Life

Sunday, May 29, 2016 | The Sunday Times

C
Managing Art in a cup
money Baristas
How get creative
Singaporeans with latte art
studying
overseas do it
C2&3 C20&21

B IG
EATERS
Competitive eating
contests are getting more
common, with restaurants
and malls organising them
to draw crowds. Who takes
part in these challenges?
Kenneth Goh checks out
the scene. C4&5

Competitive eater Sarah Ow polishes off bowl after bowl of ramen.

DESIGN: CAROL GAN ST PHOTOS: ALPHONSUS CHERN, LIM SIN THAI

Great savings await this

Shopping Season

AMEXNETWORK.COM.SG/GSS

From now till 14 August 2016, take your savings to the next level with your American Express Card at our featured merchants below. For more offers together with full Terms and Conditions,
please visit amexnetwork.com.sg/gss

10 AT CLAYMORE CAFFBENE CRUMPLER DANCING CRAB DEJEWEL GALLERIA DUNKIN DONUTS

15% savings 20% savings 10% savings 10% savings 50% savings 10% savings
on lunch and dinner buffet with a min. spend of S$30 on regular-priced items on la carte food menu with on Diamond Flower Collection with a min. spend of S$20
Pan Pacic Orchard, Singapore VivoCity #02-150 ION Orchard #B3-62 Tel: 6273 3084 min. spend of S$120 jewellery ION Orchard #B4-60 Tel: 6509 8511
Paragon #04-43 Tel: 6273 3084
Not valid with other promotions, discounts, offers or
Rafes City Shopping Centre #B1-23 Tel: 6273 3084
VivoCity #01-94 Tel: 6273 3084
Wheelock Place #02-06 Tel: 6273 3084
15% savings vouchers and certied diamonds unless otherwise stated.
VivoCity #01-206 Tel: 6732 7374
on la carte food menu with min. spend of S$200
Orchard Central #07-14/15 Tel: 6509 1878
The Grandstand #01-20/21 Tel: 6466 3303
VivoCity #03-10 Tel: 6222 7377

GINZA BAIRIN GNC GUKSU RESTAURANT JPOT HOTPOT SINGAPORE STYLE KIMCHI KOREAN RESTAURANT LARRY JEWELRY

20% savings 15% savings 10% savings 35% savings 10% savings 25% savings
on total bill on regular-priced items on total bill on la carte menu on total bill on regular-priced items
Valid on Monday to Thursday only, excluding public holidays. Not valid with ongoing promotions, VIP privileges, discount Suntec City Mall #02-385 Tel: 6334 7950 Valid on Monday to Friday, 12pm to 5pm only. Suntec City Mall #02-387 Tel: 6337 7811 ION Orchard #03-04 Tel: 6235 5848
cards & vouchers. Not applicable for nett-priced items such
ION Orchard #B1-39/40/41/42 Tel: 6509 8101 VivoCity #01-53
as foodstuff.
Tampines 1 #03-16
HarbourFront Centre #01-53 Tel: 6270 0231 Parkway Parade #B1-17
ION Orchard #B4-44 Tel: 6509 8168
Parkway Parade #B1-K1 Tel: 6447 6029
Suntec City Mall #B1-103 Tel: 6837 0939
VivoCity #B2-18 Tel: 6376 9985

LOVE & CO. MY DINING ROOM SK JEWELLERY ST. MARC CAF THAI ACCENT YUEN LOONG WATCH

10% savings 20% savings 15% savings 10% savings 10% savings 25% savings
on LVC Lovemark Solitaire on la carte food menu on regular-priced ALLOVE Diamond on total bill with a min. spend on total bill storewide
Collection Suntec City Mall #02-314/316 Tel: 6238 6898 Jewellery Collection of S$18 in a single receipt Valid for dine-in only. Offer is not applicable with other Parkway Parade #B1-92 Tel: 6344 6864
ION Orchard #B2-64 Tel: 6509 8633 Valid only at ION Orchard & VivoCity outlet. Valid for VivoCity, Marina Square and Rafes City outlets in-house set menus, kids menu, bento menu and alcoholic Parkway Parade #03-L1 Tel: 6344 6864
Plaza Singapura #01-07 Tel: 6835 7533 only. Offers is only valid for dine-in and takeaway. beverages.
ION Orchard #B2-61 Tel: 6509 8733
Suntec City Mall #01-368 Tel: 6333 1433 VivoCity #02-145/146 Tel: 6376 9282
VivoCity #02-180 Tel: 6376 8033 VivoCity #01-108/109/110 Tel: 6222 2309
Tampines Mall #01-25 Tel: 6789 3733
Marina Square #02-105 Tel: 6338 8606
VivoCity #01-145/146 Tel: 6376 9033
Rafes City Shopping Centre #B1-44M Tel: 6338 8043
Westgate #01-16 Tel: 6465 9233

Dont have an American Express Card?

Sign up now and enjoy a first-year fee waiver*. To enjoy this offer: Visit amex.co/gss Call +65 6392 5701 Pop by any American Express booth *Terms & Conditions apply.
Terms & Conditions: Offers are available when payment is made with the American Express Card, including American Express Corporate Cards and American Express Cards issued in Singapore by DBS Bank Limited, United Overseas Bank Limited, Citibank Singapore Limited and EZ-Link Pte Ltd. Prices listed may be subject to service charge and prevailing government taxes
where applicable. Offers cannot be exchanged for cash or used in conjunction with other promotional programmes, offers, discount cards, vouchers or VIP privileges, unless otherwise stated. MerchantsTerms and Conditions apply please check with respective stores for complete details. American Express acts solely as a payment provider and is not responsible or liable in the
event that such services, activities or benets are not provided or fullled by the merchant. Card Members acknowledge that any disputes in relation to the above are to be directed solely to the merchant providing such services, activities or benets. American Express International Inc. is not responsible for the endorsement of any service or product featured. Merchants are solely
responsible for the fullment of all offers.American Express International Inc. and the business establishments reserve the right to change the Terms and Conditions at any time without prior notice.All information is correct at the time of publication.Visit amexnetwork.com.sg for more details. For dining privileges, privileges are not applicable on eve of Public Holidays, Public Holidays,
the rst 15 days of Chinese New Year and special occasions such as Valentines Day, Mothers Day and Fathers Day, unless otherwise stated.
American Express International Inc., (UEN S68FC1878J) 10 Marina Boulevard, #15-00 Marina Bay Financial Centre Tower 2, Singapore 018983. americanexpress.com.sg Incorporated with limited liability in the state of Delaware, U.S.A. Registered Trademark of American Express Company. Copyright 2016 American Express Company.
 C4 | The Sunday Times | Sunday, May 29, 2016 Sunday, May 29, 2016 | The Sunday Times | C5
Life Features Features Life
Meet Singapores She eats
top eater enough
for three
Scrawny freelance photographer Ng Chin Sheng (left),
37, is Singapores No. 1 eater.
In 2012, he represented Singapore in the international
finals of CP Biggest Eater Competition organised by
frozen food brand CP Foods. When Ms Sarah Ow cooks for her
Eventually beating fast and furious eaters from husband and herself, she typically
around the world, he wolfed down 161 steamed cooks enough for four people and
wontons in eight minutes to emerge first in the regional ends up eating 70 per cent of the
male eaters category. food.
In August last year, the bachelor made the Singapore The 28-year-old flight attendant
Book of Records for the fastest consumption of xiao says: My husband is a small eater
long bao (steamed pork dumplings) in 10 minutes. His and I really hate to see food being
number? 109. wasted, so I finish up whats left on
In the last 12 years, he has participated in more than the plates.
100 eating competitions here and abroad. The couple do not have children.
Mr Ng, who is 1.74m tall and weighs 50kg, says: I Despite her voracious appetite,
have never excelled in a sport when I was young. This is she did not think much of it until
the first sport in which I can channel my competitive she came across a Japanese eating
energy and do well. challenge on television, which
His forte is speed-eating, but he is also good with featured competitive eater Angela
spicy food. At last Sundays So Spicy Eating Challenge Sato from Japan going on a binge-
at JCube Mall, he gobbled 150g of noodles tossed with eating trail.
spices that included chilli padi and Sichuan chilli sauce Ms Ow says: She looked so slim
within 19 seconds. and pretty and could eat so much. I
He has a serious training regimen. To stretch his wanted to be like her.
stomach, he downs more than 2.5 litres of water within Intrigued by such contests, she
five minutes three times a week and records his went online to search for similar
timings. He increases the volume of water every six ones here and ended up having a go
months. at a 3.8kg chicken platter challenge
To boost his tolerance for spicy food, he buys chilli at 289 Xiang Ji Chicken Rice stall in
sauces such as Thai birds eye chilli sauce from an Bukit Batok last month. She
online speciality shop as those available in super- polished the dish off within 28 min-
markets here are not spicy enough. He eats a few utes.
spoonfuls of the chilli at one go for practice. Two weeks later, she created a
He also orders three to four cartons of frozen buzz in the Singapore social media
wontons at one shot from supermarkets, to practise scene when she demolished a 3.2kg
swallowing them at lightning speed. burger with fries at Southern Ameri-
Joining competitions no longer gives me the thrills, can restaurant The Beast in Jalan
he says. It has become second nature for me to Klapa in 43 minutes.
compete. She also ate 10 packets of nasi
He is fully aware of the pitfalls of competitive eating, lemak within an hour for a radio
from choking to having stomach cramps. He says: show last month.
Over the years, I have almost experienced whatever The 1.68m-tall Ms Ow, whose
can go wrong in competitions, so I am not afraid of weight fluctuates between 48kg Despite being aware of the health ment of collecting a tattoo from In a recent
anything. and 52kg, says: I want to see how risks and feeling hungry all the every country that I visit, she says. personal
Despite being older than most participants, his far I can push myself to my limits of time, she does not have an challenge,
appetite for competitive eating is insatiable. Top of his eating. It is only when I am pushing exercise regimen. Toughest challenge: Eating Ms Sarah Ow did
bucket list is participating in the famed Nathans Hot myself to the extreme that I can On her secret to staying in shape, seven bowls of ramen at a go. I not manage to
Dog Eating Contest in New York. He says: It is only by experience life to the fullest. she says she has her very mobile didnt know I had to consume such finish eating all
entering competitions that you can push your limits. To train for the contests, she job to thank. a huge amount of soup, which filled seven bowls of
wolfs down four foot-long Cold Cut I have no time to eat on flights me up. ramen. ST PHOTO:
Toughest challenge: Finishing 11/2 portions of Trio sandwiches from deli chain and walk a lot up and down the It was also quite stuffy in the ALPHONSUS CHERN
Spaghetti From Hell at Western restaurant Southwest Subway within nine minutes as my aisles to serve passengers. Im fast- restaurant so I wasted some time
Tavern in Boon Lay Way within 10 minutes without post-dinner snack. This helps to ing and doing a workout. drying my forehead with tissue
drinking water. The spices included ghost pepper, hone her coordination skills in She adds that she plans to go for paper. I am quite a vainpot, but I
which gave me such a shock. After the challenge, I handling food and taking gulps of eating competitions during her rest need to learn to be less conscious of
vomited and my stomach was in extreme pain. water efficiently. days abroad. It beats the excite- my looks during these challenges.
ST PHOTO: KUA CHEE SIONG

Chomping to win Eating challenges

Competitive eating as a sport is
gaining a serious following here
with more events and challengers
Kenneth Goh
The clock is ticking and flight
attendant Sarah Ow is more than
halfway through her seventh bowl
of ramen when she suddenly sits
back. Sweat is beading on her fore-
head and her jeans are unbuttoned.
Her friends cheer her on. They
suggest she move her body and try
to burp.
Clenching her fists, the slender
1.68m-tall 28-year-old eats for
another four minutes and then,
without warning, throws up on the
table.
Welcome to the thrills and spills
world of competitive eating, where
participants risk indigestion, vomit-
ing and stomach cramps to scarf
down the maximum amount of
food within a certain time.
Seems like a joyless task? Proba-
bly, for the uninitiated and modest
of appetite.
And making it more puzzling, the
rewards are humble too. Diners
usually enjoy the meal on the house if
they demolish the food within a
stipulated time. The winner may
take home vouchers or a small cash
prize.
Nonetheless, in the past five
years, there has been a growing
appetite for such contests, from
once or twice a year to once a
month these days.
orlevel ofspicinessthey cantolerate.
Regular competitors say they do
not take part for the love of food.
Freelance photographer Ng Chin
Sheng, 37, a competitor for 12 years,
says: When I am competing, my
minds reciting the workflow: eat,
chew, swallow. If you can taste the
food, it means you are too slow.
Neither are they in it for the
prizes usually dining vouchers,
electronic devices or a few hundred
dollars cash.
IT consultant Kent Phoa, 40, says
he was lured by the prize vouchers
when he took part in his first con-
test in 2007. He left the scene to
get married and returned last year
to check out the new crop of eaters.
He says: I dont bother to find out
what the prizes are. Joining these
contests is a way to catch up with
the competition. The newer eaters
are faster and eat on a bigger scale.
Like in any other sport, competi-
tive eating gives participants an
adrenaline rush from the race, the
challenge of testing their physical
limits and pride at possessing and
honing a skill in this case, relent-
less eating or a high tolerance of
spicy food.
Gaming assistant Alvin Chen,
who declined to give his age, has
been eating competitively for four
years and says winning boosts his
self-confidence. He had accidental
training in his last job in outdoor
sales, where his lunch breaks were
short and he had to eat fast.
When I am competing,
my minds reciting the
workflow: eat, chew,
swallow. If you can
taste the food, it
means you are too slow.
Personal trainer Zermatt Neo, 28,
who has participated in more than
30 contests in the past three years
both here and overseas, is driven by
the thrill of competing and getting
bragging rights if he wins.
With the physical discipline
required of his day job, he keeps in
shape by hitting the gym six times a
week. His daily diet consists mainly
of vegetables and lean meats,
although on his cheat days, he
enjoys eating at buffets.
The competitive eating scene
here is turning professional, with
the setting up of Food League Singa-
pore, an events firm that helps
eateries organise challenges. It is in
talks with 10 eateries and gets paid
up to $4,000 to organise a challenge.
It also manages a team of eaters,
including Mr Neo, Ms Ow and
Mr Chen, sending them to relevant
events and coaching them on tech-
niques to speed up their game.
Food League Singapore founder
Sean Lee, 34, a competitive eater
himself, says these events are good
marketing tools for restaurants.
Our food challenge videos usually
go viral as people are curious and
will watch till the end to see if the
eater finishes the food.
Malls and restaurants which hold
such events agree. JCube mall has
been organising spicy noodle chal-
lenges for the past two years. Its
centre manager, Ms Maggie Chua,
says these events increase visitor
traffic by more than 10 per cent.
Western food restaurant South-
west Tavern in Boon Lay Way gets
about 20 challengers a week for its
Spaghetti From Hell contest, featur-
ing pasta tossed with fiery ghost
pepper and Trinidad scorpion pep-
per. Owner Andrew Koh, 40, says:
My business has grown by 15 per
cent despite our non-central
location.
For the past four years, Peperoni
The dish becomes a talking point,
with more people signing up for the
challenge over the years.
Medical professionals, however,
frown on competitive eating.
Ms Jennifer Shim, a dietitian with
Singapore General Hospital, says
swallowing food without adequate
chewing can lead to indigestion.
Overeating can cause a spike in
blood sugar levels which, in turn,
leads to fatigue.
Dr Yim Heng Boon, a senior gastro-
enterologist with Mount Elizabeth
Novena Hospital, says serious side
effects include tearing of the gut
wall, choking and water intoxica-
tion from gulping large amounts of
water to hasten the food passage,
which can lead to nausea, muscle
cramps and seizures.
He says: Long-term side effects
include gastroparesis, or slowing of
stomach contraction from the
frequent stretching of the stomach
wall due to sudden ingestion of
large amounts of food.
Other problems include loss of
satiety, the bodys signal to the
brain that it is full and one should
stop eating. Dr Asim Shabbir, senior
consultant and director of the
Centre of Obesity Management and
SurgeryatNationalUniversity Hospi-
tal, says loss of satiety results in
weight gain and problems such as
obesity and diabetes.
Despite the health risks, most
competitive eaters say they know
their limits and space out their
competitions. Mr Ng says: How
often does one have the chance to
perform such crazy acts? These
competitive eating achievements
are something I can show to my
grandchildren in future.
Meanwhile, it is back to the draw-
ing board for Ms Ow. She failed to
finish her seventh bowl of ramen as
fast as she could, but it had only a
few strands of noodles and some
To
watch
the
competitive
eaters in action,
go to http://
str.sg/4JsF
ST PHOTO: LIM YAOHUI
Looking a
mess when
gobbling
up food
In his competitive eating career, he
has devoured wheel-sized pizzas
and kilograms of chicken rice, so it
might be surprising to find out that
Mr Zermatt Neo had a weak
stomach when he was young.
When in primary school, he often
suffered indigestion. Unable to
handle solid food, he ate a lot of
porridge and still had frequent
bouts of diarrhoea.
Fast forward to today and the
channel, Zermatt Neo, which has
more than 9,000 subscribers.
Some of his recent food challenge
videos include him devouring, on
separate occasions, a 3kg platter of
nasi lemak, a 4.5kg bowl of laksa
and 20 fish burgers.
He also gets paid to appear at and
take on such challenges, getting a
fee ranging from $500 to $1,000.
Earlier this week, he took up a 1kg
ribeye steak challenge at Big Berns
American Grill in Toa Payoh North
and finished a thick slab of meat
and four side dishes, such as baked
potatoes and baked beans, within
eight minutes.
How does all this square with his
day job and six-pack?
Well, he pumps iron in the gym
six times a week. His regular meals
are filled with vegetables and lean
meat. And he goes for health check-
ups twice a year.
Mr Neo, who is 1.76m tall and
weighs 65kg, says competitive eat-
ing is a dangerous sport. There are
no rules or guidelines for this sport
ramen-eating competition at
Japanese restaurant Ramen Cham-
pion in Bugis Plus. On a whim, he
did and came up tops after slurping
11 bowls of ramen in under 20
minutes.
A year later, he won a beef-bowl
eating competition organised by
Japanese fast-food chain Yoshi-
noya in The Philippines. He ate
more than eight bowls in 15
minutes. It was then that he decided
to get serious in the sport.
Mr Neo, who is single, says he
receives his fair share of attention
from female fans, who turn up at
his eating challenges or leave
messages of encouragement on his
Facebook page.
Asked if women are attracted to
him because of his competitive eat-
ing glory, he says: I think it is quite
a turn-off as I look like a mess when
I am gobbling down all the food.
Toughest challenge: I ate a whole
3.5kg buttercream vanilla cake on a
live television show in 35 minutes.
THE BEAST BURGER
CHALLENGE
The 3.2kg burger comprises a
grilled beef patty, pulled pork
and fried chicken topped with
coleslaw and lettuce. It also
comes with a bucket of sweet
potato fries. Finish the meal
within an hour and it is on the
house. Only three people have
succeeded since the challenge
was introduced three years ago.
Where: The Beast, 17 Jalan
Klapa
Open: 5pm to midnight
(Monday to Wednesday and
Saturday), 5pm to 1am
(Thursday and Friday),
10am to 5pm (Sunday)
Price: $125
Info: Call 6295-0017 or
go to thebeast.sg
MEGA CHICKEN RICE
CHALLENGE
This gigantic platter, which
feeds seven people, consists
of 800g of chicken on
a 3kg bed of rice. Get a free
feast if you finish the meal
within 40 minutes. Only 10
portions are available daily.
Where: 289 Xiang Ji Roasted
Delights, Block 395H Bukit
Batok West Avenue 5, 03-01
Open: 7am to 5.30pm daily,
closed on Monday or Tuesday
every fortnight
Price: $28
Info: Go to
www.facebook.com/
289XiangJi
SPAGHETTI FROM HELL
Love spicy food? Try the
Level 18 version of the dish,
which has 200g of pasta tossed
with fiery spices including
ghost peppers from India and
Trinidad Scorpion Butch T
pepper from Trinidad and
Tobago, and chilli padi.
Challengers have to pay for the
dish, but if they manage to
finish it within 10 minutes
without drinking water, they
can win either $100 worth of
dining vouchers from the
restaurant or two towers of
Heineken draught beer.
Where: Southwest Tavern,
8 Boon Lay Way, Tradehub 21,
01-33

At least 10 eateries are offering
food challenges, which can be
broadly categorised into three
types. Contestants compete on the
amount of food eaten, speed of eating
MR NG CHIN SHENG, 37, who has been
participating in eating contests for 12 years
Pizzeria has been organising the
XXL eating challenge. Contestants
need to eat a 21-inch pizza, the diame-
terofacartyre,within45minutes.
Group manager Adrian Tan says:
pieces of meat left. ripped personal trainer is an eating
She says of her personal chal- machine.
lenge: I am up to doing it again. Every week, the 28-year-old
posts two to three videos of his
kengohsz@sph.com.sg eating challenges on his YouTube
and a lot of how I am training
comes from experimenting.
His first experience of competi-
tive eating was in 2013, when his
friend dared him to sign up for a
The cake was dense and heavy and
high in sugar. It was one of the rare
challenges where I felt sick after
that and had to rest for a few days
before feeling better again.
Open: 11am to midnight daily
Price: $26++
Info: Call 6515-4303 or go to
southwesttavern.com.sg