Pasta Brava has long been acknowledged as one of the top Italian restaurants in Singapore and few would dispute its authenticity and quality. As fate would have it, I dropped by one evening armed with tons of recommendations sourced from friends and a powerful tool called the internet.
Tucked amongst the row of shophouses along Craig Road, which also houses the famous Xi Yan, Pasta Brava is located in a quaint rustic looking unit just opposite a multi story carpark and a community centre. The interior exudes warmth and familiarity with its simplicity and choice of colours, making for a comfortable and homely atmostphere.
Complimentary Bread - Just your normal baguette with a touch of maize. Crisp on the outside but could have been softer and chewier on the inside.
Capesante Alla Cardinale Gratinato - As much as I'm a fan of scallops, this dish didn't really wow me. There was a consistency issue with the scallops. Some were done just right while others were undercooked or overcooked. And I didn't find them particularly sweet. I simply loved the béchamel sauce though. Creamy with a mildly burnt taste and just great as a dip for the complimentary bread.
Stracci Ai Gamberie Capesante - The pasta was rolled into nice flat strips that weren't too thick nor flimsy (reminded me of hor fun, just much firmer in texture) while the saffron cream sauce was rich yet didn't threaten to overwhelm. Portions of fresh scallops and prawns were generous which made this dish an excellent order.
Tagliolini Con Aragosta - The tagliolini was probably a little overcooked, coming across as a tad too soft. However, I appreciated its fragrance and the plentiful crunchy lobster cubes. The base was predominantly olive oil with squashed tomatoes so though oily, it wasn't heavy on the palate.
Torta Di Mele Al Mascarpone E Ricotta Con Gelato - I thought that the apple pie was a very interesting piece of dessert, with the top layer tasting like light and cheesy lemon cheesecake. The middle layer comprised of apple cubes that were almost tasteless when eaten on its own. Wrapping up the bottom was a nice baked crust. There were raisins in the apple pie to give it a sweetness boost and a scoop of ice cream completed the dish.
Panna Cotta All'Amaretto - Pasta Brava's pride and joy and the most interesting take on this ubiquitous Italian dessert that I've ever tried. On the outside it looked quivery yet firm but stick a spoonful into your mouth and feel it literally disintegrate (very little gelatin), very much like soya beancurd (豆花). Paired with the mildly sweet amaretto, it made for a nice soothing dessert.
1 appetiser, 2 mains and 2 desserts cost us to the tune of $104 which isn't anything near what I would classify as cheap but I would say its money reasonably well spent. Food quality is comforting and so is the excellent service rendered by the friendly owner. Doodling on the table with crayons is encouraged and that adds to the fun factor. Remember to make your reservations!
I visited and bought things from Ikea Tampines close 8 times in the last 2 months. That's really a record for someone who doesn't drive. I faithfully took the shuttle on most trips and took a cab home on a couple of occasions.
There are a number of things I've learnt on these trips to Ikea...
Unless you bought extremely large items, it still makes more sense to take a cab home rather than pay for delivery which is $40 if you live in Tampines, Pasir Ris or Simei areas and $45 for other areas. There was one occasion where we bought quite a number of items and we booked a Maxi Cab home, costing us $20 which is still cheaper than the delivery cost and we needn't wait for the delivery date/time.
If you're going for a specific item/s, call ahead to check for stock, especially during peak seasons before Christmas and CNY. Things go out of stock easily and may not be re-stocked within the week. It happened to me a few times and it's quite exasperating.
Always keep your receipt. Ikea is no longer as liberal as they used to be on return policies. I think there were amendments to the policy when they realised that people were taking advantage of it. Keep your receipt not as proof of purchase but to prove WHEN you made your purchase as they have a 100-day policy. It didn't used to be this way.
AND if you see the item going on clearance... MAKE SURE you really want the item before buying it. If the item is no longer sold at the store, you'll have trouble trying to return it if you don't like it anymore.
DO YOUR HOMEWORK before going. We did do our homework but when we got there we had a change of mind. If you take a look at my pictures I have a high table with metal legs. Those aren't suppose to go together. The metal legs are meant for another table top that has one end attached to the wall. The table top has 16 holes pre-drilled under it. This table top that we got has 20 holes pre drilled under it and we couldn't fix it properly. We were a little upset that we had to return it at first but LUCKILY my contractor did us the favour by putting it together for us. hehe
I still like going to Ikea... I like to buy all the little decorative items for my room and the rest of the house. I enjoy walking around in the big open space and not have any salesperson following me around. I like how they sometimes stock the things in two areas so that you can change your mind and still buy the item without going back up. I also love the $1 hotdogs which I buy to eat while waiting for the shuttle.
Firstly please accept my apologies on the poor photographs posted up. The material we chose was blackout material which means it shuts out the light from outside when the photo is taken. At the point when these photographs were taken my lights weren't completely ready.
I saw this shop on television, a chinese variety programme, and decided to give it a try. Upon getting to Tanjong Katong Complex we realised that there were many curtain shops there, and we enquired at every one. We asked for the same thing at every single shop: 4 sets of blinds with blackout materials. We received quotes from $200 to $290 per set.
Jimmy Textile was the only one who was able to give a definite quotation based on our accurate measurements. They were willing to confirm the quotation of $200 on the spot even without going to our place to measure (we took the measurements right down to the mm.) They also did not try to hardsell, badger us or hover around us as we looked at the materials. They, in a friendly manner, just left all the materials we needed on the table and left us alone to choose. And whenever we needed help they gave us the advice we needed. They have a wide variety of materials and we really took a lot of time scouring through the various booklets.
On the day, they came to take measurements, they were very punctual and polite. My father was very fussy about the measurement of the blinds but the uncle was still very patient with him, making sure we were satisfied with the measurements before they left.
I had to change the installation date/time 3 times due to the delays in my renovation but there were no grumbles from them and they tried to accomodate whenever they could. They work every day, even Sundays and Public Holidays (Except for CNY).
My installation was finally fixed on a Sunday and the two men came promptly. Just 20 minutes before they were to arrive they called me to confirm that I was there. I think this is really good practice. When they came they did their work as quickly as they could and were very careful when placing the ladder on my newly laid tiles. I absolutely love my new blinds!
I, Willy Wonky, have decided to allow three children, to visit my Research facility this year. These lucky three will be allowed to see all the secrets and the magic of my facility. Then at the end of the tour, as a special present, one of them will be given enough chocolates and sweets to last him/her for the rest of the life! So watch out for the Choc Tickets!
The Chocolate room. An important room, this! This is the heart of the whole research facility. And so beautiful yes! Below the melting chocolate wall, are bars and bars of chocolate, 100 different flavours! There, it’s all chocolate!
The inventing room. All the most secret new inventions are cooking and simmering in here. The connoisseur, exotic, double fruit series are some of the ones which will make your saliva-gland start working. Not to mention there’s the classic, nut, coffee and tea series.
Only Brad Brat left. The winner, with enough chocolate & sweets to last him for the lifetime! The dark chocolate 70% from Saint domingue in the spotlight.
***
Chocolate Research Facility (CRF) is a chocolate boutique, which comprises of a retail store and a cafe. The interesting layout of the shop, the unique packaging of the chocolate bars, the intriguing combination of flavours available, meant that you need to grab a bar here! The chocolate are priced at $8, 10, & 12 for different flavours. I brought one bar, guess the flavour!
This post is inspired base on the story, Charlie & the chocolate factory by Roald Dahl. I have made some changes to parts of it, no intention of misusing the author’s right.
You are always welcome to visit ladyironchef for a full-up on this trip. Whatever written herein are my genuine feelings expressed in words. Food, my dear, is what they call an adventure!
This is a small shop right at the corner of a row of shophouses. You might just miss it if you don't look up and see the big signboard. I got to know of this shop from renovation forums and went down to take a look.
Small as it looked from the outside, it was cramped with all sorts of lights inside. They have designer lights and simple ones too! They also sell a range of ceiling fans though not very many. The husband and wife team are very polite throughout our hour long visit on both days and they obligingly turned on all the lights we asked for. (you'll be surprised many shops aren't happy to.) They also suggested energy-saving methods and were professional in handling us even though it's a family-run business and they have two kids hanging out at the back.
The prices are cheaper than most of the bigger shops and I even saw one of their lights retailing at a popular store for 4 times its price. So I was rather happy to get most of my lights there.
Two weeks after I moved in, one of the bedroom lights died and we called them up. They aimably sent down someone two days later to fix it. No questions asked.
This is the only shop that utterly ruined my renovation experience. I have no choice but to relate my entire experience here...
We were out shopping for sanitary and stopped by at Viva Nueva first. But I didn't like the design of the one-piece toilet bowl they had there so we thanked the saleslady, Jojo and we went to look for more. We finally picked out our toilet bowls, sinks and taps at a shop further down. But my mom really liked the cooking hob at Viva Nueva so we walked back to the shop. We ordered our hob and kitchen sink from them and left. Before we left I asked for them to provide me with a trap for the kitchen sink. It costs only $5 and Jojo's face immediately turned "black" when I asked for it FOC. I just spent $700 at her shop and she was unhappy about me asking for a $5 item....
After 30 minutes, Jojo called me on the phone and demanded to know where I bought my sanitary fittings. She asked if I bought from XXX shop down the street and demanded to know exactly what I bought from them. I flatly refused to give her any details and the conversation lasted for 8 minutes with her repeatedly asking me what I bought. When I put down the phone, I really regretted buying anything from her but since I'd already paid the deposit I only prayed for my items to come intact.
About a week later, I asked for the items to be delivered. The salesgirl on the line (not Jojo) confirmed that my items can be delivered on Wednesday at 1pm. At 12pm on Wednesday I called to confirm again and she told me that the items were not in the warehouse yet and she cannot confirm that my items can reach me at 1pm!! Can you imagine that she didn't even intend to call me beforehand and was going to let me wait like a fool at a half-renovated house with no seats?! Anyway I agreed to postpone the delivery to the next day.
The next day the items arrive promptly... but... there was no hole for my tap on the kitchen sink. There was a hole on the sink that was displayed in the showroom so I naturally assumed that the sink comes with a hole for kitchen taps. I do know that some sinks do not as the taps are to be mounted on the table top. So I called Viva Nueva again and this time Jojo answered.
She insisted that it was MY FAULT for not telling them that I needed a hole for my kitchen tap and wanted me to ask my contractor/plumber to drill a hole. BUT if they did the job and spoilt the sink who was to pay for it? In the first place, I don't buy sinks every day and am not a professional at buying sinks so HOW WOULD I KNOW that sinks don't come with holes?! She as the sales staff SHOULD ask the customer if they need one drilled isn't it??? Anyway the deliveryman was very kind and he agreed to take back the sink and drill the hole for me, even while I was still arguing with Jojo over the phone. So there went my sink again. Thankfully my kitchen hob came intact.
I told Jojo that she has to inform me two hours before the delivery of my sink as I needed time to rush down. She said she would inform me an hour before and I found that to be reasonable. BUT the next day, the deliveryman called me at 12noon to tell me that he was there waiting for me. I was on my way to town and simply couldn't rush down. So the deliveryman left the sink there and left. I managed to go down at 4pm and lo and behold, there was a footprint in the middle of the sink and tons of haphazard scratches all over the base of the sink which weren't there in the first place. I reckon they must have gotten there when the drilling was done.
Anyway I called Jojo again and told her to take back the sink. She said that the scratches were part of the design and ALL her sinks have the scratch-like design. hahaha Anyway she said she got her deliveryman to come down and I asked her when he would arrive. She insisted that he was coming now and refused to say when he would arrive. He did eventually after 45 minutes and took back the sink grudgingly saying that he would never deliver the sink again.
In the next two days, we argued with Jojo many times and insisted that we wanted a refund and that we would just buy our sink elsewhere since the delivery of HER sink was delaying our renovation. My contractor needed her sink in order to cut the opening on my kitchen cabinets. After much talks, the sink finally came (unannounced again) and we inspected it before paying the remaining amount in cash.
What an experience it was just trying to get our $235 sink (which IS expensive for a non-European sink btw).
The hob wasn't cheap too at $529 though I was told by friends that for that brand it is quite a good buy. BUT I certainly would have settled for a lesser brand if I knew how much trouble patronising this shop would cause.
After renovation, the walls in our house looked so empty so we looked into ways of getting them spruced up. My parents weren't a fan of getting paintings as holes had to be made in order to hang the paintings up.
So I thought of wall decals. After looking at many local decal websites, I found Decorette! I liked a few of the designs on the website and was ready to order them. However, at that point, I could find one that I liked for the living room. I wanted something which was family related but there weren't any of those. So I decided to have one customised.
I emailed Amanda of Decorette about my plans and she replied in a couple of days. With a couple of emails to and fro, we had the design finalised and I paid through paypal. In 3 days after paying, the decals were on my doorstep! That's fast isn't it? Especially since she needed to customise mine and cut it up, etc... Not to mention the customised one cost $50 only! She also threw in little swirly designs for me free... and I made little changes to my chandelier one without additional charges.
The decals came well packed and protected by the hard tube, so they were in mint condition.
The decals were easy to put up and the instructions were easy to understand. Amanda even included a little cute birdie for us, first-timers, to try putting up before we put our actual decal. But we loved the birdie so much we put it together with the family decal!
Though easy to put up, it still took us some time about 1 and a half hours to put two up. But it was well worth the effort!
I was shopping along Geylang for my sanitary fittings and came across this shop. We were looking specifically for one-piece toilet bowls as they are known to have less leakage problems but the one-piece bowls at other shops were really expensive, some going up to $800 when a two-piece one goes for $100 .
We went into Eestilo and was happy to find that they had a package for the one-piece bowl and a sink for $299. There were also other sinks available and one has to just top up a little on the package.
What I was most impressed with was the level of service provided. Sunny, the sales guy there, moved the two sinks we wanted to where they had the taps. At my father's request, he detached the taps from the display and place them on the sinks we chose to let us see if it was satisfactory. He did that for 7-8 taps without any grumble and with a smile, in fact!
Though the taps weren't as cheap as we had hope for it to be but I guess the promotion for the one-piece toilet bowl and the service made up for all that. :)
Confession of a non-Japanese food lover. Right, I admit. I’m not the biggest fan of Jap food, while others rave about the freshness of the sashimi, I stared at them and wondered why they like to eat raw seafood. When others sipped and finished their bowl of ramen, I’m quietly thinking of my wanton mee. But, I can’t stop myself eating Tonkatsu, whenever I enter a Japanese restaurant.
The inevitable thing happened when I stepped into Tonkichi, thoughts of the excellent Kurobuta pork cutlet that I had at Tampopo, flowed into my mind. And of course, the visit here was because friends have always recommended Tonkichi for their famous tonkatsu. The interior is very simple, smaller than what I expected from the outside, with a comprehensive menu to showcase their speciality.
And this is where the main difference between Tonkichi and Tampopo lies. The latter offers a wide range of Japanese food, with Katsu and ramen as their signatures, the former does what they’re best in, Tonkatsu. They have the hire and rosu katsu of course, but there are also other set combinations to try their prawn, oyster, crab with their katsu.
Eggs are my favourite, and fried eggs with white rice can satisfied me. I’m a simple person with a simple taste bud, really. But somehow I do not fancy the Chawanmushi ($3.50). I guess the problem is steamed eggs and I simply do not get along. Nonetheless, my friend enjoyed the starter, and finished it fast enough.
Somebody once told me that Japanese potato salad ($3.50) is very good. It surely represented what an appetiser was about, light and simple, something to get your engines, or rather stomach going.
We were expecting the tonkatsu to be the star since Tonkichi is famous for it. But instead, we found ourselves falling in love with this instead. Man, the simmered pork belly was just so, so good! Well it tasted akin to our Chinese braised pork belly, everything was perfect. My friend was contemplating to order another serving, but we decided to come back to Tonkichi again, just for the divine Buta Kakuni ($6.50).
I was somewhat disappointed by the supposedly signature dish, Rosu Katsu ($20). There was the option of going for the premium tonkatsu set, but since I tried the normal grade pork loin at Tampopo last time, I wanted to give them a equal footing for the comparison. Sadly to say, I felt that the rosu katsu here didn’t quite match up to the one I had before. While there was a layer of fats underneath the crispy exterior, but the katsu somehow just lacked the oomph factor.
Adding a few more bucks, gets you the Oyster & Rosu Katsu set ($24.50). The same goes for the rosu katsu, while my friend who is a big fan of oyster dutifully chomped down both oysters while leaving the katsu unfinished.
Total bill was $68.25 for two person. The conclusion was quite clear-cut, I’ll like to think that Tampopo serves a meaner and better Tonkatsu, well the best I ever tried so far. But I’ll certainly come back to Tonkichi, just for their Buta Kakuni.
You are always welcome to visit ladyironchef for a full-up on this trip. Whatever written herein are my genuine feelings expressed in words. Food, my dear, is what they call an adventure!
Three. It is the natural number following two, and preceding four. It also represents the three of us, the memories; of the fun, joy and laughter that we shared throughout the years. No, although we didn’t meet frequently, but somehow our conservation always continue smoothly from the previous meeting which was a few months ago, as though we just met yesterday.
Friends, are like the macarons you see. They come in all shapes and flavours, just like friends who has different characters and personality. And how long have we all known each other; with each finger representing a year, I count almost nine out of the ten fingers I could afford on both of my hands.
Friends. There isn’t a need to contact with each other all the time. A simple greeting, uncomplicated chit-chats, and a sincere well-wishes, are the ingredients needed, just like how a good macaron is defined by having chewy shells, with flavourful fillings.
Friends, we automatically updated and filled in on each others life, the gossips and chit-chats that make a whole afternoon passed by in a blink of the eye. A place to sit, some desserts to go along with a cup of tea, are all we need.
She giggled, you chuckled, and we smiled. Much as we used to complain about dragging ourselves out of bed on a Saturday morning just for the practice, thinking of the silly times we had, those were the days.
All of us had moved on, to new pasture, and a different world. But we still managed to meet up even though the rest often had excuses to miss our gatherings. Yes, always the three of us.
Bakerzin is currently having their Macarons promotions, selling at a dollar for each macaron (usual price $1.60 ). And since it is a promotion, their usual flavours will not available, instead there’s ten different flavours to choose from. We had seven out of the ten, namely; lemon, coffee, Peach, Pistachio, Sakura, Blueberry, and Chocolate.
In short, not all the macarons impressed. We like the coffee, with the strong after-taste lingering on our tongue. The pistachio was chewy and sticky. The first bite of the chocolate was overwhelming bitter, but the taste became sweeter for the second bite. The different macarons have different texture, the lemon and the blueberry’s shell crumbled easily, while pistachio and chocolate have slightly crispy ones. But still, a dollar a macaron is cheap, and you can’t complain.
I was sceptical about choosing the Mango mousse ($6.20) initially. But since I’ve try most of the other cakes available at Bakerzin, we decided to take a risk and go ahead with it. And I must say the mango cake, or rather mousse was better than what we thought. Two layers of thin sponge with thick layer of mango mousse in between. The mango mousse, was naturally fulsome with mango.
With a name like Lavande ($6.90), we were perhaps expecting something more of the lavender flower, but it never came. Instead, the cake was very rich, with the goodness of dark chocolate fudge, and the velvety lavender-infused chocolate mousse. The very subtle lavender flavour in the cake meant that it was simply a chocolate cake, with a slight hint of flower.
As with most tastings, we always leave the strongest for the last. Sweet Pleasure ($6.90) is what my friend call it, my-kind-of-cake. How very true. A top layer of chocolate, jivara milk chocolate ganache, a layer of chocolate mousse, and hazelnut praline dacquoise. All in all, it did seem like a ferrero rocher cake. And having tried about thirteen of Bakerzin’s cake so far, sweet pleasure together with the chocolate amer are two of my favourites.
Friends are one of the nicest things you can have, and one of the best things you can be. One year technically isn’t very long, and with the advancement in technology, there’s always msn and email to bridge the gap of the two countries. Have fun in the coming months, my friend, my senior, my big sister. The three of us, yes as always, three, will meet once you got back.
***
Total Bill was $37.25 for 3 cakes, 7 macarons, and 3 drinks. With the promotion of getting a drink at $1.90 each with the purchase of each slice of cake during tea time. As you will know by now, I don’t like to repeat visits, but the one-dollar a macaron was too tempting for me to resist. Having tried thirteen cakes on two visits, it is unlikely that i will visit Bakerzin in the near future, but yeah, you shouldn’t missed their current promotion until end of Feburary.
You are always welcome to visit ladyironchef for a full-up on this trip. Whatever written herein are my genuine feelings expressed in words. Food, my dear, is what they call an adventure!
1=SGD 0.0587
Pasta Brava has long been acknowledged as one of the top Italian restaurants in Singapore and few would dispute its authenticity and quality. As fate would have it, I dropped by one evening armed with tons of recommendations sourced from friends and a powerful tool called the internet.
Tucked amongst the row of shophouses along Craig Road, which also houses the famous Xi Yan, Pasta Brava is located in a quaint rustic looking unit just opposite a multi story carpark and a community centre. The interior exudes warmth and familiarity with its simplicity and choice of colours, making for a comfortable and homely atmostphere.
Complimentary Bread - Just your normal baguette with a touch of maize. Crisp on the outside but could have been softer and chewier on the inside.
Capesante Alla Cardinale Gratinato - As much as I'm a fan of scallops, this dish didn't really wow me. There was a consistency issue with the scallops. Some were done just right while others were undercooked or overcooked. And I didn't find them particularly sweet. I simply loved the béchamel sauce though. Creamy with a mildly burnt taste and just great as a dip for the complimentary bread.
Stracci Ai Gamberie Capesante - The pasta was rolled into nice flat strips that weren't too thick nor flimsy (reminded me of hor fun, just much firmer in texture) while the saffron cream sauce was rich yet didn't threaten to overwhelm. Portions of fresh scallops and prawns were generous which made this dish an excellent order.
Tagliolini Con Aragosta - The tagliolini was probably a little overcooked, coming across as a tad too soft. However, I appreciated its fragrance and the plentiful crunchy lobster cubes. The base was predominantly olive oil with squashed tomatoes so though oily, it wasn't heavy on the palate.
Torta Di Mele Al Mascarpone E Ricotta Con Gelato - I thought that the apple pie was a very interesting piece of dessert, with the top layer tasting like light and cheesy lemon cheesecake. The middle layer comprised of apple cubes that were almost tasteless when eaten on its own. Wrapping up the bottom was a nice baked crust. There were raisins in the apple pie to give it a sweetness boost and a scoop of ice cream completed the dish.
Panna Cotta All'Amaretto - Pasta Brava's pride and joy and the most interesting take on this ubiquitous Italian dessert that I've ever tried. On the outside it looked quivery yet firm but stick a spoonful into your mouth and feel it literally disintegrate (very little gelatin), very much like soya beancurd (豆花). Paired with the mildly sweet amaretto, it made for a nice soothing dessert.
1 appetiser, 2 mains and 2 desserts cost us to the tune of $104 which isn't anything near what I would classify as cheap but I would say its money reasonably well spent. Food quality is comforting and so is the excellent service rendered by the friendly owner. Doodling on the table with crayons is encouraged and that adds to the fun factor. Remember to make your reservations!
See all my pictures here.
Rating given:
I visited and bought things from Ikea Tampines close 8 times in the last 2 months. That's really a record for someone who doesn't drive. I faithfully took the shuttle on most trips and took a cab home on a couple of occasions.
There are a number of things I've learnt on these trips to Ikea...
Unless you bought extremely large items, it still makes more sense to take a cab home rather than pay for delivery which is $40 if you live in Tampines, Pasir Ris or Simei areas and $45 for other areas. There was one occasion where we bought quite a number of items and we booked a Maxi Cab home, costing us $20 which is still cheaper than the delivery cost and we needn't wait for the delivery date/time.
If you're going for a specific item/s, call ahead to check for stock, especially during peak seasons before Christmas and CNY. Things go out of stock easily and may not be re-stocked within the week. It happened to me a few times and it's quite exasperating.
Always keep your receipt. Ikea is no longer as liberal as they used to be on return policies. I think there were amendments to the policy when they realised that people were taking advantage of it. Keep your receipt not as proof of purchase but to prove WHEN you made your purchase as they have a 100-day policy. It didn't used to be this way.
AND if you see the item going on clearance... MAKE SURE you really want the item before buying it. If the item is no longer sold at the store, you'll have trouble trying to return it if you don't like it anymore.
DO YOUR HOMEWORK before going. We did do our homework but when we got there we had a change of mind. If you take a look at my pictures I have a high table with metal legs. Those aren't suppose to go together. The metal legs are meant for another table top that has one end attached to the wall. The table top has 16 holes pre-drilled under it. This table top that we got has 20 holes pre drilled under it and we couldn't fix it properly. We were a little upset that we had to return it at first but LUCKILY my contractor did us the favour by putting it together for us. hehe
I still like going to Ikea... I like to buy all the little decorative items for my room and the rest of the house. I enjoy walking around in the big open space and not have any salesperson following me around. I like how they sometimes stock the things in two areas so that you can change your mind and still buy the item without going back up. I also love the $1 hotdogs which I buy to eat while waiting for the shuttle.
Rating given:
Firstly please accept my apologies on the poor photographs posted up. The material we chose was blackout material which means it shuts out the light from outside when the photo is taken. At the point when these photographs were taken my lights weren't completely ready.
I saw this shop on television, a chinese variety programme, and decided to give it a try. Upon getting to Tanjong Katong Complex we realised that there were many curtain shops there, and we enquired at every one. We asked for the same thing at every single shop: 4 sets of blinds with blackout materials. We received quotes from $200 to $290 per set.
Jimmy Textile was the only one who was able to give a definite quotation based on our accurate measurements. They were willing to confirm the quotation of $200 on the spot even without going to our place to measure (we took the measurements right down to the mm.) They also did not try to hardsell, badger us or hover around us as we looked at the materials. They, in a friendly manner, just left all the materials we needed on the table and left us alone to choose. And whenever we needed help they gave us the advice we needed. They have a wide variety of materials and we really took a lot of time scouring through the various booklets.
On the day, they came to take measurements, they were very punctual and polite. My father was very fussy about the measurement of the blinds but the uncle was still very patient with him, making sure we were satisfied with the measurements before they left.
I had to change the installation date/time 3 times due to the delays in my renovation but there were no grumbles from them and they tried to accomodate whenever they could. They work every day, even Sundays and Public Holidays (Except for CNY).
My installation was finally fixed on a Sunday and the two men came promptly. Just 20 minutes before they were to arrive they called me to confirm that I was there. I think this is really good practice. When they came they did their work as quickly as they could and were very careful when placing the ladder on my newly laid tiles. I absolutely love my new blinds!
Rating given:
I, Willy Wonky, have decided to allow three children, to visit my Research facility this year. These lucky three will be allowed to see all the secrets and the magic of my facility. Then at the end of the tour, as a special present, one of them will be given enough chocolates and sweets to last him/her for the rest of the life! So watch out for the Choc Tickets!
The Chocolate room. An important room, this! This is the heart of the whole research facility. And so beautiful yes! Below the melting chocolate wall, are bars and bars of chocolate, 100 different flavours! There, it’s all chocolate!
The inventing room. All the most secret new inventions are cooking and simmering in here. The connoisseur, exotic, double fruit series are some of the ones which will make your saliva-gland start working. Not to mention there’s the classic, nut, coffee and tea series.
Only Brad Brat left. The winner, with enough chocolate & sweets to last him for the lifetime! The dark chocolate 70% from Saint domingue in the spotlight.
***
Chocolate Research Facility (CRF) is a chocolate boutique, which comprises of a retail store and a cafe. The interesting layout of the shop, the unique packaging of the chocolate bars, the intriguing combination of flavours available, meant that you need to grab a bar here! The chocolate are priced at $8, 10, & 12 for different flavours. I brought one bar, guess the flavour!
This post is inspired base on the story, Charlie & the chocolate factory by Roald Dahl. I have made some changes to parts of it, no intention of misusing the author’s right.
You are always welcome to visit ladyironchef for a full-up on this trip. Whatever written herein are my genuine feelings expressed in words. Food, my dear, is what they call an adventure!
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This is a small shop right at the corner of a row of shophouses. You might just miss it if you don't look up and see the big signboard. I got to know of this shop from renovation forums and went down to take a look.
Small as it looked from the outside, it was cramped with all sorts of lights inside. They have designer lights and simple ones too! They also sell a range of ceiling fans though not very many. The husband and wife team are very polite throughout our hour long visit on both days and they obligingly turned on all the lights we asked for. (you'll be surprised many shops aren't happy to.) They also suggested energy-saving methods and were professional in handling us even though it's a family-run business and they have two kids hanging out at the back.
The prices are cheaper than most of the bigger shops and I even saw one of their lights retailing at a popular store for 4 times its price. So I was rather happy to get most of my lights there.
Two weeks after I moved in, one of the bedroom lights died and we called them up. They aimably sent down someone two days later to fix it. No questions asked.
Thumbs up for good service and prices!
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This is the only shop that utterly ruined my renovation experience. I have no choice but to relate my entire experience here...
We were out shopping for sanitary and stopped by at Viva Nueva first. But I didn't like the design of the one-piece toilet bowl they had there so we thanked the saleslady, Jojo and we went to look for more. We finally picked out our toilet bowls, sinks and taps at a shop further down. But my mom really liked the cooking hob at Viva Nueva so we walked back to the shop. We ordered our hob and kitchen sink from them and left. Before we left I asked for them to provide me with a trap for the kitchen sink. It costs only $5 and Jojo's face immediately turned "black" when I asked for it FOC. I just spent $700 at her shop and she was unhappy about me asking for a $5 item....
After 30 minutes, Jojo called me on the phone and demanded to know where I bought my sanitary fittings. She asked if I bought from XXX shop down the street and demanded to know exactly what I bought from them. I flatly refused to give her any details and the conversation lasted for 8 minutes with her repeatedly asking me what I bought. When I put down the phone, I really regretted buying anything from her but since I'd already paid the deposit I only prayed for my items to come intact.
About a week later, I asked for the items to be delivered. The salesgirl on the line (not Jojo) confirmed that my items can be delivered on Wednesday at 1pm. At 12pm on Wednesday I called to confirm again and she told me that the items were not in the warehouse yet and she cannot confirm that my items can reach me at 1pm!! Can you imagine that she didn't even intend to call me beforehand and was going to let me wait like a fool at a half-renovated house with no seats?! Anyway I agreed to postpone the delivery to the next day.
The next day the items arrive promptly... but... there was no hole for my tap on the kitchen sink. There was a hole on the sink that was displayed in the showroom so I naturally assumed that the sink comes with a hole for kitchen taps. I do know that some sinks do not as the taps are to be mounted on the table top. So I called Viva Nueva again and this time Jojo answered.
She insisted that it was MY FAULT for not telling them that I needed a hole for my kitchen tap and wanted me to ask my contractor/plumber to drill a hole. BUT if they did the job and spoilt the sink who was to pay for it? In the first place, I don't buy sinks every day and am not a professional at buying sinks so HOW WOULD I KNOW that sinks don't come with holes?! She as the sales staff SHOULD ask the customer if they need one drilled isn't it??? Anyway the deliveryman was very kind and he agreed to take back the sink and drill the hole for me, even while I was still arguing with Jojo over the phone. So there went my sink again. Thankfully my kitchen hob came intact.
I told Jojo that she has to inform me two hours before the delivery of my sink as I needed time to rush down. She said she would inform me an hour before and I found that to be reasonable. BUT the next day, the deliveryman called me at 12noon to tell me that he was there waiting for me. I was on my way to town and simply couldn't rush down. So the deliveryman left the sink there and left. I managed to go down at 4pm and lo and behold, there was a footprint in the middle of the sink and tons of haphazard scratches all over the base of the sink which weren't there in the first place. I reckon they must have gotten there when the drilling was done.
Anyway I called Jojo again and told her to take back the sink. She said that the scratches were part of the design and ALL her sinks have the scratch-like design. hahaha Anyway she said she got her deliveryman to come down and I asked her when he would arrive. She insisted that he was coming now and refused to say when he would arrive. He did eventually after 45 minutes and took back the sink grudgingly saying that he would never deliver the sink again.
In the next two days, we argued with Jojo many times and insisted that we wanted a refund and that we would just buy our sink elsewhere since the delivery of HER sink was delaying our renovation. My contractor needed her sink in order to cut the opening on my kitchen cabinets. After much talks, the sink finally came (unannounced again) and we inspected it before paying the remaining amount in cash.
What an experience it was just trying to get our $235 sink (which IS expensive for a non-European sink btw).
The hob wasn't cheap too at $529 though I was told by friends that for that brand it is quite a good buy. BUT I certainly would have settled for a lesser brand if I knew how much trouble patronising this shop would cause.
If I can give lesser than one star I would.
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After renovation, the walls in our house looked so empty so we looked into ways of getting them spruced up. My parents weren't a fan of getting paintings as holes had to be made in order to hang the paintings up.
So I thought of wall decals. After looking at many local decal websites, I found Decorette! I liked a few of the designs on the website and was ready to order them. However, at that point, I could find one that I liked for the living room. I wanted something which was family related but there weren't any of those. So I decided to have one customised.
I emailed Amanda of Decorette about my plans and she replied in a couple of days. With a couple of emails to and fro, we had the design finalised and I paid through paypal. In 3 days after paying, the decals were on my doorstep! That's fast isn't it? Especially since she needed to customise mine and cut it up, etc... Not to mention the customised one cost $50 only! She also threw in little swirly designs for me free... and I made little changes to my chandelier one without additional charges.
The decals came well packed and protected by the hard tube, so they were in mint condition.
The decals were easy to put up and the instructions were easy to understand. Amanda even included a little cute birdie for us, first-timers, to try putting up before we put our actual decal. But we loved the birdie so much we put it together with the family decal!
Though easy to put up, it still took us some time about 1 and a half hours to put two up. But it was well worth the effort!
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I was shopping along Geylang for my sanitary fittings and came across this shop. We were looking specifically for one-piece toilet bowls as they are known to have less leakage problems but the one-piece bowls at other shops were really expensive, some going up to $800 when a two-piece one goes for $100 .
We went into Eestilo and was happy to find that they had a package for the one-piece bowl and a sink for $299. There were also other sinks available and one has to just top up a little on the package.
What I was most impressed with was the level of service provided. Sunny, the sales guy there, moved the two sinks we wanted to where they had the taps. At my father's request, he detached the taps from the display and place them on the sinks we chose to let us see if it was satisfactory. He did that for 7-8 taps without any grumble and with a smile, in fact!
Though the taps weren't as cheap as we had hope for it to be but I guess the promotion for the one-piece toilet bowl and the service made up for all that. :)
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Confession of a non-Japanese food lover. Right, I admit. I’m not the biggest fan of Jap food, while others rave about the freshness of the sashimi, I stared at them and wondered why they like to eat raw seafood. When others sipped and finished their bowl of ramen, I’m quietly thinking of my wanton mee. But, I can’t stop myself eating Tonkatsu, whenever I enter a Japanese restaurant.
The inevitable thing happened when I stepped into Tonkichi, thoughts of the excellent Kurobuta pork cutlet that I had at Tampopo, flowed into my mind. And of course, the visit here was because friends have always recommended Tonkichi for their famous tonkatsu. The interior is very simple, smaller than what I expected from the outside, with a comprehensive menu to showcase their speciality.
And this is where the main difference between Tonkichi and Tampopo lies. The latter offers a wide range of Japanese food, with Katsu and ramen as their signatures, the former does what they’re best in, Tonkatsu. They have the hire and rosu katsu of course, but there are also other set combinations to try their prawn, oyster, crab with their katsu.
Eggs are my favourite, and fried eggs with white rice can satisfied me. I’m a simple person with a simple taste bud, really. But somehow I do not fancy the Chawanmushi ($3.50). I guess the problem is steamed eggs and I simply do not get along. Nonetheless, my friend enjoyed the starter, and finished it fast enough.
Somebody once told me that Japanese potato salad ($3.50) is very good. It surely represented what an appetiser was about, light and simple, something to get your engines, or rather stomach going.
We were expecting the tonkatsu to be the star since Tonkichi is famous for it. But instead, we found ourselves falling in love with this instead. Man, the simmered pork belly was just so, so good! Well it tasted akin to our Chinese braised pork belly, everything was perfect. My friend was contemplating to order another serving, but we decided to come back to Tonkichi again, just for the divine Buta Kakuni ($6.50).
I was somewhat disappointed by the supposedly signature dish, Rosu Katsu ($20). There was the option of going for the premium tonkatsu set, but since I tried the normal grade pork loin at Tampopo last time, I wanted to give them a equal footing for the comparison. Sadly to say, I felt that the rosu katsu here didn’t quite match up to the one I had before. While there was a layer of fats underneath the crispy exterior, but the katsu somehow just lacked the oomph factor.
Adding a few more bucks, gets you the Oyster & Rosu Katsu set ($24.50). The same goes for the rosu katsu, while my friend who is a big fan of oyster dutifully chomped down both oysters while leaving the katsu unfinished.
Total bill was $68.25 for two person. The conclusion was quite clear-cut, I’ll like to think that Tampopo serves a meaner and better Tonkatsu, well the best I ever tried so far. But I’ll certainly come back to Tonkichi, just for their Buta Kakuni.
You are always welcome to visit ladyironchef for a full-up on this trip. Whatever written herein are my genuine feelings expressed in words. Food, my dear, is what they call an adventure!
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Three. It is the natural number following two, and preceding four. It also represents the three of us, the memories; of the fun, joy and laughter that we shared throughout the years. No, although we didn’t meet frequently, but somehow our conservation always continue smoothly from the previous meeting which was a few months ago, as though we just met yesterday.
Friends, are like the macarons you see. They come in all shapes and flavours, just like friends who has different characters and personality. And how long have we all known each other; with each finger representing a year, I count almost nine out of the ten fingers I could afford on both of my hands.
Friends. There isn’t a need to contact with each other all the time. A simple greeting, uncomplicated chit-chats, and a sincere well-wishes, are the ingredients needed, just like how a good macaron is defined by having chewy shells, with flavourful fillings.
Friends, we automatically updated and filled in on each others life, the gossips and chit-chats that make a whole afternoon passed by in a blink of the eye. A place to sit, some desserts to go along with a cup of tea, are all we need.
She giggled, you chuckled, and we smiled. Much as we used to complain about dragging ourselves out of bed on a Saturday morning just for the practice, thinking of the silly times we had, those were the days.
All of us had moved on, to new pasture, and a different world. But we still managed to meet up even though the rest often had excuses to miss our gatherings. Yes, always the three of us.
Bakerzin is currently having their Macarons promotions, selling at a dollar for each macaron (usual price $1.60 ). And since it is a promotion, their usual flavours will not available, instead there’s ten different flavours to choose from. We had seven out of the ten, namely; lemon, coffee, Peach, Pistachio, Sakura, Blueberry, and Chocolate.
In short, not all the macarons impressed. We like the coffee, with the strong after-taste lingering on our tongue. The pistachio was chewy and sticky. The first bite of the chocolate was overwhelming bitter, but the taste became sweeter for the second bite. The different macarons have different texture, the lemon and the blueberry’s shell crumbled easily, while pistachio and chocolate have slightly crispy ones. But still, a dollar a macaron is cheap, and you can’t complain.
I was sceptical about choosing the Mango mousse ($6.20) initially. But since I’ve try most of the other cakes available at Bakerzin, we decided to take a risk and go ahead with it. And I must say the mango cake, or rather mousse was better than what we thought. Two layers of thin sponge with thick layer of mango mousse in between. The mango mousse, was naturally fulsome with mango.
With a name like Lavande ($6.90), we were perhaps expecting something more of the lavender flower, but it never came. Instead, the cake was very rich, with the goodness of dark chocolate fudge, and the velvety lavender-infused chocolate mousse. The very subtle lavender flavour in the cake meant that it was simply a chocolate cake, with a slight hint of flower.
As with most tastings, we always leave the strongest for the last. Sweet Pleasure ($6.90) is what my friend call it, my-kind-of-cake. How very true. A top layer of chocolate, jivara milk chocolate ganache, a layer of chocolate mousse, and hazelnut praline dacquoise. All in all, it did seem like a ferrero rocher cake. And having tried about thirteen of Bakerzin’s cake so far, sweet pleasure together with the chocolate amer are two of my favourites.
Friends are one of the nicest things you can have, and one of the best things you can be. One year technically isn’t very long, and with the advancement in technology, there’s always msn and email to bridge the gap of the two countries. Have fun in the coming months, my friend, my senior, my big sister. The three of us, yes as always, three, will meet once you got back.
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Total Bill was $37.25 for 3 cakes, 7 macarons, and 3 drinks. With the promotion of getting a drink at $1.90 each with the purchase of each slice of cake during tea time. As you will know by now, I don’t like to repeat visits, but the one-dollar a macaron was too tempting for me to resist. Having tried thirteen cakes on two visits, it is unlikely that i will visit Bakerzin in the near future, but yeah, you shouldn’t missed their current promotion until end of Feburary.
You are always welcome to visit ladyironchef for a full-up on this trip. Whatever written herein are my genuine feelings expressed in words. Food, my dear, is what they call an adventure!
Rating given: