Tanjong Katong Road, Thai Food Overload!

As previously mentioned, Tanjong Katong Road is home to an authentic Thai Stall. Today, Alex kindly drove me around and I decided to recommend this stall to him. Located just outside where I used to study (Chung Cheng), I never knew such a place until my friend from India introduced me to it. He loves the mango salad that they prepare here. And I got to say, I fell in love with their food as well. If you are lucky, when you order food, you just might be able to catch the extremely (in my opinion that is) polite sounding Thai language that the very pretty staff uses to convey your orders to the cook. (Also, they offer vegetarian alternatives to some dishes)

Having first fell in love with their Garlic Pork Rice, (I love garlic and shallots.) they are very generous in their garlic and pork portions. Priced at just $4, this is just a trip to Disneyland for your tastebuds. Your tastebuds need a holiday? No problem! The porks flavour is sealed in and the taste just explodes when you first take a bite into it. Its not the most juicy fried pork I have tasted, but with garlic? Fantastic.

Food: 4 / 5

I would have given it a higher rating if the egg was more tasty.

Presentation: 3 / 5

Waiting time: ~5 minutes to cook.

This was what Alex ordered. Belachan Fried Rice. Alex usually doesn't take spicy food, so when he requested for it to be non-spicy, both of us got surprised by the response of the staff. She said, "It's not spicy at all." And indeed we were surprised at how it looked. Maybe we need to adjust our perception of what belachan is...

His dish comes with strips of fried egg, honey chicken, and generous portions of vegetables. The honey chicken was so well-fried that the moment I tasted it, I needed seconds. I even went up to the cook and asked what the chicken was. (because both of us had no idea.) Priced at $5, this is a dish that is light on your pocket if you have cravings for Thai. The honey chicken on its own is $6. Drizzled with honey, the chicken was a very interesting blend of crunchy, sweet and juicy rolled in one. Forget KFC, this is going to be my sinful indulgence in the future.

Food: 4.5 / 5 just for the chicken

Presentation: 3.5 / 5

Waiting Time: ~5 minutes

Being a soup person (thanks to my mum, but that's another story.), we ordered Seafood Soup with Tang Hoon as Alex doesn't take spicy. The soup is not loaded on MSG, which I genuinely have a strong distaste for. It comes with very generous portions of tang hoon as well, (which again, I LOVE!) which are hidden underneath all the food in the above picture. The fried fish also created a special flavour. Even after being soaked in soup for so long, the fish retained its crunchy texture, unlike those soggy fried fish you have at certain fish soup stalls. The soup had lots of garlic / shallots in it as well, and ginger, which in Chinese Medicine terms: good for the stomach. Ginger is especially effective for the tummy, so again, yum with health!

Food: 4 / 5

Presentation: 3 / 5

Waiting Time: ~5 minutes

As mentioned, they also serve Tom Yum and Mango Salad, which are also really yummy. As my India friend would say, "it's so yummy!"

Overall: 4 / 5

Katong Student Hostel
369 Tanjong Katong Road
Singapore 437126

Poh Poh Mookata, Surprising Delight from a Nondescript Stall!

Located at Tanjong Katong Road just opposite Chelsea Lodge, this coffee shop (coffee shop in my opinion anyway, its fairly large for a coffee shop.) houses two different stalls of Thai Food, your typical Zhi Char, Western and Indian cuisines. Both stalls of Thai Food are a delight on any tastebuds, one of the stalls are run by authentic Thais, and the other I am not so sure. Today's post will be about the latter.

A surprisingly nondescript stall, when I first chanced upon it, the "display fridge" (as I so aptly decided to name it as of this post) is empty and devoid of any food. The stall sign says Poh Poh Mookata, Thai Charcoal Grill and Steamboat, but I see no food, so I presume they are closed. I went back there on a separate day, and it was once again, the same. However, I realized that they do not store food in the "display" set (for purposes that remain unknown to me till this date), but rather in another fridge inside when I saw people ordering. So do not think they are closed when you visit them, ask first.

Pardon me for the lack of pictures of the stall. I will upload them when I have the chance. 

Staring at their menu (which is pretty plain), which offers Combo A for 2 people at $28, and Combo B for 3 people at $38, there doesn't seem to be a lot to choose from. They do provide several addons, like more pork belly at $8, or abalone at $10.

Having placed our order (Combo B), the teapot and the round metal cylinder was promptly placed on our table. However, the food was served about 10 minutes later, as the staff was chopping the meat and vegetables. The wait was pretty long in my opinion, but if you have the patience to enjoy good food, this is a stall worth visiting.

Afterwards, this huge pot was served. The depth of the pot was for holding hot charcoal, which kept the soup hot long after we finished our meal. Combo B comes with a vast assortment of beef, pork belly and chicken, which are all very nicely marinated. They are wonderfully tasty, and perhaps one of the best grilled meat I have had thus far. The teapot contains soup, which you pour around the sides of the steamboat as seen above. The soup has a strong taste, which might not be to some peoples liking. But the grilled meat? You will definitely enjoy them. And due to the design, the essence and flavours of the meat will flow down into the soup, which does make it extremely savoury and flavourful. 

If you are a fan of grilled food, this is not one stall you should miss.

Food: 4.5 / 5 

Layout: 3.5 / 5

Waiting Time: > 10 minutes

(I dont like to wait too long for coffee shop food.)