Life! Happenings Aug 17: A complete guide to what to eat, drink, watch and listen to this weekend

Thin, smooth inaniwa udon is clean and silky, and a joy to eat. ST PHOTO: REBECCA LYNNE TAN

FOOD PICKS

Rebecca Lynne Tan Food Correspondent recommends:

COLD INANIWA UDON

Inaniwa Yosuke at Wisma Atria is my go-to restaurant for thin, smooth inaniwa udon. It brings in udon, based on a 150-year-old recipe, that is handmade in Akita Prefecture.

The udon is clean and silky - a joy to eat. Have it cold or hot, in soup with beef ($16.80 for lunch, $24.80 for dinner), in a curry gravy ($16.80 for lunch, $22.80 for dinner) or as part of a set with donburi or items such as grilled wagyu beef and tempura.

I like the tanuki udon best ($15.80 for lunch, $18.80 for dinner). Icy-cold udon is served in a shoyu-based dipping sauce and topped with sliced fresh tomato, julienned cucumber, shredded crab stick, an onsen egg and crunchy tempura bits. Add a smidgen of wasabi and toss well to eat.

The restaurant has a one-for-one weekday udon and rice set lunch deal (lunch sets range from $18.80 to $29.80).

WHERE: Inaniwa Yosuke, 04-45 Wisma Atria, 435 Orchard Road

MRT: Orchard

OPEN: 11am to 10pm daily

TEL: 6262-3279

INFO: www.japanfoodtown.sg/stores/inaniwa-yosuke

TACOS AND MARGARITAS

Month-old Papi's Tacos in Seah Street is the latest Mexican taqueria to open here. It can get quite crowded, so be prepared to wait for a seat at this gritty, no-reservations eatery.

I love the margaritas - classic ($15) or strawberry ($18), blended with ice or shaken over ice. The flavour of the day ($18) when I dined there last week was pineapple - refreshingly sweet-tart and fabulous. There is also a selection of tequila and mezcal.

Snack on tostadas, chips with guacamole and pico de gallo, and esquites (charred grilled corn, add a squeeze of lime for zip), then hone in on the tacos (from $11 for two).

The soft tortillas, which are made in-house from scratch, are filled with ingredients such as marinated pork, steak, chicken, fish and shrimp. I am especially fond of the fish taco - grilled dory topped with red cabbage and a spicy, smoked chipotle aioli. The combination of flavour and texture is a real winner.

The salsas, from mildly spicy to fiery, are housemade too and the fresh, lively flavour of the salsa verde won my heart over.

You must save space for a slice of tres leches cake ($8) - the only dessert on the menu. This lightly frosted cake made with milk, condensed milk and evaporated milk looks dense and heavy, but is quite the opposite. The airy cake has a lovely crumb and the perfect flavour.

WHERE: Papi's Tacos, 39 Seah Street

MRT: City Hall

OPEN: 5pm to midnight (Mondays to Saturdays, closed on Sundays)

TEL: 6258-0701

INFO: E-mail hola@ papis-tacos.com or go to www.papis-tacos.com.

Walk-ins only

PANDAN KAYA CHEESE TART

You can never go wrong with pandan and kaya. The pairing is an all-time favourite among most local diners here.

Japanese cheese tart specialist Pablo rolled out a seasonal pandan kaya cheese tart (left)

to cater to local taste buds earlier this month.

Here, a moist layer of sponge cake spread with kaya jam is sandwiched between lush, pandan-coconut cheese filling.

The cake and the brand's signature flaky pastry help to cut through the richness of the cheese filling. It is much less cloying than the original version.

A whole tart costs $19.90 and a slice $5.50. I suggest a tart and drink set instead. For $8, you get a slice of the pandan kaya cheese tart and a choice of drink (priced between $5 and $7.50 each), which can range from coffee to iced matcha latte.

The tart will be available until the end of next month.

WHERE: Pablo, two outlets - 01-02/03 Wisma Atria, 435 Orchard Road; and 02-K05/06 Nex, 23 Serangoon Central

MRT: Orchard/Serangoon

WHEN: Now until Sept 30

OPEN: 10am to 10pm daily (Wisma Atria), 10.30am to 10.30pm daily (Nex)

TEL: 6835-9269 (Wisma Atria), 6509 -0350 (Nex)

INFO: E-mail support@pablo.com.sg or go to www.pablo.com.sg

BRAISED DUCK KWAY TEOW

I much prefer thin kway teow when it comes to noodles. The flat rice noodles do a much better job of soaking up sambal and gravy.

Jin Ji Teochew Braised Duck & Kway Chap in Smith Street has customers who flock there for duck rice and kway chap, but I like the duck kway teow (right, $3).

Here, kway teow is tossed in a piquant housemade sambal and a herbal gravy flavoured with spices such as cinnamon and star anise. It is then drizzled with garlic and shallot oil before serving. The sambal, made with chilli padi, belacan, shallots, garlic and dried shrimp, is very tasty.

When it comes to noodles, I am all about the sauce - the right balance, its fullness of flavour. For me, the kway teow gravy here is truly slurp-worthy.

The stall also recently introduced a duck tsukemen - dunk dry ramen, tossed in the same tasty chilli gravy, into its herbal soup.

WHERE: Jin Ji Teochew Braised Duck & Kway Chap, 02-156 Chinatown Complex, Block 335 Smith Street

MRT: Chinatown

OPEN: 10.30am to 6.30pm (Saturdays to Thursdays), closed on Fridays


FILM PICKS

John Lui Film Correspondent recommends:

MADELINE'S MADELINE (M18)

93 minutes/Opens today

Teenager Madeline (Helena Howard) is not just an in-betweener in age - she is in between reality and fantasy because of her mental illness and in between two older women, each seeking control of her.

Her mother Regina (actress and film-maker Miranda July) sees her as damaged and in need of care, while Evangeline (Molly Parker), the head of a physical theatre troupe, sees in her a gifted actor.

This powerful drama about the complicated bonds among women - beautifully acted and featuring a head-spinning variety of dream-like images - is directed and co-written by Josephine Decker, a noted performance artist and documentary maker.

NUS ARTS FESTIVAL

The film component of the festival is always interesting for its mix of the popular and the yet-to-be-discovered. This year, the focus is on Asian cinema and one of the more interesting picks is Maineland (2017, rating to be advised, 89 minutes).

The documentary follows the lives of two students, Stella and Harry, among the thousands from China arriving in the United States each year to study.

Documentary-maker Miao Wang points her camera at the pair as they settle into an elite boarding school in rural Maine, preparing themselves for their big American adventure.

Ngee Ann Kongsi Auditorium, Level 2 Education Resource Centre, 8 College Avenue West Dover Sept 7 - 23, various times

Free with registration at NUSartsfestival.com

26TH ISRAEL FILM FESTIVAL

Each year's edition brings a batch of high-quality, challenging work and it should be no different this year.

The opening film, drama-comedy Longing (2017, M18, 103 minutes), has ageing bachelor Ariel (Shai Aviv) discovering that his former college girlfriend has kept a secret from him for 20 years - one that will shake up his life for good.

Also stars Neta Riskin.

WHERE: The Projector, Level 5 Golden Mile Tower, 6001 Beach Road Nicoll Highway Aug 29 to Sept 2

ADMISSION: $13.50 For bookings and registration go to theprojector.sg


ARTS PICKS

Olivia Ho recommends:

SINGAPORE NIGHT FESTIVAL

For its 11th edition, the annual festival in the Bras Basah-Bugis Precinct will put together some unusual combinations as the National Museum of Singapore lawn transforms into an aquatic forest, one of 14 light installations.

Watch jazz dance troupe EV Dance don automated exoskeletons by engineering firm Hope Technik, or a duel between British troupe Lords Of Lightning that harnesses nearly four million volts of electricity.

Pedal on a bike at installation Ember Rain by local collective Starlight Alchemy, which will ignite a shower of sparkling embers from a 5m-tall fire tower.

WHERE: Various venues in Bras Basah and Bugis

MRT: Bras Basah/Bugis

WHEN: Till Aug 25, 7.30pm to midnight. Performances on Thursday, Aug 24 and 25, various times

ADMISSION: Free

INFO: www.facebook.com/ brasbasahbugis

THE ORDINARY AND THE UNSPECTACULAR

Everyday actions and movements inspire this non-verbal performance, part of The Theatre Practice's M1 Patch! A Theatre Festival Of Artful Play.

It features seven artists above the age of 50, including 79-year-old dancer Goh Lay Kuan, directed by her daughter Okorn-Kuo Jing Hong. Her other daughter, Kuo Jian Hong (right), helms The Theatre Practice as artistic director.

WHERE: Practice Space, 54 Waterloo Street

MRT: Bras Basah/Bencoolen

WHEN: Today, 8pm; tomorrow, 3 and 8pm; Sunday, 3pm

ADMISSION: $38 from Sistic (call 6348-5555 or go to www.sistic.com.sg)

INFO: Non-verbal performance; go to www.practice org. sg/en/m1patch for details

PANCHA 3: FLOWERS DON'T BLOOM ALL THE TIME

The third instalment of Maya Dance Theatre's Pancha series centres on the domestic sexual assault of women and children.

In the site-specific work, seven dancers from Indonesia and Singapore lead the audience around bungalow-turned-theatre space Centre 42 and portray different characters, from a seven-year-old who is sexually assaulted by her uncle to an abuse victim-turned-abuser.

Artistic director Kavitha Krishnan wants the work to look towards healing and engender empathy for sexual assault survivors.

WHERE: Centre 42, 42 Waterloo Street MRT: Bras Basah/ Bencoolen WHEN: Today and tomorrow, 8pm

ADMISSION: $32 and $29 (concession) from flowersdontbloom.peatix.com

INFO: www.mayadancetheatre.org

THE WORLD'S LONELIEST BOOKSTORE

In its last weekend, this pop-up by BooksActually and D/SINI imagines a bookstore at the end of the world, in the wake of an apocalypse caused by a solar flare. The bookshop-cum-art exhibition features an installation of a thousand paper cranes, an immersive sound experience and a host of scavenged items - lost keys, snail shells, a nest of twigs and so on.

WHERE: Block 7 Gillman Barracks,

7 Lock Road MRT: Labrador Park

WHEN: Till Sunday, 11am to 7pm

ADMISSION: Free INFO: bit.ly/2nCpkyv


GIGS PICKS

Anjali Raguraman recommends:

MIKE SHINODA'S POST TRAUMATIC TOUR - LIVE IN SINGAPORE

Linkin Park's Mike Shinoda (right) processed the pain of losing frontman Chester Bennington to suicide by turning to music and putting out a 16-track solo album called Post Traumatic earlier this year. Apart from music off the album, his show here will also feature Fort Minor material and Linkin Park songs.

WHERE: Zepp @ Bigbox Singapore, 1 Venture Avenue MRT: Jurong East

WHEN: Wednesday, 8pm

ADMISSION: $148 (standard tickets), $158 (at the door) via Sistic (go to www.sistic.com.sg or call 6348-5555); VIP hospitality (including a private cordoned-off area with a prime view of the stage, four drink coupons and a commemorative laminate and lanyard) is available for an additional $150.

BOYZONE LIVE

Earlier this year, Irish boyband Boyzone announced that they were splitting up after 25 years. But before they go their separate ways, Keith Duffy, Shane Lynch, Mikey Graham and Ronan Keating are holding a series of farewell concerts, one of which will be at the Singapore Indoor Stadium.

WHERE: Singapore Indoor Stadium, 2 Stadium Walk

MRT: Stadium

WHEN: Tuesday, 8pm

ADMISSION: $98 to $188 from SportsHubTix (www.sportshubtix.sg) and all SingPost outlets or call 3158-7888

BAYBEATS 2018

Baybeats may be better known for its live and loud rock acts but, this year, the annual alternative music festival is experimenting with up-and-coming rap acts like Yung Raja (below right) & Fariz Jabba. This will also be the final year the Powerhouse stage will exist at its current waterfront location.

Over the years, it has played host to many headlining bands, but this year, post-hardcore group Caracal have the honour of playing the swansong set on Sunday night. Also catch acts like local grindcore heroes Wormrot and American alt-rockers Hundredth.

WHERE: Various venues across The Esplanade, 1 Esplanade Drive

MRT: Esplanade

WHEN: Today, 6.30pm to 3am; tomorrow, 6pm to 12.10am; Sunday, 6pm to 12.10am

ADMISSION: Free

INFO: For the full line-up and timings, go to www.baybeats.com

75 YEARS CELEBRATION - ILAIYARAAJA LIVE IN CONCERT

Ilaiyaraaja (below) has composed over 4,500 songs and provided film scores for more than 950 Indian films in Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, Kannada, Marathi and Hindi, in a career that has spanned more than 30 years. He plays in Singapore tomorrow for the first time, backed by a 30-piece orchestra and a star-studded line-up of playback singers, including K. S. Chithra, Vijay Prakash and Mano.

WHERE: The Star Theatre, 1 Vista Exchange Green

MRT: Buona Vista

WHEN: Tomorrow, 7pm

ADMISSION: $55 to $500 (VIP) from Sistic

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