My friend wanted to take me to the mini Hawker center at the Esplanade. Unfortunately, it’s not open until late afternoon. We settled into Thai Express for lunch. Thai food here is rather different than Thai food back in New York. It’s more flavorful and more varied. It’s not a menu designed for fusion Thai-American cuisine.
Hor Mok Talay: Thai seafood otah. Grounded seafood with spices, grilled in a banana leaf. A Bangkok Street Favourite ta-noň ah-hahn. Yummy Otah!
Khao Phat Supparod Talay: Pineapple fried rice with seafood. The nuts and the seafood are surprisingly good. Not sure about the pineapple; it didn’t come through clearly for me. The fish floss was great with the seafood friend rice though.
This was their special for the day, boring fried chicken with rice, for a picky daughter who often wants Italian pasta while in Asia. Fortunately, she did rather well with the other dishes and we ended up with a lot of leftovers.
Sen Lek Neua: Stick noodle with sliced beef in beef broth. Ok, this is the Taiwanese beef noodle soup, 牛肉麵. The soup base was rich, thick, and filled with the five spice flavor. This is one of my favorite noodle dishes and it is also on my last meal list. So happy to have it here in Singapore.
Khao Niao Mamuang: Sweet glutinous rice with fresh mango and coconut milk. I wasn’t sold when my friend suggested this dessert. But I figured when in Singapore, go with a local’s recommendation. Am I glad that I did! The glutinous rice and the coconut milk combo was heavenly. Adding mango to the mouthful is like adding a cherry on top. Didn’t think rice could be a dessert but it is. I will now retract my statement of “Only French desserts are true desserts.” This is something to love and to have in the tummy.
I must say that I didn’t think much of Thai Express when I first walked in. It is a chain restaurant. But the looks can be deceiving. The food was packed with umami; the menu options are plenty and authentic. Perfect Thai food in Singapore.
Recommend.
This experience took place at
Thai Express
Esplanade
8 Raffles Avenue
#01-13D Esplanade Mall
Singapore 039802
Tel: +65-6533 6766
Peilin Corbanese 