The Real Deal

Hey guys!

I'm gonna introduce you all to something I look forward to every year and have to privilege of omnomnoming at least once a year. It's....

IPOH HOR FUN

Fun

fun

fun

FROM IPOH.

Oh

Because I go up to Ipoh every Chinese New Year and maybe if there are other occasions that bring my family there, this is something I always look forward to. 

It's this small road side shop called Nam Fatt and they probably have the best Ipoh Hor Fun and freshest YTF (Yong Tau Foo) I have ever had. If you think Old Town White Coffee has the real stuff, shit just got more real. (Old Town originates from Ipoh by the way).

These are the stuff my family usually orders:

Usually my parents and I will start the meal off with this tangy tongue warm-up - Sour plum juice ( or "kat zai" in canto). Really refreshing and a good complement to the salty food that's about to arrive.

Le Ipoh Hor Fun - choose between dry and soup. I like the dry one. All it needs is a touch of their home-made chilli :) Sometimes one portion isn't enough, even for me. So especially if you're a big eater, yeah.

I love the deco hehe. My favourite and just the right amount - spring onion and shallots

Tau geh!! (bean sprouts in English, "ngah choi" in cantonese) I sense many people cringing. As if the tau geh in the Hor Fun itself is not enough, I do spam it even more. It really adds a punch with the crunch... lol

The YTF - inside: green chilli & tau foo with fish in it. If you're a huge fan of spiciness like me, try dipping the green chilli in the red home-made chilli. Zai max.

Fried indulgences - Bitter gourd and wanton

Gizzard ball. I'm not an eater of unconventional parts but my dad loves it so must be real good. I like the soup, very peppery. But they could go a little easier on the pepper.

Nam Fatt

This shop goes back about 26 years and they've revolutionised step by step (environment wise, not food wise. Food is still the same old authentic). When they installed the air-con (which is a pretty big deal in the rural... okay not that rural... Ipoh), it was such a blessing. 

BUT WAIT. 

NOW

They have...

WIFI!!!

Talk about first world pains/addictions.

Now you can eat AND surf at the same time. Which is fricks awesome when I don't have roaming and perpetually depend on an available hotspot. 

Okay, so if you're ever around the area (which I highly doubt because Ipoh is a  really really old town and it only has domestic flights, which is already a great improvement, compared to the 7 hour drive from Singapore), but if you are ever there, this is a must-try. Or if you go on a food hunt around Malaysia, this is the way to go; alongside Penang Laksa. 

Hope you guys enjoyed this. 

Just wanted to share one of my favourite things about my grandparents' home town. 

:)

Love and/for Food

Hi lovers of the world!

Happy post Valentine's Day :)

This year was probably the most tummy-satisfying celebration ever because Keith and I just all outed on meals. Hehe. Enjoy the pictures!

OMNOMNOMNOMNOMNOMNOMNOMNOMNOMNOMNOMNOMNOMNOM

Breakfast!

Jones at Dempsey Hill

Breakfast BLT

 Super yummy! The spinach goes really well with the juicy yet crispy bacon. Fresh, sumptuous breakfast. At first the ratio of spinach to bacon looks quite vast but it ended up just right. 

Coconut pancakes with maple syrup and vanilla ice-cream

For all the sweet-teethed babies, this is the one for you. I think my photo doesn't do justice to the pancakes. The pancakes are like 1 inch-thick so they're really nice to bite and can absorb the syrup really nicely. And they leave a coconut after taste. Shiok da. 

For lunch we went to Manhattan Fish Market and since we were going to eat a big dinner as well I decided to hold back on the detoxifying dishes.

Spaghetti Aglio Olio

Fish & Cheese

Cheezzzz

THE HIGHLIGHT!

Went to Chili's for the first time. Had to queue pretty long but it was totally worth it. Ended up sitting at the bar because the restaurant itself had no more seats. 

Full rack of ribs with corn on the cob and mashed potatoes on the side

The sauce for half the rack was honey-glazed/barbecued/baked haha I forgot la honey something and the other half rack was barbecue. Oh... so good, not dry at all, just juicy enough. Haven't eaten ribs in a really long time so this was... top of the charts. 

Foodgasm...

Totally devoured everything. The sides were damn good as well. No quality dip there:) Ahh... the mashed potatoes, the mushrooms in the mashed potatoes, the corn, the cob... lol.

Highlighted with strawberry and mango mojitos

This is Yusoff the bartender. Perks of sitting at the bar is we got free refills! And he's a joker too. 

Then we ended the night with ice-skating cause I got free tickets over a 98.7 radio comp!

Disco Night at The Rink; Nice lights :)

More photos from the day

Haha the sneaky eye

Bye!

Fresh from my travels!

Sawadeecap.

I'm back from Bangkok!

Now I really understand what 'Shop 'til you drop means'.

So here's a rough overview of what we covered over the 4 days:

Day 1

• Head from airport to hotel

Thais (or maybe just those in Bangkok) are very good drivers. Their aiming is like wtf?! When we were in the minibus, people can walk as close as like, right next to our window, like a boss. It's totally normal for them and surprisingly (or not) there was not one accident. I was thinking, 'You're supposed to give pedestrians and cyclists AMPLE CLEARANCE!!' (damn BTT) but no it's not necessary here 'cause Thais are cool like that.

• Check in at Pratunam Pavilion 

Most people didn't know where Pratunam Pavilion was because it's really new and tucked away into some dodgy corner. BUT, I strongly recommend this hotel. It's situated at the end of Pratunam Market and is within walking distance of Platinum Mall and Baiyoke Sky Hotel. Despite it's dark alley-ish location, the inside is very comfortable, clean and cheap! Siew Yin and I shared a twin bed room which was connected to Claudia and Tim's queen bed room. They also provide complimentary Tuk Tuk services to nearby places (very nearby only though...like 2 minutes away kinda thing).

Just us in our very nice room before embarking on our adventures 

Stocking up

Okay enough of my advertising...

• Shopping @ Pratunam Market 

Kekeke

Day #1 Buys

Likabause.

• Dinner time!!

Only cost each of us about SGD$9!

 AND WE HAVE OUR WINNERS FOR THE WHOLE TRIP!

This mango salad is soooo good omnomnom. It's sour but with a tinge of sweetness from the mango, a little tangy from the onions and has different layers of crunchy from the vegetables and peanuts. And it's spicey! Sssss

Fried crab with curry IT'S TOO SHIOK ALR I DIED 

• Thai massage 

Pretty okay, wish the masseuse pressed harder though, and covered more of my lower back. Other than that, Thai massage is a must-try because they really covered many many muskles and the atmosphere was nua max.

Day 2

• Breakfast buffet @ the hotel (omg so early, holiday not supposed to be waking up before 8am...)
• Off to MBK via BTS!

MBK is just like 2 MRT stops away (including an interchange) from our hotel area. 

If you're looking for genuine imitation bags and wallets, this is the go-to place. :)

80 baht all you can eat Thai buffet! (The catch: it's vegan) But still shiok and super super spicey. I died.

• Headed to Silom area to chill while Timothy went for his massage. After eating we seriously just sat and enjoyed not moving. 

• Next was Patpong Night Market

This is haggling heaven. Quality of bags is definitely not as good as MBK but you can find many exotic and interesting accessories and deco here. When bargaining just don't go too low a price, it'll scare the shopkeepers away. (Tested & true. Heh.)

Day #2 Buys

Day 3

• Early breakfast then took a Tuk Tuk to Platinum Mall

Okay we had a slight detour to this jewelry shop (that was part of the city tour that we decided to forgo for shopping. Yay! Unexpected sightseeing!) because our driver wanted to go and pick up his free petrol from there. Haha. 

Tuk tuks are high-tech ok! Surround sound system all siol. No joke.

• Platinum Mall

This place is like Bugis Street x1000. Five floors of non-stop shops and they sell a lot of sheer material stuff like Far East. You should go with more people to this place because they sell by retail (1 piece) and wholesale (2 pieces & up) prices and the wholesale prices are really wholesaliao!

Milk tea from Platinum Mall. It's really good like comparable to Eskimo standard.

View from an overhead bridge

• Back to hotel to put down our stuff then out again to MBK to buy a bag for my mommy:) 

Dinner at MBK; this steamed fish with lime sauce is the ultimate. The fish is so smooth and tangy from the lime sauce and there's just enough garlic. Awesome.

• Back to Pratuman Market for last minute shopping then to hotel to R&R

Day #3 Buys

Day 4

• Slept lika dog. While Claudia, Timothy and Swing went for breakfast again and out to Pratunam Market to shop, I slept until 11.30am.
• Checked out and had lunch at the same place where we had our dinner on the first night

Cantaloupe Juice

OMNOMNOMonomonomnom

• Manicure! (My nail polish got ruined already but oh welllll)
• Back to Singapore! 

Felt extremely tired the whole day 

Last meal at the airport! Thank you Tim, for the treat :)

Verdict:

Before

After

Awesome trip. Won't be shopping for a very long time! 

Wadecap!