Foodie Paradise

Yu Sheng (鱼生） is a Chinese-style raw fish salad, commonly eaten during the Chinese New Year period.  "Lo Hei", as it is known in Cantonese, or tossing the yusheng, is a CNY custom practice where family and friends will toss the shredded ingredients that made up the yu sheng into the air with the chopstick while making auspicious wishes out loud to mark the start of a prosperous new year.

Yu Sheng is a popular, must-eat dish every Chinese New Year.  However, not many of us actually know that the current-day Yu Sheng is a dish invented in 1964 by a Singaporean chef.

Photo from Makansutra

 

For $20, the Yu Sheng serving was huge!  The raw fish slices were sufficiently marinated to cover any fishy taste and ingredients served were fresh.  The entire dish was very crunchy and delicious.  It’s definitely one of the better Yu Sheng that I had tasted (though I have tasted better ones before) and definitely worth the $20 price tag!

 

Yam Pot with Prawns and Cashew Nuts

 

 Photo from Makansutra

 

I also tried another famous dish pioneered by Mr. Tham - Yam Pot with Prawns and Cashew Nuts. It was my favourite dish that night.  The fried yam was very crispy and seemingly melted in my mouth when I bit them.  Though yam is one of my favourite food, I personally feel that it’s difficult to make a delicious yam cuisine.  If a yam dish is not handled well, it is very easy to get "sick" eating the dish within a few bites.  It’s definitely high culinary standards to make such delicious yam pot!  Besides the lovely outer yam crust, the ingredients in the pot were just as delicious.  The prawns were very smooth and tender.  I just love this dish lots!

 

LE CAFE CONFECTIONERY & PASTRY
264 Middle Road
Tel: 6337-2417

Ratings: 7.5/10

Tucked in the corner of Middle Road, I uncovered this treasure accidentally last year when I was around the area.  The first thing that caught my eye about this shop was the voluminous photos and newspaper articles that adorned the shop front.  Being a typical Singaporean, the voluminous photos and newspaper articles immediately signalled to me that this is a "must check out" shop. 

"Are you serious?!!??"  That’s the first thought that came to my mind after talking to the female shop owner, Betty. 

I had such a big reaction simply because this is the first and only shop that I have come across so far that sells pineapple tarts all year round.  Pineapple tarts are Chinese New Year (CNY) goodies that are usually only available during the CNY period around January and February each year.  I just find it hard to believe that a shop can make profits through selling pineapple tarts as one of its main items all year round.  Betty also told me frankly that if I want to order pineapple tarts from her shop during the CNY period, I’ll have to order 3 months in advance.   

That day, I left her shop with a bottle of pineapple tarts and a box of moon pies.  I also become a fan of LE Confectionary that day after trying those lovely pastries. 

Being such a forgetful person, I have of course forgotten to place my order for pineapple tarts three months before the CNY.  Despite turning up at her shop three weeks before CNY, I could only managed to get two bottles of those lovely pineapple tarts in the end, after some pleading. 

The lovely pineapple tart

 
The scrumptious fillings

These pineapple tarts, due to their huge sizes and round-shape, have been nicknamed as "golf balls".  I suppose one of these pineapple tarts are equivalent to two of the usual pineapple tarts that we can buy locally.  And I can only say, "Double the size, double the enjoyment of tasting these delectable goodies". 

A word of warning though, these pineapple tarts are addictive!  The first thing that hits you when you first bite into the pineapple tart is the lovely crust, which has a slight milky taste to it.  The crust is very fragrant and has just the right texture.  Then you’ll taste the thick pineapple filling inside the tart, which has the right level of sweetness.  The pineapple filling will leave a sweet aftertaste in your mouth, but not as to be so overwhelmingly sweet that makes you feel sick.  What I really have to rave is the texture of the entire pineapple tart.  The texture of the pineapple tart is just right, making it very nice to chew.

I guess it is easy to tell that these pineapple tarts are my current favourites.  In fact, they are the best so far that I have tasted in Singapore.  

Besides the pineapple tarts, I have also tasted their moon pies and some other traditional pastries from the shop.  They are all equally delicious.  Betty, the female shop owner, will also not hesitate to share the history of the shop with you (they have been there since 1959) and to recommend you what are the lovely "treasures" in the shop.  Most of the customers there are also loyal customers who will come back year after year to buy their pastries.  When I was there, I met an Indian guy who was collecting a birthday cake for his son.  He told us that he had been coming back to this shop for eons to get birthday cake, because there are no other shops that sold such lovely cakes like LE Confectionary.   

Well, it’s definitely too late to get the pineapple tarts for this coming CNY now.  However, make a note in your diary.  Book these pineapple tarts three months before the next CNY.  I am sure you won’t regret buying these pineapple tarts.  Of course, you can always drop by the shop anytime after the CNY to try these pineapple tarts and the other delicious pastries.  You might also get addicted to them like me!

Hoe Heng Handmade Noodles
Blk 269 Waterloo Street
(First hawker centre from the Guan Im Temple) 

Ratings: 6.5/10

I’m feeling sheepish right now, simply because my last food review was in October.  I haven’t blogged a food review for more than three months! When I started blogging this entry, I realised I have forgotten the "usual format" that I adopt for my food reviews.  I had to keep referring back to my past entries.

After being hounded by my friends who kept subtly reminding me for the past three months that I haven’t updated my food blog for so long, I’m finally back blogging about food.   

I blogged about the mouth-watering red wine chicken thread noodles at Seow Choon Hua Restaurant many months back.  Sadly, I haven’t found time to go back to visit the food stall since then as I seldom frequent that area. 

Thus, when I found out that there’s also another stall selling lovely red wine chicken thread noodle at Waterloo Street, I immediately made a mental note to go try it as soon as possible, especially since I pass by that area regularly.   

To do some recap, red wine chicken thread noodles or 红糟鸡面线 originates from Fuzhou, China.  This dish is cooked in red vinasse (红糟) and shaoshing wine, hence giving the dish a very aromatic smell.

红糟鸡面线 - Red Wine Chicken Thread Noodles - $3

If my memory did not fail me, since the last time I had this dish was almost a year ago, I personally prefer the red wine chicken thread noodles at Seow Choon Hua restaurant more.  This is not to say that this stall at Waterloo Street serves lousy noodles.  In fact, the red wine chicken thread noodles was delicious.  The chicken was tender and tasty and it was more appetising than the one I had at Seow Choon Hua restaurant. 

In comparison, the characteristic red soup of the noodles at the Waterloo Street stall was thinner in consistency at this stall and I found it harder to detect the sweet and sour taste in the soup.  Some of the thread noodles were also lumped together which means that the noodles were not well cooked. 

Overall, I will have loved this dish better if not for the fact that I have tasted better ones previously.  I may visit this stall again, as it is located at a more accessible location for me than the stall at Seow Choon Hua. 

Besides eating the red wine chicken thread noodle, greedy me couldn’t resist ordering some of the crispy curry puff from another stall located in the same hawker centre. 

 

The crispy curry puff tasted average.  The skin of the crispy curry puff was not well made and wasn’t not sufficiently crispy.  I didn’t like the fillings in the crispy curry puff too.

Hence, if you happen to be around the area, do pop by to give the red wine chicken noodle a try.  Otherwise, walk further down slightly to another hawker centre along the row of shops and try the hainanese curry rice there.  The hainanese curry rice tasted great the last time I had my meal there.  Hmm, I shall make another mental note to review that delicious hainanese curry rice stall the next time I am there!