Chili crab. [Photo by Wang Chao/China Daily]

We went to a restaurant near the old Singapore airport and had a wonderful outdoor dinner sharing four chili crabs. Although the restaurant offered plastic gloves, it still got very messy.

As we had to grab the legs with fingers and lick the sauces on the bone, the gravy was all over our hands and faces. During the 40 minutes of gnawing and sucking, the four chatty girls on the table suddenly became very quiet, as our taste buds were brought into wonderland.

Strangelymy Singapore friends told me thatmany best chili crabs were sold in coffeeshops. They are not the Starbucks-like coffeeshops, but small to mid-sized places hosting a few hawker stalls. There you can also find the sister dish - the black pepper crabs. If you are not a big fan of red chili and tomato source, it is a good alternative.