Taste of Singapore
I have developed a bit of a taste for Singaporean fare of late, especially as it is such a melting pot of Chinese, Malay, Indonesian, Indian, Mamak, Tamil and Peranakan cultures (have I missed anyone?). Yes, the fact that EG and his family hail from the island definitely contribute to that yearning, as does the week spent in Singapore last year. So you can imagine my delight when I read and heard about an authentic Singaporean eatery out in the burbs serving traditional fare at awesome prices. So with EG and his parents in tow, we headed out to Clayton to see what all the fuss was about.
Taste of Singapore is like stepping into a hawker cafe in the ol’ country, notwithstanding the humidity or the need to refrain from spitting out your chewing gum. Yes, it may be a little grungy around the edges - there are two long communal tables sporting tartan tablecloths with plastic outdoor furniture to cushion your behind. Twee touristy souvenirs and posters adorn the walls, and a self service cutlery and napkin station makes the cafe seem decidely utilitarian. The menu consists of eight items as well as a daily rotating specials menu and whatever other delights are to be found the bain marie. But the heavenly smell alone promises a tasty feast.
Both EG and I chose the nasi lemak($5.50) - where nasi translates as ‘rice’ and lemak translates as ‘rich in fat’. The reason for the fat is that the rice is cooked in coconut milk instead of water, infusing the grains with a fragrant sweet rich flavour. This is served with crispy ikan bilis (deep fried anchovies), roasted peanuts and a hard boiled egg topped with sambal (chilli paste). It is said that sambal is the measure of a good nasi lemak, and I wholeheartedly concur; this sambal brought the whole dish together. A couple of slices of cucumber freshened the palate, although we negated this by choosing the turmeric and spice infused deep fried yellowtail mackerel ($2.00) as a side. I almost broke out in a sweat eating the dish, and that wasn’t because of the sambal. The hard work came from making sure I didn’t choke on all the little fish bones, though all was forgiven as it was a finger-licking good fish. In fact, the whole dish was finger-licking good. I can’t wait to eat it again!
EG’s mum chose the nasi champur from the bain marie ($6.50), a mix of basmati rice, sambal, green bean vegetable stirfry, spiced chicken leg and the deep fried turmeric and spiced yellowtail mackerel. For a little woman, she packed away the entire plate. It must have been good.
EG’s dad went the mee rebus, a rather soupy dish I noticed was quite popular amongst the other patrons in the cafe. Hokkien mee noodles are put in a serving bowl with diced pieces of tau pok(fried tofu) and a thick gravy made with curry powder, spices, dried shrimp and pounded peanuts. It is served with a hard boiled egg, cut green chilies, crispy shallots and a slice of lemon. There should be a balance between sour, sweet, salty and chilli, and the only comment EG’s dad had was that it needed a lick of dark soy.
A Singaporean feast would not be complete without satay, where $8 will buy you 10 sticks of chicken or lamb (or a mix if you ask nicely). The sticks themselves were pretty darn good, the meat almost tasting candied they were so sweetly marinated and BBQd. The satay sauce too was good - not too watery. The ketupat on the other hand was not like what I sampled in Singapore, but thumbs up for at least trying. I am yet to see this elsewhere in town.
We also couldn’t pass up a glass of teh tarik($1.50), a rich condensed milk ‘pulled’ tea (tarik is Malay for ‘pull’). The process goes like this - the milky tea is placed in one container and as it is poured into another container, the two containers are pulled apart, therefore incorporating air into the tea and cooling it down. Some teh tarik experts can pull the containers more than a meter apart from each other. This results in a thick foam being formed on top of the tea, kind of like a cappuccino. I don’t quite know if our host managed such a tea pulling feat, but we did witness him getting at least a half meter pull (hmm…the vernacular here is getting disturbing). It was not too sweet and it had a good head! (ahem)
Written by mellie on
January 20th, 2008 | Tags: Singaporean | Category: Uncategorized
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January 21st, 2008 at 8:16 pm
Hey guys,
I love nasi lemak! Although being Malaysian I have to state, here and now, my alliance to Penang style food, rather than Singaporean.
Let me recommend Straits Cafe on Doncaster road, Doncaster. Best Char Kway Teow in Melbourne!
xox Sarah
January 22nd, 2008 at 3:42 am
Yumm-O. I don’t think I’ve really had any Sinaporean food in 20 years (actually probably nearly 22 years now). I should take a trip out there and try this place.
January 22nd, 2008 at 4:45 am
My father lived in Singapore for a couple of years so I think I’ll have to take him here. Great find Mellie!
January 22nd, 2008 at 11:31 am
Sounds like a place i want to go try out… yumm… I love nasi lemak. I’m a sucker for singaporean style nasi lemak.
Sarah (if u r reading this) Personally, I like singaporean style Char Kway Teow (I grew up eating those stuff!), but my hubby who’s from penang, swears by his Penang Char Kway Teow. Anyhoo, I think we will go Straits cafe and try it out for ourselves…i presume it’s penang style? =)
January 23rd, 2008 at 9:12 am
Hi there Sarah - thanks for the tip on the Straights. We will certainly have to try it out - along with the real testers, EG’s parents
Is there a Penang style nasi lemak?
Hey anna - yes, it’s certainly worth the trip! There is not much on the menu, but you really can’t beat the simple things.
Hi truffle - let me know what you (and your Dad) think! EG’s parents are Singaporean, and they both enjoyed it, probably because it was both tasty and cheap (..as all good Singaporean food should be!)
Hi phyllis - well, if you love nasi lemak, you’ll love this version. Seriously, I am having cravings for it already.
January 31st, 2008 at 12:22 pm
5.50 gets you that plate of nasi lemak? That’s quite cheap in Melbourne, isn’t it?
I know people always blast me for saying this, but I don’t eat the sambal that comes with the nasi lemak. If anything, I usually ask the waiter NOT to give me sambal. I prefer nasi lemak with some curry chicken.
February 2nd, 2008 at 4:58 am
My friend was just telling me about this place. He just went and loves the mee rebus and sata sticks. He was recommending I go and I said I will. Now I’m definitely going to give it a try.
February 5th, 2008 at 3:26 am
hi!
After reading about this place (thanks to a link to your blog from a foodie sister), I spent my lunch break driving over and getting my fill of the nasi lemak and two cups of teh tarik. I had to drive to Clayton town first to grab money from the atm.
It could have been because it was a quarter to 2 when I got there and they were pretty much running out of certain things, but I wasn’t too impressed. I agree that the sambal is a measure of the yumminess of the nasi lemak. Where I’m from (Brunei), the sambal usually has a bit more substance to it, is a little hotter and a little tastier. The sambal I got served was very very liquid-dy; it was swimming in oil. And it wasn’t as tasty as it could have been. The rice was a bit dry too.
It’s not going to stop me trying the other dishes though. I think the nasi lemak today could just be a one off, and will be better when I’m able to leave the lab earlier.
The teh tarek wasn’t bad, although it was cold by the time I got to drink it (after bringing it back to work to sip while staring at the computer screen)
February 9th, 2008 at 5:36 am
oo..that plate of nasi lemak looks v authentic. and Phyllis, penang’s char kuey teow is really really good, the best i hav tried =D
February 10th, 2008 at 12:32 am
Hi crushedguava - yup, that’s dirt cheap, huh? The fish though is an extra couple of bucks. What is it that you don’t like about sambal? Is it the chilli? If so then fear not, as this sambal is quite mild on the chilli.
Hey thanh - the mee rebus was very popular when we were there - I saw quite a few people eating it. The satays are pretty darn good though, so I’d recommend the journey just for them. Just a tip - try to hit the joint about 12.30 - that way the food is freshest and most plentiful. Sometimes they can run out.
Hi chea - sorry to hear you didn’t have such as good an experience as we did. Granted, I agree that the sambal isn’t that hot (perhaps watered down for Australian tastes), but other than that, I found mine to be wonderfully tasty. But sambal, if made fresh, can differ day to day. Yeah, I’ve been told that you really need to get there on lunchtime (as mentioned above to Thanh), to get food when it is at its best.
Hey ironeaters - glad to see you’re still reading the blogs. I’ve been missing your posts though!