All posts tagged: Singapore

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.

Bellwethers Bistro Bar @ Desker Road

Published by Beatrice

The reviews of Bellwethers on HGW have been amazing, so we tried this bistro that opened in Jan13, for a gathering of 4 on a Friday chillout night, to further my Jalan Besar Trail. Nestled in a corner of Singapore’s oldest red light district, Bellwethers Bistro Bar definitely looks like a modern oddball at the corner of the historic shophouses. The design of Bellwethers Bistro Bar is modern, simple and unpretentious, juxtaposed against the quaint shophouses and edgy characters in the neighbourhood. Edgy enough to see police patrolling around :P. Bellwethers’ goal is to “create a quirky and offbeat watering hole away from the humdrum of Singapore’s concrete jungle and bring cool to this charming hidden gem” and they have definitely succeeded. And I am not sure what is with bicycles recently, but Bellwethers also have one in their bathroom to add to their charm. Personally feel that Bellwethers has an Aussie/NZ feel.

(Behind the Scenes) Empower Me Series for Women – Gala Premiere @ Tangs, Orchard

Published by Beatrice

Even though I don’t work on the SK-II business, I was privileged to be able to attend the SK-II Corporate Social Responsibility Event (CSR) at Tangs Seviin yesterday as a #PGemp. I need to apologize for the lousy paparazzi-like photos because I self-invited myself and rushed down last minute so I was shooting with my phone camera. As part of SK-II’s annual CSR programme, EMPOWER ME has collaborated with Social Entrepreneur, former Miss Universe and host of WomenTalkTV.Asia – Eunice Olsen and UN Women Singapore. I am so excited to finally meet this beauty in person. Plus, she is so friendly and humble, with a great heart for the community and women in need! Inspired by the vision of women-to-women empowerment, SK-II and Eunice Olsen have co-created the first-ever EMPOWER ME Series named, Champions of Empowerment, featuring 3 ordinary women – Cassandra Chiu, Rachel Chung and Emily Teng – who have achieved extraordinary achievements. All these 3 women had short videos about their journey that was played at SK-II’s first-ever film festival gala premiere held …

Oxwell & Co @ Ann Siang

Published by Beatrice

Despite reading quite a lot of horrid reviews on Oxwell’s service, I couldn’t help but try this 3 month old Oxwell & Co restaurant because the chef used to work with Gordon Ramsay! And I had one of the most mind blowing experience with Gordon Ramsay in the UK, I was willing to risk the bad service. Oxwell’s executive chef, Mark Sargeant, spent 13 years with Gordon Ramsay Holdings, including 7 years as head chef at Michelin-starred Claridge’s. Sargeant is known for his simple, honest food that is easy on the palate. I must say, firstly, the restaurant must have taken the service feedback quite seriously; I had a pleasant experience with the staff. When I called, they were initially full but gave me the option of going slightly earlier at 630pm so they can still seat me, so long as I could return the table by 8pm. When we arrived, the service crew did seem a little disorganized in that they weren’t sure about my reservation and took a while to check, but they were warm …

Mai Noodles @ Pekkio Food Center

Published by Beatrice

Had a simple meal at Pekkio Food Centre at Owen Road. I originally wanted to try the Wah Kee Prawn Noodle that my friend recommended but this is my second trip there and it was closed again!. So I opted for Mai Minced Pork Bee Hoon ($3), which honestly surprised me with its good taste! Be prepared to wait though, as the food is prepared by 2 elderly folks.  

Novena Peranakan Cuisine @ Novena

Published by Beatrice

I discovered an old gem recently at Novena recently. Apparently, I was told by Jeffrey, one of the owners, that they have been open 9 years! Funny how I have always passed it eating the Hong Kong Family restaurant on its left or Prawn Mee to its right but deselected Novena Peranakan Cuisine. They run a set lunch/dinner at $12.90, with 3 mains (1 each from 3 different lists), 1 drink and 1 dessert. Been there twice now! And these are the dishes: 1) Assam Pedas Fish Meat – so good I repeated on second visit! Assam Pedas, literally meaning “sour spicy,” is a classic Malaysian/Indonesian dish. It is supposed to be sour and fiery hot, and this dish didn’t fail to live up to its name. Rich and sour punch with every mouthful of fish and curry. This dish at Novena Peranakan Cuisine tastes extraordinarily satisfying and has become one of my favorite top fish curries in Singapore (alongside Ocean Curry Fish Head @ Toa Payoh Lorong 4 and Hong Kong Street Chun Tat …

Common Man Coffee Roasters @ Martin Road

Published by Beatrice

Common Man Coffee Roasters (CMCR) is a unique concept brewed from a partnership between Harry Grover, Five Senses Coffee (Australia), and the Spa Esprit Group. The cafe roots from the notion that great coffee should not be a privilege, but instead available for all to enjoy, hence, “common man”. But truth be told, the prices of the food is not the most  “common”/affordable. Located at 22 Martin Road, Common Man Coffee Roasters houses a coffee roaster, a specialty coffee bar, a 60-seater cafe and a retail space that offers coffee accessories. Even though it has quite a lot of seats, they do not take reservations and the cafe was packed when we arrived on Sunday lunch time. However, they reassured me that there is usually no longer than 5-10min waiting time during busy hours for groups of 4 or less. I actually find this cafe a smart business partnership  for all the partners. This is the first tieup that moves Spa Esprit in the wholesale business, an expansion from retail which they already do very well. …

Quan Xiang Yuan 泉馨园 (Jing Ji) Seafood Restaurant @ Jalan Besar

Published by Beatrice

I used to frequent Quan Xiang Yuan previously with my aunt since I was a kid. Apparently, this is one of the oldest Hokkien restaurant in Singapore, founded since the 1930s. First up, we tried Quan Xiang Yuan’s traditional Prawn Roll ($8), handmade using pork, prawn and spice mix. It was well battered (fish-and-chips style) and juicy on the inside. Most prawn rolls tend to be a bit dry inside due to the frying but this one was still supple. We also had the Fish Maw Sea Cucumber Stew ($20), a must order every time we visit a Hokkien Restaraunt. This particular stew had a lot of the ingredients – Fish Maw, Sea Cucumber and Mushrooms so this is good value for money in terms of the amount of ingredients. However, the taste was just average for me. We couldn’t decide between the Fried Hokkien Noodles ($6) and Fried Hokkien Beehoon ($6) so we ordered both in small portions to share. The noodles were definitely traditional, but I think all 4 of us unanimously preferred the Beehoon! The …

NOX – Dine in the Dark @ Beach Road

Published by Beatrice

We decided to celebrate our 100th days of marriage at NOX Restaurant, which is Singapore’s version of dining in darkness. On top of it potentially being an interesting experience, we also wanted to do our little bit to help with the visually impaired in Singapore. As NOX website describes, we are constantly having sensory stimulation. Especially in our modern fast paced environment, our senses are nearly overwhelmed, always having new news to look at, new information to feed into our brains, new people to talk to. So the concept of NOX – Dine in the Dark, is to compel us to be more conscious of our remaining senses since we cannot see, thus heightening our ability to smell, feel and taste! As NOX describes, the experience is to “temporarily surrender one of your dominant senses, sight, in exchange for enhancing the other four, allowing you to completely re-evaluate your perception of the world around you”. When you first enter the restaurant on the first floor, the host will brief on all the necessary logistics – …

Cad Café @ Kampong Glam

Published by Beatrice

Cad Café is a new coffee joint opened for just 3 months, set in extremely hipster Haji Lane! You will walk through a sea of graffiti walls to get to Cad Café! It is  a very small café that can seat less than 20 people in total. Extremely artistic and grungy interiors, Cad Cafe has some good hand drawn paintings hanging for sale. I personally think they blend the décor perfectly with the Haji Lane esoteric atmosphere. It is a rushed breakfast coffee grab, so we tried the Flat White and Ice Coffee. They are using beans from Toby’s Estate, and I must say the coffee is better than I expected (7.5/10)! The Flat White ($5) is medium bodied – quite viscous. It is bitter and only slightly acidic, but is well balanced with the milk, with strong aroma. The Ice Coffee ($4.50) is not too acidic and had quite a long lingering taste. There are tourists sitting around chatting, and given the vibrancy of the café, if I was on a holiday, it would be a …