I Eat Only, That's All!

Fattened in Shanghai (1) - Street food/Snacks

2011-12-03T11:31:00.013+08:00

It's been more than half a year since this blog had been updated... not that we haven't been eating, so no, we're not cachexic; Nor that there was nothing we ate that was good to share... but it's been quite a packed out and eventful couple of months, so writing on the blog's been the least of my priorities! And it's been so long since i wrote, that i'd forgotten how therapeutic it is just sitting here writing about food... especially in the recent spate of battering and needless attacks from one whom i'm a direct minion to at work... sigh...

So, on this rare Saturday with no work and no call, i present the first of the entries from my recent Shanghai trip!

1. "Fresh Meat Mooncakes"

Well, that's the direct translation!

"Xian(1) Rou(4) Yue(4) Bing(3)"...

We had this (and queued for it!) on the first night we arrived, when we were taken to Nanjing walking street.

This little stall in the corner of a larger snack shop sold this interesting combination of a Bak Pau and a Tau Sar Piah... think Bak Pau filling in a Tau Sar Piah skin... YUM! The meat inside was tasty and juicy... tho for a split second, i thought about what the filling could really be... At 3 Yuen, it's a must try!

2. Nanxiang Xiao Long Bao

Found in Yu Yuan Garden, the snake-like queue to this Xiao Long Bao was phenomenal... but doing the tourist thing, we decided to queue for this famous must-try XLB which my friend brings all her visitors to... The interesting thing about this XLB was how hardy it was... unlike the very thin-skinned counterpart we find at home, which sometimes ruptures prematurely, this one is a little more thick-skinned that it could withstand the rough emptying of a "long(2)" of 16 XLBs into the little cardboard boxes they were served in. Soup remains intact, and everyone's happy!

3. The "straw pau"

This amusing snack comprises of a shallow bamboo dish with minced meat and soup (like a XLB), topped with a regular Pau skin, and a straw stuck into it so you can sip the soup before devouring the rest. Taste-wise, it wasn't great, but hey, for the novelty!

4. Pork chop on Nian Gao

This dish, the neighbour of the straw pau in the photo, was a yummy fried pork chop on chewy slabs of nian gao, drizzled with a salty sauce... the pork chop was good ol' artery clogging food, but the nian gao was just tasteless chewy flour slabs, slightly off what i expected... This one's good for sharing, cos it's really filling!

5. Lillian egg tarts

I'm an egg tart fan... but good egg tarts are hard to come by. Here at home, Tong Heng egg tarts are my favourite, and i never thought i'd find something better... until i found Lillian.

Crisp light pastry holding smooth silky egg custard... when eaten warm, just sent me going "mmmmm....". It's slogan says "Could be Shanghai's most delicious egg tarts". Totally agree. Ten thumbs up.

Ok, til the next installment of Fatttened in Shanghai, keep savouring the little joys of life... :o)

Nostalgia

2011-04-23T17:13:00.006+08:00

Have you ever gone back to your childhood neighbourhood, and had that warm fuzzy feeling? I recently did, with the bonus of having the chicken rice I grew up eating.

I spent most of my growing up years in Lorong Ah Soo... and just across the road from my block, was a cluster of shops, including a coffee shop - the one with my favourite chicken rice!

Back then, the coffee shop was an old dingey one, with the chicken rice stall at the left corner. There would always be a queue at lunchtime, and I remember queuing there my dad... and I was so small I couldn't see the food placed on the stall. Then I grew up and would sometimes ta pau lunch there after school... then we moved away. For years, I hadn't gone back to that stall, until a couple of months ago, when I brought a friend there, and to my surprise, the stall was still there, still in the dingey corner of the coffee shop, and STILL had the same fragrance of the rice, exactly as I remembered it!

Last week, I made another trip back, this time with mum and dad, and got to walk around a little more. I was pleasantly surprised that some things haven't changed... the doctor I used to go to is still there... the little Econ mini-mart, the old fruit stall, the messy hardware store... all in their original spots! This time, the coffee shop had been renovated, and the stall moved to the other corner, occupying a more spacious spot, where they continue to roast their meats in the background.

This chicken rice stall may not be an all-famous one, but it remains my favourite. The rice is grainy and fragrant, with just the right consistency. The roasted chicken skin is so tasty and usually doesn't have much fat under the skin, so it doesn't feel so sinful! And the chilli - tangy and citrus, without gingery traces - just make you wanna eat more rice! Plus, the soya sauce is the thick sticky type... Put all that together, it's the perfect chicken rice! In my eyes at least... :p

Shui Ji Chicken Rice

Blk 121 Hougang Ave 1

Crabbified!

2011-04-04T21:02:00.006+08:00

Decided to do some therapeutic writing on food this breezy calm night, hoping to take the edge off a little. It's been a trying few days as this feeling of 'impending doom' builds up within me. Ok, that sounded a little drastic, but really, the feeling of kinda being in limbo, as I await news of where I am to be 'despatched to', was getting to me a little, since the weekend. And besides, this blog has been rather neglected, so here goes!

Power Teremah! That was the first reaction I had when I first tasted the sauce of the curry crabs. It was SPICY! Much spicier than the usual standards... The chili padi, fresh curry leaves and other spices blended into a magical sauce that tickled my tastebuds.

Mellben seafood was where we had dinner to celebrate my brother's birthday last week. Recommended by my sis-in-law, the crab queen, Mellben was a good choice! Tucked away in some corner of AMK, it was really crowded for a weekday night! Thankfully we were early, or else we would have been in a long queue of fellow hypoglycaemic people.

The crabs were really meaty, so it was worth getting your hands dirty for... you know, rather than getting your hands all mucky and yielding tiny bits of flesh! With the outstanding curry sauce crabs, the rest of the dishes kinda faded

into the background a little.

The crab bee hoon soup did a good job of washing down the heat a little though... milky enough for my liking too! And, thankfully, I had spotted the forbidden (f)root (ginger!) the minute the pot arrived, and swiftly rescued the rest of the pot from its evil infusion.

"Fortune chicken" was rather boring... chicken in a claypot of other seafood things... rather bland too. And what we didn't expect was for an entire chicken to be in the dish, and that really tipped us over, given all this food was ordered for 3 and a half people (yes, the half is my 5 year old nephew!)

Tofu with minced pork sauce was an ok-dish too... nothing too spectacular, though I suspect if I had had it on it's own, I would have liked it better, since the tofu was nice an silken.

All in all, it's a good place to have crab! Hmm...What I think would make a great dish is sliced pork in the power curry sauce!

My Reunion Lunch

2011-02-03T20:17:00.002+08:00

This year's reunion lunch for my family... it's really a REUNION! Thank God that i'm back in Singapore and was allowed to spend a day with my family.

We almost didn't get to go for this meal because before my brother's car couldn't start and was really late in picking me up. Then we had to go to the mechanic to change the battery. Anyway... we still managed.

So.... We went to Resort World, Sentosa. Not that I really want to recommend this restaurant.. because it's EXPENSIVE, but more so of sharing my joy with all of you.

We ate at Fung Shui Inn Restaurant. We had Gourupa fish, asparagus with scallop, soup, Lobster salad, crab meat with Huang Di Miao and roasted chicken. As usual, my brother only remembered to take the photos after we started the meal. What's new... As for the taste, it's so so lah. The ambience was cozy and quiet. It indeed recreated a beautiful atmosphere our our reunion lunch. And, more importantly, my nephew Jevin has got enough space to walk about and crawl under chairs to entertain himself without us worrying that plates and bowls falling over him.

After our meal, we walked around the Resort World. the place was really huge. It was really a wonderful family outing just walking around and visiting boutiques which it's too ridicules to buy anything from them. Then we ended up at Toast Box which is more affordable for tea before heading back home.

I'm just so happy to be with my family an of course Jevin, my nephew is the central attention and the joy giver that brings my whole family together. It's just so wonderful..

Banyak makan

2010-11-07T21:48:00.006+08:00

Sometimes what we plan for doesn’t happen... but in it’s place we might find something good.

That was what happened last night. My friends and I decided to have dinner and a chill night out, and to have a breather from people and crowds, so we had planned to have pizzas and pastas at an Italian place at Far East Square, where it’s serene and no one’s in your face. Didn’t work out though... since it was closed :( My first reaction was “What?!! But they’re ALWAYS open on Saturday nights!” *sigh*

But we quickly settled on another place – Pagi-Sore, and Indonesian place just a around the corner – and what a gem it was! I had heard good things about it, but never got down to trying it. So 3 hungry hippos plonked themselves at table and ordered their food - slightly over-enthusiastically. And we only realised what damage we had done when the food arrived – Tahu Telur, Sambal Kangkong, Ayam Bali and Ikan Otah Kukus – all for 3 people who don’t usually eat very much!

The highlight for me was the Ikan Otah Kukus. I had always known Otah as minced up fish with the otah paste, whether in a tray or wrapped up in banana leaf. But this one is different. A whole leatherjacket fish cooked in a pasty otah gravy. I would have liked the gravy slightly more lemak and pedas, but it did well enough!

Slowly but surely, and slightly painfully towards the end (since our tummies were on the verge of bursting!), we finished our food... only to have the sweet waitress come by and ask us if we wanted desserts! Faint. Though the general rule was that desserts belong to a separate compartment, I was so stuffed it spilled over into the dessert compartment. However, Soursop sorbet caught the eye of my friend, and we decided to share it. Yet another good choice...as it refreshingly cleansed the palette, and gave a nice closure to dinner.

So, sometimes when certain doors (be it that of restaurants or life in general) close on us, be open to others, and you might be just be pleasantly surprised :o)

Pagi-Sore
Far East Square

La La La...

2010-10-05T16:29:00.005+08:00

It has been a while since I've put up anything here... thanks to the hectic production line I work in, that has recently left me rather tired and out of sorts.

Today, however, being my long awaited off day, I had the luxury of having some peace and quiet... to just be. A nice change from having to speak incessantly to some 60 - 90 people a day, depending how good or bad the day is. One thing for sure, my vocal cords are thankful... and my blood pressure is doing well :o) Hence the inspiration to write an entry in this rather neglected blog. Besides, I was being introduced to a new makan place today... a cuisine I had never heard of - Heng Hwa - so how can i not write right?

God somehow always had good timing, and the off day coincided with Line's very short visit back to SG. Hence her mum had invited me for lunch at one of her favourite hang outs - Xing Hua Family Restaurant, at Boon Keng. Camouflaged in a row of "void deck shops", this gem of a place served really tasty food!

Auntie, being the regular customer there, quickly rattled off the dishes she so decided for the day - Prawn in herbal broth (served in a bamboo) - interesting!, Deep fried Tenggiri fish - so crispy youcan eat the bones, Stir fried deer meat - nice and tender, Sambal kangkong - quite the usual, La la in spicy sauce - OOOH!, and Fried yam. Though all the dishes were great, 2 made deeper impressions - the La la and the yam.

The spicy sauce of the La la was one of those that was tasty, spicy, but not oily. It infused the fresh little clams such that each mouthful was a flavour burst. Not to mention that mixing the sauce with rice was heavenly! In fact, this dish was so good, we had a second order!

The fried yam was a simple dish. It was, exactly as it's called - Fried yam. Nothing else in the dish, but yam that was fried - not deep fried with a batter, but fried with a caramelised exterior, shelling a soft, moist interior. YUM! (no pun intended :o))

There are still many dishes there that are yet to be tried, so I'll definitely be going back!

Xing Hua Family Restaurant

Block 101 Towner Road

Famous Terengganu Bread

2010-06-26T21:18:00.000+08:00

It’s a long time since the last entry. I hardly get to go out for meals. Even the times when I do go out, I feel unsafe to bring a camera out. Sometimes, I’m also a little shy to take pictures in front of the sisters and friends.

So… this is Terengganu signature bread. Well, it’s actually a round bread with many small buns joined together. And individual buns have fillings. There’s kaya, margarine, etc… but I’m not sure if mixed fillings are available. This particular one has margarine in every little bun.

Now, let me explain why it’s not round in the picture. I only took the shot when all the sisters are resting in their rooms. So, it’s what left after lunch.

It taste really good. Although it’s normal bread, the unique shape and the way we eat it (bun by bun) makes a whole lot of difference.

So, if you come to Terengganu, don’t forget to buy some of me… ha ha….

Food for my spirit

2010-05-05T20:14:00.004+08:00

I'm 3 days into my new assignment, and "overwhelmed" is it, in a nutshell. Overwhelmed from the shear speed I need to have, which leaves me hardly any time to think... Overwhelmed from the realisation that I do need to know just about everything, cos unlike working in specialty units, anything under the sun can turn up in my room!

However, overwhelmed me was thankful that I managed to end the day with Mass on my 1st day... a luxury I haven't had all last year. And it did make a difference... it was a settling time... as if the "oh my gosh, what a day!" exhausted me turned up at His table and was fed... It was also a time to come before the Divine Physician to ask that whatever work i do, that it is Him doing through me... a reminder that in such a rushed setting, I need Him to watch my back. And with this current assignment, i can look forward to more of such days of reclining at His table at the end of the day!

Today, I also saw another need for this food... the need know how to do the right things... not just the life-saving or disease-curing decisions, that are more or less universal... but harder than that, those surrounding what our faith teaches us. What do i do when a 45 yr old woman turns up wanting a pregnancy test, and asking what i can give to cause a "natural miscarriage"? Evidence tells us that she's at a high risk of foetal abnormalities like Down's, and many other complications herself, so logically it's the way to go. But faith tells me that if it was a positive, that is God's life giving love created in flesh! It makes sense to me... but how do i make that sense to others? Do i then send her next door to another colleague who has no such dilemma? Especially when i don't have the luxury of time for a long counselling session? At that point I didn't know what i would have done, but thankfully, being towards the end of the day, the lab had closed so I had to ask her to return tmr for the test. Though i'm hoping she might not turn up in my room again, i have to be prepared. I don't know... I've just been feeling rather unsettled since then... I just hope that when the time comes, I may know what to do.

The crab solution

2010-04-15T10:32:00.009+08:00

Here's part 2 of food from my trip... this time, instead of sitting by the fireplace and getting comfort away from the cold while writing, I feel like I'm, IN the fireplace. It's been insanely hot, and I can't seem to get used to it!

Anyways, this is about Maryland's famous - Crab cakes. I had never known that, until I went to Baltimore, and my dear friend (knowing what a foodie I am) had put that on her list of "Karen's must-eats". If you're thinking fish cakes like the ones in ta-mee, throw that image out. Throw even Thai prawn cakes out.. This is real crab (and nothing but chunks of it!) nicely seasoned and rolled up into a ball, then lightly fried. Awesome!

For someone who likes crabs, but not enough to want to fight with it's shell to get the flesh out, this is the perfect solution! And i thoroughly enjoyed it :o)

Along with crab cakes, we ordered a pasta to share - Seafood cajun fettucine. Thankfully we stopped at 2, cos the pasta was a huge portion, with a generous lot of prawns and scallops! We were stuffed.

Service was great at this place too, so if you ever head to Baltimore, pop in to Obrycki's and try them. You'll love them!

Food from the other side of the world... part 1

2010-03-30T09:51:00.007+08:00

Thanks to the miserably cold and rainy weather outside, I'm indoors today, and am enjoying the warmth of the fireplace and having some time to be still and just lounge around.. and write an entry... all the way from the other side of the world, abt good food I've found here :o)

This one will be about Chicken Rico... the best (i mean BEST!) chicken I've had... it's a Peruvian charcoal broiled chicken I had in Baltimore... after my longtime good friend raved about it, and took me there :o) The shop was found in one of the dodgey parts of town, so we drove there, found a parking across the road and ran into the shop. The slightly dingey-looking shop run by Latinos greeted us with a yummy fragrance that got me hungry. Standing in line waiting to be served was rather torturous, since they took so long, and the charcoal grilled chicken, freshly out of the rotisserie, was just staring at us! *drool*

When we finally got our "ta pau" order packed, we ran back out and drove home, to enjoy our dinner in the comforts of her studio apartment.

Ok, I realise that the photo doesn't do Chicken Rico justice... the skin was so flavourful (who cares abt the fat at this point) and the flavour of the spices and who knows whatever they put inside penetrated the whole chunck of meat. Well roasted on the outside and juicy in the inside, it deserved 6 out of 5 stars! For sides, we had (1) the rice (which was just alright, until we mixed in the extra juices (and oil) from the chicken), and (2) platains, which I had for the first time in my life... these are bananas of a certain kind that is roasted til they're brown on the outside. Kinda like the mexican counterpart of goreng pisang. They were so good, but also super filling! :p

We loved it so much that we thought of forgetting about our jobs and opening an outlet back home! :o)

Local delights.... Kuala Trengganu

2010-03-06T14:05:00.001+08:00

Writing all the way from Kuala Trengganu, Malaysia. Have been here almost a week. I don’t really know much about the place, but life is definitely slower here. Today, we had a half day recollection. So, Sr. Mary Peter Ng went out to buy some food for lunch. She bought some local delights. My first reaction when I open…errr….. purple rice!!! Weird!! But had to change the image of it cause it’s still food…ermm… it’s interesting.

It tasted really good. It's a bit spicy too. Over here, the locals eats them for breakfast too, even the children, that’s what they bring to school for snack time.

I was so eager to share with all of you… so I bravely ask the sisters if I can take a photo to share with my friends…. Yeah!!! They were all so excited to say, of course!!!

So here’s my entry…

The one in trianglar shape is called Nasi Kelabu (2 ringgit)

The one in the box is also called Nasi Kelabu with meat (3 ringgit)

The one in cone shape is called Nasi Dagang (1 ringgit)

The one in the leave is called Tapai (1 ringgit for 2 bundles)

Ha ha… at least I managed to name them all… of course asking the sisters and writing it down.

Comfort food

2010-02-28T21:51:00.003+08:00

Just as Line thot that last nite was the last makan we were gonna have before she left for KT, I popped up from the back of the van to surprise her today. Abt a week ago, I had (after much prayer!) managed to swap out of a work shift so that I could be around with her and send her off. And I am thankful that God allowed this to work out. He knows best, I suppose!

Seeing her lighten up a little after a relaxing foot massage and some bak kut teh comforted me... that at least she was a little better than she was earlier in the morning, when i sensed her being rather out of sorts, to say the very least. Well, tho it's not as simple as for all that to go away after a massage and a bowl of bak kut teh, it did provide some respite. That, i suppose, was enough. After all, sometimes, a breather gives us that bit more of strength to keep going.

Anyways, here's the bak kut teh that we thot was one of the better ones we've had... peppery enough... as Dom's exclaimation on his first sip puts it "Wah! pepper free one ah?!"

Song Fa Bak Kut Teh
Rochor Centre

Our last maken

2010-02-28T00:42:00.001+08:00

Earlier this evening, was our last maken session before I leave for Kuala Trengganu.(KT) I longed to go East Coast Park nor for food only, but also the beach. We ate at East Coast Lagoon. At East Coast, it seems like the whole Singapore are going there. But, because we prayed, the Lord heard our prayers and gave us car packing lot.

While Kare and I went round looking for tables, our 2 guys were standing at section waiting. Finally, the 2 guys got a table which was located at a very comfortable and breeze section.

As soon as we sat down, we decided what we wanted to eat. Then Dom and Kare went off ordering food. Not long later, we started enjoying our meal and chit-chatting.

After eating, we walked for ONLY awhile and rested nearer the coast. We saw bright sister moon and many other stars. the East Coast Lagoon and the beach are one of the best place to hold gatherings.

So, this would probably be my last entry. Hopefully I get to use the computer and share something with you while in KT.

Continue to Eat only and I will be back when. Hopefully get to post something from KT.

The long and short of it

2010-02-27T16:09:00.006+08:00

While we were at Geylang, we decided to find the shop that sold beancurd with LONG yew char kway. Some taiwanese dessert place of some sort. I remembered the shop being just a short distance down from the beef kway teow shop, and Line and Dom remember it too. Fr was slightly clueless tho, so over dinner, we were trying to describe it to Fr, however our rusty memories could agree on just how long it was... ahem! We had a good laugh over it ;p

Sadly though, we walked and we walked, but never found the shop. Giving up, we decided to head back and drive to another beancurd place at Selegie road. There, in the little back alley, under the cloudy sky, with "sister moon" peaking at us, we had our cravings satisfied... tho they were not as long as the other shop, who cares? Long or short, we enjoyed it, since there was no choice anyways :o)

Rochor Original Beancurd House

Happy Birthday Everyone

2010-02-23T17:17:00.001+08:00

Ok.. this is an overdue entry.

On 20 February 2010, the 7th Day of Chinese New Year, ‘ren re’ (people’s day), is known as everyone’s birthday. So, most Chinese would have a big feast on this special day.

We too joined in the celebration…..ermm…actually it wasn’t planned, it just coincides with the day, moreover, WE EAT THAT’S ALL. Who cares about the day.

So, we went dressed in our ‘Geylang outfit’ (do not think futher than T-shirt, ~~bums~~ berms and slippers) to the famous Geylang Lorong 9 Beef Hor Fun, surely you would know where right. It was at least 10 years ago since I last ate there. It’s still so popular and nice. It was a very memorable place for Kare Kare too (Kare, you know what I’m referring to right).

In addition, it was a treat from someone special (I wonder who?). So, it tasted even better.

We ordered Beef Hor Fun with more beefs and Kai Lan with more garlic, specially requested by our dear friend, Dom.

And as usual, this photo shot, notice the messiness, was taken after experiencing the great enthusiasm for service(I hope!) by our dear Fr. Aloy, who is ever so ready and eager to serve us.

Geylang Lor 9 Beef Hor Fun

Where?? Geylang Lorong 9 lah.

Don't wear a yellow polo shirt here!

2010-02-15T16:46:00.006+08:00

An overdue post about lunch last Fri...

As you can tell, we've been eating a lot.. cramping as many meet-ups as we can before Line leaves. In the process of fattening Line for the slaughter, I have inevitably fattened myself. Not sure abt our other 2 faithful makan kakis, but I sure am feeling it! Our to-do (and to-eat) list keeps growing, but time seems to be an issue... Oh well, we'll see how much we can do.

So, on that terribly hot Fri afternoon... yes, the same one we had Haato, we headed down to Upper Thomson Road for Ampang Yong Tow Foo, of course, with the other 3 coming by to collect me along the way [thank you! :o)].

There were 2 stalls in that same row, but we chose to try out Ngee Fou. It was my first time trying it, and I was not disappointed. Having ampang yong tow foo seems less complicated than having the usual yong tow foo, or maybe the lazier option. We didn't have to queue up and pick our items. We literally sat down, the waitress confirmed the number of people, and voila! our platter of a variety of yong tow foo things on a big bed of kangkong drenched in a yummy sauce arrived. The food was nice, and something different, at least for me, though we wished we had more of the crispy fried stuff on top!

Piece of advice though... Don't wear a yellow polo shirt there, or other patrons may mistake you for one of the staff!

Ngee Fou Restaurant (Hakka) Ampang Yong Tow Foo

928 Upper Thomson Road

Hands off!!

2010-02-12T17:34:00.003+08:00

....photo needs to be taken first

After Ampang Yeung Tow Fu for lunch, we adjourned to Haato at Thomason Plaza for gelato.

We ordered a waffle with black sesame gelato and 3 individual cups of green tea gelato, strawberry gelato and lime sorbet.

At the table, we tried to plan for more makan sessions before I leave Singapore, especially immediately after Chinese New Year after collecting Ang Pows.

Ai ya... I have to go now for another reunion dinner..... would like to write more but.... words coming in too slowly...

Haato is good... go for it....

Haato

Level 2, Thomason Plaza

Rest helps the memory :o)

2010-02-12T10:54:00.004+08:00

Continuation of our Bird Park day...

After shutting our tummies up with Casurina Curry, 3 post-prandial souls headed home for some rest, with plans to meet up again later for dinner. So promptly at 8.15pm, we dutifully kidnapped Line after her duty in church, and cruised our way to be gong gong...oops i meant, to eat gong gong. This time, with a bit of rest, we remembered the photo.. *yay*

This place has been my favourite place to have chut chut and gong gong for ages. The chut chuts are always well cut such that it's optimal for sucking the lil snails out of their homes, and the sauce spicy and with heaps of garlic. *shiok* Once more, this time, they didn't let us down. Their gong gong cousins did well too! Being so fresh, the flesh was firm, and had no hint of muddiness. In fact, the beauty of being gong is that you can be enjoyed plain, just blanched, so that your sweetness steals the show. Our 3rd dish from the well known Hua Kee in Pasir Panjang Food Centre is the BBQ stingray... Well grilled to seal the juices, with the fragrant sambal basted all over, it was a champion, and it sure did satisfy Line's stingray craving!

My personal bonus was that the Yusoff Haji Jalal satay stall still had Babat satay! Bonus because the past 2 times I went there, they had run out of babat. They have one of the best babat satays, in my opinion, as they've managed to consistently panggang the babat to perfection, leaving the lil skewered piece of beef tripe fragrantly grilled soft and chewy. Heavenly. I was most glad to have Dom also enjoy babat, since it sometimes seemed like I was the only savage eating some animal's tummy. Of course, along with the babat, we ordered some chicken satay, especially for our less barbaric friend and sister, and they were just as yummy!

With sugarcane juice as the finishing touch, it was... Good Food, and Good Company!

It happened again!!!

2010-02-10T17:59:00.001+08:00

Yes.. it happened again…. What happened??

Well as usual, see the photo taken… sigh..

We were tired and sleepy after spending the morning at Jurong Bird Park. As we did not have a proper lunch, our tummy tells us that we need to EAT. So, we went to Casuarina Curry at Casuarina Road. We ordered Garlic Prata, Onion Egg Chili Prata, Mutton Curry and Chicken Curry. And…. Lime Juice to quench our thirst.

I love the Lime juice…. Ermm as for the food stuff, they were really delicious. Personally, I finds the chicken curry a little too spicy but SHIOK!!!. The pratas were very crispy too.

I would recommend this place to you if you are looking for crispy pratas in an air-conditioned restaurant. There’s no need for me to say further as this prata place is superbly well-known…..

Go …. Enjoy…

Casuarina Curry

136 & 138 Casuarina Road

Happy food... on 2 levels

2010-02-07T18:08:00.004+08:00

It has been a trying week... Not so much the work load that made it trying, but working with one of the bosses. Having spent the last month with a boss who was such a wonderful person, this was a stark contrast. I mean STARK. I loved the way my ex-boss saw his patients... with so much human touch and compassion. He reinforced, by example, that medicine requires more than the hard-core scientific stuff. He always made his patients feel listened to, and he genuinely cared for them. And being like-minded, working with him was JOY. This week, however, I felt that for the better half of the time, we were managing diseases rather than caring for patients. Doesn't help that this boss seemed as if he was perpetually MANopausal, with frequent displays of his irritability... and guess who bears the brunt of it... What saddens me most is that sometimes, the patients get a taste of his irritability. Sigh.

So, anyway, on Thursday night, I msged Line to arranged for dinner on Friday, as I was so in need of happy food. Whatever that might be. When we met up at my workplace, we decided to have a quick-ish dinner somewhere along the way, then head to our favourite place. :o) So we headed to Bishan and walked around in search of food.

Lobs-xi-fa-cai caught our eye... It was a seafood platter with a small lobster, calamari, and fish, served with garlic rice and fries. Manhatten's current 1-for-1 promotion. The tasty lobster was succulent, and topped with mayo that was flamed brown; the calamari tastily battered, though slightly overfried; the fish was well done, retaining its juices. Topped with my extra serving of chopped garlic (pardon my garlic breath!), the meal did well as happy food. :o)

What followed was actually more instrumental in helping me unwind... sitting at the steps of our piazza in the silence and God-sent gentle breeze, and staring up at the 3 warmly-lit crosses against the background of the dark sky. It somehow was a reflection that in the darkness of the world, we are called to look to the Cross, for there is the light. That place is special to me... to both of us, in fact! A place that we've often sat at to share & enjoy each other's presence, and also a place that we sometimes go on our own to be alone... It has never falied to calm and soothe me, a place where I can take a step back... to retreat... I suppose that was my spiritual happy food. :o)

Looking forward to..........better ones....

2010-01-31T18:25:00.002+08:00

It all started with...me lor.... craving for Peppery Bak Kut Teh Soup since last Sunday when we were at Sin Ming.

So while walking around Marina Square, we decided to activate everyone for lunch today after mass. Miraculously, Kare managed to get home from work today before I finished mass at Church of the Immaculate Heart of Mary… so lunch was earlier then expected.

So our friend Dominic drove his big white “Caravan” down to Sin Ming. We ordered 2 bowls of Bak Kut Teh and a bowl of Big Trotter. As usual, we said our our prayers and dug in......forgot to take pictures...as you can tell, half the soup was GONE!!!

It was good, but a little disappointing cause we expected the soup to be more peppery. We decided to go in search for even better clear soup Bak Kut Teh. Looking forward to it…….

Rong Chen

Blk 22, Sin Ming Road

The little joys of life!

2010-01-30T23:39:00.001+08:00

After our short and fruitless shopping trip after lunch, we decided to head to the Henderson waves for some fresh air, and to while away some time before going for sunset Mass at St Teresa's. Serendipitously, an ice-cream man had stratigically parked his scooter at the start of the slope up from the carpark. Just what we needed to cool ourselves in the humid outdoors of Singapore!

Like happy kids, we savoured our $1 treats and began on our walk up (wishing we were dressed in shorts and T-shirts). Chocolate chip & Macadamia flavours... not that the ice-cream was gourmet, but hey, for a dollar, it's good stuff!

What's better was the lepak-ing on the waves... we conveniently plonked ourselves in a corner and quickly conformed our lazy selves to the contours of the wave, and there, just chatted the hour away. The sun was a tad bit uncomfortable to our eyes, as we were facing west.... more so for me, since i didn't have transition lenses!

Perhaps going one early morning to lie there and watch the world light up would be beautiful. We could do it as morning meditation :o) We'll be dressed a little more appropriately too...

Dinner only begins at 10pm

2010-01-30T23:19:00.005+08:00

It was a farewell dinner with my friends from Mission Awareness Group at Khansama Tandoori Village. We walked through the side gate at Normanton Park Condo which leads to Science Park 1.

We went there about 8.15pm and there were only 2 other tables occupied. The restaurant ambience was very suitable us to reflect and share our lives.

My friends ordered many dishes...opps sorry, I can't named them. Anyway, all that we ordered was really good. I, who never really likes Indian food says that it's good... means it's good lah.....

Ok... we enjoyed our meals very much and shared alot till 10pm where all the Indians started coming into the restaurant. We were shocked!!! That's where I learned that Indians eats very late at night....

Khansama Tandoori Village

87 Science Park Drive,

#02-01 The Science Hub,

Science Park 1,

Rubber ducky you're the one...

2010-01-30T17:41:00.001+08:00

The IT-challenged one is FINALLY writing her first entry... in this blog that is more than just about food, really. For beneath the surface of penning (or typing, rather) down the little adventures that tantalise our tastebuds (whether or not we end up finding the places in the end!), lies the laying down of memories of times spent with good friends. Afterall, more important than good food, is good company :o)

So, it was a Saturday afternoon when we were to meet for lunch after I was done with work, and after running around like a headless chicken most of the morning, I sure was hungry. A certain other person who was 3/4 of her wisdom short, and is finally back on a normal solid diet, was craving for rice. So we drove rather aimlessly for a start, and landed up at Marina Square. There, we scrutinised the mall directory, and decided on Dian Xiao Er, well known for their herbal roasted duck.

Strangely enough, it wasn't crowded, but hey, who's complaining?! When our food promptly arrived, we nearly hungrily wolfed it down, but thankfully remembered to catch a shot... The Roasted duck with angelica herb was juicy on the inside, with skin that was roasted crisp. The sauce was comfortingly herbal, and not overly powerful. Baby Kailan with salted fish and lime had an interesting zing to it... tasted slightly thai, thanks to the bits of ?lemongrass?. Our wintermelon and conpoy soup was simple and "qing dan".... the kind that reminds me of my grandma's soups.

Three thumbs up! (one for each dish lah...)

Dian Xiao Er

Marina Square, Level 2

How to Sin at Ming

2010-01-24T21:41:00.000+08:00

It was one hot Sunday afternoon when we were tempted with visions of noodles and ice-cream - you know, the hot and cold thingy?

So, we used our usual transport that walks on water and zipped down towards Thomson Road and parked at the Holy Spit... er, I mean... Spirit Church car park and walked first to the first 'eating house' that caught or fancy. It was the want that was famous for their bak chor mee. We forgot the name of the restaurant but, er, I think you may know this when you are there - it is the one with advertisements of famous celebrities who had frequent the premises.

The mee and other ingredients were so on with our stomachs and taste that we finished everything and left the plates and bowls empty! So, take it from us, this eating house and its bak chor rawks!

Later we had to pacify our tastebuds with something cooler and we walked a little further down along Sin Ming and came across Icekimo (get it? get it?) We had a bowlful of 5 scoops of ice-cream that had strawberry, durian (D24), rum and raisins, snickers and horlicks for flavours! Our verdict? This was outstanding! Better than the Earthquake at Swensens :-D

Thankfully we did not take the 8 scoops one, or else we would have to waddle out to our car with great stress to our stomachs.

Ming something
Thomson Road

Icekimo
Sin Ming Road (we think...)

Frolicking in Serangoon Gdns!

2010-01-22T09:12:00.002+08:00

It began, as with any other night - the need for supper.

With our stomachs growling away, we got into our trusty "I Have A Friend Who Walks on Water" car and headed down to Charlton Park area to scout out our favourite Charlie's Corner joint for some lychee freeze. But guess what??... The entire food joint had closed down!!! Sounds familiar, right?...

OK, so we decided to then go over to Serangoon Gardens.

There, after parking our car and walking for some 10 minutes or so, we found an apt substitute for Charlie's in the form of Frolick. It is a yoghurt and ice-cream joint where they sell - yes - yoghurt and ice-cream lah (and other related items)!

We had smoothies and yoghurt. They were smooth, yoghurty and delicious to our palates as we gently swallow and slurp the items down, savouring their sweetness, and er.. sourness of sorts too. We recommend this place if you have nothing else to do for the evening and your sweet tooth is having an overdrive. It is also good for those who have just went to the dentist and lost 3 or more wisdom teeth in the process ;-)

Frolick
Serangoon Gardens
(near 7-11)

The Tam Po Po Affair

2010-01-18T09:49:00.002+08:00

After a long day at work, Kare and Line decided to have something soupy.

We went to Tam Po Po @ Liang Court. We ordered Tonkatsu Ramen. On the way there, we reminded ourselves to take pictures of our food for our Blog... but as soon as the food arrived, we whacked it ...... the here's the result of the end product.

Tam Po Po
Liang Court
Level 1

The Pasir Ris Incident

2010-01-03T08:24:00.003+08:00

It all began with an idea, no, make that a DESIRE, to go and have dinner at the Pasir Ris seafood center - like, you know, by the beach?...

Well, imagine our utmost surprise when we got there and found that said seafood centre is no longer there!!!

So we ended up at Elias Mall Zhi Char.......

We ordered Shark Fin Melon with Pork bone and their speciality Tou Fu.

How we found the food? Good!

How was the setup and ambiance there? Can be better. It was noisy but the waitress were efficiently fast enough to give us our food. We wolf them down quickly and almost forgot to get a picture. When we finally did, the result is as seen in this pic (above).

Verdict? We eat that's all lor!...

Elias Mall Zhi Char
Elias Road lah! (don't ask us where, we eat only!)

Chiak Pah Beh?...

2010-01-01T08:16:00.000+08:00

Hello food lovers! Ler ho boh? ;-)

This blog is the result of the minds of two food challenged ladies and the inspiration from ieatishootipost. Here are the results of the culmination of our adventures in the land of culinary delights, Singapore style!

Have fun with our jalan-jalan into the various food centres and other makan places which we will highlight now and then. May you also be inspired to eat and enjoy the food mentioned here as we ourselves did in this paradise of diverse food which is our home - Singapore lor!...