I rode the "Yau Kwee" (hungry aliens) bus on a Saturday morning on 31 July, and boy, did I have a great time! With other Yau Kwees, of course -we're a dying breed you know ! Here's what happened ………

Everyone had smiles on their faces, and the mood was jolly and almost conspiratorial--imagine: we were on a safari hunt for hawker food! Organiser and Publisher K F Seetoh regaled the participants with tales of eating escapades. And then began the real journey - he described our first stop.

Roti Prata (Indian bread)
"Not just ANY Jalan Kayu prata. This one, the guy has style you know. He wraps the prata around a rolling pin, and presents it like a CERTIFICATE !! Best part ? NO oil!!!!!!!!!!!" We were all, in truth, salivating.

The prata was everything he said it would be. Crispy. Delicious even without curry. And the Yau Kwees made it a point to watch the demonstration too, just like real tourists. What a fun beginning! The anticipation was rising. What better way was there, to spend a Saturday morning ? !

Prawn Mee (Noodles)
Next stop - orders were taken on the bus. "Who wants mee? Soup or dry? Bee Hoon (rice vermicelli) soup or dry?…." The Yau Kwees had grown to be firm friends by now - teasing one another, swopping stories of the "best this" and "best that"………

The Hokkien Mee sisters at the prawn mee stall got the recipe from their father. According to Seetoh: "You must best eat this at 2 o'clock.. Wah! That time I tell you ah, you can put your spoon inside the soup and the spoon can stand up by itself, you know !"

All was silent as the bowls of steaming murky soup arrived, and the Yau Kwees tucked in. Not a sound. Except, "Waaaah !" For me, my 'dry' version was the tastiest I've ever had. But I left some remnants behind (what to do--three more places to go you know ?!!), and promptly got scolded by a fellow Yau Kwee: "How can you waste ? ! Tsk tsk tsk ! I'm going to enjoy every morsel!"

Popiah (Spring Roll)
Along the way, some ladies shared their experience at the Makansutra dinner tour they just had. "We had frog legs' porridge - it was so shiok (satisfying) ! I just HAD to come and try the breakfast tour!"

Also heralded as "The Toilet Stop" in case anyone needed to "go", the Popiah was a delightful mix of textures. But there was a challenge! "I think the one in Joo Chiat is better," commented one. And the organising team welcomed it - Great. That's what Makansutra is all about. Let's FIND the best ones……….

Chicken Rice and Dessert
We were in Maxwell Food Centre for the yummiest chicken rice. It was a busy lunch time and we saw several others staring jealously at us - THEY were queuing , obviously hot and tired, whilst WE barged in, sat down and were promptly served one of the best Chicken Rice in Singapore. A couple of the women had been so "greedy" at the previous stops that they begged, "Ay, please lah, must ta pau (takeaway). I cannot eat anymore!"

Last stop. By now, everyone bore smiles of sated content and practically "rolled" onto the bus, grateful for the air conditioning, and for the comfortable seats! This last stop was what one lady joined the entire tour for - SHE had actually sacrificed her Chicken Rice to ensure she had room for this. The famous one and only Ellenborough Market Ah Boling. The chatter had died away to a companionable murmur. All delved straight into the smooth richness of this treasured dessert. "AAAAAAAH ! So smooth!" The vote was unanimous. Unrivalled Ah Boling.

And a totally satisfied bunch of Yau Kwees who have vowed to venture on future Food Safaris with Makansutra!!

Click here to watch the video

story by Quek Li Huan
photos by Alvin Toh