Saigon, (aka Ho Chi Minh City) Gastronomy Tour Part I

Unfortunately there is nothing really sexy about this city once named Saigon. If you were hoping for a French colonial feeling Hanoi is your best bet. Saigon, or what it is presently known as today -- Ho Chi Minh City, is still very much an underdeveloped, dare I say industrialized city. There aren't too many sights to see, but the Gastronomy Tour: Saigon Edition I took was one of the greatest.

First stop Pho Hoa, considered the best Pho in all of HCM. The sayers were right. This place was delicious. The sliced raw beef - tender and taseful. Not at all the chewiness I sometimes find. I got the Pho Tai for 35,000 VND (2.10 USD) which I found to be almost a crime. I think the look I gave them was appalled. Preying on the innocent tourists. Usually a bowl is 27,000 VND (1.60 USD). But it's almost pointless to argue over a few cents (though on more than one occasion I have). Especially, when you fly all the way to their country and walk half way across the city for a bowl of noodles. Indeed, Pho Hoa is not the easiest to find. But it was all worth it to taste the clear broth and fresh ingredients.

A close up. With the necessary condiments of hot and plum sauce.

A delicious last bite!

Pho Hoa
260 Pasteur Street
Ho Chi Minh City, (Saigon)
Vietnam

Marmalade Pantry Oh My!

The food served up here is as cute and kitchy as the name of the restaurant. There are two locations, one in Hitachi Tower (my personal favorite) and the other at Palais Renaissance. Marmalade Pantry serves up sandwiches, pitas, salads, pasta and even all day breakfast! We had the Crab Meat Cesar Salad. Personally, I don't like that much crab meat in my salad, it tends to overwhelm the rest of the other fine ingredients -- such as the lettuce. Otherwise, this dish was a nice spin on the traditional Cesar Salad. I also sampled the snapper cooked in breadcrumbs and I couldn't have been any happier. I am trying to go on a diet the past couple of days (success rate zero) so this dish fit the bill perfectly. My friend on the other hand had an extra large helping of eggs, sausages and french fries?! Muahaha. Verdict? They definitely don't skimp here.

Crabmeat Cesar Salad with Pine Nuts.

Marmalade Pantry

Palais Renaissance

390 Orchard Road

Singapore 238871

House of Singapore

I am strangely drawn to places that have been 'converted.' 'Oh this use to be a convent where nuns used to pray. Now they serve Spanish tapas.' or 'This used to be my mom's house, but I kicked her out and turned it into my dream restaurant.' So, it was only fitting that I visit a place called Dempsey Road. It's an area of Singapore that used to be army barracks (are you shocked as I am that this place even needs an army? I have lived here or one year and saw a police officer once. It was at the police station to file a lost ID card.) which has now been converted to a series of restaurants on a road called Dempsey. Here you will find a large number of expats as well as locals dining a range of Mexican, Italian and American cuisine. 

House is a combination of things: spa, restaurant, bar and/or living. However, I went for the Sunday brunch. The place serves your basic American breakfast with its own unique twists on the average sunny side up eggs and pancakes. A tad on the expensive side, think NYC prices. When I arrived I was immediately drawn to the 7-layer pancake with nuts and other various delights on the menu. Sadly, when the plate of pancakes arrived I was completely taken aback. It was 7-layers of pancakes alright, but what they forgot to mention was that they weren't going to serve 3/4 of the rest of the pancakes. What I got was actually 7 slices of pancakes. Deceiving. I took matters in my own hands and went back home to create the same exact dish --with my own added touches of course. And yes, they look exactly like the ones at House. ;)

Making 7 stacks of pancakes takes a long time! I could only do 3 stacks before I got hungry.

Each layer had nutella inside with toasted almonds, pistachios, green raisins and dried figs. Don't forget the maple syrup!

Dempsey House

8D Dempsey Road, Singapore 249672

Singapore

JJ Market & Braised Chicken Noodle Soup in Bangkok

Braised Chicken Noodle Soup with Ramen.

This weekend I traveled to Bangkok and gave another go at the weekend JJ Market, also known as Chatuchak Market. It's dubbed Asia's largest outdoor market. However, I am not entirely sure if this is true. But best believe that this place is large and sells everything from dried plants, vintage clothing, pets and even random car parts. However, my favorite part about this market are the ubiquitous food stalls. My friend and I took a quick break from our shopping and got a bowl of stewed chicken and ramen noodles. Simple, yet utterly delicious. The chicken just melted off the bone. Even better was that each bowl was 1.16 USD each!