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Food & Beverage
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1=SGD 0.0587
Went on a tiny shopping spree with my gf at Suntec so decided to have dinner around the area. And as usual, every dining outlet at Suntec, down to Burger King, was bursting to the seams with people. We had noticed Pearl River Palace on one of our previous visits to Suntec, so thought of giving it a try.
Doesn't it scare you when a restaurant is devoid of the usual mad crowd which throng food outlets during the weekend? But then again, Pearl River is hidden in a rather secluded area on the third floor of the Suntec convention area. The only trace of its presence is the huge neon light signboard plastered on the windows facing Marina Square. If you do manage to find it, a waitress greets you at the and ushers you into a huge hall which can seat at least 150pax upwards - only a tenth of which is taken up.
I don't know what they were thinking when they coined the name "The Washing Line". Sounds rather crude to me, but I must credit them for their innovation in presentation. Two chilled carrots sculptured into towers and joined by a thin pole, with thin slices of meat draped across the pole and thick garlic sauce drizzled over - this is probably one of the most innovative dish presentation I've seen in a Chinese restaurant in quite a long while. Taste wise, I found it fairly acceptable, just that the garlic taste in the syrup was a little too strong and too sweet.
Sauteed Fresh Prawn with Egg White & Pine Nuts - I really am a sucker for dishes with lots of egg white, which explains this dish. I personally found it not too bad, with the texture being a little sticky and dense probably due to the addition of milk or the prolonged beating of the egg white. It actually reminded me of MacDonald's scrambled eggs, but easier on the milky taste. The pines were a nice addition with their slightly nutty taste, but the wolfberries seemed rather redundant. Now we certainly can't forget the prawns, which were crunchy and larger than normal. By and large a fairly nice dish, but a little on the salty side.
Braised Beancurd with Enoki Mushrooms & Preserved Vegetables - Just another normal beancurd dish. Bland with an equally bland gravy. This pretty much sums it up. The Enoki Mushrooms did add a nice crunch to the dish though.
Desserts. You either love them or loathe them. They have this effect of expanding your already exploding waistlines and yet you can't seem to resist their seduction. Alright I'm exaggerating, but I love my desserts. Our dessert for the night was a bowl of bird's nest soup and a slice of Durian Pancake. The Double Boiled Bird's Nest with Rock Sugar was pleasant, but the bird's nest wasn't exactly of top quality. Then again, I can't expect much for the price. One gripe though. I could see bits of feather still embedded in the strands of bird nest, which meant that the staff didn't put in the extra effort to remove them before boiling - something which I would expect from a top grade restaurant, but probably not Pearl River. The Durian Pancake's skin was a little too dry and thick, but the Durian filling was thick and flavourful, signs of a good Durian. And its rather small for $2.
I certainly wasn't expecting to spend close to a hundred bucks($96.75/-) for this dinner, but I guess its all my fault. Me and my bird's nest, which added about $30 to the bill. Having said that, prices at Pearl River are on the higher end of the reasonable spectrum, but food quality is slightly above average. The service is above average, but could do better with increased attentiveness. Another point to note, they charge $1/head for ice water or tea, so go for the tea.
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Rating given:
Cafe Swiss - a not too recent addition to the Swissotel family and specialising in traditional Swiss and European Cuisine. Honestly, I have but a vague idea of what constitutes Swiss cuisine. My idea of Swiss food goes as far as Cheese Fondue. Its shameful really, considering that I had a Swiss buddy in school while I was pursuing my college education.
Far from the maddening crowd, in a private space with a soaring ceiling on the second level of Raffles City, Cafe Swiss provides the perfect place to have that idyllic dinner as crowds are scarce and the ambience is one of contemporary elegance infused with soothing comfort.
The de facto opening dish - complimentary bread. Although Cafe Swiss serves up various varieties of bread in a neat napkin wrapped basket, none of them impressed me at all. Not to mention they weren't the least bit warm as well. So much for the purposeful napkin.
Veal Emince Zurichoise - Sliced veal and button mushroom on morel cream sauce with roesti potato. Interestingly, I never had veal done this way thus this dish proved to be an eye opener for me. Not that it tasted out of this world though. The veal was done medium well with the button mushrooms wedged between the rolled up veal. All of which was served on a bed of rice (Risotto? Sure tasted like it) with the morel(type of mushroom) cream sauce. Honestly, the veal was a tad too salty for my liking but I do like the texture and the flavour of the veal and this dish as a whole especially with the infusion of the cream sauce. Look out for the small portions though.
Papet Vaudois - Smoked pork sausage on leek and potato stew. Firstly, the sausage didn't taste smoked to me. Second, it lacked the exploding juices effect when popped into the mouth. However, having said that, it was nice and flavourful but could have been better. A plus point was its huge size.
Ignorant me has never eaten carrot cake before (Not chye tao kway!) so we got this to try. First looks didn't impress me much as the cake looked unevenly sliced with carrots protruding out from the sides. Taste wise was decent, with the sugar top not too sweet and the cake tasty from the walnuts, almonds and carrots within. However, it was a little too dry, which is a bummer really.
I would like to think that through this meal, I have learnt what Swiss cuisine is all about. Unfortunately I'm none the wiser even after spending about $70 for 2 pax (before discount).
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Rating given:
Was wandering around United Square with my gf deciding what to eat for dinner when we chanced upon this eatery/watering hole.
Tucked in a rather obscure corner of United Square, it is hidden from the crowds that descend upon the other more prominent food outlets in the area. This isn't a bad thing at all, considering that it provides a welcome respite from all the hustle and bustle. The interior of the place is simply charming. A high ceiling coupled with an overhanging chandelier against a red wall backdrop provides a feeling of space and relaxation. Add the comfy window seats and soft background music to the equation and viola, you have a nice chill out place.
Nicely presented with a slice of bread, the mushroom soup didn't quite meet expectations. It came across as a little runny and tasteless although it was made from grounded mushrooms. A little salt might have done wonders. And at $8 a bowl, it certainly didn't come cheap.
Long Fed Ribeye - According to the waiter who recommended this dish to me, long fed beef has its fats within the slab of meat, whereas normal beef has fats around the edges. Someone please correct me if I am wrong, but I infer that its something similar to Wagyu then? The beef was served almost well done and strangely enough, the waiter didn't ask me how I wanted it to be done when he took my order. I wonder why. That aside, the ribeye was surprisingly tender for its doneness, but lacked the succulence that I would have enjoyed. Size wise was probably about 180g - 200g. The accompanying mushroom sauce was a little diluted and light on the flavours. I would have preferred a more robust sauce honestly.
The Coppa Noce sounded absolutely tempting but like the mushroom soup, fell a little short. The Maple Walnut ice cream had no hint of maple syrup whatsoever whereas the Straciatella had a slight tinge of coffee aftertaste. Nothing spectacular really.
$60 for 1 pax (I did all the eating) is pretty steep for the quantity and quality of food served. To top it off, I wasn't exactly stuffed up after the meal, which says pretty much about the quantity I guess. Service is good but food quality really needs to move up a notch or else all the good service and ambience will still amount to zilch.
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Rating given:
Asia Grand Restaurant has reopened with much fanfare at the former premises of Chef Chan at Oden Towers. Formerly from Asia Grand Hotel, Asia Grand Restaurant was set up by the original owners of the popular Tsui Hang chain of restaurants, which has since closed down.
A brightly lighted interior greets you as you step into the rather cramp restaurant, which incidentally, was packed with people. Floor to ceiling windows offer a clear view of passers by at ground level, seperated only by thin veiled curtains. The lack of privacy is further enhanced by the closely placed tables which makes it hard not to eavesdrop.
The appetizer was a mixture of Capsicum, fish cakes and bell peppers, which was rather intriguing given that I've never tried anything like it. The fishcake cubes took on a slight tinge of the bell pepper taste and proved to be a nice way to start dinner rolling.
Braised Shark's Fin Soup with Shredded Chicken & Bamboo Pith -
Honestly, for a restaurant such as Asia Grand, I would have expected better shark's fin soup. Not just quality of fins wise, but overall preparation of the soup as well. The soup was way too starchy and oily by any measure. The fins were of rather inferior quality but portions were still decent. Overall an average dish and no more.
Peking Duck - Our unanimous star of the evening - the humble Peking duck. With crackling crispy skin thats almost fat free wrapped in thin yet chewy egg crepes, you will be hard pressed to find any substitutes with similar quality at such a low price of $28 a duck (ongoing promotion).
Baked Lobster with Egg Yolk - The lobster got me all excited and was one of the reasons why we chose to order the set menu instead of going ala carte. My hopes shattered when I saw the size of the lobsters. They were tiny, weighing in at most the size of a huge prawn. The meat was barely a spoonful, which was absolutely pathetic. Berates aside, I must admit that the lobster was quite tasty, with the saltiness from the egg yolk complementing the slightly sweet lobster flesh. However, the egg yolk could have been saltier to further bring out the contrast.
Duck Fried Rice - Wondering what happened to the meat from the Peking duck? Well, you have your answer. The rice was moist and rather well fried together with the fibrous yet tender duck meat. However, it did get rather bland after a while. I mean, how tasty can it get when its just diced duck with rice and egg with no gravy whatsoever?
Steamed Pa Ting fish with Olive, Chilli & Garlic - A most forgettable dish - steamed fish at its most uninspiring. The fish was fresh but not particularly sweet. It didn't help that the fish was rather small as well.
Sauteed Fresh Scallop with Assorted Mushroom - The scallops were supposed to be the main focal point in this dish, but ironically I preferred the mushrooms better. Tasty, juicy and the direct opposite of the scallops, which were a tad too soft without much bite and rather bland. Portions are pathetic as well and we had to limit everyone to 2 scallops each. Talk about rationing.
$61.50/pax is rather expensive for such an average repertoire of food, the Peking duck withstanding. Service is excellent and all of the wait staff are attentive and friendly. After doing my math, I reckon I'll be back just for the $28 Peking duck. No more, no less.
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Rating given:
The tour of trying out far flung food places continues with a visit to Villa Seafood Galleria. As with Made In China and Pier Eleven, Villa Seafood Galleria is owned and operated by the Singapore Explorer group, which has a knack for sourcing out isolated places to set up restaurants. I mean that as a compliment by the way.
Sitting pretty at the top of Labrador nature reserve overlooking the sea, Villa Seafood Galleria is a little paradise all by itself, shrouded in greenery. The private dining room was set amongst a pool and oozed pure class through its fall to ceiling windows. The air conditioned common dining room, however, didn't impress that much but was spacious and comfortable with yes, floor to ceiling windows as well.
less than interesting name, a less than interesting dish. The Crispy Almond Chicken was essentially chicken coated with almond on the skin and baked. The skin was nice and crunchy from all the almonds but the meat was a little on the dry side. Ironically, for a name like Almond Chicken, there wasn't the faintest taste of almond at all, at least not that I could detect. However, the biggest gripe about this dish was that some pieces of chicken had a slight oil residue, which is a big no no.
Fish noodles usually come in soup so this variation of Fried Noodle with Seafood came as something new to me. Not that I'm complaining though. The noodles were slimmer and more springy, with the extra bite evident. However, I did find it a little too oily though, which made it almost unpalatable when cold. On a positive note, the toppings of prawns and scallops were plentiful, making the dish all the more enjoyable.
You can't really go wrong with vegetables and the Kailan with Scallops and Crab Meat was well, simple yet tasty. Fresh and crunchy, the vegetables were topped with generous servings of crab meat and gravy.
Huge prawns which were a little crisp along the edges yet succulent and full of bite topped with a thin layer of wasabi and mayonnaise. Now who wouldn't like that? The wasabi sauce honestly didn't look like much but it got really strong after a while. The small slices of cut fruit, though nothing fantastic, were a nice complement to the prawns.
Another first for me, the pumpkin sago was smooth yet not too starchy. Coming across as sweet and refreshing with the fruits and grass jelly in it, it was a little small for the price though. It helped that the sago was served really chilled as well.
I would say that the food at Villa Seafood Galleria tends towards the finer side as compared to its sister restaurant, Made In China, but of course prices are steeper and portions are smaller as well. $113 for 2 pax does seem a little on the high side but the ambience and service more than makes up for it. If you have a big group (10-20pax), you must go for the private dining room by the poolside.
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Rating given:
I went there for lunch the other and it was AWESOME.. Though the ambience is just so so, but i love the food they dish out.
I had seafood for one and my friend had Fish and Chips. We shared the food and i simply love the rice. Well flavoured yellow rice with bits or raisin all over. It was simply delectable and very appetizing. I love the hints of spices invading my tastebuds as i chew on the rice slowly in my mouth. The fries were great also, especially sizzled with spicy powders, it sure did ZEST things up. Prawns and fish is ok, fresh with no seafood stench and the fried calemari was FAB.... I love it with extra tar tar sauce.... whom which the waiter gladly provided us.
You must also try the passion fruit soda. I love the funcky popping taste with the glamourous passion fruit. It was indeed a fabulous lunch, perhaps too heavy for lunch but i'm sure its good for dinner.
The ambience is so so, not glam but casual. They have the alfresco sits as well, but it faces the road and fumes from the industrial park in tuas makes it not so nice.... The waiters gave us pretty good attention, though as it happens to most waiters and waitresses, We really wonder if they are overly concerned over lizards on the ceiling or zealous with their own shoes. They seemed to look up into the ceiling or look down to their shoes but never to the custiomers asking for bill, more water or to order........
Its indeed a pretty nice place to bring your family along though this outlet is not too huge, you could call first to reserve a table. Also avoid sitting near to the side railings unless you wanna pissed the shoppers using the escalators with your OH SO DELECTABLE food and throw them a prawn head or two.. heh heh!
While making payment, they gave us some candy.... and GOODNESS GRACIOUS ME... the candy was so so so so sooo........ YUMMY....... and so watching me go all ecstatic over the small white candy the waitress kindly mentioned that they do sell it if i want. AND i went home happily with ONE KG of that delectable CANDY.... AND ITS made in AFRICA....
Why is it white candy? Hm............
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Happened to be at Bugis Junction with my gf and chanced upon this Nanxiang Steamed Bun Restaurant. Actually it was the only restaurant that didn't have a queue at 730pm on a weekday evening. They are supposedly a very well known outfit in Shanghai, so expectations were rather high.
The interior was rather cramp, evidently with the restaurant trying to squeeze as many tables as possible in the relatively small room, resulting in a less than comfortable boxy looking dining area. I could easily overhear the adjourning table's conversation, not that I wanted to though. I guess that gives you an idea how close the tables were.
Have you ever tried pork rib noodles that were sweet? I for one, have not. Thats why Nanxiang's rendition came as quite a surprise (or was it shock?). The broth was sweet, not the MSG kind of sweet but literally sugar sweet. The pork ribs were sweet as well, which was rather weird, considering that I had expected the entire dish to be salty. The noodles were rather springy though and appeared to be the only thing that was "normal". Sorry but sweet broth and pork ribs just don't cut it for me.
For $8.50, I had expected better. The Yang Zhou Fried Rice was a joke and I'm not kidding. Served in a rounded symmetrical form, the rice looked like it had been pre-prepared and scooped from a container using a bowl (I'm just guessing). The de facto Char Siew was replaced by luncheon meat which is a poor substitute in my humble opinion. The rice lacked taste and came across as rather bland. Probably the only thing that I liked about this dish was the homogeneity of colours.
The Fried Prawns with Salted Egg came piping hot, with the gravy still bubbling and frothing. The relatively fresh prawns were of average size and overall tasted decent with the gravy buttery and a little coarse, probably due to the bits of egg yolk. However, this dish is best eaten hot as the gravy tends to harden as it cools and things get really gross from there.
The baked mini puffs looked like your normal curry puff, but break it open to find pork, mushroom and bamboo. Supposedly of course. Truth is, I only found pathetic bits of mushroom in it with what seemed to be scrap morsels of minced meat. It was like eating the pastry more than anything else. Not that it tasted good by the way.
Steamed Soup Bun with Crab Roe and Pork Filling - Purportedly Nanxiang's signature dish - the Xiao Long Bao (XLB). I honestly wasn't the least bit impressed. The skin was way too thick and I had to literally tear it apart before I could take a snapshot of the filling. And there is something about the QC of their XLB. Some had loads of fluids contained within, some had minimal. Talk about consistency.
I have never tried Pan Fried Pumpkin Cake before and I don't think I ever want to try it again, at least not at Nanxiang. The cake was soaking in oil but tasted decent though, a little sweet and crispy on the outside.
$59 for such mediocre quality food is plain absurd. The only redeeming factor was the reasonably good service but I don't think thats enough to make me go back.
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Had a leisurely set lunch with LSD at Jaan, one of the few well known French restaurants in Singapore. Perched at the peak of Raffles City Tower on the 70th floor, it is one level above the much talked about, but totally undeserving Equinox Restaurant. Reservations were a breeze, but the person on the other line sounded rather fake with her inclination to vary her voice pitch.
Take the ear popping but rather cheaply finished lift up to the 69th floor and walk the remaining flight of steps up to the 70th floor where you are ushered into a small dining area aka Jaan. And here you are in for a big surprise. The pictures of Jaan in food magazines show grandeur and finesse. What greets you is a tiny room which seats probably about 30 pax and done up with cheap looking wavy lights that scream bad taste. Well to be fair, the lights do look a lot better at night, almost mysterious. But in the day, they are better left off. View wise, its better I leave the talking to the photos. This is definitely Jaan's trump card and words just do not do any justification.
I had gotten this starter because I was sick of eating the scallops which I usually have when I go to Jaan. I guess bad choice sums it all up. The Crabmeat and Shrimps Ceviche was pretty normal but the Bloody Mary Granite was a total disaster. When was the last time you tried a tomato which was extremely salty yet cold? I'm sorry, but I just can't accept ice which tastes like tomato and yet be so salty. I was literally grimacing in my futile attempts to finish it.
The Red Port Jus was a recommended sauce for my medium rare steak and kudos to the waitress for the great recommendation. It hinted subtly of red wine without being artificially sweet. The steak came almost medium well, but still packed in a punch with its tenderness, juiciness and sweetness. A pity about the size of it though. It can hardly feed a 12 year old kid, much less a greedy slob like me. Probably a comparison is in order between this and Buko Nero's offering. No prizes for guessing which was the better of the two.
Jivara Mille-Feuille - Poached Rhubarb In Sangria, Chestnut Ice Cream - Now with such an interesting name, one would expect an equally interesting dish to go along with it. Sadly, that wasn't the case. The Chestnut Ice Cream didn't quite taste like Chestnut. I can't really put a finger to what it actually tastes like, but it wasn't very sweet and left a pleasant aftertaste. Not bad actually. What can I say about poached rhubarb except that it tastes like soft apple? The tiered chocolate piece by the side (I don't think it appears in the name of the dish) was chocolate mousse and the only good thing about it that I can think of is its light and not too sweet. Again, portions are smaller than small. Oh and one interesting thing to note. Sangria is a Spanish recipe, so whats it doing in a French dessert?
We went to Jaan hungry and left hungry(at least for myself). And it didn't come cheap at about $82 for 2 pax. I had to resort to eating MacDonalds after that, so imagine that. The only draw of this place, to me at least, is the respectable mains and panoramic view. Service, though reasonably good, seems rather biased towards Caucasians and well dressed customers and serving time is slow. I might probably do lunch again, but only lunch. Dinner is criminally expensive and I would be better off eating elsewhere.
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Rating given:
I'm pretty sure everyone knows Killiney Kopitiam. They have a few outlets around Singapore and most people would have been to one or the other.
Anyway this particular one in Siglap is always busy. They are never empty and I wonder why.
Coffee at Killiney's ain't different from the 70 cents one you find at your regular coffeeshop. not to mention it's more expensive here. In fact, it's more diluted if they're really busy. It's a little wierd since they supposedly make each cup as they are ordered.
They also have local foodfare like Mee siam and Nasi Lemak. Taste-wise is pretty average. Nothing special, thus it doesn't quite justify that $1 or $2 more....
I like the toast though, but again it's nothing extraordinary.
Nonetheless this small outlet is always bustling. Only try if you really have no other place to go for breakfast.
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Ice Cream Chefs ... located along East Coast Road... How could I not visit this place?! It's a quaint little joint located near where Jackie's Bowl used to be.
Initially I'd thought the ice cream would be made on the spot ... haha the bimbo I am...
The ice cream is displayed like normal. There are many flavours to choose from including special ones like Chocolate and Hershey's, Nutella Delight, Mrs Smith, etc. The ice cream is made from real ingredients... not just flavouring. There's real durian meat in the Durian Decadence flavour.
And The really special thing they'd do for you is CUSTOMISE your ice-cream. You can add Loacker's wafers, Oreos... into your ice-cream!! You can even mix flavours...
One large pint will cost $9.50. Two pints was nice for 3 people who loved ice cream.
I think it's worth a try. The quality is pretty good and it's great fun! The ambience is very casual with music from the radio in the background. You can choose to sit inside or outside... total seating area for about 20 people .
Will definitely be back!
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