Chill out at Kids Kampong & Soulout

Daddy & Mummy have long heard and read about the Kids Kampong at Pasir Ris Farmway, but with most of our weekends being so fully packed with activities, they were hard-pressed to find time to bring us down.

So it was thanks to Mother's Day a few weeks back (yes, I know this post is rather belated) that we finally got a chance to experience the kampong life.

I do apologise for di-di's & my constipated expressions. The sun was stinging our eyes, and yet Daddy insisted on snapping a photo of us.

So what can one expect with a place like Kids Kampong?

Lots of animals, of course! Particularly the longkang fishing bit.

Be warned though - Daddy said it's rather pricey. $14 got us each 1 bucket, 1 net, 1 full hour of trying desperately to fill our buckets with fishes, 2 packets of animal feed to feed the animals in the mini zoo, a bottle of water and a cup of ice cream.

Well, that sounded rather okay to us. Or maybe that was because we blinded by our fish-catching enthusiasm.

Well for starters, it looked easy enough before di-di & I actually attempted it. But it wasn't.

I was flinging my arms and legs all over the place just to catch one solitary fry but it wasn't to be. Di-di was flicking the water all over the place and still no fish. Suffice to say, there was an urgent need for a change in strategy.

So up stepped Daddy who took over the nets and showed us the way. Not wanting to be outdone, di-di & I eventually waved Daddy away and succeeded in netting a few fishes on our own! For the record, I caught 7 fishes while di-di nabbed 5. Not too bad I reckon.

And what was mei-mei, who was without a net, to do all these while?

Any surprise if I said she was busy posing for the camera?

Well, she did demand for a net towards the end but I think she kind of expected the fish to magically fall into her net when she waved it vigorously in the air.

Notice that Mummy was conspicuously absent in all the fishing photos above. She isn't exactly a huge fan of fishes, though the only type of fish she loves are those that are dead. Better yet if they come in a crispy & golden brown form, complete with fries.

No matter then, for there was still the mini zoo.

If you are like Mummy, who is not into fishing, then you can just pay $1 as an entrance fee to the mini zoo. And it comes with a mix of animal food to feed the koi, rabbits, ducks and chickens there.

The fishes in the koi pond were practically leaping out of the water whenever we neared them. I figured they were extremely friendly and happy to see us. Hmmm... either that, or they were just plain hungry.

Di-di & I held the food pellets in our hands and let the fishes eat right out of our palms. Rather itchy and slimy experience. And it was an experience that mei-mei wanted to emulate as well.

As dinner time neared, we brought our fish prisoners to the fish packing counter where an uncle helped us to transfer the fishes into a plastic bag. It was a good thing too, as our tummies had started to rumble. And it was even better that our dinner makan place was just beside Kids Kampong!

Soulout - an eatery located in such an ulu (or rustic) place.

And it is precisely this sense of rustic feel that make Soulout such a cosy tze char eating place.

The sunset looked particularly enchanting, although we were paid no attention to it. Blame the ice cream from Kids Kampong.

But for the adults, it was the place where they decided to celebrate Mother's Day for all the mummies in Por-por's side of the family.

And with such a large crowd of us, we had every excuse to try a bit of everything on the menu.

Har Cheong Gai

Mee Goreng

Chilli Crab

Fish Head Curry

Some claypot dish, which Daddy had forgotten.

Food-wise, Daddy & Mummy thought it was quintessentially tze char fare. Decent, but nothing spectacular. The har cheong gai was probably the most outstanding of the lot and it should be the first thing you should order if you are dining there.

Food prices are rather reasonable, ranging from $6.90 for a plate of Mee Goreng to $35 for 4 small crabs. But one thing that Soulout trumps the rest of the other tze char kopitiams is the chill factor of the surroundings.

Somehow, it felt as if we were dining at some place across the causeway, without the need to having actually pass through customs.

I guess the adults must have enjoyed the sumptuous dinner then and I think I speak for di-di & mei-mei too when I say we do not mind going back again soon!

That is provided we get to go Kids Kampong too, of course. Heh.

Useful Information:

KIDS KAMPONG
No 11, Pasir Ris Farmway 1, Aqua Fauna Centre, Singapore 519355
Opening hours: 9am to 6pm daily
Tel: 6583 9030
Website: http://www.prkidskampong.com
Directions:
Public Transport - From Pasir Ris bus Interchange, Take bus service number 88 or 359. Alight at Pasir Ris Drive 12, (Stop Number: 77261) which is the 6th stop (Include Interchange). Walk another 7 minutes before you reach Aqua Fauna Centre.

Driving - From TPE, exit into Pasir Ris Dr 12. Go straight till end of Dr 12, you will pass by a prominent building (SSMC Factory). At the bend, turn left into FARMWAY 1.

SOULOUT @ FARMWAY 1
No 11, Pasir Ris Farmway 1, Aqua Fauna Centre, Singapore 519355
Opening hours: Mon - Thu: 4:00 pm - 1:00 am; Fri: 4:00 pm - 3:00 am; Sat - Sun: 11:00 am - 3:00 am
Tel: 9367 0308 (Takes reservations)
Website: http://www.facebook.com/pages/SoulOut-Farmway-1/115873585983