An ex-colleague recommended Tiong Shian years ago and it is still one of the few porridge places that I regularly go to. It specialises in Cantonese-style porridge as well as claypot dishes and one of its signature dishes would be the claypot frog legs which they are famous for. Its main outlet at Chinatown (New Bridge Road) is always bustling with customers, every day and night.
As the husband and I were around the Balestier area, I decided to bring him to the Whampoa outlet to try out the porridge.This is one dish that almost every customer would order. Thinly sliced raw fish drizzled with light soy sauce and sesame oil and topped with fried shallots, sliced red chillies, chopped spring onions and shredded ginger. Such a humble looking dish but packed with a lot of robust flavours. The fish was fresh with a slight crisp to it and it didn’t contain any fishy smell at all. Squeezing the lime over the fish gave it a sharp and refreshing aroma. To eat this, you’d have to combine each mouthful of fish with a bit of every condiment so the different flavours and textures would all explode in your mouth.This is another must-order side dish if you love pig’s large intestines as much as I do. It’s a pity the husband doesn’t really appreciate them much as he doesn’t get to eat them in England. These were braised for a long time so every bite was effortless as they were so soft and tender. Very flavoursome too as the intestines had soaked up the savoury braising liquid. These intestines were all properly cleaned so there wasn’t any unpleasant odour or dirty residue.I’d normally go for their Mixed Porridge which consisted of a generous portion of ingredients such as sliced pork, minced pork balls, liver, intestines (both fried and poached) and cuttlefish that were cooked to perfect tenderness. I loved the consistency of the rice porridge as it wasn’t too watery. The rice grains had disintegrated slightly so the porridge remained fairly thick.The husband opted for the pork porridge that came with sliced pork, minced pork balls and liver. It tasted just like the Mixed Porridge so the only difference was in the ingredients.
Both porridges were not heavily seasoned so we could just adjust the taste with additional pepper or light soy sauce to our preferences.

The husband thought the porridge wasn’t spectacular as it was just like any other ordinary porridge that he could get from the hawker centre but I beg to differ. This was one of the few better tasting ones out there. Maybe I am just fussy when it comes to porridge but I can easily return again to try out the other porridges plus the side dishes are just hard to resist.

For full review and pictures, please visit http://www.springtomorrow.com/2014/03/09/tiong-shian-porridge-centre/

The green paper label on top was actually meant for the sandwiches but they still used it for the pad thais. Weird.
Anyway this just looked like an awesome fiesta. Big, crunchy-looking fresh prawns, shredded chicken breast with coarsely chopped peanuts, assorted vegetables, rice noodles and sauce in a separate container so it wouldn’t get soggy.I poured all the sauce over the ingredients, squeezed the lime wedge over and gave it a good toss. Looked so healthy and mouth-watering!
Every mouthful was like a myriad of flavours. Sweet, sharp, spicy, bitter and nutty – all perfectly harmonised. Even the textures blew me away from the crispy lettuce, succulent prawns, firm noodles, tender chicken to the crunchy peanuts.
This is probably the westernised version of the same Thai dish as it really tasted more like a chilled rice noodle salad than an authentic stir fried pad thai but it was good on its own though it was in a different style. If you’re seeking out meal options but can’t get a seat during the peak hours, this is one good alternative to consider that you can pack to go.

For full review and pictures, please visit http://www.springtomorrow.com/2014/03/13/paris-baguette-with-food-to-go/

Whenever I’m at Tiong Bahru market for breakfast or brunch, I’d always try to end my meal with a bowl of tau suan (mung bean with sliced dough fritters) or pulut hitam (black glutinous rice porridge with coconut milk) from here. What I really like about these local desserts from this stall is that they are served in smaller portions which is perfect to satisfy my sweet tooth without being overfilling.And the best part? Each bowl is only a dollar. Yes, $1. Seriously, where else can we get such desserts at just one buck?

The tau suan has a good consistency, neither diluted nor overly starchy. The beans are nicely steamed beforehand and aren’t mushy or overdone. The ratio of mung beans to syrup is high too so there is a bite to every mouthful. Pairing with the crispy dough fritters is simply impeccable.

Similarly, the pulut hitam is well executed too. It is thick, full-bodied, naturally starchy and creamy. Such starchiness is never too cloying because it is not overly thickened with flour. The coconut milk is fresh and just lends an extra aroma to the rice.

Both desserts are only mildly sweetened. Thumbs up!

Do note these desserts are only available for sale in the morning (till they sell out) so do come early if you want to give it a try.

For full review and pictures, please go to http://www.springtomorrow.com/2014/02/08/tiong-bahru-tau-suan-tiong-bahru-market/

Previously when I headed to town for a night out and craved for a late night snack, I found myself stuck with the usual common choices of 24-hour fast food and coffee outlets which weren’t exactly what I needed so when the Persian wave started sweeping across Orchard Road with kebabs to go, I warmly embraced my new supper joint.

Shiraz Mazzeh, part of the Shiraz group of restaurants, serves up rotisserie grilled meats in kebab-style. Choose between chicken, lamb, beef or falafel (vegetarian) and enjoy your kebab on its own or complete your meal with fries and a soft drink. Shiraz offers some decent German sausages too for non-kebab lovers.My usual has got to be its Premium Lamb Kebab with garlic yogurt. It’s not just minced or thinly sliced meat. The kebab is filled with meaty chunks of lamb that will truly satisfy any carnivorous instinct. Accompanied with intensely-packed shredded lettuce, cabbage, diced tomatoes, pickles & jalapenos, every bite delivers different textures from the soft wrap, succulent meat to the fresh, crunchy vegetables. A word of caution though – the lamb meat is a little gamey but it’s not something I couldn’t do with. It’s more like the usual smell and taste of lamb as it is so I’d think only lamb eaters would appreciate it. The garlic yogurt sauce is remarkable as it gives the filling a nice, soury rich flavour so it takes away any possible sickly feeling of grease from the grilled meat. This kebab has my two thumbs up!

For full review and pictures, please go to http://www.springtomorrow.com/2013/12/22/shiraz-mazzeh-gourmet-kebabs/

If you’ve been to Adam Road Food Centre, you’d probably have noticed the endlessly long queue for their nasi lemak. Selera Rasa has won numerous accolades and awards for being the best nasi lemak stall in Singapore and till today, I still think their nasi lemak has consistently maintained its high standard. Its second outlet at Ang Mo Kio is near where I live so enjoying a morning brunch of good old nasi lemak is always within reach.Their nasi lemak sets are priced between $2.50-$5.50 depending on what ingredients you like. I ordered a Chicken Wing Meal whereas the husband got a regular one so we could share the chicken wing.

At first glance, you’d probably not be impressed by the presentation of the entire dish but one mouthful of the fragrant rice, I was truly sold. The basmati rice exuded a wonderful aroma of rich coconut milk. It was perfectly cooked, neither clumpy nor soggy and every rice grain was well separated from one another. This, I must say, was the best rice of nasi lemak I’d ever eaten. Thumbs up!

The other components of the dish were memorable too. Though the chicken wing had a thicker crust than others, it was fried to a perfect crisp and served fresh & hot. I could just hear the crunch with every bite. And the inside was just moist and succulent. The fried anchovies (ikan bilis) were very crispy too and not oily at all. I just wish they could give more!

The best part had got to be the sambal chilli that had the right amount of spice and sweetness in it that really complemented the rice. What is nasi lemak without the chilli? Two thumbs up for this!This was the regular meal. Just need to top up another dollar for a chicken wing.

For full review and pictures, please go to http://www.springtomorrow.com/2014/01/28/selera-rasa-nasi-lemak-ang-mo-kio-avenue-5/