Charcoal Thai

This is gonna be a rather short post.
Most of my colleagues know that I like BBQ. I'm always suggesting to go new bbq places for dinner gatherings and all. Thing is, my parents love steamboat. So we went Charcoa Thai @ Nex for dinner yesterday. Mookata is somewhat good to satisfy the soupy steamboat craving as well as the hot plate bbq.

We reached there at 1800hrs and there was no queue so we got seated very quickly.

We were introduced the buffet but seeing there was only 3 of us, we went ahead with the Mookata Set instead. Price was very reasonable for the portion, I would give it a 4/5. Food was also very fresh and good, also a 4/5. We even ordered additional cray fish which was really good - so fresh you can taste the sweetness in the meat!

What I didnt like about the place was the ambience and the service. Frankly, I think its common for such BBQ restaurants to be slightly busy but they were clearing tables with their trolleys in a very messy way. The reason for it? They were seriously shorthanded. The place was handled by 3 service staff. 2 of whom looked more senior that were running around the entire place, including, cleaning, serving, ushering and also collecting payment.

If their service improved, with the prices they are charging and the freshness of their food, I'm pretty sure they will always be long queues outside. Till that improves, I see no incentive in going back, unless specified by others.

Gonna end off this post with photos. Cheers!

The amount of food (FRESH) in one Mookata Set

We already started eating. Spot the crayfish.

Vege and shrooms.
There are more Veg under the meat on the other platter

Mum ordered this for me cause I like LALAs.
But I didnt like the taste of it. Too sweet.

Burgers & Lobsters

Travelled to Genting in June for work and got to try out
Burgers & Lobsters.
Burgers & Lobsters.
Burgers & Lobsters.

They're a restaurant chain from London that specialises in beef burgers, lobster rolls and lobsters! I've not been to UK before so I have not tried it before. But the reviews are always so good! And when you google, things to eat at Sky Avenue, it was literally the first thing that came up.

Google Search Results

If you click into any of those sites, you will realise that Burgers & Lobsters is definitely within the list (and some even Top 3). So yes! I was really excited to try it out seeing that SkyAvenue (at Genting highlands) is the first SEA expansion.

Snapshot extracted from their story

I think they are probably planning their next SEA expansion in Bangkok seeing there's a red dot on the website's map... But there's no location indicated yet (unlike the red dot on Malaysia that says Genting Highlands), so I would say its in plan but nothing's confirmed.

The interesting signage that became the #OOTD wall of many 

The Menu

I ordered the STEAMED LOBSTERS!!!

What's the verdict?

For the price of approximately RM160 (SGD50), I felt that it was TOTALLY WORTH IT! The sauce was so good. And to ease the oiliness in the butter sauce and fries, the salad was sour and refreshing! The down side was that the steamed claws were probably a little overcooked. It was really tough to get the meat out of the claws. But they were really meaty!
My friend had the grilled ones and her claws were easier to eat. That said, the size of her claws were smaller than my original steamed. I would think that the meatier the better but sometimes the ease of eating does put some people off. Nonetheless, I really enjoyed it! Would love to go back there every month or so to eat but, it's so tiring to take the 2-3 hour ride from KL (and a possibly 5-6 hour ride from Singapore)...

After the awesome dinner, we went to walk around and look-see look-see. Hahaha. We went into the Casino as realised we couldn't understand the games. Was observing for a while and then we left without placing any bets. There were so many China Chinese in the casino and they were smoking everywhere. Somehow, the mall is renovated as an non-smoking premise. However, even in the mall, you could see people smoking within. Sigh.

Soon after leaving the casino, we found ourselves in a cosmic bowling alley. Haven't really seen one in Singapore myself, so as a frequent bowler, it was intriguing. Managed to play a quick game before heading back to the hotel for a good rest as I had an early day the next morning.

Even the balls glowed

SO PRETTY

I'll be writing another travel post about my recent trip to Medan in this week. Hopefully by tomorrow, they'll be up! Cheers!

The Mad Sailors

Whenever I am meeting up with my poly friends, we would always be troubled because we don't know where to go. As this clique is a 'halal' clique, we always ended up at the same places and we are bored. So one day, I came across this on facebook and we decided to try and check this list, one by one.

As usual, we were a bunch of people who couldn't decide what to eat. So when we finally started calling restaurants for reservations on Christmas week, most places are filled - with the exception of the #10 on the list, i.e. The Mad Sailors (aka the title of today's post).

The restaurant is located at Haji lane with interesting decor.

Just round the corner of the Mad Sailors

Decor on the second floor. 

  

Yes. The theme is mostly doors! All sorts of old school doors.

While the store's decor was interesting, we weren't too impressed with the food. Yahoo mentioned that "This, my friends, is comfort food at its finest." but I really didn't think so.

Partial Photo of what we ordered.
Fish & Chips (Cod & Dory), Marmite Wings, Truffle Chips

This photo above was only a partial photo of what we actually ordered. There were 2 more dishes that came later which weren't in the photo. One by one... I'l give you my 2 cents.

One, Fish & chips. We ordered Dory and Cod. Both of which started off quite well. Until the fish cools, you start to have trouble cutting. What do I mean? Well, the batter was thick and the fish separated from the batter. So, essentially you are eating either the batter on its own, or the fish itself. Not good - 1.5/5?

Two, Marmite wings! What you see in the middle of the picture. I think this is quite alright since I am a fan of marmite myself. But for my friends, they didn't quite like it. Personally, it's a 3/5.Try it for yourself.

Three, Truffle Chips. I gotta say, this is a major fail. There was hardly any taste of truffle, and the chips were just oily. We were better off with the regular chips that came with our fish. Haha. 1/5.

Four, Hunky Dory. When we first ordered this, we would have expected some Dory but apparently 'Hunky Dory' is just a slang and this pasta has no dory(s). It's an aglio olio pasta with supposedly large prawns. But what came was small shrimps. Again, disappointing. The taste was also not impressive. I would rather have my aglio olio at Wicked Garlic with my 5 large tiger prawns that is also cheaper than this. (P.s. Hunky Dory was about 18bucks, but Wicked Garlic Tiger Prawns Aglio Olio was about 14bucks). Conclusion, 2/5.

Five, Dory & Mash. The portion is just small and the taste doesn't appeal to us again. Sadly. The only thing we liked about this dish, the mash! HAHAHA! So, I will give it a 2/5 as well.

Yeah. Total damage for that night was slightly more than 100. If I didn't remember wrongly, it was about 120. Sorry but it really wasn't worth it. Final Verdict... 1.9/5.

Frankly, I did see quite a few good reviews about this place. So we were really excited to try it out. And because of the expectations, we were really disappointed. I thought it might be a good idea to share our thoughts. Oh well! It could be just us not knowing how to appreciate the food but if you're game for it, try it for yourself. Sorry this post came so late! Been too busy with CNY and work lately. Till next time~

3 paragraphs and then come September

Frankly, I have not written a blog post in months (yes, I know. In fact, I am very aware). Initially this update was supposed to come in July before my exams in August. But seeing its already the end of august, it shall be not a slightly longer one – with a few mashups in between before September begins tomorrow. (Wanna know what’s happening in September? Read on or scroll till you see “UPCOMING SEPTEMBER” in big bold font…)

Anyhow, don't say that I’m biased for not posting pictures of Father’s Day. It was really a peak period of ultimate busy-ness that I’ve failed to consider anything else other than my work and assignments. So, finally, all assignments have been submitted and presentations completed. But work is not ending because September is coming…!

So yes. Back to father’s day update... I brought my parents to “Crab in da Bag” at Sports Hub. Frankly, my dad was craving for crabs so I just googled and decided on something a little more different than the usual Chilli Crab in Singapore. I can’t really recall details but overall, ambience was good and the serving crew was awesome. Thumbs up and Kudos for the service. Enough for the words, I’ll let the pictures do the talking..

It's a bit of a walk when you drive but its good to take in the fresh air. 

How the Menu Looks like with the plastic bib in the background

View of the Restaurant

Our orders for the night. Fathers Day Special - Whole Alaskan King Crab!!!

Love the concept... "ALL ABOARD~"

Right… UPCOMING SEPTEMBER

What’s this buzz all about for September?

Off the books, I am waiting for my final results to be released – which according to the latest email I received from Murdoch, it should be some time in the first week of September. *Fingers Crossed*. Once the results are out, I shall deliberate on whether to check it immediately and bite my fingers (figuratively) and open the website. Once the results are positive, I will be able to graduate and officially be done with school, i.e., my degree in international business and management. All that’s left is the actual convocation and hello there Bachelor of Commerce. Hahaha.

Not too exciting? Well, work-wise, there is more build up.

Uniqlo Singapore is opening the first ever Global Flagship Store in South East Asia on September 2 (Friday) at Orchard Central. Do pop by if you're around the area. I'll be writing more about it in another post. For now, BYE~

Mothers' Day 2016!

Happy (Belated) Mother’s day to all mothers out there!

What did I do on Mother’s day? Nothing much actually, except dinner. There were no special plans, but my dad was saying to find somewhere different – somewhere we’ve never really been before. So, I start scrolling through the net and I found this little interesting place called Rider’s Cafe at Bukit Timah Saddle Club.

Rider’s Cafe is a small cafe nestled within Bukit Timah Saddle Club so you get to see the horses while you’re there. When we got there, it was pretty dark so no pretty horse pictures but if you go there earlier in the day, you may even see some riders – literally.

Upon reaching the cafe, you will see a blackboard with a few dishes listed. These are their daily blackboard specials. 

The blackboard specials for Mothers' Day.

Once you climb up the stairs and enter the cafe, there are no written copies of this menu. So, either take a picture at the door or get the waiter/ waitress to recite it for you. Their menu on their website is not entirely updated but then again, the mains are mostly the same as the previous 2015 menu. There are just a handful of additions. Frankly, I didnt try any of the Blackboard specials that day because they didn't appeal to me as much as the main menu did. 

We ordered the following with a bottle of red:

Dad's Moroccan Lamb Shank

Mum's Bone-In Pork Chop

My Medium Well Steak Frites

And a dessert - Death by Chocolate cake

Frankly speaking, my steak was awesome. And according to dad, his lamb shank was good too. However, mum's choice was not as good for her. And on top of that, we realised the meat was not cooked well. So we requested the staff to cook it again. 

Although there was this little setback, I am very amazed by their service. Service is awesome! As someone in the retail industry, I am always paying attention to customer service and when I say its good, trust me - it's definitely good enough! There were no unhappiness at all even with the semi-cooked pork chop. The waitresses and waiters were full of smiles and they were very concern about the remaining dishes and how well they've done. Kind and good staff. Kudos for the training!

Overall, the cafe is pretty dim but provides good ambience.

Of course, being in a saddle club, there are bound to be smells. But, it isn’t that bad. Although the cafe was not air conditioned, it wasn't very warm. In fact, it was pretty cooling the whole time I was there.

Happy faces after dinner!

In case you’re looking to try a dinner in a rather nature-like environment, operation hours are:

Sunday – Thursday 8am – 9pm, Friday & Saturday 8am - 10pm, and Closed on Mondays.

You can either call +65 6466 9819 for reservations or do so online via their website with Chope. 

Do note that it is best you drive there and if you do not have a car, it would be most convenient to take a cab. We called a cab before leaving the restaurant too! We spent a total of 230odd dollars there. With a bottle of red, 3 mains and 1 dessert. Felt it was a pretty decent amount and we were all very full. So, again, kudos to Rider's Cafe for the good job well done! Thanks for the wonderful experience!

Two-for-One

Don't get me wrong. I'm not talking about my block but the famous...
6241-0-241... Canadian Pizza, Two for One!

Anyhow. Ordered pizza for dinner a few days back and they were giving out free Churros. It came hot and fresh with the pizzas. The pizzas were pretty good and so were the wings.

When I finally tried the Churros, I was sadly disappointed. I wasn't a huge fan of Churros but I like the concept of it. So when I knew it was coming free, I was excited. Knowing it will be free but worried it won't be good.

True enough. It was disappointing. It was nothing like what I had in Seattle. Nor was it anything like what I had at Sarnies. Don't try cause I don't think it's worth the effort. But, to each our own. You can try and let me know what you think. Cheers!

My 8 shades of 小笼包

You must be wondering why the title? HAHAHA.

Well... Yesterday night, my friends and I went to watch the all-raved book turned movie - 50 shades of grey. And, before the movie, we ate...

Paradise Dynasty - 8 colours 小笼包

Anyway, about the movie. If you read the book because of the story line of how Anastasia managed to transform a f*cked up guy into a married man (and not because of the S&M sex), DO NOT WATCH THE MOVIE!

That's my recommendation for you.

Simply because there was very limited story line in the movie. It was just sex sex and sex. I would very much prefer to read the book to understand the entire story. Okay, you might say that I'm too quick to judge since there's "Fifty Shades Darker" and "Fifty Shades Freed", but I think the movie did not do the 1st book justice.

Besides! I always thought all the characters in the books were super hot and cute. Frankly, in the movie, besides the main characters (Christian and Anastasia), the rest were only so-so. Sigh! Huge disappointment on the eye-candies. But oh wells, judge for yourself.

Tatas~

ITACHOOOOO

I always go crazy for sushi. Especially when it involves Salmon. And ITACHO is one of the best Sushi places I've been to in Singapore. The fish are always fresh and with the right bunch of friends, it always feel like sushi fest.

Start off with warm Chawanmushi

SALMON SASHIMI

Don't even try asking me what's what. They're all salmon and all in my stomach. HAHAHAHA.

Salmon SUSHIIII~

I had trouble biting the seaweed because of the braces (gaps and all) but boy was this delicious! 

Scallops anyone?

Always going crazy with the sushi at ITACHO. I bet you're hungry now. HAHAHA. Gonna let it digest and go to bed. Nights!

A start for 2015

I’ve been meaning to write a something when 2015 started but I never really got down to it. Not because I was procrastinating, but because I had no idea what to write. Oh well, I’m here now.

Last weekend was my parent’s 31^st wedding anniversary. 31 YEARS!!! I cannot imagine myself spending 31 years with someone – at least not at the moment – so I really think it’s an incredible feat. Especially when the trend now, or rather couples nowadays always have the word “D-I-V-O-R-C-E” hanging by their mouths when they fight or disagree. Anyway, back to my parents. HAHAHA! They don’t fancy fine dining or any ‘atas’ restaurant. Mum just decided to eat out and Dad agreed – simple. And the nearest dining place is nex – easy. That’s how my parents live by, I think – SIMPLE & EASY, never complicate things.

So we went to Din Tai Fung for dinner and whilst waiting for dinner to be served, Dad decided to don the ‘selfie-trend’ with Mum. The sight was just too adorable to not snap it down. But after that, dinner was just dinner. HAHA.

We walked around and went OWNDAYS cause I wanted to get a new pair of specs. Well, specifically because the old pair was pissing me off – the ‘hook’ of the specs were wearing and it strains the ear and the eyes. So, when I finally enquired about the price – before deciding whether or not I should proceed – it was quoted to be S$278 for the frame, prescription lens and PC coating, all inclusive. To me, this is too good to be true.

For fellow bespectacled friends that degrees are beyond 500, you would know that the ‘traditional’ specs would mostly cost more than S$300. I believe the usual case of ULTRATHIN lenses, and the nice frames would cost approximately S$500-S$600. So I was ECSTATIC that it cost less than S$300. Dad was also awed by the price that he decided to pamper himself too. What’s more, OWNDAYS is having the promotion where you can get your second pair of specs at 50% off. So, Dad made his regular progressive lenses and was considering if he should get a driving lens. The good filial daughter in me decided to get him the driving lens – since it was 50% off and it will help him see better when driving at night. And also because I was getting my year-end bonus at the end of this month. HAHAHA. So, why not? When I made the payment, I was expecting to collect my specs in a week – like the usual opticians. But when they told me to come back at 2140hrs to collect my specs, I was pleasantly shocked. Note that it was almost 2100hrs by the time I made payment. I really didn't expect the in-house service to be THIS FAST! Dad’s specs would need more time because they are progressive lenses and they had to be specially ordered from Japan so, he can only “SAY HELLO” to his specs in 2 weeks’ time or when they text us for collection.

The staff at OWNDAYS NEX were very friendly and I am very happy with their service.  I also saw a Japanese staff in the outlet that was transferred here from OWNDAYS Japan. Tell me about familiarity… This is what I see in my office, except these expats are not store staff but managers and executives. A company that does all it can to increase staff’s exposure to this ever-changing global market is definitely a company you can work for. KUDOS TO OWNDAYS!!!

And the reason I took extra time to write today’s post is because of an adorable Barista, Safri, at Starbucks Capital Tower. There was a long queue at the cashier and he saw me somewhere in the queue. He did the ‘miming’ dance to ask if I was having my regular and he got it ready for me at payment. Now, this is what I call EXCEPTIONAL customer service. Good is when they recognize you as a regular and greets you in the morning. EXCELLENT is when they recognize you as a regular, greets you in the morning and remembers your orders – not forgetting the ‘miming’ dance that might make you look super silly over the counter to other customers. Thank you!

Being part of the service industry, you know how hard it is to maintain a smiling face throughout the day when you are standing all day and you see all sorts of customers. Yes, and after having firsthand experience myself, I will be more “strict” on service standards. But it is always pleasant to see good customer service – rare but not absent. And time to time, I get lucky and I’ll see great services that just brighten your day!

New year eve’s dinner cum Mum’s birthday dinner #2in1 #elliefoodhunts (at Thien Kee Steamboat @ Golden Mile Tower)

Dinner with the folks. #postbirthday #elliefoodhunts (at GENKI SUSHI(元気寿司))