GE 2020 Polling day parties and promotions happening on July 10

You’ve cast your votes – now it’s time to kick back with friends and family as you wait for the results.

When all is said and done at the ballot box, you might be faced with a long weekend and no plans during these socially distanced times. In the spirit of polling day, some restaurants around town have rallied together special deals and promotions to help kill time as you wait to see who’s going to run your constituency for the next five years.

Whether you plan on going out with your mask or staying in with delivery options and the news playing in the background, these dining options are sure to keep you distracted, regardless of the results.

1. Humpback is throwing a polling day bash complete with its very own elections. The candidates? Different species of oysters. Cast your vote by ordering your favourite oyster at the all-day happy hour price of only $3 a piece. While you watch the live oyster polling results to see if your candidate wins, nibble on brown crab croquettes ($16) or dig into a plate of ah hua kelong lala ($25) cooked in a rich saffron broth. Head down before 7pm to enjoy drinks at happy hour prices too.

Make a reservation via Chope

2. Italian gourmet playground Publico Ristorante teams up with Hendrick’s Gin for a month-long party starting on polling day. Soak in the view of the Singapore river from Publico’s outdoor terrace while sipping on summer cocktails created by Hendrick’s Southeast Asia brand ambassador Charmaine Thio. With names like Raspberry Rose Royale and Meadow Mule, you can expect these tipples to be fruity and refreshing. If you’re feeling adventurous, take part in unusual activities like growing virtual cucumbers or be #basic and snap a pic for the ‘gram at a live photo wall. You’ll get cups of Hendrick’s Gin on the house for your efforts.

Make a reservation Call +65 6826 5040

3. Go healthy this long weekend with produce-driven and vegetable-forward dishes from SPRMRKT. It now has a takeaway and delivery promo that gives you 15 percent off when you make a direct order through call or text. Menu highlights include the soy-glazed butternut squash ($12) with black barley and farro dressed in wild honey, and charred hamachi collar ($29) served with capers, burnt butter and anchovies. Alternatively, get out of the house for a change and check out SPRMRKT’s lush new enclave at Dempsey Hill. It has set up a completely contactless ordering and payment system to keep you safe. 
Minimum order None for direct orders; $50 for online orders

Delivery fee $10 for direct orders; $7 for online orders

Order here Whatsapp or call Dempsey Hill: 8129 8166; Cluny Court: 9736 4170; sprmrkt.oddle.me/en_SG

4. Chinese cuisine specialist Min Jiang wants to spice up your polling day party with new additions to their takeaway and delivery menu. Bring up the hype with its legendary wood-fired Beijing duck ($129.80) served with homemade crepes. It joins perennial favourites like the deep-fried mee sua pancake with preserved meat ($9.70) and mini charcoal salted egg custard buns ($7.50). To sweeten the deal, Min Jiang is offering a 20 percent discount for self-collection and a 15 percent discount for delivery orders.
Minimum order $50

Delivery fee $15 for orders below $120

Order here minjiangdempsey.oddle.me/en_SG/

5. There’s no saying when all the election results will be out, so why not chill with friends over drinks while you wait? To make it easy on the wallet, RedTail Bar by Zouk is serving up five bottles of Carlsberg smooth draught at only $38. Zouk’s signature shooters like sour plum and chrysanthemum are also on the menu, which you can pair with snacks like the crispy cereal squid ($16) or Carnivore flatbread with beef strips and Peking roast duck ($15). Just remember that alcohol consumption has to stop at 10.30pm.

Minimum order $30

Delivery fee Free for orders above $30 for CapitaStar members

Order here via Capita3eats

6. Santa Fe Tex-Mex Grill is celebrating 21 years of serving up authentic Texan-Mexican fare in Singapore. After you vote, join their festivities at Purvis Street and tuck into a special all-you-can-eat buffet ($21). Expect some classics like quesadillas, chimichangas and ribs, as well as premium items like Iberico pork or Wagyu-Angus fajitas – all freshly prepared and served to you on small plates. If you love the experience, buy yourself a limited dining voucher to get 21 percent off your next visit.

Make a reservation santafetexmex.com.sg/dinein/

7. Small Boutique Hotel near Clarke Quay - Jayleen 1918

jayleen1918.com.sg/contact-us

Jayleen 1918 Hotel 

42 Carpenter Street, 

Singapore 059921 (Near the Singapore River, Boat Quay) 

Email : rooms@jayleen1918.com.sg 

Tel : +65 6808 1918 

Fax : +65 6808 1910 

Website : www.jayleen1918.com.sg

Burnt Basque Cheesecake Recipe

I first tasted burnt Basque cheesecake long before it became world-famous. Now it even has its own hashtag on Instagram! This easy burnt Basque cheesecake recipe comes from the Devour Tours cookbook and is based on the original version served at La Viña in San Sebastián.

My delicious cheesecake following the recipe below.

Burnt Basque cheesecake at La Viña

About ten years ago I explored San Sebastían for the first time. I was armed with a handful of pintxos bars recommendations, but no one had said anything about dessert! When I passed by La Viña (which wasn’t on my list) I was drawn in by the smell of baking, and when I saw the towers of freshly baked cheesecakes in front of me I knew it was something I had to try. 

It was love at first bite, creamy, eggy… delicious! It was unlike any cheesecake I’d ever tried before.

Delicious cheesecake in San Sebastian!

Over the past ten years the burnt Basque cheesecake has become a worldwide phenomenon and the La Viña cheesecake recipe has been republished many times. It’s an easy (though decadent) recipe, well worth the time (and the calories)!

Epic cheesecake at La Viña

My tour company, Devour Tours, has included La Viña on our San Sebastian food tours for many years, and when we all had to shut down due to Covid-19 we figured we’d share their incredible recipe in our digital cookbook, Recipes from the Devour Tours Kitchen. 

I’ve decided to share it here as well, in hopes of contributing to your own happy baking (and eating!) memories, especially during these tough times.

This is an easy recipe with amazing results.

If you enjoy the recipe and are able to support our cookbook project – have a look! There are many more excellent recipes waiting.

Onto the cheesecake…!

La Viña’s Burnt Basque Cheesecake Recipe

5.0 from 2 reviews

Burnt Basque Cheesecake Recipe

Prep time

15 mins

Cook time

45 mins

Total time

1 hour

Author: Lauren Aloise

Serves: 8 slices

Ingredients

• 1 kg (2.2 lbs) Philadelphia cream cheese (you can also sub any other cream cheese, such as mascarpone)
• 7 eggs
• 400 g (2 cups) sugar (for a slightly less sweet cheesecake use only 300-350g (1.5 to 1.75 cups)
• 1 tablespoon of flour
• 200 ml (6.5 fl oz or ⅘ cup) heavy cream

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 410°F (210°C).
2. Using an electric mixer, whisk or a metal spoon (the classic La Viña way!) combine all the ingredients in a large bowl until smooth and creamy.
3. Line a 10 inch (25 cm) springform pan or round baking pan with enough wax or parchment paper that it extends past the edges of the pan. This will help you remove the cheesecake from the pan later on, and will prevent it from sticking. You can use a smaller pan for a higher cheesecake but may need to bake longer so that the center isn't too runny.
4. Bake on the center rack for 35-50 minutes. The cake will rise quite a bit but don't worry -- it will settle when it’s out of the oven. I like my cheesecake just cooked through, so I generally bake 40 minutes and if it isn't quite burnt enough on top I turn the heat up for another minute or two, being careful it doesn't burn too much! If you like the center very runny, remove at 35 minutes.
5. When the cake is brown and almost burnt looking, turn the oven off. The center shouldn’t be completely set. It will wiggle a lot when you move the pan (like Jello!)
6. Let it start to cool gradually by leaving it out on the counter. After an hour or so, move the cake to the fridge to cool completely.
7. After a few hours, your cheesecake should be chilled enough to cut. Don’t remove the cake from the parchment paper until it’s ready to be cut, plated, and devoured (as it can start to lose its shape).
8. Enjoy with a sweet glass of Pedro Jimenez sherry -- just like on our tours!

Have you been to San Sebastian to try burnt Basque cheesecake? How did this recipe compare?

Lauren Aloise

Professional eater, writer, cook, food tour operator. Fascinated by food and its history. Loves: a gooey slice of tortilla, fish markets, homemade cocktails, train travel. Hates: Overhyped restaurants, wine snobs, long menus, mediocrity. Check out my food tours at www.devourtours.com.


Watch Youtube video, click here. 

India coronavirus: Life-saving Covid-19 drugs sold on Delhi black market

Image copyrightREUTERS

Image captionThere is widespread hope that remdesivir could treat Covid-19

A BBC investigation has found that two life-saving drugs used to treat Covid-19 patients in India - remdesivir and tocilizumab - are in short supply and being sold for excessive rates on a thriving black market. Vikas Pandey reports from the capital Delhi.

Abhinav Sharma's uncle had very high fever and difficulty breathing when he was admitted to a hospital in Delhi.

He tested positive for coronavirus and doctors told the family to get remdesivir - an antiviral drug that's been approved in India for clinical trial and also under "emergency use authorisation", meaning doctors can prescribe it on compassionate grounds.

But procuring it proved an impossible task - remdesivir did not seem to be available anywhere.

Mr Sharma desperately called people to arrange for the drug as his uncle's condition deteriorated by the hour.

"I had tears in my eyes. My uncle was fighting for his life and I was struggling to arrange the medicine that could possibly save him," he said.

"After dozens of calls, I paid seven times the price to get the medicine. I was willing to pay any price really, but my heart goes out to people who can't afford it," he said.

Mr Sharma's plight is familiar to many families in Delhi, desperate to do whatever it takes to save their loved ones. Some say they have been forced to pay exorbitant prices for the drug - many of those ending up at a medicine market in old Delhi.

Image copyrightGETTY IMAGES

Image captionUS-based Gilead has given five Indian companies authorisation to produce remdesivir

The BBC was able to connect to people working at the market who said they could arrange the drug, but for the right price.

"I can get you three vials - but each will cost 30,000 rupees [$401; £321] and you have to come right away," said one man, who claimed he worked in the "medicine business".

The official price for each vial is 5,400 rupees, and a patient typically needs five to six doses. Another man quoted 38,000 rupees per vial.

• US buys nearly all of Covid-19 drug remdesivir
• India, Pakistan to make drug to 'fight coronavirus'

The demand for remdesivir is driven by the fact that it has managed to cut the duration of Covid symptoms from 15 days down to 11 in clinical trial at hospitals around the world.

Experts have warned that it's no "silver bullet". But in the absence of any proven drug, doctors are increasingly prescribing it in India, driving demand in Delhi and other Indian cities.

The BBC has learned of several similar instances where families of patients in Delhi and neighbouring districts had to pay excessive prices for remdesivir. Some say they even spent their life's savings to buy the drug - just to give a loved one a fighting chance to survive.

Image copyrightHINDUSTAN TIMES

Image captionThe number of cases have sharply risen in India in June

The main reason for this kind of profiteering seems to be a massive gap between supply and demand.

US-based Gilead Sciences, which originally developed remdesivir to treat Ebola, has allowed four Indian companies - Cipla, Jubilant Life, Hetero Drugs and Mylon - to produce it in India.

However, only one of these companies - Hetero- has produced it so far.

The company has distributed 20,000 doses of the drug between five states and told the BBC that it wasn't sure how the "leakage" was happening.

"We have not given the medicine to our distributors. As per the guidelines, we have directly supplied the vials to hospitals," Hetero's vice-president of sales Sandeep Shahstri said.

Image copyrightHETERO

Image captionHetero's brand name for remdesivir is Covifor

He added that the firm was working hard to meet demand and "such black marketing was really demoralising".

"We understand the pain of the families. They shouldn't be told to go and hunt for the drug. We are confident of increasing our production in the next few days and the situation should get better."

Pharmacists say they don't have supplies of the drug either.

"A woman called me from Hyderabad last night. Her father is in a Delhi hospital - she said she would pay any amount to get the medicine. But there was nothing that I could do," said Rajeev Tyagi, vice president of a chemists association in Ghaziabad near Delhi.

So how is the drug ending up at the medicine market in old Delhi?

Rajiv Singhal, general secretary of All India Chemists and Druggists Association - an umbrella body of medicine shop owners - denies that any shop owner is involved.

"I am sure that none of our members are involved in such practices. It's a national health emergency and I want to give a clear message that strict action will be taken against if anyone is found to be selling life-saving medicines illegally," he said.

Image copyrightGETTY IMAGES

Image captionMany hospitals have been struggling to cope with the rise in cases

But the issue appears to not just be with remdesivir. The prices of another life-saving drug, tocilizumab, have also exponentially gone up.

The drug, sold as Actemra, has shown positive results in critically ill patients around the world. Experts say more research is needed to fully understand its effectiveness, but many hospitals have reported positive results.

But the drug was originally meant for patients of rheumatoid arthritis and supply has always has been limited.

Cipla sells the medicine in India on behalf of Switzerland-based Roche and it's entirely imported. But it's hard to find - especially when you in need it within hours.

A representative of Cipla in north India said demand has risen drastically in the past few weeks. "We have increased supply, but we expect demand will continue to grow in the coming days," he said.

The BBC has learned of several cases where hospitals asked family members of patients to find the drug themselves.

"I must have gone to 50 stores in Delhi. They all promised but asked for twice or thrice the price of each dose. It took me two days to get the number of doses needed for my aunt," a Delhi resident, who did not wish to be identified, said.

But the Cipla representative denied that tocilizumab was being sold on the black market.

"We are tracking each dose to ensure that there is no profiteering. We won't let that happen," he said.

Some names have been changed on request.

Chye Kee Chwee Kway: Freshly milled from rice!

I never thought I would ever get to eat Chwee Kueh which is freshly milled from broken rice! When I blogged about Ghim Moh Chwee Kueh in my last post, I thought I was already quite fortunate to be able to find an Uncle who still made Chwee Kueh himself rather than buying them from the factory. So when Uncle Smart alerted me to this particular Chwee Kueh stall in Macpherson, we had to summon the ieat brigade to go check it out.

Yes, it is true. Chwee Kueh is made from rice. I guess this is something the younger generation of Singaporeans (myself included) may not have realised because we don’t see hawkers making stuff like Chwee Kueh, Noodles or Kway Teow nowadays. All these processes are now largely done in factories. However, I do hope that one day we may see boutique stalls making fresh Kway Teow or Egg Noodles. I mean, we are seeing more bakeries baking artisan breads, surely it is not that far fetched to imagine that we can have shops making Kway Teow for sale right?

Anyway, we are talking about Chwee Kueh, so let’s get back to the subject. The process is really quite straightforward when you have the machinery to mill the rice. Water is added to broken rice, fed into a machine and out comes the milky solution which is then passed through the machine a second time. Hot water is then added to the solution to thicken it and then it is poured into molds to be steamed.

So you can imagine how the Chwee Kueh tastes like right? Yep, it tastes like rice but with smooth but pastey firm texture. This Uncle tells me that he used to work in a factory that produces Chwee Kueh in the past before coming out to make Chwee Kueh on his own. His Chwee Kueh is made purely from milled rice whereas the ones he used to make at the factories had Tapioca flour in the recipe.

Chwee Kueh 5 for $1

I really enjoyed this Chwee Kueh. The Chye Poh topping is a little different. It is less oily and the Chye Poh has a very dry and chewy texture and reminded me of some Japanese Daikon pickles that I had eaten recently at Inagiku. Some of the other kakis complained that the topping was a little dry, but for me I would think of it as less oily. 4.5/5

Conclusion

Chwee Kueh made from freshly milled rice at five for a dollar! What more can I say? Except perhaps that I actually quite like the chye poh topping here too but opinions on the chye poh might differ.

Chye Kee Chwee Kueh

Address:
Blk 89 Pipit Road Market and Food Centre #01-129, Singapore
View Map

 

Opening hours:
6:30AM to 3:00PM

Ghim Moh Chwee Kueh – Traditional Chwee Kueh Stall Selling Since 1959, With Michelin Recommendation

I admit I am more of a “Tiong Bahru boy”, and so grew up eating Jian Bo Shui Kueh (and home-made ones), and so all other versions of Chwee Kueh only appeared later in my life.

It was only much I experienced and appreciated the likes of Bedok Chwee Kueh, Chwee Kueh at Bukit Timah Market and Food Centre, and Xiang Xiang Chwee Kueh at Whampoa Drive.

Ghim Oh Chwee Kueh 李老三 is also one of the “Chwee Kueh legends”, with loyal customers and a long history since 1959.



The stall is also listed in the Singapore Michelin Guide with the L’Assiette Michelin or Michelin Plate (but not Bib Gourmand yet).

For the uninitiated, Chwee Kueh 水粿is a type of steamed rice cake topped with radish relish. Chwee (water) refers to the puddle of water on top of each freshly-steamed rice cake.



The stall 李老三 at Ghim Moh Market & Food Centre #01-54 is run by Mr. Lee who has been making Chwee Kueh since he was 8, helping his mother and brother in pushing their street food cart.

He learned the recipe from his mother and, up to now, insists on making Chwee Kueh still the old-fashioned way with no short-cuts.

They say he spends 16 hours a day making Chwee Kueh!

Each piece is priced at 50 cents here, with a minimum order of 4 pieces (ie $2 for 4).




Ghim Moh Chwee Kueh uses garlic and pork lard (instead of vegetable oil) which make their cai po (preserved radish) more fragrant.

The radish is the chunkier-than-usual type, and this make the radish chewier in texture.

Compared to the Jian Bo and Bedok styles I was used to, this was quite distinctly different, with the cai po being more salty-savoury than sweet. Also, there are no sesame seeds to be found.

Therefore, some customers may choose to go easy on the cai po as it can be strong, a bit salty and greasy. As for the condiments, Mr. Lee’s chili sauce is spicy and salty.



The draw for me was the Kueh itself, steamed in aluminium moulds (they used to have ceramic ones).

The texture was soft yet slightly firm, and so not overly-wobbly, that was good enough to eat with just a dab of cai po and chilli.

One of the most nostalgic experience you can have with Chwee Kueh.



Ghim Moh Chwee Kueh 李老三
Blk 20, Ghim Moh Road #01-54, Singapore 270020
Opening Hours: 6:15am – 6:30pm (Mon – Sun)