Hello my dears. I hope your weekend is going great. Mine was basically spent washing at least three batches of laundry and trying to unwind after a fully loaded week. Since I returned from my short-term assignment in Singapore, I've spent the first week clearing my backlogs of work and non-work to-dos.
I managed to squeeze in waxing sessions last Friday (yup, you read that right, I've decided to be my hair-free carefree self and saved myself some time and effort by leaving it to the professionals). Now, after finishing my last batch of laundry, I'm sitting down to share with you my SG food experience.
I'm not exactly a foodie and my work assignment left me very little time to explore Singapore. Thanks to my SG-based friends and my hotel's proximity to cool dining spots, I managed to have a taste of Singapore. Here goes my food adventure, in chronological order:)
The night before my flight, my good friend Maris and I decided to check out Tim Ho Wan as a sort-of send-off dinner (note: there's a Tim Ho Wan branch in SG). Sorry, I didn't have pictures, but all I can say is: Tim Ho Wan lived up to its Michelin credentials. We had the famed pork buns --- three buns in one serving. Since I had rice toppings and was very full, I managed to finish only two of the three buns. I gave my third to the very helpful taxi driver who took me to the airport.
Back at my temporary crib and while waiting for the hours to pass before I leave for the airport, I needed to clear my fridge since I will be away for a while. Thus, I cooked up a mean combination of chicken thigh fillet, seashells (bought them frozen), and cherry tomatoes. They're pictured below, and may not be that photogenic, but I swear, this was memorably 'umami' good 😁
What is SG without its kaya toast? I had several of these at various restos and kopitiams. Toastbox is one of my favorite stops for these kaya toast sets. I've violated my coffee abstinence while in SG. At Toastbox, I loved my coffee with evaporated milk and a bit of sugar a.k.a. kopi-c.
Please click 'Read more' for the rest of my SG food trip.
We usually had our breakfasts at the Lau Pa Sat, and we kept coming back to the Mugiho Bakery for their breads...
Since I usually work while at the hotel, I had these ready for midnight snack. I loved the Bulgaria yogurt I got from The Market Place, the supermarket at Raffles Shopping Center that resembles that of Rustan's. I also tried copying the kaya toast sets by buying my own jam. :)
My 'healthy diet' stash: cereal, milk and apples
After our catch-up dinner at Suki-ya (a shabu-shabu buffet; again, sorry I don't have pics), Jellyn got me a box of mochi sweets. I've been wanting to try these but they just seemed so expensive at 100 pesos each. I think they're cheaper in SG.
And mmmm, they tasted much better than I imagined, and definitely yummier than the supermarket version I buy at the The Landmark.
More coffee cheats coming up! I had this cup at Coffee Club, one of the pioneer coffee shops in SG and a bit pricier than Starbucks. I had this while waiting for Duanne and Deech, who treated me to a sushi feast (no pictures again; I guess, you know by now that most of my friends belong to a generation who cares more about the 'real' face-time).
Deech recommended this steak place, Steakout, which is very near my hotel. It didn't disappoint considering that this costs only about S$20, about 600+ pesos. Good steak back home usually costs at least a thousand pesos.
I was told that good coffee is usually found at hawker centers or stalls, SG's version of an open-air food court. I tried this combo of Yangzhou rice and kopi-c at the Tastebuds Food Center, near the Bugis Village (a bargain shopping destination).
The succeeding pictures are from my dessert place discovery while walking down Northbridge Road looking for my calligraphy supplies shop, Straits Art. The dessert place is called 'Rabbit Owl Depot' and is quite known for its waffles served with ice cream.
It's right across the National Library and right next to Teajoy --- where you will find everything you need for authentic tea, from tea sets to tea leaves.
Rabbit Owl Depot happens to be among the hot 100 in 2014 according to Burpple. If you happen to be in Singapore and you want to check out food guides and recommendations near your place, make sure to download the Burpple app.
Cutesy Instagram-able corners...I took some shots while waiting for my order...
And here's my order: Snowflakes served with caramel ice cream (there's about a dozen flavors to choose from and they let you have a taste before you decide)...
As in the concept for lava cakes and brownie cups, the hot and cold combination is just so comforting...A lovely treat to cap my second Sunday in SG...
Excuse the tourist/blogger me, I just had to take these pictures before leaving...;)
The awesome quotes are perfect for Sunday reflections, too.
And I agree with this 100%!
Moving further to Purvis Street, I found another gem: Killiney Kopitiam. Like what I've posted in Facebook, the bonus was the good-looking guy behind the counter who also happened to be my server. I'm not a fan of chinitos and I didn't understand the latter part of what he was saying. He was smiling, his eyes almost gone, and he recommended the curry rice. I remembered asking if it was spicy; when he said no, smiled again and mumbled some more, I gave it a go. Funny me, right? Good thing that I wasn't disappointed 'cause the curry rice was really good that I wanted to have more rice. But enough chinito-gawking, I thought. LOL.
I failed to check out this interesting place at Queen Street, near the Singapore Art Museum. Food for Thought, from what I read, is known for its pancakes.
On my last Saturday walking around Victoria and Queen Streets, I found this thoughtful quote at the National Design Center... Pretty much sums up my drink preference ;)
My second to the last (my last is a kaya toast set at the airport) SG food is this laksa at Toastbox. It sums up Singapore food very well. The mix of coconut cream, seafood, ramen and a bit of spiciness is synonymous with the variety of Asian flavors that one will find in Singapore.
Overall, I think I will not thrive on Singaporean food alone. I still longed for Filipino food in the very short time that I was there. I will have to look for other Asian dishes if I had to stay much longer and intend to not lose more weight. I loved the kaya toast sets, but I would need more calories for all the walking and work. Thank you for the variety of Asian and even Western food available across the city. The local food may take some getting used to, but this just shows how open Singapore is to other cultures.
I'd like to end with this quote found at Rabbit Owl Depot.
Hope this makes you smile and gives you the perfect excuse to be chocoholic. :)
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