Ipoh Lou Yau Bean Sprouts Chicken

I'd seen this chain across Singapore a few times now, but was told that it wasn't any good, and hence never bothered to try it. We needed food urgently this morning though, and I grabbed this set. It wasn't as bad as it was made out to be; it was kinda like chicken rice, but with rice noodles instead.

I liked the chicken, mainly because the ginger was laced with scallions, while the chili sauce was extra fragrant on the calamansi. But those rice noodles ended up being an unappealingly mushy clump. I can only assume (or at least, hope) that hawkers up in Ipoh might do a better job on those noodles.

Halloumi Cheese from Open Door Policy

We were in Tiong Bahru late this afternoon, and figured that we'd stick around until 6 PM when Open Door Policy opened up for dinner. We really weren't in the mood to try to decipher their menu either, so we went for their "Feed Us" sharing menu that they so conveniently placed at the top, following which they brought out a number of things, like this cheese from Crete that was fried with olives, bread, and anchovies.

They also brought out their signature 48 hour braised beef cheek, which was surprisingly tender, even though I wasn't in the mood for red meat. And while I liked everything that they brought out for us tonight, it also served to reinforce my opinion about how good Lolla is. This place is fine, but for this kind of money, I prefer Lolla's more simple approach of letting the purity of the ingredients shine through.

Flying Fish Sashimi from Meidi-Ya

I wasn't planning on getting this, but when I passed by the fish section at Meidi-Ya today, I noticed this flying fish that had been cut up and arranged onto this disposable foam plate, complete with little packets of soy sauce and an unattractively huge wad of wasabi paste. Honestly, it didn't really taste of anything, but I guess I was drawn in by the appearance.

What was perhaps more interesting was that Meidi-Ya had Keisuke's prawn-based noodles available at its boxed Ramen Fair today. Despite how much I wax lyrical about that stuff, I did not buy a box, mainly because I've been scarred by the hassle of having to assemble such bowls on my own. Please, I hope he brings it back to his restaurants soon.

Ta Lu Prawn Noodle at China Square Central

This was an unplanned visit, as I was running an errand in the neighborhood and needed a quick bite before going back to the office. This place was nearby, and presumably some local prawn noodles would be fast enough (22 Cross Street, 6536-1538). I upsized to a large bowl and got a mango juice to go with it.

Sure, they were generous with the prawns, but this wasn't necessarily anything mindblowing either. Still, I liked that broth stewed from prawn heads - it certainly reminded me a bit of Keisuke's now-defunct creation. Interestingly, these guys seem to be open as early as 7:30 AM; I should come here for breakfast one of these days.

ANA's Cheese and Bacon Hamburger

No, this was not my dinner on the plane tonight. This was from ANA's Light Dishes section, which I requested just an hour before landing when I realized that I was going to be hungry when I got home later. It was a Japanese burger, complete with Japanese mayo, mustard and ketchup, as well as a piping hot patty. I've never really been a big fan of Japanese burgers, but my goal here was just to fill the belly.

Two Meals While Transiting at Narita

Seeing how I didn't get my meal before arrival earlier either, I immediately went to the airport food court to try to hunt down some food, this time deciding on Oedo Soba from Chiyoda in Tokyo. And this was a cold sansai soba, which tasted like, well, sansai soba that was chilled. It did the job, but I think the only thing that got me even the slightest bit excited about this entire plate was the coarsely ground wasabi on the side.



Feeling unsatisfied, so I went back to Kyotatsu to top up with a quick plate of sushi, this time opting for the more expensive wild bluefin tuna plate. I figured that a pricier version would have some fattier cuts, but this stuff was surprisingly lean; had I known, I would have just gone for the cheaper one that I got last time. Wait a minute, isn't bluefin tuna endangered?

Ippudo Ramen and Salad on ANA

This was the only thing that I ate on the long haul out of San Jose today, in part since I wanted to sleep right away rather than dealing with meal times, but also since I wasn't that hungry after that delicious birria earlier. When I finally awoke, they offered to give me the meal that I missed, but I passed, opting instead for another bowl of in-flight Ippudo as well as a salad that they had on their snack menu as well.

It still tasted like it did last time, with the noodles seeming like they were instant. Well, I suppose that they couldn't exactly boil real noodles in strainers on an airplane after all (and it's still better than being served in a foam cup!). But honestly, if no one told me that this was from Ippudo, then I never would have guessed. It was that unremarkable.

La Birrieria in San Jose, California

I've been meaning to come here for a while now (1480 South White Rd, 258-9612), but I could never quite swing it out to East San Jose. This morning though, I knew exactly where I was going to have breakfast before heading to the airport. I grabbed this half bowl of birria and wolfed everything down, including all of the tortillas (something I don't think I've ever done before).

OK, to be sure, the meat was a bit boring and tasteless. But I hardly ever get a chance to eat this stuff, so I happily slurped it down nonetheless. I'm definitely coming back here too - they had all of my favorite Mexican soups on the menu, including menudo and pozole.

Either way, I need to remember to wear a dark colored shirt next time...or at least tuck a napkin into my collar. For some reason, it's always my nicest shirts that love to attract red splatter that stubbornly refuses to come out in the wash.

El Korita on Story Road in San Jose

I love it when I randomly come across places like this. See, my hotel is near East San Jose this time, so I figured that it'd be a great chance to head out to Story Road where I'd seen a bunch of street stands lit up at night before. And oh boy, were there a lot of them, serving everything from tacos to tortas to Mexican hot dogs. This one was set up at the corner of Jackson and Story, just in front of the Mariscos el Rincon restaurant.

I went with a couple of tacos to start, one featuring head meat and another one featuring tripe, the latter being so delicious (he made them "crispy") that I immediately asked for another one. I also got that vampiros on the right, which used a hard shell like a tostada but also had a layer of beans and melted cheese on it. Either way, all of this went down my belly in no time, all followed by some fresh and light churros from a neighboring stall later. Yum.

Stanford's Restaurant & Bar from Oregon

I needed some lunch before getting on the plane at PDX today, and this local chain seemed like it had the most promise prior to clearing security (again, TSA Pre✓ rocks!). I grabbed a grilled artichoke along with this burger, which featured some super thick and crunchy bacon, all washed down with some local suds. It was fine, but the artichoke was my favorite, especially with that melted garlic butter. Mmm..

23 Hoyt in Portland, Oregon

I'm not sure if there was much to say here, aside from the fact that this was an upscale American place that featured local items (529 NW 23rd Avenue, 503-445-7400). I grabbed these clams, which surprisingly had a heavy overtone of cumin or fennel thanks to the chorizo in the thing. Either way, the food was fine and pretty much what I would have expected of a place in Portland.

ANA's 787 Dreamliner to San Jose

Man, coming into SJC was sooooo much nicer than SFO. First off, this was a relatively small plane so there were very few people, and unlike giant hub SFO, our flight was the only one from overseas at the time. So even though they didn't have Global Entry kiosks setup at SJC yet, it wasn't needed. I breezed right through immigration and was on the street in a jiffy. This new SJC flight rocks.



Food-wise, I tended to stick to the Japanese selections, which unfortunately were kaiseki courses, and hence nothing that got me too excited (and surprisingly, the in-flight Ippudo was a bit of a bore too, tasting like instant noodles). But this plane was very interesting - not just the electronic window shades, but also the way ANA did things, like the Japanese bidet and automatically closing toilet seat cover, as well as the staggered business class seats that basically became little capsule hotels where you shoved your feet into the slot in front of you. Surprisingly though, there was no front-of-plane camera like most Japanese airlines seem to have.



And no, that was not the in-flight Ippudo above. When I was transiting in Narita earlier, I passed by Yoroku on the way to my connecting flight, so I figured that I'd grab a quick bowl just for the sake of trying it. This one seemed interesting with its deep-fried shrimp. It pretty much tasted like it looked; a crisp shio-based broth that wasn't anything to go nuts for, but nonetheless was interesting to try.

Chuan Garden in Singapore's Chinatown

There seem to be a million spots in Chinatown serving Sichuan food these days, but we specifically came to this place (79 Pagoda Street, 6222-3451) for this dish, which I noticed on the menu a few months ago. See, it was on the same page as the shui zu yu, and in many ways was effectively the same dish, but with one huge difference: it used fresh green peppercorns and chilis rather than dried ones.

And that's pretty much what it tasted like too. The use of fresh spices meant that it wasn't as earthy or smoky (and the oil was clear instead of red), but it was still nearly just as spicy. Psychologically that somehow made it feel a bit more guilt-free, especially since they included a surprising clump of fresh dou miao in the center of that bowl too. OK, it was still a lot of oil and salt, but it was good enough that I shoved more than one bowl of rice down my throat in the end. And I couldn't complain about the cold noodles (in red oil) that we got as well.

Yes, I'll come back to this place. The menu was pretty darned long and looked like there were a few other things worth trying out. And normally I'm not too particular about this sort of thing, but the moderately more upscale decor of this place was a welcome relief from most of the other grimey spots around. Either way, it will be interesting to see what Hometown looks like after they finish all of that remodeling on Smith Street.

Afterthought: I assume that this place has nothing to do with Chuan on Purvis Street from many years ago. But now that I look at it again, I can't help but wonder if this was another reincarnation of it, seeing how these guys also had something with those thin slices of pork hanging like laundry. Or is that the way that the dish is always done in Sichuan?

Muso's Cha Cha Ramen at Menya Koji

Man, these guys change names more frequently than Prince, Snoop, and P. Diddy combined! Anyway, this was from Daikokuya at Paragon, except that it was now called Menya Koji. Keep in mind that this was run by the guys who moved the Ebisboshi Shotengai name to Great World City to make room for Ramen Champion, and then also positioned Daikokuya at Robertson Quay as Jyoshoken. Confused? I shake my head just thinking of it.

Well, the thing that drew me here was this bowl from Muso, which seemed like a part of this ongoing guest ramen chef thing that these guys keep rotating through, although in this case it was permanently burned into the menu. Anyway, I liked it. The chashu was tender and tasty while the thin broth was savory enough for me to finish, all dusted with a bit of black pepper.

These guys should just name all of their properties Ramen Champion and let guest chefs rotate though. Why keep messing with these other names like Daikokuya, Ebisboshi Shotengai, and Menya Koji??

Menzo Butao at Marina Square in Singapore

Not to be confused with Butao Ramen in Hong Kong, this was a new shop that has opened up at Marina Square (6 Raffles Boulevard #02-180, 6338-0840). The chashu was decent with its grilled aroma, but that was probably the only thing that I liked. I didn't care much for the clump of noodles, nor was I able to finish the broth (that ginger really killed it for me). I really don't think I'll be going back again. Side note: it turns out that this place is run by the same guys who brought Ajisen, Botejyu, and Musashi to Singapore.

Truffle Chicken Soup from Din Tai Fung

Yes, these guys are getting a bit carried away with the truffles, now adding it to their signature chicken soup as well. At S$19.80 (US$15.70), it was twice the price of the normal chicken soup. But honestly, it was just chicken soup with a touch of truffles, and hardly worth the difference. I'm still kinda scratching my head at this Chinese-food-and-truffles thing going on these days.

The Noeoeoedles Stall at KLIA

No, I didn't eat here; the menu just didn't look very appetizing. But I just found it interesting that they used umlauts on three straight letters, and hence my interpretation of it above. Actually, KLIA really doesn't have much that is good to eat. I was chatting with my cab driver on the way in, who said that he used to run a Ramly Burger stall in Johor. Now why can't they open one of those at the airport?? I'd be there all the time if they had one!

Nasi Kandar from Kuala Lumpur

I needed a quick bite before heading to our meeting today, and this was one of the few stalls near our office in KL that seemed to have much promise, especially since I'd never seen fried calamari at one of these places before (My local colleagues told me later that it's quite common with nasi kandar, actually.)

Anyway, it tasted fine. I wasn't expecting a lot, but it sufficed in getting food into my belly. Next time I need to be sure to take Firefly into KL instead. It's closer to the office which will mean that hopefully I can crash my colleagues lunch plans; today they went to some skinny ban mee place whose chili sauce is apparently so hot that you pay for it the next morning. I can't wait.

Sin Ming Rong Cheng Bak Kut Teh

No, I wasn't planning on eating bak kut teh for breakfast today. But I was at Changi Terminal 2 this morning for a quick hop up to KL on SilkAir, and figured that I'd better get some food in my belly, seeing how the flight was so short that it would barely get me a plastic cup of juice.

To my surprise, there were a number of decently famous hawkers up here, including my beloved Tai Wah Pork Noodle. I wasn't in the mood for anything too heavy though, so I got this, especially since it had a full three chopstick rating from Makanstura.

And yes, the broth was good; super-peppery just as I like it, complete with bits of crushed peppercorn at the bottom of my bowl. I wasn't planning to eat the meat, but it was tender and tasty too. Nice one. (BTW, when did Malaysia stop requiring arrival cards? This is great!)

(Fake) Spanish Elver Eels in a Can

Meidi-Ya has been running a Spanish Fair over the past few days, featuring everything from jamón and manchego cheese to one of my recent fixations, Spanish canned seafood. And when I saw these baby eels in a can, I freaked out, instantly throwing one into the shopping cart along with some octopus and even sea urchin. Yum!

I opened them up for breakfast over the weekend, with the eels unhesitatingly being opened first. Now, keep in mind that at only S$19.95 (US$15.90), these were clearly not the real thing. They were effectively fish-flavored noodles, but I still happily gobbled up these mildly spicy gulas given how long it was since I last had them, almost wishing that I had bought a second tin.

Alas, I still had others, including some pulpo that I particularly enjoyed given the extra stank that the canning process provided. The sea urchin that I got was a bit of a shock though, especially given how accustomed I am to eating the fresh stuff. Nonetheless, I was so happy with all of this loot that I'm eager to go back and buy some of those canned clams that I saw too.

Japan's Magosaburou in Singapore

When I first heard about this yakiniku chain from Kumamoto, I was interested, and yet somehow never got so excited that I would go to ION Orchard for it (92 Orchard Turn #04-11A, 6634-1411). But a couple of months ago, I was told about how the grade of wagyu here was comparable to some of the best in Japan, so we came down here tonight to finally give it a try.

The menu took a while to navigate. Yes, they had the usual yakiniku grill in the center of each table, but I tried to veer toward the items that seemed the most unique, including a steak baked in Himalayan rock salt, as well as something that they claimed to be their "original signature dish," yakishabu. Unfortunately, both were letdowns. The former used a very lean rump cut that, while tender, just wasn't the fatty wagyu that we were expecting. And the yakishabu, described on the menu as thinly sliced meat that is "lightly boiled like shabu shabu then barbecued," had no broth to speak of to shabu shabu first like it suggested. It was just thinly sliced shabu shabu meat that went directly onto the grill.

It was only after tacking on that ribeye above did we finally get the marbling that we were after, and even then I'd argue that Yazawa is better. Oddly, the thing that we liked the most tonight was the rather unappealingly named "salted cabbage salad," which was fresh cabbage coated in a super fragrant sesame oil and seasoned with a delicious salt and hijiki combination. Well, there was an interesting weekday special featuring handmade pasta that might be interesting to come back for. But as far as the meat goes, it may be best to stick to the traditional yakiniku.

Taiwan's Sushi Express in Singapore

I bash places like Sakae Sushi and Ichiban Tei all of the time for that boring (and oftentimes nasty fried and mayonnaise-covered) food. And yet, when I saw an outlet of this conveyor-belt chain from Taiwan opening in Singapore, I was kinda curious. I mean, it was serving the same kind of unappealing stuff as the other guys, but they were also only charging S$1.50 (US$1.20) a plate. At those kind of prices, I wouldn't expect quality, but at least my wallet wouldn't get reamed in the process either. And this afternoon, we needed a quick snack to stave off some hunger pangs, so we came here to try it, assuming that it would not be so filling so as to spoil our dinner later.

It was interesting. Immediately upon being seated we were told that they had no menus and took no orders. I saw the guys behind the counter making the sushi too - Jiro Dreams of Sushi this definitely was not! They made this stuff assembly-line style, forming multiple balls of rice on each plate first (cue: the sushi machine scene from Wall Street!), and then ladling out the fish on top, which incidentally was pre-sliced and all set in a silver tray from the back room. So much for the warm body temperature hands of a male sushi chef!

Nonetheless, I still ate it by being very selective about what I picked out (and in case you're wondering what that yellow and silver fish was above, it was some kind of a herring and roe thing). That doesn't mean that I enjoyed it though: the fish was pretty dull, with things like salmon totally lacking the fatty taste that otherwise makes it wonderful. They had sea urchin available, although those little scraps were hardly the creamy delicacy that they were supposed to be. So yes, I'd much rather go to Ikeikemaru, but this place is so darned cheap that it did the job of holding off the hunger for a few more hours, even if it was emotionally unfulfilling.

Bangalore's MTR 1924 in Singapore

Yes, I wanted to come here after reading about them in the Sunday Times (438 Serangoon Road, 6296-5800). Part of it was simply because it was a well-established chain from Bangalore, but also since it was hard to forget the name of the shop (nope, it's not named after the Hong Kong subway, but rather stands for Mavalli Tiffin Room).

Anyway, it turns out that these guys have a different menu for each day of the week. The vanghi bhath with eggplant above was one of the specials today, while another rice dish called bisibele bhath went down quickly too, all washed down with a mug of coffee that they seemed to take a lot of pride in.

Admittedly, I'm not sure if what I had today was anything that I'd get overly excited about, but I know that I'll be coming back here again, especially since they open at 8 AM and thus can get me my idli fix before Murugan opens. The lunch sets here are also supposed to be pretty good - maybe I should have gotten that today instead.

Wrapping Up the World Streetfood Congress

So this is actually my sixth time here in the past seven days. And there were really just two things fueling that. First, they started comp'ing people at the door earlier in the week, so this basically became an expensive hawker center rather than an event that one had to pay to enter. But more importantly, I came back for La Guerrerense. Sure, that Karnatakan garlic chicken above that I tried in between meals was, well, garlicky. But La Guerrerense was the only stall that I consistently ate at during all six visits.



Actually, there was one peculiar thing that happened tonight. There were two stalls whose lines were longer (much longer) than La Guerrerense, and those were two Vietnamese stalls. One was selling a banana sticky rice that pretty much tasted like it sounded. But the other one was selling bánh xèo together with those smaller bánh khọt, and admittedly it was probably my second favorite stall of them all. Sure, there are plenty of places in town to get bánh xèo, but this guy made his nice and small, coming off of the pan piping hot, going down easily with all of those fresh herbs.



And yes, that Noma-affiliated Meyers Køkken place was finally open midweek, where they made a pork sandwich that was filled with contrasting textures and flavors of apple, crackling, and other goodies. It was fine, but I'm not sure why they were so erratic with their opening hours. Even tonight, they were closed, which must have bummed anyone who had only arrived hoping to get it. And interestingly, La Guerrerense sold out before the sun went down tonight, so hopefully anyone who wanted to get those wonderful tostadas got a taste before then. Either way, I must to go to Ensenada at the next chance that I get.

Toripaitan Ramen from Kagetsu

This chicken-based bowl from Kagetsu was a lot better than I thought it would be, with a richness reminiscent of a proper tonkotsu, and yet clearly with a chicken taste. I drank this thing down to the last drop in no time, almost wishing for more.

Burnt Ends Bar & Grill in Singapore

When I first heard about this place (20 Teck Lim Road, 6224-3933), I wasn't too excited about it. This was in part since it was related to Esquina, but also since they used the name of an American barbecue component and yet wasn't really serving American barbecue. Still, the same colleague of mine who referred me to Lolla kept telling me about this place, so I came down here after work tonight to see what all of the fuss was about.

He was right - this place was pretty darned good. The interesting thing was that the wood burning smoke made the dining room indeed smell like the City Market in Luling, Texas, and yet the food was far from brisket and sausage. These were upscale small plates instead, all carrying a pleasantly smoky taste, with the perfectly seasoned quail eggs and and tartare in particular being a couple of my favorites. The asparagus above was right up my alley too, as was everything else that I had. Good call.

Well, I guess at one point I did say that I was looking forward to the next venture from the guys behind The Market Grill, and here it was. Surely enough, I liked it, and I hope that there are more no-reservations counter-seating places to come. Somehow I just haven't been that big on Esquina though.

World Streetfood Congress 2013 in Singapore

I was looking forward to this event at the F1 Pit Building. Setup by that Makansutra guy and headlined by Bourdain himself, this was supposed to feature street food from around the world. So you can imagine my disappointment when I found out that most of the stalls were from Southeast Asia and India, the food of which is easily available around here. Sure, there were a few guys from the US and China, but they were largely from Portland in the case of the former and Hainan in the case of the latter. Whatever happened to food off the streets of Morocco, Brazil, or even Germany?

Well, for me, the star of the show was La Guerrerense from Mexico. Remember that Bourdain episode when he went to Baja? I was totally wowed by that sea urchin tostada scene, and now that lady was here, serving a deliciously fresh and savory seafood tostada that totally lit up when she cranked up the spices. She also made a campechana, but done in the lighter - and original - Mexican way. Unfortunately, she didn't have any sea urchin today, but that just means that I'll still have to go to Ensenada for the real deal eventually. BTW, why was that stall from the co-owner of Noma unmanned today??

ANA Features Ippudo Ramen In-Flight!!

Holy crap! I had to stop and look at this again when I saw this in the ANA in-flight magazine. They are now serving Ippudo in-flight? Granted, it looked like it was only available in the front of the plane (whereas my measly peasant-class fare tonight meant I had to suffer with that karubi that I got last time - pity me!). But that's it - I've decided. Next time I'm fortunate enough to be on a paid business class fare to the US, I'm taking ANA. I love this airline!

Hiyashi Chuka at the ANA Lounge in Narita

I wasn't planning to eat at the ANA Lounge today. But when I noticed that they added hiyashi chuka to their noodle bar's selection, I grabbed one just out of curiosity. It was fine with its tangy sauce, and thankfully the portion wasn't too big. But it is just airport lounge food, after all. Now, onto that sake and Japanese whiskey bar!

Continental Economy Plus Out of Houston

Yeah, I know, it's United now, not Continental. But given that I was leaving IAH, it was only natural that they'd be using a former Continental plane. And actually, this Economy Plus seat wasn't nearly as bad as I thought it would be...and in fact seemed better than the United-proper version.

The seat pitch was generous enough that not only could I recline back and not bother the person behind me, but also I could get out of my window seat to go to the lavatory without needing the two people next to me to get out of their seats. Indeed, I think I got better sleep here than I did in that old-school business class seat on the way in, and I was able to charge my computer and phone too.

Pappadeaux Seafood Kitchen at IAH Terminal E

Believe it or not, I actually had my heart set on coming to Houston airport to eat at this place. Why? I had noticed it when I came in the other day (along with Cat Cora's restaurant there), and somehow the thought of trying this Texan Cajun seafood chain sounded interesting. It turned out that it was right next to my gate this morning too, so I went upstairs to the bar and tried to find the quickest thing that I could get.

I ended up with this campechana, a Mexican ceviche cocktail that was adjusted in New Orleans to add things like Tabasco. I wasn't sure why they gave saltine crackers with it at first, but it became obvious once I took my first bite. The carbs not only helped offset the salty salsa, but also it made for a bit of a utensil that one could use to scoop this stuff out of this top-heavy glass. Next time I should come here to try the other stuff on the menu.

Pho Binh by Night in Houston, Texas

When I passed by here earlier this afternoon, I noticed this place, but really just because of the tacky-sounding name. It was only when I got back to the hotel in the evening did I read about these guys in passing, realizing that Pho Binh is one of the better phở shops around town, and this was their late-night outlet (12148 Bellaire Blvd #101, 832-351-2464).

Still, that alone was not the thing that brought me back here. What brought me here was a news story that said that these guys had bone marrow phở. Huh? What the heck was bone marrow phở?? See that little bowl on the left with those globules floating on top? That's the bone marrow, which, upon scooping into the main bowl, completely transformed the anise-heavy broth into one with a rich and fatty taste. It was almost like someone dumped butter or lard into it!

That was definitely one of the more unique bowls that I've had (it's like St. John meets Pho Hoa!). And the cool thing about this shop is the quality of the ingredients that they used too, including extremely big and green leaves of basil as well as crisp and clean bean sprouts. Even if it weren't for the marrow option (which as far as I could tell was an off-the-menu item, BTW), this would probably be worth coming to for the normal bowl alone.