fooDee

Spaghetti Aglio Olio

2009-12-22T16:47:00.001+08:00

My favorite pasta is spaghetti aglio olio. Its sauce consists entirely of minced or pressed garlic lightly sauteed in olive oil, plus hot pepper flakes.

I also love anything oil-based, like Green Tomato's anchovies in oil. My next preference is tomato-based pasta dishes but I grew up in the Philippines so I kind of like them sweetened. I don't like cream-based pasta at all, except if it's doused with so much mushroom flavor that it overpowers the cream.

Yogurt Place

2009-12-22T16:23:00.000+08:00

Yogurt Place's greek yogurt is really delicious - just the right combination of creamy and tartness.
However, their frozen yogurt, which they call "yogurt gelato" and which comes in 2 flavors, lychee or mango, is disappointing. The ice did not have the soft creamy consistency of gelato at all. It can't hold a candle to Red Mango, for sure. I'd stick to their plain yogurt.

Chocolate-Covered Marshmallows

2009-12-22T16:17:00.000+08:00

This was how I used to describe my ex: "he's like a chocolate-covered marshmallow - dark and hard on the outside, soft and sweet on the inside." That was seven years ago. I've always loved chocolate-covered marshmallows but I think Lumont is the best I've tried so far.

Milo Dinosaur vs Godzilla

2009-12-20T11:51:00.000+08:00

There is such a thing as Milo Dinosaur. It's iced Milo with a scoop or Milo powder on top. Can be bought from most hawker stalls and food shops in Singapore. The best I've tried is McDonald's Milo dinosaur shake, but it was a seasonal thing so I can't get it now even if I want to. Hmp.

Then there is also the Milo Godzilla. Iced Milo with a scoop or vanilla ice cream and Milo powder on top. Can be bought at Spize: the Makan Place.

Is there really a contest? Obviously you know who is the winner.

Hokkien Mee for Me

2009-12-20T11:42:00.000+08:00

My first favorite Singaporean food was the prawn Hokkien Mee. It tastes a bit like the Philippine palabok only less fishy and not yellow. Perhaps the reason why it's so popular with Filipinos based in Singapore. The best one I've tried so far is from Vivo City's Food Republic.

Chowking is a King Indeed

2009-12-20T11:37:00.000+08:00

Halo-halo is a popular Filipino dessert that is a mixture of shaved ice and milk to which are added various boiled sweet beans and fruits, and served cold in a tall glass or bowl. the most popular ones are from Razon and Chowking. I prefer the latter. The slices of leche flan and real ube are my favorite parts.

My other favorites from Chowking are chao fan, tofu (love the sauce) and siomai with toyomansi and chili oil. They actually have siew mai here in Singapore but no toyomansi. Where is the fun in that?

Fresh or No Dalandan at All

2009-12-20T11:25:00.000+08:00

Dalandan is the Philippine native orange, and its juice is slightly sweeter than your usual orange. You can squeeze it to make dalandan juice or shake. It's my favorite drink of all time, but I want it fresh, not the ones that are made from concentrates. I like Dencio's version. My former housemate Reggie also makes them so good that the first time I tasted his creation, I asked, "Reggie, will you marry me?"

House of Sylvanas

2009-12-20T11:20:00.000+08:00

I miss the sweet cold chewy sylvanas from House of Sylvanas. I used to swing by their branch in Glorietta 4 and buy a couple of pieces (at Php19 each) right before heading up to the movie theatre. There were many other flavors inside their freezer, but I always just chose the original one.

Quickly's Taro Ice

2009-12-20T11:06:00.001+08:00

Purple is my favorite color except when it comes to food. I usually don't like ube (yam) flavored food until I tried Quickly's Taro Ice. Then I quickly became a fan. I especially love the nago (nata de coco sago, I suppose). Nata de coco are such wonderful things.

There's a stall in Glorietta 4 Foodcourt.

Pretzel Perfect

2009-12-20T10:53:00.001+08:00

I love Auntie Anne's pretzel (plain or cheese) with caramel dip.

Aston's Hickory Chicken Barbeque

2009-12-20T10:53:00.000+08:00

You can get cheap (less than S$15) and delicious steaks from Aston's (yes, there is no H after S). I love mine medium well (not medium rare, apparently there's a difference) even though the average Pinoy loves theirs well done.

Cheaper still are the barbeque chicken. I love the hickory chicken barbeque with a sweet-sour taste. At less than S$7, it already comes with two side dishes of your choice.

Barbeque Stingray

2009-12-20T10:43:00.000+08:00

Let's avenge Steve Irwin's death* and eat a lot of stingray! This is my most favorite Singaporean food. Love the ones from Makan Sutra and Newton Circus hawker stalls.

*Steve Irwin, known as Australian TV's "Crocodile Hunter," was pierced to death by a stingray while he was being filmed snorkelling for a show.

Starbucks Represents More Than Just Coffee

2009-12-20T10:35:00.000+08:00

Starbucks hot mocha sipped with a happy little straw equals happiness.

Cereal Prawns

2009-12-20T10:34:00.000+08:00

They're delicious from Newton Circus hawker stalls. Elsewhere it's not as good.

Recipe: Beef and Eggplant Medley

2009-12-19T23:38:00.001+08:00

Ingredients:
250 grams ground beef
1 big eggplant, sliced
3 cloves of garlic, minced
cooking oil or butter
1 tablespoon chicken stock
1 tablespoon tomato ketchup
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 cup of water
salt and seasoning granules

Preparation:
Saute the garlic in cooking oil or butter in a pan.
Brown the ground beef (about 5 minutes).
Stir in the eggplant.
Mix the chicken stock, ketchup, and soy sauce with the water and pour into the pan.
Add salt and seasoning granules to taste (about a teaspoon of each should be fine).
Stir for about 3 minutes.

Tsokolate Ice Cream Cake

2009-12-19T23:27:00.000+08:00

This mini chocolate ice cream cake came all the way from my hometown, Zamboanga City. Apparently a franchise of Tsokolate has opened there. It has such a real chocolate taste that I honestly prefer it over Myrna's, whose cakes don't taste good at all, just their icing with the rich butter taste.

Thailand's Turon

2009-12-19T23:20:00.000+08:00

What I like to call Thailand's turon (a Philippine banana-based delicacy) - fried batter and egg wrapped around some sliced bananas and drizzled with condensed milk. Bought off the sidewalks.

Doitung's Chocolate Macadamia Dream

2009-12-19T23:17:00.000+08:00

Doitung's chocolate-macadamia blended ice drink is a dream. Worth every calorie.

Piri-Piri Portuguese Flame-Grilled Chicken

2009-12-19T23:11:00.000+08:00

Located at basement 1 in Siam Paragon, Thailand.

I'd recommend the piri-piri chicken.

For your drink, get a coconut shake (smoothie). They even serve it in a coconut shell.

Thailand Fresh Coconut Ice Cream

2009-12-19T23:00:00.000+08:00

Creamy coconut ice cream served with fresh coconut strips in its shell.

Apparently available for only a limited time in Siam Paragon's basement 1. Glad I caught it.

The Best Ramen in the Land

2009-10-30T16:06:00.002+08:00

Once you've tasted the chicken soup ramen from Marutama Ra-men at Liang Court (second floor), you won't like any other ramen anymore. The meat and the soup just assails the senses. And don't forget to get a half-boiled seasoned egg - it's the tastiest tasty egg I have ever tasted. ;P

Apricot Yogurt = Awesome

2009-10-26T00:47:00.000+08:00

Whenever I went to Korea on business trip (three times), I would filch sealed cups of yogurt from my hotel's buffet breakfast, and make off with them in the deep pockets of my trench coat so that I'd have something to snack on later. My favorite flavor was apricot but in all these years that I've gone yogurt-shopping in the Philippines and Thailand and Singapore, I never found one again until today, when I saw this in AMK hub's Fairprice.

It's creamy and dreamy. The best! And it was on sale at less than a buck each if you bought three.

The cheapest yogurt I ever bought was in Thailand, though. It was also good, so I bought a dozen to bring back to the Philippines. Thank goodness none of them burst and spilled all over my clothes in my luggage.

Recipe: Barbeque

2009-10-25T21:41:00.000+08:00

Ingredients:

1 kg of meat

1 cup soy sauce
1/2 cup ketchup
1/2 cup Sprite or any clear cola
1/4 cup calamansi (lime) juice

Preparation:
Mix all the liquid ingredients.
Immerse the meat in the marinade for at least 30 minutes.
Cook the meat over a grill.

Cool Colas - Vanilla Coke & Mountain Dew

2009-10-25T17:29:00.004+08:00

My favorite sodas are Vanilla Coke and Mountain Dew with lots and lots of ice. Correction, I don't drink soda with ice but rather, ice with soda.

I love Vanilla Coke because it tastes like Coke float.. you know, Coca Cola with a scoop of vanilla ice cream in it. Unfortunately is not as easy to find as its plain variant. So far I've seen it sold in only one hawker's stall, at Lau Pa Sat. I used to be able to buy 1.5 liter bottles from the convenience store Cheers but there was one time that I went there and they no longer had it or maybe it was just out of stock at the time. As for grocery stores, Sheng Siong only sells it in cans while Fair Price does not have it at all.

I love Mountain Dew because of its sweet-sour lemon taste. It's not that common, too, but at least it can be found in all grocery stores. And whenever I'm in KFC, I always get it with my favorite oriental chicken salad.

Some hawker stalls don't have it, though, and while usually they just tell me upfront that this is so, one auntie actually gave me Kickapoo Joy Juice, saying that it tasted just like Mountain Dew. Err okay. It doesn't taste like it, by the way. Tastes more like Sprite or 7-Up.

When both cannot be had, I stick with Coca Cola, or if I'm trying to diet, Coke Zero. Their slogan is a lie, by the way. Coke Zero does not taste like the real Coke at all.

Block of Ice...Cream

2009-10-25T10:54:00.001+08:00

There are ice cream carts on the streets of Singapore, and they serve ice cream in blocks sandwiched between two wafers. Who needs cones, right?

Recipe: Pork and Bean Sprouts

2009-10-25T00:47:00.002+08:00

Ingredients:

250 grams ground pork

300 grams bean sprouts

3 cloves of garlic, minced

cooking oil or butter

salt and seasoning granules

Preparation:

Saute the garlic in cooking oil or butter in a pan.

Brown the ground pork (about 5 minutes).

Toss the bean sprouts into the pan.

Add salt and seasoning granules to taste (about a teaspoon of each should be fine).

Stir for about 3 minutes.

Recipe: Buttered Garlic Mushrooms

2009-10-24T20:15:00.000+08:00

Ingredients:

a twist of butter, or just enough to cover the pan when it's melted

6 cloves of garlic, finely minced
a big can of button mushrooms, sliced
a dash of Maggi Sarap seasoning granules

Preparation:
Melt the butter in a pan.
Saute the garlic.
Saute the mushrooms.
Add a dash of seasoning granules.
Stir constantly for about 3 minutes, then serve warm.

Vjandep Pastel

2009-10-24T19:55:00.000+08:00

The most popular pastry from Camiguin - fluffy buns oozing with delicious creamy yema (egg and condensed milk) filling. It comes in different flavors as well, but only yema tastes wonderful. I believe there's now a shop in The Fort that sells these.

Baker Boss

2009-10-24T17:17:00.002+08:00

This is my favorite picture of food. My boss baked some egg tarts with strawberries and gave us one each. I took a picture of mine before eating it.

Ric & Remy's Biscocho de Zamboanga

2009-10-24T17:07:00.005+08:00

My favorite pasalubong from Zamboanga is Ric & Remy's biscocho (toasted bread). People always underestimate it and get taken by surprise at how tasty it is. I'm a bit hurt that they did not believe me when I said so in the first place. Hmp.

KFC Philippines vs Singapore

2009-10-24T14:12:00.005+08:00

I miss KFC Philippines's fully loaded meal - a single meal that carried everything I loved about KFC - 1 piece original recipe chicken drenched in gravy, rice covered in gravy, french fries that taste like real potato slices or creamy buttery mashed potatoes with even more gravy, a moist fudge brownie, and a glass of Mountain Dew. Their gravy was so good, they needed to chain their gravy pots to the service tables to prevent people from hogging it on their tables.

KFC Singapore has only the chicken and the dew. Their gravy is no good. Their fries taste just like ordinary french fries. They don't have brownies or even rice. How uncool is that?

Their only saving grace is the oriental chicken salad. It's a mixture of lettuce, red cabbage, crispy noodles, diced tomatoes, corn kernels and bite-sized fried chicken chunks. The combination is good, but what really has me sold on it is the sweet-sour-salty taste of the oriental dressing. It's my favorite salad dressing ever. It's now my KFC staple; either this or a piece of original recipe fried chicken, with Mountain Dew, naturally.

The Best Chicharon Ever

2009-10-24T14:09:00.002+08:00

When it comes to chicharon (pork crackling), nothing beats Lapid's.

Lovely Baked Potato

2009-10-24T13:51:00.004+08:00

It used to be that the words "baked potato" invoked images of me at my sickbed, punished with eating bland food. That is, till I tried Yes Asian Cafe's baked potato with ham and cheese. Whenever I passed by that cafe outside AMK hub, I always got tempted by their display window of baked spuds till one day I finally gave in. Mother mother I am sick. Gimme a baked potato with ham and cheese very quick.

Red is Real Good

2009-10-24T13:21:00.001+08:00

I am a huge fan of yogurt, most especially of frozen yogurt (fro yo). The best one I've come across so far is Red Mango.

The tart frozen yogurt was first introduced in Korea but later became the rave in the United States. Singapore is lucky to have one store located in Suntec City Mall ground floor near Carrefour, inside Tasty Treatz.

I usually just get a small cup at almost S$4 and prefer not to have any toppings as they only get in the way of the yogurt's taste. It comes in different flavors, too, and my favorite is the original one. Not only does it taste "quite nice" but it's actually good for the health too, as the tagline goes: "Red is Real." Real taste. Real Color. Real stuff. For me, it's just real good!

plain strawberry flavor

berry overload

everything on it

Oh My P.osh!

2009-10-24T13:13:00.003+08:00

I was in Dhoby Gaut station, hurriedly walking towards the ATM, when a girl gave me a stick with a little bit of brownie stuck to it. I took it distractedly, went on walking, popped the brownie into my mouth, then did an about-face and went back to the girl to buy a couple whole ones of those brownies she had doled out for sampling. Honestly, P.osh brownies are the best damn brownies I've ever tasted in my life, and the price (S$2.80 for a plain brownie and S$3+ for designed ones) is totally worth it.

Did Somebody Say Swensens?

2009-10-24T11:17:00.007+08:00

My first time was in Thailand, after Cate had her "where where?" episode. Then I moved to Singapore and discovered that they have many branches here. It was a lot cheaper in Thailand, but then again, what isn't?

thick chocolate milkshake

coit tower

a chocolate parfait of some sort

banana split

rocky road sizzling pan

Tamarind

2009-10-24T10:56:00.003+08:00

I've loved tamarind eversince I was a kid. Tamarind in all forms. The raw ones cracked open and dipped in salt. The freshly cooked stuff ladled in clear plastic best eaten by licking off the fingers. The soft candy rolled into balls with a dusting of sugar and sold for 25 cents apiece. The Thai variant mixed with chili.

I love them all except those sweet ones. They've lost the essence of being a tamarind, like, what is the point?

Bukayo

2009-10-24T10:18:00.003+08:00

Bukayo is a Filipino sweet made of coconut strips and sugar. When I was a kid, I bought them for 50 cents from Auntie Amparing's store. I think they cost ten times as much now, and Auntie Amparing's store is no more.

Provence Chocolate Rolls

2009-10-24T10:09:00.003+08:00

Soft chocolate rolls from Provence, located in Central mall, Clarke Quay. So good, the bakery constantly runs out of them. It's a good thing Chi and her officemates have noted the pattern and know at what exact time they can catch these bad guys.

Recipe: Pork Potapples

2009-10-21T16:01:00.003+08:00

Ingredients:

a twist of butter, or just enough to cover the pan when it's melted

3 cloves of garlic, diced

500g of pork sirloin, cut into bite size pieces

1 big red onion, peeled, root end trimmed but left intact, halved through the root, then each half cut into 6 wedges through the root (to help hold them together)

1 medium sized red apple, cored and chopped into wedges

1 big potato, chopped into wedges

3 spoonfuls of concentrated chicken stock mixed with two cups of water

Preparation:

Melt the butter in a pan.

Saute the garlic and a wedge of onion.

Lightly fry the pork for about 5 minutes.

Drop in the potatoes, apples and the rest of the onions. Pour in the stock mixture. Let it simmer and stir occasionally, adding salt according to taste.

Turn off the heat after about 5 minutes.

Doubly Delicious

2009-10-21T16:00:00.001+08:00

I was in Wheelock Place when I walked past The Big O and its counter of delicious looking cakes. In most other stores, I'd be really confused as to which to buy - cheesecake or chocolate mousse? Here, both of my favorites had been married into one slice - the Big O cheesecake. New York cheesecake topped with smooth chocolate mousse in an Oreo cookie crust - what could be better than that?

When I took my first bite, the words "Oh my God!" escaped from my lips. It was simply the best cake I have ever tasted ever. The cheesecake is creamy, smooth, rich and dense like real cheesecakes are supposed to taste, not light and full of air like some cheap ones do. The mousse has a real chocolate bar taste, not at all just too sweet brown gunk masquerading as chocolate.

The Big O Cheesecake

One slice costs S$6.95 and they had an ongoing promotion - for every slice of cake, you get a drink for free. I got a mocha cappuccino and it was the perfect chaser to the perfect cake.

Best Filipino Food in Singapore

2009-10-21T15:57:00.001+08:00

Years ago, if someone asked me what my favorite cuisine was, I'd reply that I wasn't sure, maybe Italian or Chinese and that Mexican food ain't bad, too. That was before I left my country. Now, when someone asks me what my favorite cuisine is, my answer is a resounding "Filipino food!" Thank goodness we got those in Singapore. Here are my faves places to get them.

Jologs

Lucky Plaza 4th floor

This was the first Pinoy restaurant that I tried. They serve all sorts of meals, but I always have the same thing whenever I go there - my favorite tapsilog (tapa, sinangag, itlog) which costs S$6.50. All meals come with drinks that you can refill from a fountain - your choice of Nestea iced tea, Tang's orange juice or water. You can't get any more Pinoy than that.

tapsilog

Lucky Plaza 4th floor

We used to come here when they still had their S$10 lunch buffets which included appetizers, viands, drinks, and dessert. Crispy pata was even included in the buffet. Too bad they don't have that promo anymore as it was a very great deal - all their food tastes great. My favorite is the kilawing tanguige, though, and if I crave for it, I can still go there.

super sulit buffet

my first plateful. my plates are never without kilawin.

Pilipino Cafe

Lucky Plaza 4th floor

It's a small carinderia or cafeteria like place and is really cheap. They have set meals for S$5 that already comes with rice, two viands, and a canned drink. The food tastes good, definitely better than others of its range. My fave choices are the sinigang, kilawing baboy and chicken liver adobo.

S$5 set meal - rice, 2 choice of ulam, 1 drink in can

Kabayan

Lucky Plaza 3rd floor

I wouldn't recommend their meals. They're not bad, but they're not noteworthy either. Pilipino Cafe's viands taste better. However, this store's cassava cake is really good. So it's worth it to drop by here, at least for that. One slice costs S$2. And oh, did you know that Singaporeans don't know what cassava is? They know it as tapioca.

cassava cake

Happy V
Lucky Plaza 2nd floor or Lau Pa Sat, Raffles Place

This used to be known as Jolly V because it's a Jollibee rip-off. Their chicken tastes like chicken joy and their spaghetti is the trademark Pinoy sweet-style one. I wouldn't recommend the burger steak, though. It's nowhere near the real thing. Their value meals average around S$6.

"chicken joy"

sweet-style spaghetti

Mang Kiko's
Lau Pa Sat, Raffle's Place

Their stall looks like the typical lechon manok places in the Philippines, and their food tastes like those too. I love their lechon manok, liempo, and lechon baboy. They only have lechon baboy on Saturday afternoons, though. An order of either one with rice costs around S$6.

lechon manok and liempo

7107 Flavours

Marina Square 2nd floor

This place serves the best Filipino food by far, but we usually reserve it for special occasions because it's a bit pricey, around S$12 an order. Their menu is like Gerry's Grill. My favorites are the ones pictured below. On Friday nights they have live acoustic performances. Feels just like you're at home.

ensaladang mangga

sizzling sisig

inihaw na liempo

leche flan