cold appetizer station

went with my OPS primary school classmate for lunch at the line on 28.9.2016. ^^

the line is a new inclusion in amex lovedining, so we have 50% discounts for 2pax for the S$62pax buffet lunch.

this maybe the second time i came here. the first time probably like maybe 5yrs ago when there was also some 50% discounts. didn’t leave an impression then, didn’t leave an impression this time round too.

oysters

the cold appetizer station quite limited  oysters, mussels, clams, prawns.

oysters freshly shucked, sweet, plump but left a bit metallic taste on the palate.

oysters, mussels prawns

prawns were good, like most buffets. mussels, clams can do without.

sashimi station

there’s only salmon, maguro (tuna) & tako (octopus) at the sashimi station.

sushi station

& sushi no attraction for me, so i just took the atlantic surf clam & the reverse maki, ignored the scallop entrails & seaweed, no unagi sushi.

salmon & tako sashimi, atlantic surf clam sushi & reverse maki

the salmon belly sashimi was very good though, very fresh, nice cut, sweet.

salmon & tako sashimi, atlantic surf clam sushi & reverse maki

the sushi rice here quite good, tako so so la…

oysters & salmon belly

i had a second helping of oysters & salmon belly.

sushi, adegashi tofu, cha soba

ebi sushi no attraction for me. adegashi tofu mediocre, cha soba poor.

roasted lamb dish

the roasted lamb was tender & moist, should be quite good, but i forgot to get sauce & did not bother to go back for it, so taste quite bland.

baked salmon

baked salmon quite ok. took just tiny bits to try.

roasted lamb, grilled veg, baked salmon

the grilled vegetables were good, reminded me of pontini eons ago.

dimsum dishes

har gao was good.

my friend took the siew mai. i tried abit. it was good.

i took the orange skin dumpling. this was quite poor not worth trying, skin was thick & fillings were not tasty.

satay

satay was good. i took only 1 chicken satay.

satay & sambal seafood

tried the sambal seafood items.

sambal seafood,roasted lamb, grilled veg, baked salmon

buffet items – friend’s photo

good tasty if robust dish. a competent dish quite ok if no other food.

indian dishes

indian station probably the best food.

dimsum & indian lamb dish

marvellous indian lamb dish

lamb was especially good. very well marinated & properly chargrilled, very flavourful.

i took a bit of paneer (cottage cheese), always good, a prata with dahl & chicken curry.

roast duck, toast pork, char siew, poached chicken

the roast duck was poor, like an average hawker standard,

not even flavourful like chinatown stall or roast duck at joyful palace 怡乐坊, clementi coffeeshop stall,

and so no comparison with (a) canton paradise, (b) house of roasted duck or (c) tunglok signature etc….

laksa

laksa also poor. & too sweet.

prima laksa sauce standard or poorer.

popiah

popiah was good.

popiah

skin was good, thin, firm, not broken up. good chilli, nice wrapping & cutting (inconsistent, some i saw were quite poor). the trick is to ask for smaller amount of ingredients. then it will be manageable, neat & tidy.

cheese

cheese was ok not fantastic.

cheese

i had the brie, english blue stilton, nuts, jam/compotes, dried fruits.

cheese

small amounts. i like cheese, this nothing too great but i enjoyed it nonetheless.

nonya kueh

i took only the lapis sagu.

dessert

ignore the cakes. my friend took the chocolate mousse. i tried a bit it was good.

fruits & nonya kueh

& i had to try the choc lava cake.

choc lava cake

very ordinary, nothing to look at, good chocolate taste, no much lava so not that exciting.

yogurt ice cream

soft yogurt ice cream ok, not my favourite.

3 flavour ice cream

we had 3 flavours ofice cream, mango sherbert, sallted caramel (the best!!) & a pecan one.

cappuccino

& rounded off with a nice creamy cappuccino.

overall for me the buffet was quite mediocre, nothing that attracts me. likely even at 50% discounts=S$31++pax, i still would not be interested to come back.

& at S$62++pax for this food if no discounts, then it is to me overly expensive & not much meaning…

i guess that applies to most buffets for me.

i used to quite like equinox. but now the buffet like reduced 1/2 in size at the same price (S$59pax 50% discounts for 2pax).

the only attraction for equinox is it is a semi-buffet, meaning you order a fine dining main course dish.

here at the same, there is hardly any good standard main course except the indian station.

the point, 2 of us were saying, is that it is not that the standard of dishes here are poor, but they are mostly mediocre.

so if i rather go to eat good/top quality sashimi or pasta or roast duck or laksa or western main courses in small amount than to eat a lot of mediocre food here, & some poor ones like the roast duck & laksa.

not sure i would come back at all. if i do i will just do a bit oyster, sashimi, indian food, a bit dimsum, cheese & enjoyed the few i like.

c.h.e.f andy

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

#1 JB Ah Meng 三楼米粉

we had a lot less RI G20 makans this year.

this time, the organiser chose JB Ah Meng. we had 16pax dinner on 27.7.2016. ^^

recently michelin released a list of bob gourmand eateries in singapore & JB Ah Meng is one.

great! i have been wanting to try this place since lately my OPS friends have been introducing me to 三楼米粉.

a vegetarian friend joined us later after dinner. he always made an effort to join us after our makan if he can.

JB Ah Meng

JB Ah Meng is located between lor 23 & aljunied road.

i turned around couple times but unable to get street parking, so parked at KH Plaza along aljunied road.

#2 famous white pepper crabs – 2 medium crabs S$48

i was a bit cautious, ordered only 8 dishes & medium serving.

later i asked the guys whether they wanted to add dishes, they did not need. a good thing too as we don’t need to eat too much at our age la…lol! 🙂

#2 famous white pepper crabs – 2 medium crabs S$48

white pepper crabs was done well, sweet, tasty. crabs were ok not super.

#1 JB Ah Meng 三楼米粉 _ S$14

#1 JB Ah Meng 三楼米粉 – S$14

the signature 三楼米粉 was excellent!

it was not the most crispy version but it was tasty, moist, flavourful, a wonderful dish.

seng kee’s 香煎米粉or三楼米粉 fried beehoon

not sure it was better than the香煎米粉or三楼米粉 i had recently at seng kee which was more crispy & also very good. 🙂

i was quite inspired by seng kee that i went back & did a 三楼米粉myself. haha! ^^

#3 brinjal potato with chilli dish – S$12

the potato dish recommended by a few reviewers was good.

& in fact most of the dishes were done well & tasty even though not much special.

#4 kampung chicken with mushrooms – S$22

kampung chicken also good taste. serving small, bony & not that much meat.

#5 fishhead 金香鱼头 – S$24

#5 fishhead 金香鱼头 – S$24

金香鱼头 also small serving & mostly bones. quite ex for me at S$24.

#5 fishhead 金香鱼头

good thing the dishes all mostly quite tasty & flavorful. 🙂

#6 crispy lotus roots – S$12

crispy caramelised lotus roots good too! accompanied by snake beans, crunchy & fresh.

#6 crispy lotus roots – S$12

quite a good dish, not so common & nice to try.

#7 beancurd _ S$18

3 mushrooms beancurd was quite ordinary. for me the poorest of the dishes.

#7 beancurd dish – S$18

sauce was very ordinary, mostly like oyster sauce taste, not like very tasty tofu dishes at (say)

• minced pork tofu at kok seng
• or the tofu prawn dish at sik bao sin.

(both are also bib gourmand eateries now).

#8 青龙菜 – S$12

a friend wanted the 青龙菜.

it was good, like chives & tender. & good wok hae! so done quite well la..

price S$328 for 16pax

dinner was S$328 for 16pac which was just like S$20.50pax nett so overall price was ok.

if i had ordered a bit more dishes of larger dishes, probably say S$30pax, not really like cheap for zi char but quite ok la i guess.

we were seated 8pax on 2 tables. nice food & good time together with friends.

c.h.e.f andy

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

yong tau foo 

so we had a 5pax family lunch outing at holland drive food centre this morning on 25.9.2016.

we shared what i thought was expensive not great kueh chap & braised duck at cheng heng.

hakka noodle yong tau foo 

& daughter ordered 2 bowls of ytf at hakka noodles.

yong tau foo 

name is hakka but it felt more like hock chew?

the 釀 meat fillings were pork & not fish meat??

wife & daughter didn’t like it much.

soup was ok. ytf was non-descript. we left about 4 pieces uneaten.

i did not mind the noodles & chilli with some ikan bilis. but far from anything worth eating la.

c.h.e.f andy

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Hakka Noodles

Address:

Holland Drive Food Centre, #02-15

44 Holland Dr, Singapore 270044

kueh chap

went for 5pax family lunch at holland drive food centre on 25.9.2016. ^^

today we shared some duck & kueh chap.

and daughter ordered 2 yong tau foo from hakka noodles.

cheng heng kueh chap

cheng heng kueh chap is a popular stall here.

cheng heng kueh chap

long queue.

i wonder why after trying the food?

but there’s always a reason. so i guess most people actually like the food. & in the end things are relative, just a matter of comparison.

kueh chap

the kueh was ok, soft. the gravy/sauce though not so tasty.

kueh chap

the intestines & pig skin were good, texture & taste, tau kua also good, taupok so so not soft enough not well infused yet, kong bak too fatty.

lor nerng (braised egg) was good. chai buay was not. not tasty like those teochew muay ones.

the duck was the poorest of the lot. duck not “pang” (flavourful) at all, meat too soft.. i forgot to take photo as it came last.

(cheng heng’s duck was like less than 1/2 the serving of happy duck’s 1/2 duck for S$18 in the photo below).

& it was S$26 for very little food.

bukit merah view FC happy duck’s 1/2 braised duck S$18

bukit merah view happy duck’s pigs ear, intestines, pig skin & lor bak S$10

so as i said everything just a matter of comparison.

c/w the S$30 duck & kueh chap lunch for 5pax guys i had at happy duck bukit merah view food centre on 16.6.2015?

for me, actually simply no comparison la..how to compare???

lor arh = braised duck

& if it was just a matter if taste & not price, then my own lor arh would be just a lot better lor..

lol! 🙂

c.h.e.f andy

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Cheng Heng Kway Chap & Braised Duck

Address:

Holland Drive Food Centre, #02-05

44 Holland Dr, Singapore 270044

S$4 mee pok tar 

wife having dinner with her friends. children eating out.

decided to have a quick early dinner at jln tua kong mee pok tar at 6th avenue on 22.9.2016. ^^

jln tua kong mee pok tar @ 6th avenue 

i ordered the S$4 mee pok tar. really shiok la! 🙂

S$4 mee pok tar 

it’s really good S$4 mee pok tar…

everything good, the lar pok (crispy lard) the qq noodles, chilli especially good, minced pork, soup etc…

maybe fish balls not as good as xinlu at meiling food centre…

otherwise superb!

S$4 mee pok tar 

it was not too heavy, just nice for me la! ^^

c.h.e.f andy

++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Jln Tua Kong Mee Pok Tar

24 Sixth Ave, Singapore 276481

Good Good Eating House 好好餐室

steamed chicken feet 

wife finished late today.

we did not want heavy lunch so decided to take advantage of 25% discount for tea at crystal jade kitchen @ hollandv (3pm to 5pm) on 21.9.2016.^^

good timing to do some errands & got a seat at the restaurant at 3pm.

crystal jade kitchen @ hollandv-3.15pm

restaurant was quite empty at this hour.

har gao 

har gao was tasty.

skin breaking up a bit but skin & fillings both tasty. i took with some chilli, quite enjoy it.

steamed pork ribs 

steamed pork ribs were good.

tasty, and good amount of meat. tender too. good standard this.

& the steamed chicken feet (top photos). good too.

3-combo porridge =liver,kidney,meatballs

& we always like the porridge (or congee) here.

we ordered the 3-combo, with liver, kidney & meat balls.

3-combo porridge =liver,kidney,meatballs 

porridg very smooth 滑, very good standard.

the bill after 25% discounts-S$26 

basically this standard of dimsum & porridge is HK standard. maybe a bit more than HK prices.

with 25% discounts it was ok at S$26nett. maybe still more ex than HK.

c.h.e.f andy

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

very good ice lemon tea S$1.80

after an excellent best-value lunch at feng bo zhuang, we went to essen at the pinnacle for cuppa on 20.9.2016. ^^

pinnacle @ duxton

pinnacle just outside CBD, so cheap parking just S$1 per hour.

and you can just walk down to tanjong pagar market, where my OPS friend has a stall selling chickens.

i bought some apples, pears, spanish melon from a fruit stall there.

such a wonderfully designed HDB skyscraper.

look better than private condos la… 🙂

essen at the pinnacle

nice cafe. there is nice seating indoors.

also nice wooden tables & chairs outside.

we had a drink inside, then continue outside open patio. 🙂

essen at the pinnacle

view of the buildings from the outside patio.

ancient tree

& the ancient tree outside.

i had a cappuccinoS$2.40. the long black were similarly priced.

it was average, not great, but quite a lot lower price for brewed coffee.

the i had another drink – an iced lemon tea. this was very good. not like just tea with a lemon slice, but nice strong lemon drink with tea flavours. very good. not too sweet also.

they say the food there so so & expensive, like 3 chicken wings for S$8.50. i think also very limited choice. so not much business la…

the drinks seem ok. 🙂

c.h.e.f andy

#4 spicy fish 口水鱼 – S$18

we had 7pax dinner here last month on 16.8.2016.

food was ok for me and there were a few dishes i liked especially the trotters, duck soup, & the 百叶fried bean curd puff dishes.

we had a spare S$100 groupon voucher, so my OPS friend decided to come back today to feng bo zhuang 风波庄 for lunch on 20.9.2016 before the voucher expires. ^^

appetizer

we had chinese tea & appetizer, a spicy bean thing, slightly salty.

i saw on the bill (bottom photo) that they charged S$1pax, pretty ok.

#1 jelly fish – S$8

my 2 OPS friends ordered the dishes. & they were a lot better than the last time.

we had jelly fish, refreshing, quite standard, pretty ok.

#2 lamb, pork, chicken skewers – 10 skewers S$1 each

we had 10 skewers – lamb, pork chicken.

seasoning ok the peppery 羊肉串flavours but the not well bbq, don’t have the bbq flavours.

#3 frog in bamboo 竹筒牛蛙 – S$18

frog was poor the last time.

but this frog in bamboo 竹筒牛蛙  quite tasty, especially with the sauce at the bottom.

#4 spicy fish 口水鱼 – S$18

the spicy fish 口水鱼 looked wonderful, not quite the usual 水煮鱼standard.

the spices were actually quite good, flavourful, but the fish slices not great, not sweet, texture not great, not sure what fish this.

#5 chicken with 粉皮&金针day lily – S$18

the stewed chicken with mushroom dish was very tasty.

the soup was excellent though slightly salty, still drinkable.

#6 红烧雪菜小黄鱼braised yellow croaker – S$18

the 红烧雪菜小黄鱼braised yellow croaker with salted veg was excellent. the frying 煎made it very “pang” & the braising 红烧gave it the sauce flavours & moist texture, excellent 半煎煮preparation.

#6 红烧雪菜小黄鱼braised yellow croaker – S$18

for me the chicken soup & the 红烧雪菜小黄鱼braised yellow croaker were the 2 best dishes for lunch today.

#7 potato strips 土豆丝 – S$9

the julienned potato strips 土豆丝 was good, very competently done, excellent crunchy texture & sweet.

#7 spicy veg 干炒时蔬 – S$16

the spicy veg 干炒时蔬 was a bit wet, not so 干. veg were ok, good enough, the flavourful mala taste only at the bottom.

the bill

the bill for 7 dishes + the 10 skewers came to S$121.

so with groupon voucher S$50 discounts (S$50 for S$100 voucher), it was S$71 for 8 dishes for 5pax. a really good deal in my opinion.

today the lunch was very good. i enjoyed every dish (more or less), and the service was quite ok & pleasant.

it seemed so different from the last time –

• first we ordered dishes that was almost all good (for me only the skewers were food i didn’t need..), and service also…so ordering the right dishes make a huge difference.
• like i mentioned previously if you don’t need to ask questions, just order yourself the service was quite the usual & pleasant enough.

after this lunch, this a place i will come again if there is groupon offer, just maybe not too soon.

after lunch we went to essen @ pinnacle for some coffee & chit chat. 🙂

c.h.e.f andy

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

3tapas=chicken drumlets,pork ribs,mussel pot 

another unsuccessful attempt to have frog porridge at G7 sinma this evening.

no parking lots, lots of cars.

running out ideas where to go for light makan, then remembered i have groupon vouchers. so called up & got an outside table for 2pax at sixty40 @ rochester mall on 16.9.2016. ^^.

ballantine whisky and white wine 

groupon voucher for 2pax entitled us to 2 alcoholic drinks, but not cocktails.

i got a ballantine whisky & wife got a white wine. both are lousy, quite expected for the groupon price la.

sixty40 @ rochester mall

sixty40 @ rochester mall 

place has nice ambience, both inside & outside.

there is life music wednesday to saturday.

it was more fun to sit outside.

chicken drumlets 

we ordered 3 tapas for the applicable menu.

chicken drumlets were good, good flavour, wings still juicy, nice vinegar dip. we also asked for chilli.

mussel pot 

they had the cheap local mussels which was tough not so succulent.

but soup was great. so preparation ok good standard just the ingredients not the good mussels.

pork ribs 

pork ribs was excellent la! loved it! ^^

don’t know if i can make this pork ribs. i think louisiana. pork rib was tender & very tasty, smokey flavours.

not sure if it was just marinade or because of using a smoker or bbq. i can experiment the marinade & recipes but not do the smoking.

S$29.90 groupon voucher for 2pax=3tapas + 2alcoholic drinks 

groupon deal was quite genuine = S$19.90 for 3 tapas, which would have cost up to S$40++.

what i bought included 2 drinks for S$10 more at S$29.90. & we had the whisky & white wine at S$12 & S$11 outside happy hours (we were at at 8.45pm).

the deal expired now but guess it will come back. won’t mind having it again.

dart boards @ sixty40 

they have dart boards inside. some people were playing.

sixty40 @ rochester mall 

sixty40 @ rochester mall 

& nice ambience at the tables outside.

bar food not exactly my most preferred. but i quite enjoyed this evening. good tasty food with wonderful ambience.

c.h.e.f andy

++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Sixty40 @ Rochester Mall

S$4 ah hoe bak chor mee on 16.9.2016

after the community breakfast at PPH teban gardens community service centre, my OPS primary school classmate & i adjourned to ah hoe mee pok at blk 710 clementi west street 2 on 16.9.2016. ^^

was looking forward to this, especially after the below par, actually quite disappointing seng kee bak chor mee at serangoon gardens yesterday!

2pax queue ahead at 10.30am @ ah hoe bak chor mee on 16.9.2016

we arrived about 10.30am. there is not much queue, just 2 pax before us.

we ordered a S$4 mee pok each (the no. 2 bak chor mee style, they also sell the no. 1 fish ball noodles style)

S$4 ah hoe bak chor mee on 16.9.2016

this my 4th time here, the last time was on 3.2.2016, and it was good every time, today included! ^^

S$4 ah hoe bak chor mee on 16.9.2016

there’s lots of ingredients for S$4, lots of minced pork, sliced pork. pork balls, mushrooms etc & not too much mee pok, just perfecto for me la…

the mee pok was qq, quite perfect (unlike the quite unacceptable soggy mee pok i had at seng kee yesterday).

the chilli sauce over taste was very good, just not spicy enuf, not enuf kick for me,i took some chilli paste from them but that was not enuf, so i added a bit of chilli padi without the fish sauce. they also have the garlic sauce like what they used for ramen in japan, but i quite ok without that.

they served a chashu men japanese ramen style (S$6/S$7) on weekends only. maybe i will come & try that 1 weekend. 🙂

braised pork trotters (ter kah) @ ah hoe bak chor mee on 16.9.2016

today i tried the ter kah braised pork trotters.

the skin gelatinous part texture ok. the mushroom sauce taste not my preferred style.

braised pork trotters (ter kah) @ ah hoe bak chor mee on 16.9.2016

i liked both the common styles the lor 鲁 type seved in most bakuteh & other trotter stalls, and also the vinegared trotters. both are more “pang”. this one the sauce is just the similar mushroom sauce for the bakchormee. & i feel the texture of the lean part is not as good.

c.h.e.f andy

++++++++++++++++++++++++

Ah Hoe Mee Pok

S$4 seng kee 胜记bak chor mee

went with a good RI friend for bak chor mee at seng kee 胜记at serangoon gardens food centre on 15.9.2016. ^^

long queue @ seng kee 胜记bak chor mee

this supposed to be the famous  stall at eunos then changi road before relocating to serangoon gardens. & the stall holder used to be known for clanging his ladle on a plate when he cooked his noodles.

long queue @ seng kee 胜记bak chor mee

it was almost 12pm, & there was a queue of about 8pax ahead of us, though when we collected our bak chor mee, there was only 1 person behind us.

seng kee 胜记bak chor mee

queue was maybe 15mins. we ordered a S$4 bowl dry mee kia. the chilli looked potent & great.

however after all these build up, the results was much below expectations la….

S$4 seng kee 胜记bak chor mee soup

today the soup was quite tasty….

surprisingly i forgot to check my own blog post that i made 2 years ago on 19.11.2014.

i said in the post then –

“that should have been promising, however the results were very disappointing. i would say the bakchormee was totally mediocre, can probably get better from any coffeeshop or hawker centre.

for us, the main failure was the chilli. i went to ask for more chilli. chilli looked potent but it had no taste no kick. my wife’s mee kia (thin noodles) was still qq, my meepok was becoming soggy.

the ingredients were quite good, with teepor (dried flatfish/sole) & her kilo (fish dumplings), mushroom sauce, liver, lean meat etc”.

==========================

and today i said on my FB-

Long queue…..

Quite surprise noodles soggy not qq …I thot any body can make qq noodles nowadays???

not really poor but definitely below expectations….soup good got tipor taste…good ingredients but chilli mushroom sauce oso not super… 

S$4 seng kee 胜记bak chor mee

2 times over a 2 year gap the same mediocre experience quite enuf for me. don’t think i want to try this bak chor mee again.

c.h.e.f andy

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Seng Kee Mushroom Minced Meat Noodle 胜记香菇肉脞面

Address:

Serangoon Garden Food Market, 49A Serangoon Garden Way, Singapore 555945

Contact:

8439 0434

Opeing Hours:

7:00am to 1:30pm (Sun and Mon off)

thai style fish head curry – S$25

we had wanted to go G7 sinma for frog porridge.

but there was a long queue. we not quite the queueing type, not for sinma frog porridge anyway though it is very good.

thai style fish head curry – S$25

only 2 of us. decided to just drop in at forture for thai style fish head curry on 12.9.2016. din have to wait long <10mins.

always good this.

the special slight sour, tangy sauce is a winning formula. & of course the fish head is very fresh. & lots of vege.

we eaten here many times. maybe only twice fish head not so fresh.

thai kailan – S$8

tired of sambal kang kong etc.

we decided to have a plain stir-fried thai kailan.

thai kailan – S$8

it was very good too.

the bill

price was ok for zi char places these days. not cheap not expensive also.

thai style fish head curry – S25

sometimes the restaurants give better deals with discounts etc.

but we need variety of food, preparation, and also ambience & mood.

it was a good dinner with wife. excellent fish head, good fried vege, ok prices.

c.h.e.f andy

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Forture Seafood

Address: