I HAD the pleasure of taking Anthony Bourdain around again for makan (I've done so for many other international foodies, writers and food show host, but I can't easily use the word 'pleasure' on many occasions).

He was in town last week to film his Singapore episode of No Reservation, which airs on the Discovery Travel and Living Channel.

Tony really is an 'anything-also-can-but- don't-bullshit-me' kind of guy, which is my kind of guy.

It all started with an innocuous e-mail from his producer asking if I could help string some ideas here for his show based on his new format, adding that the broadcasters like some of that 'gritty element' that gives character to any city or location.

South-east Asia, especially Vietnam and Singapore, ranks high on his list of favourite makan places worldwide.

I dug deep, knowing he'd 'been-here-done-and-ate-that' seven times before and had even written about having steamed shark's head at Macpherson Road with me in The New York Times.

I gave some ideas and noted some of his off-camera reflections and thoughts.

HILL STREET TAI WAH BAK CHOR MEE
Blk 466, Crawford Lane, Tai Wah Eating House.
Open 9.30am to 9pm, except Mondays

This was our first stop and right off, he pulled out a file on Singlish which he has been researching on the Internet.

After his pathetic attempts at uttering 'the noodles very the can, lah' and 'I simply bo chup', his local guests and I felt he should just stick to 'shiok' as he raved about the black vinegar being agreeable with the noodles.

SUP TULANG AT HAJI KADIR
#B1-15, Golden Mile Food Centre, 505 Beach Road.
Open noon to 2am, closed on Wednesdays

Despite the fact that he is a recognised figure with foodies at the hawker centre, Tony was thrilled that some would just walk up to him and show him how to properly knock the slivers of marrow off the mutton bone... while the camera was running.

'They did not care that they were interrupting, but cared that I was not doing it right!' he said.

TIAN TIAN CHICKEN RICE
Stall 10, Maxwell Food Centre
Open 11am to 8pm, closed on Mondays

Tony wrote in his New York Times piece about how crazy Singaporeans are about food and recalled how he had been jeered at by 300 diners at a five-star hotel here three years ago.

'I was booed when it was exposed that I had never eaten chicken rice during my many visits here before. It was so cool, you gotta love that.'

He adores Tian Tian's chicken rice and when it was revealed that I will be taking them up to New York for a Singapore Day food carnival in Manhattan in April, he was so pleased, he happily shared that I'll get a chance to see his newborn baby girl due that month with his girlfriend Ottavia Busia.

I was thrilled for him becoming a first-time father at age 50.

STEAMED SHARK'S HEAD AND CHILLI CRABS
Tian Jin Hai Seafood, Stall 13, Jackson Kopitiam, 39 Macpherson Road
Open 5pm to 2am daily

He loved the steamed shark's head the first time I took him there two years ago. He just wanted to put it on film this time and watch chef Ah Heng chop the heads at the Jurong Fishery Port.

But what blew him away, and it tops this trip, were the chilli crabs - two huge Sri Lanka meat stunners languishing in their special chilli sauce.

I showed him how he must first dunk the crispy mantou (fried buns) in the sauce as a build-up to the tasting sensation ahead. He did and was momentarily stunned and reacted with his signature superlative monologue thereafter.

OLD RETIREES AT REDHILL FOOD MARKET

I suggested that he just had to spend some time with these ubiquitous old retired folk happily whiling their hours away at food centres and coffeeshops over beer and finger food all day long.

We spoke about casinos, karaoke and the subtle art of staying happy and keeping friends till you're 80, till we were all flushed over eight bottles of beer with a platter of roast pork.

Then one of the uncles belted out a Hokkien song for Tony, to which he said: 'I wanna be like them when I grow up.'

You are on track, pal. Buzz me, so I can order the roasted duck necks to go with the beers.

Makansutra, founded by KF Seetoh, is a company that celebrates Asian food culture and lifestyle. It publishes food guides in and around the region, produces food television series, develops interactive mobile content and services, operates food courts and eateries, organises food tours and events, and consults on culinary concepts.

It operates the breezy and open-air retro push-cart hawker centre, Makansutra Gluttons Bay, at the Esplanade Mall. Makansutra offers its searchable listings with discounts in its 3G mobile services for subscribers to local telcos. Its 6th edition of Makansutra Singapore 2007 is on sale now. Visit www.makansutra.com.