Lucky Her Kiao off Balestier Road

One thing that really doesn't get enough attention is the Teochew herh keow dumpling with its chewy fish paste-based wrapper. Sure, one usually gets a few in a bowl of noodles, but the dumplings are never really the focal point. Fortunately, one of the Song Kee family folks makes them by hand and sells boxes out of a freezer in a little shop at One Dusun Residences, which I happened to be at this morning (1 Jalan Dusun #01-01, 9830-1661).

There are a number of different types of fillings available, but he doesn't serve hot food on-site, so one has to bring those dumplings home and DIY it. I'd much rather leave it in the hands of professionals, but now I know that next time I should get the pork filling instead of the grouper, or at least not use a fish-based stock as that ended up being too much fish in one go (i.e., a fish-based filling wrapped in a fish paste skin and dunked in a fish-based broth). But I will go back to get more.

A Late Night Snack at Ng Kuan Chilli Pan Mee

The Yaowarat folks have a small chain of Malaysian ban mian shops called Ng Kuan, and I stopped by an outlet for a late night top-up. It probably doesn't look like much above, but all of the seasoning was underneath the noodles. So after a big stir, one ended up with exactly the sodium and fat-laden bowl of carbs that my tummy was seeking. Those fried garlic chips were pretty thick BTW.



It wasn't just noodles on the menu BTW. There were veggies and other things that you could get on the side. Boiled clams probably don't sound very exciting, but they were delicious after a quick dip into soy sauce with some chili. The soup version of noodles here hit the spot tonight too.

Paris' Nonette Bánh Mì & Donuts x Tiong Bahru Bakery

The Foothills location of Tiong Bahru Bakery at Fort Canning Park (70 River Valley Road #01-05, 6877-4865) is doing a pop-up this weekend with a bánh mì shop from Paris, but using Tiong Bahru's bread along with Bordier butter, among other things. They apparently sold out pretty quickly both this morning and at noon, but fortunately there were some available when I walked in this afternoon, like that roast chicken one above. Yes, I liked it enough that I'd order it again if they make it a permanent part of the menu. Compared to my usual Viet9, the bread was chewier but still airy, and the pickles were more tart but still nicely balanced. Their dặc biệt was already sold out this afternoon though, and I'm curious to try that one.

Sei Ngan Zai from the Malaysia Boleh! Folks

The Malaysia Boleh folks now have a brand of wanton noodle stalls called Sei Ngan Zai, the signage of which prominently features a "Super Spicy" label on their signature noodles. Naturally, I was quite excited to try it as a result, hoping that the chili would be nice and potent.

But when I first tried it a couple of months ago, it was not spicy at all, making me suspect that maybe they messed up my order. I thus went back again tonight, telling them twice that I wanted it spicy to be sure. But it still wasn't spicy. Or at least, it definitely wasn't "super spicy" nor even moderately spicy. At best, it was mildly spicy.

The staff told me that I could always add more chili if I wanted to, but neither of the two varieties of chili that they had available were spicy either. Even if the noodles and meat were half-decent on their own, I don't really want to go back given how cheated I felt.

Finally Trying Don Don Donki’s Wagyukushi

I finally tried Don Don Donki's wagyukushi skewers today. Contrary to how they looked in the signage, these were not solid cubes of meat. Instead, it was sliced meat that was compacted together into the shape of cubes. I didn't entirely mind that given that I usually prefer thinly sliced meat, and this was tasty enough that I nearly went for another one. Still, I couldn't help but feel a bit duped.

Atmosphere Thai Bistro & Bar at Parkland Green

As the name suggests, the beachside open air seating is the priority here (920 East Coast Parkway #01-25). Still, they serve Thai food, among other things, and I certainly wasn't complaining about the cheap beer. The dishes did the job, with that pork belly namtok above being the best thing that we had tonight, especially since these were crispy fatty pieces of pork belly instead of the usual lean meat that one usually gets. But again, the emphasis here is more about the laid back location rather than the food.

Heng Kee vs Ah Heng Curry Chicken Bee Hoon

I was at Hong Lim today and finally had a chance to try Heng Kee at stall #01-58. To my surprise, my small bowl came with a variety of bone-on chicken parts, which I thought they only reserved for folks who paid for the large bowl. The chicken was definitely moist, but they hardly gave any noodles, and in some ways I was longing more for Ah Heng upstairs since the bones here made it more troublesome to eat.



The good thing though was that I still had stomach space for another bowl, so I grabbed one from upstairs. They were much more generous with the noodles at Ah Heng, even if they gave less chicken...and lowly breast meat at that. But it was precisely that breast meat that I was looking for, and I liked the crispy chili here better too. The bigger mystery to me is whether there is a difference between the "Song" stall number 59 and "Kwang" stall number 58 on the other side of the aisle.

The Grilled Pomfret from Dapur Penyet

I passed by an outlet of Dapur Penyet tonight, and the idea of Indonesian grilled fish sounded pretty good, especially since it went for a bargain price of just S$9.90 (US$7.20). Granted, there wasn't much meat to pluck off of that pomfret, but it was slightly smoky and went nicely with rice and that slightly sweet dark sauce drizzled on top. The skin was pretty tasty too, but unfortunately most of those bones weren't edible.

Din Tai Fung’s Fried Rice with Vegetables

I am not sure how long this has been on the menu at Din Tai Fung, but I got it precisely because it was green and a departure from the usual egg fried rice behind it. It had a nice light fragrance, but was also light on the seasoning, making for quite a contrast with Ohsho's chahan.

Finally Trying Out PastaGo in Singapore

There have been a number of fresh pasta stalls popping up around town lately, but most of them generally haven't been very memorable. So I was never under any huge urgency to try out PastaGo either. But we were near an outlet tonight, and I figured that I'd try it given that they started at a bargain price of just S$3.90 (US$2.80).

It was much better than most of the competition, as they didn't overdo the garlic in that fettucine aglio e olio above, and fortunately they used dried chilis instead of fresh ones to give it that nice smoky aroma. They weren't shy about using salt and oil here either. I'm kinda curious about the other menu choices now, despite having heard some wobbly things about them.

Ji Ji Noodle House at Hong Lim Market & Food Centre

Here's another one of the Michelin-listed stalls at Hong Lim (531A Upper Cross Street #02-48). They call themselves "wanton noodle specialists," and the items in the bowl were done with care, be it the firm and skinny noodles, paper thin skin on those fried wantons, or the wolfberry and red date garnished soup. But the chili sauce was based on dried shrimp, which on its own is not a bad thing, but I still prefer the straight heat that one gets from places like Eng's.

By the way, I also had a chance to try the curry puffs from the two family rival Tanglin Crispy Curry Puff stalls at Hong Lim. I preferred the stuffing and crust from the "original" stall #02-36, although that might've also been a function of the one from the "Since 1952" stall at #02-34 being cold when they served it to me. Either way, J2 at Amoy Street is still my favorite given their delightful crust.

"Fresh and Slimy Goodness" at Sukiya Singapore

Yep, that's how Sukiya worded their promotion: fresh and slimy. It was nothing more than just an okra-topped bowl, and wasn't really anything to get excited about either. (Indeed, I just realized that they've had an okra topping option on their bowls all this while.) But it is an amusing way to pitch the product.