Xin Heng Feng Guo Tiao Tan (新恆豐粿條攤), Whampoa Makan Place

It is time. To finally put a name to the mee pok stall which I like at Whampoa Market (#01-14/15 Whampoa Makan Place, 91 Whampoa Drive) after all these years. We haven't been back for quite a while so the good news for us was that the noodles have remained delicious. This serving was the smaller portion when I've only ever ordered the larger one previously. The stall isn't exactly a secret. There's always a queue and they do fish head steamboat at night which I've gathered is pretty popular.

Ayam Penyet President, Lucky Plaza

I wanted to see if these guys (#03-36/37 Lucky Plaza, 304 Orchard Road, tel : +65 6735 1262) were any good compared to Ayam Penyet Ria - turns out that it's been so long since Ayam Penyet Ria that I don't actually remember much apart from what I previously mentioned. So no comparisons.

Ayam bakar's pretty tasty thanks to the caramelization from the grill. I enjoyed it. Just didn't think it was so good that I'll crave for them anytime soon. The portions were a little small though and it could have been nice to have a half chicken option rather than just a thigh. That sauce on the side was their sambal with kecap manis.

Their ayam penyet's not bad too. These people know how to properly fry chicken without all the excessive grease. This sambal without the kecap manis did pack enough heat to get my lips burning and my scalp prickling.

These fried potato patties were known as potato frikkadel - If anyone noticed that the name sounded like begedil, they were pretty much the same thing. Not one of the better tasting ones we've had, but no complains either.

Because we didn't order any vegetables, I thought some crunchy green mangos would be a good idea. It was. Though they tasted more like guavas than mangoes. That sauce on the side tasted suspiciously like another mixture of their sambal and kecap manis again. More of the latter than the former.

Burgers at The Market Grill

But first, a New England styled clam chowder to start. This was not bad. Chopped bits of shellfish in a creamy but not cloying garlic-ky broth.

I thought their bleu cheese burger wasn't bad. There was enough cheese, hence enough of that stinky presence while the walnut raisin held it up nicely. The Greg Norman from Black Tap still beats this though.

Market Grill's cod burger was unexpectedly good. The fish was smooth and buttery while those tomatoes were pretty garlic-ky. Almost a light as air sandwich between that parmesan bun.

Mei Wei Hainanese Chicken Rice, Tiong Bahru Food Centre

We came across this stall (#02-47, Tiong Bahru Food Centre, 30 Seng Poh Road) and saw that they had sesame chicken rice which reminded us of the ones we had previously at Shi Mei Hainanese Chicken Rice.

In retrospect, we liked the chicken rice at Shi Mei better. Much better. They had a nicer tasting sweet and spiced brown sauce which was leaps ahead of this gloopy one which I didn't like. Not to mention sesame chicken that wasn't so dry and chilli that was punchier. Even the garlicky rice was more enjoyable. This one wasn't bad to be fair. It just wasn't outstanding. 

Re-visiting Blu Kouzina

It's been a couple of years since the last time we were here at Blu Kouzina.

Had some refreshing watermelon salad with feta while waiting for the rest of the food. While this wasn't the first time we've had watermelon and feta, I've just noticed more of how nicely they paired up.

We had their spanakorizo a few years ago back at their old premise at Bt Timah. Enjoyed it. It was more lemon-y than I remembered it but that was about all that was different. I was of the opinion that the dill made this dish then and still think it today.

Some grilled sardines that were pretty delicious.

And a roasted Cornish hen that had a nice chicken-y flavour zested up with lemon as well. The bird was reasonably tender and wasn't dried out.

Looking forward to coming back.

A rice bento from Duck Master

I noticed Duck Master when they first set up shop at People's Park a few years back. The queue deterred me so they ended up pretty much out of sight and out of mind until recently when I stumbled upon another of their shops at the basement of Tiong Bahru Plaza. It seemed their business have expanded to more than a handful of outlets in the island. This was one of the bento-esque set which they offered. 

It was actually pretty good eating. The rice tasted very much like chicken rice which was a bonus. The herbal-ish duck was reasonably tender and moist. While there're definitely better roasted ducks out there, this one wasn't bad at all. I wouldn't mind having them again.