Taiwan Trip 2010 - Restaurant 青叶

Quite a number of exciting food in Taiwan can be found along the street and night markets. Hence, we din go to restaurants for most of our meals during the 9 days holiday except two meals, one dinner in 青叶 and one lunch in 鼎泰丰. Both can be considered Taiwan's icon especially the 鼎泰丰 which has ventured out to other countries such as Singapore, Hong Kong, China and Malaysia.

青叶 provides Taiwan Cuisine (ie 台菜 or 台湾料理). It is one of the oldest brand. It also happened that the restaurant was pretty near to where we were staying ie walking distance, that we decided to give it a try. :-)

What did we order for dinner ?

- 九孔 (Abalone, cold dish)
- 乌鱼子 (BBQ fish egg or Mullet Roe)
- 菜莆蛋 (Fried egg with caipu)
- 豆腐 (Bean curd)
- 地瓜粥 (Plain porridge with sweet potato).

What excited us most is the 九孔 and 乌鱼子.

乌鱼子 is Taiwan local specialty. You eat together with slides of radish and onion to reduce its salty taste due to seasoning and fishy smell. I was quite hesitated to try it as I am very afraid of fishy smell. Hence, I started with a small bite initially. Well, not too bad and it tasted like cheese. ;-)

What is so special about 九孔 is the sauce. It blends with the abalone very well. I was surprised of the abalone size, bigger than I though it would be.

Though the other three dishes were more commonly known, the 菜莆蛋 tasted very nice and professional done. I enjoyed it very much. The porridge itself was also an excellent dish. I can just eat it plainly without the need to order dishes.It was served warmly, not too cold or hot. It was very tasty and well cooked. Simple yet a great dish.

The service was pretty good. Staff was attentive and polite. We ended the dinner with a complimentary dessert, warm green bean soup. Half of the total bill went for the 乌鱼子. Overall, it was much cheaper as compared to eating it locally at 欣叶, another Taiwan's brand but has ventured out. We had a nice, full and enjoyable dinner. Will go again when i next visit Taiwan. There are still a few dishes yet to try it out.

See u again, 青叶

Nice Food in HK

Wang Cafe, Toastbox, Ya Kun ....

I am sure u are familiar with these names. They provide coffee/tea and kaya toast daily in shopping areas island-wide. Not to forget the soft-boiled eggs :-) These are pretty traditional and local food. Of course, some of the names have ventured out to regional area such as Hong Kong, Tokyo etc.

I visited a very local food stall in Hong Kong recently that provides similar type of food but with a different twist to it. The stall name is Lan Fong Yuan (兰芳园) located in Hong Kong Island itself. This is properly the best place that provides smooth and fragrant HK milk tea. Most importantly, it is reasonably priced.



How to access the place ? Take MTR to the Central station and take a short walk along the Queen's Road Central until u reached a junction with a staircase leading u to a escalator. This is the longest outdoor escalator built to facilitate users to "climb" up and cutting across a few streets. The area here is pretty steep and the escalator is definitely a very useful and practical help. There are a few connectors along the escalator and u will see Lan Fong Yuan signage on one of these connectors. U should reach the place within 25 minutes after getting out of the MTR station.



The stall sits along a normal wet market street. U will see stalls selling pork, vegetables, fish and seafood etc. Luckily not smelly at all. Lan Fong Yuan is a very small outlet with not many seats. Customer service is acceptable. Not very noisy. I am sure it could be a long wait during peak hours.



We ordered the smooth HK milk tea, toasted bread coated with condensed milk / butter and pork chop bun. The food is well done and presentable. Of course, all tasted nice especially the toasted bread - fresh and crispy. My suggestion is to visit the stall for breakfast or as one of a resting point for a tea break. We just happen to order these three items. There are many other items on the menu.



How do i know about the place ? I happen to read about it when I was reading an article in Zaobao. Google for more information and decided to give it a try. Well, it was a great attempt :-) Will go back again when i visit HK next.



Btw, Cailan recommended it too. U will also see photos showing HK celebrities visiting the stall as well as food review by various magazines.

Noodle Place Restaurant

It has been awhile since I last shared about food. Actually, I have been going around to taste different cuisine as usual. Properly just lazy to blog it down.

I went to a few recommended places to eat when I was in Hong Kong recently. Most of it were pretty nice. Hence, when i read about a Hong Kong Chef heading in a local restaurant, I decided to give it a try to see if it is comparable.

The restaurant name is Noodle Place Restaurant. located along the Orchard Road, The Centrepoint, level 1. It was pretty crowded when i reached. The place is not too big but neat and clean. Not advisable if dining in a big group, 6 or fewer should be just nice. I am sure the waiting time could be longer during the usual lunch and dinner time.



There are about 100 dishes on the menu, we ordered three dishes + a drink ie Shrimp Wanton Noodle Soup, Noodle Place Special Congee, Twin Mixed Roast Meat + K-last Sng Boey drink.



The noodle soup tasted nice. However, the yellow ingredient used to make the noodle is a bit too strong and affected the tasted of the soup though the noodle is quite q. A simple and light dish. Can try it. The congee is much better. Not too salty and pretty smooth. The pig's liver is done well ie not too hard. A small surprise to me is a nice fresh prawn in it + a thin slice of abalone. They would have served it with dough fritter (油条) but has to be ordered separately at $2 per plate. The twin mixed for us is the roasted duck and pork. The presentation not so good and the roasted pork is cut into too small pieces. Taste wise is normal. I prefer having roasted pork prepared in a bigger pieces. More shiok and chewy.

Overall, the dishes are fine. Service is quite good. I would still prefer the same dishes in Hong Kong. Something seems to be missing here - culture, smell etc, i do not how to describe it. Maybe my mood ba. Ha...ha...ha...

Noodle Place Restaurant Tel: 67333171 (no reservation)
Business hours from 10am to 10pm (daily except First Day of Chinese New Year).

Cantonese cuisine

It has been almost 12 years that i revisited the same place to dine.

Why 12 years ? No particularly reason, just happen to be. My first visit was with my JC friend who liked the food so much as that he kept promoting how the nice the dishes tasted. Then , i was not really pretty keen on food and it was just another dish. What is so big deal about it. Of course, I did enjoy the food, partly also because of his accompany. He is now in US, PhD trained and married with 2 children.

Read a food review and I was attracted to one of the dishes. The outcome is .... let's go to try it. :-)

Restaurant name: Lai Wah Restuarant.
Address: Blk 44 Bendemeer Road #01-1436
Tel: 62949922



Do u know what is the above dish ? Yes, a fish. To be exact, it is a red garoupa.

The chef prepared two different tastes on the same fish: half steamed and half flour then fried. I wun say that it is something totally new but it is quite a piece of art to be presented with the dish. A lot of preparation work and skills to do it well. It tasted nice :-) The fried portion smelled and tasted better but the steamed portion tasted pretty smooth with gravy. It is very filling and dun have to order too many other dishes if dining in a small group of 2 to 4 people.

Surprisingly the restaurant also provides vegetarian dishes. Good for me as I have one more option on the 1st and 15th day of the month :-) The place itself is quite cramped. The business is pretty good. Parking facility is convenient with a nearby HDB carpark.

Tiramisu promotion Now !

If you love and enjoy Tiramisu, there is a promotion at the moment at Bakerzin, 44% off. I have not tasted the tiramisu from the outlet, hopefully it tastes great :-)

Chatterbox

It has been pretty awhile since i visited Chatterbox by Mandarin Hotel in Orchard. Decided to dine there again and realized that the Chatterbox had moved from the ground floor to 39th floor.

What is so special about Chatterbox ? The chicken rice - the signature disk that SQ will serve you if you travel by First Class and also the same one that appeared on the newspaper when the chef who had created it left the hotel to start up on his own (now selling it in the Downtown East - Mr Chicken Rice).

How does it taste ? Not very bad but also but very good. You pay for more than the dish, ie the service, dining experience, culture + scenery since it is now located at 39th floor. Of course, they do provide much chicken in each portion. The chili sauce is great :-) I have come across chicken rice that tasted much better than the one provided in Chatterbox.



How much does it cost ? S$24 per person before all taxes ! I requested another bowl of rice for my daughter and it costs S$3.50 ie much more than what i pack from a hawker center ! It is definitely expensive. But if u have American Express Card, you can enjoy the 1 for 1 promotion. However, there are still many people dining in the restaurant.

Of course, they have other dishes such as Laksa, Hokkian Mee, Nasi Lemak, Wanton Mee, local dessert, fruit juicy, western food, coffee/tea etc. Btw, u may wish to consider dine at Chatterbox and enjoy the National Day fireworks on 9 Aug 09.



Opens Daily:
5am to 1am (Sun – Thu; Last order at 12.30am)
24 hours (Fri, Sat & Eve of Public Holidays)
Weekend Local High Tea – Available on Saturdays, Sundays and Public Holidays from 3pm to 5pm

Reservations: 68316288

The Great Singapore Feast

I am sure u will like to enjoy good food and to pay as low as possible ?

The Great Singapore Feast 2009

Organized by Restaurant Association of Singapore,
from 24 July 2009 to 31st Oct 2009.

173 restaurants participating in this event (eg. Tung Lok, Crystal Jade, Jumbo Seafood, Palm Beach Seafood, Jack’s Place, LingZhi Vegetarian, Prima Tower Revolving Restaurant, Pu Tien Restaurant etc).

Diners are able to buy food vouchers to use it at the participating restaurants. Voucher is selling at a 30% discount ie paying only $35 for a $50 voucher. Limited to 4 vouchers (each of $50 value) per person and payable only by Citibank credit card.

I have tried to buy some but the online portal is overloaded with high traffic. Cannot make any purchase at the moment. Need to try again later. :-(

Teochew dishes (2)

There was a Chinese article in Zaobao last Sat on the Teochew restaurant ie Chin Lee Restaurant (深利美食馆）. I scanned the article and to share it with you here.

What interest me is the dried prawn roll and the goose palm with mushroom and sea cucumber. Will try it in my next visit. Just knew that the restaurant has been in business for 36 years. :-)

不简单, well done

.

Crystal Dumpling

I last eaten the Tiong Bahru's crystal dumpling (水晶包) 5 or 6 years ago. I could not find the stall after the upgrading and renovation of the Food Centre . I thought the owner had decided to retire and din "persue" further where the stall could be located.

Recently, I was sharing with Lay Yen about the nice food in the Tiong Bahru Food Centre. One of the stalls I told her was the one selling the crystal dumpling. She shared that the owner had shifted to Alexandra Village Food Centre. Wow, so they are still in operation and i decided to visit them.

I found the stall last Sunday around 3pm but they had sold out the dumpling. Hence, I revisited the stall the next at 10am. Ordered a few to try and also bought some to share it with my colleagues. It still tasted as nice and they liked it too :-)

However, the prices have increased quite a bit: 70 cents / pcs for the salty taste dumpling and 60 cents / pcs for the sweet taste dumpling.



I hope u have tasted it before else I would like to recommend that you should give it a try. U are sure to love it.

The stall opens 7 days a week from 9am onwards until sold out.
Address: Blk 120 #01-10. Bukit Merah Lane 1 (opposite the form Bukit Merah SAFRA). Tel: 62745561

Durian season is back

Went for a durian session last night after dinner at home.
Ended up packed back the durian because 谨卉 fell asleep while we were on the way. She din sleep in school in the afternoon. Quite a number of people.

It's durian party time :-)


Going with my colleagues in July. Yeah !

Teochew dishes

I had my first typical Teochew cuisine when I was invited to my brother's wedding dinner food tasting session many years ago. It was a good dining experience and got to know a few Teochew dishes. Since then, I have patronized the same restaurant many times for the nice Teochew cookings.

Coincidentally, I ran into another Teochew restaurant located in Bedok North HDB heartland named Chin Lee Restaurant (深利美食馆）not too long ago. There are a few signature dishes to order whenever i eat in a Teochew restaurant:

- Steamed Pomfret in Teochew Style (must be 斗鲳 and not 白鲳 ）
- Freezed pork skin
- Yam Paste with Gingko Nuts & Pumpkin as dessert
- Briased goose
- Sea Cucumber with Fish Maw soup
- Stired fried Sambal crayfish

Besides ordering the steamed pomfret and yam paste, we tried 2 more common dishes so that my daughter could have something to eat for dinner.

Chin Lee Restaurant is definitely well decor. The staff provides a very attentive and pleasant service to all customers, similing at all times and responsive to request. :-) Food is served pretty fast and it is tasty, not so salty in general. The pomfret is very fresh and yam paste sweetness is just nice for me. We also ordered soup of the day and i enjoyed the winter melon soup much - simple and light in taste. :-)



At the end of the dinner, they served us with some denser Oonlong chinese tea so that we wun feel so oily. I will patronize the restaurant again to try the other dishes. Chin Lee Restaurant is located at Blk 115, #01-285, Bedok North Road (opposite the Fengshan Food Centre). Tel: 64445554. They serve both lunch and dinner 7 days a week.



My grading (♥♥♥♥♥ means excellent):

- Location ♥♥♥♥ (pretty convenient if u drive with shelter parking lots)
- Food ♥♥♥ to ♥♥♥♥
- Service ♥♥♥♥♥
- Price ♥♥♥
- Dining experience ♥♥♥♥

Ampang Niang Tou Fu

I have been visiting the Ampang Niang Tou Fu for a couples of years. I knew about it from a makan tv programme then.


Basically, it is a very simple, no frill eating place with kopitiam type of layout, tables and chairs. U may feel that the whole setup is like one of those eating places in Malaysia. But the place is clean, bright and pretty cooling though no air-con. Of course it can be quite noisy during the peak hours. There are parking lots just in front of the eating place.



It provides about 12 - 14 niang tou fu items. Customers can decide if u want all the items or to remove some and they will replace it with what u want. $6 per person for 10 pieces (ie 60 cents per item). Rice and drink are charged separately. The eating place dun provide mee hoon, mee etc to go along with the niang tou fu. There is also no dry niang tou fu. All items are prepared and served in a big plate together with the soup in it. If it is your first visit, do also try the sour plum cold drink. :-)



I feel that the price is a bit on a high side (ie 60 cents per piece) especially when there is not much changes to its offerings. It was 40 or 50 cents then. :-( I have cut down my visits to Ampang as i have more makan options to consider as well that will also come to about the same total cost.


Nevertheless, it is still a nice place to go for lunch or dinner.
The address is 225, East Coast Road. Singapore 428922.
Tel: 63453289.
Operating hours: 11.30am to 8.30pm.
No website. No email.


My grading (♥♥♥♥♥ means excellent):

- Location ♥♥♥♥ (pretty convenient if u drive with parking lots)
- Food ♥♥♥♥
- Service ♥♥♥
- Price ♥♥♥♥
- Dining experience ♥♥♥♥ (Can be quite noisy during peak hours)

Do u like durian ?

I enjoy durian.

The key to eating durian is not to eat a lot but to taste a few real excellent durians. The smell and its nice tasty will stay in your mouth and mind for awhile. I feel good about it.

I prefer eating it at durian stall. Dynamic and full of excitement. People come and go with bags of durians happily to share it with family members and friends. Much better than drinking beer and chewing peanuts + smoking endlessly.

Though there are many durian stalls along the Geylang area, it is very crowded on Fri and Sat. I find it too noisy though it also full of excitement (heavy traffic as well). I usually patronize the durian stall along the Yio Chu Kang Road called 717 Trading. U can find more information on the website at http://717trading.com/717trading/index.html

However, i must confess that i dun know how to choose a good durian. I will ask the stall helpers to help me and trust that they will choose a nice one.

Besides calling them, u can also order the durian through email.

Highland Centre
No. 22 Yio Chu Kang Road #01-01 Highland Centre,
Singapore 545535
Tel : 6487 2777 Fax : 6487 2272
Bus No: 136
MRT/Interchange: Serangoon MRT


My grading (♥♥♥♥♥ means excellent):

- Location (at Yio Chu Kang Road) ♥♥♥♥ (pretty convenient if u drive with parking lots)
- Food ♥♥♥♥
- Service ♥♥♥♥
- Price ♥♥ to ♥♥♥♥
- Dining experience ♥♥♥♥♥ (especially when it is a windy night. Less noisy)

Brazil Churrasco

Read about the Brazil Churrasco in a magazine and decided to try out the Brazilian food for dinner. Yup, my first visit.




The restaurant I patronized is located at the Lock Road, Gillman Village along the Alexandra Road where HP, NOL and PSA Building are located. The restaurant is very nicely designed with colourful and modern feel. The layout is good with a round buffet salad bar in the center of the restaurant. Customers can easily access to the salad in regards to where they sit. Of course, the music is lively and creates a very relaxing dining experience. No samba music and dance (ie not live performance). Easy to find parking lots nearby or just in front of the restaurant (though with limited lots).




The restaurant only offers buffet lunch/dinner from Mon - Sat (Not open on Sun). Beverages have to be ordered separately that include wine, cocktail, mocktails and coffee/tea. Besides the salad bar, the main course of the buffet is the grilled / BBQ meat such as chicken, beef, mutton, fish, chicken heart/liver, ham, sausages and pineapple. There is not main course corner at the restaurant. Instead, u will see waiters carrying different freshly grilled meats serving the customers by moving from table to table. It is important to say no politely to them at times especially when you already have enough food to chew else it may not taste so nice when the meat turns a bit cold.



For the main course, i love the chicken heart, fish and pineapples. I must say that i enjoy the pineapples very very much. Though it is grilled, the pineapple is juicy and sweet. It goes very well with the main course to make u feel less "meaty" after u have a few round of grilled items. Must try and ask for more. :-) As i dun eat beef, hence no comments about its quality. Basically, the meats are tasty and well seasoned.


I also love the salad bar. Pretty different in terms of its varieties and the way it is prepared as compare to say Swensen's salad bar. I like the ceaser salad, pumpkin, fresh tomato, fried banana and mushroom. They also provide noodle and rice as hot items as part of the salad offering. The staff service level is pretty good.




Well, it is pretty expensive. S$42 per adult for dinner (excluding drinks).
If u are interested to give it a try, visit the website at http://brazilchurrasco.com/index.php for more information. There are three outlets in Singapore:

(1) 5, Lock Road. Gillman Village (Tel. 64799573)
(2) 14/16, Sixth Avenue (Tel. 64631923)
(3) 7 Club Street (Tel. 63279663)

They also have catering service (tel. 64631923) for parties/gathering.


My grading (♥♥♥♥♥ means excellent):

- Location (at Lock Road) ♥♥♥♥ (pretty convenient if u drive)
- Food ♥♥♥ to ♥♥♥♥
- Service ♥♥♥♥
- Price ♥♥ (expensive)
- Dining experience ♥♥♥♥♥

Btw, remember to use the toilet. Very nicely done especially the lady toilet (♥♥♥♥♥).