Royal China @ Raffles exudes the prestige and grandeur as the famous colonial Raffles Hotel. Housed in the 3rd level of the hotel, Royal China definitely strikes out to be a cut-above-the-rest with its impressive name, and location. Having heard rave reviews about Royal China’s dim sum, it was about time that I patronised the restaurant, and boy I was charmed.
I decided to go against the norm this time round, usually i’ll write out my conclusion at the end, but Royal China isn’t any normal restaurant serving run-of-the-mill dim sum. I’ll rate them in the same league as Yan Ting, but definitely cheaper. Given the varsity in prices, I say Royal China certainly serves the best dim sum among the places i tried so far.
You can be forgiven if you think that Royal China comes with some Chinese background since the name China indirectly implied the meaning. In fact, The Royal China group is eminent in London, and the foray into Shanghai was just a recent event. Royal China @ Raffles remains the exclusive restaurant in the whole of South-east Asia.
Stepping into Royal China, the contemporary interior which comes in wave of ocean blue makes it a swanky restaurant. No doubt you wouldn’t believe this was actually a Chinese restaurant, and i must say I enjoyed the ambience as it’s very different from the traditional red and gold setting which you find in Chinese restaurants. The blue and white backdrop ooze a certain calm and tranquil, which made you feel right at home.
Baked Barbecued pork puff ($4 for 3) The baked barbecued pork puff or char siew sou, was definitely the must-order dim sum at Royal China. Within the flaky, crispy pastry skin was the most delicious, sweet and juicy char siew that you could find. I regretted not having second serving of this, the next time round, i’ll have one basket for myself!
The best char siew sou that i tried so far was at Yan Ting, and Royal China’s rendition is certainly on-par with that. The thought of the excellent BBQ pork puff is enough for me to make a perennial return.
Steamed pork dumpling ($4.80 for 4) Making a strong case for Royal China, the steamed pork dumpling, or siew mai was also another staple in the menu. Like most siew mai, the beautiful red roe adorns the top, and how can you not order this when you are having dim sum!
Steamed prawn dumpling ($4.80 for 4) As with most, if not all good steamed prawn dumplings, a whole fresh and luscious prawn shroud within the thin and light skin had the right amount of bite. And at $1.20 each, they are really worth the money, compared with the ones at Peach Garden which are higher in price.
Steamed BBQ pork buns ($3.60 for 3) Like i mentioned before, I love to eat char siew buns from Chinese restaurants because they are usually in three parts which have gaps to tease you with the char siew fillings. And at $1.20 each, I’ll rather have one of these any time over the sub-standard buns elsewhere.
Steamed seafood roll with minced garlic ($4.80 for 2) Coming on the recommendation of the staff, the steamed seafood roll with minced garlic was one of the more expensive dim sum at Royal China. Each basket only serves two person, nevertheless, each serving came in the form of a huge crunchy prawn wrapped around wisp of noodles. An interesting and novelty take.
Carrot cake with preserved meat ($4 for 1) There wasn’t anything fantastic with the carrot cake here, No complications of XO sauce, no carrot cake wannabe cheong fun just a good and reliable portion of the dish which we are all familiar with.
Glutinous rice in lotus leaf ($4.80 for 2) We decided to have just one basket of the Glutinous rice not because it wasn’t good, but rice makes you full easily, and we wanted to keep our stomach for the other delectable dim sum. The rice was enhanced with the fragrant emitted by the lotus leaf.
Royal China Cheong fun ($4.80 for 3 rolls) We had the Royal China Cheong fun, which was a combination of the three different ingredients, namely, prawn, char siew and scallop. You can also get just one of the ingredient in a serving, but since we wanted to try all three, this was a good choice.
The cheong fun rice rolls were silky-smooth, and encompassing within were fresh scallops, crunchy prawns and juicy char siew. I couldn’t quite decide which ingredient was better, but i’m leaning towards the crunchy prawns.
String beans crystal dumpling in chilli oil ($3.6 for 1) This was the only upset from the otherwise perfect meal at Royal China. Coming as a last minute before the last order at 2.45pm (lunch’s from 12-3pm), the staff told us this was special because not many places uses string beans in dim sum. And i agreed, only with the part that you seldom see string beans.
The string bean crystal dumplings had fillings of string beans, and soaked in chilli oil. We did not like the combination, the chilli oil was too spicy and oily. But being the nice people, we didn’t want to waste food, so we took one each and gulped it down.
Deep fried prawn dumpling served with Mayo ($4.80 for 3) Another of the last minute order, the deep fried prawn dumpling fared better than the string bean crystal dumpling. Covered with almonds, the inside was minced prawn. My friend was looking out for the big prawn which was evident in the prawn dumpling, and the seafood roll. But the prawn here was minced nicely and filled in the dumpling instead.
Baked duck meat roll in Portuguese sauce ($4.80 for 3) The baked duck meat roll was also on the recommendations of the staff, it came as a surprise to us when it arrived, looking like meat roll dipped in curry-like colour sauce. In fact, it was Portuguese sauce, now i’m not too sure what exactly was Portuguese sauce, but the flavour was too strong, and overwhelmed the duck meat roll.
But eaten without the Portuguese sauce, the duck meat roll on its roll was actually quite good. The fillings were generous within the roll, pity the Portuguese sauce though.
Total Bill was $95.10 for 5 people. Most of the earlier dim sum that we ordered came in 6 portions because another friend didn’t come in the eleventh minute. I listed out the normal pricing for the standard pieces of dim sum available so as not to confuse you. You could also do it like us, say you have 5 people order 5 pieces instead of getting two basket of 3 each.
Prices are reasonable given the quality of the dim sum. We paid about $19 per person, definitely not expensive, but we didn’t exactly eat a lot, one of each dim sum. I preferred to appreciate each piece of quality dim sum than to gorge myself silly with a lot of sub-standards one.
Dim sum at Royal China was an excellent one, standards are comparable to Yan Ting, yet prices are cheaper than the latter. There are some other dim sum which i haven’t try, and a perennial return looks to be a certainty, and I’ll definitely recommend Royal China if you are looking for good dim sum. The restaurant’s also famous for their lobster noodles, but unless you got deep pockets, i suggest you stick to the dim sum. See you there!
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!
We had so many tries, that I overlook your existance.
Still, I believe, we should remain separately.
For I have since found my new love, the lovely in pink.
We, Banana and chocolate should never have got together.
For I realise, the lovely in pink watermelon’s better for me.
Now do you remember?
Water melon sorbet and banana chocolate gelato!
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!
Life’s simple pleasures. I liked Mr bean’s tagline, it’s easy enough, and i thought it conveyed the message quite well. I never really noticed it before since i didn’t try them. Have you felt the beauty of a smile, the warmth of a touch or the bliss of simply watching the world go by, the goodness of Mr bean soya milk’s a life simple pleasure.
The branch at Raffles Place MRT is always packed with the office crowd, a light breakfast before starting a new day at work, some beverage for after-lunch, or also a quick bite before going home. My partner thinks that Mr Bean’s definitely better than Jollibean, well it won’t be fair to comment on that since i haven’t try both Mr bean and jolli bean soya milk.
Bandung soya milk My partner’s a fan of their bandung soya milk. I had a sip of it, and although i didn’t really like bandung, the taste was quite all right, not as sweet as i thought it’ll be. In fact it’s quite light, and there’s a subtle hint of soya milk combined with the bandung, certainly a healthier drink compared to having bandung alone.
Taking a quick glance at Mr bean’s menu, they have a wider variety of soya milk, 14 if you included the icy versions, and i am quite intrigued by their honeydew soya milk. Given the wide-spread locations of Mr bean islandwide, it won’t be a problem picking up one of them next time!
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!
Another store which stood out at Lau Pa Sat for its unique name, was Souper! Like the name implied, the food couldn’t be far off from soup, and it did slightly remind me of our Chinese steamed soup with rice. Well except for Souper they had baguette instead of rice to go along with the soup.
There’s four choices, the mushroom, clam chowder, garden salad, and maryland crab soup, which all came in two sizes, the 12oz, and 15oz.
Souper! Value Meal ($6.50) There’s a souper value meal which consisted of a choice soup, baguette, meatballs and bashed potatoes. It’s more worthwhile to get this rather than just the soup and baguette alone. The meatballs were not too bad, and they strike a cord with Ikea’s Swedish meatballs, which also had strawberry jams to accompany the meatballs.
My friend tried the maryland crab soup for the value meal. But somehow we didn’t particularly enjoy the soup, like i always mentioned, i’m not a soup person (other than my mom’s soup of course).
Total cost was $6.50 for the Souper! value meal, which i felt was quite worth the money since there’s a soup, baguette, meatballs, and also bashed potatoes. Nothing fantastic, but it’ll do for a simple lunch. Even though i don’t really like the soup that we had, Souper! does deserved a praise for being the outstanding one in the midst of the many stalls in Lau Pa Sat, for coming out with something different from the norm.
'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!
MmM I feel a little weird reading everyone else's review on Jetstar. I've taken Jetstar to Thailand, Siem Reap and Taipei.
Funnily I remember the planes I took to Thailand and Siem Reap were newer and better compared to the one I took recently to Taipei. Odd huh.
Anyways, Jetstar is comparatively cheaper. And compared to other budget carriers, it takes off from the main terminals at Changi so that makes it more convenient to get on. If you book your tickets earlier or during promotional periods you can get $38 / $69 tickets easily. A bargain if you ask me. Early booking can also save $200-$300. I guess if you're taking a short flight of 3-4 hours it's a good deal.
Since it's cheaper (provided you dun buy tickets last minute), there's no inflight entertainment and no free meals. Bottled water costs $3 for a 400ml bottle which is REALLY expensive. A sandwich costs $8 and there isn't much inside. No cool free gifts in the compartment waiting for you and no free blankets if you're cold. Seats are alright, the usual crammed economy seats but a good number may not be able to recline at all.
So I guess to really make most of your flight on Jetstar, eat just before you board, load videos into your lappie, bring newspapers/books for entertainment.
I found this place without much problem as it's located near the Raffles Place MRT. The exhibits were interesting as I found that some of the cultures have stronger influences than the rest.
There are well-placed self-help guides and detailed information for each exhibit. Walking around is a breeze and there are benches available for those who are tired.
I like the fact that the place is wheelchair friendly. However, some of the exhibits for interaction aren't that friendly for wheelchairs which is a pity.
You can even place your bags in the lockers provided so you can roam around with less things to carry.
I am rather disappointed. Even when the selection of songs have been upgraded to using remote control method, I have a lot of difficulties with the room that we were given.
Problems
1. The remote was not sensitive or too sensitive at different times.
2. Attempts to select "All songs" for any singers had the menu jumped to other singers.
3. The mic provided were too soft.
4. Changing to Singer mode resulted in louder music.
Mostly, technical problems plagued the place. Otherwise, it would have been a more enjoyable session with friends.
It was our first time to dine at Sakae for this branch. I was more used to be sitting next to the conveyor belt rather than just at a table.
The four of us had to sit near the entrance because there wasn't any space left. Thus, we asked if the place allowed booking but unfortunately, the lady didn't seem to understand my question that well or I couldn't understand her. We could book but there is a time limit. That didn't answer my question exactly. A simple yes or no would have suffice if we could book a table for Fridays.
The waitresses weren't that attentive. We had to request for the menu after 5 minutes of waiting for them to attend to us. They were just a step away and could obviously see that we haven't ordered anything.
If not for the crowd, we would have left immediately since we weren't attended too.
The food is almost the same as other branches that I have been too. The space was a little cramped as the outlet had a small area. I felt claustraphobic while dining there.
Lau Pa Sat or Telok Ayer Market, holds a very special meaning for most Singaporeans. The distinctive clock tower on top, the unique, octagonal and intricate roof structure of the building. Not to mention the many mouth-watering food which showcase a wide variety of our Singapore culture.
Having said all that, i’m didn’t frequent Lau Pa Sat often, why you asked, since i praised the place to the sky. Well, i felt that it’s more like a tourist attraction kind of place rather than a food centre to me. And because of the tourist crowd and the over-hype in the place, prices are obviously much higher than other places. Therefore even i was working in the vicinity last time, but i rather go to other places for lunch.
Nonetheless, having heard some good reviews about a particular burger stall from Philippines setting up shop in the midst of Lau Pa Sat, and I was meeting a friend who was working in the CDB area, so we decided to go to Lau Pa Sat for lunch!
Hotshots does have a rather impressive menu of burgers considering that their’s a small store in Lau Pa Sat. I was in a dilemma over which burger to get, so i just randomly picked the Cheeseburger deluxe.
They took quite some time in preparing the burger on the spot, around 5-10 minutes or so.
French Fries ($3) I also ordered french fries for side since Hotshots didn’t have any set meals and just came with a lone burger. For fries that cost 3 bucks, I definitely expected better. Their fries was average, there’s no “wow” factor, which failed to justify the high price for a small miserable packet of fries.
Cheeseburger Deluxe ($5.50) On first sight, the Cheeseburger deluxe was kind of smaller than what i imagined, since the word deluxe implied another meaning. The sesame seed bun was kind of too soft, i’ll preferred those that are slightly toasted which gave a firmer characteristic to the burger. Presentation-wise also didn’t quite make the cut, the ingredients were hasty organised, and everything dropped out easily. A Messy affair!
The beef patty was not bad, rather juicy although it might look a tad dry on the outside. But still, i lamanted the fact their patty’s kind of too thin, which didn’t provide the “kick”when you took a bite in the burger. Nonetheless, you can’t compare this with Relish’s gourmet burger, given the disparity in prices.But i think it edged out Seah Street Deli’s rendition.
Total Bill was $8.50 for a burger and fries. I think i made the wrong choice in burger, maybe i’ll go back again to try their Real Bleu cheeseburger, or the crispy burgermelt. But for now, i still favoured the one that i had at Epicurious.
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!
Was planning to have dinner at Amirah's neighbor stall, but was told it was already fully booked for that night. In order not to stay hungry for too long, we decided to give Amirah a try. The place was already packed with customers when we arrived as it was time to break fast.
We quickly ordered our food and thought the food would be served quickly. Well, our drinks did come almost immediately after our orders. But the rest took too long to come.
We ordered Hummus and Moutabel which are served with baskets of pita bread. The dishes were served cold but it took so long! The taste isn't as good as those I'd tasted few nights before at its neighbor's stall. But still not bad. The Moutabel lacked the texture that I wanted, perhaps their onion/garlic was over chopped. The pita bread served was not very good too. Some was either too tough or too soft.
Also ordered the mixed grill main course as seen in the photo. The meat were all rather tough to chew, was rather blunt and lacks in flavor. This only passable imo.
Overall the food is still considered as acceptable. Will probably not return for a next round due to the long waiting time and not so flavorful dishes.
(This review might seem a little unfair as I had a better experience few days before this nearby. Go give it a try and judge it yourself.) :)
1=SGD 0.0587
Royal China @ Raffles exudes the prestige and grandeur as the famous colonial Raffles Hotel. Housed in the 3rd level of the hotel, Royal China definitely strikes out to be a cut-above-the-rest with its impressive name, and location. Having heard rave reviews about Royal China’s dim sum, it was about time that I patronised the restaurant, and boy I was charmed.
I decided to go against the norm this time round, usually i’ll write out my conclusion at the end, but Royal China isn’t any normal restaurant serving run-of-the-mill dim sum. I’ll rate them in the same league as Yan Ting, but definitely cheaper. Given the varsity in prices, I say Royal China certainly serves the best dim sum among the places i tried so far.
You can be forgiven if you think that Royal China comes with some Chinese background since the name China indirectly implied the meaning. In fact, The Royal China group is eminent in London, and the foray into Shanghai was just a recent event. Royal China @ Raffles remains the exclusive restaurant in the whole of South-east Asia.
Stepping into Royal China, the contemporary interior which comes in wave of ocean blue makes it a swanky restaurant. No doubt you wouldn’t believe this was actually a Chinese restaurant, and i must say I enjoyed the ambience as it’s very different from the traditional red and gold setting which you find in Chinese restaurants. The blue and white backdrop ooze a certain calm and tranquil, which made you feel right at home.
Baked Barbecued pork puff ($4 for 3)
The baked barbecued pork puff or char siew sou, was definitely the must-order dim sum at Royal China. Within the flaky, crispy pastry skin was the most delicious, sweet and juicy char siew that you could find. I regretted not having second serving of this, the next time round, i’ll have one basket for myself!
The best char siew sou that i tried so far was at Yan Ting, and Royal China’s rendition is certainly on-par with that. The thought of the excellent BBQ pork puff is enough for me to make a perennial return.
Steamed pork dumpling ($4.80 for 4)
Making a strong case for Royal China, the steamed pork dumpling, or siew mai was also another staple in the menu. Like most siew mai, the beautiful red roe adorns the top, and how can you not order this when you are having dim sum!
Steamed prawn dumpling ($4.80 for 4)
As with most, if not all good steamed prawn dumplings, a whole fresh and luscious prawn shroud within the thin and light skin had the right amount of bite. And at $1.20 each, they are really worth the money, compared with the ones at Peach Garden which are higher in price.
Steamed BBQ pork buns ($3.60 for 3)
Like i mentioned before, I love to eat char siew buns from Chinese restaurants because they are usually in three parts which have gaps to tease you with the char siew fillings. And at $1.20 each, I’ll rather have one of these any time over the sub-standard buns elsewhere.
Steamed seafood roll with minced garlic ($4.80 for 2)
Coming on the recommendation of the staff, the steamed seafood roll with minced garlic was one of the more expensive dim sum at Royal China. Each basket only serves two person, nevertheless, each serving came in the form of a huge crunchy prawn wrapped around wisp of noodles. An interesting and novelty take.
Carrot cake with preserved meat ($4 for 1)
There wasn’t anything fantastic with the carrot cake here, No complications of XO sauce, no carrot cake wannabe cheong fun just a good and reliable portion of the dish which we are all familiar with.
Glutinous rice in lotus leaf ($4.80 for 2)
We decided to have just one basket of the Glutinous rice not because it wasn’t good, but rice makes you full easily, and we wanted to keep our stomach for the other delectable dim sum. The rice was enhanced with the fragrant emitted by the lotus leaf.
Royal China Cheong fun ($4.80 for 3 rolls)
We had the Royal China Cheong fun, which was a combination of the three different ingredients, namely, prawn, char siew and scallop. You can also get just one of the ingredient in a serving, but since we wanted to try all three, this was a good choice.
The cheong fun rice rolls were silky-smooth, and encompassing within were fresh scallops, crunchy prawns and juicy char siew. I couldn’t quite decide which ingredient was better, but i’m leaning towards the crunchy prawns.
String beans crystal dumpling in chilli oil ($3.6 for 1)
This was the only upset from the otherwise perfect meal at Royal China. Coming as a last minute before the last order at 2.45pm (lunch’s from 12-3pm), the staff told us this was special because not many places uses string beans in dim sum. And i agreed, only with the part that you seldom see string beans.
The string bean crystal dumplings had fillings of string beans, and soaked in chilli oil. We did not like the combination, the chilli oil was too spicy and oily. But being the nice people, we didn’t want to waste food, so we took one each and gulped it down.
Deep fried prawn dumpling served with Mayo ($4.80 for 3)
Another of the last minute order, the deep fried prawn dumpling fared better than the string bean crystal dumpling. Covered with almonds, the inside was minced prawn. My friend was looking out for the big prawn which was evident in the prawn dumpling, and the seafood roll. But the prawn here was minced nicely and filled in the dumpling instead.
Baked duck meat roll in Portuguese sauce ($4.80 for 3)
The baked duck meat roll was also on the recommendations of the staff, it came as a surprise to us when it arrived, looking like meat roll dipped in curry-like colour sauce. In fact, it was Portuguese sauce, now i’m not too sure what exactly was Portuguese sauce, but the flavour was too strong, and overwhelmed the duck meat roll.
But eaten without the Portuguese sauce, the duck meat roll on its roll was actually quite good. The fillings were generous within the roll, pity the Portuguese sauce though.
Total Bill was $95.10 for 5 people. Most of the earlier dim sum that we ordered came in 6 portions because another friend didn’t come in the eleventh minute. I listed out the normal pricing for the standard pieces of dim sum available so as not to confuse you. You could also do it like us, say you have 5 people order 5 pieces instead of getting two basket of 3 each.
Prices are reasonable given the quality of the dim sum. We paid about $19 per person, definitely not expensive, but we didn’t exactly eat a lot, one of each dim sum. I preferred to appreciate each piece of quality dim sum than to gorge myself silly with a lot of sub-standards one.
Dim sum at Royal China was an excellent one, standards are comparable to Yan Ting, yet prices are cheaper than the latter. There are some other dim sum which i haven’t try, and a perennial return looks to be a certainty, and I’ll definitely recommend Royal China if you are looking for good dim sum. The restaurant’s also famous for their lobster noodles, but unless you got deep pockets, i suggest you stick to the dim sum. See you there!
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:
After meeting you once,
I could never forget the encounter.
We had so many tries, that I overlook your existance.
Still, I believe, we should remain separately.
For I have since found my new love, the lovely in pink.
We, Banana and chocolate should never have got together.
For I realise, the lovely in pink watermelon’s better for me.
Now do you remember?
Water melon sorbet and banana chocolate gelato!
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:
Life’s simple pleasures. I liked Mr bean’s tagline, it’s easy enough, and i thought it conveyed the message quite well. I never really noticed it before since i didn’t try them. Have you felt the beauty of a smile, the warmth of a touch or the bliss of simply watching the world go by, the goodness of Mr bean soya milk’s a life simple pleasure.
The branch at Raffles Place MRT is always packed with the office crowd, a light breakfast before starting a new day at work, some beverage for after-lunch, or also a quick bite before going home. My partner thinks that Mr Bean’s definitely better than Jollibean, well it won’t be fair to comment on that since i haven’t try both Mr bean and jolli bean soya milk.
Bandung soya milk
My partner’s a fan of their bandung soya milk. I had a sip of it, and although i didn’t really like bandung, the taste was quite all right, not as sweet as i thought it’ll be. In fact it’s quite light, and there’s a subtle hint of soya milk combined with the bandung, certainly a healthier drink compared to having bandung alone.
Taking a quick glance at Mr bean’s menu, they have a wider variety of soya milk, 14 if you included the icy versions, and i am quite intrigued by their honeydew soya milk. Given the wide-spread locations of Mr bean islandwide, it won’t be a problem picking up one of them next time!
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:
Another store which stood out at Lau Pa Sat for its unique name, was Souper! Like the name implied, the food couldn’t be far off from soup, and it did slightly remind me of our Chinese steamed soup with rice. Well except for Souper they had baguette instead of rice to go along with the soup.
There’s four choices, the mushroom, clam chowder, garden salad, and maryland crab soup, which all came in two sizes, the 12oz, and 15oz.
Souper! Value Meal ($6.50)
There’s a souper value meal which consisted of a choice soup, baguette, meatballs and bashed potatoes. It’s more worthwhile to get this rather than just the soup and baguette alone. The meatballs were not too bad, and they strike a cord with Ikea’s Swedish meatballs, which also had strawberry jams to accompany the meatballs.
My friend tried the maryland crab soup for the value meal. But somehow we didn’t particularly enjoy the soup, like i always mentioned, i’m not a soup person (other than my mom’s soup of course).
Total cost was $6.50 for the Souper! value meal, which i felt was quite worth the money since there’s a soup, baguette, meatballs, and also bashed potatoes. Nothing fantastic, but it’ll do for a simple lunch. Even though i don’t really like the soup that we had, Souper! does deserved a praise for being the outstanding one in the midst of the many stalls in Lau Pa Sat, for coming out with something different from the norm.
'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:
MmM I feel a little weird reading everyone else's review on Jetstar. I've taken Jetstar to Thailand, Siem Reap and Taipei.
Funnily I remember the planes I took to Thailand and Siem Reap were newer and better compared to the one I took recently to Taipei. Odd huh.
Anyways, Jetstar is comparatively cheaper. And compared to other budget carriers, it takes off from the main terminals at Changi so that makes it more convenient to get on. If you book your tickets earlier or during promotional periods you can get $38 / $69 tickets easily. A bargain if you ask me. Early booking can also save $200-$300. I guess if you're taking a short flight of 3-4 hours it's a good deal.
Since it's cheaper (provided you dun buy tickets last minute), there's no inflight entertainment and no free meals. Bottled water costs $3 for a 400ml bottle which is REALLY expensive. A sandwich costs $8 and there isn't much inside. No cool free gifts in the compartment waiting for you and no free blankets if you're cold. Seats are alright, the usual crammed economy seats but a good number may not be able to recline at all.
So I guess to really make most of your flight on Jetstar, eat just before you board, load videos into your lappie, bring newspapers/books for entertainment.
Hey. You pay for what you get right? :)
Rating given:
I found this place without much problem as it's located near the Raffles Place MRT. The exhibits were interesting as I found that some of the cultures have stronger influences than the rest.
There are well-placed self-help guides and detailed information for each exhibit. Walking around is a breeze and there are benches available for those who are tired.
I like the fact that the place is wheelchair friendly. However, some of the exhibits for interaction aren't that friendly for wheelchairs which is a pity.
You can even place your bags in the lockers provided so you can roam around with less things to carry.
Rating given:
I am rather disappointed. Even when the selection of songs have been upgraded to using remote control method, I have a lot of difficulties with the room that we were given.
Problems
1. The remote was not sensitive or too sensitive at different times.
2. Attempts to select "All songs" for any singers had the menu jumped to other singers.
3. The mic provided were too soft.
4. Changing to Singer mode resulted in louder music.
Mostly, technical problems plagued the place. Otherwise, it would have been a more enjoyable session with friends.
Rating given:
It was our first time to dine at Sakae for this branch. I was more used to be sitting next to the conveyor belt rather than just at a table.
The four of us had to sit near the entrance because there wasn't any space left. Thus, we asked if the place allowed booking but unfortunately, the lady didn't seem to understand my question that well or I couldn't understand her. We could book but there is a time limit. That didn't answer my question exactly. A simple yes or no would have suffice if we could book a table for Fridays.
The waitresses weren't that attentive. We had to request for the menu after 5 minutes of waiting for them to attend to us. They were just a step away and could obviously see that we haven't ordered anything.
If not for the crowd, we would have left immediately since we weren't attended too.
The food is almost the same as other branches that I have been too. The space was a little cramped as the outlet had a small area. I felt claustraphobic while dining there.
Rating given:
Lau Pa Sat or Telok Ayer Market, holds a very special meaning for most Singaporeans. The distinctive clock tower on top, the unique, octagonal and intricate roof structure of the building. Not to mention the many mouth-watering food which showcase a wide variety of our Singapore culture.
Having said all that, i’m didn’t frequent Lau Pa Sat often, why you asked, since i praised the place to the sky. Well, i felt that it’s more like a tourist attraction kind of place rather than a food centre to me. And because of the tourist crowd and the over-hype in the place, prices are obviously much higher than other places. Therefore even i was working in the vicinity last time, but i rather go to other places for lunch.
Nonetheless, having heard some good reviews about a particular burger stall from Philippines setting up shop in the midst of Lau Pa Sat, and I was meeting a friend who was working in the CDB area, so we decided to go to Lau Pa Sat for lunch!
Hotshots does have a rather impressive menu of burgers considering that their’s a small store in Lau Pa Sat. I was in a dilemma over which burger to get, so i just randomly picked the Cheeseburger deluxe.
They took quite some time in preparing the burger on the spot, around 5-10 minutes or so.
French Fries ($3)
I also ordered french fries for side since Hotshots didn’t have any set meals and just came with a lone burger. For fries that cost 3 bucks, I definitely expected better. Their fries was average, there’s no “wow” factor, which failed to justify the high price for a small miserable packet of fries.
Cheeseburger Deluxe ($5.50)
On first sight, the Cheeseburger deluxe was kind of smaller than what i imagined, since the word deluxe implied another meaning. The sesame seed bun was kind of too soft, i’ll preferred those that are slightly toasted which gave a firmer characteristic to the burger. Presentation-wise also didn’t quite make the cut, the ingredients were hasty organised, and everything dropped out easily. A Messy affair!
The beef patty was not bad, rather juicy although it might look a tad dry on the outside. But still, i lamanted the fact their patty’s kind of too thin, which didn’t provide the “kick”when you took a bite in the burger. Nonetheless, you can’t compare this with Relish’s gourmet burger, given the disparity in prices.But i think it edged out Seah Street Deli’s rendition.
Total Bill was $8.50 for a burger and fries. I think i made the wrong choice in burger, maybe i’ll go back again to try their Real Bleu cheeseburger, or the crispy burgermelt. But for now, i still favoured the one that i had at Epicurious.
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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Was planning to have dinner at Amirah's neighbor stall, but was told it was already fully booked for that night. In order not to stay hungry for too long, we decided to give Amirah a try. The place was already packed with customers when we arrived as it was time to break fast.
We quickly ordered our food and thought the food would be served quickly. Well, our drinks did come almost immediately after our orders. But the rest took too long to come.
We ordered Hummus and Moutabel which are served with baskets of pita bread. The dishes were served cold but it took so long! The taste isn't as good as those I'd tasted few nights before at its neighbor's stall. But still not bad. The Moutabel lacked the texture that I wanted, perhaps their onion/garlic was over chopped. The pita bread served was not very good too. Some was either too tough or too soft.
Also ordered the mixed grill main course as seen in the photo. The meat were all rather tough to chew, was rather blunt and lacks in flavor. This only passable imo.
Overall the food is still considered as acceptable. Will probably not return for a next round due to the long waiting time and not so flavorful dishes.
(This review might seem a little unfair as I had a better experience few days before this nearby. Go give it a try and judge it yourself.) :)
Rating given: