Nutritious Nosh

Most folks wouldn’t call pasta healthy, but @harryssingapore does spaghetti two ways that are incredibly healthy yet sufficiently savoury. First up is the Surfer’s Aglio Olio ($22++), featuring the timeless & trusty pairing of seared tiger prawns & al dente spaghetti tossed in olive oil, garlic, and chilies, but Harry’s goes a step further & adds furikake for extra umami. The tiger prawns are flawlessly fresh and seared to perfection, and the surprisingly spicy spaghetti was savoury & rich thanks to the olive oil & furikake, and there’s a lot of chili concealed within for a fiery surprise.⠀
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On the even healthier side of things, the vegan friendly Greens with Pesto ($20++) stars spaghetti in an aromatic & herbaceous pesto with a whole garden’s worth of fresh vegetables. Broccoli, green beans, pine nuts & sugar snap peas are lightly dusted with a touch of parmesan for your daily dose of greens. I thought it could do with a little more salt, but since we’re trying to keep it healthy, I think it’s just fine.⠀
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Thanks for having us, @harryssingapore & @burpple!

If chicken is too basic for you, the Pan Seared Salmon ($22++) is a suitably healthy alternative. The salmon is seasoned simply but cooked quite competently, achieving a crispy skin while keeping the flesh reasonably moist. Instead of being served with the pleasant purple sweet potatoes, the salmon comes with brown rice and pesto. As with the chicken, the pesto is invaluable in providing flavour to the unseasoned rice & veg, and adding extra flavour to the salmon, and I couldn’t get enough of its herbaceous deliciousness.⠀
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And of course, the ultimate in clean eating is a salad, and Harry’s Quinoa salad made me feel so healthy I had to down a few cocktails to balance it out. Broccoli, cherry tomatoes, cucumbers, egg, feta cheese, green beans, mixed lettuce & seeds, quinoa and my beloved roasted purple sweet potatoes are all combined in a dish. Then, you bind everything together with the acidic but flavoursome balsamic dressing. Definitely a little too healthy for pub grub, but I ain’t complaining.⠀
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Thank you for hosting us, @harryssingapore & @burpple!

One of @harryssingapore new dishes in their push to be more health conscious is the Roasted Chicken Roulade ($23++). I’m not sure what they stuffed into the chicken breast, but it feels like a mix of minced chicken& chopped up mushrooms. It was sufficiently salted, but as you may expect of a roasted chicken breast, it was a tad dry. ⠀
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Fortunately, the chimichurri provided was more than enough to lube up this meat tube, and it added herbs & complexity to the otherwise monotonous roulade. I also appreciate the battens of purple sweet potato on the side, as they were sweeter & more delectable than the standard sweet potatoes. Unfortunately, Harry’s forgot to season their steamed veggies, and you have to spend some of that precious chimichurri on the veg. I wish Harry’s would’ve seasoned the veg very simply with some melted butter, salt & black pepper. Yes, butter is healthier than seed oils, all other answers are wrong.

Thank you for hosting us, @harryssingapore & @burpple!

@miskacafe is located in the posh enclave of Sentosa Cove, and despite its inaccessibility from mainland Singapore, is worth a visit if you’re already on Sentosa. They serve satisfying sustenance along with cold tall pints of Paulaner fresh from the tap along with wines & ten buck cocktails, all enjoyed while gazing at the yachts moored at dock. Their cuisine is predominantly Greek with a smattering of Turkish and Western, and it’s all rather fetching.⠀
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I’ve had a soft spot for doner kebabs ever since my uni days in Newcastle, where I’d grab a kebab at three in the morning while shitfaced drunk. So when I saw that Miska offers a Lamb Kofta Doner Wrap ($19++), I knew I HAD to have it. While it is a lot healthier by virtue of being a lot less greasy than my 3am kebabs, it’s still delicious and quite a hearty meal. The lamb kofta was well spiced & concealed most of the gaminess, and the tangy & refreshing tzatziki added lubrication & richness to this tastefully toasted doner kebab. My only complaints about this Doner Wrap are that the tzatziki wasn’t applied evenly, resulting in dry patches, and it could’ve used some more strips of lamb kofta.⠀
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Overall, Miska’s got a good thing going with a view that many restaurants would kill for, and the food’s simple yet decent. Thanks for the invite @burpple & @miskacafe!

When @littlefrench_sg first opened its doors, it was a dinner only French bistro, but they’ve since expanded to lunch with their reasonably priced lunch sets. For $24.80++, you get a choice of a tuna tataki salad or a French onion soup for the starter, and a choice between a roasted leg of poulet (chicken), lamb burgundy linguine, or barramundi grenobloise, all washed down by either coffee or tea.⠀
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While Little French Bistro’s set lunch certainly isn’t the most bang for your buck on the market, the dishes served are all full portions so your hunger will definitely be satisfied. I needed to eat healthier that week, so the tuna tataki salad fit the bill nicely. A trio of sesame encrusted seared tuna slices are complemented by crumbled blue cheese, compressed watermelon, artfully twirled ribbons of zucchini, razor thin slices of red radish, cherry tomatoes and a few wedges of dehydrated mandarins, all dressed with a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil and balsamic vinegar.⠀
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It’s really more of a fruit salad than an actual salad due to the ratio of fruit to veg. The radish & zucchini were sharp & sour due to the balsamic, which was offset by the sweetness of the compressed watermelon & mandarin orange wedges. The finely seared tuna slices possessed an alluringly meaty texture, broken up by the crunch of the sesame seeds, and complemented by the creamy, funky & salty flavours of the blue cheese. ⠀
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They were a bit too heavy handed on the balsamic though, as the salad was definitely firmly on the acidic side, and I found myself relying on the sweetness of the fruit to chase down the sourness of the balsamic vinegar. Still a decent salad though, and a solid opener for Little French Bistro’s lunch set.

The Geylang Serai Ramadan bazaar is back after a three year hiatus due to the Big Coof. However, the triumphant return has been severely marred by disgustingly exorbitant rents, which does distract from the fact that 2023’s Ramadan pasar malam has a mind boggling variety of food available. Despite being sorely tempted to write a rant post about the absurd rents & human greed, I’ll stick to writing about the food. For now.⠀
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Kebabs are an iconic pasar malam staple, and the Geylang Serai pasar malam has about a dozen kebab merchants. @bosphorusturkishkebab is probably the most famous of them all, as this is the same hawker stall from Golden Mile Food Center. I initially wanted a kebab, but the allure of their chicken butter rice ($8) was too charming to resist.⠀
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A copious portion of chicken sliced off the slowly rotating vertical rotisserie is loaded onto a bountiful bed of butter basmati rice. The chicken and rice are then obscured by lots of lettuce, a couple of the most beautiful tomato slices I’ve ever seen, and showered in a tangy sauce that suggests a yogurt based sauce. It’s a truly gargantuan serving, and fully worth the eight bucks on size alone.⠀
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Bosphorus’ chicken butter rice ain’t just big in size, the flavours are equally massive. The chicken is definitely the juiciest and most flavourful kebab chicken I’ve had, and each soft shred of chicken is super savoury, and jazzed up with the aromatics of cumin, nutmeg and possibly paprika. It’s the perfect combination with the brilliant butter rice, which is incredibly fragrant thanks to the butter it’s been cooked with, and it’s fluffy and so incredibly satiating to both your palette and your carb cravings.⠀
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The veggies are more than amply dressed with the yogurt(?) sauce, which is salty & subtly tangy, breathing luscious life into boring veg. I’ve always been an admirer of olives, and the single green olive in here gave me such joy. For a very reasonable eight bucks, you’re getting the healthiest and heartiest meal at the entire bazaar.

One of @alteregosg calling cards are their poke bowls, and they’ve very wisely decided to retain all four of them. Unfortunately, on the day I was there, they only had the Original Poke Shaker ($20++) and the Wasabi Yuzu Dragon (also $20++) available. While they’ve stayed on the menu, both poke bowls have been slightly updated to keep up with the times.⠀
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The new versions of both see the addition of walnuts, the green noodle stuff that I can’t remember what it is, shimeji mushrooms, and a whole boatload of nori. However, the core has remained the same: chunks of fresh salmon, steamed rice, diced cucumbers and cherry tomatoes, all garnished by a generous helping of tobiko (prawn roe).⠀
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Unless you’re an anti-wasabi or anti-yuzu extremist, there is no reason why you shouldn’t get the Wasabi Yuzu Dragon over the original. Salmon sashimi just doesn’t feel right without wasabi, and the additional perfume of zesty yuzu enlivens all of the other elements in the bowl. The addition of almonds are absolutely inspired, as it adds a hard textural contrast to the all the soft elements in the bowl, keeping your mouth & palate fully engaged all throughout.⠀
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For the justifiable price of twenty dollars, you can eat real healthy while getting your hunger satisfied. Thanks for inviting us, @alteregosg & @burpple!

The caesar salad, while less memorable than the elegant elotes, was still expertly executed. Most renditions of this classic salad these days are unfaithful to the traditional recipe, but I sure am glad that Tonito has chosen to keep it classic with the oft omitted anchovies. These anchovies added a satisfyingly salty and moderately fishy taste that many caesars these days sorely lack, and give the otherwise dull dish a massive dose of deliciousness.⠀
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Mucho gracias for the hospitality, @tonito.singapore & @burpple!

Despite working at Joo Chiat, which is effectively Singapore’s Little Saigon, I rarely have Vietnamese food. However, I’m glad I decided to sample the Bún Thit Nuong Chá Giò, which is a Spring Roll, Grilled Pork combo on a bed of vermicelli noodles at Lap Vietnamese Restaurant.
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Yeah, I know, I actually had to dig to find the noodles too. Yes, the bowl is actually a large bowl. That’s right, the pork chop & vegetables were so awesomely abundant that it obscured the prodigious portion of noodles. The vegetables & vermicelli noodles were unseasoned, but there’s a bowl of sweet chili sauce provided that you mix into it all to power it up with sweetness, spiciness and just a little twinge of tanginess.⠀
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The pork chop was incredibly intriguing, as it was a little on the tough side, yet it was most definitely not dry. It’s been sensationally seasoned with a herb & spice rub that I can’t place for the life of me, and it’s acquired a delicious smokiness from the grill. Better yet, it’s served with the bone, and as expected, the meat got felicitously fatty & divinely juicy the closer you get to the bone.⠀
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The surprise star in the bowl definitely has to be the deep fried spring rolls. It’s charismatically crunchy, and Lap is incredibly generous with the minced pork in the filling. The minced pork is sensationally seasoned, and the crunch of water chestnuts is endlessly endearing. The perfect blend of savoury, soft meatiness juxtaposed with the indecent crunchiness of the chestnuts & the thin rice paper wrap? Sold, sold and SOLD.⠀
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Yessir, Lap serves up Viet food so good I’d gladly lap it all up all day any day. GOOOOOOD MORNIN’, SAIGON!

@salmonwarriorsg boasts of their fresh salmon that’s flown in straight from Norway, and said salmon is pretty impressive. Not only is it fresh & ready for your pleasure, you can choose to have it in a bowl or in a roll. This time, I chose to construct my own salad bowl, and I’m not gonna lie: I was flabbergasted when I realised my creation would conquer my wallet to the tune of $14.80. At least Salmon Warrior is one of those wonderful eateries where it’s all nett prices, whew.⠀
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Sure, I might’ve blown more cash than I was intending to, but I got one of the freshest & crispest salad bowls in Singapore. I decided to keep it real with just plain salmon sashimi and I’m glad I did, because I wouldn’t have been able to grasp its fantabulous freshness otherwise. The sashimi is sliced just the way I like it: T H I C C. The sensational salmon slices were fresh, slightly sweet & an utter delight to devour.⠀
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It really annoys me that Salmon Warrior charges extra for salad dressing. Shouldn’t salads come dressed by default? Anyway, the Garlic Mayo sauce I selected for an extra dollar & twenty cents was gleefully garlicky & cheerfully creamy, but it was sorely lacking in salt. Sure, $2.50 for half an avocado might be the reason why I can’t afford to own a house, but this half avo is at peak freshness and on god the $2.50 I spent was worth it.⠀
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Sure, building your own salad bowl at Salmon Warrior can get pretty bougie, but it’s pretty Gucci both for the ‘gram and for your body. Namaste & all that new age stuff, really.

Ah yes, cauliflower. Also known as that white veg nobody likes. Aka bargain bin broccoli. Aka low tier trash broccoli. Aka-yeah you get the general idea. However, @walkingonsunshine.cafe might’ve actually made cauliflower tolerable. I must admit that it was only because of @esth3r_esth3r suggestion that I decided to try the cauliflower, and boy did she pick right.⠀
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Their cauliflower dish that I’m talking about is very creatively named ‘Cauliflower’. Absolute genius, I r8 8/8 on cr8tivity m8. Priced at $13.50 before GST, the Cauliflower is constructed around a whole head of cauliflower that’s been baked (oven baked, not Snoop Dogg baked) and painted adequately with a very interesting eggplant purée, and garnished with a generous amount of mixed salad on the side.⠀
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When you’ve got a main ingredient that’s as reviled as cauliflower and with that few ingredients on the plate, your sauce better be a world beater. @walkingonsunshine.cafe definitely got that right, as their eggplant purée is inexplicably addictive. I swear there’s cheese inside, as the distinct scent of dairy is most definitely wafting from the sauce. It’s superbly savoury, silky smooth and charmingly creamy. You gotta try it to believe it, as my writing alone isn’t quite enough to fully articulate the wonders of this dish.⠀
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Tl;dr: guy who really dislikes cauliflower really likes @walkingonsunshine.cafe cauliflower because of the stellar sauce

@goodbitessg have a decent build-your-own-salad selection in three different sizes, which are the petite Nom Nom ($8.90++), medium sized Munch ($10.90++), and the big boi, Chomp ($13.90++).⠀
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Needless to say, I took the big boy Chomp and got myself the fishy duo of pan seared dory fish, and smoked salmon along with a smattering of colourful vegetables to serve as plate ornaments. Nah I’m kidding, I ate it all.⠀
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I’m gonna be honest with you, the only good thing I can say about the portion size is that they actually give you half an avocado as one of the veggie options for no extra charge, which is pretty rad. The protein portions, on the other hand, were downright miserly. ⠀
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“But there’s a decent amount of smoked salmon right there!” You cry. Yeah, but that comes with an additional two dollar surcharge. The two dory fillets were the ‘free’ option, and they came off of what I assume to be a growth challenged midget dory fish. My pal got the herb & citrus roasted chicken, and out came what appears to be a thigh fillet from a chicken suffering from polio. Oh, and the sweet potatoes were diced into such tiny cubes that eating them became a textbook example in frustration.⠀
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The lemon basil pesto dressing I ordered was suffering from a crippling lack of salt, but there were salt shakers on deck to remedy that problem. ⠀
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It ain’t all bad news though! The ingredients were phenomenally fresh, and a whole half of an avocado. Really, a full half avocado at no extra charge.