Wednesday, January 16, 2008

Newton Circus Food Centre

Do you remember the times when the devilish prefects in your school were tasked to conduct a spot-check on your hair, clothes, shoes and bags? That's how I felt (almost) when Mum and Aunt decided to visit Singapore during last year's Christmas week.

As I'll be picking her up at the bus station after work, I had my office attire ironed well (really well), my shoes cleaned and my facial hair trimmed. A small flaw and I'll get it from her. "Who in the world would employ a sloppy guy like you", "I'm having headache looking at your untidy outfit", "Please trim you goatee, you look older than me!". Ok, perhaps I'm exaggerating, but please do not underestimate the capability of your Mum. Afterall, Mum knows best.

At last, the evening came. And complained, she did. Not on my appearance though. It seemed that there were some entry issues with some of the passengers on her bus. A sigh of relief, let me tell you.

After a frenzy shopping spree at OG (the girls loved that place!), we went to Newton Circus Food Centre despite knowing how touristy the place has become. For old times sake.

At 10.30 pm on a public holiday eve, the foodcourt was as noisy and crowded as it could get. Not a bad thing though. We managed to secure a table with the help of a waiter from one of the stalls. Now, I wouldn't call that thoughtful, would I?

We had Char Kway Teow or fried flat broad rice noodles (S$6.00-medium) from Thye Hong (Stall No. 58). For the price, the portion was humongous! The noodles were firm and coated with a generous amount of sweet dark soya sauce. Other ingredients included squid, prawns, beansprouts and cockles. The seafood were all well-cooked. A dollop of chili paste added a touch of spiciness to the noodles. Overall, there was nothing spectacular about it. I've tasted better ones The one at Zion Road Food Centre, for example. Have yet to try out Margaret Drive and Old Airport Road Food Centre's though.

One will not leave Newton Circus without trying the Oyster Omelette. I just picked the nearest stall and ordered a medium-sized serving (S$6.00, if I recall correctly). I forgot the name of the stall but it has a "Homemade" word to it. Couldn't remember the stall number either. Well, the omelette had a crispy skin and was quite aromatic. I wished it was less oily though. Oysters were aplenty, mostly placed on top of the egg. I enjoyed the tender and smooth texture of the morsels. Take that with the garnishing cilantro leaves for added freshness.

Where has the popiah stall gone? This is one of the popiah stalls that I fell for as it included shrimps in the filling, not forgetting the juice too.

Everytime I bring my overseas friends to Newton Circus, I tell myself it will be my last visit. And yet, it's always included in the itinerary somehow when there are other options like Lau Pat Sat and Hong Lim (personal favourite). Another unsolved mystery.

As I contemplated on this rather silly thought, the girls were already fast asleep in the cab.

Newton Circus Food Centre
500, Clemenceau Avenue North
Singapore 229495
(Just across the Newton MRT Station - use the overhead bridge)

17 comments:

Alexander said...

Oh my GOD! The food really makes me hungry!
yummy. I only can watch!
Hehe...

Alexander
Alex's World! - http://www.kakinan.com/alex

"Joe" who is constantly craving said...

aiyoh..how can u take malaysians to eat a singaporean char kuey teow?? aiyoyo..take them to a nice chilling cafe with no one to disturb..now thats a hard thing to find in malaysia

Xiu Long Bao said...

haha...like my mum she just can't help but to nag me even when on the phone :p The food doesn't look appealing to me but 'shopping spree at OG' did catch my attention *eyes glowing*

yammylicious said...

hahax!!!!!! i don't think singaporian know the tasted about our keow teow! lolx... anyway singapore keow teow tasted sux!

ling239 said...

the char koay teow looks oily though...

JOjo said...

I can only say, Singaporean eats differently from us, Malaysian. Tastebutt jus different.

I only visited Newton Circus twice.Too far fr NTU la~ Somemore,there's nothing spectacular there.Haha.

Sugar Bean said...

I like Oyster Omelette a lot, too bad most of oysters are always not fresh.

Anyway, I was a prefect in secondary school! Haha! Are prefects that scary? :)

backStreetGluttons said...

That is surely a youngish reflection of a first tour of homely duty ? Yes ?
but mum knows best coz son knows bester
sing food is quite exciting as far as we know

~Christine~Leng said...

i kinda fancy oyster omelette too:) but till now, still can't find these preparations that are 'less oily'.

HairyBerry said...

alexander: do get some oyster omelette when you come back to singapore! i'm sure you miss this dish...ok, i'm not being very helpful here... :)

joe: yeah, i know...my fault. like pumping diesel in a petrol car, right?..haha! it's quite difficult to find a quiet cafe here in sg too these days...especially on weekends...

xiu long bao: ohh...OG at chinatown was just part of the fun..wait til i bring you to orchard and vivocity...shop til you drop..hehe...

yammylicious: hehe...well, all i can say is, the taste is different lor. i love the penang type for the keow teow, i love the kl type for the savouriness and i love the sg type for the moistness. aiyoh, i love them all lar...hehe!

ling239: yeah, it was! we couldn't finish it. quite jelak, actually...but of course we sapu all the seafood lar...hehe...

jojo: true. the taste is different. hey, if you have time, do visit this stall at golden mile food centre. the ckt has "shang tang" or superior soup added to it :)

wenching & esiong: ahh...that's the good thing about the one i ate...very fresh! and juicy too :)

prefects are good people, but i prefer to be the bad guy...i was "forced" to become one too in Form 3! haha!

team bsg: young reflection, yes. son is bester, definitely not...hehe...sometimes, i still refer to my mum on cooking and food, in general. yes, sg food is exciting...especially those teo chew dishes and of course, fine dining!

christine: yeah, i guess deliciousness comes with an "unhealthy" tag, huh? haha...that's the reason why gyms are making so much money...hehe! i love oysters too! with the chili sauce!

wmw said...

Don't mess with Mama! An advice we need to follow now ... and then ;o)

Big Boys Oven said...

Boy always trust what mum says..... right? lol!

Jason said...

Hahaha, I understand how you feel. Everytime I went back to Ipoh, mom will say, "How come you look so much slimmer than last month?" Giggles.

And that's a cute name for a food court, really.

Christina Kim said...

I have not been to this place the last time I was in Singapore, although I have heard of it so much!
I went to Lau Pa Sat and Hong Lim (People Park) too!:D

HairyBerry said...

wmw - oh yes, definitely. dont make her take out that thick rotan! that's the last time i need..haha!

big boys oven: hmm...agree but not totally..haha! there are some things that i trust dad's judgement more..hehe..like girlfriends and cars :)

jason: hehe...we are never too fat in our mum's eyes. and that's not really healthy, right?..hehe...well, thanks to them, we appreciate and enjoy food, though.. :)

christy: oh, i think hong lim is a much more interesting and foodilicious hawker centre...u can find me there on public holidays...hehehe...love the bak chor mee there!!!

Bernsy said...

wahahaha, the SG posts are starting back liao.... keep it work

HairyBerry said...

bernsy: ya lar, bro...people are already confused whether i'm singaporean working in kl or klite working in singapore...haha! more coming up!