World Street Food Congress 2015 @ Tan Quee Lan Street

I finally made my way down to Tan Quee Lan Street to check out this year's World Street Food Congress 2015. Love their new location and the vibe of the whole place. It felt like an outdoor picnic carnival. The World Street Food Jamboree is happening now to 12 April 2015, showcasing 23 stalls from different parts of the world which is the main attraction of the whole congress. The response has been overwhelming, so much that stalls ran out of food and they have to close early. In anticipation of the weekend crowd, the organizer and stalls owner has made the necessary adjustment and arrangement.

If you do not want to miss this event. You have 2 more days left to check it out. The world street food jamboree will be opened from 1pm to 11pm this weekend.

The first stall I checked out is East Side King. The East Side King is a group of Asian-inspired street food restaurants and food trucks in Austin co-founded by Top Chef champion Chef Paul Qui.

Chicken Inasal Taco

Kinilaw

I tried both the Chicken Inasal Taco and Kinilaw from East Side King. The Chicken Inasal Taco is my favourite among the two dishes. The crispy chicken skin encased in the soft taco was the winning factor for me. The Kinilaw which is also known as Filipino ceviche has an interesting combination of Asian flavours. However it was not sharp enough for me.

The next stall I wanted to try which is on the top of my list is Bon Chovie from the United States of America.  It is established by self-trained chef and music industry veteran Renae Holland.

Bon Chovie offers a variety of seafood. Her carefully crafted signature fried anchovy dish, which made its first appearance at the famous flea market Smorgasbord in New York. It catapulted to superstardom in 2011.

Fried Anchovy

The Bon Chovie signature Fried Anchovy is a little fresh whole fish (shishamo), lightly breaded and fried to bone soft perfection. This dish is then served with fresh lemon, pickled sweet peppers, and smoked paprika aioli. All these together with the belly packed fish roes is just heavenly.

Supporting our local hawker heroes/heroines, I had Chey Sua Carrot Cake who also took part in the Ultimate Hawker Festival 2014 last year which I am one of the curators. It is glad seeing the 2 sisters still cooking from their heart preserving the tradition taste for our hawker heritage.

Fried Carrot Cake

Both sisters still continues to handmade and steamed their white radish cake in aluminium bowls just like how it was done more than 50 years ago. One side of the carrot cake is pan fried longer to achieve the crispy exterior while still retaining that silky texture inside.

Another local stall at the World Street Food Jamboree is Keng Eng Kee Seafood established by Chef Liew Choy in the 70s. Now the kitchen is headed by his son, Wayne Liew in the picture.

Keng Eng Kee Seafood is offering a Seafood Platter with 3 Dips. The platter comes with deep fried soft shell crabs, calamari and egg plant. The 3 different dipping sauces are chilli crab, salted egg yolk and black pepper.

Pak Sadi Soto Ambengan won the top honors in the world's Top 20 Street Food Masters Award at WSFC 2013. Since they are back for the 2nd year, I got to try this honorary stall.

Soto Ayam  may sound and look familiar in Singapore, but don't be fooled. Sadi's Soto Ambengan is Indonesia's variant of soto, traditional spiced chicken soup commonly regarded as the perfect form of chicken soto from East Java area, Lamongan. The secret to this dish can also be traced to the use of fresh milk fish, seafood in the stock, and the use of a dangerously addictive and own made "koya" powder added to the stunning spiced broth.

Seafood Omelette

My most favourite dish at this year World Street Food Congress has to go to the Seafood Omelette sold by Hoy Tord Chao Lay. The ultra crispy omelette with soft, fluffy insides is plated with a portion of freshly seared crunchy sprouts and completed with a splash of pepper and fish sauce.

WSF Jamboree (8 to 12 April 2015)

The WSF Jamboree is the most eagerly look forward part of the World Street Food Congress where foodies get to try street food across different parts of the world. This year we will see 23 stalls from 12 cities coming together at the open field of beside Tan Quee Lan Street along North Bridge Road. The top street food vendors and award winning chefs hail from USA, Bolivia, India, Indonesia, Vietnam, Germany, Vietnam, Malaysia, Thailand, Philippines and Singapore will be gathered for the world's best street food party.

The Jamboree is open to the public. Food price will start from $4.50. The public can enjoy a cashless mode of payment via NETS FlashPay (Enjoy a 5% rebate), NETS and/or Credit Card.

8 to 9 April 2015 (Wednesday - Thursday)
Time: 5pm - 11pm (Last order 1030pm)

10 Apr 2015 (Friday)
Time: 4pm - 11pm (Last order at 1030pm)

11 to 12 April 2015 (Saturday - Sunday)
1pm - 11pm (Last order at 1030pm)

Dai Pai Dong, street style live demos daily from 6pm - 8pm
Live music available daily from 8pm - 10pm

Ginzawa Japanese Dining @ Palais Renaissance (Orchard Road)

The location of Ginzawa Japanese Dining at Palais Renaissance is lead by Chef Donny Tan, who has over 30 years of culinary experience under his belt. Ginzawa which means silver river, offers an unfussy traditional Japanese fare elevated with a modern twist.

Sake Kinuta Maki 3.5/5

Dinner at the new Ginzawa restaurant started with some like appetizers in the Sake Kinuta Maki ($12). The rings of daikon is stuffed with salmon and seaweed and interestingly dressed with a egg yolk sauce. The purple and green seaweeds not only provided colourings to the dish but an extra layer of crunchiness to the dish.

Sakura Ebi Salad 3.5/5

A light and refreshing dish is the Sakura Ebi Salad ($22) dressed in mirin, dashi and soy sauce. The addition of sakura ebi gives the mixed greens a boost in both flavours and textures.

Wagyu Tataki 4.5/5

The perfect dish for the night has to go to the lightly seared Wagyu Tataki ($30) with ponzu sauce. The flavour of the beautiful beef is further accentuated by the dipping ponzu sauce which literally melted in the mouth.

Tai Moto Yaki 4/5

The Tai Moto Yaki ($22) comes with a nice grilled coating of sweetness which is pretty pleasing to the palate. More interestingly that distracted us from the main, is the sliced egg or rather what looks like it. It is actually squid ring stuffed with shishamo roes. This is a popping good surprise for the dish.

Kurobuta Tsuke Soba 3.5/5

I actually have not really seen this combination been served on the menu elsewhere before. The Kurobuta Tsuke Soba ($20) felt like a set meal that comes with buckwheat noodles and sliced kurobuta with a yuzu perfumed dipping sauce.

Tempura Moriawase (Deluxe) 3/5

On the fried items, there is the Tempura Moriawase, Deluxe ($35) which consists of Anago Ippon Age, Amaebi Hotate Kakiage and Uni Tempura. I personally thought it is a waste of the uni as I could not really taste any trace of it in the seaweed pillow.

Wagyu Saikoro 4/5

The pan fried Wagyu Saikoro ($48) with garlic, mushroom and bean sprouts is quite straight forward it is execution allowing one to appreciate the quality of the tender and juicy beef.

Kurobuta Zaku Don 4/5

The Kurobuta Zaka Don ($35) is only available in the lunch set and comes with miso soup, chawanmushi and dessert.  The pork is braised for a good 8 hours to achieve that melted in the mouth texture. Together with the flavourful rice, customer will left the restaurant satisfied with the lunch.

Tokusen Hokkai Chirashi Don 4.8/5

Instead of offering affordable chirashi don for lunch, Ginzawa has gone premium with its Tokusen Hokkai Chirashi Don ($50) which is only available for lunch set that comes with miso soup, chawanmushi and dessert. Definitely the price justify for the freshness and quality of the sashimi. However I think it is too expensive for lunch. Customers may think twice before ordering it.


Ginzawa Japanese Dining
Palais Renaissance
390 Orchard Road
#01-06/07
Singapore 237781
Tel: +65 67360100
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ginzawa
Website: http://www.ginzawa.com/
Nearest MRT: Orchard (NS Line)

Opening Hours:
Daily: 12pm - 3pm, 6pm - 1030pm

Direction:
1) Alight at Orchard MRT station. Take Exit E. Walk towards Wheellock Place via ION. Exit Wheellock Place and turn left towards Liat Tower. Cross the road at the traffic light junction and turn left towards Royal Thai Embassy. Palais Renaissance is right after Royal Thai Embassy. Journey time about 10 minutes. [Map]

2) Alight at Orchard MRT station. Take Exit A. Walk towards Shaw House via underpass. At the road level, walk along Orchard Road towards Royal Thai Embassy direction. Palais Renaissance is right after Royal Thai Embassy. Journey time about 10 minutes. [Map]