Food Picks: Cafe-worthy food at coffee-shop prices at Uncle Lim’s Diner
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox
(Clockwise from left) Fish And Chips, Nacho Chips with housemade guacamole, Chicken Chop With Pasta and Crispy Chicken Cutlet at Uncle Lim’s Diner.
ST PHOTO: HEDY KHOO
Follow topic:
- Jeremy Lim, 33, and Joyce Sih, 30, opened Uncle Lim's Diner, serving Western fare in a coffee shop after leaving Tonito Latin American Kitchen.
- The stall offers affordable dishes like Crispy Chicken Cutlet ($7.90) and Chicken Chop With Pasta ($8.50), using quality ingredients and restaurant techniques, skipping local sauces.
- Standout items include the fresh sea bass Fish And Chips ($9.90) and flavourful Aglio Olio, showcasing Lim's culinary skills and commitment to Western flavours.
AI generated
SINGAPORE – At Lengkok Bahru coffee-shop stall Uncle Lim’s Diner, the “uncle” in question is no grizzled hawker, but 33-year-old Jeremy Lim. His knifework and stove skills, though, could easily earn him the title.
“The name Uncle Lim will fit me in 10 years anyway,” he quips.
He runs the Western food stall with his wife Joyce Sih, 30. The couple used to work at Tonito Latin American Kitchen at Jewel Changi Airport, where he was sous chef and she a junior sous. Early in 2025, they left restaurant life to strike out on their own, opening their stall in June.
Their guacamole is a nod to their Tonito days. Housemade Guacamole ($5) is tweaked for the neighbourhood crowd – less tangy, less salty, more mellow. For better value, get the Nacho Chips ($6.50) set which comes in a melamine boat, heaped with tortilla chips, guacamole and cheese sauce.
They mash Hass avocados with yellow onion, tomato, green chilli and coriander, finishing with juice from large seedless limes. It is bright and zippy, though I wish for a touch more avocado. Still, given the stall’s slim margins, it is a valiant effort.
Nacho Chips, which come with housemade guacamole, cheese sauce and tortilla chips, at Uncle Lim’s Diner.
ST PHOTO: HEDY KHOO
The real crowd-pleaser is the Crispy Chicken Cutlet With Fries ($7.90) – a golden panko-coated slab the size of a child’s face. The crust stays crisp even for takeaway orders. It is drizzled with Marie Rosa sauce – the stall’s version is a blend of tomato ketchup and mayonnaise – which adds a creamy tang to the gently seasoned meat.
Crispy Chicken Cutlet at Uncle Lim’s Diner.
ST PHOTO: HEDY KHOO
Prices here are lower than those at many other Western food stalls, making the quality and value-for-money even more impressive.
The stall uses restaurant-quality fries that are evenly cooked, retain their sunny yellow hue and are not oversalted, while the coleslaw is fresh and zesty with lemon zest, lemon juice and Sarawak black pepper.
To keep flavours true to Western fare, Mr Lim skips local staples such as soya sauce and oyster sauce. Instead, he marinates boneless chicken thighs with onion and garlic powder, ground paprika and rosemary for 36 hours.
The Chicken Chop With Pasta ($8.50) showcases that marinade beautifully – smoky paprika on the pan-seared crust, juicy meat within. But it is the Aglio Olio on the side that steals the show: spaghetti cooked al dente, coated in a housemade garlic confit that is aromatic yet creamy, leaving a rich mouthfeel. My only gripe – the Thai chilli flakes make it a little too fiery.
Chicken Chop With Pasta at Uncle Lim’s Diner.
ST PHOTO: HEDY KHOO
Also worth a try is the Fish And Chips ($9.90). Mr Lim, who detests dory, insists on using sea bass, even though it adds to his cost. He mixes Japanese tempura flour with soda water for a batter that fries up light, crisp and airy.
Fish And Chips at Uncle Lim’s Diner.
ST PHOTO: HEDY KHOO
Where: 01-387 Meet@55, 55 Lengkok Bahru
MRT: Redhill
Open: 11.30am to 8.30pm daily; no fixed days off
Info: Call 9182-9540; @unclelimdiner on Instagram
