Choongman Chicken Silom - Korean Fried Chicken @ Bangkok in Thailand

In the land of good food, it's quite a contradiction that we would be going for Korean fried chicken at Choongman Chicken Silom, when the main and sole indulgence should have been Thai cuisine!

While I am a believer of Google Maps review, the expectation had waned in recent years. For this Korean eatery, the review score was 4.7 from over 800 reviewers but the number of customers within can be counted using two hands, and it's during the peak dinner period. 

But the promotion of one for one asahi beer was too hard to resist, and my brother in law was craving for ice cold beer! I am nonchalant about it, so long it's cold enough to temper Bangkok's heat and humidity. 

Banchan - otherwise known as the side dishes were better than they looked. The kimchi was spicy yet fresh, and the radish was crunchy, albeit on the sweeter side, which I personally prefer. 

Asahi Beer - thirst quenching although not as cold as my brother in law would love. For that, I would strongly recommend the extra cold hite beer from REPLYK1988 in Singapore instead! 

Samgyetang - hot and humid, yet we ordered this! Nevertheless, the surprise was that the portion was tiny. Not an issue as smaller portions mean more opportunity to eat other stuff. C'mon, we were in Bangkok where street food prevails! 

Chicken given was not even half a chicken, but the meat was tender. The soup itself was darn flavourful, albeit consistency was thickened; to the extent, I would say it felt like porridge! Thanks to the air-conditioning in the eatery, this tasted real shiok! 

Squid Ring - the promising visuals betrayed the truth; aside from being rubbery, there was zilch notion of any seafoody squidiness to the taste! Disappointing. 

Snow Onion Fried Chicken - said to be the signature dish of Choongman Chicken, it "was topped with sliced onions and drizzled with a secret white sauce". Now, anything with onions would have secured my immediate attention! 

I would best describe the "toppings" as sour cream and onions and yes, super appetising just like eating sour cream and onions potato chips, but switched the chips with fried chicken! Batter was heavy, typical of Korean fried chicken, and not cloying! Chicken was boneless (default), making it so much easy to eat! 

 

Spicy Yangnyeom Fried Chicken - choosing boneless again although there were options for drumettes or joint wings. A bit too spicy for my liking, and I can feel my head sweating, plus some numbing on my lips...

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Would love to return for the Samgyetang and Snow Onion Fried Chicken! Choongman Chicken has actually multiple stores across the globe, including Vietnam and Malaysia; closest to Singapore would be its branch at Bukit Indah!

Address

60/1, 1 Si Lom Rd, 

Bangkok 10500, Thailand

Map

As above.

Menu

As above.

Pricing

Asahi Beer - 119 Baht for Two

Samgyetang - 320 Baht

Squid Ring - 130 Baht

Snow Onion Fried Chicken - 229 Baht for Regular

Spicy Yangnyeom Fried Chicken - 219 Baht for Regular

(NETT)

Signature Braised Pork Rice from Hua Zai Hong Kong Style Roasted Delight @ Yishun Block 101 [Singapore]

Hua Zai Hong Kong Style Roasted Delight is no stranger to me as I blogged about it more than five years ago, when I noticed there were many mushrooming branches all over Singapore.

I wasn't impressed and had never revisited since, until a friend mentioned that his brother loves the signature braised pork rice, and thought I should check it out, given how deep an adoration I had for luroufan!

 

Ignoring the long queue for the bak chor mee in the same coffee shop at Yishun, I sure hoped the braised pork rice would be worth me dropping by on a Sunday morning. 

For convenience, my family ordered other things from the same stall; one of which would be their char siew wanton mee that proved to be just average tasting. 

Anyway, the braised pork rice was said to be chef recommended, and signature. So I shall dig in with bated breath. Visually, the excessive lean meat and the lack of much braised sauce were downers.

One scoop in and I was rolling my eyes; meat was tough and wasn't braised long enough, resulting in a blandness that the braised sauce also didn't help by being overly light and short on sweetness and savoriness. Definitely not Taiwanese style, and thoroughly disappointing. Even the fatty bits fail to elevate my mood! 

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Address

Block 101, Yishun Avenue 5, 

#01-101, Singapore 760101

Map

As above.

Pricing

Braised Pork Rice - S$5.80

Qijin / Cijin Island (旗津岛) - Oldest Settlement at Kaohsiung in Taiwan

After leaving the Cijin ferry pier, the first thing we noticed at Cijin Island was the line of shops offering rental of buggy-like bikes! We didn't bother given the short timeline we have on the island, deciding to continue our journey on foot instead.

"At 8.5 kilometers long and an average width of 400 meters", the island was once connected to mainland Taiwan on the southern end but it was severed in 1967 for port operations. The above street was a hive of activity, given its position as Cijin Old Street! 

 As a commercial street catered for visitors, there were souvenir shops and seafood eateries even though I wondered about the viability of the swim wear business given that the temperature wasn't exactly summer level at this time of the year.

One of the activities I wanted to partake was having the interesting raw tomato with ginger at Qijin! Taste aside, I bet just hearing the combination already gave many the psychological impression that it would be great for the body's health. 

Venturing towards the end of the old street, where we shall check out the other notable attraction at Cijin Island; one that I didn't realize differs from others I have been to. 

Cijin Beach! Don't you find it extremely beautiful when the sun was covered by the clouds, yet the streams of sunlight still managed to permeate through, resulting in a surreal, visual experience?

And the sand is black! According to Wikipedia, the "sand is made from eroded volcanic rock, primarily dark-colored basalt, which breaks down over time and gets deposited by ocean currents, creating the distinctive dark hue".

Another thing that made us go "wow" was the depth of the sandy beach. The shoreline was like about 80 meters deep and from the measurement tool on Google Maps, it can stretch to almost 250 meters deep. 

Maybe it was super low tide? 

Walking so far on sand was tiring! 

More photographs; with the sea breeze, a comfortable temperature, peals of laughters and the views surrounding us, both Alex and I felt utterly relaxed, with the mental soul being so comforted that we regretted not staying a night or two on the island. 

It would have been better if I remove my shoes; which I didn't as I didn't want the hassle of having to dry my feet before putting on my shoes after that. 

The above scenario would have been so uncomfortable! 

Not to mention the cold as well with the sea breeze.

Public amenities were available to wash up. 

Similar to Kuta Beach at Bali, the waves were more suitable for surfing than snorkeling (my preferred activity on the beach). Having gone through a painful, surfing experience on Royal Caribbean's Quantum of the Seas, I am sure I am not cut out for it. 

Cijin Sunset Bar (旗津沙灘吧) - as the name suggests, a great place to catch the sunset with food and drinks. But we had so little name to explore this small island. 

We shall chase the sunset as we continued our exploration. 

Crossing the road but going towards the direction against the Cijin Old Street as impatient me would find it hard to sit down for an hour just for the sun to slowly make its descent. 

It felt so empty; I wonder if it would be worth the wait.... 

Turned out it housed the "Cihou Market 旗后觀光市場"! 

It would be a market that my mom would get excited about, but not me! There was a heavy aroma of dried and preserved seafood; and it's a smell that some would think is overbearing. And for someone who doesn't cook much, the items for sale at the stalls all looked the same. 

Alex and I were more enthusiastic about the dog wearing a tee-shirt and a tag in Chinese that indicated" do not touch me"! Thankfully we can read Chinese! 

There were many temples in Taiwan but while some can be in a state of disrepair; I was more curious about the above temple. Known as "前臨水宮", it was a towering, imposing structure built in the modern era, yet totally abandoned. What happened"

A comment on Google Maps revealed that the temple was built in 1989 and supposedly, illegal on port grounds. The city government imposed power and water cuts in in 2005, resulting in abandonment, with the temple now known as the "Temple Without Deities".

Good news is that the temple eventually managed to get a permanent space about 600 meters, also on Cijin Island, and on the northern end. 

Proceeded to the beachside again.

Overlooking the Taiwan Straits, the beach was said to be haunted, with over a hundred drownings over the past 20 years, sparking rumours that there were water ghosts bent on having a replacement so that they can reincarnate. 

Nevertheless, the sunset was beautiful! 

My slipper accidentally kicked against the flooring, and a piece of tile fell and broke off! Wait, is that a result of a maintenance long coming or I am responsible?!? Okay, maybe have to share some responsibility too.

More photographs with the stunning sunset! With a growling stomach, however, sharp-ass me would not endure till the glowing globe disappeared at the horizon. 

Let's get some food into the tummy first.

Taiwanese White Sugar Cake from 不一样香可儿白糖糕! 

The dog looked so zen here. 

A fuller meal at 阿榮虱目魚肉燥飯, where we indulged in a mouthwatering bowl of braised pork rice and a serving of lip-smacking good milkfish soup! Yummy yummy.

A fascinating house that had seen its fair share of wear and tear, with a second level that had a sealed door, and no safety rails. Compared to a boring island that lacked amenities, living on Cijin Island would have been more convenient for urban folks like us. 

Checking out Cijin Tianhou Temple (旗津天后宮) that had a super strong accolade; it is Kaohsiung oldest temple, and was built in year 1673! In case you are unaware, Cijin Island is also Kaohsiung's oldest settlement! 

While small, the temple had modern elements, including a pipe above the paper incense burner that likely helped to filter the air and ash for a better environment.

Back at Cijin ferry pier for our ride back to the mainland. 

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Island Map

As above. Frankly, we only "conquered" a tiny portion of what Cijin Island offers in terms of attractions. Needless to say, we would definitely return to Kaohsiung in the near future, and commit to staying at least a a full week to get to know the city better! 

Location Map

As above.