Peramakan

Thanks to The Little Nyonya, I fell in love with everything that is Peranakan. I love the kebaya. I love Jeanette Aw and Joanne Peh. I love the Peranakan food.  So when I saw Groupon offering $20 for $40 worth of food at Peramakan, I quickly took the wise action. 

Peramakan has 2 branches, one in East Coast Road and the other near Harbourfront in Keppel Club. We visited the East Coast Road after making a reservation. I love restaurants that take reservations. Because queuing is a waste of life. (PS: The East Coast outlet closed already! Now left with Keppel Club outlet)

There were a lot of choices in the menu and we took quite a while to decide because all of them sounded good. 

Babi Pontay ($14++)which is braised fatty pork was one of the dishes we ordered. Peramakan's Babi Pontay was soft and tender and the delicious bean sauce which was slightly salty enveloped in the meat.

The Chap Chye ($10++) is cabbage and other assorted vegetables cooked in a yellow sauce which was probably made from beans. Hearty and feels like homemade dish that mama can cook.

The Otah ($18++) was substantial and has a lot of ingredients - prawns, fish. We can even see the mackerel fish meat. And the prawns. It was very spicy and moist. And the portion was very big. 

Rice is $1 but it is refillable for free. Service was attentive and the waiters will refill water and rice whenever they see that my glass and plate is not filled. Overall, while the food is not heavenly but more homely, I think this place is worth a visit especially when there are special offers. 

328 Katong Laksa

Time: 3pm

Location: 328 Katong Laksa

Mission: To eat the legendary laksa that beat Gordon Ramsay.

My detective nose could smell the coconut milk and laksa fragrance in the air just a few shops ahead. The lady boss was cooking the broth. I got XS size for $5. It was really XS. Hmmm good things come in small sizes? 

The noodles were short and hence no chopsticks required, typical of nyonya laksa. What can I say? The gravy is indeed to die for. For me, it has the best balance between coconut milk and chilli spices. The umami flavour was distinct in every sip. And the sambal chilli was full of oomph - very spicy. The prawns and fish cakes were size XS too. There were also tiny prawn bits which gave a nice finishing texture to the gravy.

Even though a bit expensive for street food and the size is quite small, it is a must eat to complete my food pilgrimage. And I guess a must eat at least once in a lifetime for everyone. Mission accomplished!

Tip next time: Remember to go to the aircon room next door instead of sitting in the hot coffee shop.

Address: 216 East Coast Road Singapore 428770

Little Ice Cream Kafe (LICK)

Life is like ice-cream. Enjoy before it melts.

Ice-cream is one of my favourite foods. A pity it falls into "unhealthy" category if not I will eat it everyday. We found this Little Ice Cream Kafe, deliciously acronym-ed as "LICK" along Tanjong Katong Road, just a few shophouses after Ponggol Nasi Lemak.

Check out their website here for a list of the flavours they have! They have really interesting flavours e.g. D24 Durian, Earl Grey, Teh Tarik, Avocado, Gula Melaka, Kaya Toast and Lychee Martini. A single scoop costs $3.30, double scoop for $5.30 and triple scoop for $7.40.

I saw they do waffles too and I just had to get it. Waffles + Ice cream --> One of the most delicious things on earth!

We saw the staff having problem with the waffle machine and we got a little worried  #Fingers crossed. And they need to get more waffle machines! We waited for quite some time for our waffles. Luckily, there was free WIFI and TV to keep us occupied. 

Here's our waffle with Earl Grey and Lychee scoops ($10.10). Loved the fluffy and buttery waffles. And their scoops were of generous size! The Earl Grey ice-cream had the earl grey tea flavour and fragrance. The Lychee ice-cream was tropical and refreshing, had bits of real lychee and sweet. Strongly recommend the lychee ice-cream.

Here's the shop front.. Not sure if you are digesting the important information in the pic.. Yes LICK cafe has daily promotions on weekdays. It's quite a nice place to have desserts especially after dinner/supper at nearby Ponggol Nasi Lemak.

Address:
258 Tanjong Katong Road
Singapore 437046

Mon - Thu: 1:00 pm - 11:00 pm
Fri - Sat: 1:00 pm - 12:00 am
Sun: 1:00 pm - 11:00 pm

Ponggol Nasi Lemak @ Tanjong Katong

I actually thought that I was going to Punggol for this Nasi Lemak stall until I googled the address. Although it is named Ponggol, this Ponggol Nasi Lemak stall is located along Tanjong Katong Road instead. As if it is not confusing enough, it has two branches : the main branch in Kovan and this is the other branch in Tanjong Katong. Ponggol Nasi Lemak started in 1990 at Old Tampines Road, then moved to the now-defunct Brighton Crescent premises in 1994 and then its current two outlets.

At first sight, it might look like a coffee shop, but there is only one stall - Ponggol Nasi Lemak. There is another small drinks stall behind the Nasi Lemak stall. It is a norm that one has to stand around and wait for others to finish their food as this popular stall seems to be always fully packed.

There are no set meals. Only ala carte dishes are available as the owner wants the customers to have the freedom to choose what they like. Prices are steeper than other normal Nasi Lemak stalls, ranging from $5 to $8, depending on what you order. For instance, my personalized Nasi Lemak (below) comprising of one chicken wing, luncheon meat, fish cake, peanuts and ikan bilis cost me $5.30.

Given the wide variety of dishes available, allow me to assist you to narrow down on what I think you should order:
#1- The chicken wing is a must-order. Fried to golden crisp perfection, the chicken wing was crunchy on the outside and juicy on the inside. I am not sure what ingredient was used but I thought I tasted some prawn paste taste.
#2 - The peanuts and ikan bilis. Crunchy and crispy.
#3 - The Otah. Spicy, soft and disintegrates in the mouth.

For me, the sambal chili is the most important ingredient in Nasi Lemak and it can spoil the whole dish if it is not good. Ponggol Nasi Lemak's sambal sauce was one of the best I've eaten. I can totally eat it on its own. It was sweet, spicy and delivered the kick to the overall Nasi Lemak experience. Smile to the auntie and ask politely more sambal chili sauce (which was what I did, although my friend koped some of my extra chili sauce while I wasn't looking).  The coconut and pandan taste of the rice was aromatic and subtle, just nice and normal.

My overall rating: 4/5

Besides the newspapers writeups and "certificates" awarded by the local TV shows that adorned the walls of Ponggol Nasi Lemak, the stall apparently also gained some publicity from its claim over the title of the original Ponggol Nasi Lemak and announced that they were not related to other Nasi Lemak stalls that bears the name "Punggol" with the word "New" or "Old" or "21" added.. Nowdays Nasi Lemak also can be counterfeit ah (Source). Besides that, they were also once in the limelight over gossip that the son of the owner had gambling debts owing to MBS (Source). And there was also another article on $8.30 spent on a Nasi Lemak stall in Upper Serangoon which ignited the set up of a "Boycott Ponggol Nasi Lemak" facebook page (Source).

Address: 238 Tanjong Katong Rd Singapore 437026
Telephone: 6348 3303
Opening hours: 17:30-02:30 daily except Thurs which it is closed