Discoveries while travelling - things you didn't know before
Jun 27, 2019, 7:36 pm
#47
Join Date: Jan 2015
Posts: 2,918
1. Cream for my coffee (or even something like Coffeemate) - curious: are Americans the only ones who use half-and-half and/or cream in coffee? I don't find that milk really does the trick and this is an issue that I've found all over (Europe, Asia, South America)
2. Ice - Why don't people outside the US love ice the way we do?
2. Ice - Why don't people outside the US love ice the way we do?
Jun 27, 2019, 8:13 pm
#48
Join Date: Oct 2006
Location: Long Beach, CA
Programs: AA PLTPRO, HH Diamond, IHG Plat, Marriott Plat, Hyatt Globalist
Posts: 3,559
Jun 28, 2019, 12:46 am
#50
Original Poster
Join Date: Dec 2007
Location: Virginia City Highlands
Programs: Nothing anymore after 20 years
Posts: 6,900
Kopi C - Coffee with evaporated milk.
There is whole website how to order coffee (kopi) in Singapore https://kopi.guide/
A lot of local people do not eat cheese 'as-is', but you see a lot of various 'spicy cheese sauce' used in local fast food restaurants.
Last edited by invisible; Jun 28, 2019 at 12:59 am
Jun 28, 2019, 12:57 am
#51
Original Poster
Join Date: Dec 2007
Location: Virginia City Highlands
Programs: Nothing anymore after 20 years
Posts: 6,900
In Asia people do love ice, but here surprise comes - it is not free.
I mean - if you want to have iced coffee (or Kopi, as I explained in previous post) you need to pay 50c more just for ice. One of our first culture shock after moving to Singapore was that we went to a restaurant and asked for water before bringing food. To our big surprise, waiter brought warm water (and it is 90F and 80% of humidity outside). Asked to bring ice and he said 'cannot lah'. It took about 2 min question/answer until he finally said that he can't bring ice 'for free' but he can bring it separately and charge $1 per 'glass of ice'.
I mean - if you want to have iced coffee (or Kopi, as I explained in previous post) you need to pay 50c more just for ice. One of our first culture shock after moving to Singapore was that we went to a restaurant and asked for water before bringing food. To our big surprise, waiter brought warm water (and it is 90F and 80% of humidity outside). Asked to bring ice and he said 'cannot lah'. It took about 2 min question/answer until he finally said that he can't bring ice 'for free' but he can bring it separately and charge $1 per 'glass of ice'.
Jun 28, 2019, 3:59 am
#53
Original Poster
Join Date: Dec 2007
Location: Virginia City Highlands
Programs: Nothing anymore after 20 years
Posts: 6,900
I dun have lah. - I really don't have it.
I dun have leh. - For some reason, I don't have it.
I dun have lor. - I wish I had it, but sadly I don't.
I dun have liao. - I used to have it, but I don't anymore.
I dun have ha. - I remind you that I don't have it!
I dun have hor. - Don't look at me; I don't have it.
I dun have mah. - It would help if I had it, but I don't have it.
I dun have meh? - You think I don't have it?
I dun have siah! - I can't freaking believe I don't have it!
I dun have leh. - For some reason, I don't have it.
I dun have lor. - I wish I had it, but sadly I don't.
I dun have liao. - I used to have it, but I don't anymore.
I dun have ha. - I remind you that I don't have it!
I dun have hor. - Don't look at me; I don't have it.
I dun have mah. - It would help if I had it, but I don't have it.
I dun have meh? - You think I don't have it?
I dun have siah! - I can't freaking believe I don't have it!
Jun 28, 2019, 4:23 am
#54
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jan 2009
Location: London & Sonoma CA
Programs: UA 1K, MM *G for life, BAEC Gold
Posts: 10,224
Just back from a week in the UK and it's interesting that it feels less and less different than the US each time I visit. Too many things that we have are also there.
However, there are two things that we have that aren't there (or at least not super common) and I actually missed a lot, as an American in a foreign land:
1. Cream for my coffee (or even something like Coffeemate) - curious: are Americans the only ones who use half-and-half and/or cream in coffee? I don't find that milk really does the trick and this is an issue that I've found all over (Europe, Asia, South America)
2. Ice - Why don't people outside the US love ice the way we do?
However, there are two things that we have that aren't there (or at least not super common) and I actually missed a lot, as an American in a foreign land:
1. Cream for my coffee (or even something like Coffeemate) - curious: are Americans the only ones who use half-and-half and/or cream in coffee? I don't find that milk really does the trick and this is an issue that I've found all over (Europe, Asia, South America)
2. Ice - Why don't people outside the US love ice the way we do?
British cream is much thicker than US cream. More people in the UK drink tea. Anything thicker than milk in tea is disgusting and cream in tea would be totally horrible (one of the several reasons why tea in the US is not nice). So when you add all this up, any cafe will simply serve milk. Half and half is unknown, much as in the US single, double and clotted creams are largely unknown, whereas they are common in the UK.
On ice, people in the UK tend to put one or two not very cold ice cubes in their drinks and really don't like the way the ice cube dilutes the drink. Putting more in the drink would be perceived as a) short-changing when the drink is served by volume and b) more dilutive, the latter reason being, of course, entirely dependent on temperatures, but I'm talking perception here.
Jun 28, 2019, 4:36 am
#55
Join Date: May 2009
Location: Shanghai
Programs: BAEC (Gold), PC (Plat), HH (Gold), MR (Gold)
Posts: 2,729
In Asia people do love ice, but here surprise comes - it is not free.
I mean - if you want to have iced coffee (or Kopi, as I explained in previous post) you need to pay 50c more just for ice. One of our first culture shock after moving to Singapore was that we went to a restaurant and asked for water before bringing food. To our big surprise, waiter brought warm water (and it is 90F and 80% of humidity outside). Asked to bring ice and he said 'cannot lah'. It took about 2 min question/answer until he finally said that he can't bring ice 'for free' but he can bring it separately and charge $1 per 'glass of ice'.
I mean - if you want to have iced coffee (or Kopi, as I explained in previous post) you need to pay 50c more just for ice. One of our first culture shock after moving to Singapore was that we went to a restaurant and asked for water before bringing food. To our big surprise, waiter brought warm water (and it is 90F and 80% of humidity outside). Asked to bring ice and he said 'cannot lah'. It took about 2 min question/answer until he finally said that he can't bring ice 'for free' but he can bring it separately and charge $1 per 'glass of ice'.
Jun 28, 2019, 6:32 am
#56
Join Date: Jan 2015
Posts: 2,918
You will also find that yogurt and especially cheese section is like 1/10th what you will see in american or european supermarkets, in my local supermarket it is like two shelves of 2ft long and you will only find well known brands of processed cheese there, like President. Also cheese is about 2-3x more expensive compared to US/EU. I or my wife, when travelling to US, always bring back at least 20lb of cheese from Costco. You can't get it in Singapore.
A lot of local people do not eat cheese 'as-is', but you see a lot of various 'spicy cheese sauce' used in local fast food restaurants.
A lot of local people do not eat cheese 'as-is', but you see a lot of various 'spicy cheese sauce' used in local fast food restaurants.
In Asia people do love ice, but here surprise comes - it is not free.
I mean - if you want to have iced coffee (or Kopi, as I explained in previous post) you need to pay 50c more just for ice. One of our first culture shock after moving to Singapore was that we went to a restaurant and asked for water before bringing food. To our big surprise, waiter brought warm water (and it is 90F and 80% of humidity outside). Asked to bring ice and he said 'cannot lah'. It took about 2 min question/answer until he finally said that he can't bring ice 'for free' but he can bring it separately and charge $1 per 'glass of ice'.
I mean - if you want to have iced coffee (or Kopi, as I explained in previous post) you need to pay 50c more just for ice. One of our first culture shock after moving to Singapore was that we went to a restaurant and asked for water before bringing food. To our big surprise, waiter brought warm water (and it is 90F and 80% of humidity outside). Asked to bring ice and he said 'cannot lah'. It took about 2 min question/answer until he finally said that he can't bring ice 'for free' but he can bring it separately and charge $1 per 'glass of ice'.
Jun 28, 2019, 6:53 am
#57
formerly known as Tad's Broiled Steaks
Join Date: Jun 2004
Posts: 6,412
I'm kinda surprised. I remember visiting a Cold Storage somewhere and seeing a decent cheese selection (eg, more than a selection of american, cheddar and mozz). That was a few years ago though.
There is also the believe in TCM that cold liquids impede the digestive system. That's why hot tea is what is often offered. Personally, I prefer an ice kachang or a chendol when at a hawker center, but that's just me.
There is also the believe in TCM that cold liquids impede the digestive system. That's why hot tea is what is often offered. Personally, I prefer an ice kachang or a chendol when at a hawker center, but that's just me.
My first encounter with its lunacy was at my school in Shenzhen, where the chef wouldn’t prepare chilies and bell peppers because “they didn’t go together.”
Fast foward a couple of years to a brief stay at the Shenzhen Kaili Hotel, where a small diagram in the desk drawer helped inform those unfamiliar with hot/cold foods (i.e. how they relate to qi) about what not to combine in a dish. Again, 双喜 goes great with EVERYTHING.
n.b. I would order ice in China if the water didn’t taste like a New York subway.
Jun 28, 2019, 8:38 am
#58
Join Date: Dec 2006
Location: Enroute to ? & likely flying in ' A ':)
Programs: TPPS, UA, EK ...; Marriott BONVOY , HH, GP, GC..
Posts: 4,217
I'm kinda surprised. I remember visiting a Cold Storage somewhere and seeing a decent cheese selection (eg, more than a selection of american, cheddar and mozz). That was a few years ago though.
There is also the believe in TCM that cold liquids impede the digestive system. That's why hot tea is what is often offered. Personally, I prefer an ice kachang or a chendol when at a hawker center, but that's just me.
There is also the believe in TCM that cold liquids impede the digestive system. That's why hot tea is what is often offered. Personally, I prefer an ice kachang or a chendol when at a hawker center, but that's just me.
In Asia people do love ice, but here surprise comes - it is not free.
I mean - if you want to have iced coffee (or Kopi, as I explained in previous post) you need to pay 50c more just for ice. One of our first culture shock after moving to Singapore was that we went to a restaurant and asked for water before bringing food. To our big surprise, waiter brought warm water (and it is 90F and 80% of humidity outside). Asked to bring ice and he said 'cannot lah'. It took about 2 min question/answer until he finally said that he can't bring ice 'for free' but he can bring it separately and charge $1 per 'glass of ice'.
I mean - if you want to have iced coffee (or Kopi, as I explained in previous post) you need to pay 50c more just for ice. One of our first culture shock after moving to Singapore was that we went to a restaurant and asked for water before bringing food. To our big surprise, waiter brought warm water (and it is 90F and 80% of humidity outside). Asked to bring ice and he said 'cannot lah'. It took about 2 min question/answer until he finally said that he can't bring ice 'for free' but he can bring it separately and charge $1 per 'glass of ice'.
At the risk of hijacking this thread to focus on Singaporean foods, I actually like Lau Pa Sat for the convenience. It's in a area easy to meet with office teams for food. While the food might not be the greatest, you could do much worse. My only beef is the occasional tout (sorry, but that's what they are). Every place has its advantages, it's just different for everyone.
Ahem, any local and expats who have been living here for a while would tell to avoid these two places - food there is not particularly great and overpriced as well.
Good hawker centers are in heartlands - Tiong Bahru, Old Airport Road, Zion road. And if you wanna to see how really locals are living/eating, go to places like Khatib or Jurong.
Good hawker centers are in heartlands - Tiong Bahru, Old Airport Road, Zion road. And if you wanna to see how really locals are living/eating, go to places like Khatib or Jurong.
Likewise in whatever countries we might be in .
Am in Singapore now , thankfully , not charged for ice for my numerous glasses of extra ice for my iced water ( not just cold ) . For many who enjoy having spicy food , lukewarm water , is supposed to work best , besides the TCM - traditional Chinese medicine - bit . In recent years , many “ restaurants “ have started charging for tap water ! These we avoid .
As for cheeses , there is a wide range but obviously not all and usually European cheeses , at select supermarkets besides Cold Storage mentioned - Culina , Hubers , Jones the Grocer .. non hawker centre food is expensive .
Last edited by FlyerEC; Jun 28, 2019 at 9:08 am
Jun 29, 2019, 4:16 am
#59
Original Poster
Join Date: Dec 2007
Location: Virginia City Highlands
Programs: Nothing anymore after 20 years
Posts: 6,900
Think about Cold Storage like Whole Foods, but more expensive. Ordinary local won't shop there, they will go to Shen Siong and Fairprice. And contrary to Whole Foods where you have bunch of things which are not available at Safeway/Vons/Albertsons/etc, at Cold Storage there is mostly the same stuff you can get at Safeway and Giant but it is 1.5-2x more expensive.
Jun 29, 2019, 4:24 am
#60
Original Poster
Join Date: Dec 2007
Location: Virginia City Highlands
Programs: Nothing anymore after 20 years
Posts: 6,900
You get an idea... fortunately, such idiots are minority.
Last edited by invisible; Jun 29, 2019 at 6:27 am