we’re staying with a friend who was born/raised there until he became a Los Angeles attorney. six years later he moved back to Singapore ;p. Take that how you want
Perankan food. Ivins is good. The restaurant scene changes quickly so there may be better places.
There is very good South Indian food.
My favorite hawker fare:
poh piah (local “spring rolls” except all the ingredients are pre-cooked and it is assembled and served to order)
roti parata (fried Indian flat bread with spicy curry sauce for dipping, what doesn’t work about that? )
Singapore style laksa (rich coconut milk base noodle soup)
Penang style laksa (sour chicken broth base noodle soup)
Nasi Padang (a plate of rice and you choose what combo of Malay/Indonesian foods you want with it)
Ban Mee (Chinese style noodle soup, you want the ikan bilis on top)
BBQ stingray
Chendol (icy coconut milk based dessert with assorted goodies in it)
Long Beach Seafood Market (there are a few locations, I’ve been to the original on the water and the one in the complex near the Orchid Gardens). And it has to be black pepper crab (last May, went to it two days running, one black pepper, one spicy red pepper, but the red was sweet).
Expect to pay for quality - and get the biggest Sri Lankan crab possible. They are quite large and the quality/freshness is amazing. Maybe $60 for a big one, you probably could share. Other items (i.e., not shellfish from the tank) are less expensive.
Agree with Barry about Long Beach Seafood Market. And chili crab and black pepper crab are better at good restaurants than at hawker markets. At the latter, you must get chicken rice and carrot cake, which is really a fried radish omelet-y thing.
Black Pepper Crab is good, I prefer White Pepper Crab. Head over to the Geylang branch of No Signboard for some White Pepper Crab. Have some fried buns to wipe up the sauce with. Simply amazing.
Lau Pa Sat late at night for cold beer and warm food. Very relaxing.