When this little tube was implemented, I was wondering what we can see on such a tiny screen. Well, it didn't disappoint but it didn't wow me either.
The frames were jerky at certain stretches of the roads and the sound of varying volumes on different buses. Perhaps due to the different crowd at different time.
The colours were torturing because of the reddish hue or dark shades on different screens. I simply get headaches and feel nauseous after 5 minutes of staring at the screen.
And not to forget, the freezing frames during the show's climax and you simply want to scream. Other times, you have reached your stop and the scenes will be missed because it won't be shown again at the appropriate time (read your own convenience).
Not that I'm complaining but if this constant freezing of frames doesn't even contribute to the passengers' entertainment, then, it might as well be scrapped instead of taking up that extra seat.
I've been there a few times since it's accessible as of now. The place used to be less crowded. The Egg mayo set sandwich is one of my favourite choice as it's generous with the egg mayo. The spicy fries have different taste of spiciness at different times. Not evenly mixed, I must say.
There was only once when my meal was served quite fast. Just within 5 minutes after I had placed my order. However, the fries were not well fried. That was the only time. Other times, the fries were well cooked.
Although the location looks hidden away, it's not that far from the train station if you are coming by train. Alighting from the bus is almost the same distance from the train too. Just a 10-minute walk.
My cousin picked this restaurant for my aunt’s birthday celebration last month. Since there are more old people in the group, I think it will be a good place for dinner and celebration as well. This restaurant is right in front of the hotel and next to the main road. It is directly opp parkway parade as well. Hard to miss it with a big white signboard outside the restaurant.
From the outlook of the restaurant, white grand old looking double story building that seems that it had been standing there since I know when. There is also a big carpark jz outside the restaurant, making parking an easy thing to do. If you are really that lazy, there is also valet parking as well. Haa…
When I stepped in, I was quite surprised to see that the restaurant has 3 levels, a basement, ground floor and 2nd floor. Since we have a reservation for 10 people, we were ushered to a private room. Hee… Cool! The main dining room is quite big all with tables able to host at least 10 people and not to mention that they are all full that day. So back to the private room, I think they had at least a few private rooms there.
Inside the room, they have a table for 10 (of cos!), a tv which can watch Ch 5, 8 or U and it is hook up to their KTV system as well. Haa… Can sing and eat at the same time, but then dun expect Kbox or Partyworld kind of songs ok. Hee…… Well at least the TV entertained my nephew, making all of us free to enjoy the dinner. Haa…
We decided to settle for buffet since it will be much more worth it than ordering a set meal for 10 people and at the same time we can order more dishes as well. Well it was a no brainer choice anyway. Looking at the menu there are altogether 52 items where 3 items can be ordered only once and the rest unlimited orders.
The 3 items are:
Mini Monk Jump Over The Wall (Limited to one serving per person). They came in small portions but have to say that we are all very impressed with what is inside the soup! Each bowl will consist of scallops, shark fin, a small little abalone, mushrooms and tons of other goodie stuff that made the soup really good! All natural flavors went into the soup and no MSG. It is a favorite among group. Too bad only 1 serving.
Beijing Roasted Duck (Served with Spring Onions, Cucumber & Sweet Sauce). This one came all ready made. That means the duck skin already all wrapped up in the crepe. I find the dish a little cold and the skin is not as crispy as I expected it to be. Only limited to 2 pcs per person, where got enough?
Live Prawns (Limited to 100g per person) which can be done by either Poached Live Prawns or Deep Fried Prawns with Almond Flake or Fried Prawns with Marmite Sauce. This one came as wrong order, as we had not ordered yet they sent other table prawns to us. Well, since we dig in already, they cannot take back as well. It was poached and has to say that it is one of the freshest prawns I have eaten from sometime. The sizes of the prawns are really huge as well. The prawns are really sweet and there is no “xing wei” at all.
Below are some of the items that I think is worth to give it a shot as well.
Salmon Sashimi – This came in big potions and thick slices as well. It was a hit with my cousin who loved to eat sashimi. Well I am not a big fan of it. However from the way they keep ordering this dish, I think they are really fresh (well I ate one slice), and it was as good as any common jap restaurant that you can find.
Crispy Vietnamese Spring Roll – This came as a surprised. It came to us hot and very crispy. They added in mango and cucmber in the roll which make it extra crunchy.
Cantonese Style Roasted Spring Chicken – I loved to eat chicken and this dish does not disappoint me. The skin is roasted to turn very crispy and have to say very little fats on the skin as well. The meat is juicy and tender not dry even when eating the breast meat. No need the help of the salt, the chicken is already very tasty on its own. Ordered this dish twice.
Barbecued Combination – It came with cha siew, soy sauce chicken and roasted duck. Not too impressed with this as the dish came cold, like in a cold platter. The cha siew tasted quite good on its own, not to sweet as well. Too bad it is cold.
Seafood Salad with Fresh Fruits – This came as a simple salad but because of the fruits used are very fresh, sweet and crunchy, it becomes the highlight of this dish instead of the seafood. Surprising even left on its own, it does not become very watery as well.
Crispy Fried Stuffed Dough Fritters Coated with Mayonnaise – This came in very small portion so we got to order more so that everyone could have at least one. Haa…. Usually this dish will be very oily, but then it turned out to be crispy but not oily. Together with the mayo, it is a prefect combination.
Sautéed Scallops with Celery in X.O Sauce – Well the combination of scallops and celery is enough. Plus the scallops are not over done, not to mention that they are huge! The celery is green and cruchy not overcooked. When both are combined with the sauce, it is so tasty that we had to order another one more.
Deep Fried Marble Goby Fish with Chef’s Special Sauce - According to my mum this fish is very expensive, and were quite surprised when they served us 2 fish. The fish is deep fried and therefore very crispy. It is slightly floured so when eating the fish on its own is able to taste the sweetness and have to say that it is fresh as well. The sauce jz heighten our taste buds and makes the fish taste even better. Haa….
Coffee Pork Ribs – This dish dun look appealing as it came dark brown and not appetizing at all. However looks can be deceiving. The coffee taste is strong enough to taste but not strong enough to overpower the taste of the pork ribs. The pork ribs are chewy and came with a little bit of fats making it melt in your mouth. Of course we have to order this the second time as well.
Sliced Ostrich Meat with Ginger and Onion in Clam Sauce - This one came in a claypot all sizzling. The meat is not over cooked and tender, with the sauce, I can eat this dish all by myself. Now someone pls hand a bowl of rice to me now.
Sweet and Sour Pork Served in Yam Ring – This came as surprise as well. Who will combine sweet and sour pork with yam ring? The sweet and sour pork tasted normal, nothing out of the ordinary. However it was the yam ring that made us asking for more! It is so soft and fluffy, and it is coated with a thin layer of flour before it was deep fried. It is not oily as well. In fact we all finished the yam ring instead of the pork. Haa….
Ice Cream Puff – Out of all the dessert, this one stand out! Reason being, the puff is light and fluffy with ice cream inside the mouth sized puff, prefect. We jz ordered more and more and keep throwing more and more into our mouth as well.
Some of the dish that you can give it a miss, well have to be fair down here right:
Crispy Soft Shell Crab with Salted Pepper – We all got high expectation for this dish but this is a major disappointment as it came to us cold and the soft shell crap going all soft on us. I wonder did they leave it in the counter for too long before serving or what. We can taste all the resuide oil in the crab. Disgusting. We rejected the first serving and when then second serving came back to us, at first no one touched it, so I took myself to the task and the result, it is still the same. I rejected it and told them no need to serve us this dish again.
Steamed Red Tilapia (thai style) – This fish somehow is not fresh and not really a lot of meat on it. Next!
Red Bean Pan Cake – This one is a different version from what I expected. The whole pan cake was covered with sesame seeds. I think with the overloading of the seeds, it downplays the appeal of the dish and the skin of the pancake seems to soaked in a lot of oil, so each bite of the pancake oozes out a lot of oil.
Service wise can say that it is very good. The tea cup is never left empy for long. However at one point, our tea pot did went missing. Haa… Wonder where it went? They also keep replacing our plates and clearing our empty dishes as well. The dishes are also served promptly as well. The waiter that served us also had a permanent simile on his face, making him more friendly as well.
Now the bad, as it is an ala carte buffet, you cannot expect me to remember what I have ordered. Of cos when you asked me if I ordered this dish, I will say yes. Hee…. If you have run out of the dish, you could have informed me earlier rather than when I remembered and I asked then you mention to me that the dish is out of stock.
The price is quite reasonable, you can refer to the above post. If we ordered a set meal, I think the price will be much more expensive and we will not able to each so many dishes again and again.
By the end of the meal, all of us are very full and very happy as well. So much so that we brought a birthday cake along, however at the end of the meal we only cut it and took it back home. Haa…. When they know it is ur birthday, they will also play the birthday song over their PA system. Haa… A bit like those old type of Chinese restaurant. Be prepared to hear someone sing using the KTV system, with the sleazy type of MTV that came along with it. Haa…
Overall, it was a very filling and great dinner especially got older people in the group and they always like these kind of traditional food. Everyone in my group is happy with the food. This is a good place for gathering where can have free flow of food and can chit chat at the same time. I will be back again when I got the chance.
Having walking past it several times and never tried it, thus I suggested that we go to Pasta Cafe at Ngee Ann City. We decided to order the set up which a salad, pasta and gratin because we get to try different food in small serving instead of one large serving of pasta. These were what we ordered: Hawaiian Salad, Potato Salad, Caesar Salad, Black Pepper Beef Pasta with Lobster Gratin, Bacon Gratin with Mushroom Tom Crm C, Seafood Pesto with Lasagne.
We were wrong, despite it looked small serving but the plates had depth, thus we struggled to finish the meal! Nevertheless, it tasted rather nice but the costing are on a high side!
for photos, see my blog - http://leonardpng.blogspot.com/2008/01/meeting-h-b.html
Having spent in excess of $1200 (I am still reeling from the shock from seeing my credit card bill) on food alone in the month of Sep (mind you, this sum only includes what I've charged to my credit card. If you include cash expenditure on food, I should be up by another $400 tops), I decided to go budget a little and give Cafe Vic @ Carlton Hotel a shot given its relatively inexpensive pricing for a weekend high tea ($22 ). With a dining timeslot from 12-5pm, it starts a little early for high tea and ends a little late for lunch, which leaves it somewhere in the middle, or perhaps a combination of both lunch and high tea.
The heavy rains throughout the island on Saturday didn't deter us one bit, although it did make us terribly late for our reservation (45 mins in fact. We got there at 1345hrs instead). Upon arrival, we were seated at a pretty cosy table at one of the corners of the restaurant, which was fine with me except for the fact that the tables surrounding us were occupied by groups of people who were making quite a bit of noise with their loud guffaws and raised voices. That really didn't sit well with me, as I didn't trudge through the heavy rain to listen to people's gossips about the latest games or that secret romance. Maybe I'm being a little cranky here, but try getting your pants all wet with a less then dry gf and having to put up with all that loud chatter. I could barely have a decent conversation with my gf throughout the whole meal. Ok enough of my rambling. The cafe was quite nicely done, with huge paintings adorning the walls and floor to ceilings windows offering a view of the outside world. Capacity would easily be in excess of 100 pax, not that it was needed though, with only about 10 pax throughout the whole course of my meal there.
I did a rough estimate on the number of buffet offerings and it totalled about 40, most of which were common fare like dim sum, sandwiches, salads, Rojak, Ice Kachang, noodles and a splattering of sushi and sashimi, which was still ok, given the price and well, its supposed to be high tea. I made it a point to try everything that Cafe Vic had to offer and two words sum my experience up. PLAIN DISAPPOINTMENT. Everything from the sushi to the desserts, were at best, average. The sushi's rice was cold and dry and the same could be said for the sandwiches. The roast duck was way too salty and the deep fried fishballs tasted rubbery and starchy. Even something as simple as fried noodles was a disaster, with parts of the noodle dry and hard. The selection of salads like the smoked chicken salad and the chicken sausage salad was still ok though. The desserts were average, but I particularly liked the pear pie, which I felt was the only one that shone amongst all the desserts, particularly with its nicely baked crust. Even my gf agrees. However, I must compliment on their service, though not fantastic, was good enough for me.
It cost us about $46 after taxes and a 10% discount with my UOB card, which effectively works out to be $23/pax. Definitely not expensive, but quality of food leaves much to be desired, which I feel is a pity given its simple yet nicely done interior. Also, given my good experiences with Wah Lok, I would have expected more from Cafe Vic. Hence, my stand on Cafe Vic is this. Go for it if you just want to gorge yourself with food for a long period (12-5pm no time limit) and food quality bears little significance to you or if you want to just find a nice place to while the weekend afternoons away with your friends over food at a not too hefty price tag. (Sit in a secluded area though)
Had another impromptu dinner last night albeit with a much smaller price tag as compared to the last one when we dined at Morton’s. The venue was Wah Noogee House at Carlton Hotel just across the road from CHIJMES. The younger cousin of the famous Wah Lok is known for whipping up simple yet delicious fare, as evidenced by the multiple newspaper cuttings plastered to the glass. On this particular occasion, it was offering an Ala Carte buffet of 38 dishes at $22 NETT. Being the “kiasu” Singaporeans, we decided to give it a try. Spaces were aplenty when we got there about 2015hrs. Décor was simplistic yet modern, with aesthetically pleasing lights hanging from the high ceiling.
We tried almost everything on the menu. That might seem a little greedy, but trust me when I say this; portions are single servings (read small) and I estimate that we ate about 20 dishes in all. I found everything pretty average, with the deep fried beancurd being slightly above average. It was nicely diced and fried, with a sprinkling of salt and Monosodium Glutamate (MSG). The roast duck had a nice crisp skin, but minimal meat, which was a bummer really. I did like the wantons for their huge and fresh prawns which were tasty and crunchy. But overall, nothing really stood out.
Damage was $22.40/pax, with the 40 cents going to the cost of the wet towels. Not exactly value for money, but it was a pretty satisfying and enjoyable dinner (for me at least). Service was also quite good and the place was nice and quiet. Still it’s not worth the $22 in my opinion. Approximately $15-$17 would have been just right. Having said that, I might just be convinced to try it again because it offers a relaxed environment with decent food at a not too expensive price. (Actually no hotel that I know has a buffet dinner at $22 NETT)
t was the second outing for the forum people and this time round we tried The Tent @ Clark Quay, which supposedly served Mongolian food steamboat buffet style. Having never tried Mongolian food, I was pretty enthusiastic about the whole thing. After some wrong turns and confusing streets, we finally made it there at about 1945hrs. First looks, the whole place didn't look Mongolian in any way but the setting was pretty nice I must say. And there weren't many people around when we arrived, which was a good thing. (People started filling in at about 8 though)
How this place works is this. You choose your ingredients(rice, meat, prawns, vegetables etc) and toss them into a big bowl and you place your sauces(Teriyaki, BBQ, green curry etc) into a small bowl, after which you give them to the chef together with a metal token with your table number on it and he will cook your food for you and have it served to your table. In case you are clueless as to how to choose your sauces from the 40 or so varieties available, there are some 20 recipes that the chefs have come up with to simplify things.
Food wise, I can't really judge because they all pretty much tasted the same(the ones I had) and it really depended more on what sauces you add, in what quantity etc. Well all in all, it cost us about $151 for 5 pax. Honestly speaking, it was reminiscent of Seoul Garden, albeit a better but more expensive eatery. The "experience" is also slightly different from what you would get outside. However having said that, I don't think I'll be coming back anytime soon. $26 /pax is just too much to pay for food that is a mix and match of everything. Oh and not forgetting the oil smell left on my shirt.
This tiny Italian restaurant, hidden behind a bus-stop and set within a rather rundown place, was pretty tricky to find. With the tinted glass doors and windows, if you didn't take notice of the signboards, you'll never that that's a restaurant.
Finalmente only opened recently, couple months ago. The place was nice and simple. However, the people running the place seemed abit cold tonight. Perhaps its due to the high volume of us, a group of 12, chatting and laughing non-stop when we stepped in. Before that, it was very peaceful and quiet.
The menu was printed on an A4 paper on double side. Perhaps they're still revamping it so keeping it simple for now. There wasn't that many choices of food, just mainly, Salads, Pizzas, Pastas, Sandwiches and Focaccia Breads.
The 12 of us ordered total of 10 pizzas to share. Out of the 9 flavors, I tried only 4 as the rest either were gone even before I managed to see it, or contains pork.
All the pizzas were thin and baked to perfection. The thin base makes it light to eat. Once can finish the entire pizza if you're not watching your weight. As the pizzas all comes on the same type of base, I'll just talk about the flavors for each.
Napoli Pizza $8 - Tomatoes, Anchovies, Capers and Black Olives
This was my least favorite out of the 4. The Anchovies was overpowering and too saltish for me (and everyone who tried it).
5 Cheese $12 - Tomatoes, Mozzarella, Gorgonzola, Emmenthal, Fontina, Parmesan
This was my favourite! Love the cheese! Unlike the normal cheese you find on the regular pizzas from elsewhere. The aroma makes one drool and want to grab a piece. These cheese were nicely spread and baked to the right texture. It was so good that we had to order another one! This will be the one that I'll return for more!
Calzone Gourmet $25 - Close pizza filled with Tomatoes, Mozzarella, Ham and Ricotta Cheese, Mushroom and Boiled Egg
Ouch! I just realised that there's ham in this one! But I don't remember tasting any. Perhaps cos I took the corner which only few slices of mushroom were found. This is more like a huge curry puff instead of a pizza. The crust was light and crispy, and the mushrooms were nice. One thing interesting about this is the egg in the center. It's half cooked and so the yolk will spill out when you cut into it. But the mixed was heavenly.
Bosco $27.50 - Mix cheese, Porcini Mushroom, Grill eggplant, Parmesan shave, drizzled with Truffle Oil
I can't really remember the taste of this pizza. So I guess there's nothing quite nice about it. But if you like eggplant, you should give this one a try.
Overall, this place serves pretty nice pizzas. If you're a fan of pizzas, do go give this place a try. Maybe you'll enjoy it more than me. :)
Oh couple more things! They don't serve ice water. When you order ice water, they'll serve you bottled mineral water. So you might want to just order can drinks or wine instead. There's also no service charge nor GST.
Long heard of this famous ice-cream shop but did not have a chance to patronise it. So after finishing our dinner at Greenwood, we head straight to serene centre which was nearby. When we reached the place it was full house, so we waited a while for our seats. Single scoop comes at $2.50 each, while double scoop is $4.00. There is also the 500ml tub at $8.00
We 3 person order double scoop each and share, so each of us can taste 6 flavours instead of 2. Smart right? There are other flavours like black sesame, soursop, and some others which i can’t remember. But we dun have the courage to try them, so we ordered the more popular ones.
One by one, the top two is teh tareh (coffee) and nutella, bottom left is burn cameral and the popular cookies & cream, bottom right is reversO (chocolate) and horlick (see picture from my blog). We judge the popularity by seeing which one finish first. Make a guess? Cookies & cream and nutella tied for first, followed by cameral, ho, coffee and reverO (chocolate). My personal fav is nutella, never tried before. The reversO was too strong in flavour, as in after eating it when we eat the other flavours we cant taste anything. So we leave it for the last. lol
All in all, Island creamery is quite valued for money, there is a similar ice-cream shop called daily scoop at sunset way which offers double scoop for $5. Head there when u have a chance. 4.5 out of 5
You are always welcome to visit Ladyironchef for a full-up on this trip. Whatever written above are my geniune feelings expressed in words that may be subjected to my personal distortion or bias. Please do not feel emotional or distress should you have any violent objections. Kindly click the little X at the upper, extreme right of your screen if negative adjectives would be derived. Otherwise, feel free to furnish me with comments, may it be positive or negative : )
Three of us went to Greenwood. its behind NJC. Quite hard to go if you do not drive.
The external part of the restaurant does not really have the appeal, like the name implies, Greenwood fish market. It is literally a fish market where u can buy their fish, prawn, oyster. But the interior part is diff (see picture) the lights are dim jus nice and its rather small, so make your reservations before going.
Greenwood is quite famous for their fish & chips, many types of diff fish like snapper, sole filet, salmon, barramundi, tusk fish, yellow fin tuna, nz pink snapper and so on. They also had diff style of cooking the fish like pan-seared, baked, steamed, char-chilled, battered or crumbed. Cool huh? haha. So we had quite a dilemma in choosing what fish we wanted. Above picture is battered snapper($19.95) based on recommendation from the enthu staff. Had a hard time understanding the differences between battered and crumbed. Anyway, battered snapper is good and crispy, but have to finish it fast because its not so nice when it get cold unlike the crumbed sole filet. Both fish & chips come with a healthy side serving of chips and vegies. The chips are good, but the vegies are even better. We have no idea what they do to the vegies, but it’s really good and you want to have more. 4.5 out of 5
Next up is crumbed sole filet ($19.95) also on recommendation. By the way, although both chips are diff fish, but i can’t really tell the diff. lol. From what the staff say, you can tell crumbed from battered because crumbed is fried with bread crumb flour. O well, its quite good also, but i think snapper is a tiny bit better than the sole filet. 4 out of 5
Pasta spag soft shell crab with chili crab sauce ($19.95), unlike the pasta at pastamania, The one here is really pasta. Haha. Soft crab is nice, but too small ! O well. 4 out of 5
Overall good place for fresh fish and seafood, highly recommended just that it is hard to access if you are not driving. We did not have any desserts there because we had already decided to head to Island Creamery for ice cream !
You are always welcome to visit Ladyironchef for a full-up on this trip. Whatever written above are my geniune feelings expressed in words that may be subjected to my personal distortion or bias. Please do not feel emotional or distress should you have any violent objections. Kindly click the little X at the upper, extreme right of your screen if negative adjectives would be derived. Otherwise, feel free to furnish me with comments, may it be positive or negative : )
1=SGD 0.0587
When this little tube was implemented, I was wondering what we can see on such a tiny screen. Well, it didn't disappoint but it didn't wow me either.
The frames were jerky at certain stretches of the roads and the sound of varying volumes on different buses. Perhaps due to the different crowd at different time.
The colours were torturing because of the reddish hue or dark shades on different screens. I simply get headaches and feel nauseous after 5 minutes of staring at the screen.
And not to forget, the freezing frames during the show's climax and you simply want to scream. Other times, you have reached your stop and the scenes will be missed because it won't be shown again at the appropriate time (read your own convenience).
Not that I'm complaining but if this constant freezing of frames doesn't even contribute to the passengers' entertainment, then, it might as well be scrapped instead of taking up that extra seat.
Rating given:
I've been there a few times since it's accessible as of now. The place used to be less crowded. The Egg mayo set sandwich is one of my favourite choice as it's generous with the egg mayo. The spicy fries have different taste of spiciness at different times. Not evenly mixed, I must say.
There was only once when my meal was served quite fast. Just within 5 minutes after I had placed my order. However, the fries were not well fried. That was the only time. Other times, the fries were well cooked.
Although the location looks hidden away, it's not that far from the train station if you are coming by train. Alighting from the bus is almost the same distance from the train too. Just a 10-minute walk.
Rating given:
My cousin picked this restaurant for my aunt’s birthday celebration last month. Since there are more old people in the group, I think it will be a good place for dinner and celebration as well. This restaurant is right in front of the hotel and next to the main road. It is directly opp parkway parade as well. Hard to miss it with a big white signboard outside the restaurant.
From the outlook of the restaurant, white grand old looking double story building that seems that it had been standing there since I know when. There is also a big carpark jz outside the restaurant, making parking an easy thing to do. If you are really that lazy, there is also valet parking as well. Haa…
When I stepped in, I was quite surprised to see that the restaurant has 3 levels, a basement, ground floor and 2nd floor. Since we have a reservation for 10 people, we were ushered to a private room. Hee… Cool! The main dining room is quite big all with tables able to host at least 10 people and not to mention that they are all full that day. So back to the private room, I think they had at least a few private rooms there.
Inside the room, they have a table for 10 (of cos!), a tv which can watch Ch 5, 8 or U and it is hook up to their KTV system as well. Haa… Can sing and eat at the same time, but then dun expect Kbox or Partyworld kind of songs ok. Hee…… Well at least the TV entertained my nephew, making all of us free to enjoy the dinner. Haa…
We decided to settle for buffet since it will be much more worth it than ordering a set meal for 10 people and at the same time we can order more dishes as well. Well it was a no brainer choice anyway. Looking at the menu there are altogether 52 items where 3 items can be ordered only once and the rest unlimited orders.
The 3 items are:
Mini Monk Jump Over The Wall (Limited to one serving per person). They came in small portions but have to say that we are all very impressed with what is inside the soup! Each bowl will consist of scallops, shark fin, a small little abalone, mushrooms and tons of other goodie stuff that made the soup really good! All natural flavors went into the soup and no MSG. It is a favorite among group. Too bad only 1 serving.
Beijing Roasted Duck (Served with Spring Onions, Cucumber & Sweet Sauce). This one came all ready made. That means the duck skin already all wrapped up in the crepe. I find the dish a little cold and the skin is not as crispy as I expected it to be. Only limited to 2 pcs per person, where got enough?
Live Prawns (Limited to 100g per person) which can be done by either Poached Live Prawns or Deep Fried Prawns with Almond Flake or Fried Prawns with Marmite Sauce. This one came as wrong order, as we had not ordered yet they sent other table prawns to us. Well, since we dig in already, they cannot take back as well. It was poached and has to say that it is one of the freshest prawns I have eaten from sometime. The sizes of the prawns are really huge as well. The prawns are really sweet and there is no “xing wei” at all.
Below are some of the items that I think is worth to give it a shot as well.
Salmon Sashimi – This came in big potions and thick slices as well. It was a hit with my cousin who loved to eat sashimi. Well I am not a big fan of it. However from the way they keep ordering this dish, I think they are really fresh (well I ate one slice), and it was as good as any common jap restaurant that you can find.
Crispy Vietnamese Spring Roll – This came as a surprised. It came to us hot and very crispy. They added in mango and cucmber in the roll which make it extra crunchy.
Cantonese Style Roasted Spring Chicken – I loved to eat chicken and this dish does not disappoint me. The skin is roasted to turn very crispy and have to say very little fats on the skin as well. The meat is juicy and tender not dry even when eating the breast meat. No need the help of the salt, the chicken is already very tasty on its own. Ordered this dish twice.
Barbecued Combination – It came with cha siew, soy sauce chicken and roasted duck. Not too impressed with this as the dish came cold, like in a cold platter. The cha siew tasted quite good on its own, not to sweet as well. Too bad it is cold.
Seafood Salad with Fresh Fruits – This came as a simple salad but because of the fruits used are very fresh, sweet and crunchy, it becomes the highlight of this dish instead of the seafood. Surprising even left on its own, it does not become very watery as well.
Crispy Fried Stuffed Dough Fritters Coated with Mayonnaise – This came in very small portion so we got to order more so that everyone could have at least one. Haa…. Usually this dish will be very oily, but then it turned out to be crispy but not oily. Together with the mayo, it is a prefect combination.
Sautéed Scallops with Celery in X.O Sauce – Well the combination of scallops and celery is enough. Plus the scallops are not over done, not to mention that they are huge! The celery is green and cruchy not overcooked. When both are combined with the sauce, it is so tasty that we had to order another one more.
Deep Fried Marble Goby Fish with Chef’s Special Sauce - According to my mum this fish is very expensive, and were quite surprised when they served us 2 fish. The fish is deep fried and therefore very crispy. It is slightly floured so when eating the fish on its own is able to taste the sweetness and have to say that it is fresh as well. The sauce jz heighten our taste buds and makes the fish taste even better. Haa….
Coffee Pork Ribs – This dish dun look appealing as it came dark brown and not appetizing at all. However looks can be deceiving. The coffee taste is strong enough to taste but not strong enough to overpower the taste of the pork ribs. The pork ribs are chewy and came with a little bit of fats making it melt in your mouth. Of course we have to order this the second time as well.
Sliced Ostrich Meat with Ginger and Onion in Clam Sauce - This one came in a claypot all sizzling. The meat is not over cooked and tender, with the sauce, I can eat this dish all by myself. Now someone pls hand a bowl of rice to me now.
Sweet and Sour Pork Served in Yam Ring – This came as surprise as well. Who will combine sweet and sour pork with yam ring? The sweet and sour pork tasted normal, nothing out of the ordinary. However it was the yam ring that made us asking for more! It is so soft and fluffy, and it is coated with a thin layer of flour before it was deep fried. It is not oily as well. In fact we all finished the yam ring instead of the pork. Haa….
Ice Cream Puff – Out of all the dessert, this one stand out! Reason being, the puff is light and fluffy with ice cream inside the mouth sized puff, prefect. We jz ordered more and more and keep throwing more and more into our mouth as well.
Some of the dish that you can give it a miss, well have to be fair down here right:
Crispy Soft Shell Crab with Salted Pepper – We all got high expectation for this dish but this is a major disappointment as it came to us cold and the soft shell crap going all soft on us. I wonder did they leave it in the counter for too long before serving or what. We can taste all the resuide oil in the crab. Disgusting. We rejected the first serving and when then second serving came back to us, at first no one touched it, so I took myself to the task and the result, it is still the same. I rejected it and told them no need to serve us this dish again.
Steamed Red Tilapia (thai style) – This fish somehow is not fresh and not really a lot of meat on it. Next!
Red Bean Pan Cake – This one is a different version from what I expected. The whole pan cake was covered with sesame seeds. I think with the overloading of the seeds, it downplays the appeal of the dish and the skin of the pancake seems to soaked in a lot of oil, so each bite of the pancake oozes out a lot of oil.
Service wise can say that it is very good. The tea cup is never left empy for long. However at one point, our tea pot did went missing. Haa… Wonder where it went? They also keep replacing our plates and clearing our empty dishes as well. The dishes are also served promptly as well. The waiter that served us also had a permanent simile on his face, making him more friendly as well.
Now the bad, as it is an ala carte buffet, you cannot expect me to remember what I have ordered. Of cos when you asked me if I ordered this dish, I will say yes. Hee…. If you have run out of the dish, you could have informed me earlier rather than when I remembered and I asked then you mention to me that the dish is out of stock.
The price is quite reasonable, you can refer to the above post. If we ordered a set meal, I think the price will be much more expensive and we will not able to each so many dishes again and again.
By the end of the meal, all of us are very full and very happy as well. So much so that we brought a birthday cake along, however at the end of the meal we only cut it and took it back home. Haa…. When they know it is ur birthday, they will also play the birthday song over their PA system. Haa… A bit like those old type of Chinese restaurant. Be prepared to hear someone sing using the KTV system, with the sleazy type of MTV that came along with it. Haa…
Overall, it was a very filling and great dinner especially got older people in the group and they always like these kind of traditional food. Everyone in my group is happy with the food. This is a good place for gathering where can have free flow of food and can chit chat at the same time. I will be back again when I got the chance.
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Having walking past it several times and never tried it, thus I suggested that we go to Pasta Cafe at Ngee Ann City. We decided to order the set up which a salad, pasta and gratin because we get to try different food in small serving instead of one large serving of pasta. These were what we ordered: Hawaiian Salad, Potato Salad, Caesar Salad, Black Pepper Beef Pasta with Lobster Gratin, Bacon Gratin with Mushroom Tom Crm C, Seafood Pesto with Lasagne.
We were wrong, despite it looked small serving but the plates had depth, thus we struggled to finish the meal! Nevertheless, it tasted rather nice but the costing are on a high side!
for photos, see my blog - http://leonardpng.blogspot.com/2008/01/meeting-h-b.html
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Having spent in excess of $1200 (I am still reeling from the shock from seeing my credit card bill) on food alone in the month of Sep (mind you, this sum only includes what I've charged to my credit card. If you include cash expenditure on food, I should be up by another $400 tops), I decided to go budget a little and give Cafe Vic @ Carlton Hotel a shot given its relatively inexpensive pricing for a weekend high tea ($22 ). With a dining timeslot from 12-5pm, it starts a little early for high tea and ends a little late for lunch, which leaves it somewhere in the middle, or perhaps a combination of both lunch and high tea.
The heavy rains throughout the island on Saturday didn't deter us one bit, although it did make us terribly late for our reservation (45 mins in fact. We got there at 1345hrs instead). Upon arrival, we were seated at a pretty cosy table at one of the corners of the restaurant, which was fine with me except for the fact that the tables surrounding us were occupied by groups of people who were making quite a bit of noise with their loud guffaws and raised voices. That really didn't sit well with me, as I didn't trudge through the heavy rain to listen to people's gossips about the latest games or that secret romance. Maybe I'm being a little cranky here, but try getting your pants all wet with a less then dry gf and having to put up with all that loud chatter. I could barely have a decent conversation with my gf throughout the whole meal. Ok enough of my rambling. The cafe was quite nicely done, with huge paintings adorning the walls and floor to ceilings windows offering a view of the outside world. Capacity would easily be in excess of 100 pax, not that it was needed though, with only about 10 pax throughout the whole course of my meal there.
I did a rough estimate on the number of buffet offerings and it totalled about 40, most of which were common fare like dim sum, sandwiches, salads, Rojak, Ice Kachang, noodles and a splattering of sushi and sashimi, which was still ok, given the price and well, its supposed to be high tea. I made it a point to try everything that Cafe Vic had to offer and two words sum my experience up. PLAIN DISAPPOINTMENT. Everything from the sushi to the desserts, were at best, average. The sushi's rice was cold and dry and the same could be said for the sandwiches. The roast duck was way too salty and the deep fried fishballs tasted rubbery and starchy. Even something as simple as fried noodles was a disaster, with parts of the noodle dry and hard. The selection of salads like the smoked chicken salad and the chicken sausage salad was still ok though. The desserts were average, but I particularly liked the pear pie, which I felt was the only one that shone amongst all the desserts, particularly with its nicely baked crust. Even my gf agrees. However, I must compliment on their service, though not fantastic, was good enough for me.
It cost us about $46 after taxes and a 10% discount with my UOB card, which effectively works out to be $23/pax. Definitely not expensive, but quality of food leaves much to be desired, which I feel is a pity given its simple yet nicely done interior. Also, given my good experiences with Wah Lok, I would have expected more from Cafe Vic. Hence, my stand on Cafe Vic is this. Go for it if you just want to gorge yourself with food for a long period (12-5pm no time limit) and food quality bears little significance to you or if you want to just find a nice place to while the weekend afternoons away with your friends over food at a not too hefty price tag. (Sit in a secluded area though)
See all my pictures here
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Had another impromptu dinner last night albeit with a much smaller price tag as compared to the last one when we dined at Morton’s. The venue was Wah Noogee House at Carlton Hotel just across the road from CHIJMES. The younger cousin of the famous Wah Lok is known for whipping up simple yet delicious fare, as evidenced by the multiple newspaper cuttings plastered to the glass. On this particular occasion, it was offering an Ala Carte buffet of 38 dishes at $22 NETT. Being the “kiasu” Singaporeans, we decided to give it a try. Spaces were aplenty when we got there about 2015hrs. Décor was simplistic yet modern, with aesthetically pleasing lights hanging from the high ceiling.
We tried almost everything on the menu. That might seem a little greedy, but trust me when I say this; portions are single servings (read small) and I estimate that we ate about 20 dishes in all. I found everything pretty average, with the deep fried beancurd being slightly above average. It was nicely diced and fried, with a sprinkling of salt and Monosodium Glutamate (MSG). The roast duck had a nice crisp skin, but minimal meat, which was a bummer really. I did like the wantons for their huge and fresh prawns which were tasty and crunchy. But overall, nothing really stood out.
Damage was $22.40/pax, with the 40 cents going to the cost of the wet towels. Not exactly value for money, but it was a pretty satisfying and enjoyable dinner (for me at least). Service was also quite good and the place was nice and quiet. Still it’s not worth the $22 in my opinion. Approximately $15-$17 would have been just right. Having said that, I might just be convinced to try it again because it offers a relaxed environment with decent food at a not too expensive price. (Actually no hotel that I know has a buffet dinner at $22 NETT)
See all my pictures here
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t was the second outing for the forum people and this time round we tried The Tent @ Clark Quay, which supposedly served Mongolian food steamboat buffet style. Having never tried Mongolian food, I was pretty enthusiastic about the whole thing. After some wrong turns and confusing streets, we finally made it there at about 1945hrs. First looks, the whole place didn't look Mongolian in any way but the setting was pretty nice I must say. And there weren't many people around when we arrived, which was a good thing. (People started filling in at about 8 though)
How this place works is this. You choose your ingredients(rice, meat, prawns, vegetables etc) and toss them into a big bowl and you place your sauces(Teriyaki, BBQ, green curry etc) into a small bowl, after which you give them to the chef together with a metal token with your table number on it and he will cook your food for you and have it served to your table. In case you are clueless as to how to choose your sauces from the 40 or so varieties available, there are some 20 recipes that the chefs have come up with to simplify things.
Food wise, I can't really judge because they all pretty much tasted the same(the ones I had) and it really depended more on what sauces you add, in what quantity etc. Well all in all, it cost us about $151 for 5 pax. Honestly speaking, it was reminiscent of Seoul Garden, albeit a better but more expensive eatery. The "experience" is also slightly different from what you would get outside. However having said that, I don't think I'll be coming back anytime soon. $26 /pax is just too much to pay for food that is a mix and match of everything. Oh and not forgetting the oil smell left on my shirt.
See all my pictures here
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Hidden treasure. Super Pizzas.
This tiny Italian restaurant, hidden behind a bus-stop and set within a rather rundown place, was pretty tricky to find. With the tinted glass doors and windows, if you didn't take notice of the signboards, you'll never that that's a restaurant.
Finalmente only opened recently, couple months ago. The place was nice and simple. However, the people running the place seemed abit cold tonight. Perhaps its due to the high volume of us, a group of 12, chatting and laughing non-stop when we stepped in. Before that, it was very peaceful and quiet.
The menu was printed on an A4 paper on double side. Perhaps they're still revamping it so keeping it simple for now. There wasn't that many choices of food, just mainly, Salads, Pizzas, Pastas, Sandwiches and Focaccia Breads.
The 12 of us ordered total of 10 pizzas to share. Out of the 9 flavors, I tried only 4 as the rest either were gone even before I managed to see it, or contains pork.
All the pizzas were thin and baked to perfection. The thin base makes it light to eat. Once can finish the entire pizza if you're not watching your weight. As the pizzas all comes on the same type of base, I'll just talk about the flavors for each.
Napoli Pizza $8 - Tomatoes, Anchovies, Capers and Black Olives
This was my least favorite out of the 4. The Anchovies was overpowering and too saltish for me (and everyone who tried it).
5 Cheese $12 - Tomatoes, Mozzarella, Gorgonzola, Emmenthal, Fontina, Parmesan
This was my favourite! Love the cheese! Unlike the normal cheese you find on the regular pizzas from elsewhere. The aroma makes one drool and want to grab a piece. These cheese were nicely spread and baked to the right texture. It was so good that we had to order another one! This will be the one that I'll return for more!
Calzone Gourmet $25 - Close pizza filled with Tomatoes, Mozzarella, Ham and Ricotta Cheese, Mushroom and Boiled Egg
Ouch! I just realised that there's ham in this one! But I don't remember tasting any. Perhaps cos I took the corner which only few slices of mushroom were found. This is more like a huge curry puff instead of a pizza. The crust was light and crispy, and the mushrooms were nice. One thing interesting about this is the egg in the center. It's half cooked and so the yolk will spill out when you cut into it. But the mixed was heavenly.
Bosco $27.50 - Mix cheese, Porcini Mushroom, Grill eggplant, Parmesan shave, drizzled with Truffle Oil
I can't really remember the taste of this pizza. So I guess there's nothing quite nice about it. But if you like eggplant, you should give this one a try.
Overall, this place serves pretty nice pizzas. If you're a fan of pizzas, do go give this place a try. Maybe you'll enjoy it more than me. :)
Oh couple more things! They don't serve ice water. When you order ice water, they'll serve you bottled mineral water. So you might want to just order can drinks or wine instead. There's also no service charge nor GST.
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Long heard of this famous ice-cream shop but did not have a chance to patronise it. So after finishing our dinner at Greenwood, we head straight to serene centre which was nearby. When we reached the place it was full house, so we waited a while for our seats. Single scoop comes at $2.50 each, while double scoop is $4.00. There is also the 500ml tub at $8.00
We 3 person order double scoop each and share, so each of us can taste 6 flavours instead of 2. Smart right? There are other flavours like black sesame, soursop, and some others which i can’t remember. But we dun have the courage to try them, so we ordered the more popular ones.
One by one, the top two is teh tareh (coffee) and nutella, bottom left is burn cameral and the popular cookies & cream, bottom right is reversO (chocolate) and horlick (see picture from my blog). We judge the popularity by seeing which one finish first. Make a guess? Cookies & cream and nutella tied for first, followed by cameral, ho, coffee and reverO (chocolate). My personal fav is nutella, never tried before. The reversO was too strong in flavour, as in after eating it when we eat the other flavours we cant taste anything. So we leave it for the last. lol
All in all, Island creamery is quite valued for money, there is a similar ice-cream shop called daily scoop at sunset way which offers double scoop for $5. Head there when u have a chance. 4.5 out of 5
You are always welcome to visit Ladyironchef for a full-up on this trip. Whatever written above are my geniune feelings expressed in words that may be subjected to my personal distortion or bias. Please do not feel emotional or distress should you have any violent objections. Kindly click the little X at the upper, extreme right of your screen if negative adjectives would be derived. Otherwise, feel free to furnish me with comments, may it be positive or negative : )
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Three of us went to Greenwood. its behind NJC. Quite hard to go if you do not drive.
The external part of the restaurant does not really have the appeal, like the name implies, Greenwood fish market. It is literally a fish market where u can buy their fish, prawn, oyster. But the interior part is diff (see picture) the lights are dim jus nice and its rather small, so make your reservations before going.
Greenwood is quite famous for their fish & chips, many types of diff fish like snapper, sole filet, salmon, barramundi, tusk fish, yellow fin tuna, nz pink snapper and so on. They also had diff style of cooking the fish like pan-seared, baked, steamed, char-chilled, battered or crumbed. Cool huh? haha. So we had quite a dilemma in choosing what fish we wanted. Above picture is battered snapper($19.95) based on recommendation from the enthu staff. Had a hard time understanding the differences between battered and crumbed. Anyway, battered snapper is good and crispy, but have to finish it fast because its not so nice when it get cold unlike the crumbed sole filet. Both fish & chips come with a healthy side serving of chips and vegies. The chips are good, but the vegies are even better. We have no idea what they do to the vegies, but it’s really good and you want to have more. 4.5 out of 5
Next up is crumbed sole filet ($19.95) also on recommendation. By the way, although both chips are diff fish, but i can’t really tell the diff. lol. From what the staff say, you can tell crumbed from battered because crumbed is fried with bread crumb flour. O well, its quite good also, but i think snapper is a tiny bit better than the sole filet. 4 out of 5
Pasta spag soft shell crab with chili crab sauce ($19.95), unlike the pasta at pastamania, The one here is really pasta. Haha. Soft crab is nice, but too small ! O well. 4 out of 5
Overall good place for fresh fish and seafood, highly recommended just that it is hard to access if you are not driving. We did not have any desserts there because we had already decided to head to Island Creamery for ice cream !
You are always welcome to visit Ladyironchef for a full-up on this trip. Whatever written above are my geniune feelings expressed in words that may be subjected to my personal distortion or bias. Please do not feel emotional or distress should you have any violent objections. Kindly click the little X at the upper, extreme right of your screen if negative adjectives would be derived. Otherwise, feel free to furnish me with comments, may it be positive or negative : )
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