Olio Cafe @ Compass Point

I was at Compass Point Shopping Mall the other day and decided to check out Olio Cafe. I tried the Thai Grilled Beef Salad and Mixed Grilled Lamb.

The salad was fresh and refreshing. The beef was not over cooked and it gave the salad some proteins.

Thai Grilled Beef Salad 4/5

The lamb had a different texture which was nicely cooked and tasted pretty good.

Mixed Grilled Lamb 4/5

Olio Cafe
Compass Point
1 Sengkang Square
#01-14/15
Nearest MRT: Sengkang (NE Line)

Chinese New Year Gathering 2011

Chinese New Year this year was special to me. I get to know a wonderful group of friends on twitter. I was invited to a Chinese New Year gathering with my foodies and twitter friends at Susan's place.

Like every tradition Chinese New Year dinner, we had Lo Hei (bought from Sakae Sushi). Hope it brings prosperity, luck and good health to everyone.

Susan has prepared a lot of food for the group. For cooked food, we had Fried Beehon, Curry Chicken and Chilli Crab. They were all very yummy! A big thanks to the wonderful cooks in Susan's family for dishing out the wondering dinner.



Besides the cooked food, the lovely host also prepared steamboat for us. We were presented with a great selection of fresh food for the steamboat.

Dinner did not just stop here. We have desserts waiting for us. There were Bobo Cha Cha (prepared by Susan's mum), Chocolate Fondue and Durian Puff (brought from Durian King at Northpoint).

One of our friends, Rae also brought some homemade ice-cream made by her aunt. She brought us 4 different delightful flavours (Durian, Milo, Ginger and Rum & Raisin). My favourite was the Durian. It was creamy and flavouring with the Durian aroma.

If you would like to try out these homemade ice-cream, you can refer to their website HERE (http://www.jessdesserts.sg/).

Lastly a very big THANK YOU to Susan for the great hospitality and to each and everyone that made the gathering possible.

Ice Edge Cafe @ Kovan Road

The stretch of roads around Simon Road and Kovan Road has been slowly and in a way quietly developing into a food street. The Ice Edge Cafe is a cozy cafe located at the quiet stretch of Kovan Road. The cafe offers a wide variety of Gelato Flavors.

Gelato Flavors in display

I ordered a Root Beer with ice cream which is known as black cow on the menu. For the ice cream flavor, I went for Lychee Martini. I thought I made a bad choice. Should have gone for something more creamy and sweet without alcohol.

Root Beer with Lychee Martini Ice Cream 3.5/5

The waffle was crispy on the outside, soft and fluffy on the inside. The ice creams were Mao Shan Wang (a type of durian breed), Snickers and Strawberry Cheesecake which were very flavoring too.

Waffles with Ice Cream 4/5

Ice Edge Cafe
Simon Plaza
2 Kovan Road
#01-10
Nearest MRT: Kovan (NE Line)

Le Chasseur @ New Bridge Road

This humble eatery directly opposite the Central at Clark Quay along New Bridge Road with a French name and lots of food picture pasted on the wall is exactly a Chinese restaurant dishing out Teochew food.

The Salted Fish with Eggplant is a classic home cooked dish. The eggplant was cut into slices and cooked with minced meat and salted fish.

Salted Fish with Eggplant 4.2/5

 
I really enjoyed the Watercress Soup and I can taste the passion in preparing the soup. Chinese herbs such as Red Dates and Bitter Apricot Seeds were added giving the soup a refreshing and sweetness taste.
 

Watercress Soup 4.5/5

 
The Butter Oatmeal Beancurd turned out to be an average dish except for the used of Oatmeal in the cooking. The two ingredients just didn't fuse together. I also felt that the dish was short of a dipping sauce to enhance it.
 

Butter Oatmeal Beancurd 3.5/5

 
This is the highlight of the dinner that I am waiting for. The Crispy Pork Knuckle was huge! It was really amazing that the meat was still moist and tender. The skin was crispy and nice too. However I need to remove the layer of fats underneath the skin as it had some piggy smell which I did not enjoy. The special sauce that came with it also highlighted the meat.
 

Crispy Pork Knuckle 4/5

Le Chasseur
31 New Bridge Road
(opp Central/Clark Quay MRT)
Nearest MRT: Clark Quay (NE Line)

Seng Huat Western Food @ Zion Riverside Food Centre

When mentioned about Zion Riverside Food Centre, the first food that came to your mind would probably be the famous Fried Kway Teow there. If you do not want to join the long queue, you can check out this western food stall. The chicken chop was pretty good. If you are adventurous, you can try the ostrich steak offer on their menu.

To get here you can,

(a) From Outram Park MRT station, cross the road to the bus stop at Singapore General Hospital side and take bus 75 or 970. Alight at Zion Road which is 5 stops later or
(b) From Tiong Bahru MRT station, take bus 16 or 195 and alight at Zion Road 5 stops later.


Seng Huat Western Food
Zion Riverside Food Centre
70 Zion Road
Stall 12
Nearest MRT: Outram Park (EW Line, NE Line), Tiong Bahru (EW Line)

View Larger Map

View Larger Map

Cheong Long Fish Soup @ Plaza Singapura

Another favourite stall for me at Dining Codes is Cheong Long Fish Soup. The fried fish was very good and different from most eateries. The fish was marinated before it was fried and it was very tasty. I had the Tom Yam Fish Soup which gave me another taste experience in addition to the marinated fried fish.

Tom Yam Fish Soup 4.2/5

Cheong Long Fish Soup
Dining Codes by Kopitiam
Plaza Singapura
68 Orchard Road
#06-15/17
Nearest MRT: Dhoby Ghaut (CC Line, NE Line, NS Line)

Jia Xiang Yong Tau Foo @ Plaza Singapura

Does Dining Codes sounds "Atas" to you? Well, it is only another food court by the Kopitiam Group on the 6th floor of Plaza Singapura. Located at one corner of the food court is the Jia Xiang Yong Tau Foo stall. It has a wide spread of fresh and fried Yong Tau Foo varieties which were a delight to the eyes and taste buds.

I had the Curry Yong Tau Foo with yellow noodles. I always prefer yellow noodles with curry. The curry gravy was really thick and flavouring. The thickness probably came from the amount of coconut milk added which can be quite unhealthy but it was shiok.

Yong Tau Foo 4/5

Jia Xiang Yong Tau Foo
Dining Codes by Kopitiam
Plaza Singapura
68 Orchard Road
#06-15/17
Nearest MRT: Dhoby Ghaut (CC Line, NE Line, NS Line)

Melbourne Trip January 2011

I was back in Melbourne for work in January, the week before Chinese New Year.  Several friends have mentioned to me about Koko Black Chocolate so I took the opportunity to check out the place on my off day on Australia Day.

The apartment I stayed was only a short walking distance to the original Koko Black Salon at Royal Arcade on Bourke Street. I walked into the cafe and was greeted with a strong aroma of chocolates in display. There were a lot of kids with their parents and tourists at the salon too.

I sat myself on the 2nd level where I can have a view of the walking street below.

I ordered a cup of Belgian hot chocolate and a cake and biscuit plate. The hot chocolate came with a flowery pattern on the froth. The cup of chocolate was rich in flavour and aroma. Every sip was enjoyment.

The cake and biscuit plate was very good too. The chocolate cake was very nice and moist.

Megumi Japanese Restaurant @ Sunset Way

I last visited Sunset Way back in July last year. I was curious which restaurants are still operating after the rental hike saga. Great to see most of the restaurants are still there and the place. The area was also quite crowded for a weekday night.

I roamed around the area for a while before settling for dinner at Megumi Japanese Restaurant. Most of the restaurants were quite full and this was the least crowded.

The Grilled Saba was quite good for the standard of a casual Japanese restaurant.

Grilled Saba 4/5

Rice 4/5

The Yasai Tempura consisted of deep fried sweet potato, golden mushroom, eggplant, mushroom and carrot. The deep fried carrot was very hard and I just don't enjoyed carrot being done this way.

Yasai Tempura 3/5

Shabu Shabu and the Hokubee Beef was good. Although it was not top grade beef, the Hokubee beef was good and worth for money.

Hokubee Beef for Sabu Sabu 4/5

Sabu Sabu 4/5

To get here, alight at Clementi MRT station and walk to the bus stop at exit B. Take bus number 184, 53 or 154 and the restaurant is about 10 minutes away.


Blk 106 Clementi Street 12
(Sunset Way)
#01-38
Nearest MRT: Clementi (EW Line)

Putien @ Nex

This year we went to the new Putien outlet at Nex Shopping Mall to celebrate my dad's birthday cum a reunion dinner with my cousins. The front of the restaurant is catered for small group of diners while the back of the restaurant partially hidden by the partition is for larger group.

On each table was the Putien Chilli sauce which was freshly made without any preservatives. The chilli sauce was really nice and you can even buy it off the counter.

Putien Chilli Sauce 4.2/5

I ordered a total of eight dishes. The stir fried yam was a simple dish whereby the yams were cut into rectangular shape and stir fried with some sweet sauce. The yams were cooked to perfection neither too hard nor soft and giving it a bit of crispiness.

Stir Fried Yam 4.2/5

The sea cucumber was my mum's favourite. I noticed her helping herself to several servicings. Besides the sea cucumber, theree were broccoli, roast pork, mushroom and chestnut in the dish.

Claypot Sea Cucumber with Chestnut

The sweet and sour pork was probably one of the best in town. Unfortunately I was late in snapping the picture and the lychees were gone.

Sweet and Sour Pork with Lychees 4.2/5

The shrimp roll surprised everyone at the table. It was the largest shrimp roll we have ever seen. It was really good but the size of it did not encourage us to go for more pieces.

Shrimp Roll 4.2/5

This is my first time ordering the deep fried chicken with garlic at Putien. It was also the dish I ate the most. The crispy golden skin was very yummy. Although it was deep fried, the meat was still moist and tender.

Deep Fried Chicken with Garlic 4.5/5

Unlike the commonly known Lor Mee which is starchy and dark in colour. Putien Lor Mee is white and soupy. It is one of their signature dishes and my favourite too.

Lor Mee 4.5/5

The Spinach with three eggs is a dish which I usually order when I dine at a Chinese restaurant. Putien's Spinach with Salted Egg and Century Egg in Supreme Stock was the best I have eaten.

Spinach with Salted Egg and Century Egg Supreme Stock 4.5/5

I ordered this dish because my younger sister wanted it. I only ordered 2 buns (the minimum order) since only she wanted it. The dish came with plastic gloves to stuff the shredded meat in between the bun. I took a bite of the shredded meat and it was so so only.

Shredded Meat with Bun 4/5

Putien
Nex
23 Serangoon Central
#02-18/19
Nearest MRT: Serangoon (NE Line, CC Line)

Poy Kee Yong Tau Foo @ People's Park Cooked Food Centre

I was looking for lunch at Chinatown before commencing my Chinese New Year shopping. I roamed around People's Park Cooked Food Centre for a while and noticed the queue at the stall. The stall sells traditional Yong Tau Foo with noodles.

Typical there are 2 types of Yong Tau Foo stalls in Singapore. The modern stall displays a wide variety of selection and usually they are factory produced and mass distributed. The traditional stall sells a standard selection of Yong Tau Foo in each bowl which were usually made themselves.

Poy Kee Yong Tau Foo came with a standard selection of fish ball, bean curd with fish paste and fried bean curd skin with fish paste. My favourite was the fried bean curd skin with fish paste. The noodle also came with anchovies (ikan bilis) which is quite rare.

Yong Tau Foo 4.2/5

Noodle 4/5

Pok Kee Yong Tau Foo
People's Park Cooked Food Centre
#01-1066
Nearest MRT: Chinatown (NE Line)

Yomenya Goemon Japanese Spaghetti House @ Marina Bay Link Mall

Have you tried eating spaghetti using chopsticks? At Yomenya Goemon Japanese Spaghetti House, that is the way you do it. The restaurant sells only spaghetti. It has an interesting menu with a huge selection of pasta cooked in Japanese way.

My partner and I ordered the set which came a salad (one servicing from the salad bar), a drink and a main. As the set only entitled to one servicing from the salad bar, being typical Singaporean, you can see diners trying to squeeze as much as possible into the tiny bowl for the salad. The salad bar has limited selection. The Japanese salad sauces and the seaweeds were my favourite.

Salad 4/5

The restaurant was quite crowded and I was offered to sit at the bar counter which gave me a direct view of the chefs preparing the dishes. It was interesting to see the teamwork in the kitchen and how each chef went about preparing the dish at their stations.

I had the regular size (smallest in the menu) spaghetti and it was already quite a big servicing. I enjoyed unique taste of the Mentaiko Pork Spaghetti. It tasted like eating a plate of chinese fried noodle with Sichuan vegetables, especially eating it with chopsticks.

Mentaiko pork 4.2/5

The Avocado and Shrimp Spaghetti my partner had was the cream base type. It was not as flavouring as mine but overall it was good and creamy.

Avocado and Shrimp 4/5

If you are not a big eater, the restaurant has a "half and half" set which you can select 2 types of spaghetti from the menu. I saw a couple ordered the set and shared. The portion was quite reasonable too.



Yomenya Goemon Japanese Spaghetti House
Marina Bay Link Mall
#B2-03
Nearest MRT: Raffles Place (EW Line)