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No, I'm not talking about hungry ghost festival. Eating supper seems to be something habitual to Singaporeans. One can easily pop by a 24hr coffeeshop or prata place to beat their late night hunger pangs. Even Mc Donald's is now 24/7. However, I was pretty intrigued to find a foodstall that only opens at midnight. And interestingly, you'll spot a queue on most nights. I have to find out what is it that their business has been running 顺顺利利 (smoothly) for years.
Shunli Niang Toufu is located in Bukit Merah View Market. You won't miss it because it's the only stall that's lit up at such wee hours. 
The choice of ingredients is regular. I believe the secret of its success lies in the stock, and the chilli sauce. Served in a 555 stainless steel bowl, the food did not look appetizing at all. But with a sip of the soup flavoured with green chilli paddies and ikan bilis, that didn't really matter. (It was really dark anyway.) It was very tasty. The ordinary ingredients also tasted extraordinary with the special sauces. If you think niang tofu is boring, I beg to differ.
I really don't mind having a healthy supper.
I'm never a west person for I've lived in the north since young and schooled in the east. Only of late, I got acquainted with the west due to work. And it got me interested to learn more about the west side story. I've only been to Sunset Way once but that was like 3 years ago and the sun has since risen and set countless times. The HDB estate has now developed into this so-called next Holland V with alfresco dining. Not much of a view though, but diners are pampered for choice with restaurants serving different cuisines including Japanese, Thai, Italian, etc. Ironically, my friends and I decided to settle for a more comfy air-conditioned dining instead because of our long walk earlier.
Rocky's Pizza is right at the corner of the array of restaurants. Unpretentious and in fact, feels kind of homely with waitresses in their 40-50s serving us like mums. We ordered a 12" Boston Special ($23.80) and a Lasagne ($10.70). The 12" pizza was huge! 8 huge slices enough for 4 to share! Tasty, cheesy and appetizing. The crust although was not the authentic crispy kind, was light and thin. Toppings was generous and it tasted very homestyle. The Lasagne was a delicious blend of meat, cheese and lots of sauce. We had a satisfying meal accompanied by familiar Italian tracks playing in the background.
Sorry for the lousy pictures which I shot with my handphone hastily as we were all starving.
On my second visit to Sunset Way, I brought my friends to Grill-Out. This time round, I got to enjoy the alfresco dining experience amongst lush greenery. As mentioned, not much of a view, but doesn't really matter because it was really dark. The service was excellent. From making reservation, taking orders, refilling our glasses, clearing the plates and keeping the kids entertained, they did a perfect job. The food however was a little disappointing. To begin with, there was no soup on the menu. I wonder why.
We started with with salad and bread which were complimentary. Nice. Appetisers came Clams with garlic and white wine and Kurobuta Pork Skewer. There wasn't enough garlic and white wine to cover the fishiness of the clams. I'd prefer the garlic to be finely chopped such that they'll be trapped in the clams. The pork skewer was not well-done and they were chewy. We told the waiter and he assured us it was perfectly safe to eat because it was Berkshire pig. But eating rare pork is the last thing I crave for.
I ordered the U.S. Black Angus Ribeye ($30) which was on promotion and it came twice the size. It turned out I got loads of extra fats. I washed it down with a glass of House Red ($6.80). The most affordable red wine ever. As a side note, the U.S. Kobe Ribeye ($60) was highly recommended but spending that amount at a suburban joint didn't seem rational. :P So, do drop me a note if you've tried and think it's worth the try. :)
The Yellowtail Cheek with wasabi sauce ($18.00) was the best on the table. The portion was generous. The wasabi sauce goes well with the crispy skin and tender meat. S thinks that it tasted better than the Yellowtail Fillet (more expensive than yellowtail cheek) which was on their Today's Special. I didn't try the Pork Collar which was decent according to K.
The overall dining experience was pleasant. And I believed the service has contributed largely.All in all, Sunset Way is a great place to chill out while not having to dress up for the occasion. After sunset.
Unfortunately, the view at the restaurants wasn't this magnificent. These were shot on the deserted railway tracks 5 minutes away (plus another 5 for trembling across the rusty tracks). They don't name the estate Sunset Way for nothing.
P/S: Thank you, IL & E, for the eventful day and "homemade ice-cream". ;)
This is a recipe for pork roast I adapted and improvised from Betty Crocker's Best of Baking. As I'm quite selective when it comes to pork dishes, I choose to substitute the roast with chicken. It tasted equally good, I imagined. Well, what it matters is it's good enough for him. :)
Ingredients:
chicken thighs
salt
black pepper
cooking wine
margarine
olive oil
rosemary
garlic (finely chopped)
onion (finely chopped)
Steps:
Make a few cuts in chicken thighs with a sharp knife.
Season with salt, black pepper and wine.
Mix rosemary with garlic.
Insert garlic mixture in cuts.
Melt margarine in shallow roasting pan in oven and sprinkle with onions.
Place chicken thighs in pan and drizzle with olive oil.
Bring to heat at 180ºC for 40 minutes.
My foodie fans are complaining that I've been eating too much and blogging too little. Here's a drink to quench their thirst first. :P
Post-Museum Pour-spiced apple tea ($2.00) from Food #03, is a concoction of apple tea, mint leaves, lime, longan and some spices. Unique and refreshing after a long walk around Little India.
I'm no big fan of vegetarian food but I'm impressed with the concept and feel of Food #03. You can check out what's cooking in their very healthy kitchen. I will definitely drop by again for their Tempeh Burger sometime. No GST, no service charge, no microwave oven. And yes, they recycle! I wonder what they recyle! Haha! Let's go green!
The must-order dish when I step into a Thai restuarant got to be Tom Yam Soup. In fact, that's the first thing most will name when Thai food is mentioned.
The best Tom Yam Soup I've tried so far is from Renn Thai in Ngee Ann City many many years back. It was the authentic clear soup base kind unlike those super oily and cloudy Tom Yam Soup you get from food court. The food was pretty pricey according to my paycheck back then, so I didn't go back again. And along the way, I discovered Simply Thai. The Tom Yam Soup was just as good, although with lesser ingredients, was much more affordable. After a few good years, Simply Thai disappeared! But I found Thai Express along with some super nice ex-colleagues. :) The sliced fish tom yam soup with vermicelli is so spicy and good you'll be lost for words.
And now when I've time, I make my own. Here's a Tom Yam Goong recipe I got from a cookbook of popular Thai dishes. Tried and tested. You will be surprised how easily you can spice up your life.
Looks can be deceiving for this harmless looking soup will burn your tongue! :P
Serves 4-6
Ingredients:
450g king prawns
1 litre chicken stock
3 lemon grass stalks
10 lime leaves, torn in half
225g can straw mushrooms, drained
3 tbsp fish sauce
50ml lime juice
chopped spring onions and coriander leaves
red chillies, chopped
Steps:
Shell and devein the prawns
Rinse the prawn shells, place them in large saucepan with stock and bring to boil. I added an additional cup of water and a few prawn heads. Too many will make the soup taste fishy.
Bruise the lemon grass stalks with knife and add them to the stock together with the lime leaves. Simmer gently for 5 minutes or until stalks change colour and is fragrant.
Strain the stock, return to saucepan and reheat. Add mushrooms and prawns. Cook for a few minutes or until prawns turn pink.
Stir in fish sauce, lime juice, spring onions, coriander and chillies. Taste and adjust the flavours if you prefer it spicier, saltier or more sourish.
With just a mini budget, you're in for a big treat at Timo Mini Italian Cuisine. Timo means thyme in Italian. Not surprisingly, thyme is a basic ingredient in Italian cuisines.
Timo is sandwiched between stalls of famous traditional local favourites in Maxwell Market. A humble stall selling spaghettis, pizzas and desserts, Timo draws the younger crowd who are opened to new taste. I may not be that young but being a huge fan of Italian fare, this new boy-next-door won my heart over the other familiar local delights.
The first time I went Timo with J and JP, I tried the Black Pepper Chicken Spaghetti ($4.00). It was pretty decent for the price I paid. The Chocolate Lava ($3.50), however, was more than decent. It was sinfully tempting. We were very impressed by the presentation as something that pretty was never expected to be served here, in an old-fashioned market. After admiring the chef's masterpiece for some time, we decided to keep the chocolate pie warm and attack before the ice cream melts.
It was heavenly. The Chocolate Lava is what I call a simple pleasure. If this was served on a porcelain plate, it'll probably cost twice as much. 
The Chef told us we have to try his pizzas on our next visit if we can afford to wait for 15-20 minutes. On my second visit, I didn't think twice and went straight for the Seafood Pizza (6", $7.00), served fresh from the oven.
The crust is thin, light and crispy, the toppings fresh, moist and tasty. It was definitely worth the wait.
The only mistake was sharing the pizza with JP! We ended filling up our stomachs with the famous DIY hum chee peng across Timo.
I think apart from instant noodles, that was the first time he actually cooked and I got to taste it. Haha!
You know those roasted black pepper and honey glazed chicken you can get from the hot deli corner of Cold Storage? They aren't gourmet food but may not be a bad choice if you want to pack a simple dinner home from the mall and do not feel like fast food.
My own version of the roasted black pepper chicken is very simple. Tasty and juicy but not as oily. Good as a marinate for BBQ wings and whole spring chicken too if your oven has the rotisserie function.
Ingredients:
chicken thighs
dash of salt
cooking wine
dash of light soya sauce
oyster sauce
dark soya sauce for colour
McCormick coarse black pepper
McCormick Italian Herbs or MasterFoods Mixed Herbs
Steps:
Season the chicken with the ingredients in that particular order for at least two hours, if not overnight. Cover the chicken with black pepper generously. I will sprinkle extra rosemary on top of the mixed herbs. On a separate note, it'll taste just as good with only rosemary, that is of course if you like the distinctive taste of rosemary.
If you're using wings, just cook them in the oven at about 175ºC for 15 minutes and grill them for another 5 mintues or until brown. Coat the wings with the remaining marinate on and off.
If you're using the whole drum with thigh, wrap it up in aluminum foil and pour in all the marinate. Cook it for 20 minutes at about 200ºC. Open it up and grill it for 5-10 minutes or until brown.
If you're cooking the whole chicken, stuff some garlic and herbs in the chicken. Read the oven instruction manual for cooking time and temperature.
Drizzle the remaining gravy on the chicken and serve hot with rice or baked potato.
Everyone knows I'll die for Italian, especially pizzas and pastas. Modesto's and Spizza's pizzas are by far my favourite. Cantina is also worth my praises but I've only dined there once.
The unfortunate thing is that most decent Italian restaurants are posh and the bill usually totals up to a considerable amount. And that's why I was very excited when I spotted IL Piccolo. It is no slick restaurant, but an unpretentious stall hidden in an industrial food center. The signage says "hand tossed Italian pizzas baked in a stone oven". That bought me over.
I ordered the Pescatora (seafood, $6 for a personal pizza). The whole clams was what drawn me to my choice but it was also the setback of having to shell them while eating. It's kind of troublesome if you're planning to eat with your hands. I found the crust too soft and I couldn't really hold it up to eat without folding it. Anyway, that aside, the pizza was delizioso!
I completed my satisfying meal with a Tiramisu ($2.50). A guy friend, J, can make better Tiramisu. :)
I'm so going to try the pasta on my next visit. Probably vongole.
I've been wanting to make my own burger since C gave me the link to his friend's blog. An ugly burger recipe. Since I've been burger hunting lately, I am very keen to make a burger from scratch. And I'm glad I did because it was definitely worth my time. Yes, like he said, it was darn good. Just that mine wasn't as ugly. :P
I never really measure when I cook just like keongzai. So with his recipe, I guesstimated the portions of ingredients he stated. I'll just copy the basic steps over just in case he deletes his blog. But do hop over to his blog and read his interesting burger rules which I followed readily.
Ingredients to make 4 patties:
400gms of topside steak, pulsed in food processor
dash of salt
dash of black pepper
dash of ground cumin
dash of ground coriander seeds
half teaspoon of mustard powder
half an onion (sauté with olive oil)
handful of grated parmesan cheese
half cup of breadcrumbs
1 egg
Patty:
Mix everything together with half of the breadcrumbs, adding more if mixture is too wet. The egg binds the mixture, and the breadcrumbs absorbs some liquid if it’s too wet. Fashion thick patties, dust it with breadcrumbs and fridge it for at least 20 minutes. This allows the flavors to get to know each other and for the patty to hold its shape. Fry it in pan with olive oil. Don’t overcook, it’s not sexy.
Buns:
Lightly butter the buns and toast them.
Toppings:
Sauté fresh (shitake or white) mushrooms and onions with butter. Egg is optional.
This looks pretty decent, isn't it? It's topped with mushrooms, sauté onions, fried egg, tomatoes and lettuce.
Some like the lot.
Some like it topless.
I like it with fresh onions!
Be it red or yellow.
And I also like my beef to be slightly rare.
I bet it's better than the burger E claimed her bf can make! Haha!
P/S: I'd like to thank keongzai for the wonderful recipe and P for helping me with super-marketing and eating. :P
ifinallygettoeatSuperBurger at Astons.
M and her hubby were quite sure I couldn't finish the super-sized burger. Which I did. Not that it was super shiok, I just have a super big appetite.
"The ieatSuper Burger ($12.50) is made from 200gm chopped Sirloin Steak, 2 slices of cheese, 2 rashers of bacon, Romaine lettuce, tomatoes, Astons Special Hickory Smoked BBQ Sauce, Astons Special Sauce and crispy onion frost all piled up in a sesame seed bun."
The burger was served looking super messy such that I didn't know where to start. Nothing like what is pictured on their blog. The patty is tasty but a tad dry. The bacon was overdone and the buns were not toasted.
This is what I call a super gelak burger. It was oily rather than juicy. I think the culprit was the crispy onion frost. But then again, the Onion Frost ($5.00) was very tempting!
A complete opposite of the Beef Onion Portobello Burger I just had Cedele, these are definitely not for the health-conscious or weight-watchers. Still, it's a decent burger for the starving.
M insisted that the standard is much better during lunchtime when it is less crowded. I trust her words and will revisit during off-peak hours for better food and pictures.
