Tuesday, March 19, 2013

Outram Park Fried Kway Teow Mee : Oh The Length I Had Gone For You.

The little red dot.
The fine city.
The lion city.
The shopping city.

Despite of all the nicknames given, Singapore has grown more and more as a foodie city for me. So much that I dedicated the whole three days solely to hunt for culinary gems. I would blame this rising frenzy to I Eat I Shoot I Post, a Singaporean food blog that in a way has become my unofficial guide for this trip of complete gluttony.

It's funny how I get that extra surge of battery power prior to traveling that I manage to sleep at 12.30am and then wake up at 4am to catch the earliest flight available. I guess it's the endorphin called excitement. I was all smileful during the drive to the airport. Even more cheery upon boarding the gate with some of the hottest flight attendants alive. Yes, the ones in red. ;)

Arrived just in time for breakfast, I spared no time and rush to Chinatown right away to grab what said to be one of Singapore's most acclaimed char kway teow. With a starved belly and a I-could-eat-a-guy appetite, I must face reality when my dollar notes is rejected. Lesson's learned. Only carry small notes. Apparently people prefer to lose one customer rather than having to bear the tedious task of finding change.

Total breakfast delay time: one excruciating hour.

What happened in that precious hour? I ran to find money changer, that Indian guy say no even before I finished my sentence. I ran to 7-11, that old Chinese lady spoke something in words I don't understand followed with a go-away hand gesture. Alright, I get it ma'am. I've never feel so rejected in my life. *dramaking* Fortunately, an aha-moment came when I saw a shophouse on the side of New Bridge Road, wrapped in glass wall, a yellow banner that says Maybank, and a security guard that opens the door for me. Finally!

Off I go to Hong Lim Food Centre, jumped to the second floor and with the little snapshot of Outram Park Fried Kway Teow Mee taken from the web, I browsed the site for it. You should see the sparkle in my eyes upon seeing this store sign. I think there was a bit of happy tears flashing out in between too. *dramakingcontinues* 




It appears that this place has gained popularity having featured on the page of Strait Times. I was told a long queue happens almost everyday, but I was lucky coming in as an earlybird. No queue at all, and I get to take a few close shots of the uncle cooking. I noticed that he has his own way of frying the kway teow. He would splat out a few eggs to start with, let it cooked, pour in all the other ingredients, and then he'll stop in the middle, splat out a few more eggs. However, this time, he let the eggs half cooked and quickly mash the stuff all over again. The latter gave the kway teow a rather creamy wet end results.







I love this $3 goodness. I love that it uses cockles. I've been craving for a good alternative since Chopstix took it out of their menu. I love that it's more on the sweet end. I love that its hot as it needs to be. If only it could be a bit spicier, then it would be perfect. Overall, as a dish, it has all the quality that pulls you in. It made you couldn't stop until you savored the last bite.

And until the last bite I did. Enjoyed it so much, that I sat another 15 minutes just mesmerized. In that short period of time, I kept on seeing people taking the familiar kway teow on red plates and wood chopsticks to their table. If this were an MTV award, this stall would've won the people's choice trophy.

I'm happy that I started my journey with the dish that is not a tourist trap. I must say you are worth all the length that I've gone just to meet you.

Drama King over and out,

Fellexandro Ruby 
Food / Travel Photographer & Storyteller

---

Outram Park Fried Kway Teow Mee
Hong Lim Food Centre
Blk 531A, Stall 02-17
Monday - Saturday : 06.00am - 04.30pm
Closed Sunday & Public Holiday

3 comments:

  1. "Drama King over and out" hahahaha. I really enjoy your writing and of course ur pictures never fail. :D

    ReplyDelete
  2. love ur pictures. totally flawless!

    please check out our blog at www.thetwotales.com. we're newbie! :)

    ReplyDelete
  3. Is it better than kwetiauw akang? :)

    ReplyDelete

Real Time Analytics