An afternoon in Chinatown + Tiong Bahru Hainanese Boneless Chicken Rice

Recently, we have been challenged by our church community magazine to plan a date for $10 or less. Not to show off, but Ms Budget said that was too easy because we go for such dates rather frequently; we enjoy them!

Case in point: Last week we went for two such dates (and apologies for not updating this blog last week!)

On Sunday, we went to Chinatown. Now Chinatown is a fascinating place, if you haven't been there before or in a long time. Sure, Chinese New Year is a great time to visit Chinatown to soak up the atmosphere, but the place is knee-deep in culture and other oddities on any other day of the year too!

Chinatown itself is well-known for finding great bargains and cheap food. But here at our Budget Couple blog, we look for more than great savings; we also look for good deals, especially when it comes to food. A friend said that the cheapest food anywhere in Singapore is still hawker centre, but not every hawker centre with cheap food serves good food.

Over in Chinatown, we went to a place recommended by Ms Budget's colleague, and we're going to share it with you now.

Along Smith Street, off New Bridge Road, directly opposite Chinatown Complex, you will find a row of shop houses. At one of these shop houses there is a branch of the famous Tiong Bahru Hainanese Boneless Chicken Rice.

The address is: 56 Smith Street.

What's so good about this? For one thing, it's only $2 per plate. Of course the shop also sells other dishes, such as oyster sauce vegetables, chicken feet, etc, but all these come at $3 or more. You want a good deal? Stick to the standard plate of chicken rice.

What's more, ordering the $2 plate of chicken rice gives you a medium-sized bowl of soup that comes free, together with a Mentos breath mint. This is to counter the smell of garlic which will inevitably emanate from you after chowing down your chicken rice with dark soya sauce and mashed garlic.

But! We don't recommend their drinks. Save it for a $3 coconut that you can both share. Unfortunately, we forgot the address of the place...

We won't tell you where else in Chinatown to go, because everywhere is great fun just walking around and seeing everything that is there. Instead, we'll show you just some of what we came across:

Here, two uncles are selling photocopies (and some originals) of personalities and photographs of Singapore in the 1950s.

Two old ladies chatting as they display their metal jewellery for sale.

A man examines a piece of jewellery... perhaps to buy for his wife?


An older uncle trying to sell a middle-aged uncle some trinkets.

Speaking of trinkets, there are tons of stuff there. What caught Mr Budget's attention were some old coins and dollar notes. There were the old S$1 coins - the silverish ones, not the gold ones we have now, and dollar notes having the same serial numbers or special numbers that people might want to buy. But why would we pay $3 for a coin marked $1, and that is no longer in use?

Hence, look around, but you don't have to buy anything. You will want to, though. What you will definitely need is a cap or sunshade, and carry around a bottle of water, because the heat these days is a real scorcher.

At the end of the afternoon, after much walking around, we recommend hopping onto the North East Line, and taking the train a couple of stops to Dhoby Ghaut for... you guessed it! A foot massage at TT Quick Massage!

Next week: Another $10 date, this time in a relatively secluded place!

Sumo House - the cheapest Japanese food in town!

When we can't decide on a place to eat, which usually happens on a weekend evening, one of the places we frequently find ourselves going to is Sumo House.

Though the Japanese food is not splendid - actually it doesn't taste like Japanese food at all - the prices are good. The franchise which is available in Ang Mo Kio, Clementi, and Bedok, sells a la carte dishes and set meals, with the cheapest set meal being the katsu don at $2.90.

That's a decent price for a medium-sized bowl of rice, egg, and chicken, and it comes with miso soup, pickles, and some fruit as well. Actually, all the set meals come with those sides. To top it off, customers get free-flow of hot green tea as well, albeit somewhat diluted.

Like we said earlier, the food's not fantastic, but the prices are. A couple of Sundays ago, we had dinner here, and our total bill for a meal for two came up to $6.20 (including GST). A friend remarked that it's even cheaper than eating at a food court. We heartily agree. Like a food court though, it's also air-conditioned, and always crowded.

Another friend tells us that if you're the last customer for the night, the staff will give you a plate of sushi on the house. We have not yet confirmed this with our own experience, so please feel free to try it out and let us know what's the best time to go.

We normally visit the Sumo House in Ang Mo Kio for dinner on Saturday or Sunday. After dinner, and filled to the brim with green tea, we often make our way to the neighbouring Cash Converter. Though we hardly buy anything from here, it's a great place to window shop; you always find the weirdest things here and, once in a while, a real gem can be found.

We've been known to find gift-worthy items at jumble sales, secondhand shops, thrift stores, and Cash Convertor.

These are the addresses of the three Sumo-House outlets in Singapore:

Ang Mo Kio Central
Blk 710A Ang Mo Kio Avenue 8
#01-2633
Singapore 561710

Bedok Central
799 Upper Changi Road
#01-02
Singapore 467351

Clementi Central
Blk 451 Clementi Avenue 3
#01-309
Singapore 120451

Website: www.sumo-house.com

We haven't been to the other two, but the Ang Mo Kio branch is easiest to get to by MRT. Just cross the road at the traffic light on the side of Ang Mo Kio Avenue 8, and it is located behind the bus stop. The Cash Converter is just round the corner.

Dhoby Xchange

Where to go after a nice relaxing 10-minute massage? Well, after TT Quick Massage has warmed you up and as you sit there sipping your hot cup of cooling tea, let your eyes wander to just outside the kiosk.

Located in the centre of Dhoby Xchange, is JustAcia - your destination for noodles & rice set meals from $5.90 onwards. Being the Budget Couple we are, we'll of course take the $5.90 sets. But regardless of which set meal you choose, you'll have free-flow of cappuccino, soft drinks, and ice-cream!

Although there's no service charge, GST applies. Seats and tables take a little while to find as the place is often crowded, especially on weekends. What's more, seats really do take a while to find because JustAcia is all over Dhoby Xchange! It's hard to tell where it ends and where another food outlet begins, so just follow the directions of the staff.

If free-flow average-tasting ice-cream is not to your liking for dessert, we've got another great place for you to try out. It's called P. Osh, an all black-and-white shop that specializes in brownies. Depending on the topping you choose, prices per slice range around $3.00.

Okay, so that's not cheap, but it's still a good deal because they are oh so yummy! The free samples served by the promoter just outside the kiosk are just the tip of the iceberg, or rather, the base, of the brownie, that is. But what really kicks in P. Osh brownies are really the toppings, available in 11 different flavours.

The most popular ones are the Triple Chocolate and the Marshmallow, but we are a little picky. I, Ms Budget, only like milk chocolate, so we often ask the staff to sell us a customised slice of brownie with just melted milk chocolate topping. You can choose your own, of course, and the staff are always happy to oblige.

I, Mr Budget, was initially skeptical of the brownies, but the moment Ms Budget popped one piece dripping with chocolate into my mouth, my face melted into ecstasy.

Though P. Osh is a little beyond what we usually call 'budget', it's a must-try when you're here. One slice for two people is usually enough. Too much and you tend to get gelak (italics) (sick of the rich flavour).

How to get there:
JustAcia is located at #B1-45 to 50, while P. Osh can be found at #B1-40 of Dhoby Xchange, which is located just above the exit of the North-South line of Dhoby Ghaut MRT station.

P. Osh can be found at #B1-40 of the same place.

Have fun!