LeBan HK Cafe @ Upper Thomson Road

LeBan HK Cafe is the new kid on the block at Jalan Leban along Upper Thomson Road. The 1 month old cafe serves a wide range of Hong Kong inspired food.

LeBan HK Cafe has a youthful ambience with its contempoary colorful interior with walls painted in purple and white, red chairs and black tables. Even the lightings are in rainbow colours.

Chili Cheese Fries 3.5/5

The Chili Cheese Fries ($6.50) is topped with Chef's special chili and oven baked. I was confused as I did not taste any spiciness. The dish is a bit old school in my own opinion. I would prefer the cheese to be more liquid or even lava form.

Seafood Baked Rice in Cream Sauce 3.5/5

The Seafood Baked Rice in Cream Sauce ($9.80) came with fresh and big succulent seafood such as prawn, squid and mussel hidden inside a bed of baked cheese. It comes in either cream or tomato sauce. I felt that the dish did not have a body to gel all the wonderful flavours together.

Crispy Butter Bun with Condensed Milk 4.5/5

The Crispy Butter Bun with Condensed Milk ($4) brough back my childhood memories. I love having my bread with condensed milk. The toasted buns with the condensed milk spread was simple, sinful but yummy!

Savoury French Toast Bites with Ice Cream 4.5/5

I will definitely return for the Savoury French Toast Bites with Ice cream ($4.90). The deep fried breaded cubes comes with a scoop of New Zealand Natural ice cream. They are a total of 7 flavours to choose from currently. Bite into the breaded cubes and there is a little surprise. The french toast had peanut butter in it! LeBan definitely knows my weakness...we have condensed milk and now peanut butter.

Sizzling Crispy Noodles with Jumbo Prawns 3.5/5

I applauded the concept but not the dish. The noodles of the Sizzling Crispy Noodles with Jumbo Prawns ($8.50) had an unique crisp and crunchy texture. It reminded me of Mamee Monster Noodle Snack. The sauce which tasted like sweet and sour sauce was too sweet and overpowering.

Potato with Corned Beef Hash & Egg 3.5/5

When the Potato with Corned Beef Hash & Egg ($5.50) was served, I thought it was carrot cake with scrambled egg. Corned beef is salt-cured product hence the dish was a tad salty. An enjoyable dish but nothing fancy about it.

Sun Fried Ice Cream 4.2/5

Sun Fried Ice Cream with Green Tea flavour 4.2/5

The huge ball shaped Sun Fried Ice Cream ($4) is a must try. The ice cream is breaded, deep fried and topped with chocolate rice. Good quality New Zealand Natural ice cream is used with a choice of flavours. The hot and cold combination will leave your taste buds delighted.

Affagoto 4.8/5

Being a coffee addict and ice cream lover, the Affagoto ($4.80) is the mix from heaven that satisfied my weakness for them. A scoop of vanilla ice cream was dropped into a shot of freshly brew espresso. The coffee and the ice cream combination was so good that I selfishly finished the glass all by myself.

LeBan's is giving out 10% discount to our blog readers from now till 31 July 2012! Simply quote "Funky Food" before making payment and you will be entitle to the discount.

I would like to thank Stephenie for having us and Cheryl for asking me along.


LeBan HK Cafe
No.2 Jalan Leban
Upper Thomson Road
Singapore 577547
Tel: +65 62578801
Website: http://lebanhkcafe.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lebanhkcafe
Nearest MRT: Marymount (CC Line)

Opening Hours:
Daily: 4pm - 2am

Direction:
1) Alight at Marymount MRT station. Take Exit A. Walk to Upper Thomson Road towards SPC Petrol Kiosk direction. Take bus number 163, 167, 855 or 980 across the road (Stop ID B53021). Alight 7 stops later. Walk to destination across the road. Journey time about 15 minutes.

Spice Sutra Restaurant & Cafe @ Upper Thomson Road

I still remember my first encounter with Spice Sutra a few years back. After reading good reviews about the restaurant on Hungrygowhere.com, my partner and I decide to check out the place. However we made a last minute U-turn at the restaurant's doorstep as there were hardly any customers. Thanks to Charlene from www.missuschewy.com asking me along for a food tasting session at Spice Sutra, I am able to judge for myself whether the reviews are truth.

Spice Sutra serves Northern Indian cuisine and it has an extensive menu of Vegetarian and Non-Vegetarian starters and mains. In addition, you can also have Naan & Roti, Rice & Briyani, Kebab Roll, Soup and Dessert on their menu.

Mix Grill Hotplate 4/5

The Mix Grill Hotplate ($31.90) came with an assortment of the chef's selection of meats marinated with oriental spices and grilled. A good starter where you get to try bits of everything that the restaurant offers.

Samosa Chaat 4.5/5

The Samosa Chaat ($5.90) is a best try. This is like an open faced version of the Samosa we usually have. It has chick peas, boiled potatoes, yogurt, ketchup, chopped onions, lime squeeze and spicy garnish. Don't be deceived by the greenish sauce, that is the highlight of this dish.

Butter Naan and Garlic Naan 4.2/5

Spice Sutra offers 6 types of Naan on their menu. We had the Butter Naan ($3.50) and Garlic Naan ($3.90) served in a nice basket and sliced into smaller pieces. The Naans were fluffy and not oily.

Butter Chicken 4/5

To go with the Naan, we went for the Butter Chicken ($15.90) so that we can dip it into the gravy and scoop the tender boneless tandoori chicken.

Mutton Masala 4.5/5

We also ordered the Mutton Masala ($15.90) which was very good. The mutton cubes cooked in spicy gravy was very soft and tender.

Prawn Biryani 4.5/5

The Prawn Biryani ($15.90) was the surprise for the night. The Basmati rice absorbed the aromatic flavours from the spices and retained the moisture making the rice very fragrant. Spice Sutra definitely is a place where spices and taste matters most.

Gajjar Haluwa 4/5

After all the savoury food, we decided to try the carrot dessert on the menu. It is a warm dessert with sweeten carrot strips. The taste and texture was rather unique to me, kind of like eating fruit cake.


[CLOSED]
Spice Sutra Restaurant & Cafe
Thomson Imperial Court
200 Upper Thomson Road
#01-03
Singapore 574424
Website: http://spicesutra.com/ss/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SpiceSutra
Nearest MRT: Marymount (CC Line)

Opening Hours:
Lunch: 11am - 230pm (Wed-Sun)
Dinner: 6pm - 1030pm (Daily)
Closed on Mon & Tue for Lunch

Direction:
1) Alight at Marymount MRT station. Take Exit A. Cut through Shunfu estate and walk towards Thomson Community Club. Thomson Imperial Court building is just beside Thomson Community Club along Upper Thomson Road. Journey time about 10 minutes.

Mei Zhen Hakka Delicacies (美珍客家美食) @ Shunfu Mart

Thinking of going where for breakfast this long weekend? Why not head down to Shunfu Mart for some Hakka Delicacies? I was back to try more of their Hakka snacks since my last visit in July. You can read about it here.

The Soon Kueh here is quite different from the others. The skin is much thinner and had a nice chewy texture. Love the chopped scallions sprinkled on top of the Soon Kueh.

Soon Kueh 4.2/5

The Taro Cake is my other favourite here. The steamed Taro Cake was soft and fragrant. Eaten together with the sweet sauce was a delight to the palate.

Taro Cake 4.2/5

Suan Pan Zi or Abacus Beads is kind of a heritage dish. Not many places sell or make Suan Pan Zi anymore. Mei Zhen Suan Pan Zi has a bouncy and chewy texture. It will be a pity if you have not try this Hakka delicacies.

Suan Pan Zi (Abacus Beads) 4.2/5

Mei Zhen Hakka Delicacies (美珍客家美食)
Shunfu Mart
Blk 320 Shunfu Road
#02-26
Singapore 570320
Nearest MRT: Marymount (CC Line)

Opening Hours:
Daily: 7am - 2pm
(Closed on Mon)

Direction:
1) Alight at Marymount MRT station. Take exit A. Cut across Shunfu HDB estate. Journey time about 5 mins.

Meng Kitchen (日夜小厨) @ Upper Thomson Road

If you are a Bak Chor Mee lover, there is Meng Kitchen that can satisfy your craving 24 hours 7 days a week at Upper Thomson Road. The noodles were springy and well mixed with  a good balance of vinegar and chilli. They are also generous with their ingredient which has meatball, sliced and minced pork, liver and mushroom.

Bak Chor Mee 4.2/5

Bak Chor Mee 4.2/5

Meng Kitchen (日夜小厨)
246B Upper Thomson Road
Nearest MRT: Marymount (CC Line)

Opening Hours:
Daily: 24hr

Direction:
1) Alight at Marymount MRT station. Take Exit A. Walk to the Bus Stop opposite Shunfu Estate (ID 53021). Take Bus No. 52, 132, 162. 163, 165, 166, 167, 855 or 980 and alight one stop later. Cross the road and walk to destination. Journey about 9mins.

Mei Zhen Hakka Delicacies (美珍客家美食) @ Shunfu Mart

I remembered the first time I have Suan Pan Zi (算盘子, Abacus Beads) was during one of my Chinese New Year visit prepared by my friend's parent. Since then I have not been able to find the dish in eateries around Singapore. When I read about this Hakka stall at Shunfu Mart that sells traditional Hakka food, I was excited and made my way down to the food centre one morning.

A queue was formed at the stall when I reached the food centre. The stall sells a variety of Hakka snacks and food but I only had the Suan Pan Zi (算盘子, Abacus Beads). It made my day though as I finally get to satisfy my craving.

Suan Pan Zi (Abacus Beads) 4.2/5

Suan Pan Zi (Abacus Beads) 4.2/5

To get to Shunfu Mart, alight at Marymount MRT station. From the MRT station, walk across the block of flats for about 5 minutes to get to Shunfu Mart.


Mei Zhen Hakka Delicacies (美珍客家美食)
Shunfu Mart
Blk 320 Shunfu Road
#02-26
Singapore 570320
Nearest MRT: Marymount (CC Line)

Opening Hours:
7am - 2pm (Closed on Monday)

View Larger Map

Sangokai Japanese Restaurant @ Upper Thomson Road

The Japanese Restaurant is located at the row of shop houses along Upper Thomson Road. I was surprised the restaurant served us an appetizer after taking our order. I thought it was complimentary until I saw the charges in the bill.

Anyway, the appetizer was a cold dish of Octopus, Radish, Carrot and Cucumber infused in a citrus sauce. The taste was subjective to individual palate.

Octopus Appetizer 3.5/5

The Shake Mentai Yaki Set has BBQ Salmon with Cod Roe Sauce, Salad, Miso Soup, Rice and Fruit. The Salmon had a very nice melting texture with a lay of Cod Roe coated on the surface of the Salmon.

Shake Mentai Yaki Set 4/5

The Yakitori & Kinoko Nitsuke Set has BBQ Chicken Skewer, Braised Mixed Mushroom and Vegetable, Salad and Rice. The BBQ Chicken Skewer had a nice sweet grilled fragrant from the Teriyaki Sauce. The Mushroom and Vegetable was well simmered in the soya sauce base broth, soft and tasty that goes very well with the rice.

Yakitori & Kinoko Nitsuke Set 4/5

To get here, take MRT to Marymount station and go to exit A. From exit A, walk about 100 metres to Upper Thomson Road. You will see a SPC petrol kiosk. Cross the road and take bus number 52, 132, 162, 163, 165, 166, 167, 855 or 980 from the bus stop. Alight one stop later and walk about 260 meter to Sangokai.



Sangokai Japanese Restaurant
203 Upper Thomson Road
Nearest MRT: Marymount (CC Line)

Opening Hours:
Mon-Sun: 1130am - 230pm, 6pm - 11pm
(Closed on Wed)

View Larger Map

Peach Garden Restaurant @ Thomson Plaza

May's monthly foodies and twitter friends gathering was at Peach Garden Thomson Plaza for the Dim Sum buffet from 3pm to 5pm. It was also a birthday celebration for Maureen aka Miss Tam Chiak. It was a surprise for Maureen and she was supposed to be attending some food tasting session.

Before 3pm, a large crowd already gathered outside the restaurant. Everyone was only allowed to be seated exactly at 3pm. This was my first time having dim sum buffet and I didn't know it was so competitive! Luckily we had a big group and distributed ourselves to queue and grab any dim sum that was available.

Overall the dim sum were pretty good but limited in varieties for the buffet. If you want to try other stuff such as custard bun, you need to order from the ala carte menu

Egg Tart

Carrot Cake

Braised Beancurd

Vinegar Pig Trotter

BBQ Pork Rib

Fried Fish

Deep Fried Sesame Balls & Mochi

Fried Shrimp Dumpling

Pork Ribs

Dumpling

Something different and not expected at dim sum buffet, ICE CREAM! Listen out to the bell ringing and ice cream will be served.

The group also bought Maureen's favourite durian cake from Goodwood Park Hotel. Look how happy our birthday girl was.

To get here, take MRT to Marymount station and go to exit A. From exit A, walk about 100 metres to Upper Thomson Road. You will see a SPC petrol kiosk. Cross the road and take bus number 52, 132, 162, 163, 165, 166, 167, 855 or 980 from the bus stop. Alight 2 bus stops later and walk to Thomson Plaza.


Peach Garden Restaurant
Thomson Plaza
301 Upper Thomson Road
#01-88
Singapore 574408
Nearest MRT: Marymount (CC Line)

Opening Hours:
Mon-Fri: 11am - 230pm, 6pm - 10pm
Sat-Sun: 10am - 230pm, 6pm - 10pm

View Larger Map