$1.00 Durian

looking at the solid golden fruits you might think that it'll cost a bomb! probably at least $10 a kg! is it D24, XO?

 $1.00 for 1 whole fruit! YES, it's True! a stall at blk 352 ubi ave 1 sold this unnamed King of Fruits.

although it's small in size, only slightly bigger than the cane-ball (sepak txxxx), each piece has many fruits in it.

all the 10 pieces are of the same great Quality, Creamy, Thick, Slightly Bitter, Strong Aromatic Smell! it's Truly Treasure!

husk or shell forms a flower! amazing! bought it by chance. the strong smell from miles caught my attention & interest. so the next time give cheap durian a chance.

my D24, planted a few years ago, after eating it, just for fun threw the seeds in a pot. interestingly it grows!
 

 my XO, history same as above.

 since the $1 Durian was so Nice, decided to plant it.

perhaps 1 day i'll enjoy Great Fruits!

Happy Eating, 2/11/13, 6.55pm.

Moon Cake 13

it's again Mid-Autumn time. Moon Cake, Lantern, & Moon Fairy. Hotels, Restaurants & Cake Shops busy period. most malls have many moon cake stalls including those by hotels.

in recent years, Packaging or Moon Cake Box has become a highlight. many of these boxes are so nice & well created that you'll keep. 

1st take a look at Yan Ting Restaurant of St Regis. this award winning establishment again comes out with very Creative Box. ate their Single Yolk, Double Yolks, LOtus & White version & Mixed Nuts. Thumb Up of course

new taste is always welcome. another award winning restaurant, Hua Ting of Orchard Hotel's Snow Skin Sweet Potato Paste is simply Marvellous! she keeps the box simple.

i always believe if you eat Hi-End moon cake, your Gods & Ancestors must too! so every year i get the Best Vegetarian Moon Cake for My Buddha & Ancestors from Wo Peng Restaurant owned by HK Platinum Master Chef Julian Tam. it's Baked with White Lotus Paste & Black Sesame. they also have other fabulous favours. 

lastly is the Very Traditional Piglet Mooncake. cantonese call it Chu-Chai-Peng. just flour made into Pig shape & put in Pig Case. Delight for Kids & those Young at Heart!

 

Beer & Ribs

Tsingtao is probably the Best China Beer! it's imported into S'pore around the 70s with a different packaging. its Stout was short-lived due to reason best known to the authority. a friend who'd just returned from Guangzhou mentioned that they're various types of Tsingtao Beer over there.

Nice Roast Pork Ribs from Cold Storage, Otah from the popular Ubi Bejing Duck, & homecooked Veg blended very well with Tsingtao!

on the same day the bottle i bought from Cold Storage parkway parade mall costed $5.25 whereas the one from Fairprice marine parade costed $4.95! eventually decided to buy 2 bottles coz realised that my young man was at home, perhaps he wanted a beer too! not forgetting that he finished a Draught in Bangkok in 3 mins!

Happy Friday, 2/8/13. 7.45pm.

Soup Kambing Kaki

on the signet of this 24 hours big indian muslim restaurant at blk 304 ubi ave 1 wrote Soup Kambing Kaki. casually it means Goat Leg Soup. to be exact maybe it's the lower Shank. whatever, local will know this very popular Soup Kambing or Mutton Soup dish. usually other than the meat, other parts are involved too eg brain, eyes, tongue, leg etc.

once a week i'll try to eat kambing soup from this store. it's better than the famous one in Upper Boon Keng Road or Eunos hawker centre. very good on a cold night or if you're suffering from coldness.

each good stall will have its own secret recipe but Pepper is one vip ingredient. thus you can expect it to be Hot & Spicy. i prefer to put the food on the plate for easier bite with my hands.

the soup from this stall isn't oily. commonly in other shops you can see the fatty layer! for $4.50 it's certainly Worth It! the soup is aromatic & thick but not oily. strictly shank with tender flesh! after the good food, have a cup of hot Tea-0, will make your delicious meal perfect!

Yummy Nasi Lemak

A Surprise Find! $2.50  Nasi Lemak with Chicken  Wing, Egg, Ikan Bilis, Nuts, Shiok Shiok Chilli Sauce & Cucumber. Fresh, Tasty & Economical! Blk 305 Ubi Ave 1 Coffee Shop. Wide Choice of Other Mixed too. Yummy! Sedap!

Jack's Place

Jack's Place a steakhouse estd in 1966 by a local hainanese. It's Singapore's Proud. A must try place! My virgin visit when i was a teenager. Had the first whole Turkey from her Orchard Road outlet in the 80s. Today my family & I went to the Parkway Parade branch to so-call celebrate pre-Father's Day.

As usual the Q was long but my early reservation helped. This outlet is small outside but big inside. Service was good. 5 of us had NZ Ribeye Steak, Fish & Chips, Sambal Prawns, Chicken Chop, Slipper Lobster with Cod, Soft Drinks was 1 for 1. Tasty & Big Serving. All in near $90 only.

 

Taiwan Beer

this 'noon i went to the supermarket to scout for Wine but what caught my eyes was the much advertised Taiwan Beer! it wasn't on offer & costed S$5.65. Worth It! 
on the label it reads 'Distinctive Flavor Lager Beer since 1919 Gold Medal. Refreshing, Clean & Smooth Taste!' totally truth. & i add now Aromatic. 
trust me, before dinner was served at home, i finished the whole large bottle which actually meant to pair with prawns, fish & vegetables! Too Good To Stop!
if you like beer or to cool such hot local weather, give Taiwan Beer a chance!

Charcoal Burnt Meat

Look at the Char Siew (Roast Meat) & the Roast Pork! Its Colour & Shine prompted me to blog this $3.00 lunch packet from Blk 305 Ubi Ave 1. 
Juicy & Fatty Char Siew. Lean Roast Pork with smell of Charcoal. This's true Charcoal Burnt Meat, a term local understand well. The Roast Duck Sauce didn't override the aroma of the other.
Must Try!

Wo Peng - New Menu '13

What i like about Wo Peng Restaurant, 476 Macpherson Road, is every now & then they'll cook up new dishes. Here are some new creation i ate for dinner on 8/5/13.

this isn't the usual Jelly Fish! only the Best Part was used, that's the Top. QQ, Spicy & Yummy!

silver-foil will not dirty your hands. Tasty & Chewy Fried Chicken Wings.  

Chicken Soup with many types of Herbs. although the manager May told me the type of herbs, i just couldn't remember all. too many! 

Iceland Sea-Cucumber Grouper! What a rare deep sea fish! the bones were transparent, so soft & qq that i ate all! fresh flesh. here steamed with soya beans. another way is deep fried. 

they've a branch at hotel furama chinatown. both are equally good. Try it!

5-Star Bak Chor Mee

i'm not a mince-meat noodle fan but i can't wait to blog this dish from Blk 302 Ubi Ave 1 Coffee Shop! this's my 2nd time to eat it & brought camera. all the ingredients including the raw chilli piece & soup tasted great, surely not msg. $3.00 add 50cts you'll get mushroom slice. old days Bak Chor Mee taste found! expect bouncing, qq & fresh fishball. the stall run by a middle-age couple is opened daily for lunch & dinner. they also sell other noodle mixed eg fishball mee. you haven't tasted the best till you try this stall!  6/5/13.

Shifted jun.

Rojak

Rojak commonly known as Chinese Fruits & Vegatables Salad. Over the years, this stall at Blk 350 Ubi Ave 1 certainly has improved greatly.
Once I opened the plastic carrier, not the container, I smelled Rojak! The thick Black Prawn Sauce blended well with the Chilli Sauce. All the stuff eg Turnip, Cucumber, Towkay, Yew-Thio, & Smashed Nuts mixed very well. Chewy.
It costed only $2.50. Worth It! 

Green Tea

my girl brought this Harada Yabukua Blend Japanese Green Tea Bags home. see her enjoy it every now & then. today i chose to try it out myself using a fine china teacup. Wow! Pure, Aromatic, a very Zen Feeling! such sentiment remains on 2nd fill! 

Yu Sheng 2013

Yu Sheng or Raw Fish Salad is a delicacy during Lunar New Year. the Higher you Toss Up the Dish, the Better is your Luck! this belief started in the 60s by the famous 4 Heavenly Chefs & Restaurant Owners in S'pore. nowadays Salmon has replaced Wolf Herring (Ikan Parang).

this Snake Year 2013, i've to agree with good friend Stanley that this dish from all the outlets we tried seemed Plain! somehow it lacked the Wow! recall we ate this at Wo Peng restaurant on lunar 4th day, he remarked that he already lost count how many times he'd eaten Yu Sheng just for this year!

here you see is from a Neighbourhood Coffee Shop. Takeaway, for less than $20, there're more than 10 types of ingredients exclude the Salmon. in addition there're 2 Good Luck Oranges, an empty Ang Pow with 4D nos written on it, 10 sets of bamboo chopsticks & plastic spoons. not all takeaway provides such.

taste is acceptable. it's not bad. well through restaurants you'll expect to pay at least double! 

today is lunar 1st 15th day also known as Chap Goh Meh. officially it's the last day to eat Yu Sheng. but some outlets in Chinatown sell a simpler version usually with Wolf Herring throughout the year.

Happy Chap Goh Meh 2013.

Prosperity Fish

my hokkien friends told me usually they eat Fa Cai fish on the 2nd day of lunar new year for Prosperity reason. this period such Rabbit Fish or White Stomach fish come in very large shoal. in other time, cantonese call it Lai-Monk.

during such festival, the fresh ones in 2013, sell at about $2.50 a kg. frozen type is around $3 to 4 for a packet of 6 or 7 fish. 

for cny it's usually done in the steam way. often eggs are found in its stomach. it's a delicacy.

Kong Hei Fatt Choy

Sake A Different Drink

last drank sake was 20 years ago with a mr goh in a japanese restaurant. long forgotten its taste but not the friendship!

this bottle by the name Nan, meaning South in Chinese, was a gift by dennis 2 years ago for a special occasion. i waited for 2 years for the Right Occasion to open it. 

according to internet data, Nan this particular bottle is Premium Grade. on its label, 720ml, alcohol content: 16%, made in oct 2010 etc. several friends who are good at their own drinks mentioned that chilled it, heat it or drink straight; best to consume at one go. who to follow?

about 10am, feb 9, 2013, i put it in the fridge. around 1.30 we started Reunion Lunch. the fine china cup paired the rice wine perfectly. we'd raw fish salad (yusheng), roast meat/duck/chicken, & claypot treasure (poon choy). Smooth but Tasteless. i drink wine & hard liquor. drank 4 cups but still tasteless & no kick.

about 7pm, i took it out again from the fridge. Ah! can smell the aroma. it tasted better. drank 3 cups.
today, chinese new year 2nd day, dinner with it. Wow! better aroma & taste. felt the kick! drank 3 cups. 

my suggestion: it should be chilled for about 24 hours for its aroma & real taste & kick to appear. it has no bubble or sparkling effect, no strong aroma as in wine, no strong bite as in hard liquor. it's a totally different type of drink.

a relative made good rice wine in the old days for cooking. she said many traditional customs need to be observed for good rice wine eg the lady who's having her normal health issue must not make rice wine, auspicious date/time needed etc. the making of Sake in Japan also have many traditional rules to follow.

Enjoy Your Drink. Toast!

Luk Yu Chinatown Point

good friend Lee was attracted to the Bamboo Calm offer of the newly opened Luk Yu restaurant at Chinatown Point. name after the famous tea-maker of dynasty time, our Jasmine Tea was really Good!

most of the tim-sum are base on each piece price. 2nd pic showed Scallop Dumpling $1.80 per pc. we'd 2 pcs, 1 pc bamboo calm, 1 bowl of mushroom soup (v small for 1), 1 plate of pork ribs, pork knuckle, 1 pc goose web with sea-cucumber  & mushroom, & 1 plate of fried simple veg E-mee (enough for 3). all in costed us about $68 for 2 pax Lunch.

service was good. tea was nice. area was large. food choices quite limited.

impressed by the Ceiling Top of the new Chinatown Point!

Good Drinks To Share

from my pte collection i've the following to offer. if you're keen pse email me at mastercheong@gmail.com & offer your best price.

A) Wine:

  1. 2002  Cuvee Prestige Chateau La Bourree
  2. 2004  Vin Francais French Full Red (1L)
  3. 2005  Domaine Huet Vouvray (France)
  4. 2005  Casa Leona Chardonnay (Chile)
  5. 2006  Oyster Bay Sauvignon Blanc (NZ)
  6. 2008  Mud House Pinot Noir (NZ)
  7. 2008  Jacob's Creek Riesling (Aust)
  8. 2008  Wolf Blass Yellow Label Moscato (Aust)
  9. 2008  Wyndham Estate Bin 555 Shiraz (Aust)
10. 2009  Wyndham Estate Bin 333 Pinot Noir (Aust)


B) Hard Liquor 1L

1.  Martell VSOP   (20 years or older)
2.  Remy Martin VSOP  (20 years or older)
3.  Camus XO  (20 years or older)
4.  Johnnie Walker Black Label  (10 years or older)
5.  Chivas Regal (10 years or older)