hburn10's Reviews
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I emailed the spa to check for availability but the slot I wanted was not available so I replied to ask about another slot - and was met with silence. There was no reply. I waited for a few more days before sending a chaser email, to which a lady called to confirm my booking.
I reached just about on time for my treatment on a Sunday late afternoon and was impressed by the entrance and the waiting area - all very posh and grandeur looking.
I was asked what drink would I like by the receptionist and asked to take a seat to wait for my therapist to be ready. I was also given a customer form to fill in but no one came to collect it after that, so I just left it on the table.
My therapist led to me to the room after changing my shoes just after the waiting area. The room had very poor lighting, or the lack of it. My eyes didnt have the chance to adjust properly before my therapist mumbled something and left the room.
I looked around and saw 2 towels and 1 bathrobe on the bed - and was left to my own devices to figure out whether I should wear the robe or what. There was also no disposable undergarment which massages places usually provide but luckily I spied one supposed left stranded on another table.
Shall not comment too much on the massage itself but let me instead look at overall experience.
Pros
- a really quiet spa away from the crowds
- heated massage bed
- the therapist executed firm strokes and asked at the beginning if the strength was okay.
- no hard selling after the treatment
- no 'stealing' of treatment time as some other places tend to do
Cons
- no personal touch
- no sense of being pampered at all which I would expect if one were to pay for the original price
- no washroom inside the spa itself which I find very annoying.
To conclude, the original price is too pricey and definitely not value for money. To charge more than $100 for 1 hour, they have to be alot more than this.
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The place is not big, probably sits 25-30pax. A typical thai restaurant setting complete with thai statues greeting you from the entrance. Non airconditioned but it was breezy enough for us to eat and not break out a sweat. Nice!
We werent hungry so opted to go easy on the selection.:
Tom Yam soup - came in a nice clay pot which doubles up as a warmer to keep the soup warm. You can choose having it clear or not, and can have either chicken or seafood in it. The soup was tangy and spicy enough at first try and should be good with a bowl of rice. This dish was not mine so I really just had 1 spoonful but suspect it may get a tad too spicy along the way.
Prawn cakes - This was a specialty which was only available during weekdays so we ordered it with high expectations. But it was disappointing as the deep fried discs were too oily and I couldnt taste any prawns in it, unless it was all mashed up inside.
Thai fried koey tiao - This was nice, albeit a little too oily after a while. I smelt a little wok hei too, but it could have come with more vegetables.
We also ordered a stir fried veg but that was common so I shall not review it here.
Service was okay and water was available if you dont prefer flavoured drinks.
I dont remember the prices (sorry!) but I do remember we paid about $12-$13 per person which was reasonable. In conclusion, the food is not worth travelling out of the way for but if you're in the neighborhood then its not a bad choice away from the hussle of the nearby coffeeshops and food centres.
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I reached at 6:45pm and the snaking queue was easy to spot. Terrible humid weather but everyone seemed to be patient - good! I was finally seated at 7:30pm for a table for 4pax so I was hoping the 45mins wait will be worth it.
A few things that struck me:
- this tiny place only sits 18pax.
- they serve only their signature ramen, nothing else (except a few soft drinks).
- they provide water and magazine for people in the queue. How nice.
- (I've heard) they frown upon customers who stay too long after finishing their food, which makes perfect biz sense of course. A table of 4 is already almost a quarter of their total seating.
Seating
The 18 pax are really cramped - what true Jap style. I was fortunate enough to get a table right at the end of the hole, and that means no bodies passing behind you every now and then.
Menu
The menu is kept really simple.
Choose your soup:
- normal - prawn based
- red - chilli oil
- black - black pepper
Choose your 'type':
- just the ramen
- with flavoured egg
- with seaweed
- the special ie. to have them all.
Since I'm not fan of spicy stuff, I picked the normal soup base, with all toppings.
In addition you can also choose from light, normal or strong / soft the taste of the soup, the amount of chicken oil, texture of noodles. Slips of paper to indicate these choices are passed to you to write on so you get your food quick after you are seated.
There's also a very strange ritual of pounding your own mixture of black and white sesame seeds to mix into your ramen. I think its a gimmick that makes the short waiting time for food even shorter.
Food
Tonkotsu Ramen Special ($14.80) with everything 'normal' - food came within 15mins of us being seated. It was a moderate bowl: the soup was murky milky, and the seaweed was a huge huge piece. There were 2 big pieces of chasu, plus a flavoured egg. The soup was really good, but it got a little salty after a while. The chasu was nice but a little too fatty for me.
But the star of the evening had to be the flavoured egg. I usually dont quite like how most places do it soft but flavourless but this was just spot on! Its like a pre-mixed half boiled egg - taste and texture all came up tops.
I didnt try the other 2 soups but I got feedback from the rest of the guys that the chilli nor pepper was very evident.
Complimentary sides
Interestingly, they have complimentary hard boiled eggs in baskets on each table - you can eat as many as your cholesterol allows you to. But the flavoured egg beats them hands down. A container of cold marinated tao gay is also placed on each table, and these are seriously addictive and very good on their own. Suspect its marinated in some sesame dressing, and they maintained the crunch very well.
Service
Service was hurried but nothing to complain about. Everything you need is basically on the table and you just help yourself to it. And its useful to note that there is practically no air con inside so it is also quite hot and stuffy, after being hot and stuffy while in the queue.
Admittedly, I was expected to be wow-ed but didnt quite get that although the food was good. And I'm not sure if I'd want to queue for 45mins again for it. But tastes are subjective after all, so I'd encourage you to try for your own~
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The place was packed when I went on a Sat afternoon for lunch, with a mostly young crowd. A quick glance through the menu told us why.
The prices are extremely reasonable and definitely affordable for even those on a tight dating budget. For any main course, you just need to add $4.50 for a garlic bread, soup of the day and a choice of soft drink or coffee/tea. Given that the cheapest main on the menu is $4.90 (plain alio olio), this is truly value for money.
Garlic bread - Each person only gets 1 piece but it is fairly sized and tasty with the garlic spread and herbs.
Mushroom soup - I was expecting Campbell-ish soup like many other (sometimes more expensive places) serve but this is quite good! Home-made and had the quality similar to what a proper restaurant would serve. Thumbs up!
Teriyaki chicken chop ($8.90) - This came with a big slab of chicken complete with skin on a bed of alio olio and served with a side of greens (iceberg lettuce?) drizzled with some vinegrette-like dressing. The teriyaki sauce was good and the alio olio al dente. The only grouse I had was having to remove the skin which contained most of the teriyaki sauce but the chicken itself was fresh, thankfully.
Service was alright and we didnt have to wait long for the food. The visit exceeded my expectations I must say, and the prices makes the value really hard to beat.
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