Foodie Paradise

Soon Huat Pig’s Organ Soup
Serangoon Garden Market Stall 42 

Ratings: 6.5/10 

As the saying goes, "one man’s meat is another’s poison".  Having pig organ’s soup may allude to an episode of "Fear Factor" to some, but to many locals, it’s another gratifying meal at the local hawker centre.

I’ll probably cringe at the sight of fried insects or escargots now, but pig organs are something that I’ve been having since young.  At the young tender age where everything is just food to you, you relished them like any other dishes.  Then when it comes to the age of "enlightenment", where you realised they are pig’s offal, you decided in the end that they are still…..just food.  Well, I just try not to learn which part of the pig they come from.  Ignorance is definitely blissful occasionally. 

The sour pig organ’s soup is due to the salted vegetable that is boiled in the soup, hence making the soup especially appetising.  Eating it together with the braised organs and rice, it’s a delicious meal at the local hawker centre that is not to be missed!

Pig’s Organ Soup

Soon Huat Pig’s Organs Soup is characterised by its long queues.  At S$10.20, it is definitely a cheap meal for three.  What I loved most about this stall is the mouth-watering gravy that is served together with the braised organs.  Pouring a little of the gravy into the rice, I could just have the rice and gravy and nothing else!

Rice with gravy

My only complaint is that the meat from this stall is not as tender as I hope.  On the whole, the food is palatable and it definitely justifies the long waiting time for the food, given the long queue at the stall. 

Shukor Stall
Serangoon Garden Market, Stall 30

Ratings:  6.0/10

Roti John - S$2.50

Roti John, a local Malay dish, is toasted French Toast spread with pan-grilled eggs and minced meat with a chilli-ketchup sauce. 

A search I did online came up with different versions on how this dish actually originates in Singapore.  The first story that I read said that Roti John had been inspired by a homesick tourist named John who was in search of a sandwich.  Failing in his search, a helpful hawker sliced up a loaf of French bread, clapped in a mixture of minced mutton and onion and dipped the whole in beaten egg which he fried until crisp.  As locals took to Roti John, it soon becomes a staple at Muslim food stalls.   

Another explanation about the origination of Roti John said that this food is actually named after the British who were stationed in Singapore during the colonial era.  Roti means bread in Malay and the British were known as "John" to the Malays and that is how the name of this dish originated. 

However, according to the Makansutra Hawker Legend 2005, if we were to trace the origin of Roti John, it will inevitably lead back to the Shukor stall, which is the stall that I’ll be writing on in this entry.  Apparently, the history of Roti John goes way back to 1976.  The Shukor Stall used to be located at the Taman Serasi Food Centre near the Botanic Gardens, before the food centre was demolished some years back.  Now, this legendary stall has moved to the Serangoon Gardens Market, which also happens to be just a stone throw away from another famous local hawker centre, Chomp Chomp.

Irregardless of which is the actual version on how the Roti John originates, the most important point here is still to talk about the legendary Roti John that’s being served at the Shukor Stall.

My first taste of the Shukor’s Roti John was two months back when my parents bought it back home for me to try.  Despite being wrapped up for some time, the crust of the French toast was still crispy, which I attribute it to the patient grilling of the stall owners.  The eggs that was spread above the French Toast was tasty.  The entire combination of this "fusion food" was delicious, and I regretted not taking photos of the Roti John and blogged about it.

However, when I went back to try the Roti John last weekend, I was disappointed.  Though the combination of eggs, onions and minced meat still tasted delicious like before, the crust of the French Toast wasn’t as crispy as I had remembered it.  I guess the reason was because it was the busy weekend peak hour period when I was at the Serangoon Garden Market, thus the French Toasts were not as patiently grilled as the ones that I had before.

My conclusion about this famous Roti John stall: This lack of consistency in the Roti John irks me because I had purposely gone to the Serangoon Garden Market hoping to try some great Roti John.  As for being one of Singapore’s legendary hawkers, I feel that there are definitely better hawker legends around that are not among these top 15.  However, on the whole, the Roti John sold by the Shukor stall is definitely delicious.  It’s a can-try local food in Singapore.

Hotel Phoenix Basement 1
277 Orchard Rd
Singapore 238 858
Tel: 6233 6129

 Ratings: 5.5/10

Price: $24.80+++ (Adult) and $16.80 (Child)

My aunt decided to treat us to a lunch buffet at Hotel Phoenix. How can I say no to a treat?

Before having my buffet there, I did hear praises about the delicious roti prata that they served during their buffets.  Upon eating, I felt that the roti prata was decent but definitely not delicious.  It was crispy, but the accompanying curry to the prata was salty.  What’s roti prata without a delicious curry to accompany it?

Roti Prata 

Some salad from the buffet 

During the buffet, there was also a rojak fondue.  Yes, it’s rojak and not the usual chocolate fondue.  Rojak is a fruit and vegetable salad dish commonly found in Malaysia, Singapore and Indonesia.  Rojak, in Malay, means mixture.  The usual rojak ingredients such as the cucumber, pineapple, turnip, bean sprouts, taupok, and fried dough fritters were offered separately on the buffet table.  The rojak sauce, a dark sauce which is usually made up of water, belacan, sugar, chili, and lime juice (the ingredients vary among the vendors selling rojak), was used on the fondue.  So instead of the usual rojak we get that has been tossed nicely before serving, we got to skew the ingredients and dipped them into the rojak fondue instead.  To be really frank, it tasted bad.  It was also the most "deserted" buffet table that day when I was there, unlike the queues forming elsewhere on other buffet table.  Visually wise, as the rojak sauce is of thinner consistency, it did not have the grand and delicious look of the chocolate fondue that’s so pleasing on the eye.  To me, it spoils the image of this really nice local dish in Singapore, but I do have to say it’s a very brave attempt by the cafe to introduce something new in a buffet that also showcased plenty of our local delights.

On the whole, I’ll describe the buffet as good in the variety of food served, but poor in terms of quality.  There are more misses than hits among the food that are served on the whole.  The desserts are too sweet, and the main courses are decent but nothing memorable.  There were some seafood such as fresh oysters served at the buffet table but they were not fresh.  Though the food was served in a nice surrounding and the service was prompt, I guess there’re definitely better deals at some other restaurants.

My impression on Sydney Fish Market: Big nice stalls in the market selling a wide assortment of fishes in equally nice surroundings.

My visit to Sydney Fish Market did not turn out to be as fun as I have thought it might be. It was actually one of my highly-anticipated spot in my itinerary, so I was a bit disappointed when I was there. I attribute the reason to my preference towards the noisy, colourful, and teeming with life wet markets that is found mostly in Asia. In contrast, Sydney Fish Markets seems a tat boring.

I was hoping to taste some fresh seafood too while I was there, but the seafood I tasted wasn’t really fantastic. I supposed I still miss the seafood that I had while I was in Perth. The only notable seafood that I tried was the raw oysters, which was really fresh. Yummy!

bills (Sydney)
433 Liverpool St Darlinghurst
NSW 2010

Ratings: 7.0/10

Quoting the Financial Times, "Breakfast made Bill Granger famous; specifically, scrambled eggs. Light, rich, and quivering on the plate like jellies of gloss paint, the Australian chef’s eggs have been analysed and eulogised by critics from Sydney to New York to London." Our local "8 Days" magazine had also mentioned that Nicole Kidman had her breakfast there. With such high praises, Nicole Kidman mentions, and delicious-looking cookbooks as shown above, I couldn’t resist a chance to pop by at bills (yes…no capital B here, as Mr. Granger dislikes the look of it) for breakfast when I was in Sydney.

Free range scrambled eggs with wholewheat toast - A$11.80

A cup of flat white

How can I ever resist having coffee during breakfast? I ordered a cup of Flat White. The aromatic cup of coffee had definitely started off my breakfast at bills on a good note. more…

BBQ King
18-20 Goulburn St
Sydney 2000

Ratings: 7.5/10

Roast Duck

Before I went to Sydney, I heard some comments from friends that the roast duck in the Chinatown there is delicious. I was very sceptical about their comments. I was thinking to myself that the chances of me finding great Chinese food will be so much higher in countries like Hong Kong, Taiwan, and our own Singapore, rather than in cities like….Sydney? Furthermore, I was keener on trying the Modern Australian cuisine while I was there, rather than trying out Chinese food, which I can always try at home.

However, since the apartment in which we were staying was located just a stone thrown away from Chinatown, it became inevitable that my occasional dinner will be settled there, which I did during my first day in Sydney. We randomly went into a restaurant at Chinatown owned by some Hong Kongers. Not surprisingly, the food pretty much sucks. And it pretty much “confirmed” my suspicions that no good Chinese food can ever be found outside Asia.

Then came one day whereby we were wondering what we should have for dinner. Wandering into Chinatown again, we saw BBQ King, a restaurant that was also recommended by the Lonely Planet Guide. Again, I was pretty sceptical. Lonely Planet Guidebooks are definitely not a good “where-to-eat” guide.

Yet curiosity got the better of me. As we walked past the shop, I noticed that there is an article pasted on its doors - a food review about some of the best cheap Chinese eats around the world. Three places were mentioned in the article - a Vietnamese restaurant in France, our local Boon Tong Kee, and BBQ King. That article definitely piqued my interest regarding BBQ King, mainly because Boon Tong Kee is my favourite place to savour our local Hainanese Chicken Rice. So how good is BBQ King to be mentioned together with one of my favourite food haunt?

A quick search online regarding BBQ King will show that lots of flak has been garnered regarding its bad service, the lousy interiors which desperately requires a facelift, and its overcharged prices. True enough, this place doesn’t look at all like a popular restaurant in Chinatown from its exterior and its service was lousy at times when I was there.

But food wise?

more…

Some of my relatives are coming over to my place next week and I’m thinking of preparing some desserts/snacks for them. What is a simple dessert/snack that I can make that doesn’t require me to use the oven?

P.S. My oven is spoilt.