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The Singapore Food Festival is back for its 16th time and participants can look forward to experience the annual event differently from Jul 17 to 26 with the special Peranakan twist given to it.
On the first day of the Singapore Food Festival, more than 30,000 people came for the parades, food and fine weather. The opening, which gathered crowds inside The Central, started off literally with a bang, with SMU’s percussion band Samba Masala dancing as they played a mix of Brazilian and Asian music their instruments.
The crowds grew larger when the finalists of Miss Singapore World 2009 strutted out of The Central in colourful Peranakan outfits and posed for eager photographers on the steps leading to the Singapore River.
One of the programme highlights listed on the Singapore Food Festival official guide was the Peranakan Parade, where for the very first time, “more than 200 Peranakans, elaborately dressed in traditional gear, will be marching down from various locations”. However, the only parade that seemed to take place with Peranakan gear was the display by the finalists of Miss Singapore World 2009.
“My friends and I were here since 5pm because we wanted to take photos. But we don’t see 200 Peranakans anywhere,” 19-year-old student photographer Wu Jia Ying voiced his annoyance.
The procession headed towards Read Bridge, which was specially transformed into Food Street for the festival. The guest-of-honour and internationally acclaimed celebrity chef Ms Violet Oon took part in a small opening ceremony at 6.30pm and hand pounded the spices rhythmically in time with Samba Masala’s musical beats. Photographers and videographers trailed behind them as they made their way around stalls afterwards and chatted with tourists who were sampling local delights.
Next, the crowd moved along to Central Square @ Clarke Quay where a temporary platform had been erected. Samba Masala took stage while the public streamed in and gathered around, and guests and VIPs sat at their tables. The Miss Singapore World 2009 finalists also got ready for a Peranakan fashion show. The display had the ladies modelling both new and traditional Peranakan outfits.
Soon after, The Peranakan Voices of The Peranakan Association got the audience in a jolly mood with their catchy songs and simple but cheerful dance moves.
“It’s very enjoyable to see the aunties and uncles dancing so happily on stage. They look very cute. The songs were nice too even though I’ve never heard of them,” said Yang Li Na, 18, a student from Republic Polytechnic. 37-year-old homemaker Jennifer Chin liked the songs as well and felt that the fashion show made her “want to try and dress up like a Nonya”.
At a different site of Clarke Quay, was the Nonya Mobile where a lady was showcasing a Peranakan cooking demonstration. However, only a handful of people were standing around. The Nonya Mobile, a 24-foot truck converted into a roving kitchen, rather like Sureal Chef Bob Blumer’s toaster truck, will travel to different places in town each day and allow audiences to learn more around Peranakan food.
At about 7.30pm, the crowd at Clarke Quay slowly dispersed and people returned to the Read Bridge for food. Compared to 3 hours ago, Food Street was more crowded and the ground was visibly dirtier, with spilled drinks and dirty disposable plates. As there were stalls which sold Satays (a dish of meat, where usually chicken, mutton or beef are barbequed and served on bamboo skewers) and fried noodles, the air was smokier and warmer too.
There was a shortage of seats and people were waiting around for empty tables. It didn’t help that people didn’t clear their trash before leaving the tables.
“People should help to clear their own dirty plates. It’ll make things easier and faster for those who are still waiting for seats,” said Nicholas See, 19, who is serving his National Service.
Luckily though, there were people who were going around with big trash bags to help clear the tables.
While invited guests and VIPs had Nasi Lemak (coconut milk rice served with cucumber, small dried anchovies, among others, and served with sambal chilli sauce), Nonya Kueh (sweet, steamed, bite-sized Peranakan cakes) and Ayam Buah Keluak (chicken stewed with black nuts) in tiffin carriers that were sponsored by Swissotel Merchant Court Singapore, 30 stalls in Food Street served anyone with dishes that ranged from local delicacies such as Hokkien Mee and Chicken Rice to Peranakan snacks.
For 37-year-old housewife Ibnu Bramono, this was “the best place to eat crabs for a much lower price compared to at a restaurant”. According to her, while crabs served at restaurants can cost tens of dollars, the fleshy crab pincer that she was enjoying only costed $16. On the other hand, social worker Grace Poh, 56, felt that “More Peranakan dishes should be available as there is a Peranakan theme.”
Another highlight of Singapore Food Festival 2009 was the Singapore River Market. Held in conjunction with the festival, more than 50 stalls in white tentage lined the River Promenade, and items sold ranged from fashion to knick-knacks to tech gadgets like thumbdrives.
However, only one stall, Rumah Bebe, was selling Peranakan-related items. The last stall of the bazaar sold both Nonya clothes and delicacies. The owner, Ms Bebe Seet, shared that sambal balachan is the most important condiment for Peranakan food as it is not only an appetizer, but also a simple concoction that tastes good even with just rice.
Ms Seet, who is also a well-known expert on Peranakan beading, felt that the Singapore River Market “should have more stalls in line with the supposed Peranakan theme”. She added, “It is a good idea to have the Singapore Food Festival with the Singapore River Market. However, the food stalls and the market are segregated. This means not everyone will get a chance to explore the entire market if they don’t walk around much.”
37-year-old consultant Dian Bramono, who happened to be in the vicinity, thought that, “Although Singapore Food Festival would be interesting with Singapore River Market, it should not happen too often as they might miss their purposes.” Also, he felt that better publicity would have allowed more people like himself to know about the events.
Though it rode on the wave of the popularity of Channel 8’s megablockbuster The Little Nyonya, the Peranakan flavour might have been overdone and might not suit everyone after all.