Yu Sheng Ramen from Uma Uma

Uma Uma is running this special right now, and it didn't look very good. But it was a limited edition in the run-up to Chinese New Year, so I figured I'd give it a try. It was better than it looked. It was basically just a hiyashi chuka, but with raw fish in place of ham, and topped with some fried gyoza skins. Most importantly, it wasn't sweet; there wasn't any of the plum sauce that you would normally find in a local lo hei. It just tasted like hiyashi chuka. But I won't get it again.

Lunch at Burnt Ends Bar & Grill

Somehow I never noticed this until now, but the menu at Burnt Ends is rather cryptic. Basically, he only lists the ingredients that he uses in each dish, but he doesn't tell you how he prepares them. So "venison, mint, and cranberry" may turn out to be a bit of a surprise when you realize that the venison is a tartare. Or the "beef marmalade and pickles," which is a served on toast.

Moreover, a lot of the things that he lists may require a bit of deciphering. For instance, it was only today that I learned that the dish above was composed of a grissini (read: breadstick) and taramasalata (read: fish roe spread). And a "W.A. Marron and Paprika" was an Australian crayfish, grilled on a fire, and served with a paprika-based sauce on the side. I loved it all. This place is seriously one of the best places in town.

3Crab Delicacy Seafood Restaurant in Singapore

Is this place featured in a tourist guidebook or something?? The only time that I've been here was many years ago when a friend from out of town said that he wanted to go. And the only reason why I came here tonight was because another friend from out of town likewise heard that this place was good. Really? I don't remember it being anything special. Well, let's see (265 Outram Road, 6327-2148).

No, it still wasn't anything special. The chili crab was forgettable, and the black pepper crab was coated in an oddly goopy substance. And even though it was still edible, it couldn't hold a candle to the all-time king of black pepper crab, Eng Seng.

The one thing, however, that was kinda interesting is that curry crab above. But it was the curry that made it good, not the crab. I basically just scooped curry onto a bowl of rice without touching any of the crab. Well, if another visitor requests to come here again, I'll have to remember to try the clams and/or the cold crab; I suspect that I'll be happier with those.

"Spinach Soup" at Amoy Street Food Centre

When I hear the words "Spinach Soup," I think of something chopped up into a green colored broth. This, on the other hand, looked like just a plain local noodle soup. Still, these guys at Amoy Street Food Centre had a huge line today, and it sounded like it was healthy to boot. I thus duked out the ten minute wait (7 Maxwell Road #02-114).

It was a lot better than it looked, mainly because of the chopped up bits of salted and century eggs, making this thing delightfully savory and creamy at parts. There was some ground pork in there as a bonus, and the spinach of course kept it guilt-free (I loved how he just shoved tons of it in each pot). Yes, I'll eat this again. I wonder if other stalls are going to copy this soon.

Hyang Yeon Korean Kitchen on Amoy Street

To be sure, this place is not in the hawker center, but rather in the shophouses behind it, across from Wanton Seng's and not far from Aloha Poke (80 Amoy Street, 6221-6368). Unlike the bazillions of Korean BBQ places around here, this place focuses on chulpan yori, or a Korean teppanyaki, if you will.

That probably set the wrong expectations for me, as they seemed to have grilled it in the back of the shop, and then kept it warm on this plate. It tasted fine, but wasn't anything so spectacular that I'll get cravings for it. Still, that bulgogi that I saw on the menu looked interesting enough that I wouldn't mind coming back to try it.

Thambi's at Amoy Street Food Centre

Time for more food from Amoy Street. This guy is just diagonally across from MJ Egyptian at stall #02-92, and I was surprised to find that I liked it just as much as Bismillah, and perhaps even more. The rice was infused with lots of tasty goodness and he was generous with the spices in there too. Granted, I haven't eaten at Bismillah enough times to do a proper head-to-head comparison (and this guy does lack those lovely caramelized shallots that Bismillah has). But I liked this so much that I nearly went back for seconds. Thumbs up.

MJ Egyptian Cuisine at Amoy Street Food Centre

A number of interesting stalls have opened up at Amoy Street Food Centre, like this Egyptian place (7 Maxwell Road #02-87). I have any idea how authentic this was (the fries, cheese sauce, and local sweet chili sauce aren't exactly a ringing endorsement), and the kofta on this plate were a bit dry. But I have to admit that I liked this thing enough that I was happy to finish it all, even if I'm not likely to come back for more.

My First Taste of Shaanxi Paomo

Actually, that's not paomo above, but instead some kind of peculiarly-named "Waistband Noodle" that initially drew us to this stall at People's Park Complex Food Centre (32 New Market Road #01-1061). I'm not sure why they called it that, but each bowl was finished with bubbling hot oil poured over it. It was also much more sour than I thought it would be, but nonetheless still decently tasty, even if there was some chopped raw garlic in there.



While waiting for them to cook my food though, I noticed that some folks were ordering something called paomo, and when I looked it up, it was a dish from Shaanxi where flat bread is torn into small pieces and cooked in a lamb broth. I thus tried one afterwards, and the good thing is that it was deliciously savory and earthy. Still, it was very difficult to eat quickly given not just the scalding hot soup, but also the fact that there were tons of bone fragments in there. So as much as I liked the taste, I'm not going to order it again.

Kite on Craig Road in Singapore

I'd heard about these guys a while back, but could never get in the mood to try them out. Yet today, I happened to be walking by their shop at lunch time (53 Craig Road #01-01, 9729-7988), and it looked like it might have some promise. I went in to see if it were any good.

It was. The food was fresh and creative, and oftentimes laced with a hint of local flavors. For instance, those "dirty vegetables" above were composed of carrot sticks and asparagus spears dipped in a mildly sweet mixture of brown butter and ground coffee that tasted a bit like Milo Dinosaur. I was surprised by how much I liked it.

Other fun items here included a cold somen tossed in Chinese lap cheong sausage oil, as well as a creamy soup-like dish of corn, portobello, king oyster mushrooms, and polenta, which I gobbled up in an instant. I'll be happy to come back here, especially since the list of cocktails looked worthy of a try too.

An In-Flight Karipap on Firefly

No, this wasn't anything to get excited about, especially with its disturbingly soft skin. But I didn't really each much at lunch earlier, and somehow Firefly's in-flight snack seemed appealing for a moment. Actually, it was only today that I learned that karipap is how one says curry puff in Malay.

Sushi Zanmai...From Malaysia, not Japan

We needed a quick team lunch near our Kuala Lumpur office today, and this was one of the only places available. At first I got excited, thinking that it was the same Sushizanmai from Japan (they even pitch themselves as having "more than 20 years of experience in Japan"). But upon closer inspection, it became clear that it was not the same thing.

Sure, it had kaiten conveyor belts like the real Sushizanmai, but so do places like Sushi Tei, and this was definitely more like the latter than the former (think: mayo-drizzled sushi...ugh!). Too bad I won't have any time to get some real local food on this quick overnight trip to KL.

Straits Food Village at Changi Terminal 2

Welp, they've redone that Universal Dining food court at Changi Terminal 2 into a nicer-looking Straits Food Village, featuring a fancy self-ordering kiosk (that frankly seemed to confuse most visitors there, to be honest) and a fresh clean decor. Unfortunately, Tai Wah Pork Noodle is no longer there. Instead it was some nameless stall serving this rather mild and watery thing with weirdly soft meatballs. Sigh...I don't need to come back.

Four Varieties of Ful Medames from Chtoura

Yep, once again we have more goods from Mustafa, this time from a Lebanese brand called Chtoura. It was ful medames, but the interesting thing was that they had multiple variations of it, including a Syrian, Egyptian, Palestinian, and Lebanese version. I grabbed one of each to see what the differences were.

I started with the Syrian one first, as the ingredients on the label suggested that it was the simplest, featuring fava beans and cumin. I was surprised to find it featuring whole beans in a thin broth rather than being mashed together, but nonetheless it was spicier than I thought it would be. I then proceeded to the Egyptian one, featuring fava beans, cumin, ginger, and chili. Despite how it sounded, it actually seemed less spicy than the Syrian one, thus making me wonder if they mixed up the labels. It was rather boring, and I didn't really want to finish it, to be honest.

Next up was the Palestinian one, featuring fava beans, chickpeas, cumin, chili, and fennel. It was bland at first but the mildly spicy broth grew on me. I finished it off with the Lebanese one, featuring fava beans, chickpeas, cumin, chili, and basil. It wasn't spicy, but surprisingly slightly richer than the others. I think the Syrian one is still my favorite, followed by the Palestinan one.

Tuna from Callipo in Southern Italy

No, these weren't from Mustafa again. These were from CiBO Italiano for S$15.20 (US$10.50). Deep down inside, I was kinda hoping that perhaps these would be as delicious as that lovely Atún Rojo Salvaje from Don Bocarte (or even the one from Conservas Ortiz). But I also figured that it couldn't be so fatty at such a price point, and I was right. These were leaner than I would have liked. Still, the oil in this jar was tasty enough for me to mop up so much bread with that I'm totally stuffed right now.

Saffola Masala Oats from Mumbai

Here was another thing that we picked up at Mustafa last weekend: oatmeal packets from Mumbai, done up in a savory masala style. Yeah, it was pretty tasty, spiced up Indian style, and tasting a bit like instant noodles thanks to those MSG-like "flavor enhancers" 627 and 631. I liked it enough to nearly say that I'd take this over Quaker Oats any day, but a quick search online suggests that Quaker offers something similar in India too.

Curry Soba from Hokkaido Izakaya, Singapore

Hokkaido Izayaka has expanded its lunch menu, which is good since I've tried nearly every item on there by now. This was a new curry soba, which was fine (and rather interesting given that they provided a little cup of cream on the side to make it richer). But it wasn't anything that I'll likely get again, especially since that tempura turned soft upon contact with the curry. I am kinda curious about that cold soba that they are now pairing with kakiage though.

Huang He Lou on Temple Street, Singapore

I'm not very familiar with Hubei food. But I randomly came across this shop on my way home tonight (50 Temple Street, 6222-3705) and figured that I'd give it a try. It was better than I thought it would be, including both that tofu sticky rice cake above as well as some kind of "dry pot" thing. The flavors were reasonable; not excessively oily, salty, nor spicy, but still pronounced enough to be interesting. I'd like to come back to try some of that re gan mian that they were advertising.

Tamek Canned Goods from Turkey

I was delighted to discover last weekend that Mustafa was selling these canned goods from Turkey. So I picked up a can of the "fried eggplant slices" on the left and the "cooked white beans" on the left. The eggplant was pretty much like imam bayıldı, with more tomato sauce on it than I would have liked but nonetheless was still easy to eat. On the other hand, the beans were more sour than I would have liked, being heavy on lemon juice, even if it was still very edible on its own.

Ikan Penyet from Indonesia Delight Gandis

I was back at Trivex today and decided to get Gandis' ikan penyet, which was impressively good. The fish was fresh and easy to eat (i.e., no tiny bones), and came topped with some surprisingly airy bread crumbs, all complemented with a thin peppery soup. I don't exactly get out here very often, but I'd happily eat here again if given the chance.

Fishball Noodles from San Yuan Gourmet

After finishing the day in the area, I made my way over to Joo Seng Food Place in search of a shop called Rui Ji Teochew Fishball Noodle (1 Upper Aljunied Lane #01-02), as apparently they had a brutally spicy chili sauce. Unfortunately, it was no longer there. Instead, an outlet of San Yuan Gourmet took its place. The noodles were edible, but it was just standard-issue chili. Does anyone know if Rui Ji emerged somewhere else?

Indonesia Delight Gandis at Trivex

I don't eat soto ayam frequently enough to really say much about it. And this was just a totally random stall in the middle of an industrial building off Macpherson Road (8 Burn Road), of all places. But I gobbled this up in an instant thanks to that super potent chili sauce that she heaped onto the thing. Yum.

Bikaner Express on Syed Alwi Road

Someone had mentioned to me the other day that Bikanervala's Singapore outlet had shut down. So I was a bit surprised to see this Bikaner Express shop across the street from Mustafa (83 Syed Alwi Road, 6295-2720).

The staff mentioned that it's the same owner as the old shop, but I'm not sure if that's the same local owner or if there really is some relation to the Rajasthani chain (I saw both Bikanervala and Bikaner Express-branded sweets at the front of the shop).

Anyway, the food was pretty straightforward; we got a few chaat and pau bhaji, all of which went down in a jiffy. But none of it blew me away either. In retrospect, maybe should have just hopped on over to Murugan Idli Shop instead.

Middle Road Pork Ribs Prawn Mee in Little India

We needed to make a run to Mustafa this morning and thus popped on over to this place for breakfast (16 Sam Leong Road, and they're only open from 8AM-2PM). I can't remember where I read about it, but there were so many people ahead of us that it took at least 15 minutes for our food to arrive, so there must be something really good about it.

Yet I failed to see what it was. There really wasn't anything that special about the pork, prawns, noodles, or even chili here. The only interesting thing was the broth, which was pork-based and reasonably tasty at that. But I would have much rather had a prawn-based broth instead. In short, it's unlikely that we'll be coming back.

Side note: this place is across the street from Loylum Thai Boat Noodles, which to my surprise, has been shut down. There was a piece of paper posted on the shop from two days ago saying that the place has been repossessed.

CiBO Italiano on River Valley Road

The folks from Donna Carmela have opened up a little place at the new Loft @ Nathan condo (428 River Valley Road #01-01, 6385-1310). Part of it is a small Italian grocery, but there are also a few bar stools and tables where they'll serve you simple pasta and pizza too...and it was a tad cheaper than 2it & drink across the street. Granted, it's really more about small simple snacks rather than a restaurant. Nor was it anything to go out of one's way for (and it was still twice the price of Valentino's Pasta Stop). But I'm nonetheless happy to see some decent Italian food without the outrageous prices that one usually gets around here.

My First Taste of Indonesian Snake Fruit

I noticed this when passing by the fruit vendors on the ground floor of Tiong Bahru Market this morning. The clove-like white meat under that thin scaly skin was much firmer than I was expecting, all while carrying a mildly tangy taste. Yeah, it was better than I was expecting. Apparently it's the fruit of a short palm tree from Indonesia.

Sakanadonya Kunimaru on Boon Tat Street

I wandered down to Boon Tat Street today, thinking that I could grab a quick lunch at No Menu's Chinese Corner. When I arrived, I found this shop in its place instead (7 Boon Tat Street, 9616-6517). Calling itself a "Fishmonger Cafeteria," it served mostly seafood donburi. I thus grabbed this kaisendon, the fish of which was better than I was expecting (and certainly much better than that bizarrely marinated one from Teppei). But I'm not likely to make any effort to come back here.

Rounding out the Extract Trinity with Bovril

I finally bought a bottle of Bovril to finish off the salty extract tastings. It's similar to Marmite and Vegemite in the sense that it's a dark, salty, thick paste. But it's based on beef rather than yeast, and definitely much better than Marmite, the latter of which is too one-dimensional.

Perhaps what's more interesting is how NTUC FairPrice supermarkets here put Bovril and Marmite in the "Health Supplements" section next to bandages, antacids, and cough medicine. It's also near the Brand's Essence of Chicken, perhaps because the stuff tastes pretty similar when you make a soup out of it.