George Young drools over Hollywood catering on set of his US TV show
Celebrity Chow with Singapore-based British actor George Young
What is a sure sign you have arrived in Hollywood?
Singapore-based British actor George Young would know.
The 35-year-old, who plays a major role in upcoming US TV series Containment, got his own trailer while filming the pilot episode in Atlanta last year.
"We're talking about Hollywood. Everything there is of Hollywood scale," Young told M over lunch last week at Potato Head Folk on Keong Saik Road.
"I got the whole deal, the name-on-the-trailer-door and all. I made the most out of it.
"The catering on Containment's set is amazing. I'm used to being in Singapore with the chicken rice lunchboxes, which I love.
"But in Atlanta, we had guys grilling steak on barbecue pits - healthy options like salmon and Southern fried chicken - in between lunch and dinner.
"When the crew members brought out a tonne of Atlanta-style fried chicken at 4pm, all of us actors, who were watching our figures, couldn't resist pigging out."
"At one point, there were even baristas with coffee machines, making espressos and lattes," the Fly Entertainment artist said.
Containment features Young as a medical researcher racing to find a cure for a mysterious, deadly virus.
The 13-episode dramatic thriller is slated to air next January.
Young, who married Taiwanese-American travel host Janet Hsieh in January, will head back to Atlanta later this year to shoot the remaining episodes.
You have ordered Truff Ryder burger, Naughty Fries and Messy Elliott.
I tried the Truff Ryder the first time I was here. I remember thinking, "This is juicy. Janet would love it, too."
It's definitely a premium burger, with wagyu beef and foie gras.
Messy Elliott puts a spin on traditional English dessert Eton Mess, which is a mixture of strawberries, meringue and cream. It reminds me of something I'd eat as a kid.
I dined here once with some friends. I'm not cool at all, so I'd say that this place helps to improve my cool factor.
When Janet is in Singapore, where do both of you usually dine at?
We'd go everywhere and try everything. We love the champagne pork ribs at Por Kee Eating House.
Janet is obsessed with crab, especially chilli crab. Our personal favourite is salted egg crab. I tried condensed milk crab recently and liked it.
Whenever Janet's here, we invite our friends to Master Crab Seafood Restaurant at Ghim Moh Road, a hawker centre-style eatery.
How was your wedding feast on the cruise ship in Antarctica?
Oh, we just ate penguins. (Laughs) I'm joking, we didn't.
We did an 11-day expedition on an icebreaker ship with 50 guests. The food was good. We had great steak, a nice salad bar area, even a soup course.
A memorable incident happened during the soup course.
The ship was passing through Antarctica's Drake Passage, known as the washing machine of the world for its turbulent waters. The soup swooped one way, then the other way and landed on 20 to 30 tables!
Who's the better cook, you or Janet?
We're both not very good. Between both of us, it'd have to be me.
Janet has cooked for me only once, when I was very ill in Taiwan. She impressed me. She made chicken salad and soup. It was around the time when our friendship was starting to become a romantic relationship.
I've cooked for her and her friends but it was a failure. I miscalculated the salmon sauce and made enough sauce for 100 people. So Janet has a batch of sauce in her freezer for two years now.
What are some of your favourite eats in Atlanta?
Besides fried chicken, Atlanta is known for its grits (ground corn mash) and chicken fried steak (steak coated in breadcrumb and pan-fried). It's super unhealthy but really nice.
While shooting the pilot, some of the cast members and I went to Atlanta's Krog Street Market. It has mini eateries selling sushi, kebabs and Greek food.
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