Kimchi Chigae (Kimchi Stew with Pork) @ Manna Story

Walked into Manna Story and you will feel like you are in a garden. A very comfy place to have a meal.

Ordered the Kimchi Chigae which is Kimchi Stew with pork. The place serves 4 side dishes (Kimchi, anchovies, potatoes and coleslaw) with every main dish ordered. The Kimchi is nice but the anchovies is not crispy. Personally, I love the potatoes and coleslaw the most. 

Kimchi, anchovies, potatoes, coleslaw 

It took quite some time to serve the Kimchi Chigae - Queue was forming outside while I was waiting for the food.The broth is spicy but yet not too spicy that my stomach could not take it. The pork was tender and nice. However, there were very few pieces of pork for me to savor. The rice was quite dry but it went well with the soup. There were tofu, kimchi and glass noodles in the soup which made the whole dish more flavourful. 

Kimchi Chigae (S$12)

The food taste quite authentic, might be back to try the other dishes.

Plaza Singapura

68 Orchard Road #B2-22

Japanese Set Meals at MOF @ My Izakaya

Went to MOF @ My Izakaya at Tiong Bahru Plaza for dinner. It is having a "Everyday is MOF Day!" promotion now, so there is a different promotion for each day from Monday to Friday. I went on a Thursday and the promotion is "30% off your 2nd set meal with every order of 2 set meals." 

I ordered a Vegetables Hot Pot & Salmon Set ($20.80). It comes with a vegetables hot pot, salmon sashimi, pickles, raw egg and rice. There are 2 soup bases to choose from - sukiyaki soup or miso soup. I chose sukiyaki soup. Usually I enjoy my sukiyaki with pork but this set only comes with beef or salmon, so I had to settle for salmon since I don't take beef. Personally, I don't think salmon taste good when cooked in hot pot, so I ate the salmon slices raw and they taste fresh. The vegetables hot pot is okay. 

My friend ordered the Salmon Set Meal ($19.80) which comes with salmon steak cooked in teriyaki sauce, tori karaage (fried chicken) in tempura sauce, pickles, rice and miso soup. The salmon is good but the chicken tastes salty.   

For dessert, I ordered a Macha Imo ($6.80). Macha Imo is soft ice cream served with green tea sauce, red bean paste and Japanese sweet potato. The hot sweet potato tastes heavenly when eaten with the cold ice cream . I love it! 

By the way, each set meal also comes with a cup of tea or coffee. Overall, I find the set meals average. But, the Japanese desserts at MOF @ My Izakaya is a must try! 

MOF @ My Izakaya: 

302 Tiong Bahru Road, #02-16/17/18, Tiong Bahru Plaza, Singapore 168732

Fried Kuay Teow Mee @ Seah Im Food Centre

As direct as it is, the stall name of this Fried Kuay Teow Mee at Seah Im Food Centre is simply ""Fried Kuay Teow Mee". No fancy name, and the best part is a plate of the Fried Kuay Teow Mee (also known as char kuay teow) only cost S$2. Where can you find such an affordable price in Singapore？

Though cheap, the char kuay teow did not disappoint me. A very basic dish with the very traditional ingredients like cockles, fishcakes, the noodles and kuay teow was not too dry. Though greasy, but that is what a plate of char kuay teow is about - Is ok to spoil yourself once in awhile to indulge in "high-calorie'' local delight. There are also other price options available. 

Besides fried kuay teow mee, the stall also sells fried carrot cake, fried hokkien mee etc all for just S$2. It is located at Seah Im Food Centre which is just opposite Vivocity and near to our tourist attraction - Sentosa. Grab a bite at this food centre before you head to shopping or visit Sentosa. 

Seah Im Food Centre

2 Seah Im Road 

Stall #01-26

Yuan Yang & Teh C @ Toast Box

Toast Box is a cafe that sells traditional Singaporean beverages and food. Its signature beverage and food are traditional Nanyang (South East Asia) coffee and toast. There are many branches all over Singapore, and I dropped by the one at Suntec City the other day to rest my tired feet after shopping for hours. 

I ordered a cup of Yuan Yang ($2). Yuan Yang is actually coffee with tea, a popular way of drinking coffee and tea in Hong Kong. The taste is unique and the caffeine kept me alert for the rest of the day. 

 

My friend ordered a cup of Teh C ($1.80). Teh means tea while C refers to milk. Thus, Teh C is milk tea. I tried some of my friend's Teh C which is sweet and fragrant. I like it more than my Yuan Yang.    

Toast Box: 

1 Raffles Boulevard, #B1-126/127, Tower 5, Suntec City, Singapore 039593 

Mango Desserts @ Hong Kong Sheng Kee Dessert

Went to Hong Kong Sheng Kee Dessert at VivoCity for, well, dessert. As a mango lover, I was delighted to see the variety of mango desserts on the menu.  I ordered Mango Crystal Pearls and Grass Jelly ($5.30), Mango Pomelo Herbal Jelly ($5.30) and Mango Aloe Vera Sago ($5.30).

 

Among the 3 mango desserts, I like Mango Pomelo Herbal Jelly the most. Herbal jelly is supposedly good for the skin and helps to clear the body of heat and toxicity. Eaten on its own, herbal jelly has a slight bitter taste which I don't like. However, when served this way, the sweetness of the mango and mango syrup hid the bitterness of the herbal jelly.

Overall, I give this shop a thumb-up for the variety and creativity of its desserts. However, I find the desserts too sweet because I think they added too much mango syrup. For Hong Kong style mango desserts, I prefer another shop - Honeymoon Dessert.

Hong Kong Sheng Kee Dessert: 

1 HarbourFront Walk, #B2-25A, VivoCity, Singapore 098585 

East meets West Casual Dining @ KungFu Paradise

The concept of KungFu Paradise is "East meets West", which means it serves both Asian and Western cuisine. For Asian food, there are Hong Kong style rice and noodle dishes, Thai Tom Yam soup, etc. For Western food, there are pasta, burgers, grills, etc. A great place to go to when you are with a group of friends and everyone wants to eat something different.   

The Seafood Chilli Crab Pasta ($10.90) is a "East meets West" dish which serves pasta in our local chilli crab sauce. To my surprise, the chilli crab sauce tastes authentic and goes well with pasta. This dish may be a tad spicy for some but as a spicy food lover, I love it!    

The Chicken Cutlet "Babe" Rice ($10.90) is a Hong Kong style baked rice dish. And yes, I didn't spell the name wrongly. That's the restaurant's idea of humor, I guess. You can choose to have the baked rice with tomato sauce, cream sauce or curry sauce. I chose the curry sauce. The curry is Japanese curry, which means it tastes more sweet than spicy. The chicken cutlet is crispy  on the outside and tender on the inside, yummy!  

The French Toast with Ice Cream ($4.90) is normally served with vanilla ice cream, but I requested for chocolate ice cream instead and got it. It was also served with a bottle of maple syrup. The french toast tastes like doughnut, and tastes better with the maple syrup than with the ice cream.

Overall, the food is good and the price affordable. The restaurant absorbs GST and service charges, which means the price you see on the menu is the net price you pay. However, it charges 30 cents for a glass of water.

KungFu Paradise: 

2 Jurong East Central 1, #01-07, JCube, Singapore 609731

Herbal Roast Duck & Chinese Cuisine @ Dian Xiao Er

Yesterday was Father's Day in Singapore. My family and I headed down to Dian Xiao Er, a Chinese restaurant in Vivocity, for a celebratory dinner. The queue outside was very long when we arrived at 6.30 pm. The waiter passed us some menus and we placed our order while waiting for a table. When we got our table at 7 pm, our food was served almost immediately. We were impressed by the efficiency. 

Dian Xiao Er is famous for its herbal roast ducks, so of course we had to order that. In fact, we ordered 2 ducks - Duck Roasted with Ten Wonder Herbs ($13.60) and Duck Roasted with Wild Ginseng ($13.90). The herbs are said to be good for health, helping to relieve stress and fatigue, and to restore energy, etc. The taste of the ducks is sweet, but at the same time contains a subtle bitterness of the herbs. Great combination, yummy!      

For our veggie, we ordered Kangkong with Fermented Beancurd ($8.60). The saltiness of the fermented bean curd makes this a great dish to have with plain rice.  

I'm actually a lover of shark fins. However, I seldom eat them in recent years, due to the "Save the Sharks" campaigns that have been going on aggressively. The Fish Maw Thick Soup with Seafood ($16.90) is a great alternative to shark fins. The texture and taste closely resemble that of shark fins we eat at Chinese wedding dinners.

The Stir Fried Frog Legs with Spring Onion & Ginger ($16) is so tender that I feel like I'm eating chicken. The sauce is yummy and goes well with plain rice.  

The Yam Ring Delight ($19.30) is not bad. I wished the chef had put in more vegetables though.

We ordered the Wheatgrass Tofu ($12.60) because it sounds really healthy. The tofu (bean curd) has a smooth texture and the taste of the wheatgrass is subtle, not overwhelming. Quite a special dish which is worth trying.    

Overall, we had a sumptuous and healthy dinner. The signature herbal ducks are a must try!

Dian Xiao Er: 

1 HarbourFront Walk, #02-137/138, VivoCity, Singapore 098585 

  

Saint Marc Cafe @ Vivo City

Tea-time while waiting for dinner. The hot weather made cold dessert much more appealing and thus, we decided to go Saint Marc Cafe. Beside drinks, they serve a range of food from pastries and sandwiches to parfaits and Japanese desserts. It has a free-seating concept and you got to go to the counter to place your order. A buzzer was given to us so to alert us to collect our order at the counter when the order is ready. At the front of the food counter, you can choose the ready-made pastries and at the cashier, you can order the the drinks and desserts. 

We ordered the chococro which is croissant with chocolate filing. It is nice especially when is still warm. The outer layer is crispy while the centre is soft. The chocolate filing adds flavour to the buttery croissant.

Chococro

Next up is the Kyoto Delight which took a while to be ready. One look and we can see the milk soft serve, complemented by matcha ice-cream, red bean paste. mochi and mini rice balls. But as we ate, we discovered the pound cake and cornflakes buried underneath. What a nice surprise and combination for a cup of dessert. Yummy! However, it became too sweet at the end as all the syrup was at the bottom of the cup. 

Kyoto Delight

Will be back to try out their drinks and sandwiches soon! 

Saint Marc Café 

1 Harbourfront Ave, Vivo City 1F #108-110, Singapore 098585 (Harbourfront MRT) 

Opening hours: 10 am – 10pm

Ayam Penyat Ria @ Lucky Plaza

Heard of Ayam Penyat Ria through friends and their facebook posts that the food there is nice. Queue can be formed during the meal time. Decided to head there for lunch while shopping in Orchard. 

There are 2 outlets located at Lucky Plaza and we headed to the shop at level 1. At 11.30am, there is no queue and we were showed to our table promptly. Ordering of food is self-service - We were given a picture menu to help us decide on the food, complete the order paper and proceed to pay at the cashier. The service was prompt and drinks were served within minutes.

Left: Lava Boy (Blueberry mocktail with logan and  jelly
Right: Teh Botol Sosro (Indonesian Iced Tea)

Nothing special much about the drinks though. Within 5 minutes, the food were served. First up is the Tauhu Telur. A dish of crispy fried egg and beancurd with peanut sauce. The peanut sauce is sweet and nice and it reminds me of satay sauce. It really complements the beancurd well. The dish is not oily and it went well with rice. I even finished the shredded cucumber and carrot with the sauce. Look at the 'rooster' plate, so old school.

Tauhu Telur

Next up is the Ayam Penyet which I have came specially for. The dish comprised of a fried chicken with fritters, fried taukwa (beancurd), fried tempeh (fermented soybeans)and kangkung. Look at the scoop of sambal belacan. This is really spicy and a little of it was enough to make me sweat. The chicken is not served hot and I guess it could be due to them preparing it before hand. The chicken was small and the meat was quite dry. Was quite disappointed as I had eaten better ayam penyey before. 

Ayam Penyet

However, the special item on the menu - Ikan gurame penyet (if I remember the name correctly). The fish is piping hot and the meat is very nice. The first bite reminds me of fish and chips. The skin is crispy and the dish is not greasy at all. Totally prefer this to the chicken and it went well with the sambal belacan as well. Same as the ayam penyet, this dish came with the sides but was totally covered by the big fish. Should try if this is still the special item on the menu. Or maybe the shop can consider making it their permanent dish.

Ikan Gurame Penyet

We spent about S$30 for the whole meal. If you love fried spicy food or if you love to eat fish, this will be the place you got to visit. But be early as the crowd starts to swim in when it is lunch time, and the place was almost packed when we left.

Lucky Plaza #01-45 

(11.00am to 10pm daily)

They also have some other outlets in Singapore: 

Lucky Plaza #04-25 (12.00pm to 9pm daily) 

Far East Plaza #05-22 (11.30am to 10.00pm daily) 

Jurong Point #B1-06 (11.30am to 9.30pm daily) 

Bedok Point #01-05 (11.30pm to 1.00am daily)

Soft Shell Chilli Crab @ Japanese Gourmet Town

As mentioned in a previous blog article, Japanese Gourmet Town is a restaurant made up of 3 brands - Ajisen Ramen, Aji-Tei and Botejyu. Thus, you can enjoy a large variety of Japanese food there.

Went to try the Soft Shell Chilli Crab set ($15.90), which consists of Soft Shell Chilli Crab, a rice, a soup and Gyoza (Japanese dumpling).

Unfortunately, I have to say that I was disappointed with the Soft Shell Chilli Crab. The chilli sauce tastes sweet and sour, more like Thai style. The taste is nothing like our famous Singapore chilli crab. Forget this dish, just go for authentic chilli crab at one of the famous seafood places.   

Japanese Gourmet Town: 

1 HarbourFront Walk, #01-157/158, VivoCity, Singapore 098585 

  

板面干 @ 旺角手工面 (Wang Jiao Handmade Noodle)

Normally, when I think of eating 手工面 (handmade noodle), I will always link it to some soupy noodle dish. Does not know that the dry version of the 板面 brings out a new kind of taste to the noodle. 

Was at West Coast Market Square, craving for 板面 (a type of handmade noodle), I noticed 板面干 (dry handmade noodle) on the signboard of this stall -  旺角手工面. With this hot weather now in Singapore, I decided to go for the dry version. Also, the dry version is not very common in Singapore (yet). 

板面干 (S$3)

This 板面干 tastes really unique once you stirred up the whole dish. The special dark sauce added more flavour to the dish, making it sweet and yet not too salty. The sambal chili is good but I find it too spicy for my liking. Those who like spicy food will love it. They can definitely improve on their anchovies which is not very cripsy. The soup at the side is also yummy. I guess, if I'm around the area, I might go back for the soup 板面. Overall, I find it filling and nice for a lunch meal.

Oh, do remember to return your own tray at the designated drop-off point after you had your meal - a campaign by the government.

West Coast Market Square: 

Blk 726 Clementi West Street 2 #01-193

Grub (Bishan Park)

"A dinner date away from town" was a request from a friend. Thus, we decided to head to Grub (Bishan Park) which is recently opened on 1 May 2013.

We reached at around 7pm and the place was already crowded. They do not take reservations at Grub and thus, we were lucky that a table of four had just finished their meal.

I ordered the Slow Roasted Pork Belly with mango sauce, mash, cherry tomato salsa. This dish is good. It is not oily and the pork belly gives me the "melt-in-the-mouth" feeling. The mango sauce is refreshing and it goes well with the mash potato. The portion is just nice, saving the stomach for the desserts.

Slow Roasted Pork Belly (S$15)

My friends ordered the Grilled Chicken Thigh Burger with peanut butter aioli and fried enoki, Grilled Chicken Leg with honey feta, roasted peppers, mash, and rocket & corn salsa and Pork Steak Burger with apples and cashew chimichurri (Optional add-on of a fried egg). The burger set comes with a cup of fries.

I did not try their food except the fries, but their overall comment on their food was good but some found the portion a little too small for their stomach. I find the fries normal though.

1. Grilled Chicken Thigh Burger (S$10.50)
2. Grilled Chicken Leg (S$15)
3. Pork Steak Burger (S$12) with fried egg (S$2)

Desserts is a must must for a dinner date -

We ordered the Belgium waffle with grilled banana, salty caramel and dark chocolate sauce. As one of my friend does not like caramel, we asked for the caramel to be served separately. The waffle was crispy on the outside and soft on the inside. The combination of chocolate sauce and salty caramel really goes well with the waffle. With the grilled banana (not just plain fresh banana), it just tasted great. The serving is just nice for 4-pax sharing as we went on to order the next dessert.

Belgium waffle with grilled banana, salty caramel and dark chocolate sauce (S$9)

Next on the table was Churros with dark chocolate and tangy creme anglaise. Not many places in Singapore serve churros. We waited quite a while for this. Not sure if they missed our order or they fried freshly upon order. The churros came piping hot and fresh. Like the waffle, the churros were soft and fluffy on the inside, yet cripsy on the outer layer. It came with 2 dips, the dark chocolate and tangy creme anglaise. Personally, I prefer the tangy creme anglaise sauce. It brings out a refreshing taste but the dark chocolate was my friend's love.

Churros with dark chocolate and tangy creme anglaise (S$8)

Hand crafted beers are also in their menu and they are priced at S$10 per bottle. Quite a reasonable price for people who likes to try out the different type of beers like Pear Cider, Ginger beer etc from various countries.

All in all, it was a nice chill-out dinner place at Grub and I'm sure I'll be back again, to try out the Brunch Menu.

As mentioned earlier, they do not take reservations at Grub, so you should probably go earlier to grab a table before the dinner crowd starts streaming in. Oh, did I mention, they allow pets in their outdoor sitting area. But be mindful that they are located in a park. My friends got bitten by mosquitoes within the short waiting time while they prepared for our table.

510 Ang Mo Kio Ave 1 (Bishan Park 1) Singapore 569983 

Open: 5:30pm-10:30pm (Tues-Fri); 9:00am - 2.30pm, 5.30pm - 10.30pm (Sat - Sun) Closed on Mondays and the last Tuesday of every month

Korean Minced Meat Sauce Noodle (Jajangmyeon) @ Song of The Prince Korean Cuisine

The most delicious bowl of Korean Minced Meat Sauce Noodle (Jajangmyeon) I ever had was in Lotte World Theme Park in Seoul, when I was a tourist there a few years back. Now, when I watch Korean dramas and see those people in the show eating jajangmyeon, my mouth waters and I feel like flying to Korea just for those delicious noodle. Unfortunately, I'm not that rich. Thus I have been looking around for good jajangmyeon in Singapore. Unfortunately, I have yet to do so. Thus I decided to give the jajangmyeon in Song of The Prince, a popular Korean eatery in Bukit Merah Central, a try. 

The jajangmyeon here cost $5.50 and comes with a Korean seaweed soup and 2 banchan (side dishes), kimchi and spicy anchovy. The soup and the banchan are mediocre. As for the jajangmyeon, horrible. It tastes nothing like the jajangmyeon I had in Lotte World Theme Park. The sauce is watery and bland, unlike the thick and savory sauce I had in Korea. The chef was stingy with the minced meat, I could hardly find any in the sauce. This dish should be taken off the menu, just saying.  

Song of The Prince Korean Cuisine: 

Blk 164 Bukit Merah Central, Singapore 150164

Day Night Fried Kway Teow @ Bukit Merah Central Food Centre

Day Night Fried Kway Teow is a popular stall in Bukit Merah Central, and said to be one of the best fried kway teow stall in Singapore. I went down specially for it a few weeks ago on a Thursday, and it was closed. That's when I found out that it closes on alternate Thursdays. Went again today and finally got to try the famous fried kway teow ($2.50).   

The fried kway teow came with half a lime, and I squeezed its juice into the dish. I have never eaten fried kway teow like this before. However, I could hardly taste the juice as the sweetness and spiciness (I asked for chili) of the fried kway teow overwhelmed the sourness.  

Recently, there have been some discussion about how the authentic taste of hawker food in Singapore is disappearing. Well, here is one fried kway teow that tastes deliciously authentic.

Personally, I prefer Lao Fu Zi Fried Kway Teow at Old Airport Road Food Centre, which I blogged about previously. However, Day Night Fried Kway Teow is definitely still worth a try.  

Day Night Fried Kway Teow: 

Blk 163 Bukit Merah Central, #02-29, Singapore 150163

Thunder Ramen & Gyokai Cha Shu Ramen @ Japanese Gourmet Town

Japanese Gourmet Town is a restaurant made up of 3 brands - Ajisen Ramen, Aji-Tei and Botejyu. Thus, you can enjoy a large variety of Japanese food there. It is selling a Thunder Ramen now, and as a spicy food lover, I had to give it a try. The Thunder Ramen is $12 a bowl while the set which comes with 1 ala carte and a drink (green tea or iced lemon tea) cost $15.90.

The Thunder Ramen does not taste as hot as its name suggests, which is disappointing. Apart from that, it is a decent bowl of ramen, and the noodle has a nice springy texture.

For the set, you get to choose 1 from 13 basic ala carte items - Fried Prawn, Fried Tofu, Cuttlefish, Grilled Chicken Wing, California Maki, White Fish, Edamame, Butter Corn, Fried Ika (squid), Fried Chicken, Chuka Hotate (scallop), Baby Octopus, and Chicken Cutlet. I ordered the Baby Octopus, which tastes a bit salty. I didn't really like it.

I also tried the Gyokai Cha Shu Ramen set. Gyokai Ramen is ramen with fish or seafood broth. The ramen itself is $13 a bowl while the set which comes with 1 ala carte and a drink (green tea or iced lemon tea) cost $16.90. The noodle in this restaurant has a nice springy texture (as mentioned before) and I rather like the sweet taste of the gyokai soup. The cha shu (braised pork belly) is nicely marinated, but the texture is not tender enough.      

As mentioned before, you get to choose 1 from 13 basic ala carte items for the set. I chose the Fried Tofu (bean curd). The tofu has a smooth texture, and as tofu itself tastes bland, it goes well with the slightly salty sauce.

Overall, I find the taste of the ramen in Japanese Gourmet Town average. For ramen, I will go somewhere else next time. However, I spotted an item on the menu which looks interesting - Soft Shell Chilli Crab. I may be back to try that next time.

Japanese Gourmet Town: 

1 HarbourFront Walk, #01-157/158, VivoCity, Singapore 098585 

Mel's Drive-In @ Universal Studios Singapore

When I went to Universal Studios Singapore on Wednesday, I had lunch at Mel's Drive-In. The decoration of the restaurant is really nice and brings you back to the 50s. I can't say the same for the food. 

As expected, food and drinks sold at theme parks are relatively expensive. I ordered the Tender Fish Burger ($11) and added $1 for Cheezy Fries. My friends ordered the Crispy Chicken Burger ($11) and Chili & Cheese Burger ($11) too. One of them added $1 for Onion Rings. Anyway, all burgers are served with fries, but not with a drink. So you have to pay a few dollars more for a drink which makes the meal quite expensive.  

The thing I like about my fish burger is the vegetables taste fresh. However, the sauce tastes bland. Overall, the burger tastes average. I'd choose my McDonalds Filet-O-Fish over it any day. The cheezy fries are good because I love cheese.
 

  

Overall, I find the food at Mel's Drive-In expensive for the quality. But hey, this is a theme park, what do you expect?

Mel's Drive-In: 

8 Sentosa Gateway, Universal Studios Singapore, Singapore 098269

Spicy Cabbage with Toufu Soup (Kimchi Chigae) @ Song of The Prince Korean Cuisine

This is a popular shop at Bukit Merah Central where you can savour a large variety of Korean food at affordable prices. 

Tried the Spicy Cabbage with Toufu Soup a.k.a Kimchi Chigae ($5.50). It comes with rice and 2 banchan (side dishes). The banchan, kimchi and spicy anchovy, are mediocre. The soup is more sweet than spicy. Unfortunate for me as I like my kimchi soup hot and spicy. 

You can choose the meat to put in the soup - chicken, pork or beef. I chose pork and I find it overcooked and not tender enough. The kimchi in the soup is good but the toufu (bean curd) has a rough texture, which I don't like. 

Song of The Prince Korean Cuisine: 

Blk 164 Bukit Merah Central, Singapore 150164