Singapore has no shortage of food options. So when a brand keeps drawing crowds at 14 different malls island-wide — from Tampines to Bukit Batok, Punggol to Bishan — you have to ask: what's the pull? I Love Taimei has been answering that question since 2009. Crispy fried chicken, handcrafted bubble tea, braised chicken rice, and a clear set of values that make the food genuinely accessible to almost everyone in Singapore.

Starting From Scratch in 2009

I Love Taimei opened in Singapore in 2009, at a time when Taiwanese street food was still a niche interest here. Taiwan's night markets — the stalls lit up at midnight, the sizzle of giant chicken cutlets, the rows of bubble tea with grass jelly and brown sugar — those were things you flew to Taipei or Taichung to experience.

The founders saw something different. Not a novelty. A daily thing. Food that could fit into a Singapore lunch break or a Saturday night supper with the family. So they started with a kiosk format: compact, fast, and focused on getting the flavours right.

Seventeen-plus years later, the original instinct holds. The brand has never tried to be a sit-down restaurant or a premium concept. It stays close to the energy of the night market stall — quick, generous, unfussy, and just really good.

The Brand Ethos — Inclusivity, No Pork, No Lard

Here is the thing that matters most about I Love Taimei's food philosophy, and it is stated clearly on every outlet: NO PORK, NO LARD.

This is not a certification or a marketing claim. It is a straightforward commitment that the brand made at the start and has kept. The menu does not contain pork or lard in any form. That means a Muslim customer can eat here — and many do — even though I Love Taimei is not halal-certified. It means a Hindu customer avoiding beef (there is none on the menu) can eat here too. It means groups of friends with different dietary backgrounds can all order from the same counter without anyone being left out.

That quiet inclusivity is part of why the brand has lasted. Singapore is a city where you eat together. A food brand that makes shared meals easier earns loyalty fast.

The menu also includes vegetarian-friendly options, which expands the circle further. Taiwanese street food is not inherently meat-heavy, and I Love Taimei leans into that — not to chase a trend, but because it reflects the actual breadth of what you find at a real night market.

From One Kiosk to 14 Outlets Island-Wide

Fourteen outlets is a significant footprint for any F&B brand in Singapore. The full list spans the island's major residential and transport hubs:

Waterway Point (Punggol), Sun Plaza (Sembawang), SingPost Centre (Eunos), Northpoint City (Yishun), Junction 8 (Bishan), Lot One (Choa Chu Kang), Sengkang Grand Mall, The Woodleigh Mall, Hillion Mall (Bukit Panjang), Nex (Serangoon), The Clementi Mall, Bugis Junction, West Mall (Bukit Batok), and Tampines 1.

The pattern is deliberate. These are not tourist corridors or CBD lunch spots. They are neighbourhood malls — the ones Singaporeans walk to after work, pass through on weekend errands, or stop at before catching the MRT home. I Love Taimei positions itself as a local staple, not a destination.

Every outlet runs the same core menu and the same hours: 11am to 10pm daily (with Junction 8 and West Mall closing at 9:30pm). Consistency at that scale is harder than it sounds.

If you want to find the outlet nearest to you, the store finder is here: https://ilovetaimei.com/places/

Women-Owned, Singapore-Born, Taiwan-Inspired

I Love Taimei is a women-owned business, and has been from the start. CEO Phoebe Wang and CMTO Yadah Wang have run and led the brand since 2009.

What that ownership looks like in practice: a brand that makes decisions based on long-term community fit rather than short-term hype. The kiosk-first model, the no-pork-no-lard commitment, the neighbourhood-focused expansion — these are not moves that came from a growth deck. They came from people who understood what Singapore eats and how Singapore families make decisions about where to spend money.

The Taiwan-inspiration is genuine, not decorative. The brand name itself — Taimei (台妹) — is a Taiwanese colloquial term. The food traces back to specific traditions: the XXL chicken cutlet that became iconic at Taiwanese night markets, the lu rou fan braised pork rice that is Taiwan's most comforting street dish (adapted here without pork, using chicken), the brown sugar bubble tea that took over every night market counter in the 2010s.

The bridge between Taiwanese originals and a Singapore audience is where I Love Taimei does its best work.

What's on the Menu

The headline items are the ones that bring people back.

The XXL Taiwan Fried Chicken is the signature — a full chicken cutlet, battered and fried until the crust shatters when you bite through it. It comes in multiple seasonings. It is the kind of thing that is genuinely hard to finish alone, which makes it ideal for sharing, or for a serious appetite after a long day.

The Taiwan Popcorn Chicken is the snackable version — bite-sized pieces, same crispy technique, easier to eat while walking. If you have ever stood at a night market stall with a paper cup of popcorn chicken waiting for your bubble tea order, that is exactly the experience I Love Taimei is replicating.

The Brown Sugar Bubble Tea is a must-order alongside any fried item. The brown sugar syrup adds a caramel depth that plain milk tea cannot match, and the contrast with the savoury chicken is the whole point of the milk tea and fried chicken pairing that defines Taiwanese street food culture.

Braised Chicken Rice (a chicken-based adaptation of lu rou fan) rounds out the menu for anyone who wants a proper meal rather than a snack. Tender braised chicken over rice, with the braising sauce soaking in — it is comfort food in the most direct sense.

The full menu, including Taiwan Tempura, desserts, and seasonal items, is at https://ilovetaimei.com/menu/

Find Your Nearest Outlet or Order Now

If you are looking for the closest I Love Taimei to you, the store finder has all 14 locations with addresses and hours: https://ilovetaimei.com/places/

You can order online for delivery or pickup here: https://go.momos.com/ilovetaimei

And if you eat here often enough that a membership makes sense, the details are at: https://ilovetaimei.com/membership/

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