This Eatvestigator has recently been investigating the bak kut teh (herbal tea pork ribs soup) scene along Rangoon Road. Among these is the venerable Ng Ah Sio Bak Kut Teh that has been in existence since 1955.
The scene at 7pm on a Saturday nightThe shop appears to be a common stop for many overseas dignitaries
We got started with the selection of Kung Fu Teas (jasmine or oolong) which goes for about $4.50 a pot. Tea is pretty much self service, you will be heaping in your own tea and fetching your own hot water from the water kettles littered around the shop corners.
The star of the show arrived with the premium pork ribs soup. We also ordered a healthy companion of side dishes to go along with the meal including braised bean curds, eggs, and lettuce. The fieriness of the pepper was well balanced out by the tea which actually tasted sweet in contrast. Feel free to ask for free refills of the soup.
Overall a good concoction of pepper and pork. For the heritage experience, the original shop would be my preferred place to visit.
Stacked behind habitat by honestbee, is this unassuming little distillery brewing up Singapore-made gin. You would never guess from the pair of lone brass lion that adorns its entrance.
Rawr
Speakeasy Bar
We flitter up the stairs, and arrived at this old world bar on L2.
The bartender introduced us to the Three Musketeers of the house. These spirits are born and bottled in this very building.
The Three Musketeers Butterfly Pea, Singapore Dry, Pahit Pink
The Butterfly Pea and Singapore Dry are both available for sale at $88 a bottle, and we are told that the Pink Pahit will be available soon once production is up to scratch. These are small batch production, therefore you won’t be finding them in volume at any duty free. A quick look at the menu reveals their spiritual possibilities:
Happy hours from 5-8pm weekdays
We decide to summon for a trio of Brass Lion ($16), Butterfly ($16), and Pahit ($16), the latter which was had on the rocks. Our attention quickly turned to the bartender’s quick work. The bartender first doses the glass with some Butterfly Pea gin, which has a distinctive peaflower blue glow. Upon touching the Indian Tonic water, it quickly morphs into purple.
Butterfly
The end result is both alien and mesmerising. The Butterfly takes on grapefruit with subtle floral hints.
(L) Brass Lion and (R) Pahit on the Rocks
The next of our companions, the Brass Lion, is slightly more laid back in appearance and tone. It makes up for that understatement with a ginger flower and juniper berries, which add quite a spice. The favourite for this eatvestigator was the Pahit, which reminded one of an Old Fashioned contorted out of gin. This was certainly an interesting experience and we hope to be back to check out the rest of the menu. Until then…
We were also told about an alternate hands-on experience, a certain gin school, where one can concoct up your own gin flavours.
Friends of this eatvestigator would know that this eatvestigator loves to try beans from all over the world. Besides returning from most overseas trips with a bag of coffee beans from that locality, this eatvestigator also hand grinds the beans and brew them with an Aeropress. This eatvestigator tends to avoid the bigger brands like Nylon coffee, preferring to go for this lesser known shop at Balestier.
The shop has been in existence for decades, and supplies the local coffee scene (i.e. kopitiam) with their blend of coffee roasted with butter and sugar, in the range of $8-10 per kg. These are typically blends of Robusta and Arabica that are sourced from Indonesia and Vietnam.
The younger owner who took over from his father, also sources more exotic stuff from other continents. There are more than 20 types for your choosing. At an average of $12/250g, this is probably 30-40% less than what you would pay at other popular cafes which merely resell beans that aren’t roasted by them.
If variety is your preference, then you could just buy 250g of different origins and try to your heart’s delight here. This eatvestigator bagged 250g of Bali origins for $4.50 that day, along with the normal coffee mixture.
Those beans went into an Aeropress, and go very well with condensed milk for an authentic-tasting rendition of kopi at less than 20 cents a cup. As for the Aeropress, it retails for approximately $65 in Singapore but you can get them on Carousell for ~$49. 328 Balestier Road, Singapore 329760 https://www.facebook.com/lamyeocoffeepowder
