Franky's Kaffe Kitchen [Closed]

Franky's Kaffe Kitchen

9 Raffles Blvd

#01-55/56

Millenia Walk Mall

Tel: 6336 7641

Would I say that I've finally found an authentic Korean Cafe? I think so... the ambience will surely remind one of the cafe in Coffee Prince, except that this place lack the luxury of having a courtyard since it is located in a prime area in CBD.

The cafe is located in Millenia Walk mall, next to Pan Pacific Hotel and it is facing Marina Square. It used to be Burger King, for those of us who are old enough to remember the place well. Despite locating in a prominent location, there were few customers when a few of us went there for after-dinner coffee on a weekday night. We wonder why....

This is Franky, who is also the barista. He is a Korean and is a rather friendly person, if you approach him.

Look at this unique projection clock!


Love this hot chocolate... think made from dark chocolate and reasonably priced at $5.10. It definitely tastes different from coffee bean chocolate.


When I went back again, this time in the daytime, there were slightly more customers. Most of them seemed to be on the go and order sandwiches, and not the Korean meals. There seemed to be more Korean diners in the evening...


Besides sandwiches, they serve Korean meals too! Here's my Kimchi Stir-fried Udon. At first look, I was rather sure that the portion was too much for me! But but but... I said it too quickly. The kimchi fried udon was so appetising that I finished the entire plate! There was a generous portion of kimchi used in the udon. The kimchi was one of the best that I've tried in Singapore so far.

The fried udon cost $13.50 and initially thought I should order the mini portion which cost about $6. But there was no regret after my first bite.


My friends who tried its bibimbap were raving about their food too...

Their signature dishes!

More Korean dishes from their little menu which was tucked away in a unprominent corner, and not place on every table.

For those who are aware of the price of Korean alcohol will know that this is quite a steal... it is even cheaper than Korean supermarket price! Anyone game for a hite beer or soju drinking session, buzz me!

And if you have a HSBC credit card, there is a 10% discount for evening dining =)

Jaz Restaurant

Was in Little India for a workshop and my colleagues decided to bring us to this Indian Restaurant, which is actually an Indian kopitiam with only 1 stall selling Indian "cai bng" (economy rice).

Turned out that it wasn't that economy at all. The meal which I had, a supposedly set meal comprising fried chicken and fried omelette with their standard side dishes & gravys cost $7.50!

Though there were only about 6 of us, the stall helper got all our orders mixed up despite noting our orders on a piece of paper. They were also not consistent in their "complimentary dish - an egg", which was an egg that I did not get. Well, I did not pursue further since I already ordered omelette. It would have saved me $2.50 if I knew they were going to give us complimentary item...

 

The food was average and I think there are better (value for money) options in the vicinity...

Pin Si (Hong Kong Style Cafe) [Closed]

This is an excellent discovery. Simply love the food from this Hong Kong style cafe located at the AMK Hub basement 1, diagonally oppposite New York, New York.

AMK Hub

53, Ang Mo Kio Ave 3

#B1-22

Singapore 569933

Tel: 6481 2271

11am to 10.30pm

My favourite is the Sweet & Sour Fish - $7.90.

The fish fillets are very fresh. The outer layer is crispy (and not too oily) and the meat is smooth and springy. The standard is probably even better than what you get from some expensive restaurants.

Next recommendation is the Hotplate Beancurd ($7.90). What I like about the dish if the beanpaste gravy used to cook the tofu and minced pork & prawn.

One of the best places to go for a simple home-cook meal. Wash it down with a cup of HK style milk tea and that might make your day.

Two thumbs and two big toes up for this cafe!

Bird's Nest with Chicken Porridge

Ingredients
* Two whole bird's nest (cooked)
* chicken breast meat (200gm)
* 3 dried scallops
* 1 cup of rice
* 3 cups of chicken broth
* 7 cups of water
* shredded spring onion
* vegetable oil
* salt to taste


Marinade
* ½ tsp salt
* ¼ tsp granulated sugar
* 1 tsp light soy sauce
* 1 tsp ginger juice
* 1 tsp wine
* ¾ tsp corn starch
* dash of sesame oil
* pinch of white pepper
* ½ tbsp oil


Method

Wash rice. Add dash of oil and salt. Marinade for 1 hour.

Soak dry scallops until they are tender. Tear into shreds.

Steam chicken breast for 20 minutes. Let it cool down. Tear into shreds and add marinade.

Bring water to the boil. Add dried scallops and rice. Bring to the boil again then cook under low heat and the rice becomes congee.

Add shredded chicken and swallow nest. Bring to the boil and cook for 5 minutes. Season with pinch of salt. Put shredded spring onion on top. Serve hot.

Bird Nest Soup

You may pre-cook the bird's nest and store in the refrigerator for up to 7 days to be added to dessert, porridge, soup, as additional stuff for pork dumpling etc.

Soak the bird's nest in a bowl of water for 45 mins to one hour.

Use a sifter to filter the water and set the bird's nest aside.

Bring to boil a pot of water and place the bird's nest in a stew pot, making sure the stew water must cover the nest.

Place the stew pot in the pot of boiling water and using low heat for 45 mins.

For simple bird's nest soup, add rock sugar at the end of stewing.

Alternatively, you may add 5-6 pieces of American Ginseng or 4-5 pieces of red dates and simmer with the bird's nest.

Important: Always add rock sugar at the end of stewing not begining as it will spoil the taste of the bird's nest soup.

Imperial Treasure Nan Bei Restaurant

IMPERIAL TREASURE NAN BEI RESTAURANT

391 Orchard Road

#05-12/13 Ngee Ann City

Tel: 6738-1238

Decided to have a reunion dinner with friends at the Imperial Treasure Nan Bei Restaurant. Because of the peak season, we were given 2 options on the time slot, either 7pm or 8.30pm. If we had chosen the 7pm, we had to finish our dinner by 8.30pm! So... we opted for 8.30pm... so that we would not be rushed to finish our dinner.

The food quality is really quite good...and that explains why the restaurant is so packed. Making reservation is a must!

Must try - This spinach tofu dish is so so so good.

The beancurd skin is slightly crispy while the beancurd is very soft and fragrant. The bottom layer is spinach.

Souffle Egg White Ball - If you frequent CJ restaurant enough, you might be surprised to find the same dish at Nan Bei... Frankly, I would not have been able to tell if the souffle balls were from CJ or Imperial Treasure if they were placed side by side. Overall, the souffle balls tasted good.
 

Definitely an ideal casual dinner place for cantonese cuisine, on not-so-crowded evenings.

Waraku Casual Dining Restaurant [Closed]

Waraku - Heeren Branch

260 Orchard Road

#05-04 The Heeren

Singapore 238855

Tel: 6834-1123

(http://www.waraku.com.sg/index-sin.html)

Was quite surprised to find that business at the restaurant level was rather quiet on a weekday night. We were given a choice to choose our seats, despite reservation made...

The cosy restaurant is a suitable place for small gatherings. They also offers a while selection of Japanese food. I ordered the Gindara Kaminabe (Codfish Hotpot), $12.80. There are 3 choice of soup base to choose from (Miso, Wafu and Chige) and I opted for miso soup base.

Besides the codfish, the other main ingredients include mushroom and cabbage.

If you prefer something hot and soupy, hotpots are always a good choice.

Food Republic (Vivocity) - Fried Hokkien Mee

Food Republic

1 HarbourFront Walk,

#03-01 VivoCity

Singapore 098585

I always wonder why there are long queues at the fried hokkien mee stalls, especially those with crews dressing up with straw hats. Can anyone tell me what is the relation between straw hats and fried hokkien mee and... banana leaves? Does banana leaves really enhance the fragrance of the fried noodles?

For $4.50 (not cheap!), the portion was rather huge. However, I must say that I am quite disappointed with the food quality. The "essence from the prawn stock" hasn't been fully absorbed into the noodles...What I could taste was ordinary yellow noodles and thick rice noodles garnished with a couple of big prawns. Even the sambal chilli, which I asked for extra portion, was a let down.

Niqqi's The Cheese Prata Shop

Niqqi's The Cheese Prata Shop

18 Clementi Road (off Kent Ridge Bus Terminal)

Not sure why the sign board isn't lit, but nonetheless the shop is super crowded. Waited for about 15 to 20mins to get seats and had to share the long table with another family of 8!

There don't seem to be a lot of supper places in the west, since I guess many westerners flock to this 24-hour shop if they wanna have supper.

Me ordered ice milo and 2 kosong pratas. They aren't really good choices as the ice milo was rather diluted and it tasted like those dispensed from the instant ice milo vending maching instead of freshly brewed milo.

The prata was so-so as it wasn't crispy and the texture was a little chewy. The good thing about this prata is that, it wasn't oily.

A little regretful that I did not try the cheese prata cos I believe it should be good since it claimed to be a cheese prata shop. Anyway, will check that out IF i ever go there for prata again.

Jones the Grocer

Jones the Grocer

http://www.jonesthegrocer.com/

Location: Blk 9 #01–12 Dempsey Road

Operational Hours: Mon 9:30am - 6:00pm

Tue - Fri 9:30am - 11:00pm

Sat - Sun 9:00am - 11:00pm

Tel: (65) 6476 1512

Located in the colonial style Dempsey Hill, this is a place where you can eat, if you're particularly hungry for cheese, and shop for grocery, mainly Australian products, since Jones originates from Australia and the Dempsey outlet is their 1st South-east Asian outlet.

The grocery section. Check out the high ceiling...

The deli section with long wooden tables and wooden chairs. A rather laid-back culture.

A snapshot of how its menu looks like altho this is a brunch and not lunch menu.

Cheese platter shared by 5 of us. One of the long white strip of cheese has a strong goat smell...supposed that is goat cheese? The other white cheese and orange coloured cheese tasted ok. It went well with the bland black biscuit. Have no idea why it is black - some said it is made of charcoal?!

The dried grapes were good, except that it would have been better if there were no seeds.

My honey baked ham sandwich ($11.50), squashed with loads of tomato and salsa. Thumbs up especially when it was served while the filling was still hot.

A close-up shot of my sandwich.

While the food quality is good, do not expect high service standards as they seem to have the same laid back culture, back home - Australia.