Star Western at Kovan: 24/7 coffee shop stall with old-school Western food

A straightforward menu at Star Western

Here, the menu is simple and straightforward — old-school, Hainanese-style western fare is served on metal plates and accompanied by a choice of baked beans, coleslaw or garlic toast. 

You can also expect some other side dishes — that we don’t often see served at coffee shops — such as tater tots (S$5) and roasted russet potatoes (S$3). 

But the most eye-catching dish on its menu is its chicken wings (S$1.50 for one, with a minimum order of two pieces) that are freshly fried upon order.

The food at Star Western

Star Western has a handful of proteins to choose from, such as chicken chop, pork chop (S$10), lamb chop (S$13.50) and salmon steak (S$13.50). 

During our visit, we chose the chicken chop mushroom sauce (S$9) — Star Western’s signature dish, which comes with fries, a sunny side-up egg, baked beans, garlic toast, and coleslaw. 

When it first arrived, the dish looked promising. Besides looking juicy and tender, the meat was decently portioned — so much so that it took up half the plate.

But once we dug in, we found that both the sauce and meat over-seasoned and salt-heavy.

We did, nonetheless, enjoy the sides that came along with it: Two slices of white bread were gently toasted with garlic spread and it sopped up the salty-sweet zhup (gravy) of the baked beans and mushroom sauce, which was on point for us.

Next, we had the chicken cutlet rice (S$9.30), which is paired with a sunny side-up, baked beans, coleslaw and turmeric rice. 

Between the two mains, we preferred this, instead. The chicken cutlet was comforting, well-seasoned and fried to a good crisp — although we found the rice was slightly mushy.

Besides its mains, we tried its roasted russet potatoes (S$3), a large potato that’s cut open lengthwise and served hot. Before it arrives at your table, the buttered potato receives a generous dollop of sour cream, cream cheese, and spring onions in between its two halves, before being topped liberally with real bacon bits. 

Meanwhile, Star Western also prides itself in its affordable and crispy chicken wings, which are also served freshly fried and piping hot. 

Though Star Western might be a little on the pricey side — slightly more than what you usually find at western hawker stalls — we do think that its generous portions justify its prices.

The real draw, though, is that Star Western remains open 24/7, making it a convenient late-night spot, if you’re around the area and looking to settle your Western food fix during odd hours!

For the latest eats, read about Korio reopening at Downtown with new sammies and donuts to boot, or Nibbies Cafe, a Japanese-inspired spot at Telok Ayer with tatami-style seating and brunch.  

Enjoy up to 50% off when you dine with GrabFood Dine Out. 

You can also book a ride to Star Western to try its old-school Western food.