Rider's Cafe (Once Again) @ Fairways Drive (Near Turf City)

It's been a long, long time since i last paid a visit to the place where horses trot right beside you.

And it's also the only place in Singapore where chances are high that you will likely step onto a fresh pile of horse poo while walking towards the dining establishment.

It was after our interesting lesson on Angry Birds cupcakes decoration and i was a bit taken back to find the restaurant relatively quiet on a normally busy dinner time on Sundays.

Oh well, i took the opportunity to ask for a window seat as i never seemed to have the chance to do so in my last few visits!

A picturesque scene alright with glimpses of strolling horses every now and then.

On the other side of the view is a stable. The closeness of the horses' unassuming abode means that we can smell the pungent ammonia whenever the breeze picked up.

Thankfully i am a person of absolute concentration whenever it comes to food. 

Crispy Soft Shell Crab

Slightly crunchier bite with a batter that contained more spices than the usual Japanese rendition. I might have considered second helpings if not for my experience that prices are not exactly comfortable for the pockets at Rider's Cafe.

Peanut Butter Jelly Milkshake

You either like this or you don't.

Obviously, i am one of those who adore this sinful drink! If i can take porridge with chocolate (and like it at the same time), this is something i can accept with no further question.

Orecchiette with Spiced Pork Ragu & Shaved Pecorino

I am bad with Italian words, even if it's food related. Since i am not an innards person, i would hesitate to order anything unusual that deviates from my limited dictionary. Just in case.

As far as my tongue is concerned, i have never tasted pasta that has so strong a meat taste. It was very delicious and i love the clam-shaped pasta as it made eating so much easier with just the use of a spoon!

Linguine with Chorizo & Portobello in Aglio Olio

In case you are wondering, chorizo is a type of sausage - as google has kindly informed me.

Kowtows to the rich fragrant garlic oil that stuck stubbornly to each strand of "noodle" and the high quality of ingredients that made this so memorable!

Cut down on the cheese though - Cavin is not a cheesy person.

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Location

51 Fairways Drive

(Access from Eng Neo Avenue)

Reservation

Call 6466-9819

Price

Crispy Soft Shell Crab - S$13

Peanut Butter Jelly Milkshake - S$7.50

Orecchiette with Spiced Pork Ragu & Shaved Pecorino - S$22

Linguine with Chorizo & Portobello in Aglio Olio - S$23

Subject to GST and Service Charge

Additional Information

Some items are not listed on the menu! Fret not, those specials dishes will be listed on the blackboard standee placed at the entrance.

My last post of Rider's Cafe (with more information) can be found at http://cavinteo.blogspot.com/2010/01/riders-cafe-unlike-most-cafes-with.html

Fishing Joy Game Cheat (iPhone) - Get Many Coins with Just A Few Simple Steps

Like Coin Dozer, this is a time wasting game (with the same aim to earn as many coins as possible for continual gameplay) and is strongly recommended for people who have too much time to spend.

Problem is; the coins will run out pretty fast especially when i use the most powerful fishing net (that cost 7 coins for each cast) and yet have no luck nor patience in capturing any big fish.

You can buy coins via the coin shop (just like Coin Dozer) but why waste good money when there's a simple cheat readily available. Expectedly, the great game cheater, Alex, was the source for this information.

Players of Fishing Joy should know that once the juice bar (bottom right of the screen) fills up fully, it will generate a laser (i thought it's cosmic) beam for a short period of time that kills any sea creature that touches it.

What this cheat seeks to achieve is to prolong the duration of this beam so that you can get many many coins at minimal effort!

Once the laser beam is shot out, press the HOME button on your iPhone and go to Settings > General > Set Date & Time.

Set the year to one year earlier.

Go back to the game and watch with joy as the coins keep increasing!

And increasing.

And increasing (10,286 coins)! Damn! If only i can use the same method to pump up the paltry amount of cash in my bank account.

Eventually you will come to a scene where no fish will appear on screen. This is the result of an incoming wave and for the game to continue its course, you have to revert the date back to the original year.

Do it a few more times and you will never be in that pathetic situation to wait for the standard coin generation which i think is five coins every minute and only up to 200 coins!

Roasted Chicken Rice (烧鸡饭) @ Eng Kee Hainanese Chicken Rice - Hiap Hoe Eating House

With mom busy with her confinement duties at my sister's house, i am no longer blessed with a table full of home cooked food when i return from a tiring day at work.

Mostly, i will satisfy my dinner at Hiap Hoe Eating House since it is quite near to the train station. My usual order is horfun but one fateful day, the craving for chicken rice proved to be absolutely unbearable.

Seeing a chicken rice stall a few meters away, i bypassed the usual tze-char stall for a better look.

The official accolades by Makansutra were assuring enough for me to immediately order a plate.

At S$2.50 a plate, the owner was definitely not stingy to provide a generous serving of thick, chunky meat.

The amount of oily sauce poured onto the rice can only be described as a big no no by many cardiologists. But it's exactly this greasy product that spiked up the delicious factor!

Protein wise, the meat was not the smooth, solid type that is more common with white chicken. I am okay with that since any bland chicken meat will be greatly enhanced by the oil anyway.

I am more particular with the roasted skin! This was a bit too fattening for me although the advantage was that each mouthful of rice (with the skin) was juicier and left a greasier yet fulfilling aftertaste that made a sinful meal so worth it!

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I am now a regular customer!

Location

Block 747, Yishun Street 72,

Hiap Hoe Eating House

(Walking distance from Yishun MRT Station)

Misty Forest - Where Was I?

Guess where i was when i took the following few pictures.

Rainforest covered with a mysteriously light mist that foretold the legend of monsters dating from the ancient Jurassic period. *nostalgic memory obviously taken from the thriller - Jurassic Park*

Fronting the forest was a lake dotted with uninhabitable islands where creatures lurk underneath the thick green foliage.

Sightings of the paranormal were reported occasionally with affected visitors saying that there were 'people' in those inaccessible islands waving for help....

Is this area the great Amazon rainforest in South America? Or is it the neighbouring Taman Negara national forest of Malaysia? Maybe it's one of the many rainforests in the Indonesian Archipelago?

Wrong wrong wrong!

They were, in fact, photographs taken from the top of the iconic rocket tower at Upper Seletar Reservoir Park!

Set Dinner @ Wangi Melati Cafe (Batam View Beach Resort), Indonesia

It's time for a late dinner at Batam View Beach Resort. The thing of being a trigger-happy person (for camera) means i usually have too many pictures to edit and this inadvertently increases the procrastination of doing anything!

Anyway, back to my batam trip again before my memory fails.

This complementary set dinner was part of the full board tour package and we were allocated to Wangi Melati Cafe again as the Kelong restaurant is closed on Mondays.

I was disappointed as i was expecting to enjoy the relaxing natural sea breeze.

But the cafe seemed to transform into a very classy place comes night-time and i was most impressed with the food that followed shortly after we commenced our dinner.

Mixed Green Salad with Grilled Chicken and Salad Dressing

Once again, a very normal salad with nice display but no substance.

My standard for a good salad must be ladened with pieces of bright, juicy fruits and generous sprinklings of pumpkin nuts!

Soup- Soto Ayam

How can soto ayam be a soup on the menu!? In Singapore, this would be deemed a main course and back in my starhub days, this dish was usually my lunch!

The soup was light tasting without being overly salty yet each spoonful was as oily as its friendly relatives in Singapore. Suggestion - eliminate the mee hoon so that it would not be so carbohydrate-heavy!

Main- Indonesian Prawn Curry

Although i am back in Singapore for almost three weeks, this is one curry that remains deeply etched in a corner of my brain cells.

Five fresh prawns half submerged in a rich, creamy curry broth; a dish that looked delicious and in every sense, tasted as good as its presentation!

Knowing it might be too sinful to eat it on its own, a scoop of fluffy rice topped with crackers was served together. Gosh, i am so craving that scrumptious taste right now!

Dessert - Banana Fritters

Deep fried in the typical Malay style that lacks the crunch i usually desire; this dessert was simply displayed with strings of chocolate sauce right beneath the bananas.

The chef did an almost perfect rendition with these creamy fruits that remained mushy with natural goodness, not oil! It was "almost perfect" because the liquid chocolate should be not included in the first place.

Sunset @ Upper Seletar Reservoir

After that gruelling, torturous two-hour walk along Mandai Road, i took bus number 138 back to the starting point where i parked my car - a small parking area near Upper Seletar Reservoir (the one with the rocket-shaped tower).

That huge ball of fire we know affectionately as the sun (or tai yang gong gong) was like me; dead tired and aching to settle down for a good rest. It was pulling a blanket slowly and gently over this little red dot that most people seem to take for granted.

Like them, I could have driven off and relaxed in that air-conditioned metal enclosure but i was stopped abruptly by the beautiful sight across the reservoir.

The sunset was dazzling and for that moment, i slowed down my impatient self and sat quietly right opposite this postcard quality view that transformed almost everything into basic silhouettes.

Life can be so beautiful...

Fishballs Noodles (鱼圆面) @ Bedok South Hawker Centre (Hock Seng Choon Fish Ball Kway Teow Mee - 福成春鱼圆粿条面)

One of the four main hawker centres in Bedok, Bedok South Road Block 16 Market & Food Centre should be considered as the one that is the least famous.

Having said that, a few stalls do attract long queues when dinnertime comes. And apparently, the most popular has to be this stall that sells fishball noodles.

I was lucky, in a way (was supposed to have ramen with my mom at Big Splash but it has closed for good and i could not find a parking lot for the next destination in mind; Megumi) as the queue started building right after i tucked into my bowl of noodles!

My favourite fishball noodle came from Xiang Xiang at Chong Pang Hawker Centre and in my opinion; it has always been the best.

Hock Seng Choon's irregularly-shaped fishballs, however, are a notch higher with a bouncy tenderness like a solid 100% cotton-filled pillow.

Chilli was ordered (instead of my usual tomato-sauce) as mom prefers her noodles hot and spicy! It was pre-mixed by the cook upon serving and tasted really fantastic with each strand carefully coated with a delicious chilli-tomato-sauce concoction.

At S$2.50, the amount of noodles given was pathetic and definitely insufficient for my dinner. The meal would be more satisfying with a S$3 order.

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Location

16 Bedok South Road,

#01-211, Bedok South Road Block 16 Market & Food Centre