Singapore - Chili CRAB!

On we go with our culinary journey through the food-fantastic land of Singapore!

Cheers! We found a quaint wine bar in Dempsey Hill, which houses British Army barracks that have been converted into restaurants and bars. We had to warm up our tummies for the life-changing meal that was to come later in the evening...

Chili crab is the unofficial (or maybe official?) national dish of Singapore. There are many restaurants and hawker stands that serve chili crab, but Carmen and Jamie's favorite is Long Beach in Dempsey (not to be confused with the other restaurants in the chain that are located throughout Singapore).

Kyle's favorite staple to Chinese meals: salted fish fried rice

These are the house special prawns, which we had to order for Kyle who happens to be allergic to one of my favorite foods, crab. Don't feel too sorry for him, these were delicious. The Singaporean people sure know how to cook prawns, and these were fabulous.

Crispy duck. How they managed to keep that duck so moist and tender, while achieving the most crisp and flavorful crust, is a great mystery that I will spend the rest of my life working to uncover.

Here we go with the star of the show: Chili Crab! I kept a food journal while I was in Singapore (and not the Biggest Loser kind that tracks calories. No, this was quite the opposite--a journal that captured all my food thoughts in the moment!) I will share the journal entry I wrote as I woke the next day, still in a daze from the previous night's meal.

"Chili crab and crispy duck at Long Beach in Dempsey last night will stick with me in my food dreams for years to come. The chili crab was more like lobster. The Sri Lanka crab was thick and meaty, with claws that store juicy hunks of meat. Carmen and Jamie let me have one of the prized claws and I accepted, gratefully devouring it and using the meat to slop up the thick, spicy sweet sauce. There was a savory donut like pastry they serve on the side that you can also use to soak up the sauce. I wanted to take home the sauce and ship it home, but thought it would be tacky to ask. This morning, I woke up at 6AM laughing, remembering that after that delicious meal, Kyle and I passed out in the cab ride home--officially in a food coma."

I realize I sound overly dramatic when talking about the food in Singapore! I admit that the natural high of being on vacation and seeing old friends for the first time in a long time might have added an extra kick of flavor to these meals. However, it is undeniable that Singapore will be one of my top food vacations of all time.

Thank you, Carmen and Jamie, for hosting us and giving us the grand tour of your fabulous new city! While it is hard to see your friends leave for far off lands, I am grateful for the opportunity to have new vacation destinations and excuses to explore our world.

Happy Eating,
Emi