Its been a while since I last stepped into Shangri-La hotel (the last time being the IISS about a year back) and what better way to revisit than a leisurely dim sum meal at its flagship Chinese restaurant, Shang Palace. It definitely helped that Shang Palace was offering a 30% discount on all its dim sum items from now till 31st Dec 2008 for its first dim sum seating (10.30am - 12pm).
Located at lobby level of this highly regarded premium hotel, Shang Palace's recent facelift sees a more contemporary and posh interior with elements of tradition through the usage of red crystal chandeliers amidst flowery wall panels and black wooden door arches. Is it just me or are alot of the Chinese restaurants starting to look alike?
What I found rather ingenious was the tea menu. Instead of the usual book like menu, the names of the various teas were inscribed onto colour coded sticks and placed in a container. Merely a novelty, but at least it beats flipping through pages.
Custard Bun - Fast becoming one of the quintessential items on my dim sum list, the custard bun got the meal off to a great start with its piping hot and sinfully rich custard mixed with sediments of egg yolk, all contained within a soft and slightly chewy bun. I would have liked it better if the custard to bun ratio was lower, ie. decrease the amount of flour or increase the amount of custard. There's the issue of its minute size though.
Shanghai Pork Dumpling - I was utterly disappointed with Shang Palace's rendition of this classic Shanghainese dish. The skin was a tad too thick while the gravy came across as thick and oily. After popping one XLB into my mouth, I couldn't bear to eat another one.
Fried Spring Roll - This spring roll was rather different from the commonplace ones that you get elsewhere. Instead of vegetables, you get egg white and crab meat as a filling. Not that it made much of a difference honestly. The oil taste from the crisp skin overwhelmed everything. Not that egg white or crab meat had much taste to begin with though.
Shark's Fin Dumpling Soup - At $8 a bowl, the fins were ample but of very low quality. I like the fact that there were bits of scallops in the dumpling and that the soup was very light on the palate.
Deep Fried Beancurd Skin Roll with Prawns - The fried beancurd skin roll or 腐皮卷 came stuffed with prawns, spotting a nice crisp exterior that wasn't overly fried. However, it did come across as a tad too oily.
BBQ Pork Custard Bun - This dish was essentially pineapple bun stuffed with char siew (叉燒菠蘿包). I personally liked this quite a bit as the bun was soft and not too sweet while the char siew was plump and juicy. The sweetness from the char siew permeated through, which made for a nice but extremely high in calorie snack.
Siew Mai - Very much like the siew mai I had at Peach Garden, Shang Palace's offering had small chunks of prawns in it as well. There was a noticeable absence of the overwhelming pork taste that plagues alot of siew mais but I did find the salt level a little high.
Scallop & Lobster Roll - I don't quite remember the name of this dish but it tasted to me like Har Gao, which wasn't really what I was expecting. The lobster shreds were minimal, not to mention tasteless and the whole thing was mainly prawn paste (I believe) and a small piece of scallop.
Har Gao - The Har Gao skin was excessively thick and became gross when cold. Not even the crunchy prawn filling could save it after we left a piece to cool for about 10 minutes. However, when eaten hot, its still rather decent overall.
Four Treasure Flour Roll - Fancy names aside, the flour roll aka chee cheong fan, was smooth, silky and not too thick. I could only make out char siew and prawns in the filling so I'm not sure where did the 4 treasures come from. One of the better chee cheong fans I've had in a long long time.
Century Egg Porridge - $10 got me a bowl of congee that's probably three quarters the size of those you get for $3 at food centres. Topped with thin slices of crispy dough fritters, the porridge had a generous amount of chicken shreds and century egg. But I did think that the chef was a little too liberal with the salt.
A disappointment really. The mini egg tarts were, as the name suggests, mini and the pastry was a little too flaky. No buttery undertone that I personally like as well. The custard filling could also have done with more sugar. $4.90 for 3 is really a rip off.
It was really an expensive dim sum experience, at $113 before discount and $87 after a 30% early bird discount for 2 pax. Overall I thought that the dim sum lacked finesse, and pales in comparison to places like Royal China or Yan Ting. Service was good but pacing of the dishes would be much appreciated - all my dishes came in the space of 10 minutes. I highly doubt that I'll be back, not even with the discount.
Had the extreme good fortune to partake in a food tasting session at Seafood Paradise one day with couple of like minded bloggers. Part of the paradise group which also operates Taste Paradise, this is a well received and critically acclaimed restaurant that has garnered more supporters, business and foodies alike with each passing day. The kind owner and our host also kindly positioned the restaurant as a mid range restaurant that will appeal to a greater clientèle as opposed to being a totally high end eating place.
Located at the swanky new premises right below the Singapore Flyer, Seafood paradise here ushers in a new era of style and taste with a noted increase in clientèle which includes but notwithstanding the rich and the famous. The restaurant itself is ambient, carpeted and boasts a huge wine cellar next to the door. Lighting is bright to mid in the early hours and ambient and dim at night. The private room is open to spenders and groups in access of 10 to 15 people and comes with a floor manager and personalized waiter for on the spot service.
The day kicked off with the usual roasted peanuts which set the mood well. Regardless of the exterior, this place is at its heart, still a chinese restaurant with a twist.
Combination Trio Consisting of Tea-Smoked Sliced Duck ($10) Chilled Jellyfish With Chef's Special sauce ($12) and Yammy Scallop Pie ($14) - Our host has already prepared a nice menu for our sampling pleasure and the first to come is a trio platter that is available separately on the menu. The tea smoked duck was tender with a smokey taste which didn't appeal too much to me while i found the chilled jellyfish to embody just the right springiness and sweetness that is pleasing. The yammy scallop pie tastes just like it would it you wrapped a small layer of yam around scallop and deep fried it. The scallop was fresh and the yam, light.
Australian Lobster Baked In Salted Egg Yolk (Seasonal Price) - Our visit of luxury then led to our next dish, salted egg lobster. Now, this is described as having a silky and velvety taste and true enough, thats exactly how it tasted like. In fact, its difficult to explain what velvety means so i recommend trying it to find out. The salted yoke has a light powdery texture that extends and enhances the natural sweetness of a fresh lobster. An excellent dish for any occasion.
Crispy Chicken With Special Szechuan Sauce ($26) - The special Szechuan sauce in question tastes strongely of vinegar and is only a little bit spicy so its perfect for kids. The deep fried stuff above tastes like kellogs crispy puffs and goes along surprisingly well with the sauce. The chicken is also worth mentioning for being well marinated and roasted. Thus it means that the juices are intact while the skin is as crispy as it should be. The meat is tender and moist and you'll be lapping up its juices with ease.
Homemade Beancurd with Seafood in Claypot ($12 per portion) - Silky smooth and soft tofu that literally melts in your mouth. Add in an equally tempting and ingredient filled seafood claypot and its easy to see why customers order so much of this item.
Sea Bass with Salted Raddish ($4 per 100 gram) - The sea bass is fresh, sweet and simply delectable however i must say that the salted raddish concoction doesn't quite appeal to me. I'm not sure if lard is used but sprinkled amongst the raddish are little chewy bits that got in the way of enjoyment of the sweet meat of the fish.
Honshimeiji Mushrooms with Broccoli ($14) - Fresh Hoshimeiji mushrooms are a delight to eat. Springy and chewy, it's reminiscent of abalone in some ways and this rendition is pretty good. Doing it much justice.
Seafood Supreme Fried Rice ($24) - Their rendition of this done to death fried rice is of the dry variety. This means that the rice are not moist and have a decidedly wok hei like taste to it. Seafood like shrimp, squid and crab meat are plentiful and deliberately placed in the rice to good effect. I loved this with the sauce from their creamy butter crab.
Man Tou Bun ($0.60 each) - The man tou is simply excellent. No 2 ways around it. The pan fried base is hard and contrasts with the rest of the bun which feels as though its deep fried in oil but was not oily. I was pretty amazed. It also emits an excellent aroma that makes the chili and creamy butter sauce alot better then it should be.
Signature Creamy Butter Crab ($3.80 per 100 gram) - Their signature creamy butter immediately reminded me of Mellben's version which is the golden sand crab. This version is more milky, contains less cheese and egg and has a more peppery taste to it then the other rendition. Definitely still a winner since their crab is sizable, fresh and has all the goodness of a good crab.
Popular Chili Crab ($3.80 per 100 gram) - The chili crab is starchy, mildly spicy and has a stronger tangy tomato taste then most outside. As the host also kindly points out, the sauce gets better with each bite. And i can attest that its addictive, perhaps more so than the creamy butter above. No faulting their crab on this though, its still fresh and sweet and still lovable.
For the crabs, if you do get a private room, the host will gladly deshell it for you. Although the scene reminds me of gangster flicks in which the bosses have such service, i'd say its a step in the right direction in terms of service.
Finally, after the stomach expanding meal above, i'm glad to say. Seafood paradise is a great place for a meal. In fact, all lovers of Zhi Ca can gather to try their food. Its pretty darn good. Do watch the price though, even though its a mid range offering, over ordering does cause quite a burn on the pocket. If you have a deep pocket, no worries then. Come along and enjoy the food.
It was another day when the search for food led us to town, this time, to Centrepoint in Orchard road. It was during the GSS season and we happened to chance upon this newly opened restaurant nestled in an inconspicuous corner of the enhanced Food Wing at Centrepoint. Touted as serving Yakitori (skewed delicacies) cooked in white charcoal, this Japanese restaurant also served cheap Ramen below $10. Me and my gf were the only people who went for the set meal that night.
Special Set Menu for 2 ($45) - Seeing that everyone is having the Ramen here brought shudders to me which i can't quite explain, thus, we opted for the GSS set dinner which seemed like a good deal. @ $45 for 2 people, it falls in the mid range. However, compare it to the actual ala carte menu and its easily double the price if ordered item by item.
Mixed Sashimi - The meal started with the mixed sashimi platter which came with squid, swordfish, salmon and tuna sashimi all in one plate. Everything on the platter was fresh and tasted sweet albeit being in a smaller portion. It still felt like a good value item though.
Tofu - The first grilled item to appear was the grilled tofu and to be honest, it was very average. Tasted slightly dry like dao pok and most of the taste was covered under thick teriyaki sauce.
8 Yakitori White Charcoal Grilled Sticks - The sticks included 2 grill corns, 1 grilled enoki mushrooms wrapped in bacon, 1 grilled shittake mushroom, 2 grilled prawns and 1 grilled chicken meat ball. The grilled corn was sweet with a thin layer of butter for a salty finish while the bacon and enoki combination tasted fresh but was a little too difficult to chew through. The mushroom itself was juicy and tasty while the prawns were nicely grilled to a crispy finish with tasty and sweet meat. The chicken meatballs were the least memorable, being salty and overly peppery.
Japanese Organic Momotaro Tomato - This is a wonderful starter actually but was strangely served midway through the meal. The sauce is made up of a concoction that seems to be filled with mustard, peanut sauce, mayonnaise and maybe vegetable oil. The tomato went really well with it too and it should be noted that the tomato itself was firm, juicy, sweet and simply delectable. Something anyone can enjoy.
Chef's Appetiser - The chef's appetiser tastes like vermicelli tossed in thai sweet and sour sauce and is yet another tasty treat that shouldn't be missed.
Pan Seared Foie Gras With Ume Sauce - This sinful item came pretty late as well and to be honest, it tasted pretty well done. The inside were left springy and melts in your mouth while the outer covering of ume (cranberry) sauce enriched its taste on the outside. However, it was oily, very very oily.
Creme Brulee - This creme brulee had the thin layer of sugar burnt just right and tasted good without being too eggy on the inside. I found the vanilla taste just right for this and find it easy to recommend.
Black Sesame Gelato - One taste and you'll find this strong. The sesame taste is present throughout without overwhelming. It was the right sweetness and creamy to the end.
Bill - The total bill for 2 only came up to $57.67 which was great value for a meal with such variety and above average quality.
In the end, i'm glad i tried this place. It serves tasty charcoal grilled Japanese food at bargain prices. I do have gripes about the service and order of food served though. The appetisers did not come first and i had to call at least 3 times before my rice and foie gras was served. It was as though they didn't want to make a loss or something. Still, considering food quality, it definitely is value for menu in this offer. Ala carte and normal prices though...and i probably won't recommend when prices are back to normal.
I've always thought of Ikea as the place for furniture and home accesories but was pleasantly surprised one fine weekday when i was dragged along with the team for a meal there.
The IKEA foodcourt or restaurant is a novel concept where most of the process involves the customer choosing and creating their own menu as they go.
For example, collecting salads, cakes, coffee and sandwiches etc. But the place is known for its extremely big and juicy chicken wings and their meatballs with spagghetti which i managed to try a little of.
The meatballs were really something different with its strong taste of spices and considerably bigger then normal size. The spagheti costs about $8 and comes with 5 meatballs but trust me, its never enough. Something to look out for.
The coffee dispenser is free flow so take all you want with the cup you are "issued". But don't expect to be able to take away the drinks however.
Overall, an interesting experience at an interesting concept store.
1=SGD 0.0587
this is an outlet that sell ZHU CHAO !!!
you knows those main "restaurants " in coffee shops that sell fried rice , sweet and sour fish rice , etc.
They always have promotion like the TOU FU , is only for $6 which is like soooooooooo cheap !!!
Moreover, i wondered what they used to make the tou fu it smell so fragrant !!! like the oat. P.s ( i am a tou fu lover :P )
Overall, the food the chefs cooked are very delicious , perhaps the most delicious among all the other zhu chao in Yishun .
Rating given:
TOday went to bugis and try the chewy junior !!!
the first thought that came across my mine is chewy !
however, after a few taste . i regretted !
I felt that it is like you left a cone outside for few hours and it became soft ...and "chewy"
Perhaps the flavour i tried is not that appetising maybe i should try next flavour , the other time !
Even though, the chewy puff is not what i expected but their service is good !
I think it credited to the staffs' hardwork , you can see that they are standing outside the shop trying to let passers-by try the sample .'Thumb up '
Rating given:
Daiso is kind of JAPAN Style of shop .
However, in Japan ... almost everything is expensive than in Singapore.
In contrast, the things sell in Daiso is very CHEAP !
It is famous for most of the thing at the price of $2.
I almost buy items like plates, candles...etc from Daiso .
The shop will play Japanese song , and sometimes you will be greeted in Japanese !!! SO COOL right ?
other than homeware, they also sell clothes which usually suit the kids !
and the aroma oil !!! : ) i like the lavender and apple oil
beside these things...
Daiso also sell Japan tibits..., make-up stuffs, stuff toy , a lot a lot of things. etc.
Beside IMM , they also have another outlet at VIVO !
Rating given:
Its been a while since I last stepped into Shangri-La hotel (the last time being the IISS about a year back) and what better way to revisit than a leisurely dim sum meal at its flagship Chinese restaurant, Shang Palace. It definitely helped that Shang Palace was offering a 30% discount on all its dim sum items from now till 31st Dec 2008 for its first dim sum seating (10.30am - 12pm).
Located at lobby level of this highly regarded premium hotel, Shang Palace's recent facelift sees a more contemporary and posh interior with elements of tradition through the usage of red crystal chandeliers amidst flowery wall panels and black wooden door arches. Is it just me or are alot of the Chinese restaurants starting to look alike?
What I found rather ingenious was the tea menu. Instead of the usual book like menu, the names of the various teas were inscribed onto colour coded sticks and placed in a container. Merely a novelty, but at least it beats flipping through pages.
Custard Bun - Fast becoming one of the quintessential items on my dim sum list, the custard bun got the meal off to a great start with its piping hot and sinfully rich custard mixed with sediments of egg yolk, all contained within a soft and slightly chewy bun. I would have liked it better if the custard to bun ratio was lower, ie. decrease the amount of flour or increase the amount of custard. There's the issue of its minute size though.
Shanghai Pork Dumpling - I was utterly disappointed with Shang Palace's rendition of this classic Shanghainese dish. The skin was a tad too thick while the gravy came across as thick and oily. After popping one XLB into my mouth, I couldn't bear to eat another one.
Fried Spring Roll - This spring roll was rather different from the commonplace ones that you get elsewhere. Instead of vegetables, you get egg white and crab meat as a filling. Not that it made much of a difference honestly. The oil taste from the crisp skin overwhelmed everything. Not that egg white or crab meat had much taste to begin with though.
Shark's Fin Dumpling Soup - At $8 a bowl, the fins were ample but of very low quality. I like the fact that there were bits of scallops in the dumpling and that the soup was very light on the palate.
Deep Fried Beancurd Skin Roll with Prawns - The fried beancurd skin roll or 腐皮卷 came stuffed with prawns, spotting a nice crisp exterior that wasn't overly fried. However, it did come across as a tad too oily.
BBQ Pork Custard Bun - This dish was essentially pineapple bun stuffed with char siew (叉燒菠蘿包). I personally liked this quite a bit as the bun was soft and not too sweet while the char siew was plump and juicy. The sweetness from the char siew permeated through, which made for a nice but extremely high in calorie snack.
Siew Mai - Very much like the siew mai I had at Peach Garden, Shang Palace's offering had small chunks of prawns in it as well. There was a noticeable absence of the overwhelming pork taste that plagues alot of siew mais but I did find the salt level a little high.
Scallop & Lobster Roll - I don't quite remember the name of this dish but it tasted to me like Har Gao, which wasn't really what I was expecting. The lobster shreds were minimal, not to mention tasteless and the whole thing was mainly prawn paste (I believe) and a small piece of scallop.
Har Gao - The Har Gao skin was excessively thick and became gross when cold. Not even the crunchy prawn filling could save it after we left a piece to cool for about 10 minutes. However, when eaten hot, its still rather decent overall.
Four Treasure Flour Roll - Fancy names aside, the flour roll aka chee cheong fan, was smooth, silky and not too thick. I could only make out char siew and prawns in the filling so I'm not sure where did the 4 treasures come from. One of the better chee cheong fans I've had in a long long time.
Century Egg Porridge - $10 got me a bowl of congee that's probably three quarters the size of those you get for $3 at food centres. Topped with thin slices of crispy dough fritters, the porridge had a generous amount of chicken shreds and century egg. But I did think that the chef was a little too liberal with the salt.
A disappointment really. The mini egg tarts were, as the name suggests, mini and the pastry was a little too flaky. No buttery undertone that I personally like as well. The custard filling could also have done with more sugar. $4.90 for 3 is really a rip off.
It was really an expensive dim sum experience, at $113 before discount and $87 after a 30% early bird discount for 2 pax. Overall I thought that the dim sum lacked finesse, and pales in comparison to places like Royal China or Yan Ting. Service was good but pacing of the dishes would be much appreciated - all my dishes came in the space of 10 minutes. I highly doubt that I'll be back, not even with the discount.
See all my pictures here.
Rating given:
Had the extreme good fortune to partake in a food tasting session at Seafood Paradise one day with couple of like minded bloggers. Part of the paradise group which also operates Taste Paradise, this is a well received and critically acclaimed restaurant that has garnered more supporters, business and foodies alike with each passing day. The kind owner and our host also kindly positioned the restaurant as a mid range restaurant that will appeal to a greater clientèle as opposed to being a totally high end eating place.
Located at the swanky new premises right below the Singapore Flyer, Seafood paradise here ushers in a new era of style and taste with a noted increase in clientèle which includes but notwithstanding the rich and the famous. The restaurant itself is ambient, carpeted and boasts a huge wine cellar next to the door. Lighting is bright to mid in the early hours and ambient and dim at night. The private room is open to spenders and groups in access of 10 to 15 people and comes with a floor manager and personalized waiter for on the spot service.
The day kicked off with the usual roasted peanuts which set the mood well. Regardless of the exterior, this place is at its heart, still a chinese restaurant with a twist.
Combination Trio Consisting of Tea-Smoked Sliced Duck ($10) Chilled Jellyfish With Chef's Special sauce ($12) and Yammy Scallop Pie ($14) - Our host has already prepared a nice menu for our sampling pleasure and the first to come is a trio platter that is available separately on the menu. The tea smoked duck was tender with a smokey taste which didn't appeal too much to me while i found the chilled jellyfish to embody just the right springiness and sweetness that is pleasing. The yammy scallop pie tastes just like it would it you wrapped a small layer of yam around scallop and deep fried it. The scallop was fresh and the yam, light.
Australian Lobster Baked In Salted Egg Yolk (Seasonal Price) - Our visit of luxury then led to our next dish, salted egg lobster. Now, this is described as having a silky and velvety taste and true enough, thats exactly how it tasted like. In fact, its difficult to explain what velvety means so i recommend trying it to find out. The salted yoke has a light powdery texture that extends and enhances the natural sweetness of a fresh lobster. An excellent dish for any occasion.
Crispy Chicken With Special Szechuan Sauce ($26) - The special Szechuan sauce in question tastes strongely of vinegar and is only a little bit spicy so its perfect for kids. The deep fried stuff above tastes like kellogs crispy puffs and goes along surprisingly well with the sauce. The chicken is also worth mentioning for being well marinated and roasted. Thus it means that the juices are intact while the skin is as crispy as it should be. The meat is tender and moist and you'll be lapping up its juices with ease.
Homemade Beancurd with Seafood in Claypot ($12 per portion) - Silky smooth and soft tofu that literally melts in your mouth. Add in an equally tempting and ingredient filled seafood claypot and its easy to see why customers order so much of this item.
Sea Bass with Salted Raddish ($4 per 100 gram) - The sea bass is fresh, sweet and simply delectable however i must say that the salted raddish concoction doesn't quite appeal to me. I'm not sure if lard is used but sprinkled amongst the raddish are little chewy bits that got in the way of enjoyment of the sweet meat of the fish.
Honshimeiji Mushrooms with Broccoli ($14) - Fresh Hoshimeiji mushrooms are a delight to eat. Springy and chewy, it's reminiscent of abalone in some ways and this rendition is pretty good. Doing it much justice.
Seafood Supreme Fried Rice ($24) - Their rendition of this done to death fried rice is of the dry variety. This means that the rice are not moist and have a decidedly wok hei like taste to it. Seafood like shrimp, squid and crab meat are plentiful and deliberately placed in the rice to good effect. I loved this with the sauce from their creamy butter crab.
Man Tou Bun ($0.60 each) - The man tou is simply excellent. No 2 ways around it. The pan fried base is hard and contrasts with the rest of the bun which feels as though its deep fried in oil but was not oily. I was pretty amazed. It also emits an excellent aroma that makes the chili and creamy butter sauce alot better then it should be.
Signature Creamy Butter Crab ($3.80 per 100 gram) - Their signature creamy butter immediately reminded me of Mellben's version which is the golden sand crab. This version is more milky, contains less cheese and egg and has a more peppery taste to it then the other rendition. Definitely still a winner since their crab is sizable, fresh and has all the goodness of a good crab.
Popular Chili Crab ($3.80 per 100 gram) - The chili crab is starchy, mildly spicy and has a stronger tangy tomato taste then most outside. As the host also kindly points out, the sauce gets better with each bite. And i can attest that its addictive, perhaps more so than the creamy butter above. No faulting their crab on this though, its still fresh and sweet and still lovable.
For the crabs, if you do get a private room, the host will gladly deshell it for you. Although the scene reminds me of gangster flicks in which the bosses have such service, i'd say its a step in the right direction in terms of service.
Finally, after the stomach expanding meal above, i'm glad to say. Seafood paradise is a great place for a meal. In fact, all lovers of Zhi Ca can gather to try their food. Its pretty darn good. Do watch the price though, even though its a mid range offering, over ordering does cause quite a burn on the pocket. If you have a deep pocket, no worries then. Come along and enjoy the food.
Rating given:
It was another day when the search for food led us to town, this time, to Centrepoint in Orchard road. It was during the GSS season and we happened to chance upon this newly opened restaurant nestled in an inconspicuous corner of the enhanced Food Wing at Centrepoint. Touted as serving Yakitori (skewed delicacies) cooked in white charcoal, this Japanese restaurant also served cheap Ramen below $10. Me and my gf were the only people who went for the set meal that night.
Special Set Menu for 2 ($45) - Seeing that everyone is having the Ramen here brought shudders to me which i can't quite explain, thus, we opted for the GSS set dinner which seemed like a good deal. @ $45 for 2 people, it falls in the mid range. However, compare it to the actual ala carte menu and its easily double the price if ordered item by item.
Mixed Sashimi - The meal started with the mixed sashimi platter which came with squid, swordfish, salmon and tuna sashimi all in one plate. Everything on the platter was fresh and tasted sweet albeit being in a smaller portion. It still felt like a good value item though.
Tofu - The first grilled item to appear was the grilled tofu and to be honest, it was very average. Tasted slightly dry like dao pok and most of the taste was covered under thick teriyaki sauce.
8 Yakitori White Charcoal Grilled Sticks - The sticks included 2 grill corns, 1 grilled enoki mushrooms wrapped in bacon, 1 grilled shittake mushroom, 2 grilled prawns and 1 grilled chicken meat ball. The grilled corn was sweet with a thin layer of butter for a salty finish while the bacon and enoki combination tasted fresh but was a little too difficult to chew through. The mushroom itself was juicy and tasty while the prawns were nicely grilled to a crispy finish with tasty and sweet meat. The chicken meatballs were the least memorable, being salty and overly peppery.
Japanese Organic Momotaro Tomato - This is a wonderful starter actually but was strangely served midway through the meal. The sauce is made up of a concoction that seems to be filled with mustard, peanut sauce, mayonnaise and maybe vegetable oil. The tomato went really well with it too and it should be noted that the tomato itself was firm, juicy, sweet and simply delectable. Something anyone can enjoy.
Chef's Appetiser - The chef's appetiser tastes like vermicelli tossed in thai sweet and sour sauce and is yet another tasty treat that shouldn't be missed.
Pan Seared Foie Gras With Ume Sauce - This sinful item came pretty late as well and to be honest, it tasted pretty well done. The inside were left springy and melts in your mouth while the outer covering of ume (cranberry) sauce enriched its taste on the outside. However, it was oily, very very oily.
Creme Brulee - This creme brulee had the thin layer of sugar burnt just right and tasted good without being too eggy on the inside. I found the vanilla taste just right for this and find it easy to recommend.
Black Sesame Gelato - One taste and you'll find this strong. The sesame taste is present throughout without overwhelming. It was the right sweetness and creamy to the end.
Bill - The total bill for 2 only came up to $57.67 which was great value for a meal with such variety and above average quality.
In the end, i'm glad i tried this place. It serves tasty charcoal grilled Japanese food at bargain prices. I do have gripes about the service and order of food served though. The appetisers did not come first and i had to call at least 3 times before my rice and foie gras was served. It was as though they didn't want to make a loss or something. Still, considering food quality, it definitely is value for menu in this offer. Ala carte and normal prices though...and i probably won't recommend when prices are back to normal.
Rating given:
I've always thought of Ikea as the place for furniture and home accesories but was pleasantly surprised one fine weekday when i was dragged along with the team for a meal there.
The IKEA foodcourt or restaurant is a novel concept where most of the process involves the customer choosing and creating their own menu as they go.
For example, collecting salads, cakes, coffee and sandwiches etc. But the place is known for its extremely big and juicy chicken wings and their meatballs with spagghetti which i managed to try a little of.
The meatballs were really something different with its strong taste of spices and considerably bigger then normal size. The spagheti costs about $8 and comes with 5 meatballs but trust me, its never enough. Something to look out for.
The coffee dispenser is free flow so take all you want with the cup you are "issued". But don't expect to be able to take away the drinks however.
Overall, an interesting experience at an interesting concept store.
Rating given:
The straits time has changes it front page !
THe straits time , i can say should be the best selling English newspaper in Singapore :D
If you are not quick , you probably won't get to read your paper .Because it will be sold out !
Almost , all my english teacher recommend me to read The Straits time to improve my english !!! that is how influentia it can be !
However, that are some categories which i find it useless to me... examples are the CLassified , Sport , Urban ..
Perhaps is because i am still student ...
well i guess i will get use to it once i entered the adult world .
one more thing is the online version is very confusing as the arrangement all of the page seem to be confusing !
Rating given:
LIKE IKEA !!! my first choice for furniture !!!
of course , other than the good-looking furniture ...
the ikea hotdog is the beat hotdog i had ever tasted !!
Hence, after a big round of walking , i will order a combo set and stand there enjoying the hotdog
the combo set consists of 1 free flow of drink and 1 hotdog .
IKEA's furnitures are always so creative and at the same time affortable.
Since, it establishment at Tampines !
Not only it sells bulky furniture likes wardrode, beds , cardboard...it also sell small items like spoon and folk , cups...etc...
it range from kids' use furniture to adult's world ...
shopping in Ikea is different , compare to shopping for clothes.
However, there is one thing i dislike ... is the direction given .It is so unclear and i always find myself get lost in IKEA ! haha
ANyway , i will give a 4 STARS rating !
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Ho chi minh is a good place to travel .
First, the security is very good
Second , the clothes all that is cheap !!! ( Provided that you need to use your bargain skill !!! )
Thirdly , you can find all sort of Fake branded there. LOL
Lastly , the food is definitely cheaper than in Singapore !!!
the breads !!! and cakes is like sooooooooo cheap !!!
prices of breads range from 40 cents to $1 ... while the cake 1kg is like $10 ~$15 !
their handicraft is also very good...
when i visited their market , i can see a few shops which sell hand-made shoes which mean is makes according to your sizes !
you make click here for more info on Vietnam - Ho chi minh
http://www.sakurrin.blogspot.com/2008_04_01_archive.html
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