u/GreyFishHound

Microwave food from 7-11.

Being a 90s kid, I was always in awe with all the various microwavable varieties available, especially the pizza bars (LOL). Alas, those items were usually out of my reach as my pocket money was not much and if I saved up, it's usually for a special Friday McDonald's or KFC meal with my classmates.

Back then, I really envied those students who has access money to splurge on those pastas and sandwiches, always wondering when I will be able to afford such luxury ha! Parents wouldn't indulge me also because they feel these are unhealthy and not proper food.

Now in my late 30s, I have tried these several times to sort of make up for the lost childhood; but with the exception of some, most taste awful. 🤣

After making 192763410268 mental notes with the place popping up everywhere on social media, I finally visited Smash Street yesterday.

From the outside, it reminds of George Motz's Hamburger America which I've seen a few documentaries on. Once inside, the pseudo-diner appears much smaller - with only a few counter seating, coupled with some space at the back that accomodates small groups, no booths. The room fills up quick.

Doors open at 1130, and I reached 15 minutes early to a short line of 3. By 1129, I counted 5 more people behind. They were running some specials but I was only interested in their classic smashed burger. A small portion of fries are also complimentary as part of a Tuesday promotion.

The classic comes with double patties and I added pickles because a burger without them is not one worth eating. Ordered chicken poppers and a milkshake too. Bill came up to $34.88. Ouch.

I'm quite partial to good burgers; and having worked for some time at Shake Shack followed by a short-lived stint at Honbo, believe I know what a good burger should be like. At Smash Street, they do their patties really thin, resulting in crispy, almost lacy edges that maximises the Maillard reaction, hence producing more flavours. The pucks look to be approximately 2-3oz, so a double patty shouldn't fill you up too much (Shake Shack uses 4oz). The patties are tasty with a good hit of salt. I've read some silly Google reviews mentioning the lack of juices, which is not something associated with burgers smashed to this level.

The chicken poppers are also delish, but very aggressively seasoned. I find the accompanying Chili Crisp Aioli overly salty and doesn't pair well. A dip with tangy/acidic notes would fare better in my opinion. Fries are standard fare - salty, crisp and served hot. Some online reviewers seem to suggest the poppers are homemade, but I am willing to bet good money they came from a bag. Lastly, the milkshake has a nice subtle sweetness from the cereal infused milk, and was also studded with cereal bits and caramel. Wished it was thicker though, but an uphill task because it's spun with soft serve instead of frozen scoops.

Generally, I found the food tasty but not blow your mind good. However, there are two reasons I won't be in a hurry to return - prices and sanitation. I was greedy to try most of the items but $35 (inclusive of free fries) is a huge ask for the quality. The milkshake at $8+ hovers between Shake Shack and Five Guys, and both offer thicker shakes at better value. Their sanitary levels are also something I'm not entirely comfortable with. While I don't care for gloves when handling food, I was seated at the counter to witness the action; and the same guy using his bare hands to mould and shape the raw beef patties is also handling the assembling of the cooked patties, the placement of cheese and touching the toasted buns, all simultaneously without washing his hands. Led me to wonder what happens if some raw mince passes onto the cooked items.

Will get these whenever I spot them at a night market. They have long dethroned the Ramly (abysmal quality and rising prices) as my favourite item at pasar malams. The green chilli is a NON-NEGOTIABLE. Also if you aren't eating it whole, head, shells and all; you might as well not have it.

VAA DEY!

Have been craving prata for a while; so earlier I made the trek to Chindamani at Serangoon North, a short but daunting 15-minute due to the relentless weather.

There are 2 popular spots near my place, the other being Al Falah. Both serve crispy style pratas, but I prefer Chindamani as I feel the dough is chewier.

The pratas there aren't given the aggressive slap to fluff and crisp them up. Instead, they are doused with (and in) ghee and served unblemished and blistered straight from the griddle. Best friend found it a bit too biscuit like for his liking, but I enjoyed it. Tearing up a small piece and folding it within itself allows you to appreciate the layers and dough more. I'd like to think of this as an Asian croissant.

Plaster prata is popular amongst the younger generation, but I pledge my allegiance to the trusty egg prata (in my case double). While a plaster prata allows you to savour the richness of the yolk, I find the union of egg and dough much more desirable in an egg prata. The outer crisp yields to unveil fluffy eggy goodness that in my opinion is the perfect vessel for the aromatic fish curry (anything otherwise is criminal).

Washed everything down with an iced kopi because it was too hot for my usual kopi-o.

Have a good week ahead everyone!

This is from The Test Kitchen at 18 Cross Street. Some would know it as Rebecca Lim's (the Mediacorp actress) brother's shop. They have really fabulous egg tarts but the highlight of this post is their Sea Salt Brownie. I can't remember the price off hand but it's hovering $5ish.

Now this is a good brownie.

Proper crust (!!!). Proper fudgey. Proper dense.

I've had many many many brownies in my time. From famous shops to home based businesses, and many often come up short, especially with he fudginess and the crust. I want a brownie, not a damned chocolate cake.

The Backyard Bakers - very popular at one point, but to me with the signature crackly crust, it ain't a brownie but just a dense cake

Lucia Brownies - way too cakey

P.Osh - quite possibly best before my recent discovery

Wanted to dismiss them initially because of that gimmicky gold dust but luckily I gave them a chance. Really good.

E.A.T at Serangoon NEX. They sell the typical local noodle dishes like fishball noodles, laksa and satay beehoon. There are a few outlets but I frequently visit this particular one as it's in the vicinity of home.

What I always go back for is their bak chor mee. I like mine with either mee pok or bee tai mak; and always get it with extra chili and vinegar. The blend of the sauces always taste just nice for me, and the cook on the noodles is usually good. I also like toadd on the fried taukee.

Prices are fair, and whilst there are better bak chor mee specialists out there; for an all rounder shop the dish is quite competent.

It currently holds a 2.8 rating on Google.

My plans at night got thwarted so I asked on Reddit what's good to eat around town for about $25. The community replied and I pick Bouillon Gavorche as I suddenly had a craving for steak frites/au poivre.

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Place was packed on a Monday night, and I went in straight for what I came for without much of a glance at the menu. Steak came looking beautiful with a nice crust, and the plate was lovingly heated - always a good sign. At $28 (also the priciest item on the menu), the meat was on the leaner side but had good flavour. I ordered it medium (sue me) as I hate returning steaks to the kitchen and most places I am not confident with cook their under. Still tender, but on hindsight I should have trusted the chef more with medium-rare. Fries are hot and crisp and the serving generous for a big eater like myself.

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Couldn't resist a dessert and ordered the Dame Blanche (white lady) - soft serve with warm chocolate sauce. Saw on various social media platforms that the profiteroles is the popular option but for $4 less I'm just missing the choux pastry and I could live with that. Chocolate sauce was the highlight with good fruity nuances instead of just being saccharine.

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Bill came up to $40.77, overshot my budget of $25 but happier than if I'd gone Sushiro.

I buy supermarket sushi time to time. They satisfy the more than frequent sushi itch without breaking the bank. Amongst them all, I find Meidi-Ya and Donki ones taste better.

However, it really irks me that the quality at Donki is crazy inconsistent. Sometimes, the neta looks good; but recently most of them appear as if they were carelessly sliced. I have seen ootoro that are dark and suspicious; and others full of tendons. At the same time, the chutoro sometimes are insane value for the quality. Does everyone feel the same?

Revisited GU:UM for mother's day, after bringing GF there in April and loving the food.

Meal was still fire (as the younger ones say), both literally and figuratively but it made a dent in my wallet.

Reason I chose this place was because mum and dad never really cared for nor had much fancy restaurant experiences, so I wanted to bring them somewhere different. Being very traditional Chinese and brought up rather frugally, their idea of an indulgent meal is tze char and a typical Dian Xiao Er/Din Tai Fung meal be considered expensive.

We started off with the crowd pleaser option of Korean Fried Cauliflower doused in a spicy and sweet sauce. This is a very easily likable dish, even for myself who much prefers broccoli. This was followed by their rendition of Soondae, done with squid stuffed with a prawn filling. The accompany sauce is a peanut butter samjang which I appreciated but threw my parents a bit off.

Moving on to proteins, we had prawns, abalone, 2 different cuts of pork and their signature shortrib. Prawns are as good as I remember, and mum particularly loved it. The abalone was intended for dad, as he enjoys it and recent experiences in Busan and Hokkaido have been slightly disappointing. He said it's tasty. The pork collar is decent and done slightly pink (as it should be) while the Iberico Pluma shines with its richer and more well marbled meat. Both are tender cuts without the annoying globs of unrendered fat you sometimes get with pork.

The shortrib, the highlight of my first visit; was marginally less memorable this time although it remains super competent. The part we had was slightly fattier and less "melt-in-your-mouth" this time, but everything was still polished clean.

For some carbs, we added on a fried rice. It was tasty but probably something that can be passed over.

Brother wanted to try their hotteok so I ordered that together with a mandarin orange bingsu. The former was served with a really delicious burnt honey ice cream while the latter acts as a lovely palate cleanser after the heavy meats.

Bill came up to $660ish without drinks. Pictures not the greatest because I didn't bother much. Still a restaurant that I recommend. Thanks for reading.