A Gastronomic Experience!

Shoutout!

2009-09-30T11:38:00.004+08:00

A shoutout to all our loyal fans, there's new content coming up soon!

All of us have been pretty busy recently, buried under piles of work, but we're coming back soon to bring you more good food from the sunny island of Singapore!

In time to come, I'll be doing a special feature on Indonesian food too, so look out for it! In fact, I'll be based in Indonesia from November onwards, so I'll still continue to bring you good food - from our neighbouring country down south.

Stay tuned!

Jeremy

Thai Express @ Tiong Bahru Plaza

2009-06-22T14:45:00.006+08:00

Crayfish: Oversized Prawn or Undersized Lobster?

Dear loyal readers of thehumblegourmet, its been a month or so since the last post of mouth-watering Singaporean Gourmet food due to preparations for our exams and such, so we're glad to be back!

This time round, Jeremy takes you on a trip to Thai Express to try some of the food served in one of, if not the most, known Thai restaurant chains here in Sunny Singapore!

Upon entering the half-empty (or half-full for you optimistic people) restaurant during lunch time, we were immediately greeted by polite staff who immediately led us to our seats.

Disclaimer: Please excuse the colour and quality of the photos, these were taken under severely bad lighting conditions within Thai Express (Orange Spotlights) and taken with my 2.0MP iPhone camera.

Black Pepper Claypot Crayfish with Tang Hoon. This one was a little on the spicy side, with the black pepper served in generous proportions. Felt that the taste of the black pepper masked everything else. Only for fans of black pepper dishes. $13.90

Yellow Ginger Chicken Rice - Featured in the newspapers not too long ago, this dish boasts of being REALLY SPICY!! Waiter even served the dish and said "Good Luck!" to my colleague! *Note from thehumblegourmet - Not for the faint-hearted! $9.90

Tom Yum Soup with Stick Noodles

Soft Shell Crab - This dish was light and fluffy, and tasted somewhat different from the way the Japanese make it. $7.90

Lemon Chicken Drumlets This dish comes free with every $30 minimum spend and if you're paying with DBS/POSB Cards.

On the whole, Thai Express is for people who love Thai-style spicy cuisine and don't mind getting their tastebuds burnt!

Shin Kushiya

2009-04-11T00:41:00.008+08:00

Located in a corner of Vivocity nearby the GV Cinema, Shin Kushiya caught my eye and I decided to give this Jap restaurant a try.

Shin Kushiya

Sashimi Moriawase... consisting of Maguro, Salmon, Mekajiki, Hamachi and Amaebi. $22.

Onsen Tamago - loosely translated as "Hot Spring Egg". This one is a soft boiled egg served in a cup of soba sauce topped with spring onions! Didn't really get to taste the yolk of the egg here as the soba sauce and spring onions covered the taste of the egg.

Agedashi Tofu - topped with yummy seaweed strips!

Buta Mentai Kushiyaki - Pork-on-a-stick, topped with spicy fish roe! The pork was served on a stick in neat rectangular slices, alternating between lean meat and some fats. The Mentaiko here, unfortunately, didn't taste like what you normally find in most restaurants. $3.20 per stick

Shishamo! Usual, nothing out of the ordinary here. $1.90 per pc.

Soft shell Crab! this one tasted crispy on the outside and squishy on the inside.

Niku Nabe (Meat Hotpot) - This one tasted quite ok, full of ingredients such as meat slices, mushrooms and other interesting stuff.

Mentaiko Spaghetti - This one was a disappointment for me as the mentaiko did not taste like it normally would in other restaurants. Or maybe it was just a different type that I wasn't used to.

And how else to top off a very satisfying meal - a scoop of nice Haagen-Dazs ice cream! =D

Overall the service was very polite and prompt, but the food was pretty ok-lah standard. Nothing special to shout about, but to their credit, they carried quite a wide range of Jap food for you to choose from. Not exactly cheap either.

I spent about $46 per person.

Mr Prata @ Evans Road

2009-03-24T18:46:00.004+08:00

Had lunch today at Mr Prata's at Evans Road today, just located at Evans Lodge right opposite the Co-Curricular Activities Center of the Ministry of Education.

This is one of the few 24/7 makan places offering a whole wide range of south indian cuisine such as Roti Prata, Murtabak and the like.

Prices are dirt cheap here, as you can find with most Prata Establishments, and there is a cashcard parking at Evans Lodge for those of you who drive ($1.07 per hour).

Teh Tarik! Perennial Favourite. =)

Beehoon Goreng. Our special guest Gerri ordered this and had these comments: "I liked the texture of the beehoon - not too dry, not too wet, but it could have been better if the egg yolk could have been kept intact..."

My 2 + 1! 2 Cheese Pratas + 1 Plain Prata... good stuff. But the standard of the cheese prata here seems to have dropped somehow. Didn't taste as good as I remembered it. But as with 24-hr prata cafes, 'probably a different cook' comes to mind.

Mushroom Murtabak!

This dish was introduced by Gerri. It's called Chicken 65, and it is actually chicken bits marinated in some indian spices and topped with some leaves and onion peels. Good Stuff! thehumblegourmet's MUST TRY!!! dish of the week.

I spent about $7 per person.

Buffet Greatness @ Kuishin-Bo!

2009-03-18T14:44:00.012+08:00

Great food, fresh sashimi, great price, what else can I say? Haven't enjoyed myself so much in a long time.

Located in the heart of Great World City, I had been eyeing this restaurant even before it started opening its doors to do business sometime late last year.

Front View of Kuishin-Bo...

A pic of the sweets and desserts section. Wide range of Chocolates and other sweet items such as mochi here.

For those who are not big fans of Japanese food, standard fare such as fried rice is also available here. =)

Cha Soba! I expected this to be bland and the usual "offered as a dish only because other buffets have it" kind of dish served in a single serving, I was pleasantly surprised that it was quite tasteful~! The noodles were just the right texture and the addition of seaweed, sesame seeds, a dash of chilli powder and some spring onions on top, provided a burst of flavour in my mouth. =) MUST TRY!

Seafood and Sashimi! They offered seafood such as Crawfish, Fresh Prawns, White Clams and Mussels. For Sashimi, they had 4 types: Sake (Salmon), Maguro (Tuna), Kajiki (Swordfish) and Tai (Sea Bream).

The Fried Items Section! Soft Shell Crab, Takoyaki, Tonkatsu on a stick, Scallop with cream topping, Ebi Tempura and Breaded Fish... Abit on the oily side but still yummy. =)

Sweet Treats!~ Konnyaku Jelly, Chocolates, Cake, Marshmellows dipped in Chocolate Fondue, Chocolate Mousse and Mango Pudding! What more can I say?

Sizzling Goodness! Hotplate Tofu~~

Overall, service was good, and the lunch was pretty filling. Lunch will set you back $28.90 per adult, but if you can finish your food within the hour, you only need to pay the promotional price of $20.90. A steal for those who can eat quickly, if you ask me.

Sizzler~~

2009-03-13T00:24:00.003+08:00

Heya dear readers! I'm finally back after 2 weeks or so on my Reservist In Camp Training...

Don't ask me about camp food or even worse, Combat Rations, because.... the latter is just plain inedible. I will also decline to do a feature on it for obvious reasons...

Well, first thing out of camp is to treat myself to some good food, so went to Sizzlers' at Suntec City.

They are currently running a promotion for Free Salad Bar with every order of a main dish. The Salad Bar stocks a whole range of salad items consisting of the fresh veggies, chickpeas, ham, salami, and many others. There is also a wide range (I counted 8 types) of salad dressing - Thousand Island, Vinaigrette and Blue Cheese included. 3 type of soup provided too - Mushroom Soup, Clam Chowder and something else which I can't seem to recall now, but quite sure it is some clear soup.

Feeling a little more health conscious that usual, I passed on the sirloins and tenderloins and opted for the much healthier Dory Fish Fillet. They offer this dish in 2 different styles - Grilled or Batter Fried Tempura Style.

I though the Tempura style sounded quite interesting so I ordered it. It came with chilli and tartar sauce, and sided with spicy fries.

The Dory Fish Fillet didn't disappoint, and tasted very fresh and smooth. The tempura style batter was really done like it would be in Japanese cuisine - light and non-oily.

Overall, I'd give Sizzlers' 2 thumbs up for good and friendly service, good food and a good dining experience.

I spent about $32 per person.

Hong Kong & Macau Fare!

2009-02-16T10:11:00.005+08:00

On to the next location of my overseas makan trip, Hong Kong! I have visited HK almost once a year since 2006, and the one thing that never ceases to amaze me is the quality of the wontons in HK.

One of the first stops I made was to the Lantau Island Big Buddha. I had to take the cable car up the hill from the Ngong Ping Cable Car Station. After a 20 minute ride to the top, which was predominantly blanketed by thick fog during that time of the year, I finally reached the little tourist village at the top of the mountain.

The village is surprisingly bustling with activity, and made out to be more of a tourist location of some sorts. There are shops of all kinds found there, ranging from the souvenir shops to our main topic, the food! You can find an interestingly wide range of food there - pizzas, pastas, steaks, and also the standard HK Cha Chan Teng fare.

After a year of depravation from HK's wonderful wontons, I naturally chose the HK style Cha Chan Teng for my choice of lunch.

The soupy wonton noodles set me back about HKD$38 per bowl (about S$9), and there was quite a big range of food found there, and they were priced at aroud HKD$30 - HKD$60. Quite reasonable for a food establishment found at a tourist location.

The thing about wontons in HK, even at this place I found from nowhere, contained no less than THREE prawns. Yes, I jest you not. In the rest of my days in HK (only 3 days) I ate wonton noodles another 2 more times and there were also no less than THREE prawns in each wonton. I always tell my friends, "If u can find ONE prawn in a wonton in Singapore, YOU'RE VERY LUCKY!!"

HK's famous Ice Ying Yong (Tea + Coffee), served in a cute mug! =P

Check out the size and texture of these wontons... Note: 3 PRAWNS!! The noodles tasted nicer than most places in Singapore. MUST TRY!

This is the dry version of the wonton noodles. If you're ordering this, better not forget the chilli oil that goes VERY well with the noodles!

Century Egg & Lean Meat Porridge (皮蛋瘦肉粥）Another delicacy in HK, the texture of the porridge here is almost perfect, and is also another MUST TRY!

Macau

The first thing I noticed when I stepped out of the Macau Ferry Terminal, was that it was MUCH colder than Taiwan & Hong Kong because of the strong winds! Could also partly be the problem that we were right next to the sea.

The ride to the hotel took less than 5 mins, and after checking in and settling my luggage, I went out hunting for Macanese delicacies! Oh, and also for some nice casinos =).

Macau's famous Portugese Egg Tarts! These babies don't cost much, and each one can be finished in one gulp, but the nothing really comes close to the taste of warm, freshly baked egg tarts burstin in your mouth...

A sample of Macanese food in a restaurant... This one's Fried Tomato Rice or something like that. Can't really remember the name, but this dish was quite ok with me, though I don't take tomato-based food very often.

The curry here was okay too, but nothing like the powerful stuff we have back home in Singapore.

Macanese cuisine, although generally attuned to the taste of Hong Kongers because of the abundance of Cha Chan Tengs (茶餐厅s), do have some distinction because they offer some authentic Portugese dishes. Just ask the locals for directions to the restaurants that offer Portugese cuisine, and you'll be directed to these places! (Macau's not very big, so the good ones will usually be full if you don't make reservations beforehand!)

Next destination: Vietnam! (hopefully in June)

Taiwanese Food Fiesta~!

2009-01-21T09:49:00.010+08:00

Hi guys, I'm back, and here to introduce to you all the fine tasting cuisine I hunted around for and tasted in beautiful Formosa!

One of the first stops I went to in Taiwan was Tamshui's Lovers' Bridge, where the guide told me, was one of the filming locations for the popular taiwanese serial - Meteor Garden. Being located right next to the Fishermen's Wharf, strong and chilly winds were expected, and my fingers froze up barely 2 mins after I got off the tour bus.

Anyways, after crossing the bridge - on to the food! I found a nice row of shops selling all sorts of food! In that kind of weather, something (or even anything) hot and piping would be really good to warm up the body... I bought myself a giant chicken cutlet (twice the size of those u find in Singapore!!!)

Look at the sheer size of the chicken cutlet!! Topped with generous helpings of salt, pepper and chilli powder =D....

You can never find cutlet done do such perfect standard in Singapore... 外香脆，内松软 - Crispy and flaky on the outside, soft and chewy on the inside! In Taiwan, they say "赞！" MUST TRY

Picture of Tamshui Old Street, where you can find some of Taiwan's famous makanmakan here... Some famous food you can find here are the Iron Eggs, vegetable and prawn crackers and some tofu dish (but I can't remember the name now, will post it once I do).

Some rip-off of Starbucks' logo here... there are at least 3 other companies with similar looking logos in Taiwan...

Shih-Lin Night Market - Home to the orignal Giant Chicken Cutlet and many other delicacies! Look for the longest queue extending out of the market into the open area outside, and you've found the queue for the Giant Chicken Cutlet! =)

There are at least 5-8 stalls in the night market providing this famous dish - Oyster Omelette or Oh Ah Jian 蚵仔煎...

Another one of the famous delicacies here - Seafood Porridge with Abalone slices. Other flavours available too!

Didn't forget to try the Ajisen Ramen while I was in Taiwan... this one's their version of the Volcano Ramen here.

This is what I chose, seems to be their version of Ton Toro Ramen back in SG.

My only regret is not being able to try out the Ah Chung Mee Sua in Ximen Ting because the queue was too long!!! Oh well... next time, perhaps!

Look out for my next post on HK food!

Chili Padi @ Bugis

2008-11-04T23:48:00.006+08:00

This one's located opposite the Pet Shop at the corner of Bugis Junction's air-conditioned street, hidden from view by the bus stop in front of it.

What's not so hidden when you walk to the front of this small restaurant is the buffet spread that is laid out next to the glass window.

Walking into the retaurant will get you greeted immediately by a few smiling ladies dressed in orangey-red batik tops.

My all-time favourite here is the pork belly soup (or affectionately known as 猪肚汤 in cantonese.

Simple buffet style offering a range of peranakan and chinese cuisines. Curry, Pork Belly Soup, kueh kueh topped with coconut shavings and fruit & jelly desserts are always on the menu here.

Highly recommended if you're thinking of paying abit more for a nice meal (but definitely not more than a standard restaurant. Chili Padi's home-cooked style will definitely appeal to people like me who miss home cooked meals.

I spent about $15 per person for dinner.

Sushi Tei @ Holland Village

2008-10-22T19:35:00.006+08:00

This one's a two-storey building among the row of restaurants opposite the hawker center in Holland Village, and they don't take lunch reservations, so people interested in dining here can just do the walk-in.

Ground floor is the area where the sushi conveyor belt runs around the first thing that greets your sight immediately when you walk in - the lobster tank.

We were immediately led to the 2nd floor where the standard dining area is and I was surprised to find a nice corner with tatami style flooring.

When we got down to ordering, the nice colourful menu had many pages of different styles of Japanese Dining, such as Nabemono, Sushi, Makimono, Sashimi, and many more!

It took quite a long time for the food to be served, though. The wait was seemingly excruciatingly long for a hungry man, even though the restaurant only seemed 80% full.

Cha Soba - They put 3 ice cubes under the noodles to make it look like there's a big helping, but still left me feeling hungry after I had finished it. No quail egg here, too. $7

Nabemono.

Tofu Mentai Cheese - This one is a MUST TRY. The Mentaiko (明太子) is the spicy roe of the pollock fish, and can found in both Japanese and Korean fare. This one is tofu coated in mentaiko and topped with a generous helping of cheese. Try it yourself, bet you'll like it! $10.

Sashimi - The saving grace for this restaurant would be the fresh sashimi. Although I reckon we didn't really get a good cut of Maguro this time round (flesh was tearing apart at the lines), the Hamachi and Salmon were neatly cut into THICK slices and they tasted fresh and tantalizing! Good thing about Sushi Tei is that they allow you to make a choice from different combinations of sashimi, e.g 3, 4 or 5 slices at different prices. The different combinations also feature a wide array of selection for sashimi, even the rarer ones like sea urchin (Uni), amaebi and many others. 5 slices - $22

[no picture]

The Shishamo here was disappointing though, as it was only served in plates of 2 pieces.

I spent about $28 per person.

Tampopo @ Liang Court

2008-10-07T15:25:00.010+08:00

Decided to have our lunch at Tampopo at Liang Court today, and we were pleasantly surprised that the restaurant was not full as expected, and we managed to get a table immediately. Staff were courteous, as usual, and the menus were informative and full of pictures.

Jo had a bowl of famous Kyushu Pork Bone Black Pig Soup Ramen. This one's the specialty of this restaurant and is highly recommended by thehumblegourmet.

I ordered the Zaru Soba and was surprised to see that they had given me a big serving of buckwheat noodles.

Salmon skin is a MUST TRY here! The salmon skin is fried to a crisp, served with mayonnaise and sprinkled with spicy powder and sesame seeds.

Sashimi Mix Platter B - This one costs $35 and consists of Maguro (Tuna),Sake (Salmon), Tako (Octopus), Hamachi (Yellow Tail) and most of all, my favourite Mekajiki (Swordfish). The sashimi was extremely fresh, probably cos it was a Tuesday (any jap foodie worth his salt would know why). They were cut into thick slices, and for each fish there were about 3 slices. Wasabi was very good too - powerful, mind-blowing, nasal-clearing stuff!

Hokkaido Shishamo - Jo liked this alot!

Agedashi Tofu - Yummy stuff!

Uni and Amaebi Sushi - Uni(Sea Urchin) tasted soft and heavenly, and the amaebi came with the prawn head too! Sublime...

The overall experience was very gratifying, and definitely a place to come back and visit again in future!

I give it (8 out of 10).

Well Done!

I spent about $42 per person.

Tampopo can be located at the Ground Floor of Liang Court, right next to the main lobby of the Novotel Hotel.

Kyoto Sabo Aji-Tei @ Plaza Singapura

2008-09-29T14:38:00.000+08:00

Had dinner there with an old friend of many years, and we were greeted immediately by some polite staff at the door, which is the usual standard expected of Japanese Restaurants here.

The restaurant is not too huge, but the "darker-than-usual" ambience is good for couples looking to have a nice, quiet meal there.

Food is pretty affordable, too.

The Salmon (cooked) meal. Salmon was done quite well, not too oily, not too dry, just right, and able to retain the original taste of the salmon.

My Hokkaido Scallops Spaghetti with Cream Sauce. The spaghetti and cream sauce was the usual taste but the highlight here is, of course, the Hokkaido Scallops.

Close up of the Hokkaido Scallops, which tasted very fresh and tasty.

I spent about $25 per person.

Kyoto Sabo Aji Tei can be located at Plaza Singapura, Unit #02-01.

Hanabi Restaurant @ King's Arcade

2008-09-19T20:46:00.001+08:00

Hanabi is located in the corner of King's Arcade along Bukit Timah Road, and you've gotta take the filter lane where BT Road meets Farrer Road to reach there. If you had taken the flyover over Farrer Road, good luck trying to navigate your way back to King's Road via Empress Street.

Parking at King's Arcade is strictly residential only, so you can try parking at Coronation Plaza or the carpark directly opposite Hanabi.

We were immediately greeted a la Jap style when we entered the restaurant, and we were pleasantly surprised that there wasn't a full house of noisy patrons, as we had expected from Hanabi's reputation. The lady boss seemed very nice and helpful, and was also thankful that we were taking photos of our food to help her publicize her restaurant!

Decor of the place

The jar of flowing water next to our table... very therapeutic.

Sushi Bar at the corner

招财猫！

Cheese Chawanmushi! <-- DIE DIE MUST TRY!!!

This one brings tears to my eyes as the flavour of cheese blends in perfectly with the steamed egg here and there's even a cheezy surprise at the bottom - half melted mozarella! Definitely a MUST TRY for cheese fanatics like me. =D

Kushi-style (on-a-stick) Shishamo

This one was grilled to perfection, as the size of the shishamo was larger than the usual you get at those less-than-proper Japanese Restaurants. As usual, my favourite part of this fish is the head (surprisingly not the eggs).

Zaru Soba

This one tasted quite the usual, but the texture of the buckwheat noodles was a little different as there was some degree of chewy-ness. Missing a quail egg, though.

Sashimi Moriawase (Mix Platter)

This one is the perennial must-have for me - the main reason I'm being recognised by my fellow authors as Mr Sashimi(which obviously speaks for itself). The sashimi was very fresh, as usual on tuesdays, but there was an obviously larger portion of salmon to make up for the significantly fewer pieces of Maguro. Another downside is that they do not serve Mekajiki(Swordfish) here.

La Forketta - Ristorante Italiano

2008-09-18T13:57:00.000+08:00

Finally my post is up! Hahaha!

Went to this Italian restaurant at Dempsey Hill with Vijay and Jonathan. (Been planning to go out for lunch since forever but the weather...) La Forketa is just around the corner of our workplace. So near yet so far, considering that we walked there and back. Haha. But its good for our digestive system since its a really heavy meal. Went there intending to have Ben and Jerry's for dessert. But end up... too bloated to eat after the 3 course meal. LOL!

The place is very classic, decorated with a very "open" concept. Very different from the only other Italian restaurant (Michelangelo's) which I had been to. But nice all the same.

Tea.

Breads.

Salt and pepper and ??? I have no idea whether that is a display "flower" or lettuces for us to eat. =X

My Order

Minestrone soup.
Very unlike other minestrone soup which I have tried before. Minestrone soup, as I know it, should be orange-y in colour. This, however is towards the light yellow side. It may look creamy but it isn't. The generosity of vegetables in the soup make sure that I enjoy it down to the very last mouthful.

Spaghetti with clams.
More famously know as Spaghetti Vongole. This is a must-try for me! I love spaghetti. I love clams. I love it more when these two are served together in white wine! Need I say more? Haha. One thing I must say is that this restaurant is definitely not stingy with its food! There are like, endless amount of clams! I eat and I eat and I eat and I eat and there still are more for me to eat! =P Overall, this dish is very nice though not spicy enough in my case. Hence even though this dish is up to standard, I still prefer New York New York's Spaghetti Vongole just because its spicier. Haha.

Tiramisu!!!

And a closer look.. *drools*
The texture of all Tiramisu which I have tried before is like normal cake. Hard, not soft. But this cake is creamy! I can literally feel it melt the moment I put it into my mouth! Really tasty with just a hint of alcohol!

Vijay's Order

Bruchetta with Cheery Tomatoes

And a closer look...

Vijay: The bread was crisp and drizzled with just the right amount of olive oil. There was also a sprinkle of dried Italian herbs for its distinctive flavour. The cherry tomatoes, however, were overwhelming but gave the dish its body. Overall, it is a healthy eat, and an excellent starter!

Penne Pasta with Salmon

Vijay: Do not be fooled by its unflattering looks! The sauce is actually cooked salmon, blended, and mixed into the penne pasta. The pasta was cooked to perfection, as was the salmon sauce. The salmon sauce was rich and when mixed into pasta, proved to be a sizable portion, fit for anyone who's terribly hungry!

Warm Chocolate Cake with Chocolate Sauce

Vijay: The cake was warm and it was made with dark chocolate! It was more towards the bitter than sweet, but it was well paired with the sweet chocolate sauce. It was an ideal way to end your gastronomical adventure, at La Forketta!

I love this cake too!!! =P

Jonathan's Order

Tuna salad.

Roasted Pork (I think)

Cheesecake with raspberry sauce.

Its nice. And seeing that I'm not a huge fan of cheesecake, this is high praise! LOL!

And with this, our meal came to an end. =) A restaurant worth trying!

Sapporo Bishamon Ramen @ GWC

2008-09-09T14:36:00.011+08:00

Had lunch at Great World City's Sapporo Ramen Bishamon with a colleague today, and was quite surprised at being able to get a table immediately. Which may translate into alot of negative things which I will decline to mention here.

But to be fair, service staff were prompt and courteous enough to greet us on our way in.

Here are a few pics to (hopefully) whet your appetite:

My observations about this place are best described in this picture, a blurry cup of green tea.

My colleague ordered a bowl of Shio Ramen... at least this looked appetising. $11

My Spicy Beef Ramen set, comes complete with seafood tempura, 3 slices of Salmon Sashimi and some fruits. $15.90. This was Tuesday's set meal of the day (yes, they have one for each day of the week).

Close-up of the Spicy Beef Ramen. Not very spicy, not too many slices of beef (I counted only 3.5 slices) that tasted overcooked and ramen looked suspiciously like instant noodles.

The seafood tempura, which I suspect only consists of prawn meat.

The only saving grace of the day was the fresh salmon sashimi. Then again, their wasabi was below standard and not the usual nose-clearing, strong stuff that I'm used to. Good for beginners, though. =)

While being a ridiculously affordable place for Jap food, quality of the food left much to be desired.

I spent $16 per person.

Chappati @ Norris Rd

2008-09-05T16:35:00.007+08:00

Had lunch today with Bee and some other colleagues at Azmi Restaurant at Norris Road today!

Azmi Restaurant is located at the edge of Norris Road, which is just off Serangoon Road in Little India. Heard from our colleague that they had been around for almost 40 - 50 years! Thats a REALLY long time for a chappati store...

This place serves one of the best tasting Chappati in Singapore, and with a slew of other yummy side dishes like fish curry, chicken curry and mutton curry to go with it.

Looks yummy...

Glorious Chappati!

Close-up shot of the Chappati

The chappati is fluffy and not too dry, and aromatic too. In combination with the chicken curry, the taste is absolutely out of this world. We all ate it Indian-style - with our hands!

The Curry Chicken that went very well with the Chappati

The nice red acrylic chair at Sakunthala's nearby. Cool, right?

MMmmmmmm.... Teh Tarik... @ Sakunthala's

Price was extremely affordable too - cost a total of $30 for 7 people.

Azmi is recommended for those who are looking for a quick fix of Indian food and for those with a love for chappati.

Ichiban Boshi @ Great World City

2008-09-02T16:43:00.004+08:00

Had lunch at Ichiban Boshi with a group of colleagues recently.

Sushi & Sashimi Takeaway Bar outside the restaurant

Sushi & Sashimi Takeaway Bar - Handrolls (Maki) section!

Firstly, they do not do reservations, so you can only do walk-ins. They are usually full during the lunch hour, and if you reach at about 12.45pm it is already full, so there was a queue waiting outside.

For groups smaller than 4 people who do not mind counter seats, you'll probably get a seat pretty quickly, but not for those in big groups. Had to wait about 15 - 20 mins or so before we were ushered to our table.

There was even a variety of 3 different menus, namely the main courses & drinks, Sushi & Sashimi foldout menu and another one which I didn't bother to see because there were so many different menus on the table.

Overall the food is not too expensive, and they come in set meals at an average of 20++ per set. Of course, if you are the type that goes for variety, there's always the choice to go ala carte and order many other smaller dishes to go with your udon / soba / rice.

Nigiri sushi is relatively cheap, going for $2.10 per plate, while ala carte sashimi comes in either 4 ($5.50)or 7 pieces ($9.50).

I would recommend people who come here to try the soft shell crab, fried shishamo and the ever-popular fried salmon skin.

A good place for students / young working adults who like Jap food but are on a budget.

I spent about $30 per person.

Ikoi

2008-09-01T11:04:00.008+08:00

On 22 August 2008, went to Ikoi for lunch with the 3 Js - Jeremy, Josephine and Uncle Jimmy (HEHE). Its only when I reached there that I realised I had been there before. Sashimi sashimi sashimi! Haha.

Compliments from the restaurant. :)

Yummy!!!

Veggie tempura and Uncle Jimmy's sake.

Agedashi Tofu. Doesn't look tempting here but it is real tasty. Hehe.

Soba! I love soba. But till now, no restaurant's soba had been able to win Sun with Moon's.

Kaminabe. *drools*

Chicken Wings!

Prawn tea. Not sure of the name. Haha.
Jo - It's called Dobinmushi!

Jeremy - これは鳥からげです。Tori Karage.

Jeremy - The shishamo here is good! Baked, not fried. Best part is the head.. chew it off in one bite and savour the taste!

As per usual, whenever I go for buffet lunches, I will end up being bloated. Haha. But I would say this is money well spent! :D

The Magic of Chongqing Hot Pot

2008-09-01T11:03:00.002+08:00

On 12 August 2008, my colleagues and I went to Chong Qing Hotpot for lunch. The soup base is really nice. But its a real shame that we did not get to try the spicy soup base. Oh well, Josephine, we shall go and try it another time! :D

The HUGE bucket of dried red chillies which amused me no end.

The four types of sauces provided. Sweet sauce, sesame oil, peanut paste and a mixture of chillies and some other herbs which I'm not sure about.

Eight Treasure Tea. Which have a really interesting way of being refilled.

A kettle with a LONG sprout!

The hotpot! There's too little seafood in my opinion. And, the sauce, none of them are spicy! Think would be much nicer if half of the soup base is spicy based.

Fried dumplings! My favourite! :P

The dessert.

Eight Treasure Dessert. Sweet and yummy. Nice!

Can't wait for my second trip there to try the spicy soup base! Hehe.

Michelangelo's

2008-09-01T11:00:00.004+08:00

On my first day, my supervisor, Josephine, brought me to Holland V's Michelangelo for lunch. It is a small, cozy Italian restaurant. And it turned out that she also loves to take photos of food! Had a really great lunch and photo-taking session! Hee.

Mushroom soup. Nice and creamy. Yum!

The spaghetti with rose wine which I had. Very unique taste. But nice all the same! :P

The chicken fillet which Josephine had. Looks super appealing!

The dessert. (I love this photo! Haha! Looks real appetizing right? :P)

Last but not least, of course is the decoration! The walls are all filled with paintings!

This drawing is on the wall beside me.

And this is found on the ceiling! Amazing isn't it?

Iggy's @ Regent Hotel

2008-09-01T09:58:00.002+08:00

Had lunch at Iggy's with a good friend before he left for Myanmar on work.

We were immediately greeted by a tiny passageway and welcomed by 3 staff who suggested that we take a counter seat. But preferring a quieter setting, we opted for a table in the back.

We were (almost) immediately offered drinks, and subsequently a free flow of plain / olive bread.

I tried the Gnocchi with truffles and egg yolk, and was pleasantly surprised at the smooth and slimy texture of the truffles. Its was slightly salty but yet not overly done, and the overall taste tuned to perfection. The Gnocchi was very well done, and it tasted light and yet flavourful when tasted together with the truffle.

We were then offered a small pitcher of soup that tasted like corn soup a la cappuccino style albeit with a small drop of molten chocolate that needed to be burst open as you would eating a whole egg yolk.

Had the Iggy's Wagyu Beef Burger for the main course, which took a little longer to serve. The burger looked small, but the beef patty was about an inch thick. Was slightly disappointed as I couldn't really taste the texture of the wagyu beef in all its glory with it being mashed up into a patty. The burger was served with some sauce and a few thickly sliced french fries, which resembled wedges, albeit in a cuboid shape.

For the dessert, I chose the champagne jelly with sorbet and elderflower foam. It was served in a martini glass and it looked really pretty. The first spoonful of elderflower foam burst in my mouth as it was a very cool and refreshing taste, which totally blew me away. Underneath the foam was a scoop of sorbet that tasted slightly alcoholic and the strong smell of the champagne was already wafting out to greet my nose. The champagne jelly was good too, leaving a nice scent in my breath afterwards.

Iggy's is a place to go if you're not that hard up on cash and enjoy some good service and a quiet meal.

Iggy's can be found at:

#03-00, 1 Cuscaden Road, The Regent Singapore
Singapore 249715