The Singapore Food Festival is back

Starting with July 13 (to July 22) all the gourmets can satisfy their desire for mouthwatering delicacies doing the annual Singapore Food Festival. This year focused on SEAFOOD!

You can experience this culinary event at the new Singapore Food Festival Village, the Waterfront Promenade@ Marina Bay! 

Up to 50 stalls will be featuring local favorites:

Chili Crab (my personal favorite!!)

and more.        I’m already salivating! :(  anyways...

Let’s look at some of the event highlights

    For details about the various cooking/demonstration workshops or dinners please checkout this website by clicking the logo

And last but not least, if you think you need a brake from Seafood visit Erich’s Wuerstelstand (who is officially part of the festival promotion) and enjoy discounts throughout the festival

Singapore Food Festival 2010

Embark on a mouth-watering journey and discover the culinary cultures behind different Singapore Chinese dialects this year at the Singapore Food Festival 2010. From bold aromas to subtle flavours, these iconic Singapore Chinese dialect dishes are set to stimulate your senses for an unforgettable experience!
From 16 July to 25 July many events in different locations will be happening.

To see the details check out this website: Singapore Food Festival 2010

Chinatown is also a great spot to catch the festival. Enter the world of Cantonese Cuisine, as you explore and rediscover the many reasons why Singaporeans love Cantonese Food so deeply! Be sure to pamper yourself with a fascinating mix of exclusive Cantonese tastes from highly renowned restaurants:

Fatty Weng Da Dong Restaurant (Numerous Gourmet Awards Internationally)Moi Lum Restaurant (Over 80 years of History in Cantonese Cuisine)Ho Kee (Voted top 10 Best Porridge & Top 5 Best Char Siew Bao in Singapore) And many more! Indulge in your favorite dishes from the Cantonese Cuisine including:Roast Meat Series (Roast Duck, Roast Char Siew, Roast Pork)Cantonese CongeeCantonese Dim Sum (siew mai, har gow, char siew bao)Cantonese Desserts (Sesame Paste, Red Bean Paste)
Date:
24 & 25 Jul 2010 (Sat & Sun)
Time: 11.00am to 9.00pm
Venue: Kreta Ayer Square
Fee: Free Entry

B. Family’s Cantonese Recipe Cooking Competition 家传秘方烹饪比赛
Chinatown invites all food-loving families to take part in this year’s inaugural Cantonese Recipe Cooking Competition. Whip up any Cantonese dish (of your choice) in the given 45mins to impress our chef judges! The winning family can win up to the 1st prize of $1000 worth of Cash and Hampers! Attractive prizes as below: First prize = $300 cash and $700 hamper, total $10002nd prize = $200 cash and $500 hamper, total $7003rd prize =$100 cash and $400 hamper, total $500 Experience and enjoy the fun-filled, adrenaline pumping cooking competition and be crowned the King of Family Recipe Cooking Competition in this year’s Singapore Food Festival 2010.
Date: 24 Jul 2010, Sat
Time: 12.00pm to 2.30pm
Venue: Kreta Ayer Square
Registration Fee $10

C. Singapore’s LONGEST ‘Chee Cheong Fun’ Record 新加坡最长猪肠粉纪录
150 Chefs from Society of Chinese Cuisine Chefs (Singapore) will gather at Chinatown to challenge this amazing feat for charity! The targeted 80m long Chee Cheong Fun will write history as it gets recorded in the Singapore Book of Records! The completed Chee Cheong Fun will be pan-fried immediately on site to be sold at a nominal price to the public in efforts to raise funds for charity.
Date: 25 Jul 2010, Sun
Time: 3.00pm
Venue: Kreta Ayer Square
Fee: Free Entry

And don't forget to visit Erich's Wuerstelstand to clear your pallet between all the Chinese Food.

Chicken Rice Finals

And then there were 12 at the thorough briefing with the judges and no change in the menu but definitely a change in quantity.

A 70 year old auntie next to me was pretty sure the 8 1/2 bowls from the qualifying round have to be beaten in order to cash in the price money. She seemed to be more excited than the contestants and proudly told me all the details about last year's contest.

Another sweltering Sunday in Singapore but despite the heat, again people didn't want to miss the spectacle and flocked to the Square from all over the Island.

Not really sure what their motives were, was it sympathy for the contestants, a lust for sensation if someone might not be able to keep the food (??) or just being curious?

The 2 hosts Zhang Ying and Jeff did a great job in building up the excitement with their bilingual moderation.

The Taiwanese "Burger King" made it to the final, so far the trip was worth it, but can he win? Can he beat the Singaporeans on their home soil and with one of their most favorite dish if not THE FAVORITE one?

By the way one lady made it to the finals as well. Is the time ripe for Tan Hui Ling?

....or will it be the big boy Peter Low who, as the winner on Saturday, will go as favorite into the finals with 8 1/2 bowls down.

......or a fifty four year old seasoned and experienced guy like Ng Weng Hong who gobbled 7 bowls in the 1st round

....or Ng Chin Sheng, last years runner up (8 bowls). Will he stand on the podium again?

The Contestants were ready to Rock and Roll, the bowls served and it's Showtime now:

Tan Hui Ling
Koh Song Yee

Tan Kok Beng, one of last years finalists, can he win it this year?

Li Rong

Wong Kai Hu
Zhang Shi Chao

Li Jian
Leong Ing Kiat, quietly but steadily finished one bowl after the other

Liu Chao Chiang , the Taiwanese was not able to beat the locals he only made it to 7 bowls. As we all know: Don't play, play with Singaporeans!Ng Chin Sheng tried different positions to get things down. Did it help in the end?

Ng Weng Hong (54) was not able to keep it up and as it seemed to keep it in as well so he had to retire after 4 1/2bowls only

Peter Low very confident

10 minutes are over! Every single grain counts. The judges take their job very seriously and are usinge a scale 3rd place is last years runner up Ng Chin Sheng with 9 1/2 bowls
2nd place Peter Low finishing 10 bowls

and the winner and Chicken Rice Eating Contest 2008 Champion is Leong Ing Kiat with 10 1/4 bowls

You want to be part of it and win great cash prices next year, then start your training now! You can find the best chicken rice stalls all over the island.
Maybe you're one of them next year:

If you want to see the whole Chicken Rice Eating Competition Album:

Just click the photo

CHICKEN RICE EATING COMPETITION 2008

Chicken Rice Eating Competition Attracts Overseas Contestants

The annual chicken rice contest was once again one of the highlights of the Chinatown food festival. Close to 1000 spectators, locals and tourists, gathered around the stage at Kreta Ayer Square in Chinatown to watch witness as close as possible how many bowls of rice a human can swallow within a 10 minute time limit. Last years record of 8 bowls might not be enough to cash in the price money. Due to the limitation of 75 people, by the organisers more than 20 last minute walk in contestants had to be rejected. 10 percent of them were Malaysians, Ang Moh's and even Taiwan's Burger Eating Champion Lu Chao Ching from Taiwan flew in to win the price money.

Before the start of the contest Wong Chi Keong, Chairman of the Chinatown Business Association welcomed the guest of honour MP Dr. Lily Neo and presented a cheque of $ 10,000 for the Yong En Care Centre.

But then it started what people came to see for. The first group in the qualification round tried to beat last years record.

Only 12 of the 75 will qualify for the finals next day. To me it seemed so much easier compared to last year for the contestants to swallow that much chicken rice. As it turned out 7 bowls was the minimum to proceed to the next round.

Watch some of the contestants during their task

Would there be an advantage for big boys?

Or does size not matter? Or can a woman win this year?

You'll find out the answer in our next post. So stay tuned.

SINGAPORE FOOD FESTIVAL (4.- 27.July): Eat Like a Local

The 24-day Singapore Food Festival will show you what it is all about in our City-State, besides shopping and making money. You will learn what food makes the locals so passionate about eating (365 days a year).

This festival is dedicated to celebrating the best of Singapore food.

With a line-up of themed events, master classes, tasting sessions and more, the 15th Singapore Food Festival (4 – 27 July) will enlighten you on the multi-ethnic heritage of Singapore food as we know it today. Chinese, Malay, Indian, Peranakan and Eurasian cuisines have played key roles in the evolution of a unique “foodscape”, so come and discover Singapore’s culinary traditions and secrets.

To find out details checkout this website: Singapore Food Festival

In Chinatown some events of the food festival take place as well.

During the Chinese Dialect Food Showcase (12th & 13th JULY 2008; Kreta Ayer Square)
you can look back and explore the Chinese traditional heritage through its diverse range of foods from the established dialects in Singapore including the three main dialects (Cantonese, Teochew, Hokkien) and other dialects such as Hakka, Hainanese, Shanghainese, and Henghua.

Chinatown Old Brands Showcase
In the HUNT for Most Popular Signature Dish just dive into the Chinatown Food Paradise with a Food Hunt Booklet specially launched to help locals and tourists navigate around. Check out the Old Brands Restaurants, each of more than 30 years in history, indulge in their well-known signature dishes and enjoy exclusive discounts just for this July!

Support your favourite 'Chinatown Old Brand Restaurant' simply by voting for their signature dish and you might be rewarded at the Grand Lucky Draw with cash prizes up to $1000!