THUNDER TEA RICE

While I was at Food Republic (Vivocity Shopping Mall level 3) for lunch, I came across a stall selling thunder tea rice (lei cha 擂茶). I have heard about this Hakka cuisine for years but did not get to try it. I thought I should try it this time. The dish included ingredients like tofu, pickled radishes, friend ikan billis, roasted groundnuts and assorted chopped vegetables. There was also a bowl of soup, made from the mixture of hot water, tea leaves, grounded roasted peanuts, basil and mint. The dish reminded me of the Korean bibimbap and Japanese ochazuki.

I was told by the stall holder to pour any amount of soup into the bowl of assorted ingredients and mix well. I told myself, "what the heck, just pour all in". I stirred well and the dish became a messy mixture. When I first ate it, I was not used to the strange taste of mint and tea. It was not bitter and blend. After a few mouthful, I gradually got to like the taste.

I will eat it again for sure. Certainly a healthy dish.

• Food & Beverage 7/10 • Ambience - • Service 6/10

CRAB DINNER @ MELBEN SEAFOOD (ANG MO KIO)

Two of my friends had strong cravings for big crabs and we headed down to Melben Seafood in Ang Mo Kio (Blk 232 Ang Mo Kio Avenue 3 #01-1222). We ordered a claypot of crab bee hoon and a plate of creamy butter crab, with fried "man tou" (chinese buns). All big crabs from Sri Lanka. Very delicious! Both dishes are highly recommended.

• Food & Beverage 7.5/10 • Ambience - • Service 6/10

 

PERANAKAN FOOD @ KIM CHOO'S KITCHEN

One of my favourite cuisines is Peranakan food. I grew up eating delicious traditional Nonya dishes cooked by my late paternal grandmother. She was such a great cook. I previously bought Kim Choo's (www.kimchoo.com) popular Nonya dumplings a couple of times and I wanted to try their Peranakan dishes this time.

I ordered plain rice with (pic below, from left to right) fried egg omelette, ayam buah kerluak, achah and samba belachan. The omelette with shredded cabbage was tasty but too salty for my liking. The ayam buah kerluak was disappointing - gravy was too sweet, buah kerluak nuts' content too little and not so aromatic, chicken was not tender. The achah was delicious - crunchy with the right sweetness and spiciness. Not to mention the generous serving of spicy sambal belachan.

• Food & Beverage 6.5/10 • Ambience 6/10 • Service 6.5/10

BOTEJYU OKONOMIYAKI

Finally the much anticipated Botejyu from Osaka has opened in Liang Court Shopping Mall level 2. I understand that the restaurant is managed by Bachmann Japanese Restaurant Pte Ltd, which also runs Ajisen Ramen chain of restaurants. As I love Osaka's specialities like okonomiyaki and takoyaki, I just had to give Botejyu a shot.

I ordered the pork okonomiyaki and pork yaki-soba. As I was at the restaurant during off-peak hours, both dishes arrived within 15 minutes. I heard that during peak hours, customers have to wait at least 30 minutes for an okonomiyaki. Bottles of bonito flakes, aonori (seaweed flakes) and chilli powder were available on every table.

The pork okonomiyaki tasted rather average, nothing to shout about. Somehow I did not enjoy the flour and chopped cabbage batter combination. The combination of okonomiyaki sauce and Japanese mayonnaise was good though. Well, nothing beats the original from Osaka. The pork yaki-soba was not bad. The soba was well-fried with yaki-soba sauce. Aromatic and tasty, not too soggy. It went well with the sliced pork and cabbage.

• Food & Beverage 6.5/10 • Ambience 6.5/10 • Service 7/10

A GIFT FROM OSAKA

I had a wonderful surprise lately when I received a parcel from my Japanese friend, Akiko. Recently she and her family went to the Momofuku Ando Instant Ramen Museum in Ikeda, Osaka. She wanted to share with me her experience at the museum by sending me the museum flyer, packets of instant noodles and a souvenir cup noodle. So nice of her!

The museum has an instant ramen workshop "My Cup Noodle Factory", which allows visitors to make their very own "fresh" instant noodles. Akiko and her mum wanted me to try their choice of instant noodles – chicken ramen in a cup. They also did some beautiful paintings on the cup, using words like "love" and "peace". The cup noodle was wrapped in a clear plastic "balloon" pack with red cotton string. What a nice souvenir item!

As for the packets of instant noodles (bought from the museum), Akiko sent me Chicken Ramen, Shio (salt-based) Ramen and Miso Ramen. I just can't wait to cook them and get to know their taste. Now I know where I should visit when I go to Osaka again.

I am thinking what should I send to Akiko from Singapore next time...

CUPCAKES @ PAISLEY & CREAM

Delicious and creative food always interest me. And I have heard that Paisley & Cream serves a wide variety of cupcakes that are beautiful to see and yummy to eat. The cafe is located at The Central #01-09/10. From the glass showcase, I could see cupcakes flavours divided into 4 kinds – Nutty (pistachio, hazelnut, peanut butter, almond, etc), Fruity (strawberry, lemon, mango, carrot, etc), Chocolate (kit kat, toblerone, espresso+chocolate, snickers, etc) and Speciality (rum & raisin, baileys & hazelnut, kahlua & coffee, etc).

I ordered 2 cupcakes and a cup of coffee. One cupcake was the double chocolate. The chocolate cupcake was filled and frosted with chocolate buttercream, topped with edible tiny silver ball bearings and a tiny heart-shaped red biscuit. Beautiful! The cupcake had a slightly bitter taste and was not too sweet. Very delicious when eaten with the cream mousse.

The other cupcake I ordered was vanilla. The vanilla cupcake was filled and frosted with vanilla buttercream, topped with edible tiny silver ball bearings and a tiny flower biscuit. Visually stunning! Frankly I couldn't bear to eat it. The cupcake was not too sweet and very yummy when eaten with the cream mousse.

• Food & Beverage 8/10 • Ambience 7.5/10 • Service 7/10

 

 

 

PREFERE ICE CREAM CAFE

This ice cream cafe is located at Square 2 Shopping Mall level 3. I was told that all the ice creams of Prefere (which is French for 'favourite') are imported from South Korea. There are a couple of flavours to choose from – melon&yogurt, chocolate, strawberry&vanilla, green tea&yogurt, herb blueberry, grape&vanilla and so on. I ordered the melon&yougurt with chocolate chips in a cup, without toppings. The ice cream was smooth, creamy and not too sweet. I really like the strong honey melon taste. Very yummy.

• Food & Beverage 7.5/10 • Ambience 6/10 • Service 6/10

RAMEN & NATTO @ NETSURETSU ICHIBAN-TEI

I heard so much about the tonkutsu ramen at Netsuretsu Ichiban-Tei and decided to try it while in Liang Court. The soup (pork bone broth) was rich and aromatic. Yummy and not too salty and oily. The two big slices of fatty kurobuta (black pig) were well marinated with miso, tasty and not too salty. The stewed boiled eggs were average. The egg noodle was well cooked, not too soggy. Other ingredients included bamboo shoots and spring onions.

I also ordered a bowl of sticky Japanese natto. It was my first time eating this delicacy. The fermented soyabeans were quite small and tasted a bit bitter. Overall it had a strong flavour and smell, but it tasted kind of bland - not sweet/salty/sour. I guess I should have added some soya sauce. When mixed with seaweed, spring onions and some mustard, the overall taste was acceptable but complex. Not so remarkable. I wonder if other Japanese restaurants serve Japanese natto the same way as Ichiban-tei. I do not mind trying the delicacy again elsewhere.

• Food & Beverage 7.5/10 • Ambience 7/10 • Service 6/10

MIHARU RAMEN

Miharu is a Hokkaido/Sapporo-style ramen restaurant located at The Gallery Hotel level one. This cosy restaurant is popular for its miso and shio (salt-based) ramen. I ordered a bowl of Tokusen Tonshio ramen, plus a plate of pork gyoza (6 pieces). The salt flavoured soup (pork bone broth) was flavourful and rich. Not too salty and oily. Heavenly! The one big piece of chashu was soft, tender and well-marinated, with the stewed boiled egg very tasty. The egg noodle was well cooked and delicious. Other ingredients included braised bamboo shoots, corn, seaweed and spring onions. The pork gyoza was crispy on the outside, juicy and aromatic on the inside.

• Food & Beverage 8.5/10 • Ambience 6/10 • Service 6/10

MARUTAMA RAMEN

For the past few months, I had always wanted to have delicious ramen at Marutama. But each time I was at The Central Shopping Mall level three (especially the weekends), the long queues just repelled me from trying. This time I was determined and did not want to miss the chance. I had to queue up for about 20 minutues due to a long queue during lunch hour. Luckily it was worth the wait.

I ordered Marutama's special – Aka Ramen. The slightly spicy soup mixed 7 different nuts with chicken broth. Not the usual kurobuta (black pig) broth. Rich and aromatic. It was very delicious and not too salty. I squeezed some lemon juice into the soup to add a refreshing taste to it. The thin egg noodle was springy and well cooked. The 3 chicken meatballs were slightly spicy and nothing to shout about. Other ingredients included corriander, spring onions, seaweed, pickled onions and sesame seeds. Services from the male/female bosses and waiters were good.

• Food & Beverage 8/10 • Ambience 6.5/10 • Service 7/10

KHULFI BAR INDIAN ICE CREAM

Khulfi Bar is located at Upper Dickson Road, off Serangoon Road (Little India). It is more than just an eating place serving authentic Northern Indian ice cream and finger food. The place is like an art gallery, displaying various beautiful Indian artefacts and colourful decors.



Since it was my first time eating Indian ice cream, I wanted to be safe and ordered the best seller – Bollywood Silver Khulfi. The dessert was specially made of hazzlenut khulfi with chocolate fudge, lined with pure edible silver. Other ingredients included pistachios, cashew nuts and roasted almonds. Overall combination was delicious and very sweet (I expected Indian desserts to be sweeter than normal). I also ordered a cup of hot mint tea, which was of normal standard. As much as the khulfi was good, it was really quite expensive – khulfi at S$12.90, mint tea at S$3.60. Service from the lady boss was friendly. She took the trouble to explain the khulfi ingredients and menu items.

• Food & Beverage 7/10 • Ambience 7/10 • Service 6.5/10

ICE CREAM GALORE!

The ice cream frenzy in Singapore really caught up with me lately. Within a period of 2 months, I checked out 4 different establishments to try out their unique ice cream. Frankly I have never been an ice cream fanatic. I just wanted to find out what was the frenzy all about and to understand more about the unconventional modern ice cream.

My first stop was at Udders Ice Cream (www.udders.com.sg), situated at Goldhill Centre level one. My friend and I ordered the "Mao Shan Wang" (Cat Mountain King) durian ice cream, "Orange Choc Bitters" ice cream, "Rum Rum Raisin" ice cream and Waffle with chocolate sauce. I loved the taste of durian ice cream very much. Strong durian taste and not too creamy and sweet. I could actually taste small pieces of durian. The "Orange Choc Bitters" ice cream was very rich and unique, combining well orange and dark bitter Belgian chocolate. The "Rum Rum Raisin" ice cream had a strong rum content, with twice as much liquor than normal. Honestly I got abit tipsy after a few scoops. Lastly, the Waffle with chocolate sauce was very good. Very crispy and flavourful. Service from the lady boss was friendly.

• Food & Beverage 8/10 • Ambience 6/10 • Service 7/10



Next I visited the newly-opened Marvelous Cream (www.marvelouscream.com) located at City Link Mall basement one. The ice cream outlet is the first overseas store outside of Japan. The store uses the "Cold Rock" concept – ice cream is mixed with fruits and various toppings (nuts, sprinkles, chips, etc) on top of a frosted granite slab. I ordered a regular 100ml cup of "Angel's Parfait' ice cream, which consisted of white milk cream (ice cream imported from Hiroshima, milk from Hokkaido), strawberry, melon and macaron vanilla. I liked the rich milky flavour. The ice cream was smooth and not too sweet. Service from the staff was friendly.

• Food & Beverage 7/10 • Ambience 6.5/10 • Service 6.5/10




My third stop was at Haato (www.haato.com.sg) located at Liang Court Shopping Centre basement one. This flagship outlet was formerly known as "Gelato di Crema" and has been at the same shopping mall for 16 years. Haato produces gelato in Singapore, using traditional recipes from Japan. The staff at the counter recommended a mix of black sesame and green tea gelato in a cup. The combination was very good. The gelato mix was rich, smooth and not too sweet. The green tea gelato is the best I have eaten so far. The staff were quite friendly and chatty.

• Food & Beverage 7.5/10 • Ambience - • Service 7/10




I came across the fourth store – Yoguru (www.yoguru.com.sg) – by chance while I was at Raffles City Shopping Centre basement one. I was invited to try a small cup of soft-serve yogurt ice cream by a friendly Korean store manager. The ice cream tasted really good and refreshing. I was told that Yoguru uses fresh ingredients without preservatives or additives. Every yogurt ice cream is non-fat and produced at the store. This health benefit concept hailed from South Korea (the owner of Yoguru is a Korean). From my personal perception, Yoguru does not project a "made-in-Korea" identity and brand. I did not see any Korean icon, from the logo to the store design. I saw Yoguru merely as a local establishment selling healthy yogurt ice cream.

I ordered a regular cup, combining Original (white yogurt) and YoguBliss (mix of dragon fruit and promegranate), with no toppings. I was surprised by the generous amount! The yogurt ice cream mix was tasty and not too sweet. What came to my mind while eating was: "a very healthy dessert". The Korean store manager was very friendly and patient.

• Food & Beverage 7/10 • Ambience - • Service 7.5/10

A LA CARTE THAI BUFFET @ SUANTHAI (LIANG COURT)

I wanted to give a friend a birthday treat and we decided on Thai food at SuanThai (Liang Court Shopping Centre #B1-03/04/05). My friend and I ordered the standard A La Carte Buffet (SGD19.90++ per person), with 29 dishes to choose from. One time order for some dishes, such as seafood tom yam soup, beef salad and stuffed chicken wings. With an additional $1.50+, there is free flow of pineapple rice. Overall the dishes and desserts were delicious and value for money. The pineapple rice was the only disappointing dish, having a strong thai spice aroma. I highly recommend the stuffed chicken wings, chicken wrapped in pandan leaf, beef salad and desserts.

Service was good and assorted dishes were served rather quickly.

• Food & Beverage 8/10 • Ambience 6.5/10 • Service 6.5/10