hawker – Jellybeans in the City

A taste of Singapore’s hawker scene at Roti Shop, Rockwell

A key feature of Singapore’s foodie scene is the proliferous hawker shop. Populated by stalls selling wondrous varieties of inexpensive food, the Singapore’s hawker centers are among the first food stops for many tourists and a go-to place for good yet cheap eats for the locals.

Having already closed her Southeast Asian Restaurant Wild Ginger in the Power Plant Mall, Marla Moran decided to use the space vacated to bring a hawker-style eatery to the mall. And so the Roti Shop came to be.

The resto’s premises are bright and cheery, with a happy jumble of bright colors and kitschy decor, particularly those maneki-nekos, cat figurines with one paw periodically waving, or beckoning to customers. These figurines are said to bring good luck to business establishments.

Roti, obviously, is the key item in most dishes served here. Also known as chapati, it is a round unleavened flatbread rooted in Indian cuisine. Normally eaten by hand, it is served hot from the pan then usually pulled apart and shaped to scoop into savory side dishes. Alternatively, cheese and other ingredients may be folded into the roti dough, resulting to tasty murtabaks.

Together with fellow food bloggers from #WeLoveToEatPH, I was able to sample some of the Roti Shop’s signature offerings, which include:

Cheese Roti Prata (Php160). Cheese slices are inserted in between balls off roti dough then flattened down prior to cooking in a buttered pan, resulting to a crispy and flaky flatbread with melted cheese flavoring each bite. This is among the most basic of roti varieties; I would prefer to dip it into a stronger flavored side dish but it is a safe bet for those new to this kind of cuisine.

Beef Murtabak (Php215). Consider this the Asian Quesadilla: the roti prata is stuffed with marinated minced beef which makes for a filling, savory dish.

Corned Beef and Onion Murtabak (Php225). Imagine your favorite breakfast flavors of corned beef, onions and fried egg packaged roti style! I would prefer the fried egg yolk to be a little more runny, though. (Yeah, I’m looking for #yolkporn, hehehe!)

Veggie Murtabak (Php195). A savory mixture of chickpeas, peas, spinach and carrots replaces meat as the filling in this murtabak, which will surely be much appreciated by those on a vegetarian diet.

Roti Tisu. Its name translates tom “roti tissue paper” because the bread is actually paper thin. In Singapore, however, it is called “roti helicopter” as the cooks usually spin the dough around to stretch and flatten it prior to cooking. It is then twisted into a cone and sprinkled liberally with chocolate sauce and candy sprinkles. Quite a treat for those of us with a sweet tooth!

Non-roti items served include:

Char Kway Teow (Php275). Wok-tossed rice noodles with seafood and chicken.

Hainanese Chicken Rice (Php495). A half-chicken poached in a stock flavored with garlic and ginger. The stock is then used to cook rice, producing a flavorful and oily rice. It is served with a trio of dipping sauces comprised of dark soy sauce, red chili sauce and freshly ground ginger in oil.

Roti Shop Chendol (Php125). An iced dessert made with pandan jelly, red beans, coconut milk and coco palm sugar syrup. Consider this the Singaporean halo-halo!

These Singaporean hawker dishes are an exotic treat for me and my fellow foodies. I plan to come back and get a taste of that Laksa!

Roti Shop is located at the P1 Level of the Power Plant Mall, Rockwell, Makati City, open daily from 11am to 9pm. For inquiries and reservations, call +63 2 4789450 or +63 917 7114533.

Disclosure: Together with other food bloggers, I was invited to attend a foodie meetup held in this restaurant. Food items mentioned here were served to allow us to sample the fare and were not paid for by the attendees, including myself.

World’s most affordable Michelin-starred restaurant Hawker Chan opens 2nd PH branch in SM North EDSA

When we think of Michelin-star restaurants, what comes to mind are posh establishments and stiff dining etiquette.

That couldn’t be farther from Hawker Chan.

The internationally acclaimed Singapore-based restaurant, famous for its Soya Chicken Rice, has opened a store at SM Mall of Asia earlier this year and is now opening its second branch in the country in SM North EDSA.

Founded by Malaysian chef Chan Hong Meng in 2009 as a small store in the largest hawker center in Singapore serving soya sauce rice, Hawker Chan has since been recognized by Michelin’s Singapore Guide when it debuted in 2016 and every year since, making it the most affordable Michelin-starred restaurant in the world.

Hawker Chan was brought to the Philippines by Foodee Global Concepts, which currently manages fourteen food brands in the country.

Together with fellow foodies and other selected guests, I attended a pre-opening dinner at Hawker Chan SM North EDSA.

Among the dishes we sampled are:

Combination Platter of Char Siew, Roasted Pork and Pork Rib (Php270). Served with either plain rice or Hawker Chan’s signature noodles freshly made daily, it is a hearty meal for meat lovers.

Chicken Platter (Php299 for half | Php598 for whole). Juicy, succulent chicken with that flavorful skin, it just makes you want to get more and more.

Thai Style Tofu (Php160). Our wait staff Ian called it the healthier option among the items served but I’m calling it an addition to the items on my plate (Yep, an addition, not an option. I’m having all of them and who’s to stop me? :-)) It adds a contrast in texture and spiciness to the other dishes.

I don’t know about you, but I’m hoping they open another branch nearer to my place soon so I can enjoy a great, affordable hawker meal!

This Hawker Chan branch is located at the Upper Ground Level, City Center at SM North EDSA, Bago Bantay, Quezon City. With a seating capacity of 56 people, it is open daily from 10am to 10pm.

Did you know that there’s a possibility that you can enjoy Hawker Chan’s Soya Chicken Rice for a year at this branch? Simply be among the first ten customers when this branch opens on December 4 and 5. The 11th to the 20th customer will get 6 months supply, the 21st to the 50th will get 3 months supply and the 51st to the 100th customer will get a month’s supply. Remember: you found out about it here (and maybe treat me to one of those free Soya Chicken Rice, maybe? Hehehe!)

And with Christmas just around the corner, you can treat your fam-bam to a family-sized platter of Hawker Chan’s mouthwatering roasts – Char Siew, Roasted Pork and Soya Chicken – good for six to ten people.

Hawker Chan’s other branch is located at Ground Floor, Entertainment Mall, SM Mall of Asia, Mall of Asia Complex (MOA), Pasay City, open daily from 10am to 10pm.

Disclosure: Together with other food bloggers, I was invited to attend a Pre-opening Event held in this restaurant. Food items mentioned here were served to allow us to sample the fare and were not paid for by the attendees, including myself.

Savouring Asian street food at Hawker Street, Savour Manila

I took an opportunity to take my daughter on an impromptu foodie adventure (and on a weekday at that!) at Savour Manila.

My daughter recently started her internship/work immersion in a company in Quezon City. Since it is a short distance from my office, I usually drop her off and pick her up from her workplace.

On this particular afternoon, we found ourselves with a couple of hours to while away and we decided to meet up at my office then go out to eat.

She was all set for some Japanese food but as we were walking along Tomas Morato, the Savour Manila food park caught our eye.

For our first time here, we decided on Hawker Street, the stall that offers Asian street food. We shared a bowl of laksa (Php200), my daughter’s first encounter with this Peranakan soup dish, and two sticks of bacon yakitori wraps (Php100).

We requested for the laksa to be mildly spicy, given that we both have low tolerance for spicy food. While the broth has a nice balance spiciness from the curry and creaminess from the coconut milk, the noodles used are pasta noodles instead of the more authentic vermicelli or laksa noodles.

The bacon wrapped asparagus spears and enoki mushrooms served as our meaty viand. We really couldn’t say anything much about the bacon wraps except that bacon makes everything better.

We even shared a giant glass of iced tea from the store two stalls down.