Finally! A place that sells all day breakfast and nothing else - a casual eatery by the name of Hatched, which apparently is the brainchild of a former SAF scholar who probably decided that eggs and breakfast were his calling.
The eatery is housed in Evans Lodge, a rather dilapidated building along Evans Road that is home to a prata shop as well. The interior of the place is charmingly cozy, with bright sunlight frittering through the side windows. Capacity probably peaks at about 30 people or less, making reservations a must, especially on weekends. Special mention goes to the menu, which is extremely colourful and cute but probably caters more to the ladies then guys.
Dippy Eggs and Soldiers - Cutesy names and aesthetically pleasing food presentation aside, this dish didn't wow one bit. The dipping bread sticks looked tantalising but had a funny mildly rancid taste while the soft boil eggs didn't taste anything out of the ordinary (Read. Your local coffeeshop standard). A pity there wasn't enough Parmesan cheese or limp bacon bits to go around.
Burly Benedict - This was a double portion and it sure wasn't big. The eggs were nicely poached but the muffin wasn't spongy enough for my liking and was overly greasy. However, the major disappointment came in the form of the corned wagyu beef, which was a little rubbery and tasted very processed. It didn't help that the salt content was excessively high as well.
Croque Madam - The Ciabatta bread was rock hard and I mean it literally. I had to muster up quite a bit of strength in order to cut through it with my knife. Seriously, hurling it at someone could have caused a minor concussion. The grilled kurobuta ham tasted no different from ordinary ham which makes it a waste of good pork. The side of mashed potato could have done with a little butter but at least the mushroom drizzle was decent.
Papillote - I thought that the smoked salmon was a tad too salty for my liking, masking the taste of the scrambled eggs. A very normal dish to say the least. I don't even know why we paid $12 for it. Well, at least the tomato was nice.
Ever had the feeling of being full but not the least bit satisfied? Well that was what we felt after our $58 brunch for 3. I like the vibe and decor of the place (save for the less then ideal car park lots) and I like the culinary concept. However, food quality treads in the average zone and the long waiting time for the food doesn't exactly help things. Lets hope, for Hatched's sake, that they buck up because I hate to see such a concept go to waste.
Been there to watch movies a few times in the past. There doesn't seem to be much changes since the revamp and the seats are quite comfortable. However, being stepped on despite keeping my feet to myself wasn't what I would expect.
There are times when someone sits in front that I still see some head bump during the movie screening. That is when the person is taller than the average height. I'm too embarrassed to get a child boost seat. It would have been a great idea when such tall people buy the last rows.
It would be good to provide more nacho chips as they don't seem to be enough to finish the cheese. I just find that the tickets are getting too expensive to be able to enjoy on a weekly basis. I feel as if I'm back in school struggling to save up for a "luxury" treat even when I'm working.
The best of everything. The sashimi platter ($120) was the highlight of our meal and we started with a bang; there’s tuna, pink prawns, hirame, uni (sea urchin). Every slice was so fresh, I could see the glitter in my dining companions eyes. While I’m not a big fan of “raw fish”, it’s definitely a feast for the eyes and treat for the palate to have it prepared so exquisitely.
The Sakura set dinner ($58 per set) which included appetiser of assorted braised vegetables Japanese style, spicy dynamic oyster, sushi roll. For sashimi there’s tuna, salmon and oyster, and this was followed by a steamed dish of chawanmushi, with a deep fried tofu from the land behind. The two mains would be grilled chicken and wagyu beef burger, if that’s not enough, there’s hot udon served with kakiage. And finally rounding off the meal with a chef’s special dessert.
The four of us ordered two sets to share because there was so much else to order from the ala carte menu!
Fortunately, the assortment of sashimi from the set menu came early, and an innocent question “more sashimi?” led to the fantastic sashimi platter you saw on the first photo.
I love eggs, all kinds of them; fried, half boiled, scrambled, sunny side-up, poached ones, anything – except steamed eggs. There are bits of chicken, crab stick, boiled prawns, ginko nuts, and shitake mushroom within the Chawanmushi.
The deep fried tofu and cheese wrapped with soy bean skin is up next, at first sight the sticky cheese looked promising, but upon tasting there wasn’t much wow – the cheese’s not enough and the whole taste was subtle, bordering on bland.
Our first main course of the menu came piping hot, the grilled chicken was served on a hot stone which was specially brought back from Mount Fuji, to ensure the meat retained its optimum temperature – while we took photographs!
Umami’s rendition of wagyu beef burger came in the form of two “meatballs”, while there was nothing spectacular of its appearance, the meat was sure tasty!
Hot udon served with kakiage was the last item on the Sakura menu before dessert. The tasting portion of the menu covered a variety and was decent, there’s two other set dinners at $88 and $128.
And now it’s where the real dinner starts, our selections from the ala carte menu.
A simple deep fried dried cuttlefish ($8) brought us back to the appetiser stage, and prepared us for all the food coming.
I enjoyed the Grilled cod wrapped with lettuce ($16) tremendously. The fish was lightly grilled on the outside and tasted good on its own. But it’s when we wrapped it within the lettuce, Korean-style, and the crunchiness of the lettuce supplemented and enhanced the freshness of the cod.
Clearly, the spicy dynamic oyster ($16 for 3) was everyone’s favourite. Befitting of its name, it had us on first bite in the Sakura menu and we ordered again. The tangy sauce was oh my god, so good! We slurped down the delicious oyster, and did not waste a single drop of the sauce.
The comprehensive sushi menu made it difficult for us to choose from, but in the end for the love of salmon, we went for the Avocado salmon roll ($12). An elongated plate with eight pieces of makis, was indeed value for money.
A whole chunk of it, right in front of our eyes. The scared foie gras ($33), grilled with teriyaki sauce. Oh-oh-oh! Lightly grilled on the outside yet retaining a soft pink within, I swallowed it down – gulped, and wish that time stood still at that moment.
We were all excited by the Japanese beef – Umami served top grade wagyu! A sizzling sound signal the arrival of something magnificent, the marbling was so rich & dense that the meat literally melted in our mouth. I looked around and tried to speak, but no words came; I just allowed myself to quietly finish the meat, and inside I was secretly hoping there was more of this. It’s like totally God’s gift to mankind. Our jaws dropped when we heard that it’s a current promotional price of just $38 instead of the usual $60.
My previous encounter with Kurobuta pork was enough to tell me it’s good stuff, so when we browsed through the “from the land” menu, I immediately ordered the Braised kurobuta pork belly ($12).
“Eeekk!” The girls exclaimed when it was served. The fatty layers were enough to scare off the others, but not me. One bite of the braised pork belly, and one sip of beer, what more can you ask for?
The Rolled omelette with truffle oil ($8 for 5 pieces) was also one of Umami’s signature dishes. You like Japanese omelette? You will like this.
Like what the manager Nigel had mentioned, although the US Black Angus beef ($38) is great, but it’s not in the same league as the Japanese wagyu; the former is like human while the latter is god. The Angus tasted ordinary considering we had gone to heaven with the wagyu – the marbling was just not the same. But it’s not that the Angus wasn’t good, but because we had tried the wagyu first.
And finally after a very long and satisfying dinner, desserts came in the form of home made kurogoma brulee ($6), and home made custard pudding ($6). The former was a sesame version of creme brulee that I didn’t quite take to, but I love the home made custard pudding!
Umami has been around at Liang court since April and I have to admit I did not notice their presence previously when I went to Liang court. The very posh and club-like entrance made it rather intimidating for diners to step in, and they are currently making changes to the front decorations. There’s a current DBS 1-for-1 promotion for their $18 and $25 set lunches.
My appreciation to Lynda from DBS, Cherylene & Seema from Eurorscg, and the Nigel & his staff from Umami for the wonderful dinner.
Long story short, if you like my review please do come by ladyironchef . . . for the delicious in you
We decide to go into this shop as we were quite tired of going to the same places to eat since we needed to go Plaza Sing at least once per week. Only with time for a quick lunch, we chose this place mainly because it has got dim sum which we can gobble at a fast pace.
Not much of comment on the setting except that its rather dark. We very much regretted chosing this place due to the quality of the food. I will choose Crystal Jade anytime. We ordered Ha Gao, Glutinous Chicken, Yu Jiao and Prawn Zhu Chang Fen. We were extremely disappointed at the oily and lame texture of the Yu jiao where the yam paste will fall out and the skin seems like it was placed outside for too long. The prawns in the Zhu Chang Fen and Ha Gao had a distinctive prawny smell that told us the prawns were not fresh.
Not sure whether it was due to the lunch time rush but we certainly didn't feel like going back for 2nd opinion after our lunch there.
I wasn't that hungry when I decided to have a meal there, rather, dessert. The place was empty as it was near closing time. It was a pleasure to be served by the staff since we were the last customers.
I was curious about the fried cheese cube and ordered one to try it out. The cubes had cheese filling and something else that I'm not sure what those are. It wasn't too thick and had a slight cheese flavour.
It was only when they started to pack for the night that I noticed they had salt and pepper at a counter. I felt the staff could have taken the initiative to at least tell us about them. The seats were rather comfortable but not for long conversations. A quick meal there would serve the purpose.
Variety wise, it was simple with affordable prices.
Our very special night with DBS Foodster started with the limo fetching us to The Queen & Mangosteen. Cheerful staff greeted us, the smoothing sea breeze, with the relaxing ambience, the stage was set for a wonderful dinner.
We started off by ordering from the Nibbles menu. The portion of the Fish & Chips ($15) was more than enough to be served as an entrée, three pieces of fish with a big bucket of fries. Mind you, it’s not just the usual side fries, it’s a whole bucket of tasty potatoes! I would prefer them to come in thicker wedge with some green peas by the side – the traditional British good O’ fish & chips. But still, it’s good enough.
And oh yes, I forgot to mention about the special curry tartare sauce. It was awesome! Indian cuisine has always been a big influence on the Brits, the sauce provided another different dimension which we never had before.
The shredded slow-braised duck with crusty bread ($13) was ordered out of curiosity, and the staff did warn us it could be an acquired taste, but we went ahead anyway. The taste was quite close to a pate, but somehow it reminded me of the tuna spread that I put on my bread.
Following on the adventurous tone that has been set, we went for the Spicy minced beef ($14). There wasn’t anything spectacular when we had the minced beef or corn chips separately. But it was a hit when we spread a generous layer of minced beef on top of the chips and drizzled some sour cream together.
Love comes in all shapes and sizes, the Mini hamburgers & chips ($18 for 3 mini burgers) were not only cute but also pleasing to the palate. I didn’t think much of it initially, but after taking a bite, the small beef patty was delicious! And just like the fish & chips, it came with a big bucket of fries too.
Just in case you were wondering, no we’ve not started on our main courses yet, all those you seen thus far are all just appetisers. At The Queen & Mangosteen, they offered a wide range of its signature craft brews including old favourites like Archipelago Straits Pale to pair with the food.
We wanted to order everything from their menu; the wild mushroom risotto is totally my kind of dish, the clayfish cooked in beer and fisherman’s pie are crowd-pleaser, roasted rack of lamb is music to the ears of a carnivore, but there was just too many to choose from so in the end we didn’t have all of them.
The rope-grown blue mussels ($28) came highly recommended and it did not disappoint. Using a fork to pitch the shell, we slurped down each mussel which was cooked in chilli, with delight.
I always wanted to try Bangers & mash ($26) which was quintessentially three sausages – pork, lamb and beef with mashed potatoes served with caramelised onion gravy. The lamb sausage had a very distinct and gamy taste that might be too much for non-lamb eaters, and the beef was fairly good too. But it was the pork sausage that grabbed our attention!
Bea’s a big fan of beef, so naturally we ordered the rib-eye of beef ($38). Steak with thick cut chips, yorkshine pudding and a choice of wild mushroom sauce, thyme jus or caramelised shallot pepper sauce. We chose the latter with the steak done medium rare.
“It’s one of the better steaks that I’ve!” She exclaimed. I like the thick cut chips, while the chewy texture of the Yorkshire pudding sort of tasted like choux pastry.
The Cambridge Burnt cream ($10) or affectionately known as Creme Brulee was our favourite dessert. Beneath the beautifully burnt caramelized sugar, was a rich custard base. We dug in, and finished every bite of it.
“Whoa“, and “Ooh” were heard when the Mango coconut truffle ($12) arrived on our table. Our first impression: was it ketchup? There was a generous amount of berries and mango within the layers; the strong mango taste hit us first, with a subtle hint of coconut.
Between you and me, this shall be fondly remember as the ketchup soap.
It was one of those desserts that you didn’t know how they manage to make it this way, which you just keep on eating, and eating until it’s gone. I totally enjoyed the White chocolate & Cassis cake ($12). Interestingly, the triple chocolate ice cream on top of the cake took very long to melt. The white chocolate cassis cake was sweet, the girls found it too sweet, and so I had most of it to myself!
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While the menu doesn’t have a wide variety of selection, there’s some pretty good selections for sharing and the portions were substantial too. My appreciation to Lynda from DBS, Cherylene & Seema from Eurorscg, and the folks at The Queen & Mangosteen for making the dinner a blast!
Long story short, if you like my review please do come by ladyironchef . . . for the delicious in you
I know you are the one. Somehow a part of me, know that I will like Oriole even before I come. Make sense? Because love is blind.
Oriole is one those place that is chic and exudes the laid-back vibe. It is smack right in the middle of town, yet most people isn’t aware of it’s existence. Small, cozy, good food, reasonable prices, totally my-kind-of-place. Oriole!
You like fish & chips? You will like the one here, it’s one of the better fish & chips that I’ve recently; the batter wasn’t soggy and oily even though I took a long time taking photographs, it was still crispy and good. The portions were generous too, with three big pieces of fish at 15 bucks, it’s great for sharing! Most of the wedges were slightly burnt, I’m not sure if it’s done intentionally that way, but it sure was tasty to me!
We took a long time to decide the second main, there was a few choices, spaghetti/risotto of the day, banger & mash, or the oriole burger. But in the end we went for the Beef cheek tagliatelle ($15). The staff loosely compared the tagliatelle to our Chinese kuay teow, but I will beg to differ.The pasta isn’t as thick, so if there must be a comparison, I say it’s closer to Mee-pok. I had a good impression of beef cheeks, and this was delicious! Chewy but not to the extend of being overly difficult to bite, every bit of the beef is immersed in the red wine.
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And for once we didn’t have any desserts because we already had other sweets from elsewhere. But I’m keen to try chocolate fudge cake on my next visit, See you there!
Long story short, if you like my review please do come by ladyironchef . . . for the delicious in you
My family chanced upon Singapura Restaurant one evening and was so taken by its nostalgic appeal that we stepped in for dinner. An old school Foochow eatery, Singapura Restaurant has been around since the early 90s and apparently, attracted quite a sizable following in more then a decade of operations.
Located just below a block of HDB flats along Selegie Road, Singapura Restaurant is highly visible if you happen to travel down that stretch of road towards Little India. Otherwise, you probably wouldn't know of its existence. The layout of the place is kept simple and cozy, with no emphasis on providing any visual simulation to the consumer. The steel chairs with red paddings/cushions are (at least to me) a classic characteristic of restaurants from yesteryear.
Braised Tofu - I can't say that the braised tofu was fantastic, coming across as your average decent cze char stall standard but with a relatively generous serving. The gravy wasn't too starchy and I liked the mushrooms and sweet peas that came alongside.
Honey Pork Ribs - Touted as one of their "must try" dishes, the ribs were wedged between good and decent. Crisp along the edges with relatively tender meat that didn't scream tenderizer. But the honey was a overly sweet and the ribs had quite little meat honestly, which at $15 for 5 pieces, wasn't exactly my idea of value for money.
Special Prawn Rolls - Now this dish was interesting. Apart from being another one of the recommended dishes, the prawn rolls differ quite significantly from the usual ones that most places sell. Instead of minced pork or prawn paste, it's whole prawns compressed into a cylindrical shape and wrapped around with a thin deep fried skin, which apparently is pig's caul. The prawns were very crunchy, almost to the extent of being hard, probably due to soaking in a sodium bicarbonate solution for too long. Personally I found the whole dish a little too fishy for my liking but the sweet sauce did help to mask the taste.
$50 for 3 pax isn't exactly expensive but the food isn't fantastic in my humble opinion. It might be the dishes we ordered. Service was quite good but then again, we were the only customers there that evening. Still I would give them the benefit of the doubt.
Weekends are the best time for dim sum, it is when everybody is free to have a long lunch, and what can be better than to yum cha?
My friend wanted to try the Beancurd prawn roll ($4.50), and I have never been a big fan of beancurd skin. Since a lot dim sum has prawns, we decided to go for the Char siew cheong fun ($4.50). The savoury light sauce always enhance the flavour of the cheong fun.
After trying so many different har gau ($4.50), it has somewhat become rather ordinary to me. I know it’s the dim sum queen; all right if you must, fresh crunchy prawns held firmly within translucent skins. But I’m indifference to it, at least for now.
I was craving for custard buns badly, and to my delight it’s listed on the menu; but the initial euphoria half evaporated when the captain said that it’s been replaced by the Baked custard buns ($3.50 for 3). So feeling half skeptical and half excited, we approached it. Judging from appearances, the baked buns look like those hard, baked pastry kind. We took a bite, and it was astonishing so soft! I would prefer those molten custard on any other day, but this was just as good!
Siew mai and har gau always come together in pairs, there isn’t one without the other. But unlike the har gau, I’m not so sick of Siew Mai ($4.50 for 4) since it has a combination of porky and prawny bite.
I’m insanely in love with Char siew sou ($4 for 3). The ones here reminded me of my old flame; the buttery crispy flakes, the oozing oh-so-sweet juice from the char siew. Delish! You know like they say, your first love is always the most memorable, if I’ve not had better before, I’ll say this is quite good. But then again, I’m biased against char siew sou.
The fragrant glutinous rice ($4.50) enveloped within the leaf; the salted egg yoke bursting through your tastebud with it’s strong and distinct taste, the little bites of chicken shreds, a pity the Chinese sausages were missing here. Almost perfect.
Pan-fried carrot cake ($3.50) used to be a favourite of mine, but after trying several half-hearted versions, I’m leaning towards some of the better steamed ones that I had. Packed the carrot cake full with relish, lots of them. Then lightly-seared it until golden brown, leaving a crispy surface with soft relish beneath it. Sounds easy? Do one for me.
I’m undecided if I will come back to Asia Grand for dim sum again. And it’s not because they are not good, the variety of dim sum available was very comprehensive. But the main reason was the existence of a better option just directly opposite them. I’ll probably drop by again for their Peking duck, which is definitely much cheaper than the one I had at Peach Garden.
Long story short, if you like my review please do come by ladyironchef . . . for the delicious in you
I settled my dinner there. There can be more space to walk between tables. Quite a number of people had luggages including us, hence the tight space. The food is rather standard and I like the variety as there's a bit more there.
The food arrived in a reasonable time despite the late night crowd. The staff were busy with the customers but they still managed to attend to us.
I like to use the computerised system as it was much easier to order the food than wait for the waitress/waiter to come for our orders. The experience overall was good.
1=SGD 0.0587
Finally! A place that sells all day breakfast and nothing else - a casual eatery by the name of Hatched, which apparently is the brainchild of a former SAF scholar who probably decided that eggs and breakfast were his calling.
The eatery is housed in Evans Lodge, a rather dilapidated building along Evans Road that is home to a prata shop as well. The interior of the place is charmingly cozy, with bright sunlight frittering through the side windows. Capacity probably peaks at about 30 people or less, making reservations a must, especially on weekends. Special mention goes to the menu, which is extremely colourful and cute but probably caters more to the ladies then guys.
Dippy Eggs and Soldiers - Cutesy names and aesthetically pleasing food presentation aside, this dish didn't wow one bit. The dipping bread sticks looked tantalising but had a funny mildly rancid taste while the soft boil eggs didn't taste anything out of the ordinary (Read. Your local coffeeshop standard). A pity there wasn't enough Parmesan cheese or limp bacon bits to go around.
Burly Benedict - This was a double portion and it sure wasn't big. The eggs were nicely poached but the muffin wasn't spongy enough for my liking and was overly greasy. However, the major disappointment came in the form of the corned wagyu beef, which was a little rubbery and tasted very processed. It didn't help that the salt content was excessively high as well.
Croque Madam - The Ciabatta bread was rock hard and I mean it literally. I had to muster up quite a bit of strength in order to cut through it with my knife. Seriously, hurling it at someone could have caused a minor concussion. The grilled kurobuta ham tasted no different from ordinary ham which makes it a waste of good pork. The side of mashed potato could have done with a little butter but at least the mushroom drizzle was decent.
Papillote - I thought that the smoked salmon was a tad too salty for my liking, masking the taste of the scrambled eggs. A very normal dish to say the least. I don't even know why we paid $12 for it. Well, at least the tomato was nice.
Ever had the feeling of being full but not the least bit satisfied? Well that was what we felt after our $58 brunch for 3. I like the vibe and decor of the place (save for the less then ideal car park lots) and I like the culinary concept. However, food quality treads in the average zone and the long waiting time for the food doesn't exactly help things. Lets hope, for Hatched's sake, that they buck up because I hate to see such a concept go to waste.
See all my pictures here.
Rating given:
Been there to watch movies a few times in the past. There doesn't seem to be much changes since the revamp and the seats are quite comfortable. However, being stepped on despite keeping my feet to myself wasn't what I would expect.
There are times when someone sits in front that I still see some head bump during the movie screening. That is when the person is taller than the average height. I'm too embarrassed to get a child boost seat. It would have been a great idea when such tall people buy the last rows.
It would be good to provide more nacho chips as they don't seem to be enough to finish the cheese. I just find that the tickets are getting too expensive to be able to enjoy on a weekly basis. I feel as if I'm back in school struggling to save up for a "luxury" treat even when I'm working.
Rating given:
The best of everything. The sashimi platter ($120) was the highlight of our meal and we started with a bang; there’s tuna, pink prawns, hirame, uni (sea urchin). Every slice was so fresh, I could see the glitter in my dining companions eyes. While I’m not a big fan of “raw fish”, it’s definitely a feast for the eyes and treat for the palate to have it prepared so exquisitely.
The Sakura set dinner ($58 per set) which included appetiser of assorted braised vegetables Japanese style, spicy dynamic oyster, sushi roll. For sashimi there’s tuna, salmon and oyster, and this was followed by a steamed dish of chawanmushi, with a deep fried tofu from the land behind. The two mains would be grilled chicken and wagyu beef burger, if that’s not enough, there’s hot udon served with kakiage. And finally rounding off the meal with a chef’s special dessert.
The four of us ordered two sets to share because there was so much else to order from the ala carte menu!
Fortunately, the assortment of sashimi from the set menu came early, and an innocent question “more sashimi?” led to the fantastic sashimi platter you saw on the first photo.
I love eggs, all kinds of them; fried, half boiled, scrambled, sunny side-up, poached ones, anything – except steamed eggs. There are bits of chicken, crab stick, boiled prawns, ginko nuts, and shitake mushroom within the Chawanmushi.
The deep fried tofu and cheese wrapped with soy bean skin is up next, at first sight the sticky cheese looked promising, but upon tasting there wasn’t much wow – the cheese’s not enough and the whole taste was subtle, bordering on bland.
Our first main course of the menu came piping hot, the grilled chicken was served on a hot stone which was specially brought back from Mount Fuji, to ensure the meat retained its optimum temperature – while we took photographs!
Umami’s rendition of wagyu beef burger came in the form of two “meatballs”, while there was nothing spectacular of its appearance, the meat was sure tasty!
Hot udon served with kakiage was the last item on the Sakura menu before dessert. The tasting portion of the menu covered a variety and was decent, there’s two other set dinners at $88 and $128.
And now it’s where the real dinner starts, our selections from the ala carte menu.
A simple deep fried dried cuttlefish ($8) brought us back to the appetiser stage, and prepared us for all the food coming.
I enjoyed the Grilled cod wrapped with lettuce ($16) tremendously. The fish was lightly grilled on the outside and tasted good on its own. But it’s when we wrapped it within the lettuce, Korean-style, and the crunchiness of the lettuce supplemented and enhanced the freshness of the cod.
Clearly, the spicy dynamic oyster ($16 for 3) was everyone’s favourite. Befitting of its name, it had us on first bite in the Sakura menu and we ordered again. The tangy sauce was oh my god, so good! We slurped down the delicious oyster, and did not waste a single drop of the sauce.
The comprehensive sushi menu made it difficult for us to choose from, but in the end for the love of salmon, we went for the Avocado salmon roll ($12). An elongated plate with eight pieces of makis, was indeed value for money.
A whole chunk of it, right in front of our eyes. The scared foie gras ($33), grilled with teriyaki sauce. Oh-oh-oh! Lightly grilled on the outside yet retaining a soft pink within, I swallowed it down – gulped, and wish that time stood still at that moment.
We were all excited by the Japanese beef – Umami served top grade wagyu! A sizzling sound signal the arrival of something magnificent, the marbling was so rich & dense that the meat literally melted in our mouth. I looked around and tried to speak, but no words came; I just allowed myself to quietly finish the meat, and inside I was secretly hoping there was more of this. It’s like totally God’s gift to mankind. Our jaws dropped when we heard that it’s a current promotional price of just $38 instead of the usual $60.
My previous encounter with Kurobuta pork was enough to tell me it’s good stuff, so when we browsed through the “from the land” menu, I immediately ordered the Braised kurobuta pork belly ($12).
“Eeekk!” The girls exclaimed when it was served. The fatty layers were enough to scare off the others, but not me. One bite of the braised pork belly, and one sip of beer, what more can you ask for?
The Rolled omelette with truffle oil ($8 for 5 pieces) was also one of Umami’s signature dishes. You like Japanese omelette? You will like this.
Like what the manager Nigel had mentioned, although the US Black Angus beef ($38) is great, but it’s not in the same league as the Japanese wagyu; the former is like human while the latter is god. The Angus tasted ordinary considering we had gone to heaven with the wagyu – the marbling was just not the same. But it’s not that the Angus wasn’t good, but because we had tried the wagyu first.
And finally after a very long and satisfying dinner, desserts came in the form of home made kurogoma brulee ($6), and home made custard pudding ($6). The former was a sesame version of creme brulee that I didn’t quite take to, but I love the home made custard pudding!
Umami has been around at Liang court since April and I have to admit I did not notice their presence previously when I went to Liang court. The very posh and club-like entrance made it rather intimidating for diners to step in, and they are currently making changes to the front decorations. There’s a current DBS 1-for-1 promotion for their $18 and $25 set lunches.
My appreciation to Lynda from DBS, Cherylene & Seema from Eurorscg, and the Nigel & his staff from Umami for the wonderful dinner.
Long story short, if you like my review please do come by ladyironchef . . . for the delicious in you
Rating given:
We decide to go into this shop as we were quite tired of going to the same places to eat since we needed to go Plaza Sing at least once per week. Only with time for a quick lunch, we chose this place mainly because it has got dim sum which we can gobble at a fast pace.
Not much of comment on the setting except that its rather dark. We very much regretted chosing this place due to the quality of the food. I will choose Crystal Jade anytime. We ordered Ha Gao, Glutinous Chicken, Yu Jiao and Prawn Zhu Chang Fen. We were extremely disappointed at the oily and lame texture of the Yu jiao where the yam paste will fall out and the skin seems like it was placed outside for too long. The prawns in the Zhu Chang Fen and Ha Gao had a distinctive prawny smell that told us the prawns were not fresh.
Not sure whether it was due to the lunch time rush but we certainly didn't feel like going back for 2nd opinion after our lunch there.
Rating given:
I wasn't that hungry when I decided to have a meal there, rather, dessert. The place was empty as it was near closing time. It was a pleasure to be served by the staff since we were the last customers.
I was curious about the fried cheese cube and ordered one to try it out. The cubes had cheese filling and something else that I'm not sure what those are. It wasn't too thick and had a slight cheese flavour.
It was only when they started to pack for the night that I noticed they had salt and pepper at a counter. I felt the staff could have taken the initiative to at least tell us about them. The seats were rather comfortable but not for long conversations. A quick meal there would serve the purpose.
Variety wise, it was simple with affordable prices.
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Our very special night with DBS Foodster started with the limo fetching us to The Queen & Mangosteen. Cheerful staff greeted us, the smoothing sea breeze, with the relaxing ambience, the stage was set for a wonderful dinner.
We started off by ordering from the Nibbles menu. The portion of the Fish & Chips ($15) was more than enough to be served as an entrée, three pieces of fish with a big bucket of fries. Mind you, it’s not just the usual side fries, it’s a whole bucket of tasty potatoes! I would prefer them to come in thicker wedge with some green peas by the side – the traditional British good O’ fish & chips. But still, it’s good enough.
And oh yes, I forgot to mention about the special curry tartare sauce. It was awesome! Indian cuisine has always been a big influence on the Brits, the sauce provided another different dimension which we never had before.
The shredded slow-braised duck with crusty bread ($13) was ordered out of curiosity, and the staff did warn us it could be an acquired taste, but we went ahead anyway. The taste was quite close to a pate, but somehow it reminded me of the tuna spread that I put on my bread.
Following on the adventurous tone that has been set, we went for the Spicy minced beef ($14). There wasn’t anything spectacular when we had the minced beef or corn chips separately. But it was a hit when we spread a generous layer of minced beef on top of the chips and drizzled some sour cream together.
Love comes in all shapes and sizes, the Mini hamburgers & chips ($18 for 3 mini burgers) were not only cute but also pleasing to the palate. I didn’t think much of it initially, but after taking a bite, the small beef patty was delicious! And just like the fish & chips, it came with a big bucket of fries too.
Just in case you were wondering, no we’ve not started on our main courses yet, all those you seen thus far are all just appetisers. At The Queen & Mangosteen, they offered a wide range of its signature craft brews including old favourites like Archipelago Straits Pale to pair with the food.
We wanted to order everything from their menu; the wild mushroom risotto is totally my kind of dish, the clayfish cooked in beer and fisherman’s pie are crowd-pleaser, roasted rack of lamb is music to the ears of a carnivore, but there was just too many to choose from so in the end we didn’t have all of them.
The rope-grown blue mussels ($28) came highly recommended and it did not disappoint. Using a fork to pitch the shell, we slurped down each mussel which was cooked in chilli, with delight.
I always wanted to try Bangers & mash ($26) which was quintessentially three sausages – pork, lamb and beef with mashed potatoes served with caramelised onion gravy. The lamb sausage had a very distinct and gamy taste that might be too much for non-lamb eaters, and the beef was fairly good too. But it was the pork sausage that grabbed our attention!
Bea’s a big fan of beef, so naturally we ordered the rib-eye of beef ($38). Steak with thick cut chips, yorkshine pudding and a choice of wild mushroom sauce, thyme jus or caramelised shallot pepper sauce. We chose the latter with the steak done medium rare.
“It’s one of the better steaks that I’ve!” She exclaimed. I like the thick cut chips, while the chewy texture of the Yorkshire pudding sort of tasted like choux pastry.
The Cambridge Burnt cream ($10) or affectionately known as Creme Brulee was our favourite dessert. Beneath the beautifully burnt caramelized sugar, was a rich custard base. We dug in, and finished every bite of it.
“Whoa“, and “Ooh” were heard when the Mango coconut truffle ($12) arrived on our table. Our first impression: was it ketchup? There was a generous amount of berries and mango within the layers; the strong mango taste hit us first, with a subtle hint of coconut.
Between you and me, this shall be fondly remember as the ketchup soap.
It was one of those desserts that you didn’t know how they manage to make it this way, which you just keep on eating, and eating until it’s gone. I totally enjoyed the White chocolate & Cassis cake ($12). Interestingly, the triple chocolate ice cream on top of the cake took very long to melt. The white chocolate cassis cake was sweet, the girls found it too sweet, and so I had most of it to myself!
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While the menu doesn’t have a wide variety of selection, there’s some pretty good selections for sharing and the portions were substantial too. My appreciation to Lynda from DBS, Cherylene & Seema from Eurorscg, and the folks at The Queen & Mangosteen for making the dinner a blast!
Long story short, if you like my review please do come by ladyironchef . . . for the delicious in you
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I know you are the one. Somehow a part of me, know that I will like Oriole even before I come. Make sense? Because love is blind.
Oriole is one those place that is chic and exudes the laid-back vibe. It is smack right in the middle of town, yet most people isn’t aware of it’s existence. Small, cozy, good food, reasonable prices, totally my-kind-of-place. Oriole!
You like fish & chips? You will like the one here, it’s one of the better fish & chips that I’ve recently; the batter wasn’t soggy and oily even though I took a long time taking photographs, it was still crispy and good. The portions were generous too, with three big pieces of fish at 15 bucks, it’s great for sharing! Most of the wedges were slightly burnt, I’m not sure if it’s done intentionally that way, but it sure was tasty to me!
We took a long time to decide the second main, there was a few choices, spaghetti/risotto of the day, banger & mash, or the oriole burger. But in the end we went for the Beef cheek tagliatelle ($15). The staff loosely compared the tagliatelle to our Chinese kuay teow, but I will beg to differ.The pasta isn’t as thick, so if there must be a comparison, I say it’s closer to Mee-pok. I had a good impression of beef cheeks, and this was delicious! Chewy but not to the extend of being overly difficult to bite, every bit of the beef is immersed in the red wine.
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And for once we didn’t have any desserts because we already had other sweets from elsewhere. But I’m keen to try chocolate fudge cake on my next visit, See you there!
Long story short, if you like my review please do come by ladyironchef . . . for the delicious in you
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My family chanced upon Singapura Restaurant one evening and was so taken by its nostalgic appeal that we stepped in for dinner. An old school Foochow eatery, Singapura Restaurant has been around since the early 90s and apparently, attracted quite a sizable following in more then a decade of operations.
Located just below a block of HDB flats along Selegie Road, Singapura Restaurant is highly visible if you happen to travel down that stretch of road towards Little India. Otherwise, you probably wouldn't know of its existence. The layout of the place is kept simple and cozy, with no emphasis on providing any visual simulation to the consumer. The steel chairs with red paddings/cushions are (at least to me) a classic characteristic of restaurants from yesteryear.
Braised Tofu - I can't say that the braised tofu was fantastic, coming across as your average decent cze char stall standard but with a relatively generous serving. The gravy wasn't too starchy and I liked the mushrooms and sweet peas that came alongside.
Honey Pork Ribs - Touted as one of their "must try" dishes, the ribs were wedged between good and decent. Crisp along the edges with relatively tender meat that didn't scream tenderizer. But the honey was a overly sweet and the ribs had quite little meat honestly, which at $15 for 5 pieces, wasn't exactly my idea of value for money.
Special Prawn Rolls - Now this dish was interesting. Apart from being another one of the recommended dishes, the prawn rolls differ quite significantly from the usual ones that most places sell. Instead of minced pork or prawn paste, it's whole prawns compressed into a cylindrical shape and wrapped around with a thin deep fried skin, which apparently is pig's caul. The prawns were very crunchy, almost to the extent of being hard, probably due to soaking in a sodium bicarbonate solution for too long. Personally I found the whole dish a little too fishy for my liking but the sweet sauce did help to mask the taste.
$50 for 3 pax isn't exactly expensive but the food isn't fantastic in my humble opinion. It might be the dishes we ordered. Service was quite good but then again, we were the only customers there that evening. Still I would give them the benefit of the doubt.
See all my pictures here.
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Weekends are the best time for dim sum, it is when everybody is free to have a long lunch, and what can be better than to yum cha?
My friend wanted to try the Beancurd prawn roll ($4.50), and I have never been a big fan of beancurd skin. Since a lot dim sum has prawns, we decided to go for the Char siew cheong fun ($4.50). The savoury light sauce always enhance the flavour of the cheong fun.
After trying so many different har gau ($4.50), it has somewhat become rather ordinary to me. I know it’s the dim sum queen; all right if you must, fresh crunchy prawns held firmly within translucent skins. But I’m indifference to it, at least for now.
I was craving for custard buns badly, and to my delight it’s listed on the menu; but the initial euphoria half evaporated when the captain said that it’s been replaced by the Baked custard buns ($3.50 for 3). So feeling half skeptical and half excited, we approached it. Judging from appearances, the baked buns look like those hard, baked pastry kind. We took a bite, and it was astonishing so soft! I would prefer those molten custard on any other day, but this was just as good!
Siew mai and har gau always come together in pairs, there isn’t one without the other. But unlike the har gau, I’m not so sick of Siew Mai ($4.50 for 4) since it has a combination of porky and prawny bite.
I’m insanely in love with Char siew sou ($4 for 3). The ones here reminded me of my old flame; the buttery crispy flakes, the oozing oh-so-sweet juice from the char siew. Delish! You know like they say, your first love is always the most memorable, if I’ve not had better before, I’ll say this is quite good. But then again, I’m biased against char siew sou.
The fragrant glutinous rice ($4.50) enveloped within the leaf; the salted egg yoke bursting through your tastebud with it’s strong and distinct taste, the little bites of chicken shreds, a pity the Chinese sausages were missing here. Almost perfect.
Pan-fried carrot cake ($3.50) used to be a favourite of mine, but after trying several half-hearted versions, I’m leaning towards some of the better steamed ones that I had. Packed the carrot cake full with relish, lots of them. Then lightly-seared it until golden brown, leaving a crispy surface with soft relish beneath it. Sounds easy? Do one for me.
I’m undecided if I will come back to Asia Grand for dim sum again. And it’s not because they are not good, the variety of dim sum available was very comprehensive. But the main reason was the existence of a better option just directly opposite them. I’ll probably drop by again for their Peking duck, which is definitely much cheaper than the one I had at Peach Garden.
Long story short, if you like my review please do come by ladyironchef . . . for the delicious in you
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I settled my dinner there. There can be more space to walk between tables. Quite a number of people had luggages including us, hence the tight space. The food is rather standard and I like the variety as there's a bit more there.
The food arrived in a reasonable time despite the late night crowd. The staff were busy with the customers but they still managed to attend to us.
I like to use the computerised system as it was much easier to order the food than wait for the waitress/waiter to come for our orders. The experience overall was good.
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