pianomania: Coronation Plaza

Thai cuisine has become universally popular, and it's no exception in Singapore. However, the first rule is Thai food must be prepared by Thai cooks. That itself is a guarantee of success, and seldom have we encountered a busier Thai restaurant as Hom Aroi Thai Food at Coronation Plaza. Having visited Rida Video Centre, this seemed like the logical choice for dinner. And it was packed.

Lucky to find a table that has just been vacated with a mess of dishes left over by the last patron, we occupied the spot. Ordering from a menu was fuss free, and you paid up front after making food choices. Wait time was not long, and the dishes just came as the crowd steadily builds up. There are many, many students from neighbouring schools, and their presence reassures the notion the food is going to be good. Young people in their masses are seldom wrong. They know where to get good value.

We ordered traditional Thai Chinese dishes - chicken and pork - eaten with rice, and the sine qua non Tom Yum Goong. The redder the better, for me, as long as it's not too sour. The chefs here got it just right, and that was the first dish to be consumed fully. The other dishes were so generous in portions that takeaway was necessary, and we got something to fill the stomach on the next evening.

Classic red tom yum seafood soup
with two big prawns (concealed)

HOM AROI THAI FOOD

587 Bukit Timah Road #03-01A

Coronation Plaza

Singapore 269707

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It's time to say goodbye. For just over 40 years, Rida Video Centre at Coronation Plaza was our go to place to rent movies. On 30 April, it closes for good, a sign of the changing times. With Netflix, streaming video services and YouTube, there is now little need for physical media to be rented or bought, which is why we have not been to this library in ages. It might just be the last surviving video rental shop left in Singapore. We came for one last time to say goodbye.

Rida Video Centre opened in 1985, one of the original shops in Serene Centre at the end of Farrer Road. Located on the ground floor just at the entrance from the car park and opposite McDonald's, it was hard to miss. Its shop window was plastered with video covers from top to bottom, and the door led to a virtual Alladin's cave of movies. In those early days, physical media meant VHS videotapes. As a student, I was one of their many faithful customers, regularly renting James Bond movies (my first exposure to the entire franchise outside of cinemas) and WWF (World Wrestling Federation) videos - Wrestlemania, SummerSlam and the lot. During the 1990s, it later moved to Coronation Plaza where it still is until the end of the month.

Just look at the merch!

I was such a regular that the proprietor Laurel Khoo and his husband Mr Ooi even remembered my membership number, which was 2824. Any new wrestling video was flagged for my interest as soon as it was released. Then came the switch of physical media to the large and unwieldy LaserDisc (LD), the handy low resolution video CD (VCD), later upgraded to Digital Versatile Disc (DVD) and BluRay. I enjoyed the lot, but then came mobile media which finally made physical media obsolete.

You got to hand it to Rida for its longevity. A major video rental franchise that entered Serene Centre soon moved out, simply because it could not match Rida for business, range and accessibility. Laurel and folks were always friendly and informal. There were no paid deposits, nor late fees and there was flexibility in borrowing. They just called you when a high-demand disc was needed back urgently. I will always treasure their friendship and personability. We chatted often about family, movie trends and medicine. Laurel enjoys a well-deserved retirement, where she can spend more time with her five grandchildren in Singapore and USA.

At our final visit, we had the option of getting our deposit (which amounted to $55) returned or we could buy her stock at heavily discounted prices. We chose the latter, and now have many hours of movie-viewing (repeated one must add) to enjoy. Rida Video and Laurel, we will miss all of you.