Elderly diners ‘adopt’ Australian influencer for hawker food tour at Old Airport Road Food Centre
An Australian travel influencer won the hearts of a group of elderly patrons at Old Airport Road Food Centre, who introduced her to their favourite dishes there.
Amy Lyons, who goes by Blondie in China on social media and boasts over 597,000 subscribers on YouTube, has been travelling to China for the past 10 years, documenting food finds from her travels.
Her recent posts feature hidden gems in Singapore, including two videos made in collaboration with local competitive eater Zermatt Neo.
In a post on May 15, she walks through Old Airport Road Food Centre and is recognised by an elderly man who approaches her, saying he is a loyal fan.
Ms Lyons sits with the group of three, as one of them explains that the hawker centre is known for oyster omelette and chendol.
The video then cuts to her asking the group about the dessert, with a bowl of chendol placed in front of her. The elderly man provides a detailed explanation of gula melaka, a type of palm sugar made from coconut sap.
He describes the red beans as soft and tender, while pointing out the green jelly strands known as chendol.
Taking a bite, Ms Lyons gives him a thumbs up and says it is “rich” and “sweet but not too sweet”.
“I wanna eat this every day in Singapore that I’m here,” she adds, prompting the group to break into laughter.
Their next stop is an oyster omelette stall, Xing Li Cooked Food, where she documents the hawker preparing the dish.
She describes it as “salty and umami, simple and a little bit spicy”.
“Singapore uncles adopted me for a day and showed me their fav food spots! Thank you Unolau, Andrew, and Simon!” she added in the post’s caption.
Netizens applaud ‘wholesome’ interaction
The viral video drew over 1,100,000 views on Instagram, as netizens gushed over their spontaneous food adventure.
“You know you’ve made it when the uncles include you,” one netizen wrote, while another added that “seeking her out to share food and interests is their love language”.
Others commended her for “attracting kind people and delicious food”, and some described the interaction as “the cutest thing”.
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