Peeking into chef Choo's little hawker stall kitchen, I recognised those heavy duty stoves from past visits to hotel kitchens. Chef Choo simply transplanted a hotel specification stove with all its capabilities to his tiny hawker stall. But, chef Choo did not just bring some showy hotel paraphernalia, he also brought along its professional culture and spirit.
Chef Choo who is 33 this year, learnt his craft from Regent Hotel and Pete's Place restaurant at Grand Hyatt. Struck out to open his own hawker stall last year (2019), chef Choo turns out proudly everyday at the stall in his smart double breasted chef's jacket. Chef Choo keeps his tools in tip top condition and his stall squeaky clean which earned him the "A" grade for cleanliness and hygiene by National Environment Agency.
Look at chef Choo's menu and prices - he is really bringing Italian dishes to the hawker centre at hawker prices. Spaghetti aglio e olio $4.00, spaghetti Bolognese $5.50, spaghetti carbonara $5.50 - you get the idea. Chef Choo's prices are comparable to traditional Singapore hawker noodle dishes like char kway teow, fried Hokkien mee etc.
Chef Choo delivers 5 star hotel fare at hawker prices with no compromise in quality by cleverly designing his menu and cooking them with gusto and flare.
Chef Choo also has seasonal specials which we can indulge in like the current Live Blue Mussels pasta with white wine spicy tomato sauce for $12.80. Cooked, flambéed and served in a heavy cast iron skillet on a wooden board like in a good restaurant.
As we were at the tail end of a whole day food trail, we had the blue mussels sans the pasta.
The thick slightly tangy marinara sauce house made with fresh tomato was boosted with savoury, umami, garlicky flavours from parmesan cheese and lots of crunchy garlic slices. There's a bit of chili padi for that Singapore style spicy kick. Aiyoh... I can only imagine how more shiok this would be with pasta or baguette.
The thumb size live blue mussels were plump, soft, full of juice and tasted briny umami with underlying sweetness.
Next time, I surely want to try chef Choo's spaghetti or risotto dishes instead of always going for traditional fried kway teow or fried rice dishes at Golden Mile Food Centre.
Date visited: 4 Sep 2020
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