One of the Best Yusheng Delivery · Beautiful Like Gardens by the Bay · Feast Box by Esseplore

Two weeks of Chinese New Year celebrations, limit to maximum five guests per day, can cause headaches to some people. Feast Box by Esseplore offers a brilliant solution to keep everything joyful and stress free.

Kagoshima Kitchen · Wagyu Specialist @ 100AM Tanjong Pagar

Kagoshima Kitchen wasn't on our agenda this morning but we found ourselves here due to some last minute change of plans 🤷  Anyway, it turned out to be an over indulgent experience and a benchmark for wagyu for me 😄

Stall name: Kagoshima Kitchen

Address: 100 Tras Street, #03-13, Singapore 079027 (at level 3 of 100AM mall beside Amara Hotel)

Nearest MRT: 10 minutes walk from Tanjong Pagar station

Tel: 6443 2218

Hours: 11:30am - 2:30pm | 6:00pm - 9:30pm

Foods that Bind · Social Glue of Hakka People · Abacus Seed, Lei Cha and Poon Choi 客家人

Hakka people left their ancestral homeland around 300 AD when their home in the Yellow River valley was conquered by nomadic invaders from the north. For the next 1,700 years, the Hakka people kept moving south to escape wars and conflict. Today, there are over 100 million Hakka in the world with half living in China and the rest around the world.

JOYFULNESS DINING Eating Through A Dozen Years · A Guest Post By Shirley Tan

Two Pigs, two Rats and a Rabbit sat down to dinner at Joyfulness Dining in KINEX Mall. They decided to each choose a dish from the “Chinese Zodiac Five Elements Lucky Meal” to welcome the Year of the Tiger 🐯  

Restaurant name: Joyfulness Dining by Yuan Cuisine Group

Address: 11 Tanjong Katong Road, #02-38 KINEX Mall, Singapore 437157

Nearest MRT: 10 minutes walk from Paya Lebar station

Tel: 8690 4726

Hours: 10:00am - 10:00pm (opens at 8am on Sat & Sun)

Where do Hakka Come From? History of "Guest People" Migration & Cuisine 客家五次遷徙

Hakka 客家 people form the fourth largest community among ethnic Chinese in Singapore. Hakka presence in Singapore hawker culture can be seen in dishes like yong tau foo, lei cha rice, Hakka beef noodles, etc. In Johor (Malaysia), there are choy ban (bamboo shoot / chive dumplings), deep fried fermented bean curd pork, bitter gourd soup, Hakka mee, etc.

Hakka dishes are historic dishes, artefacts from China's ancient Central Plains, centred in today's Henan province. These dishes came to us through five great migrations of Hakka people to the South, a long march starting nearly 2,000 years ago.

Where to Eat Teochew Marinated Raw Crab 🦀 Chaoshan Poison in Singapore 潮汕毒药 🦀 生腌螃蟹

There are not many restaurants in Singapore with Teochew Marinated Raw Crab 潮州生腌螃蟹 on their menu. This traditional Teochew dish is so potent that, in China, they call it Chaoshan Poison 潮汕毒药.

History of Babi Guling & Why Balinese Eat Pork in the World's Largest Muslim Country

Indonesia is the largest Muslim country in the world, so why do Balinese in Indonesia eat pork? 

The most common reply is: "Because Balinese are Hindus".

HK Mong Kok Kui Ji Kitchen · One of the Best Zhi Char in Chinatown Complex 香港旺角葵记小厨

Buddies Daniel, Sylvia and Judy (who are ardent foodies) asked where shall we meet for lunch. I replied, "The one I saw you posted a couple of times last week" - HK Mong Kok Kui Ji Kitchen in Chinatown Complex. My buddies are so super nice - they ended up going to the same stall three times in a week just to accommodate me 😝 🙏

Stall name: HK Mong Kok Kui Ji Kitchen 香港旺角葵记小厨

Address: 335 Smith Street, stall #02-217, Singapore 050335 (stall in Blue Zone of Chinatown Complex Food Centre)

Nearest MRT: 5 minutes walk from Chinatown station

Tel: 9789 5529

Hours: 11:00am - 2:00pm | 5:00pm - 9:00pm (Weds off)

Macau Fong Cheng Cuisine @ Chinatown Complex · Hidden Gem Cantonese Zhi Char 澳门凤城小厨

Five of us went zhi char diving in Chinatown again - I mean we went to Chinatown Complex again to try and spot under-the-radar zhi char stalls. I am glad to report that we are happy with the outcome of today's mission - we enjoyed our lunch at Macau Fong Cheng Cuisine 澳门凤城小厨. If you Google for this stall now, you will find more or less nothing on it online.

Stall name: Macau Fong Cheng Cuisine 澳门凤城小厨

Address: 335 Smith Street, stall #02-211, Singapore 050335 (Blue Zone in Chinatown Complex Food Centre)

Nearest MRT: 5 minutes walk from Chinatown station

Tel: 9712 6998

Hours: 11:30am - 9:30pm

Thailand Style Chicken Rice @ Golden Mile Hawker Centre · From Soi Thong Lo to Singapore 泰式雞飯

During my last few visits to Golden Mile Food Centre, Thailand Chicken Rice stall always caught my attention. The stall window was always meticulously laid out. The parade of golden brown fried chicken looked so alluring - do they taste as good as they look? I can't help wondering 🤔

Stall name: Thailand Chicken Rice 泰式雞飯

Address: 505 Beach Road, stall #B1-39, Singapore 199583 (inside Golden Mile Food Centre)

Nearest MRT: 10 minutes walk from Lavender station

Tel: 9387 1217

Hours: 7:00am - 7:00pm till sold out (usually around 2pm)

Austronesian Roots of Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore Food Culture

My image of Indonesian, Malaysian, Singaporean cuisine is both like kueh lapis (multilayered cake) and a melting pot. Our cuisine is like kueh lapis made up of layers of food culture over thousands of years - each layer of culinary culture brought by successive migration waves.

Sin Ming Blk 22 Teochew Braised Duck · Hup Seng Duck Rice 合成鸭饭

Lovely Teochew braised duck at Hup Seng Duck Rice in Block 22, Sin Ming Road. It's the favourite of many people.

Stall name: Hup Seng Duck Rice 合成鸭饭

Address: 22 Sin Ming Road, Singapore 570022

Nearest MRT: 10 minutes walk from Upper Thomson station

Tel: 6454 3810

Hours: 9:00am - 2:00pm (Thurs off)

Chinese Zodiac Food Guide 2022 🐯 Year of the Tiger 🐯 Eat your Way to Health & Blessings

This Chinese Zodiac food guide is created by feng shui master Peng Song Hua 彭崧桦大师. According to ancient Chinese tradition, each of us is one of twelve Zodiac animals depending on our year of birth. For example, my Zodiac animal is Rat as I was born in the Year of the Rat. Traditional Chinese believe that eating the right types of food for our animal sign can enhance our health and blessings.

Joyfulness Dining @ KINEX Mall Tanjong Katong 🐯 Chinese Zodiac Five Elements Lucky Meal by Master Peng Song Hua 彭崧桦

Thanks to June's invitation, I enjoyed a most interesting and delicious dinner at Joyfulness Dining in KINEX Mall at Tanjong Katong Road. Joyfulness Dining's “Chinese Zodiac Five Elements Lucky Meal” dishes are prepared to bring blessings to each Chinese zodiac sign in this Year of the Tiger 🐯

Restaurant name: Joyfulness Dining

Address: 11 Tanjong Katong Road, #02-38, Singapore 437157 (inside KINEX Mall level 2)

Nearest MRT: 10 minutes walk from Paya Lebar station

Tel: 8690 4726

Hours: 10:00am - 10:00pm (opens at 8am on Sat & Sun)

Ji Xian Restaurant @ Kallang Wave · Exquisite Hong Kong Style Live Seafood @ Singapore Sports Hub 极鲜

Today, buddy jio-ed (invited) a few of us to a newly opened seafood restaurant in Kallang Wave Mall - Ji Xian 极鲜 which serve live seafood exquisitely prepared Hong Kong style. We tasted a few interesting, delicious twists to familiar dishes by Ji Xian's expert chefs.

Restaurant name: Ji Xian 极鲜

Address: 1 Stadium Place, Kallang Wave, #02-15/16, Singapore 397628

Nearest MRT: 5 minutes walk from Stadium station

Tel: 9329 1881

Hours: 12:00 noon - 10:00pm (Fri, Sat, Sun, PH opens at 11am)

Xing Long Food Stall @ Chinatown Complex · This Cantonese Zhi Char Stall Serve Excellent Signature Dishes 兴隆菜社

Continuing our hunt for under the social media radar but good zhi char stalls in Singapore, our target today was Xing Long Food Stall 兴隆菜社 in Chinatown Complex Food Centre (red zone). We went to Xing Long not knowing what to expect but it turned out that all of us enjoyed the delicious food and were pleased with the competitive pricing.

Stall name: Xing Long Food Stall 兴隆菜社

Address: 335 Smith Street, Chinatown Complex, stall #01-134 & #02-161, Singapore 050335

Nearest MRT: 5 minutes walk from Chinatown station

Hours: 11:00am - 9:00pm (Weds off)

HENRI Fine French Wine Bistro & Artisan Bakery @ Pekin Street · Menu & Food Review

Just opened at Pekin Street steps away from Telok Ayer MRT station, HENRI wine bistro and bakery is a nice casual hangout, meet up place with fine French cuisine, pastries, coffee and wine. I enjoyed the food, breads, cakes and coffee here.

Restaurant name: HENRI Bistrot Du Boulanger

Address: 48 Pekin Street, 01-01, Singapore 048778

Nearest MRT: 3 minutes walk from Telok Ayer station (Exit B)

Tel: +65 8690 4927

Hours: 8:00am - 10:00pm (Dinner 6pm to 10pm | Lunch 12 noon to 3pm | Bakery 8am to 4pm)

724 Ang Mo Kio Fried Kway Teow · Top 5 in My Best Singapore Char Kway Teow List 宏茂桥鲜蛤果条

724 Ang Mo Kio Central • stall #01-22 • Singapore 560724 • 10:30am - 2pm, Fri off • Tel 9729 8273

✍️16 Apr 2024. Shot this freshly fried sizzling, aromatic cha kway teow through the glass counter of BLK 724 Ang Mo Kio Fried Kway Teow stall.

The Other 545 Whampoa Prawn Mee @ Whampoa Food Centre · 黃埔蝦麵

Being a long time fan of 545 Whampoa Prawn Mee in Tekka Market, I had long wanted to try the same name prawn mee stall in 91 Whampoa Drive Food Centre. The two stalls are related - the Tekka stall is run by third generation owner Li Ruifang and the 91 Whampoa stall by her aunt (a second generation owner). While the Tekka stall has a high media profile, the Whampoa stall hardly gets a mention.

Stall name: 545 Whampoa Prawn Mee 黃埔蝦麵

Address: 91 Whampoa Drive, stall #01-39, Singapore 320091

Hours: 6:00am - 12:00 noon (Mon, Tues, Fri off)

Teowchew Kway Tiao Mee @ Whampoa Food Centre · Over Half Century Heritage Hawker Stall 潮州粿条面汤

Stalking Whampoa / Balestier area this week, I stumbled upon a long queue at Teowchew Kway Tiao Mee, so decided to give it a try. This heritage stall with over fifty years of history, generations of fans, yet has very little social media mention.

Stall name: Teowchew Kway Tiao Mee 潮州粿条面汤

Address: 91 Whampoa Drive, stall #01-07, Singapore 320091

Hours: 6:00am - 10:00am (Sun & Mon off)

Fried Bee Hoon by Hong Lim Outram Park Fried Kway Teow

This morning got up early and chiong (dash) to Hong Lim hawker centre for Outram Park Fried Kway Teow Mee stall but ordered char bee hoon instead 🤔

Restaurant name: Outram Park Fried Kway Teow Mee 欧南園炒粿麺

Address:  531A Upper Cross Street, #02-17 Hong Lim Market & Food Centre, Singapore

Nearest MRT: Doorstep of Chinatown station

Hours:  6:30am to 3:30pm (Sundays and public holidays off)

History of Candlenut · Buah Keras · Kemiri · Kukui Nut · Indian Walnut 角力仁 · 南洋石栗

Candlenut known as buah keras (hard fruit) in Malay and kemiri in Indonesian is indispensable in Indonesian, Malay and Peranakan cuisine.

Banh Mi Sai Gon @ Block 505 Ang Mo Kio · Cure for Vietnamese Sandwich Cravings in Singapore

I am a banh mi lover and when buddy Aaron declared that his Singapore favourite is from Banh Mi Sai Gon at block 505, Ang Mo Kio, I gladly jumped on the bandwagon (after he did all the hard work of tasting and filtering 😄 ). I tried Banh Mi Sai Gon today and it was the best that I had ever tasted so far. Disclaimer: I haven't eaten that many banh mi but have eaten them in Vietnam, Singapore, Canada, USA and Australia (both store and home made).

Stall name: Bánh Mì Sai Gon

Address: 505 Ang Mo Kio Ave 8, Singapore 560505

Nearest MRT: 10 minutes walk from Ang Mo Kio station

Hours: 9:00am - 8:00pm

Tian Tian Porridge in Chinatown Since 1952 · A Blast from the Past 天天粥品猪

I enjoyed this simple, no frills old school Cantonese porridge in Chinatown Complex. It's a blast from the past.

Stall name: Tian Tian Porridge  天天粥品

Address: 335 Smith Street, #02-185 Chinatown Complex Food Centre, Singapore 050335

Nearest MRT: 5 minutes walk from Chinatown station

Hours: 6:00am - 2:00pm (Mon off)

Sun Seng Gourmet's Corner Zhi Char Stall in Chinatown Complex · I was Still Burping Serious Wok Hei when I Got Home 🤭

The thing about Chinatown Complex is there are simply too many good Cantonese zhi char stalls, so much so that some great stalls remained under the radar as undiscovered gems. If you Google for Sun Seng now (2021), there is hardly any mention of this little zhi char stall with at least 50 years of history. After tasting their food for the first time today, we all fell in love with it. Their food is delicious and prices very affordable.

Stall name: Sun Seng Gourmet's Corner 生成

Address: 335 Smith Street, stall #02-61 Chinatown Complex Food Centre, Singapore 050335

Nearest MRT: 5 minutes walk from Chinatown station

Hours: 11:30am - 4:00pm (Mon, Thurs, Sun off)

Kacang Pool Mustafa @ Geylang Serai Hawker Centre · Since 1952

This morning, I gave Kacang Pool Mustafa a try as I wanted something light to tide me over before my lunch appointment. Kacang pool is an acquired taste as it is still a relatively unfamiliar dish even though this stall have been around since 1952 (that's 68 years ago 😱 ). It is a good alternative to roti prata, roti John or kaya toast, if you want a change.

Stall name: Kacang Pool Mustafa

Address: 1 Geylang Serai, #02-142, Singapore 402001 (Geylang Serai Market & Food Centre)

Nearest MRT: 10 minutes walk from Paya Lebar station

Hours: 7:00am - 1:00pm

That Corner of Trengganu & Sago Street in Chinatown · Painting by Hugo Vilred Pederson

While researching about the history of street hawkers in Singapore Chinatown, I came across this fascinating oil painting done by Hugo Vilred Pederson in 1897 (124 years ago). Since then, this street corner has a special place in my mind and I am curious about how it changed over the decades.

Florian Italian Restaurant & Bar @ Naumi Hotel · Home of Puglia Cuisine in Singapore

The first time we were at Florian, it was a rush as we were just having a quick pit stop before dashing off to an event nearby (in Raffles City). But, we liked Florian's food so much that we decided to come back again for a leisurely lunch to appreciate their food better.

Restaurant name: Florian Italian Restaurant & Bar

Address: 41 Seah Street, Singapore 188396 (at Naumi Hotel lobby)

Nearest MRT: 10 minutes walk from City Hall station

Tel: 9863 6361

Hours: 8:00am - 10:30pm

Song Fa Kway Chap, Braised Duck & Claypot @ Northshore Plaza 1 in Ponggol 松發粿汁

Song Fa, one of Singapore's top bak kut teh brands just opened a kway chap and braised duck shop in Northshore Plaza 1 in Ponggol. From the heart of the city serving peppery Teochew bak kut teh, Song Fa now ventured to the heartlands serving other traditional Teochew icons in a modern, comfortable environment. Braised offal and duck - Ponggol residents are responding warmly to it.

Stall name: Song Fa Kway Chap 松發粿汁

Address: Northshore Plaza 1, unit #02-22, 407 Northshore Drive, 820407

Nearest LRT: Samudera station

Hours: 10:00am - 3:00pm | 4:30pm - 8:30pm

Youtiao @ You Zha Kueh in 216 Bedok Central Hawker Centre · Look Ma! No Grease You Char Kway!

There are many very good food stalls at 216 Bedok hawker centre, and this You Zha Kueh stall has the longest queue - this should tell us something 🤔 This you char kway stall in 216 Bedok market & food centre opens only on Tuesdays and Fridays - yes, only two days a week.

Stall name: You Zha Kueh 油炸粿

Address: 216 Bedok North Street 1, stall #01-43, Singapore 460216

Nearest MRT: 10 minutes walk from Bedok station

Tel: 9878 0143

Hours: 3:30am - 12:00 noon (Tues & Fri only)

Sixteen Storey Hong Kee Porridge @ Commonwealth Crescent · Old School Cantonese Congee 鸿记粥

Ben introduced me to Hong Kee Porridge, he said William our mutual friend thinks this porridge stall has the best pork liver - can fight with the legendary Mui Siong of Veerasamy Road 😮

Stall name: Hong Kee Porridge 鸿记

Address: 31 Commonwealth Crescent, stall #02-89, Singapore 149644

Nearest MRT: 10 minutes walk from Commonwealth station

Tel: 9067 5755

Hours: 6:00am - 2:30pm