The results are in. Thanks to all 1000 people who polled.
It seems that it is almost split equally with most people (36.5%) eating out mostly on weekends on one end of the spectrum and 32.9% eating out almost every night and 30.7% somewhere in between! So I guess most of our readers still enjoy home cooking on most nights!
Stay tuned for the next poll question which is going to be quite interesting!
With iwatch_ueat and SCS Butter
Sarawak Kolo Mee $3 (Big)
What I really enjoy about Sarawak Kolo Mee is the noodles itself and the savoury minced meat sauce that goes with it. In fact, I like these frizzy QQ noodles so much that I wonder why there aren't many more hawkers selling them?
Anyway, the last time I blogged about Sarawak Kolo Mee was the Yummy Wonton Mee stall at the Tampines Round Market. However, that one was a Singaporeanised version of the Kolo Mee and lacked the meat sauce. This time round I found a true blue (I am told) Sarawak Kolo Mee run by a couple that are real Sarawakeans. I found out that they actually make their own noodles at the factory! It's funny, when I asked them about how they knew how to make the noodles, the answer they gave made it look as if EVERY Sarawakean actually knows how to make their own kolo mee! It's like saying every Hainanese knows how to make chicken rice and every Hokkien can cook Hokkien Mee!
Whatever it is, the noodles were excellent and the combination of the Minced Meat Sauce with the noodles was even better. It would have been perfect if they had better char siew and the fried dumplings had more stuffing. 4.25/5
Conclusion
Authentic Sarawak Kolo Mee at hawker prices! Well worth a trip. Usually sold out by 2pm, so make sure you get there early. The shop is right at the back of the coffeeshop itself and easily missed.
Sarawak Kuching Laksa, Kolo Mee
Sing Li Coffeshop
177 Macpherson Road
8am t0 2pm Mon-Fri
Recommended by SCS Butter
With ieatMama, iwatch_ueat, liverpool, PowerAunty and the PowerGang
Fish Head Curry (whole) $30
Quite a few people have written to me about Hooked on Heads, but I never quite got round to it. However, last week a series of events happened that finally brought me to this restaurant. Firstly, my friend from church emailed me about this stall raving about the Mee Siam and Har Cheong (Prawn Paste) Kai and then PowerAunty found out that ieatMama was in town and wanted to meet her. Knowing that both these ladies love fish heads and peranakan food, I finally arranged to eat here. At least I will have two experts to give their opinion on the Fish Head Curry!
I must admit that I have never been big on fish heads, but I really enjoy watching how people who love fish heads really slurp up all the fiddly jelly bits with gusto. I imagine it is like eating chicken feet or oxtail where there is a lot of effort for that bit of tasty gristle.
Anyway our two experts concur that the fish head curry was really sedap! (tasty). The curry is made with milk and coconut milk so it is not too jerlak, but still creamy and the fish was really fresh. It wasn't overly spicy so it suited me fine but for someone like Liverpool, he complained that it was too mild. If like me you are not big on Fish Head Curry, this one might get you "Hooked on Heads". 4.5/5
Mee Siam $3.80
The Mee Siam here is quite different from your normal Mee Siam. If you are a stickler for the more traditional Mee Siam, you might not take to this. However, I loved it because it had the sweetness and creaminess of the Indian version but at the same time it retained the tanginess of the more familiar Mee Siam. Both PowerAunty and ieatMama gave a resounding two thumbs up as well. 4.6/5
Mango Salad $6.80
Although there is a strong emphasis on Peranakan food, the restaurant owners has not allowed this to restrict his menu. They also offer Thai food as well as local Cze Char dishes. I was amazed at how well Thomas and wife Gina were able to juggle it all. And what I really enjoy is the way they tweak the dishes just that little bit to make it even better. Take for instance the Green Mango Salad which is a traditional Thai Dish. Aside from the crisp, tangy shredded Mango and other greens, they have also topped it off with shredded dried Cuttlefish which has been lightly toasted. The savoury flavour and chewy texture of the cuttlefish was an excellent contrast to the tangy, crunchy salad. 4.5/5
Prawn Paste Chicken $8
I have been lamenting the fact that though many places serve Prawn Paste Chicken that one can hardly taste the flavour of the prawn paste. So I am happy to report that the prawn paste chicken here is excellent. They use only mid wings here and they are marinated long enough such that the red colouring has really seeped into the flesh. Thomas also explained that they use modern fryers to deep fry the chicken instead of a wok. So with the right temperature control, the meat of the chicken is kept nice and juicy inside. One of the best Prawn Paste Chicken I have tasted. 4.5/5
Crispy Sole Fish $18
There are three versions of the Crispy Sole Fish. We had the plain one which is dipped in a Thai style green chilli sauce. This is a real visual treat and though it was executed perfectly, I found that there was a lack of ooomph in the flesh. What was interesting though is the unique garnishing which is made from thinly shredded lemongrass. I think the Garlic Fried or Thai Sweet Chilli version should taste better. 3.75/5
Banana Fritters Special $3.80
Make sure that you leave some room for desserts as they have got a nice selection here. The first I would recommend is the banana fritters which is eaten with ice cream and golden syrup. I used to have this a lot when I was living Thailand. But the version I had was simply a banana halved lengthwise and fried in a crisp batter, very similar to our Goreng Pisang. This one is a little bit different. It has a crispy golden shell on the outside and fluffy on the inside, almost like a donut with banana inside. They use Del Monte bananas here which is nice and sweet. It was both a visual and gustatory treat! 4.5/5
Mango Sticky Rice $3.80
I used to buy Mango Sticky Rice for 50 Baht (less than $2) from the roadside hawkers in Bangkok and it was one of those things that I was really hooked on. Although it seems like a simple dish, there a real art in getting the sticky rice to the right consistency and it has to have a good balance of sweet and salty. Thomas was explaining to me that they use Thai sticky rice which cooks evenly unlike those of Vietnamese origin. This is one of my all time favourite Thai desserts and I am very happy with this one. 4.5/5
Conclusion
We all had a great time in this restaurant that really exceeded our expectations. They have a nice Lunch Sampler Set for 2-4 people that features a half Curry Fish Head with a choice of other dishes for $22.80+ on weekdays which is quite good value. For those eating alone, you can get a mini set with a choice of 2 dishes for $5.80+. Everyone was so delighted that we all vowed a return visit to taste the other items on the menu.
Hooked on Heads
Tower 2, #01-01/02,
Sin Ming Plaza 6
Sin Ming Road 64554948
www.hookedonheads.com
Recommended by Rebecca and Karen
Char Siew Chee Cheong Fun $2 each
My five year old daughter is really picky about food and often would take an hour just to finish a meal (if she even finishes it!). But when she took her first bite of this Chee Cheong Fun, she couldn't stop eating it and I had to go back to buy an extra one just for her! Are there any parents out there who are reading this?
The reason she likes it so much is that the Chee Cheong Fun is really soft, smooth and slippery. That's because it is made on the spot. The sauce that goes with the Chee Cheong Fun is the type that you get when you go for Dim Sum. Ok, belay that, the Chee Cheong Fun IS the type that you get at Dim Sum Restaurants -- only better. It doesn't get fresher than having your face steamed by the very steam that steamed your Chee Cheong Fun.
Ok, I admit it. I had to buy my daughter some more Chee Cheong Fun because Daddy liked it so much that Daddy had finished it before she had enough. I am so enamored with freshly made Chee Cheong Fun that I don't think I would ever be satisfied with the usual pre-made ones anymore! Aside from the superly duperly soft-as-silk Chee Cheong Fun, I also found the Char Siew to be very good. Gimme two Char Siew Cheong and I am a very happy man! (Oh and two more for my little girl....and two more for my boy) 4.5/5
Hae Chor and Sui Gao $4
Besides the Chee Cheong Fun, the other item that you should try is the Hae Chor. It's handmade and contains lots of crunchy water chestnuts and they are freshly friend to order. Bit on the small side but it packs quite a crunch! 4.25/5
Conclusion
Definitely one of the best Char Siew Cheong Fun and great value for money too! From my daughter's point of view it would probably have rated close to a 5!
Freshly Made Chee Cheong Fun
Old Airport Road Food Centre
#01-155
8am to 10pm daily
There are 3 famous Wanton Mees at Old Airport Road Food Centre and no clear winner yet. They are differentiated by the colour of their signboards which are very easy to remember. Red, yellow and green. I learnt about this from bobafett whose preference was Red, Yellow, Green. Now I don't think that there are many Wanton Mee lovers out there who actually go to the extent of trying all three and having an order of preference. Or maybe there are? Do identify yourselves please and let us know your personal preference.
I have already blogged about the Red one last time, so now its time for the Yellow Signboard.
This stall is the least "Tua Pai" (Showy) of the three stalls and the owner was very modest about her noodles. The Char Siew is procured from other sources and is good but not unremarkable. They also use a better quality noodle and the texture is good. The thing that I like about this wonton mee is the sauce that they put in it. It is a bit sweeter which agrees with my tastebuds. 4/5
Conclusion
One of the better Wontan Mees around but I between Red and Yellow, I really have no preference.
Kallang Wanton Noodle
Old Airport Road Hawker Centre
01-61
10am to 11.30pm
Closed on Tuesday
Special Promo for ieatishootipost readers! Details at the end of the blog
Moo Moo II Burger $10.90 250gm beef pattie
This little diner up North is going to put a smile on many faces. It's the latest "Value for Money" diner which has recently opened in Sembawang barely 2 months ago and judging from the quality of the food and the prices, I can only say that it has all the qualities of another Astons in the making.
Just take a look at the Moo Moo II Burger. For $10.90, you get a big and juicy 250gm, hand chopped beef pattie, sauteed mushrooms and onions, crispy bacon, tomato and lettuce in a really nice oat meal crusted burger bun!
Truth be told, this is the ieat new improved version of the original Moo Moo Burger. I told Chef Julius that what I would really like to have is not just another burger but one that is going to get people talking. So he went to the kitchen with a few new ideas and whipped up the burger shown in the picture. He liked it so much that he told me that he will henceforth be serving the new improved version.
I really like beef patties where the meat is not so finely ground such that you can still bite into the meat fibres. The pattie was big and juicy and just needs a bit more tweaking to get the full beefy flavour out of it. I like the big soft bun which readily absorbed the juices of the meat pattie and the tangy BBQ sauce which gave it a nice balance. At $10.90, this is probably one of the best value burger in town! 4.25/5
Parmesan Coated Fish Fillet $7.90
The Parmesan Coated Fish Fillet came as a very pleasant surprise. The Parmesan cheese gave the Pacific Dory fillet a nice savoury flavour which is a very nice departure from the more familiar bread crumbs. The fish was cooked to perfection. Nice and juicy on the inside and crumbly on the outside. It went really well with the zesty homemade tomato salsa. 4.5/5
Emperor Oriental Chix Salad $6.90
If you enjoy Lo Hei (Raw Fish Salad) because of all the crunchy bits and salad rather then the raw fish itself, then you are going to like the Emperor Oriental Chix Salad where instead of raw fish, you have shredded chicken. I just love the crunchy crackers with the the tangy sweet salad dressing. 4.25/5
Vittles is an excellent place for family meals as they have stuff that the kids will love. Their Nachos are freshly fried and served with minced beef and cheese sauces. I usually prefer my nachos with melted cheese on top but my kids like it this way. 4/5
Pistachio Herb Crusted Lamb Rack $18.90
Chef Julius makes all the sauces and sides here himself and very few items actually come out of a packet. He makes the red wine sauce from scratch and even the mashed potatoes are made from real potatoes. You get a choose from 11 different home made side dishes. My personal favouriet was the creamy gratinated potatoes.
The Pistachio Herb Crust on the Lamb Rack is very addictive. I just couldn't stop nibbling on it with the red wine sauce. However, the lamb was frozen not chilled lamb, so it was not has juicy. But at $18.90, one can't really expect them to serve up chilled lamb rack. Still it was a delicious lamb rack that lamb lovers should try. 4.25/5
Conclusion
It was an invited review, so I was apprehensive at first. But it turned out to be a most wonderful lunch for the whole family. The kids loved the free popcorn that you can help yourself to as you are waiting for the food as well as the nachos and fries. The diner is run by 3 sisters and Chef Julius, so the service was very personal. Food is great value and on top of that, there is no GST or service charge. I think this place is poised to do very well.
Special for all our readers!
Print out this page and get 50% off your 2nd main course and a free Tropical Crush. This smoothie is is made of soursop and jackfruit and I found it really very unique and refreshing and I am sure you all will like it too. (50% off 2nd main meal is valid on Tues to Fri only. One weekends you still get the Tropical Crush) Offer valid till end Oct 2007.
Update 1 26 Sep 2007
There has been some confusion about the offer and I have just spoken with Denise. Now it is confirmed that the Tropical Crush is available both weekends and weekdays but the 50% off is only valid on weekdays. Denise has also said that the Moo Moo II will be available daily from next week onwards.
Vittles 369 Sembawang road
#01-05 Sembawang Cottage (Same bldg as Mac's)
67561138
www.vittles.com.sg
Sun to Thurs : 11:00 am to 10:00 pm Fri, Sat & Eve of Public Holidays : 11:00 am to 11:00 pm
Closed on Monday
Disclosure: This review was done at the invitation of Vittles
With FashionFoodie, smart, liverpool, tag, iwatch_ueat and damien
Today was the day I found out I did not qualify to be a True Blue Teochew Ah Hia! Oh, don't misunderstand me. I am pure bred. Both sets of Grandparents came direct from Swatow. However, I failed the ultimate test of the Teochew Ah Hia. I failed to appreciate freshly steamed Peh Dou Her (Rabbit Fish).
My idea of a perfect Teochew porridge lunch was porridge with stuff like Chye Poh (preserved veg) Omelette, Braised Pork, Sliced Lup Cheong (Chinese sausages) and Braised peanuts. But I found out that that only qualifies me to be an entry level Teochew Ah Hia. The True Blue, Hard Core, Fair Dinkum, No Play Play Teochew Ah Hia loves stuff like steamed Peh Dou Her, steamed mullet and steamed baby squid dipped in Tau Jnior (fermented bean sauce) and chilli.
Peh Dou Her (Rabbit Fish) $4 each
Peh Dou Her is especially prized during the Chinese New Year period when they are about half the size and full of roe. Teochew Ah Hias like Fashionfoodie tell me that the stomach is bitter and when taken with the roe, it is supposed to bring you to the heavenly Swatow. (Area where the Teochews come from)
Here is where I failed. I never did like all the steamed fish that my parents love. In fact it was the fishiness of fish like Peh Dou Her that put me off steamed fish for most of my younger life. But I was game to see if my tastebuds are indeed as Teochew as I thought. Perhaps, as I get older, I might actually like fishy fish?
Not.
Even as the Teochew Ah Hias are attacking the fish with gusto, I found the fish to be too fishy for me. I tried my best but only finished a few mouthfuls. I guess it really is an acquired taste. So, are there many Peh Dou Her afficianados out there?
My rating would be 2.5/5 whereas the other guys rate it 4.5/5
Similarly with the steamed squid. My first bite of it was ok. But it wasn't something I would rave about. So I asked Fashiofoodie again just how to appreciate the dish. He told me that not many people can actually steam it until it was just so soft and tender. Ok. My rating 3/5, his rating 4.5/5.
I was told the beauty of these baby squids is that they are full of roe. Smart especially liked it and kept raving about it. Again for me, it was plain 
steamed squid. I still prefer it deeped fried till crispy with black sweet sauce. My rating 3/5, Smart's 4.5/5
Conclusion
So will you pass the True Blue Teochew Ah Hia test? My three Teochew Ah Hia friends certainly passed with flying colours. That's not to say that people of other dialect groups would not like Peh Dou Her, it's just that if you claim to be a Teochew Ah Hia, you should pass the Peh Dou Her test. Agree or not?
Bukit Merah View Economic Teochew Porridge
#01-377/379
115 Bukit Merah View
10am to 7pm
Closed on Sunday
Recommended by FashionFoodie
Today's recommendation on 938Live! at 12.15pm is Wah Kee Big Prawn Noodle!
....Read more!
Bak Chor Mee $2.50
I found this review by Teo Pau Lin not long ago about this Bak Chor Mee "in the boondocks" and what struck me most was how in the world do these Straits Times reporters find this sort of places. I mean, the Food Centre is smack in the middle of nowhere in Loyang Industrial area and Loyang itself is smack in the outskirts of Singapore. So how did Ms Teo even find this place? Even if her friend had given her the tip, what in the world would possess her to make a trip to the middle of nowhere to eat and review a bowl of Bak Chor Mee? And when she was writing it, did she really think that Singaproeans would be crazy enough to make a trip to the middle of nowhere to eat this Bak Chor Mee?
So I decided to find out direct from the horse's mouth and called up Ms Teo's secretary to arrange an appointment for an interview..... no lah, Ms Teo doesn't really have a secretary. The answer was sublime... tell you about it later.
This is one hearty bowl of Bak Chor Mee. I guess "being in the boondocks" they have to cater for men with big appetites. So each bowl not only has a generous mound of noodles, it is also chock full of minced meat, sliced pork and sliced fish cake.
The noodles are also the eggy thin Mee Pok type which is my favourite. I like the way it has a firm bite but still gives you that nice "serrated" feel when you slurp it. You need to take this mee pok with the chilli sauce because the non-chilli version only has vinegar and soy sauce. The soup was tasty but not as robust as some of the others in this blog. 4.25/5
The Keow is made with a fish paste filling which is quite tasty but one is never enough. You can get an extra bowl of 6 Keows for $1. It's too bad I got there after the lunch crowd. I think they would have tasted even better fresh.
The other little surprise that I found was their Lor Mee which was actually quite good! The sauce is not overly thickened and it has a sweet, flowery fragrance to it. Again the portions are rather generous for $2.50. The ngor hiang was ok but the lor bak was quite tasty. 4/5
Ah yes, back to our little mystery of how our intrepid ST reporter traveled to the boondocks to eat a bowl of Bak Chor Mee. Her "friend" was non other than the man to whom she is married to now. He works in the area and told her about the noodles. Ha! So Ms Teo went to review food and at the same time had a tryst with her boyfriend!! (Last statement is only my imagination yah?)
Conclusion
Good hearty bowl of Bak Chor Mee. But how many would be game enough to travel all the way there to try it, I wonder?
Mei Xin Minced Meat Prawn Noodle
NTL Eating House
64 Loyang Way
6am to 4.30pm Mon - Friday
6am to 11.30pm Sat
I was featured on Yum.sg!
To read please click here
Just one little clarification. Contrary to what the article says, I do know how to cook and used to cook regularly in the past. However, since I am working most evenings now, the maid does most of the cooking.
With iwatch_ueat and smart
Fish Soup $3
Smart tells me that he visits this particular fish soup at least twice a month although he would not say it is the best in Singapore. It has the combination of being "one of the best" and being "close to home". So as a result, he was willing to sacrifice a bit of ooomph for convenience.
Macpherson estate is one of the oldest parts of Singapore, so the food here is still pretty cheap. The food centre is still very much in its original condition, so I suspect that the "Gow'ment" will probably be renovating it soon. Being such an old place, there were lots of stalls that looked like they served really good stuff that was still not too "sanitized". You know what I mean right? Somehow food that is too clean does not taste as robust as food that may have an element of risk in it. Now, I am not advocating that we should all throw caution to the wind. Just merely stating an observation. Lots of people would agree that the food in JB is much tastier than Singapore and that the best Hawker foods are often found in rustic places rather then spotless spots.
The soup here is indeed very good. The fish is fresh and they are quite generous with the amount of fish. I especially liked the Ti Poh (Fried Sole Fish) which was very "Pang" (Savoury). They make everything themselves here including the Ti Poh and the Ikan Bilis (Fried Anchovies) and the soup is made from boiling fish bones and chicken for at least 8 hours. They also add bittergourd in the soup. Tasty and at the same time good for your cholesterol levels! 4.25/5
Fish Head Noodles $4
I am not one for Fish Head, but smart is. This Fish Head noodle soup is his fortnightly "must eat" dish. The interesting thing about it is that they use the dried egg noodles to cook the dish. These noodles have a unique texture and tastes quite savoury. They are also very generous with the chunks of Batang Fish Head and the soup is sweeter than the normal sliced fish soup. Smart rates it a 4.5/5.
Conclusion
Very good sliced fish soup and real value for money. My only complain is that they only give one or two pieces of the excellent Ti Poh!
Yong Lai Fa Ji Cooked Food
Macpherson Food Centre
79A Circuit Road
5am to 9pm
Closed Sun and Pub Hol
  |   |
Aston's new restaurant, located a stone's throw away from the old Aston's Specialties was the perfect cosy little diner to host the event. Whilst Astons Specialties serves Value for Money western food, the idea of Astons Prime is to dish out higher end stuff like the Australian Angus Prime Rib of Beef at "Value for Money" prices. A 300g cut of the Prime Rib costs $46 and is available every evening. I especially enjoyed the Red Wine Gravy which Aston tells me takes 3 days of slow cooking to make.
Astons Prime also serves up Grade 9 Wagyu 200gm steaks for $89.90 and other stuff like Lamb Racks and Crab Cakes in their regular menu, at prices that would make you smile! His idea is to have a casual dining restaurant where you get to eat quality produce that is usually served at high end restaurants at the best price possible.
Astons Prime
