Food forms many of the unforgettable markers of our lives, says cookbook author, reviewer and food consultant Violet Oon, 49 (left). Our early memories, courtship rituals, and glory days are all linked somehow with eating haunts. YONG SHU HOONG gets a guided tour

STREETSIDE eating was common. Many hawkers could be found in pockets of the city .

Hock Lam Street (opposite what is now Colombo Court): Teochew porridge.
Satay Club (Beach Road): Predecessor of the Esplanade's Satay Club.
Palm Beach Restaurant (Bedok): Chilli crabs.
Adelphi Cake Shop: Best rum balls in town.
Seaview Hotel: Western food and dancing.

Violet Oon: "Singapore was a tropical paradise. The food was true and traditional."

The centre of eating in the 1960s was the carpark in front of Cold Storage (currently Centrepoint) along Orchard Road.

FAVOURITES:
Troika (Liat Towers): Best Western restaurant in Singapore, serving wonderful Borsch soup.
Cathay Restaurant: Chinese food, live music and dancing after dinner.
Stamford Cafe (Raffles Hotel, where Ah Teng's Cafe is now): Local Western food like chicken chop and oxtail stew.
Coq D'Or (Cockpit Hotel): Romantic French restaurant with live music from a violin trio.
Magnolia Snack Bar, Capitol Building (right): Popular cafe serving set lunches and milk shakes.

Violet Oon: "As a teenager, I went dating in places like the very smart Batik Inn behind the old CK Tang Building on Orchard Road. "This was a standalone building that served good set lunches and wonderful satay for dinner."

THIS was the heyday of international hotel chains like Shangri-La, Hilton and Hyatt.

No more travelling hawkers - most were moved to food centres located next to markets.

Hotel restaurants, like Harbour Grill (Hilton Hotel), Brasserie (Marco Polo Hotel), The Tiara (Shangri-La Hotel), The Islander (Hyatt Hotel).

Violet Oon: "Surprisingly, the best hawker food in town was found at the coffee house in Ladyhill Hotel.
"Kentucky Fried Chicken was among the first fastfood chains to set up a restaurant in Singapore - but it was McDonald's that took Singapore by storm later."

HE food court made its grand entrance with Scotts Picnic (left), paving the way for more of such air-conditioned "high-class" hawker centres.

The restoration of Tanjong Pagar shophouses in the late 1980s also started the trend of restaurants being housed in shophouses.

Restaurants located at Boat Quay, Clarke Quay, Chinatown, Far East Square, Holland Village; alfresco dining in the Orchard Road area.

Violet Oon: "The 1980s was the most sterile time for local food when it came to ambience. Tables and chairs were not allowed outside restaurants. Thankfully, that is all changed now.
"In fact, Orchard Road is now a huge outdoor eating place, dotted with alfresco eateries and sidewalk cafes."

The delivery was on Aug 6, 1993, when the first Violet Oon's Kitchen opened at the basement of Takashimaya.

Everything fell into place the night before - cooking utensils, food counter, an oven big enough for a man to crawl in.

On opening day, I was at the counter at 6 am to start preparing shepherd's pie, potato souffle, lasagna and sandwiches.

It was like being in a zoo. Not just because of the crowd, but also the waist-high glass panels surrounding the kitchen allowed people to stand around and watch me cook.

By the time the department store closed at about 10 pm, I was so tired I could hardly stand or walk. And I couldn't stand the sight of another potato.

P.S. The Kitchen was closed in 1995 and I set up Violet Oon Consultants, which provides food consultancy.

Victor Nai, 23, trainee, Singapore Hotel and Tourism Education Centre (right): What's your favourite food?

Ms Oon: Whenever I'm asked this, my usual answer is: The next meal! But when I get back home tired, I usually eat plain white porridge with just pickles and ikan bilis.

Pek Lay Sheng, 24, Shatec (left): What advice would you give to an aspiring chef?

Ms Oon: Keep on learning. When someone gives you cooking tips, don't let your ego get in the way. You can "steal" knowledge. Learn by reading cookbooks. I read a lot of them in bed - as if they are bedtime stories!