Our Deepest Fear ...

Dear all,

I would like to share this really inspiring quote with everyone:

“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It's not just in some of us; it's in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.”

Reference: Williamson, Marianne (1996). A Return to Love: Reflections on the Principles of A Course in Miracles. New York: HarperCollins.

For more information on the internationally acclaimed Author, Marianne Williamson, this is the link: http://www.marianne.com

Touching Marriage Proposal!

Hi all, :)

I want to share this touching marriage proposal video. Timothy Tiah, the Co-founder of Nuffnang was recently engaged. Congrats!!

Meme Proposal | Tim * Audrey from Crazy Monkey Studio on Vimeo.

Really sweet and touching! :)

Dear all, :)

On the last weekend of November, I went to Swensen's for lunch with a friend. =)

This is my first visit since several years ago. Reason? Found the food and ice cream rather average. But I believe in positive change thus, I've decided to reopen my senses and mind to trial.

Since it is the Christmas season, Swensen's whipped up a Christmas dine-in menu:

6 Main Courses
(Ranges between $8.90 to $22.90):

- Hearty Soup (A vegetable broth with chicken bites)
- Turkey and Chicken Ham Salad
- Grilled Turkey Breast (See my review below)
- Roasted NZ Ribeye
- Baked Barramundi with Mustard Cream
- Fried Dutch Milk Fed Veal Cutlet

12 Sundaes of Christmas
(Innovative Christmas-themed names, ranges between $8.90 to $10.90):
Off the top of my mind..
- Gingerbread House
- Merri-Mint Macaron

I ordered a Grilled Turkey Breast main course ($16.90). This happens to be my first Christmas-inspired meal.


My Review (Overall, 3/5):
1) Grilled Turkey Breast - Not too tough and dry. Tastes like chicken to me. Comes with a chicken gravy which is slightly oily and really average.
2) Glazed Chestnut - Sugary sweet with a tinge of cinnamon. Great for lifting up the Christmas spirit!
3) Mashed Potato - Love the shape. Average-tasting.
4) Vegetables - Consists of carrots, cucumbers, baby tomatoes and something that tastes abit like potatoes. I find the vegetables oily.
5) Cranberry Sauce - It does a good job in adding flavour to the grilled turkey breast.

Christmas is a time for joy and laughters! So why not start by sharing a lovely meal with your loved ones? Let them know how much you treasure their company and warmth! =)

Christmas Trees in Orchard 2011

Dear all, :)

Christmas is just around the corner! Excited?! Me too!!! :)

Hereby, I wish everyone a joyful and fulfilling Merry Christmas 2011! Spend precious time with your loved ones!

I was at Orchard the other day. Busy shopping but not forgetting everyone on my blog, I took photos of four prominent Christmas Trees in Orchard!

Here is a simple Collage that I've made (in a hurry to catch the X'mas spirit!):


Go to Orchard and see if you can find the exact locations of the Christmas Trees! Please feel free to share your comments!

There is one more Christmas Tree in Orchard that I really like! It is the one just outside Orchard Ion. What's unique? It comes with an Observatory Deck!!!
Here is an article about the X'mas Tree: http://www.capitalandinside.com/index.php/spaces/leisure/984-innovative-festive-cheers-at-ion-orchard-light-up-lives

~Happy Holiday~ :)

Two Chefs Eating Place

Dear Fans,

How are you today? =)

Today, I am going to share with you a local Zi Char stall that my family and I have visited recently. I'm sure some of you have heard from its name.

Anyway, here is my two cents' worth of the signature dishes that we've ordered:

1. Butter Pork Ribs (Signature Dish) $8 - I love it when the bones are removed. This is actually more like Pork Chop. The meat is graciously tender. The butter powder is milky and slightly creamy, with a tinge of saltiness and spice. The curry leaves buried in the powdery "snow" manage to boost the dish to the next level. 3/5

2. Golden Mushroom Tofu (Signature Dish) $8 - The tofu is soft and not beany in taste. For me, the key in this dish is its sauce. Somehow, it tastes like Chili Crab sauce. Love the sauce. But the tofu fail to absorb the sauce. A slightly thicker sauce might be helpful. I really wish that the tofu can keep its heat. Put it on the hotplate or craypot, please? 3/5

3. Fried Prawn Ball in Salad Sauce (Signature Dish) About $20 - I love the crispiness and juiciness of the prawn balls. The mayonnaise sauce is good too. It has a tinge of sourness (the Chef probably added some lemon juice). The floss topping complements the dish by adding a hint of sweetness. 3.5/5

4. Tri-egg Chinese Spinach (Signature Dish) $12 - The name is derived from the number of egg types in this dish. These are Chicken, Salted and Century eggs. Heard some hype about this dish but, sorry to say it is a huge disappointment for me! Really ordinary in taste. I had much better ones. 2.5/5

The other three dishes that we've ordered are: Herbal Chicken Soup ($13), Prawn Rolls (Ngoh Hiang, $8) and Steamed Red Spotted Grouper ($36). The first and third dishes are fairly average, while the prawn rolls are way below average. The rolls are non-crispy and mushy.

Overall, the food was alright and the prices was reasonably good. If you happen to be at Commonwealth, you might like to drop by and have a tasting session with your loved ones.

Location / Operating Hours / Calling Number:
Blk 116 Commonwealth Crescent,
#01-129,
Singapore 140116
Mon: 5pm – 11.30pm
Tue–Sun: 11.45am–2.30pm, 5pm–11.30pm
Tel: 6472 5361

QQ Noodle House

Dear fans, :)

How is your day coming along? Great day, isn't it?

I was shopping at Bugis with my friend last week. She recommended QQ Noodle House. I was thinking why not? It is one of the cheaper eat-out places compared to other restaurants and cafes at Bugis.

Exterior: The vibrant colours and posters on the glass entrance of the store never fails to capture my attention. But it might be a double-edged sword. Clutter (blocking the full view of the interior, less clean-cut look) or attention-grabbing?

Interior: Ample lighting. As for seats, you have the choice of wooden and cushion seats. We wanted to take the cushion seats but the condition of some cushion seats was a major turn-off. In the end, we chose the wooden seats in the middle of the store. Generally, it is quite a comfortable environment for a chat.

Food Choices: Moderately wide number of choices. You can try their specialty noodles, or some of the popular Hawker-centre or Zi Char dishes (like Sweet and Sour Pork) or both.

Prices: For their QQ Noodle House Specialty, it is $5 (dry version, see below for the description) or $6 (soup). The cheapest Zi Char dish is about $6.

Customer Service: We ordered two bowls of QQ Noodle House Specialty. It was left at the serving counter for a few minutes. We were dead-hungry thus I approached the counter and asked if I could carry it back to my table. The guy at the counter was a little embarrassed. He called out to the waitress but there was no reply. Too hungry to wait, I grabbed the tray of food and went back to my seat.

Below are some photos that I've taken:

QQ Noodle House Specialty -

Consists of Kampua Noodles, Sweet Barbequed Pork ("Char Siew"), Minced Pork, Meat Dumpling ("Wanton"), a Fishball, a Meatball and Vegetables. I love the texture of the noodles. It is firm and chewy. The sauce is lovely! I can picture some pork lard, onion oil and soy sauce or MSG. The fishball and meatball were not that great. 4/5

Some background of Kampua vs Kolo Mee:

"Kampua noodles, which mean dry plate noodles in the Foochow dialect, are one of the specialties of Sarawak, right alongside kolo noodles. Although similar, kolo noodles originate from Kuching, while Kampua noodles hail from the Sibu district."
[Reference: http://www.sharesinv.com/articles/2010/11/30/myths-on-mee-debunking-the-myths-on-sarawak%E2%80%99s-kampua-noodles/]

FYI, the location of QQ Noodle House:

Bugis Village
231 Victoria Street
Singapore 188025

A Vegetarian Meal at Hwa Jin Vegetarian Family Restaurant

Dear fans,

Daddy, Mummy and I had a splendid dinner at Hwa Jin Vegetarian Family Restaurant, located in Bukit Gombak. We have been here a couple of times.
The exact location: 359 Bukit Batok ST 31 #01-393 Singapore 650359.

I love to be a Vegetarian once in a while. It makes my mind, soul and tummy feel better. At least psychologically. =)

Interior: The size is roughly a third of a coffeeshop. Casual, cosy and comfortable environment. Well-ventilated.

Price: So reasonable. On average, about $5 per dish.

Food: In general, I see a lot of efforts, be it appearance or taste. Overall, I would give them 4/5.

Here are some photos for your kind viewing:

Impressive Signboard, isn't it? It reminds me of a Martial Arts School.

1. Hokkein Mee - This is my favourite dish. Never fail to order it. It is a must-try for all. The vegetable stock-like gravy is superb. It brings up the flavour of the entire dish. 4.5/5

2. Fish in Sweet Vinegar Sauce - The fish is made up of Tofu Skin I think. I love the mouthfeel of this dish. It is thick enough for me to bite into. As the name suggests, you get the taste of sweetness and sourness from the sauce. The sauce is rather well-balanced. 3.5/5

3. Sweet Potato Leaves - I love this dish. It has this slightly burnt note. Wolfberries are added, which is an excellent complement in my opinion. I remember this dish used to contain Vegetarian Prawns. Apparently, the store has removed them. Oh well, the dish is still worth 3.5/5.

4.1 Fish in Sweet and Sour Sauce - The fish is coated with a layer of flour and send to fry. It doesn't taste oily due to the charm of the sauce. Well-balanced sweet and sour sauce. Don't worry, this dish is not spicy (if you worry about the chilies in the picture). 4/5

4.2 "Shi Jie Ming Pian" - I am not sure how the name is derived. But my Mum mentioned that this is a common name for the dish. Abalone Mushrooms are flour-coated and fried. They are simply mouth-watering. Because of the layer of flour, their moisture is retained and it gives you that crispness. Again, this is bathed in sweet and sour sauce. My favourite sauce! 4/5

4.3 Oyster Omelette ("Hao Jian") - Boy! Oyster Omelette is one of my favourite indulgences! This dish is not always available so I was lucky. The Chef uses mushroom instead of oysters but it still tastes good. Plenty of eggs used. Probably because of the comment that my Mum made when deciding whether to order (she said, "too much flour and so little eggs"). If it is so, the restaurant puts a lot of efforts in satisfying its customers. 3.5/5

I saw this poster containing some inspiring phrases and thought
I should share this.
Let me translate to English:

After saying, you do not listen.
After listening, you do not understand.
You do not understand but you do not ask.
After asking, you do not do.
After doing, you make mistakes.
You make mistakes, but you do not admit.
You admit but you do not change.
You change but you are reluctant.
You are reluctant but you do not say.

Well, I hope the above information is useful. Please share your comments if you have any. :)

Celebration @ Boon Lay Raja Restaurant!!

Dear all, =)

We had an advanced Birthday celebration for Dad as Dad and Mum will be in Europe on his Birthday. We decided to go to Boon Lay Raja Restaurant for lunch as Grandma likes the food.

After much deliberations, we decided to order individual dishes instead of a Set. Reason being I was having a sore throat and most of the Sets comprise some fried dishes. And we get to order what we like.

We picked 8 items from the menu:

1. Crayfish Salad with 4 Other Sides Cold Dish

You will have to check with the waiter or waitress if you want to find out the names of the other sides in this Cold Dish. There is a moderate selection of Cold Dishes. Each with a different "Main Character", e.g. Abalone, Lobster. I love the sweetness and chewy texture of Crayfish, thus this is an obvious choice. The other sides are: Baby Octopus in Thai Sauce, and Mini Pacific Clams ("Bao Bei"). I did not eat the other sides as they are fried. My overall rating for the Crayfish Salad, Baby Octopus and Mini Pacific Clams is 2.5/5. The reasons, the Crayfish Salad was average, the Thai sauce for the Baby Octopus was too sour and the Mini Pacific Clams taste horrible. All in all, the Seafood does not taste fresh and it was a disappointment!

2. Fish Maw Soup

The Fish Maw Soup was not too bad in terms of appearance, aroma and taste. The ingredients were rather plentiful and fresh. Unlike the usual clear Fish Maw Soup found in Nyonya Restaurants, this soup has a thick mouthfeel. My rating is 3/5.

3. Fried Tofu with Spinach

My Grandma loves Fried Tofu with Spinach neatly packed on them. So we decided to order this. However, the Tofu is too oily and the Spinach is too dry. The Spinach does not add any flavour to the Tofu. A heartbreaker. My rating is 2/5.

4. Hong Kong Style Steamed Marble Goby ("Soon Hock")

The Marble Goby is supposed to be one of the best tasting freshwater fishes. The meat should be smooth, tender and sweet. For the dish we ordered, the fish is indeed smooth but not so much of tenderness and sweetness. My rating is 2.5/5.

5. Braised Duck with Sea Cucumbers

The Duck is roasted and the meat is tough. Not what I had hoped for. The Sea Cucumbers are another disappointment. Most of them are hard and not chewy. My rating is 2.5/5.

6. Mixed Vegetables

There is a handful of nutrients in this dish. The vegetables include Broccoli, Flat Beans, Carrots, Baby Corns and Mushrooms. The gravy complements the vegetables quite well. It tastes a little like Shark Fins' Soup. My rating is 3/5.

7. Longevity Noodles and 8. Longevity Buns

What is a Birthday without a symbol of our Well Wishes towards Dad? Longevity Noodles or Longevity Bun is commonly eaten by the Birthday Boy or Girl in the Chinese culture.

I hope you will find the above useful. The location of Boon Lay Raja Restaurant is Blk 135 Jurong Gateway Road, #02-337, Singapore 600135. For more details, you may visit the website at http://boonlayrajarestaurant.com/

P.s. I love you, Dad!

New Energy Drink in Town!

Dear all, :)

Energy Drink is for people who need an energy boost.

Recently, I have spotted a new Brand of Energy Drink in Singapore. It was spotted in NTUC Fairprice in mid-September 2011. The brand name seems to be 235. I am not sure how it got its name. But the words appearing in mind are "Casual", "Fun" and "Energizing".

This is the image of the Energy Drink:

What is special about this Energy Drink? To me, it's about the blend of flavours - Plum + Cranberry! I have not seen this mix of flavours in the Energy Drink category in Singapore.

The energy-boosting ingredients in this Energy Drink are - Sugar, Taurine, Caffeine, Inositol and Glucuronolactone. Taurine and Caffeine are well-recognized by the Consumer for energy boost. The product is also fortified with Vitamins B3, B5, B6 and B12. These ingredients are quite common in the Energy Drink category.

I believe that there is an opportunity for addition of natural ingredients like Ginseng and Gingko Bilbo Extracts.

Hope the above is useful for those who simply love to rock with the "Power" of Energy Drinks!

p.s. Personally, I wouldn't recommend more than one Energy Drink a day. The key is moderation.

What's for Dinner? Episode one

Dear fans,

I consider myself lucky. I have a great mother who is a fantastic cook. My mum will cook at least thrice a week. :)

Here are some photos for your sweet admiration (taken on 13/10/2011):

Fried Eggs with Onions and Prawns

Braised Bittergourds with Pork

Yong Tau Foo

Ah Char
(My mum bought this for our Appetizer)

Isn't the above lovely? I hope these photos will inspire you to be an "iron chef" for your loved ones! :)

p.s. Stay tuned for the next Episode! :)

Home-made Breakfast!! =)

Dear Readers, =)

Recently, I made a heart-warming breakfast for my family. Pictures are as uploaded. :)

First Occasion:
Scrambled Eggs, Cheese Chicken Sausages, Biscuits and Baby Tomatoes
+ a Glass of Milk
(The Biscuits are similar to the Popeyes's Biscuits)

Second Occasion:
Scrambled Eggs, Cheese Pork Sausages, Pancakes and Baby Tomatoes
+ MacDonalds Coffee
(I used "White Wings" Instant Pancake Mix. On the packaging, there is a label that states "Just Add Water". When cooking the pancakes, it is critical to use low to medium heat. Make sure your pan is hot enough first. Use a drop of water to test. If it dances and evaporates, your pan is ready.)

I hope the above pictures have enticed you to prepare Breakfast for your loved ones. If you have any great Breakfast ideas, please feel free to share them with me. =)

Wanton Mee @ Nex Serangoon!

Dear all, :)

I must blog about this superb Wanton Mee from the Graffiti Cafe, located at Nex. It has successfully created a burning craving in me for its Wanton Mee. At least three times a month.

The combination of its "special" Black Sauce and Mee makes my mind, heart and soul crave, race and dance! :)

You can have the flexibility to choose the type of sauce(s) you want for your Wanton Mee:

- Black Sauce

- Chili Sauce

- Ketchup (Tomato Sauce)

My good guess is that many people will go for the Black Sauce + Chili Sauce combination or just Black Sauce alone.

Here are the pictures that I have taken:

1) Black Sauce Wanton Mee ($3.80 a Bowl for Eat-in)

The spotlight is definitely on the Black Sauce and Mee. They complement each other extremely well. The Sauce is right for me - neither too salty nor too oily. 5/5

The Wanton is crispy and the meat within is really minced. I don't quite like the texture of the meat. Sometimes I get the feeling that there is some bone finely minced with the meat. 3/5

The Char Siew pieces are thinly sliced and have a well-balanced sweetness. I wish the store will be more generous with the Char Siew though. More Char Siew please! 4/5

2) It comes with a Bowl of Boiled Wanton Soup (For Eat-in)

The soup is flavourful. The saltiness level is just right. Slightly peppery. I am speculating that they use pork bone to boil the soup. 4/5

My sincere appeal - Try it yourself! You might just fall in love with it! Besides, the store is quite cosy - the interior is "decorated" with artistic Graffiti.

That's all for now. If you have any comments, please feel free to express them. :)

The King Louis Grill & Bar

Hi all, :)

In the month of May, I visited the King Louis Grill & Bar @ Vivocity. It has a castle theme. Obviously, the management has put some thoughts into it. The shop name, exterior store front, interior design and food menu are all aligned to create the intended atmosphere.

Erm.. hem... Let me try to paint your imagination. :)

The Exterior:
The main entrance is an elaborated fortress with the store name, The King Louis, in an enormous font size.

The Interior:
Standing knights in shiny silver and golden armours, gold-beaded curtains, hanging silver torches, wooden tables and a beautiful castle wallpaper.

There are also modern, leather sofa seats located beside the glass window where you can immense yourself in the seaview. From the view, you can easily see a part of the Integrated Resorts World at Sentosa.

One thing weird though. A black-stripped tiger figurine? Can you imagine that? I am not sure why they would want to place a tiger in the restaurant. Maybe the late King Louis has a thing for tiger?

Food Menu:
There are Knight and Queen Feasts where the dishes are bundled. If I recall correctly, the Knight Feast serves a few selections of meats while the Queen Feast has some meats and seafood. In my opinion, unless you are with your guy friend(s) or love meat, stick to Ala Carte (ordering individual dishes) or order the Queen Feast.

Like many other restaurants, they offer appetizers, soups, main courses and desserts. And of course, they serve wines, beers, liquors and cocktails.

Apparently, I found out from The King Louis website that the restaurant serves Medieval cuisine. I wiki-ed Medieval cuisine and it was described as "the foods, eating habits, and cooking methods of various European cultures during the Middle Ages, a period roughly dating from 5th to the 16th century."

Okay, enough of painting. A picture speaks a thousand words. Here are some photos that I had taken:

Store Front

Dashing Knights

Bar and Sofa Seats

Stunning Castle Wallpaper

The King Louis Menu

Mushroom Soup - Rather creamy and full of fresh mushroom aroma

Pork Chop Served with Salad and Grilled Potato - The meat is quite tender and juicy. The mushroom sauce topping is ok, a little oily though. I really love the corns! The dressing is superb! Not sure what it consists of but it tastes sour. When you bite the corns, the sweet juice of the corns and the sour dressing complement each other so well. Like a married couple!

Fish & Chips Served with Salad and Potato Wedges - The fish is a generous portion. It is very tender and fresh. The amount of flour coating is fair enough. However, it is a little too oily for me.

A Glass of White Wine - I am not an expert in wines. But I just love drinking them!

Vanilla Ice Cream with Tiny Chocolate Bits, Topped with Chocolate Syrup - The sweetness of the ice cream is just right! It is fairly creamy. And I love biting the chocolate bits.

Overall, I would rate the food 4/5, customer service 4/5, ambience 4/5. For those who have comments, please feel free to share with everyone here.

For those who are interested to know more, this is their website:

http://www.thekinglouis.com/

My Blog is 1 Year and 23 Days Old!!

Hi all,

I just want to say "Dear Blog, I love you!"

My first post was on 17/06/2010.

Which means my blog is 1 Year and 23 Days Old and Counting...

Not forgetting the lovely readers of my blog, I love you too! :)

p.s. Please continue to love and enjoy your life.

All You Can Eat Ala Carte Buffet Lunch!!!

Hi everyone, :)

I'm back! I am so sorry for being away for such a long period (close to 3 months)! I have so much to share with everyone! Miss each and every one who cares about me and my blog! =)

I visited this Chinese restaurant called The Seafood International Market & Restaurant in May. I love their tagline - "If It Swims We have it". I am not sure if this is true, but it may not be possible to offer all variants of seafood. The tagline is just cute. It portrays their clear positioning of being "an expert" in seafood. Anyway, looking at the store name and interior design of the restaurant, my expectation of the food was pretty high.

I was surprised to find out that the price of its buffet lunch is relatively cheap.
On Weekdays: Price per Adult is S$23.80++
Price per Child is S$16.80++
On Weekends, Eve of Public Holiday & Public Holiday:
Price per Adult is S$25.80++
Price per Child (3 to 11 years old) is S$16.80++
The time starts from 11.30am to 2.30pm (Last order is 2pm).

According to the menu, there are 40 dishes, of which 12 dishes are limited to one serving. There are a variety of choices, ranging from soups, appetizers, salads, Tim Sum to main dishes. All you have to do is to indicate on a piece of paper what you want and the dishes will be served. There is also a dessert corner where you have to pick them yourself.

I had tasted about 15 to 18 dishes. However, I am only going to upload the dishes that are above average in taste.

1. Braised Mini Whole Abalone with Oyster Sauce

The mini abalone is fresh. The sauce complements it. I love that this dish is served with broccoli.

2. Beef Steak with Black Pepper Sauce
I only had a bite. The beef is tender and it tastes great with the black pepper sauce. Not too spicy.

3. Fried Assorted Mushroom with Baby "Gai Lan"
The Vegs are fresh and crunchy. The mushrooms are stir-fried with some kind of sauce (I figure there must be oyster sauce). It lovingly absorbed all the sauce. Overall, this dish has a well-balanced sweetness and saltiness, and a great mouthfeel.

4. Fried Turkey Breast with Tri-Sauce
What I love about this dish? I love the tenderness of the meat.

5. "Char Siu" Turkey Breast
The meat is lean, tender and thinly sliced. The sauce is pleasantly sweet.

You might ask, what about the other dishes? The other 10 to 13 dishes that I had tasted were really not worth talking about. They were average. I was most disappointed by the two Tim Sum that I had - Steamed Crystal Prawn Dumpling and the Steamed Chicken "Siu Mai" Dumpling.

Overall, I give the food 3/5, customer service 3/5, ambience 3.5/5. Maybe my expectations were overly high.

For those who are interested in patronising The Seafood International Market & Restaurant, this is the address:
902 East Coast Parkway, Blk A #01-01 Playground @ Big Splash

The website is: http://www.lobster.com.sg/

Welcome Lunch!

Dear all, =)

My company's Bosses and colleagues were kind enough to hold a welcome lunch for 2 other colleagues and I. Today marks the start of my 2nd month in the company. Actually, I already had a great welcome lunch in my 1st week. But today is a larger group, involving 3 departments.

Today we went to "Prosperous Kitchen", a Chinese Restaurant located at Basement 1 of West Coast Plaza. We had Dim Sum and some Chinese dishes.

These are what we had ordered:

Dim Sum: Carrot Cakes, Yam Pies, Steamed Pork Ribs with Black Bean, Fried Beancurd Rolls (Fu Pi Juan), Steamed Prawn Dumplings (Ha Gao), Steamed Pork Dumplings with Prawn (Siu Mai) and Barbecued Pork Buns (Char Shao Bao)

Chinese Dishes: Fried Chicken with Bean Paste Sauce, Lettuce with Sauce and Braised Ee Fu Noodle

I will only highlight the ones that are tasty to me (the rest are either below average or average):

1. Yam Pies



The Pie is crispy. Biting into it, the aroma swam joyously in my mouth. The sweetness of the yam is just right.

2. Fried Beancurd Rolls



This is impressive! The exterior is crispy and the interior is soft and juicy. Best of all, it doesn't have the oily mouthfeel.

3. Fried Chicken with Bean Paste Sauce



The chicken is crispy and it goes rather well with the bean paste sauce.

All in all, I give a rating of 3.5/5.0 for all the dishes that we had ordered. The 3 dishes that I had highlighted above contributes to bulk of the score.

=)

Xin Wang Taiwan Cafe @ CityLink Mall

Hi,

A good evening to start a Blog post. The weather is cool after a heavy rain. =)

I am going to comment on a Taiwanese Cafe which I had visited with a friend about a month ago.

The name of the Taiwanese Cafe is called Xin Wang Taiwan Cafe. You can read more about its profile at this link: http://www.xinwang.com.sg/profile_taiwan.htm

The atmosphere is quite comfortable and casual. I browsed through the menu. I like the cartoon drawings of some of the dishes on the menu. So cool and creative. Basically, the cafe has a range of Taiwan's well-known snacks. But I was quite disappointed that the Oyster omelette is not on the menu. It is my favourite Taiwan snack.

Anyway, we ordered the Braised Pork Noodle, Tempura and a Mango Smoothie.

Here are my comments for the first two:

Tempura - Don't be mistaken. This is completely different from the Japanese Tempura. This dish is something like a Fish Paste Cake. There are three served on the plate. It is not very flavourful but it has the desirable aroma and sweetness of a fish paste. The dipping sauce is supposed to be sweet but it is quite bland.

I would like to contrast this dish with the other Taiwanese Tempura that I ate at one of the night markets in Taipei. The colour and texture are different from this. That one is pale yellow in colour, topped with a sweet sauce (taste a little like ketchup sauce without the sourness). The texture is more chewy. To say the truth, I prefer that.

Braised Pork Noodle - The gravy of the braised pork is not too salty - just right. There are some fats on each cube of meat. It is meant to be this way. The noodle is nice. It is not very chewy though. So if you are looking forward to a chewy noodle, you may be disappointed. Overall, the dish is satisfying. :)




Based on my overall experience (food choices, the dishes we ordered, ambience and customer service), I give it a 3.5/5.0. I will probably visit the store again. I would like to try other dishes like the Salted Crispy Chicken Bites.

Breakfast for Thought!

Hi,

Tonight is a great night to think about breakfast! =)

Breakfast is about the most important meal of the day! Has anyone heard of this phrase?

"Eat like a King for Breakfast, Eat like a Prince for Lunch and Eat like a Beggar at Night"

It is important to have a nutritious meal for breakfast. So I am going to "share" my breakfast with you. I had these for a week about two weeks ago:



I am not saying that this is the best breakfast. There are so many choices out there. For example, egg (scrambled egg, omelette etc.), cheese, tuna, toast etc. A sandwich is great.

I would appreciate any comments you may have. =)

P.S. This week I am having White bread + milk.