Jollibee Singapore opened about two months ago but the queues were so long! There’s even a holding area next to the restaurant.

My boyfriend and I decided to give it a shot earlier. We arrived about an hour before closing. The end of the queue was at the holding area but not as crowded as our first attempt.

Within 15 minutes we were already at the counters inside. Quite fast! I heard it took half an hour before when it opened.

We ordered the staple Chicken Joy with rice and gravy. I got Jolly Spaghetti for takeaway while Neil got a Yum (the Jollibee burger).

The restaurant is pretty large. It was filled with Filipinos from all walks, and there were many Singaporeans too (usually Lucky Plaza is swarmed with fellow Pinoys). I’m excited to bring my local colleagues to give our crispy chicken a try.

The selling point isn’t the taste though. Jollibee is a Pinoy brand, a household name, a childhood memory, a go-to tasty alternative to McDonalds or “Mak-Doh” as my fellow Filipinos say. It’s like Coca-cola. It comes with that fuzzy feeling, a brand that connects you to the past. Well… that’s how i describe it.

So nevermind if we notice small things like the chicken may taste a little dry (compared to a Philippine branch), the spaghetti being 85% close to one at Jollibee Quezon Avenue… it’s the fact that a visual of the “jolly” bee mascot connects you instantly to “home” when you are thousands of miles away.

A 2 pcs. Chickenjoy meal with rice and drink is SGD 6.60 (PHP 214.00+). Jolly Spaghetti ala carte is SGD 4.00 (PHP 130.00+). They also serve Burger Steak and Jolly Hotdogs. No palabok (thin noodles with tasty orange prawn sauce gravy) yet. They have sundaes.

A second branch is rumored to be opening in Singapore. Serves it right since Singapore is 2nd highest origin for remittances to the Philippines behind Japan. The Filipino community is large and busy here and we also want to share a piece of Filipino culture to our Singaporean friends.

Jollibee Singapore is located on the sixth level of Lucky Plaza. Closest MRT is Orchard. Open from 10am to 9pm.