I went to the IT Show yesterday after 7pm, and as expected, everyone headed down on the first day too, in hope to avoid the even massive jam over the weekend.
I did a survival guide for those who's visiting IT Show. If you're keen to read, please go to my blog.
One concern I have at such a crowded event... what IF there's an emergency? I wonder how will they evacuate that many people within the shortest time possible. But I'm sure the organisers would have all these planned and ironed out long ago.
Everyone knew that the place is going to be packed, but still everyone still wants to go check out the prices. Why? Cos they always have very good bundles and discounts at the show. Especially for those who hate shopping and comparing prices at so many stalls around Sim Lim or Funan, shows like this is the easiest for them. Perhaps the price is not the cheapest, but with a little more, you get whole lot of goodies. So why not right?
Have you gone to the show too? Did you get anything there?
My first trip back in Serangoon Gardens. I haven't been here for the last ten years. So many things have changed and many had remained. I found myself on the doorstep of this quaint little Italian restaurant. My friend and I were curious about it and decided that this would be our dinner place that Thursday evening.
Being a weekday evening, I guess it's perfectly understandable why it wasn't crowded. About 4-5 other tables were occupied while we were there. They have a seating area of about 40, including the two tables outside. They have soft warm lighting and earthy tones to create a cosy ambience. It has nice interior decor really.
The staff was warm and friendly. My friend came a little later than me. So the staff talked to me a bit, introducing the restaurant and telling me about the background of it,which was nice.
Food ordered: Funchi Triffolati al Moda Dello Chef - $12.90 Portobello Mushroom garnished with grilled bell peppers, sun dried tomatoes & olives with de Parma's house dressings. I love mushrooms and I'm so glad this dish didn't disappoint. I love the juiciness of the mushrooms as I bit down into it. In fact I loved it so much I was clearly happy to have more than my share. haha I also enjoyed eating it with the bell peppers.
Calzone (Folded Pizza) - $24.90 This Neapolitan speciality is filled with ham, bacon, onions, mushrooms, capsicums & smoked cheddar cheese. This folded pizza was pretty huge, so it sort of justified the price. Inside was filled with plenty of warm ingredients. It would have been more delicious if it were piping hot but then it would have been difficult to eat. So it's good as it is, just one gripe... the outer covering was a little too hard and we had to put quite a bit of effort into cutting it up. Good exercise.
Fileto Di Mento - $32.90 Air-flown, grain-fed beef tenderloin drizzled in red wine sauce & served with Portobello Mushrooms & sauteed vegetables. Let me say this for the record: I'm not a beef person. In fact I don't like beef, but only started eating it when I joined Yebber. Even so I only take one small slice to try each time. But this one? It was fantastic. Yummilicious! The meat wasn't tough and hard to chew. It was tender and the meat was well marinated. But the mushroom that came with it was visibly squashed and shrunken, though it still tasted nice with the sauce they had.
Chocolate Fondant Break the hard crust outside and the chocolate inside flows out nicely. A chocolate addict, I'd say this fondant is good! Not the best but certainly very good.
Tiramisu I think I was a tad biased when I had this Tiramisu. The last 4 Tiramisus I had simply didn't taste like Tiramisus... so when I had this one, I had the words "FINALLY...." going in my head. Nicely done with a tinge of liquor which my companion insisted didn't exist.
The total damage for two of us was $105. Good food, nice ambience, good service. It does seem a little ex but I think it was well worth it. TRY TRY TRY!
1/2 Price Tuesday! So 1/2 the menu and service too?
Felt like having waffles yesterday so I met my girlfriend for dinner at Gelare. The last time I went, the mushroom cream pasta was pretty shiok. But yesterday our experience was in fact, very bad.
This outlet at Hougang Mall is pretty small and getting a table for 4 wasn't easy. After 20mins of waiting outside, finally we got our table. They've now improved on their menu and there were many choices that looks quite good. Since we were there for the waffles and pasta, we didn't get distracted. We wrote our orders on the order sheet provided at every table and went to the cashier to place our order.
While waiting in the queue, I realised that the ice cream choice we wanted wasn't available. And thus I tried to remember whatever that's there and walked back to the table to check with my friends. By then, I've already forgotten 80% of the choices available. Had to walk all the way back to check again and then back to the table to change our orders. Statisfied with our choice of ice cream for our waffles, we got back to the queue and when its our turn, the cashier told us that they had run out of mushroom cream pasta!!! (They could have indicated somewhere or inform us when they cleared the table right?) My friend had to walk back to our table and check what we want to change our pasta to, and then we changed our order AGAIN and joined the queue AGAIN!
We ended walking back and forth for about 5 times before we placed our orders with the cashier!
Our pasta was served first and one look at it I lost my appetite. We ordered tomato seafood pasta, the pasta looked pathetic with the little amount of sauce that only managed to cover 1/3 of the pasta for mine and 1/2 of the pasta for my friends'. We were too hungry to complain and so we just went ahead with what was given.
After our pasta, we stayed to chat while waiting for the waffles which was finally served after more than 30 mins! We did indicate to serve our waffles later, aka after we're done with our pasta, but not till that late.
Very disappointed about yesterday's experience. Guess I'll just forget about the pasta and just go for their waffles the next time.
I had a chance to take a ride on the Singapore Flyer before it was officially opened to public. I was very very excited and was looking forward to the flight. I was there at night and as it was not open to public yet, there wasn't much people there. The flyer was lighted in blue neon color at night and gives a very dreamy feeling at night.
Everyone has to pass through a security check, like at the customs, before entering the boarding area. To get to the flyer itself takes abit of walking and couple of escalator. And before stepping onto the boarding platform, everyone will enter into a mock up of the capsule where photos will be taken. ($15 for the first photo, $10 for subsequent copies.) This photo is supposed to be superimposed into the back drop and show as if we took it while riding on the Singapore Flyer. You can buy the photo after the flight with the magnetic tag passed to you at the mock up photo taking area.
Finally we saw the capsule! Boarding the capsule can be rather tricky. It continues to move as everyone rushed up to get into the capsule before the boarding period passes. I wonder if they carter for handicaps entrance. Probably they'll have to stop the moving flyer for such boardings. The capsule was not as big as I’d imagined. 24 of us standing around the capsule already seemed rather packed and it was rather warm inside the capsule. Can't imagine hot hot it might be in the day when the sun is above.
The view from the top of the capsule was magnificent. You get to see the beautiful skyline from high above. It's recommended that you move around the capsule and enjoy the entire 360-degree view. If you are planning to take photos, its advisable to bring a tripod and set it up before you're 1/4 way up the flight. The glass used isn't suitable for photo taking with flash. So you'll have to have very steady hands or use flash and missed out the beautiful backdrop in the background of your photo.
I'll probably return for another flight when the construction of Marina Bay is complete. Now only one side has got good view.
The first impression I got when I stepped into the cafe is the use of bright colors and 2 huge Jalapeno plushie on display at the capsule display near the entrance. There's a row of booth seats thats great for big group gatherings. Very cosy place to chill out and enjoy the night with friends.
As I was there for an event, I didn't get to take a look at their menu. Everyone was served a sampler plate with fried calamari, wedges, soft burrito and some jalapeno-liked thing with stuffings. I like the fried calamari as it was tasty and crispy. Would surely order this if I go back again. And the jalapeno was as flavorful, not sure wat's inside the stuffing thou as I was too hungry to slowly taste and analyzes them.
Perhaps Yebbers can arrange a gathering there? Hmm...
Seasons Reasons was featured on TV a few times and finally I got a chance to settle for lunch one day. The place is hidden at a corner and easily missed if one isn't noticing. The place can hold about 30-40 pax and is simply decorated with white tables and chairs. Good place for quick meal but not so comfortable for chilling out with friends.
The choice of food is quite small, and I settled with something special that day. I ordered the Spicy Spaghetti Goreng Topped with Mussels & Shrimps @ $13.90 and a glass of Orange Spice. When the spaghetti was served, the smell of Tom Yum filled my senses. I was attracted to it and wanted to deep my fork in it as fast as I could. The presentation was enticing too. The color makes it appealing enough for even my friend who came later to order the same dish. After my first taste of it, I knew immediately I'll return for more if I've the chance. The spaghetti is cooked with some spice that resembles those used in Tom Yum. Very fragrance and nice. Shrimps were plentiful and the mussels were fresh. Serving is big enough to fill any hungry man/woman. Yummilicious pasta!
After hearing about Waffletown from His Food Blog in the shoutbox, I went there to give it a try since I was around the vicinity. The place looks very retro and brings back memory of the A&W days, without the big brown bear wearing the orange top. There were many students when we arrived. Half of them eating cup noodles! Strangely, waffletown is more like a cafeteria that serves other kind of food other than waffles and fried chicken.
As recommended, I ordered the Strawberry Ala Mode Waffles. The waffles are rectangle and topped with real strawberries, whipped cream and a scoop of ice cream of choice. I've to agree that the waffles is simply divine! I fell in love at first bite! I'm craving for their waffles now! *drooools*
I also tried their fried chicken set that comes with whipped potato and coslaw. Quite disappointing with this one thou. The chicken was rather small and there's nothing special about it. Arnold's chicken is much more yummy lah. So Wafflestown is just for waffles huh.
Had passed by Chewy Juniors couple of time when I was at Bugis Junction, but the queue was long most of the time. When I saw that there wasn't any queue one day, I bought a box of 6 to try. There were quite a number of choices and I settled with the more common ones. Couple of toppings worth mentioning is the Strawberry Cheesecake and Blueberry Cheesecake. I like the blend of sweetness and sourness from the cheese.
Chewy Juniors is almost like a combination of donuts and cream puff. With an almost crispy outside and soft chewy inside. Toppings just gave the puff more texture and taste. Can give it a try if you're craving for something sweet.
After reading the two very different takes on this place, I went last week to try it out myself. The place looks very different from how I'd pictured it. It was nicely done up and looks very appealing. When I was there around 5.30pm, there were already 2 families ordering in the restaurant. One thing I've to agree with Lucardia is that the photos in the menu really did make the food look more appealing than it really was. And I've also spotted the reason why the above reviews were so different. They've actually changed their menu after genesis review and before Lucardia went. They'd also increased their pricing! I suspect that they've changed the cook too.
Anyway, since I was already there, we went ahead to order. I ordered a medium-rare Cumin-rubbed Sirloin Steak @ $12.90, my bf ordered a medium done Sizzling Sirloin with blackpepper sauce @ $10.90. The Gratinated half mussels, @ $6.90, looked interesting so we ordered it too. For drinks, we had a sarsi float @ $3 and a mocha latte ice blended @ $5.
The wait for the food took alittle too long since there wasn't much people around. While waiting, our drinks came and they gave us a complimentary basket of chips. This chip tasted like some Hari Raya goodies. They should probably just use potato chips instead. The mocha latte was badly done. It was too diluted and didn't taste like mocha latte at all. Sarsi float was alright since its just normal soda with ice cream.
Soon, our steak came, before the starters (or tapas as they'd called it). It didn't look as appealing as seen on the photos in the menu, but still the smell was pretty good. When I cut into my steak, the steak was overcooked to medium done instead of my medium-rare. It was too tough and the layer of fats was pretty big as compared to the rest I'd seen elsewhere. Taste wise, its nothing to rave about. Soon my bf's sizzling sirloin came. And guess what! His was cooked to medium-rare! Bravo! They'd mixed up our steak! We ended up eating the other's order instead since he's not a fan of bloody steak. The blackpepper sauce was pretty good as compared to the cumin one.
The mussels were the best catch for us that day. Interesting taste with the toppings, which tasted like cheese and some flakes-like toppings.
Before we left, the person on duty told us that the restaurant is there to serve the community. All the earnings from the restaurants actually goes back to charity and to help the needy. It's under the management of Jeewa Ltd and incooperation with Jamiyah Singapore.
Overall, the experience at J's Wok and Grill was quite a disappointment. Considering we actually drove around Bedok just to find the place.
At an event I attended recently, they had CJS catering for tea break and lunch. The presentation was simple and the food didn't look appertising to me. Tea break looks normal with puffs and sandwiches. Didn't taste them as I wasn't hungry. By lunch, everyone was hungry, and I joined the queue for the buffet spread. There was the usual cauliflower, sweet and sour fish, beef stew, some chicken cooked with cheese and vege spring rolls. Almost all the dishes tasted blend in my opinion. The only passable one is the sweet and sour fish. I'm sure not going to recommend this to anyone who's looking for caterers.
Don't go if you don't have anything to buy!
I went to the IT Show yesterday after 7pm, and as expected, everyone headed down on the first day too, in hope to avoid the even massive jam over the weekend.
I did a survival guide for those who's visiting IT Show. If you're keen to read, please go to my blog.
One concern I have at such a crowded event... what IF there's an emergency? I wonder how will they evacuate that many people within the shortest time possible. But I'm sure the organisers would have all these planned and ironed out long ago.
Everyone knew that the place is going to be packed, but still everyone still wants to go check out the prices. Why? Cos they always have very good bundles and discounts at the show. Especially for those who hate shopping and comparing prices at so many stalls around Sim Lim or Funan, shows like this is the easiest for them. Perhaps the price is not the cheapest, but with a little more, you get whole lot of goodies. So why not right?
Have you gone to the show too? Did you get anything there?
Rating given:
My first trip back in Serangoon Gardens. I haven't been here for the last ten years. So many things have changed and many had remained. I found myself on the doorstep of this quaint little Italian restaurant. My friend and I were curious about it and decided that this would be our dinner place that Thursday evening.
Being a weekday evening, I guess it's perfectly understandable why it wasn't crowded. About 4-5 other tables were occupied while we were there. They have a seating area of about 40, including the two tables outside. They have soft warm lighting and earthy tones to create a cosy ambience. It has nice interior decor really.
The staff was warm and friendly. My friend came a little later than me. So the staff talked to me a bit, introducing the restaurant and telling me about the background of it,which was nice.
Food ordered:
Funchi Triffolati al Moda Dello Chef - $12.90
Portobello Mushroom garnished with grilled bell peppers, sun dried tomatoes & olives with de Parma's house dressings.
I love mushrooms and I'm so glad this dish didn't disappoint. I love the juiciness of the mushrooms as I bit down into it. In fact I loved it so much I was clearly happy to have more than my share. haha I also enjoyed eating it with the bell peppers.
Calzone (Folded Pizza) - $24.90
This Neapolitan speciality is filled with ham, bacon, onions, mushrooms, capsicums & smoked cheddar cheese.
This folded pizza was pretty huge, so it sort of justified the price. Inside was filled with plenty of warm ingredients. It would have been more delicious if it were piping hot but then it would have been difficult to eat. So it's good as it is, just one gripe... the outer covering was a little too hard and we had to put quite a bit of effort into cutting it up. Good exercise.
Fileto Di Mento - $32.90
Air-flown, grain-fed beef tenderloin drizzled in red wine sauce & served with Portobello Mushrooms & sauteed vegetables.
Let me say this for the record: I'm not a beef person. In fact I don't like beef, but only started eating it when I joined Yebber. Even so I only take one small slice to try each time. But this one? It was fantastic. Yummilicious! The meat wasn't tough and hard to chew. It was tender and the meat was well marinated. But the mushroom that came with it was visibly squashed and shrunken, though it still tasted nice with the sauce they had.
Chocolate Fondant
Break the hard crust outside and the chocolate inside flows out nicely. A chocolate addict, I'd say this fondant is good! Not the best but certainly very good.
Tiramisu
I think I was a tad biased when I had this Tiramisu. The last 4 Tiramisus I had simply didn't taste like Tiramisus... so when I had this one, I had the words "FINALLY...." going in my head. Nicely done with a tinge of liquor which my companion insisted didn't exist.
The total damage for two of us was $105. Good food, nice ambience, good service. It does seem a little ex but I think it was well worth it. TRY TRY TRY!
Rating given:
1/2 Price Tuesday! So 1/2 the menu and service too?
Felt like having waffles yesterday so I met my girlfriend for dinner at Gelare. The last time I went, the mushroom cream pasta was pretty shiok. But yesterday our experience was in fact, very bad.
This outlet at Hougang Mall is pretty small and getting a table for 4 wasn't easy. After 20mins of waiting outside, finally we got our table. They've now improved on their menu and there were many choices that looks quite good. Since we were there for the waffles and pasta, we didn't get distracted. We wrote our orders on the order sheet provided at every table and went to the cashier to place our order.
While waiting in the queue, I realised that the ice cream choice we wanted wasn't available. And thus I tried to remember whatever that's there and walked back to the table to check with my friends. By then, I've already forgotten 80% of the choices available. Had to walk all the way back to check again and then back to the table to change our orders. Statisfied with our choice of ice cream for our waffles, we got back to the queue and when its our turn, the cashier told us that they had run out of mushroom cream pasta!!! (They could have indicated somewhere or inform us when they cleared the table right?) My friend had to walk back to our table and check what we want to change our pasta to, and then we changed our order AGAIN and joined the queue AGAIN!
We ended walking back and forth for about 5 times before we placed our orders with the cashier!
Our pasta was served first and one look at it I lost my appetite. We ordered tomato seafood pasta, the pasta looked pathetic with the little amount of sauce that only managed to cover 1/3 of the pasta for mine and 1/2 of the pasta for my friends'. We were too hungry to complain and so we just went ahead with what was given.
After our pasta, we stayed to chat while waiting for the waffles which was finally served after more than 30 mins! We did indicate to serve our waffles later, aka after we're done with our pasta, but not till that late.
Very disappointed about yesterday's experience. Guess I'll just forget about the pasta and just go for their waffles the next time.
Rating given:
I had a chance to take a ride on the Singapore Flyer before it was officially opened to public. I was very very excited and was looking forward to the flight. I was there at night and as it was not open to public yet, there wasn't much people there. The flyer was lighted in blue neon color at night and gives a very dreamy feeling at night.
Everyone has to pass through a security check, like at the customs, before entering the boarding area. To get to the flyer itself takes abit of walking and couple of escalator. And before stepping onto the boarding platform, everyone will enter into a mock up of the capsule where photos will be taken. ($15 for the first photo, $10 for subsequent copies.) This photo is supposed to be superimposed into the back drop and show as if we took it while riding on the Singapore Flyer. You can buy the photo after the flight with the magnetic tag passed to you at the mock up photo taking area.
Finally we saw the capsule! Boarding the capsule can be rather tricky. It continues to move as everyone rushed up to get into the capsule before the boarding period passes. I wonder if they carter for handicaps entrance. Probably they'll have to stop the moving flyer for such boardings. The capsule was not as big as I’d imagined. 24 of us standing around the capsule already seemed rather packed and it was rather warm inside the capsule. Can't imagine hot hot it might be in the day when the sun is above.
The view from the top of the capsule was magnificent. You get to see the beautiful skyline from high above. It's recommended that you move around the capsule and enjoy the entire 360-degree view. If you are planning to take photos, its advisable to bring a tripod and set it up before you're 1/4 way up the flight. The glass used isn't suitable for photo taking with flash. So you'll have to have very steady hands or use flash and missed out the beautiful backdrop in the background of your photo.
I'll probably return for another flight when the construction of Marina Bay is complete. Now only one side has got good view.
Rating given:
The first impression I got when I stepped into the cafe is the use of bright colors and 2 huge Jalapeno plushie on display at the capsule display near the entrance. There's a row of booth seats thats great for big group gatherings. Very cosy place to chill out and enjoy the night with friends.
As I was there for an event, I didn't get to take a look at their menu. Everyone was served a sampler plate with fried calamari, wedges, soft burrito and some jalapeno-liked thing with stuffings. I like the fried calamari as it was tasty and crispy. Would surely order this if I go back again. And the jalapeno was as flavorful, not sure wat's inside the stuffing thou as I was too hungry to slowly taste and analyzes them.
Perhaps Yebbers can arrange a gathering there? Hmm...
Rating given:
Seasons Reasons was featured on TV a few times and finally I got a chance to settle for lunch one day. The place is hidden at a corner and easily missed if one isn't noticing. The place can hold about 30-40 pax and is simply decorated with white tables and chairs. Good place for quick meal but not so comfortable for chilling out with friends.
The choice of food is quite small, and I settled with something special that day. I ordered the Spicy Spaghetti Goreng
Topped with Mussels & Shrimps @ $13.90 and a glass of Orange Spice. When the spaghetti was served, the smell of Tom Yum filled my senses. I was attracted to it and wanted to deep my fork in it as fast as I could. The presentation was enticing too. The color makes it appealing enough for even my friend who came later to order the same dish. After my first taste of it, I knew immediately I'll return for more if I've the chance. The spaghetti is cooked with some spice that resembles those used in Tom Yum. Very fragrance and nice. Shrimps were plentiful and the mussels were fresh. Serving is big enough to fill any hungry man/woman. Yummilicious pasta!
Rating given:
After hearing about Waffletown from His Food Blog in the shoutbox, I went there to give it a try since I was around the vicinity. The place looks very retro and brings back memory of the A&W days, without the big brown bear wearing the orange top. There were many students when we arrived. Half of them eating cup noodles! Strangely, waffletown is more like a cafeteria that serves other kind of food other than waffles and fried chicken.
As recommended, I ordered the Strawberry Ala Mode Waffles. The waffles are rectangle and topped with real strawberries, whipped cream and a scoop of ice cream of choice. I've to agree that the waffles is simply divine! I fell in love at first bite! I'm craving for their waffles now! *drooools*
I also tried their fried chicken set that comes with whipped potato and coslaw. Quite disappointing with this one thou. The chicken was rather small and there's nothing special about it. Arnold's chicken is much more yummy lah. So Wafflestown is just for waffles huh.
Rating given:
Had passed by Chewy Juniors couple of time when I was at Bugis Junction, but the queue was long most of the time. When I saw that there wasn't any queue one day, I bought a box of 6 to try. There were quite a number of choices and I settled with the more common ones. Couple of toppings worth mentioning is the Strawberry Cheesecake and Blueberry Cheesecake. I like the blend of sweetness and sourness from the cheese.
Chewy Juniors is almost like a combination of donuts and cream puff. With an almost crispy outside and soft chewy inside. Toppings just gave the puff more texture and taste. Can give it a try if you're craving for something sweet.
Rating given:
After reading the two very different takes on this place, I went last week to try it out myself. The place looks very different from how I'd pictured it. It was nicely done up and looks very appealing. When I was there around 5.30pm, there were already 2 families ordering in the restaurant. One thing I've to agree with Lucardia is that the photos in the menu really did make the food look more appealing than it really was. And I've also spotted the reason why the above reviews were so different. They've actually changed their menu after genesis review and before Lucardia went. They'd also increased their pricing! I suspect that they've changed the cook too.
Anyway, since I was already there, we went ahead to order. I ordered a medium-rare Cumin-rubbed Sirloin Steak @ $12.90, my bf ordered a medium done Sizzling Sirloin with blackpepper sauce @ $10.90. The Gratinated half mussels, @ $6.90, looked interesting so we ordered it too. For drinks, we had a sarsi float @ $3 and a mocha latte ice blended @ $5.
The wait for the food took alittle too long since there wasn't much people around. While waiting, our drinks came and they gave us a complimentary basket of chips. This chip tasted like some Hari Raya goodies. They should probably just use potato chips instead. The mocha latte was badly done. It was too diluted and didn't taste like mocha latte at all. Sarsi float was alright since its just normal soda with ice cream.
Soon, our steak came, before the starters (or tapas as they'd called it). It didn't look as appealing as seen on the photos in the menu, but still the smell was pretty good. When I cut into my steak, the steak was overcooked to medium done instead of my medium-rare. It was too tough and the layer of fats was pretty big as compared to the rest I'd seen elsewhere. Taste wise, its nothing to rave about. Soon my bf's sizzling sirloin came. And guess what! His was cooked to medium-rare! Bravo! They'd mixed up our steak! We ended up eating the other's order instead since he's not a fan of bloody steak. The blackpepper sauce was pretty good as compared to the cumin one.
The mussels were the best catch for us that day. Interesting taste with the toppings, which tasted like cheese and some flakes-like toppings.
Before we left, the person on duty told us that the restaurant is there to serve the community. All the earnings from the restaurants actually goes back to charity and to help the needy. It's under the management of Jeewa Ltd and incooperation with Jamiyah Singapore.
Overall, the experience at J's Wok and Grill was quite a disappointment. Considering we actually drove around Bedok just to find the place.
Rating given:
At an event I attended recently, they had CJS catering for tea break and lunch. The presentation was simple and the food didn't look appertising to me. Tea break looks normal with puffs and sandwiches. Didn't taste them as I wasn't hungry. By lunch, everyone was hungry, and I joined the queue for the buffet spread. There was the usual cauliflower, sweet and sour fish, beef stew, some chicken cooked with cheese and vege spring rolls. Almost all the dishes tasted blend in my opinion. The only passable one is the sweet and sour fish. I'm sure not going to recommend this to anyone who's looking for caterers.
Rating given: