Adam Road Food Centre: Selera Rasa Nasi Lemak

Hello Readers,

So just last week, I went for a half island ride with my usual Happy Feet. I swear my out-of-true rear wheel and broken cleat slowed me down by a lot during that ride... So sorry for holding you guys back!

We started off from our usual meetup spot at UMC Pasir Ris, headed towards Punggol, Seletar, Mandai (i literally died here), Upper Bukit Timah and to the junction of Dunearn Rd and Adam Rd where Adam Road Food Centre is located.

More details of the ride can be found here.

At 0830, Adam Road Food Centre was already filled with hungry customers. Well most of them were eagerly queuing for one of the famous Nasi Lemak in Singapore. The stall that I am referring to is none other than Selera Rasa Nasi Lemak!

Singaporeans are willing to queue for anything good! Don't say bo jio!

After having queued for at least 20mins, I finally got to the front. Their menu offers various set meals for your nasi lemak. You can still add other side dished to the prefixed sets. I ordered their "Full House" which consists of rice, chicken wing, otah, egg, ikan bilis, sambal tumis and cucumber slices for only $4.50.

Selera Rasa Nasi Lemak: Full House

I requested for extra rice which was only 50¢ more. Considering that they used a decent quality basmati rice, 50¢ for extra rice is really cheap.

The Verdict

The taste of the rice is light and fluffy. The grains do not clump together unlike other stalls who do not use basmati rice. The amount of coconut cream and salt used is also perfect. I would compare this with Geylang Serai's Warong Mak Dara's Nasi Lemak and I have to say that the rice from both are just as good.

To me, their sambal was just okay. For me it was a little on the sweet side. I believe they have adjusted their sambal based on feedback from their valued customers. Well, not everyone can withstand the kick of really spicy sambal. So I would say that their sambal is suitable for everyone.

I will not be talking about the various side dishes like otah and chicken wing as I believe that they do not contribute significantly to the overall dish. On a side note, I'm pretty damn sure they used goreng pisang batter for their chicken wing.

Prices start from $2.50 and I have to say that their sets are really value for money considering that they use quality ingredients. If you want a taste of real nasi lemak, this is probably one of it. 

Their website and menu can be found here: Selera Rasa Nasi Lemak

Thanks for reading!

Cheers!
-Fad

Pinky Commuter

Hi Guys!

So now I'm in the midst of building up my third bike which will be my main commuter/ market bike. And yes, its pink in colour. Why pink? Because I like it. Currently my Haro is my commuter and no doubt, its a horrible bike for commuting considering that its a BMX. But hey, it works great on tracks!

My idea of the commuter was more of a rigid XC mtb which can go pretty much anywhere. I got my frame a few months back, an Ironhorse Warrior Expert for 100 bucks iirc. I was contemplating as to whether I should spray paint it as the original was a gunmetal grey which seemed pretty boring to me. So it then struck me that I should just paint it pink, well, for the fun of it (and the headturner factor LOL).

Took me a week to get it to this state:

I felt really satisfied at the quality of my paintjob considering its my second paint project without the use of professional air compressors and a spray gun. Could use some decals hehe.

Now I'm slowly gathering parts to get it setup. I'm currently left with a few parts that I need such as the brakes, rotors, grips and maybe a new stem. Its actually rideable now but its really scary riding brakeless.

Here's some pics of the progress! (pardon the poor quality pics)

I'm really tempted to run BMX bars on this as I really liked the very lepak geometry and posture of riding with BMX bars on a 26er. And it looks cool too!

Had a hard time getting the chain on as I've never used a chain tool before. I broke like 5 links but managed to join some of the remaining Dura Ace chain I had from my roadie. I think my chain is rather short as I can't shift properly to my largest sprocket. So I decided to limit my rear dee to the second last sprocket, making my bike a 1x8 now.

I'd say I spent quite some cash on this up till the point I'm broke now. So I won't break my heart further by calculating how much I spent.

Hope I can get this bike ready before the holidays come to an end!

Cheers!

-Fad

Happy Feet Cycling Team

Hi guys!

So recently I just joined a cycling group on Facebook and had my first ride with them. Group cycling is something new for me as I usually ride alone (I like the peace and comfort of riding solo). The group/team is called "Happy Feet Cycling"~ haha what a cute name!

My first ride with them was on Friday, 8 August 2014 and it was a Round Island Ride~ I was excited about it since it was my first group ride covering such a long distance. I have rode round island once alone and I swear it wasn't easy as you can't draft behind anyone. But nevertheless it was a real fun experience riding alone.

We met at Shell Loyang before departing at about 9pm. The first rider I met was Wee. Nice guy with a humble bike. Had a chat with him before another guy, KS, came along. KS had a really nice S-Works Tarmac in bright yellow with a matching SRAM groupset. He's also a nice dude and rides fast hahaha..

We then rolled off once everyone was gathered. Route was pretty straightforward. Loyang - Coastal - ECP - Fort Rd - Stadium - Nicoll Highway - Shenton Way - Keppel Rd - Telok Blangah Rd - Pasir Panjang Rd - West Coast Highway... then i can't remember where we went haha. But I remember passing by CCK and then the group went to Mandai and back towards Pasir Ris after I broke off along Woodlands Rd to collect my fork.

It was a really fun and enjoyable ride! Meeting new people and also enjoying a long ride! (though my ass hurt when I got home)

Photo of the pack (Credits: Clement Tan of Happy Feet Cycling FB Group)

Cheers!

-Fad

Best Satay Ever

Hello Readers,

Yes, I am here to share with you some good lobang after not writing for quite awhile. Although Singapore is undeniably a food paradise, not everything here is totally good. Sometimes, a trip across the border can offer better food and at a cheaper price too. Well, let's face it. We Singaporeans love Malaysia don't we?

So let's get straight to the point of this post: BEST SATAY EVER.

For my entire life since I was born, the only satay my family and I ate was in JB. Originally, we patronised a humble Satay/Soto stall located in the foodcourt in Komplex Tun Abdul Razak (Komtar). It was definitely THE best satay I have ever eaten in my entire life. Offering an assortment of meat from chicken, beef, mutton to intestine, what they had to offer was simply the best. Sadly, Komtar was demolished for upgrading works as of 2008-ish (as far as I can remember). We did not have any contacts with the stallholder and thus, our favourite satay/soto stall was gone.. :(

Over the recent years, after roaming around JB with my family, we stumbled upon another good satay stall that was worth comparing with the one at Komtar. It's located at Taman Perling, nearby a mosque. Here is a map of the stall location. It is located exactly at where the red arrow is pointing at.

I don't have pictures of the exact stall though. But it is very easy to spot the stall. You can see smoke coming from the barbeque pits of the stall. However, they begin operations after 5-6pm and serve only during dinner. They are usually open on weekdays but they may be closed on Saturdays or Sundays. To avoid a wasted trip to Malaysia, I would suggest coming on a weekday instead of a weekend.

Without further ado, I present you, THE BEST SATAY EVER!

Perfectly marinated satay, roasted to perfection. Served (fresh) with lontong (rice cakes) and cucumber pieces.

Dipped in thick and rich peanut gravy that adheres to your satay, making sure that every bite is filled with savoury and peanuty goodness. I swear that you CANNOT find this quality and taste of satay gravy in Singapore. The consistency is simply perfect, unlike some that are too watery.

Well guess what? Here's the secret to making reaaaaaaallllyyy good satay. I call this the DLD (daging-lemak-daging) [meat-fat-meat]. This has got to be the best way of making satay. Fat? Unhealthy? Who cares! If it makes your food taste good, use it! 

As the satay gets char-grilled over the barbeque pit, the beef fat melts, coating the two meat pieces. Beef fat has got to be one of the most flavourful fats I've ever eaten in my life (since I can't take pork). I remembered having a chat with the abang at his satay stall and he said that he only used the tenderloin cut of beef for his satay.

Tenderloin, being the most sought after cut for its tenderness, is suitable for making satay as it grilled over a flame. This may cause certain cuts of meat to become tough when not cooked properly. As such, tenderloin would be an ideal cut of meat for making satay.

Paired with two parts tenderloin and one part fat, this is undeniably THE BEST SATAY EVER.

Well, what's even better is the price! Going for only RM0.70 (approx SGD0.30) per stick, you can pretty much go on a satay spree when you're here! Satay gravy is complimentary, however, I am not sure if the lontong and cucumber is complimentary as well. But I'm pretty sure they'd be more than happy to provide you with those condiments if you order a large portion of satay.

This is a reason why I support street/hawker food compared to high-end fine dining restaurants. They serve wonderful food and a mere fraction of what restaurants are selling at. Anyway, why support a restaurant owner who earns to buy a new car or yacht when you can support a street/hawker vendor who earns to support his family or pay his children's school fees? I strongly believe that these little things can go a long way in helping someone's life. :)

I guess that's all I can say about this satay stall. The rest is up to you, my readers, to taste and believe it for yourselves. I see no point in lying to my readers so yes, please try the satay!

I hope you enjoyed reading this and thank you all for your continuous support.

Au Revoir!

P.S I strongly recommend dining in instead of dabao-ing it as the meat tends to harden when it cools down.