Da Jie Wanton Mee: Simply Divine!

With SCS Butter

Braised Chicken Feet $3

Wanton Mee is a serious misnomer.

Just the other day I was talking to some passionate Hong Kong foodies about our Wanton Mee and all I got was a "Pfffff! You call this Wanton Mee? Yao Mo Gao Chor Ah? (Gotta be kidding right?)" I think I would have to agree. Unlike the Wanton Mee in Hong Kong where all you get are big juicy Wantons with noodles, Our Wanton Mee here is served with Char Siew, veggies are pathetically anorexic wantons where there is more skin than meat. So really, we shouldn't call our Wanton Mee, Wanton Mee since the Wanton is such a small part of the whole dish. Gon Lor (Dry Tossed) Mee would be a more accurate name in order to differentiate our version from the Hong Kong version.

Since we are on this topic, wouldn't it be great if some enterprising hawker would take on this idea and start dishing out ping pong sized Wantons? It will surely get the attention of the foodie community! Now if you know of someone who is interested to take on this idea or if you know of any stall already doing this, do let us know!


Wanton Mee $2-$3

This Wanton Mee was really a very pleasant surprise. For me the noodles and the sauce really hit the U-Spot (Umami Spot). The texture of the noodles was perfect and comes alive when you slurp and chew on it. The sauce had that extra something in it that made the difference between great and eye-opening "Phwa, Shiok!" (Yes there's lard) I have been continually thinking about eating this again the whole of this week! Now if this Wanton Mee had big, juicy Wantons and Char Siew that had a little more burnt bits and fats, then I would have found my Holy Grail. 4.6/5



One of the secrets to the texture of the noodles aside from the fact that they use a specially ordered egg noodle is Da Jie's practice of actually loosening all of the noodles and allowing it to rest in a big box. If I were to open a Wanton Mee stall, this is definitely what I would do. Of course a lot has to do with the way the noodles are cooked as well. That one I still have to learn.

SCS Butter raves about the Chicken Feet here. The Chicken Feet are stewed till they are super soft and gelatinized, so you really get to slurp up the sticky gluey juices and it is literally "finger lickin good!" (both yours and the chicken's). A bit more kick with the sauce, (perhaps a little cut chilli and fermented black beans) might just make it so much more enjoyable. 4.25/5

Conclusion

Most enjoyable plate of Wanton Mee I have had in a long long time!

Now please remember my Ping Pong sized Wanton challenge. If you know of anyone who is game enough to serve up a Wanton Mee that would satisfy my Hong Kong foodie friends, please write in and let me know! The thing is there are $5

Da Jie Famous Wanton Mee
209, Jalan Besar (Sam Leong Road)
96670087
7am to 2pm daily
Closed on Sun and PH
Recommended by SCS Butter and Tian Tian Chi

What is Singapore's Favourite Dessert?

Our polls last year showed that Hokkien Mee, Chicken Rice and Mee Poh were the top 3 hawker dishes.

This time round we are looking for Singapore's favourite dessert. Please nominate up to 3 of your favourite desserts.

Mine would be:

1. Bean Curd
2. Orh Nee (Yam Paste)
3. Cendol

93 Wu Xiang: Handmade Teochew Wu Xiang

With smart and bashful hunter


It is increasingly hard to find people making their own Ngor Hiang nowadays. With the advent of the commercially available Ngor Hiang, most stallowners have opted to be Ngor Hiang Traders rather than Ngor Hiang Chefs. So when I find passionate hawkers who still endeavor to make their own Ngor Hiang, I usually like to give them a try and blog them so that their efforts are recognized. (Of course, the Ngor Hiang has to be nice as well!)

If it is hard to find handmade Ngor Hiang, it is harder to find handmade Teochew Ngor Hiang! Even the commercial ones are Hokkien Style.



The thing that struck me about the Ngor Hiang is that it is not as spiced up as the usual Ngor Hiang. So for me, it did not have the kick of a spicy full flavoured Pork Ngor Hiang roll, but both of my kakis liked it because they like the freshness of the taste. 4/5 There were a couple of items that you don't find elsewhere ie the chef's own inventions. One that is worth mentioning is the tofu egg fritters (pic above). It was refreshing to have a Ngoh Hiang that was silky soft on the inside, something quite novel for me. 4/5

Conclusion

Handmade Teochew Ngor Hiang is not that common so it's well worth a try.

Update:  18 Sep 2008

The Hawker Centre is closed for renovation which will take around 1 year.  Thanks to Lorenz for the update.

93 Wu Xiang Xia Bin
Blk 93 Toa Payoh Lor 4 Food Centre
#01-202
12pm to 9pm daily
Closed on Thursdays

The Whole Earth: Was Jesus a Vegetarian?

With smart, PK and PowerAunty

Tom Yum Soup $10

I think its best that I make clear my position on vegetarianism before I plunge headlong into my philosophical dissertation on this subject.

• I believe that vegetarianism is a healthy lifestyle choice and that eating more veggies and less (or no) meat is beneficial in combating chronic diseases like high cholesterol and hypertension.
• I respect vegetarians and their choice not to partake of animal foods although I do not have any religious/moral convictions about not eating meat.
• I would opt to be a vegetarian for health reasons, but I just love my Beef Burgers too much.

OK, with that out of the way, let's get on to this very interesting question that was being discussed during our vegetarian makan session: Was Jesus a Vegetarian?

My first response was: "What a preposterous question! Of course he was NOT!" For me, saying that Jesus was a vegetarian would be in the same league as saying that the Holocaust did not happen. It is quite straightforward, is it not?

Ah, but you'd be surprised that there are people who have written whole books and websites to "prove" that he really was a vegetarian! Some of the arguments that were given was that it was his nature to be compassionate and so he must have been compassionate to animals as well. Aside from that, they also gave many references to historical resources outside of the Bible to substantiate their claims. Just google "Is Jesus a vegetarian?" and you would be amazed at how much material there is out there!


Monkey Head Mushroom Satay $9

I guess, it would make a compelling case for vegetarianism if it could be shown that the founder of one of the major religions of the world was vegetarian, even though the religion he founded does not actually require its adherents to practice vegetarianism. Or perhaps, they argue, it was in fact a practice that has been conveniently overlooked.

For me, this sort of argument is easy to debunk. It is the same sort of True/False question that we used to get in school. I always remember this very simple principle when it comes to answering True/False questions. If the statement has the word "ALWAYS" in it, then it is most likely to be false. That is because "ALWAYS" does not allow for even a single non-qualifying event. This is especially true for medical exams. Questions such as "Breast Cancer ALWAYS occur in women" are most likely to be False because it only takes one case of Breast Cancer occurring in one man to make the statement false. (The fact is that men are affected in 1% of all breast cancer cases).


TWE Olive Fried Rice $5

So when it comes to the argument of whether Jesus was vegetarian, rather then going convoluted philosophical arguments that imply that he was vegetarian, the simple thing is to answer the question: "Did Jesus ALWAYS eat only vegetables?" meaning that if I can show that he ate meat, then the argument is debunked.

So consider this passage is Luke 24:41-43:

This scene occurred after his death and resurrection which means that it occurred after he had been with his disciples for three years:

".........he (Jesus) asked them, "Do you have anything to eat?" They (his disciples) gave him a piece of broiled fish, and he took it and ate it in their presence."

For me it showed three things. First, Jesus ate fish and he ate it without hesitation. Second, the disciples who had been his companions for three years gave him fish when he asked for something to eat. If he had been vegetarian, then it would be the ultimate insult to their master whose habits they should know after spending such a long time with him. Thirdly, the disciples would not have been much of disciples if after three years they have not modeled to follow their master's vegetarian practice.

Case closed. Back to the food.


TWE Sweet and Sour Delight $12

If you have been reading my other vegetarian posts, you would know that I would opt to go veg whenever I feel I have eaten too much meat. The problem is that vegetarian food is not readily available and the ones that you often see in the food courts usually serve lots of deep fried gluten disguised to look like common Cze Char meat dishes. They all have that particular taste about them that I don't quite like. PK (a part time vegetarian) also remarked that it seemed hypocritical that one would still try to eat something that looks and tastes like the animal when the whole point was to protect them.

So when I found out that this vegetarian restaurant served Peranakan/Thai cuisine, it really got my attention as it is something I have yet to try.


Summer Shitake Mushrooms $15

For starters we had the Monkeyhead Mushroom Satay which was surprisingly quite good even though the only things that makes it a Satay are the peanut sauce and the skewers. The marinade is not your usual Satay marinade and they are deep fried, not grilled. It would have been even better for a meat eater like me to have the Satay marinated and grilled like Satay with pieces of Water Chestnuts in between the Mushrooms! That aside, the Monkey Head mushrooms have that chewability and taste about them that gives you that umami satisfaction that comes from eating meat. 4/5

Another dish that was quite commendable was the TWE Olive Fried Rice which we all felt was pretty good. They made a little concession and added a small amount of veg ham in it. The main taste still came from the liberal use of shredded olives and it was not too oily. 4/5

The Sweet and Sour delight is another dish that I would come back to order again. Instead of gluten, they use a Soy based protein "meat" which was nice and chewy and actually has that "Can't stop eating this" quality about it. Given that it does not have any cholesterol in it, I can say that I wouldn't mind substituting this for the usual sweet and sour pork. 4.25/5


Buah Keluak $15

In terms of the Peranakan/Thai food, I would say that they were a good attempt and definitely a nice departure from the usual but more work needs to be done before they would impress Peranakophiles like PowerAunty. The Buah Keluak could have been a hit since the main star of the dish is the Buah Keluak and not the meat. The gravy needed to be a little thicker, spicier and nuttier. However, I did like enjoy the Soya "meat" which was braised in the gravy. 3/5

The Tom Yam Mushroom soup is almost there but lacks that extra kick that comes from the use of Fish Sauce as well as a good stock base. But I think this can be tweaked by the addition of some Vegetarian fish sauce. 3.75/5. What I think could work really well is Tom Kha soup which is not on the menu.

We all liked the Summer Shitake Mushrooms which featured nice juicy Shitake Mushrooms simmered in a piquant sauce. The only thing we can't understand is why it is called a Thai dish since I really haven't come across this dish before even having lived in Thailand for two years. But still worth trying even if it isn't your classical Thai dish. 4/5


Oatmeal Tofu $15

Conclusion

The Whole Earth just underwent a change in the management and the new menu looks promising. The really good thing about the place is that you can actually bring anyone with food restrictionse. Not only don't they have meats, they also don't use garlic and onions. So they can actually appeal to people who are Vegans or Jains and to those who eat Halal and Kosher foods.

Overall, the food is not bad, but for a carnivore like myself it still only appeals to the health aspect. What I would really like to see is a vegetarian dish that is so good that I would crave to eat it despite it being vegetarian. Now that for me would be the "Holy Grail" of vegetarian food.

The Whole Earth
593 Geylang Road
Between Lor 29 and 31
68413319
11am to 3pm
5.30pm to 10pm
www.thewholearth.com
Disclosure: This was an invited review.

ABC Poh Piah: Poh Piah goes with everything!

With smart and bashful hunter


Poh Piah is just great. It's healthy (relatively) and tasty and it is a really good side dish with whatever you are ordering. If you think about it, it is just the Chinese version of the Donar Kebab or the Burrito and the way I see it, it should originally be eaten whole rather then cut into bite sized pieces. Why I say this is because the nature of the "wrap" is such that it is designed as food on the go, meaning that you can grab the Poh Piah in one hand while the other hand is being used to hold onto the reins of your horse. It is supposed to be Chinese fast food, if you know what I mean.

However, nowadays, it is the custom to cut it into bite sized pieces and eat with your chopstick which really doesn't make sense as quite often, some of the filling will drop out during the transit from the plate to your mouth.

Smart (more precisely, his wife) recommends this particular Poh Piah stall in Toa Payoh. So far, very few of the Poh Piah's in this blog has hit the threshold for me except for the Qi Ji which at one stage really did it for me. But I found recently that the standard of the filling had fallen a little. For me the ultimate Poh Piah has got a nice, soft, chewy skin which leaves that sweet carbo aftertaste, packed full of the savoury turnip filling and most importantly, packed with lots of the crunchy stuff.

I must say this particular Poh Piah tastes rather good. The balance of flavours of the ingredients is just right. The only problem is that it is a little limp and the skin (handmade but procured from elsewhere) just lacks that chewiness of which the Qi Ji one is still currently the gold standard. Perhaps the next time I could ask the Uncle to make a specially turgid one for me! 4.25/5

Conclusion

Try to see if the Uncle will sell you a Poh Piah with extra ingredients (you'll have to offer to pay more of course). That might well turn this from a very good to great Poh Piah.


ABC Poh Piah Blk
93 Food Centre #01-204
Toa Payoh Lor 4
9am to 10pm
Monday closed

Ali Nachia Briyani Dum: Real Dum Briyani

With Damien


I remember some years back, MM Lee once mentioned that Singapore may merge with Malaysia in the future. This created such an uproar among the Malaysians, who simply don't see any reason why they would want Singapore back with Malaysia. Culturally, Singapore and Malaysia are very close and it used to be that many families have cousins and uncles across the causeway. However and time went by, the two cultures are slowly diverging.

If you think about it, Singapore and Malaysia may not be so culturally different as say East and West Germany. We speak almost the same language and share lots of common hawker foods. It's only the proportion of the mix of Malay, Chinese and Indians which are different. And when we are overseas, Malaysians and Singaporeans tend to congregate and regard each other as the same gang. So it might not be so difficult to imagine that one day in the distant future, the socio-political-economic climate might force the two countries to consider merger again.

Anyway, the Malaysia-Singapore preamble is to introduce this particular stall which is situated in the Malaysian part of Singapore. Yes, there is a thin strip of Malaysian land which bisects our island from the causeway up north right down the middle to end in the South at Tanjong Pagar. It's none other than the Tanjong Pagar Railway Station. The last bastion of Malaysia in Singapore. Yet even though it is Malaysian land, we still have to pay Singapore prices for the food and the stalls are still subjected to the NEA's cleanliness ratings. Aside from that, the Railway Station still retains that Malaysian charm of yesteryear guaranteed to bring back some feelings of nostalgia of our colonial past.



Now moving on to the topic of Dum Briyani.

There's Nasi Briyani and then there's Dum Briyani. And nowadays, stallowners are increasingly calling their Briyani "Dum" to differentiate it from "lesser" Briyanis. From what I understand, this should not be the case at all. All Briyani should be "Dum" Briyani. The lesser "Briyani" is in fact pilaf, which is essentially Nasi Minyak (Buttered/Oil Rice). Whereas in a real Dum Briyani, the rice and mutton curry is partially cooked first then combined and baked together. (pic above). This way all the aroma of the curry gets infused into the rice. Mmmmmm....

This stall is run by ex-butcher turned ex-soccer coach, Cik Ali who happens to be the father of soccer star Rafi Ali. This Pak Cik is passionate about wanting to make a proper Dum Briyani and as you can see from the picture above, this is the real deal. And furthermore, being an ex-butcher, Cik Ali also knows how to handle his meats so he only picks the best parts of the goat to make his curry.



The Briyani Rice here is light and fluffy and not over powering so you can eat lots of it and not feel too jerlak. But the real gem is the super tender and aromatic mutton which has been slow cooking in the rice. The mutton has been seasoned just right such that it does not have that strong mutton smell that puts most muttonophobics off, and it has just the right amount of fats so that the meat is not dry after cooking for so long. At $5 per plate, it is still worth it as the piece of mutton is very generous and comes with the bone. The only little drawback for me was the dhalchat which could do with a bit more ooomph and it really should be eaten when it is still piping hot during lunch time because by 2pm the rice has lost some of its ooomph. 4.25/5

Conclusion

Yummy Dum Briyani surrounded by nostalgia. Little wonder that it is recommended by foodiephiles like Yuen (Prive and Brown Sugar) and Damien (Mien).


Ali Nachia Briyani Dam
The Railway Station
Tanjong Pagar
93892615
10am to 3pm
Closed on Sundays

Yan Ya: Smoked Duck Specialist

With SCS Butter


Tucked deeper in this little Coffeeshop in Siglap is a smoked duck joint that looked pretty promising. Actually this LTN coffeeshop is pretty horribly laid out. There is little exposure for the stalls that are deep inside the coffeeshop but I am beginning to appreciate just how many gems there are in there. Right towards the end there is a Tandoori stall and a Vadai stall which are both pretty good which I have yet to take some pictures of.

But anyway, the one that caught my attention was this stall that claims to be the specialist in smoked duck. Yeah, my sentiments exactly. What's the diff between smoked duck and roast duck? Seems like the same deal to me.

But the duck actually turned out to be unexpectedly good! And I must say that the flesh has actually got a smoky flavour to it. (Or is this just a case of auto-suggestion?) Anyway the duck was quite enjoyable and the char siew was also quite pleasing. Don't mind eating here at from time to time since it is so close to home. 4.25/5

Conclusion

Not bad, not bad at all! I'd say this is a "yet to be" rated Roast Duck. Only problem is that they don't have the plum sauce to go with it.

Yan Ya
936 East Coast Road
LTN Eating House
10am to 10pm

ieat on 938Live!

Todays recommendation is the Wagyu Tenderloin at Astons Prime!

Astons Prime: Wagyu Tenderloin!

Wagyu Tenderloin 250gm $79.95

When it comes to steak, I usually order Ribeye, T-bone or Sirloin. I avoid Tenderloin because it lacks the robust beefy flavour due to the lack of fat. Because of this, lots of places serve tenderloin wrapped with a piece of bacon to give it a bit more flavour. Furthermore, the serving of tenderloin is usually quite small so it never really satisfies a Beefeater. It would be safe to say that a lot of ladies go for tenderloin because of its tenderness, lack of fat and the smaller servings. Right ladies?

Anyway, when Astons told me that he just got hold of this Grade 7 Wagyu Tenderloin at "Fell off the back of a truck" prices, I just could not resist. The truth was that I was a bit skeptical. A Tenderloin is a Tenderloin even if it was a Wagyu Tenderloin..... or so I thought.

It is quite amazing to see the extent of marbling on a Wagyu Steak, but even more amazing to see it on a Tenderloin which is usually very lean. The marbling on the Tenderloin is more intricate and reticular (net like) then that of Ribeye, so pound for pound there is still less fat on the Tenderloin.



A delicate piece of meat like this needs to be treated royally and Astons got it just right for me. Conventional wisdom says that Wagyu should be cut thinner and quickly seared on the outside so that the fats won't all melt during the cooking process, leaving a piece of cardboard-like steak. But have a look for yourself.... this is a thick steak that is beautifully charred on the outside but still juicy pink on the inside.

Taste wise, this is the BEST Tenderloin I have ever tasted. The meat is tender and the wonderful beefy juices are released with every bite. Truly a wondrous piece of meat which will satisfy the most fastidious of carnivores. 4.6/5

Conclusion

You have got to see it and taste it to believe it!

Link to previous Wagyu Article

Astons Prime
467 Joo Chiat Road
Open 11.30 to 11pm
Closed on Tuesdays
Call 63442447 for reservations
astonsspecialties.blogspot.com

Happy Valentine's Day!

I still remember when my Amagada and I were still dating more than 20 years ago. We had the heart shaped pizza at Milano's. That was real treat back then. I think it cost like $16 for the heart shaped pizza and came with drinks as well. Pretty romantic for JC students who don't really have much pocket money to spare. Too bad Milano's is no longer around. I wouldn't mind having a heart shaped pizza just for the sake of nostalgia.

So what is your most memorable Valentine's Day dinner?

Xin Mei Xiang Lor Mee: Taste IS subjective

There are several phrases which I think are overused when it comes to discussion about food. One is "Overated" and the other is "Taste is subjective". I have always prided myself to be a bit of a rebel (ok a soft core rebel) so I steer clear from using those phrases.

However, today I seem to have no other recourse. You see, everyone says this place has got a fantastic Lor Mee and the last time I was here, it was sold out. What's more they were even featured in the 2007 Makansutra Street Food Masters. So my level of expectation was very high.

I guess the gold standThe gravy was good but was not the kind of "Holy Grail" experience that I was led to believe. The ingredients was also good but not tongue tingling great. The fried snapper that they put on top was generous but tasted a bit fishy that day. Also they ran out of Ngoh Hiang which did not help. One thing that was good though was the black vinegar which was really smooth and piquant. So, much as I hate to say it, this stall is "overated" but then again "taste is subjective". 3.75/5

Conclusion

Any fans out there who would beg to differ?

Xin Mei Xiang
Blk 51 #01-116
Old Airport Road Hawker Centre
7am to 2.30pm
Closed on Thursdays

Cheok Kee Duck Rice: How good can Braised Duck get?

Did you know that a duck is called a duck because of the way it ducks underwater to feed? I just thought that that was an interesting piece of trivia.

Talking about ducks, it seems to be the poor (or should I say fortunate) cousin of the chicken. I mean, you eat chicken at least a few times per week and its cooked in so many different ways. When it comes to duck, you basically have the roast version or the braised version and a sprinkling of dishes here and there. I remember as a kid, mom only ever cooked braised duck and it is eaten only during festive occasions.

Since braised duck is a supposed to be a Teochew dish, I should really love it since I am 100% unadulterated Teochew. Then again, I have already confessed to my lack of Teochewness as is apparent in my lack of appreciation of the Peh Toh Her. So braised duck does not evoke as much saliva as say Char Siew for me. In fact, I think that braised duck can only attain a certain level of shiokness which will never surpass the shiokability of something like say, a bowl of laksa. I don't remember eating one that I can really go "Shiokadoooledoooo!".

So when it comes to this 40 year old Duck Rice in Macpherson, I was not too disappointed since I was not expecting too much. The thing about this stretch of stalls along Macpherson Road is that it really is a model of Darwin's theory of survival of the fittest. There are only a few shops there that have been around for more then a couple of years. The rest of the stalls just keep changing hands because the location is just not conducive. So if this stall has been around for so long, it means that the food must be good enough such that it has got a critical mass of regular customers to keep it going.

As I said, I did not expect too much. So it wasn't too bad. The duck was a little dry and the braising sauce was nothing to brag about. But hey, I am sure that there are fans out there who would disagree with me. The other thing I found out is that this is a Cantonese version of braised duck. Interesting since you would not expect people in the past to do cross cultural dishes as much as they do today. I was told that Cantonese Braised Duck has a thick gooey sauce and uses more herbs then Teochew Braised Duck. Perhaps our Braised Duck experts can confirm this to be true? 3.5/5

Conclusion

Has anyone ever eaten a braised duck that can be rated near a five or can braised duck only ever get so good?

Cheok Kee Duck Rice
520 Macpherson Road
9.30am to 7pm
Closed on Tuesdays
67439755

Happy New Year! Commercially Available Homemade Pineapple Tarts

Happy New Year Everyone!

Pineapple tarts have been my favourite CNY tidbit since I was a kid. I remember how mom used to make her very own Pineapple Tarts every New Year. But soon commercially made ones became available and she stopped making her own. In fact, it would seem that lots of other mothers also stopped making their own since it was so much easier just to buy them ready made.

After a while people realized that the commercial ones are not that great, so the cottage industry emerged with Aunties making their own pineapple tarts for sale. Soon everyone had "homemade" pineapple tarts that were made by their Aunty to serve during CNY. As their orders got bigger, the Aunties started getting their maids to make the tarts while they inspect their manicures.

When they first started, the Aunties made their pineapple tarts from scratch. Each pineapple was carefully selected, the flesh was chopped up and caramalized into the pineapple paste. Soon, some enterprising Thai businessman saw the opportunity to provide ready made pineapple paste for the Aunties which would save them a lot of trouble having to do it themselves. This freed the Aunties from having to soak their hands into the acidic pineapple puree and so ruin their manicures.

Another CNY went by and another enterprising businessman whose Aunty is making the pineapple tarts thought that his Aunty's pastry was so good that every other Aunty should actually use his Aunty's dough. So, he set up a factory to produce his Aunty's pineapple tart dough and made it available to all the other Aunties.

So now, our Aunties don't have to make their pineapple paste or the dough. All they have to do is to sit down, inspect their manicures and direct their Indonesian maids, to put the Thai pineapple paste onto the commercial dough base and bake the tarts.

Guess what? The next thing that will happen is that someone will make commercially available pre-baked pineapple tarts so that all the Aunty needs to do is to direct the maid to put it in the oven to bake. Soon, this Aunty might start a small factory to do this and start to market her "Aunty's very own, commercially homemade pineapple tarts".

Well, happy New Year to all our Aunties out there, but please keep our pineapple tarts homemade and do continue to use SCS butter as it really does make it taste better!

Gong Xi Fa Cai everyone!

PS: So what is everyone's favourite CNY tidbit? Mine is Pineapple Tarts and Bak Kwa!

Simpang Yong Tau Foo: Not Ampang......Simpang

With smart and PK


One of the good things about retirement is that you get to go around looking for good things to eat without the pressure of exams, loans, bills, kids and other stuff that add stress to your life. Not that I am speaking from personal experience of course, (still a long way from retirement) but more from the point of view of my two esteemed makankakis that afternoon who also happen to be old boys from my alma mater.

Anyway, both smart and PK have been friends since school days and it would seem to me that the baby boomers tend to keep their schoolday friendships better then us Gen Xers. Smart, PK and a whole bunch of their school friends still get together at least every month to makan together. Perhaps it was the days of playing catching, marbles and pretending to be Tarzan with the Banyan Tree rather then playing gameboys and computer games that made the big difference? Or maybe it is just me.

Anyway, this Yong Tau Foo place was recommended to me by smart who, being semi retired, makes it his hobby to walk around food centres scouring for good (and interesting) things to eat. He chanced upon this stall on one of his recce trips and it is just the kind of stall that makes one go "Phwa, must at least go and try leh!"

Yes, this is our very own SIMPANG Yong Tau Foo. You heard it right, not AMPANG but SIMPANG. The difference might not be as stark as the difference between Phua Chu Kang and Chua Chu Kang, but there is a difference.

The homemade Yong Tau Foo is fried first and then doused with the soy based sauce. But the similarity ends there. The sauce here is quite unique. It is sweet, a little tangy and mildly punchillie hot. Perhaps the right adjective is "piquant". Quite shiok actually and definitely unique. 4.25/5


Crispy Pork Knuckle $16

And if you feel that eating deep fried Yong Tau Foo doesn't do enough to clog up your arteries, you might opt for the Deep Fried Crispy Skin Pork Leg. Oh yes, Pork Knuckle or Ter Kah definitely ranks up there as one of those sinfully bad food that you would only eat if you wanted to reward yourself for scoring well on your latest cholesterol report.

The Ter Kah here is stewed first then deep fried just before serving. The skin is super duper crispy and went well with the Thai style chilli sauce. The flesh was however, a little on the dry side. Actually if you ask me, this seems to be more like the German version of the Pork Knuckle rather than the Chinese version. Not bad, but this really is a Gu Gu Jip Pai (once in a long while) type of dish for me. 3.75/5

Conclusion

Our very own Simpang Yong Tau Foo! It is the sauce that makes this particular Yong Tau Foo stand out from the rest. Casual and cheaper alternative to your German Restaurant if you wish to get your Crispy Fried Ter Kah fix.


Simpang Yong Tau Foo
Bedok Market Place
348 Bedok Road
#02-05/06
64449986
9.30am to 7pm
Recommended by smart