Lor Mee 178 @ Tiong Bahru Market & Food Centre

The last time I visit Tiong Bahru Market & Food Centre was probably more than 5 years ago. My memory of Tiong Bahru Food Centre was bad air circulation, small and crowded. The place has since undergone renovation and now it is more spacious with good air circulation.

There were many reviews on Lor Mee 178. Since I have never tried the stall's lor mee, I ordered a bowl to find out why so many people queued up for their lor mee.

Lor Mee 3.8/5

The winner for the Lor Mee ($2.50) has to be the deep fried shark nuggets. The shark meat was surprisely flavourful and moist inside the crispy fritter. Different from other stalls, the bowl of lor mee did not have the usual braised egg, braised pork and ngor hiang. I also found the Lor Mee gravy lacked robutness. You can ask to to add the deep fried shark nuggets at an extra $0.50.


Lor Mee 178
Tiong Bahru Market & Food Centre
30 Seng Poh Road
#02-58
Singapore 168898
Nearest MRT: Tiong Bahru (EW Line), Outram (EW Line, CC Line)

Opening Hours:
Daily: 6am - 930pm
(Closed on Wed)

Direction:
1) Alight at Tiong Bahru MRT station. Take Exit A or B. Head east on Tiong Bahru Road towards Jalan Membina. Walk down Tiong Bahru and turn right onto Kim Pong Road. Turn left onto Lim Liak Street. Walk to destination at the end of the street. Journey time about 10 minutes.

2) Alight at Outram MRT station. Take Exit A or C. Walk to bus stop opposite Outram MRT station (Stop ID 06011). Take bus no. 33, 63, 75, 851 or 970. Alight 1 stop later at Blk 55 Tiong Bahru Road. Walk to destination about 200 meters away. Journey time 8 minutes.

Seng Kee Roasted Meat Duck Rice @ Eunos

My mother reads the Wanbao (晚报) newspaper and I like to browse through the paper's food column. It always introduced local fare and I will make a note to visit them if I came across an interesting stall.

Recently Anchor Beer has a contest in Wanbao (晚报) newspaper nominated by their readers for the top 5 favourite braised duck. Seng Kee's Braised Duck was one of the 5 finalist. When I saw the address, I realized I have been passing by this stall for the past 8 years in my journey home from work and I have never eaten there.

Coincidentally, the stall belongs Shiting's uncle, a foodie friend of mine. After firing a few text messages, we met up for a Sunday lunch with Celes and Shiting's family.

Braised Duck 4.2/5

Since Seng Kee was the top 5 finalist for their braised duck, definitely we must taste it to know why.
With over 30 years of braising experience, no wonder the Braised Duck ($10) came with the taste of tradition, similar to how my grandma would have done it when she was around. Not overly intense in flavours, just simple and light but tasty. I also like the fact that the duck was not too fat with just a slight thin layer of fats underneath the skin. If you are there for just a simple lunch, a plate of duck rice will cost $3 while the boneless duck rice is $3.50.

Assorted Braised 4.2/5

The stall also sells a selection of assorted braised. We tried the Assorted Braised ($6) that came with Tau Kwa ($0.80/pc), Tau Pok ($0.60/pc), Egg ($0.60/pc) and Braised Pig Head ($3 minimum). Not many stall sells braised pig head nowadays. I really enjoyed the texture and well braised flavour of it.

Roast Duck 4.5

The braised duck was already good but I like Seng Kee's Roast Duck ($10) even more. Once again the duck was not too fat with a nice thin crisp of skin over the succulent and tender duck meat. Same as the braised duck. a plate roast duck rice is $3 and boneless is $3.50.

Roast Pork & Char Siew 4/5

The Roast Pork and Char Siew ($8) are the other roasted meat that is available at the stall. I loved the  roast pork with the crackling crisp skin and the beautiful layers of meat and fats. The stall used lean meat for the Char Siew after feedback from their customers. I would preferred it to be more fat and charred. A plate of roast pork or char siew rice is $3.

Chicken Wings & Pork Ribs Mix 3.8/5

I am surprised that the stall also sells Pork Ribs & Chicken Wings ($4.20). The chicken wing is at $1.20 per piece and the pork ribs $34 per kg. The stall is only run by 2 gentlemen and they have to roast and braise all these delectable meats all by themselves in the confine space at their small stall. The children will love the pork ribs and chicken wings with the lovely sweetness beautifully coated over it. For me, it was a bit too sweet for my palate.


Seng Kee Roasted Meat Duck Rice
Hong Lee Coffeeshop
Blk 7 Eunos Crescent
#01-2651
Singapore 400007
Nearest MRT: Eunos (EW Line)

Opening Hours:
Daily: 9am - 8pm
Closed on Tuesday

Direction:
1) Alight at Eunos MRT station. Take Exit C. Seng Kee is located at the coffee shop behind the hawker centre/market. Journey time 3 minutes.

Kway Guan Huat @ Joo Chiat

I love exploring Joo Chiat as there are many historical buildings as well as food stalls. My food trail brought me to Kway Guan Huat, Joo Chiat Original Popiah & Kueh Pie Tee since 1938! That is 74 years of history!

For over 70 years, they continued to make popiah skin the traditional way, painstakingly by hand using a secret family recipe handed down by their forefathers in Fujian province, China.

The worker will hold a lump of soft and elastic dough, pressed it against the pan and made a circle motion.

A thin circle layer of the dough is formed on the pan and he continued to the next pan.

When the dough is cooked, another worker will scrap out the skin and that is your freshly made popiah skin.

Crab Popiah 4.2/5

Check out how thin and translucent the popiah skin was. I tried the Crab Popiah ($2) which was filled with turnips, carrots, eggs, lettuces, bean sprouts and etc. To be frank I couldn't see the crab meat but I definitely can taste the sweetness of the seafood among the fillings.

At Kway Guan Huat, you can also DIY your own popiah. It comes with a claypot of ingredients and popiah skins. In addition, they also have vegetarian popiah and kueh pie tee.


Kway Guan Huat
Joo Chiat Original Popiah & Kueh Pie Tee
95 Joo Chiat Road
Singapore 427389
Tel: +65 63442875
Website: http://www.joochiatpopiah.com/
Nearest MRT: Paya Lebar (EW Line), Dakota (CC Line)

Opening Hours:
Tues-Sun: 10am - 8pm (Dine-in)
Tues-Sun: 830am - 11am (Popiah skin making demonstrations)
Closed on Mon except when Mon is a PH.

Direction:
1) Alight at Paya Lebar MRT station. Head south towards Geylang Serai Malay Village. Cross Geylang/Changi Road and continue onto Joo Chiat Road. Turn left into Joo Chiat Place. Journey time about 17 minutes.

2) Alight at Dakota MRT station. Walk to Bus Stop at Blk 99 (Stop ID 81181). Take Bus 33 towards Bedok Bus Interchange. Alight 5 stops later at. Journey time about 12 minutes.

Akari Dining & Bar @ Marina Bay Link Mall

A birthday dinner celebration for Maureen between Charlene and her became a group celebration at Akari Dining & Bar. Since I was meeting Charlene to collect our prize for winning the contest organised by Standard Chartered Bank for their My Good Life Iphone App, they asked me to join them for dinner. Cutting the story short, a few text messages and the initial group of 3 grew to 8. You can read more on Maureen and Charlene's blog.

Thanks Nadia for the photo

Anyway here is a photo of the 3 winners. Charlene, Nadia and me. We won ourselves a new iPad each. Thank you Standard Chartered Bank.

Salmon Zukushi 4.2/5

After collecting our iPad, we met up with Maureen and proceed to Akari Dining & Bar at Marina Bay Link Mall Ground Plaza for dinner. We had to act blur and ordered our food while we waited for the rest to show up.

We started off with Salmon Zukushi ($58) which is a platter with 3-kind of salmon sashimi. We have salmon, salmon belly and salmon roe on the plate. The salmon was fresh and of good quality.

Buta Shiro Kakuni 4.2/5

The Buta Shiro Kakuni ($18) is an interesting and unique dish I have not experience in Japanese cuisine. The simmered black pork reminded me of the Chinese's "Dong Po Rou". It has similarity in texture but the flavours from the stock plus the mustard was a new experience for my palate, in a good way.

Kurobuta Miso Yaki 4.2/5

The Kurobuta Miso Yaki ($26) was succulent and flavourful. It was well marinated with homemade miso sauce and grilled to perfection.

Gindara Saikyo Yaki 4.2/5

Cod fish can be rather flat if it is not flavoured properly. The Gindara Saikyo Yaki ($26) was flavourful and moist. It was marinated with sweet miso sauce before cookng on the grill.

Madai Yaki Anchovy Flavour 3/5

The Madai Yaki Anchovy Flavour ($24) is grilled Japanese red snapper served with red chilli pepper and anchovy paste. With all the hits, this was a miss for me. I thought the fish lost its shine and was a tad dry and bland.

Tokusyou Nigiri 12 4.5/5

Food was delish at Akari but served in fine dining portion which was hard to fill the foodies' hungry stomach. Since we have a large group, we ordered 2 set of Tokusyou Nigiri 12 ($64) that came with 12 kinds of selected premium sushi.

Tokusyou Nigiri 12 4.5/5 and Kaisen Sansyoku Wan 4.2/5

More rice dish to fill up the hungry foodies. The Kaisen Sansyoku Wan ($38) is a 3-kind mini rice bowls with sea urchin & salmon roe, yellowtail & sesame sauce and seasoned tuna red meat.

Lastly a group photo of the group. Mission accomplished!


Akari Dining & Bar Marina Bay Link Mall
8A Marina Boulevard
GP #01-02
Singapore 18984
Tel: +65 6634 0100
Nearest MRT: Raffles Place (EW Line, NS Line), Bayfront (CC Line), Marina Bay (EW Line, NS Line)

Opening Hours:
Daily: 12pm - 230pm, 530pm - 930pm

Direction:
1) Alight at Raffles Place MRT station. Take exit towards Marina Bay Link Mall. Journey time about 12 minutes.

2) Alight at Bayfront MRT station. Exit and walk towards Marina Bay Link Mall. Journey time about 15 minutes.

3) Alight at Marina Bay MRT station. Exit and walk towards Marina Bay Link Mall. Journey time about 12 minutes.

[Guest Post] - Johor Kaki's favourite 5 food places in Johor Bahru (JB)

"Singaporean loves food and this passion for food has seen some of us travelling all the way across the causeway to hunt for good food. Recently I get to know Tony aka Johor Kaki who writes on http://johorkaki.blogspot.sg/, "Put every good hawker on the World Wide Web". I like following his blog as it gives me an insight of the hidden gems in JB. I am making a list to visit them in my next trip up north.

With this note, I have invited Johor Kaki to do a blog post to share with us 5 of his favourite food places in Johor Bahru."

[Guest Post by JOHOR KAKI]

Derrick kindly invited me to guest post on sgfoodonfoot about my 5 favourite food joints in Johor Bahru.

There are so many nice places to eat in JB, so it is a big challenge to narrow them down to just 5. I’ve decided to introduce you just 5 of my favourite JB food places that are  all within 10 minutes of leisurely walk after clearing Malaysian immigration. There are a few more good eating places within 10 minutes walk in JB’s old downtown area.

Here is the sketch map of where my 5 favourite places are located. After clearing immigration, walk out of City Square shopping centre and go onto the main street, Jalan Wong Ah Fook. .

Walk along Jalan Wong Ah Fook and head towards the direction of Singapore. Look out for this Hindu temple along Jalan Ungku Puan, which you can use as a reference point. Then follow the directions on the sketch map.

If you are there early and need a morning coffee, I suggest you can try the coffee and half boiled eggs at Kin Wah coffee shop. The traditional office here is full bodied and robustly flavoured. The perfectly done half boiled eggs here are made from kampung chicken eggs. The eggs have a heavier texture and more distinct aroma of fresh eggs. This Hainanese kopitiam is packed the whole day with customers of all races and from all walks of life. I haven’t tried their toast buns and breads myself but I can see that they are very popular. Many people also order their mee siam here. Business can get very hectic here and the harried staff can be a bit on edge.

A short walk away is Ah Hua kway teow soup. This old shop has been here for a long time and is today run by the third generation. They still use charcoal to boil the soup stock – something that I have not seen anywhere else. RM16 gets you the “King’s version” loaded with abalone, fresh oysters and all the extra luxuries. Personally, I am perfectly happy with the basic RM5 version to savour the old traditional flavours 古早味 of Teochew kway teow soup.

If you like Western, I suggest you try IT Roo cafe. This is another very old Hainanese café and it is famed for their chicken chops. The chicken chop comes in a big slab of thigh, crispy on the outside and moist and juicy inside. The chicken chop comes with their addictive fresh mushroom sauce. Be early as IT Roo is always packed during lunch and you may have to wait for your seat.

In the same area is Hiap Joo bakery. This traditional bakery still uses their old wood fired oven to bake their cakes and pastries. Hiap Joo’s banana cake is very popular. Go inside the shop and you will see the huge charcoal oven, and all the fresh ingredients like combs of bananas used to make the cakes. No artificial flavouring is used here. You can taste the difference, instantly. I always bring home something from Hiap Joo whenever I pass by this shop.

If you stay beyond 5:00pm, try this BBQ chicken stall in Meldrum Walk. Medrum Walk is a back lane food paradise – something we cannot find anywhere in Singapore anymore. There are many good food stalls here and my favourite is the BBQ chicken stall. The fresh charcoal roasted chicken literally drips with sweet natural juices. The juice was so good, I actually felt bad that some of it inevitably dripped onto the plate when I bite into it – such a waste J

There are many other good food stalls and shops to try out when you are in JB. JB is generally safe but please do be alert and take the usual precautions e.g. move away when approached by “Scratch and Win” scammers.

It is easy to enjoy JB food with a little bit of knowledge of where the good eating places are J.

Wish you happy eating.
JOHOR KAKI
http://johorkaki.blogspot.sg/

Relish @ myVillage Serangoon Garden

I had a myVillage mall dining voucher to spend before it expired. After looking through the list of restaurants in the mall, I decided to check out Relish with my partner on a Sunday afternoon. Relish is a restaurant under the Wild Rocket Group and owned by Chef Willin known for his Asian-western fusion creation.

Mocha and Coconut & Gula Melaka Milkshake 4.2/5

We started with drinks. I ordered the Coconut & Gula Melaka Milkshake ($8.00) as I never had it before. The name itself also aroused my interest. The interesting combination of flavours was surprisingly very good which I can distinctly identified the individual core flavours.

Sarawak Shepherds Pie 4.2/5

My partner had the Sarawak Shepherds Pie ($16.80) that has curry chicken inside the bed of mashed potato. We all know and love our Asian curry and potato. Interestingly, the chef has infused them into a western dish. There was a good harmony with the ingredients and flavours, not stealling the show from each other. We really applauded the creation and we enjoyed the dish. I would love to have it again in my next visit.

Wild Rocket Beef Burger 110g 4/5

Relish is known for its burgers before it introduced other hearty mains in the menu. Going back to what they are popular for, I decided to try their Wild Rocket Beef Burger 110g ($10.90). The burger came with sun-dried tomatoes, rockets and Sarawak pepper cream. It was just the right size that can be handled with ease. When I saw the patty, I thought it looked overcooked and dry. I was wronged. Biting it into, the juiciness started oozing out from the patty and dripping onto my hand. The disappointment for me is the way the restaruant charges for any add on to the burger. The sunny side up cost me an additioal $1.80 which I probably can buy a dozen of it.



Relish
myVillage Serangoon Garden
1 Maju Ave
#02-07/09
Singapore 556679
Tel: +65 66343422
Website: http://www.wildrocket.com.sg/relish.htm
Nearest MRT: Lorong Chuan (CC Line), Serangoon (NE Line, CC Line)

Opening Hours:
Mon-Fri: 12pm - 3pm, 630pm - 11pm
Sat-Sun: 1030am - 4pm, 4pm - 11pm

Direction:
1) Alight at Lorong Chuan MRT station. Take Exit B. Walk to bus stop at New Tech Park (Stop ID 66021). Take Bus 73. Alight 4 stops later. Walk to myVillage Shopping Centre. Journey time about 15mins.

2) Alight at Serangoon MRT station. Take Exit B or E. Walk to bus stop at Serangoon Central (Stop ID 66351). Take Bus 315. Alight 5 stops later. Walk to myVillage Shopping Centre. Journey time about 15mins.

Dough Culture @ Nex

(Photo taken with Canon IXUS 120IS )

I have walked passed Dough Culture numerous time and I always spotted a queue at the stall. Since I was feeling a bit hungry and I was at Nex, might as well grabbed a bite at the stall.

I thought Dough Culture sells only You Tiao. Is only when I queued for my order, did I realize Dough Culture sells quite a wide range of sweet and savory local snacks too.

You Tiao 4/5

I tried the You Tiao which is also known as chinese crullers. It was crisp on the outside and tender inside. The fried dough was not too oily too.

Dao Suan 4/5

Dao Suan is made from split green beans or mung beans. Potato flour is also added to thicken it. Rock sugar is usually added for sweetening and pandan leaves for fragrant. The Dao Suan at Dough Culture has the right thickness and not overly sweet which I enjoyed. Of course it is best eaten together with the You Tiao.


Dough Culture
Nex Shopping Centre
23 Serangoon Central
#B2-85
Singapore 556083
Tel: +65 66342061
Website: http://www.doughculture.com.sg
Nearest MRT: Serangoon (NE Line, CC Line)

Opening Hours:
Sun-Thu: 930am - 10pm
Fri-Sat: 930am - 1030pm

Direction:
1) Alight at Serangoon MRT station. Take Exit E. Walk to destination. Journey time about 3 minutes.

Naomi Kitchen @ Crawford Lane

Naomi Kitchen was established in April 2010 at Golden Mile Food Centre as a tiny food stall by a husband and wife team who left their corporate jobs in pursuit of their dream. With many positive feedbacks and encouragement from their satisfied customers, friends and relatives, Naomi Kitchen has moved to the current shop outlet at Crawford Lane.

Naomi Kitchen has also ventured into Tampines Mall. The outlet is located at basement 1 inside NTUC (vegetables section).  Naomi Kitchen has relocated their Tampines Mall branch to White Sand Pasir Ris at B1-16. The new outlet at White Sand will open on 13 Jun 2012 (Thursday).

Mixed Fruit Slice Cake 4.2/5

Mango Slice Cake 4.2/5

Strawberry Shortcake 4.2/5

The various beautiful Fruit Cakes ($2.80 - $3.00) were the first to catch my attention. The chunky fresh fruits, the soft sponge and the light fresh cream were like a beautiful art piece that was pure visual enjoyment. The cakes were not overly sweet and the lightness in both flavour and texture were very delectable.

Black Forest Slice Cake 4.2/5

Besides the fruit cakes, I also get to try the Black Forest Slice Cake ($2.80). I am not really a cake lover because I always find them too sweet, creamy and heavy. I think Naomi Kitchen has changed by perception.

Mocha Red Bean, Lychee 4.2/5

Yam, Coffee Walnut, Durian Rolls 4.2/5

Strawberry Mango Pudding Fruit Roll 4.2/5

The Specialty Fruit Roll ($1.20 - $2.80) at Naomi Kitchen brought the traditional roll to a new level. Before my visit to Naomi Kitchen, I only know of the popular Swiss Roll and Sugar Roll from Polar Cafe. Now the conventional rolls have been injected with more flavours and creativity. The cottony soft sponge rolled up with fresh cream and chunk of fruits or nuts in the middle were distinctly flavourful and not overly sweet. If you are looking for something unique, try the Strawberry Mango Pudding Fruit Roll. Who would have imagine you can have both fruit and pudding inside a sponge roll.

Grape Cheese Cake 4.2/5

The Grape Cheese Cake ($2.20) has a sponge base topped with a thin layer of jelly and grapes. The cheese cake was rather different and did not taste very cheesy at all. Even the texture was different. It was more like a mousse cake. Nevertheless, I still enjoyed it a lot.

Tiramisu 4/5

If you do not like your Tiramisu to be too strong on the liquor or too heavy on the coffee flavour, you will probably like the Tiramisu ($4.50) at Naomi Kitchen. It did not have the intense flavours which was light and easy for the palate.

Sheperd Pie 4/5

The Sheperd Pie ($2.80) comes with delectable chicken chunks, carrots, celery, mushrooms and onions topped with creamy mash potato and cheese. The one I had is the regular size. It also comes in petite size and party portion for 6-8 pax.

Fruit/Chocolate Tart 4/5

Another popular item at Naomi Kitchen is their Fruit/Chocolate Tart ($1.70). In the picture are
Blueberry Cheese, Mandarin Orange, Banana Tarts. The winner for me is their crisp and buttery tart base.


Naomi Kitchen
Blk 465 Crawford Lane
#01-08
Singapore 190465
Tel: +65 93213688
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KitchenofNaomi
Website: http://naomikitchen.com
Nearest MRT: Lavendar MRT (EW Line)

Opening Hours:
Daily: 11am - 8pm

Direction:
Alight at Lavendar MRT station. Take Exit A. Cut through the open air carpark and walk towards the canal. Cross the canal and walk toward block 465. Journey time about 5 minutes.