The Muslim Hunger Games have begun again! Yup, the Holy Month of Ramadan has reared its head and that means that all of us Muslim have to fast. Bye food and water! Love it or hate it but one thing’s for sure, there’s no avoiding it if you’re Muslim.
Whether you like it or not, one thing we can all agree is that fasting brings out weird food cravings for all of us. I’ve had a hankering for pancakes, ice cream cakes and even takoyaki these past few days alone!
If you’re like me, you’ll have those cravings too…Luckily mine have led me to source out some pretty awesome food to sate my appetite!
Food #1 – 3: Nasi Lemak, Nasi Sambal Goreng and Naan Bread
For these traditional rice dishes, I’ve found my favourite place for both is at the Afghanistan Family Restaurant.
Located in Tampines, the restaurant is just a short walk away from Tampines East MRT station. That’s a great thing because chances are you’ll be struggling home carrying your haul.
The restaurant might not look like much but trust me, its Nasi Lemak, Nasi Sambal Goreng and the Naan bread (particularly the garlic version) are to die for!
I live in the North, and I regularly head down there just to buy them.
Nothing else, just those three.
I’m really fussy about the type of Nasi Lemak I eat too! The rice has to be soft, the sambal has to be sweet (yet spicy) and it has to have chicken and an egg. The restaurant’s Nasi Lemak ticks all those boxes. I particularly love the rice and sambal, as they’re just the right mix to complement the other ingredients.
On the other hand, their Nasi Sambal Goreng isn’t lacking either!
Their version is nothing special (rice, serunding, begedil and a few other ingredients) but it’s damn tasty! I’m gonna be honest and come out and say that it’s not the best Nasi Sambal Goreng I’ve ever tasted (it’s damn close though) but since you’re already at the restaurant to buy Nasi Lemak and Naan, why the hell not just get a Nasi Sambal Goreng (or two or three) as well?
Speaking of Naan, the Garlic Naan (and to a certain extent the Cheese Naan) are damn awesome too. Pair them with the Butter Chicken or Keema (I personally prefer the Butter Chicken, as it’s also great with Prata) and you get a one-two punch of a dish!
I really love the Naan bread because it’s pretty big, so you really get a bang for your buck. Another reason it’s awesome is that it retains its softness even hours later (as long as you don’t take it out of its wrapper).
It’s one of the reasons I always buy a couple of Garlic Naan to go with my Nasi Lemaks and Nasi Sambal Gorengs. I don’t need to eat it right away since it’ll still be awesome a few hours down the road!
Food #4: Soup Tulang Merah
Eaten with bread, there’s nothing more awesome to a hungry stomach than a good, spicy portion of Soup Tulang Merah. Do you want to know where the best one is sold? Find Haji Kadir.
Haji Kadir’s Soup Tulang Merah is damn awesome!
It’s tasty, decently priced ($2 a bone) and they give a massive portion of the soup with every order. One great thing I love about the Soup Tulang Merah soup from Haji Kadir is that the meat on their tulang (bones) are still tender and soft. I’ve eaten a ton of Soup Tulang Merah from a ton of places and Haji Kadir’s the best.
If you can’t make it down to the their prime outlet at Golden Mile Food Center, you can always order online from their website and get it delivered to you 24/7!
I have no idea about the rest of the items on their menu though…I’ve never bought anything else from them so order those dishes at your own risk!
Food #5: Cheeseburger
I’m a sucker for a good old fashioned, regular cheeseburger. Nothing fancy, just two pieces of bread, cheese, and a burger patty. My pick for that?
Burgs by Project Warung.
While not my favourite burger joint ever (that goes to Killer Gourmet Burgers in Malaysia), Burgs does still serve up some tasty cheeseburgers. The cheese is tasty, the burger patty is pretty decent and the bread soft enough to be enjoyable.
Unfortunately, while Burgs does have a couple of outlets, they don’t deliver islandwide. Unless you’re in range of one of them via Foodpanda, I’m afraid you’re going to have to make the trip yourself to nab one of their burgers.
Food #6: Rojak
It’s pretty easy to make good rojak…NOT!
While it’s easy to get the ingredients, the magical component to make a rojak special is its gravy. That’s why I’m all in for the ones you can get at the Ministry of Rojak.
While I was a hardcore fan of Al-Mahboob’s rojak for years, their steadily increasing prices, varying quality (sometimes their food’s heavenly, sometimes not) and long wait times have made me look elsewhere for alternatives.
Luckily for me, I found Ministry of Rojak (I get mine from their Northpoint outlet) and haven’t looked back. MoR’s gravy is sublime; it’s sweet and nutty enough without being too cloying. It’s the perfect mixture and in a weird twist of fate, it even tastes like Al-Mahboob’s gravy!
You’re going to want to head on down to their locations yourself when you order. While they do deliver on Foodpanda and Grab, there’s a bit of a markup. It’s not worth it at all, so just do yourself a favour and go down yourself to nab your rojak ingredients!
Trust me, if you’ve not tried them before…it’s damn worth it!