HE EATS, HE SHOOTS

A doctor with a penchant for local food and author of popular food blog ieatishootipost.sg Major (MAJ) (Dr) (NS) Leslie Tay has one hand on his stethoscope and the other firmly on his chopsticks.

Many will find MAJ (Dr) (NS) Tay familiar. In fact, most will know him as the writer of local food blog ieatishootipost.sg, which was set up over five years ago.

He has devoted countless hours to scouring the island for the best hawker fare, and he contends that street food is Singapore's soul. "It's our culture and it tells the story of Singapore. Hawker food will always be in fashion, no matter what," asserted MAJ (Dr) (NS) Tay.

As the saying goes, "absence makes the heart grow fonder" and this was precisely the case for MAJ (Dr) (NS) Tay, who returned to Singapore hungrier than before for hawker food after spending six years in Australia pursuing his medical degree.

Back to serve

Those six years, as it turned out, were formative to his mad love for local Singapore food. Southeast Asian food is rare and expensive in Australia, he said, and even if you found a restaurant which served Singapore food, it often did not taste like the real deal.

Those who have spent time away from Singapore will agree with MAJ (Dr) (NS) Tay when he says: "You're not going to come back here and head straight to a French or Italian restaurant. Most likely, you ll hit the hawker centres first!"

After attaining his medical qualifications and returning to Singapore, MAJ (Dr) (NS) Tay was posted to the 3rd Combat Support Hospital as part of his National Service (NS) duties. He continues his training as a doctor within the Singapore Armed Forces Medical Corps.

"Medicine is relevant to Singapore s defence. If our soldiers are out there fighting, there will be casualties and they need to know that they have a very competent field hospital there to provide treatment," MAJ (Dr) (NS) Tay said of his role as a military doctor.

"Hopefully we will never need to deploy. But we re ready, no matter what," he added. And, in a way, he views his foodie role as a kind of National Service.

Inspiring food

"I feel that younger Singaporeans are losing the affinity with hawker food that I had, and still have," said MAJ (Dr) (NS) Tay, who is 41 years old. Through the blog, he hopes to inspire younger Singaporeans to find out more about the country s culinary history and culture.

While it is hard to measure youth s uptake on the educational value of his blog, the hawkers are certainly happy. Many have reported long queues after being featured on his blog; something MAJ (Dr) (NS) Tay calls the "ieat" effect.

In addition, almost all of the monies collected from those who attend his workshops on various topics - like beef appreciation and making roti prata - are channelled towards charitable causes such as building schools in Sarawak, Malaysia.

For those efforts, MAJ (Dr) (NS) Tay partners with Goducate, a non-profit organisation that aims to provide access to education for poorer Asians.

"The fees that my readers pay to attend these workshops go straight to helping others. It's a tangible and real way of doing good," he explained, "and education is one of the key things that help to alleviate poverty."

Guide to hawker fare

On the back of positive responses to his blog, MAJ (Dr) (NS) Tay decided to compile some of his posts into his first book The End of Char Kway Teow and Other Hawker Mysteries.

Besides listing some of the best places to find local dishes in Singapore, the book details the history behind each dish, such as how curry puffs are a Chinese adaptation of a Malay adaptation of an Indian adaptation of a western snack!

"That's just the way we are, a rojak (hotchpotch) of cultures that come together beautifully," he said.

On the title of the book, it was because some of the famous hawker dishes are about to face extinction due to several factors.

MAJ (Dr) (NS) Tay says that the long hours and laborious nature of preparing good hawker food might hark the death knell of local fare as we know it.

Best to keep in mind the doctor s favourite refrain on his blog as you read the book: "Never waste your calories on yucky food!"

"Food is for enjoyment, but everyone has a greater role in life than to look after their own stomachs." - MAJ (Dr) (NS) Tay on using his blog as an avenue to support charitable purposes.