Zichar @ Toa Payoh Lorong 7

We've begun eating at KKP, Kim Keat Palm, or Toa Payoh Lorong 7 (as I like to call it) a bit more often these days. 

I'm glad for it. 

Especially since for a while now I had been wondering just what it was about this place that made people miss it, and what it was that remained in their memories there.

It's like there was something about this place that kept people coming back, never mind that they had moved away from the 'hood to another place elsewhere.

Whether it was a dude who wanted to go there at 1am just to drink a bout of beer, whether it was another dude who got all nostalgic at the thought of having fishball noodles in the hawker there, the excitement in their voices was unmistakable. 

And it made me curious. 

But life be such that I didn't have much of a time to make a deliberate foodie trip there, and it wasn't until this time of life, when, thankfully, I have reason to come this zone on a regular basis through the weekly visits to Miss Brown, whom, let me say, I am so glad. 

Mind, it's not merely because I now get to try the food of Toa Payoh Lorong 7 market, but because Miss Brown herself has become more alert, more responsive, and, most importantly, increased her appetite and put on weight. 

Maybe it is the atmosphere.

I don't know.

But the food here is good.

Several weeks ago we were at one of the coffee shops- the one nearest the road- and decided to have zichar. The place was crowded- there were people at the tables, there were people in the queue, and the phone kept ringing with new phone-in orders even as we queued up to order our food. 

A part of me had wanted noodles. 

So that's what we got. 

And because the rest of the dishes also seemed rather good, we got ourselves another plate of la zi ji, or mala (fried) chicken Sichuan style. 

I was delighted by the Fried Hor Fun Seafood.

Not very sure if it were beef or seafood, actually- I have forgotten- but the hor fun was thick, the whole dish was very well fried, and even though it didn't seem to have as much wok hei as I thought it might have had, the balanced flavors made up for it, and I liked that it wasn't too salty. 

Might have been better had it been less oily, though, if I may say, the addition of shredded cabbage and leeks on top of the hor fun eased a bit of the feels, and it is probably just my personal preference anyway. 

The surprise lay in the la zi ji.

I had expected the chicken pieces to be very small and the dish to be very oily.

But, nope, it was neither.

Yes, bite sized they were, but each piece wasn't as tiny as I thought it might be, and easy it was to pick up with chopsticks. Plus, there was enough for the chew, and best of all, the chicken pieces weren't dry or hard. 

I tend to be a little cautious when it comes to this dish.

Some places make it super oily so much so that you can see the glint and taste the oil in the chicken.

Others put more of the pepper than the chicken so that you get the spice but you don't get as much chicken as you want to. 

Always a bit of hit and miss.

But this one- it was as if they had stirred the pieces in some oil deep frying it with dry wok heat so much so that whilst each small chonk of a piece got crisp on the outside, it remained soft and tender on the inside. 

You know what's the best part?

For someone who doesn't take spice very well, I actually enjoyed eating this.

I thought it more worth than the hor fun, really. 

Great fun it was for me to search through the heap of dried red peppers with my chopsticks and pick out the cute little chonks of chicken. 

And no sooner had I popped one inside my mouth that my chopsticks got busy searching for another.

Between the hor fun and the la zi ji, we finished dinner rather quick this way. 

But I didn't leave the veggies at there.

I ate the shredded cabbage, and I chomped through the leeks too. 

Hey, they helped ease the numb of mala, and made me feel like I was eating healthier with at least some greens. 

Nanyang Dao's Food & Coffee

One of the very first dishes I had at Nanyang Dao after it newly opened at Parkway Parade was Chendol.

Now, don't laugh, but it is this very bowl of (small-sized) Chendol that had me so impressed I told myself I was going to come back here for more. 

What's happened, however, is that I have been back to Nanyang Dao more than a couple of times, but what with the variety of dishes and everything else that they have  on the menu, joke's on me, I've tried a couple other dishes- but not this shaved ice dessert generously drizzled with lots of santan coconut cream, lots of gula melaka and topped with green-colored flour worms and a huge heap of red bean. 

Is it a pity?

A bit lar. 

But there're so many foods I want to have and want to try. 

There's a shiokness about their food that is impossible to ignore.

Doesn't matter if it is the deep fried pork chop with salted egg sauce that comes in a lunchtime set where you can choose between a dessert or a drink.  

Doesn't matter if it is the nasi lemak set that I also got absolutely impressed by the first time I ate it, because how often is it that a lunchtime set plate gets you two cute chonky pieces of fried chicken, a huge mound of fragrant coconut-scented rice, a fried sunny side up egg, and a little portion of achar that is not too spicy but a great balance of sour and sweet. 

Their food is just so good I'm pretty sure it will be the same for the signature Penang char kuay teow that looks so delightful on the menu and which I'm waiting for the chance to try. 

And this shiokness- this feeling of being satisfied, this feeling of having your money's worth- it doesn't happen only when you have the mains. 

You get the same feeling when you have their snacks, and their beverages too.

I should know.

Couple of weeks ago we were at their outlet in Bugis+, and because I wasn't in very much of an appetite, decided to order their Portuguese egg tarts, and nothing more. 

Notwithstanding the fact that the lady gave us three instead of only two, I loved that both tarts were warm when brought to our table. 

I wouldn't know what to do if the egg custard inside the tart were cold and hard, so thankfully, it were warm, mushy and soft, making it a pleasant delight when I bit into one. The pastry, too, was crisp and flaky, making each bite have a bit of a light crunch with bouncy, mushy custard that simply melted in your mouth. 

To my surprise it was quite filling. 

I guess a snack to them isn't just a snack but can also be a literal meal. 

I'm not complaining.

At least I know where I can go if I want a light bite to tide me through an afternoon or an early evening. 

Not just that.

I also know where to go when I want an IG-worthy drink as talkable as this. 

It isn't every day that I go for something so aesthetic, but you see the bear? 

This little bear here is a whole solid chonk chunk of ice. 

Actually, a whole chunk of iced coffee frozen in a teddy bear mold. 

So cute!! 

It was so hard to drink the coffee without making the frozen bear drop, I tell you.

At first I tried sipping the drink by the side, hoping that the bear would continue its delicate balance on its bed of ice cubes, but then one accidental swoosh from my companion and the tower of ice cubes upon which the bear perched came crashing right down.

Fortunately I had had a picture taken by then. 

There would have been no picture otherwise. 

More than that, however, even in the practical, functional sense, besides the pleasant eye, the solidly built bear of ice kept the coffee cool, and cold, for a fairly long time.

It was still there at the bottom of the glass when I finished. 

Glad was I.

I needed the coffee.

The sweetness, the thickness, the refreshing ice-cold chill, the way the drink made you slowly sip instead of guzzling it all at one go. 

I loved it. 

And at another time appropriate, when I'm wanting a siew bao or a tart or both, I'm pretty sure I will be having it again. 

More Springleaf

It is a little hard to believe that I only have three pictures of my meals here at Springleaf Jalan Tua Kong.

Have I been there only three times in the entire course of this half year?

I thought there had been more! 

Could it be that I had gone there but hadn't managed to take pictures?

Then again that's very unlikely. 

Springleaf is, after all, one of my favorite go-tos when it comes to prata. 

When it was I began going there, I cannot remember, but it must have been at least a couple of years ago when we discovered that from Dunman Road there was a bus that took us direct to the place here at Siglap.

Fast forward to a year ahead and we're now actually closer to Springleaf and Jalan Tua Kong than we previously were before. 

If there's something interesting about being here at Kembangan and the Lengkong Tiga area it is that- even if one doesn't realize it- Frankel Avenue and Siglap are literally down one single road. 

Which is why these days we bike there, or if we're lazy, bus a 42 there. 

Now you know why I'm surprised that out of all these months I only have pictures three? 

I really thought I had had taken more. 

I mean, the food's good. 

Never has it been here at Springleaf- whether Jalan Tua Kong or Upper Thomson Road- that the food whetted my palate. 

There have been times when we take the Mutton Murtabak- a huge rectangular piece of triple-layered thin crepe generously laid with crispy mutton bits, ketchup and mayonnaise. 

There have been times when we take the kambing soup- a milder, less oily, but equally spicy soup with that distinctive boiled roundedness you can taste.

But most of the time we come here for the Prata Plaster, and the Murtaburger.

The Prata Plaster here is one of my favorites. 

At first glance it doesn't look like much- a plain piece of prata kosong with a sunny side up egg slapped on top- but surprise of surprise, fried egg white and flour crepes go together very well for a nice savory chew, not to mention the smooth bright colors of the gooey, runny egg yolk flowing over and all about your prata. 

If you thought regular egg prata zhnged up prata kosong, a fried egg on top of the crepe puts an added dimension of texture to the taste and makes it double the joy. 

I'd be pretty happy with just the Prata Plaster but then there's the Murtaburger, which, can I say, is totally one of a kind when it comes to prata creativity here. 

Their website says it is meant to be a variation of the Ramly burger, which in a way, is true. 

Because if the first thought of Ramly burger isn't in the ingredients but in the sauce and the mushy mushy taste of meat melting together in one multi-textured bite, well, that's the same for Springleaf's Murtaburger as well. 

One doesn't get the burger bun, of course. 

But you get a very thick, very chewy prata that's got the looks of a cute bouncy pillow, has got lots and lots of beef bits, a generous slather of chili sauce, black pepper sauce, plus what I think is mozzarella cheese.

I don't know how they do it, but the sauces are well balanced. 

There isn't that overwhelming taste of black pepper (which might have conked every other flavor out)

Neither is there the overwhelming presence of chili sauce that would spice you out. 

But the star of this dish has to be the melted cheese. 

It is the cheese that holds everything together. 

It is the cheese that keeps everything sticky and chewy and irresistible. 

And it is the cheese that gives you the taste of dairy right in your mouth with every bite. 

Good enough for three, or four, the Murtaburger is a huge piece and I always find it hard to finish my shared portion when we share it between two. 

But perhaps in that alone lies its charm. 

You don't have to try this prata or that prata to figure out which one you like.

You just need to come have this one. 

And if after eating it, you realize you only have space for one, well, this be it. 

No need to look too far for another.

Donergy's Ice Cream

Okay, so I might seem a little over enthusiastic about Donergy and their latest addition of an ice cream cart right by the entrance of their diner in Millennia Walk. 

But, you see, Donergy's ice cream and I go back a long way. 

There are some memories that linger around with you even long after they've passed. 

My first acquaintance with Donergy's ice cream is one of them. 

It was a couple of years when I was still hanging around the Joo Chiat area. 

That evening we had been heading out to dinner, my friend and I, going towards what I think was the frog leg porridge place on the road towards Joo Chiat Complex and Geylang Serai.

Then there, in one of the (usually closed) shop house fronts, I turned my head, and saw someone I thought I recognized. 

What's charming is that he recognized us too. 

Was it a pleasant surprise? 

Absolutely. 

By that time we had been frequenting their outlet at Millennia Walk, relishing in the Kebab Wrap (I always had them cut into half), on occasion the Babaganoush, and their Tombik (whose crunchy top bread made me think of a burger every time)

And because the boss was the super hands-on type always at the counter, I always saw him, he always saw me, and we recognized each other. 

What made this chance encounter really interesting was that in the shop house he wasn't working the kebab station.

Instead he was working the ice cream. 

A sight which, I must say, absolutely delighted me. 

Those of us who know Turkish ice cream, or Dondurma, as Wikipedia tells me, will know just how unique the texture of this dessert is. 

Unlike soft serves and ice loliies that melt readily in the tropical heat, Dondurma doesn't.

Made from salep- a root flour from the early purple orchid, mastic-a resin from a tree, and cream, Dondurma holds probably one of the thickest textures when it comes to ice cream. 

It's so thick you can't lick it as you would other ice creams. 

And so dense is it that it won't drip even when they do that flipping, twirling thing whenever they serve their cone to you. 

Maybe that's why they do it. 

They have to show you just how thick it is. 

How it doesn't drip.

How it doesn't plop onto the counter even when they turn the ice cream upside down. 

This ice cream is great for children. 

One doesn't have to worry about staining their clothes because this whole frozen dessert doesn't even melt away at all. 

As a street food, Turkish ice cream makes for a fantastic snack. 

As the close of a meal, it makes for a pleasant end that will get you going for whatever it is you want to do after.

You know, I've never forgot the dense, chewy texture of the huge strawberry ice cream scoop he so generously gave me that one late evening.

I remember the pretty pink of the (big) strawberry cone.

I remember the sweet of it. 

And ever since the presence of Turkish ice cream carts began to dwindle all around town, I've never stopped wishing Donergy would have their ice cream cart at their restaurant either. 

So I'm glad.

I'm glad they're here, cultural outfit and all. 

Sure, some might think they be a little out of place, but oy, they're lively, they're full of color, Turkish food is probably one of the most soulful, delicious, heartwarming (and reasonably priced) foods in this Downtown bay area zone, and judging by the weekday lunchtime shirt and tie crowd digging into their kebab wraps and plates of rice, it is highly unlikely that the charm of Turkish food- and their ice cream- will be going anywhere anytime soon. 

JEN's Weekend Afternoon Tea

It has been a few months since I tried writing this post. 

Two months, to be exact.

It isn't because I don't have pictures or don't have anything to write, but because I do, and there is a lot that I want to talk about. 

You know how there are some meals that don't seem to leave impressions or memories on you even though you know you've had a great time? 

Not the case with the weekend afternoon tea here at JEN65. 

There's something about this buffet here that sticks with you long after you're finished. 

I don't know if it is the offerings, the ambience, or the crowd. 

There's something very cozy about the cafe here. Maybe it is the orangey-yellow tones of the furniture. Maybe it is the color of the warm-toned wood. Or maybe it is how their lights make the place feel welcoming, and embracing, both at the same time. 

It doesn't matter which part of the restaurant they seat us. 

All sides feel the same. 

But we have a thing for space and so often prefer to be seated at the lower deck closer to the laksa noodle side. 

If there's one thing about the food here at JEN65's afternoon tea that I like, it is the combination of both ethnic Asian and Western that speaks to me. 

This is a place where you can decide whether you want a salmon pastry or a plate of seafood pasta with mussels and cream or a plate of beef rendang with rice. 

This is a place where you can have a plate of sushi together with a serving of salad. 

Or quiches with Chinese-style wok-stewed vegetables. 

I am the sort who loves variety, and it is wonderful knowing that I can have on the same plate a grilled ham & cheese sandwich, a spinach quiche and a heapful of mee goreng all at the same time. 

Then again I don't usually mix everything, and so, instead of tossing everything onto one plate at one go, I go multiple times. 

I began the meal this afternoon with several sticks of satay, a wee little bit of mee goreng, and a couple of cherry tomatoes that would add that burst of sweet-sour fresh tomato juice whilst helping (hopefully) with the digestion. 

I like the satay here. 

Best if you eat it hot, but it also doesn't matter if you happen to have it lukewarm.

Yes, the meat does get a little hard but, surprise of surprise, it's not dry, and tastes just as good along with other foods.

So clean, and good it is that I don't even need the peanut sauce. 

I just eat the satay all on its own.

This afternoon (upon the recommendation of my friend) along with my second helping of satay, I helped myself to a bowl of sweet, creamy pumpkin soup, a grilled ham & cheese sandwich, and two little bites of what I think is chicken dim sum. 

It might have been siew mai.

It might not have been.

That's not to say that I didn't help myself to other foods. 

One plate I took had on it mashed potato (which unfortunately turned cold before I could get to it), some couscous (that I found at the salad counter), a heap of black olives and more of the cherry tomatoes. 

Then there was the plate which had four little cups of kueh pie tee, one lor mai kai (I wanted the glutinous rice) and a ham & cheese sandwich. 

I have my own tastes when it comes to customizing my kueh pie tee. 

Where others might go with the full works of turnip, chopped hard boiled egg, sesame seeds, parsley, tiny little shrimp and everything else, mine only had the chopped hard boiled egg, lots of parsley, and a little bit of sweet sauce. 

I didn't take the turnip, nor the sesame seeds, nor even the shrimp. 

For some reason the turnip tends to soak through the pastry cup of the kueh pie tee even before i get to the bottom of it and I like my pastry cup to stay crisp and crunchy throughout. 

Hard boiled egg and sweet sauce go surprisingly well together. 

Buffets are some of the best places to test just how suitable some combinations can be. 

It's like I didn't know how well tomatoes and black olives together were. 

And how well fresh crab meat and laksa soup go together. 

This crab laksa dish is one that we specially concocted ourselves. 

Admittedly it does take a bit of brute strength to whack out the shell to get to the meat inside but thankfully my friend is quite gungho when it comes to laborious tasks like these and at our table there gets a fair bit of hammering with tools and all. 

My job?

Yank out whatever shreds of crab meat there are still stuck inside.

Stir the crab meat inside the soup. 

Eat it. 

This afternoon I decided I was going to leave a lot of room for dessert. 

No way was I going to do the same thing as I'd done the last time- eating myself happy with all the lovely foods but leaving no space for all the desserts I wanted to try.

This time I got three servings of dessert. 

First one was an ice cream sandwich whose carnival-like stall was alfresco outside the restaurant at their outdoor seating area. 

I think the flavor was Thai milk tea. 

The ice cream didn't melt as quickly as I thought it would. 

So solid was it that I was able to eat the entire ice cream with a spoon- without having the bread slowly getting soaked in melting ice cream. 

After that I helped myself to a couple of cakes. 

There were some cute, and unusual ones that I hadn't had before, like the kueh lapis- a staple cake which I always try to have whenever I'm here- that I like to eat layer by layer. Then there was a slice of Earl Grey, a gula melaka sponge cake that looked like a banana one, a lemony cheesecake, and a cute little piece of Nyonya kueh of glutinous rice that I took mainly for the pretty colors. 

The Earl Grey was a lovely blend of soft mousse-like texture, and sponge. 

The lemon cheesecake gave a pleasant contrast between the sour and the sweet.

The gula melaka was thick yet had that slightly burnt taste which I always like.

And the kueh, simple as it might as seemed, had them so delightful I found myself appreciating it even more. 

I had thought I'd be fine with just this plate of dessert.

To my surprise I realized I actually could still eat more. 

So back to the counter I went, and came back bearing a couple pieces of dragonfruit, more of the spongy gula melaka cake (which I really liked), and marshmallows dipped in the chocolate fountain. 

Oh, by the way, have I mentioned the drinks?

There can be no afternoon tea without drinks, can there?

So here at JEN65 one gets a variety of sweet drinks- the fun type- lots of fruit punch, syrupy drinks, iced peach tea, and iced lemon tea, but me, I go for mugs of hot green tea or osmanthus tea.

They work the digestion better. 

For me to eat more. 

(New) Bak Kut Teh & Ter Ka

Before reading the rest of this post there is one thing you must know about me. 

I am not a huge fan of Bak Kut Teh.

Nor of Ter Ka braised pig trotters. 

I say I am not huge. 

That doesn't mean that I don't appreciate a good bowl of soup from time to time.

Neither does it mean I'm so completely averse that I refuse to touch the dish of pig trotter with a ten-foot pole.

It just means that neither dish is not often the very first thing that comes to mind when I'm hungry, and it just means that I become sort of discerning when it comes to the style of Bak Kut Teh and Ter Ka that I want to have. 

That being said, I don't think I'm very particular, nor am I very faithful to this style or that style. 

Maybe because I was brought up Cantonese, so I don't have a particular preference whether it be the clear peppery style or the black herbal style. 

If I so happen to be at where, I see what, I eat what. 

Like how if I happen to be in Chinatown, Somerset or Suntec City, I might head to Song Fa because there're outlets in Chinatown Point, Centerpoint and Suntec City.

And how if I'm near the East Coast at Joo Chiat Road I could head to Sin Heng Claypot Bak Kut Teh for their black herbal style of soup, their yam rice, and thickly cut youtiao. 

Then, if I happen to be in the Geylang area and I'm thinking of Bak Kut Teh, then it is the claypot Klang style at Geylang Lorong 11 that I head for. 

Which is better, which is nicer, that doesn't matter so much to me. 

Both styles of soups are heartwarming whenever I have them, and there's more than enough protein to go around with the thick chunk of pork on the pork ribs, and the trotter.

But there came the day when my friend told me about this new place a short walk away from the Lifelong Learning Institute at Paya Lebar. At first I had wondered just how special and how unique this BKT was, and quietly I had hoped it would be good. 

But, guess what, one dine-in at Heng Kee Delights Bak Kut Teh in Guan Guan Kopitiam on 1015 Geylang East Avenue 3, and I've become a new fan. 

Yes, seriously.

No joke, I've become a fan of this BKT. 

Not the dry version- that one I sadly haven't tried- but the soup one. 

But, let me say this, if it were the soup that I fell in love, it was the Ter Ka that had me completely blown away. 

See, I've had a fair bit of pig trotters in simmering claypots, but never, I think, have I ever seen something this large and this huge. 

This was no tiny pork leg. 

This was one big chonk of a trotter with an equally large chonk of a meat. 

And it glistened- unabashedly- under the lights of the Kopitiam. 

I had thought one piece of the leg was more than enough, but inside the claypot there were other smaller pieces of meat bobbing about in the gravy here and there. 

It is the sheen of the dish that gets to me. 

Like how I do know that Ter Ka can be on the oilier side- all the collagen- but to have it shine so enticingly under the lights is another feeling altogether. 

It is a little unfortunate that I'm a mouse when it comes to seeing the braised skin of the trotter. 

It is also a little unfortunate that I never know how to distinguish the fat from the meat.

So glad I am that this evening I wasn't dining alone and that I had a friend who was more expert than I was in separating the fat from the meat. 

Shall I say that the meat of the trotter was tasty?

Yes.

And better it was when eaten with the gravy still simmering in its own claypot.

So full of flavors was the zup that I think I ate every piece with at least a spoonful. 

The same compliments can be said of the Bak Kut Teh here at Heng Kee Delights. 

It is so seldom that I manage to find a soup that makes for a perfect balance between the two, and find it here I did.

Milder than the black herbal style, stronger than the clear peppery style, whether in terms of taste or thickness, this newly-discovered BKT of mine sat solidly right in between. 

And I loved it, I tell you. 

It wasn't even just the flavors alone, but the thickness of the soup itself. 

Especially since I am the sort who loves her porridges to be thick and her soups to be creamy, broth-like, and this BKT had a thickness that didn't overwhelm, yet had a bit of clearness at the same time. 

It's kind of funny, but writing about this dish I'm actually beginning to miss it now. 

Perhaps I'll find some chance to have it soon, before the week is over. 

Or I might just wait till another day, another time. 

Tha Chang's Thai

If there is one dish that stands out amongst the plethora of dishes on the menu at Thai bistro and restaurant Tha Chang, it is this bowl of Boat Noodles that I had the very first time I was there. 

I'm not sure if I've said this before, but I've never been able to have boat noodles here back on the island ever since trying the legit-as-can-be Boat Noodles in BKK at Ploenchit. 

I dont' want to compromise my taste buds with the clearish, watered-down beef soup versus what I have had back in the hometown. 

But then one evening we came upon Tha Chang up on the 3rd floor of Bugis Junction near where the restaurants are, and decided to try.

Guess what, I fell in love straight. 

If anything, the magic lay in the soup.

Because ingredients wise, yes, you can have three, four, five meatballs, you can have wagyu grade slices, or even lovely thin slices of beef floating all about in your bowl, but if the soup don't have that oil, if it don't have the rounded flavor mixed with (what I think is) a bit of herb, and a bit of spice, and if you don't get that earthy, meaty flavor that gives the soup a color of dark brown (but incredibly hard to describe), that bowl of noodles won't feel so authentic after all. 

Come to think about it, earthy doesn't even describe it well. 

Swampy might be more suitable.

Yes, that's right, swampy, meaty flavors all mixed together skillfully in one bowl. 

The noodles of Tha Chang have a fair bit of ingredients, by the way.

Except that I don't really pay much attention to what's swimming about inside. 

I dont even know how many meatballs I have. 

I just know that there're more than enough to share, and so I do, sharing them with my friend whom- at our very first visit there- got a crab omelet that he said he missed. 

I liked the chunks of soft, tender crab flesh over the thick, fluffy egg omelet, which added that hint of mush every time you took a bite.

But maybe our memory held close to the wetter styles of crab egg omelet which we'd had back in BKK, and so quietly both of us found this one a little more dry. 

Still neither of us had any problems finishing up the crab omelet with the delicious bowl of Boat Noodles, the extra order of pleasantly-sweet Moo Ping Grilled Pork on Skewer (the size was huge), and we decided we'd come here at another time. 

One thing about the food here at Tha Chang is that you get bistro quality at bistro prices. 

So dont expect prices here to be cheap and portions to be small. 

Nope, not happening.

It doesn't matter whether you order pints of beer or not.

Your food is crafted to look shiok, the flavors are well adjusted to make the taste shiok, and when the plate arrives, even your eyes are greeted with a visual delight. 

So enticed were we by the food that we went back to Tha Chang a couple of weeks after. 

This time- in the late afternoon- although the hot pot seemed attractive, and they had a lovely looking Pad Thai on the menu, we decided we'd have a sort of Crab Omelet Rice, and because we wanted to know how the island's seafood tasted like when prepared the Thai way, we got a plate of tiger prawns.

The omelet done this way was significantly softer, but what we liked most was the sauce. 

We don't know exactly what it was, except that I remember it to be savory and thick, like a paste on its own.

If I'm not wrong, it might have been a concoction of salted egg, thick, full of teeny weeny little salted egg yolk bits, and which went very well with steamed, slightly fried, white rice. There was no need to have the rice with chili or anything else- we just ate the rice with the sauce, a spoonful of egg omelet, and one little chunk of crab. 

I think below the egg there was more of them crab. 

Although secretly I think we were wishing there could be more. 

My friend also took a liking to the prawns. 

He had been drawn especially to them since the last time he'd tried those river mantis prawns back in Thailand. 

These ones here were tiger prawns, and the most attractive thing about them were the heaps of garlic over and above them well-prepared prawns. 

I had forgotten just how great seafood tasted when dipped in garlic bits. 

There was, of course, the strong fragrant taste of the stir-fried garlic, and, because the portion was so generous- I don't think I'd ever seen a dish with this much garlic in any of our local dishes, I found myself smothering the prawn with them bits and eating them at one go using my hands. 

We haven't been back to Tha Chang here in a while. 

Perhaps one day I might go try the outlet at Tanjong Pagar.

Or maybe I might just come back here, order a big cup of Thai milk tea, and one plate of Pad Thai. 

Just for the fun of it.

I love Pad Thai. 

SteppyYums

I have been wanting to write this for a while now but somehow, just somehow, have been kind of distracted, haven't found the inspiration, and in a way, haven't found the time. 

Sometimes I feel it is a good thing that I'm quite a homebody and just so long as I have food I like and have enough of it, I don't actually need to go about everywhere and anywhere- unless the food there is really, really good. 

In that sense, I am blessed that I've got a great cook at home, and by that I mean I've got someone who knows how to work the pan, work the pot, balance out the sauces and manage the heat. 

There've been some great dishes in the past couple of months, mostly revolving around minced meats, eggs, and salmon belly. 

Because in the freezer that's exactly what we have.

Sometime early this year we'd made orders for bags of frozen organic minced pork, organic minced beef, pork chops, and salmon belly. Add to that we still had the foie gras carried over from last year. 

There's been a plate of minced pork with leftover rice.

There's been a plate of minced beef prepared with either Massaman curry paste or red curry paste. 

There's been a plate of minced pork with rice, with pieces of salmon belly. 

And there's been a plate of minced pork with eggs done sunny side up doused with a mix of soy sauce, fish sauce and oyster sauce. 

I love the eggs that we have here.

The chef never fails to make these eggs interesting for me, and no two days are the same. 

There are days where the eggs are scrambled. 

There are days where the eggs are sunny side up. 

There are days where the eggs are mixed together with the meats. 

Yet this meal, with all her varieties of taste and flavors and style, is consistent. 

And I love it. 

There aren't absolute favorites.

But I do take a fancy to salmon belly, and delight it is that we have the frozen kind that we can simply throw in the pan and fry and don't have to worry too much about paying exorbitant costs at Japanese sushi chains and restaurants.  

I don't care even if there be a bit of fishy fishy taste. 

It's just good for me. 

We haven't gotten round much to the pork chops- save for one time and I don't have a picture- but there'll be other times, thank God, and I'll get a picture with the herbs and everything next time. 

The pork's pretty soft when pan-fried, after all, and it will make for a lovely plate with, eggs, or potatoes, or even some other vegetable. 

A Thing for Pad See Ew

So thankful I am, I tell you, that after all these many trips to BKK, I've finally found a dish that resembles a little of Singapore's Char Kuay Teow, and which, in a way, always makes me think of the hawker center staple that I can easily have when back home. 

For the longest time ever the only Thai noodle dish I knew was Pad Thai. 

It was my go-to dish whenever I wanted noodles at the Thais. 

But after last year, thanks to all the many "Deep Fried Flat Rice Noodles in Soy Sauce" at the hotel buffets, I finally got to understand what the See Ew in Pad See Ew stood for- and, trust me, I was a bit flabbergasted. 

Because how could I not have seen that the "Fried Hor Fun Beef" was literally Pad See Ew- with beef? 

And how could I not have drawn the parallels between the thick chewy hor fun noodles and dark brown soy sauce in both the dish at the hotel's buffet breakfast counter, and the plate of Fried Hor Fun Beef from Soi 47 Orchard Central that I had fallen in love with, recommended to an elderly man, and whom later claimed was "the best fried kuay teow" he'd had?

Maybe that claim of 'it was the best' remains very close to heart even after 4 years, and so I didn't think much about the parallels and even the dish itself. 

But after BKK, after realizing just what this dish really was, I had to have it again back here on the island. 

So it was at Tuk Tuk Cha in NEX Shopping Mall one evening where I saw it on their menu, and whilst trying to make up my mind between the Pad Thai and the Pad See Ew, I decided I'd give it a try. 

And let me tell you, I loved it. 

Ok, so it might be that to begin with, I am already a hor fun kuay teow type of girl who, out of all the noodles that are available in this part of the world, will go for the flat rice noodles at first try. 

And it don't matter how they're prepared, whether they're in clear soup or laksa or curry or shallow fried or deep fried. 

I choose them flat rice noodles all the same. 

But if there were a difference between this Thai-Singapore one and the Thai-Thai one, it would be the lime. 

The cute little single wedge of it that they put at the side of the pretty patterned plate. 

To some, eating this plate of Pad See Ew might feel a tad too oily. 

But to me, all I felt was the smooth (oily) taste of the thick chewy flat rice noodle, the saltiness of the soy sauce perfectly, and evenly coated over every piece of noodle, and the tangy tangy part of the juice that went so well with the soy sauce taste of the noodles. 

And the juice, even if it be just a little, gave that bit of refreshing burst in the mouth.

Maybe I'll try squeezing out limes when I get to have Pad See Ew at hotel buffet breakfasts next time. 

I'd love to know how varied, yet balanced, the flavors would be. 

After all, in these months past I have gravitated to other dishes that my friend and I can both share. 

Coffee Shop @ East Coast Road

This afternoon we were hunting for new places to lunch.

And because we weren't so keen on the cuisines nearest to us, to the Grab app we went, where amongst all the varied restaurants and coffee shop stalls within a 5km radius, one- at East Coast Road- stood out. 

What the name of this coffee shop is, I don't know. 

I just know it's near the junction of Telok Kurau Road and East Coast Road, opposite The Snooze Hotel. 

What will surprise you, however, is the fact that it's not a small-type, unknown, random coffee shop, but in fact quite a well-known, famous one. 

What stalls they're famous for, what cuisine they're famous for, I can't tell- it might well be the Happy Hour Beers that I saw some patrons go for- but there's a chicken rice stall, there's a stall offering Indian food, there's a stall offering Taiwanese, Kim's Fried Hokkien mee (the famous one) is there, and then there's a dim sum stall. 

We were here for two things.

Dim sum, and the Taiwanese.

It was the Taiwanese food that I in particular wanted to try. 

Perhaps there is a difference between eating at home and eating it at the place itself. 

We ordered a bowl of Lu Rou Fan. 

The sauce, in particular, was our thing and really what we had come here for. 

But besides the Lu Rou Fan, on the menu too was the pancake, and so we ordered one. 

The Lu Rou Fan had these really huge chunks of meat all nicely chopped up easy to eat with chopsticks and spoon, and although I'm not sure how best to describe the crepe pancake. there was a thickness to it, there was a chew to the piece of crepe itself, the fillings were more than enough, and there was a lot of pork floss all scattered on top as well. 

Surprisingly it was this crepe that really made me feel full.

I had thought it might be the dim sum, out of which this afternoon we'd chosen quite a few, but no, it was this crepe that gave the feeling.

Maybe it were the texture of the flour which is, shall I say, significantly different from that of cheong fun where again we were surprised by the size of the plate. 

I had thought that the cheong funs be just two little rolls (as some dim sum places tend to be) but no, this was like four rolls altogether, huge ones they were, all perfectly rolled up, chopped neatly, arranged prettily. 

It was lovely feeling the cheong funs slide so smoothly and silkily down my throat. 

It was also lovely getting to chew them a little bit so I could taste the sauce well. 

There was a basket of what I think- if I'm not wrong- siew mai, underneath the scattering of bonito flakes. 

Then there was also a plate of yam puffs. 

Which I'm not really sure just how to describe them. 

It wasn't that they weren't nice. 

But there was a wee bit of oil lingering around on my tongue after I'd finished.

And I'd forgotten how the yam tasted like. 

Maybe because they weren't as hot as I would have liked by the time I got to them.

Maybe they would have tasted better had I eaten them first (instead of finishing everything else) 

But I'll order this again next time. 

I'm sure it will be good. 

Yam puffs, after all, do make for a great snack, and are one of the best dishes to order when having dim sum. 

It is the kind of snack where one gets the best of both worlds. There's a softness, a light sweetness, even a smoothness about them that make you want to have it again and again.