Categories
Movie Review

James Bond: Quantum of Solace

Okay. So I went to watch James Bond: Quantum of Solace. I quite enjoyed it, really.

I like the direction of the opening sequence. The audience wasn’t given any inkling that the show has started and ‘vroom’ an Aston Martin zooms into view, a heart stopping car chase ensues. As the story unfolds, we see more fighting, more dirt, more blood, some sex (only one sex scene really) and quite a bit of humour.

Personally, I like Daniel Craig’s Bond. I think there’s a kind of rawness in him, as compared to Pierce Brosnan’s Bond, which is way too sophisticated for me anyway. Yes. Craig’s Bond leaves a trail of wreckage behind wherever he goes, but I believe it’s a part of his growth into James Bond. In my opinion, the molding of Bond is probably as such Craig > Connery > Brosnan. The others were.. Urm.. Identity crises. Craig’s Bond doesn’t think twice before he does anything, doesn’t consider the consequences, doesn’t think of other possibilities. He follows his gut and his instincts, which is quite often propelled by women in seeming distress. He is intelligent and sharp, but still an animal. He hasn’t yet learned that there are ways to accomplish things without having to kill. He even fails at trying to protect himself. Almost every woman in his life sees right through him and his walls. Think about it this way. How much of a real 007 is he, when he can’t even build a proper wall around his heart? Don’t forget, the very first James Bond movie “Dr. No” portrayed Bond as a seasoned spy, not a young rookie. Who is to know if his past isn’t as it is portrayed in Craig’s Bond? We are simply too comfortable with watching the veteran Bond and might find it a little odd to accept the rookie Bond.

It is entirely possible that I like the current rendition of James Bond because I got to a point where Brosnan’s Bond was so congested by machines and gadgets and sex that if all these were stripped away, there’d be absolutely nothing left in James Bond, the person. I stopped watching Bond after just 2 movies. By the time The World Is Not Enough was showing, I was so disgusted by the overly computerised effects in the Bond series that I had absolutely no inclination to head to the movie theatres to catch it. I found Brosnan’s Bond with no soul at all, just another living walking machine. I’d rather watch Austin Powers. However, I had the chance to catch a snippet of Sean Connery’s Bond in Thailand in 2006, but I didn’t find him much to my liking. Maybe it was because I was watching You Only Live Twice and it was the last movie that starred Connery as Bond, the time he got really sick of playing Bond. I thought it was above average, but not as exciting as the hype had made it to be.

Daniel Craig really delivers a solid performance as James Bond, the arrogant demeanour, yet with vulnerability in the eyes; mean yet gentle; polished yet raw. A lot of contradicting factors in one character. Awesome. Here’s a really good review of it.

Anyway, I digressed. I’m supposed to be writing about Quantum of Solace.. It’s such a funny show! Granted, it isn’t tear-jerking funny like Borat but it’s has many of those subtle one-liners that really cracked me up. Spoiler ahead. Stop reading if you have yet to watch it and don’t want the jokes to be revealed. It’s all over the place though, cos it’s based on what comes to my mind.

* Bond killed Edmund Slate, an informant for Mitchell, and when M called Bond and asked for the status of the lead with Slate.
Bond: Tell her he’s a dead end.
M: He’s killed him!

* Part I (When they first meet):
Camille: Get In!
Bond: What!?
Camille: Get In!
Bond: Allright.

Part II (After Bond was stopped from continuing the mission and escapes the hotel):
Camille: Get In!
Bond: Are you going to shoot me!
Camille: I said Get In!

* Camille (forgot exactly which scene): Is the person (Greene attacked) a woman?
Bond: Yes. But it’s not what you think.
Camille: Your mother?
Bond: She thinks so.

* At the hotel, Fields was killed by Greene and found covered in oil, with oil in her system as well. At the end of the show, after Bond captures Greene, he drives him to the middle of the desert, and sets him free.
Greene: Please… I told you everything..
Bond: Oh no I’m not going to kill you. I’m sure your friends will be very interested in finding you. And you’re in the desert. (Throws him a can of motor oil) I bet it’ll be 20 miles before you consider drinking this.

* At this dilapidated airway Bond got hold of a plane to manoveur.
Camille: How much did you pay him?
Bond: He wanted you but I gave him the car. He’ll make more money giving us up anyway.
Bond flies off and scene cuts to the man making a phone call.

* Strawberry Fields, tasked to bring Bond back to London, brings them to a dilapidated ‘hotel’ which was supposed to fit their covers as teachers on sabbatical. Instead Bond refuses and brings them to a posh hotel and heads to the concierge.
Bond: We’re teachers on sabbatical, who’ve just won a lottery.

* After locating where Dominic Greene was going and M authorised a private plane for Bond to go chase him.
M: Could you avoid killing every possible lead?
Bond: I’ll try my best. (throws the phone on the passenger seat)
M: I’ve heard that before.

* Bond calls Felix in Haiti and asks to meet him at the local bar. Bond discovers Felix didn’t come alone and asks
Bond: How much time?
Felix: 30 seconds
Bond: We don’t have much time then do we?
Felix: (Gives the information Bond wanted) You better start running Bond.
A hoard of SWAT agents begin dashing about trying to catch Bond, while Felix continues to drink his beer nonchalantly. “You will never be able to catch him” written all over his face.

* After Camille found out that she was supposed to get killed, she tried to shoot Bond but he jumped out of the car in time. A man who was following them in a bike all along asked
Man in Bike: You were supposed to shoot her!
Bond: I missed.
And promptly kicks his bike away from under the man and rides away on it.

* Bond (At M’s remark on how the Americans wanted him alive for questioning): If the American’s wanted Le Chiffre’s soul, they should have made a deal with the priest.

* At the Greene Enterprise? fundraising party, when Greene tried to push Camille off the building and Bond arrives just in time to stop it
Greene : You can’t imagine how amazing she is, when she’s on her back.
Camille : I wish I could say the same about you.

* Final scene, after Bond exits Vesper’s bf’s place…
M : Is he alive?
Bond : Yeah.
M : I’m suprised.

* Bond calling the CIA undercover office in Haiti and Felix answered.
Bond: You should just anwser ‘CIA’, Felix. A taxi driver told me where the office was.

Click here for more QoS LOLs

Categories
Food Review Singapore

Pho Hoa

Now that I’m back working in Suntec, there’re some lunch joints that I quite liked that I can go again. One of it is Pho Hoa. It’s simple & casual Vietnamese noodles, Pho.

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And it’s Healthy! Relatively healthy I mean. It has no MSG (at least I don’t get thirsty after a meal here) and it really does serve tasty stuff.

This is a selection of your normal Pho. Nothing fancy, just simple steak, brisket & meat balls combination. This time round, I ordered the Pho Tai Bo Vien, or the steak & meat balls combi.

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While waiting for my order, I read a book. =) My Vivienne Westwood wallet has been complaining that she has no screen time on my blog so here it is.. Hope she’s satisfied.

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Decor at the place is really very simple, but because it’s got large windows, it’s nice and bright, which is a trait I like when I eat. I prefer to see what I’m eating thank you very much.

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Look closely and you can see the steam from the soup. I love hot soup especially when you’ve spent half the day in a freezing cold office. Always a huge welcome. I also like that they have kept the steak half-raw, because the hot soup will cook the meat just nice in no time. Giving fully cooked meat with the soup would make it overcooked by the time we actually eat it.

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Close up of the soup. Look at the steam! And the thinly sliced beef! The meat balls are quite big too!

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The real good stuff is this side plate, where there are bean sprouts and chili. I love the chili paste. It’s not too spicy yet gives a real good flavour to the meat. The chopped chili has too many seeds though. Small complaint there. And because I LOVE BEANSPROUTS!!! (Okay I know I’m a little whacked) So I requested for more beansprouts and my noodle turned out like this:

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Where’s the main dish? Haha.

There’s another dish I really like here, which is the Carrot Beef Stew. The stew is thick and the beef chunks are tender and just nicely cooked. You could get the stew with bread or pho. I’ll take pictures the next time I visit Pho Hoa!

Categories
Musings

Why Malaysia is still economically behind

The mentality and the focus of Malaysian politicians are all wrong. They are way too focused on minor things such as sodomy, Muslim rights, privileges, fights over tiny islands etc. So much so that they are missing the issue at hand. They are losing out to many other countries, in terms of economic viability. Politics and social economics are all intrimental to the country’s success (or failure). Investors will not pour money into the country if the streets are dangerous, if the cost is much higher than the profit, or if the right people are not being attracted into the country.

In Malaysia’s case, I feel that it is not that people don’t want to go there. It’s the frustrating issue of the government favouring the Malay Muslims way too much, treating the other races like the appendix, they’re there, but totally unneccessary, and extreme pain when antagonised.

What they do not see, or refuse to see, is that Chinese & Indian elites are leaving the country. They are going elsewhere in the world and achieving great heights. If kept at home and properly nurtured, these people can bring so much benefit to Malaysia.

And so many decades into it’s independence, Malaysian politicians are still making stupid racist remarks, such as that made by Mr Ahmad Ismail. Even the DPM’s apology will not help to alleviate the anger it causes amongst ethnic Chinese in Malaysia.

These politicians are way too blinded by their own wealth and privileged status to see the real problem at home.

Very unfortunate.

Categories
Singapore

Why can’t they understand?

In the case of the Repeal of Section 377A, homosexuals are NOT campaigning for the rights to rule the country. They are not campaigning for the right to have same-sex marriages. They are just campaigning for the right to maintain privacy behind doors, and the right to do what they please without breaking the law.

When I read Mr Ho Kwon Ping’s article on TODAYonline yesterday, I was pleased to see the Chairman of Mediacorp stand up for what he believes in, to the extent of putting it up on national papers, though it isn’t The Straits Times. I applaud but honestly, I don’t think anyone in the rainbow club will believe that it will change anything.

Today, however, I came across this other article written in response to Mr Ho’s commentary. And with all due respect, I’m afraid I have to say, this is something about Christianity I don’t understand. I thought God teaches us to love all brothers and sisters unconditionally? That was what I was taught in 10 years of convent education. Of course, my education is far from the tip of the iceberg. But that was one consistent teaching I was given for 10 whole years of my primary to secondary life. Isn’t this prejudice & discriminatory? I don’t remember the Ten Commandments having anti-homosexuality in it. But of course, I have only wikipedia and the movie to guide me. Please, correct me if I’m wrong. I’m not well versed in Bible studies. Anyway, before I digress further, the point of this post is NOT about Christianity & homosexuality.

Mr Anton Chan has it all wrong. And I’m sure he’s not alone. Singaporeans have become so paranoid that they seem to think that everything that goes against their perception of normal is dangerous. Then again, philosophically speaking, what is normality? The Merriam Webster dictionary explains normal as b: conforming to a type, standard, or regular pattern. Normality is relative.

What’s next? Same sex marriages?
Letter from Anton Chan

MR HO Kwon Ping is wrong to propose the acceptance of gays into Singapore society because accepting a gay lifestyle would have a tremendous impact on society as a whole in terms of religious beliefs, social well-being and families.

Being homosexual isn’t a lifestyle. Taking on a certain lifestyle means you have a choice. You pick & choose what type of actions you’d like to adopt. Being sporty is a lifestyle; clubbing is a lifestyle. Homosexuality is not. It’s a sexual orientation. You don’t pick & choose who you decide to fall in love with. Not unless you live in the past where nobody marries for love, only convenience. Yes, there are choices made. A choice of accepting yourself or not. That is the only choice to be made.

As a Christian, I oppose legalising a gay lifestyle in Singapore because it’s against my beliefs. As a father of three teenagers, I care because I don’t want my children to be affected by such a lifestyle.

Honestly, if your kid is gay, he’s gay. No matter whether you expose him to such a ‘lifestyle’ or not. If he is being oppressed to be straight, he’s going to suffer real pain inside. Furthermore you are opposing ‘legalising a gay lifestyle’ but we are for the legalising of an act, which is mutally consented between two adult males.

Imagine if we allow the acceptance of such a lifestyle in Singapore. What next? Legalise same sex marriages? Legalise adoption of children for gays?

Ah… I dont understand this line of thought. So, Belgium, Canada, Norway, South Africa, Spain, Massachusetts and California are all what.. beneath everyone else? Just because they legalise same-sex marriages? The last I know, Canada is a great place to live in.

Where are we as a socially-conservative society heading towards?

Erm… Acceptance of all as one? Liberalisation?

Soon gays will claim the right for social acceptance in all areas including education, welfare et cetera. What effect will this have on the next generation of children and parents who wish that their children will grow up normally and produce children in the normal course of their being?

In the first place, all Singapore citizens have the right in all areas such as education, welfare etc. So if I read this right, you’re suggesting that homosexuals are not supposed to be entitled to benefits that are given to ALL citizens? So they are, in your books, third-class ‘citizens’? Now I’m starting to get the picture. Also, your point of ‘produce children in the normal course of their being’ isn’t standing much. Heterosexuals are not having kids anyway, so what’s the fuss? If heterosexuals aren’t having kids and homosexuals would love to adopt one, hey! Good for the country’s population growth! 1 for the gays!

The only strong contention in Mr Ho’s proposal is the so-called gay leading edge in the “creative class”. Doesn’t our society have many other people to develop and nurture? Why are we so eager to promote creative class talent in Singapore? So that we can become a more tolerant society to accept whatever lifestyle these bring? Definitely no.

‘Why are we so eager to promote creative class talent in Singapore?’ I think that’s because if otherwise, Singaporeans will be nothing but robots toiling away at work. Your national day parade won’t look so grand & well put together, you won’t have performances to watch, no designers, no artists, no musicians. No Dick Lee! Oh then again, we could always import foreign talent, to put together our national day parade.

I would like to borrow a similar argument by Attorney-General Walter Woon regarding the Human Organ Transplant Act (Hota). In “None above the law” (Sept 8), he said: “If Dr Lee (Wei Ling) disagrees with Hota, she is at perfect liberty to campaign to have it amended … But until Parliament amends or repeals the Hota and the Oaths and Declarations Act, they remain the law of Singapore.”

If anyone disagrees with the law for gays as enacted by Parliament, he/she is at perfect liberty to campaign to have it amended … But until Parliament amends or repeals the law of Singapore for gays, it remains the law of Singapore.

The thing is, the law is quite ridiculous if you don’t enforce it. What’s the point of having a law that is in black & white, yet you tell everyone in the country that you will not be prosecuting the offenders? It’s like saying rape is illegal yet people are free to do it. So why is it illegal in the first place?

It’s hypocritical to have a law to make conservatives happy, and turn around and tell those affect that they will not be prosecuted, so please continue to bring back glory for the country. Please continue to make waves in the international scene. Singapore wants to be number 1 in everything, but no, we will not repeal Section 377a. As the government, they should be doing what they preach. Singapore is conservative? Okay fine. Then prosecute all who do not abide by the law and stick to it. Don’t want to encroach on their privacy so will not prosecute? Then don’t even have this law in the first place. What a cognitively dissonant country we live in. *Sigh*

Categories
Review Technology

Google Chrome – Impressions of a casual user

Okay. I know I said casual. And yet I’m quick to start trying it out. Honestly, comparing myself to the others who have been testing it in the states, I’m casual. Those guys are serious web developers dudes! I’m just…. in ’cause it’s new & fun. Ok here goes.

First impressions. I like the layout and the colour scheme of the browser. Very similar to Firefox 3.0 (3.0.1 recently released), the interface is clean without any fuss. When I first opened Google Chrome, it offered to import all my bookmarks from Firefox immediately, presumably because my default browser is Firefox at the moment. Any IE or Safari users like to testify that Chrome will offer based on current default browser settings? Smart move. I also liked the “Most Visited” areas where the websites which I visit the most often is placed right at the front page. I’m sure it will make my surfing much more efficient, and I can get things done faster. The search bar is now to the right of the page, instead of right smack in the centre as of current Google search page. Doesn’t affect searching much since it’s still pretty prominent. An interesting feature I noticed is that the URL bar is embedded within the tabs, instead of the other way around, as with the rest of the browsers. It may not make much sense now, but once I took a look at the best feature of Chrome, this design fits perfectly.

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Tab detaching. Refreshing change. Will definitely improve my internet experience. I’ve been in situations where I wanted to view a current tab as a new window and instead of addressing this immediately, I had to copy and paste the url in a new window. Troublesome. With this, going from tabs to windows is so much easier.

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Viewing area. Much bigger compared to Firefox. Less need for vertical scrolling, which is always good when reading long articles, like blogs or news. Being every so lazy, less scrolling = love.

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Browse invisibly. HOLY COW! I was checking out the controls drop-down, which is the dog-eared page icon on the top right hand corner, and what do I see? A selection that says “New incognito window”. So what do I do? CLICK it of course. It allows you to browse websites, yet do not leave any trace on your computer. Good for those browsing on public resources and yet do not want to clear cookies everytime you log out. Cool stuff!

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Web developers tools. This portion I’m not exactly excited about, since I know nuts about web developing. hehehe. What I do know it does is that you can look at the codes of page, fiddle with Javascrīpt and check out the task manager. The task manager really is pretty for-nerds-only as it measures the memory in a multi process browser, and shows you the stats.

But it seems like a useful tool, as lifehacker reports. What it can help me as a normal everyday user, I don’t think very much. Just a little tidbit that shows Google cares for all. =)

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Root domain. Some anti-phishing help, Chrome highlights the root domain of every page you go to, as shown. It will offer some protection against people stealing your identity, which is what phishing is in a nutshell… I think. Not adept in phishing but it was just interesting to me. XD

Check out the lifehacker review (link above). He gives a 1000000x better review that what I can do, showcasing more functions. You don’t even have to test it! He does it for you.

Other no screenshots impressions.

Speed. It’s incredibly fast. Alot faster than Firefox. Do I need to mention IE at all?

Easy bookmarking. Makes your bookmarking easier, with the bookmark icon just next to the url bar. Similar to Firefox 3. To look at all your bookmarks, the “Other bookmarks” icon is right on top at the right hand corner. Does away with an additional row of toolbar, which is mostly useless.

In general, Google Chrome seems to be a more efficient way of browsing the internet. At least for me. I’m sure I’ll find room for improvement as time goes by, when I really get down to serious browsing with this browser. But for first impressions, Chrome delivers.

However, I’m not sure if it will enable Google to take over the browser market. Firefox users will most likely be the first to switch. Not that Firefox is bad, just that Mozilla users are more susceptible to such advances in technology. Some of the less hardcore IE users might switch because of the speed, but as there are still some advantages of IE over other browsers, I doubt IE will die off. Another one to fight for a slice of the pie, I think the biggest sufferer will be Safari..

Sometimes I thank God for Microsoft dominance. Windows users are usually able to test new stuff earlier. Like Google Chrome. Chrome for Mac & Linux users are not ready yet, but you can sign up on the download page to get first wind of it.

Side note, Firefox doesn’t support Javascrīpt all that well so I hope Chrome will do better…

Download Google Chrome yourself to test it out.

Bloggers who have already checked it out & blogged about it:
– jialat dot com
– Tech 65


Categories
Musings

What does China gain from Olympics?

I don’t think very much. Yes. In terms of making a stand on the world stage, and showing all of us that YES, China can do it, I think much has been accomplished in Beijing 2008. However, if we look at the long term benefits to China and it’s people as a whole, I doubt it helped much.

The tens of billions of dollars could have and should have (in my opinion) be used to aid the large number of less privileged citizens of China. There are so many things that can be done with the money that will provide longer run benefits to the people of China, in turn helping them to compete in the world stage. To finish the cycle, these Chinese people will be able to push China’s economy to even greater skies.

I’m not sure what China wants to get out of hosting this Olympics. It’s a highly acclaimed world sporting event, yes. It will propel China’s visibility to the skies, yes. It will provide millions of jobs, yes. It will push Beijing’s GDP, yes. But for how long? And by how much?

We look at history, what has Olympics brought for past host countries? Not much progress, but a lot of wastage. Look at Athens. Less than 4 years after they hosted the Summer Olymics in 2004, and almost all their Olympic facilities are “abandoned, derelict, covered in graffiti and rubbish”. It’s painful to look at these photos and think back on how glorious the 2004 Olympics was.

Of course, however, we cannot discount the pros that hosting the Olympics has brought to Beijing (and only Beijing). The transport systems have very much improved, the environment immensely upgraded, better public facilities, and of course, the biggest benefit, the skills that the Chinese people have learned.

The effects of the games is yet to be over, and I’m eagerly & anxiously waiting to see how it all unfolds. Crossing my fingers too.

Various resources:

Instant demands have cost at Beijing Games

Games over, but new start for China

Categories
Singapore

Why we are not getting married

Though I object the idea of pre-arranged marriages, I do share the viewpoint of Prime Minister Lee Hsien Long on the connection between falling birth-rates in Singapore and  the independence of women here. With reference to the National Day Rally last night and the article found on TODAYonline.

Being one of the “modern-day woman”, I get equally pissed off when some men are still harbouring that primitive thought of women having to be submissive and latch on to the every word of men, as if they are words of God. Unfortunately, times have changed and quite a bit it has. Though such women still exist, it is small in percentage and such wonderful women would have been snapped up in an instant. I personally believe that due to such mentality, marriages nowadays hardly last. It’s a fundamental dissonance in the essence of marriage in the eyes of the 2 most important parties, the husband and wife. If this dissonance is not addressed right from the beginning, no marriage will last. And when everybody else sees that marriages doesn’t last anyway, why would anyone jump into something that is, to them, bound to fall apart?

Marriage, to me, is like closing a deal. Both parties have to list out what they want through this marriage and what is their ‘motive’ for wanting to get married. No lofty ideals, no romantic notions. Cold, hard realistic views. If a match is found possible, then the marriage can happen and will last. Of course, such calculating behaviour is not going to be how it will happen. In relationships, we think using our hearts, never our heads. Unfortunately.

Of course, independence and career is not the only deterent for me in terms of getting married, and having kids for that matter. It is also the cost involved in all of these actions. Imagine, to get married, you’ve got to throw a proper Chinese wedding DINNER. That in itself will set you back tens of thousands dollars. Don’t even think about depending on the ang paos you get in return. I’ve seen Singaporeans who prepare a S$80 ang pao and bring a family of four. So distasteful. Worse still, these people are usually your relatives. Or distant relatives. Or friends of your parents. So unless you hold a dinner solely for your friends, it’s not going to cover. And the money spent is not just on F&B, there’s the gowns, the cake, the gifts, the tea ceremony, the bridesmaids gowns etc etc etc. On top of that, planning such an event is a major pain in the neck, having to really co-ordinate small minute details. If you hire a wedding planner, that’s another wad of cash down the drain. And there’s going to be the issue of both parties’ expectations of a wedding. That’s another headache to handle. And if not handled well, it’s the beginning of the end………

Kids, although cute at times, are a major cash suckers. During the 9 months that you carry them in you, there are already expenses incurred for medical fees as well as wardrobe costs… For the next 20 years after you give birth to them, you need thousands of dollars every single year to upkeep their well-being. Parents of older generations can still depend on their kids to take care of them when they get old, but in the future, I think this situation will change, ever so slightly. Old Folk’s Homes are increasingly being more accepted by my current generation, where more people have the mentality that they rather be in an old folk’s home than inconveniencing their kids. What with globalisation bringing the concept of privacy and personal space within the family closer to us, it won’t be surprising to me if there be an increasing number of people who’d prefer to check into an old folk’s home in future, me included. If I’m all alone that is. This probably sounds a little callous, but really, it’s not all about keeping the family line going. There are material concerns and realistic issues to deal with. So unless I have Victoria Beckham’s money, I don’t want a soccer team of kids.

That’s only touching on the ACTIONS of getting married & having babies. Another issue is FINDING the right person. With the competitiveness in the society now, it is not as easy as it seems to get to know new people. On paper and in theory, all one has to do is get out more often and engage in social activities. However, do not forget that meeting new people and socialising does sap energy out of you, and after a week of hard work, all you want to do is to meet your familiar circle of friends to hang out for drinks or a meal. Meeting new people and getting to know them from the beginning is something we do all the time at work, and after office hours, do we really want to expend some more energy to meet even more new people? Furthermore, it’s difficult to get close to, or intimate with co-workers. Office gossip is something that can potentially break any relationship, and where else do we spend most of our time? In the office of course. Not to mention, being in such a competitive environment, getting ahead in work can really take up quite a bit of your time, what with possible overtime and working on weekends.

Of course, all I have is my mouth and thoughts and no real solution. That’s why I’m a commoner and not a Member of Parliament… They are supposed to do the problem solving for us no? XD

Categories
Food Review Singapore

No Signboard Seafood Restaurant

New Year’s dinner with current + ex-colleagues was at Geylang’s No Signboard seafood restaurant.

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While we were waiting for our food to arrive, playing around with taking photos of the appetizers.DSC00403

They are best known for their white pepper crab which is usually cooked to the right mixture of spice and yet not lose the freshness of the crab.

Also very generous with their serving of green onions, thus enhancing the fresh sea taste of crabs yet killing any smell it might have.

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Also quite tasty is their chilli crab. This dish, of course, has to be served with piping hot and crispy man tou. Dipping the man tou in the not-very-spicy-but-slightly-sweet gravy and letting the man tou soak it all up, is pure heaven.

Other than the signature crabs, we had to have some sides to go with it.

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I love Achar. I think it’s the greatest thing in the world next to bread.

However, the achar at No Signboard was not sour enough to whet your appetite and it’s not crunchy enough to feel like a good ol’ salad-ish dish.

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One good thing about their food, which is very apparent in this stir-fry kailan dish, is that it does not threaten to kill us with salt.

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The baby squid that day was a disappointment. Not crispy enough. Personally I find that it is coated with too much honey. It’s sweet but lacks the crispiness of it. Sad fact, cos the distinct crunch is the best part of eating fried baby squids. Other than a mug of beer in the other hand.

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They are known for seafood and for a reason. The prawns are succulent and fresh and huge. Cereals are spiced with the right amount of basil & chilli so as to bring out the taste yet not overpower it.

Their cereal is so addictive the waitresses will help you hold the plate while you scoop every single remaining piece into your bowl. *sheepish*

No Signboard Seafood Restaurant (Geylang)
414 Geyland Road Lor 24
(Nearest MRT Aljunied)

Opening Hours: Mon-Sun 3pm-2am
Tel: 6842 3415
Payment: Cash, Visa


Categories
Singapore

STCC 2008

Woohoo! Back from otaku heaven! Yesterday that is. XD Photos! Photos!

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Ehem. Please see portion in red… Can’t see? I will enlarge it for you XD

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CLOSED SESSION okay? No joke man! All thanks to OMY for letting me win the preview tickets!

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Huge welcome standing banner. Too big to go into my camera. XD

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Graffiti wall done ‘fresh’ by artists participating in the convention, such as Tokidoki, Gary Erskine etc…

STAR WARS

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OMNUYA DOLLS

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TOFU OYAKO / DEVILROBOTS

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GLOOMY

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OLD MASTER Q 老夫子

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LEGO

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OTHERS XD

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And proof of my otaku-ness:

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Only managed to buy ONE thing there.. Cos I consciously didn’t bring any cash with me to the venue. XD

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I can’t wait for Sunday’s Anime Cosplay! More photos then! Hopefully lots of WOW and no YUCKS.

Adios! For now!

Categories
Food Review Singapore

Curry Wok

Sometimes we think how friendships are built over food. Just take the example of my dad and the owner of Curry Wok. They met cos my dad was introduced to this place which serves some great food, because he wanted to get some fresh awesome otah. My dad and the owner shares one passion — food. And the owner ain’t stingy about treating my dad to expensive stuff. He just wanted company. So fortunately for my dad, he gets to enjoy some really good stuff.

But of course, we are not people who are unappreciative. My dad brings him business. We eat there as and when we can, and my dad packs for his staff sometimes, brings clients for lunch etc..

Okay.. Really, this blog post ain’t about friendship. It’s about food and what’s a food post without food talk and food photos!?

Curry Wok is famous for 2 things. Curry Fish Head and Braised Pork Knuckles. These are must trys for every visit.

First up the Curry Fish Head.

currywok-fishhead

The curry is rich and creamy but not overwhelming. It’s well balanced in it’s taste, being spicy and yet the spiciness does not take over the fresh taste of the fish head. Proportions are healthy and the fish head is meaty and really fresh. No fishy taste at all.

We had the vegetables up next..

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Honestly, their vegetables are just normal. I wouldn’t rave and rant about them but hey! My mom doesn’t eat meat so what are we gonna do? And it provides some balance to the array of meat meat and more meat you going to see later!

currywok-centuryeggtofu

This century tofu dish actually came a little later than the vegetables which I was quite amused. It’s a cold dish which is supposed to be eaten before the rest. And it’s pretty easy to make considering that there was zero cooking involved. XD That said, this is one of my favourite dishes. The Tofu is soft and delicate and the century egg is slightly sticky yet extremely Q. But the saving factor has to be the sauce. Most Century Egg Tofu sauces are extremely salty, to make up for the general tastelessness of this dish. However, Curry Wok’s sauce is thick but not too salty, It compliments the bland tasting tofu yet you can still taste the refreshing taste of cold tofu.

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Now this is one delicacy. The Ngoh Hiang is 100% home-made and the ingredients used is fresh and really generous. They are not afraid to charge a little higher, because they know that what they deliver is one of the most awesome Ngoh Hiang I’ve ever tried. The outer bean skin is so thin that when it is deep fried, it’s extraordinarily crispy, even when it’s cool. The meat is not too oily and fattening as they try to use as much lean meat as possible. It’s easy to tell that they only use fresh oil to fry this because you do not get those blackened flakes and distinct burnt smell which accompanies dishes fried multiple times in the same oil.

currywok-otah

Now this Otah what my dad used to buy home for us in cartons of 10 (I know, we’re gluttons.) Hey! If it’s good, it’s worth it! Like the ngoh hiang, it’s not cheap but after you sink your teeth into the soft otah and bite some fresh fish chunks, you’ll agree with me that it’s worth every single penny. I always like to keep this till the end to savour it’s flavour and never once has the taste deteriorated because it’s been left out uneaten for at least 20mins. It is still juicy and soft, unlike some other places’ otah, where you really have to eat it up first before it dries up.

Now for the main attraction…

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Look at the SIZE of the pork knuckle! Really I don’t know where they get their supply but it’s HUGE. Mind you it’s not multiple pieces but ONE GIGANORMOUS piece. Honest to God, you can look at the remnants later. It’s braised in dark soy sauce with garlic, ginger and whatever. To such perfection it is cooked, that the skin and the meat is easily separated, without any trouble. Do not be fooled by all that skin and fats.. It’s surprisingly light and the skin is not overladen with fatty tissue, as with most pork knuckles sold elsewhere. Dig in with not THAT much guilt….  XD

All cleaned up! Look at the size of the Pork Knuckle bone!!!

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We cleaned up every single drop of food. Really every single one. Even the fish head curry… We were just short of licking the plates to get the most out of the sauces…

Personally, I think the food at Curry Wok is so amazing because they put their heart into it and because the owner’s a food fanatic, it is his faith and mission to ensure that what he delivers to his customers is personally acceptable. And not to mention, they do not stinge on their ingredients, which is what makes the difference between good food and great food. The place is small and atmosphere just like your grandmother’s little kitchen, where your family gather together and have a great home-cooked meal, chatting away while you wolf down everything that’s on your plate, thanking God that there IS food on your plate. It’s the kind of simple pleasure at eating great food that makes this place more than just good food!

Be there early or make a reservation! If not be prepared, you will not have any seats!

Curry Wok
5 Coronation Road
#01-04 Coronation Arcade
(Next to Coronation Plaza)

Opening Hours: Wed-Mon: 11am-930pm
Tel: 6464 8878
Payment: Cash