Situated at United Square, one can locate Fiesta Brasilia hidden at the corner on the basement level beside Brauhaus Restaurant & Pub and McDonalds.
Started by one of co-founders of Brazil Churrascaria along Sixth Avenue and his partner, what sets this restaurant apart from the rest of the Brazilian meat buffet outlets is their casual setting and festive atmosphere, although a nice private dining area is also available.
Dinner was kick-started by the Cheese Bread, which was something different and interesting – it had a nice cheesy flavour accompanied by a lovely chewy texture. Only drawback was that it was served cold – perhaps so that one can enjoy the cheesy taste better.
HFB found the Pumpkin Soup to be mild-flavoured, and also thought it was strange it inclined towards saltiness rather than sweet-flavoured, but he truly enjoyed the accompanied Garlic Bread which he thought was crustily delicious.
HFB then proceed for some salads, and cooked items that also included pasta that one can be ordered off the pasta bar. Voiced your pasta and sauce selection to the chef behind the counter and it will be served right to your table once it is prepared.
While the Cream Sauce Pasta was nothing memorable, the Tomato-based version came al dente and the sauce was surprisingly not too bad amidst the lacked of ingredients.
The first item off from the Passadors, or meat-wielding waiters in Portuguese, was the Snow Fish. The snow fish has a nice firm texture and HFB readily indulged in the nicely charred exterior. However, one had to be careful while eating it as it contains bones within.
The Roast Chicken was a joy to behold – the meat was succulent and the crispy layer of skin was something to die for – this is a MUST TRY!
The Tenderloin wrapped with Bacon though could be better executed – the meat was slightly tough – similar to my experience with Vibe.
The Roast Lamb though was something out of the ordinary with a hint of peppermint flavour, although one may find it slightly gamy.
HFB was pretty impressed by the Rump Steak; known to shrivelled when roasted or grilled, it was surprisingly juicy despite it’s lacked of fats.
A few tiny shaves of Honey Roasted Ham revealed a nicely roasted exterior and a sweet tasty bite – something comfy from everyone’s favourite ham.
The Baby Beef, which HFB assumed it to be from a baby calf, was just as brilliant – it was scrumptiously moist and tender and HFB would definitely have more of it if it weren’t for the fact that there was still the Topside Beef Steak to go.
Medium rare was the way the topside beef was prepared and the requested thinly sliced beef was deftly carve from the skewer. It was truly a nice piece of meat to savour and HFB definitely didn’t regret one bit to save some space in his tummy for it.
There were a couple of meats to go but one surely could not leave this place without having the Mövenpick Ice Cream and Cheese Platter served at the dessert corner.
And if you are above 18, do also give the Caipirinha, Brazil’s national aperitif a try! Made with Cachaça, Sugar and Lime – have a few sip and enjoy a festive mood with the passadors who will not hesitate to swap their skewers for some percussion instruments and a douse of samba music.
Fiesta Brasilia is definitely the place for a fun, loud and crazy night out with your peers!
Si bon - the upmarket Japanese restaurant at Sentosa that specialises in kushiage, a form of Japanese cooking that involves coating a variety of ingredients with egg and bread crumbs and deep fried. Helmed by Chef Seiichiro Arakawa, Si bon promises a refined kushiage experience equal to what you would experience in Japan itself.
Hidden in a reclusive recess within the Amara Sanctuary Resort at Sentosa, Si Bon occupies a small restored colonial chapel that once housed a nursery (It happens to be the oldest chapel on Sentosa by the way). Seats are scarce, with the counter seating only 13 diners indoors and the charming al fresco area, complete with a water feature and bamboo garden, allowing for only another 10. The interior of the place exudes olden charm stemming from its soaring pointed ceiling and exposed unevenly laid brick walls - a reference to the building's historic origins.
Appetiser - Personally I thought that the appetisers were great. The miso beans were very savoury and complimented the crunchy and bland radish slices very well. On the other hand, the fish pieces were dipped in a salty yet sweet sauce that made got my appetite going.
Prawn - Served with a dollop of what looked like ketchup (someone please tell me what is it cause I have no idea), the prawns were fresh and crunchy with a light and crisp batter coating that didn't threaten to overwhelm or held any oily residue aftertaste.
Scallop - One of my personal favourites of the meal, the scallop was nothing short of excellent. Huge and bursting with flavour (sweet and salty all at once) while the batter came across as light and crisp. A pity it was only 1 piece.
Eel - I'm not exactly a big fan of eel and this one wasn't exactly outstanding. Served with a dash of wasabi atop, the eel came across as rather tasteless and had to be eaten with soya sauce, which just made it, well, salty. I must comment that the wasabi was rather strong though.
Pork Loin - In my excitement to taste the food, I forgot to take a picture of the pork loin before I started eating so please bear with the shot of my half eaten piece of loin. That said, the loin came served with a piece of mint leaf and had to be eaten with mustard sauce. The pork was succulent and juicy with a somewhat moderate tinge of mint taste from the leaf. Nice and refreshing.
Lotus Root - Interestingly, the lotus root had japanese curry powder and chicken thrown along with it - all nicely wrapped up in a light batter casing. Eaten with black sauce, this dish was crunchy and crispy with hints of curry powder. Not exactly my cup of tea though but something different I must admit.
Egg Plant - I usually baulk at the taste of egg plant, but not this one. Topped with white miso and eaten with no sauce, the egg plant was seriously good. Nice and smooth with a tinge of sweetness from the white miso paste.
Enoki Mushroom - Another most interesting concoction, the enoki mushroom was deep fried together with cream cheese and came served with a slice of parma ham atop and drizzled with lemon juice to jazz things up a little. The cream cheese sang in harmonious symphony with the mushroom, resulting in a smooth, creamy and an ever so light sourish aftertaste. I couldn't quite make out the taste of the parma ham in the equation though.
Wagyu Beef - I personally swear by this and I am nothing short of amazed by how wonderful the wagyu beef turned out. Expect nothing less then the best Australian wagyu beef with its excellent marbling and tenderness, dusted with the lightest batter and deep fried till an even crisp. Very full of flavour I must say. Please note that this was an additional order outside of the set and cost a seemingly exorbitant $18 /stick.
Udon - The udon came as an option on the set menu and although I'm not fan of udon, I have to say that it had me hooked. Full of bite and accompanied by slices of chicken, scallop and a stick of snow crab, the udon came across as nice and light on the palate.
Nigiri Sushi - One of the other options in the set besides udon/soba and steamed sushi, the nigiri sushi required a top up of $20 , which netted me a plate of 5 sushi pieces. I can't say I enjoyed this very much because I'm not exactly big on raw stuff but hey I made it through. Everything was very fresh so no complaints.
Grapefruit Sorbet - This is the first time I'm eating something like this and its somewhat intriguing. The sorbet had grapefruit pulp in it and overall the palate cleanser cum dessert was sweet and sour with a bitter tinge.
$174 for a 2 person lunch is definitely a high price to pay, especially when you are eating satay sticks lookalike. But the quality of food is apparent and the experience, eye opening. Top that with excellent customer service and an out of the country ambience and you have a top notch restaurant that is worth many revisits (provided you have the money of course). From what I understand from the chef, Si bon flies in its ingredients from Japan, except the wagyu, but that is about to change next year when Singapore lifts its restriction on Kobe beef. Till then, I'll be patiently awaiting.
We walked along the narrow street, wondering where was our destination. The road seems so distant, the future so vague. Just like the route we took, there’s much hurdle to be clear. At long last, we arrived, Dim joy.
Culture of all walks of life, our very own roots. Dim Joy offers a perspective much more than just eating dim sum. Its about the art of appreciating dim sum, the approach in understanding our culture. I like the small details they look into, like how they have tiny notes on the teapot to teach people about the correct method of teapot refill, like how they print their own manuals on the chopstick cover to educate about chopstick etiquette. Small little things like these, make a whole lot of differences.
Nestled in a shop house on neil road, the restaurant quaint and tranquil environment made me feel at home upon entering. There wasn’t much people on a weekday lunch, we had the whole lovely place to ourselves. This is just a place where you can seat down and chill for the whole day.
The simplistic approach to the chief, King shrimp har gao ($4). The whole taste was very subtle, the prawns were fresh, but the skin was again, too thick. While it wasn’t fantastic, dim sum just isn’t dim sum without har gao.
There wasn’t much difference with the Barbecued pork & celery in rice rolls ($5) too. It was way too short if i were to compare it with elsewhere. There was also the option of having the rice rolls in claypot, but i dismissed it as gimmick. I wanted a good steamed and savoury rice roll in light sauce.
There were bits of char siew which could passed off as bacon strips. And we were wondering how cool it’ll be if there’s bacon rice rolls. Nonetheless, the taste was again, very subtle and tame if i may just use the word. I didn’t quite enjoy the celery within too.
I was eagerly anticipating the Honey-syrup char siew bun ($3). With such a sweet name, we were like bees attracted to the beauty of the honey pot. The white pillowry bun was soft and fluffy, very good! But the char siew fillings could be better. While its sweet with honey-syrup infused, the fillings were too little, and i’ll preferred it to be more moist, like their char siew sou.
There is also Siew mai ($3.50 for 4), another dim sum staple. Chewy, shrimpy and not too oily. Value for money definitely, and its the only one that comes two by two. The ratio of shrimp to pork outnumbers greatly, with only a small portion of lean pork meat.
I always choose Pan-fried radish cake ($3) over its steamed cousins. I love the slightly charred surface of the carrot cake, but this one wasn’t charred enough. Well unlike most carrot cakes which are very filling, this one wasn’t very starchy, and had a different taste from the ones which i tried before. The jury’s out on this, you need to make your judgement.
Personally, i ain’t a big fan of the beancurd skin roll ($4.50) but my companion wanted to try this, so here we go. Instead of the typical prawn fillings, this one was all about mushrooms. The skin was a bit raw, and taste almost like beancurd, well it’s made from beancurd after all. The wholesome, vegetarian fillings within the beancurd skin roll didn’t work for me. But my companion rather enjoyed her helpings.
Now, my choice. The char siew so ($3.50) bears a great resemblance to our festive pineapple tarts. Golden brown in colour, with the buttery egg-graze taste on the pastry. While it didn’t come in the form of my favourite flaky skin, Dim Joy’s rendition was unique in its own right.
This time, the sweet honey infuse char siew fillings were more generous, and it was very moist within the pastry. But the char siew did lacked certain texture, and given time to improve, it’ll be better.
We were half-decided on ordering the Custard bun ($3) since we heard it wasn’t that good. But we decided to try for ourselves, taste after all is a very subjective thing. The vital factor for a good custard bun, the oozing out of the golden custard fillings. This one did, the molten custards flowed out of the bun, just like the lava erupted from a volcano. The salty egg yolk taste wasn’t strong enough, the bun was soft but, there’s some fine particles which we guessed was course sugar not dissolved properly. I had the best, and the worst before, this one would be good given some minor tweaks.
While i know Lingnan is an area in China, i couldn’t see the link what the place got to do with the Lingnan egg tart ($3.50 for 4). The best part about Dim Joy during weekend was there wasn’t much people around, so everything was made freshly, rather than pre-made. We waited 25 minutes just for the egg tarts to come out freshly baked. The egg fillings were nice and wet, but the pastry lacked the buttery undertone.
Total bill was $42.35 for 2 person. I must say, with 9 dim sum between us, the prices are fairly reasonable given the standards of the dim sum. I’ll definitely make a perennial visit again, and for that, See you there! And just for some background information, Michelle Saram’s the partner behind Dim Joy.
It also helped that Dim Joy served dim sum throughout the day, even during dinner. Most places don’t serve dim sum at night, so it’s a nice place if you are craving for dim sum after the sun set. I heard they are packed during weekend, so avoid the crowd come on the weekdays instead.
You are always welcome to visit ladyironchef for a full-up on this trip. Whatever written herein are my genuine feelings expressed in words. Food, my dear, is what they call an adventure!
Television often play an important part in our life, and definitely have great influence on many people. But the debates on whether it is a good thing or not continues to rage on. Many certainly thinks that Television’s one of the greatest inventions, while some in the other camp believe that it is a bad influence on children, especially so when they get addicted to watching TV programmes. Did you ever hear a parent telling her kid to watch more TV shows?
Recently, we have a television show on Channel 8, “Buffet Buffet” which has garnered much interest among the young and the old. And its hard not to see why, food-related programmes have always been a hit with the audience, not to mention this one introduce all kinds of buffets in Singapore. I saw Penang place restaurant on one of the episodes, and since the price is reasonably cheap and near to my place, why not?
If you just watch the crowd in the place without knowing where is it, you’ll never guess its located within the International Business park (IBP) at Jurong. Perhaps that’s exactly the reason why the owner set up shop there, since there’s so many hungry white collar workers in all the offices around. The atrium building is just beside Creative, so its pretty easy to find, and there’s shutter bus from Jurong East mrt station.
Penang place oozes a sense of tranquil with its simple furnitures, and the water settings just beside the restaurant. It was fully packed when we visited on a weekday lunch, Singaporeans do love their buffets!
The selections actually is pretty decent given its reasonable pricing of $19.80 for weekday buffet lunch.
The Penang laksa actually comes in the form of Assam laksa, sour and spicy in taste, which differed greatly from our local version. The katong-laksa purist might not take quite well to this, which is more like a mix between tom-yam soup and laksa, with the sourish taste dominating the taste bud. But that’s the authentic Penang laksa for you.
I was rather impressed with the seafood soup, well for one it tasted like shark fin soup (even though there’s no shark fin of course), and secondly, i felt that it was similar to my mom’s home-made soup, and that’s a compliment!
What do you think of when I mentioned Penang? The name synonymous with the city is definitely Char Koay Teow. And if you didn’t notice, even the spelling differs slightly from ours. Well, there’s also Assam laksa, wonton mee and hokkien mee too, but Char Koay Teow certainly is the one which leave most people with memorable memories of Penang. Their rendition comes slightly spicy, not too oily and with a generous serving of ingredients. And the best part? Penang Place actually replenished their char koay teow in small portions very often, since it’s like the most popular dish there. While Char koay teow has a reputation for being unhealthy, and even though i had eaten it twice that week, i couldn’t help myself to second helpings. My sinful food.
The Nasi Lemak is served simple and nice with the fragnant rice, crunchy ikan billies, crispy peanut with cooling cucumbers. There are some other common dishes like curry chicken, fried food, but one dish which i found it good was the Batu Uban Ayam Panggang, which was seasoned grilled chicken with peanut sauce. A pity it was gone when i wanted to take a shot of it.
Glutinous rice is often use in the Asian context, and its no surprise to see the Kueh Salat here. Basically steamed glutinous rice topped with a layer of pandan flavoured custard. Well, i didn’t know if it’s just me or what, but i didn’t really enjoy glutinous rice done this way. The taste was rather weird for my liking, and i guessed i still prefer the Chinese dim sum glutinous rice in lotus leaf.
One of my personal favourites, the Kueh Dardan was actually pandan flavoured pancakes filled with sweetened coconut shavings. The pancakes were very soft and nice, with the coconut shavings coming not too heavy. Easily finished a few of them even thought we were full from the buffet.
Another dessert, or rather kueh that i enjoyed was the Kueh Talam. Essentially a pandan flavoured cake topped with a savoury coconut milk layer, the pandan cake was very fragnant indeed.
Total bill was $69.90 for 3 person at their weekday lunch buffet. I must say, for $23 per head after taxes and service charges, its rather reasonable for the amount of food served. Note, i didn’t say its excellent, but for the price, its rather acceptable since i find it hard to name another place serving buffet in the 20 dollar range which is good. I guess the money will be worth it if you eat more of their Char Koay teow which will cost $8.90 if you order a plate a la carte.
The location might be a tad difficult, since its within the International Business Park, people wouldn’t travel all the way there just for their buffet, but i did. Well for the rest of you lucky souls who are working in the area, i’ll say this is one place to check out for lunch when you are in the mood for a longer lunch.
You are always welcome to visit ladyironchef for a full-up on this trip. Whatever written herein are my genuine feelings expressed in words. Food, my dear, is what they call an adventure!
I couldn’t forget you, no, not after what happen last time.
The two sided face of you. You were rich and good to me before.
But you showed me your cold side now.
I know we couldn’t be together.
But i can’t stop thinking of you.
Until we meet again, my duck.
The scones ($2.50) from Caffe Beviamo was soft and fluffy, with a buttery undertone.There wasn’t any “wow” from the strawberry jam, but it was enough to compliment the warm scones. If i may say so in my humble opinion, the ones here are better than the legendary Royal Copenhagen scones.
When you run out of names for your desserts, why not try some creative ones which can attract others attention? That’s exactly what Beviamo did. The hummingbird cake ($3.50) had was pineapple, banana and coconut involved, definitely no bird or what so ever. I love to eat pineapple and banana on its own, but to have them in cake is completely a different story all together. Banana cakes are just not for me, some things just can’t be forced.
You are always welcome to visit ladyironchef for a full-up on this trip. Whatever written herein are my genuine feelings expressed in words. Food, my dear, is what they call an adventure!
If you're looking for a quiet and pleasant place for French cuisine, I would say Vis-A-Vis would satisfy your requirements. The warm orange lightings and neatly furnished restaurant makes one feel very comfortable. On top of that, the restaurant is usually peaceful and is not very crowded. However, beware - this is not the place to go if you're on a budget.
Service Something I noticed and was surprised for some unknown reason - the waiters were all middle-aged men, minus the lady behind the bar in charge of the bill (whom I reckon is the boss/ co-owner).
Upon entering, it seems like there would always be someone attending to you, hence minimizing your waiting time. A waiter is assigned to the table and is always ready to take your order or answer any queries. While I have to give them credit for their effort in providing good service, it occasionally felt like the waiters were "doing too much". Having them looking over at your table all the time sometimes did make me feel a little uneasy.
Food and Price We ordered a Christmas special that was $86 (original: $78, but we changed the dessert for something else outside the set) and is fairly cheap, relative to the prices of their individual items. All in all, we ordered an additional Clam Chowder, Roasted Lamb, Roasted Prime Rib, Creme Brulee Ice Cream, Escargots and a bisque (but I forgot what was in it).
I especially liked the Clam Chowder. It was unexpected but a pleasant surprise. The soup tasted sweet and came in a large portion. Also, it did not have any clams in it. Where did the clams go? That's where it's different. On the side, they served a strip of bamboo clam flambed in whisky, topped with garlic and some spices. So now we have Clam Chowder, with the whole Clam! Perfect for clam-lovers. I'd say it was great.
The Escargots were part of the set and came in a bowl with some salad and half a potato. And the verdict? Disappointing. There were only 4 pieces of escargots (and I was expecting the usual 6...) that was garnished with some butter and garlic I believe, which made it rather tasty I admit. However, the potato used was that of a boiling potato rather than a baking potato, which is a whole world of difference. To me, it was rather shocking to know that a restaurant like this would serve potatoes that we usually use in making clear soup (and perhaps with some tomato and pork).
The Lamb (medium) was well-decorated and looked very appetizing. So was the Prime Rib. However, the gravy that came along with the Lamb had a smell that usually comes with the meat. Ironically, the meat did not have that smell. However it was rather soft and chewy. The Prime Rib (medium-rare) was not too bad, but just a little over-done. This could be because it was a really thin slice. The beef was sweet and tender, but had a little more fat than expected. So part of the slice of steak was wasted.
So, everything but dessert was done. Wasn't all satisfied, considering how much they cost, but the dessert was.. worse. We had a Creme Brulee Ice Cream. Firstly, it tasted from like coffee/ dark chocolate ice cream. It tasted nothing like caramel/ cream. Then, there were 3 balls of fritters that was stuffed with sweet potato, with some melted chocolate in it. Not exactly the best French dessert combination, plus the fact that I'm not a fan of sweet potato. On the other hand, my friend quite liked it for the slight bitterness and sweet potato with chocolate. So it couldn't be all that bad.
Along with the meal, we had a glass of red wine and rose wine. The whole meal came up to came up to $220 . The lamb was about $50. For your information, deserts are priced at $20 , soups are slightly below 20, main course above $40. Final verdict? It was alright, but I wouldn't go back again even though it tasted alright. But for this price, alright shouldn't be what you expect.
Had a go at Ah Yat Seafood at The Village after reading about its recent opening in the papers. Actually there wasn't much of a choice, with only 3 eating places available and one of them didn't even bother to acknowledge our presence even though we stood at the entrance for a couple of minutes and the place was relatively empty.
The place is typical of many seafood restaurants - brightly lighted, cramped with tables and a hotbed of noise pollution. And surprisingly, the place was packed for such a wayside location which is hardly accessible by public transport.
Deep Fried Beancurd Cubes - This was more of an appetiser and though I liked the simplicity of it, the dish wasn't much to shout about. For one, the beancurd skin was too a little too thick.
Roasted Meat Combination - We waited 45mins for this dish all because the waiter forgot to log it in. And guess what? No one had the decency to tell me anything or apologize. It was only through overhearing the conversation between the waiter and another waitress regarding my order that I learnt what transpired. Service grievances aside, this roasted meat combination probably ranks as one of the worst I've tried this year. The duck reeked strongly of fowl taste with lots of oil to boot while the char siew was rather fatty with a gross oily aftertaste. Even the chicken was very oily and tasted very bland. Seriously disappointing with a not too wallet friendly pricing ($20 ) to boot.
Broccoli with Crab Meat - You can't really go wrong with vegetables so no complaints about the broccoli. I liked the crab meat sauce though, which came across as not too starchy with strands of crab meat in it. Mildly savoury and complemented the broccoli relatively well.
I don't reckon $57 for a 2 pax dinner is anywhere near value for money for food of such quality. Add to that the less then stellar service and I am seriously better off taking my money elsewhere.
Thanks to a dear friend, I got a chance to enjoy their lunch buffet recently. According to her, the variety of dishes has become lesser as compared to before they renovated and moved up the place. Not sure how long ago was that thou.
When I was there, the crowd were mostly the senior citizens who've retired and has lots of time (and money) to spend. There were also families and taitai look-alike there. If not for the lunch meeting, I would probably never have a chance to dine at such a place.
The food though variety is not plentiful, but the spread was good enough for lunch. And the most important thing is that its fresh and taste very well.
My favorite from that day was the Thai Seafood Curry, Fresh Salmon Sashimi, couple of the appertisers and the hazelnut chocolate cake from the desserts bar.
And the highlight at Rose Veranda is the huge variety of tea available free-flow(!!!) for customers. I spent 15minutes going through and deciding which to try. If I had the time, I would have ordered like few options (one after another) to try more varieties.
Rose Veranda is a great place to spend the afternoon with friends over good quality tea and great food. The setting is very comfortable and they've got very comfy sofa seats too.
If you're planning to give it a try, don't forget to call for reservations! Even if its on a weekday!
Its one of those rare days where you'll find me in a KTV room. But after that night with the crazy bunch, I think I'll be visiting these cosy rooms pretty often! They made KTV so fun and enjoyable! It's the best session I've had in years!
Like all KTV places, there'll be the standard fruit platters and tidbits which you're "forced" to pay for. And imo, the tidbits is to make our throat feel uncomfortable so that we will order more drinks to smoothen it so we can sing more songs/ better. But of course, you can choose not to those these tidbits and let it lao hong (gets soften) over the 4 hours in the air con room.
The collection of songs was great and about 85% of those we selected were of original mtv. The sound system was very good too. Except for one of the mic in our room which couldn't be turned off. The room was just nice for 9 of us, and the sofas were clean and comfortable too.
One thing I learned about singing at KTV rooms is never to go late! If you book the room at 10pm, be there on time. Their clock starts counting from 10pm instead of 10.30pm where we finally got settled in the room. So instead of the full 4 hours of singing time, we sang for only 3.5 hours.
I'm so looking forward to our next session together! Let's try their other outlets too!
Thanks to the food hunters! We managed to have our Christmas dinner at this hidden place. I think I've heard about it before but never really thought of trying it. But no regret after I tried it.
When we arrived, the place was empty with only one table filled. But as the night comes, the place gets very packed with hungry families and friends.
The choice of food is pretty decent, and they're fresh. Agree that the beef was fantastic! We should have ordered more of it! Love the mini custard bao which needs exactly 2mins in the boiling steamboat to cook/ heat it.
Their choice of cooked food though little, but they are of good quality too imo. Love the lemongrass chicken, fried chicken wing, sotong you tiao and cucumbers!
The service staff were helpful too. When the table couldn't put that huge number of plates we ordered, they helped us "throw" all the food into our steamboats too.
And do you know who owns this place? Its Terrence Cao the TCS actor.
Nice place for gatherings and hungry souls.
*No photos caused everyone was hungry and too lazy to take out our cameras! LOL!
1=SGD 0.0587
Situated at United Square, one can locate Fiesta Brasilia hidden at the corner on the basement level beside Brauhaus Restaurant & Pub and McDonalds.
Started by one of co-founders of Brazil Churrascaria along Sixth Avenue and his partner, what sets this restaurant apart from the rest of the Brazilian meat buffet outlets is their casual setting and festive atmosphere, although a nice private dining area is also available.
Dinner was kick-started by the Cheese Bread, which was something different and interesting – it had a nice cheesy flavour accompanied by a lovely chewy texture. Only drawback was that it was served cold – perhaps so that one can enjoy the cheesy taste better.
HFB found the Pumpkin Soup to be mild-flavoured, and also thought it was strange it inclined towards saltiness rather than sweet-flavoured, but he truly enjoyed the accompanied Garlic Bread which he thought was crustily delicious.
HFB then proceed for some salads, and cooked items that also included pasta that one can be ordered off the pasta bar. Voiced your pasta and sauce selection to the chef behind the counter and it will be served right to your table once it is prepared.
While the Cream Sauce Pasta was nothing memorable, the Tomato-based version came al dente and the sauce was surprisingly not too bad amidst the lacked of ingredients.
The first item off from the Passadors, or meat-wielding waiters in Portuguese, was the Snow Fish. The snow fish has a nice firm texture and HFB readily indulged in the nicely charred exterior. However, one had to be careful while eating it as it contains bones within.
The Roast Chicken was a joy to behold – the meat was succulent and the crispy layer of skin was something to die for – this is a MUST TRY!
The Tenderloin wrapped with Bacon though could be better executed – the meat was slightly tough – similar to my experience with Vibe.
The Roast Lamb though was something out of the ordinary with a hint of peppermint flavour, although one may find it slightly gamy.
HFB was pretty impressed by the Rump Steak; known to shrivelled when roasted or grilled, it was surprisingly juicy despite it’s lacked of fats.
A few tiny shaves of Honey Roasted Ham revealed a nicely roasted exterior and a sweet tasty bite – something comfy from everyone’s favourite ham.
The Baby Beef, which HFB assumed it to be from a baby calf, was just as brilliant – it was scrumptiously moist and tender and HFB would definitely have more of it if it weren’t for the fact that there was still the Topside Beef Steak to go.
Medium rare was the way the topside beef was prepared and the requested thinly sliced beef was deftly carve from the skewer. It was truly a nice piece of meat to savour and HFB definitely didn’t regret one bit to save some space in his tummy for it.
There were a couple of meats to go but one surely could not leave this place without having the Mövenpick Ice Cream and Cheese Platter served at the dessert corner.
And if you are above 18, do also give the Caipirinha, Brazil’s national aperitif a try! Made with Cachaça, Sugar and Lime – have a few sip and enjoy a festive mood with the passadors who will not hesitate to swap their skewers for some percussion instruments and a douse of samba music.
Fiesta Brasilia is definitely the place for a fun, loud and crazy night out with your peers!
You can view all the photos here.
Rating given:
Si bon - the upmarket Japanese restaurant at Sentosa that specialises in kushiage, a form of Japanese cooking that involves coating a variety of ingredients with egg and bread crumbs and deep fried. Helmed by Chef Seiichiro Arakawa, Si bon promises a refined kushiage experience equal to what you would experience in Japan itself.
Hidden in a reclusive recess within the Amara Sanctuary Resort at Sentosa, Si Bon occupies a small restored colonial chapel that once housed a nursery (It happens to be the oldest chapel on Sentosa by the way). Seats are scarce, with the counter seating only 13 diners indoors and the charming al fresco area, complete with a water feature and bamboo garden, allowing for only another 10. The interior of the place exudes olden charm stemming from its soaring pointed ceiling and exposed unevenly laid brick walls - a reference to the building's historic origins.
Appetiser - Personally I thought that the appetisers were great. The miso beans were very savoury and complimented the crunchy and bland radish slices very well. On the other hand, the fish pieces were dipped in a salty yet sweet sauce that made got my appetite going.
Prawn - Served with a dollop of what looked like ketchup (someone please tell me what is it cause I have no idea), the prawns were fresh and crunchy with a light and crisp batter coating that didn't threaten to overwhelm or held any oily residue aftertaste.
Scallop - One of my personal favourites of the meal, the scallop was nothing short of excellent. Huge and bursting with flavour (sweet and salty all at once) while the batter came across as light and crisp. A pity it was only 1 piece.
Eel - I'm not exactly a big fan of eel and this one wasn't exactly outstanding. Served with a dash of wasabi atop, the eel came across as rather tasteless and had to be eaten with soya sauce, which just made it, well, salty. I must comment that the wasabi was rather strong though.
Pork Loin - In my excitement to taste the food, I forgot to take a picture of the pork loin before I started eating so please bear with the shot of my half eaten piece of loin. That said, the loin came served with a piece of mint leaf and had to be eaten with mustard sauce. The pork was succulent and juicy with a somewhat moderate tinge of mint taste from the leaf. Nice and refreshing.
Lotus Root - Interestingly, the lotus root had japanese curry powder and chicken thrown along with it - all nicely wrapped up in a light batter casing. Eaten with black sauce, this dish was crunchy and crispy with hints of curry powder. Not exactly my cup of tea though but something different I must admit.
Egg Plant - I usually baulk at the taste of egg plant, but not this one. Topped with white miso and eaten with no sauce, the egg plant was seriously good. Nice and smooth with a tinge of sweetness from the white miso paste.
Enoki Mushroom - Another most interesting concoction, the enoki mushroom was deep fried together with cream cheese and came served with a slice of parma ham atop and drizzled with lemon juice to jazz things up a little. The cream cheese sang in harmonious symphony with the mushroom, resulting in a smooth, creamy and an ever so light sourish aftertaste. I couldn't quite make out the taste of the parma ham in the equation though.
Wagyu Beef - I personally swear by this and I am nothing short of amazed by how wonderful the wagyu beef turned out. Expect nothing less then the best Australian wagyu beef with its excellent marbling and tenderness, dusted with the lightest batter and deep fried till an even crisp. Very full of flavour I must say. Please note that this was an additional order outside of the set and cost a seemingly exorbitant $18 /stick.
Udon - The udon came as an option on the set menu and although I'm not fan of udon, I have to say that it had me hooked. Full of bite and accompanied by slices of chicken, scallop and a stick of snow crab, the udon came across as nice and light on the palate.
Nigiri Sushi - One of the other options in the set besides udon/soba and steamed sushi, the nigiri sushi required a top up of $20 , which netted me a plate of 5 sushi pieces. I can't say I enjoyed this very much because I'm not exactly big on raw stuff but hey I made it through. Everything was very fresh so no complaints.
Grapefruit Sorbet - This is the first time I'm eating something like this and its somewhat intriguing. The sorbet had grapefruit pulp in it and overall the palate cleanser cum dessert was sweet and sour with a bitter tinge.
$174 for a 2 person lunch is definitely a high price to pay, especially when you are eating satay sticks lookalike. But the quality of food is apparent and the experience, eye opening. Top that with excellent customer service and an out of the country ambience and you have a top notch restaurant that is worth many revisits (provided you have the money of course). From what I understand from the chef, Si bon flies in its ingredients from Japan, except the wagyu, but that is about to change next year when Singapore lifts its restriction on Kobe beef. Till then, I'll be patiently awaiting.
See all my pictures here.
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We walked along the narrow street, wondering where was our destination. The road seems so distant, the future so vague. Just like the route we took, there’s much hurdle to be clear. At long last, we arrived, Dim joy.
Culture of all walks of life, our very own roots. Dim Joy offers a perspective much more than just eating dim sum. Its about the art of appreciating dim sum, the approach in understanding our culture. I like the small details they look into, like how they have tiny notes on the teapot to teach people about the correct method of teapot refill, like how they print their own manuals on the chopstick cover to educate about chopstick etiquette. Small little things like these, make a whole lot of differences.
Nestled in a shop house on neil road, the restaurant quaint and tranquil environment made me feel at home upon entering. There wasn’t much people on a weekday lunch, we had the whole lovely place to ourselves. This is just a place where you can seat down and chill for the whole day.
The simplistic approach to the chief, King shrimp har gao ($4). The whole taste was very subtle, the prawns were fresh, but the skin was again, too thick. While it wasn’t fantastic, dim sum just isn’t dim sum without har gao.
There wasn’t much difference with the Barbecued pork & celery in rice rolls ($5) too. It was way too short if i were to compare it with elsewhere. There was also the option of having the rice rolls in claypot, but i dismissed it as gimmick. I wanted a good steamed and savoury rice roll in light sauce.
There were bits of char siew which could passed off as bacon strips. And we were wondering how cool it’ll be if there’s bacon rice rolls. Nonetheless, the taste was again, very subtle and tame if i may just use the word. I didn’t quite enjoy the celery within too.
I was eagerly anticipating the Honey-syrup char siew bun ($3). With such a sweet name, we were like bees attracted to the beauty of the honey pot. The white pillowry bun was soft and fluffy, very good! But the char siew fillings could be better. While its sweet with honey-syrup infused, the fillings were too little, and i’ll preferred it to be more moist, like their char siew sou.
There is also Siew mai ($3.50 for 4), another dim sum staple. Chewy, shrimpy and not too oily. Value for money definitely, and its the only one that comes two by two. The ratio of shrimp to pork outnumbers greatly, with only a small portion of lean pork meat.
I always choose Pan-fried radish cake ($3) over its steamed cousins. I love the slightly charred surface of the carrot cake, but this one wasn’t charred enough. Well unlike most carrot cakes which are very filling, this one wasn’t very starchy, and had a different taste from the ones which i tried before. The jury’s out on this, you need to make your judgement.
Personally, i ain’t a big fan of the beancurd skin roll ($4.50) but my companion wanted to try this, so here we go. Instead of the typical prawn fillings, this one was all about mushrooms. The skin was a bit raw, and taste almost like beancurd, well it’s made from beancurd after all. The wholesome, vegetarian fillings within the beancurd skin roll didn’t work for me. But my companion rather enjoyed her helpings.
Now, my choice. The char siew so ($3.50) bears a great resemblance to our festive pineapple tarts. Golden brown in colour, with the buttery egg-graze taste on the pastry. While it didn’t come in the form of my favourite flaky skin, Dim Joy’s rendition was unique in its own right.
This time, the sweet honey infuse char siew fillings were more generous, and it was very moist within the pastry. But the char siew did lacked certain texture, and given time to improve, it’ll be better.
We were half-decided on ordering the Custard bun ($3) since we heard it wasn’t that good. But we decided to try for ourselves, taste after all is a very subjective thing. The vital factor for a good custard bun, the oozing out of the golden custard fillings. This one did, the molten custards flowed out of the bun, just like the lava erupted from a volcano. The salty egg yolk taste wasn’t strong enough, the bun was soft but, there’s some fine particles which we guessed was course sugar not dissolved properly. I had the best, and the worst before, this one would be good given some minor tweaks.
While i know Lingnan is an area in China, i couldn’t see the link what the place got to do with the Lingnan egg tart ($3.50 for 4). The best part about Dim Joy during weekend was there wasn’t much people around, so everything was made freshly, rather than pre-made. We waited 25 minutes just for the egg tarts to come out freshly baked. The egg fillings were nice and wet, but the pastry lacked the buttery undertone.
Total bill was $42.35 for 2 person. I must say, with 9 dim sum between us, the prices are fairly reasonable given the standards of the dim sum. I’ll definitely make a perennial visit again, and for that, See you there! And just for some background information, Michelle Saram’s the partner behind Dim Joy.
It also helped that Dim Joy served dim sum throughout the day, even during dinner. Most places don’t serve dim sum at night, so it’s a nice place if you are craving for dim sum after the sun set. I heard they are packed during weekend, so avoid the crowd come on the weekdays instead.
You are always welcome to visit ladyironchef for a full-up on this trip. Whatever written herein are my genuine feelings expressed in words. Food, my dear, is what they call an adventure!
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Television often play an important part in our life, and definitely have great influence on many people. But the debates on whether it is a good thing or not continues to rage on. Many certainly thinks that Television’s one of the greatest inventions, while some in the other camp believe that it is a bad influence on children, especially so when they get addicted to watching TV programmes. Did you ever hear a parent telling her kid to watch more TV shows?
Recently, we have a television show on Channel 8, “Buffet Buffet” which has garnered much interest among the young and the old. And its hard not to see why, food-related programmes have always been a hit with the audience, not to mention this one introduce all kinds of buffets in Singapore. I saw Penang place restaurant on one of the episodes, and since the price is reasonably cheap and near to my place, why not?
If you just watch the crowd in the place without knowing where is it, you’ll never guess its located within the International Business park (IBP) at Jurong. Perhaps that’s exactly the reason why the owner set up shop there, since there’s so many hungry white collar workers in all the offices around. The atrium building is just beside Creative, so its pretty easy to find, and there’s shutter bus from Jurong East mrt station.
Penang place oozes a sense of tranquil with its simple furnitures, and the water settings just beside the restaurant. It was fully packed when we visited on a weekday lunch, Singaporeans do love their buffets!
The selections actually is pretty decent given its reasonable pricing of $19.80 for weekday buffet lunch.
The Penang laksa actually comes in the form of Assam laksa, sour and spicy in taste, which differed greatly from our local version. The katong-laksa purist might not take quite well to this, which is more like a mix between tom-yam soup and laksa, with the sourish taste dominating the taste bud. But that’s the authentic Penang laksa for you.
I was rather impressed with the seafood soup, well for one it tasted like shark fin soup (even though there’s no shark fin of course), and secondly, i felt that it was similar to my mom’s home-made soup, and that’s a compliment!
What do you think of when I mentioned Penang? The name synonymous with the city is definitely Char Koay Teow. And if you didn’t notice, even the spelling differs slightly from ours. Well, there’s also Assam laksa, wonton mee and hokkien mee too, but Char Koay Teow certainly is the one which leave most people with memorable memories of Penang. Their rendition comes slightly spicy, not too oily and with a generous serving of ingredients. And the best part? Penang Place actually replenished their char koay teow in small portions very often, since it’s like the most popular dish there. While Char koay teow has a reputation for being unhealthy, and even though i had eaten it twice that week, i couldn’t help myself to second helpings. My sinful food.
The Nasi Lemak is served simple and nice with the fragnant rice, crunchy ikan billies, crispy peanut with cooling cucumbers. There are some other common dishes like curry chicken, fried food, but one dish which i found it good was the Batu Uban Ayam Panggang, which was seasoned grilled chicken with peanut sauce. A pity it was gone when i wanted to take a shot of it.
Glutinous rice is often use in the Asian context, and its no surprise to see the Kueh Salat here. Basically steamed glutinous rice topped with a layer of pandan flavoured custard. Well, i didn’t know if it’s just me or what, but i didn’t really enjoy glutinous rice done this way. The taste was rather weird for my liking, and i guessed i still prefer the Chinese dim sum glutinous rice in lotus leaf.
One of my personal favourites, the Kueh Dardan was actually pandan flavoured pancakes filled with sweetened coconut shavings. The pancakes were very soft and nice, with the coconut shavings coming not too heavy. Easily finished a few of them even thought we were full from the buffet.
Another dessert, or rather kueh that i enjoyed was the Kueh Talam. Essentially a pandan flavoured cake topped with a savoury coconut milk layer, the pandan cake was very fragnant indeed.
Total bill was $69.90 for 3 person at their weekday lunch buffet. I must say, for $23 per head after taxes and service charges, its rather reasonable for the amount of food served. Note, i didn’t say its excellent, but for the price, its rather acceptable since i find it hard to name another place serving buffet in the 20 dollar range which is good. I guess the money will be worth it if you eat more of their Char Koay teow which will cost $8.90 if you order a plate a la carte.
The location might be a tad difficult, since its within the International Business Park, people wouldn’t travel all the way there just for their buffet, but i did. Well for the rest of you lucky souls who are working in the area, i’ll say this is one place to check out for lunch when you are in the mood for a longer lunch.
You are always welcome to visit ladyironchef for a full-up on this trip. Whatever written herein are my genuine feelings expressed in words. Food, my dear, is what they call an adventure!
Rating given:
Love is just like raindrops.
They evaporate, and leave stains behind.
I couldn’t forget you, no, not after what happen last time.
The two sided face of you.
You were rich and good to me before.
But you showed me your cold side now.
I know we couldn’t be together.
But i can’t stop thinking of you.
Until we meet again, my duck.
The scones ($2.50) from Caffe Beviamo was soft and fluffy, with a buttery undertone.There wasn’t any “wow” from the strawberry jam, but it was enough to compliment the warm scones. If i may say so in my humble opinion, the ones here are better than the legendary Royal Copenhagen scones.
When you run out of names for your desserts, why not try some creative ones which can attract others attention? That’s exactly what Beviamo did. The hummingbird cake ($3.50) had was pineapple, banana and coconut involved, definitely no bird or what so ever. I love to eat pineapple and banana on its own, but to have them in cake is completely a different story all together. Banana cakes are just not for me, some things just can’t be forced.
You are always welcome to visit ladyironchef for a full-up on this trip. Whatever written herein are my genuine feelings expressed in words. Food, my dear, is what they call an adventure!
Rating given:
If you're looking for a quiet and pleasant place for French cuisine, I would say Vis-A-Vis would satisfy your requirements. The warm orange lightings and neatly furnished restaurant makes one feel very comfortable. On top of that, the restaurant is usually peaceful and is not very crowded. However, beware - this is not the place to go if you're on a budget.
Service
Something I noticed and was surprised for some unknown reason - the waiters were all middle-aged men, minus the lady behind the bar in charge of the bill (whom I reckon is the boss/ co-owner).
Upon entering, it seems like there would always be someone attending to you, hence minimizing your waiting time. A waiter is assigned to the table and is always ready to take your order or answer any queries. While I have to give them credit for their effort in providing good service, it occasionally felt like the waiters were "doing too much". Having them looking over at your table all the time sometimes did make me feel a little uneasy.
Food and Price
We ordered a Christmas special that was $86 (original: $78, but we changed the dessert for something else outside the set) and is fairly cheap, relative to the prices of their individual items. All in all, we ordered an additional Clam Chowder, Roasted Lamb, Roasted Prime Rib, Creme Brulee Ice Cream, Escargots and a bisque (but I forgot what was in it).
I especially liked the Clam Chowder. It was unexpected but a pleasant surprise. The soup tasted sweet and came in a large portion. Also, it did not have any clams in it. Where did the clams go? That's where it's different. On the side, they served a strip of bamboo clam flambed in whisky, topped with garlic and some spices. So now we have Clam Chowder, with the whole Clam! Perfect for clam-lovers. I'd say it was great.
The Escargots were part of the set and came in a bowl with some salad and half a potato. And the verdict? Disappointing. There were only 4 pieces of escargots (and I was expecting the usual 6...) that was garnished with some butter and garlic I believe, which made it rather tasty I admit. However, the potato used was that of a boiling potato rather than a baking potato, which is a whole world of difference. To me, it was rather shocking to know that a restaurant like this would serve potatoes that we usually use in making clear soup (and perhaps with some tomato and pork).
The Lamb (medium) was well-decorated and looked very appetizing. So was the Prime Rib. However, the gravy that came along with the Lamb had a smell that usually comes with the meat. Ironically, the meat did not have that smell. However it was rather soft and chewy. The Prime Rib (medium-rare) was not too bad, but just a little over-done. This could be because it was a really thin slice. The beef was sweet and tender, but had a little more fat than expected. So part of the slice of steak was wasted.
So, everything but dessert was done. Wasn't all satisfied, considering how much they cost, but the dessert was.. worse. We had a Creme Brulee Ice Cream. Firstly, it tasted from like coffee/ dark chocolate ice cream. It tasted nothing like caramel/ cream. Then, there were 3 balls of fritters that was stuffed with sweet potato, with some melted chocolate in it. Not exactly the best French dessert combination, plus the fact that I'm not a fan of sweet potato. On the other hand, my friend quite liked it for the slight bitterness and sweet potato with chocolate. So it couldn't be all that bad.
Along with the meal, we had a glass of red wine and rose wine. The whole meal came up to came up to $220 . The lamb was about $50. For your information, deserts are priced at $20 , soups are slightly below 20, main course above $40. Final verdict? It was alright, but I wouldn't go back again even though it tasted alright. But for this price, alright shouldn't be what you expect.
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Had a go at Ah Yat Seafood at The Village after reading about its recent opening in the papers. Actually there wasn't much of a choice, with only 3 eating places available and one of them didn't even bother to acknowledge our presence even though we stood at the entrance for a couple of minutes and the place was relatively empty.
The place is typical of many seafood restaurants - brightly lighted, cramped with tables and a hotbed of noise pollution. And surprisingly, the place was packed for such a wayside location which is hardly accessible by public transport.
Deep Fried Beancurd Cubes - This was more of an appetiser and though I liked the simplicity of it, the dish wasn't much to shout about. For one, the beancurd skin was too a little too thick.
Roasted Meat Combination - We waited 45mins for this dish all because the waiter forgot to log it in. And guess what? No one had the decency to tell me anything or apologize. It was only through overhearing the conversation between the waiter and another waitress regarding my order that I learnt what transpired. Service grievances aside, this roasted meat combination probably ranks as one of the worst I've tried this year. The duck reeked strongly of fowl taste with lots of oil to boot while the char siew was rather fatty with a gross oily aftertaste. Even the chicken was very oily and tasted very bland. Seriously disappointing with a not too wallet friendly pricing ($20 ) to boot.
Broccoli with Crab Meat - You can't really go wrong with vegetables so no complaints about the broccoli. I liked the crab meat sauce though, which came across as not too starchy with strands of crab meat in it. Mildly savoury and complemented the broccoli relatively well.
I don't reckon $57 for a 2 pax dinner is anywhere near value for money for food of such quality. Add to that the less then stellar service and I am seriously better off taking my money elsewhere.
See all my pictures here.
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Thanks to a dear friend, I got a chance to enjoy their lunch buffet recently. According to her, the variety of dishes has become lesser as compared to before they renovated and moved up the place. Not sure how long ago was that thou.
When I was there, the crowd were mostly the senior citizens who've retired and has lots of time (and money) to spend. There were also families and taitai look-alike there. If not for the lunch meeting, I would probably never have a chance to dine at such a place.
The food though variety is not plentiful, but the spread was good enough for lunch. And the most important thing is that its fresh and taste very well.
My favorite from that day was the Thai Seafood Curry, Fresh Salmon Sashimi, couple of the appertisers and the hazelnut chocolate cake from the desserts bar.
And the highlight at Rose Veranda is the huge variety of tea available free-flow(!!!) for customers. I spent 15minutes going through and deciding which to try. If I had the time, I would have ordered like few options (one after another) to try more varieties.
Rose Veranda is a great place to spend the afternoon with friends over good quality tea and great food. The setting is very comfortable and they've got very comfy sofa seats too.
If you're planning to give it a try, don't forget to call for reservations! Even if its on a weekday!
Next to find chance to try The Line!
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Its one of those rare days where you'll find me in a KTV room. But after that night with the crazy bunch, I think I'll be visiting these cosy rooms pretty often! They made KTV so fun and enjoyable! It's the best session I've had in years!
Like all KTV places, there'll be the standard fruit platters and tidbits which you're "forced" to pay for. And imo, the tidbits is to make our throat feel uncomfortable so that we will order more drinks to smoothen it so we can sing more songs/ better. But of course, you can choose not to those these tidbits and let it lao hong (gets soften) over the 4 hours in the air con room.
The collection of songs was great and about 85% of those we selected were of original mtv. The sound system was very good too. Except for one of the mic in our room which couldn't be turned off. The room was just nice for 9 of us, and the sofas were clean and comfortable too.
One thing I learned about singing at KTV rooms is never to go late! If you book the room at 10pm, be there on time. Their clock starts counting from 10pm instead of 10.30pm where we finally got settled in the room. So instead of the full 4 hours of singing time, we sang for only 3.5 hours.
I'm so looking forward to our next session together! Let's try their other outlets too!
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Thanks to the food hunters! We managed to have our Christmas dinner at this hidden place. I think I've heard about it before but never really thought of trying it. But no regret after I tried it.
When we arrived, the place was empty with only one table filled. But as the night comes, the place gets very packed with hungry families and friends.
The choice of food is pretty decent, and they're fresh. Agree that the beef was fantastic! We should have ordered more of it! Love the mini custard bao which needs exactly 2mins in the boiling steamboat to cook/ heat it.
Their choice of cooked food though little, but they are of good quality too imo. Love the lemongrass chicken, fried chicken wing, sotong you tiao and cucumbers!
The service staff were helpful too. When the table couldn't put that huge number of plates we ordered, they helped us "throw" all the food into our steamboats too.
And do you know who owns this place? Its Terrence Cao the TCS actor.
Nice place for gatherings and hungry souls.
*No photos caused everyone was hungry and too lazy to take out our cameras! LOL!
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