Stills and Glyphs: Toastbox: A taste of Singapore

In a few days, Roselle will be leaving for Singapore. Yes. Singapore. The “Lion City”. A country where acute poverty is so rare that employment seems like a fad. A country that proved to us that urbanization can also mean clean streets. A country that holds the title for being the cleanest in Asia, if not in the entire world; so clean that chewing gum is punishable by law.

Too bad for her, she will stay there for only three days and two nights.

So, we conducted an eating-in-a-Singaporean-diner simulation in a ToastBox branch inside Robinson’s Ermita just to let her have a taste of Singapore before her scheduled trip.

A nice and very clean-looking place this particular ToastBox outlet was--- almost bordering on sterile ---with its overall white color and bright and sunny atmosphere. It’s primarily a coffee shop with offerings of signature brews and light meals. But people with more serious appetites---- ahem...like us---- also have room here.

The Toastbox Heart Attack Tower

No starters whatsoever, we pounced right on the main course; Roselle ordered Nasi Goreng and Lemon Iced Tea, I picked Hainanese Chicken and Rice and Horlick’s Dinosaur.

For meals with very common ingredients, both the Nasi Goreng and the Hainanese Chicken were curiously flavorful. We particularly liked the salty-sweet Hainanese sauce, and as for Nasi Goreng, it had us with its salty and slightly spicy bagoong (shrimp paste).

ToastBox’s Horlick’s Dinosaur, is a malted milk cousin of the more popular Choco/Milo Dinosaur. It’s not the best thirst-quencher there is, but it’s a very interesting drink, to say the least. Good thing, too, that we ordered Toastbox’s home-brewed lemon iced tea. It’s a refreshing drink with a very entertaining brewing method.