Submerged in the tastes of Singapore

I may have gorged myself on South Indian food every morning and night during my last visit to Singapore, but the city had more to offer, so I set aside part of the day to try Chinese or Malay dishes.

Return to Singapore’s Little India

Some how this area of Singapore always draws me back. The lively atmosphere at night and the colourful buildings by day are a plus, but the real reason is Komola Vilas.

Tamarind Moment

Photo courtesy Tau’olunga — Wikimedia Commons

Tamarind is often used in South Indian cooking, but my association is with Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.

Uppuma

I don’t remember where I first tried uppuma in South India, but I knew it was a flavour my taste buds craved again. After I left India, I scoured a bookshop in Tanzania and came across a South Indian cookbook with the very recipe inside.

Pongal

I ate a Tamil Nadu breakfast while my eyes wandered over a menu painted on the wall above, deciding what to eat for breakfast the following morning.

Chennai alleyway street food

After catching ae bus, then another from Mamallapurum to southern Chennai, I idled in alleyways; anything to avoid the roar of traffic on the main road.

Chennai gems

While I was in the midst of endless traffic and tooting horns I came across two gems in Chennai’s back streets.

Tamil Nadu return

It had been forty years since I set foot in India. I landed in the same city that was my original introduction to the country, Chennai (Madras back then).

Some aspects didn’t appear to have changed after all those decades: the wonky footpaths; the constant tooting of horns; the delicious South Indian food; local people friendly and helpful; men still with sarongs doubled up like mini skirts (though now more wore trousers); women in saris (though many had gone to the Punjabi style of dress).

Singapore’s Little India

As I wove my way along Serangoon Road, I was bombarded by alternating Tamil then Hindi music from nearly every store along the route. Glittering saris and sparkling gold shops mingled with countless vegetarian restaurants.

Little India’s best restaurants

I stayed in Singapore’s Little India for one reason only; to be close to my favourite restaurant in the world – Komala Vilas! I discovered since my last visit some twenty-five years ago that instead of one restaurant, there were now another four within a kilometre radius.

Was the South Indian food still as good as I remembered?