Posted on: Friday, September 12, 2008
Chinatown food court full of glorious eats
By Mari Taketa
Special to Metromix
The food court at Maunakea Marketplace in Chinatown is a bona-fide hawker center, and if you've been to Singapore or Malaysia, you know exactly what that means: cheap, glorious eats! Fresh, cooked to order, a smorgasbord of Asia stuffed in a squeeze-through space that transports you right back to the cities of the steamy continent.
But before you go foraging on your next lunch hour, there are some tips you need to know:
It's hidden. Even though Maunakea Marketplace occupies an entire half block, the main action is in the interior courtyard and food court, neither of which is visible from the street. The main entrance is on Maunakea Street — look for a wide entryway next to Pho 97, halfway between Pauahi and Hotel. Small signs mark two more entrances on Hotel Street, and you can also enter from the loading zone on Pauahi.
The food court is air-conditioned, but just barely. It's usually at least warm, and being surrounded by open kitchens and people slurping steaming bowls of noodles adds to the effect. Get your cold drink first.
The 15 stalls are cash-only, no tax.
If you see only pictures of food or menu boards, that means dishes are cooked to order. If you see serving trays of food on the counter, try asking for samples.
Some things you'll find at the Marketplace will challenge you. OK, maybe a lot of things. Other things will take you straight back to childhood.
Singapore laksa. Yes, the soup is that red. Yes, that means it's spicy. The fiery-smooth coconut milk broth cradles saimin-style wheat noodles and vermicelli rice noodles topped with shrimp, calamari, tofu, sprouts and two kinds of fishcake. At Triple One: $7.50.
Beef salad. The full riot of flavors that sets Southeast Asian cuisine apart from its northern cousins comes together in one plastic foam box: herbaceous mint, cilantro, tangy lime, in-your-face chilis, raw onion and softly poached but chewy beef on a lush bed of greens. At Vientiane Fast Food: $6.50.
Pad pet. What's not to like about meat simmered in curry with coconut milk? Pad pet comes with your choice of chicken or beef, with enough sauce to smoosh your rice into at will. The abundance of eggplant and other veggies cancels out the nutritional sin of coconut milk — NOT! At Malee Thai Vietnam Cuisine: $6.50.
Sari-sari. Clean and simple, with loads of earthy-sweet ong choy, this bowl makes you feel like you're doing your body a warm, delicious favor — even though the depth of the broth comes from fried pork and the saltiness from shrimp. At Naty's: $4.
Custard tarts, coconut tarts and French doughnuts. The tarts are a crispy, not chewy, not soggy-cookie surprise cradling eggy custard or spongy, not-too-sweet coconut macaroon.
As for the French doughnuts, don't be fooled by their andagi looks. Fresh out of the fryer, these are sugary crisp on the outside, hollow, warm and aromatic inside. At Rainbow Tea Stop: custard tarts, 80 cents each; coconut tarts, 50 cents each; French doughnuts, three for $1.
