Stuff to eat. Mostly around St. Louis.

Spencer 7/27/15 Spencer 7/27/15

Tiong Bahru

I constantly find myself looking up when walking around Singapore. The country is notorious for its constantly changing landscape; down goes an old apartment complex and hawker center, up go the kind of modern marvels you don't even see in the US. I'm a sucker for them - if I had my way, I'd live in one those sixty story condo complexes with jungle gardens, rooftop pools, and robot butlers. I've always wanted to live in the futuristic world you see in movies, but since that doesn't exist, Singapore and Korea are suitable substitutes. With a country the size of Singapore (somewhere bigger than the city of Chicago and smaller than Memphis...with 5 million people), the effect of the build, build, build way of thinking has obvious effects on the once historical neighborhoods. Traditional homes and shophouses have been swept aside, with a few notable omissions. One of which is the Tiong Bahru neighborhood.

I'd been to Tiong Bahru before, but mostly in the evening and never set about to explore it. As Patricia, my girlfriend, and I ambled around, I suddenly felt like I wasn't in Singapore at all. The Tiong Bahru Estate was built in the 1930's with an Art Deco meets Singaporean shophouse design. Flat roofs and rounded buildings abound. It's like someone in Singapore visited Miami and said "that's what I'm going to build!"

Within 30 minutes of our walkabout, the heat had defeated us. Dehydration was creeping in. Luckily (I guess), Tiong Bahru has become a bit of a hipster hideaway. Replacing the old chicken rice and curry puff stalls are rows of artisan coffee houses, cafes, eateries, and art stores. It's on its way to being Singapore's Williamsburg.

I felt like I was in Portlandia when I went into BooksActually, a store that actually sells books. The young staff all wore the same glasses their parents did in the 80's, there were two mean cats eyeballing me, and the back of store was a mini-antique shop, selling old cups, Japanese magazines, and various other oddities no one will ever buy.

We made our way into Forty Hands Coffee, an Australian-owned shop. They partnered with Five Senses Coffee Australia to create Common Man Coffee Roasters, importing and roasting their beans in Singapore. The result is an elevated coffee experience, not unlike Sump or Blueprint in St. Louis. Below is their cold-drip, perfect for helping your kidneys regain functionality after a long walk outside.

Tiong Bahru Singapore Forty Hands Coffee

The menu is primarily Western, with sandwiches, salads, and mac & cheese, but there's Asian influence, as well. The menu touts their tau sar pau (red bean bun) as being Singapore's best, they have a red bean poster on the wall, and the staff said we should get it. So we did.

The hockey puck sized bun was dropped off just after it came out of the steamer. Lacking patience, I cut/tore it in half (burning my fingers), then took a bite (burning my mouth). I haven't had all that many red bean buns in my life, but this was the best I can remember. Super fluffy bread and a smooth, not overly sweet paste inside.

Tiong Bahru Singapore Forty Hands Tau Sar Pau

I've been let down so many times by Western dishes in Singapore, but I couldn't help myself: I had to try the 40 Hands Cubano. To our surprise, they pulled it off! Mojo pork, honey-smoked ham, jalapeño, and cheese on crusty Tiong Bahru Bakery baguette made for a solid sandwich, though meats both could have been more flavorful. When you say the ham is smoked, I want to taste that.

Tiong Bahru Singapore Pork Bun Forty Hands

Tiong Bahru Singapore Braised Pork Forty Hands

The real surprise came from the Kong Bak Pau (Asian pork sliders). Steamed buns, lettuce, and a cup full of fall-apart tender pork braised in a soy-garlic concoction. I could have eaten 3 or 4 of these myself.

Feeling a bit unhealthy after our carbs and pork lunch, we decided to walk down the street to Plain Vanilla, a cafe and bakery. I loved the design - They made the front section a covered outdoor seating area with the door to actually go inside the shop way back there. A pretty bold move to not have an airconned sitting area for customers in a place just off the equator, but it was surprisingly pleasant out there.

Tiong Bahru Singapore Plain Vanilla Patio

Tiong Bahru Singapore Plain Vanilla Seating

Tiong Bahru Singapore Plain Vanilla Table

While you wait for your coffee or pastry to be prepared, you can spin around and check out their wall of goods for sale, ranging from gourmet honey and jam to decorative pillows that you'll remove before guests arrive so they don't touch them with their filthy hands.

Plain Vanilla Tiong Bahru Singapore Pastries

Plain Vanilla Tiong Bahru Singapore Interior

Thank god I had already eaten lunch, because I would have gone mental in here otherwise. Salted caramel truffle tarts beckoned me, massive brownies dusted in cocoa powder begged me to eat them, lemon cream tarts taunted me. I regained control of myself and took a step back, stopping myself from ordering one of everything. Seeing as Patricia is the Tiong Bahru expert and person who brought me to Plain Vanilla, I let her pick.

Plain Vanilla Tiong Bahru Singapore Caramel Tart

Plain Vanilla Tiong Bahru Lemon Tart Singapore

Brownies Plain Vanilla Tiong Bahru Singapore

Plain Vanilla Tiong Bahru Singapore Shortbread

She went for the Earl Grey Lavender Cupcake, a bold choice because cupcakes are usually worthless pieces of garbage. Shitty bakeries get away with selling cupcakes because they can dress them up pretty. If I can make the same thing at home with little effort, I don't want to spend $5 on each one at your shop.

Every once in awhile, I can be wrong. The Earl Grey Lavender cupcake was actually delicious. Soft cake with the distinct Earl Grey flavor of black tea and bergamot, topped with a light (and most importantly, not too sweet) lavender icing. Cupcakes are still bullshit, but Plain Vanilla gets a pass.

Cupcakes Plain Vanilla Tiong Bahru Singapore

Plain Vanilla Tiong Bahru Earl Grey Singapore Cupcake

If you're a visitor to Singapore or a local Singaporean who hasn't spent much time in Tiong Bahru, I implore you to go. Support the small local businesses, spend some time walking through the old neighborhoods. Who knows when it will all be torn down to make way for something 'better'.

Spencer 7/16/15 Spencer 7/16/15

Motorino

If you follow me on Twitter/Facebook/Instagram/Tinder, you know that I'm in Singapore. I've been here for just over a week and won't be back to the US until August. I've been like a kid in a candy store, hopping from hawker stall to hawker stall, restaurant to restaurant. I don't want to shock anyone with these strange Far East treats, though, so we'll start things off with something more familiar: pizza. Motorino, a New York City based Neapolitan pizza shop, has spread its wings in recent years and expanded to Singapore, Manila, and Hong Kong. After eating so much good pizza in St. Louis, I had to try it out and see how it compared.

Motorino Singapore is located in Clarke Quay, a touristy area with restaurants like "Wings", a US Air Force theme chicken restaurant, Hooters, and, in years past, a hospital themed restaurant. It's the place to go to see drunk Australians playing in a fountain made for children. The restaurant itself is small, about 10 tables inside and nearly the same on the patio.

Like any good pizza place, the oven is the focal point, the beating heart of the restaurant. It also helps to keep the restaurant warm on cool nights - something that doesn't exist in Singapore - so it just served to make the restaurant nearly unbearably warm. You've got AC! Turn it on!

We started the meal with their meatballs, baseball-sized balls of juicy pork coated with a thin, slightly sweet tomato sauce, basil, and a hint of pecorino. I could have done with more cheese (who couldn't?), but these were a big hit at the table. One of the pizza customization options was to get these on top, something I'll do if I return.

Our first pizza was the Soppressata Piccante, a spicy salami pizza with chili peppers, oregano, and sea salt. (There was a yellow spotlight behind us, shining onto our table, which meant that after sunset, the pictures started looking a little wonky. Just pretend they look perfect.) I liked this one - the mix of good tomato sauce, melty mozzarella, and the salty & spicy soppressata gets my approval. I thought the topping to crust ratio was a bit off, though. You can see that the crust pieces are pretty substantial.

Their dough is, by design, breadier than I prefer, so I actually ended up not eating most of the crust. Sacrilege, I know! It was all so I could eat more of the next pizza, though! I had good intentions.

Our second pizza was the Cremini Mushroom and Sausage. From the description - Gaeta olives, garlic, sweet sausage, thyme - I thought it was going to be bursting with flavor. Somehow it ended up being very one-note, essentially a cheesy mushroom toast. Everything else was overpowered (or there simply wasn't enough) to counter the mushrooms. I only had one piece of this.

Aside from the mushroom pizza, I liked my meal at Motorino, but wasn't blown away. St. Louis wins this round, without a doubt in my mind. Next up for my global pizza tour will be Mario Batali's Pizzeria Mozza. It's been almost two years since I've had it, but it was my #1 favorite up until I left Singapore. Will it take down St. Louis' finest? We shall see in the next few weeks.

Motorino

Merchant's Court #01-01A

3A River Valley Rd

Singapore 179020

6334-4968

Spencer 5/15/14 Spencer 5/15/14

The Ubud Hanging Gardens Hotel

When you think of Bali, what do you think of? I think of the beautiful beaches, the 5-star resorts, the ancient temples. I think of the disorder of the Denpasar airport, the shittier beaches covered in drunk assholes, the poverty you have to drive through to get to your resort. The incredible foods and foliage. The beautiful paintings and carvings. Bali is a complex animal that I both love and hate.

I've yet to travel through Bali's huge new airport, but if it's run anything like the previous one, it's a mad house full of stores selling typical tourist crap--sir, would you like a carved wooden penis?--with no food options. I hope it's not. The old Denpasar airport was hot and crowded with chairs you had to share with roaches.

I would break down Bali's main tourist areas into four parts:

Seminyak: Nice resorts and small houses in town. Good restaurants nearby, as well as some shopping. My recommendation for where to stay if you're visiting. The W Hotel is awesome. Pretty close to...
Kuta: Kuta is the party zone and home to an army of drunk Australians.
Nusa Dua: Bali's original tourist area, away from everything else. Lots of resorts all right next to each other in a blocked off area. The most touristy area for sure. Staying here doesn't feel much different than staying in Florida, Hawaii, etc. I don't recommend it.
Ubud: A few hours inland is Ubud, my favorite place in Bali. You're in the jungle surrounded by ancient villages and temples, as well as some of the best artisans in all of Bali.

We started our trip in Ubud. Wanting to making sure that the trip was as memorable as possible, we decided to throw down and stay at the Ubud Hanging Gardens. The people of Bali are so friendly. I can't think of a single place I've gone where everyone was nicer. Our driver from the hotel was no exception, even with his limited English. After two and half hours, we arrived at our hotel, which felt a lot like arriving at Jurassic Park. Strangers in a strange land, surrounded by an overwhelming jungle full of dinosaurs (okay, maybe not that part). The Hanging Gardens are famous for how romantic they are with their hillside villas and private pools. Knowing this, I made sure to remark in my reservation that I was traveling with my brother and that we would need two separate beds. We may be from Missouri, but we're not that Missouri.

"Hello Mr. and...Mr...Pernikoff," the check-in woman said a bit quizzically. She was probably looking through her notes to see if we were there for a romantic couples trip or otherwise. Then we were told that the twin bed villa we requested wasn't actually available at the moment. Great. Nothing like spending 3 days cuddled up in bed with my brother.

In an amazing twist, they apologetically told us we'd be staying in largest option, the family villa. Well, okay then! We were taken down the little hillside tram (funicular) to our "room". Now I know what it feels like to be P.Diddy. We had a two story villa overlooking the valley below. The upstairs had a huge master bedroom with windows looking out over our pool, a gigantic bathroom, a huge deck and a private pool. The downstairs had another deck, twin beds and a separate large bath. Not too shabby for one unemployed college kid and his awesome older brother.

Our time at the resort was incredible, even with the heavy rainshowers we had to endure. The food was spectacular, the staff were delightful and I didn't have to cuddle with my brother (but I did it anyway).

The only negative thing that happened was a humongous spider decided to hang out just outside our shower window, making every shower a horrifying experience.

Ubud Hanging Gardens deck bali hotel room

private pool Ubud Hanging Gardens bali hotel

infinity pools Ubud Hanging Gardens bali