EXPLORING JOO CHIAT (26 JULY 2009)
Grandpa Eddy is an ardent fan of the wanton mee stall at Tembeling Road called Hong Mao Noodle. Four mornings a week, he'll be there tucking into a bowl of wanton mee for breakfast. He said the wanton skin was so silky smooth that the flavourful wanton would literally melt in your mouth. He spoke so highly of the stall that the rest of us decided that we should have a bowl of wanton mee for Sunday brunch one day.
Two Sundays after our cruise to nowhere, we pulled up at the wanton mee stall in our MPV. We quickly found 2 tables in the coffeeshop for our whole family, but the wait for the wanton mee was horrendous. Forty-five minutes later, my noodles were still not here. I couldn't wait any longer, so I had prata instead. Ah Gong, Ah Ma, and Mommy who waited for the wanton mee weren't too impressed. Fairly ordinary noodles with an extraordinarily long wait was their verdict. Hygiene was also very poor at the stall. Sorry Grandpa Eddy! We're in no hurry to go back...
Feeling rather dissatisfied with the culinary experience, Mommy suggested that we explored the rest of Joo Chiat to see what else there was to pop into our mouths. We passed a row of very pretty conservation shophouses, an old Chinese shop which sold cane furniture, and an equally ancient Chinese bakery. By the time we got to East Coast Road, we were all very sweaty and pining for something cold.
An icy dessert would be perfect, so Grandpa Eddy suggested having chendol at Glory Catering on East Coast Road. He ordered a round of chendol and an assortment of Nonya kueh for everyone. Mommy and I both liked sticky kueh with 9 layers of colours.
A little further down the road was Gina's Vadai stall in a coffeeshop called Carlton Restaurant. Grandpa Eddy loved vadai and he reckoned this stall had the best in Singapore. The rest of us had never tried vadai before, so Grandpa Eddy bought some for us to sample. It was sinfully oily but flavourful. I liked it!
On the other side of the road, we stumbled upon an interesting find - Katong Antique House, a museum showcasing all things Peranakan. The owner and curator of the museum, Mr Peter Wee, welcomed us in and introduced us to his wife and friend who were having lunch at the back of the shophouse. Mr Wee was fiercely proud of his Peranakan roots and he had spent about 30 years collecting Peranakan clothing, jewellery, beaded shoes, porcelain, portraits and pictures. We learnt that Keong Saik Street was named after his great grandfather. We had a nice chat with Mr Wee and his wife, and Ah Ma and Grandma Nancy bought some homemade nonya goodies from the lovely couple. We promised to re-visit one day before saying goodbye to them.
We continued walking. We passed Mary's Corner Tau Kwa Pau shop, the row of laksa stalls all laying claims to serving the original and the best Katong laksa around, and the Red House (an old-fashioned confectionery which has since been hoarded up because the building is dangerously close to collapsing). No traditional cream cakes for me... but we did come across some really cute terrapins in a tub. All in all, it was an interesting day-out.
Grandpa Eddy is an ardent fan of the wanton mee stall at Tembeling Road called Hong Mao Noodle. Four mornings a week, he'll be there tucking into a bowl of wanton mee for breakfast. He said the wanton skin was so silky smooth that the flavourful wanton would literally melt in your mouth. He spoke so highly of the stall that the rest of us decided that we should have a bowl of wanton mee for Sunday brunch one day.
Two Sundays after our cruise to nowhere, we pulled up at the wanton mee stall in our MPV. We quickly found 2 tables in the coffeeshop for our whole family, but the wait for the wanton mee was horrendous. Forty-five minutes later, my noodles were still not here. I couldn't wait any longer, so I had prata instead. Ah Gong, Ah Ma, and Mommy who waited for the wanton mee weren't too impressed. Fairly ordinary noodles with an extraordinarily long wait was their verdict. Hygiene was also very poor at the stall. Sorry Grandpa Eddy! We're in no hurry to go back...
Feeling rather dissatisfied with the culinary experience, Mommy suggested that we explored the rest of Joo Chiat to see what else there was to pop into our mouths. We passed a row of very pretty conservation shophouses, an old Chinese shop which sold cane furniture, and an equally ancient Chinese bakery. By the time we got to East Coast Road, we were all very sweaty and pining for something cold.
An icy dessert would be perfect, so Grandpa Eddy suggested having chendol at Glory Catering on East Coast Road. He ordered a round of chendol and an assortment of Nonya kueh for everyone. Mommy and I both liked sticky kueh with 9 layers of colours.
A little further down the road was Gina's Vadai stall in a coffeeshop called Carlton Restaurant. Grandpa Eddy loved vadai and he reckoned this stall had the best in Singapore. The rest of us had never tried vadai before, so Grandpa Eddy bought some for us to sample. It was sinfully oily but flavourful. I liked it!
On the other side of the road, we stumbled upon an interesting find - Katong Antique House, a museum showcasing all things Peranakan. The owner and curator of the museum, Mr Peter Wee, welcomed us in and introduced us to his wife and friend who were having lunch at the back of the shophouse. Mr Wee was fiercely proud of his Peranakan roots and he had spent about 30 years collecting Peranakan clothing, jewellery, beaded shoes, porcelain, portraits and pictures. We learnt that Keong Saik Street was named after his great grandfather. We had a nice chat with Mr Wee and his wife, and Ah Ma and Grandma Nancy bought some homemade nonya goodies from the lovely couple. We promised to re-visit one day before saying goodbye to them.
We continued walking. We passed Mary's Corner Tau Kwa Pau shop, the row of laksa stalls all laying claims to serving the original and the best Katong laksa around, and the Red House (an old-fashioned confectionery which has since been hoarded up because the building is dangerously close to collapsing). No traditional cream cakes for me... but we did come across some really cute terrapins in a tub. All in all, it was an interesting day-out.
posted by jinjin at 8:20 AM
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