Mention roti prata to my son and I and we will suggest the family-run The Prata Place in Singapore which sells the most crispy roti prata in town. You will also see us transform into salivating salesmen pushing our favorite sinfully healthy prata meals at the Prata Place.
Roti prata is a flat pan fried wheat flour pancake. It is common to Indian and Malay cuisine. At The Prata Place where the humble food is sold by the hundreds per day, ingredients to make the dough are usually machine-whipped into a fluid consistency before the workers squeeze the dough into palm-sized portions to further knead and coat in ghee, the sinful butter made from the fats of the goat. Ghee is once again smeared over the massaged dough before the dough is left overnight to rise.
What makes The Prata Place so outstanding and its food so addictive? Its roti prata, so-named crispy prata for its thin and crisp version, are freshly made by the order - there are no pre-fried pieces waiting to be picked up from the shelves as one would expect from cakes and bread.
Every lump of dough is sufficient for a crispy prata and is tenderly kneaded once more and skillfully flipped in the air with both hands, as a Chinese acrobat would twirl a kerchief, until the dough is stretched and you can see through its translucency in bright light. The thin spread of dough is then laid onto a piping hot rectangular and flat metallic pan which is similar to a Japanese Teppanyaki cooking pan.
The rectangular piece of prata dough turns from translucent white to paper thin brown in a matter of minutes and when ready, is placed on a rectangular silver serving tray. The tray of prata is passed through a rectangular window in the glass wall and served piping hot at your table.
As the cooking area of the restaurant is separated from the dining area by a transparent glass wall, you get to see your order in the making and yet spare your hair and clothes from the grease and smell of fried ghee.
At slightly less than an American dollar apiece, the plain crispy prata is indeed an affordable meal for many. The prata is usually accompanied by a small dish of thick and spicy vegetarian, meat or fish curry gravy. When the prata soaks in the curry gravy, it becomes a morsel anyone will cry for. The prata simply melts in your mouth while your tongue goes into a dance of its own while it is intoxicated by the ingredients in the curry!
If curry does not delight your taste buds, go for one of these home-grown creations which delight both adults and children:
*Chocolate prata is a simply sinful prata with a generous helping of chocolate which runs down your throat! This is a favorite snack, dessert or simple meal to fight those 'one of those days' blues away!
*Milky prata is what those of us who grew up on condensed milk and who loved to lick the gooey milk off our fingers would adore! This is my son's favorite and usual order, being the creature of habit that he is.
*Pineapple prata is another alien pizza for those who love the taste of cooked fruit with fried breads - simply tantalizing!
*Egg prata is another heavenly fare. Fresh egg is lightly beaten, spread over the half-fried prata and then enveloped by the prata when thoroughly cooked. Who would have thought that egg and fried dough would make such a delicious combination - crispy on the outside and springy on the inside?
*If savory prata is your fare, go for mushroom prata, a crispy prata stuffed with a generous helping of sliced button mushroom.
*Chicken floss prata is another meat-filled prata that will satisfy both children and adults as a meal on its own.
If you do not fancy any plain, sweet savory prata, go for Prata Place's thosai, another typical pancake. Thosai is made from a batter consisting of ground rice and Blackgram or Urad dhal. My favorite is the thin and crispy paper thosai, which I eat with lentil gravy, spicy coconut sauce puree and vegetable curry.
Murtabak is another version of fried pancake in which a generous amount of spicy diced meat is folded into the prata. At The Prata Place, take your pick of vegetable, fish, mutton or chicken Murtabak. Do not be deceived by the price: an order feeds two petite Asians without making them feel hungry or stuffed.
Meat dishes are abundant in this unique restaurant. Mutton and chicken are staple meats. Squid or fish cooked in Indian spices and sambal chili is a must for seafood and chili lovers. It goes well with plain or egg prata and rice. Fried chicken, chicken curry, mutton chop and chicken gizzard are other mainstay meat dishes served alongside vegetable curry and rice, plain prata or egg prata.
There is also a less watery version of curry called the Masala if watery curry does not engage your taste buds. You can have Masala egg, Masala Chicken Tikka and even Masala vegetables if you are a vegetarian!
Try the mutton soup. Bread is served alongside a bowl of diced mutton in a tasty soup. The succulent meat is simply heavenly. A bone with marrow accompanies the soup in the bowl. Do not be mistaken it is not for you to bring home to your dog! Bone marrow of the goat happens to be an Indian delicacy. Suck the marrow out of the bone or dig it out using your fork. The marrow would have soaked in the goodness of the soup and tastes spongy and oily.
Select from the equally vast menu of drinks which includes plain or fruit lassi, a mix of milk and syrup called Bandung, milk or plain tea and coffee, coconut juice in its shell and husk and soft drinks.
With so many choices for, you can have all the meals and snacks in a day at the restaurant and not get sick eating there! A typical meal for two costs anything from four American dollars.
Even as you wait to pay your bill, temptations continue with a shelf full of snacks, packets of fried nuts, sweetmeats, putu mayam which is a rice noodle-like mass woven into a flat round shape and eaten with shaved coconut and sugar or curry and papads which are flat fried crackers.
As with many restaurants in Singapore that have gained much public acclaim, The Prata Place is halal-certified. In other words, you will not find liquor or pork products on its grounds. As many Indians converge there for their fare, you will also not find beef on its grounds. The cow, considered a holy deity to Hindus, is meant to be revered and not eaten. Hence, you will find people of all races and religions gathered there. The Prata Place can be found in prominent towns as air-conditioned restaurants as well as outlets occupying just a stall space in coffee shops.
Open from seven in the morning right up to beyond ten at night, you can say you can have breakfast, lunch or dinner there as well as have tea there. A convenient way to get to the more nostalgic restaurant at Upper Thomson Road is to get to the Ang Mo Kio Bus Station and board Bus Service Number 138. Get the bus driver to alert you and let you alight at the bus stop opposite it.
If you miss the stop, do not worry. The same bus will bring you to the Singapore Zoo where you can have a leisurely stroll and exciting view of the animals there. After the visit to the Zoo, hop onto the same bus which happens to be a loop service and stop at the bus stop immediately in front of the shop, this time at the same side of the road. You will find the food at The Prata Place even tastier and a great reward after your long exercise at the Zoo!