TOBY'S The Dessert Asylum

This impromptu trip to Toby's had kind of surprised me that their menu had extended to fit the local's taste bud in selling Kopi and Toasts set for breakfast as well as selling the local's Curry Rice and Noodles. I thought what a big switch from those Pasta and Western Food that had already been there!

TOBY'S The Dessert Asylum

Nonetheless. we had the Buddy Meal for the choice of 2 mains that comes free with drinks at $11 Nett without ordering the pasta or western food.

Buddy Meal

The Curry Rice will cost $6.90 per plate if we are taking ala carte, without the buddy meal. The meal was simple with a slab of Pork Cutlet chopped uniformly into sizes, a sunny side up egg and braised vegetables.

Pork Cutlet Curry Rice

The curry rice was executed in the Hainanese Style way where rice was both drenched in curry sauce as well as black braised sauce. The pork chop was deep fried with rough biscuits crackers on its batter and maintained a good thickness. It looked a bit dry but they did go well with the generous amount of gravy given.

Pork Chop

The rights ratio of meat and fat from the braised pork belly was commendable. The meat was fork-tender and well braised to its brownish colour. 

Pork Belly Curry Rice

These meat were soaked in the savoury curry generously given by TOBY's.

Look at the Braised Pork Belly

Our set meal comes with 2 glasses of soft drinks and we had chosen root beer.

Drink - Rootbeer

It is a good initiative that the menu includes local meals like this. A good bargain given the hearty portions too.

Rating: 3 / 5

TOBY'S The Dessert Asylum
Location: Tradehub 21, 8 Boon Lay Way, #01-35, Singapore 609964

Tian Huat Rice Stall

After much observation that Tian Huat Rice Stall is always packed full of white and blue collars workers queuing up for their food, we decided to give it a try. With such a small stall, it's quite impressive that they whip up a variety of dishes.

Stall of Tian Huat Rice Stall

While there are so many articles of Netizen commenting about the price of mixed vegetable rice stalls, I had finally experienced it myself. While I'm expecting the rate of such rice to be pocket friendly in an old school environment coffee shop like this, this order got the shock of my life. 

It started when we were at the counter paying up, the auntie called out the payment of $8.50 and we were like "huh" then she repeated the amount. She further explained that the Prawns cost $1.50 each and only fresh prawns were used. Beats me, I only have sambal Sotong, steamed egg and the number of prawns were given as default.

Guess How Much?

While I cannot remember exactly how much this plate of rice cost, I will say that this was not cheap either. With 3 dishes, egg, meat and curry vegetables, it already cost us more than $6 per plate.

A plate of mixed vegetables and meat rice

Did we order the wrong thing? I guess it will be our first and the last time buying from this stall. If not we have to be very selective about what dishes we pick in the next round.

Rating: 3 / 5

Tian Huat Rice Stall
Location: 83 Pasir Panjang Rd, Singapore 118508

Ura Hototogisu Ramen

While running my errand at 100am, I walked past Ura Hotogogisu Ramen and was attracted by the signage that mentioned its Tokyo Michelin Guide. Founded by Michelin Starred Chef Yamamoto and has been awarded One Michelin Star for 4 Years in a row.                                                                     

Ura Hototogisu Ramen

While waiting for our bowls of Ramen, I have a cup of Ice Lemon Tea.

Ice Lemon Tea - $3

The ambience is good with warm lighting and given that the environment was classy with the wooden theme. 

Environment

Fried Tofu with Bonito Flakes was tasty and addictive as the taste was very well balanced. The flakes and the exterior of Tofu were lightly crisp and gave a special texture to the bite before our teeth sunk into the soft disintegrable tofu. 

Fried Tofu with Bonito Flakes 揚げだし豆腐(かつお節和え） - 　$4.90

The gyoza skin was thin and nice to bite on. With char sides, it gave a good crispy contrast to the soft skin with meat fillings. The fills were stuffed and the gyoza was quite fat.

Gyoza 饺子 - $4.90

The bowl of ramen was quite outstanding on the menu with the use of Oyster. The creation of Ramen uses their Signature Sawara & Genmai Cha Broth infused with notes of oysters taste.

Sawara Oyster Ramen

Garnished with Oyster paste, a brainchild of Michelin-Starred Chef Yamamoto, coupled with the Oyster Oil for deeper flavour. The aromatic Garlic butter is alluring. 

Also known as Hototogisu's Signature Ramen

The Tonkotsu Original Ramen Special version is infused with their original housemade oil and further enhanced and invokes a deep flavour. This is Hototogisu's specially crafter Tonkotsu (Pork Bone) soup. 

Tonkotsu Original Ramen (Special) - $13.90

Dumpling and Soup

The taste of Ura Hototogisu Ramen stands out and differs from other ramen chains,  however, I still find that these ramen taste decent and there are better Ramen out there.

Rating: 3 / 5

Ura Hototogisu Ramen
Location: 100AM, 100 Tras St, #01-01 Singapore 079027

Milah's Corner

After countless times driving past the main road facing this Muslim Coffeeshop in Bukit Batok, we finally took the chance to visit the place. It was a public holiday and most of the stalls were packed with long queues in front of the stall.

Stall Milah's Corner

Mee Soto was decent and topped with celery and fried onions. While I was expecting some shredded chicken in my bowl of noodles, their version was part of the chicken being chopped into smaller pieces with bone attached.

Mee Soto - $3.50

Mee Rebus tastes pretty standard with sweet peanut gravy and Kecap Manis with Tau Gua Cubes and Egg. We topped up 2 pieces of Bagedil to make the meal more filling.

Mee Rebus - $3.50

The taste of the Bagedil was quite ordinary. It had a strong potato taste and I would prefer that more spices and condiments are added to make this traditional item tastier.

Bagedil - $0.50 Each

The standard Malay noodles from Milah's Corner tasted ordinary and nothing outstanding. Will I be back again soon? Well, most probably I will be back at the same coffee shop trying out food from other stalls.

Rating: 3 / 5

Milah's Corner
Location: Blk 134 Bukit Batok West Avenue 6  #01-463 Singapore 650134

Nam Sing Hokkien Fried Mee [Closed]

The Old Airport Legendary of Singapore's Traditional Fried Hokkien Mee has its first outlet in the West after their opening at Hawker Street in ION Orchard. This popular stall in Old Airport Road has been in business since 1963.

I did not queue up this stall during my first visit as I heard that the Hokkien Mee demands a wait as long as 1.5 hours. In fact, I only got this plate of Hokkien Fried Mee by chance since it was a wet weather and there were little orders in the coffeeshop. Even though, I got to wait about 15 minutes for my portion.

Stall of Nam Sing Hokkien Fried Mee in Bukit Batok

Unlike the usual Hokkien Prawn Mee, Nam Sing's version is fried with thin strands of Bee Hoon together with round type of yellow noodles. Instead of the usual Belacan chilli, they served patrons with cut slices of red chili which is supposing the most tradtional way of savouring down a plate of Fried Hokkien Prawn mee.

Hokkien Mee - $5

The Cons of having cut chilli was said to be letting patrons enjoy the original taste of noodles without mixing them with the overpowering spiciness of the Belacan taste that comprises of the fermented shrimp paste.

See the Strands of Bee Hoon

A good part is that the prawns are already deshelled and the seafood together with the naturally sweetness of egg was all soaked up by the noodles on the plate.

Ingredients

The execution of this traditional plate of noodles slightly differs from those savoury ones we have. 

Its good that we got a plate of Nam Sing Hokkien Fried Mee after their "Novelty" period in the west as I heard that they have been improvising the version since day one of operation. For Fans of Traditional Nam Sing Hokkien Fried Mee,  now you do not have to travel all the way to Old Airport to get a taste of it.

A good mixture of Noodles & Bee Hoon

With so many types of popular Hokkien Prawn Mee we have in Bukit Batok District. Which style do you really prefer?

Here's the list of Popular Hokkien Mee Places you can get in Bukit Batok:

• Mian Wang 1971 面王一九七一
• Yong Heng Fried Squid Prawn Mee . Hokkien Mee
• 777 Fried Hokkien Prawn Mee
• The Neighbourwok 街坊

Rating: 3.25 / 5

Nam Sing Hokkien Fried Mee
Location: Blk 177 Bukit Batok West Ave 8, Singapore 650177 (Stall Visited)

                  51 Old Airport Rd, #01-32, Singapore 390051

South Buona Vista Braised Duck

The first time when I learnt that South Bouna Vista Braised Duck (South Buona Vista Road Famous Teochew Boneless Duck [Closed]) had moved to Desker Road, we drove all the way there but were left with frustrations as we made numerous rounds in the vicinity and got no parking lots.

This time, I decided to give it a try while I was in the vicinity hunting for some Heritage Challenges. They finally have a shop space of their own with simple white walls and non-elaborated furnishings. If you are looking for some Instagram worthy decorations, I'm afraid there aren't any but if you are here for their food, you are sure to bring back with a satisfying tummy.

In the shop of South Bouna Vista Braised Duck

The braised duck was savoury just like the way we like it. The starchy braised sauce was rich enough to give a good flavour to the plate of meat. To add on, the meat was tender and soft

Signature Braised Duck for 2 Pax - $12 with 2 Bowls of Porridge at $1 each

The chilli dip goes well with every item on the plate, including braised duck and cucumber. It was both sweet with a little spicy kick from the sambal and have a sour vinegar taste with some minced garlic as well as chopped chilli.

The Complete Order

If you enjoy braised items, you can order their braised egg, beancurd and beancurd skin with peanuts set.

Braised Egg, Beancurd, Beancurd Skin, Peanut Set - $4 (Small)

There are a few signature Sambal dishes that are not to be missed, namely their Sambal Kang Kong, Tofu, Prawn and Sotong.

To be honest, I felt warmth in the tummy as well as in my heart for I have been missing this taste ever since.

Sambal Kang Kong - $8 (Small)

We have ordered the cup of Homemade water chestnut to beat the heaty day. The day was so hot that we ordered 2 cups per pax.

Homemade Water Chestnut Drink - $1.80

I will say that they have maintained the "99 Bend Braised Duck Rice" standard that I used to have during my school days. If to compare the popular braised duck rice we have in Singapore, for example, Sean Kee, I will say that they are of both different levels of taste, sometimes I will miss one of them. Last but not least, there are no service charges or GST to be paid here.

Rating: 3.5 / 5

South Buona Vista Braised Duck

Location: 81 Desker Road Singapore 209604

Chin Choon Prawn Noodle 進春

We had a takeaway meal without prawns in which we ordered a box of Pig's Liver noodles and a box of pig's intestine noodles.

Pig's Liver and Intestine Noodles

The texture of the Liver was skillfully cooked to perfection whereby the boiling timing must be accurate so that the liver will not be overcooked. The texture is just of the right chewiness and was not hardened. 

Pig's Liver Noodle - $5 (Excluding Container)

The intestines and noodles tasted as good as enjoying a bowl of noodles right in the coffee shop.

Pig's Intestine Noodle (Dry) - $5 Excluding Container

I still enjoy this style of noodles tossed in black sauce coupled with fried crispy onions and some leafy greens. 

Pig's Intestine

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Posted 26th October 2021

Do you know that Chin Choon Prawn Noodle used to operate at Bukit Panjang before and closed their shop for years? If not via words of mouth, I would not have realised they have opened in Bukit Batok. They serve a Malaysian style of Prawn Noodle in a savoury black sauce that we seldom see here in Singapore.

Stall of Chin Choon

If you are looking for a unique style of prawn mee ( not those soaked with heady prawn broth tasting soup) then you are at the right place. Prawns were deveined and sliced into halves. Noodles were coated with black sauce and ingredients like fish cakes, pork slices, bean sprouts and vegetables were included. The soup is clear, tasted sweet with hints of prawn taste.

Prawn Noodle - $4

If you prefer to explore something beyond prawn noodles, there are options like Kidney, liver, pigtails and even pig intestine noodles. Apart from the $4 prawn mee, or other pig offals noodles cost $5. 

Pig's Intestine Noodle - $5

Apart from just prawn mee, kidneys were added to the bowl.

Prawn Noodle with Kidney - $6

It's often a risk to order pig offals like this. Luckily for these kidneys served, they were processed and well taken care of. No weird taste and smell over here. In addition, the texture of the kidney was perfectly done as it was not too tough to bite.

Kidney

The default portion may be too little for a man. If you want to upsize the bowl of noodles with additional items, you can do so.

Prawn Noodle with Intestine and more noodles - $6.50

Despite the change of location from Bukit Panjang, Chin Choon Prawn Noodle still draw a substantial crowd in the coffee shop.

Rating: 3.25 / 5

Chin Choon Prawn Noodle 進春
Location: 265 Bukit Batok East Ave 4, Singapore 650265