Chinese Desserts!

Nowadays, many dessert shops claim to be linked in one way or another to Hong Kong. It is hard to know which one is and which one is just pretending to have originated from Hong Kong. My Hong Kong friend brought me to this shop so this shop is pretty authentic when it comes to desserts. It even serves durian crepes and they are not stingy with their durian filling either.

Perhaps one tell tale sign that this place is truly from Hong Kong is by their jokes. I hope you enjoy some of them here.

Dessert Bowl, 80A Serangoon Garden Way, Singapore 555976. 6285 1278.

Beancurd and gingko nuts. This was nice, not overly sweet.

Hot white fungus, pears and osmanthus. In the background is the durian crepe which was yummy. Both were good. Yum!

The crepe had real durian flesh in it. It was not blended with something else..

Placards of jokes are all over the place. The jokes are rather humourous especially the one that read, “You can angry with anyone except boss!”

Yureka!

I’ve always wondered if there are halal Japanese restaurants in Singapore and tonight a friend and I chanced upon this one. So, Yureka it is! It is the only halal teppanyaki restaurant in Singapore. My friend and I ordered the beef set each and it was value for money with no service charge and GST. Sashimi and sushi are also served here. There are other better and more expensive Japanese restaurants in Singapore. However, for those looking for good, value-for-money halal Japanese food, there is only one, Yureka.

Yureka Teppanyaki, 10 Jalan Masjid (Opposite Kembangan MRT), Singapore 418930. Tel: +65 68427317.

Beef teppanyaki set for just under $10. A good deal, indeed!

A pit stop

I have been here several times in the past but the service before was bad. In August 2013, I heard that the place was under new management so I decided to wait for the new boss to take over before I did the review. The new boss was aware of the poor service before and had promised to improve on it. And improve, he did, significantly. Waiting times became noticeably shorter as staff became a lot more attentive and prompt in their service.

This place is a novelty because it has a wonderful parking bay for cyclists to park their bikes, unlocked, and have a meal. Because of this concept, many cyclists like this place.

I came here for something light and they were offering roti prata and drinks. There were large television monitors in the restaurant and occasionally, one could hear the cheers and groans of supporters depending on whether a goal was scored or lost. The night that I was there, the customers were mainly Singaporeans while the servers were mainly Malaysians. As the game continued, different people would react according to the side they were supporting. It was quite comical to watch. One time, when Malaysia scored a goal, the customers moaned while the servers secretly cheered. When Singapore scored a goal, the opposite happened. I suspect this place is popular not because of the bicycle bay alone but because of the television screen and the fact that it is a nice place to chill with friends and family alike and watch an entire match on TV.  Just remember to keep the good improved service coming.

There is now a set and ala carte menu.

Pitstop, 10 Tebing Lane #01-01, Singapore 828836. Tel: +65 6242 0710.

Tissue prata with drizzled condensed milk, banana prata and ginger lime drink.

Beef fried beehoon which was a little small for a serving portion but good for those who are not ravenous. It was tasty enough.

G’day mate!

I love unexpected lunches. This was one of them though the choice of restaurant was mine. This is an Australian themed restaurant owned by Singaporeans. Robert Timms is an Australian brand, famous for its coffee. Here, you can even get kangaroo and crocodile meat though I prefer to photograph them rather than to eat them.

The place has nice salads and I decided to try one. It did not come cheap though I am told the price is around what other places are offering as well. But it seemed rather pricey for some rocket leaves, cheese, good ham and grilled pineapple. It was the pineapple that drew me to the dish. A friend ordered the wrap and I volunteered to help her with the fries. Fortunately, they had a credit card promotion going on and that made the prices more reasonable. Sorry, I have a price-sensitive stomach so I like my food reasonably-priced and good. I’d certainly come back here for salads again and hope their credit card promotions last a long time. And yes, I shall have my lamington and cuppa tea the next time. One cannot go to an Australian restaurant and not have lamington or pavlova and cuppa!

Robert Timms, 1F Wheelock Place, 501 Orchard Road, Singapore 238880. Tel: 6735 9201.

Parma ham, rocket salad and grilled pineapple

The precious grilled pineapple. There were only two or three pieces.

Chicken and cheddar cheese wrap.

PIccolo latte. Wink.

‘Sinning’ within limits

I love fried carrot cake but I try not to eat too much of it at hawker centres as it is usually overly oily and fried. As one advances in age, one has to watch one’s cholesterol levels. But when my friend invited me over for lunch and said that it was going to be carrot cake, I was happy. What made it acceptable? There was not going to be any added MSG in it, it was going to be cooked in olive oil (I know, we deceive ourselves sometimes) and she was not going to make it too salty.

Verdict? It was all that and I loved the deveined prawns in it as well. Good job, indeed! She can open a stall at a hawker centre soon.

By the way, there are two types of fried carrot cakes. One is black while the other is white. I like the white ones, i.e. the one without the added black sauce.

Home-cooked carrot cake.

Good food does travel

Din Tai Fung was first known for its xiao long bao. They were nice and soupy and in fact if one was not careful when one was eating the bao, one could scald one’s tongue in the process as the soup was hot. Started by a Taiwanese, the baos made waves in Taiwan first and then internationally. In Singapore and Thailand, DIn Tai Fung is managed by the Breadtalk group, who opened Breadtalk and Ramen Play.

We came here for a good meal and they are indeed known for their good food and as a result, they have expanded to different countries. I remember having a meal at Din Tai Fung at Bishan years ago and being impressed with both their baos and their noodles. But the quality between branches does not seem to be consistent. The menu has since increased as well but the taste of Din Tai Fung food in the past seemed better than what it is today.

Certain branches of Din Tai Fung in Hong Kong have been awarded one Michelin star — note it is the specific branch and not the whole chain — and the franchise is found as far away as the USA. I even saw it in an Australian foodcourt late last year when I was in Sydney so good food does travel. The quality has to go along with it as well.

Din Tai Fung, 3 Temasek Boulevard #02-302 Singapore 038983. Tel: 6338 2422.

Wanton noodles. The noodles were nice though the dumplings seemed to lack in taste probably because there were more vegetables than meat in the wanton.

Dumplings or xiao long bao. These seemed less ‘juicy’ than the baos we have had in other DTF restaurants elsewhere. This is the signature dish of this restaurant and one of the key reasons why the restaurant is popular. But maintaining the quality among all the franchisees on a daily basis is a challenge, I’m sure.

Duck in springroll. This was rather dry and oily. The duck was dry while the springroll had been deepfried. The choice was between drunken chicken and duck in springroll and from hindsight, we should have chosen the drunken chicken as it would not have been oily. We did not finish this dish.

Stir-fried spinach with garlic. This was fine.

Roselle tea. The Roselle juice was actually in the round ice piece which we were not aware of until we broke up the ice towards the end. Roselle is a flower, made into tea.

Best rendang in town?

I’ve reviewed this place before but not with the intention of talking about beef rendang. But after ordering their beef rendang, I reckon this place has one of the best beef rendang in town. It is tender with the right amount of flavours in it without being overly oily and it was not overly spicy either. Perfect.

Nasi Lemak Kukus, 908 Upper Thomson Road, (Start of Sembawang), Singapore 787111.

Mackerel Fusion

This restaurant is located among several restaurants at Tebing Lane along the Punggol Park Connector. There are many cyclists who come through here. But not all who come are cyclists though. Many come just for alfresco dining or a pleasant night out. Other restaurants in the area serve western food with alcohol. This place serves local and Chinese food.

This is one of the strangest fusion meals I have ever had. The fish was served with vinegar and sliced ginger, like they do with some Chinese dumplings except that this was not Chinese dumplings, and there was coleslaw and fries on the side. I sampled the coleslaw and the fries and decided not to have them. But the mackerel tasted really good with the vinegar and sliced ginger so I was happy. Next time I do something like this at home, I am going to have the fish with vinegar and sliced ginger. I did not take the coleslaw and fries as they seemed to confuse the taste a little. But I like what I discovered.

Ah Dong Teh House, 10 Tebing Lane, #01-03/04, Singapore 828849.

Crackers were served before one’s meal.

On an earlier occasion, I ordered claypot rice. The food was okay. For great food, there are other places that one can go to. For local Chinese food after some exercise, this place has it.

Sliced fish and mushroom soup noodles

This restaurant is surprisingly quite popular with the Japanese as I’ve seen Japanese eating here now and again. Locals and the Chinese eat here as well. I chanced upon it as I was in the area for some work and I was brought to this restaurant. The prices are indeed reasonable.

I decided to order the fish and mushroom noodles as I wanted something soupy. I was not sure what to expect out of a dish like that but I guess since I wanted something that had clear soup in it and non-spicy, what I got fitted the description. So I shouldn’t complain. The soup tasted bland (as expected) but the fish was fine as it did not taste fishy and some people are really particular about fish tasting fishy. The noodles were nice and springy.

The restaurant serves a lot of other Chinese food as well so there is enough variety including the spicy kind for those who prefer other tastes. Please refer to the picture below for the location of the restaurant as I was not able to google for the restaurant name. Anyone who knows the name may leave it in the Comments section.

Name of the restaurant. It is located on the corner of Hindoo Road and Jalan Besar.

Fish and mushroom soup noodles with a lot of bean sprouts.

Hellish ramen?

The last time I visited this place, it was part of a wider food court and they served fiery ramen. The ramen had varying degrees of spiciness to it and they alluded to hell when describing just how hot their ramen was. Well, their menu has expanded since but their name has not changed. And instead of just serving very spicy ramen, one can now choose to have it without any chilli at all.

There is a wide variety of ramen and their more famous ones are the ramen with salmon fish, salmon skin and chicken karaage. The spicy ramen is recommended as that is what the restaurant is famous for. The sashimi servings were fresh and we polished off the ice-cream pretty quickly.

From the pictures below, we ordered a variety of food as there were several adults and two kids.

Beppu Menkan Ramen, #01-19, China Court, 20 Cross Street. Tel: 64380328

Salmon sashimi.

Tuna sashimi

Yellowtail sashimi

A friend ordered ramen with cod fish on the side, non-spicy. Cod fish was served separately, unlike the salmon (see picture below) and it was good. Shiok even! Soup and ramen were both fine too.

Another friend ordered spicy ramen with salmon. Salmon was a little dry but the ramen was spicy enough. This was the two chilli rating.

A third friend ordered spicy ramen with chicken karaage. Ramen was just nice, spice wise. It was also the the two chilli rating. To him, the chicken was the best karaage chicken in Singapore.

Mushroom ramen, non-spicy. The soup was rather bland. I liked the mushrooms though.

A fourth friend ordered Beppu ramen which had beef, seafood and vegetables in it. This was non-spicy as well. The broth was a little light but the noodles were nice and springy.

Flavoured crushed ice with apple pieces in it which we polished off very quickly. I don’t know what it’s called.

Dessert with fruit in them. They were nice, light and refreshing.