Monga (艋舺) - The King Taiwanese Style Fried Chicken & Fried Chicken Skin @ JEM [Jurong, Singapore] #mongasingapore #jem

My love for fried chicken is quite obvious when i need to have my fix on a WEEKLY basis and it could range from the slightly more expensive range from Arnold's Chicken in Yishun Ten to the cheaper happiness plate (3-piece) from the western stall in the nearby coffee shop. 

Taiwanese fried chicken is another option and it's amazing that there are, in fact, quite a number of stalls offering it. The original one is Shilin, then Hot Star; today, i am going to review Monga (艋舺) which opened its first store at JEM a few months ago! 

There was a lot of hoo-ha and knowing myself; i didn't want to join in the fray and only got to trying it a few days ago when the queue had yet to build up at about noon on a Saturday. Ordering was fuss free with the use of a self-service kiosk where you indicate what you want, key in the 'pager number', pay and then wait. 

Less than five minutes and the pager rang! Collected my basket filled with two paper bags. Thankfully, i had two other friends with me and it makes better to sense to order more given the 'expanded' capacity for sharing.

The obvious must-have was the The King Fried Chicken; i would have usually stopped at just the signature but when my eyes caught sight of the words "chicken skin"; i just couldn't resist! 

Fried Chicken Skin - i love chicken skin in the grilled and fried form although strangely, i couldn't stomach steamed chicken skin. Nonetheless, these were in rather large pieces like pork rinds.

They were delish; fried to a crisp with a batter that wasn't too thick, it didn't leave an oily stain on my fingers and taste wise, the seasoning was just right with a good balance of pepper and salt that still allow us to savour the goodness of chicken skin.  

The King Style Fried Chicken - everyone was like showing how big the patty was on instagram (comparable to a human head) and i think it's a norm for us to match the game! It's huge lah but correct me if i am wrong; most Taiwanese style fried chicken brands are always talking about the size of their fried chicken! 

Most importantly is still the taste factor and i must say i am darn impressed with the thickness of the patty and its corresponding juiciness that wasn't a result of being overly oily! 

Seasoning, similar to the chicken skin, wasn't overwhelming and the batter was also rather thin! My peers and i had a great time chomping down the fried chicken; until it left with just bones! Is it possible for Monga to open a branch in Northpoint? 

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Location

50 Jurong Gateway Rd, 

#B1-K10 Jem, 

Singapore 608549

Menu

As above.

Pricing

Fried Chicken Skin - S$3.90

The King Style Fried Chicken - S$6.90

Spending Christmas at the Pool

My immediate family makes it a point to meet on Christmas Day and this year; we gathered at my sister's house! As i was one of the earliest to arrive, i decided to take the opportunity to swim in the pool of her executive condominium!

The kids joined me shortly after; unlike some condominium dwellers who literally don't use the facilities despite paying such a higher maintenance fee, i believe my sister's family is getting their money's worth. 

With an underwater camera, Jovyn couldn't stop asking me to take photos of her! She even taught me to do a back-flip with the use of the snorkeling mask so that water would not go into my nose.

I attempted asking her to do something about the bubble burst from the Jacuzzi but she either didn't get what i meant or the pressure of the water gushing out from the outlet was just too much for her to handle. Whatever the case, i gave up! 

Carrying Jovyn on the shoulders is possible only when i am in the pool. I am not a strong swimmer myself so a 1.2-meter high pool would be just about right for me.

My younger sister is picture-shy when she is unprepared for the camera but her attempts to block me turned out rather sinister! Have put in a black and white filter as she looked like some kind of paranormal kid-snatcher from some old Malay legends. 

Ended the swim and Jovyn eagerly showed me her neighbourhood; including this neighbour's cat who was comfortably resting on top of a bush! Not prickly meh!? 

Mini Van Shuttle from Krabi International Airport to Aonang (Including Krabi Town)

The misconception that people have when it comes to visiting Krabi is that most tourists would not likely be staying in Krabi Town; the seat of the provincial government. Instead, many would flock to the seaside and book an accommodation in the resort town of Aonang.

Question: how do we get to Aonang from Krabi Airport? Does it involve a taxi ride with hefty transfers or the local bus where we might have extreme difficulties in securing our large suitcases?

My answer to you is that you can consider the mini-van shuttle and you can find the stop right after you step out of the airport! Look out for the above sign and approach the nearby staff members to purchase your tickets! 

Rates as above and the service to Aonang (usually direct to your accommodation if it is along the main road) would cost us 150 baht a person. Should you prefer to take a taxi (slightly faster as it's direct and more available), the rate was said to be about 500-600 baht a taxi. It's more economical to hop onto a taxi if you have three or four persons in your group.

Bought the tickets! Remember, you get a discount if you decide to engage the mini van again for your return to the airport. You can scan the QR code as provided or submit your request here. 

Interior of the mini van; pretty comfortable with leather seats and it's like those typical 11-seater mini van that's rather spacious. Most importantly, the driver would know how to miraculously arrange the luggage so that they are all in! 

Start of our one-hour journey to Aonang! Thankfully, the van only stopped once in Krabi Town and our eventual travelling time right to the doorstep of Bluesotel Krabi was maybe about 50 minutes.

So what happened if you need the mini-van to send you back to the airport but you forgot the website or didn't keep a copy of the slip with the QR code? Fret not, just go look for the numerous tourist counters in Aonang and purchase the ticket (150 baht per person) from there directly.

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Click here for the itinerary of my 4-day visit to Krabi

Xmas 2019 - Unwrapping the Presents!

It's once again the Christmas festive period and while i didn't manage to bake any butter cookies this year; i managed to spend quality time with my family and friends which i think is way more important than the gifting and receipt of presents. 

Presents are still part and parcel of our custom, especially among colleagues whom we really wish to express our appreciation for their help over the past year. p.s. the presents were not for Jovyn; she was happy to see them though.

Roping in Jovyn just so she can help with the unwrapping of presents! I think it's really a kid's thing; they really enjoy tearing apart the wrapper and checking out the mystery gift hidden within. 

Problem was; she wasn't that nimble in her fingers and took a much longer time to remove the wrapper. Being much older and having had to wrap presents myself, i am also a lot more patient. She actually tore apart a box; thinking it's part of a wrapper! 

Finally done! Loving all the thoughts that went into the presents for me; a handy luggage scale, personalised towel, eco-friendly straws, a Burpple Beyond: 1-for-1 Dining Deals subscription and many more! I didn't have that many presents this year as a few groups of close friends decide to do away with presents and just meet up for a meal with tons of laughter! 

The Monkey-Themed Bus Stops @ Aonang [Krabi, Thailand]

I walked a lot during my 4-day Krabi trip and there's one thing that stood out from the many souvenir shops, massage parlours and restaurants in Aonang; the appearance of monkey statues every now and then. 

Thinking they were photo spots for tourists; i didn't pay that much attention at them until my last day; when i needed to cross the busy road and noticed the two words, in red. 

BUS STOP!? 

My head turned behind and hold and behold; the place with monkey statues literally means it's a bus stop! And how come i don't remember seeing buses in the past few days?! 

My only guess is that i don't concentrate much on the vehicles traversing the road since there were plenty of shops attracting my attention. It's already quite good that i remember the monkey statues! 

Helpful info for tourists - the identification of the buses (including the local Thai songtahews) for route no 8415 and 8399. It's a pity i didn't know about it earlier as one of my intended places to visit would be the shell cemetery. 

It seems that different bus stops cater for different destinations; this one would bring us to the night market at 60 baht person and even to tiger cave temple at 150 baht per person. Maybe i should consider taking the local bus the next time i visit Krabi. Bet it will be interesting! 

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For the itinerary of my 4-day visit to Krabi, click here. 

The Nasi Briyani (Mutton / Chicken) from I. Mohamed Ismail Food Stall @ Boon Lay Place Market and Food Village [Jurong, Singapore] #boonlayhawkercentre #nasibriyani

How long has it been? Maybe about 10 years since my last visit to Boon Lay Place Market and Food Village for the power nasi lemak! Guess the hawker centre had been renovated since then as i don't recall the impressive dome-roof in the middle of the structure!

But my purpose that day wasn't to revisit Power Nasi Lemak; it's another stall that commanded easily the longest queue in the entire food centre.

I. Mohamed Ismail Food Stall - the usual me would have ordered the prata but my nose-flarer twin, who is more familiarized with the Jurong region, strongly endorsed the nasi briyani which is only available for sale from 10.30am to 1.00pm!

Knowing there's a chance it would be sold out by the time we reached; she called up earlier to reserve two plates of nasi briyani (one chicken, one mutton) for our food trail entourage, numbering six persons.

She was a tad disappointed with the chicken; not that it's not good but she thought it would be the fried chicken (said to be super good), instead of this curried version.

For briyani, i always prefer mutton over other kinds of meat. To me, its signature gamey flavour is the perfect companion for the spices used for briyani. This didn't disappoint; meat was tender, easy to tear apart using your fork and wasn't chewy.

Basmati rice is my weakness when it comes to briyani (just like nasi lemak) and this was so infused with spices; although i did find it a bit too spicy! The accompanying raisins and acar added a sweet coating in every mouthful but the acar, unfortunately, failed to impress.

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Address

221A Boon Lay Place, #01-104,

Boon Lay Place Market and Food Village,

Singapore 641221

Map

As above.

Pricing

Chicken Nasi Briyani - S$6.50

Mutton Nasi Briyani - S$6.00