Singaporean Breakfast at the Heart of Ortigas

Breakfast, as they say, is the most important part of the day. This is because breakfast gives you that boost of energy that will make you ready for school or for work. A Pinoy breakfast would usually consist of eggs, hot dogs, hot pandesal, and a cup of coffee. Sometimes there would be tocino, tuyo, tapa, or sardines. Most Filipinos who have the colonial mentality would go for foreign-inspired breakfasts such as waffles, pancakes, bagels, and the like. There are a lot of good food places that offer those kinds of food. But, when you're looking for a place that’s open as early as 7am but not as full as Starbucks or Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf, then head over to Escriva Drive and grab a fix of your light Singaporean breakfast fare.

Ya Kun Kaya Toast is a franchise from Singapore and has numerous branches in Malaysia, Indonesia, Taiwan, South Korea, Japan, and the Philippines. It offers a variety of toasts and drinks, most famous of which are the Kaya Toast and the Milo Dinosaur. And because they are the most-loved items in the menu, we decided to try those, along with others we’d like to try. Maybe this Singaporean treat is something new to you. If you haven't heard of it, Kaya Toast is a  notable snack amongst people at Singapore and Malaysia. It's bread (or toast, or 'tasty', as our locals would call it) with a spread of coconut milk, eggs, butter, and other flavorings. Because it's so good, it's not surprising that it made all this way to the Philippines for Pinoys to try out.

The Road to Singaporean Yummy-ness

If there's one nearby country that's a big hit among Pinoy tourists, it's gotta be Singapore. It's just a few hours away from the Philippines and it has a lot to offer when it comes to sights and scenes. One good thing Singapore can offer would be the delectable food. Singaporean cuisine is actually a mixture of Chinese, Indian, Malay, and Indonesian influences, due to the fact that Singapore is a very diverse country. So, just imagine the loads of food you could try when you're there. People who have been there, however, would tell you that Singaporean food is expensive. But, they have hawker centers scattered around the streets of Singapore where you can taste authentic and cheap Singaporean food. These hawker centers are what we commonly know as 'food courts'. You don't, however, have to dine at these hawker centers to taste delicious Singaporean food. You don't even have to go to Singapore just to accomplish this task. All you have to do is take a ride to SM Megamall.

Located at the second floor of the mall, Orchard Road continues to invite people to try delicious and authentic Singaporean food. Yes, the name of the place sounds very familiar, it being one of the most popular roads in Singapore. Orchard Road offers a wide array of dishes to satisfy your hungry stomach. Prices here are average, some are cheap, some a bit expensive for the serving size. Nevertheless, everything is worth trying at Orchard Road. It's all about the taste and the authenticity of the dish.

Tao Yuan: Where Singapore meets the hungry Pinoy

When you think of Singapore, one of the things that come into mind is the good and comforting food. Well, you don't have to go all the way to Singapore just to taste delicious Singaporean cuisine. If it's good Singaporean and Chinese food you're looking for, why not try Tao Yuan Restaurant at Manila.

The place is kind of hard to find, because it's almost at the end of the road. It took us loads of walking before we reached the place, and by the time we reached the place, we really were hungry. We think you can get to the place though by riding a "padyak" or a taxi if you prefer a more comfortable vehicle. We just don't know how much it'll cost you since we just walked to get there (and boy were we tired).

When you get inside, you'll feel the formal-like ambiance since it really looks like a high-end Chinese restaurant.  And believe us when we say that you'll really feel out of place because everybody seems to know each and everyone inside. Some would stand from their tables and go to other tables to talk. There were some expensive food on the menu, but there also some dishes which are light on the wallet and big in servings. They offer free tea and peanuts, by the way. Wanna know what we tried? Well, here goes:

 (By the way, you might want to reconsider on ordering drinks since theirs cost 100php each. And that's just softdrinks hahahaha)
 
 

 Lak Sa, 328 php

Glutton Guy: I really liked Tao Yuan's version of the Lak Sa. It's taste is very authentic. You can taste the nice blend of the coconut milk and the spicy seafood flavoring which I really love. It was the exact taste as the original Singaporean Lak Sa. The thing that it lacked though was the seafoods. The one I ate before was full of seafood like cuttle fish, shrimp, and oyster. The Tao Yuan version lacked seafoods because there were only shrimp and squid balls. It was still good nevertheless. : )


Glutton Girl: At first I was afraid of this dish because I really had no idea what it was. When I tasted it though my thoughts about it completely changed. It was really really good. The spicy flavor of the soup was tolerable and the noodles were really firm. The shrimps and other ingredients that are in the soup were also good. It's one big bowl of comfort food for me. Overall, I think it's a Singaporean dish worth trying.

Hainanese Rice, 50 php

Glutton Guy: Personally, I don't think it's worth it. It was just like buttered rice. It doesn't have any distinct taste. So I think it would be better if you would just order regular/plain rice. : )

Glutton Girl: When I read other blogs about it saying that it's really good, I expected it to be a good one. However, there wasn't anything special about this rice. It was just like normal fried rice that I could make at our house. Add the fact that it costs 50 php, I'd say that I would go with Glutton Guy's suggestion of just ordering plain rice.

Hainanese Chicken, 445 php (Half)

Glutton Guy: I really liked this dish. What I really don't like about the usual Hainanese chicken is the gingery flavor. Tao Yuan's version was not too gingery, which is why I liked it. True enough, it's also another dish you've gotta try at Tao Yuan. : )

Glutton Girl: What I love about the dish is the tenderness of the chicken. The half chicken is actually good for 3-4 persons. The sauce was good and the just like what Glutton Guy said it wasn't too gingery. Plus, it was beautifully presented.

Beef Tenderloin with Special Sauce, 328 php

Glutton Guy: This was my favorite amongst all of the dishes we ordered. I really loved the sauce and the beef was very tender. Plus, the servings was big. I'd have to say, it's another must-try for you Glutton Guys out there. : )

Glutton Girl: I really loved this dish. It's also my favorite. No wonder that sauce is so special - it was really really good. The beef was very soft and perfectly cooked. It was like a better version of beef with broccoli, minus the broccoli. This is probably one of the dishes that I would order again upon my return at Tao Yuan.

Mango Dessert, FREE

Glutton Guy: I liked it very much. It's free, so I just appreciated the generous gesture. Anyways, the mango was really sweet. You can tell that it was juiced out from fresh mangoes. It was a really sweet end to a glorious feast. : )


Glutton Girl: Just when I thought that nothing is free anymore. And this is one delicious free dessert. The mangoes were sweet and were pureed evenly. There were no mango lumps, which was an added plus. The tapioca was soft and good as well, a perfect add-on to the dessert. One word to describe it? Lovely.

Don't forget that they also offer delicious Chinese food. They offer hot pots, dimsum, live seafood, and even shabu-shabu. There's a lot of dishes to choose from at Tao Yuan so you'll never run out of good things to try.  So next time, if you're up for some good Chinese or Singaporean food, why not give Tao Yuan a try? Bet you'll love it there. We did. : )




Rating: Buddhalicious!
(Tao Yuan Restaurant is located at General Malvar Street, corner A. Mabini Street, Malate, Manila. It's just near Pan Pacific Hotel and in front of a Korean store.)