It's gonna get messy.

Though spoiled for choice when it comes to eating in Singapore, if there is one thing I am always keen for, it's a damn fast food burger. Call it a whim, call it a weakness - I can't help myself!!

One of the things I had looked forward to when I first spied it in the basement of Ion was Carl's Junior. We don't have this chain in New Zealand, so I had actually only experienced it vicariously through Tim's wide-eyed recounts of his life in America. "Yeah man, we used to head down to Carl's Junior after school, and their chili cheeseburger..... *insert groaning noises here*" This post is for you, Tim!!

Well I wasn't about to stop myself. I didn't end up ordering the chili cheeseburger, it seemed like a bit much for my first time. I'll save it for another day!

Here's my meal: The Big Carl, Texas Toothpicks, Lemon Tea.

The Texas Toothpicks are a new side dish - crispy battered strips of onion and jalapeno! I subbed my fries out for these as soon as I saw them.

Burger unboxing - The presentation is beautiful. Grease-free yellow cardboard box opening to reveal a tidy burger wrapped in white paper. There was also a great cheesy charred smell wafting out as soon as I opened the box!

The Big Carl - two standard patties, two slices of cheese, lettuce and special sauce. Sound familiar? Yes, the makeup is similar to a big mac, just without the middle bun!

The similarities end there, however. The toasted sesame bun tastes a lot more fresh than any McDonalds bun I have ever had, and is soft and springy, with that white roll flavour. Stayed in one piece throughout and didn't let any juice out!

The patties are closer to Burger King's than McDonalds'; I ascribe this to the char. While BK supposedly flame-grills theirs, Carl's Junior char-broils, leading to a slightly juicier patty. The flavour is fresher and beefier.

Melted American cheese slices are creamier and milder than those of other chains, and somehow seem a little less artificial. Don't know if I was overwhelmed by the experience, but they really seemed better! The special sauce was not much to talk about - not like the thousand island of a Big Mac, but not that exciting either.

Overall, a decent fast food burger, if a little pricey ($9 for the meal). Would nom again.

Texas Toothpicks were great, if a little greasy. Very crispy and it was to get a variety of jalapenos (not hot) and onions in there. Onion rings are pretty much my favourite side - could eat these forever. Good with the hot salsa (pictured at the back).

It was only after I had eaten my meal that I spied this on the tray-liner:

Well, they probably should have warned me before-hand!! Wasn't a messy meal for me, but I have a feeling it would be a different story if I ate the chili cheeseburger.. That's still on my to-do list, but with all the other local delights still to try, may not happen for a while yet!

Ciao!

The High Life

My friend, ex-Royalefam-intern Eileen took me out on Saturday for some feasting! Like me, she loves to eat, and so is definitely my number 1 eating tour guide for Singapore!

As she loves eggs, we went to an all-day breakfast cafe called Hatched! From the decor to the menu, the place is totally eggcentric =P

Hahahaha! I love this - "Friends of Eggs" - they probably won't be good friends anymore after they find out the path their 'friends' have led them down - straight into my belly!

I had the Burly Benedict, a strange mannish take on the classic Eggs Benedict poached eggs on English muffins with corned wagyu beef and mornay sauce. Who knew you could get wagyu beef in corned version!? That seemed to me to be wasting perfectly good wagyu beef - and isn't this defeating the purpose somewhat? The pickling process would surely mask that delicate wagyu flavour.

Nonetheless, it piqued my curiosity enough to make me give it a go! It surprised me - all that expected wagyu tenderness was still there - it wasn't tough as most corned meats turn out. Those tiny rivulets of intra-muscular fat were also all still present, leading to a deeper mouth-feel. The vinegar flavour was also not as strong as I had expected; there wasn't much wagyu flavour left, but it was not too tangy or salty. Overall a good impression!

I'm doubtful of the choice to use mornay sauce though - it was a bit too creamy and with not enough salt. 

Sauteed potatoes with caramelised onions were not bad - potatoes could have been a bit crispier and the onions were charred in places, with that unpleasant burnt bitterness.

Also had a latte - not bad!

All in all, though, a yum and filling breakfast - something that reminds me of many cafe breakfasts back in Auckland.

Here's a pic of Eileen's delish-looking Smoked Royale eggs benedict:

After brunch we took a cab out to the trendy area of Dempsey Hill. This is a small subdivision of cafes, bars and restaurants and a popular hangout for the wealthy expats. Everything here is expensive! New Zealand prices almost, but the interiors are decored with a touch of class.

The place we went is called HOUSE:

Everything an expat could wish for under one roof!

The menus are themed to a morning newspaper - stylishly executed and very fun to read!

Complete with full-page 'advertisements', headlines and bylines! So fun!

This is the desserts magazine!

And there's much  more! Its such a beautiful menu... I wanted to steal a copy for the coffee table at home!

Here are the desserts we ordered:

Charred grapefruit, lemon curd meringue tart with crunchy green tea base.

Decadent bittersweet chocolate tart.

Warm strawberry shortcake.

Cherry Ripe slice - layered coconut/dark chocolate with cherry.

Fantastically indulgent, daaaaaaahling! Really really good, high quality desserts here, though the prices ran to about the same as in an upmarket Auckland cafe - $6 - $10 for a dessert, $15 - $25 for a meal. I'd recommend anyone to come here and try, and the surroundings are lush and peaceful up on the hill.

Thanks so much to Eileen and her friends for a relaxing afternoon out!

A night at the Opera.

Friday night we went into Orchard Rd to have dinner in Ion - the second newest supermall along the strip. The basement has a foodcourt which is operated by Food Republic - a foodcourt chain that operates throughout several malls here in Singapore. This one in the basement of Ion is named Food Opera!

What follows is just an abridged tour around this vast foodcourt - there are more than 20 stalls in total, covering all sorts of hawker-type cuisine. Prices are about 1.5 times hawker centre prices. Food Opera has really funky decor and is super clean and well maintained - I love it!

This one's for you Carlton Wong:

I had my dinner from Teo Chew (Chiu Chow) Fish Ball Noodles, a recommendation from Mark. He was super enthusiastic - saying that it was the only thing he ever at when he came to Food Opera, and also the only Fish Ball Noodles he would ever eat!

The Singapore style of Fish Ball Noodles is different from the HK style I am used to. Instead of noodles and fish balls being chucked together in a broth, the noodles are served dry and sauced, and the fish balls in their own separate bowl of soup.

The mix of sauces on the noodles includes sesame oil, chili sauce, tomato sauce and sweet soya sauce.

Here is the big vat of fish balls ready to be served, and the cook ready to serve them!

The different types of noodles you can order.

A sign like this, delineating the heritage and cooking process of the dish, accompanied each stall. These fish balls are handmade twice daily using yellowtail fish, and are soaked in cold water instead of storing in the fridge, to ensure maximum freshness.

The sauce mixture is prepared in a bowl, and the noodles scooped on top and stirred.

Fish Balls in broth waiting to be devoured! They are huge too, about the size of a golf ball each. I was absolutely shocked when I bit into the fish ball. The texture is unlike any fish ball I have ever tasted - completely smooth and delicate, light and airy. It is a lot less dense than every other fish ball or fish cake, and not as springy. It was a complete surprise and completely delicious. I can see why Mark recommended it so highly and will definitely be back to eat it again!

Dry noodles with sauce - served with spring onions, shallots and CRISPY PORK LARD. Delish!! (Yes, this is the same kind of crispy pork lard served in the fish head noodle soup at Sri Mahkota in Auckland, but a hundred times better!!) I think everything should be served with crispy pork lard. I think I've already said the same thing in the past for crispy fried shallots, so now everything must be served with both!

And of course, everything must be served with a bowl of chilis in soya sauce. The chilis are not that hot, and balanced with the slight sweetness of the soya sauce, can be eaten with everything!

We followed our meal with a cold treat from Ice Shop - a generic icy dessert stall.

This is Chendol - a dessert made with crushed ice, coconut milk, palm sugar syrup, red beans, and green jelly. Sweet and refreshing. Apparently can get much better ones on the street so I'll have to keep an eye out for those.

Overall, a fantastic meal at Food Opera, see you there next time! =)