Hey guys and girls!

It’s been a month since I’ve returned to Manila for good, and really, the taste of Singaporean food is still haunting me. Amongst my numerous backlogs is an entry about the food at the East Coast Hawker.

As Singapore only has two beaches namely Sentosa and East Coast, East Coast is more of a leisure park that Sinagporeans love to go to to roller skate, ride their bikes, just lounge around and have a picnic, and most of all, enjoy good food.

One of my precious finds in Singapore is Joie, my bestfriend in makeup school. We’re just bout crazy people who love to laugh, joke around, and take life easy, and love good food as well. So when my days in Singapore were nearing an end, she promised to let me experience a gastronomic feast, Singaporean style.

Take note that this is a post-lunch feast. Look at what Joie got me - she must think I am a total pig. Well, I really am, admittedly! Haha! The picture above was her first pick - duck porridge! It was very delicious, the sauce salty and sweet at the same time, with delectable duck, always a favorite of mine!

Next, she just let me sit and leave all the ordering to her. She got me this very unique treat called O-ta. O-ta is somewhat fishy and shrimpy, with dried fish and squid as fillings. It’s very interesting, I think I would have this again when I go back there.

Oh, this is my favorite. I see it as beef hofan but they call it kwey teoh. I think it’s because the noodles are thinner than the really fat and flat hofan noodles. I love kwey teoh when it’s sauteed , a little bit oily, and very very tasty.

I’ve been eating too much la-la ( one kind of clam in Singapore ), so Joie introduced me to another kind of clams - tua thao ( or big head , as they call it ). Fatter, and squishier than the normal! I shall be ordering this next time. The sauce is sweet and spicy, and clams, being popular here in Singapore, converted me into liking them as well!

Well, in a span of an hour, two semi-skinny girls managed to devour and finish everything, would you believe that?

I would definitely recommend tourists, or just foodies to check out the East Coast Hawker for good eat, at a leisurely ambiance. I wasn’t able to take photos of the place because I was just too engrossed with the food! Haha!

When my friends asked me what I’d like to do for my birthday, my answer was simple.

I wanted a luxurious dimsum buffet lunch, and gobble xiao long bao ( steamed dumplings with soup stock inside ). Yes, I am the xiao long bao monster. I love dimsum, and it would be heaven on earth if I could just indulge in such for a day!

I was looking at Cherry Garden because I was told that dimsum buffet there was heaven, and my friends wanted to surprise me with lunch on my birthday. I didn’t even hear my friend mention the place we were going to, to the cab driver. I was guessing Marina Mandarin’s Peach Blossoms as a close second choice of mine, and when I saw that the cab was approaching Marina Mandarin, I rejoiced, ” I knew it! Peach Blossoms at Marina Mandarin!” I think my friends really wanted to surprise me, so they purposely steered away from Cherry Garden. Haha! I’m so not complaining!

Marina Mandarin is one of the most beautiful hotels in Singapore. The first time I went there, was with my best bud, who stayed in Meritus Mandarin, and because Meritus was under rennovation, including the pool, they provided free shuttle or reimbursable cab fares to Marina Mandarin to be able to swim in their pool. Marina Mandarin’s pool is Singapore’s first chlorine-less swimming pool, and it’s just amazing. I got up from the pool not smelling like chlorine, and the feeling was very nice. No chlorine. Wow.

Anyway, Peach Blossoms in Marina Mandarin is reputed to be one of the best dimsum places in Singapore. They have a dimsum lunch buffet that is around 30 sgd ++/pax. Well, I can’t say more ( of course, my usual commentaries, ) but let the pictures do the talking, for now!

Overall, my friends and I were majorly stuffed after this binge eating spree of ours. What can I say? I was a very, very, very happy birthday girl that day. I got to eat dimsum, with the company of friends who are equally in love with food, as well!

Bliss to my soul, that’s what this is!

Imagine this. When you’re in a desert, and you just walk, and walk, and finally find an oasis, with clear sparkling water - what do you do?

Sink your head in it and drown yourself in such luxury, then! Haha!

I didn’t mean to say that Singapore is devoid of such tasteful treats. Singapore, for a Filipino-Chinese like me, is a big, big feast. Hawker centers giving fresh, hot, and smokin` treats, and more upscale restaurant uncompromising anything, giving only the best, Singapore is a foodie’s dream, and you’d better believe me. Spicy food heaven, for those who love spicy food like me, as well!

But then, I begin to miss Filipino food, for I am, after all, Filipino! I miss sisig, kaldereta, sinigang, chicharong bulaklak, that in the midst of very very delicious Singaporean cuisine, I still look for it. So that’s my desert. And guess what - I’ve finally found the perfect oasis, and it’s in Lucky Plaza!

Lucky Plaza is the mall, where if you want to find Filipinos in Singapore, you just need to go there. It’s filled with stalls selling clothes, electronics, souvenirs, goods from the Philippines, and even Filipino food! Jologs is one very famous Filipino restaurant here in Singapore that is frequented by many - by Filipino expats, OFWs, and also Singaporeans looking for good and authentic Filipino eats.

One tiring Friday night, me and my friend were just plain hungry for Filipino food. We marched in to Lucky Plaza to look for Jologs as we were unsuccessful in finding it last time, as the stalls were closed by 9pm already. It was 8.30pm, and upon finding Jologs, we were rejoicing as we could finally eat Filipino food! Turns out, they were taking the last orders, and the only available meal was the Tapsilog. Perfect - since I love beef tapa amongst all breakfast dishes ( which I was going to eat for dinner, of course! ) I was also able to get away with ordering tokwa’t baboy, and pichi pichi, which were my favorites in the Philippines.

With my tastebuds having an emotional reunion with Filipino food, I sighed in relief as my eyes closed in simple gratification - the beef tapa was just so, so, so good! Way better than Tapa King’s, and the garlic rice perfectly paired with it, together with spicy vinegar. Tokwa’t baboy was just as good, while pichi pichi was just…home! I was half insane as I left the establishment because I sorely missed Filipino food and this was nirvana. And I didn’t even mention that the iced tea served was refillable.

As for the price, it’s not too cheap, nor is it expensive. Just right for a gratifying fare when you begin to look for the food closest to your heart! *smiles*

P.S. Jologs is quite a unique, but very distinct name for a resto, don’t you think? If it it takes someone jologs to eat there, then I’m definitely jologs, and truly Filipino by heart!

Details :
Jologs
304 Orchard Road #04-03 Lucky Plaza
Singapore 238863
Tel. 68875724

Hailed as Singapore’s most delicious chicken rice, who am I to resist?

With so much buzz, the good - being the best chicken rice ever, and the bad - being exhorbitantly pricey, it got me so curious to try out Chatterbox’s Chicken Rice to be able to have my very own opinion about it, as well.

Chatterbox is located on the 37th floor of the Meritus Mandarin Hotel, located in Orchard Road, just beside the Takashimaya Department Store in Ngee Ann City. The ambience is just about fabulous - red interiors, and a fantastic view of the city from the top. While I was dining here with friends, I was actually half talkative and half quiet - being reflective, and just in awe on how beautiful a country Singapore is.

Okay, focusing further on the chicken rice - well, chicken rice is everyone’s favorite food in Singapore. The first time I tried it, I think, in the foodcourt of Takashimaya, I wasn’t so awed, and was even questioning why people would love chicken rice as it was just something common to eat. But then, as I lived in Singapore for 5 months, I discovered that the more I eat chicken rice, the more delicious it registers in my taste buds, and I don’t get tired of eating chicken rice at all! The roasted, yet tender chicken, with such decadent chili sauce, hoisin sauce, ginger sauce, and very very fragrant rice, all I can say is that Singapore is chicken rice heaven, and this is what I will sorely miss when I go home to the Philippines for good.

Chatterbox’s Chicken Rice set meal is around 20+ with one cup of rice , which is actually a big serving of rice that can be shared by two people, one platter of white chicken, one bowl of soup, and the sauces ( chili, hoisin, and ginger. ) The chicken here is also good for two, so one set can definitely be shared.

At first taste, I already knew why this is so different from other chicken rice. The chicken meat is so lean, but still very tender. Other chicken rice dishes served out there are oilier, and not assured of the tender chicken meat while Chatterbox’s been very consistent ( I’ve eaten here twice, and I still love it. ) The sauce is just perfect, as I slowly put a bit of hoisin sauce for flavor, ginger sauce for some zest, and of course, my accustomed chili sauce for that spicy kick.

I am highly praising Chatterbox’s Chicken Rice for the entire experience - ambience, taste, and service, but I can’t assure you that this is Singapore’s best chicken rice. There have been other chicken rice establishments that are said to be even better than Chatterbox minus that hefty price tag, but for a tourist or a foodie, this is definitely a must-try, as it is nice to try this even once!

First of all, I’m sorry for the long pause. I’ve been enjoying Singapore too much, as my second home, and I’ve been tremendously busy with school. I’m blessed with flatmates that have this insatiable hunger for great eats, that really research alot about good restaurants, and hawkers here, that I just find myself looking forward to every weekend that we will be eating out, and trying something new.

Newton Circus must be the most popular hawker center in Singapore. It’s swarmed by tourists, and it’s too popular that sometime in the past, there were news of allegedly overpricing happening there - one certain stall overcharging a tourist 200 sgd ( divide by 1.5 to convert into US dollars ) for four pieces of tiger prawns! But the thing is, for every first timer in Singapore, the Newton Circus always comes to mind because it’s a sure shot for really, really delicious Singaporean food, no buts, no whys. Haha!

I’ve had my chance to try food there two weeks ago, and I just couldn’t forget about how delicious and flavorful the stingray was. As flatmate H’s sister’s birthday was coming near, she was asking her where she wanted to eat. She immediately answered Newton Circus because of the very tasty sauce in viands there. I was more than happy to tag along because I couldn’t forget on how great the food tasted there!

The chicken wings ( image above ) there costed 1.20 sgd a pop - definitely not cheap, but the way it was grilled was just way too perfect to resist. I love dipping this in sour-tasting sambal chili.

Squid and sambal, combine perfectly in this squid sauteed in sambal dish. Salty, sweet, and spicy seafood!

The la-la dish ( clams sauteed in some spicy sauce ) is also a signature dish in Malaysia and Singapore. This wasn’t cooked spicy, as the dish I tried before, but still, very good.

Of course, I’m saving my favorite Singaporean dish of all time for last - the BBQ Stingray. What I love about the stingray dish? Heartbreakingly fresh and tender stingray meat, covered in bbq sauce. We all raved about how fresh and tender the fish meat was this time, but the sauce was too salty for my taste - I’ve had better, like a few weeks ago , in Newton Circus also, which I remember, was very spicy, but less salty. Nonetheless, I love this dish- specially if you add some calamansi on top of the entire dish. Heaven.

To sum up, I’d definitely bring any visitor of mine to Newton Circus, because it is the best bet for good food, hawker style in Singapore. No matter what stall you order from, no matter how persistent the vendors are there, the food is good, period.

The Paramount is a restaurant located inside The Paramount Hotel, located in East Coast Road, Singapore. As we entered the vicinity, it was full of quiet shops and bars which were closed during noontime, and it wasn’t lively and bright at all - as compared to other establishments in Singapore. But then, as we reached the end of the ground floor ( walking further ), then, we finally saw the busy atmosphere of the usual Chinese restaurant on a Sunday lunch - waitresses running around, buffet tables, tables of families in their warm chatter, oh, it seemed like home.

Dimsum in The Paramount is only served during lunchtime, and we did not avail of the dimsum buffet since we wanted to order other food. But then, the dimsum served were really, really tres delicious. Can I say heaven?

We ordered one whole duck ( relax, we’re around 8 people ! hahaha! ), and it was cooked into two kinds,

one was just the roasted duck, sliced, with wrappers, which was very good, as dipped into some brown sauce,

My verdict? Definitely one of the best resto’s I’ve ever tried in Singapore. Flavorful, very Chinese, and all the things I want to eat are all here ( except XLB haha ) I’d definitely go back to this place before I go back to Manila for good.

A few weeks ago, my friends and I went on a very spontaneous trip to Bintan, Indonesia. With the lack of good beaches here, they say that the nearest good beach around would be an hour’s worth of ferry ride from the Tanah Merah Ferry Terminal, to Bintan, Indonesia. I was more than game to get my dose of beach-lovin`, for I love, love going to the beach!

I promise you better photos when I go back, for the weather wasn’t so nice when we went there - it was pouring. My goodness. We only managed to stay for a night there and return the day after, but one unforgettable thing we did there was definitely dining in Saffron, one of Banyan Tree’s fine dining restaurants.

Banyan Tree is one, big luxurious spa resort that has really jaw dropping pool villas and accommodations. As we checked in the Angsana Resort, the resort nearby Banyan Tree, we requested to be driven there for dinner. We dined in Saffron, a very Asian ( well, Thai and Indonesian, to be exact ) restaurant, and from the moment we went in, we were mesmerized.

The restaurant was dim-lit, hence, these kinds of pictures. Red everywhere. Very cozy chairs, eye candy utensils, and very courteous and accommodating staff. As we entered the restaurant, we were greeted by a very friendly receptionist who put orchids near our ears, as she ushered us inside. We ordered food, and with that, the mini-feast had begun!

For our soup, we shared Soto Betawi. It is considered Indonesian cuisine, which consists of coconut soup, beef tenderloin, tomato, and potato. This was actually our favorite dish of the night. The soup was very, very delicious. The coconut soup mixed with their spices tasted really nice. Not so spicy, but peppery, mixed with beef is just great.

Poo Phad Pong Goree is Stir Fried Crabmeat with Curry Cream Sauce. This was the spicy dish of the bunch. It wasn’t exactly super spicy, but you would have some aftertaste that would tell you so. This is real crabmeat, I feel, that has been manually extracted, for this was a crab shell stuffed with crabmeat. I felt relieved that I didn’t have to do anything anymore as crabmeat was there, ready for me just to eat! The curry cream sauce was very delicious. I never realized that I could appreciate curry with coconut, but this was just delightful. This was a pretty hefty serving that we all had difficulty finishing.

Last but not the least, was Pepes Ikan. Pepes Ikan is Steam Fillet of Snapper wrapped in banana leaves, turmeric and chili paste. I’ve never tasted anything like this - This was just fish baked, or roasted alone, with spices on top. Clearly, as I sinked my teeth into the fish, the flavor just burst into my mouth, giving such flavorful aroma, that I still could not forget until now. I never truly believed that spices could just seep in fish like that. It was just so strong!

Before I leave for Manila for good, I will surely promise myself that I will go back to Bintan, Indonesia. It’s such a beautiful place that I just need to see it one more time, this time, in good sunshine. The food is also terrific, so every reason is pointing me to go back there!