Tiong Bahru Bakery @ Raffles City

I’ve always wanted to spend a lazy weekday afternoon at Tiong Bahru Bakery and the opportunity finally came when I decided to drop by Raffles City. So I plonked myself at their cafe during tea time, ordered a nice Lemon Tart and Flat White and just sat there reading newspapers with the company of my afternoon tea items. The Lemon Tart ($6) though seemingly small and overpriced surprised me with it’s rich lemon filling. The centre contains a refreshingly tangy lemon curd that goes well with the soft graham crust. Coffee served here is strong and I definitely got my caffeine fix from the a their nice cup of Flat White ($5.50). I wonder when will I get another chance to while my time away on a quiet, crowd free weekday afternoon.

Tiong Bahru Bakery
Raffles City Shopping Centre #B1-11/12 

Maccha House @ Orchard Central

Maccha House is yet another green tea themed Japanese café that has sprouted out at the basement level of Orchard Central. Besides whipping up even more matcha based beverages and desserts, this outlet also serves udon and ramen mains.

We dropped by during lunchtime and I decided to try their Kyoto Style Ramen ($10.90+)which was described as having some yuzu seasoning. Unfortunately, the ramen did not live up to expectations- while the noodles were sufficiently springy, the soup was served lukewarm and the bowl just contained some chicken slices and vegetable ingredients. The yuzu seasoning was not really detected at all, which was a disappointment. I was wondering how yuzu flavoured ramen would taste.

Perhaps it’s a good idea to stick to the green tea based food here. I had their Hot Matcha Latte ($4.40+) which I felt had a nice balance of fragrant matcha and milk. The matcha drink was a tad too sweet for me and unfortunately, the sweetness level cannot be altered as I was told their matcha base
is pre-made.

Do note the prices listed on the menu are not inclusive of 7% GST. Charges will be added at the cashier.

Maccha House
Orchard Central B1-40

Hifumi Japanese Restaurant @ Plaza Singapura

A number of new Japanese eateries have opened at Plaza Singapura. Hifumi Japanese Restaurant is yet another Japanese concept restaurant that have found a new home on the fourth floor of Plaza Sing. Big eaters will be glad to know that this restaurant provides all-you-can-eat appetizer bar. The restaurant promises over 10 choices of appetizers available for every set meal purchased.

The appetizer bar actually only occupies a small corner near the entrance, but well it's free flow APPETIZERS, not a free flow BUFFET and appetizers are meant to be enjoyed in small doses. Thankfully the appetizer dishes were refilled regularly when I visited. The drinks counter is behind, but they do have additional charges ($1.99) for free flow access to their drinks bar.

They will provide a small black dish for you to place your appetizers on, ONLY ONE, that's why I resorted to cramming the appetizers on the plate. There were several Japanese style dishes available when I visited. I personally enjoyed the cold dishes offered like their chewy Jellyfish with plum dressing, Pumpkin and Walnut Salad, Potato salad. I also had my fill of cherry tomatoes, sweet potato fries and stewed eggplant. There was also a chawanmushi steamer at the appetizer bar, which serves miniscule bowl sized steamed egg. I lost count of the number of mini bowls I grabbed from the steamer.

For the main course, I had their Tonkatsu Set ($13.99), which came with a serving of rice and miso soup. The breaded deep fried pork cutlet was rather ordinary, perhaps too dry for my liking. I will probably go for another of their main course next time. Is it strange that I actually enjoyed stuffing myself with their bite sized appetizers than the actual main course itself?

Thai Grill N Bar @ Sembawang

We happened to pass by this restaurant on a nights out after our ICT stint and we decided to try out the Thai food offered. As suggested by its name, this restaurant serves Mookata- a thai equivalent of BBQ and steamboat and they also have a variety of drinks from their bar. Take a look at their extensive menu and you will discover that they also whip up a variety of Thai and Chinese zi char style dishes too. And there's no service charge and GST here.

We shared a 2 person Mookata set ($29.90). This was my first time sampling Mookata, so for the uninitiated, Mookata refers to traditional Thai metal pan used to BBQ meats and also cooking steamboat items. There is a mini grill dome in the centre for you to grill meat which is surrounded by a shallow space to contain the soup broth for steamboat. The entire pan is heated by burning charcoal underneath, so yes very old school. The mookata set comes with a variety to meats, including prawns, squids, marinated pork and chicken and some crabsticks, fishballs and vegetables and you are free to choose between grilling the items or dunking them in the boiling steamboat broth.

As the pan starts to heat up, you are supposed to place the pork lard provided on top of the grill dome. The oil from the pork lard will slowly drip out and help grease the metal grill. It supposedly also helps add flavour to the grilled meat! The oil also drips into the soup to add flavour too.

Besides having the mookata set, we also tried some items from their Thai food menu. We had their Mango Salad ($7) which was rather fresh and provided a really good start to our meal. We got a little greedy and also tried their Thai Green Curry Chicken ($10) which was served in a nice rich and fragrant curry with generous servings of chicken and vegetables. The Thai dishes were not too bad, and they seemed to be prepared by their in house Thai chefs.

We top off the meal with some Red Rubies dessert ($5) which was a really generous serving red rubies on top of shaved ice drizzled with coconut milk and dried mango bits. As you can see from the picture, it's a visual feast. The only problem was the way it was served. It was served in small bowl, like those you would put rice in and we had a difficult time trying to finish the dessert without spilling the contents all over the table. And the dessert most regrettably came together with the food items. There was apparently some communication error and as a result the dessert was served out immediately. If you do intend to visit this place, make sure you reiterate to the waiter you want dessert to be served later. 

Though the mookata was an experience, it was pretty normal grill and steamboat meal. I would like to try their other thai food next time round.

Thai Grill N Bar
25 Sembawang Road

Victor's Kitchen @ Sunshine Plaza

I expected Victor's Kitchen to be some really big establishment after hearing so many rave reviews about the place. So I was a little taken aback when I walked into Sunshine Plaza and into this little humble eatery tucked inside the building. The place seems a little old and run down, but I instantly felt the Hong Kong vibe with the makeshift tables and cantonese speaking staff. I came slightly early to beat the lunch crowd and was glad to find a table. So they will provide you with these order sheets where you select your dim sum and drinks. Note the "We Serve The Best Food, But Not Fast Foods" slogan directed at impatient customers.

I had their HK Summer Iced Milk Tea ($3) which is as authentic HK milk tea as it gets. It really reminds me of the iced milk tea I had in HK. The milk tea was really thick and definitely the strong hints of milk and tea flavours combined really well. They don't put the ice into the drink, but chose to chill the drink by inserting the entire cup into a mini ice bath. Haven't seen anyone do this before, but I guess this prevents the ice from diluting the milk tea!

Plastered all around the four walls of the eatery are food review cut outs that proclaim that Victor's Kitchen liu sa bao, (or Golden Egg Yolk Lava Buns ($4 for 3 pcs) as they call it in here) is the best you can find in Singapore. This is a must try item here that has been raved by so many people. The hype surrounding these buns are understandable. Though they may look small, each bun packs a whole lot of flowy molten golden goodness. I wasn't very careful with my first bun and the golden egg filling burst out as I chomped on the bun. A messy affair indeed. I was quite liked how their filling had a balance of both sweet and salty taste in it. Most other eateries simply neglect the salted egg part of the these buns; they scrimp on the salted egg filling and are happy to just let the sweet custard overpower it. Not in Victor's Kitchen. The buns were also fluffy and soft and a great complement to the lava fillings. One downside? It's a little oily and some might find it too rich, but hey, that's what makes it so so so good right?

I also tried their King Prawn Cheong Fun ($4), but there's really nothing much about this dish, except that the prawns were quite huge. King Prawns indeed. But I was a little disappointed with the texture of the cheong fun- too hard and stiff for my liking. Perhaps it has been overcooked?

The dim sum here are really affordable, I think the most expensive dish is only $5. I wasn't expecting much from service and I thought the serving ladies though efficient, seemed pretty cold and unfriendly at first. But talk to them a little and they are really polite and not that unfriendly after all. The cashier even thanked me and wished me a pleasant day ahead. I would definitely come back for my insatiable fix of Golden Egg Yolk Lava buns and milk tea!

Victor’s Kitchen
91 Bencoolen Street
Sunshine Plaza #01-21

Opening Hours: Tue to Sun 1030am to 8pm
Closed on Mon

Two Chefs @ Sin Min Avenue

Two Chefs Eating Place has a branch at Sin Min Avenue, which is really not easily accessible by public transport. Either take a bus 52 from Bishan Interchange, or just drive here. There are plenty of parking lots in the surrounding housing estate and there is a basement carpark just below the restaurant.

Two Chefs is located at Blk 409 Sin Min Avenue, you might miss it in the Sin Min estate but it actually takes up one lone 3 storey building separate from the housing estate.

 

We popped by to have a nice weekend family lunch!!! Two Chefs whips up nice chinese-dishes-served-in-relaxed-no-air-con-environment, aka zi char. Great place to bring your parents/grandparents who insist on sticking to decent chinese cuisine. And this place is definitely less crowded. No queues! One of the best parts of eating in a big group- you get to order many dishes to sample. Here was what our table looked like:

  

Here are some dishes we had:

1. Drunken Cockles

Supposedly one of their signature dishes, it is essentially a cold dish with slightly raw see hum drenched in their very interesting pestle sauce made from chilli, spring onion and garlic. Some people might be turned off by the slightly raw cockle meat but the sauce really makes this dish appetizing.

2. Butter Pork Ribs

Yet another signature dish, you will either love this or hate this. The pork ribs itself was really done well; tender but still retained a bit of chewiness. The strangest part of the dish- each pork rib is covered with copious amount of milk powder. It tasted like milk powder to me, but I'm not really sure if it is. It gives the pork ribs a really sweet, milky kind of flavour. It's a really love it or hate it kind of thing.

3. Sweet and Sour Pork

A standard zi char staple, the sweet and sour pork here is rather decent.

While you're here, do try their drink stall's Ice Jelly Drink. Just imagine your ice jelly dessert served in a cup. Yes, you can slurp up jelly bits and icy syrup from your straw. Unfortunately, no fruit cocktail provided. A refreshing drink nonetheless.

Overall, food here is pretty decent and affordably priced. One advantage of visiting their Sin Ming branch, it's less crowded, at least during Saturday lunch time when I visited. 

Two Chefs Eating Place (Sin Ming Branch)

409 Sin Ming Avenue #02-01

 

NTU Breakfast Set Showdown!

I consider myself a permanent resident of Nanyang Tech University (NTU), having spent a considerable amount of time residing and studying there. NTU may seem cut off and isolated from the outside world, but thankfully there are several canteens and cafes dotted around the campus to feed the hungry student population.

Breakfast is an important meal to start the day right, and definitely an important meal before our daily routines begin (COFFEEEEEEE!). Most NTU canteens serve the usual Singapore style kaya toast, hard boiled egg and coffee sets at really student friendly prices. You should be able to purchase such a breakfast set for under $2! So here is a list of canteen breakfasts I have tried several times so far in the year:

Canteen 9- CHOICE!

You get to choose different variations of toast and coffee breakfast sets here- the options are clearly stated on their menu banner above the stall. I just went for the usual traditional set with bread, two eggs and coffee- Set A I think ($1.80). The auntie behind the counter will ask how you want your eggs done (semi runny or hard boiled), which is nice because other stalls don't usually bother to ask. The eggs came out as requested- semi runny just the way I liked it. The bread were those thin crispy wafer kind of toasted bread similar to Ya Kun, with some kaya spread inside. The bread here is toasted over those open grill so it's as traditional as it gets. And they serve 3 pieces (Even more bang per buck for students!) The bread may come off a bit like a cookie, and it's really a matter of whether you love it or hate the texture. The coffee was really good here, aromatic, full bodied traditional coffee served in a rather retro koi print ceramic cup.

Canteen 11- Kaya Spread!

I've patronised this stall a couple of times and found that the auntie's mood fluctuates with the crowd; the longer the queue, the more curt her replies become. She becomes more cheerier when there are less people or there happens to be a really handsome guy waiting in line. The eggs here are not consistent- sometimes they are over boiled, sometimes they come out runny just the way I like it. I was later told that you can actually request for how you want your eggs done, just tell the auntie. I ordered iced milk tea to replace the usual cup of coffee for an additional 30 cents, but the coffee here is decent nonetheless. The bread served here is the regular toasted bread, but this stall probably serves out the best kaya spread- they use the nonya honey kaya kind and they don't scrimp on it. This is probably the highlight of this $1.80 toast set. Look out for their special scrambled eggs sets which is served like a western breakfast set if you want something different.

Canteen 13- Hard Boiled Eggs

I was a little disappointed when I cracked open the eggs and found that the egg whites refused to flow out- they have been cooked for too long already. Like Canteen 11, I'm guessing you need to request for semi cooked eggs if not the default option is completely cooked. The bread served here is also the traditional toasted brown bread kind with its nice crispy texture. Wished they were more generous with the kaya spread though. Coffee was pretty strong, served in a nice traditional cup too! This breakfast set also costs an affordable $1.80!

NIE Canteen- Not the best coffee...

Runny eggs are the default options here, and so far I didn't need to request for my eggs to be less well done and they usually turn out the way I like them! The bread served here is the regular toasted crispy white bread kind and yes, they could also be less stingy with the kaya. The coffee is served in an army style red plastic mug but unfortuately is a let down; it is a little too diluted although it does have some coffee flavour infused into it. I guess you shouldn't expect too much from a $1.80 set meal. 

Kuishin Bo (Suntec City Mall)

Popped by Kuishin Bo to get our Japanese dinner buffet fix! Judging by the long queues outside the restaurant, people still can’t enough of Kuishin Bo and their glorious food spread. It is also best to reserve beforehand, so you can be directed to your seat once you arrive and start chomping down on the food provided. There is a whole range of Japanese food to choose from: sushi, sashimi, seafood, tempura, teppanyaki, noodles and desserts!

The sushi/sashimi counter is probably the busiest counter, where people snatch up prized slices of salmon, tuna and grab the different variations of sushi available. The sashimi are replenished frequently and are quite fresh. The sushi selection includes standard rolls with various fish, unagi, egg and are quite decent.

Perhaps the highlight of the buffet is the abundance of Hokkaido snow crab legs available for consumption. The freshes, juiciest and meatiest parts of crab legs and claws are stacked in rows, and many diners just cannot get enough of them. Kuishin Bo provides the necessary utensils (scissors, crab crackers) for diners to deshell the crab; each table gets a set but you can request for more. I helped myself to multiple servings of Hokkaido snow crab, savouring the fresh, succulent crab meat. Cholesterol levels be damned, for just one night.

There is a variety of hot cooked food to choose from, we sampled the teppanyaki items which were not bad at all. You place your order for barbecued meat, vegetables at the teppanyaki counter and it will be served to your table. Besides the usual hot cooked food (rice, meat, vegetables), they also serve Japanese style dishes like udon and hotpot. You can choose between seafood, beef, mushroom ingredients for your hotpot but do not expect too much, the soup was decent but there wasn’t much ingredients in the actual hotpot.



And for desserts, there is also a large variety of cakes, cream puffs to choose from. There is coffee machine where you can make yourself a cup of coffee or tea to go with the delectable desserts. Don’t forget about the chocolate fondue too! The place can get quite messy with chocolate stains all over the counter, so be careful.

Every kuishin bo experience is not complete without the sounding of their signature jingle song: “Dong Dong Dong, Kuishin Bo”. That signals the arrival of a special limited food item and like Pavlov dogs to ringing bells, people stop what they’re doing/eating, get out of their seats and rush to the main buffet counter where they are giving out their special food item. The first time the bell rang during our stay, we got a small frozen fresh strawberry.

The second time, we got this puff cake which was filled with bean filling which wasn’t too appetizing. We heard the special items can get exotic sometimes, but so far for our visit, we weren’t impressed. But I guess the element of mystery and surprise definitely works up people’s appetite!

Also there is this ongoing lobster promotion: if you reserve beforehand for dinner at this outlet, each diner will be entitled to an additional free serving of lobster. We were treated to a lobster dish drenched in dark teriyaki sauce. The lobster was decently fresh; we had no trouble prying the lobster meat from its shell, and the fragrant teriyaki flavor actually went well with the thick succulent lobster meat.

I would visit kuishin bo for their free flow fresh seafood, the other items are quite average, but if you are itching to try a variety of food and are not afraid of piling up the calories, this place is for you!

Hong Kong Mongkok Tim Sum @ Chinatown Complex Market

Located on the second floor in Chinatown Complex Market, this humble dim sum hawker stall whips out decent and fresh dim sum at affordable prices. If you are expecting hotel or restaurant quality dim sum from a hawker centre joint, you might be disappointed. But since the prices charged at the stall are much less than those places, so naturally expectations should be lowered too. But that doesn’t mean freshness and quality is compromised here.

There is a ready stream of customers at this stall and a queue system is implemented to cater to customers. So when you arrive here, you should get a queue number first then wait patiently for your number to flash on the electronic board before proceeding to place your orders. The wait depends on how many people are in front of the queue and also depends on how fast the stall is able to churn out dim sum to meet the orders. Dim sum is freshly made and sold on the day and the stall closes once they have run out of dim sum. I waited about 25 minutes and explored the other stalls in the meantime.

There actually isn’t much food choice from this stall: the 6 main dim sum dishes served are shown on the signboard on the store’s front (Char siew bao, siew mai, har gow, chicken feet, prawn and char siew chee cheong fun). Each dim sum item costs $2 and it’s really cheap and good! All dim sum is also freshly taken from the steamer, so they are served piping hot!

Char Siew Bao ($2 for 3 pieces) is incredibly fluffy and soft when it’s warm. Not like those hard, dense overly sticky buns you might get elsewhere. The fillings are a nice surprise- the char siew filling is really fragrant and juicy. The char siew meat had been diced into smaller pieces and you can taste the roasted meat which complements the nice sweet red marinade sauce.

Siew Mai and Har Gow ($2 for 3 pieces of each kind): Siew Mai was not bad- each bite is filled with chunky pieces of fresh, succulent pork. The har gow is also fantastic- the prawn pieces inside were really fresh and crunchy. The outer skin was neither too thin nor too thick; just enough to encase the prawn fillings and complement the prawn fillings.

Prawn cheong fun ($2) was really tasty too- the rice noodle roll was really smooth and each roll contained generous portions of chopped chunky fresh prawns. The soya sauce provided the main bulk of flavouring for the dish and it really enhances the dish with its salty, sweet combination of flavours.

Although you might have to brave the queue and the stuffy atmosphere of the food centre, this is nonetheless a great place for your fix of affordable dim sum! Do note they close on Mondays and Tuesdays.

Hong Kong Mongkok Tim Sum

335 Smith Street, #02-097 Chinatown Complex Market

Eat @ Taipei, JCube

An important thing to note about this eatery- it is located right next to the ice skating rink and gusts of cold air will naturally sweep into the eatery. I was not aware of this the first time I visited and as we were seated near the rink, I felt really cold throughout my meal. The next time I visit, I will come prepared with a jacket. I suspect people who are more heat averse will enjoy the additional air conditioning boost.

The colourful signboards bear the name of this eatery and the wooden tables and chairs in this place tries to replicate the night market scene in Taipei. The Taipei subway map is laminated onto the tables and the menus provided nice descriptions about the origins of street food served in here.



There were unfortunately some hits and misses during our visit here. Since I was filling really cold, I decided I needed to have a nice hot dish to warm me up. So I ordered their Vermicelli with Oysters and Pigs Intestines ($6.90).

This was unfortunately a let down. Visually, it didn’t look as appealing as the menu picture they showed. While the mee sua was soft and slurp worthy, the sauce didn’t really match up. Unfortunately, the sauce was a little too watery and was too salty. The pig intestines were fresh and chewy, but I was only able to scoop up only a few pieces in my dish. Perhaps this particular dish is a little overpriced, and I might be able to get something of similar quality (or even better) at the Shilin snack stores.

We also had Sweet Potato Fries ($3.90), a dish I actually enjoyed eating. Sweet potatoes lend themselves a nice sweet, starchy flavor which surprisingly tastes really good when cut and fried into western fries. The outer layer is fried to a nice, crispy golden orangey hue, but retains a soft chewy texture inside. This dish comes with an intriguing sour plum powder dip, which surprisingly enhances the flavor of the sweet potato fries!

Eat @ Taipei, JCube, #03-03/18

Hoshino Coffee (星乃珈琲店) @ Plaza Singapura

You will not miss Hoshino Coffee, it's located on the third floor in Plaza Sing's swanky new extension. There is this really eye catching display of their food items at the entrance that draws potential customers in.



The decor is very similar to the Shibuya outlet I went to. Lots of wood, warm lighting and even the furniture- the red leather seats and wooden tables are similar. (Even the coffee cups are the same!) I guess it's their trademark image and it's all faithfully replicated here in Singapore's first outlet.

I believe this coffee joint is well known for their hand drip coffee and their fluffly pancake souffles. First off, I had a hot cup of Hoshino Blended Coffee ($5.80)



They claim that their coffee beans are specially selected and their coffee are specially "hand-dripped". First off, this coffee blend is tailored to Asian tastes, so it's less acidic/sour than western coffee but nonetheless, pretty potent in the caffeine department. It's a really aromatic blend and it provides some very intriguing lingering aftertaste. Some may compare this cup to their usual kopitiam coffee and wonder if it's overpriced. Well, many people actually pay a lot for their starbucks coffee. Also, I realised the coffee is actually much cheaper here compared to the cup I had in Shibuya (about SGD9 there!). It's of the exact same portion, same cup, I think it tastes similar but memory fails me here. And you can get a second refill for 50% off here! So whether you are willing to pay $5.80 for a cup of premium coffee, well it's really subjective. They also serve a variety of tea (their matcha teas look really good but be prepared to pay more!)



This is Hoshino Spaghetti ($14) and it actually looks very impressive and big at first sight. It is served al dente with a curious mix of ingredients: eggplant, bacon, shimeji mushroom, sausages, tomatoes and ONSEN EGG, sprinkled with copious amounts of sesame. Well yes, the portion is generous and there is a nice mix of fresh ingredients, but no offence I think this could be the pasta I will make with my dinner leftovers from last night, except perhaps I won't be able to make that perfect onsen egg. It still makes a wonderful and tasty dish, but I might want to try something else the next time.

For dessert, I decided not to go with their souffle pancakes; I decided it is more worth it to eat with friends, since a double serving costs $12, compared to $9.80 for a single piece. BTW, there pancakes souffle style and pot-baked souffle are freshly baked on the spot and will take about 20 minutes to be served. So I ordered their tantalizing looking Matcha Souffle ($9.80):



It was served fresh from the oven, and was still warm when I sunk my spoon into it. The top had a nicely burnt crispy brown layer. Venture further into the core of the souffle and you will find a rich, soft matcha custard oozing out. This dessert isn't overly sweet and there were hints of matcha flavour, which I would have preferred to be stronger. The insides were a bit like molten egg custard, and it really goes well with their coffee. For a moment, I was tempted to get a coffee refill.



Service wise, it is clear they are severely understaffed. I visited on a weekday evening just slightly before dinnertime. There were only 3 waiters to handle the entire dinnertime crowd, and the kitchen became noticeably slower. The food items took some time to churn out the mains and desserts and I noticed many diners had to wait. But it's their first week here in Singapore, and I guess they will iron out these problems in future. I will be coming back for pancakes the next time!

(UPDATE)

So I went down to Hoshino Coffee a second time with a friend to try their Souffle style pancakes. As mentioned earlier, one pancake costs $9.80 while two pancakes cost $12. Not sure why they priced it this way, but it's definitely more bang per buck to get two pancakes!



You will need to wait at least 15 mins for this dish to be served, because it's freshly made on the spot. The pancakes are really fat and thick! They are also immensely enjoyable, since the insides are really fluffy but the outside edges are baked to a nice crispy golden brown. You can choose to have your pancakes served with maple syrup, honey or brown sugar syrup. I had maple syrup and found the pancakes especially the fluffy, cake-like insides easily soak up the maple syrup and goes really well with it!

Hoshino Coffee, Plaza Singapura, #03-84, Singapore