Yellow Noodles Pork Crab from a Bangkok Roadside Stall (Jungko Bameekiaw Convent) near Sala Daeng BTS Station [Thailand]

I met up with a Thai friend in Bangkok recently and requested he bring me to a local eatery for good food, so long conditions are not insanitary. True to his roots; he brought me to a roadside stall near Sala Daeng BTS station!

The stall offers only noodles in soup or dry version and i gathered from the Chinese characters on the signboard that it's homemade Cantonese style wanton noodles. Menu had pictures and English translation; hence, it wouldn't be difficult for a well-seasoned traveller to order.

Yellow Noodles Pork Crab - this reminded me of the famous Bangkok Soi 19 Special Wanton Mee (aka Sabx2 Wanton Noodles) near Pratunam! Anyway, i can't resist crab although the portion wasn't that generous. Well, i can't complain when it's just 50-60 baht a bowl.

You can't really taste the sweetness of the crab but i totally enjoyed the slightly kee flavour of the springy noodles that complemented perfectly with the special sauce that's more than just our usual ketchup!

In no time; the bowl was clean! The char siew wasn't the type i like but they were passable. To me, the noodles with the delish sauce were the highlight and i guess i would go for the cheaper yellow noodle wonton pork in the future.

Bonus - go for the chrysanthemum tea; such a big mug for just 10 baht!

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Location Map

As above.

Menu

As above.

Tempura Tendon Tenya @ Samyan Mitrtown (Connected to Sam Yan MRT Station) in Bangkok [Thailand]

I love it when eateries have eye-catching taglines like Number 1 or Best in Asia as it would seriously entice me to give them a try and determine if they are worthy of the title, in my opinion. 

Tempura Tendon Tenya was one of the thousands of Japanese restaurants in Bangkok and i was drawn to it initially due to its popularity among the dining establishments in Samyan Mitrtown which i had to pass through every day when i was staying at Triple Y Hotel in my recent Bangkok trip.

We finally decided to give it a try on our last day and i was shocked to see their All Star Tendon, comprising of prawn, squid, scallop, mushroom, lotus root and beans, selling for just 169 baht! That's less than S$8.00! 

My eyes veered towards to the left of the menu and spotted a slightly more luxurious Super Star Tendon (189 baht) that had more meat ingredients. Even then, it still wouldn't cost more than S$$10.00; that's impossible to find in Singapore! 

Buta Tama Don - Alex wasn't that keen in deep fried food and opted for the above instead. I stole a bite and honestly, wasn't impressed; it's passable as a stomach filler and nothing more. 

Super Star Tendon - sadly, this suffered the same fate as the buta tama don, the chef was stingy with the tempura sauce and you get a mix that's not relatively bland. The deep fried ingredients would have to be the saviors but they were not to be; average tasting with a batter that didn't wow like the ones from Tendon Tempura Kohaku and Tendon Ginza Itsuki (both in Singapore).

In the case of the scallop, it's tasteless and i would be better off chewing a gum. Max disappointment for my last meal in Bangkok. Let me guess; maybe the store is number one due to its wallet-friendly price? 

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Address

944 Rama IV Rd, Wang Mai, B1-B1U007,

Samyan Mitrtown, Pathum Wan District, 

Bangkok 10330, Thailand

Pricing

Buta Tama Don - 109 Baht

Super Star Tendon - 189 Baht

Star Ferry - The Iconic Yet Affordable Cruise to Take @ Hong Kong #starferry

One of the rare touristy things i did in Hong Kong in 1997 was taking the star ferry; however, i wasn't really that much into blogging then and failed to take any photos to commemorate the visit.

Fast forward to 2019 and here i am once again to take the iconic cruise that would bring us on a short ride from Tsim Sha Tsui Star Ferry Pier to Central Pier on Hong Kong Island!

The signature green staircase with the painted destination.

Navigation to the deck wasn't hard; just look out for the signage or follow the crowd; which wasn't much on the day of our visit as the surrounding area was designated as a protest site. p.s. this was back in July 2019 when the situation wasn't as dire.

Price list for the ride which was amazingly cheap given the high cost of living in Hong Kong! Our ride would just cost HKD $3.70; less than S$1.00 and you can conveniently pay for it- via the contact-less Octopus Card (used for buses and train rides too).

The relatively empty waiting area; with the opening of three underwater tunnels connecting the mainland to Hong Kong Island, it's inevitable that the ferry mode is now less preferred given the longer time taken to cross Victoria Harbour.

Looking out of the window for the spectacular view of the skyline of Hong Kong Island. Both sides (Hong Kong Island and mainland) boasted towering skyscrapers although the government, financial and business district is on Hong Kong Island.

A star ferry (A2971 Northern Star) making its way across the harbour. Built in 1959, this grand dame has the capacity to hold 576 sitting passengers.

Most noticeable structure for the above photo would be the The Hong Kong Observation Wheel although my main objective was more for the central pier next to it; the one with a clock tower.

Gate was opened for departing customers!

Proceeding to the upper deck of the ferry; do note that the tickets for the lower deck were priced lower; HKD $3.70 (upper) versus HKD $3.10 (lower).

Interior of the ferry; rather basic but if my memory serves me well, i thought the seats back then were entirely wooden and the floor didn't seem to be lacquered.

Seat base now features the star logo.

Photos taken while on the cruise. Back in 1997, i remember the chill as it was winter period and my elder sister (companion for the trip) was wearing shorts; drawing stares from locals!

Oh my god; the classic junk boat on Victoria Harbour! Called the "Dukling", it's an old fishing boat that's about 65 years old and has now been converted into a tour boat.

For more information, click here!

The phallic structure - the 415-meter tall International Finance Center that's the second tallest in Hong Kong. Want to guess which takes the top rank on the board? It's the 484-meter International Commerce Centre which housed the sky100 observatory.

Reaching the Central Pier; contrast the commoners' transport with the private yacht that happened to be in the picture. To be fair, it can charted as i did in Singapore in 2014. Check out my post here.

Jet bridges - as the tide would change, there's a mechanized pulley system to raise or lower the platforms. Quite amazing right as this must have been in existence for maybe about 50 years! 

Opening the door for us to make out way out! It's still relatively labour intensive to operate the ferry and with dwindling passengers (numbering on average about 50,000 persons a day); i sure hope Hong Kong wouldn't lose this icon in time to come. 

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Website

http://www.starferry.com.hk/en/home

Additional Information

Tourists can consider signing up for the Star Ferry's Harbour Tour to spend a longer duration on the ferry with a route circling the harbour. Cost a lot more than the one we took from Tsim Sha Tsui to Central Pier.

For the summary of my seven days' itinerary to Hong Kong (with a day trip to Shenzhen), please click here. 

Lunar New Year 2020 - First Day of the Rat Year!

Happy Lunar New Year! 

Lunar new year is a big, cultural thing for ethnic Chinese with activities beginning before it starts with spring cleaning, shopping for new clothes, baking and continues with house visiting (relatives and friends) and basically food bingeing for the first 15 days after that.

My first activity for the new lunar year is to dress nicely and visit my parents' house which is literally just five minutes' walk away! That's the advantage of staying near parents; we are never too far away but hey, Singapore is just a little red dot! 

After all the auspicious greetings, it's time to hit the kitchen where the aroma of food beckons! As i don't have the habit of having breakfast, i would usually be famished.

This year, mom made curry chicken and even though i don't like to eat carbohydrates; it's impossible not to have tons of white rice drenched with curry! My god, i already feel so fat on day one of the rat year.

Sweet soup made by mom to signify sweet beginnings for the rest of the year! This is rather similar to the dessert i had in Yuen Kee Dessert (源記甜品專家) in Hong Kong; maybe i could ask my mom for the recipe. The only problem is that i dislike peeling the ginkgo nuts! 

Photo-taking time after the tummy was filled! 

Although our family is close-knitted and meets quite regularly; nothing beats taking photographs to lock down the moment. Dad was wearing the shirt i bought for him; thankfully it suited him real well. 

Our recent custom of having the younger generation in our family doing the official lunar new year greetings to our parents! With age catching on for our parents, i think the key message nowadays is to be happy and healthy!

And for the younglings; added message for them to study hard! haha

Well wishes from my family; wishing everyone a great rat year ahead and with the Wuhan virus dampening the festive mood, please be healthy and drink plenty of water (especially with the amount of trash we are having)!