Decided to revive the blog after a few inspiring culinary experiences!
Watch this space for reviews on Stammtisch, SHIP restaurant, Da Paolo Il Giardino, Da Paolo Bistro Bar and more!
Saturday, November 28, 2009
Thursday, May 15, 2008
Gangnaroo Korean Restaurant
Tucked in a little alley-way just off the heart of the CBD area, this unassuming restaurant is a gem- a cosy eatery serving authentic, affordable Korean food. The family who runs the place don’t speak much English, but service was warm and friendly nonetheless. The appetizers (e.g.: kimchi, nuts etc) came free with the meal and were topped up regularly. If I remember correctly, drinks (this sweet, cold, tea-like beverage) were also complementary. 
Price range: around $10 a person
The beef bulgogi was pretty decent, though I feel the beef could be a tad tenderer and less salty.
I’m not a huge fan of Bibimbab so I can’t comment, but (as you can see) my friend thought it was yummy.
Price range: around $10 a person
Pasta de Waraku (Central Mall)
I’m not a big fan of those fusion type places, so when my friends suggested going to a Japanese restaurant that attempts to put a Japanese twist on pasta, I wasn’t exactly jumping for joy. Pasta de Waraku at Central mall is yet another branch of the highly successful Waruku chain of restaurants. I’ve eaten at the flagship Waruku restaurant at Marina Bay
My Carbonara had already gone hard (and cold) by the time I started on it, and the raw egg had become a sunny-side-up (as you can see). It was decent enough, but a little too plain for my liking. I couldn’t taste much of the bacon and the cream sauce was quite bland.
We arrived at around 7pm on a Saturday night- without a booking. VERY bad idea. For some reason or another, the management simply refused to do call-backs (i.e.: taking down our phone number and calling us when a table is ready) and also refused to explain why.
It was stuffy, noisy and rather unpleasant. People kept jostling past us in order to get to the escalator, or to squeeze into the restaurant to check on their queue number. The manager attempted to appease us by offering little plastic cups of free drinks, but that did absolutely to assuage the increasingly hungry (and cranky!) us.
After one hour and fifteen minutes we finally managed to get a seat. Weak with hunger and annoyed at the fact that we’d just wasted an entire hour idling around, we were already irritable and grumpy. The ambience did utterly nothing to make us feel any better. We got a seat near the kitchen, cramped beside another table with barely enough space to squeeze our (not so huge) asses through. The music consisted of some loud, thumping clubbing-type songs (probably catering to the masses of clubbers who have dinner there before heading to MoS) – a rather weak attempt to mask the din of waiters and waitresses shouting of greetings to customers and orders to one another. Thankfully, the waitress who served us was rather gracious and did attempt to change the music when we told her we complained. Come to think of it, she was rather sweet, and extremely apologetic.
I must say, I can understand why the restaurant is perennially crowded. The set-meals ($16.80 each) consisted of salad, soup, a main course, and a choice of either gratin or pizza. Very affordable and definitely good value for money. We ordered the Carbonara, Spaghetti Bolognaise and another soup-type pasta (can’t remember which exactly). 
With four main courses, drinks, soup, salad plus three gratins on the table, there was simply no space left (as you can see).
Not wanting to play food jenga and have our pasta sauce congeal, we called the manager over. She explained that during busy periods they prepare similar dishes together and serve them at one go and that other customers have had similar complaints, but “company policy” dictated that they couldn’t do anything to change this. She was polite and extremely apologetic, offering to take the main courses away (but informing us that we would have to wait for the next batch to be cooked). We decided to hang on to our food, eat as quickly as we could, and get the hell out.
My Carbonara had already gone hard (and cold) by the time I started on it, and the raw egg had become a sunny-side-up (as you can see). It was decent enough, but a little too plain for my liking. I couldn’t taste much of the bacon and the cream sauce was quite bland. 
I tasted a little bit of my friend’s Bolognaise and it was way too sweet, leaving a horrible aftertaste.
To add insult to injury, halfway through our mains, an acrid smell wafted out from the kitchen. Not sure what they were cooking in there but it definitely smelt as if something was burning, making us lose our appetites instantly. The irony of it all? We spent more time waiting outside the restaurant than actually eating inside of it.
The verdict – value-for-money set meals, but definitely not worth the wait. Pretty good service (can’t blame the waitresses/manager if it really is company policy) but extremely poor ambience. Food quality – mediocre. Perhaps only a few notches above Pasta Mania.
Wednesday, May 14, 2008
Tampopo (Liang Court)
Sorry for the long delay! I've been eating way too much and posting way too little. :P Hopefully this makes up for it!
I went to Tampopo over a few months ago so unfortunately I can't really remember the specifics (sorry!)
The cutesy pig on the logo is supposed to represent the famed Black Pig ramen, which unfortunately, none of us tried. Maybe next time!
The restaurant itself is located at the basement of Liang Court, near the Japanese supermarket- a pretty low-key place that's a tad hard to get to. Nonetheless, it was pretty packed and noisy on the both occasions I visited- a Friday and Saturday night. Another good sign? The presence of lots of Japanese families and even some typical Japanese businessmen eating their ramen whilst reading Japanese newspapers.
The service was passable. Being a typical Japanese restaurant, we received the customary (and rather forced) greeting when we arrived, and were quickly seated and given menus. Service was rather prompt but don't expect anything fantastic.
What really impressed me was the sheer variety and size of the menu. Besides serving various types of ramen (including their special Black Pig variety), there were several types of Japanese curries (my favourite!), the ubiquitious katsu-dons and the like, as well as many dishes I have never even heard of. Naturally, I ordered the Ishiyaki Beef Curry, which came in a HUGE hot-pot with a yummy raw egg on top. My main gripe about the way Japanese curry is served is the fact that most restaurants are extremely stingy with the curry gravy. Some (e.g.: Ichiban Boshi) even attempt to charge you if you request for extra curry. No problems here – there was more than enough curry to coat the yummy, soft Japanese rice and the very generous serving of tender beef. Probably one of the best Japanese curry dishes I’ve ever had – totally scrumptious!
Must tries- the milk tea pudding (melt-in-the-mouth!) and the green tea ice-cream (the red beans complement the ocha perfectly). The sponge cakes are also pretty decent and not overly sweet.
Not surprisingly, we couldn't resist ordering 5 different types of dessert even after a very heavy meal!
Oh yes, I forgot to add- prices are also pretty decent- desserts were around $5 each and main-courses were pretty much under $15 for most dishes.
Verdict- definitely one of the better Japanese restaurants out there, especially if you're a dessert fan.
I went to Tampopo over a few months ago so unfortunately I can't really remember the specifics (sorry!)
The cutesy pig on the logo is supposed to represent the famed Black Pig ramen, which unfortunately, none of us tried. Maybe next time!The restaurant itself is located at the basement of Liang Court, near the Japanese supermarket- a pretty low-key place that's a tad hard to get to. Nonetheless, it was pretty packed and noisy on the both occasions I visited- a Friday and Saturday night. Another good sign? The presence of lots of Japanese families and even some typical Japanese businessmen eating their ramen whilst reading Japanese newspapers.
The service was passable. Being a typical Japanese restaurant, we received the customary (and rather forced) greeting when we arrived, and were quickly seated and given menus. Service was rather prompt but don't expect anything fantastic.
What really impressed me was the sheer variety and size of the menu. Besides serving various types of ramen (including their special Black Pig variety), there were several types of Japanese curries (my favourite!), the ubiquitious katsu-dons and the like, as well as many dishes I have never even heard of. Naturally, I ordered the Ishiyaki Beef Curry, which came in a HUGE hot-pot with a yummy raw egg on top. My main gripe about the way Japanese curry is served is the fact that most restaurants are extremely stingy with the curry gravy. Some (e.g.: Ichiban Boshi) even attempt to charge you if you request for extra curry. No problems here – there was more than enough curry to coat the yummy, soft Japanese rice and the very generous serving of tender beef. Probably one of the best Japanese curry dishes I’ve ever had – totally scrumptious!
The best part about Tampopo is the fact that the quality of dessert matches (or even surpasses) the excellent main-courses. Unfortunately, the Scoop cake, arguably the best dessert at Tampopo, was sold out both times I visited (by around 8.30pm or earlier).
Must tries- the milk tea pudding (melt-in-the-mouth!) and the green tea ice-cream (the red beans complement the ocha perfectly). The sponge cakes are also pretty decent and not overly sweet.Not surprisingly, we couldn't resist ordering 5 different types of dessert even after a very heavy meal!
Oh yes, I forgot to add- prices are also pretty decent- desserts were around $5 each and main-courses were pretty much under $15 for most dishes.
Verdict- definitely one of the better Japanese restaurants out there, especially if you're a dessert fan.
Wednesday, April 30, 2008
梅光軒 - Baikohken ramen
I knew I mentioned that I was going to post about White Dog Cafe (that mushroom soup place) today, but since I just got back from Baikohken, I thought I might as well post about that instead. The impression's still fresh in my mind and the ramen's still fresh in my stomach, after all. :)
A shot of the interior. I remember being really surprised at how small the place was; it was like one of those tiny little family-run restaurants you see in Japan - practically a little niche in the wall with 15-20 seats, max.
You can see Brudder looking very amused at being photographed. The little area in the background on the left's the little kitchen that they cook the ramen in; just behind Brudder you can see a little picture saying "namara umai", whatever that means.
Here's what I got - corn and butter miso ramen with added charshu! $13.50 for the ramen plus an additional $2 for the charshu. The menu's actually pretty limited, if I remember correctly, all they have is four different kinds of ramen - normal, corn and butter, charshu and vegetarian. The only other variety you get is the kind of soup your ramen comes with - shoyu (soya sauce), shio (salt) and miso. The only other things I remember being in the menu were gyoza (which I ordered to try), dry ramen, and various drinks, including the ubiquitous japanese beer.
Anyway, back to the ramen. The servings were huuuuuge. As in so huge that I had trouble walking after dinner. And all I had before that was rice for lunch ages ago. So don't go unless you have a really empty stomach - don't say I didn't warn you. The soup was pretty good too, not as salty as some ramen I've tried. And the charshu was, to quote Brudder, godly. Imagine really thick and tasty slices on melt-in-the-mouth goodness. It was so good I almost regretted not getting the charshu ramen instead (which comes with twice the amount of charshu(!!)).
I also ordered gyoza since I wanted to see what high-class gyoza was like. Answer: Almost like normal gyoza except crispier and more garlicky. Not really worth the $5 tag for it (as Brudder said, $1 a gyoza is the reason why he doesn't normally order it whenever he goes for ramen).
In general, Baikohken is a place to which I'd go again - I've even decided what to try the next time I go (shoyu charshu ramen)! Try to go on an empty stomach, and remember to order ramen with charshu!
The service was of the typically-fantastic Japanese kind, but the place isn't air-conditioned, so you might want to avoid it on a hot day. Thankfully, they also serve a free-flow cold mugicha (麦茶 - roasted barley tea), which helps wash everything down nicely. Ramen costs from $13-15, depending on which you order, so be prepared to spend around that amount, with perhaps a couple of dollars extra if you decide to add toppings or share gyoza with a friend.
Baikohken ramen
7 North Canal Road
A shot of the interior. I remember being really surprised at how small the place was; it was like one of those tiny little family-run restaurants you see in Japan - practically a little niche in the wall with 15-20 seats, max.
You can see Brudder looking very amused at being photographed. The little area in the background on the left's the little kitchen that they cook the ramen in; just behind Brudder you can see a little picture saying "namara umai", whatever that means.
Here's what I got - corn and butter miso ramen with added charshu! $13.50 for the ramen plus an additional $2 for the charshu. The menu's actually pretty limited, if I remember correctly, all they have is four different kinds of ramen - normal, corn and butter, charshu and vegetarian. The only other variety you get is the kind of soup your ramen comes with - shoyu (soya sauce), shio (salt) and miso. The only other things I remember being in the menu were gyoza (which I ordered to try), dry ramen, and various drinks, including the ubiquitous japanese beer.
Anyway, back to the ramen. The servings were huuuuuge. As in so huge that I had trouble walking after dinner. And all I had before that was rice for lunch ages ago. So don't go unless you have a really empty stomach - don't say I didn't warn you. The soup was pretty good too, not as salty as some ramen I've tried. And the charshu was, to quote Brudder, godly. Imagine really thick and tasty slices on melt-in-the-mouth goodness. It was so good I almost regretted not getting the charshu ramen instead (which comes with twice the amount of charshu(!!)).
I also ordered gyoza since I wanted to see what high-class gyoza was like. Answer: Almost like normal gyoza except crispier and more garlicky. Not really worth the $5 tag for it (as Brudder said, $1 a gyoza is the reason why he doesn't normally order it whenever he goes for ramen).
In general, Baikohken is a place to which I'd go again - I've even decided what to try the next time I go (shoyu charshu ramen)! Try to go on an empty stomach, and remember to order ramen with charshu!
The service was of the typically-fantastic Japanese kind, but the place isn't air-conditioned, so you might want to avoid it on a hot day. Thankfully, they also serve a free-flow cold mugicha (麦茶 - roasted barley tea), which helps wash everything down nicely. Ramen costs from $13-15, depending on which you order, so be prepared to spend around that amount, with perhaps a couple of dollars extra if you decide to add toppings or share gyoza with a friend.
Baikohken ramen
7 North Canal Road
Tuesday, April 29, 2008
An appetiser
Right. I think this blog has been stagnant for long enough. That, and the pictures have been accumulating nonstop for ages now.
So what I'll be doing will be trying my utmost best to post at least one place per day over the next few days until I've covered my backlog before I forget everything bout the places I've gone to. Brief posts for now, and perhaps more detailed ones as time goes by. :)
So let's start with the long-awaited Outback Steak House:
This is an onion thingy that they're apparently famous for. Imagine this huge oily crispy onion ringy thingy that comes with a dipping sauce. I didn't touch it that time round due to a horrible sore throat I had on the day, but it looked the same as always - good, yet ever so sinful. I think it was under $10, which is pretty decent for an appetiser that the whole table can share.
The very same onion after it was attacked by six very hungry diners. :) (not including one somewhat-sad diner with a sore throat who was trying not to drool over it)
This was what I had - Salmon. Was the only practical thing on the menu due to my horrible throat - everything else was either crispy or served with fries. Not exactly the kind of thing you go to a steakhouse for. But then again, it was during Lent and I was abstaining, so it was the only thing I could've gotten, anyway.
I remember it as being pretty good, a really juicy piece of salmon for a pretty decent price of 20-ish dollars. Don't ask me about the veg. Not a terribly hot fan of boiled stuff, so it ended up on the plates of the girls.
What Jacq had - I managed to take a quick shot of it as she was directly opposite me. Notice all the blood, ugh. I'm not really a fan of stuff that looks vaguely alive, but according to her it was really nice and juicy. 20-30ish as well, I think. Oh, and it came with this really interesting-looking mashed potatoes that we thought was ice-cream at first. It had bits of potato skin in it, which was a very unique way of presenting a very otherwise-normal dish.
And finally, one thing that really amused us was the way they served their (free) bread - it was literally skewered by this huge knife and served on a wooden cutting board. Can't really remember much, aside from the butter being really light and fluffy! I heard some people go there just for the bread... Not me, though. I go for the onion that I can't eat due to a sore throat. *grumble*
All in all, it was a pretty good (and typical) night at Outback. Good if you like typical western food, and I guess I should mention that they serve a really mean chicken. I can't remember what it was called, but I seem to recall quite a few people having it that night. I should prolly go there again to try it out.
Tomorrow: French toast at this HK Cafe opposite Novena and possibly mushroom soup at this place whose name I've forgotten (if I have the time!).
So what I'll be doing will be trying my utmost best to post at least one place per day over the next few days until I've covered my backlog before I forget everything bout the places I've gone to. Brief posts for now, and perhaps more detailed ones as time goes by. :)
So let's start with the long-awaited Outback Steak House:
This is an onion thingy that they're apparently famous for. Imagine this huge oily crispy onion ringy thingy that comes with a dipping sauce. I didn't touch it that time round due to a horrible sore throat I had on the day, but it looked the same as always - good, yet ever so sinful. I think it was under $10, which is pretty decent for an appetiser that the whole table can share.
The very same onion after it was attacked by six very hungry diners. :) (not including one somewhat-sad diner with a sore throat who was trying not to drool over it)
This was what I had - Salmon. Was the only practical thing on the menu due to my horrible throat - everything else was either crispy or served with fries. Not exactly the kind of thing you go to a steakhouse for. But then again, it was during Lent and I was abstaining, so it was the only thing I could've gotten, anyway.
I remember it as being pretty good, a really juicy piece of salmon for a pretty decent price of 20-ish dollars. Don't ask me about the veg. Not a terribly hot fan of boiled stuff, so it ended up on the plates of the girls.
What Jacq had - I managed to take a quick shot of it as she was directly opposite me. Notice all the blood, ugh. I'm not really a fan of stuff that looks vaguely alive, but according to her it was really nice and juicy. 20-30ish as well, I think. Oh, and it came with this really interesting-looking mashed potatoes that we thought was ice-cream at first. It had bits of potato skin in it, which was a very unique way of presenting a very otherwise-normal dish.
And finally, one thing that really amused us was the way they served their (free) bread - it was literally skewered by this huge knife and served on a wooden cutting board. Can't really remember much, aside from the butter being really light and fluffy! I heard some people go there just for the bread... Not me, though. I go for the onion that I can't eat due to a sore throat. *grumble*
All in all, it was a pretty good (and typical) night at Outback. Good if you like typical western food, and I guess I should mention that they serve a really mean chicken. I can't remember what it was called, but I seem to recall quite a few people having it that night. I should prolly go there again to try it out.
Tomorrow: French toast at this HK Cafe opposite Novena and possibly mushroom soup at this place whose name I've forgotten (if I have the time!).
Sunday, February 24, 2008
Nude Food
We passed by this place while searching for a place to dinner at Vivocity yesterday:
Didn't manage to eat there as we weren't really looking for Thai food, but I think it would've been quite an interesting experience, heheh.
Anyway we ended up in White Dog Cafe, which is supposedly quite well-known for it's Triple Mushroom Soup. Took a bunch of pics; food will be reviewed sooner or later. Which is whenever I have the time to get down to it.
Didn't manage to eat there as we weren't really looking for Thai food, but I think it would've been quite an interesting experience, heheh.
Anyway we ended up in White Dog Cafe, which is supposedly quite well-known for it's Triple Mushroom Soup. Took a bunch of pics; food will be reviewed sooner or later. Which is whenever I have the time to get down to it.
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