Singapore Cuisine

2011-11-13T21:50:00.000-08:00

Food in Singapore is kind of a religion!

So many ethnic groups reside in Singapore (Mostly Chinese but also Malaysian, Indian, Filipino, Burmese, Japanese, British, and Thai) that their gastronomical repertoire is very large.

The best food transcends every culture, which is why there are a few items from each national cuisine that has gained massive popularity amongst the general population, as well as many cross-cultural fusions the have gained enhanced flavor and heightened appeal in their recreations.

That being said, one of the most famous foods in Singapore is an Indian favorite called the prata (or paratha, depending on how it is being translated from tamil).

Having a Tamil boyfriend, How You Do Prata was one of the first place to eat that I was introduced to.

I don't know who the hell came up with the name for the chain of restaurants, but whoever did probably didn't understand English too well, which to me was a signal it might be more authentic than the rest!

It's a cheap place to eat at the Food Republic, a popular food court found in nearly all malls around here, but I impressed by the taste and amount of food you get for the money you pay!

S$1.20 will get you one plain prata (a type of flaky yet moist naan bread) and a generous amount of curry, either chicken or vegetarian. People who are adverse to spicy foods may want to avoid the curry (which is incredibly delicious and flavorful but very hot as well) but the prata should in no way be overlooked! Traditionally, Tamils eat this type of food with the hands, dipping the bread into the prata.

The prata can also be made with a fried egg inside or a fried banana, which is yummy as well. The banana prata might be better for those who are sensitive to offset the spiciness.

If you like food and want to know where you can go to eat, one great website I would recommend is hungrygowhere.sg. It is a review site of nearly every restaurant, vendor, fast food place, and cafe in the country of Singapore. You can search based on the type of cuisine you want, or the type of setting, or whether you want takeout or a nice sit-in type situation.

Despite Asians being generally genetically disposed to thinness, I've noticed that many Singaporeans are chubby! For this reason, the Singaporean government has started a campaign to promote exercise and healthy eating.

But how hard is that, when there are all types of delicious foods staring you in the face every day?!

How You Do Prata is generally located at every Food Republic food court, which can be found in nearly every mall in Singapore. The locations I have visited have been in 313 Somerset, the Wisma Atria and Suntec City, but there are without a doubt many more to be found throughout the city.

Here's more about How You Do Prata: http://www.hungrygowhere.com/singapore/what_you_do_prata/

Travel Singapore

2011-11-03T23:52:00.000-07:00

"Wow. You're from Boston? You can't really get much farther than that ..."

So spoke my fiancee's friend's son, who had embarked on a post-college backpacking trip around Asia and stopped by in Singapore to have dinner with us.

It's true. The East Coast is more or less halfway around the world from Singapore. Either way you go - north, south, west, east - on a plane, you are still travelling a similar amount of distance.

27 hours worth of distance, that is. And I've made the trip back and forth three times in the past half year.

I thought airports excited me until this. Sitting in one place, without the ability to even stretch your legs, in "cattle class" for 14 hours, only to have to navigate your way through some foreign airport or the other to continue the 6 hour continuing leg of your journey, is exhausting, though why it is this way is annoying because all your tiredness isn't even accompanied by a considerable burn of calories.

Can anyone tell me why they give you dinners packed with sodium on a 13 hr trip? You get so bloated with salt that you have to go to the bathroom every five seconds, and believe me, in economy class that can get pretty terrible with three people crammed next to each other.

I am determined to record my cross-cultural experiences in Singapore, land of a diverse and harmonic racial population. What I have learned about the world and myself - mostly, an insight into how much I don't know - is certainly worth being put into writing.

If anyone is in Singapore or nearby, or planning a trip there, let me know. I might have some insider tips that I wish someone had given to me. :P

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