All posts tagged: Chinese

D’Life Bistro & Cafe @ Commonwealth Crescent

Published by Beatrice

D’Life Cafe & Bistro is the latest vegetarian joint to hit the market. Only opened for 2 weeks, I am glad to see such a happening and hipster looking vegetarian joint (in an extremely old school charming neighbourhood next to famous 2 Chefs tze char!) we can hang out at! D’Life Cafe & Bistro is a lacto-ova vegetarian place that does not use onions/garlic/leek/chives/shallots. They also have some vegan options including vegan ice cream and vegan soy/almond milk coffee but the cakes are not vegan! Even though I couldn’t find any website on this new cafe, the owner was very prompt in replying to my facebook messages for reservations. The staff was also quite flexible in rearranging the tables so 9 of us could sit together. We ordered a main each, some side dishes and 3 desserts to share! All in all, we spent $145 for 9 of us which is quite reasonable for the amount of food! Enjoyed the Asian dishes very much and will try the Western dishes the next time we are …

Taiwan: Taroko National Park 太魯閣國家公園 Lodging/Hotel – Silks Place 太鲁阁晶英酒店 (Taiwan Travel Review Series)

Published by Beatrice

Silks Place 太鲁阁晶英酒店 in Taroko National Park 太魯閣國家公園 was the most amazing stay experience. Even our local guide said it had the best hotel in the area, and it was not difficult to see why.  Our “Honeymoon Package Studio Room” package for 1 night included: ‧ ‧ ‧ ‧ ‧ ‧ ‧ ‧ ‧ ‧ ‧ ‧ ‧ ‧ The Complimentary Service at The Retreat Lounge The Silks Place Breakfast The Afternoon Tea  (PM 15:00 ~ 18:00) The evening Red wine white wine (PM 17:00 ~ PM18:00) The Indoor Parking The Indoor and Outdoor Swimming Pool The Tennis, The Kid’s Club-Playground The Yoga & The Fitness Room The Wireless Internet at Retreat Lounge The Round Trip from Airport or Train Station The Half Day Tour The Daily Fresh Fruits The Daily Newspaper The Mini Bar The Evening Turndown Service Silks Place was built to truly wow and relax. While the hotel looks simple from outside, but beautiful, grand reception. After we reach the reception, we are first brought to the Retreat Room for snacks and drinks (free flow red and white wine!) …

Chin Chin Eating House @ Purvis Street

Published by Beatrice

My family likes to eat to Chin Chin Eating House @ Purvis Street for weekday evening dinners. We have been there so many times and also introduced many friends and family there. They are efficient and good value for money (usually total $50 for 4 pax). Always crowded without fail! They have Hainanese chefs so their traditional Hainanese fare like Pork Chops are good bets! Their chicken rice is also one of my favourites; I prefer it to the other hot favourite (Yetcon) just opposite Chin Chin Eating House. Great place for local tzechar style food, especially for big groups! — Chin Chin Eating House Address: 19 Purvis Street Phone: 63374640 Hours: Daily, 7am – 9pm

Grouper King Seafood Restaurant (大洋城) @ Shaw Towers

Published by Beatrice

My cousins celebrated 2 of our birthdays at Grouper King Seafood Restaurant. They bought a deal online so we had free flow of Chinese dishes, including all sorts of fish at ~$35.90/pax. I checked online and they are running a similar deal now on Qoo10. The usual price is $59/pax. As the name of the restaurant suggests, they are known for GIANT Grouper fish!! There are a few mains like main Soups, Peking Duck that can only be ordered once, but otherwise, there are at least 40 ala carte items you can re-order.   Feasting… As you can see, we had a lot of dishes including many dishes of fresh fish (I assume is grouper!) cooked in many ways. Very good value for free flow seafood dishes with the deals for $35+ for dinner, and great for family gatherings for a big group. Do note that you have pay $3-$5 more per pax depending on the drinks package picked as well; they have ala carte and free flow drinks as well. — Grouper King Seafood Restaurant (大洋城) …

Crystal Jade Steamboat Restaurant @ Zhongshan Park

Published by Beatrice

Firstly, for all who have not been to Zhongshan Park along Balestier, I highly recommend it for grocery shopping (Fairprice Finest) for those who live in the area. Zhongshan Park, though it has a very Chinese sounding name, is a modern hotel cluster comprising Ramada Hotel and Days Hotel. The Fairprice Finest is spacious and eco-friendly, with wide aisles and great selection. They also have a dog-friendly pub – Starker Fresh Beer (Stärker Frisches Bier) with a great nice lawn to chillout. Just below Fairprice Finest, there is a Crystal Jade Steamboat Restaurant, so we went for the Kurobuta Pork Set for 2 at $39.80. It comes with 2 types of soup base you can choose from, so we chose Pork Broth and Sweet and Sour. There are also many different sauces to pick from. I enjoy the spacious restaurant, fresh meats and pretty good value meal especially after 20% discount promotion! For their opening promotion, they have the below promotion but not sure when it will be taken off. Good for families! — Crystal …

Kombi Rocks Diner @ Yio Chu Kang Road

Published by Beatrice

Kombi Rocks Diner is the v2 of Koon Kee Restaurant (established 1971), serving Thai and Chinese recipes passed down for three generations. The owner’s wife is Thai so you will find some Thai fusion into the menu choices. Kombi (I know it more as the VW Camper) has been made in Brazil since 1957 but production ends this year. There are only 13 Kombis in Singapore, and I believe the owner of the cafe owns 4-5 of them.  So if you are a Kombi Fan, or have friends (like our dear friend, M) who are Kombi Fans, this is a must go in Singapore to see the rows of Kombi parked outside the diner. This diner event rents out Kombis, and sells a selection of vintage memorabilia for wedding shoots if you need.

Hong Sheng Restaurant Tzechar @ Toa Payoh

Published by Beatrice

I have been eating this Hong Sheng Tzechar at Toa Payoh Lorong 1 for many years, it almost feels weird to be blogging it only now. I have read various reviews online that say the general flavour of the dishes at Hong Sheng lacks the umami oomph compared to other Tzechar stalls. I have to agree that Hong Sheng food tastes very cosy home cooked style, where there is less salt and MSG. For example, even the tofu, they do not use the stronger tasting egg tofu, but the more authentic white tofu. The soup is also slightly bland. So if you are looking for the strong outstanding flavours in every dish, this is not the place for you. Despite some of the not so good reviews online, be prepared to wait at Hong Sheng. If you don’t arrive by 530pm, the typical waiting time will be at least 1 hour!, so tip is to reach by 530 latest, especially if you have many pax. Tip: They are known for their Horfun, which is wrapped in …

Lai Huat Seafood Restaurant Tzechar @ Jalan Besar

Published by Beatrice

Having passed Lai Huat Seafood Restaurant many times and seeing so many celebrity photos and endorsements on its walls, we finally went to check it out to satisfy my curiosity! The service is not great. I got dissed trying to change tables because they initially sat us at the back, near the wall with lizards constantly invading our personal space. The wait is also incredibly long; we waited about 45 minutes for our first dish to be served. I guess they can afford the far-from-ideal service time, thanks to their good publicity over the years. Thankfully, the food was worth the wait. We tried their signature dish – Sambal Balachan Fried Fish. This is quite a killer combo of fried and spice kick in my taste buds on the first bite. Fish was crunchy with every bite! However, tip is to order a fish for 2, to share for 3 people or more. Two of us “jelat” after 80% of the fish as the dish is really oily and rich tasting. The other dishes were good …

Jalan Sultan Prawn Noodles @ Kallang

Published by Beatrice

One of my favourite prawn noodles in Singapore is Jalan Sultan Prawn Noodles! This prawn mee was introduced by my mum who packed it home for me when I was sick and eating it actually perked me up! So I made a trip down over a weekend to check it out. Jalan Sultan Prawn Noodles is a typical Singaporean alfresco coffee shop. So tip: is to go on cooling day or pack home to eat. We felt baked on a sunny day and with the tentage keeping the heat in the alley. My personal favorite is the King Prawn Pork Rib Beehoon Soup ($8) after trying different prawn sizes, soup/dry. But even if you were to opt for regular prawn ($5), they use the same soup base brewed in prawn shells that make it really strong flavored and delicious! Their pork ribs are also tender without being over fatty. Most of the time, I get chunks of meat in the soup as well. Sometimes when I eat pork ribs prawn mee in other parts of Singapore, I get …

Wing Seong Fatty’s Restaurant @ Bencoolen Street

Published by Beatrice

Accordingly to CNN, the supposedly ‘original’ Fatty Weng Cantonese Restaurant – Wing Seong Fatty’s Restaurant  – is one of the 5 best Chinese restaurants in Singapore. I heard so much about it but never tried so we decided to bring my parents one weekday night after work. This is good value for families; we had many dishes paid $77 for 4 people. However, the food reviews even among 4 of us were mixed. N liked the food, while my mum and I personally found the food generally bland. Nonetheless, this is good try for families at least once. If you prefer sublter (and i assume healthier) tastes for some of the dishes, this will be a good repeat. Personally though, only a few dishes stood out. Am going to rank the dishes by my preference! 1) Favourite – Home Made Tofu ($8) drizzled with Enoki, regular mushrooms and starchy brown sauce. I like the strong egg flavour in this crispy tofu, and the sauce was a good blend with the tofu without being overly salty. 2) …