broth and good quality cuts of meat. Service staff were also very attentive, automatically topping up your soup. However, the price is quite eye-watering. The *you tiao* was over $2, and you'd probably only get about half a regular stick. The *ngo hiang* was almost a dollar a piece and they weren't big. Overall, I think the food's good, but some of these prices are slightly out of control.
Melanie T
I've eaten here a few times, and the food is good and the service is fast. I only wish they served the braised pork rice (lu rou fan). I decided to write a review after my most recent visit. I had recently had surgery and my arm was in a sling. One of the servers (Xiang) noticed this and took the initiative to bring me an extra plate with a fork and spoon, saying it would be easier for me to eat with, and even provided an extra bowl of soup as well. This was a very kind gesture, and I just wanted to acknowledge her great service.
Chong Kim Leong
4-Star Review
October 6, 2024, Saturday, 12:34 PM - 1:37 PM: S$29.38 - Song Fa Bak Kut Teh (松發肉骨茶) for 2 Adults.
(1) Dined in for lunch. A queue started shortly after we were seated.
(2) Items were served promptly after the order was placed, which was good.
(3) The pork ribs soup tasted fair. Personally, I prefer meat to be 80% to 90% done, but it felt only about 70% cooked, making it a struggle to detach the meat from the bone. There was plenty of black pepper, evident from the empty bowl, which made it taste better, but I feel more garlic would have made it even better.
(4) Our table for four was split into two groups, separated by a cutlery tray and shared sauces with another couple sitting next to us. This felt a bit awkward, though we didn't mind.
(5) We noticed two couples, one young and the other older, quickly finished their meals and left while we were still enjoying the free flow of tasty soup. It didn't help much, even with a spare stool placed between us for our bags.
(6) It was a bit pricey, not due to the food itself, but because of the 19% (S$4.88) in GST and service charge.
(7) Staff were too busy clearing tables, and we had to wait a few minutes to ask for a soup refill. We will avoid the lunch or dinner crowd next time.
Good business seemed to compromise the service and overall dining experience.
CKL
October 6, 2024, Sunday, 2:40 PM, Singapore
Soo Ann
Visited the branch for dinner on a weekday evening. There was no queue around 6 PM, and we were seated right away. One of the waitresses came to cover our bags with a piece of cloth, which was very thoughtful. Ordering was done via QR code.
We had the pork rib soup (big), which had around six pieces of pork ribs. The soup was good, with a nice peppery taste.
We also ordered braised dishes, and I have to say the chicken feet were very good. Minced garlic and chili padi are also available, but they are not automatically placed on the table. You just have to request them from the waitstaff.
They will also refill the soup whenever they see it is almost empty. The service is prompt and attentive. Overall, it's a pleasant place to dine.
Jacinta
Visited with my mom for a weekday dinner at 5 PM. The food was good as usual, and staff were attentive, topping up soup for guests.
No issue with the food at all, except for one tiny problem: a Chinese female staff member speaking extremely loudly about orders to her colleagues. So noisy! Please consider using a walkie-talkie/earpiece to communicate. Don’t shout across like that.
Chee Ling Cai
I visited this restaurant with my cousin and her partner. We ordered bak kut teh as the main dish, accompanied by a few side dishes. The meat in the bak kut teh was incredibly tender—truly fall-off-the-bone. The soup had a deep, aromatic flavour that was rich without being overpowering. The waitresses kept topping up the soup! It felt like endless comfort in a bowl. Overall, it was a warm, hearty experience that I’d definitely go back for.
Janet Neo
Service is superb! I was wowed by how courteous the staff are. They make their rounds regularly at each table, asking if we want to top up the soup. I do not have to flag the staff to get their attention. They are attentive and efficient. I will definitely come back again.
Food-wise, the meat is not tender enough in my opinion. Other than that, the food is fresh, and service is good!
