A whole lot of cookin’ and eatin’ in Singapore

Ask any traveler what they remember most about Singapore, and he/she will surely answer one of two things: shopping and eating. July’s a great month to be at the Lion City. Even if the Merlion is taking a much needed shower – I kid you not, he’s covered by a huge shower curtain as workers give him a new paint job – the fun doesn’t end in Singapore. The months of June and July are the time for the Great Singapore Sale, while the whole month of July is the season for the Singapore Food Festival. Any traveler who has shopping and food in mind should head out here for a world of good deals.

With the chili crab at the center of this year’s Singapore Food Festival – it has been officially named as Singapore’s national food – there’s no mistaking that tourists will be deep in chili crabs all over the city. The Singapore Tourism Board will be giving all tourists a chili crab voucher to make sure they get to sample this dish that’s close to every Singaporean’s heart.

The Singapore Tourism Board recently invited members of Philippine media to sample some of Singapore’s best cooking. Here’s what we discovered.

If it’s Singapore’s hawker food that excites you, there are lots of hawker’s centers all over Singapore to satisfy your craving. For seafood and grills and a little Singaporean night life, head off to Newton Food Center. But for daily, hearty fare, Maxwell Food Center is the place to visit.

Maxwell Food Center is just a stone’s throw away from Chinatown, which is almost always on everybody’s itinerary. Service is quick and efficient, the premises are spic and span – hey, don’t forget this is Singapore – and the food is dirt cheap.

An ordinary meal costs anywhere from $2 to $3. Roast duck or chicken rice meals go for $2.50, while a bowl of laksa, that spicy all-in-one noodle dish, can be had for $2. A glass of soymilk goes for $1.50, while my favorite dessert of ruby red, water chestnut bits encased in tapioca and served on thinly-shaved ice and lots of coconut cream, is a cheap $2. By the time you stand up from the table to continue with the day’s shopping, you’re full; you might as well call for a truck to haul you back to your hotel.

At any hawker’s or food center, you will find Singapore’s 10 must-try dishes, and if you haven’t tried all 10 yet, then these food centers are the best places to try them all.

Here’s the list: chili crab and black pepper crab; Hainanese chicken rice; bak kuh teh; fried carrot cake; char kway teow; satay; laksa; fish head curry; roti prata; and rojak.

Black pepper crab is Singapore’s other popular crab dish. While chili crab comes with a thick and creamy spicy sauce, black pepper crab is pan-roasted dry with black pepper corns, which give it its fiery flavor.

Bak kuh teh (pork rib tea) is an acquired taste. Pork ribs are boiled until tender in a broth of Chinese herbs and garlic. If you want it hot and spicy, crush the garlic into the soup. Just think of a flavorful pork nilaga and you’re not off the mark.

Roti prata is a light and fluffy bread that comes with a curry dip. It makes for a truly delightful quick breakfast. Rojak is a popular local salad that mixes crunchy fruits, vegetables and meats, like cucumber, turnip, banana flower, bean sprouts, fried bean curd, fritters, cuttlefish, pineapple, mango and green apples, in a rich, thick dressing of prawn paste, tamarind extract, fresh lime, and chili powder.

Singapore’s 10 must-try dishes may be easy to find at any food center, but you will have to wake up early to sample Singapore’s popular breakfast treat: kaya toast.

Kaya toast is thin bread toasted to a crisp and spread with a generous dollop of kaya and a pat of butter. Think matamis na bao – that’s kaya, but the spread is made flavorful with pandan and heartier with eggs.

Kaya toast often comes with soft-boiled eggs. A dash of soy sauce and ground black pepper completes the eggs. You may eat the eggs with a spoon or use your toast instead. There are no rules, so long as you enjoy yourself.

Toast Box is one of the newer breakfast places in Singapore. Malls often open at 10 a.m., but if there’s a Toast Box inside, it will be open to serve you breakfast. Other breakfast savories it serves are: otah thick toast (fish floss on crispy thick toast); hebi hiam soft bun (small shrimps fried with chili and spices and sandwiched in a soft bun); floss thick bun (savory pork floss topped on toast with evaporated milk); and yuan yang (coffee and tea in one cup, in case you can’t make up your mind). You can also try the nasi lemak, rice cooked in coconut milk served with a fried dried fish and a sambal sauce. To say that spicy sauce will wake up every sleeping cell in your body is an understatement, but it surely packs a wallop.

If Singaporean food excites you, then head off to StraitsKitchen at the Grand Hyatt Singapore. This is your hawker’s center raised to gourmet levels. With its open kitchen setup, diners can choose what they want from the restaurant’s Chinese, Indian, and Malay kitchens. If you’re wondering how they make your favorite Singaporean dish, the Hyatt’s chefs will show you. Everything here is certified halal and made from scratch, assuring diners of only the best.

With a 260-seating capacity, StraitsKitchen is one of Singapore’s more popular restaurants. The interiors of exotic woods, assorted colored glass bottles, and vintage photographs give a feel of old Singapore. Indeed, among its recommendations are traditional Singaporean dishes, like laksa, fried hor fun, mee goreng, nasi goreng, carrot cake, prawn mee soup, Hainanese chicken rice, roast duck and chicken, fish ball noodle soup, steamed whole fish. Indian favorites include roti prata, naan, chicken tikka, curries, and briyani rice.

What trip to Singapore is complete without a trip to the Night Safari? Make it a doubly memorable one by going on the Gourmet Safari Express. Yes, gourmet and safari are compatible words in Singapore. Picture this: You are on a train-cum-restaurant that travels through the jungle, and enjoy a five-course gourmet dinner as you admire the view of nocturnal animals.

Sounds like a good idea? It sure is.

Dinner starts with cocktails before your train ride. As you down glasses of Singapore sling and munch on chicken bakwa, buns with mayo and chicken floss, and peanut crackers, musicians entertain you with some traditional music.

Your guide then escorts you to your train where the gourmet continues. As the train lurches in the dark, you are served rojak with sun-dried cuttlefish, crabmeat fritters, and salmon sashimi. After a short ride, the train takes a detour to a feeder road where busy chefs ready the rest of dinner.

You can get off the train and watch the chefs busy themselves preparing your dinner. That night, we had goose and calf’s liver satay with peanut sauce, essence of chicken with abalone kut teh style, and Hainanese chicken rice. Dessert is served when the train starts moving again: cold cheng tng (sweet dessert) with bird nest, assorted nonya cakes, pineapple tart, and coffee or tea. By the time dinner’s done, the train ride ends, too, and you’re just ready to go back to your hotel room to sleep off that wonderful dinner.

Any trip to Singapore should include a walk through Boat Quay and Clarke Quay. Boat Quay can get really crowded with its row of restaurants competing for a tourist’s attention, but it does have its charm. Clarke Quay, which is just a stone’s throw away, is much more sedate. Here, dining is much quieter and the restaurants are bit more upscale.

Those looking for a taste of traditional and contemporary Chinese should try Peony-Jade.

Peony-Jade is the only modern Chinese restaurant at Clarke Quay. Located on the first floor of a converted heritage godown, it has a view of the Singapore River. Going up a flight of red-carpeted stairs, diners are greeted by an elegant dining area with plush décor and a contemporary backdrop.

The restaurant serves Szechuan cooking, complemented by a selection of Cantonese favorites. One reason why you should drop by Peony-Jade is that it offers award-winning dishes. Its executive chef Cheah Kok Lai won first place in Chinese category of "New Dish Creation 2006" for his Singa lobster in golden coconut. He also won first place in the "New Dish Creation 2005" for his prawns in bean curd phyllo with fresh fruit. Those award-winning dishes are surely worth the trip.

For the ultimate decadent treat, a stop at Crazy Horse Paris is imperative. For $85, you get to see Paris’ popular topless show here in Asia.

Crazy Horse’s Oh Chee Eng said you have to fork out 250 euros just to see the show in Paris, France; but that won’t guarantee you a good seat. In Singapore, you get the seat that you pay for. For a front row seat, complete with a half-bottle of Moët & Chandon champagne, you just have to shell out $250.

Of course, you have to feed the stomach first before you feed the mind with the artistic show inside. That means dinner, of course. At Le Restaurant at the second floor of the Crazy Horse establishment, you can enjoy a three-, four- or five-course European set menu. The restaurant is a marvel in itself. It has plush interiors in red, gold, and black that gets you in the mood for the show downstairs. The three-course dinner menu is priced at $55, the four-course at $70, and the five-course at $80. It even offers a lunch set menu.

We tried the three-course menu, and it was as opulent as we expected it to be. The duck confit pasta was heavy with the scent of truffles, while the appetizer of cheese-stuffed Parma ham was really tasty.

No matter your reasons for going to Singapore, chances are you’ll be feasting on its culinary offerings. And yes, you’ll be spoilt for choices.

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For details on the Singapore Food Festival, log on to www.singaporefoodfestival.com.