Food Review: Mei Yuen Duck Noodles @ Katong

I'm so sorry but I forgot the name of this shop. I will find it out as soon as I can. My friend works at Katong on weekends and he always talks about this duck noodles store. He spoke about this so much that I really had to try it because finding good quality roasted duck is just so hard nowadays.

So on a Sunday morning, I washed up and met him at Katong just to have this for lunch. The place was super nostalgic. The furniture, the people, the walls, the ceiling, the floor, everything was old but still in good shape. We ordered a plate of duck noodles each and just chilled before he needed to go for work again.

The noodle itself was cooked very well. It was al dante, not too soft and not too hard, just perfect. The sauce was excellent. And the duck itself was one of the better ones I have tried. It still had that distinct smell which I do not like but it really was not very obvious. Definitely better than most other places.

Overall, it was a good and simple lunch which makes you think back at the old times when you were younger. Very nice.

SimpleMakan

Food Review: I-Steak @ Serangoon Gardens

This shop is now at the same location as where Astons used to be at. Their logo and design and menu system is somewhat similar but I have to say they are good as well.

I have eaten here a few times and it is yummy. So thought of reviewing this meal just for fun.

I had the black pepper chicken chop with coleslaw and macaroni and cheese. I also ordered the mushroom soup as well as a plate of calamari. This chicken chop is quite standard. Juicy and succulent. Coleslaw was tasty as well. Macaroni and cheese was quite heavenly. My girlfriend loves it. The mushroom soup was good but a little too watery to my liking. I would prefer a thicker soup. And lastly, the calamari, they were the worst I have tried. The squid was not fresh, it was hard and the batter was horrible. The calamari was very oily as well. Only hated the calamari on the whole.

So for a simple and affordable meal, I-Steak is nice as well. :)

SimpleMakan

Food Review: Jerry's Bar and Grill @ Jalan Kayu

I have always wanted to try the ribs here because I saw a show on them long long long time ago. So when a few friends were meeting up and wondering where to have dinner, I suggested this place.

They have some outdoor seats, some indoor seats and some seats which seemed to be in the basement. The place seemed clean and homely. We met up, had a chat, looked through the menu and wanted to order. But guess what, no one was around to take our order. And even when there were waiters serving food to the tables outside, they disappeared very quickly and we still could not order. This was the major problem at this place in my opinion. I mean, it was a peak hour but having so few workers around was definitely not a good idea. And I wasn't the only one waiting for my order to be taken. Almost all the tables around were frantically trying to get the attention of the waiters. This was a real letdown here.

Now lets talk about the food. My girlfriend and I shared the slow-cooked ribs with half a roasted chicken. I have to say, it was really awesome. The meat fell off from the ribs with minimal force and the sauce used to marinate the meat was equally splendid. We could choose two side dishes with this main course so I ordered the broccoli and potato salad. Both were simple and delicious. Our friends ordered fish and chips and chicken chop. I did not try it, but it looked quite good as well. Oh yes, for appetisers, I ordered the fried mushrooms. They were somewhat tasty, but I prefer the ones I had at Coastal Settlement.

Overall, this was a filling and satisfying meal, but service was simply too slow and minimal for comfort. Even our bill took almost twenty minutes to complete. And refilling of water took ten minutes. If the service was fast and if the workers were friendly, this would be a spectacular place to chill at.

SimpleMakan

Food review: The Coffee Daily @ Brighton Crescent (close to Serangoon Gardens)

A few days ago, I went here to relax with my girlfriend. She has been here before and loves it. So she brought me here as well before her tuition lesson just to chill.

The place it real cosy and welcoming. There was no one there at that timing, about 3pm. So it made it even more comfortable because we could sit wherever we wanted. There were some nice decorations which was very pleasant as well.

I ordered an Iced Americano, she ordered a Strawberry and Banana Smoothie. And we also ordered a Egg, Ham and Cheese Sandwich on Foccacia Bread. The drinks were amazing. My coffee was bitter but definitely rich. Her smoothie was just the way she likes it but to me, I thought it would have been better if it was slightly sweeter. But it was still awesome! The sandwich was mouthwatering!! I think simply because it was freshly made. It was warm and the bread was crunchy and the egg, ham and melted cheese just made the whole sandwich the best thing ever. I enjoyed our chill out time there.

Overall, definitely a recommended chillout place. Very cosy but I'm not sure how it will feel like when it is super crowded. :)

SimpleMakan

Food Review: Broers Cafe @ Petain Road

I just went to this cafe today to kill a few hours with my girlfriend. It is located in quite a hidden place but there is a lot of parking around, though not always available.

First impression when I walked in, very simple, clean and friendly environment. Makes you feel welcome. The aircon was at a very good temperature and we just sat down and got comfy. I ordered an Iced Cocoa and she ordered Mango Iced blended. Both our drinks were splendid! My Iced cocoa was good, for sure. Rich and creamy and definitely made properly. 

I was surprised with the Mango Iced Blended. Not many people can do this well. It is always either too sweet or sometimes sour or sometimes the ice itself is not crushed properly. This was close to perfection. The sweetness level and the smoothness, all was really good! Very rich and authentic taste of a really tasty fresh mango. Not sure how this was done, but it felt like I was drinking up a really wonderfully ripe mango.

Did not really get to try any food because we just had lunch but the food seemed normal. Salads, cakes, sandwiches, nothing much you can go wrong with. I'll try next time and update again.

Overall, this is an amazing place to chill and read a good book or just to have a chat or to spend some quality time with a friend or lover. Love this place!

SimpleMakan

Recipe: S'ngao Chruok Moan (Sour Chicken Soup)

Alright, I randomly chose this recipe because it looks very easy and it is a clear soup recipe. I love clear soup, so I tried it out. But I did change some parts here and there. Very simple as well and it turned out superb! I loved it and girlfriend loved it even more! :)

Ingredients

1. 500g of Chicken, boneless or not is up to you, cut into smaller pieces, I used a chicken thigh and cut into small pieces
2. 5 cups of water
3. 1 tablespoon of uncooked rice
4. 3 lemon grass stalks, wash, cut in half and use the knife handle to just crush the thick part of the lemon grass to bring out the smell/flavor
5. 3 pieces of sliced galangal/blue ginger/lengkwas (different names, same thing), remove skin, crush as well to bring out the flavor, just crush slightly
6. 2 tablespoon of fish sauce
7. 1 tablespoon of salt
8. 1 teaspoon of sugar
9. 2 lime
10. Coriander leaves for dressing at the end (I did not use this because I do not like coriander)

Instructions

1. Place the rice and water in a pot and bring to a boil.

2. Throw in lemon grass and galangal and simmer for about 5 minutes.

3. Throw in chicken pieces and let it simmer for about 10 minutes till the flavors are released.

4. Throw in the fish sauce, salt, sugar and mix well and let it simmer for about 5 minutes.

5. Take 1 lime, slice in half, remove seeds and squeeze the juice into the soup and throw in the part of the lime which we will usually throw away. Simmer for about 5 minutes and then remove the green part of the lime which was thrown in 5 minutes ago.

6. Simmer for about 5 more minutes or until chicken is properly cooked and it is done!

Wonderful clear and sour Cambodian Chicken soup! Very easy to do and it tastes awesome!

SimpleMakan

Recipe: Cambodian Lok Lak

I went to Cambodia recently and was very pleased the kind of simple local food they had there. So I bought a cookbook there and tried some of the food at home. I am actually shocked that it turned out awesome! Here is the recipe for Cambodian Lok Lak. It is a simple meat dish, which is almost like our sweet and sour dishes we get in Singapore. Very simple to do and very delightful.

Ingredients

About 300g of Chicken, cut into cubes or just small pieces.

1 tablespoon of soy sauce
1 tablespoon of oyster sauce
1 tablespoon of chilli sauce
1 tablespoon of tomato ketchup
1 tablespoon of sesame oil or any cooking oil
1/2 teaspoon of fish sauce (even if you do not have this, it is fine)
1/2 teaspoon of salt
1 teaspoon sugar
Crushed black peppers, put any amount you desire

Mix all the above in a bowl and this mixture will be used to marinate about the chicken pieces for about 30 minutes, lesser time is fine as well.

1 tomato cut into 8 wedges
2 fresh chillies, sliced into small pieces
Oil for stir frying

Instructions

1. Place about 2 tablespoons of oil in a big enough frying pan. Heat it up.

2. Throw in the onions and stir fry it for about 2 minutes till it is golden brown.

3. Throw in the tomatoes and chilli slices and stir fry for about 2 minutes.

4. The throw in the marinated chicken pieces and stir fry until cook. It should take roughly 10-15 minutes on a low heat. Just slowly cook it so that it won't burn and for the flavors to seep into the chicken.

You are done! Delicious Cambodian Chicken Lok Lak is ready!

SimpleMakan