Thursday, November 28, 2013

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Ramen Santouka (Hokkaido) @ Orchard Cuppage Terrace, Singapore (Food rating: 4/5)

$ , Asia 0 Comments
Santouka Ramen has recently opened a new outlet at Cuppage Terrace with wider variety of delicious food. At the Cuppage Terrace outlet, we ordered two new ramen in the menu and a pau (steamed bun). The pictures on the menu look very enticing and delicious. Personally, I think you should also give them a try. We even tried to order takeaway the next day and was rejected. I think the restaurant wants to maintain its high quality of food that they restrict certain food for takeaways. Thus, I understand their stance. 

In my last entry, I introduced the Spicy Tokusen Toroniku Ramen. The food was very delicious and one of the best ramen places I have ever eaten in Singapore. 


Hiyashi Chuka with Tokusen Toroniku is made of Santouka cold chinese noodles with pork cheeks. The tinge of sourness brings out the refreshing flavours of the sauce. At the first instance, I thought I was eating salad with oriental dressing. The sauce was very refreshing. The ingredients - cucumber strips, egg strips, crab meat strips, hard boiled egg, bamboo shoot strips and seaweed - tasted wonderful when they are mixed together. The action was as if I was eating the Korean Bimbimbap. (Food rating: 4/5)



Awase-Aji Ramen is mixed soup ramen with rice. This ramen flavour is a combination of salt, soy sauce and soy bean. After eating the rice, you may put the rice in the soup. The rich broth always amaze me. I love the rich and mind-blowing broth. The egg was equally delicious. The egg white was cooked but the yolk was about 70-80 percent cooked. You can even see that it was slightly runny. The The noodles was the best I have ever eaten. It was chewy and was a great combination with the rich broth. After you finish the rice, you can put the rice in the soup. I love the shiny pearly white rice. It was delicious with the soup. However, I was already full. (Food rating: 4/5)



Toroniku-pao is made of melting pork cheek meat with Teriyaki sauce. It was a wonderful and delicious food you can order for afternoon tea at Santouka. The pao or steamed bun was served with hot red tea. I love the tender meat with lettuce strips and teriyaki sauce. They tasted superbly delicious. The steamed bun, unlike the usual burger bun, complements the meat and sauce. (Food rating: 4/5)

Address: 21 Cuppage Road, Cuppage Terrace, Singapore 229452
Price: $
Rating: 4/5
Stuffness Level (How full you are): 4/5

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Glacé - Fine Japanese Pastries @ Marina Bay Link Mall, Singapore

★★★★ , $ 0 Comments


Started in 2008, Glacé aims to bring the best of Japan's cakes and pastries to Singapore. Since its inception, Chef Tomoko and her staff have been passionately in getting all the pastries taste like they would in Japan and always believe in using ingredients of highest quality without any preservatives.

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Saturday, November 23, 2013

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Ayam Penyet President @ Nex, Singapore

$ , Chicken 0 Comments
Address: 23 Serangoon Central #B1-13/14 Singapore 556083
Price: $
Rating: 2.5/5

Ayam Penyet (smashed chicken) is an Indonesian cuisine. There are many food outlets that sell Ayam Penyet. You may find them at Far East Plaza and Lucky Plaza along the famous shopping belt of Orchard Road. 

Today, I had a strong craving for Ayam Penyet President and found that there is a restaurant near my location. The restaurant layout made it looked like a fast food outlet. You will be first greeted by a counter where you can first make a food order and take a seat or vice versa. At a corner, there was a hot pot with soup where customers can pour themselves a bowl of free soup (broth). 

The overall dining experience was a little disappointing because of the food. We spent around $30 for three persons. 




I ordered a serving of Ayam Penyet which consist of a fried chicken, tofu, cucumber, spicy chilli and fermented soya bean patty. Ayam Penyet is an Indonesian cuisine. During the preparation process, the chicken is fried and then smashed to make it softer to eat. There are many similar chains in Singapore. Because of my sudden craving for Ayam Penyet and in the vicinity, I decided to give the restaurant a try. I was highly anticipated as I look forward for a hearty meal. When the food was served, I was a little disappointed. First and the most important of all, the fried chicken was not smashed. Secondly, the chicken portion was very small. The fried tofu and fermented soya bean patty (tempeh) was normal. Although the chicken and chilli tasted above normal, I did not enjoy my dining experience. I had to order a plate of white rice separately. (Food rating: 2.5/5)



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Friday, November 15, 2013

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岡山羊肉炉, Taipei, Taiwan

$ , Cuisine - Taiwanese 0 Comments
Address: No. 2號, Lane 201, Liáoníng St, Zhongshan District Taipei City, Taiwan 104
Price: $
Rating: 3/5

If you are in vicinity of Taipei Arena (台北小巨蛋), you may want to visit 岡山羊肉炉 at Liaoning Street. It is worth your while as the food was delicious. More importantly, this restaurant sells only mutton dishes. Although I have tried similar mutton dishes in Hangzhou, China, I think the dishes from this restaurant suits my taste buds. 

If you are in the vicinity or have tried the food, please also share your thoughts with me. Let me know if you like the mutton hotpot. 

The entire dining experience cost about TWD760 for two persons. 


Rice with mutton meat gravy with vegetables (羊肉烩饭) was one of the food items recommended by a friend who visited there before. It was a thick gravy that tasted really nice with the pearly white rice. However, the gravy was a little too strong to taste which I was not used to it. I liked the tender mutton meat with green vegetables. It could make one sumptuous lunch. (Food rating: 3/5)


Mutton Hot Pot (羊肉炉) was served with cabbage, green vegetable, frozen tofu and mutton ribs. The soup was delicious. It was somewhat herbal and warmed my heart when I drank it. The mutton ribs were tender and soft. More importantly, it was very easy to eat. I love most of the ingredients in the hot pot. What I did not enjoy was the frozen tofu. I was not used eating frozen tofu as I was used to eating either the silken tofu or fried tofu. The texture of the frozen tofu was unique. It was like a sponge that absorbed the soup just like the fried bread sticks (油条) with bak ku teh (肉骨茶). Of course, I feel that the entire dish would go well with good chilli. The chilli at the restaurant did not suit me again. All in all, the entire hotpot was enjoyable and I loved the warm herbal soup that warmed my body and heart. (Food rating: 3/5)

 

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Wednesday, November 13, 2013

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Hide Yamamoto @ Marina Bay Sands, Singapore (Food rating: 4.5/5)

$$$ , Celebrity Chef Restaurant 0 Comments
After a wonderful dining experience at Hide Yamamoto the last time, I was back again with my family. This time, we ordered a  variety of food that would give us a blast of our lives. I loved their robata a lot. I would salivate and yearn to return to the restaurant again each time I read my post and reminisce the amazingly delicious food fare.

Opened by the renowned chef himself, Chef Yamamoto is the man behind his namesake - Hide Yamamoto. He had served three generations of US Presidents: Reagan, Bush and Clinton. He has a chain of restaurants under his belt. The fine-dining restaurant - Hide Yamamoto offers five concepts, Sushi, Teppanyaki, Robata, Ramen & Dining and Sake Bar.

Besides the usual food items like the Seasonal Vegetables with Italian Truffle Aroma; Whole Young Chicken stuffed with Truffle Rice, Butter and Soy Flavour, we ordered new dishes we had not tried before.

I was surprised that Hide Yamamoto maintained its high food quality despite the fact that I was here six months ago. Each dish was gastronomical and mind-blowing. I felt as if I was eating it for the first time though I have ordered it umpteen times.

At Hide Yamamoto, it was definitely a place and experience worth going for. You may also read the other posts of Hide Yamamoto.


This time, the total gastronomical dining experience cost us about $580.00.

We ordered the Assorted CHINMI appetizer for the first time. The appetizer came in three different types of dishes. The first one was a cold tofu dish topped with bonito. It was light and refreshing. The tofu had a  soft texture which I like a lot. The far end was the seaweed. It was an interesting cold dish. The seaweed seemed to be soaked in lime juice or vinegar that had a sourtaste but yet refreshing. The last cold dish was a snail dish. The snails were fresh and there was not weird aftertaste. On the overall, the cold appetizer was interesting, refreshing and nice. (Food rating: 2.5/5)

Cha-Shu Don was  served with white japanese rice topped with soy braised pork belly. We ordered an additional egg to the rice dish. This cha-shu don could be your main if you are dining alone. It was a huge portion and very sumptuous. First of all, the braised pork belly was very tender and moist that it melted into your mouth. The sauce tasted heavenly with the white rice. I could say, it is yummy!! As for the braised egg, it was another surprise. I wonder how they could cook the egg like this. The egg white is all cooked and the yolk was about two-thirds cooked. The yolk was partially running and it was delicious! I wished Chef Yamamoto could share his culinary skills with me. (Food rating: 3.5/5)

Garlic rice was a fairly big bowl of rice. The fried rice was very fragrant with nice garlic aroma. I would see each rice grain and the egg was beautiful too. I have a thing about eating rice and I can say that Hide Yamamoto has met my expectation. As I chewed my rice, I enjoyed the every rice grain in my mouth and the delicious garlic taste. Whenever I eat food with garlic, I am always conscious about my breath. However, I do not need to worry about it as it was aromatic but not overpowering that will give me bad breath. If you intend to order more dishes, you may want to consider sharing the rice. (Food rating: 4/5)

One of the must-try is the King Crab Leg served with Japanese Broth Soup. The crab meat was crispy and juicy. At one bite, you know that it was freshly prepared. The crab leg was huge and the meat was easily removed from the shell. The broth was sweet and rich. Although I was not sure if I should dip the crab meat into the broth, I drank it separately and it was heavenly. (Food rating: 4/5)

We ordered KUROBUTA (黒豚) Pork Belly and Marinated Vegetables with homemade PONZU (ポン酢) - a robata dish which we have never tried before. I loved the way it was cooked with the lightly charred corners of the pork belly. The meat itself was tender and juicy. More importantly, it disintegrated once it was in your mouth. I feel that it would be best to eat it with rice. The portion is huge, so do share with someone. (Food rating: 3.5/5)


What compliments best with good food from Hide Yamamoto? Honbou Kokutou Umeshou (Brown sugar) (本方 黑糖梅酒) is the one to complement your food. The Kokuto Umeshou is a sweet Japanese dessert wine. It infuses the Japanese plum with black sugar. This plum wine has a rich and sweet taste. You can either drink it on the rock or use it as a cocktail base or top it on vanilla ice cream. I love this wine. Its taste was sweet and heavenly. (Food rating: 4/5)

Address: Marina Bay Sands, The Shoppes, 8 Bayfront Avenue, #02-05, Singapore 018956
Price: $$$
Rating: 4.5/5
Stuffness Level (How full you are): 5/5
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Shokudo Japanese Coffee House @ Cathay Cineleisure Orchard, Singapore

$ , Cathay Cineleisure Orchard 0 Comments
Address: Cathay Cineleisure Orchard, #02-06, 8 Grange Road, Singapore 239695
Price: $
Rating: 3/5

Shokudo Japanese Coffee House is located at the shopping belt of Orchard Road. At the second floor of the Orchard Cineleisure complex, the restaurant is strategically located with nice cosy setting. The coffee house uses the best ingredients imported from Japan. The Japanese chefs prepare a selection of Japanese cuisine, making every dish a wonderful experience. 

My friend and I bought two tickets to watch "Thor: The Dark World" and we were about two hours early. We arrived earlier and had nowhere else to go. We decided to have dessert at Shokudo. We were warmly greeted by the serving staff and ordered three desserts. 

The total experience, including beverages, cost us $34.60.



One of the desserts we ordered was the Tofu cheesecake (Shokudo Original). At first, I wondered how a tofu cheesecake would taste like. When I took the first bite, I was surprised by the soft texture. The dessert suits its name because it really tasted like tofu. Apart from the soft texture, everything tasted exactly like cheesecake. This dessert is simply a delight. (Food rating: 3.5/5)


Orange Crepe was an interesting dessert. I loved the tangerine sauce as it gave a sweet and tangy taste. However, the crepe was rather normal. The vanilla ice cream also complemented the crepe. As the matter of fact, the combination of crepe, tangerine sauce and ice cream was fantastic and delicious. You can try this too and give me your thoughts. (Food rating: 3/5)



The Waffle with ice cream came last. It was served with waffle, whipped cream, red bean and green tea ice cream. Actually, I enjoyed the green tea ice cream best. The waffles were normal. I think I love the cheesecake best among the three desserts. (Food rating: 2.5/5)
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Supper at Ponggol Nasi Lemak Centre, Singapore

$ , Asian 0 Comments

My friends kept asking me to try the Ponggol Nasi Lemak and I also heard many good feedback about the food. Since it is highly recommended by my friends, I thought that I should heed their advice and try the popular nasi lemak at Upper Serangoon Road. Nasi Lemak is fragrant rice cooked in coconut milk and pandan leaves. The rice dish is one of the common local delights in Singapore.
At the Ponggol Nasi Lemak Centre, there are also other food stalls. Apart from ordering the rice dish, I also ordered myself a bowl of minced meat with mushroom noodles. The total food tour cost us less than $10.00.

There was a line when I got there to order a plate of Nasi Lemak. When it was my turn, I pointed the side dishes I wanted. I ordered myself a fried chicken drumstick, fried anchovies (ikan bills), otah, shrimp chilli and a sunny-side up. The rice was quite fragrant, However, everything else was not as good as I thought. I wonder if it was because of all the good feedback and recommendations I received from my friends that raised my expectations. I was quite disappointed by the dish. The chicken drumstick was small and the batter was a little bland. The chilli, otah and even the shrimp chilli tasted normal. For the rice dish, the chilli is very important but this was a disappointment. I can say that I ate better ones at other stalls. I think I will skip this stall. (Food rating: 2.5/5)





The AMK Hainanese Abalone Minced Meat Noodles or Bak Chor Mee at Ponggol Nasi Lemak is phenomenal. This is one of the best noodles I have ever eaten. The noodles were perfectly cooked. The sauce seemed to have dark soy sauce and vinegar. The minced pork, lettuce, braised mushroom and meatball were freshly prepared. The soup was also rich and sweet. I enjoyed this bowl of noodles and I can't wait to go the stall for another bowl of noodles. (Food rating: 3.5/5)







Address: 965 Upper Serangoon Road, Singapore 534721
Price: $
Rating: 3/5
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Saturday, November 09, 2013

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Food Centre - Albert Centre Market and Food Centre, Singapore

$ , Albert Centre Market and Food Centre 0 Comments
Address: 270 Queen Street Singapore 180270
Price: $
Rating: 3/5

Where can you find cheap and good food in downtown? At downtown Singapore, there are many food courts like kopitiam, food republic. However, the food are priced at least $3.50 onwards. At Bugis, you can find cheap and good food at Albert Centre Market and Food Centre. It is a great food option if you are working in the vicinity. 

My colleagues brought me to Albert Centre for a change one day and I fell in love with the food centre. The food centre not only sells great local delights but also at affordable prices. The cheapest I ever spent on lunch was $2.50 which was quite rare in downtown. 



 

Lor Mee is a local delight that is made from thick starchy gravy with yellow flat noodles. The gravy is made from chicken broth and dark soy sauce. There are other ingredients and I think it is easier to buy than to cook myself.  When I bought the noodles, I was amazed how the $2.50 bowl of noodles can be so filling. The owner gave a very generous portion of the noodles and the entire bowl can be shared. I could not finish my bowl of noodles as the portion is too much. However, it is a very sumptuous lunch! (Food rating: 3/5)



 

I came back to the food centre again for lunch. This time, I ordered a bowl of minced pork with mushroom noodles.  At the price of $3, it is another hearty lunch. There are a variety of noodles to choose from like the flat rice noodles, vermicelli, round yellow noodles and flat yellow noodles. I prefer flat yellow noodles to the others. I enjoyed this bowl of noodles immensely. The noodles were so perfectly cooked in the al dente style. It was chewy and smooth. The minced pork was tender. The sauce was delicious too. Every thing in the bowl was fantastic. Of course, good food comes with long queue. The queue was manageable and quick as the stall helpers were very efficient. The entire food experience was great! (Food rating: 3/5)

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Food Centre - Bukit Timah Market and Food Centre, Singapore

$ , Bukit Timah Market and Food Centre 0 Comments
Address: 116 Upper Bukit Timah Rd, Singapore 588172
Price: $
Rating: 3.5/5

Recently, I have been going around Singapore for food. This time, we headed to the Bukit Timah Market and Food Centre.

The food centre is located along Bukit Timah Road and it is near Beauty World, Bukit Timah Shopping Centre. There is no subway station near by but you may take a bus. There are plenty of buses that stop over there.

We spent less than $20 dollar and it is a worthwhile experience!


Kway Chap (果汁) serves broad flat noodles with pig innards, egg and other side dishes. I love the texture of the noodles and the dark broth. The bowl of noodles is usually sprinkled fried shallots to give that added aroma. I usually order the hard boiled eggs and tau pok (fried beancurd). The other important thing besides the sides and noodles, the chilli must also taste good. I can never forget the delicious spicy chilli sauce. It has a tint of limey taste. The tau pok, when dipped with the chilli sauce was heavenly. I think I will come back again. (Food rating: 3.5/5)


 

We had cravings for satay (沙爹) or marinated skewered grilled meat and ordered ten sticks of chicken and mutton each with rice dumplings. We randomly chose Leng Kee which seem to have a pretty good flow of customers. When the satay was served, we were surprised. The grilled chicken was crispy and lightly charred and yet tender. Like most chinese Satay stall, they usually add minced garlic into the gravy. I removed the garlic and ate it at its original taste. When I ate the satay dipped with peanut gravy, my taste buds exploded. The sweet and spicy peanut sauce was delicious and it tasted so well with the satay. The rice dumpling was normal but it tasted superbly good with the gravy too. Do give a try and share your thoughts with me. (Food rating: 3.5/5)
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Friday, November 08, 2013

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Manhattan Fish Market @ Junction 8, Singapore

$ , fish 0 Comments
Address: 9 Bishan Place, Junction 8 Shopping Centre #01-22/30, Singapore 579837
Price: $
Rating: 2.5/5

The Manhattan Fish Market has almost 50 restaurants in Asia and the Middle East, including Singapore. The food chain attributes its success and regional popularity to their fresh, flavourful and innovative offerings. The guests are served with lip-smacking American-style seafood. 

My friend and I met for lunch at The Manhattan Fish Market @ Junction 8. At that time, they had a lunch menu special. Two set meals at $19.95 nett. Next to our table, I was tempted by the feeesh n' chips that a student was eating. It looked extremely delicious. 



The cream of mushroom soup was thick and it had a strong onion or garlic taste. I loved the soup but I was overwhelmed by the strong onion/garlic taste. The generous mushroom bits, onion/garlic and cream made the soup rich. (Food rating: 2.5/5)

I ordered myself a set of Feeesh n' Cheese served with two pieces of deep fried fish fillets and cheese fries. A diner who sat beside me ordered this and then I was set on ordering it. I was excited to try the cheesy fries. Firstly, I tried the fish batter and I found it ordinary. The fish was moist and the batter was oily. As for the chips, it was not bad at all. Although I know that it is deep fried, it was not oily as if they were baked. However, the melted cheese was disappointing. It tasted weird. The melted cheese fries from KFC tasted better. (Food rating: 2.5/5)
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Sunday, November 03, 2013

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Lor Mee @ Punggol, Singapore

$ , Chinese 2 Comments
Address: Blk 612 Punggol Drive Singapore 820612
Pricing: $
Rating: 2.5/5

Lor Mee is a local dish of thick gravy with yellow noodles. Topped with sliced meat, garlic, chilli and fish cake, the dish become wholesome.

I was in the vicinity and had a bad craving for lor mee. Luckily, the coffeeshop had Lor Mee. Without waiting, I ordered myself a bowl of Lor Mee. I added the minced garlic, chilli and vinegar. Before that, I tasted the original gravy and found it delicious. I loved the viscosity and flavour of the gravy. The noodles were perfectly cooked. (Food rating: 2.5/5)


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Nanxiang Steamed Bun Restaurant @ Bugis, Singapore

$ , Bugis Junction 0 Comments
Address: 200 Victoria Street #02-53 Bugis Junction, Singapore 188021
Price: $
Rating: 2.5/5

If you have eaten soup dumplings at Nanxiang Steamed Bun Restaurant (南翔饅頭店) located near the City God Temple or Cheng Huang Template (上海城隍庙), you can now eat them in Singapore. 

Located at Bugis Junction, Nanxiang Steamed Bun Restaurant in Singapore boasts the soup dumplings (小笼包) preserved the culinary standards of the original restaurant in Shanghai. They have also expanded the menu with over 60 tantalising dishes. 

The entire food experience cost us around $65.00.




I missed the spicy & hot soup from Boston a lot. The soup never fails to bring back fond memories. At Nanxiang, we ordered a serving of Shanghai Spicy & Hot Soup (上海酸辣汤). When it was served, we drank the soup with great anticipation. Though the soup was delicious, it lacked the sourness and spiciness. I think the restaurant has re-adapted the recipe to suit local and international customers. (Food rating: 2.5/5).

The Assorted Vegetable Slices (凉拌小菜) is a great appetiser and it is a great selection. The delicious and crunchy cucumber strips and carrots were delightful. The zesty flavour exploded in my mouth. It was heavenly!!! (Food rating: 3/5)

One of the weakness is carrot cake. When I saw the Pan fried Carrot Cake in Blended Carrot Cake (极品酱炒罗卜糕) in the menu, I immediately ordered it. The carrot cake, however, did not meet my expectations. I was expecting a better and more savoury dish than the one I ate at the restaurant. (Food rating: 2.5/5)

I love these Wantons in Spicy Vinegar Sauce (京川云吞).  The freshly prepared shrimp dumplings tasted very well with the special blended sauce. The shrimps were very crispy, indicating that they were very fresh. (Food rating: 3/5)

 
I ordered the Crabmeat & Pork Filling Steamed Bun (香辣蟹肉小笼) instead of the usual meat soup dumpling. I took a small bite on the side of the dumpling and drank the soup. The sweet crab meat and pork soup was absolutely delightful. (Food rating: 3/5)

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Saturday, November 02, 2013

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Sugar and Spice Thai Cuisine, Boston, United States

Asian , beef 0 Comments

Located near Porter Square, Sugar and Spice was one of my favourite Thai restaurants in Boston. Introduced by a close friend of mine, I become a frequent customer at Sugar and Spice. Porter Square is a neighbourhood in Cambridge and Somerville and is located between Harvard and Davis Square stations.

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