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28 Apr 2015

Buffets with Yakitori in Singapore - Sumire Yakitori House, Shin Minori and En Japanese Dining

Any yakitori fans around here? If yes, you would love to read on since the post will be a personal review on 3 yakitori buffets found in Singapore that I have personally been to! I tank all the calories so that I could review these! (I did not put on a single kg anyway.)

Let me roughly share my experience!

Sumire Yakitori House

Price: $34.90 ++
Location: Icon Village
Meal of the day: Dinner
Variety: Middle range

The complimentary starter of cabbage given at the start of the meal tasted horrible to my friend and I. It was said to act as a 'cleanser' during our yakitori meal. Mainly easy-to-eat snacks such as this gyoza which was one of my favourite dish that day.

Their yakitoris were quite decent and refined, such as this bacon wrapped golden mushrooms. The only complaint I had was that they were too generous with their sweet sauce, resulting in overly sweet yakitoris that day. They were also not stingy with salt since their scallops were also slightly unbearable or I would have ordered more.

I was quite delighted to spot desserts in the Ipad menu! I had this soft mini taiyaki (waffle fish filled with red beans paste) as well as 5 scopes of ice cream! 


En Japanese Dining and Bar

Price: $38.90 ++
Location: Icon Village
Meal of the day: Dinner
No. of visits: 2
Variety: Limited range

One of the higher quality buffet around to make up for its limited range from its menu. I have been to this buffet twice, once in early 2012 and the other time was near the end of 2013. So far, I doubt there is a change in menu items. 


Sorry sashimi lovers, the sashimi platter is a 1 time serving only. (For 4 pax in this picture)

The menu also features salad and pasta that tasted of decent standard. 

Best pick for me would be the beef which were really juicy and tender, the scallops, salmon and meatballs. Check out these link for more information! (Round 1 and Round 2)

Shin Minori

Price: Lunch  $34.00 ++
          Dinner $37++ (Mon to Thur)
                      $39++ (Fri to Sun)
Location: UE Square
Meal of the day: Lunch and Dinner
No. of visits: 2
Variety: Huge range



The menu really wowed me and I was totally spoilt for choice and I only ordered the same few favourites of mine due to limited stomach space. Sashimi were not the freshest but decent. Swordfish available here, which is my all time favourite!


Too bad the pork belly we had was tough and dry, so my friend and I did not bother trying the rest unless it was stated that the grilled items were their specialty. (Check out my post here!)

Might have more Yakitori Buffets in Singapore next time??

9 Apr 2015

Orchard Central Food Trail - Green Rabbit Crepe and Salad Gastro Bar, I WANNA (cupcakes), Yi Li Pao Pao Ice

I always thought of town whenever I felt like window shopping. If you don't know me, my window shopping actually meant hunting around and 'shopping' for edible items. I was invited to a food trail, allowing me to taste from 3 (somewhat) new food establishments located at Orchard Central basement.

The healthy trend has been spreading like a wildfire throughout the CBD area for quite some time. Now it's town area too? It really seems that people who wish keep a healthy lifestyle has been on a constant rise, leading to the demand of salad outlets. The first tasting was at Green Rabbit - Crepe and Salad Gastro Bar, B2-06. I tasted 3 bowls of salad since the crepe batter wasn't ready due to manpower shortage. Is that a justifiable reason? A top view shot would be most decent since a close up on each individual bowl would definitely look like a huge mess of different vegetation. What's most attractive about salads before tucking in would usually be the vibrant colours.

Naturally the first thing to do with salads would be to toss and mix them well right after the photography session of course. The 3 salads I tried were 'Mona Laksa' (laksa inspired ingredients and dressing), 'Tom Yummy' (tom yum inspired ingredients and dressing) and Koi Nippon (Japanese style salad). The dressing were really unique and my personal favourite was the tom yum! Strong flavour and spicy level just right for me. 

Next stop is I WANNA, #B2-04. I admit that I am no fan of cupcakes and my blog content could easily prove this point. However, who could resist liking these cute petite bite size delights? I have already seen girls going crazy over such cuties and no surprise the other female bloggers were smiling in delight!

Their signature would be the lychee rose and red velvet! Check out the nicely piped glistening cream on these cupcakes! Despite being petite, there were dense, rich and sufficient to satisfy my sweet tooth! 

I just need a picture with these lovely cupcakes! Evilbeany took this picture for me... too bad he did not capture the lovely Greece painting on the wall behind... O well..
These red velvet cupcakes were ordered by a customer and we bloggers quickly capture a picture of them with this cute pinky sheepy... Meh.. (I wanna eat too!) 

Last but not least was one of my favourite icy dessert! Alright, I love eating all chilled/icy desserts. Yi Li Pao Pao Ice, #B2-05 is the first store out of Taiwan in Singapore, being one of the most popular shaved ice in Shilin Night Market. I tasted most of its flavours and my top favourite was taro and mango! (Yup, that was what I had in my cup) The ice was so delicate and it felt a bit foamy when melting in my mouth. Try different combination or even add your favourite toppings to enhance its appearance/taste.

This was the strawberry which one of the blogger had (forgot who). Yi Li Pao Pao Ice uses real fruits resulting in such pronounced and natural taste (try their mango ice ; mangoes imported from Taiwan and you will understand what I meant.) Check out the heart-shaped spoon imported from Taiwan too!

I just love to enjoy such soothing dessert. Thank you Evilbeany again to help me take these pictures despite the amount of people walking through this path along Orchard Central Basement!

Just love taking fotd (food of the day) pictures with beautiful background!

Simply spend a min. of $30 (max. 3 same-day receipts) at selected Basement 1 and 2 Food & Beverage stores to receive a $5 Far East Organization Mall Voucher. Limited to 1st 200 shoppers only. *Terms & conditions apply*

Thank you Orchard Central and Alvin Lim for the invite!

*Update* How to resist such soothing icy dessert? I went back again with a friend and had the valentine fruit (green mango) and passion fruit combo! The sour combo with the latter being more sour. My friend had the strawberry and passion fruit and he really enjoyed his shaved ice!!! 

24 Mar 2015

Penang Buffet at Princess Terrace, Copthorne King Hotel

Buffets of an Asian spread don't usually excites me that much as compared to an international or a Japanese buffet. Perhaps the mindset of Asian food being rather typical to me since I grew up consuming mainly Chinese cuisine.

Anyway, it was not my first time having this well known Penang cuisine buffet from Princess Terrace Cafe, located in Copthorne King Hotel. The spread wasn't huge but I still enjoyed some of the dishes available after all. 

Tried a piece of popiah ; best for sharing. 

I easily wiped out 10 sticks of these satays since it was my favorite that lunch! It tasted very different from the usual sweet ones found in hawkers as it was towards the salty-savoury side. I drenched them in peanut sauce for added texture and the chicken meat itself was already so tender and moist.

Tried a small portion of all the dishes available. The herbal ribs soup with my choice of noodles (not shown here) got me wanting for more too!

What got me most excited was the spread of colorful Nonya kuehs displayed along the dessert line! I admit that I was slightly disappointed at first since there were not a single cake in sight. I thought to myself, these kuehs better be good. Thankfully they were!

I started off with this super crispy pancake generously filled with grounded peanuts and sugar. After smashing the shell to create some mess for photo taking, I took a bite and tasted tradition! I had to pour out some fillings since I wasn't a fan of peanuts.

Gosh! Since young, I have been a fan of these Nonya kuehs! Still am now! Everything was in petite bite size and subtly sweet. Desserts the elderly wouldn't mind! My favorite was the ang ku kueh and bingka ubi (tapioca kueh).

Apom bokwa with caramelized banana sauce definitely made me sugar high due to its intense sweetness. It could easily satisfy any sweet tooth cravings! I was dumb enough to miss out adding the sauce on my first round, and thinking why this pancake so tasteless?

This was from the ala carte menu and not part of the buffet selection. Vanilla ice cream with a slice of tiramisu was just meh...

Another ala carte order was this banana split with the standard scoop of vanilla, chocolate and strawberry ice cream.. Memories of my childhood came flooding back to me as this dessert arrived on the table. What sweet childhood I had... 

5 Mar 2015

Nine Fresh Dessert Taiwan - Most Affordable Taiwanese Dessert in Singapore

Nine Fresh is the first local chain of Taiwanese dessert brand in Singapore, and the name derives from jiufen (jiu = nine), a place located in Taiwan, famous for its taro balls. The company decided to rebrand from the previous beanstalk to focus on the authenticity of the popular Taiwanese dessert. Best of all? The prices are so affordable and yet delicious!
 
The 4th outlet finally open in the north, located at the basement of the still renovating Sun Plaza (Sambawang). Crowd spotted taking away to enjoy in the comfort of their homes.
 
As recommended by the staff, the 3 most popular choice were No. 1, 3 and 5. I spotted other interesting options such as mango/durian beancurd and grass jelly with ice cream as well! *Drooling*
 
By this moment, my friend and I were already selecting our picks and guessing which bowl would suit our tastebuds! Typical of us when we are spoilt for choice. 

I was like 'hold on'! I want to take more photos first!
 
1. Grass Jelly Special ($2.00) - with taro balls, aloe vera pearl jelly, black sugar jelly dice and milk ball 
Since we got from the fresh new batch of grass jelly, it wasn't chilled enough (room temperature). The aloe vera pearl jelly is solid, so do not expect it to burst liquid out as some would assume. As for the black sugar jelly, expect something firm like nata de coco, with sweetness to compliment the grass jelly. 

3. Nine Fresh Signature ($2.50) - with beancurd, grass jelly, taro balls, red beans, green beans, pinto beans and peanuts
Known to be more filling, the silky smooth texture of the beancurd easily pleased me and you even get the option to choose either the soft or crunchy peanuts!

5. Black Sugar Aiyu Jelly Special ($3.50) - with taro balls (2 servings), red beans, pearls and milk ball
(This bowl is the latest creation, selling at $2.90 for a limited time only.)
I felt that this was the most refreshing dessert. It was light, soothing and definitely my favourite option! We realized that we had forgotten to add in the milk ball for this dessert. =.='' This shows how good it was naturally! 

The so called milk ball is a bit misleading. I don't see any milky ball in the dessert? It is actually the pourable milk given in a small packet, to give the dessert a mild flavour enhancement.

O man, I did not expect my dessert to be so filling! Must be those chewy taro balls? No wonder I see so many ladies take away these to substitute their lunch when I was at Toa Payoh. A healthier choice too since everything is not too sweet.
Pssst....the matcha milk latte is my favourite drink! Milky, not so sweet and a hint of matcha! 
 
Locations:
Toa Payoh Lorong 6 Blk 520 #01-50
Jurong Point Shopping Centre #01-17G
Jurong East Bus Interchange (bus 25, 7, 30e)
Sun Plaza #B1-36 (next to Sembawang MRT ; NEW!)
 
Operating hours:
11am - 10pm
 
Check out their facebook page here and also their webpage http://www.ninefresh.com/ !
 
Thank you Nine Fresh Dessert Taiwan for the tasting.
 

25 Feb 2015

Shin Minori - Omg, I see swordfish sashimi!

The search for a good and affordable buffet became a constant tinkling in my mind and ultimately becoming part of my lifestyle for a few years already. It sounds so exaggerated but a non binge eater would not understand that. The need to force myself to quit this habit ever since I looked through my external hard drive and realized that I ate an average of 10 buffets per year, with the most hitting up to 14. As age keeps going upwards and cannot be reverse, I dared not continue this sort of food spamming. I admit that I usually ended up bloated with food that would take many hours to digest after a buffet session. Not to say buffets, I sometimes eat dinner twice in just less than an hour apart - a bowl of noodles + burger. WTH right...?
Enough of being a anti-buffet person for now since I am about to share a Japanese buffet experience.

I got to know about this outlet located at UE Square after scanning through my Entertainer App for 1 for 1 food deals. Check out some of the other deals using the app here! Not my best interior shot but I felt that the sushi bar is the essence of any Japanese restaurant.

It is an ala carte buffet where we ordered through the Ipad. Obviously the first thing I would usually look for would be the sashimi. My eyes literally lit up upon seeing the word 'swordfish'! How rare to have buffets serving swordfish sashimi nowadays. Even many hotel buffets remove swordfish from their buffet line. Could it be because of the price? The reason why I like swordfish is because their smell is really faint as compared to tuna, the texture is firmer and slightly chewier than salmon and taste wise would be harder to describe till you try it. Anyway, I easily wiped out 20+ slices of each (salmon and swordfish).

The ramen was just so-so to me but my friend really love it a lot. I guess it is just individual preferences. My other 2 favourite dishes that are not featured here due to ugly pictures were the unagi sushi and the pumpkin chawamushi. They were just amazingly delicious!


Besides the usual Japanese items like handrolls, sushi, sashimi, they also have grilled items! Too bad the pork belly we had was tough and dry, so we did not bother trying the rest unless it was stated that the grilled items were their specialty.

Need cups of tea to cleanse my tummy! Too busy with food that I did not take much pictures.

Last but not least, an awkward selfie after the buffet to end the post! No more buffets for me please! 

13 Feb 2015

CooperVision Proclear 1-day Multifocal Contacts Lens

CooperVision may sounds quite familiar to those who wear contacts lens, since they are one of the world's leading manufacturers of soft contact lenses and related products and services. As most of us usually go for the 'normal' lens of near/far sightedness or even astigmatism (散光), we have no idea CooperVision actually carries another type of lens specially catered to people with presbyopia. 
 
Source from Google image
Huh??? What the heck is presbyopia??? Never heard of that word before. 
 
Normally people around my age (mid 20s, not exactly young already), but still have not heard of this term before. Not until I googled its exact definition and spotted the Chinese word '老花'. Sounds familiar right?? Usually the older generation like our grandparents would mention the Chinese word instead.
In short (cut all those scientific explanations), it is when you feel like you need a pair of longer arms to clearly read newspapers or any articles because objects close up gets blurry. Usually affect everyone once you reach the age of 40-45.
 
Can you tell from the cartoon above which man actually have presbyopia??
 Man from cartoon: ''Hey, need some help here!''

Source from CooperVision 
Beside going through presbyopia surgery or wearing presbyopia eye glasses (more commonly seen),
contact lenses for presbyopia are getting popular since everyone wants to look good at all times, especially during occasions, attending gathering or events. 

Source from CooperVision 

Before you actually purchase your lens, why not experience a 5 day trial session with CooperVision?
Check out the link here! http://coopervision.com.sg/trial-lenses 
   
This promotion ends on 8 April:
  • For a small fee of $15, get an eye check by an eye care professional and get a FREE 5-day trial of CooperVision Proclear 1 day multifocal contact lenses.
  • The $15 can be used to offset the purchase of a minimum of 2 boxes of PC1DMF @ $150.
  • The promotion is available at the 8 stores listed in the dropdown box titled “Redemption Outlet” on the same webpage.