Chinatown (Singapore)

Another favorite place of mine in Singapore is Chinatown. And just like Bugis I like it there because I can go crazy shopping and do food binges without worrying much about my budget.

Here's my (most) favorite food in Singapore. Mee-goreng (minus the chili).

And because I am matakaw I also had some sweet pork.

And Sweetie had some yummy prawns.

To burn off all the calories we ingested we walked around Chinatown and found some interesting stuff. We managed to resist shopping though and just got a magnet for our fridge.

Price range: food SG$4 and above; pasalubong stuff you can buy by bulk, magnets cost at least SG$2 or you can get 6 at SG$10, nice dresses at SG$15 and above, lots of Chinese delicacies sold per pack and by weight

Must have: Mee-goreng!

Can do without: the barbecue slathered with chili!

How to get to Chinatown: just get off at Chinatown MRT, walk around and you'll find A LOT of stuff

Makansutra Gluttons Bay (Singapore)

Makasutra Gluttons Bay reminded me a lot of a similar food place in Jakarta that we dined at about a decade ago. The place is open air and littered with chairs and tables and just a stone throw away from the bay. Food stalls line one side of the place. Then you can just select fresh meat/seafood/veggies and have it cooked your way (or choose from their menu). 

Sweetie and I hang out with his friend and chatted the evening away. I wasn't feeling so adventurous that night so I just had some steak. Sweetie had some fish and Christine got some yummy oysters. The beverage stall also made one of the best milk teas I've sampled so I had 2 glasses that night! Ummmhmmm! Nomnomnom.

Price range: approx. SG$4 per dish, the steak was around SG$12 and beverages cost around SG$1.30

Must try: the oysters and the iced tea with milk

Lakwatsera's Rating: definitely a great place to hang out in

Makansutra Gluttons Bay (map)

Raffles Avenue, Esplanade Mall

Singapore

The Merlion

I'll tell you a secret.

The photo above? That's the closest I've been to the Merlion in Singapore.

Yup. Unbelievable noh. Considering the many number times I've gone to Singapore in the past 7 years.

I just never had the time. During our trip, Sweetie actually went to see the Merlion twice. He went back because his camera's memory card was corrupted and so he lost his photos. And me? Poor me didn't have the time again to go.

I did manage to see the one in Sentosa. Yay!

Bugis Junction (Singapore)

One of my favorite places in Singapore is Bugis Junction.

At the ground level there are a lot of stalls selling anek-anek (a.k.a. girl stuff) like trinkets, shawls, watches, bags etc. and unique finds. I remember buying a lot of stuff from the stalls there, an apple trinket, cool spoon & fork earrings and many more. I also always end up buying shirts for my boys at the boutiques and enjoy window shopping for clothes at the upper level stores (I try to resist buying for myself!).

When I'm done shopping I just usually head over to the food court and choose whatever I fancy. There's Japanese, Chinese, Indian, Italian and other cuisines. Last time I was there with Sweetie I had pasta since we already had Japanese, Chinese, Indian and Thai food and my tummy was already acting up heh.

Here's the pasta I had.

And Sweetie's pepper-something dish.

Price range: for shopping, depends what you want to buy, trinkets go for as low as a dollar; food would cost you at least SG$5 a dish, depending on what you want to eat, beverages at SG$1.30 a glass

Lakwatsera's Rating: favorite place of mine, I usually go every time I manage to go to Singapore and oftentimes cross to Bugis Night Market for additional pasalubong shopping

To get here: get off at Bugis MRT

Ocean Curry Fish Head (Singapore)

Spicy food make my eyes water and oftentimes red, but there's one place all over the world where I couldn't resist eating something spicy. It's at Ocean Curry Fish Head in Singapore.

You'd be surprised with this tiny resto. It's located at a corner at the central business district. In local terms you'd probably say that it's a carinderia since the place is open, you can choose food from a windown, they just use fans for ventilation and you just sit on monobloc chairs.

I honestly wrinkled my nose the first time I went there. BUT. As the saying goes, "Don't judge a book by its cover."

This dish.

Curry fish head.

Is to die for. And no matter how spicy it is I will still eat it and will likely be the ONLY curry dish I will eat.

What are you waiting for? Go! Now!

Price range: not really sure how much the dish costs (it's a huge bowl), but we usually go as a big group and spend approximately SG$10 each (including other viands, rice and drink)

Must have: curry fish head!

Can do without: the barley drink

Lakwatsera's rating: need I say more? Go. There. Now.

Ocean Curry Fish Head (map)
181 Telok Ayer Street
Singapore
(You can walk from Tanjong Pagar MRT)

Mos Burger (Singapore)

Some friends based in Singapore have been recommending Mos Burger to me. I never had the time to try it out in the past though, but luckily Sweetie and I chanced upon it during our trip. We were already tired and hungry and a bit lost (was looking for Pepper Lunch again) when we passed by the shop at the basement 1 of Ngee Ann City.

I would say that Mos Burger's burgers is on a different level. It's not your usual fast-food burger fix. I ordered for the Mos cheeseburger and was surprised that it had salsa (or whatever it was) in it. It was yummy!

Sweetie, on the other hand, tried out the rice burger with scallops (limited time availability). He said that it was "interesting" and was okay. I was unfortunately too weirded out to try it out haha.

Their beverage cup reminded me of Twitter :)

Food price range: SG$2 and up

Must try: the bestseller Mos Burger cheeseburger (I'll probably try out other burgers next time)

The Lakwatsera's Rating: I'll definitely swing by Mos Burger again when I get the chance to go back to Singapore. I'm actually craving for a cheeseburger now.

Mos Burger
B1 Ngee Ann City
Orchard Road,
Singapore

Victoria Street Hawker Center

One of the things I made sure that Sweetie would try out was to dine at a Singapore hawker center. Hawker Center is the term they use for "food court". Hawker centers can be found in a lot of places in Singapore and is an open place (no aircon). You will also find a good variety of food, Chinese to Indian, mostly spicy. You can also choose from a wide array of beverages, most of it fresh. I certainly love the water chestnut drink (tastes like our local gulaman drink) and teh tarik (iced tea with milk).

Here's what we had after hearing mass at the Cathedral of Good Shepherd -

Some sweet pork

Chicken with vegetables

We failed to get some hainanese chicken, THE must eat food in Singapore. I tried it though in past trips (when I was still NOT allergic to chicken) and it's yummy. Locally Henry's Place at Burgos Circle serves this yummy dish too.

Food price range: SG$3 to $7 depending on the serving size

Must have: hainanese chicken, there's a wide variety of food anyway so just choose whatever you like, it won't disappoint; also get some of those water chestnut drinks

Cathedral of Good Shepherd (Singapore)

I've been in and out of Singapore for more than 7 years now and my trips usually include a Sunday. It was my Kuya who first brought me to the Cathedral of Good Shepherd to hear mass many years ago.

The cathedral is the oldest Catholic church in Singapore and that's probably why it's constantly under renovation (or maybe it just coincides with my trips). I noticed in the past years that the there are more and more people hearing mass at this church and it was packed when Sweetie and I went during our trip.

I also love the fact that the church is just nearby Chimes, City Hall MRT station and Bugis! And that's the reason why I always end up staying at Carlton Hotel :)

Cathedral of Good Shepherd
Queen St. cor. Bras Basah Road,
Singapore
(mass schedule)

Koh Grill and Sushi Bar (Singapore)

When Sweetie and I arrived in Singapore we had to rush to an appointment and wasn't able to have any lunch. The airplane food was soggy and wasn't interesting at all to eat. Good thing we had some time to grab some food from the hospital food court, but we were still hungry.

From Glen Eagles Hospital we walked to Orchard Road. Wanted to eat at Pepper Lunch but it unfortunately moved again! Since we were both very tired already we decided to head to the nearest food court and thought that Japanese food would be safe (we both don't eat spicy food), so we chose Koh Grill and Sushi Bar.

Here's the yummy food we had:

It's located in a food court (near the escalator and drinks shop).

Katsudon.

Egg maki (I wanted California maki but I'm now allergic to crab).

Fish and tempura bento meal.

Must have: Green tea iced tea (it's refreshing!); food is standard Japanese

Food price range: ave. SG$9-12

The Lakwatsera's Rating: I always end up in the Wisma Atria food court every time I go to Singapore because I usually find myself to tired to scout for a resto to try out (due to all the shopping). Been trying different stalls every time I go and it hasn't disappointed so far.


Koh Grill and Sushi Bar
Wisma Atria
Orchard Road, Singapore