Tuesday, October 13, 2026

SW1 Night Market near Asok BTS / Sukhumvit MRT Station @ Bangkok [Thailand]

I profess to be a fan of Bangkok but even I was surprised to chance upon SW1 Night Market! Honestly, I have never heard about it and it was located at prime location; less than 300 meters from Asok BTS station! 

With a perimeter of just about 200 meters, SW1 would be smaller than your conventional night markets in Bangkok. However, the crowd was thinner as well and I could find plenty of seatings, with a chillax atmosphere.

Some photo props to showcase Thailand! 
Not the mirrors, more the tuk tuk.

While food was said to be the main "draw", there were non-food stalls for those who were simply too full given the vast amount of dining options in the capital of Thailand. 

Nothing that particularly caught my attention to be honest. Furthermore, I was hoping for better offers and a much wider variety at Chatuchak Weekend Market.  

Given the many white walls at my small flat, I should really consider having my caricatures being drawn in foreign countries, with their landmarks, so that I can put them up! I can imagine having a good laugh every now and then, given how exaggerated the artists can be. 

The world is really going into retro mode. 
Pins are so my era, and back then; limited designs. 

Now the food; some photographs for your reference on what to expect at SW1 Night Market; nowadays, it's quite the usual but as I mentioned before; only so much I could eat with just one tummy and knowing myself, only when the reviews are superbly good or came with strong recommendations from friends. 

I so wanted seafood in the bag but due to some surgical procedures, I couldn't have any crustaceans! From a seafood lover, this was indeed torturing.

The more exotic fried insects, octopus shots and dancing shrimp; three challenges / dares to give you the Thai experience. I am no stranger to fried insects but I think I am giving the latter two the misses; like much higher risk of a stomach upset. 

Fancy barbecued crocodile skewers? Just seeing those decapitated crocodiles was a real turnoff though! Aside from crocodiles, there were also options for ostrich and deer! 

One thing that I seriously wanted to buy.
Crayon shin chan in the adorable durian costume! 

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Address
222 Sukhumvit Rd, Khlong Toei, 
Bangkok 10110, Thailand

Map
As above.


Monday, October 12, 2026

Restoran HW Wan Tan Mee (海威云吞面) @ Mount Austin in JB [Malaysia]

Going to Johor Bahru on a weekend always makes me sad as I know for certain that I will not be able to patronize century wanton mee near KSL City Mall as the home-based eatery only operates on weekdays! 

But there are always alternatives and I don't mind checking out the ones I have never tried before; like the above Restoran HW Wan Tan Mee at Mount Austin. 

To focus on just wantan mee for such a large shop infers the confidence that the owner has for his/her food and needless to say, I had high anticipation for the food! 

With five of us, I guess we would have sufficient stomach space to share the famous spicy muar otak! If we were to get too full, there's always the option to bring home and toast them in the next few days. 

Spicy Muar Otak - now, the highly acclaimed muar otak doesn't taste like the above. Too wet and I don't get to ingest large pieces of real fish meat. A tad spicy, it also lacked the aromatic spices that signified the otaks from muar.

Fried Wantan - a small portion with 12 pieces to be shared. Fried to a crisp, the crust was crunchy without feeling overly heavy and the meat filling was generous with a dash of pepper. Fantastic as a snack and I love having them with the sweet Thai chilli!  

White Sauce Wantan Mee - my small plate of wantan mee! What's the deal with fried beancurd skin nowadays as I recall seeing a lot of them when I last had claypot curry fish tail at Bukit Ho Swee 1961 recently! 

With no chilli, I enjoyed the moisturized, slurpy noodles; while the lard oil coating the noodles was nice, it's not on the same footing as century wanton mee and paled in comparison to Ah Tuck Wanton Noodle. To be fair, the slices of char siew was nicely flavored despite not being sinfully burnt and fatty. 

The wanton dumplings in soup were pretty decent! 

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After reading what I wrote above, would you think I would return to Restoran HW Wan Tan Mee? Maybe I would if there's a craving for wanton mee. Although on second thought, the KL hokkien mee from the nearby Restoran Uncle Pou Wok beckons...

Address
33, Jalan Austin Heights 3, Taman Mount Austin, 
81100 Johor Bahru, Johor Darul Ta'zim, Malaysia

Map
As above.

Menu
As above.

Pricing
White Sauce Wantan Mee (Small) - RM 9.40
Fried Wantan (Small) - RM 9.50
Spicy Muar Otak - RM 16.00 for ten
(Subject to Service Charge and Taxes)