Thailand’s former Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra is in Singapore and has eaten at a new Thai restaurant in Orchard Cineleisure.
The ex-leader shared a photo of herself tucking into a meal of tom yum hotpot with MAMA noodles, one of the restaurant’s specialities.
Source: Yingluck Shinawatra on Facebook
Yingluck revealed in a Facebook post on Sunday (4 Feb) that she had visited a Thai restaurant in Orchard the day before.
The establishment that received this honour was ChilChil Thai Street Kitchen, which is newly opened at Orchard Cineleisure.
Source: Google Maps
Taking the place of the defunct Fatburger in December 2023, the eatery serves up “authentic and affordable Thai cuisine” as well as a selection of beers and wines, according to an Instagram post by Cathay Malls announcing the restaurant’s opening.
In her post, Yingluck pined for Thai food, saying: “Home food is the most delicious no matter where we are.”
Thus, every time we’re in a country close to home, we have to eat Thai food to fill in the “missing memories”, she added.
According to photos she shared, she stopped by ChilChil with Moddam, a Thai actor and host.
Source: Yingluck Shinawatra on Facebook
As for the food, Yingluck said she ate “Mama Tom Yum Goong Hotpot”.
From images of the menu posted on Google Maps, it appears that she ordered the “Thai Super Bowl”, a pot of Thailand’s popular MAMA noodles in tom yum broth with ingredients like prawns, mussels and fish. The dish costs S$43.80.
Source: Google Maps
The ex-leader said that it consisted of normal MAMA instant noodles cooked in a hotpot for S$43, or more than 1,000 Thai baht.
As it’s a huge portion, she joked that it had to be “shared with black ants” as the serving was probably too much for the two of them to finish.
Even though she’s not PM any more, Yingluck hopes ChilChil, like all Thai restaurants abroad, will “earn a lot of money”.
That’s because they’re not only promoting Thai cuisine, but they’re also exporting Thai culture to the world.
This means more income for her Thai “brothers and sisters”, she added.
Source: Yingluck Shinawatra on Facebook
Yingluck, 56, is possibly missing Thailand a lot as she’s been a fugitive from her own country since 2017.
After ruling for three years, she was ousted as PM in 2014 by a military coup.
She then fled Thailand in 2017 before being sentenced to five years in prison over a rice subsidy scheme she was accused of mismanaging.
Her brother, Thaksin, was Thai PM from 2001 to 2006 before also being overthrown by a military coup.
He then fled the country in 2006 to avoid a prison sentence for corruption.
The siblings seem to have a penchant for visiting food establishments in Singapore.
In 2018, they were in Singapore together and patronised a beef noodle stall named after Thaksin.
Alas, Thaksin, 74, wasn’t free to visit Singapore this time round — he returned to Thailand in August 2023, shortly after current Thai PM Srettha Thavisin was elected.
He was immediately escorted to court and then to jail to serve an eight-year sentence.
However, his sentence was commuted to one year after a royal pardon. He has also been hospitalised for medical treatment.
He will reportedly be eligible for release on parole this month, reported The Straits Times.
It’s uncertain whether Yingluck will return to her homeland soon.
Also read: Ex-Thai PM Thaksin Visits Beef Noodle Stall Named After Him At Harbourfront
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Featured image adapted from Yingluck Shinawatra on Facebook.
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