37th Birthday @ Oriole Cafe

They say time really flies after u pass 30, and l cant believe l've just turned 37! But like they say, its just a number, so just stay happy and young at heart! Some ppl have said I look like l'm in my 20s, so thats a little consolation.. hehe...

This year, my friends celebrated for me at Pan Pacific Hotel Serviced Suites, at a cosy little cafe called 'Oriole'. Just like the biscuits with the same sounding name, this place is dark in appearance, rich in taste and has a smooth classy creamy interior.



The starters... the fish & chips and Calamari


The mains...(left clockwise, Capellini Crabmeat, the signature Beef Cheek Tagliatelle, Bangers & Mash and grilled Spring Chicken)


My fav mango cake!


'The Famous Five'





Oriole Cafe & Bar
96 Somerset Road
#01-01 Pan Pacific Serviced Suites

8th Degree

We had a farewell lunch for 2 colleagues at 8th Degree which was located near our workplace. Some of them ordered the lamb shanks which were huge! The set lunches were quite reasonable, but the soup was too salty and the dessert was a measly piece of cake.

After lunch, we ignored weather forecasts and decided to hike up the Treetop Walk. Bad decision, cos we were trapped in a storm halfway thru and were all drenched! But it was a good bonding trip, and how often u get to see ur colleagues soaking wet in see thru clothes?! haha...







11 Slim Barrracks Rise
#08-02 NTU Alumni Club
Singapore 138664

Hashima

Over the weekend, l had dim sum at Imperial Treasure Great World & Am Pang Yong Tau Fu @ 225, East Coast Rd.

Did u know that Hashima is the dried fallopian tubes of true frogs? sounds awful but its supposedly good for your skin & lungs.. so just imagine you're eating bird's nest! The Gui Ling Gao was good too, with the right bitter-sweet taste.



The shrimps and scallops were fresh...


The 'tau kee' and soup were superb, but the rice served was quite cold


Cooling Sour Plum Drink

Sweet & Sour

l visited the Buddha Tooth Temple on Sat and chanced upon 2 enlightening booklets entitled 'Anyone Can Go to Heaven, Just be Good' and 'A Life of Blessings'. l've always been fascinated with Buddhism as it's based on reasons, does not require blind faith and agrees with modern science. Do check out the author's website and find out more.

Life is full of unexpected changes, one moment it can be all sweet and nice and the next, it could turn sour. We've all experienced hurt, betrayal, lies but l guess these are all part of life's journey and we just have to deal with it.

Just like this sweet & sour fish from Thai Express, it tastes nice because of the blend of both sweet & sour sauces. So in a way, life will only be complete when we experience all the ups & downs, and grow from it. Like Buddha said, life is transient and we shld just be good to others cos we reap what we sow.









btw, also had the Maxwell Fish Bee Hoon & Popeye's over the weekend...





hmm..Maybe l shld really cut down on eating meat and cultivate compassion for all living beings...l came across this picture in a website and this morning on the way to work.. l actually saw it displayed in the car infront! wonder if it's a sign from above??!

PS Cafe

We decided to have brunch in town but nothing seems to come to mind. After making a quick search on the iphone, we decided on PS Cafe at Palais. On stepping in, we felt like we'll entered some quaint old American cafe in the States, with its classy interior and high ceiling fans. It was very laidback and definitely a great place to eat and relax.



Chicken Soup with big chunks of meat and tiny alphabets


Brunch Burger.. nice juicy beef patty with a tangy citrus sauce


BBQ Special... the sausages were nothing 'special' but the hash brown & eggs were yumz


390 Orchard Road
#02-09A
Palais Renaissance


PS : Do watch the movie 'My Sister's Keeper' if you're beginning to take life for granted cos there are always less fortunate people around us. Strangely, the cinema was only half-filled on a Sat evening, my guess is that Singaporeans rather spend $$ on comedies, action thrillers, RA flicks, rather than such poignant stuff.

After the movie, we had a sinful oil-laden dinner at Spize.. the chicken masala murtabak was damn shiok!

Better Butter Batter

'Julie & Julia' is a must-see for all foodies and budding bloggers...it juxtaposes the life of chef Julia Child in her culinary career in Paris with that of Julie Powell, a failed writer who aspires to cook all the recipes from Julia's cookbook and blog abt it for 365 days. Apparently, Julie has never eaten a whole egg in her life before trying out Julia's poached egg recipe... how can anyone not like EGGS?!

Meryl Streep is able to inject life to any character she plays. In this film, her uncanny accent and fine comedic acting truly brings out the Child in her!



After the movie, we had high tea at crystal jade and we had to order the french toast...Like Julia said, u need Butter to make food taste better..Bon Appetit!








For din, went to Soup Restaurant at DFS. After trying the soups at Imperial Treasure, the soup here tasted somewhat bland and diluted. Looks like they need some tips from Julia. btw, my cousin just graduated from London's Le Cordon Bleu, wonders if she will be writing a cookbook soon :p

Peach Garden

There was a 1-for-1 set dinner promotion at Peach Garden for UOB cardholders and we decided to give it a try. All the dishes came in 'appetisers' portions but the quality was not compromised. The coconut prawns and baked black pepper sea perch creations were unique and the ingredients blended well. Their signature custard buns were soft and were oozing with sweet custard paste.....life should be such.. all sweet and Peachy!





Peach Garden 桃苑
273 Thomson Road
#01-06 Novena Garden


Yesterday, caught the movie '(500) Days of Summer' at Vivo which took a refreshing look at Boy-Girl relationships. It wasnt your typical happy ending and sets one thinking of the fine balance between reality & expectations of love. Also had din at Sushi Tei which somehow felt inferior to the Paragon branch.

Ootoya

Walking along Orchard Rd is no mean feat, cos you need to maneuver your way to avoid the bird droppings! The birds are more deafening than the F1 cars racing here this weekend. One wonders whether we are in a famous shopping district or Jurong Bird Park!

Orchard Central was another snag... nice modern design but the space was so narrow & non-shopper friendly. We had to traverse up & down escalators several times jz to comb the whole place.

We came across 'Ootoya' on Level 8 and decided to try out the dishes. They seem to be famous for their grill fishes so we ordered their mackerel and red snapper. The former tasted abit like salted fish and was so bony. The tuna sashimi also looked eerily bloodied. l guess the side dishes like sweet potatoes and radish tasted better than the mains.



But the star of the night was undoubtedly the dessert... whoever thought of mixing green tea ice cream with red beans was a genius!



Ootoya (Orchard Central)
181 Orchard Road
#08-12 Orchard Central

Paradise Inn

Our search for good soup led us to Funan Digitalife Mall where we found a new branch of the Paradise Group that serves nutritious double-boiled soups. Located at unit #02-10/11, their traditional chinese settings were immediately alluding to home-cooked goodness. However, we found the old cucumber soup too oily and ordinary. The salted fish steamed meat patty was quite tasty though.



At night, visited Din Tin Fung at Paragon and decided to try their zha jiang mian (minced pork sauce noodles). It was not too salty and the sauce had the right consistency.

Zoo9

In case you're wondering what the title means... it actually represents the special date today 20092009 which we spent at the Mandai Zoo!

Its been years since l came here and l remember feeling all excited and sleepless when l was a kid the night before a zoo excursion.

Before we embarked on the adventure.. we filled our tummies with Macs!



The tiger trek.. featuring the rare white tigers..


The Primate Kingdom


Ah Meng + Kidzworld


Wild Africa


Reptile World


Its therapeutic to be back in nature with the company of so many lively animals.
l'm sure all of us have a favourite animal whom we can associate most with.... For me, its gotta be the giraffe, cos its tall and upright! haha...

so what's your fav?



Here's wishing all Muslim friends Selamat Hari Raya Aidilfitri!

Cedele's Carrot Cake

In Singapore, when we talk abt carrot cakes.. the dish that comes to mind is the chinese fried version with lotsa 'chye poh' and egg.

For the westerners, carrot cake literally means having carrot bits in a cake. And this version from Cedele was just right...not too sweet with a delicious vanilla topping and lotsa walnuts.





Juicy Sirloin Steak burger!


Cedele (Great World City)
1 Kim Seng Promenade
#01-01/02 Great World City


For din, we tried the HK-themed Central restaurant at Ngee Ann City. The yang zhou fried rice tasted quite homely but the pork chop noodles was just passable.





Central Restaurant (Ngee Ann City)
391 Orchard Road
#B2-01 Ngee Ann City


After din, we caught the romantic comedy 'The Ugly Truth' starring Katherine Heigl and Gerard Butler. It describes the ugly truth on what men and women really wants in relationships. The movie was hilarious, esp when Katherine wore a 'vibrating panty' to a dinner and the remote fell into the hands of a kid!... as u can imagine.. this scene was the climax (pun intended)!


Supper at Spize 'Nasi Pattaya'

Winter Melon

Visited our usual Imperial Treasure at Great World and realised the daily double-boiled soup was sold out at 7pm! Anyway, we tried their winter melon soup instead... full marks for presentation but there was so little soup inside!

Aoba Hokkaido Ramen

We seem to be on a relentless quest to sample all the new ramen stalls in town. But then again, we love japanese food so its not a frown (rhyme intended, hehe).

l believe everyone deserves a 2nd chance and we decided to give this ramen stall another try, despite its dismal performance at Manjuku@Tampines 1.

This time round, they finally redeemed themselves with their thick springy ramen, fresh cha shu and tasty full-bodied soups. Dont order the shoyu ramen though, if you prefer less salty stuff.





Aoba Ramen (ION Orchard)
2 Orchard Turn
#B3-25 ION Orchard

Being my 3rd visit here, l finally decided to brave the long queues and sample the Gindaco Takoyaki balls... it came with huge octupus chunks but was abit too oily. The peking duck rolls were good too.



Earlier in the day, we went to Chinatown to source for a tour package to Taiwan and had this yong tau fu for lunch. Another place with long queues but the traditional hand-made items were worth the wait.





32 New Market Rd
#01-1084
People's Park Food Centre

Tonkichi

Since we already explored the Ion Orchard, we decided to check out the other newly opened mall 'Orchard Central'. Situated opposite the dated Centrepoint Building, this new kid on the block immediately stood out from the rest. Its glass-paned facade is modern and contemporary. l love the 'see-thru lifts' , made me feel like l was levitating above ground!

What caught my eye was this bouncy smooth ass......



gotcha! u pervs...

its actually just a pair of red shoes worn by a gigantic lady sculpture...haha


We were attracted by the nice decor at Tonkichi and decided to see if the food matches it looks. We weren't disappointed cos the tonkatsu were crispy outside and very tender inside. We order the tonkatsu ramen and miso ramen sets which came with Rosu Katsu (Deep fried Grain Fed Premium Pork Loin) and Chicken Katsu. It was rich in flavour and came in big portions. The salmon skin roll was highly recommended and tasted quite good too.



Tonkichi
181 Orchard Road
#07-06 Orchard Central

Itacho Sushi

l was quite fascinated with the Ion and decided to revisit it today. We came across this sushi restaurant which seemed familiar at first sight. I finally remember it was the same restaurant found in Hong Kong (Causeway Bay), which was always packed to the brim. No wonder the servers here seem to speak with a HK accent. Luckily it was past dinner time so we got a seat almost immediately.

This is one of those rare places where the actual servings look much bigger and better than the menu pictures. Their sushi and sashimi were indeed fresh and appetising. The chawanmushi was also one of the better ones l tried so far. This place is definitely value for money.





Itacho Sushi
2 Orchard Turn
#B2-18 ION Orchard

Yhingthai Palace

This place is a must-try for authentic Thai food. The decor and the servers' thai costumes made us feel like we had teleported to Thailand.

The fish maw and tom-yam soups were damn power! The latter was so spicy l almost cried! haha..


The olive rice was very fragrant, with bits of shrimps, chicken and even grapefruit. The fish was slightly tough though.


The crab patties were chewy and the spicy otah came in a nice earthern pot... very traditional.


Yhingthai Palace
36 Purvis Street
#01-04 Talib Centre

After din, we went to 'Barstop' to chill and relax...

3rd Anniversary @ The Marmalade Pantry

My blog is 3 yrs old!

Wanted to celebrate it with a bit of style and finally decided to explore the newly opened ION Orchard. Well, l refused to jostle with the crowd when it first opened but l guess the hype must have cooled down by now. Strangely, the interior looks much smaller than it appears outside but the new labels were definitely a refreshing change. And yup, l did visit the famed posh toilets!



The number 3 juz keeps popping up today...
3th Sep 09 is the 3rd Anniversary where we visited Ion, came across ThreeSixty Marketplace and had dinner @ The Marmalade Pan'Three' on level 3! haha..

This classy place just relocated from Palais Renaissance and made this their flagship store. The crab caesar's salad was light and tasty. Main courses salmon soba and ebi aglio olio were equally delightful too. oh ya, you must try their wide range of juice concoctions too!





The Marmalade Pantry
Orchard Ion, #03-22
2 Orchard Turn
Singapore 238801


btw, we tried the R burger too.. apparently it contains marine collagen which is supposed to be much better than botox!



The letter R makes alot of difference in words and 'The Marmalade Pantry' reminded me of one such word. My ex-colleague came back from a trip and brought some goodies for us. She sent out an email to everyone saying : "Pls help yourselves to the chocolates in the Panty"! It was hilarious and we thought she was feeling kinky.

Imperial Treasure (Cantonese Cuisine)

The lotus root soup here tastes just like mum's cooking, it seems the secret ingredient is the dried cuttlefish, which gives the soup the homely taste. The stir fried chicken with mushrooms was tasty cos of the adequate marination.



1 Kim Seng Promenade
#02-06 Great World City
Tel: 67322232

Ichibantei

Robertson Quay is one of those place that makes you forget the hustle and bustle of city life.. esp on weekends where everyone just stroll along the carefree river or dine in alfresco settings.

We came across this jap restaurant which serves really springy ramen with thick soup stock. The service staff leaves much to be desired though.



60 Robertson Quay
#01-04 The Quayside
Tel: 67333923

Dian Xiao Er @ Vivocity

The Angelica Roasted Duck served here is unparalleled in taste and nutrition. Apparently, it seems even the emperors swear by this dish.

After din, we caught 'Final Destination' and its gruesome scenes nearly made us puke all our food!





1 HarbourFront Walk
#02-137/8 VivoCity
Tel: 6376 9786