The first time I went, the place was nicely decorated. The second time looked like it was undergoing renovation. As a portion was sectioned off, the number of tables was less. We waited for about 5 minutes and were shown to our table.
There was a lack of waiting staff. Took me a few tries to catch the attention of one to take our orders. The food was average. The plate was huge but the amount was small. It looked as if we were to be served huge portions when in reality, the plate was an illusion.
The water was refilled only once as the staff were very busy. A disappointment, really since they could have tried to get more staff as they weren't that alert.
The plus point was the table, it wasn't that tiny as Pasta Mania.
When I was in primary school, I dun like to see a student taking a white card walking into class room. Cos it means someone in the class will be summoned to the dentist! At that time everyone hope that their names will not be called. One of my classmates even burst into tears when her name is being called. Wahahaha!
So an appointment was made and the days leading to the appointment were very anxious anticipation. Well, the truth is I last visit a dentist was like 2 years ago. I knew my teeth are in very bad state as well.
So on the fateful day (today), we headed toward Apex Dental Surgery after work. The clinic is a small but well equipped one with friendly assistant and dentist as well.
When I went into the room, I saw nothing but the dentist chair only, but the dentist, Dr Tan, is kind enough to see that I am nervous and made some small talk with me before starting the procedure. After verifying some of my allergies, she began to start work on my teeth. The drill like tool was placed in my mouth and the sound of the drill started to flood into my ears. While she was gently cleaning my teeth, I was like looking somewhere else trying to distract myself, at the same time reminding to open my mouth wide so that the drill will not go crazy in my mouth.
Dr Tan is really professional and gentle, telling me that it will have to take some time for her to clear the dirt in between the teeth and some level of pain might be experienced. In between, she will still engaged me in some small talk, while she is cleaning away. At times, she will stop and ask me rinse my mouth to clear away all the dirt.
After about 40 mins of work and I mean hard work, she is finally done. I am done. Not without her, telling me about my wisdom tooth and my few holes that needs fillings as well. Sigh... The cost of cleaning of teeth $70. Finally the "nightmare" is over and I left the clinic with clean teeth again! Think I will be back soon for the fillings and a 6 monthly check up.
I happened to be at AMK Hub again and this time round, I was determined to queue for the durian pancakes until I get them. Haha... Well, the last time round I was queuing and half way through, the shop assistant announced that they have ran out durian paste and so we'll have to wait for another 45mins or so for the durian paste to be delivered from their outlet at Takashimaya. Wow, I can't help but wonder, "Their durian pancakes are really that fantastic?" Unwilling to wait for another 1 hrs for the pancakes, I left the queue, yet somehow disappointed.
Finally, I decided to queue for the pancakes again that day, prayed really hard hoping that they wouldn't run out of durian paste again. I was lucky this time round!
The queue was super long and endless! I queued for about 30mins for my turn and there was still a long queue behind me then although it was almost 10pm already. Yes, their business was really good. While waiting for my turn, I was watching the way the shop assistant made the pancakes. She was fast at making the pancakes and gave a generous serving of durian paste for each pancake before packing them into nice boxes. The service was excellent too & she even advised customers on the storage of unfinished pancakes.
Finally, the taste of the pancake. Yummy!! I really crave for more of it. The pancake was thin and a little crispy, while the durian paste just oozed out when u bite the pancake. The taste of the durian paste was great too. It's bitter-sweet in taste. Satisfied!
Each pancake costs $1.50, which is definitely value for money.
I think I'll also want to try their durian crept, puff & mochi next time.
I frequent this dental clinic for my regular dental checkup every half a year. In fact, for the past 2 years, I been visiting the clinic every month for my orthodontic treatments.
Dr Sim is my Orthodontist while Dr Tan is my regular dentist. Both dentists are every nice and friendly, to whom you can talk anything under the sun. This definitely makes visits to them very relaxing. With all the casual exchange of conversation and laughter during the treatment, time just passed so fast and you would hardly feel any pain when all the "drillings" were done.
Of course, their service is excellent as they emphasize alot on customer satisfaction. They provide good advices on dental care & cost of special dental treatments. They have made me a satisfied & happy customer.
As for charges wise, for teeth polishing, they charge $50-70. Cost of other treatments are also clearly stated inside the clinic.
Craving for Japanese food? Why not give Shokudo a try? But be prepared to be stuck with too many choices!
After reading the above reviews, I decided to give this place a try. The chance came and I went on this mini adventure of mine at Shokudo...
Thanks for the reviews here, I already know what to expect at the entrance. And I quickly got into my adventurous mode the moment I stepped in. *haha!*
The first impression I got was Wow! So big! It's about the size of the old Marche at Heeren. But cos this place is done up in a Japanese kind of style with minimum decorations around the place, it seems slightly more spacious than the old Marche. As it was a weekday, there wasn't much crowd when I went. With many tables available, I skipped the "Reserve table" part and went on to find food.
After going around the place, I kinda got lost of my orientation. (Perhaps I was too hungry then.) Good thing I didn't place my "Reservation token" at any of the tables, cos I would most probably forget which section it was. The place is divided into various themes so customers can decided where is more suitable for the mood they're in. (This is not quite possible if you go on a crowded period thou.)
As I was alone, and having limited cash with me, I opted for something friendly for my wallet and tummy. I bought a "Hakodate" Seafood Cheese Pizza ($8.80) and a glass of japanese orange peel drink ($price forgotten). The pizza is made fresh upon ordering, so I settled down with my drink to enjoy the peacefulness during that time. There was soft music playing in background and I was totally relaxed and enjoying my time alone after a long day of meetings.
The pizza was different from the one we usually see. This was served in a rectangular wooden pan and the pizza crust was thin and crispy. There were plentiful of toppings and one bite into the pizza will make you want to have more. The pizza might not look big nor sufficient for the hungry people, but if you're having it alone, its fills just right the right amount in one's tummy. Due to its thin crust, you'll not feel "sick" of the pizza.
The pizza with the refreshing orange peel drink - a perfect match!
My friends and I simply loved to try out food and desserts. For me, desserts stands for most of it. So when I saw this link for ePosh, I just click on it out of curiosity. My first impression, the website is difficult to navigate in with its black background and brightly colored words and the extremely small words.
Nevertheless, what is a website if it serves good desserts. So we went especially from the West to Dhoby Ghaut just to get a taste of the desserts. To our dismay, the shop is just a shop front. There were no seats but just a counter sort of like Famous Amos or bubble tea. There were not much cookies left, just maybe one or two cakes at the counter and of course, brownies.
The serve crew (polite and good service quality) at the counter gave us some brownie base to try. To me, its too sweet though the texture sure is better than a lot of other brownies I've eaten. Chewy and not dry. They currently have 10 flavors out of which, we bought Jelly Peanut butter, White Choc, Triple Choc, Mashmellows, Choc butter. They also have chilli choc which I found rather special but I didn't try as I don't eat chilli.
On first taste, their brownies are definitely unique and tasted above average. But as we try on, we felt thats all there is. There is no "oopmh" of tasting a great dessert and as all the brownie bases are the same, the only difference is its blend with the toppings.
If you really want me to say, I'll recommend white choc and Mashmellow (toasted). But frankly, it would be better if there are seats in the shops for patrons to sit in, not just 2 chairs in front of the shop. Desserts especially brownies, cakes and cookies taste best eaten fresh no matter whether they can be left outside for 3 days without refrigeration.
Price is still ok, going at $3 per piece of brownie. Currently they have a promotion of 5 pieces at $13. Great as a gift as it comes in the beautiful and posh box and paper bag in the pictures.
My first time in Ajisen. Surprised by how fast our food was served as it was full house with a queue outside. We order the fried pork ramen, Volcano Ramen and Teriyaki Chicken Don.
Soup base was tasty and just right without the starchiness or oiliness found in other Ramen. However, the fried pork was too salty hence you got to eat it with the Ramen to blend the taste. Perhaps it was made so that you have to eat it that way. Serving was big and definitely value for the money.
I only tried 1 piece of chicken for the Teriyaki Chicken Don. The chicken was tender and chewy though like the pork, salty. I did not try the Volcano Ramen but I thought it looks very spicy to me.
Menu for dessert was very extensive and we were spoilt for choice regarding which to order. I ordered the Strawberry Parfett. Tried some of the Mango-don't-know-whats-the-name (looks like mango ice). Desserts looks nice but tasted average. Strawberry Parfett was great and recommended though the serving was too big and will be perfect for 2 persons. Mango was sour.. way too sour to eat alone. You will have to eat with the ice shavings to reduce the sour-ness.
But I would say I won't want to patron Ajisen frequently as the food tend to the salty side and there wasn't anything special about the desserts either. Everything was just average. But it will be a good place for small group outing as they don't seem to have space for big groups.
Edited on : 1/05/08 Went back there the 2nd time last week and order some other side dishes like Prawn Mayo, Fried chicken, Pork and Cabbage Omelette, Beef with Asparagus, Chasu and some other dishes. We were quite disappointed as not only the portion was small for most of the side dishes (those in a set) the taste was below average except for the prawn mayo and the Omelette.
Mango for the dessert this time, was too "old" totally spoiling the dessert. Ice cream looks like its been out in the air for too long and melting.
The service crew who served us asked us to speak chinese cause she did not understand English while the other service crew ask us to explain what is 辣椒in English.
Went to this place a couple of times and hadn't got much of an impression there. The first time I went was in the afternoon, where guests were few and we shared the restaurant with only 2 or 3 other guests. To me, the staffs there were quite slow in serving and seems to act overly friendly but the manager seems to be experienced and good.
So far, we loved baked rice, mixed grill, Brandied cherry dessert (my favorite) and baked fish. And disliked the cheese platter which consisted of only some pieces of biscuits, some English Old Cheese which we don't know how to appreciate. But I must mention the celery were fresh though. Seems like main dishes are well done but side dishes needs more improvement.
Nicely decorated with romantic English country style as the main theme. There will be a live singer there to entertain after 7pm and I must say i think he sings very well. A very nice place to have a cosy outing or a light date. But I do dislike seeing the cooks keep coming outside of the kitchen to "look" around.
Recently, i had the honor of being invited to a friend's Wedding that was held at Qian Xi. Having never heard of the place, i was quite surprised at its location. Civil service club in far off Bukit Batok.
On the wedding invitation card, you can see the address written as Hilltop and i was quite surprised when it really meant hilltop since you had to traverse a rather steep slope just to get to the location.
The surroundings were rather picturesque with plenty of greenery and a pool along with lots of Woody buildings. Check out the pictures to see what i mean.
The ballroom itself is the biggest ballroom in the club. The crystal ballroom with a seating capacity of 57 tables. And the amazing thing is, it was filled to the brim that day with her friends, family and church friends. Quite a sight actually.
For the wedding, we had 9 dishes and free flow of wine and beer.
Lobster Cold Dish - The usual chinese cold dish with squid, fried beancurd wrapped fish cake, lobster with fruits and mayo dressing and meat balls. The lobster was pretty stale but was saved by the dressing. Not really appetising actually.
Braised Shark's Fin With Crab meat - Average, the shark's fin was practically non existent and the soup was simply too starchy to be liked. Nothing vinegar and pepper can't fix but if i needed to resort to that, its already too late.
Roasted Crispy Chicken - Another average dish with the chicken being overly dry and lacking taste. In fact, it tasted like beancurd at some points which was astonishing... The crispy skin was quite fragrant though.
Fried Prawn with Cereal - The cereal was very well done i should say. Sweet, fragrant and very tasty, i could eat the cereal and be happy with it. The prawn was quite big but felt grossly overcooked. Dry and without much taste.
Steamed Red Grouper - The grouper was huge, nicely steamed in the cooking sauce i've always liked. It wasn't overly salty but the freshness of the fish is open to question. The meat had a powdery taste near the middle but otherwise was firm and sweet.
Fresh Scallop with Broccoli - The scallops were mini scale and miserly portioned. In fact, i barely had 2 pieces before everything was swept up by the family next to us. For what its worth, the scallops were fresh and springy to the taste.
Yam Ring with Meat - The yam lacked taste and so did the assorted stuffings present in it. Very obviously pork. It was still too bland for my liking despite the multitude of ingredients served.
Fried rice in lotus leaf - As it turned out, the rice was the best. Fragrant and filling. It had alot of ingredients and even had a little wok hei in it. I have no idea how thats possible though.
Yam Paste with Gingko nut - The yam paste was extremely sweet and while the coconut milk was too little. Thus rendering the dish difficult to swallow. After all the above, i wasn't expecting much in the end anyway.
Wine - the wine served was a cornerstone 2006 cabernet sauvignon. I've been seeing this brand alot and finally got to taste it. Its extremely dry and reeked of spices yet not strong enough to be memorable. Aftertaste is spicy.
Overall, the meal went without hitches but was definitely not in the high end in terms of food quality. Honestly, i think paying $563 for this meal might not be worth it at all.
i went to harris resort in batam with my boyfriend after being introduced by my friend.
we were being welcomed by about 3 or 4 of their staff singing songs to welcome us at the lobby and they really created the very happy kinda atmosphere.
the hotel is not fantastic and i was rather disappointed with my room initially. but it was cosy enough and the thoughtful staff had nice aromatherapy and pralines prepared in the room.
we went for their 2.5hr spa which includes indonesian massage, body scrub and foot massage, all in a nice little hut on top of a building beside the pool.
afterwhich, we went for a fine dining candlelight dinner, with a table specially prepared for us by the pool. when we were seated, their live band came just to us and sang some nice and romantic songs. (but there were some japanese tourist standing beside our table enjoying the band's performance and taking pictures, which made me and my boyfriend rather awkward :P)
we had a smiley and polite waitress stand by near our table to satisfy whatever requests we had. she even had the whole menu changed for me within like 30minutes when i told her i couldnt take seafood.
after the dinner, they gave us a nice little photo frame and a specially made heart shaped fried ice cream FOC. when we mentioned we were too full to finish the ice cream, they even offered to deliver it to our room while we were heading to the bar. i tiped the waitress $2 thanking her for her nice gesture, but deep down inside with the fear that she'll think im a cheapskate for tipping only 2bucks.
but she was soooo happy and so thankful it made me feel that my worry was redundant.
for 170dollars spent per person, id say i really enjoyed my stay there.
1=SGD 0.0587
The first time I went, the place was nicely decorated. The second time looked like it was undergoing renovation. As a portion was sectioned off, the number of tables was less. We waited for about 5 minutes and were shown to our table.
There was a lack of waiting staff. Took me a few tries to catch the attention of one to take our orders. The food was average. The plate was huge but the amount was small. It looked as if we were to be served huge portions when in reality, the plate was an illusion.
The water was refilled only once as the staff were very busy. A disappointment, really since they could have tried to get more staff as they weren't that alert.
The plus point was the table, it wasn't that tiny as Pasta Mania.
Rating given:
When I was in primary school, I dun like to see a student taking a white card walking into class room. Cos it means someone in the class will be summoned to the dentist! At that time everyone hope that their names will not be called. One of my classmates even burst into tears when her name is being called. Wahahaha!
So an appointment was made and the days leading to the appointment were very anxious anticipation. Well, the truth is I last visit a dentist was like 2 years ago. I knew my teeth are in very bad state as well.
So on the fateful day (today), we headed toward Apex Dental Surgery after work. The clinic is a small but well equipped one with friendly assistant and dentist as well.
When I went into the room, I saw nothing but the dentist chair only, but the dentist, Dr Tan, is kind enough to see that I am nervous and made some small talk with me before starting the procedure. After verifying some of my allergies, she began to start work on my teeth. The drill like tool was placed in my mouth and the sound of the drill started to flood into my ears. While she was gently cleaning my teeth, I was like looking somewhere else trying to distract myself, at the same time reminding to open my mouth wide so that the drill will not go crazy in my mouth.
Dr Tan is really professional and gentle, telling me that it will have to take some time for her to clear the dirt in between the teeth and some level of pain might be experienced. In between, she will still engaged me in some small talk, while she is cleaning away. At times, she will stop and ask me rinse my mouth to clear away all the dirt.
After about 40 mins of work and I mean hard work, she is finally done. I am done. Not without her, telling me about my wisdom tooth and my few holes that needs fillings as well. Sigh... The cost of cleaning of teeth $70. Finally the "nightmare" is over and I left the clinic with clean teeth again! Think I will be back soon for the fillings and a 6 monthly check up.
Rating given:
I happened to be at AMK Hub again and this time round, I was determined to queue for the durian pancakes until I get them. Haha... Well, the last time round I was queuing and half way through, the shop assistant announced that they have ran out durian paste and so we'll have to wait for another 45mins or so for the durian paste to be delivered from their outlet at Takashimaya. Wow, I can't help but wonder, "Their durian pancakes are really that fantastic?" Unwilling to wait for another 1 hrs for the pancakes, I left the queue, yet somehow disappointed.
Finally, I decided to queue for the pancakes again that day, prayed really hard hoping that they wouldn't run out of durian paste again. I was lucky this time round!
The queue was super long and endless! I queued for about 30mins for my turn and there was still a long queue behind me then although it was almost 10pm already. Yes, their business was really good. While waiting for my turn, I was watching the way the shop assistant made the pancakes. She was fast at making the pancakes and gave a generous serving of durian paste for each pancake before packing them into nice boxes. The service was excellent too & she even advised customers on the storage of unfinished pancakes.
Finally, the taste of the pancake. Yummy!! I really crave for more of it. The pancake was thin and a little crispy, while the durian paste just oozed out when u bite the pancake. The taste of the durian paste was great too. It's bitter-sweet in taste. Satisfied!
Each pancake costs $1.50, which is definitely value for money.
I think I'll also want to try their durian crept, puff & mochi next time.
Rating given:
I frequent this dental clinic for my regular dental checkup every half a year. In fact, for the past 2 years, I been visiting the clinic every month for my orthodontic treatments.
Dr Sim is my Orthodontist while Dr Tan is my regular dentist. Both dentists are every nice and friendly, to whom you can talk anything under the sun. This definitely makes visits to them very relaxing. With all the casual exchange of conversation and laughter during the treatment, time just passed so fast and you would hardly feel any pain when all the "drillings" were done.
Of course, their service is excellent as they emphasize alot on customer satisfaction. They provide good advices on dental care & cost of special dental treatments. They have made me a satisfied & happy customer.
As for charges wise, for teeth polishing, they charge $50-70. Cost of other treatments are also clearly stated inside the clinic.
Rating given:
Craving for Japanese food? Why not give Shokudo a try? But be prepared to be stuck with too many choices!
After reading the above reviews, I decided to give this place a try. The chance came and I went on this mini adventure of mine at Shokudo...
Thanks for the reviews here, I already know what to expect at the entrance. And I quickly got into my adventurous mode the moment I stepped in. *haha!*
The first impression I got was Wow! So big! It's about the size of the old Marche at Heeren. But cos this place is done up in a Japanese kind of style with minimum decorations around the place, it seems slightly more spacious than the old Marche. As it was a weekday, there wasn't much crowd when I went. With many tables available, I skipped the "Reserve table" part and went on to find food.
After going around the place, I kinda got lost of my orientation. (Perhaps I was too hungry then.) Good thing I didn't place my "Reservation token" at any of the tables, cos I would most probably forget which section it was. The place is divided into various themes so customers can decided where is more suitable for the mood they're in. (This is not quite possible if you go on a crowded period thou.)
As I was alone, and having limited cash with me, I opted for something friendly for my wallet and tummy. I bought a "Hakodate" Seafood Cheese Pizza ($8.80) and a glass of japanese orange peel drink ($price forgotten). The pizza is made fresh upon ordering, so I settled down with my drink to enjoy the peacefulness during that time. There was soft music playing in background and I was totally relaxed and enjoying my time alone after a long day of meetings.
The pizza was different from the one we usually see. This was served in a rectangular wooden pan and the pizza crust was thin and crispy. There were plentiful of toppings and one bite into the pizza will make you want to have more. The pizza might not look big nor sufficient for the hungry people, but if you're having it alone, its fills just right the right amount in one's tummy. Due to its thin crust, you'll not feel "sick" of the pizza.
The pizza with the refreshing orange peel drink - a perfect match!
Will be back for more.
Rating given:
My friends and I simply loved to try out food and desserts. For me, desserts stands for most of it. So when I saw this link for ePosh, I just click on it out of curiosity. My first impression, the website is difficult to navigate in with its black background and brightly colored words and the extremely small words.
Nevertheless, what is a website if it serves good desserts. So we went especially from the West to Dhoby Ghaut just to get a taste of the desserts. To our dismay, the shop is just a shop front. There were no seats but just a counter sort of like Famous Amos or bubble tea. There were not much cookies left, just maybe one or two cakes at the counter and of course, brownies.
The serve crew (polite and good service quality) at the counter gave us some brownie base to try. To me, its too sweet though the texture sure is better than a lot of other brownies I've eaten. Chewy and not dry. They currently have 10 flavors out of which, we bought Jelly Peanut butter, White Choc, Triple Choc, Mashmellows, Choc butter. They also have chilli choc which I found rather special but I didn't try as I don't eat chilli.
On first taste, their brownies are definitely unique and tasted above average. But as we try on, we felt thats all there is. There is no "oopmh" of tasting a great dessert and as all the brownie bases are the same, the only difference is its blend with the toppings.
If you really want me to say, I'll recommend white choc and Mashmellow (toasted). But frankly, it would be better if there are seats in the shops for patrons to sit in, not just 2 chairs in front of the shop. Desserts especially brownies, cakes and cookies taste best eaten fresh no matter whether they can be left outside for 3 days without refrigeration.
Price is still ok, going at $3 per piece of brownie. Currently they have a promotion of 5 pieces at $13. Great as a gift as it comes in the beautiful and posh box and paper bag in the pictures.
Rating given:
My first time in Ajisen. Surprised by how fast our food was served as it was full house with a queue outside. We order the fried pork ramen, Volcano Ramen and Teriyaki Chicken Don.
Soup base was tasty and just right without the starchiness or oiliness found in other Ramen. However, the fried pork was too salty hence you got to eat it with the Ramen to blend the taste. Perhaps it was made so that you have to eat it that way. Serving was big and definitely value for the money.
I only tried 1 piece of chicken for the Teriyaki Chicken Don. The chicken was tender and chewy though like the pork, salty. I did not try the Volcano Ramen but I thought it looks very spicy to me.
Menu for dessert was very extensive and we were spoilt for choice regarding which to order. I ordered the Strawberry Parfett. Tried some of the Mango-don't-know-whats-the-name (looks like mango ice). Desserts looks nice but tasted average. Strawberry Parfett was great and recommended though the serving was too big and will be perfect for 2 persons. Mango was sour.. way too sour to eat alone. You will have to eat with the ice shavings to reduce the sour-ness.
But I would say I won't want to patron Ajisen frequently as the food tend to the salty side and there wasn't anything special about the desserts either. Everything was just average. But it will be a good place for small group outing as they don't seem to have space for big groups.
Edited on : 1/05/08
Went back there the 2nd time last week and order some other side dishes like Prawn Mayo, Fried chicken, Pork and Cabbage Omelette, Beef with Asparagus, Chasu and some other dishes. We were quite disappointed as not only the portion was small for most of the side dishes (those in a set) the taste was below average except for the prawn mayo and the Omelette.
Mango for the dessert this time, was too "old" totally spoiling the dessert. Ice cream looks like its been out in the air for too long and melting.
The service crew who served us asked us to speak chinese cause she did not understand English while the other service crew ask us to explain what is 辣椒in English.
Rating given:
Went to this place a couple of times and hadn't got much of an impression there. The first time I went was in the afternoon, where guests were few and we shared the restaurant with only 2 or 3 other guests. To me, the staffs there were quite slow in serving and seems to act overly friendly but the manager seems to be experienced and good.
So far, we loved baked rice, mixed grill, Brandied cherry dessert (my favorite) and baked fish. And disliked the cheese platter which consisted of only some pieces of biscuits, some English Old Cheese which we don't know how to appreciate. But I must mention the celery were fresh though. Seems like main dishes are well done but side dishes needs more improvement.
Nicely decorated with romantic English country style as the main theme. There will be a live singer there to entertain after 7pm and I must say i think he sings very well. A very nice place to have a cosy outing or a light date. But I do dislike seeing the cooks keep coming outside of the kitchen to "look" around.
Rating given:
Recently, i had the honor of being invited to a friend's Wedding that was held at Qian Xi. Having never heard of the place, i was quite surprised at its location. Civil service club in far off Bukit Batok.
On the wedding invitation card, you can see the address written as Hilltop and i was quite surprised when it really meant hilltop since you had to traverse a rather steep slope just to get to the location.
The surroundings were rather picturesque with plenty of greenery and a pool along with lots of Woody buildings. Check out the pictures to see what i mean.
The ballroom itself is the biggest ballroom in the club. The crystal ballroom with a seating capacity of 57 tables. And the amazing thing is, it was filled to the brim that day with her friends, family and church friends. Quite a sight actually.
For the wedding, we had 9 dishes and free flow of wine and beer.
Lobster Cold Dish - The usual chinese cold dish with squid, fried beancurd wrapped fish cake, lobster with fruits and mayo dressing and meat balls. The lobster was pretty stale but was saved by the dressing. Not really appetising actually.
Braised Shark's Fin With Crab meat - Average, the shark's fin was practically non existent and the soup was simply too starchy to be liked. Nothing vinegar and pepper can't fix but if i needed to resort to that, its already too late.
Roasted Crispy Chicken - Another average dish with the chicken being overly dry and lacking taste. In fact, it tasted like beancurd at some points which was astonishing... The crispy skin was quite fragrant though.
Fried Prawn with Cereal - The cereal was very well done i should say. Sweet, fragrant and very tasty, i could eat the cereal and be happy with it. The prawn was quite big but felt grossly overcooked. Dry and without much taste.
Steamed Red Grouper - The grouper was huge, nicely steamed in the cooking sauce i've always liked. It wasn't overly salty but the freshness of the fish is open to question. The meat had a powdery taste near the middle but otherwise was firm and sweet.
Fresh Scallop with Broccoli - The scallops were mini scale and miserly portioned. In fact, i barely had 2 pieces before everything was swept up by the family next to us. For what its worth, the scallops were fresh and springy to the taste.
Yam Ring with Meat - The yam lacked taste and so did the assorted stuffings present in it. Very obviously pork. It was still too bland for my liking despite the multitude of ingredients served.
Fried rice in lotus leaf - As it turned out, the rice was the best. Fragrant and filling. It had alot of ingredients and even had a little wok hei in it. I have no idea how thats possible though.
Yam Paste with Gingko nut - The yam paste was extremely sweet and while the coconut milk was too little. Thus rendering the dish difficult to swallow. After all the above, i wasn't expecting much in the end anyway.
Wine - the wine served was a cornerstone 2006 cabernet sauvignon. I've been seeing this brand alot and finally got to taste it. Its extremely dry and reeked of spices yet not strong enough to be memorable. Aftertaste is spicy.
Overall, the meal went without hitches but was definitely not in the high end in terms of food quality. Honestly, i think paying $563 for this meal might not be worth it at all.
Rating given:
i went to harris resort in batam with my boyfriend after being introduced by my friend.
we were being welcomed by about 3 or 4 of their staff singing songs to welcome us at the lobby and they really created the very happy kinda atmosphere.
the hotel is not fantastic and i was rather disappointed with my room initially. but it was cosy enough and the thoughtful staff had nice aromatherapy and pralines prepared in the room.
we went for their 2.5hr spa which includes indonesian massage, body scrub and foot massage, all in a nice little hut on top of a building beside the pool.
afterwhich, we went for a fine dining candlelight dinner, with a table specially prepared for us by the pool. when we were seated, their live band came just to us and sang some nice and romantic songs. (but there were some japanese tourist standing beside our table enjoying the band's performance and taking pictures, which made me and my boyfriend rather awkward :P)
we had a smiley and polite waitress stand by near our table to satisfy whatever requests we had. she even had the whole menu changed for me within like 30minutes when i told her i couldnt take seafood.
after the dinner, they gave us a nice little photo frame and a specially made heart shaped fried ice cream FOC. when we mentioned we were too full to finish the ice cream, they even offered to deliver it to our room while we were heading to the bar. i tiped the waitress $2 thanking her for her nice gesture, but deep down inside with the fear that she'll think im a cheapskate for tipping only 2bucks.
but she was soooo happy and so thankful it made me feel that my worry was redundant.
for 170dollars spent per person, id say i really enjoyed my stay there.
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