Si Chuan Dou Hua (Raffles Place)

Nothing beats having a good meal. We've recently discovered a few more delicious dishes at Si Chuan Dou Hua.  Having been dining there for years and still impressed by their standard, this is certainly a place to go for interesting and delicious (but not cheap) food.

Baked Butter Cod - Cod fish has been deep-fried before topping with baked butter, mixed with chilli padi and curry leaves. Minimum order of 2 slices is needed.  Each slice costs $12.

Crispy Rice Bubble with Beancurd (锅粑豆腐）- I was expecting to eat burnt rice but it turned out that crispy rice (unburnt) was served instead.  The crispy rice was served in a separate bowl to keep it crispy.  Add the rice to the tofu dishes (a little similar to sour & spicy soup although it is much milder version).  If you like it, eat the crispy rice by itself, and you will discover that it is a very delicious piece of food on its own... $18 for the tofu + the crispy rice.

Kim Joo Guan Bak Kwa

I did not know about this shop call Kim Joo Guan until a few days ago when I was shopping at Taka Atrium and sampling the new year goodies.  Besides Bee Cheng Hiang, the other bak Kwa shops aren't that agressive to set up stalls at CNY fairs. 

I was hoping to get some sample from this stall, but unfortunately, there was no sampling.  I was ignorant and did not know that this is the shop that supplies bak kwa to Lim Chee Guan.  Which Singapore does not know Lim Chee Guan?  They are always in the news for the long queue outside their shop at Chinatown during CNY season.  And so I thought "Wow... then Kim Joo Guan's bak kwa must be quite good".  My curousity was further aroused when a guy, who already bought 5 packets (1kg each) of bak kwa, asked if he could "tong bang" me.  This was because the stall has limited purchase of 5kg for each customer.  Each kg costs $45 now.  And I heard that the limit will be changed to 3kg per cutomers and $48/kg from 24 Jan... Pre-order of bak kwa has closed since 14 Jan =(

While I was still a little undecided, a large part of me was instigating me to buy a pack to try.  But I know 1kg was a little too much for me.  But the 1/2kg packs will only be available in the evenings at 5pm/6pm.  Well, for me to rush down just to get a 1/2 kg pack, and still run the risk of it being sold out by the time I am there, I thought it was quite a good deal.

The salesgirl was reminding that mine would be last 1kg pack left for the day (at 12noon)... out of kiasuism, I bought it...

Packaging was already done, in a nice gold colour box. And to think that I had bought something which I never sample and see (cos already pre-packed), I must be quite out of my mind.  It had better not disappoint me.

I did some surfing about Kim Joo Guan there after, and realised that Dr Leslie Tay has good reviews about their bak kwa.  I was a little relieve.  And first thing I did when I got home in the evening was to unpack and try it.

The nice fragrant was released from the packing and the nicely BBQ bak kwa looks very appetising.  Personally, I hate thick and hard bak kwas.  KJG's bak kwa wasn't that thick and quite tender.  It was sweet and juicy at the same time too.  I finished 1 piece within the next 15 minutes (and with much satisfaction).  Like it, like it, like it!  Haha!

Buttermilk Waffle @ Coffee Club

Good Morning! breakfast set from Coffee Club @ Tiong Bahru Plaza.   Took me a while to decide from the menu with about 10 choices.  Finally, I decided to try the Buttermilk Waffle. The breakfast set came with a complimentary coffee or tea. 

A set of 3 waffles was served about 10mins later.  I was initially a little disappointed that the waffles were not piping hot when served.  I like hot waffles because it gives the impression that it was freshly made... =P

The waffles was sprinkled lightly with icing sugar and doused with maple syrup.  It came with a small pot of blueberry jam and unsalted SCS butter (not in photo).  The waffles was soft but a little dry.  I always like to taste food in its original taste before adding other stuff.  The plain waffles was.... really plain.  But as soon as I spread the SCS butter on it, the waffle became much delicious compared to when it was just a plain piece of waffle!!  It was also great when i dipped it lightly into the jam. 

At $7.90 (before taxes), the breakfast set was "expensive" compared to other breakfast I could get from Tiong Bahru Plaza - Ya Kun or Mac or Toast Box.  However, because of its "atas-ness", the cafe was one of the quieter place to munch away your breakfast, and relax yourself with some light jazz music... on a Sunday morning.

Laksa @ Ghim Moh Market

I am lucky, yet at the same time unlucky to have a stall selling delicious curry laksa near my workplace @ Ghim Moh Market (Blk 20 Ghim Moh Road).  Lucky to be able to enjoy a bowl of delicious laksa with thick flavourful gravy.  I hate laksa gravy that is diluted, masked behind the notion of it being healthy.  I say, it is healthy as long as I exclude hum (cockles) =P

Since tou geh isn't my favourable at all, that is always excluded as well. Without both, this laksa can still taste very appetising with the thick bee hoon, tou pok and fish cake and sambal chilli (err, I think there is no prawn in it).  Bottomline is - the success factor depends on the quality of laksa gravy.  Delicious gravies will be thick, savoury yet a taste of sweetness in it. Yummy!  Check it out!

Because of the popularity of their laksa, it is usually sold out by noon time.  So, do be early if you're making a special trip down to Ghim Moh just to try the laksa.  By the way, there are 2 stalls selling laksa in Ghim Moh Market.  The core business for this stall is hotpot noodles (小碗面)... yet their laksa is more popular than the Katong Laksa stall in the hawker centres.  What an irony.  Haha!

驿站 (Yi Zhan) again.... [Shop has Closed]

My second visit to 驿站 within a month.  This time round, what caught my eyes was the 鲁肉饭 (Stewed Pork Rice).  The white rice has been covered by the fragrant stewed pork and gravy.  The 2 yellow pieces are pickles. 

Felt a little sinful after finishing most of the stewed pork as half of it are fatty meat =P  Washing down the rice and the pork is a bowl of clear vegetable soup.  Yummy dinner!

Honeymoon Dessert (满记甜品)

Honeymoon Dessert has arrived in Singapore in 2010 but I did not have a chance to try it until months later.  The Singapore outlets can be found at Vivocity (#01-93), Bugis Junction (#01-70) and 313@Somerset (#04-20 and #04-32).

The outlets' facet are similar to those at Hong Kong... Big brown signage at the entrance and cosy interior and yellow dessert bowls.  This dessert has come a long way since it started in 1995 at Sai Kung district in Hong Kong.  It has now expanded to mainland China, Indonesia and now Singapore.

Desserts ranges from cold to hot variations. Mango, durian, sago, black glutinous rice are some of the main ingredients. My favourite so far has been the Thai Black Glutinous Rice with Mango (Coconut Juice).  In fact, the best part of this dessert is the coconut juice, a light fragrant drink with vanilla taste.  The glutinous rice was "crunchy" and not over-cooked. However, the mango was a little sour.  Would have been perfect if it was sweeter =)

Since I'm spoilt for choice, would definitely be back to try the other desserts, especially the Mango Pomelo and Sago Sweet Soup with Ice Cream (雪山杨枝甘露) which is the most popular dessert accordingly to the shop.

MOF (Ministry of Food)

You can find green tea latte at Starbucks, you can find green tea gelato at Haato (and at many other Japanese ice cream outlets).  But, have you tried combining both in a beverage?

This is truly my preferred combination - green tea latte and green tea gelato =)  *drool* Has anyone tried this combi at other places, besides MOF??

驿站 (Yi Zhan) [Shop has Closed]

Was shopping around Tanjong Pagar MRT xchange one day and chance upon this Taiwanese food cafe 驿站.  It is located at basement 1 in the station and next to The Soup Spoon.

Decided to give it a try since I just missed the Taiwan Food Fair =(  Apart from their regular menu, there are also a few other chef's recommendation on their standee banner.  Although I can't say that the dish that I ordered was really authentic Taiwanese food, I fell in love with it afterall. It is 奶油鱼柳套餐 (Butter Fish Fillet set meal).  It comes with sauteed long bean veggies, potato wedges and rice!  Oh well, by the time i finish the fish, veggies and wedges, tummy definitely has very little room left for the white rice sprinkled with black sesame seeds =(

The best part of this dish is none other than the butter sauce.  It is buttery (that goes without saying), a little savoury, a little sweet and extremely fragrant.  Could they have added curry leaves?  Sounds a little weird but the dish suits me perfectly well!!  I am also suspecting that the batter used for the fish fillet contains some secret ingredients. 

But calories wise.... I think it is best to ignore it for the time being.

Since this is located at Tanjong Pagar, the office crowd wasn't there even at 7pm.  Suspect that they either are rushing home for dinner or still hard at work.  That makes it a good place to eat and relax, with a cup of chinese tea after the main course. =)

CNY 2011 - Pineapple Tarts

What's your favourite CNY cookies?  I've placed order for pineapple tarts, chocolate chips and almond cookies at Joyus Pastries (located at Tanjong Pagar MRT xchange) and collecting it at end Jan.  The pineapple tarts is $19 per tub and for the rest of the cookies, they are priced at $11 per tub (CNY price). 

What are you planning to get for CNY 2011?  Do share...

Claypot Sausage Rice

My first attempt in cooking Claypot Sausage Rice.  This is a relatively easy dish to prepare.  However, just like preparing many other dishes, the most amount of time is spent in cutting the ingredients =P

Ingredients:

-  Cooked Rice (portion for 2 persons)
- 1 piece of chinese sausage (lup cheong)
- 150g of chicken breast meat
- 1 piece of chinese dried mushroom
- 1/3 piece of carrot

Marinade:
- 1/2 tablespoon Sweet Sauce
- 1/2 tablespoon Oyster Sauce
- 1/2 tablespoon of Light Soy Sauce
- A few drops of Sesame Oil
- A dash of Pepper

Preparation:

1.  Cut the chicken breast meat into cubes.  Season it with marinade for 1 hour.
2.  Soak the mushroom in hot water for 10mins to soften it.  When it is soft, cut into cubes.
3.  Slice the chinese sausage into thin slices.
4.  Slice the carrots and steam it for 1 minute in microwave oven.

Cooking:
1.  Heat up cooked rice in claypot.  Add some water to give it moisture
2.  When it is heated up, add in chicken and sauage and continue cooking until chicken is thoroughly cooked.
3.  Add in carrots. 
4.  Simmer the rice until carrots turn soft.

During the cooking process, stir the rice often so that it doesn't get burnt.