Day 8

Vietnamese food is by far one of my favorite cuisines in the world. Living in California, specifically Los Angeles, I tend to take it for granted since Vietnamese restaurants are almost as common as grocery stores.

Vietnam is a close neighbor to Singapore, yet somehow the food does not transfer well. It is extremely difficult to find good Vietnamese food in Singapore. In fact, it’s almost worth it to take the hour flight to Ho Chi Minh City (formally Saigon) just to get that luscious, savory, soothing bowl of rice noodles in rich beef broth with thin sliced tender beef and fresh herbs that is so famously known as Pho.

Never one to admit defeat, I decided to try a place I recently found fairly close to my hotel – Annam Vietnamese restaurant. It was a decision well made!

I especially liked their décor. It reminds me of the French colonial style interiors of the pre war era. It's a fusion of French country and south east Asian artistry creating the "Indochine" imagery regularly portrayed in novels and films associated with this region of the world during that time period.

Going back to the food, I had 2 appetizers because I wanted a light dinner and didn't quite feel like a bowl of noodle soup.  First I had Cha Gio, deep fried spring rolls. Their version was made with whole shrimps wrapped in a weave like rice paper that made the spring rolls look like it was wrapped in crispy, thin threads that resembled a bird’s nest. Every bite was crispy, crunchy, garlicy, with chunks of tender shrimp. Wrapped in butter lettuce and fresh herbs then dipped in a salty, tangy, garlicy, spicy fish sauce vinaigrette made it a perfect meal. I could've eaten it all day!

My second dish and main course was Bahn Xeo, a type of crepe that is made with rice flour, tumeric, and coconut milk. It is then filled with a stir fry combination of savory pork, shrimp, and bean sprouts.  This was the best version I’ve had for the crepe was extra crispy around the edge and crisp, yet still chewy in the middle. At the same time there was just enough coconut milk to bring out a slight sweetness and coconut flavor, giving it a mouth watering aroma. They also garnished it with fried shallots and scallion oil to add even more layers of flavors and aromas, making this dish absolutely irresistible. It was a mess trying to cut it up, wrap it in butter lettuce and herbs, then dipping it in the fish sauce vinaigrette, but it was well worth it.

I then washed it all down with my favorite south east Asian drink - coconut juice straight out of a coconut.

The only downside to this place is all that yumminess comes at a price. For those 2 appetizers and coconut juice I paid about $63 SGD, about $60 USD.  In Los Angeles, that would have probably cost at most $20 USD including tip. Which reminds me of a fun fact. There is no need to tip in Asia because a 10% service charge is automatically added to all bills so they don’t expect a tip. I always add an extra 10% if the service is better than the usual.

Nonetheless, despite the prices, it was a great meal to end my stay in Singapore.

Next stop…Africa! Stay tuned…..

Day 7

Getting Hainanese chicken rice in Sinagapore is like getting hot dogs in Chicago or pizza in New York City. It’s everywhere and everyone has their opinion on where to get the best in town.

My first encounter with Hainanese chicken rice was my freshman year of college at a friend's house whose mom was from Hainan. I thought it was genius. What was I thinking just cooking my rice in plain water when it could taste so good cooked in chicken broth and chicken fat?! Since then I haven't had it better than my first trip to Singapore when I took a hiatus from my US university to be a student in a Japanese University.

Hainanese chicken rice, as the name implies, originated in Hainan, located in south eastern China. However, everyone who is familiar with Singapore, has been to Singapore, and those living there will claim that chicken rice is the national dish.  It’s basically cut up pieces of steamed chicken, served over a bed of rice that has been cooked in the chicken broth, accompanied by some sliced cucumbers and a side of chicken broth. It's also served with three types of dipping sauce: dark, sweet soy sauce (it has the consistency of a balsamic reduction), chili sauce, and grated ginger sauce.

Eat it however you want. Most people like to drizzle the thick dark soy sauce over the rice first then dip the chicken in the chili and ginger.  For those, like myself, who aren’t too keen on just steamed chicken, there is also the roasted chicken version. I believe it’s much tastier and the skin has a lot more flavor. 

I have eaten at more chicken rice places in Singapore than I can count.  I have eaten it from hawker food stalls to fancy fine dining establishments and everywhere else in between. My conclusion is this, you should only pay about $3 SGD, a little over $2 USD for your chicken rice.

Case in point, the best chicken rice I’ve had is at a hawker food stall at the Tiong Bharu food center.  The chicken breast was moist and succulent. The broth was clear, light, and appeared to have little to no fat. The rice was fragrant of chicken essence and not at all greasy for rice that has been cooked in chicken broth and chicken fat.  It was very filling and cost me $2.50 SGD (about $2 USD).

The worst I’ve had is at the Mandarin Oriental hotel. Everyone seems to boast about it, even my taxi driver. There I paid $27 SGD (about $21 USD) for a plate of cold, dry, mealy chicken and plain flavorless rice.

In essence, if you’re paying anymore than $3 for your chicken rice in Singapore, you’re pretty much paying for air conditioning and a softer chair to sit.  Now if you’re really keen on that environment to enjoy your chicken rice, I recommend the Sheraton Towers hotel. They make a more than decent roasted chicken rice. It’ll cost about $24 SGD (about $20 USD), but the atmosphere is nice and when it’s 100 degrees F outside with 85% humidity I WILL pay extra for the air conditioning and not have to sweat it out on a plastic stool at a hawker food center. That's just me though. =)

Stay tuned for my next meal....

Day 6

For the last 2 years, my colleagues have raved about high tea at the Fullerton Hotel. Even Anthony Bourdain suggested it on his show, "The Layover".

Maybe my standards for high tea are different than theirs.  Here is what I look for when I choose a venue for high tea.  I like a nice relaxing, quite atmosphere with some sort of classical music, preferably piano and a live performer of course would be icing on the cake. High tea is suppose to be a way of taking a breather in the middle of the day to have a cup of tea, some delicate snacks, and sweets to rejuvenate one's self.  Its also a great way to relax with some friends and catch up on the latest in each other's lives. 

The first thing I noticed when I walked into the Fullerton Hotel is that their high tea is served right in the lobby almost immediately after the front entrance. This means that everyone who enters the hotel becomes a part of your experience. That includes crying babies, rowdy children, people dragging their luggage, shoppers in the various retail stores that surrounds the tea venue, etc.  If I was looking for an open air coffee shop to people watch in the hallway of a mall, this place would be perfect.

Nonetheless since I already paid the cab fare to get there, I might as well stay to see if my experience will improve.  Everything deserves a chance.  So I ordered the tea set and a pot of pai mu tan white tea.  Pai mu tan is Chinese for white peony flower.  It was very fragrant with a slight honey hue to it. Quite nice.

Unfortunately the tea set was almost equivalent if not worse than cakes and sandwiches that I would expect to find in a train station vending machine.

The chocolate cake tasted like dark brown butter smeared between slices of mealy, yellow bread. The cheese cake was cream cheese with pastel purple food coloring. The signature crispy layer of burnt sugar that distinguishes creme brulee from regular pudding was in their version, a layer of simple syrup. Simple syrup is a mixture of water and white sugar boiled down to a slight thickness.

The sandwiches were mostly bread with a layer of filling so thin that the only purpose it could serve is to glue the slices of bread together, not a smidgen more.  The canapes' minuscule dallop of inedible topping made the small cuts of bread seem to be the size of plates.

In addition to my disappointment of the food, as I am minding my own business, reading my newspaper and sipping my cup of tea, I hear this snipping sound. Although it was so distinguishable I knew exactly what it was right when I heard it, I just didn't want to believe it could be happening in this so called posh hotel. As much as I didn't want to, I was betrayed by my instincts because right when I heard the sounds I immediately looked up and sure enough, there it was. A saleswoman in the hotel's blindingly, bright lighted "luxury" jewelry store was sitting in the middle of that shop clipping her finger nails. I paid $42 SGD, roughly $33 USD for all this.  Enough said.

From now on if I have a desire to tea again in Singapore, I will stick to my usual haunt - 10 Scott located in the ground floor of the Grand Hyatt hotel. It's a lounge with low couches and slightly dim lighting. Most importantly, although its always open and very welcoming, this place has doors and glass walls that separate it from the rest of the hotel traffic.

Part of the charm of having high tea in former British colonies, especially in Asia, is that sometimes the tea set will include a local dish that's been scaled down to a bite size piece of hors d'oeuvre. At 10 Scott, this comes in the form of a sliced up mini burrito call po piah.  

Po piah means thin cake in Hokkien. Hokkien, otherwise known as Fujian in Mandarin, is one of the many branches of ethnicities within China. There is a fair amount of Hokkien people in southeast Asia, especially in Malaysia and Singapore. And po piah, I believe, is one of their traditional dishes. It resembles a burrito filled with stewed veggies, mainly radishes and carrots, wrapped in a crepe-like shell (the po piah) that's been smeared with a dark plum sauce inside. The combination of sensations on your taste buds created by those savory veggies, sweet sauce, and soft, delicate wrap makes it inexplicably hard to stop eating this deceivingly, simple, veggie "burrito".

For those with a sweet tooth, there's a set up in the back of the room that flambes fresh rings of pineapples with a splash of brandy. This technique surrounds the juicy pineapples with a slight, smokey, burnt caramel flavor. To make it even more sinful, they top it with a scoop of freshly whipped cream. Just sweet enough to satiate any sugar cravings.

I promise this is the last time I write about high tea.

Stay tuned for my next meal...

Day 5

I'm pretty convinced that I've gained back the 2 lbs I lost this week after today's gorge-fest.

Since most of the Chinese food establishments are closed for the lunar new year holiday, I figure I should try the delicacies of another major ethnic group here in Singapore - Indian.

It was a little bit of an adventure getting there. I asked the cab driver to go to Race Course Rd, a street in Little India named after the race course that use to be there.  Now it's known for it's restaurants. I quickly realize I really ought to pay more attention when I'm in a cab.  The cabby stops at the part of Race Course Rd that's in the middle of a residential area. Obviously there weren't any restaurants there.  He said this is it, so I got out of the cab. Luckily I saw that to my left about a half a block up was another Race Course Rd that seems to veer off to the left. I walk towards it and thanks to the GPS on my phone was able to see that if I kept going, there were going to be a few restaurants coming up.

The first restaurant I stumbled upon, Muthu's Curry, looked clean, air conditioned, and most importantly, popular. The restaurant was busy, filled with both Singaporeans and Indians. An important indication on the quality of the food at an ethnic restaurant - people of that ethnicity eat there too. Being such a hot day, (it's hot everyday in Singapore, but today felt extra hot) I was ready for some air conditioning.

The stars of the food universe must have aligned correctly for the food was everything I wanted and more. My favorite part of Indian food is if you order the right spread, you'll get a rainbow of flavor that are all different yet compliment each other perfectly without any redundancy.

So I order my usual variety to better gauge how I would like their food.  First they set down a bowl of pappadam.  They're Indian potato chips but made with flour and the batter is sprinkled with salt and whole cumin seeds to give it an slight perfumed aroma. I liked their version so much I almost bought a bag!

Next came the garlic naan bread, which I would've liked for them to cook it a bit longer to get the nice crisp on the bottom.

Then came tiger prawn masala. The masala sauce had a great smokey flavor to it but the prawns were very much overcooked. It was actually hard to chew.

At the same time, they brought the paneer. Paneer is Indian cheese made by simmering milk and lemon juice until the curds float to the top. Then wrapping those curds in cheese cloth and hanging it in the fridge for it to drain and solidify. It's usually cut into cubes and mixed with your choice of gravy.  Today I chose the spinach gravy.  It was good but nothing too exciting.

Last but not least they brought out the biryani rice (basmati rice mixed with dried fruit, nuts, and infused with saffron) and the main attraction, fish head curry.

Fish head curry is a Singaporean-Indian adaptation from Indian migrants fusing traditional technique with local ingredients. Much like how California rolls are made popular by Japanese-Americans. Except fish head curry is delicious! Made correctly, I can't get enough of it. And Muthu Curry's rendition deserves every bit of praise.

Just like the name implies, it's a fish head from a massive local fish that looks like snapper. It's then drenched in a velvety, slightly spicy, red sauce with a light tamarind tang mixed with okras, herbs, and topped with chunks of fresh pineapples. I've had fish head curry at other places before that although the sauce is always great, the fish is usually a bit dry.  At Muthus, however, the fish was still moist and drenched in the sauce I almost wanted to put it in a cup and just drink it.

In addition to the spread I ordered that's enough to feed a small village, the wait staff came over and plopped down 2 complimentary heaping scoops of 2 different veggie dishes. Perhaps it was meant to cool down some of the spice. One was a crunchy cabbage slaw mixed with non spicy curry powder, yogurt, fresh peas, and lentils.  Very refreshing. The other was eggplants and bell peppers stewed in tomato sauce. Both very fresh and flavorful.

Speaking of spice, although the food was spicy, it was a good spice.  Meaning that it provided just enough heat to keep things going but still allowed room for all the other flavors to shine.

This grand spread all came to about $60 USD.

Well, as if I didn't get enough food here. I just remembered, I made reservations yesterday at the Fullerton Hotel to have high tea in about 2 hours. Good golly!

Stay tune..I'll let y'all know how it goes.

Day 4

I finally had Yu Sheng or Lo Hei for dinner tonight. It was completely by accident. I'm on a conquest to find the best Hainanese Chicken Rice in Singapore so I thought I'd try the restaurant in my hotel lobby.  Right when I sat down, they served me a plate of lo hei. It was their way of wishing their guest good fortune for the new year. Just as I had imagined, its a sashimi salad with a sweet dressing. It was quite refreshing and a good palette opener.

Speaking of Hainanese chicken rice, note to self : When in Singapore, avoid eating Chinese food during the first 3 days of Chinese new year.  They are all closed. I found out the hard way when I was looking for place to have chicken rice for lunch earlier today.  The one I originally wanted to go to was closed so the cabby drove me to 2 others that were also closed, then a 4th had people lined up around the block. Probably because it was the only one open.

Finally I told him to drive to Dempsey Hill.  Dempsey Hill is a part of Singapore that resembles an outdoor mall filled mainly with restaurants of all sorts.  Upon arrival I stumbled upon The Dempsey Brasserie. They had moules frites with truffle skinny fries on the menu. I was sold.

For starters I had a half dozen raw oysters from Tazmania.  Sweet, plump, fresh, and very cleanly shucked. The worst is slurping down a great piece of oyster only to have crunchy bits of shard from the shell to ruin it all.  But this wasn't the case here. It was great!

Then I ordered a small pot of moule frites in vin blanc broth with truffle fries and some black angus beef sliders. These were all very disappointing.  Moules frites is a popular Belgian dish that consists of green lip mussels steamed in various broths served in a tin pot with a side of fries.  Although the mussels were cooked well, the broth was merely warmed white wine mixed with cooked onions and sprinkled with chopped parsley. Very bland. The fries had a slight truffles flavor but once cold was inedible.

Sliders have got to be my favorite way to eat burgers. Bite size juicy beef patties doused in ketchup and mustard topped with melted cheese. What's there not to like?  But these were so bland, instead of the condiments complimenting the patties, all I could taste WERE the condiments. Its was the only part with flavor.

Back to the mussels. If you ever really have an urge for Belgian food, particularly moules frites when you're in Singapore, make your own.  This is my second go at having moules frites in Singapore and I'm not about to throw anymore money down the drain. My first experience was at Brussels Sprouts on Robertson Quay.  It boasts itself as a Belgian restaurant but the only part they got right was importing a massive beer selection from Belgium. The mussels were rubbery and the fries were cold and stale. They're sampler platter of hors d'oeuvres tasted like it came out of cans and I've eaten enough canned food in college to KNOW that flavor.

However, if you've got the time and money and you're really craving Belgian style steamed mussels, I suggest taking a trip to Hong Kong. Frites in the Wan Chai district of Hong Kong is the closest Belgian faire you can find outside of Belgium.  Another place is Hercules on bar street in Beijing.  It's a bit hard to find and they only serve mussels on Thursdays but it's worth it. Hercules also makes the best pastrami sandwiches in Asia.

Tomorrow I'm going to Little India....stay tuned....

Day 3

Happy Chinese New Year! Gung hei fat choi!

When in Singapore during the lunar new year it seems the popular thing to do would be to go for some Yu Sheng or Lo Hei. It's the same thing, just depends on who's talking about it.  Yu Sheng translates to "raw fish" and lo hei means "stir up".

This Singaporean lunar new year tradition was created by 4 chefs at a Chinese restaurant here in Singapore in the mid 1960s. I'm assuming it was a big publicity scheme that exploded and turned into a tradition. Somewhat like the skepticism that Santa Claus was created by a department store's marketing department, except the chefs did exist.

The dish itself is a salad of sashimi style fish, grated or sliced raw vegetables, nuts, crackers, oils and sauce. Each element represents a different symbol of good fortune for the next year.  For example the crackers represent gold nuggets and the oil represent everything will go smooth for the next year.  It's also called "lo hei" or "stir up" because the traditional way of eating it is everyone at the table grabs their chopsticks and tosses the ingredients together at the same time while shouting out blessings such as good health, good fortune, good business, etc for the coming year. The higher you toss the ingredients the more prosperity it'll bring. Food gets every where but that's part of the fun!

It's served as an appetizer to begin the traditional new year's eve/day feast. I wasn't quite in the mood for a sashimi salad and it just seemed more like a superstitious marketing ploy than a meaningful tradition. However I figure, "when in Rome..." I guess the universe sensed my unwillingness to participate because for the last 2 days I've been trying to make reservations at restaurants that serve this dish and they're all fully booked!

Now I wasn't just going to give up. What kind of a Chinese girl would I be if I didn't have a feast to ring in the new year and bring myself a year of abundance? Therefore, I'm going to have an auspicious new year feast my way. A smorgasbord to include all the major ethnicities in Singapore - Chinese, Indian, and Malay. That's right, I don't discriminate, I appreciate.  So I went to a hawker center.

Eating at hawker centers in Singapore is a national pass time. They're everywhere!  It use to be a bunch of street food vendors scattered throughout the city until the government decided to clump them together in designated areas to better monitor their sanitation standards. A great move on their part and a blessing to us all.

There are all sorts of hawker centers. Some serve either mainly Chinese, Malay, or Indian. I like the ones that serve all 3.  My usual spot is Newton Circus. It also helps that its across the street from my hotel.

Tonight's experience was a bit disappointing as half the stalls were closed due to most of the Chinese vendors taking the night off to spend new year's day with their families. Understandable. But lucky for me, there were some troopers out there.

Chinese people loves seafood for special occasions. I am no exception so I ordered some tiger prawns grilled with garlic and BBQ skate wing topped with chili sauce. To make myself feel like I'm having a healthy meal, I ordered some steamed Chinese broccoli garnished with fried garlic and oyster sauce.  The broccoli was steamed perfectly where it was still bright green with a slight crunch to it.

I would have preferred that they cook the garlic on the prawns more. The al dente garlic was a bit pungent. Plus I kept thinking it's might give me some major heartburn tonight. So I scraped most of it off.  Without the garlic, the prawn itself were perfectly grilled and had a succulent natural sweetness to it.

I also forgot to ask to have the chili sauce for the skate wing on the side. I'm a spice wimp so it was too spicy for me. I love skate wing because I'm pretty sure it's one of the few fish that's always moist and sweet no matter how much you cook it.

Then to represent the Malays I ordered chicken and pork satays. 5 of each because they come in platters of 10. These are Malaysian style mini kebabs served with peanut sauce. Don't expect a savory peanut sauce with a slight peanut butter flavor. Its more of a sweet curry thickened with chopped peanuts. That's the style and it compliments the marinade of the satays very well.

Next came some lamb mutarbek. Its sort of an Indian quesadilla. It's naan bread filled with ground lamb, fried eggs, and onions with a side of curry instead of salsa for dipping. I was disappointed with this particular one. The naan was soggy, the lamb was very dry, and the onions weren't cooked properly. The curry dipping sauce didn't have much flavor either. The naan is suppose to be chewy with a slight crisp on the outside from it being seared to seal and meld the concoction.

Nonetheless it was a feast and I washed it all down with the juice from a sweet ice cold coconut! All for about $70 USD.

Happy Chinese New Year to me!

Day 2

Last night there was a thunderstorm here in Singapore so I opted to just have some cheese and crackers in the hotel lounge and spent the rest of the evening laughing hysterically at youtube videos. Doesn't quite qualify for culinary blog material.

So instead, I'm going to share one of my favorite things to do whenever I'm in Hong Kong - going for high tea.

As a young child I would travel with my mother to the east coast to visit her family and it was there that I decided I was going to grow up to become a lady that lunches. That was until I discovered high tea. Now I want to grow up to become a lady that lunches AND a lady of leisure.  A lady of leisure goes to tea.

I figure, I'm awake at least 14 of every 24 hour day, plenty of time for both (in addition to breakfast and dinner of course).

Ever since my initial introduction to it, I've tried to tea whenever it is available. Last week at Sevva, in the Prince's building of Hong Kong's central district was by far the most memorable.

It was a bit of a rocky start because I couldn't quite figure out how to get there. There are 3 elevators at the lobby of the building but only 2 of those elevators will go all the way up to the 25th floor where the restaurant is located. So beware. Choose wisely.

I originally sat in their balcony section because I was told the view is incredible. Unfortunately, it was raining and I was seated next to three ladies who must have deemed the content of their conversation to be incredibly interesting. For I almost had to turn around and suggest to them that if they want the people in the next building to hear their conversation, they should just go over there. Shouting is far less effective.

I eventually decided to move inside. It was the best decision I made for the next 2 hours. The cushions on the couch were much more plush. Then there were piano music in the background and the dark wooded Marie Antoinette-ish decor fits all the basic elements of the serenity that makes taking time in the middle of the day for tea so enticing.

Now, I'm a simple person. It takes very little to make me happy and forgive any previous mishaps.  This was very quickly proven when the 3 tiers of hors d'oeuvres and cakes hit the table. The signature of every high tea. I almost forgot there were other people around.

Again, this was by far the most impressive of all the high teas I've had.  There were warm crispy spring rolls, crab cakes and short rib sliders on artisan bread, fresh made sandwiches, canapes of heaping perfectly cured salmon gravlax, savory caviar, and egg salads topped with shaved earthy black truffles.

Here is where I need to give a shout out to the brilliant Earl of Sandwich. It was his seemingly vulgar insistence on eating his meals between 2 slices of bread, so that he can hold it in one hand and not have to interrupt his poker games, that inspired this scrumptous thing we now call sandwiches. Quite possibly even high tea. Cheers to the Earl!

And now to the 3rd tier. The petit fours of moist, bittersweet chocolate cake, creamy, melt in your mouth chestnut infused meringue, and light, airy cakes. All paired with a refreshingly, fragrant peppermint tea.

If I were to worship at the Church of Decadence, this would be a strong front runner for finding the holy grail.

All for 660 HKD for 2 people. Roughly $85 USD.

This is making me hungry. It's almost 5pm here in Singapore. I need a pre dinner snack.

Stay tuned for my next meal..... =)

Day 1

This is the first day I've started this blog and learning how to do it. So for anyone reading this please wish me luck for I'm definitely going to need it.

As my profile states, I've been wanting to open my own restaurant for the longest time. However, I've always been a believer in "when opportunities come knocking, open the door and see where it leads". This life motto has lead me to some amazing adventures and experiences in my life. I've traveled the world, eaten at the best restaurants, sampled the most amazing as well as bizarre foods.  But, my heart is still in having my own restaurant. So here it goes....

A little background. On a road trip to AZ with my boyfriend to visit my brother for Christmas I casually mentioned to him a restaurant idea I've had for years and he thought it was great. He thinks that I should at least draft the plans on paper. It's easier to see the possibility of something when there's a tangible element to it. I agree.

A week later, at dim sum with a friend I mentioned the same thing. He was so excited about the idea! We came up with a plan for me to cook 2 dishes a week to that might be on my menu if I had the restaurant and he'll take the pictures for any future websites or social media.  I had so much fun doing it that now I want to do more.

One teensy weensy obstacle. I have a job that requires me to travel internationally every other month for 4 weeks at a time. I know myself. Once I have an idea in my head to do something I bee-line for it and there's no stopping. However, once the momentum stops, it's hard for me to get back on the wagon.    Hence this blog. I'm hoping it'll provide some accountability.

Again, my career path has been an amazing journey and continues to be every minute of every day.

Therefore as the title states, this WILL be a "journey". A blog of my journeys around the world and an inner journey of holding myself accountable and facing all the fears and doubts involved in realizing a lifelong dream.

Stay tuned..... =)