Cod Fish Hash & Full English Breakfast, Oriole Cafe & Bar

So how did the start of your 2012 feasting go? Mine got off with a gentle Singaporean nudge in the right direction, a quiet breakfast at Oriole, nestled within Somerset.

Just what the doctor ordered after one beer tower too many on the first day of the new year - Cod Fish Hash. Of course, any combination of potatoes and eggs would have done the job, but to do a magnificent one, you need to pair them with beautifully smoked fish. I need to find a place to procure smoked cod in KL; requires a bit of work, but this is something the most austere of kitchens could and should attempt to whip up.

Full English Breakfast was good, not great, but good. Crispy bacon lent this some star power, because for some reason, bacon has ceased to be crispy at all pork-friendly joints in KL. Bacon is not bacon if it ain't crispy. Understand, muppets?

Easy breezy beautiful

New Year, ya got me eating out of your hands already!

Oriole Cafe & Bar

Pan Pacific Serviced Suites

Somerset Road

Singapore

How Happy, Bhutan?

Last day to 2011. WHOA.

One of the most remarkable (and hardest) things done this year had to be our journey to Bhutan. I had to at least say something about it before hotfooting it over to the other side.

Rather than choose to celebrate the aftermath of our marital union the sensible and relaxing way, we decided, to hell with chilling by the beach sipping a Mai Tai, let's blow all our cash and hit Bhutan!

'The jaw-dropping Himalayan stretch greets you in flight even before descent

Of course, we weren't expecting to put our feet up, having done months of research beforehand and thoroughly expecting the bare minimum of creature comforts and rigorous tests to our fitness levels. The truth is, there was no way we could have prepared enough for an experience this different.

Tango Monastery, Thimphu

Any discomfort and the exhorbitant price tag that comes with a trip to Bhutan are all but the negligible price to pay to witness this tiny kingdom at the cusp of major transformation, as its pastoral beauty and way of life makes way for planned development, which had hitherto been firmly controlled.

Closest thing to a traffic light in the entire Kingdom in capital Thimphu

En route to Punakha after descent from Dochula Pass

Apart from the ridiculously picturesque landscape (which remains acutely unnatural to the untrained eye from infinitely uglier cities), the other thing we wanted to get our heads around when we embarked on the trip was Bhutan's acclaimed Gross National Happiness (GNH) concept.

Taktsang Monastery or Tiger's Nest - prevailing myths and legends not withstanding, this is a magnificent piece of architecture.

While there is plenty of literature on GNH's use in measuring Bhutan's sense of well-governance as an indicator of progress, it was difficult for us mere children of capitalism to grasp how it would feature in the average life of a working Bhutanese. Fortunately, our guide Dawa did not shy from sharing his thoughts with us about this.

While Bhutan has gained repute from being the poster child to GNH, a concept that is being studied by academics and politicians alike all over the world, it remains just that - a concept. For an abstract index that claims to measure how secure and happy people feel about governance, it is treading on uncertain grounds, given the development of democracy in Bhutan. For majority of Bhutanese, who have only in recent years seen the introduction of democratic elections, and who still ardently aggrieve the abdication of their former king (the beloved Fourth King passed the crown to his son, now the Fifth King in 2008), GNH does not necessarily assure happiness.

His personal opinion aside, Dawa does feel though, that as the young Fifth King gains his footing and as the country's democracy matures, Bhutanese will reclaim that coveted brand of intellectual progress as a Kingdom.

Since our return, I've also read with interest some other dissenting views on GNH, particularly around the issues of the expulsion of ethnic Nepalese and rise of consumerism. If you're up for some more reading on how the youth of Bhutan features in all this, this paper might be of interest.

In any case, it's an interesting topic that will continue to see plenty of argument, and one on which I will keep close tabs. Our time spent in Bhutan merely scratched the surface but we certainly didn't experience anything other than warmth and friendliness from the government-sanctioned tourist quarters.

The Happy Honeymooners, at Chele La Pass, highest point in Bhutan at 3988m above sea level

Will be thinking more about this for sure. GNH or not, happiness in all its vagueness is too individualistic and personal to dilute into some kinda common denominator report card.

Not the last about Bhutan you'll hear from me! Will definitely be a post on food and drink (most of which didn't quite agree with me!).

Until then, have a Happy New Year, beautiful ones! See you in 2012!

Chote Chitr, Bangkok

So much had been said about the legendary Bangkok icon of a hole-in-the-wall eatery Chote Chitr (in recent years, more bad than good) that we didn't know what to expect. We were prepared for the food to be either sublime or disappointing and overpriced; the service was known to be erratic and subjected to some degree of arrogance on the part of the lady owner.

Well, no knocking till we tried it, so after a 15-minute walk from Rambutri area, we were somewhat heartened to like the facade that we saw, on this small road off Tanao Road.

Old but clean and well-kept, the shop was empty when we got there slightly before 6PM. Celebrated lady owner came to take the orders, a commanding air and her equally well-known Shih Tzu in tow. We are no fans of small, yappy dogs but this one was subdued and kept mostly out of our way so we could get down to the eating.

The famed Banana Flower Leaf Salad proved its reputation correct. The nutty dressing drew the subtle bouquet of the banana flower out, inspired feelings of rolling around in grassy splendour. Or one of them Thai beaches.

We decided to venture against lady owner's recommendations (which incited visible annoyance) and picked another starter, Spicy Chicken with Salted Egg paste served with fresh vegetables. This was unusual in its pairing of the flavours - salted egg yolk and a good dose of tamarind? juice. Would go beautifully with mountains of fluffy white rice. No regrets but we would probably skip this in the future.

Finally, the stunning Chu Chee Curry with River Prawns - more sweet than spicy, the fresh crunch of the prawns when drenched in the coconut-based red curry, with the striking scent of kaffir lime leaves, sealed it for us.

Bill was around THB600, not the cheapest given that it's Bangkok, whose streets are teeming with great food at a fraction. But the succulent meal, paired with the opportunity to meet the grand dame (and defy her!) was well worth it!

Chote Chitr

146 Th Phraeng Phuton (off Tanao Road)

Banglamphu, Bangkok

Best Curry Puff from Singapore on Old Klang Road?

Just a quick toe-dip back into the scheme of things:

We were drifting by Bloom Season Bakery at Scott Garden on Old Klang Road after a particularly underwhelming breakfast at Lorong Seratus Tahun when this caught my eye:

Tip Top's claim of offering the best chicken curry puff from Singapore got me all hot and bothered. The average Malaysian would know the feeling - that instant biological reaction to the combination of the words "Best" and "Curry Puff" only savoury curry filling encased in a greasy flaky pocket can mollify. In we went...

The puff came piping hot out from the kitchen (as it was barely 11AM) and certainly very impressive in size. But upon the first bite, the filling punctured my pastry craving, a blow to the gut. Overpowering with curry-powder and not much else. Even the generous quarter of hard-boiled egg failed to lift the package from the league of highway rest stop curry puffs.

Best Curry Puff from Singapore on Old Klang Road? I don't think so!! Keep looking, folks!

Tip Top The Puff Factory

Bloom Season Bakery

Ground Floor (next to Lorong Seratus Tahun)

289 Old Klang Road

58000 Kuala Lumpur

Dynasty Dragon, SS Two Mall

Turned away by Imperial Garden Restaurant's opening hours on a Saturday (we wanted dim sum at 10AM, they were only open at 11.30AM), we drove sulkily around the area for a dim sum joint with the unspoken caveat that it not be a Jin Xuan or a Hong Kee.

Upon reaching the gleaming anterior of SS Two Mall, we spied Dynasty Dragon and swung right in. Open at 10.30AM, with a healthy queue of families lounging about the entrance waiting to be ushered in, we brimmed with profuse confidence and self-praise for having found the place.

Early birds didn't quite get the proverbial worm here though. The orders took forever as most of the staff were actually tucking into early lunch in the main dining area. Big ups to the employer for feeding the staff properly before they tackled the lunch hordes but perhaps, they shouldn't have let the early patrons in until they were absolutely ready.

When the first of our orders finally arrived, we were off to a watery start when the century egg porridge arrived, bland, more gruel than porridge.

The Prawn Dumplings (Har Gau) did much better and reassured us that we would be taken care of, one way or another.

We liked that the Shanghai Dumplings (Siu Long Bao) came in little individual saucers to catch the precious scalding hot soup spilling out upon chopstick contact.

BBQ Pork Buns went down a treat. I'm no connoisseur but anything steaming hot and fluffy with lots of pork within is a no-brainer really.

Now THIS, Deep fried Yam puff with Scallop, variation of the classic Wu Kok, was something else. These were quite the exquisite parcels of seasoned yam with a whole fresh scallop encased, deep fried to a golden crisp and finished with a sprinkle of roe. Luscious!

Ended with a miss though... the Loh Mai Kai was way too sweet and oily to recommend.

So despite a rough start, I guess we didn't do too badly, although we could have done without the initial wait. Fairly priced at around RM46 too.

Dynasty Dragon Seafood Restaurant

Third Floor, SS Two Mall

Petaling Jaya

Tel: 03-79546328

Or their full deets, together with the five other branches' here.

Gelato Secrets in Ubud, Bali

During our requisite trek down the somewhat stressful terrain of Monkey Forest Road ("up, down, up down") in Bali, we decided to make a random stop at Gelato Secrets.

Pastel-perfect as sweet-sixteen stolen kisses

Drawn to the more unusual specials of the month, we each picked a scoop to make up the triple scoop at Rp45,000.

I picked Avocado & Chocolate, Hui went for Pumpkin Hazelnut and Mei Shean, the Tomato Basil Sorbet.

Crowd favourite was easily the Avocado & Chocolate. 'Twas a beautiful pairing of two contrasting, equally complex flavours, sinfully decadent. Texture was just right too, liquid smooth yet richer than regular ice cream.

The pumpkin went down easily too, being more nutty than fruity but sadly, we couldn't quite get our heads around the novelty star of the day, Tomato & Basil sorbet. Certainly interesting and uplifting enough, just not quite our thing.

They had a gamut of other flavours which we had intended to go back for, but got side-tracked by the pool, Bintang beer and a couple of blond, Dutch boys.

Gelato Secrets

Jalan Monkey Forest

Ubud, Bali

Soon Kee Hokkien Fried Prawn Noodle

Currently craving:

Hokkien Mee that I was completely oblivious to until recent months, after spending a bit more time in suburban Singapore. This one comes with a generous mix of thick rice vermicelli with yellow noodles, sweetened with the bouquet of the sea in a deceptively light-coloured gravy. For extra punch, hot, hot chilli sauce (at SGD0.50 for an extra tiny dollop), finish with a squeeze of fresh lime.

Soon Kee Hokkien Fried Prawn Noodle, nothing like the Hokkien mee of my origins, or the darker version one found in KL, but I'm extremely close to claiming it as my favourite among all three variants.

I know there are plenty more versions of this dotted bountifully in coffee shops across the island, and by that I don't even mean the sanitized Food Republic sort. In due time, all in due time.

Soon Kee

Block 155

Bukit Batok St 11

Singapore