Essex Market has a lot of stalls to choose from but Eat Gai is one of our go-to favorite. We love ordering their Pineapple chicken. It's a Hat Yai Southern Thai Fried chicken with pineapple & ginger rice served in pineapple shell! The presentation is so cute. The chicken was crispy and juicy, seasoned to perfection with a blend of spices. The pineapple pieces in the ginger rice is a perfect complement, adding a burst of sweetness from the pineapple and a hint of ginger. We love the chicken so much that we also just ordered the Thai Fried chicken itself. Something about the chicken it is so soft, we we believe is the use of turmeric that paired with other spices has the chicken bold and full of flavorful. We didn't stop there we also ordered the Fried chicken Bahn MI as well. This was our first time trying Fried Chicken Bahn Mi, It was delicious taking the chicken into a sandwich with some greens, cucumbers, and sauce. We do suggest asking for more sauce due to the fact the its a little in the dry end when chewing so the sauce helps with that. Other then that it was fulfilling.
Elaine W.
I absolutely love Hainanese chicken, so I was excited to see that Essex Market had Eat Gai as a food vendor. I made a beeline to Eat Gai as I walked into the market.I got Eat Gai's original order, which comes with Hainanese chicken, chicken flavored rice, three kinds of sauces, and melon soup. I wanted to love this place so much but my chicken was so dry that not even the sauces did much. And where is all the chicken skin? And my rice did not have much flavor, which was also surprising because I thought the very yellow color would indicate a strong chicken flavor. I did really enjoy the soup though, that was probably the only thing I enjoyed about my $12.50 meal. Very disappointing.Still, I gave 3 stars instead of 2 because I appreciate the diverse presence within the market, and the staff was very nice. Maybe I'll try the chicken wings next time if I happen to be in the area. Maybe..
meisaka
Their Hainan Chicken looks really good on Yelp but it turned out to be a great disappointment. Chicken is way too over cooked, tasted like rubber and the rice is soggy, the whole chicken over rice is a disaster.Don't!!!
HK E.
I had high expectation of their Hainan Chicken, unfortunately their chicken is way way overcooked and tasted like rubber. Rice is soggy, the whole thing is wrong.For the $13 a chicken over right it is totally not worth it.The sauces came with the chicken rice are not bad but not something impressing.
Sarah Paik
the fried chicken plate is a must have so flavorful without being greasy!
Cheok Jia Ying
If you're a born and bred SGrean like myself, don't bother. Not that I had a high expectation to eat the exact thing in SG, but it was still disappointing with the lowered expectations. Even though the rice is ok, the chicken is bland and dry. It definitely looks like the chicken rice from home but don't let looks deceive you!
Andy Wong
Used to be better. Now the chicken is just super dry and the sauce is not as good
Tracy F.
Picked up lunch here on several occasions and always end up with a full and satisfying tummy. Favorites are the Thai crispy fried chicken and lemongrass chicken. Portions are generous and the green sauce paired with the meals are perfect! My only disappointment is that they stopped making curry puffs.
Jane P.
Just an okay spot of gai chicken and rice. It was just okay. The rice was meh and nothing special. The chicken was pretty dry. However, the flavors were there. It was just not executed probably. I have had way better gai chicken and rice. This was far below average, I would probably not go back here again.
Laura Pariso
Inside of Essex market, the popular option is the Hainanese Chicken rice, it comes with 3 sauces and a broth, chicken itself is a bit bland though.
Would come here repeated for their regular chicken over rice! An easy quick, simple lunch that left me full for hours. Everything was perfectly seasoned, I just wish the chicken portion was a bit more to balance with the delicious ginger rice.
Colleen W.
If I never had good khao mun gai, I'd think this place is ok, but I've been spoiled by Eim Khao Mun Kai in Elmhurst (having lived in Jackson Heights before) and Michelin bib gourmand KMG in Thailand. The meat here is too overcooked, tough, and dry--KMG is supposed to be velvety and smooth. Also not enough ginger flavor. The rice was also mushy and lacked the delicate aroma of jasmine rice and ginger. I'd give this place 2 stars if I was purely judging by the food, but the auntie working here seems really sweet and hard working so I'm bumping up one star.
Dave L.
I went to eat GAi Essex market for weekend Inside was very busy I order different chicken to try I like the most was chicken with lemongrass. But hainan chicken the meat a bit to dry and no taste.
Liz
Inedible fried chicken, incredibly hard. Tasteless chicken curry puff. What a disappointment.
Jackson Kaufman
Chicken sandwich is my go to lunch in Essex Market, too good
Essex Market has a lot of stalls to choose from but Eat Gai is one of our go-to favorite. We love ordering their Pineapple chicken. It's a Hat Yai Southern Thai Fried chicken with pineapple & ginger rice served in pineapple shell! The presentation is so cute. The chicken was crispy and juicy, seasoned to perfection with a blend of spices. The pineapple pieces in the ginger rice is a perfect complement, adding a burst of sweetness from the pineapple and a hint of ginger. We love the chicken so much that we also just ordered the Thai Fried chicken itself. Something about the chicken it is so soft, we we believe is the use of turmeric that paired with other spices has the chicken bold and full of flavorful. We didn't stop there we also ordered the Fried chicken Bahn MI as well. This was our first time trying Fried Chicken Bahn Mi, It was delicious taking the chicken into a sandwich with some greens, cucumbers, and sauce. We do suggest asking for more sauce due to the fact the its a little in the dry end when chewing so the sauce helps with that. Other then that it was fulfilling.
I absolutely love Hainanese chicken, so I was excited to see that Essex Market had Eat Gai as a food vendor. I made a beeline to Eat Gai as I walked into the market.I got Eat Gai's original order, which comes with Hainanese chicken, chicken flavored rice, three kinds of sauces, and melon soup. I wanted to love this place so much but my chicken was so dry that not even the sauces did much. And where is all the chicken skin? And my rice did not have much flavor, which was also surprising because I thought the very yellow color would indicate a strong chicken flavor. I did really enjoy the soup though, that was probably the only thing I enjoyed about my $12.50 meal. Very disappointing.Still, I gave 3 stars instead of 2 because I appreciate the diverse presence within the market, and the staff was very nice. Maybe I'll try the chicken wings next time if I happen to be in the area. Maybe..
Their Hainan Chicken looks really good on Yelp but it turned out to be a great disappointment. Chicken is way too over cooked, tasted like rubber and the rice is soggy, the whole chicken over rice is a disaster.Don't!!!
I had high expectation of their Hainan Chicken, unfortunately their chicken is way way overcooked and tasted like rubber. Rice is soggy, the whole thing is wrong.For the $13 a chicken over right it is totally not worth it.The sauces came with the chicken rice are not bad but not something impressing.
the fried chicken plate is a must have so flavorful without being greasy!
If you're a born and bred SGrean like myself, don't bother. Not that I had a high expectation to eat the exact thing in SG, but it was still disappointing with the lowered expectations. Even though the rice is ok, the chicken is bland and dry. It definitely looks like the chicken rice from home but don't let looks deceive you!
Used to be better. Now the chicken is just super dry and the sauce is not as good
Picked up lunch here on several occasions and always end up with a full and satisfying tummy. Favorites are the Thai crispy fried chicken and lemongrass chicken. Portions are generous and the green sauce paired with the meals are perfect! My only disappointment is that they stopped making curry puffs.
Just an okay spot of gai chicken and rice. It was just okay. The rice was meh and nothing special. The chicken was pretty dry. However, the flavors were there. It was just not executed probably. I have had way better gai chicken and rice. This was far below average, I would probably not go back here again.
Inside of Essex market, the popular option is the Hainanese Chicken rice, it comes with 3 sauces and a broth, chicken itself is a bit bland though.
Restaurantji Recommends
Would come here repeated for their regular chicken over rice! An easy quick, simple lunch that left me full for hours. Everything was perfectly seasoned, I just wish the chicken portion was a bit more to balance with the delicious ginger rice.
If I never had good khao mun gai, I'd think this place is ok, but I've been spoiled by Eim Khao Mun Kai in Elmhurst (having lived in Jackson Heights before) and Michelin bib gourmand KMG in Thailand. The meat here is too overcooked, tough, and dry--KMG is supposed to be velvety and smooth. Also not enough ginger flavor. The rice was also mushy and lacked the delicate aroma of jasmine rice and ginger. I'd give this place 2 stars if I was purely judging by the food, but the auntie working here seems really sweet and hard working so I'm bumping up one star.
I went to eat GAi Essex market for weekend Inside was very busy I order different chicken to try I like the most was chicken with lemongrass. But hainan chicken the meat a bit to dry and no taste.
Inedible fried chicken, incredibly hard. Tasteless chicken curry puff. What a disappointment.
Chicken sandwich is my go to lunch in Essex Market, too good