Sparklette Magazine » 24 hours

Prata Wala – Conquer Your Late-Night Cravings Here

Veron Ang — Mon, 21 Feb 2011 06:29:43 +0000

Night owls on the prowl for places serving late night supper, mark down Prata Wala. This Indian eatery operates 24 hours daily at Jurong Point and remains open till late at Tiong Bahru Plaza as well as the new NEX Mall in Serangoon.

The food and clientèle are decidedly casual, with the menu comprising of common Indian fares such as roti prata (pancake), naan and biryani (a rice dish cooked with spices).

While the plain roti prata is a traditional South Indian food, in Singapore it comes in a variety of concoctions with cheese, onion, fruit, and even chocolate and ice cream!

Banana prata
S$3.90
Rating:

The one pictured above is the fruity rendition with banana slices tucked within the dough layers, served with a saucer of meat-based curry. It strikes a nice balance of fluffiness and crispiness, and the banana has just the right sweetness and ripeness — not too mushy or too green.

Curry chicken prata set (with tea)
S$6.50
Rating:

For a more well-rounded meal, go for the sets that include a meat, a rice/naan/prata and a hot coffee/tea. The curry chicken prata set has a large piece of chicken simmering in hot curry, and plain prata served on the side.

Perhaps due to the busy chow hours, this dish takes quite a while to be served as compared to the banana prata. Unfortunately, I am a little let down. I mean, the meat is tender and the prata is a joy to savour with its delightfully crispy edges. However the curry is lacking in flavour and so very oily, a pity given how generous the portion is.

With its bright red furnishings and matching seats, it is hard to miss the vibrant joint. An amusing image of an Indian chef tossing a prata greets customers at the storefront.

At Tiong Bahru Plaza, Prata Wala occupies the former premises of Mr. Teh Tarik Cartel. There is even an alfresco dining area filled with comfortable couches for when the weather cooperates.

If you’re in the mood for Indian food, Prata Wala may be just the place. With its breezy atmosphere, this is a suitable gathering place for meeting up with friends especially when a late night craving strikes!

Have Your Say!

Share your favourite prata stalls in the comments!

Prata Wala at Jurong Point

Jurong Point Shopping Centre
63 Jurong West Central 3 #01-71/72/73/74
Singapore 648331
Tel: +65 6795 2530

Open 24 hours
Drinks only from 1am – 5am

Prata Wala at NEX Mall

NEX Mall
23 Serangoon Central #02-K05/08
Singapore 556083
Tel: +65 6634 2910

Operating hours:
Sun – Thu: 10am – 10pm
Fri, Sat & Eve of Public Holidays: 10am – 11pm

Prata Wala at Tiong Bahru Plaza

Tiong Bahru Plaza
302 Tiong Bahru Road #01-12
Singapore 168732
Tel: +65 6844 1852

Operating hours:
Mon – Thu: 11am – 11pm
Fri & Eve of Public Holidays: 11am – 12midnight
Sat: 9am – 12midnight
Sun: 9am – 11pm

View the original article and join the discussion at:
http://sparklette.net/food/prata-wala/ | 9 comments

Like on Facebook | Follow on Twitter | Download free iPhone app

Tom N Toms Coffee – Korean Coffee Power!

Veron Ang — Thu, 01 Jul 2010 10:29:37 +0000

Fans of Korean drama shows and handsome Korean actors would be pleased to know that another Korean export has hit our shores, in the form of coffee. Boasting over 100 outlets in Korea, the Tom N Toms Coffee chain has arrived to grab a slice of the espresso coffee market in Singapore.

While Korea isn’t exactly known for her coffee, our caffeine-loving population would certainly welcome an additional option to get a quick pick-me-up!

The ordering process is very much like your typical Starbucks and Coffee Bean, although prices are slightly cheaper.

Over here, they give you a disc-shaped pager that vibrates once your coffee is ready to be collected.

Cappuccino
S$5.20
Rating:

The cappuccino is pretty decent, with a nice, creamy froth that rides like silk on top of it. I like it unsweetened. Does anyone else drink cappuccino without sugar?

There is also some attempt at coffee art which, even if not perfect, is always appreciated.

Colourful cheery murals adorn the walls.

Getting a cuppa here is basically a fuss-free process. Next time round I’ll probably get some of that toasted pretzel to go along!

Have Your Say!

Note: There is a poll embedded within this post, please visit the site to participate in this post's poll.

Have you visited Tom N Toms Coffee yet? Would you welcome new coffee chains or do you find that there are more than enough here already? Share with us in the comments!

Tom N Toms Coffee
ICON Village
10 Gopeng Street #01-12-14
Singapore 078878
Website

Open 24 hours daily

View the original article and join the discussion at:
http://sparklette.net/food/tom-n-toms-coffee/ | 12 comments

Like on Facebook | Follow on Twitter | Download free iPhone app

Resorts World at Sentosa – The Dining Room [Hotel Guests Only]

Veron Ang — Sun, 24 Jan 2010 17:31:36 +0000

Update: The Dining Room is open only to Crockfords Tower Hotel guests.

With all the buzz surrounding Resorts World at Sentosa, some of you may be looking to spend some time over here. Perhaps you are also curious about the dining options. What restaurants are there? Are they affordable?

After watching movies like Ocean’s Eleven, casinos give me the impression of being brimming with tycoons and rich people that have the ability to blow cash freely at the tables. So, the restaurants at a casino resort must be really posh and unaffordable for the general population, right?

Wrong. The Dining Room at Crockfords Tower Hotel, one of the six at the Sentosa Integrated Resorts, offers an array of Cantonese dishes that are surprisingly inexpensive (see menu below). You would also find a rare dessert delicacy here that I would urge everybody to try at least once, because it is pretty darn good!

Let’s start with the dim sum. A selection of dim sum is available, including the crowd favourites like xiao long bao, har kow and siew mai.

Steamed scallop dumpling
S$4.80++
Rating:

But our favourite is the scallop dumpling. This comes in threes, each one topped with a slice of sweet scallop. What they don’t tell you is that it also contains a plump, juicy prawn! Seafood lovers rejoice!

Steamed xiao long bao
S$4.80++
Rating:

The xiao long bao is your standard soupy dumpling with a thick and chewy skin, served with a vinegar and ginger dip. It is quite tasty, albeit a tad salty for people that are looking for something milder. As far as the xiao long bao is concerned, the ones at Crystal Jade are still unbeatable. Everyone agree?

Cantonese seafood rice in chicken broth
S$9.80++
Rating:

The seafood rice in chicken broth is something new for me. I always had the impression that porridge is “sick man’s food” because that’s what our parents like to feed us when we are ill. That is, until I tasted my first bowl of congee that actually made me feel wonderful.

Well, this one is even better than that. It is basically a cross between porridge, rice and soup. Okay, so it is really just rice in soup, but it tastes much better than it sounds and looks. You get fresh seafood and various kinds of vegetables in the chicken broth. The combination is chock-full with flavour and the perfect comfort food. Forget porridge; this nutritious combo is what I’d like to have when I’m sick. Decent price, too.

Star grouper slices braised with fresh tomatoes and eggs
S$19.80++
Rating:

What we find less decently priced is the grouper. Now, I am certainly no fish expert, but I got a fishy feeling about this. Is grouper an expensive fish? For that price, three rather small slices is quite a skimpy portion. We do enjoy it nonetheless, thanks to the tomatoes and the unusual but much-welcome ingredient of beaten eggs that lends an additional richness.

Baked egg tart with bird’s nest
S$10.80++ for 3
Rating:

The best part of this meal is hands-down the aforementioned bird’s nest egg tart. We really have the chef to thank for this. He had already run out of the tarts, but he made a few more specially for us.

To be honest, we were sceptical when we first saw this item on the menu, thinking that the bird’s nest was simply a gimmick. To our surprise, each egg tart comes topped with a sizable heap of bird’s nest. Oodles of squeal-inducing, rock sugary sweet bird’s nest on a warm delicious egg tart! We are delighted! Right there and then, we have tasted the best egg tarts we’ve ever had in our lives!

If you are looking to impress that hard-to-please mother-in-law or pamper your partner, this, I can imagine, is quite perfect.

While the official website indicates otherwise, a check with the staff reveals that the restaurant is open 24 hours daily. This is to cater to hotel guests and patrons of the 24-hour casino. No one goes hungry!

The Dining Room
Resorts World Sentosa
Crockfords Tower, Level 2
Service:
Tel: +65 6577 889 | Website
Menu: Starters | Main courses | Desserts

24 hours daily

Open only to Crockfords Tower Hotel guests

Resorts World at Sentosa

Check out what you can expect at the rest of Resorts World at Sentosa. Want more desserts? Head over to Boulangerie at Festive Hotel.

View the original article and join the discussion at:
http://sparklette.net/food/resorts-world-sentosa-dining/ | 21 comments

Like on Facebook | Follow on Twitter | Download free iPhone app

Steven’s Tea Garden – Best Teh Tarik

Veron Ang — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 13:58:37 +0000

As I was strolling along the huge Mid Valley Megamall in Kuala Lumpur, the sign from a brightly lit eatery caught my attention.

It screamed, “Best teh tarik in the world!” (or something to that effect). The place is Steven’s Tea Garden, a mamak restaurant chain. As a teh tarik lover, I had no choice but to go in. Right?

Okay, actually it’s really the cute ~~sarong-wearing~~ lunghi-clad guy at the entrance that enticed me to enter the restaurant. (you’ll see that I even took his photo!)

Teh Tarik (“pulled” tea)
RM$3.88+
Rating:

On each table are slips of paper with check-boxes that allow you to mark down your order. I immediately put a tick next to the world’s best teh tarik. At 4 ringgit, it’s the most expensive teh tarik I’ve ever had. Well it should cost a premium for the best stuff, I guess.

The tea came with a super thick layer of froth on top, just the way I like it! I’ve had my fair share of the drink where the froth is thin or non-existent because it hasn’t been tarik or “pulled” enough. It pleases me so when I see a head of bubbly froth, kind of like cappuccino :)

The balance of tea flavour and sweetness of the condensed milk is mixed just right. Sometimes when it’s not done properly, it may get more bitter towards the bottom. Not this one though; the taste is consistent throughout. It is not sickly sweet, yet I don’t find myself reaching for more sugar.

Simply put, the taste is quite perfect! The only other teh I’ve had that fares a wee bit better is Sri Vijaya, thankfully, in our very own Little India!

That’s Steven, the cute Indian guy wearing a white tee, sarong and slippers that attracted me in the first place. He can be seen welcoming customers at the 24-hour outlet in Mid Valley Megamall just opposite toast box. Not only does he have to demonstrate the art of pulling the tea, he also has to entertain the many amused passers-by that want to take a photo with him!

The friendly manager informed me that Steven’s Tea Garden would be making a debut in Singapore soon! I think that’s great news!

Besides teh tarik, the restaurant also sells various mamak cuisine such as roti canai, nasi lemak and mee goreng. Boy, would Singaporeans love those!

This is the aforementioned Sri Vijaya Restaurant, with a REAL ~~sarong-wearing~~ lunghi-clad Indian guy at the entrance. I love that place!

Steven’s Tea Garden ( )
All outlets
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Website

View the original article and join the discussion at:
http://sparklette.net/travel/malaysia/stevens-tea-garden/ | 7 comments

Like on Facebook | Follow on Twitter | Download free iPhone app

Niqqi’s the Cheese Prata Shop – Not for People on the Move

Veron Ang — Wed, 05 Jul 2006 14:07:03 +0000

I have been missing Niqqi’s the Cheese Prata Shop ever since graduating from NUS. All NUS staff and undergraduates, especially the hostel residents, would no doubt be very familiar with the eatery. As it is open 24/7, this is a popular place to grab late night supper. When I paid a visit to NUS recently, I made use of the opportunity to pop by here for my favourite roti john.

Roti John
S$2.50
Rating:

French bread is typically used in roti john. It is pan-fried in beaten egg mixture and onion so that it gets crispy on the outside. The cheese prata shop serves an ample portion of the bread along with a generous serving of sweet chilli sauce. Very savoury and satisfying! One serving is already enough to make a full meal!

For those of you who love the simple yet delightful roti john, here’s a bit of the history behind it.

The origins of roti john can be traced back to 1976. A man named Shukor ran a stall in Taman Serasi Hawker Centre, opposite the Singapore Botanical Gardens. At that time, his Caucasian expatriate customers (always addressed as “John! John!” regardless of their actual names) frequently ordered onion omelettes along with French bread. It got so popular that Shukor decided to fuse the two together.

And that is how roti john came to be, affectionately named after Shukor’s foreign clientele.

Locals grew to love this humble dish as well, which has clearly stood the test of time. It was named one of the 15 Singapore hawker legends by Makansutra in 2005.

I have yet to try out Shukor’s legendary roti john. Today, the stall is run by his daughter at Serangoon Garden Market and I would love to pay a visit one day! Despite being an ubiquitous dish, a good roti john is hard to come by. Most hawkers can’t get it right; either the French bread isn’t properly prepared, or the wrong kind of chilli sauce is used.

Sometimes chicken or tuna is also added but I still prefer roti john the way it’s meant to be — plain and at the same time oozing with rich egg fragrance and onion flavour. Oh and the chilli sauce has to be sweet and served in a large quantity for this dish to be properly enjoyed.

So what goes well with roti john? A piping hot glass of teh tarik (“pulled” tea) of course!

Teh Tarik (“Pulled” Tea)
S$0.80
Rating:

It is a shame that the drinks here are really mediocre. Teh tarik is supposed to have a frothy top from repeated “pulling”. But the guy who pulled the tea must have gotten tired of doing it. There was little froth on our teh tarik.

Even the Milo Dinosaur isn’t made the right way. It should be a saturated Milo drink topped with a generous heap of Milo powder. Instead, noticeably little Milo powder is used, resulting in a very watered down Milo that is nothing like what Milo Dinosaur should be like.

Maggi Goreng Pattaya
S$4.00
Rating:

An interesting dish worth mentioning is the Maggi goreng pattaya. We often come across nasi goreng pattaya. This Maggi version, however, has Maggi Mee substituted for the rice. I didn’t really fancy it though.

No matter how much I love their roti john, I have a major complaint about the service over here. At any one time they have a dozen staff on duty, yet service is always slow! We were there on a weekday evening when they didn’t have many customers. Most of the staff were standing around and chatting with one another. Each time we asked for someone for help, he would say “wait” and point to another guy. This went on for about 15 minutes before we finally had our orders taken! Such tardiness can get real frustrating when you are hungry or in a hurry.

They should have a warning sign somewhere that reads: Niqqi’s the Cheese Prata Shop — not for people on the move!

Niqqi’s the Cheese Prata Shop ( Halal certified)
16/18 Clementi Road
Singapore 129747
Tel: +65 6872 1030

Open 24 hours

News updates

February 3, 2007: My list of Best (& Worst) Restaurants in Singapore for 2006
- Nominated for “Best Hawker Stall”

View the original article and join the discussion at:
http://sparklette.net/food/niqqis-the-cheese-prata-shop/ | 6 comments

Like on Facebook | Follow on Twitter | Download free iPhone app

Geylang – Sinma Frog Porridge & Yong He Eating House

Veron Ang — Wed, 04 Jan 2006 08:26:11 +0000

I had a delicious meal of all my favourite food at Geylang last night, to celebrate my full recovery from flu and sore throat. In my opinion, the best foods in Singapore are still found at hawker centres.

First there’s my favourite frog porridge from Sinma at Lorong 3. They always create the false impression that they are offering customers a great deal by selling their frogs with “buy 2 get 1 free”, “buy 3 get 2 free”, “buy 4 get 3 free” promotions. But actually the frogs don’t come cheap as they already cost around nine dollars each. And a pot of porridge for two comes at a ridiculous 3 dollars! Expensive! But at least everything tastes good..

Mummy chicken! That’s chicken cooked in marmite sauce and tastes totally yummy!

Of course there’s also my favourite you-tiao (fried doughsticks) and beancurd from the famous 24-hour stall, Yong He, further down. I like to dip the you-tiao in the beancurd and I think the you-tiao tastes better that way.

There was this guitar guy performing at the place. He was singing at tables with diners making song requests.

The guy actually sounded good, but could sing only in mandarin. Nonetheless, the songs he sang still sounded familiar as they were from popular Asian singers like Emil Chau and Jacky Cheung. Everyone at Yong He, from the staff to the patrons enjoyed his songs very much. Every one of his songs was met with applause at the end. Of my many times eating you-tiao and beancurd at Yong He, it was the first time I came across this guy. It was pretty refreshing hearing acoustic music in a hawker centre setting, especially one in Geylang!

View the original article and join the discussion at:
http://sparklette.net/food/geylang-dinner/ | 2 comments

Like on Facebook | Follow on Twitter | Download free iPhone app