New Lucky Claypot Rice

Ring ahead and you walk in as the lid comes off.

New Lucky is worth the trip to Holland Drive for a slow hawker dinner for two, and the one thing to know is that you should phone ahead. Every pot at this upstairs stall in Holland Drive Market & Food Centre is cooked to order over charcoal, from scratch, which takes time. Pre-order by phone and arrive as it comes off the fire; the compromise is short sessions and a midweek day off, so check the hours box before you go.

Claypot rice refuses to be hurried, and the stall doesn't try. It has more than thirty years behind it across several locations before settling in Holland Drive, and it has held a Michelin Bib Gourmand since 2017, including in the 2026 Singapore guide. One pot is plenty for two to share.

What arrives is the classic: chicken with salted fish and lap cheong over rice, with a thin layer of crisp, slightly burnt rice at the bottom that is the best part of the meal. You season it yourself at the table with dark soy and oil. Go easy at first, taste, then add; it is far easier to put more soy in than to take it out, and the crust deserves better than drowning.

Spend your attention on the pot. If you want something on the side, add one of the stall's traditional soups, such as lotus root with white fungus, rather than a plate of vegetables. Mixed groups are covered too: there is a pork-free claypot chicken rice alongside the house pot.

Holland Drive itself is part of the appeal. This is a proper neighbourhood market, a short hop from Holland Village, where the regulars know the drill and the drill is the phone call (the most Singaporean thing about this meal may be that you book a hawker stall).

How to do it well: ring at least half an hour before you arrive, give your order and the number of people, and turn up on time so the pot isn't sitting. Bring one friend for the two-person pot, or scale up if there are more of you. When the rice is done, scrape the crust last and slowly; it is the reason you came.

Good to know Call ahead to pre-order: the claypots take time, sessions are short and it closes one day a week, so check current timings before you go. The stall is at #02-19 Holland Drive Market & Food Centre.

New Lucky Claypot Rice | #02-19 Holland Drive Market & Food Centre, 44 Holland Drive, Singapore 270044