My Must-Eats…with Singaporean West End performer Nathania Ong
My Must-Eats is a HungryGoWhere series featuring Singapore’s public figures and their favourite food haunts. This week, we speak to Singaporean singer-actress Nathania Ong, who’s based in London, about her must-eats when she’s back home.
- 1. What dish reminds you of your childhood — and where did you get it?
- 2. What’s your go-to eatery in Singapore? Why?
- 3. When you travel, what’s one Singapore dish you always miss?
- 4. What dish or cuisine do you want to try, but have not?
- 5. What’s the last thing you ate that impressed you — and where did you have it?
Onstage, Nathania Ong, 27, is no stranger to the spotlight, having taken on leading roles such as Eliza Hamilton in Hamilton and Eponine in Les Miserables.
Born and raised in Singapore, Nathania is among the few local talents to have performed in major West End productions.
Prior to making her West End debut, she spent a year at Lasalle College of the Arts before moving to London to train at Mountview Academy of Theatre Arts.
Now, Nathania is back on home soil, playing the role of Eponine in Les Miserables: The Arena Spectacular World Tour at Sands Theatre, for the long-running musical’s 40th anniversary.
Next up, she’ll be stepping into pink as the lead role of Elle Woods in Legally Blonde, adding yet another iconic role to her growing list of stage credits.
Offstage, however, the 27-year-old performer is just as passionate about something almost every Singaporean loves — hunting down good food.
Nathania has a habit that will strike a chord with many of us: Saving every interesting food spot she comes across on Instagram, fully convinced she’ll visit it someday.
“So unfortunately, every time I come back to Singapore, I gain about 5kg, and that’s no exaggeration. I genuinely do,” she quips.
In a chat with HungryGoWhere, Nathania tells us about the local dishes she misses most, and why satisfying those cravings in the UK is nearly impossible — because no matter how good the options are overseas, nothing truly lives up to the taste of home.
You can catch Nathania in Les Miserables: The Arena Spectacular World Tour in Singapore until May 10, or when Legally Blonde opens at Esplanade Theatre from July 29.
1. What dish reminds you of your childhood — and where did you get it?
It’s got to be Ghim Moh Road Market’s chai tow kway (fried carrot cake) — the black one. When I was younger, I didn’t add chilli, but now I do. Well, I’ve gotten better at eating spicy food and I feel like I’ve just evolved.
The black carrot cake is also sweet, which adds an extra dimension. Whereas if you eat the white carrot cake, it’s mostly just salty. People might hate on me for this, but I think there’re other dishes that could replace a white carrot cake, if you just want salty, or savoury.
Personally, I don’t think many dishes can compete with the black version.
2. What’s your go-to eatery in Singapore? Why?
Honestly, it’s very hard to say, because I haven’t been in Singapore for a long time, and it feels like things change every time I come back.
But one staple I always go to is (now-closed) Nakhon Kitchen at Holland Village, because it used to be near my school — ACJC. (Editor’s note: Anglo-Chinese Junior College is Nathania’s alma mater.)
I always order the honey chicken — I feel like there’s no other version like it — and I’ll get a Thai green curry with plain white rice to share around.
3. When you travel, what’s one Singapore dish you always miss?
I’ll just say it — chai tow kway is the GOAT (greatest of all time)!
The thing is a lot of other dishes can be, kind of, found overseas. For instance, you can get a somewhat decent laksa. Also if you’re looking for roti canai, there’re quite a few places overseas as well. But again, no one makes chai tow kway — especially with that wok hei — quite like it’s done back home.
I won’t lie — I always keep an emergency supply of stock that I “steal” from Singapore, so I can cook when the craving hits. That way, I’m not completely unprepared. Obviously, I still want to do it right, but the ingredients can be quite hard to find overseas.
4. What dish or cuisine do you want to try, but have not?
There’s this coffee place in Joo Chiat that keeps appearing on my Instagram feed — Big Short Coffee — and the drinks look really pretty.
I also love desserts, but not what they do to my waistline. I’ve been wanting to try the ang ku kueh from Ah Mah’s Legacy, especially flavours such as roasted chestnut (I love chestnuts!) and pure pistachio, but the coconut gula Melaka is definitely at the top of my list.
5. What’s the last thing you ate that impressed you — and where did you have it?
I ordered some kueh from a small online business called Mummiesrella on Instagram. It was recommended to me by a friend, and when I looked at their reviews, they had a really good 4.9-star rating.
I wanted to do something nice for the Les Miserables cast, so I placed an order for everyone to try a bit of Singapore-style kueh. And honestly, I think the kueh lapis and kueh salat were some of the best I’ve ever had — they were so, so soft!
Usually, when I buy kueh and refrigerate it, it hardens the next day. Even after bringing it back to room temperature, the texture just isn’t the same. But with this one, because it was so soft to begin with, I found that even after refrigerating it, it was only slightly harder and didn’t taste stale at all!
Always on a hunt for good carrot cake? Check out our list of the best carrot cake in Singapore. Alternatively, read more about the latest F&B openings in town.
Shannon has the taste buds of a grandmother and perpetually struggles with a food coma.
Read more stories from this writer.
