It’s all about the food

When I come back to Singapore, I fix my schedule according to what I want to eat. It sounds so controlling and obsessive, but I am sure others in my position think the same.

You see the flavours of Japan can get a little too subtle for me and the two-week lead up to a home visit always makes my taste buds particularly restless.

When I touched down on Friday night, the kangaroo informed me he was at a friend’s apartment drinking wine and listening to music.

I didn’t mind zipping down to meet him, but before I did, I stopped by the Fei Fei wanton mee stall at Joo Chiat Place for a few packets. Kind of like a “welcome back” gift from me to my friends but I honestly just wanted to eat something with chilli. It was so good that I have no pictures of it — we scarfed it all down.

Singapore is developing at a crazy pace and over time I find certain familiar places have been replaced with new buildings or there are cool new hangouts which make me feel like a tourist in my own country.

But, one thing that is never strange to me is Singapore’s glorious hawker food. Here are a few old favourites I had over the weekend…

Day One

The kangaroo and I love the Killiney Kopitiam at Siglap. Every Saturday is lontong day and it was a ritual we kept up even when the kangaroo flew in from Melbourne or Tokyo to visit me when I was still living here. It was nice to know they made their own line of mineral water — business must be thriving and I hope they will stick around for a long time to come.

Every bit of gravy was savoured — and I tend to eat tofu, veggies, rice cakes, and egg in that order. The kangaroo dips his kaya toast in his leftover gravy. This is a habit that is similar to the way he speaks Mandarin and Japanese where he makes up his own rules and enjoys playing linguistic games.

Killiney Kopitiam is not known for its carrot cake but this was a decent version that was crispy and piping hot. I liked it that it was not too spicy because the lontong was already very rich and heavy.

Day Two

Over what must be the speediest gal talk session ever today, Azure and I lapped up Katong laksa, otak, and nasi lemak, washed down with some sweet longan drink.

The sambal (not pictured) was to die for. The milky coconut gravy and slivers of succulent fish cake were just what the doctor ordered. I had a tipple or two more than I should’ve the night before but this spicy treat set me right.

The otak wasn’t so great on its own but when I swirled it around in the laksa gravy, it tasted sensational!

These triangular pandang leaf nasi lemak packets are so nostalgic for me. It was always a cheap, tasty, and quick breakfast when I was in university or working as a content editor at a start up.

Azure and I concluded that Chinese-style nasi lemak wasn’t as good as the Malay version — this one was a little too salty and there was no egg or cucumber.

This “cooling” longan cocktail seemed like the right choice after all that “heaty” food. For my non-Singaporean readers, this is a Chinese concept based on “yin” (female) and “yang” (male). “Yin” refers to things that cool the body down, while “yang” objects stimulate heat. It’s an idea that the kangaroo doesn’t really get and thinks it’s folklore or old wives’ tales.

“You know the feeling have after eating too much chocolate? That’s heaty,” I once explained.

“Nope, I just feel like I had too much chocolate,” he said, sticking stubbornly to kangaroo logic.

Well, right now, I certainly feel heaty and have over-indulged so I will be squeezing in a run before a seafood pig-out with the foggies up in Seletar Hills.

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