It was a stroke of bad luck that led me to this seemingly innocent place at the inreasingly crowded waterfront hideout. I wished we hadnt.
Things started out okay with the place looking quite chill, and this is the only western option other than Popeye's close by. Warm weather made it tough for us to take the inner dining seats and instead we decided to head out to the bar seats which had 2 overhead fans whirling by (there were 4 but 2 were spoilt).
Menu also looked innocent with the usual western fare and I must say they have a selection larger than it looked like the place can offer. But it was not a blessing as we later found out.
Mushroom soup ($6.90) - I cant make out what this is supposed to be. It was hot alright but tasted like a mash of minced mushrooms with a dollop of oilve oil on top. It was not soup as I remember soup to be.
Buffalo wings ($8.90) - about 8 pieces if mini wings smothered in some hot sauce but the chicken itself was not marinated and the meat undercooked. The sad limp sticks of carrot and celery were not fresh.
Cheesy sausage ($15.90) - The sausage was bland, the mashed potatoes it was lying on powdery and very bad, and the accompanying greens absolutely no dressing at all. They couldn't even bother with thousand island.
Twin slipper lobster ($28.90) - My mum had one bite of the lobster and asked to return it as it was not fresh. The slipper lobster in the Twin Slipper Lobster was not fresh - what a joke.
Alio Olio Shrimp ($16.90) - the alio olio was not too bad actually until I had a bite of the shrimp. Not fresh too. This was returned as well.
Sambal Fried Rice ($13.90) - we were hugely dissatisfied after returning the above 2 mains so decided to order this to share. This was the saving grace of the evening with us having no complaints about this although it was a bit greasy for me.
Beers - they have a small selection of mostly bottled beer but no happy hour pricing. At least the beers were cold.
Service was a major disaster. The picture of the slipper lobster showed that it came with rice so I was trying to reconfirm this with the staff but she insisted that it was not rice but mashed potatoes. Another picture which showed exactly the same thing she said it was rice. ??!! To top it off, she told us "If you want rice, you can order the sambal fried rice. That one comes with rice". Smart.
And obviously, 2 out of 3 main courses returned was not a concern to them as staff and a chap who seemed like their supervisor was just nonchalant about it. And they had the audacity to keep it on the bill and charge me for the 2 returned main courses - I had to ask for them to remove it. And not one word of apologies throughout the evening - so maybe they feel serving not-fresh seafood in their seafood dishes were alright after all.
This place is an absolute disaster. I know I may be over generalizing as I've not tried the other items but for a place to serve seafood which are obviously bad, to me, reflects the attitude of the chef there. Plus service is just bad too. And prices for not cheap at all - I paid $97 for 3pax even after removing the 2 returned items. But i have to admit, the pictures are very deceiving as they actually looked quite decent in it.
If I am ever back, I'll eat at Popeye's and come here just for drinks, if I really have to. I'm quite sure they cannot mess up bottled beer.
We decided to drop by Turf City one Sunday evening and have dinner at one of the seafood restaurants. How we ended up at Ah Yat, I have no idea, especially when my last dinner at the Jalan Ahmad Ibrahim outlet turned out to be a disaster. To be fair, that was quite a few years ago so things might have improved?
The interior of the restaurant was a stark contrast to its surroundings. Soothing but a little gaudy versus partially smashed bare concrete, displaced steel wires/nails and loud drilling noises. Yes, the entire Turf City is under renovation and only a handful of units remain open ( I counted 3 - Owen Seafood, Ah Yat & Giant).
Shark's Fin Soup - Decently sized with slivers of shark's fin and crab meat, the broth was a little too starchy and salty for my liking. Thankfully the serving of fried, albeit overly oily bean sprouts helped to alleviate this dish by introducing water content as well as a wonderful crunch to it. It's interesting how sometimes the humblest of produce can help turn a dish around.
Oyster with Garlic - For our set, we had a choice of Bamboo Clam or Oyster and I chose the latter. And honestly, I couldn't quite make out any taste other than garlic because it was just so overwhelming.
Braised Abalone with Sea Cucumber - I am usually not a big fan of abalone and Ah Yat's well known dish just wasn't about to convert me. The abalone was of decent size (6 head) and a little chewy, though I did find it a little on the salty side. The accompanying sea cucumber and mushroom were decent but failed to leave much of an impression.
Peking Duck - The peking duck was an additional order we craved meat. And it didn't turn out to be a very wise decision. Though the skin was crisp, both the meat and crepe were too dry. Felt very much like eating roast duck - nothing special.
Fried Rice - Although the lack of ingredients was apparent (there was only egg yolk and dried scallop slivers), this dish had a nice wok hei to it and each individual grain was evenly coated and didn't come across as too oily. Be warned that the dried scallops should be eaten together with the rice as the salt content is rather high and might prove unbearable if eaten alone.
Overall the meal wasn't fantastic and even the more expensive ingredients didn't quite justify the price, at about $210 for 3 pax. Service was decent but I highly doubt I will ever return.
The Paradise Inn group to me is a trusted brand where the food is hardly ever very wrong. And this visit to this relatively new outlet proves me unsure. Our family dinner comprised of the following:
Tea - Comes in a very cute glass pot and a baby warmer. Cute. Black chicken herbal soup - Very homely and taste like a lot of stuff had gone into it. Nice substitute for home-cooked.
Braised tofu with pickled radish - the blandness of the tofu pairs very well with the salty radish but the radish was a bit soggy for my liking.
Omelet with minced meat - Average and the mince meat doesnt taste like it was marinated at all.
Steamed cod - Worst dish of the night. Measly portion of the unfresh fish, plus a lot of bones. Ugh.
Fried thai kai lan ($1) - This in-store promotion allows you to have 1 of 8 dishes at $1 if your bill before GST hits $50, which is not too difficult. I dont know what was the 'thai' in this dish but its fresh and crunchy veg, nice!
Service was average and this outlet was surprisingly not filled at 7pm on a weekday. I would want to try other places in this new mall before returning though.
Chanced upon this ulu place while trying to find a late lunch spot with family. And it turned out to be a worthy shot at dim sum. I cant recall the exact price of each dish so the prices are based on memory - if it serves me right at all:
Salted pork with preserved egg congee ($7.50) - a little pricey than usual but the portion is a full portion which is very filling. Nice smooth congee although the preserved egg has a stronger taste than I would have preferred.
Fresh shrimp wanton noodle ($7.50) - typical cantonese style with the noodles tossed in a simple sauce but nicely al dente; shrimp wantons were good too.
Marinated pig's intestines ($6) - didnt have this but the portion was much bigger than I expected. The one who tasted it said it was not bad.
3-layer abalone ($9.80) - whoever named this was smart. It was one slice of abalone, on top of a spinach tofu square, on top of a bed of spinach. So 3 layers alright. Taste wise was disappointing with all 3 rather bland.
Steamed spare ribs with black bean sauce ($4) - didnt have this but it looked like how it should. Steamed chicken claw with black bean sauce ($3.50) - i like this! Nicely done with the bean sauce just gooey-ly saltish enough.
Chilled chicken feet ($4) - Am still terrified at how this looks. Not for me.
Shrimp beancurd roll ($4) - Freshly deep fried and crunchy fresh prawns. Good!
Steamed flour roll with bbq pork ($5) - The flour roll was freshly made and silky but the bbq pork had too much fatty bits which was a turn off.
Pan fried carrot cake with bean sprouts ($4) - good! Not overly oily and the bean sprouts crunchy. I wished the carrot cake itself was more 'burnt' though.
The food were mixed but service was good - it may help that on a Sunday 3pm we were the 2nd occupied table. Nice view too if you manage to get a booth seat by the window.
Would I come back? Not sure really. Plus the bill added up to almost $100 for 3pax which was not exactly cheap.
Had dinner at Tung Lok Seafood @ Arena Country Club, a rather obscure club (if you even call it a club) just opposite SAFTI MI. Strangely enough, the same stretch of low rise buildings also host a go karting track and a huge burger king outlet.
The place is quite a size and can easily fit up to 200 people. However, the interior is a little dated but still presentable nonetheless. Definitely more suited to family dining than business meals.
Homemade Beancurd with Spinach - Sitting on a bed of spinach and topped with mushrooms, this dish lacked consistency. Some pieces of beancurd had a nice savoury taste but some were just outright bland. Pity really.
Sweet and Sour Pork - While I will admit that the sweet and sour pork had a nice smoky taste to it, the meat to flour proportion was greatly skewed in favour of the flour, which was a real bummer. Not to mention that portions were tiny for $18 .
Stir Fried Kailan - Drenched in light, mildly salty gravy without being overcooked. Very decent.
Roast Chicken - Served with the de facto crackers, the roast chicken boasted razor thin crisp skin coupled with tender flesh and a generous splashing of salt. Only gripe I had was that the meat could have been juicier. Still good though but nothing compared to what I had at Lung King Heen of course.
Deep Fried Prawns with Wasabi Mayo Sauce - Apparently Tung Lok came up with this dish many years ago. I am not sure how accurate this piece of information is but the prawns were really quite good. Huge, crunchy and coated in a thin layer of flour with a mild tolerable level of wasabi. But it's $52 for a large serving for 9 pax.
Horfun with Prawns - Although each of us managed to snag a huge prawn each, the hor fun itself lacked wok hei but I did like the not too starchy gravy with generous amounts of egg. But at $40 for such a small portion, I'm inclined to think that it's quite overpriced.
Total bill for the 9 of us stood at $238 with a 20% discount. Sure, we were all stuffed at the end of it (courtesy of the ever reliable bowls of rice) and food quality was generally above average, but I wouldn't term it value for money. Portions were less than generous and honestly, none of the ingredients in our dishes were anywhere near expensive. But still, if a family dinner is at hand and you would like an "established" brand name with decent food and prices that won't break your bank, Tung Lok Seafood may just appeal to you. See all my pictures here.
Ditch that Diet Plan for a night.... Tonight is the night to eat your heart's out.... Serving yummilicious spanish tapas.. This ahlarCART 不肥 'buffet' is one that truly deserves missing breakfast and lunch so that you could try out all the dishes on the alacarte menu. Only happening on Sundays and Mondays.... you have 2 hours to eat whatever your like on the menu. Boy... The dishes on the menu is truly deserving and fabulously delicious. You have a good mix of seafood, beef, poultry, vege and finger food...
The tenderloin beef in garlic sauce is the best for me out of all the other dishes. Served in a metal pan, flavoured lusciously with sauce and whole garlic. This is one dish that I could have one pan after another. The escargot with garlic butter comes in a pan as well, served in a bed of mash. They even provide this unique clamping tool for you to hold on to the shell while you hook the fresh and tasty flesh out.
Overall the food is pretty yummy, service is great, the staff are helpful, attentive and friendly. On top of that... the location is fabulous. Set in the Singapore Art's Museum, if i'm not mistaken, the location used to be an old classroom. You can choose indoor or alfresco dining on a cool evening. Utterly romantic and arty farty....
How to enjoy great food without some decent wine, Happy hour happens almost all the time... House Wine is going for S$5 per glass. Want something more exotic, you could go for the Sangria which is also S$5 per glass.... And let me tell you a secret... be sure to bring 3 ladies to go for the buffet on mondays.... and you get a free bottle of wine......
Buffet is optional.. you could also order from the menu, where you can find authentic spanish main courses, staples, desserts and plenty of other stuffs. There were not many seats, on the monday that we went, it is pretty quiet.. I should say... its a fabulous place to bring your date out for a quiet but yummylicious romantic dinner...
However, the only part that freaks me out a little is the ladies.. Though really nice, clean and modern looking... The fact that its a distance away from the restaurant, you have to walk through a small corridor pass a locked metal gate, a fountain to find it. In the evening when the sun is down and the lights are dim and the energy saving sensor lightings in the toilet are a little bit slow to react... One might feel a little freakish.... But thats good news if you are bringing a date.... Thats your cue to hold that hand you wanted to hold for the last 3 months.....
Fabulous food, Romantic Setting, Great Service, Convenient Location and Value for money drinks.... KNOCK YOUR Monday Blues AWAY......
I know it is really weird to review this exhibition here as it is only held once every year, however this is to lure those who have the complimentary invite from their customers to go for the exhibition. Held in the expo, though far and with the consistently inconsistent MRT train delays and breakdowns making the location worst to travel there. This is an exhibition not to be missed. Spanning a good floor area of ALL THE EXHIBITION Halls at the Singapore Expo, one can only imagine how big scale the exhibition is.
Why do i rate this as a buffet.. It is indeed a Gastromical Galore. Here is what I call all the buffets in the world combine into one location. The exhibition features industrial and commercial kitchen machinery, appliances, supplies, flavoring, frozen food, fruits, nuts, everything you can find in the F&B industry you can find it here... The GELATOs... so pretty, amazingly yummy and luring... one could not resist the encouragement of a free sample. There I had like the most flavors of GELATOs in one day all my life.... Crossants were also the hot favourite giveaway food.. Buttery, yummy and very crispy... You can find all sorts of food for tasting with the halls converted into many stalls of fully equipped kitchen, bakeries and cafes however... my clothes don't seemed to stink abit....
The wine fare is also held concurrently with the food expo. Here you find a good array of alcoholic beverages, beer, spirits, wine from many prestige brands, accessories as well as free wine drinking.... No wonder it requires an entrance fee of S$80 and for trade only...
If you love coffee and wanna know all about it... Here we have all the cafes in Singapore combined into one location. All sorts of italian made and german made commercial coffee machines are exhibited here.. on top of that... premium coffee for free... drink till you get an overdose of caffine! If you love coffee... this is the place to try it all.... pick the best you like and find the cafe that uses that!
Don't forget the supplies for hotels and commercial entities... They have all sorts of furniture, appliances, gazebo, bed sheets for distribution. All with exquisite designs.. So if you have the complimentary invite please don't miss out all the fun and information and food... If you are a photographic enthusiast you must make it there.... See the delicacies in a new light... ever wonder what happens to that beautiful GELATO mess? See it made right before your very eyes!
If you miss it this year... Make sure you make it NEXT YEAR!!!
Wanting to try after finding out UOB has a 1-4-1 promotion going on. The place was very quiet on a Sunday 3pm despite the staff telling they were overbooked when I called prior. Guess the crowd's at Dining Room for the buffet. Oh well, all the better for a relax family high tea outing.
English Afternoon Tea ($33 per pax) - For an afternoon with a difference, opt for our quintessential English Afternoon Tea. Served in the finest English tradition, it includes delicate pastries, fresh scones with house-made clotted cream and slow-poached berry jam, assorted sandwiches, and freshly brewed leaf tea. Indeed, you may choose from the renowned Mackwoods collection of fine Ceylon teas, from the unblended single estate black teas in different grades, to the exquisite range of flavoured and connoisseur teas such as The Queen's 160 Golden Jubilee Blend and Anniversary Blend. Not surprisingly, English Afternoon Tea is fast becoming an institution at Sheraton Towers.
The bites came in a typical 3 tier and 2pax to 1 tier for the 1-4-1 promo. The scones were warm and fluffy and came with big strawberries.There were also ham sandwich rolls, cheese sandwiches, and ham crossiants, out of which the cheese sandwiches were most memorable. For sweets, there were macaroons, cheesecake, chocolate tarts - all not bad!
(on the hotel website, the description actually says "English Afternoon Tea and Chocolate Fondue" and had a description of the fondue after the above, followed by the price of $33 per pax. I find this very decieving as I took it to mean that the $33 includes both the high tea plus the fondue but turns out the fondue is separately chargeable if you want it. The layout is misleading I feel)
Japanese High Tea ($39 per pax) - Whet your appetite with our new Japanese afternoon tea that boasts an array of Japanese snacks such as Mochi, Cold Soba Noodles with Quail Egg and Fish Roe, Green Tea Daifuku as well as a delectable platter of assorted Sushi and Salmon Sashimi. Sunggle in a cosy couch and pamper yourself to a truly decadent afternoon today!
This was really interesting, served in a standing open shelf. The soba noodles, sushi and (salmon) sashimi were served separately which made it feel like there were more food than it actually were. The soba noodles were disappointing bland but sushi and sashimi were not too bad. The mochi had good reviews, and there was a toufu-like thingy coated with soya bean flour which I couldnt understand. Some jelly-pudding, and also a black saseme kueh thingy which was quite unique.
With all the sets, you get 1 serving of either coffee or your choice of tea but they both come in pots so its actually more than sufficient for 1pax.
Service left much to be desired as the place was obviously understaffed - maybe they felt no need to pay too much attention to the lobby bar since it was not a full-house. Us sitting in a corner sofa added to our woes of trying to get any attention. But still, it was a good place for high tea as the likes of Goodwood and Shang were permanently crowded and makes catching up difficult.
With the 1-4-1 promotion, its really a deal not to be missed in my opinion.
3 of us ladies popped by for a quick dinner - my1st visit to the place in fact. Thankfully not too crowded it was an early dinner on a Sat. The place was nonetheless buzzing with mostly younger crowd and families; staff team seemed to be quite busy too.
Lobster Golden Bites Salad ($6.80) - deep fried (i think?) bits of the seafood coated in dressing and perched on top of lettuce pieces amidst some vermicelli. I thought it was quite a refreshing combi with the veg giving a very nice crunch. Taste good too.
Mustard Chicken Salad ($6.80) - I love the sourish dressing for this! The chicken pieces was grilled and honestly just so so, but I was distracted by the accompanying salad more.
Butariki Ishinabe ($12.80) - premium japanese niigata rice accompanied by pan fried and barbeque pork, spring onion, seaweed, and topped with a raw egg. Special sauce drizzled down the sides of the stone bowl - very good - and my spft spot for stone pot doesnt help. The pork was surprisingly tender and marinated well. The ingredients blended very well together and it was quite exciting to wait for the rice to sit and enjoy the slightly charred parts thereafter.
Toroniku Double Soup Ramen ($12.80) - A definite classic brewed to vast perfection. Indulge in this wholesome full bodied soup which is refreshingly tasty; its flavor brought forth by the pork cheek - pork cheek was good and soup was flavourful without the sometimes je lart feeling.
Yuzu Yoghurt ($5.80) - Refreshingly light and easy to take to.
Grapefruit soda ($5.80) - A bit overly tangy for me but no doubt refreshing too.
Prices were reasonable with total adding up to $70 for 3pax. Service could improve though with staff being quite unstable when serving food. The tables also have very tight elbow space - good for eavesdropping on your neighbours.
Bologna has a very generic restaurant layout with standard fittings and honestly doesn't come across as an Italian restaurant in my humble opinion. The sole redeeming factor is that one side of it faces the pool, which offers a temporary respite from the usual hustle and bustle. That's provided you manage to snag a table by the window.
Variety
I kid you not. The buffet variety during lunch was limited with about 6-8 cooked dishes, 2 varieties of pizza, a couple of cold appetisers/salads and another 5-6 types of dessert (mainly pastries).
Quality
For the most part, food quality was average at best. The chicken came across as dry and so did the seared tuna. Pizzas fared slightly better with a thin base topped with boring ingredients (ie. vegetarian pizza). Desserts were mundane and I gave up after a few nibbles.
Service
Generally attentive and professional but can be a little too attentive at times. Think someone standing beside your table and observing your every move. Uncomfortable.
Value for money
With a 50% discount, the lunch buffet for 2 cost to the tune of $54, which is cheap by hotel standards. But factor in quality and variety of food and it does come across as relatively expensive. I can't speak for the ala carte menu but the lunch buffet in my humble opinion, is a wash out. Definitely not a place I would patronise again, even @ 50% off.
1=SGD 0.0587
It was a stroke of bad luck that led me to this seemingly innocent place at the inreasingly crowded waterfront hideout. I wished we hadnt.
Things started out okay with the place looking quite chill, and this is the only western option other than Popeye's close by. Warm weather made it tough for us to take the inner dining seats and instead we decided to head out to the bar seats which had 2 overhead fans whirling by (there were 4 but 2 were spoilt).
Menu also looked innocent with the usual western fare and I must say they have a selection larger than it looked like the place can offer. But it was not a blessing as we later found out.
Mushroom soup ($6.90) - I cant make out what this is supposed to be. It was hot alright but tasted like a mash of minced mushrooms with a dollop of oilve oil on top. It was not soup as I remember soup to be.
Buffalo wings ($8.90) - about 8 pieces if mini wings smothered in some hot sauce but the chicken itself was not marinated and the meat undercooked. The sad limp sticks of carrot and celery were not fresh.
Cheesy sausage ($15.90) - The sausage was bland, the mashed potatoes it was lying on powdery and very bad, and the accompanying greens absolutely no dressing at all. They couldn't even bother with thousand island.
Twin slipper lobster ($28.90) - My mum had one bite of the lobster and asked to return it as it was not fresh. The slipper lobster in the Twin Slipper Lobster was not fresh - what a joke.
Alio Olio Shrimp ($16.90) - the alio olio was not too bad actually until I had a bite of the shrimp. Not fresh too. This was returned as well.
Sambal Fried Rice ($13.90) - we were hugely dissatisfied after returning the above 2 mains so decided to order this to share. This was the saving grace of the evening with us having no complaints about this although it was a bit greasy for me.
Beers - they have a small selection of mostly bottled beer but no happy hour pricing. At least the beers were cold.
Service was a major disaster. The picture of the slipper lobster showed that it came with rice so I was trying to reconfirm this with the staff but she insisted that it was not rice but mashed potatoes. Another picture which showed exactly the same thing she said it was rice. ??!! To top it off, she told us "If you want rice, you can order the sambal fried rice. That one comes with rice". Smart.
And obviously, 2 out of 3 main courses returned was not a concern to them as staff and a chap who seemed like their supervisor was just nonchalant about it. And they had the audacity to keep it on the bill and charge me for the 2 returned main courses - I had to ask for them to remove it. And not one word of apologies throughout the evening - so maybe they feel serving not-fresh seafood in their seafood dishes were alright after all.
This place is an absolute disaster. I know I may be over generalizing as I've not tried the other items but for a place to serve seafood which are obviously bad, to me, reflects the attitude of the chef there. Plus service is just bad too. And prices for not cheap at all - I paid $97 for 3pax even after removing the 2 returned items. But i have to admit, the pictures are very deceiving as they actually looked quite decent in it.
If I am ever back, I'll eat at Popeye's and come here just for drinks, if I really have to. I'm quite sure they cannot mess up bottled beer.
Rating given:
We decided to drop by Turf City one Sunday evening and have dinner at one of the seafood restaurants. How we ended up at Ah Yat, I have no idea, especially when my last dinner at the Jalan Ahmad Ibrahim outlet turned out to be a disaster. To be fair, that was quite a few years ago so things might have improved?
The interior of the restaurant was a stark contrast to its surroundings. Soothing but a little gaudy versus partially smashed bare concrete, displaced steel wires/nails and loud drilling noises. Yes, the entire Turf City is under renovation and only a handful of units remain open ( I counted 3 - Owen Seafood, Ah Yat & Giant).
Shark's Fin Soup - Decently sized with slivers of shark's fin and crab meat, the broth was a little too starchy and salty for my liking. Thankfully the serving of fried, albeit overly oily bean sprouts helped to alleviate this dish by introducing water content as well as a wonderful crunch to it. It's interesting how sometimes the humblest of produce can help turn a dish around.
Oyster with Garlic - For our set, we had a choice of Bamboo Clam or Oyster and I chose the latter. And honestly, I couldn't quite make out any taste other than garlic because it was just so overwhelming.
Braised Abalone with Sea Cucumber - I am usually not a big fan of abalone and Ah Yat's well known dish just wasn't about to convert me. The abalone was of decent size (6 head) and a little chewy, though I did find it a little on the salty side. The accompanying sea cucumber and mushroom were decent but failed to leave much of an impression.
Peking Duck - The peking duck was an additional order we craved meat. And it didn't turn out to be a very wise decision. Though the skin was crisp, both the meat and crepe were too dry. Felt very much like eating roast duck - nothing special.
Fried Rice - Although the lack of ingredients was apparent (there was only egg yolk and dried scallop slivers), this dish had a nice wok hei to it and each individual grain was evenly coated and didn't come across as too oily. Be warned that the dried scallops should be eaten together with the rice as the salt content is rather high and might prove unbearable if eaten alone.
Overall the meal wasn't fantastic and even the more expensive ingredients didn't quite justify the price, at about $210 for 3 pax. Service was decent but I highly doubt I will ever return.
See all my pictures here.
Rating given:
The Paradise Inn group to me is a trusted brand where the food is hardly ever very wrong. And this visit to this relatively new outlet proves me unsure. Our family dinner comprised of the following:
Tea - Comes in a very cute glass pot and a baby warmer. Cute.
Black chicken herbal soup - Very homely and taste like a lot of stuff had gone into it. Nice substitute for home-cooked.
Braised tofu with pickled radish - the blandness of the tofu pairs very well with the salty radish but the radish was a bit soggy for my liking.
Omelet with minced meat - Average and the mince meat doesnt taste like it was marinated at all.
Steamed cod - Worst dish of the night. Measly portion of the unfresh fish, plus a lot of bones. Ugh.
Fried thai kai lan ($1) - This in-store promotion allows you to have 1 of 8 dishes at $1 if your bill before GST hits $50, which is not too difficult. I dont know what was the 'thai' in this dish but its fresh and crunchy veg, nice!
Service was average and this outlet was surprisingly not filled at 7pm on a weekday. I would want to try other places in this new mall before returning though.
Rating given:
Chanced upon this ulu place while trying to find a late lunch spot with family. And it turned out to be a worthy shot at dim sum. I cant recall the exact price of each dish so the prices are based on memory - if it serves me right at all:
Salted pork with preserved egg congee ($7.50) - a little pricey than usual but the portion is a full portion which is very filling. Nice smooth congee although the preserved egg has a stronger taste than I would have preferred.
Fresh shrimp wanton noodle ($7.50) - typical cantonese style with the noodles tossed in a simple sauce but nicely al dente; shrimp wantons were good too.
Marinated pig's intestines ($6) - didnt have this but the portion was much bigger than I expected. The one who tasted it said it was not bad.
3-layer abalone ($9.80) - whoever named this was smart. It was one slice of abalone, on top of a spinach tofu square, on top of a bed of spinach. So 3 layers alright. Taste wise was disappointing with all 3 rather bland.
Steamed spare ribs with black bean sauce ($4) - didnt have this but it looked like how it should.
Steamed chicken claw with black bean sauce ($3.50) - i like this! Nicely done with the bean sauce just gooey-ly saltish enough.
Chilled chicken feet ($4) - Am still terrified at how this looks. Not for me.
Shrimp beancurd roll ($4) - Freshly deep fried and crunchy fresh prawns. Good!
Steamed flour roll with bbq pork ($5) - The flour roll was freshly made and silky but the bbq pork had too much fatty bits which was a turn off.
Pan fried carrot cake with bean sprouts ($4) - good! Not overly oily and the bean sprouts crunchy. I wished the carrot cake itself was more 'burnt' though.
The food were mixed but service was good - it may help that on a Sunday 3pm we were the 2nd occupied table. Nice view too if you manage to get a booth seat by the window.
Would I come back? Not sure really. Plus the bill added up to almost $100 for 3pax which was not exactly cheap.
Rating given:
Had dinner at Tung Lok Seafood @ Arena Country Club, a rather obscure club (if you even call it a club) just opposite SAFTI MI. Strangely enough, the same stretch of low rise buildings also host a go karting track and a huge burger king outlet.
The place is quite a size and can easily fit up to 200 people. However, the interior is a little dated but still presentable nonetheless. Definitely more suited to family dining than business meals.
Homemade Beancurd with Spinach - Sitting on a bed of spinach and topped with mushrooms, this dish lacked consistency. Some pieces of beancurd had a nice savoury taste but some were just outright bland. Pity really.
Sweet and Sour Pork - While I will admit that the sweet and sour pork had a nice smoky taste to it, the meat to flour proportion was greatly skewed in favour of the flour, which was a real bummer. Not to mention that portions were tiny for $18 .
Stir Fried Kailan - Drenched in light, mildly salty gravy without being overcooked. Very decent.
Roast Chicken - Served with the de facto crackers, the roast chicken boasted razor thin crisp skin coupled with tender flesh and a generous splashing of salt. Only gripe I had was that the meat could have been juicier. Still good though but nothing compared to what I had at Lung King Heen of course.
Deep Fried Prawns with Wasabi Mayo Sauce - Apparently Tung Lok came up with this dish many years ago. I am not sure how accurate this piece of information is but the prawns were really quite good. Huge, crunchy and coated in a thin layer of flour with a mild tolerable level of wasabi. But it's $52 for a large serving for 9 pax.
Horfun with Prawns - Although each of us managed to snag a huge prawn each, the hor fun itself lacked wok hei but I did like the not too starchy gravy with generous amounts of egg. But at $40 for such a small portion, I'm inclined to think that it's quite overpriced.
Total bill for the 9 of us stood at $238 with a 20% discount. Sure, we were all stuffed at the end of it (courtesy of the ever reliable bowls of rice) and food quality was generally above average, but I wouldn't term it value for money. Portions were less than generous and honestly, none of the ingredients in our dishes were anywhere near expensive. But still, if a family dinner is at hand and you would like an "established" brand name with decent food and prices that won't break your bank, Tung Lok Seafood may just appeal to you. See all my pictures here.
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Ditch that Diet Plan for a night.... Tonight is the night to eat your heart's out.... Serving yummilicious spanish tapas.. This ahlarCART 不肥 'buffet' is one that truly deserves missing breakfast and lunch so that you could try out all the dishes on the alacarte menu. Only happening on Sundays and Mondays.... you have 2 hours to eat whatever your like on the menu. Boy... The dishes on the menu is truly deserving and fabulously delicious. You have a good mix of seafood, beef, poultry, vege and finger food...
The tenderloin beef in garlic sauce is the best for me out of all the other dishes. Served in a metal pan, flavoured lusciously with sauce and whole garlic. This is one dish that I could have one pan after another. The escargot with garlic butter comes in a pan as well, served in a bed of mash. They even provide this unique clamping tool for you to hold on to the shell while you hook the fresh and tasty flesh out.
Overall the food is pretty yummy, service is great, the staff are helpful, attentive and friendly. On top of that... the location is fabulous. Set in the Singapore Art's Museum, if i'm not mistaken, the location used to be an old classroom. You can choose indoor or alfresco dining on a cool evening. Utterly romantic and arty farty....
How to enjoy great food without some decent wine, Happy hour happens almost all the time... House Wine is going for S$5 per glass. Want something more exotic, you could go for the Sangria which is also S$5 per glass.... And let me tell you a secret... be sure to bring 3 ladies to go for the buffet on mondays.... and you get a free bottle of wine......
Buffet is optional.. you could also order from the menu, where you can find authentic spanish main courses, staples, desserts and plenty of other stuffs. There were not many seats, on the monday that we went, it is pretty quiet.. I should say... its a fabulous place to bring your date out for a quiet but yummylicious romantic dinner...
However, the only part that freaks me out a little is the ladies.. Though really nice, clean and modern looking... The fact that its a distance away from the restaurant, you have to walk through a small corridor pass a locked metal gate, a fountain to find it. In the evening when the sun is down and the lights are dim and the energy saving sensor lightings in the toilet are a little bit slow to react... One might feel a little freakish.... But thats good news if you are bringing a date.... Thats your cue to hold that hand you wanted to hold for the last 3 months.....
Fabulous food, Romantic Setting, Great Service, Convenient Location and Value for money drinks.... KNOCK YOUR Monday Blues AWAY......
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I know it is really weird to review this exhibition here as it is only held once every year, however this is to lure those who have the complimentary invite from their customers to go for the exhibition. Held in the expo, though far and with the consistently inconsistent MRT train delays and breakdowns making the location worst to travel there. This is an exhibition not to be missed. Spanning a good floor area of ALL THE EXHIBITION Halls at the Singapore Expo, one can only imagine how big scale the exhibition is.
Why do i rate this as a buffet.. It is indeed a Gastromical Galore. Here is what I call all the buffets in the world combine into one location. The exhibition features industrial and commercial kitchen machinery, appliances, supplies, flavoring, frozen food, fruits, nuts, everything you can find in the F&B industry you can find it here... The GELATOs... so pretty, amazingly yummy and luring... one could not resist the encouragement of a free sample. There I had like the most flavors of GELATOs in one day all my life.... Crossants were also the hot favourite giveaway food.. Buttery, yummy and very crispy... You can find all sorts of food for tasting with the halls converted into many stalls of fully equipped kitchen, bakeries and cafes however... my clothes don't seemed to stink abit....
The wine fare is also held concurrently with the food expo. Here you find a good array of alcoholic beverages, beer, spirits, wine from many prestige brands, accessories as well as free wine drinking.... No wonder it requires an entrance fee of S$80 and for trade only...
If you love coffee and wanna know all about it... Here we have all the cafes in Singapore combined into one location. All sorts of italian made and german made commercial coffee machines are exhibited here.. on top of that... premium coffee for free... drink till you get an overdose of caffine! If you love coffee... this is the place to try it all.... pick the best you like and find the cafe that uses that!
Don't forget the supplies for hotels and commercial entities... They have all sorts of furniture, appliances, gazebo, bed sheets for distribution. All with exquisite designs.. So if you have the complimentary invite please don't miss out all the fun and information and food... If you are a photographic enthusiast you must make it there.... See the delicacies in a new light... ever wonder what happens to that beautiful GELATO mess? See it made right before your very eyes!
If you miss it this year... Make sure you make it NEXT YEAR!!!
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Wanting to try after finding out UOB has a 1-4-1 promotion going on. The place was very quiet on a Sunday 3pm despite the staff telling they were overbooked when I called prior. Guess the crowd's at Dining Room for the buffet. Oh well, all the better for a relax family high tea outing.
English Afternoon Tea ($33 per pax) - For an afternoon with a difference, opt for our quintessential English Afternoon Tea. Served in the finest English tradition, it includes delicate pastries, fresh scones with house-made clotted cream and slow-poached berry jam, assorted sandwiches, and freshly brewed leaf tea. Indeed, you may choose from the renowned Mackwoods collection of fine Ceylon teas, from the unblended single estate black teas in different grades, to the exquisite range of flavoured and connoisseur teas such as The Queen's 160 Golden Jubilee Blend and Anniversary Blend. Not surprisingly, English Afternoon Tea is fast becoming an institution at Sheraton Towers.
The bites came in a typical 3 tier and 2pax to 1 tier for the 1-4-1 promo. The scones were warm and fluffy and came with big strawberries.There were also ham sandwich rolls, cheese sandwiches, and ham crossiants, out of which the cheese sandwiches were most memorable. For sweets, there were macaroons, cheesecake, chocolate tarts - all not bad!
(on the hotel website, the description actually says "English Afternoon Tea and Chocolate Fondue" and had a description of the fondue after the above, followed by the price of $33 per pax. I find this very decieving as I took it to mean that the $33 includes both the high tea plus the fondue but turns out the fondue is separately chargeable if you want it. The layout is misleading I feel)
Japanese High Tea ($39 per pax) - Whet your appetite with our new Japanese afternoon tea that boasts an array of Japanese snacks such as Mochi, Cold Soba Noodles with Quail Egg and Fish Roe, Green Tea Daifuku as well as a delectable platter of assorted Sushi and Salmon Sashimi. Sunggle in a cosy couch and pamper yourself to a truly decadent afternoon today!
This was really interesting, served in a standing open shelf. The soba noodles, sushi and (salmon) sashimi were served separately which made it feel like there were more food than it actually were. The soba noodles were disappointing bland but sushi and sashimi were not too bad. The mochi had good reviews, and there was a toufu-like thingy coated with soya bean flour which I couldnt understand. Some jelly-pudding, and also a black saseme kueh thingy which was quite unique.
With all the sets, you get 1 serving of either coffee or your choice of tea but they both come in pots so its actually more than sufficient for 1pax.
Service left much to be desired as the place was obviously understaffed - maybe they felt no need to pay too much attention to the lobby bar since it was not a full-house. Us sitting in a corner sofa added to our woes of trying to get any attention. But still, it was a good place for high tea as the likes of Goodwood and Shang were permanently crowded and makes catching up difficult.
With the 1-4-1 promotion, its really a deal not to be missed in my opinion.
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3 of us ladies popped by for a quick dinner - my1st visit to the place in fact. Thankfully not too crowded it was an early dinner on a Sat. The place was nonetheless buzzing with mostly younger crowd and families; staff team seemed to be quite busy too.
Lobster Golden Bites Salad ($6.80) - deep fried (i think?) bits of the seafood coated in dressing and perched on top of lettuce pieces amidst some vermicelli. I thought it was quite a refreshing combi with the veg giving a very nice crunch. Taste good too.
Mustard Chicken Salad ($6.80) - I love the sourish dressing for this! The chicken pieces was grilled and honestly just so so, but I was distracted by the accompanying salad more.
Butariki Ishinabe ($12.80) - premium japanese niigata rice accompanied by pan fried and barbeque pork, spring onion, seaweed, and topped with a raw egg. Special sauce drizzled down the sides of the stone bowl - very good - and my spft spot for stone pot doesnt help. The pork was surprisingly tender and marinated well. The ingredients blended very well together and it was quite exciting to wait for the rice to sit and enjoy the slightly charred parts thereafter.
Toroniku Double Soup Ramen ($12.80) - A definite classic brewed to vast perfection. Indulge in this wholesome full bodied soup which is refreshingly tasty; its flavor brought forth by the pork cheek - pork cheek was good and soup was flavourful without the sometimes je lart feeling.
Yuzu Yoghurt ($5.80) - Refreshingly light and easy to take to.
Grapefruit soda ($5.80) - A bit overly tangy for me but no doubt refreshing too.
Prices were reasonable with total adding up to $70 for 3pax. Service could improve though with staff being quite unstable when serving food. The tables also have very tight elbow space - good for eavesdropping on your neighbours.
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Ambience
Bologna has a very generic restaurant layout with standard fittings and honestly doesn't come across as an Italian restaurant in my humble opinion. The sole redeeming factor is that one side of it faces the pool, which offers a temporary respite from the usual hustle and bustle. That's provided you manage to snag a table by the window.
Variety
I kid you not. The buffet variety during lunch was limited with about 6-8 cooked dishes, 2 varieties of pizza, a couple of cold appetisers/salads and another 5-6 types of dessert (mainly pastries).
Quality
For the most part, food quality was average at best. The chicken came across as dry and so did the seared tuna. Pizzas fared slightly better with a thin base topped with boring ingredients (ie. vegetarian pizza). Desserts were mundane and I gave up after a few nibbles.
Service
Generally attentive and professional but can be a little too attentive at times. Think someone standing beside your table and observing your every move. Uncomfortable.
Value for money
With a 50% discount, the lunch buffet for 2 cost to the tune of $54, which is cheap by hotel standards. But factor in quality and variety of food and it does come across as relatively expensive. I can't speak for the ala carte menu but the lunch buffet in my humble opinion, is a wash out. Definitely not a place I would patronise again, even @ 50% off.
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