I've been coming to coffee club so many times its amazing. You can view my previous 3 visits here. It does get a little boring if i keep returning to the same branch so this time, we switched to the branch along East Coast road for a try.
Garlic Prawn Pasta ($14.20) - I've reviewed this dish in my previous post and i'm glad to say its still as good as ever. Please refer to my previous post here. The only difference this time was that it was a little salty but otherwise, just as delicious.
Warm Confit Duck Salad ($9.80) - Something new to whet our appetites, the warm confit duck salad came in moderately warm duck slivers atop a bed of steamed tomatoes, greens, potatoes and some nuts thrown in for good measure. All covered with a generous dose of balsamic vinaigrette. As far as an appetiser goes, this is pretty heavy stuff since its firstly a big platter and secondly has a good dose of potatoes in it. The meat was a little dry and lackluster in the taste department but i still found the salad and potatoes itself to my liking, maybe i just like the heavy dosage of sweet and sour vinaigrette but IMHO, its passable.
Crusted Dory Gremolata ($13.90) - My Gf's dish. Another new item in Coffee Club. Plenty of chopped garlic, bread crumbs and olive oil make up this dish. There are also 2 reasonably sized dory fillets piled atop a standing ovation of potato salad. I tried a little of it and it tasted quite bland to me, the fillets are a little dry on the outside while only having hints of garlic and pan fried crumbs. The salad was also a little too....plain for my tastes but my gf liked it. She did say the dory was sweet but ultimately not filling enough.
Apple Crumble With Vanilla Ice Cream ($6.90) - Now this is an excellent dessert. Thus far, i have yet to have an apple crumble to rival this version. Caramelized apples form a small tower base while the top portion consists of a cumbly crust of nuts that surprisingly enhances the overall experience by a fair bit. Topped with a humble vanilla ice cream and this dessert is a winner. Warm and cold desserts are my favorite and this one takes the crown thus far. The apples hover between sweet and mildly sour just well with the nuts providing each bite a texture and fragrance that is totally different. Having it with ice cream as well simply makes this an indulgence not to be missed.
Chocolate Delice ($7) - Chocolate mousse cake with vanilla ice cream littered with chocolate chips. The mousse cake is of the dark chocolate variety and is quite rich. Smooth and filling describes it best while the ice cream, though normal, had chocolate chips strewn in it for a surprise crunch when eaten. Reasonably good.
Filling and satisfying. This meal came to $54.87 and is an invitation to revisit again. Which we did.
Based on the impression that Coffee Club has so far done no wrong and have yet to disappoint, we returned again and this time, tried to eat within a fixed budget as we were trying to have a cheap meal.
Fish And Chips ( $12.50) - I was intrigued that the restaurant so far had done no wrong that i thought they must serve a different version of fish and chips which would probably surprise me somehow. I was wrong. The fish and chips were very normal, too much so since i have the impression i could have gotten 2 servings at the same price. 2 reasonably portioned slices of fish fried in light batter with fries... The batter was quite thick actually while the fish, written as Cod Fillets in the menu if i'm not wrong, tasted the same as dory to me. In the end, this is my first true disappointment at Coffee Club.
Swiss Mushroom Melt Sandwich($9.90) - My gf's order turned out to be much better then mine. A warm toasted baguette with chopped mushrooms, tomatoes, cheese and lettuce was simply a healthier and better choice then mine. The bread was crunchy and soft at the same time with the cheese melting and oozing between the pieces of mushrooms. Simply divine.
Modern Lychee Tart ($7.50) - Another disappointment this time around was again, my order of the lychee tart. As of now, i've had every dessert in Coffee Club and basically, the apply crumble is still the best. The lychee tart is firstly very very small portioned. Secondly, it was not cold as i thought but rather room temperature and very soft, akin to unsolidified mousse. It also didn't taste like much but girls may be happy to know it tastes "light as air" to the point you wouldn't feel sinful after finishing it. I definitely won't order this again for sure.
This meal came up to $35.19 despite trying to keep costs down. So its quite obvious that a good budget is necessary to dine here.
Out of 5 visits, i've had only one visit which the food did not go too well. Service level is generally excellent so far and basically, for the one failed visit, its mostly due to the wrong choice in food. In summary, the food is still good and if you order only the recommendations i've had so far, you are guaranteed to be at least reasonably satisfied by the end of the day. My take on the place is, go for the good stuff and you won't regret it, but come with a good budget as well.
ladyironchefsaid: hm, 1 appeitizer, 2 main 2 dessert for $54. and u went for 5 times? so good ar? i'm quite skeptical abt the food 26 Apr 2008 at 3:05 pm
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Hidden in an obscure corner of the Changi Market is a lesser known western bar cum restaurant. Recommended by Makansutra as "Don't try, regret ah!", i made it my personal agenda to pay the place a visit. Charlie's corner has always been more of a 'watering hole' location to me as they serve an astonishing variety of beer. Pretty close to 80 different beers from around the world can be found here, though not on tap. This time however, i was there for the food.
There's really nothing much to say about the interior nor exterior really, its just a make shift corner with cheap metal chairs and alfresco dining qualities in an Asian way. Thats not to say its without it charm of course, and honestly, after a few beers, it doesn't matter where you are at.
Kilkenny ($10.90), Hoegarden ($9) - My 2 favorite sins. Kilkenny and Hoegarden. Both are bottled and served in their respective glasses but i really do find the price a little too steep. I can get a pint of Hoegarden at $7 and triple the volume shown here. That said, how can you fault a smooth and melt in your mouth Kilkenny and an ice cold sweet Hoegarden? Regardless of the price, its still going to be good.
Charlie's Famous Fish and Chips ($13.90) - Charlie's famous fish and chips is kind of an overstatement if you ask me. First of all, it really doesn't look like much. At first glance, i thought its was breaded fried fish which isn't too far from the truth. The good thing about the fish and chips is that its thick and juicy and has a light sweetness. The crust is also nicely done and well fried for a crumbling crispy finish. However, i still think its overpriced.
Chicken Chop ($12.90) - The chicken chop was a joke really. The meat was quite tender to its merit but tasteless even with the mushroom sauce accompaniment which basically renders it salty. My gf commented that its very average and just not satisfying. And at this price, i could have gotten 2 chicken chops from the market just around the corner.
Spicy Chicken Wings ($7.50) - The spicy chicken wings were served only with the central portion of the wing which is touted and the most tender and meaty portion of a chicken wing. This version came in 6 pieces but i really would have preferred having the entire wing given the price. The thing is, these wings were the best items we had that night (aside from the beer of course). Fried to perfection and still retaining its meat juices inside, the wings were delectable. Add the fact that the sauce is a mix between chili and rodeo sauce and its basically a fragrant juicy and tender experience. Have it piping hot with an ice cold beer for best effect.
This below average meal cost me $54.20 which really shocked my socks off.
Somehow, its either i ordered the wrong items or the Makansutra guy got special treatment. To me, the place is good for lazy gatherings and quiet drink sessions but the food offerings, in terms of main courses, needed much improvement. At this stage, it still feels like a bonafide rip off. And honestly, the drinks were overpriced as well. Its difficult for me to find a reason to return sadly.
Hungering for buffets? Want to show your friends from overseas what local cuisine tastes like? Well, look no further then Straits Kitchen. At one small(read: big) price, your friends will get to try everything they've ever wanted to try in Singaporean cuisine while enjoying a relaxed and comfortable ambiance within the confines of the Grant Hyatt.
Located on the first floor of the Grand Hyatt, Straits Kitchen is the restaurant encased in glass and partitioned with bottles, tea pots and soft lighting. Tables are of the wood variety as are the chairs in certain portions of the restaurant. The table we sat at comprised of wooden tables and chairs which look great until you realise how cramped and difficult it is to stand up and move around. Air conditioning in the restaurant is quite powerful while the music played ranges from classic malay, chinese and indian songs to suit the theme of the restaurant. An overall aesthetically pleasing presentation.
Being a buffet, counters are separated according to cuisine. There'll be separate counters for Malay food, Indian food, Chinese, Dessert and drinks. The range of items can be quite daunting and bascially, there are so many choices, your stomach will never be the same again. I'll just name the few i've come into contact with that day. These range from Laksa, Mee Soto, Fish Soup, Chicken and duck rice, Chili Crab, Mini Buddha Jump over the wall, Fried buns, Keropok, Fried carrot Cake, Prata, Prawns and Asparagus, Fried Kway Teow, Dory fish with Beancurd, Satay, Fried rice, Ayam Pengat, Rojak, Yam Paste, Durian Ice Cream and all manners of cakes and cookies to name a few. Even with an extensive list like this, i still may have missed out on quite a few items they had to offer. Needless to say, they have alot to offer.
Reviewing a buffet is never akin to reviewing actual fine dining establishments because first of all, its impossible to put much heart into food preparation when mass producing items and secondly, even if there were good items, the trouble with too much selection is that the customer might not get to try the better items. My colleagues mentioned that the food here was heavy as compared to carousal in Royal Scotts. They were right. With selections like fish soup noodles, fried rice, chicken rice, roti prata and laksa (that doesn't even finish covering the heavy items btw), its a killer to eat everything. In fact, eat 2 bowls of the above and you'll be stuffed enough to go home. The food is of a certain standard of course. The better items i had were the Mini Buddha jump over the wall which came with a scallop (boiled to death and very crumbly, no sweetness whatsoever) and a piece of abalone (which may or may not be actual abalone, i'm quite sure its either low quality or fake altogether). The broth itself should be double boiled which explains why its quite salty but overall, i'd say it was still passable. The carrot cake was pretty decent albeit being extremely oily. Pair it with some chili sauce and it'll do just fine. The prawns and asparagus were quite tasteless but the prawns themselves were big and crunchy, i'm disputing a little on the freshness because after 4 prawns, it started to feel generic and all of them strangely lacked any taste of sweetness in them. The satay was pretty good as the chicken (the only one i tried because all the other meats were quickly snapped up) was tender and the satay dip was authentic enough to be good. I had the yam paste for dessert which honestly wasn't too good. It was too sweet while the coconut milk portion too watery and lacking in taste to be even slightly decent. The best item i figured for that night? Probably the prawn crackers or the satay but thats just me.
I'd like to thank my boss again for the treat. She's really too kind and too generous. Wonderful boss i should say and i'm not even trying to flatter her. The experience was a good one although i can't say the same for the food offering but hey, its a buffet. A word of fairness is that it did not taste too bad actually, just that its not exactly grade A stuff. A good place to show overseas friends local food without braving the heat and oil of the real hawkers though. Straits kitchen is an interesting concept with decent grub. If only they could include the fresh juices as part of the buffet again to make it more attractive.
Playground @ Big splash is the revamped and much hyped about location these days for its semi chic food offering which can be found surrounding the defunct location. The list of restaurants to try there is quite extensive and its important thus, to start somewhere. Having had Sushi Tei close to a year back, i was once again goaded to try it out at its new location.
The exterior of the restaurant is simply a refurbishment of the old big splash building with an additional signboard. The interior consists of a oval kitchen set in the middle of the restaurant with glass panels to allow a full view of the kitchen and sushi making counter. A conveyor belt which taxis the usual sushi plates run through the restaurant as well. Seats are a mesh of wooden and minimal cushioned seats for the customers to choose from while the lighting within is rather dim as opposed to the bright interiors of Genki or Sakae sushi.
Unagi and Tamago Sushi (Yellow plate $6) - Looking at the shot, its obvious that the unagi is huge! I picked this from the conveyor because i was dead hungry and because the portion seemed too good to be true for a sushi plate. Taste wise, the unagi was soft and sweet while the tamago and sushi rice held firm. It wasn't until i learned the actual price of a yellow plate before i regretted as this was $6 which is really expensive by my standards.
Chawan Mushi (2 for $8) - Soft and sweet summarizes this up pretty well. Pieces of chicken meat and shark's fin can be found closer to the bottom but the one thing that irked me was that the dish was not piping hot when served. It was lukewarm at best and that took alot of enjoyment away.
Age Dashi Tofu ($4) - Another dish that should be served hot but made it to our tables only slightly warm. The age dashi tofu has to be the worst of its kind i've had to eat thus far. The skin had a sticky and unbreakable quality to it while the bland tofu inside simply didn't help. Also deserving a mention is how cool the sauce it came with was as well. An overall badly done item.
The above plates were basically tasteless. The tuna sushi had a rather fishy aftertaste that did not agree with me while the tamago and crab meat simple tasted like bland sushi rice. The unagi pieces were extremely thin and came with no sauce whatsoever. Disappointing.
Yakiniku Don ($10) - I had a bite of this dish and the meat was hard and overdone while the rice was once again lukewarm.
Curry Katsudon ($8) - A simple dish which i ordered for filling purposes. The curry was not spicy as Japanese curry itself is never known for being spicy. The chicken pieces were miserly and hard while the curry tasted very much like those that could be bought from NTUC. Somehow, i was hoping for more but that was never satisfied.
Sukiyaki (3 for $36) - The sukiyaki beef came in 4 long slices and the fats were readily apparent on each piece. Some call it marbling but it doesn't sit well with me as i prefer sukiyaki with minimal fat and more meat. The hotpot that came was miso based and is of the sweet variety. Its filled with mushrooms, onions, vermicelli and tofu for good measure but none decreases the sweetness of the broth (this can be good or bad depending on your tastes). Regardless, this is one of the more affordable and value for money items i've found in the place. Still not exceedingly good though.
Cha Soba ($6.50) - Another item i did not get to try but comments were that it was good.
Total damage for 6 people came to $112.39. Averaging less then $20 per person.
Although Japanese food is one of my favorite cuisines and i've tried Sushi Tei in the past. This branch needs work before its worthy of the name. From my friends, i understand that they have eaten at other branches where the standard was much higher and better then the items we've had here. Service was better as well. Either way, i did not enjoy paying at the counter, did not enjoy eating lukewarm and suspiciously "unfresh" food and did not enjoy the air con dripping down on me as i signed the cheque. Maybe this is the new business jitters i've heard so much about regarding new entrants to the field but still, i don't think i'll be coming back to this branch. Take your chances.
Shokudo is a name that you can get familiar with in a hurry. Why? Firstly, it has 2 branches already counting this one, being a Marche-like concept and the other located nearby in CityLink which specialized in Pizza and Pasta. We'll be reviewing the Marche lookalike this time around on the food quality.
Upon queuing and entering the premises, you'll be greeted by friendly serving staff who'll provide you with 2 items. Firstly, you'll receive a card thats basically your best friend, losing the card results in a penalty fee of $100 which is rather absurd if you ask me. The second item you'll receive is a round wooden placeholder thats supposed to reserve a seat for you whereever you put it. However, this simply did not work because our first reservation chip was stolen from our table and some other lady managed to get in our reserved seat... So i'm saying the system may work elsewhere, but apparently not in Singapore. The interior of the Bazaar is split into several different themes with a food court like design in the middle, more colorful lighting and cushy seats in other areas. Rather pleasing and different from an aesthetic perspective. The food preparation areas resemble Marche with the exception of everything being Japanese food or fusion in some instances. The only problem i had with the arrangement is the waiting time for each order. Its pretty ridiculous to wait 20 mins for a beef burger but i'll get to that later. The service staff were alright and courteous but can be improved for sure.
Wasabi Toro Cheese Burger ($7.80) - The name is nice, wasabi toro burger. Whatever that means i'm not too sure but to me, its a beef burger with a supremely small patty of beef wrapped in an extremely bad tasting and oversized bun. I had to wait close to 20 minutes for the above. Can you see where the time went into preparing it? I certainly couldn't unless they mashed and prepared the patty on the spot but i highly doubt that. The bun is fused to an egg which thankfully made it bearable but the miserly portion of beef was terrible visually. Not to mention that when tasted, it simply wasn't up to par, being dry and too hard. Simply terrible.
Bacon and cheese Omelette ($5.80) - My gf ordered this and the next item. Thankfully they were more palatable then my horrible choice but even then, not by much. The bacon and cheese omelet was a really small portion which could be finished in 4 spoonfuls. The omelet itself was served warm and with bacon and cheese melting within it. A little too salty however.
Rosti with Sausages ($9.80) - Since when did rosti become a Japanese item? Nonetheless, in a world of below average food, this managed to be a cut above the rest. Fragrant, hot and crispy with a soft interior. This took the crown that day but thats certainly not saying much. The sausage that came with it was your run-of-the-mill sausage with cheese in it. It wasn't bad per se but nothing exciting about it as well. The one thing about this dish is, its oily to a fault. You'll notice it the moment you have your first bite until your nausea inducing ending.
A mediocre and sub par meal came up to $27.50 for 2 people. If i'm ever in the vicinity again, i'll stay far far away.
I don't know what the matter is. The food portions were pathetic. The service was slow. The true japanese items were price sky high and the seats were only moderately comfortable. Why would i pay to eat here when there are so many better places out there? Good for people who want to see what the buzz is about but if the quality and portion size doesn't improve, i fear a quick exit will be the order of the day.
1=SGD 0.0587
Garlic Prawn Pasta ($14.20) - I've reviewed this dish in my previous post and i'm glad to say its still as good as ever. Please refer to my previous post here. The only difference this time was that it was a little salty but otherwise, just as delicious.
Warm Confit Duck Salad ($9.80) - Something new to whet our appetites, the warm confit duck salad came in moderately warm duck slivers atop a bed of steamed tomatoes, greens, potatoes and some nuts thrown in for good measure. All covered with a generous dose of balsamic vinaigrette. As far as an appetiser goes, this is pretty heavy stuff since its firstly a big platter and secondly has a good dose of potatoes in it. The meat was a little dry and lackluster in the taste department but i still found the salad and potatoes itself to my liking, maybe i just like the heavy dosage of sweet and sour vinaigrette but IMHO, its passable.
Crusted Dory Gremolata ($13.90) - My Gf's dish. Another new item in Coffee Club. Plenty of chopped garlic, bread crumbs and olive oil make up this dish. There are also 2 reasonably sized dory fillets piled atop a standing ovation of potato salad. I tried a little of it and it tasted quite bland to me, the fillets are a little dry on the outside while only having hints of garlic and pan fried crumbs. The salad was also a little too....plain for my tastes but my gf liked it. She did say the dory was sweet but ultimately not filling enough.
Apple Crumble With Vanilla Ice Cream ($6.90) - Now this is an excellent dessert. Thus far, i have yet to have an apple crumble to rival this version. Caramelized apples form a small tower base while the top portion consists of a cumbly crust of nuts that surprisingly enhances the overall experience by a fair bit. Topped with a humble vanilla ice cream and this dessert is a winner. Warm and cold desserts are my favorite and this one takes the crown thus far. The apples hover between sweet and mildly sour just well with the nuts providing each bite a texture and fragrance that is totally different. Having it with ice cream as well simply makes this an indulgence not to be missed.
Chocolate Delice ($7) - Chocolate mousse cake with vanilla ice cream littered with chocolate chips. The mousse cake is of the dark chocolate variety and is quite rich. Smooth and filling describes it best while the ice cream, though normal, had chocolate chips strewn in it for a surprise crunch when eaten. Reasonably good.
Filling and satisfying. This meal came to $54.87 and is an invitation to revisit again. Which we did.
Based on the impression that Coffee Club has so far done no wrong and have yet to disappoint, we returned again and this time, tried to eat within a fixed budget as we were trying to have a cheap meal.
Fish And Chips ( $12.50) - I was intrigued that the restaurant so far had done no wrong that i thought they must serve a different version of fish and chips which would probably surprise me somehow. I was wrong. The fish and chips were very normal, too much so since i have the impression i could have gotten 2 servings at the same price. 2 reasonably portioned slices of fish fried in light batter with fries... The batter was quite thick actually while the fish, written as Cod Fillets in the menu if i'm not wrong, tasted the same as dory to me. In the end, this is my first true disappointment at Coffee Club.
Swiss Mushroom Melt Sandwich($9.90) - My gf's order turned out to be much better then mine. A warm toasted baguette with chopped mushrooms, tomatoes, cheese and lettuce was simply a healthier and better choice then mine. The bread was crunchy and soft at the same time with the cheese melting and oozing between the pieces of mushrooms. Simply divine.
Modern Lychee Tart ($7.50) - Another disappointment this time around was again, my order of the lychee tart. As of now, i've had every dessert in Coffee Club and basically, the apply crumble is still the best. The lychee tart is firstly very very small portioned. Secondly, it was not cold as i thought but rather room temperature and very soft, akin to unsolidified mousse. It also didn't taste like much but girls may be happy to know it tastes "light as air" to the point you wouldn't feel sinful after finishing it. I definitely won't order this again for sure.
This meal came up to $35.19 despite trying to keep costs down. So its quite obvious that a good budget is necessary to dine here.
Out of 5 visits, i've had only one visit which the food did not go too well. Service level is generally excellent so far and basically, for the one failed visit, its mostly due to the wrong choice in food. In summary, the food is still good and if you order only the recommendations i've had so far, you are guaranteed to be at least reasonably satisfied by the end of the day. My take on the place is, go for the good stuff and you won't regret it, but come with a good budget as well.
Login to add your comment. Or, Register for an account now. It's free!hm, 1 appeitizer, 2 main 2 dessert for $54. and u went for 5 times? so good ar? i'm quite skeptical abt the food
26 Apr 2008 at 3:05 pm
There's really nothing much to say about the interior nor exterior really, its just a make shift corner with cheap metal chairs and alfresco dining qualities in an Asian way. Thats not to say its without it charm of course, and honestly, after a few beers, it doesn't matter where you are at.
Kilkenny ($10.90), Hoegarden ($9) - My 2 favorite sins. Kilkenny and Hoegarden. Both are bottled and served in their respective glasses but i really do find the price a little too steep. I can get a pint of Hoegarden at $7 and triple the volume shown here. That said, how can you fault a smooth and melt in your mouth Kilkenny and an ice cold sweet Hoegarden? Regardless of the price, its still going to be good.
Charlie's Famous Fish and Chips ($13.90) - Charlie's famous fish and chips is kind of an overstatement if you ask me. First of all, it really doesn't look like much. At first glance, i thought its was breaded fried fish which isn't too far from the truth. The good thing about the fish and chips is that its thick and juicy and has a light sweetness. The crust is also nicely done and well fried for a crumbling crispy finish. However, i still think its overpriced.
Chicken Chop ($12.90) - The chicken chop was a joke really. The meat was quite tender to its merit but tasteless even with the mushroom sauce accompaniment which basically renders it salty. My gf commented that its very average and just not satisfying. And at this price, i could have gotten 2 chicken chops from the market just around the corner.
Spicy Chicken Wings ($7.50) - The spicy chicken wings were served only with the central portion of the wing which is touted and the most tender and meaty portion of a chicken wing. This version came in 6 pieces but i really would have preferred having the entire wing given the price. The thing is, these wings were the best items we had that night (aside from the beer of course). Fried to perfection and still retaining its meat juices inside, the wings were delectable. Add the fact that the sauce is a mix between chili and rodeo sauce and its basically a fragrant juicy and tender experience. Have it piping hot with an ice cold beer for best effect.
This below average meal cost me $54.20 which really shocked my socks off.
Somehow, its either i ordered the wrong items or the Makansutra guy got special treatment. To me, the place is good for lazy gatherings and quiet drink sessions but the food offerings, in terms of main courses, needed much improvement. At this stage, it still feels like a bonafide rip off. And honestly, the drinks were overpriced as well. Its difficult for me to find a reason to return sadly.
Login to add your comment. Or, Register for an account now. It's free!Hmm... so now that you've tried it'll be "Go try and regret ah! (Except the wings and beer.)"? :P
22 Apr 2008 at 11:18 pm
Yeah. hahaha.
23 Apr 2008 at 9:30 am
Located on the first floor of the Grand Hyatt, Straits Kitchen is the restaurant encased in glass and partitioned with bottles, tea pots and soft lighting. Tables are of the wood variety as are the chairs in certain portions of the restaurant. The table we sat at comprised of wooden tables and chairs which look great until you realise how cramped and difficult it is to stand up and move around. Air conditioning in the restaurant is quite powerful while the music played ranges from classic malay, chinese and indian songs to suit the theme of the restaurant. An overall aesthetically pleasing presentation.
Being a buffet, counters are separated according to cuisine. There'll be separate counters for Malay food, Indian food, Chinese, Dessert and drinks. The range of items can be quite daunting and bascially, there are so many choices, your stomach will never be the same again.
I'll just name the few i've come into contact with that day. These range from Laksa, Mee Soto, Fish Soup, Chicken and duck rice, Chili Crab, Mini Buddha Jump over the wall, Fried buns, Keropok, Fried carrot Cake, Prata, Prawns and Asparagus, Fried Kway Teow, Dory fish with Beancurd, Satay, Fried rice, Ayam Pengat, Rojak, Yam Paste, Durian Ice Cream and all manners of cakes and cookies to name a few. Even with an extensive list like this, i still may have missed out on quite a few items they had to offer. Needless to say, they have alot to offer.
Reviewing a buffet is never akin to reviewing actual fine dining establishments because first of all, its impossible to put much heart into food preparation when mass producing items and secondly, even if there were good items, the trouble with too much selection is that the customer might not get to try the better items.
My colleagues mentioned that the food here was heavy as compared to carousal in Royal Scotts. They were right. With selections like fish soup noodles, fried rice, chicken rice, roti prata and laksa (that doesn't even finish covering the heavy items btw), its a killer to eat everything. In fact, eat 2 bowls of the above and you'll be stuffed enough to go home.
The food is of a certain standard of course. The better items i had were the Mini Buddha jump over the wall which came with a scallop (boiled to death and very crumbly, no sweetness whatsoever) and a piece of abalone (which may or may not be actual abalone, i'm quite sure its either low quality or fake altogether). The broth itself should be double boiled which explains why its quite salty but overall, i'd say it was still passable. The carrot cake was pretty decent albeit being extremely oily. Pair it with some chili sauce and it'll do just fine. The prawns and asparagus were quite tasteless but the prawns themselves were big and crunchy, i'm disputing a little on the freshness because after 4 prawns, it started to feel generic and all of them strangely lacked any taste of sweetness in them. The satay was pretty good as the chicken (the only one i tried because all the other meats were quickly snapped up) was tender and the satay dip was authentic enough to be good. I had the yam paste for dessert which honestly wasn't too good. It was too sweet while the coconut milk portion too watery and lacking in taste to be even slightly decent.
The best item i figured for that night? Probably the prawn crackers or the satay but thats just me.
I'd like to thank my boss again for the treat. She's really too kind and too generous. Wonderful boss i should say and i'm not even trying to flatter her. The experience was a good one although i can't say the same for the food offering but hey, its a buffet. A word of fairness is that it did not taste too bad actually, just that its not exactly grade A stuff. A good place to show overseas friends local food without braving the heat and oil of the real hawkers though. Straits kitchen is an interesting concept with decent grub. If only they could include the fresh juices as part of the buffet again to make it more attractive.
- 1 more comment »
Login to add your comment. Or, Register for an account now. It's free!i never like buffets, they made me full. whats the price? weekdays and weekends got diff?
20 Apr 2008 at 3:37 pm
Erhh.. LIC full not good meh? Wahahaha
21 Apr 2008 at 9:11 am
not good for health : )
25 Apr 2008 at 9:51 pm
The exterior of the restaurant is simply a refurbishment of the old big splash building with an additional signboard. The interior consists of a oval kitchen set in the middle of the restaurant with glass panels to allow a full view of the kitchen and sushi making counter. A conveyor belt which taxis the usual sushi plates run through the restaurant as well. Seats are a mesh of wooden and minimal cushioned seats for the customers to choose from while the lighting within is rather dim as opposed to the bright interiors of Genki or Sakae sushi.
Unagi and Tamago Sushi (Yellow plate $6) - Looking at the shot, its obvious that the unagi is huge! I picked this from the conveyor because i was dead hungry and because the portion seemed too good to be true for a sushi plate. Taste wise, the unagi was soft and sweet while the tamago and sushi rice held firm. It wasn't until i learned the actual price of a yellow plate before i regretted as this was $6 which is really expensive by my standards.
Chawan Mushi (2 for $8) - Soft and sweet summarizes this up pretty well. Pieces of chicken meat and shark's fin can be found closer to the bottom but the one thing that irked me was that the dish was not piping hot when served. It was lukewarm at best and that took alot of enjoyment away.
Age Dashi Tofu ($4) - Another dish that should be served hot but made it to our tables only slightly warm. The age dashi tofu has to be the worst of its kind i've had to eat thus far. The skin had a sticky and unbreakable quality to it while the bland tofu inside simply didn't help. Also deserving a mention is how cool the sauce it came with was as well. An overall badly done item.
The above plates were basically tasteless. The tuna sushi had a rather fishy aftertaste that did not agree with me while the tamago and crab meat simple tasted like bland sushi rice. The unagi pieces were extremely thin and came with no sauce whatsoever. Disappointing.
Yakiniku Don ($10) - I had a bite of this dish and the meat was hard and overdone while the rice was once again lukewarm.
Curry Katsudon ($8) - A simple dish which i ordered for filling purposes. The curry was not spicy as Japanese curry itself is never known for being spicy. The chicken pieces were miserly and hard while the curry tasted very much like those that could be bought from NTUC. Somehow, i was hoping for more but that was never satisfied.
Sukiyaki (3 for $36) - The sukiyaki beef came in 4 long slices and the fats were readily apparent on each piece. Some call it marbling but it doesn't sit well with me as i prefer sukiyaki with minimal fat and more meat. The hotpot that came was miso based and is of the sweet variety. Its filled with mushrooms, onions, vermicelli and tofu for good measure but none decreases the sweetness of the broth (this can be good or bad depending on your tastes). Regardless, this is one of the more affordable and value for money items i've found in the place. Still not exceedingly good though.
Cha Soba ($6.50) - Another item i did not get to try but comments were that it was good.
Total damage for 6 people came to $112.39. Averaging less then $20 per person.
Although Japanese food is one of my favorite cuisines and i've tried Sushi Tei in the past. This branch needs work before its worthy of the name. From my friends, i understand that they have eaten at other branches where the standard was much higher and better then the items we've had here. Service was better as well. Either way, i did not enjoy paying at the counter, did not enjoy eating lukewarm and suspiciously "unfresh" food and did not enjoy the air con dripping down on me as i signed the cheque. Maybe this is the new business jitters i've heard so much about regarding new entrants to the field but still, i don't think i'll be coming back to this branch. Take your chances.
Login to add your comment. Or, Register for an account now. It's free!big splash there still got what restaurant?
18 Apr 2008 at 3:59 pm
Do a search in yebber for big splash. :)
18 Apr 2008 at 10:44 pm
Upon queuing and entering the premises, you'll be greeted by friendly serving staff who'll provide you with 2 items. Firstly, you'll receive a card thats basically your best friend, losing the card results in a penalty fee of $100 which is rather absurd if you ask me. The second item you'll receive is a round wooden placeholder thats supposed to reserve a seat for you whereever you put it. However, this simply did not work because our first reservation chip was stolen from our table and some other lady managed to get in our reserved seat... So i'm saying the system may work elsewhere, but apparently not in Singapore.
The interior of the Bazaar is split into several different themes with a food court like design in the middle, more colorful lighting and cushy seats in other areas. Rather pleasing and different from an aesthetic perspective. The food preparation areas resemble Marche with the exception of everything being Japanese food or fusion in some instances. The only problem i had with the arrangement is the waiting time for each order. Its pretty ridiculous to wait 20 mins for a beef burger but i'll get to that later. The service staff were alright and courteous but can be improved for sure.
Wasabi Toro Cheese Burger ($7.80) - The name is nice, wasabi toro burger. Whatever that means i'm not too sure but to me, its a beef burger with a supremely small patty of beef wrapped in an extremely bad tasting and oversized bun. I had to wait close to 20 minutes for the above. Can you see where the time went into preparing it? I certainly couldn't unless they mashed and prepared the patty on the spot but i highly doubt that. The bun is fused to an egg which thankfully made it bearable but the miserly portion of beef was terrible visually. Not to mention that when tasted, it simply wasn't up to par, being dry and too hard. Simply terrible.
Bacon and cheese Omelette ($5.80) - My gf ordered this and the next item. Thankfully they were more palatable then my horrible choice but even then, not by much. The bacon and cheese omelet was a really small portion which could be finished in 4 spoonfuls. The omelet itself was served warm and with bacon and cheese melting within it. A little too salty however.
Rosti with Sausages ($9.80) - Since when did rosti become a Japanese item? Nonetheless, in a world of below average food, this managed to be a cut above the rest. Fragrant, hot and crispy with a soft interior. This took the crown that day but thats certainly not saying much. The sausage that came with it was your run-of-the-mill sausage with cheese in it. It wasn't bad per se but nothing exciting about it as well. The one thing about this dish is, its oily to a fault. You'll notice it the moment you have your first bite until your nausea inducing ending.
A mediocre and sub par meal came up to $27.50 for 2 people. If i'm ever in the vicinity again, i'll stay far far away.
I don't know what the matter is. The food portions were pathetic. The service was slow. The true japanese items were price sky high and the seats were only moderately comfortable. Why would i pay to eat here when there are so many better places out there? Good for people who want to see what the buzz is about but if the quality and portion size doesn't improve, i fear a quick exit will be the order of the day.
Login to add your comment. Or, Register for an account now. It's free!There's many other choices mah. Perhaps the others not tat bad?
15 Apr 2008 at 10:33 pm
Duno, but i;m not going to find out. I find the prices they charge ridiculous.
15 Apr 2008 at 10:35 pm
Next time eat with us, it will make ur meal more enjoyable. Wahahahaha
16 Apr 2008 at 10:40 am