Singapore Fling

Who among us does not have a little bit of a crush on Calvin Trillin? After reading his New Yorker article about the joys of Singapore street food, I decided to forgo the somewhat dire warnings on Chowhound and try out Singapore Cafe. While I couldn't fault the prices (a lot of the $6 plates are perfectly respectable meal portions) or the enthusiastic service, I found myself profoundly disappointed by the blandness of the food. It was one of the rare times I actually wondered whether the place deserved even a 15% tip.

My girlfriend ex and I got an order or roti canai ($2.50), pandan leaves boneless chicken ($6), popiah ($6), chow kueh teow ($6), and fried radish cake ($5).

Although the curried dipping sauce for the roti canai was rich with flavor, the roti itself was dense, lacking the distinct balance of airy and savory that makes the plate so special. I'm not a fan of very much at nearby Nyonya, but they do make a proper roti canai.

I had to end up dipping the pandan leaves chicken pieces into the curry from the roti canai, because the chicken tasted like it had no seasoning or extra flavors whatsoever. Although the leaves kept the pieces nice and moist, the overwhelming impression I got was one of blandness, which, unfortunately, carried over to popiah (basically a steamed appetizer with an egg roll shell and a spring roll filling, minus any herbs) and the Chow Kueh Teow, a classic noodle dish that's something like the Malay version of pad Thai. I found myself craving fish sauce, hot peppers, even soy sauce--anything to punch the notes up. The radish cake, thanks to what tasted like pungent dried shrimp, was the one good find on the menu, but a success rate of 1 in 5 is hardly an invitation for a return trip.

Singapore Cafe
69 Mott St. between Canal and Bayard (map)
New York, NY 10013
(212) 964-0003