This the Lau Pa Sat [I think, odd name hard to remember] food market, which is very close to Charis' house, and where we ate lunch.
I wanted to feature this not only because it looks fab - it used to be a wet market, but when the area filled up with hungry office workers galore the government switched its use - but because it because it highlights some differences to HK.
The market had tens of types of food available, and the cheerful hubbub every he lunching crowd gave it a welcoming atmosphere.
We ate at an Indian veggie joint, where had some of the best indian food I've had in ages. Every tiny dish on my thali plate was gorgeous.
So the differences this represents are:
- HK has every imaginable food type available, but not necessarily because there is a big community of that nation to cater for. Singapore is more ethnically diverse, and has lots of variety to cater for this. Hence the 'orfentick' Indian.
- Markets like this in HK were put in by the govt to tidy the streets up, but the restos in them overwhelmingly to cater to local Chinese, not expatty office types. The food there can be great, but a gamble with my fish aversion. Hence the title - my phonetic rendition of the key cantonese phrase 'no sea food!'.
- We saw lots of vegetarian restos in Singapore, and the food was slightly less fish-centric.
- The stallholders' English was excellent, as we found with almost everywhere we went. English is genuinely the joint first language in Singapore, whereas in HK it is the joint first language in name only in my view.
If I could transplant this market back into Second street in HK, it would be just about the perfect place to live...
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