Redemptio

Awesomeness! The recent less than satisfactory experience in "thosaimediocrity" has been pushed away to be forgotten by this redemptive egg & ghee thosai and its onion counterpart from Sri Kamala Vilas. Needless to say, there was a whole world of difference to be found in this crisp and freshly griddled pancake. Served warm as should be as well. The buttery flavour of that ghee was quite cheesy tasting while those lightly cooked onions inside were sweet. Not to mention the tastier sambar and coconut chutneys. This meal felt so good that I followed up with a vadai. Despite that they were a little cold at the end of the day, the vadai remained soft and dense. I shall quest for some fresh vadai someday.

A trip down Kelantan Lane......

It's been a long while since I last ate here. Don't find myself in this vicinity very often. But since I was, there wouldn't be any reason not to grab a bowl of that famous Sungei Road Laksa sans the "hum" (Blk 31 Kelantan Lane, #01-12 Seng Chuan Eating House, tel: 9690 8184) and refresh my memory of how it actually tasted. That sounded like a good decisions for the recent cool and rain that's been the weather these couple of days, slurping thick rice vermicelli with that laksa gravy and all. In retrospect, I also noticed that this laksa gravy doesn't quite compare to the richness and viscosity of the various (clones of) Katong Laksa that's popping up everywhere these days. More generous portion of bean sprouts would have made it better as well. The side of mackerel otah that the stall was also selling wasn't very special.

Since I was there taking advantage of the cooler weather and eating stuff that I tend to avoid in the usual heat, I thought why not a steaming bowl of that Sin Min Rd Bak Kut Teh as well from the neighbouring stall. The bai kut wasn't too cheap at $9, but I thought it was worth it while tearing the tender rib meat dipped in the chilli padi infused soy sauce off the bone. These are the moments I enjoy using my hands. Enjoyed this steaming peppery and garlicky broth that I asked for refills.

Madam Saigon, Liang Seah Street

My confidence in Vietnamese food has been reinforced by this trip to Madam Saigon (30 Liang Seah Street, tel: 6333 9798). Was rather happy with what we've tried so far and a re-visit is definitely in order since I didn't get to try out their pho after being distracted by the rest of the menu.


We started off with some light and crunchy summer rolls which were accompanied by a sweet dip with crushed peanuts. Never realized that there were fried versions which were on the menu.


These are known as bolalot skewers; basically sticks of beef in betel leaves. I couldn't detect any flavour from those betel leaves. They came across like tasteless seaweed. Does anyone know how these are supposed to taste like?


This chicken and sweet potato curry was something that I didn't expect to see and never knew was Vietnamese. I've never associated chicken curry with Vietnamese food. This turned out to be interesting. In fact, I wouldn't mind eating them again since they were kinda nice. The sweet potatoes imparted a mild sweetness into the mildly spicy coconut laden curry. I wasn't sure but I thought some of that sweetness crept into the chicken as well. This dish made short work of the rice.


Their Vietnamese pancake was light and pretty crunchy beneath the slightly crisp skin, loaded with stuff like beans sprouts, spring onions, chicken and some shrimps. I could eat this again. It reminded me of a kind of poh piah. The accompanying dips were good with them.

If anyone's wondering about the coffee, I've tried it and I thought their brew was pretty thick (not Turkish coffee thick though), but lacked fragrance that might have made it great. I'll be back for the pho another day.

Poutine from Yella Fellas

I had once enquired of a friend who had spent 6 years in Canada about the possible availability of poutine here. To which, he texted me back in reply and said that I should inform him if I ever find out. A lesson in lateral thinking here for those of us who subscribe to the train of "ask and thou shalt receive". Hi Stan. This endeavor bore no fruit until recently, when I came across Yella Fellas (#B1-K6 Bugis Junction, 230 Victoria Street, tel: 9863 1404) doing a "poutine" version of their fries. 

To be realistic, one cannot expect the version that the Canadians make since this place is very obviously, a fries and topping place rather than a joint that specializes in poutine. They have substituted the curd cheese topping with cream cheese instead, citing reasons of the more expensive cost for the former which is also more difficult to procure. Which to me means that it would outprice their market if they would do it and have to charge us more. Nonetheless, this was the best (or only) I could find, which was better than nothing indeed. 

I would say that this poutine was not bad for taste but no comparisons will be made since I've never had the original versions. They were quite generous with the cream cheese toppings, however, the beef gravy was kinda flat and mostly just salty. The fries were just decent and these guys apparently weigh each serving on an electronic scale. The potatoes must be expensive.

What's wrong with Casuarina Curry?

This could have been a satisfying cheese and egg masala thosai from Casuarina Curry (136-138 Casuarina Road, tel: 6455 9093) but for a couple of gripes. The first was that the thosai arrived barely lukewarm. That should not have been the case. These are supposed to be made upon order and there was absolutely no good reason for them not to be warm. The same could be said for the vegetable masala fillings. To further compounded was the barely melted (though generously portioned) cheese inside. Have I been served something that was already pre-made to be tossed into the pan for a less than half hearted attempt at heating? It's fortunate that there are other options around since they've fallen this far.

Tian Tian Hainanese Chicken Rice, Maxwell Food Centre

The queue bordered on crazy. If I hadn't been here specially to eat at Tian Tian (12 Murray Street, #01-10 Maxwell Food Centre), a queue like theirs would be a guarantee that I would not have bothered. By the way, I have no recollection of having eaten at their stall before. Their christening by a certain celebrated chef formerly from Les Halles Brasserie some years back as a shrine of chook and grains did much to cement their reputation.

If I had to say it, this was not bad as chicken rice went. What was also true was that a significant measure of the reputation at Tian Tian was overblown by the media. The chicken was deliciously tender and the grease soaked grainy rice was pretty hearty. It's nice but I wouldn't say it's the best. Whatever that best might be. What was arousingly refreshing was the lime spiked chilli sauce that was invigorating with heat and citrus. I smell a winning formula here.

We also had a side of crunchy blanched bean sprouts was expertly done with no indication of rawness. Would I come back for this again? I wouldn't say no, but there are other chicken rice options aplenty.