SINGAPORE DAY 3: THE PHANTOM OF THE FOOD OPERA

Constipation is not fun. (kidding)

        After getting rained out in Sentosa, we took a Shuttle bus from the Imbiah Station to take the token trip to Orchard Road. Just like Sentosa, I honestly don't get the big deal about Orchard Road, and why it's a "must see for every tourist". Then again, it could be the bitterness of my wallet talking. I mean, it's got all these High End shops and all, but nothing anything you can't find in Greenbelt 5. (Sorry Fashionistas of the world, but I'm totally clueless about these things, so I mean no offense.)

       As you saw in my Sentosa post, i took pix with almost every statue I could find in Resorts world.. So maybe I shouldn't be one to judge when I saw people taking pictures in front of a Dolce and Gabbana or a Louis Vuitton. 

    To me however, the true awesomeness of Orchard Road is not found on the surface, but four levels below the famed street. At Basement Four of Ion Orchard Mall, is a gastronomic paradise that every food lover should not miss.. Food Opera. 

Is this a food court, or a convention center?

             This would have to be the first time I've ever gone to a food court in a mall, and felt under-dressed. The place looks really luxurious and, as is almost everything in Singapore, it was sparkling clean. Dirty plates on tables are bussed out immediately to make way for eager customers looking for a place to enjoy their meals. I KNEW i should have worn my tuxedo.
.

 I honestly want to live here. Not just in Singapore. But in this food court.

             The food choices range from Singapore's Famous Chicken Rice, Pork Rib Noodles,  Roasted duck, and other types of Singapore "Street Food".. not to mention countless other cuisines. There is also a wide selection of dessert places.. what I'm trying to say, is that they're too many to mention.

THE FOOD

The Sarge means business.

         Its quite surprising that it took me three days in Singapore before I finally had some Chicken Rice. though the presentation was rather sloppy, "Sargeants Chicken", showed me what all the hype was about. White chicken rice won't blow you away with it's flavor, but it has that delicious taste to it that will keep you going back for more. When mixed with the chicken rice itself and the ginger sauce.. fuggedaboutit!!!!

 I could eat this on a daily basis

    I was amused to see a stall called "Modern Peking Duck", which served Peking Duck rolls like it was like a Shawarma stand. They carve it and wrap it as you wait for it, so you know it's guaranteed fresh. I reallllyyy wish we could have something like that here in the Philippines, because it tasted awesome! Maybe it wasn't as sophisticated a taste as the Peking duck from Peking Garden, but it was a suitable, and more affordable substitute!

Looked good at lift off.

       There was this small stall that had all these different types of "Street Foods".. There was a "Ukoy" with a giant shrimp on it, and BBQ  Chicken Wings, and stuff like that.. mostly food on sticks. What caught my attention was this sucker right here. It was basically a Corndog, but coated with potato bits. It sounds bad ass right?

Couldn't stick the landing

          Well, that's what I thought, until I bit into the darn thing and was disappointed to find that the Hot dog in it was so tiny, and that the coating made 60% of the entire dish. The coating wasn't too bad either, in fact, it was quite creamy and tasty, however, it was awfully heavy. Almost as if they were trying to compensate for their, umm.. diminutive sausage with more coating. Too bad, because it's actually quite a brilliant idea, but just not executed properly.

      Speaking of which..

Would've been...

           As we were walking around, we were stopped in our tracks at the sight of the Heavenly Compote Waffles stall. It was something that, when you think about it, is pretty impressive. For SG$3, you can get a slice of a cheesecake in different flavors, sandwiched into a waffle. Genius!

Should've been..

          Rina got a the Dark Chocolate Waffle with the caramel Filling...

Could've been Great..

            While I got the Belgian Waffle with the chocolate filling. First of the all, these people know how to make cheesecakes. The filling was rich and creamy, and I could imagine myself eating a whole cake to myself.. but the problem begins with the waffle itself. Considering that the word "Waffle" is in the name of their business, you'd think that this would be something that they would be really good at, right? Wrong. It was really dry, and the texture was a little bit strange. I'm thinking that as good as these thing CAN be, their stay in a refrigerated shelf doesn't help the quality of the Waffle. 

      Which, just like the hashbrown corndog experiment, was a delicious idea not executed properly. 

We're so sosyal

            After we were done eating, we made the customary trip to Orchard Road to take pictures in front of a LV and D & G (Close kami, so I can use their nicknames), so we could pretend we bought something there.

(I said if anyone asks, I'd say I bought boxer shorts)

     To be honest, I didn't eat as much as I really could have, Simply because I didn't want to stuff myself too much in anticipation of Dinner. 

     I had waited months to make a trek to Singapore and visit the home of One of The Best Things EVER and I intended to make the most of it!!!!

TO BE CONCLUDED NEXT WEEK