singapore sling - part 1

It's been some time since we holidayed in Asia. We prefer to spend our summer and winter breaks in or around Europe as the travelling time is significantly shorter and my recovery from jet-lag, much less painful.
We were able to redeem our frequent flyer points to Asia with the thanks of British Airways. Due to the time of year we were going, we were only able to get business class tickets into Singapore and out of Hong Kong - and not in and out of the same city, but then, who was I to complain? The tickets were essentially free - save for the taxes and surcharges we had to pay.

First stop Singapore! I have so many fond memories of Singapore. I spent 6 years of my early childhood here sweltering away in the constant 100% humidity and 28+ degree heat and that has attributed to my dislike of heat in my adulthood. All my favourite foods can be found on this tiny little island of some 5+ million people. Some of which I have never been able to enjoy outside of Singapore much to my chagrin.

We only had 40 hours here, but I was determined to consume as much food as possible.
For the amount of times both hubby and I have been back to Singapore, Newton Circus (a famous hawker centre and in some people's opinion - a tourist trap) has never been opened. This time was no exception. We trekked there after our flight landed (after confirming with the hotel concierge it was open!) only to find the shutters pulled down and not a soul in sight (save for the stray cats roaming between the stalls). I only go to Newton Circus predominantly for its BBQ sambal sting ray which is pretty damn good and not easily found in food courts. 
Frustrated, hungry and sweaty, we headed back to Orchard Road and into Ion Food Court, conveniently located opposite our hotel. At 9:30pm it was still heaving with people. In Prague, most restaurants would have been shut by then!

fishball noodle soup

seafood laksa

My first order was fishball noodle soup. I did contemplate ordering just fishball soup, minus the noodles (to save on unnecessary carbohydrates intake), but it wouldn't have been the same. Hubby had the seafood laksa. For a food court, the quality and standard is better than even the best Singaporean restaurant outside of Singapore and at $6 a pop, it wasn't as cheap as I remembered but it definitely hit the spot. We didn't stop there though. We continued ordering (or maybe it was just me doing the ordering) - mutton and chicken satays, singaporean fried mee goreng, fried oyster omelette and finally finished the night with a good old ice kachang (shaved ice with carnation milk, fruit syrup and a whole host of sweet corn, red bean and jellies underneath the mountain of ice.

chicken & mutton satay

singaporean fried mee goreng

fried oyster omelette

finishing touches - ice kachang

Needless to say, it was a satisfying night, mildly dampened by the failed trek to Newton Circus and the lack of BBQ sting ray.




ion orchard
2 orchard turn, singapore, 238801
(or conveniently located opposite Marriott Hotel on Orchard Road)
http://www.ionorchard.com/en/