The SingTel’s Hawker Heroes versus Chef Gordon Ramsay had finally taken place last evening. And I am proud to say that 2 out of the 3 local dishes (Tian Tian Hainanese Chicken Rice, 328 Katong Laksa and Jumbo Seafood Restaurant Chilli Crab) were won by our hawker heroes. Read on to find out who won (and of course to see Gordon Ramsay pictures).
Here is a poster of the SingTel Hawker Heroes vs Gordon Ramsay.
Thanks to SingTel for the invite, I was able to experience personally the power of Chef Gordon Ramsay, and of course, our Singapore foodies. I got to know that someone actually queued for the free coupon (1,000 coupons) since 1am on Sunday.
The event was held at Newton Food Centre. SingTel actually set up a big tentage just outside the food centre. Ramsay was surrounded with security. Even with Media pass, it was not easy to take a good picture of him. Here is my first encounter with him (abet a little far). He was checking the preparation.
BTW, I need to declare that this post is for his fans. There will be a lot of pictures of him in different angle. I did many close ups of him. So, expect to see some wrinkles (but he carries them well).
Here are the containers for the food. There are 1,000 set of 6 of these containers. Here is the Laksa and Chilli Crab.
And here is the Hainanese Chicken Rice.
There are a lot of people preparing the food. Here is a shot of some of them.
Here are some random shots of Ramsay as he moved around the place. He looked serious in these photos.
Finally, See Toh appeared. He is one of the comperes for the evening. He is asking Jumbo Seafood Restaurant, Mr. Ang Kiam Meng, about the challenge.
Finally (this is really finally), Chef Gordon Ramsay appears before us. You can hear his fans shouting and cheering him.
Here are the local Hawker Heroes with Gordon Ramsay.
A close up of Mr. Ryan Koh of 328 Katong Laksa.
Another shot of Ramsay before the competition begins.
Mr. Allen Lew from SingTel said a few words about the challenge. He took out an air horn to signal the start of the challenge.
Ramsay was there to distribute the food to the participants. He was super friendly to them. Big smiles from him.
But when he started to walk around to check on the preparation, he became super serious.
Here is what everyone did when they received their set of food. And it is (maybe) the Singapore thing to capture the food on camera.
Here is how the food were arranged. They were divided to Hawker Heroes’ side (bottom) and the Ramsay’s side (top).
Nice packaging, BTW.
A shot video of the food.
Some close ups of the food. I did not bother to place the food nicely before I shoot.
Tian Tian Hainanese Chicken Rice
Ramsay’s Chicken Rice
Jumbo Seafood Restaurant Chilli Crab
Ramsay’s Chilli Crab
328 Katong Laksa
Ramsay’s Laksa
We were given 20 minutes to have a closer look at the kitchen. We were not allow to step into it due to hygiene. Here is a mock up of a typical Chicken Rice hawker stall in Singapore.
Close up.
Here is a Ramsay preparing a bowl of Laksa for the media.
Here are the people preparing the special-made trays for the participants.
At the main tentage, there were many familiar faces (local celebrities).
From left: Flying Dutchman, the Muttons (Justin and Vernon A).
A shot of the Muttons (Justin and Vernon A).
As the clock ticked nearer to the dateline (9pm, Sunday time), the queue is still going strong. Here is the area where the results will be announced.
15 minutes before the end of the challenge, See Toh appeared again to prep us for the announcement, together with Pei Fen, Jean Danker and Glenn Ong.
Our local Hawker Heroes appeared.
Sorry for the poor framing. If you had seen the number of people taking pictures/videos, you will understand.
Finally Ramsay appeared.
Interacting with his “competitors”
The programme is “live” on Mio TV. See Toh talking to the camera.
And Ramsay is busy addressing his fans (after they shouted his name).
The moment had arrived. The countdown to close the SMS voting.
While waiting for the results, See Toh was busy interviewing the local celebrities and Ramsay.
Don’t know what did See Toh said to make Glenn Ong come out with this expression. Haha.
Ramsay’s turn.
Thanks to technology, the results is just a paper away.
Everyone is super focused on the results.
The Verdict
Tian Tian Hainanese Chicken Rice versus Ramsay’s Chicken Rice.
Winner: Tian Tian Hainanese Chicken Rice
The moment before the announcement of the Chilli Crab results.
Jumbo Seafood Restaurant Chilli Crab versus Ramsay’s Chilli Crab
Winner: Ramsay’s Chilli Crab
328 Katong Laksa versus Ramsay’s Laksa
Winner: 328 Katong Laksa
The winners were given a gift of appreciation by SingTel executives.
The smile of victory from 328 Katong Laksa.
And here is Ramsay’s with his gift.
The event came to an end. The overall winners are the Singapore Food Lovers. Since when do you have the chance to taste the food from Michelin-starred Chef (Gordon Ramsay) and our favorite local hawker food in the same place (free, thanks to SingTel).
Kudos to Gordon Ramsay for accepting the challenge and also for churning out the food for the challenge even though he barely knew them 2 days ago.
I hope I had captured enough shots to let you have a feel on the event itself.
Here is the Official Press Release of the Challenge if you interested in the actual scores.
Press Release