Penang Delights Prawn Noodles

The prawn noodle fascination continues with recommendations from friends. This one by a foodie friend who prefers this over my favourite Wah Kee.

Of course, with recommendation this high, I just had to try it. 

I ordered the speciality Penang Prawn Noodle, they use small prawns, and in a dry noodle

With lots of fried shallots, pork...the whole concoction looks a bit messy. The noodles were nicely cooked...I had the beehoon mee. But the broth were a little too sweet for me. In Penang, the Hokkien Prawn Mee often is cooked with a touch of rock sugar in the broth, but this is way too sweet. This version is the dry version, and they added tomato sauce, something one would NEVER find in Penang. The chilli was also a bit sweetish. The prawns were small, quite sweet and fairly intense in flavour. But overall, this dish does not do it for me. 

We also tried the more regular Singapore style prawn noodle

This goes a bit better with my palate, but the broth was mild, almost tasteless. the prawns were ok, but not exceptional. The broth is similar to the first bowl, a bit too sweet.

A quick look on the blogosphere revealed that it did get good reviews from many respected bloggers, so I guess there is no accounting for taste. And I strike this one as one which, unfortunately the taste does not quite agree with my palate. So no recommendation from me, but do give it a try, it might just be your taste.

Penang Delights

#01-08, S-11 Food Centre, 711 Ang Mo Kio Ave 8 

Tale of two Mee Poks: Tua Kong and 132

Mee Pok is one of the standards and staples of the Singapore hawker scene. Some have elevate it to artisanal level. Witness the Tai Hwa in Crawford Lane. And the Jalan Tua Kong.

Originally from Jalan Tua Kong, this veritable shop now occupies the corner coffee shop in Simpang Bedok. The workers wear T shirts bearing the inscription "Art of Mee Pok"

I visit often to this shop. But recently, over a period of a week, I went twice. The first order was $6.50 and the second order $4.50. The first visit, was on a Friday, and I had a rather regular Tua Kong Mee Pok

Unusual in that it had prawns, minced and sliced meat, fishcake. And a very nicely done mee pok. The broth on this dry version was thick and wonderfully savoury, with great umami. And coupled with pork lard and lard crisps make a satisfying meal. The chilli proved to have a strong kick, and very tasty. Though, a bit pricey at $6.50 a bowl. 

A few days later, on the following Friday, we ordered the least expensive option at $4.50:

No sweet succulent prawns. In its place, two fish balls, and the rest was similar. Taste wise this was not a bad bowl. But the question is...what does the $2 buy you? Indeed it is not a lot of money, but proportionally $2 is 45% more expensive. The jury is out on this one.

Not far away, in Marine Terrace, the 132 Mee Pok is another similar styled dish being served. As I queued at the stall, I read on the framed Straits Times report that this was possibly the stall which "invented" the mee pok. The next generation has taken over the business now, and continue to be quite popular.

For this, $5 portion, two very nice, fresh succulent prawns adorn, with fish cake slices, and fish ball. The noodle was done just right. There was precious little gravy, yes I know this is a dry noodle dish, but compared to the Tua Kong version which had a beautiful savoury gravy, this was rather dressed with pork lard...as a result a bit greasy. Taste wise it was superb. Very nice indeed. 

I can recommend the original Jalan Tua Kong version, but not the second one. The 132 version is also recommended if you are not averse to pork lard and a slightly greasier dish.

JALAN TUA KONG LAU LIM MEE POK

308 Bedok Road, Bedok Shopping Centre
Open 7.30am – 5pm
Closed Alt Mondays

132 MEE POK

Block 59 Marine Terrace
#01-105 MP 59 Food House
Open 7am - 4pm
Closed Mondays and 3rd Sundays of the month

Prawn Noodles in Sengkang: Penang Kia

My lunching friends are now crazy over prawn noodles, so I have been going around tasting interesting candidates.

Recently, this little stall in Compassvale made some news when Leslie Tay wrote about it in his facebook page. Immediately the next day, long queues formed. But when I cycled to Compassvale one fine Wednesday morning, at 11:30am, there was no queue. 

They have several kinds of prawn noodles. What they call Penang Prawn Mee is only $3.50, available soup or dry. And the big prawn noodles for $6.50. They also have various combinations with pork rib. I went for the big prawn noodles.

The prawns were cooked on order, so it takes a while...though the cheaper $3.50 dish can be served immediately.

The wait was worth it. The broth is the winner. Thick, savoury, very beautiful flavours. I loved it. Very ince.

The prawns were rather large, and two were presented. They were fresh, had a crunch to the bite, and sweet. Nice. Two slices of lean pork accompanies, just like in Penang. I understand the couple who own the stall were former SQ Cabin Crew, and the wife was from Penang, and her father used to run a Hokkien Mee (as they call Prawn Mee in Penang) stall. When I was there, only the husband was there with a helper.

I found it to be very good. Worth the calories and worth the ride to eat. Its a 45km round trip by bicycle for me. Highly recommended.

Penang Kia

Prawn Noodles

Coffeeshop @ Blk 205D Compassvale Lane.

12 Stones Noodle House

I featured Loy Sum Juan as one of my favourite places to eat in the early days of this blog. I followed them from Outram Park to Tiong Bahru Plaza, but when they went to Murray Terrace we went less regularly, as parking is not the most convenient there and somehow I felt the quality of the cooking declined.

They closed in Feb 2014, and the main chef, who is the son of the founder and who ran Loy Sum Juan in the kitchen for many years started out on his own at a hawker stall in ABC.

I loved the har cheong kai at Loy Sum Juan, and he re-created a bone-less chicken version of har cheong kai, and served it atop noodles.

I added some pork chop shown in the foreground with the sauce, and the har cheong kai in the background. The noodles were de rigeur wantan mee style egg noodles. The pork chop was crispy, and the pork was tender and quite nice. Needless to say, the chicken is superb. The batter coating was fragrant, and the chicken tender.

We also tried the ngau lam mien

Braised brisket. I used to love their braised brisket and tendon at Loy Sum Juan. This version, perhaps as a hawker stall with price points to meet, the meat was a rather lower cut of brisket, and there were no tendons. 

I found the food quite good, particularly the har cheong kai noodles. But not really exceptional. I can recommend the har cheong kai.

12 Stones Noodle House

• Blk 6 Jalan Bukit Merah #01-140
• Singapore 150006
• Mon to Sat 11:00 - 15:00, 17:00 - 21:00

Great Cze Chars: Ga Hock Seafood

Great Cze Chars are not easy to find. Good ones are plenty. So when one finds a great one, go back often, and patronize the store, make sure they thrive.

I have been eating at Ga Hock, right across the road from Mindef for a while. And have always had great experiences there...for sure its not because of the ambience...as one sits under a shed, with full view of the kitchen.

But the food is good, and that makes up for all of it. Probably the best fish head curry in town, the nyonya styled curry is beautifully aromatic, and served with deep fried bean curd sticks:

May not look like much, but when soaked, the crispy fried beancurd sticks impart a wonderful flavour and consistency in the mouth that is absolutely marvellous. The gravy is thick, piquant, mild spiciness, and very aromatic. And the fish head itself, very fresh...I ate the soft gelatinous parts and they were wonderful, no after taste or untoward smells that a less than fresh fish head will have. Absolutely top class fish head curry, and certainly one of the best in Singapore. The style is similar to the one I tasted in Johor Bahru last year.

If it were only for this dish, I would come back again and again. But the other dishes were rather superb too. The sweet potato leaves in sambal was also excellent.

Deceptively simple. People used to throw away these leaves. But harvest them at the right time, I imagine when young, tender, and fried with great wok control with a wicked sambal, one gets a dish to die for. Very good vegetable dish here. 

So is the oyster omelette

The eggs were light, fluffy, tasty. The oysters were cooked just right...a few seconds more would have over cooked them, and a few seconds less would leave them bloody and raw. But this was very very good. The oysters were fat, juicy, tasty.

We also had the ginger chicken, which required a day's advance order

I guess the advance order is needed as the chicken is probably marinaded over a long time. The frying was, once again superbly done. Crisp on the outside, juicy on the inside. The slices of ginger were fried till crisp, like potato chips, and were rather nice to eat...the pungent nature of the ginger mellowed with the deep frying into a sweetish, crispy chip. Very nice, though I often preferred their har cheong kai.

And we had some prawns in black pepper

When it arrived, it was a little disappointing, as we had expected large prawns. The prawns were smallish, about an inch in diameter. But it slightly made up for the lack of size by the taste. Fresh, sweet, crunchy, with a crisp outer...it proved to be quite enjoyable.

Ga Hock is highly recommended. One of the gems of cze char cuisine in Singapore. The chefs/cooks exhibiting good taste, and excellent control of their wok and fire to achieve the beautiful consistency of the cooking. Excellent Plus Plus. 

Ga Hock Seafood

794 Upper Bukit Timah Rd, Singapore 678133 6314 5725

Tonkotsu Kazen Ramen: claim to be the best?

A very interesting ramen style, supposedly originating in Osaka, but the shop only has physical stores in Singapore, Bangkok and Jakarta. Kazen in Japanese means volcano, and the concept of the cooking is based on a funnel like chimney, which is put over a stone bowl heated to 300C. The chimney's funnel releases copious amounts of steam as the soup boils, and creates what looks like a volcano.

Stepping in the shop, I felt I had stepped into a shop in Japan...Shouts of welcome from the staff, the decor all were reminiscent of a small shop in Osaka.

We ordered the spicy tonkotsu ramen in kazen style. It came  with a set of instructions on how to eat the dish.

The hot stone bowl was delivered on our table. They have a version meant to be shared by two diners. The waiter poured about a quarter of the broth into the stone bowl, covered it with the funnel. We had to wait for a minute for the bowl to cook, and the dish was ready to eat. We dished out small portions on our bowls. 

The broth was thick, rich, and unlike many ramen broth, was not salty at all. We loved the mouthfeel and taste of the broth, which is made fresh daily from boiling pork bones. The chasiu was flavourful, rather tender, and quite nice indeed. And within the bowl was a lot of vegetables, mainly cabbage and thick home made ramen. The ramen was made thick, like the fat noodles used in the KL Fried Black Hokkien Mee so that it does not get soggy when soaked in the boiling broth. More broth can be added as the bowl boiled away. The soup does keep hot and remained quite warm throughout. When the ramen was finished, we added a bowl of rice, which, to me was a rather delicious way to end the meal. We loved it.

We also added some fried prawns as a starter...it did arrive before the main course..

The prawns were rather large, and fresh. Not greasy, crispy batter. And the prawns was very sweet and firm to the bite. The egg and potato salad on the side was also quite excellent.

Edward had the fried rice, also served in a hot stone bowl

We found it rather bland, but by adding some seasoning on the table...soy sauce and a tad of chilli, it was rather nice, and the heat formed the rice into a beautiful crispy crust at the end of the meal. 

Very interesting. We will be back to taste the kazen with curry and seafood soon. But based on our first experience, we know we will love it.

Tonkotsu Kazen Ramen

http://tonkotsukazan.com/index.html

Liang Court Singapore

177 River Valley Road, #01-10,
Singapore 179030

tel :(06)6336-8698

Restorante Otto: a gem in Italian cuisine

Otto has been one of my favourite Italian fine dining restaurants. Always appropriate, always excellent cooking.

This recent visit, on invitation by Omega Watches in a dinner to show their latest BaselWorld collection, was no different. Except for one dish, which while still ok, did not make the cut of the other excellent dishes served. 

The dinner was a degustation menu. Let me start with the wines. The white is an old favourite from the region of Langhe. 

Nice, dry, with sweet notes, apples, pineapple. Very good with the starter, which were giant white asparagus with parma ham and Montasio cheese gratin.

Very good. I am reminded with the Spargel Konig in Germany when I was there for the whole month of May in 2010. Very nice indeed. And complimented wonderfully with the saltish and savoury parma ham.

The second course was a pan fried foie gras

Magnificent. Two rather large slivers of a top grade foie gras. No veins, all smooth, wonderfully aromatic and fantastic mouthfeel. The tiny drops of aged balsamic vinegar providing a nice counterpoint by cutting the fat.

The ravoili was next

I loved this as well. Dutch veal in ravioli. The meat was very nicely balanced within...bursting as one bites into the ravioli. The pasta itself was perfectly cooked...a nice al dente.

We also had a seared kingfish, but that dish was a letdown after the amazing appetizers, and what was to come next. No pic of the fish. 

But the mains of suckling pig was superb

The very crispy skin of the suckling pig, lacquered with black locus tree honey and aged balsamic vinegar. The meat was also extremely tender, and flavourful. Very good main course which went well with the red wine chosen for the evening.

Not really a wine I am familiar with, but the Vigneto Gallina Vursu Reserva 2006 was quite superb. Dark, fruity, crisp barbaresco, the wine paired perfectly with the suckling pig. 

For dessert, a dark chocolate cake

Served with Haitian vanilla ice cream. The chocolate was as chocholate usually is...marvellous. Dark, a tinge of bitterness but clothed with sweetness, and a rich, oozing mouthfeel. Great way to end a wonderful meal.

Highly recommended for a great Italian meal. And thanks to Omega for hosting.

Restorante Otto

28 Maxwell Road,
#01-02 Red Dot Traffic Building
Singapore 069120

Reservations strongly recommended
Telephone +65 6227 6819
Fax +65 6227 8350
Email info@ottoristorante.com.sg

Tiong Hoe Speciality Coffee

Espresso joints abound in Singapore. What a total contrast with 8 -10 years ago. When the coffee giants like Starbucks moved into town and took over the coffee scene.

For many of us, afficionados, this was the dark ages. And prompted us to learn how to roast our coffee in our homes and make espresso ourselves. Thus was born our little group Singapore Coffee Greens. But fortunately, this revolution caught on, and out sprung many speciality espresso shops, owners driven by the same goals to serve freshly roasted coffee, ground on demand, and made with love. The third wave has arrived.

Pride of place, an huge burr grinder with electronic doser, and the Elektra 3 group espresso machine.

 One such curious new wave shop actually arose from the old school Nanyang coffee roasters. Tiong Hoe started out in 1960, and now managed by the second generation. Tucked in the quiet neighbourhood of Sterling Road, I was alerted of its existence by a good friend who lives nearby.

The shop is not really an espresso joint. But rather a shop to sell coffee beans, grounds, and brewing paraphernalia including espresso machines and burr grinders. 

Hundreds of kilograms of fresh green coffee is stored in the room nearby. And the coffee is roasted in a huge roaster in the back. As the company has been around for a long time...the decoration is full of old, beautiful coffee making equipment. Like this vintage test roaster, which apparently has been upgraded with electronics.

The coffees are served for tasting, so there is no prices for the coffees...a small box suggests you tip the barista, a sweet young lady who is very knowledgeable of her coffees. 

The espresso, doppio

Fabulously small...the correct dosage. Thick, syrupy, with a nice, beautiful crema thick and firm enough to support a teaspoon of sugar for at least 10 seconds...viola! Like in Italy! On the palate, it was well rounded. Full bodied, with a mild astringent acid note at the back of the throat, which lingers for quite a while. Quite nice.

The cappuccino came with decent latte art

The milk was nicely foamed, and the art had nice definition. On the palate, the astringent quality of the blend was muted by the milk, as milk tends to do. Not a bad cup. 

Beans are also availalbe. I bought 250g of the blend used in the house espresso

Pulled on my 12 year old machne...Mazzer Mini with Elektra Micro Casa A Leva

The espresso which yielded was quite good. A bit shallower crema than with the big espresso machine in the shop, but I would apply the same tasting notes.

Superb coffees and a great find. And quite a nice relaxing atmosphere to drop in a hot afternoon for a cuppa. Highly recommended.

Tiong Hoe Speciality Coffee

Blk 170 Stirling Road
#01-1133
Singapore 140170

Tel: (65) 6473 1133
Fax: (65) 6473 1187

Email:sales@freshcafe.com.sg

Hooked on Heads

Hooked on Heads is one of the old shops who have been dishing out delights for quite a while...I am not sure when they began operations, but from as long ago as 2007 I have been visiting this place.

Originally, cooked and served with passion, but my latest experience falls short of all the other visits. Not only did the quality of the cooking falter, but also, and perhaps more dangerously, the attitude of the owner. It is a sad when an old faithful fails. Sad indeed.

We ordered our usual fish fillet curry. Usually this was a beautiful piece of fish, fresh, cooked just so in the wonderfully fragrant curry. The curry was still rather good, but the fish had a foul smell. 

Unfortunate, and these things sometimes happen. But when we told the owner, his reaction rather surprised me, and told me that the passion has left, and the days of the restaurant are numbered. He said, "oh, its the fish belly...if you don't like, don't eat.", and got his server to take back the curry. I am saddened. No apology, no offer to replace with another dish. No interest from him at all.

I have had a taste of the curry, it was still rather good, but not class leading anymore. Happy Fish, a stall in a Food Court is very similar, and I can see the owner of that stall takes great pride in the freshness and the quality of his fish. 

The other dishes were also not class leading...the baby kailan

Was good, but the vegetable was not peak freshness. It lacked the crunch, and sweetness that a good baby kailan has. I will introduce a small cze char stall who does this particularly well soon...and who also does the next dish extremely well...the venerable har cheong kai, But that is another story for another blog post. We push on with Hooked's har cheong kai.

The har cheong kai at Hooked was very good. Crisp, juicy. It was well seasoned, with nam yu and other condiments, giving it a red hue. It remained the saving grace for Hooked this evening. Still very good. 

And we used to love the hae cho

Still quite decent. But a bit lacking...I cannot quite put my finger on any one single component that this dish is lacking a bit. It was perhaps only good...but why eat good deep fried food, when you can get excellent ones? Especially with the attendant health risks associated with deep frying. 

So it is with a bit of sadness, that I see the passing of a great place to eat...at least for me...I probably won't be visiting again soon. Sigh.

Hooked on Heads

#01-01, Tower 2, 6 Sin Ming Road

64554948 

Daily: 10:30 - 14:30

Daily: 17:30 - 21:30

Yoshimaru Ramen Bar

Yoshimaru is one of the traditional places one goes to seek out a satisfying ramen meal. Tucked in one corner of Holland Village, this little ramen bar is also well known for its Ramen Challenge, which now returns from now till June 22.

I was invited to try out the challenge: finish the challenge ramen, which is triple the regular sized ramen, including soup and all contents, and you get the meal for free, enter into a draw which may win you some Lenovo tablets.

Quite huge, weighs about 3kg of food...and the soup is hot...but to win, you need to finish this in 12 minutes. If you don't you will need to pay the $35 for this huge portion.

But I chickened out...I went for the regular and traditional Hakata ramen, in tonkotsu broth...the very same as the challenge ramen, but in a regular portion.

Rather good, I must say. The soup is thick, full of collagen, and very tasty. The egg was very nicely done...firm whites, and nearly runny yolk, and flavoured. The chasiu was good, but in my view not quite exceptional, but on the whole, the ramen is quite good. 

And instead of testing myself with the challenge, we had fried chicken.

I found this rather good, not greasy. The batter was light, and crispy. And the chicken within was still quite juicy.

And added gyoza

These were quite good. The browned side was not quite super crisp, but does the job...and the filling was rather tasty...filled with chicken and prawn meat. I really liked the taste of the gyoza, and would rate this as one of the better ones I have eaten.

Overall, nice ramen place. And with the ramen challenge, makes quite an interesting outing for groups.

As mentioned, this is an invited tasting. Thanks to Ann for invitation.

Yoshimaru Ramen Bar

Holland Village, 31 Lorong Liput

64633132 

Mon to Sun: 11.00 am - 11.00 pm

Pasta Brava

Pasta and Italian food is one of the mainstays in most culinary agenda. And in Singapore, we have many potential candidates for best in town. Pasta Brava, tucked in a little corner shophouse in Craig Road is one candidate, and has been around for a long time...longevity must mean they are good...or are they?

The interior is quite beautiful, comfortably decorated like someone's home...with children drawings hanging on the wall...but those are not children's drawings...they are those of the diners who can draw, doodle on the paper table coverings with chalk provided. I guess the best ones are selected and hung...which explains the somewhat random shapes of the paper...I guess cut to exclude stains from the food.

I do love a plate of real squid ink pasta...by that I mean the sauce is made from squid ink, not those where the pasta is made with squid ink, and the sauce just a simple cream sauce. And they do serve a fine example here.

So dark, the spaghetti is totally blackened. And within are morsels of prawns, squid, clams, mussel and half a small crayfish. The sauce is as it should be...black as hell...and fragrant with a wonderful aroma only freshly made squid ink can provide. The other seafood is marvelously fresh, sweet, succulent. Magnificent dish. I will return for many more of this.

We also had the risotto, which is another reported favourite

And indeed, it too was fantastic. The proper slow cooking method, of dishing out stock ladle by ladle, slowly allowing the flavours to infuse into the rice is paying dividends. The rice was very nice, flavourful. Absolutely mouthwatering. And very satisfying. The mushrooms complimented perfectly. One of the best risottos in town that we have tasted. Very nice.

And a slightly unusual dish in Singapore...I think fairly regular on the menu in Venice, but this is the first time I have seen it here...a bavette pasta, with crab.

Looks like mee pok...but this is a very unusual pasta in Singapore...somewhat like spaghetti, but flat and with a slightly convex shape, the pasta was perfect al dente. The bits of crab was very nice and sweet. I love that the pasta (both this and the squid ink above) is served Italian style...with just the right amount of sauce, not like some places in Singapore were after eating the pasta, one is confronted with a small pond of pasta sauce. The sauce is supposed to be dished out just in the right amount, and the pasta cooked just so that it allows the sauce to stick to it, giving it maximum flavour.

We also had the time and tested tiramisu

I loved it too...though truth be told, this is not the best I have tasted...not in Italy or Europe, but not also in Singapore. The old La Forketta served a better version...I haven't eaten tiramisu at the new La Forketta (at Dempsey) to tell if this has been dethroned. But the mascarpone cheese is wonderfully light, and creamy. I cannot quite make out what alcohol was used, but it was quite nice and complimented the sweet and richness. The cocoa powder, though de rigeur, adds a touch of depth, as did the chocolate sauce.

One of the better pasta meals I have had in Singapore for a while. Beautiful ingredients, cooked nicely. Recommended.

11 Craig Road 

62277550 

Mon - Sat: 11:30 - 14:30

Mon - Sat: 18:30 - 22:30

Closed: Sun & PH

Revolution Coffee

Espresso joints and hip eateries are sprouting out everywhere these days, where there was a dearth of them some years ago. Here is another hip one, in a somewhat not accessible location in Portsdown.

Revolution Coffee has been around for a year now, but tucked in a building called Infinite Studios, in Portsdown Road, means it ain't gonna get a lot of foot traffic. But for those who work or live nearby, or can drive or better cycle (yes there is space outside for parking bikes) there.

The cafe is quite cozy, and very child friendly...many little chairs everywhere for the little one. And the tables are actually beer crates topped with a timber top. A bit shakey at times...

The main event, of course is the coffee...they feature coffee roasted in Australia by Single Origin Coffee...oh no, not only single origins, but blends, but that's the name of the roaster. And sometimes, as when I visited, feature a local guest roaster. In this case, from Smitten.

Pride of place, a nice Synesso machine. Just love the huge group heads. I tried the house espresso, using Single Origin blend for espresso.

The double shot was nice in volume, with a thick, and beautifully molted crema. On the nose, it was quite fragrant, with whiffs of berries, and a very light sour note. On the palate, it was quite powerful, quite acidic, but somewhat balanced by the viscous thick body. Not too bad, but I would have preferred less acidity...though I have been warned by the owner/barista that the blend was a bit on the bright side.

The food there is quite interesting too...the satay chicken salad

Beautifully grilled chicken, perfectly seasoned. The satay sauce is quite fantastic! But too little! And a bit too much salad...not that I am complaining for getting the greens, but too much for the satay sauce. Also found within the salad are traditional satay accompaniments like the ketupat and cucumbers.

The grilled cheese sandwich was also very good.

The ciabatta was fresh, and nicely toasted, nice and crisp on the outside, while still retaining moisture and very soft within. The cheese was grilled perfectly, and goes well with the ham, well everything goes well with good han...and rockets and caramalised onions. Very nice.

Highly recommended, if you can seek the place out...it is a bit off the beaten path, but then if you do, you will be rewarded with good food, nice coffee and a comfortable ambience to hang out.

#01-03A, 21 Media Circle 

67772110 

Mon - Fri: 08:00 - 17:00

Sat - Sun: 09:00 - 16:00