Eda Wong
I have spent the last six months navigating the tight corridors and bustling walkways of Fortune Centre, determined to map out its legendary food scene. I’ve tried all of these famous stalls, sampling everything from intricate plant-based creations to humble rice plates, and I can confidently say that this ageing mall is an absolute treasure…
The first thing I noticed was the steam. It rose in soft, continuous bursts from stacked bamboo baskets, drifting into the cold Beijing morning like breath made visible. The vendor lifted each lid with practiced rhythm, a quick tilt, a release of heat, then the faint scent of yeast, pork, and warm flour rolling outward.…
When I first tried to navigate a traditional Cantonese family dinner, I made a spectacularly embarrassing mistake. I sat down, looked at the sprawling, beautifully written menu, and confidently ordered an individual plate of sweet and sour pork just for myself. The table went completely quiet. My host gently nudged the menu back towards the…
The first thing I noticed was the smoke. It didn’t rise all at once, but in thin, steady ribbons that curled upward from a narrow grill set just inches from the counter. The scent came first, warm and unmistakable, a mix of rendered chicken fat and binchōtan charcoal, clean but deeply present. Inside the small…
If you live in Singapore, you know that finding Thai food is about as difficult as finding a humid day. We are spoiled for choice. From gritty hawker stalls serving fiery basil pork to upscale restaurants where a bowl of tom yum costs more than a taxi ride, the options are endless. But sometimes, you…
For the longest time, I was convinced that cooking authentic Thai food at home was out of my league. I imagined complex pastes, hours of simmering, and a mountain of ingredients I couldn’t pronounce. I was happy to leave it to the experts. But a casual dinner at Fourgather, a stylish Thai eatery in Telok…
In our first, would probably say, emotional editorial, I would like to open with how there is a particular kind of silence that happens before a dish is eaten now. Not the quiet of anticipation, but the pause of positioning, a hand hovering just above the plate, adjusting the angle of a bowl so the…
For years, I thought cooking Asian food at home required something mystical. My stir-fries were soggy, lacking that smoky breath of the wok. My fried rice was inconsistent, sometimes clumpy, other times dry. My sauces tasted flat, missing the balance of savory, sweet, and tangy flavors I craved. I assumed restaurants had secrets I’d never…
A friend texted me last week: “I’m outside this new Vietnamese place. How do I know if it’s legit before I waste my money?” It’s a question I get often. We’ve all been there, drawn in by a cool sign, only to get a plate of sad, sweet, tourist-grade pad thai that tastes like ketchup.…
My first time ordering Nasi Padang in Geylang Serai was overwhelming, I randomly picked dishes and was shocked by a $20 bill due to premium beef rendang and squid. That taught me to always ask seafood prices and that Malay food is a complex, modular cuisine. Malay food is everywhere in Singapore, in hawker centres,…