Heart and Soul - the key ingredients

I always believe that if one puts his heart and soul into providing good food for people, he will be able to have a successful business. Just wanna give 2 examples:

a. Teochew Char Kway Teow @ Margaret Drive

The queue at this stall is never ending. The char kway teow by this one-man-operation is good. But I believe the reason for the success for this uncle is also his attitude that is definitely worth top marks. He frys every plate of char kway teow individually. Using only eggs and cockles (no fish cake, no chinese sausages), he whips out plate after plate of moist and delicious char kway teow with a smile that never leaves his face. Ever willing to accommodate special requests (although there's not much room for variety with limited ingredients...), he is never hot under the collar even working in front of the hot stove.

Word has it that there was once a loyal customer who has travelled far to eat his char kway teow. But alas, he has sold out all his noodles. Not willing to see his customer disappointed, he suggested to the customer to go to the fish ball noodle stall to buy a bowl of raw kway teow and mee. He then heats up his wok again and fried a plate of char kway teow just for his customer... absolutely FREE! He said that since the customer has already paid for the ingredients elsewhere, it is not fair to pay more for the same plate of char kway teow. Now that is SERVICE!


b. Rui Xing Coffee Stall @ Bedok Central (hawker centre next to market, NOT the bus terminal)


There are at least 5 coffee stalls at this hawker centre. Rui Xing is the only one with long queues. Not only that, they close shop as early as 11:30AM!!! Full effort is put in to every cup of coffee. He even makes sure that every cup is pre-heated with hot water before the coffee is poured into it. This will ensure that every cup of coffee is piping hot as it should. The coffee powder used is made from fragrant, charcoal grilled beans. But more importantly, he is generous in the usage of the powder, thus giving full flavoured coffee that packs punch!

Both stall owners knows that life is more than just work. The char kway teow seller sells only at night while the coffee seller only the day. They know when enough is enough. They would rather spend the rest of the time doing what they like to enjoy life instead of breaking their backs to earn more. For that I respect them. There's more wisdom here than what is taught in universities...

What the duck!

Have not posted for a while... just wanna show the pix of the duck noodles that I lurve so much!!

Duck noodles!

Thot I'll retype another portion of the post I lost on Margaret Drive Hawker Centre.

My fave (or one of them at least) is Jin Du Ya Fan Ya Mian. It serves braised duck. The "tzup" they use to braise the duck, tofu, egg etc is simply great! The duck meat is cooked to perfection. Go for noodles as the rice is a bit too dry for me... plus there's more "tzup" in the dry noodles... (^_^)

Oh yes, must must get your bowl of soup too! It's peppery with taste of chinese herbs. Very authentic and shiok! There are of course down sides...

The ducks are sometimes not "de-feathered" cleanly enough at the wings (which I like) and can look quite gross... My fave is to have "kway teow" dry... but the kway teow they use is not the best grade so it's a bit "rough"... But for $2.50 a bowl (they used to sell only $2), I think it's worth it man... I usually go for $3 to get more meat (yum....) and add tofu or egg for another $0.50...

MUST TRY MUST TRY!!!

Chocolate muffins

My fan club president wants reccommendations on chocolate muffins... hmm... come to think about it, I think she just wants chocolate muffins... haha...

For the record, I don't have any (reccommendations nor muffin). I don't usually save space for heavy desserts after a meal nor do I have the habit of having tea. But I do like a simple fruit sponge cake. My ex-company in Hong Kong makes one of the best sponge cake base. Very light. I once had to tell the difference between those made from American eggs and those made from Holland eggs (for costs reasons). The American one is lighter but only just. I don't think they made any changes... not based on my comments anyway. Japanese bakeries sells very good fresh fruit sponge cake. Their quality of ingredients is tops which make the cakes simply class above the rest.

My ex-company used to boast that we use Japanese flour in our products. But the boss told me, in Japan, the grade which we used are probably fed to the pigs... such extravagence! Japanese' pursuit for quality commands my respect!

Anyway, to make my fan club president slightly happier, here's a pics of a chocolate snack she gave me. The mid-section tastes actually like the hazel-nut cream in Kinder Bueno. Nice but I got no sweet tooth... so that's that.

Chicken Rice

It is common to see chicken rice stalls selling both broiled chicken (or "white" chicken) and roast chicken or just broiled chicken. But Tong Kee Chicken Rice at Margaret Drive hawker centre sells ONLY roast chicken. Specialisation enabled them to master the art of cooking really good chicken...

Only thing is, it's not really roast chicken. You see, everyone calls the "brown" chicken roast chicken (or "shao ji") but it's not roasted at all! Roast chicken is like those sold by Kenny Rogers. The ones sold in all chicken rice stalls are actually FRIED. Deep-fried. So I give Tong Kee full marks for "honesty" as they are called "Tong Kee Fried Chicken Rice". (^_^)

Anyway, the rice is nice and fragrant having been cooked with pandan leaves in chicken broth. The chicken? Tender and juicy. For $3 (instead of the $2 version) they even give you a lime to help counter the oilyness. Oh yes, it is a little on the oily side. But nevertheless, it is definitely worth 4-stars to me. (^_^)

There are lots more delicious stuff at Margaret Drive Hawker Centre which I blog on in later posts. The place is going to be demolished soon so do check out the place before you have to wait for "Makan Places Lost and Found2" to help you locate them...

Anyone interested in an extended lunch one of these days?... (^_^)

Dedicated Post

Wanted to make a dedicated post to scream ARRRRRRGH!
Typed a long post and it disappeared!!!
It's like the 2nd time this happened!!!
Maybe it's punishment for doing it during office hours... :(

Bak Chor Noodles

Some hungry (I presume... haha) folks have been asking me "why no new posts"... well, rather than excuses, I thought I'll give what the "customer" wants yah? (^_^)


Following the post on the disappointing cod fish, here's the stuff me frens and I ate at Nam's noodle. Famous for their abalone bak chor noodle. I felt that the noodle was a little...well,... little in portion. It is nice and springy and for those who like the vinegar taste in Teochew styled noodles, this does not disappoint. Personally, I like sourish stuff so the sauce in the noodle was quite tasty. The other surprise was a small piece of GREEN APPLE in the soup. It doesn't look like they cooked the soup with the apple. It was put in upon serving. Perhaps it helps to kill the pork taste, perhaps it's just to decorate or both, I don't know. But it's not something I'd be too bothered with. Overall, I felt that the noodles were a bit over-hyped. Some might feel more "dignified" eating abalone with their noodles but really it's no big deal. The other dishes? Just see the pictures above lah...



After the episode at Nam's, my wifey and I had to go back to Tai Hwa noodles (previously in Marina Food Court). This stall has tradition. Got website some more (with Jap description)... www.taihwa.com.sg but it doesn't serve much purpose except giving you the address if you forget lah. The noodle is not as springy, but the pork is generous. Bak-chor (minced pork), sliced pork, pork ball, liver and the all important crispy dried fish (not sure what it's called in English). Business is very good and therefore the soup is very tasty (having cooked the large quantities of meat). This tip can apply to Prawn noodles and Bak-kut-teh as well. When the stall is popular, the soup will be cooked with large quantities of meat or prawns thereby making it very flavourful and tasty. If you don't know whether a stall is good or not, just check out the queues...

Anyway, the conclusion is, I'll rather go without the abalone and go for Tai Hwa's noodle. PLUS, if you go, do order at least $5 version so that you can have the dumplings in your noodles as well. They contain the dried fish as well, making it very sedap... and the skin is smooth... We usually have the noodles dry (with chilli... shiok) and an extra $5 bowl of soup with dumplings... yummy!

Oh My Cod...

Couldn't resist trying this black pepper cod fish at Nam's noodle. At $15, it is not exactly cheap.

Conclusion? It is disappointing.

There is no black pepper taste and the fish is done sort of hurriedly over high heat (thus a little burnt on the outside).

Where oh where art thou, my cod?...

Thai Food

Had a Thai styled beef with basil and rice at Thai Express. It's one of my preferred Thai dishes cos I love basil. The dish was on the saltish side but it was great taken with steamed rice.

Which reminds me of another "Thai" eatery: "Black Canyon Coffee". I don't have a lot of good experiences with fusion food but I like the spaghetti with beef and basil and the green curry fried rice there. However they seemed to have changed the chef after moving from Serene Centre to Katong... standard dropped... :(

Simple Fare

Before anyone thinks I eat at restaurants all the time, I'd better touch on some simple fare for a change. Ever made a ham sandwich? (read: slap ham on bread, cover with another piece of bread and viola! Butter/Margarine/Mayo optional)


I bought some honey baked ham instead of the usual picnic ham recently. Simple logic says the ham is larger than the bread area. (read: round peg cannot fit small square hole) I thought it looks "untidy" with the ham hanging out...


So I tore up the ham into pieces instead... guess what? It tastes better!

Why?

Because in piling up the pieces, it creates more texture to the sandwich. You also get the feeling you are biting into more layers of ham. This pychological feeling increases the satisfaction level derived. Try it! You can make 2 of the same sandwich and you'll be able to tell the difference.

However, this difference will be gone if you add lettuce or say cucumber shreds. 'Cos the lettuce or cucumber will provide the extra texture or 口感. Just a little more effort and you can enjoy your food more!

I'll touch on bread in the next post... lotsa stuff I've learned from working in a confectionery chain...

CNY Lunch (cont'd)

Steamed Cod-Fish in Soy Sauce

Cod fish is both nutritious and delicious. It is more "oily" compared to other fish as it is found in cold waters, but it is low in saturated fat and high in vitamins B6 and B12. The lack of bones makes it ideal for steaks and filets. Fresh cod has lots of flavour. I therefore prefer a light soy sauce than a teriyaki sauce (in some Japanese outlets). Unfortunately, the one I had is a little overcooked, making the flesh harder than it should be.

The best cod fish I had is found in Hong Kong's Maxim restaurant in the old Kai Tak Airport. Sadly, when the airport was closed, I'm not sure where the chefs are relocated. The dish is special because it is cod fish pan-fried with top soy sauce. As the flesh is very delicate and breaks easily, most chefs will deep fry the fish with a little corn flour to hold the flesh together. It is therefore a dish that truly test the skill and patience of the chef. In my memory, the flesh is both smooth and tender and literally melts in your mouth. The flavours of the fish is brought out fully by the top grade soy sauce with is combined with the oil that is broken down through the pan-frying. An absolute masterpiece.

If you have come across other cod fish dishes that are good, do recommend them to me!

Let's talk about FOOD, baby...

Decided that this shall be a blog on FOOD... a topic close to the hearts of many. Having learned the "art" of differentiating between "living to eat" and "eating to live", I reckon I should be able to contribute some thoughts on food in Singapore. Besides, being a food critic has always been a dream job for me, haha...

Anyway, I had a CNY business lunch at Peach Garden Novena today. CNY lunch is an absolute chore. For one, you got to do the usual PR talk. Then there is that "waste food" tradition of tossing yu-sheng all over the table. And besides, the rushed and mass-produced set menus are always sub-standard compared to the normal days. But I digress... I shall highlight a couple of dishes I had:


Wasabi prawns and Roast meat

Two of Peach Garden's popular dishes. As the apertiser, the wasabi cream on the prawn and the mustard to accompany the roast meat serve a similar purpose of waking up the taste buds and the stomach.

As with all other prawn dishes in Chinese restaurants, the prawns are "treated" with baking soda to make them cruchy. However, the process also kills off whatever taste of prawn left. In this instance, the cream was a little too heavy for my liking and makes the whole morsel a little too "jia-lat". ie., you are not likely to go for a second helping.

The roast meat is nice although I felt that the skin is not as crisp as it should (victim of the CNY mass production no doubt). I will recommend this during normal seasons though...


Venison Steak with mushroom sauce

This is without doubt a western dish although the marinade used on the venison is oriental. (I'm pretty sure oyster sauce is used instead of HP sauce). The meat is tenderised well. Venison (or deer meat) is similar to other "game" meat in that they are rather strong in flavour.

In western cuisine, red wine is often used to both add flavour, tenderise the meat as well as to mask the game taste. Here, the chef probably opted for oyster sauce and the mushroom sauce to do the trick but sadly, it makes the meat too saltish. Perhaps more ginger in the marinade would be a better option. Afterall venison with ginger and spring onions at some "zi char" stalls are quite tasty.

Ok. Will save the next couple of dishes for the next post. Do let me know your comments!

Tea anyone?

Have a cuppa tea, a steam bun...

ie., 饮杯茶，食个包… 得闲来坐坐…