At 1 a.m., the Singapore streets are mostly quiet, and the ubiquitous apartment towers are dark silhouettes dotted with just a few brightened windows. In the blackness, though, there are glaring beacons for the hungry, or, in my case, the hungry, homesick and jet-lagged.
They are the neighborhood hawker centers, the open-air food courts -- sometimes ramshackle, sometimes buffed to a Disneylike sheen -- where vendors in tiny stalls chop, dice, boil and fry the best food to be had in my native country, a nation fixated on eating.
Under the bright lights, to the smell of oyster omelets sizzling in woks and the loud flaps of the hawkers' flip-flops as they run from table to table, people huddle over bowls filled with delicate egg noodles simmering in a spicy broth with peppery minced pork and a generous sprinkling of sliced red chillis.
It isn't until I taste my first spoonful of these minced pork noodles that I feel it -- I am finally home.
In this tiny Southeast Asian country that straddles the equator, food -- or makan, as we call it -- is something a national obsession.
Singaporeans spend hours passionately debating where to find the best chicken rice, and think nothing of driving all over the island -- which, at 240 square miles, is less than a quarter of the size of Rhode Island -- in search of new feasting spots. And when we're away from home, we gather on the Internet to wax about the barbecued stingrays and fish-head curries we've left behind.
In fact, food is of such importance that many restaurants and hawker centers have become landmarks. Even now, people know exactly where I live when I tell them it's near the old Long Beach Seafood, a famous eating hole that hasn't been at that spot in more than 10 years.
"What else is there to do?" asks KF Seetoh, host of Makan-sutra, a popular Singapore food show that discovers and rates hawkers and restaurants. "Every piece of land is used up. You can't go to the country; you can't go to the lake. You can only watch movies or go clubbing and go makan."
The country's unique flavors have caught on in America recently as Malaysian and Singaporean restaurants have sprung up along the East and West coasts. These restaurants, however, tend to just skim the surface. To truly sample Singa-pore's smorgasbord and get to the heart of the country, you have to visit -- and be ready to eat.
Sure, the Singapore Zoologi-cal Gardens' Night Safari -- a showcase of nocturnal animals -- is popular with tourists. And yes, the country is a growing Asian arts hub, with a beautiful new $343-million arts center modeled after the Sydney Opera House.
But there is also the exquisite experience of sitting by the beach at East Coast Park, gnawing on sizzling chicken and mutton skewers from the Haron 30 Satay stall as a soft breeze rolls in over the water. Or digging into a bowl of ice-cold cheng tng -- a clear, sugary soup with ingredients like lotus seeds and dried persimmon slices -- on a sweltering tropical day.
And then there's chicken rice, which may be Singapore's most well-loved dish: tender chicken served with a rice that's been steeped in a mix of ginger, garlic, soy sauce, chicken stock and leaves from the tropical pandan tree.
Feels good!
As in many cultures, food isn't just important to Singaporeans because of taste. It's our way of bonding.
My fondest memories of growing up in Singapore revolve around food. There were the times in elementary school that my neighborhood friends and I sneaked out to a nearby hawker center for ice kachang, a dessert of sweet corn, red beans and jelly topped with shaved ice smothered in evaporated milk and syrup. And on special Sundays, my parents would take the family out for bak kut teh, a mouth- watering, peppery pork rib broth that's nearly impossible to find in the United States.
The cuisine of this country of 4 million is best described in a "Singlish" word any Singapore-bound tourist should learn: shiok (pronounced "shoke"), which conveys something like "feels good!"
The complex flavors of Singaporean food have their origins in the 19th century. The city-state on the tip of the Malay Peninsula, just north of Indonesia, was once a quiet, rural island of Malay fishing villages. In 1819, the British discovered the island and established a bustling trading port there, attracting settlers from India, Europe and China. Today, Singapore remains one of the world's busiest ports and is ruled by a democratic-socialist parliamentary government.
Over time, the various cooking styles of the settlers meshed and new dishes were born. The chicken rice from China's Hainan Island was jazzed up with pandan leaves and served with accompanying ginger and chilli (as chile is spelled in Singapore) dipping sauces. A combination of seafood and a love for spices gave birth to chilli crab, a signature Singaporean dish of crab fried in a spicy, egg-streaked gravy. Today, there are Indian, Malay and Chinese curries to be enjoyed at any of the country's countless hawker centers and kopitiams (coffee shops that are like mini-food courts).
Every year, on the plane ride home, before I make any plans, I write down a list of the dishes I've been dreaming about while I've been away. Then, I slot in my friends around the food must-haves.
When the plane touches down at Changi International Airport, my parents know the drill -- hug, drop off the bags and head over to Xing Ji Rou Cuo Mian for minced pork noodles (better known as bak chor mee or rou cuo mian).
Most hawkers speak English, and prices can't be beat. Dishes usually cost between $1 and $4 Singapore, which is especially inexpensive considering 1 U.S. dollar currently is worth 1.73 Singapore dollars. As for my favorite minced pork noodles, bowls cost between $2 and $3. If you're still peckish after your noodles, head a few doors down to order an oyster omelet or fried carrot cake (small chunks of a starchy, scallion-filled carrot cake stir-fried with gobs of chilli), two more Singaporean favorites that are hard to find anywhere else.
Late-night beef
The next morning, I get on the phone and tell my high school friend Kevin that I need to eat beef kway teow. He knows exactly what I'm talking about.
Late that night, we head to Singapore's red-light district.
Geylang, a neighborhood of narrow lanes filled with row-houses bearing small red lanterns, comes to life around midnight. Cabs are plentiful, parking is scarce, and up and down the main drag, Geylang Road, small eating houses and kopitiams are packed.
There usually is a sizable contingent of shady-looking middle-aged men (with suddenly healthy appetites) for whom these eating establishments first sprang up. But for many other locals, the neighborhood also has become a beef kway teow haven because of the many stalls that serve the wide noodles swimming in a thick gravy.
Kevin's favorite is Lorong 8 Beef Kway Teow, where we know the food must be good because it's packed even though the wait staff is so surly they're almost antagonistic.
The ambience is far from impressive -- the chairs feel greasy and the tables are set out on the grimy sidewalk. But the noodles are silky and the sauce, heavenly. The star of this dish, the beef, is tenderized to a slightly chewy softness that's unforgettable.
"It's, like, melting in your mouth," Kevin says, barely pausing between bites.
Kevin has been one of my best friends for nearly 13 years, and we grew close partly because we both love to eat. So, on this night, naturally, the meal doesn't stop here. We head across the street to Yong He Eating House, a 24-hour coffee shop that offers dim sum-style dumplings and a sweet bean curd that's known throughout the island.
Bean curd -- or dau hway as it's most commonly known -- is a popular dish in Singapore that's eaten for breakfast or dessert, warmed or chilled. What distinguishes Yong He's bean curd is that it isn't served in the usual bowl of sweet syrup. Instead, the bean curd is immersed in a warm, comforting soybean milk. We order large mugs of sweet soybean milk and savory you tiao (fried dough sticks) to dip into our drinks.
Late-night eating is popular among most Singaporeans, and there are many places to eat in the early hours of the morning. Newton Circus, a large hawker center near Singapore's shopping district, is one such place. Though it's well-known as a tourist trap (and has the higher prices to prove it), it remains popular among locals because of the variety it offers -- from Indian mee goreng (fried noodles) to Malay soup kambing (mutton soup) to Chinese hokkien prawn mee.
Seafood adventures
A few nights later, it's 3 a.m., and I'm with a group of about 10 friends at Newton Circus. The long table we've claimed is groaning with a feast.
There are platters of mee goreng; wonton noodles; roti john, a soft baguette stuffed with spiced, minced meat, onions and scrambled eggs; and succulent stingrays (also known in America as skate), barbecued and slathered with a flaming-hot chilli paste. To quench our thirst, we have cups of hot ginger tea, Singapore's own Tiger beer and other local delights like sweet sugar-cane juice.
The best stalls at Newton Circus are the ones hawking seafood. At these tiny booths, jumbo tiger prawns, mussels and stingrays the size of paper fans are displayed on beds of ice. Some uniquely Singaporean dishes are offered here that the adventuresome should not miss.
One such dish is choot choot, a tubular local shellfish that's slightly larger than a thumbnail and comes stir-fried in a chilli sauce. The dirt-brown shellfish itself is named siput, but some say the dish earned its name from the sharp sucking sounds that erupt when diners place their lips on the shell to suck out the fish.
For the even more daring, there is tulang (bone marrow), a Malay dish of beef bones simmered in a spicy, tomato-based gravy. To get to the marrow, you either have to suck on the bone or tap it on your plate until the marrow slides out.
Not all Malay food requires such bravery. Must-try dishes include mee rebus, egg noodles in a thick soup of prawn stock and mashed sweet potatoes, and nasi padang, a meal of rice with dishes like spicy fried chicken and beef rendang, an Indone-sian dish where the meat is simmered in a dense coconut curry. (One of the best places for this meal is Nasi Padang River Valley, where the beef rendang is so tender people come from all over the island to order it. To try the Indian equivalent of nasi padang -- which is similar but is laid out on a banana leaf -- check out Samy's Curry Restaurant on Dempsey Road.)
The other must-have Malay dish on my list is murtabak, a fried roti prata (pancakelike bread) stuffed with spiced, minced chicken or mutton, onions and eggs and served with a curry dipping sauce. For the perfect ending, cap the meal with a piping hot teh halia, a thick, ginger tea that will quell the swirling spices in your stomach.
There are added advantages to veering off the beaten path to find makan. Singapore Zam Zam, where I usually head for murtabak, is near the famed Arab Street, the place to go for beautiful fabrics and exotic purses and other knickknacks imported from countries such as Myanmar, Indonesia and Malaysia.
And the hawker center at Changi Village, a neighborhood near the eastern tip of the island, may be a long way from downtown Singapore for great nasi lemak (a Malay rice dish with fried anchovies, chicken wings and eggs). But the beach around the hawker center, with its lack of tourists and beautiful palm trees swaying in the wind, makes the trek worth it.
Must-have food
A few days later, I journey to Singapore's Little India. My friend Stephanie tells me I have to try dosai, a South Indian rice crepe that's stuffed with potatoes and vegetables. Braving a brief tropical storm that erupts -- as they often do -- in the afternoon, we head to Little India, where storefronts display fragrant jasmine laurels and gorgeous saris of every hue.
Tucked away on a side street is Komala Vilas, a hole-in-the-wall vegetarian eatery with a simple menu. We order a "paper" dosai that's four inches wide, more than a foot long, crunchy thin and stuffed with potatoes and onions.
We also have a bhattura, which Stephanie fondly calls "the U.F.O." because it's an air-filled ball of fried dough stuffed with onions and chick peas that looks like it might belong in an episode of The X-Files.
Cutlery is useless here. Instead, we peel away at the dosai and bhattura and dip them into the various sauces or chutneys on the table. We order two teh tariks (which means "pulled tea," because traditional Indian vendors cool the beverage by pouring it back and forth between two mugs). Our hearty lunch costs less than $7.
These are especially small prices to pay, considering the memories tied to each meal.
Preserving traditions
On this trip home, my mom and I caught up with each other during a pilgrimage to the famous Apollo Fried Kway Teow in the Marine Parade neighborhood for plates of yummy char kway teow (fried flat noodles with cockles) wok-fried to perfection. And one afternoon, my dad launched into recollections of his boyhood after taking me to Hua Hua Eating House for tau kuah pau (fried bean curd pockets stuffed with minced meat and vegetables) -- a snack that's become a rarity in Singapore in his adult years.
Sometimes, I worry that the smorgasbord that I grew up with will gradually diminish, that hawkers of foods like tau kuah pau will slowly disappear as younger generations of Singa-poreans pick cafe lattes over teh halia and Big Macs over nasi lemak.
It was a similar concern that inspired food-show host Seetoh to create the Makansutra phenomenon that has bolstered Singaporeans' interest in their cuisine in recent years.
The former photographer named himself the Makanguru and recruited a cadre of secret Makanmata (mata is slang for "police") who helped him rate dishes across the island. Recently, he released his fourth edition of Makan-sutra, a guidebook that highlights See-toh's "Die, die, must try" hawkers and was the predecessor to his television show.
We're sitting in a stuffy kopitiam near the heart of town, where he's taken me to sample Indian rojak at Sajis Indian Food.
Seetoh says he picked Indian rojak because it's getting harder to find vendors who sell the dish, a jumbled salad of chopped, deep-fried tofu, hard-boiled eggs, vegetables and fried dough topped with whole prawns. The dish is served with a spicy dipping sauce made almost entirely of sweet potatoes.
"This is a dying food," Seetoh says. "People don't know about it. This is heritage food ... but it's hard to make and it's not a dish you can eat every day. You've got to sit down and slowly enjoy."
That also serves as sound advice for any tourist.
The truth is, the real Singapore isn't found in the squeaky-clean malls, well-manicured parks or the myriad tourist attractions. To discover the pulse of this island, look no further than your dinner plate.
Eating your way around Singapore
If you're up for the hawker center experience, here are some handy tips:
* Remember your table number. Many hawker centers have numbered tables so the vendors know where to bring your food.
* Don't expect good service. Hawkers tend to be curt; many are downright rude during peak hours. But the surliest vendors tend to serve the most delectable dishes. If you're getting super service, there may be cause for suspicion.
* Don't tip. It isn't customary in Singapore.
* Cash only. And you pay as soon as your food arrives.
* Bring napkins. Hawk-ers almost never provide them -- the few who offer moist towelettes will charge you extra. Bring your own napkins or look for drink stalls, which often sell packets of tissue.
* Don't be pressured. Some aggressive vendors will direct you to a table near their stalls and then insist that you have an obligation to order from them, which is untrue. Wave away the pushy hawkers and take a leisurely stroll to figure out what the stalls have to offer.
* Don't expect fine china. Most vendors use plastic or Styrofoam cutlery, plates and bowls.
* Don't mix cutlery. If your meal includes dishes from a variety of cuisines, unless you're using disposable cutlery, don't use the same utensils for each dish. Because Muslims and Hindus don't eat certain meats, you may offend these vendors.
* Wear light clothing. Most hawker centers are not enclosed, so be prepared to sweat on a warm day. But the heat, and other minor inconveniences (maybe a few bugs) are a small price to pay for great, cheap food that you won't find anywhere else.
-- Cheryl Lu-Lien Tan
When you go
Getting there: Flights are available from BWI, Dulles and Washington Reagan airports to Chicago, Los Angeles or San Francisco. From there, you can fly to Tokyo or Hong Kong and then to Singapore. Total flying time will be more than 20 hours.
Lodging:
Fullerton Singapore, 1 Fullerton Square, Singapore 049178
011 65 6533-8388 (When dialing Singapore numbers from the United States, you must first dial the international code 011, and then the Singapore country code, 65)
www.fullertonhotel.com
* A grand building that once housed the main post office and now is a luxury hotel and home to one of Singapore's trendiest watering holes, Post Bar.
Raffles Hotel, 1 Beach Road, Singapore 189673
6337-1886
www.raffleshotel.com
* Singapore's most famous and historic hotel, whose guests have included Charlie Chaplin, W. Somerset Maugham and Rudyard Kipling. Also home to the Long Bar, where the Singapore Sling was born.
Makan picks
* Bak Chor Mee -- Xing Ji Rou Cuo Mian, 1-07 Fengshan Market & Food Centre, Block 85 Bedok North Avenue 4.
* Cheng tng -- Hot & Cold Cheng Tng, Stall 31 Bedok Food Centre, Upper East Coast Road.
* Murtabak -- Singapore Zam Zam Restaurant, 697-699 North Bridge Road.
* Dosai -- Komala Vilas, 76-78 Serangoon Road.
* Bak kut teh -- Ah Cheng Ginseng Bak Kut Teh, Block 120 Bukit Merah Lane 1, 1-01
* Char Kway Teow -- Apollo Fried Kway Teow, 1-174 Marine Parade Centre Market & Cooked Food, Block 84 Marine Parade Central.
* Indian rojak -- Sajis Indian Food, Block 262 Waterloo Street, 1-29.
-- Cheryl Lu-Lien Tan / Some of this information is from Makansutra.
KF Seetoh's "Die, die must try" picks:
* Chicken Rice -- Tian Tian Haina-nese Chicken Rice, Stall 10 Maxwell Road Food Centre.
* Chilli crab -- No Signboard Seafood, 414 Geylang Road (Near Lorong 24).
* Fish Head Curry -- Muthu's Curry, 72-78 Race Course Road.
Seetoh's picks for hawker centers with a variety of food:
* Chinatown Complex, Block 335 Smith St.
* Ghim Moh Market & Food Centre, Block 20 Ghim Moh Road.
* Maxwell Road Food Centre, Maxwell Road.
For information on Makan-sutra or to order the book, go to www.makansutra.com, or e-mail contact@makansutra.com
Information:
For more information about lodging, dining and activities in Singapore, contact the Singapore Tourism Board in New York: 212-302 4861; www.visitsingapore.com.