What I really looked forward to the most while growing up during the early 1980s, was my family's occasional weekend trip to Chinatown.
What it meant, was that Dad has received his paycheck and we are in for a treat as we would head to Chinatown Complex Market & Food Centre for dinner at Heng Ji Chicken Rice.
Dining out was a luxury for us then as Singapore was in a state of recession at that point of time. Dad was fortunate to have kept his job but he worked such long hours that sometimes, I do not get to see him for days especially when he have to work OT through the nights and for that pittance of a salary, money was never enough.
As such, I truly appreciate the times when we could actually sit down as a family to have a meal together.
Facebook memories recently reminded me that my last visit there was some 10 years ago.
To be honest, we stopped patronizing Heng Ji for a period of time due to the discovery of Liao Fan Hong Kong Soya Sauce Chicken Rice & Noodle which is the "new kid on the block" then.
I remember walking past Liao Fan one day, completely mesmerized by the beautiful soy-glazed birds hanging on the racks. Compared to the paler looking ones at Heng Ji, Liao Fan's chickens looked like a million dollars.
But, we too have stopped going to Liao Fan (now rebranded as Hawker Chan) after they received the prestigious tyre award. The queue was already bad enough during their pre-award days. Needless to say, it got worst after that.
We have since found a new darling where a whole bird costs only $12 (now $15 due to the chicken crisis).
