Singapore in a weekend - on the bourdain trail

I prepared myself before my weekend trip to Singapore by watching Bourdain in Singapore. I decided before I went that my weekend would only involve hawker markets, the restaurants had no appeal to me when there was so much good street food to be had!

Sweet pork ribs

Fried Garlic prawns

I pitched my accommodation at a Hotel 81 Joo Chiat, in the heart of the Geylang district. Singapore is a funny place. As you arrive at the airport you are greeted with a sign that should you overstay your visa, you will be beaten with a Rattan Cane. Pornography is banned in Singapore yet prostitution is legal. The Geylang area was a hotbed for expats and backpackers to stay: the streets were filled with internet cafes, strip clubs and on every block was also a hawker centre. I arrived late on a Friday night and found myself in a windowless room in Hotel 81 (a decision I regretted the next morning, as I felt like I was sleeping in a morgue). Not wishing to spend much time in the sweatbox I quickly headed out and let my nose direct me. I found a small hawker centre around the corner. There was a few options for the stands: noodles, Italian or seafood. It was open air, the décor was simple: it didn’t look thrilling. I ordered deep fried garlic tiger prawns and pork ribs with rice (see two images below). The prawns were amazing. The shell was crispy, the garlic flavour really penetrated into the succulent prawns and I ended up eating everything – head, shell and all. Such a simple meal with a beer cost me around USD 12, great value!

The next day I decided to check out the fabled Chicken Rice at Tian Tian, Maxwell Road. Bourdain was very impressed by this. I came expecting something rather heavenly but the reality was just a modest dish. That’s what Chicken Rice is: home comfort food. It is what dumplings is to the people of Northern China, what Macaroni Cheese is to Americans and what Pie and gravy is to the British. At first sight, you have fragrant chicken that has been simmered in an aromatic broth. In reality, it is of a torso part (not from the breast/legs) with minimal meat on it, served with some rice and small amount of vegetables (see below). Not exquisite dining, but I can see why Singaporeans might miss this on prolonged absences away from the country. Maxwell road is a good hawker centre with many options and a recommended place to visit.

Tian Tian stand

Chicken rice!

In the evening I went to tackle Sup Tulang (Haji Tadir) at another hawker centre near Geylang. Tulang is lamb bones simmered in a fierce red curry sauce – invented in Singapore by the Muslims from the Indian subcontinent. When Bourdain tackled it, it was a pretty messy affair – eating with the hands so I came prepared with wet wipes. I ordered a bowl of Tulang with some Prathi bread (there were about small shanks), and sat down next to an Indonesian family to eat. It troubled me to define what I was actually supposed to eat – the meat on the bones were rather minimal. Do I tackle the soft cartilage or try and scoop out bone marrow with my knife? Or do I just enjoy the fiery red curry with my bread? I ended up holding the bone with both hands, pulling what I can off with my teeth. My face was smeared with sauce on every contact. Keeping western etiquette was impossible. The Indonesian family next to me observed with keen interest, their rather dignified meal of assorted rice and meat seemed a hierarchy above the madmen next to them chomping away. Eventually I got through all 6 shanks and had used all the Prathis to scoop the sauce up. By this point, I was a sweaty heap – the humidity of Singapore and the curry attacking me with a double edged sword. Emerging from my victory, the father of the family next to me gave me a smile and a big thumbs up. I smiled back. I left feeling that there perhaps should have been a point to eating Tulang – either for meat, marrow, or just the sauce (rich in flavour and marrow), but the particular vendor I ate at only presented the last option. A fun dish to eat with friends and have an adventure over (as long as they dont mind getting messy). Or one to tackle by yourself when no one familiar is watching...

Calm before the storm - Tulang

The carnage

During my final day, I roamed around the markets in the old Chinatown area and then saw the pretty Marina. It was nice and tranquil. A pure hybrid of East and West - Pasta and burger joints in a steamy tropical port. Interesting to see. But didn't have my appetite racing. I headed off once again in a cab to find a hawker market for food. I really craved roast pork. Instead, I found a recently emigrated Chinese couple running a pancake (bing) stand which caught my eye. Simple stuff from my homeland in the North of China: Pan cooked flour buns with chives and egg. Served with some suspicious sausages. My mum hasn't made the buns for years so I really enjoyed them.

Egg and chive buns, with Chinese red sausage

And that was all I had time for. I really liked the place. A jewel in SE Asia