Friday, August 19, 2011

Instagram-ed 2 ~ Desserts


Doughnuts!

… or is it 'donuts'?

I get this only when I have a sudden hankering for them. Which is not often, thankfully.

That's when I alight at Tampines (I hardly go there w/o a mission) and troop over to Tamp1's J.Co.

I can't manage more than a couple of these so I usually take time to make out the best choices. It's disappointing to see that I never get to try their cheese variant. Boo!

The ones above are 'black forest' & avocado. Very, very sinful.


Key Lime Tart

My boss's favourite tart/pie. And this one must have scored well in her books since she excitedly bought individual portions for my colleagues & I.

I have to agree. The tart base, despite being a lil' on the greasy side, has a nice crunch and the lime custard… oh my! Nicely creamy with a tangy lime accent that's not too over-powering.

I might just be a Key Lime Tart/Pie convert, with this one.


Oreo cheesecake

Just a random buy from the Cafe Galilee at Pasir Ris Library. I usually hang out here for a lil' bit of 'me' time.

I remember craving for a chocolate cake that day and was disappointed to see that they ran out of the Lava cake. So I just settled for this.

Raised my eyebrows upon seeing that a good half of the cheesecake is made up of choc. sponge layer. However, the strong taste of Oreo cookies managed to please me. And the choc. sauce that they squiggled onto the plate satiate my chocolate craving, somewhat.

In the picture above, I played around with the various filters in Instagram and got really intrigued by how comic-like the cake appeared when I lomo-fi it.


Frozen lychees

Taken during the lychee season, sometime back.

My collegue popped them into the freezer. Tried them out when they're still not frozen through. I still flinched when I bite into the slightly cold flesh, though (sensitive teeth).

It's very refreshing, when eaten that way. The cold juice that squirt out as we bite were really delightful.

The next day, my collegue finished up the rest of the lychees in the freezer. I dare not consume any and simply amuse myself, seeing him almost frost-bitten as he tried to peel the icy skin off with his bare fingers.

And when he finally get to pop the now frozen flesh into his mouth, you can see the look of sheer ecstasy as he remarked dreamily, "Mmm… just like lychee sorbet! Are you sure you don't want some?"

Err… never mind. I'll pass. Thank you.


Peach

Pardon me, but doesn't the above picture remind you of a certain part of the human anatomy?
Didn't mean to gross you out, there but I'm sure you're aware which part I'm referring to.

During the recent peach season, my boss bought a whole box of them (cheaper that way). I mistakenly thought them to originate from China, as with the lychees. She was quick to correct me that these were from the USA.

(My mind immediately flew to the quirky 'Peaches' song by the band, Presidents of USA)

These were pretty ripe. Still with a firm flesh and taste sweet, with a tangy accent. Lazy me simply cut them like apples and spit out the skin as I chewed on them. :P

Wednesday, August 17, 2011

Instagram-ed - Beverages



Nespresso capsules

My boss's pride and joy. He always made sure to ask his clients who came down to the office, "Any COFFEE for you?" Not drinks in general, but specifically, coffee.

I'm very sure he's disappointed when some of them happen to be non-coffee drinkers...



TWG tea

…Well, that's when his wife steps in and set to prepare tea for them instead.

The row packaged loose tea leaves above, well, their total cost can easily allow you to purchase a 'Longchamp Le Pliage' handbag or something.

My lucky boss and her cousin were darn lucky because their super rich Indonesian client needed to get rid of her credit card miles and gave them the chance to go on a shopping spree at MBS; using the said card.

Wow.

She even purchased their teapot + sleeve. Guess how much it cost? $200++, can??



Nespresso coffee

In my own favourite dainty teacup (got it as a wedding favour).

My fave Nespresso flavour? Indriya (v.strong), Fortisso Lungo (pretty strong) & Roma (medium).

I dislike Arpeggio. Smelt like ciggarettes.

Only 1 sugar cube pls (preferably the raw one).



Bubble tea

Koi's great (milk tea ice-cream, ovaltine ice-cream! 25% sugar). Someone told me that with other competition, its getting to be a bit overrated. There's also Gong Cha (gotta try their pudding tea). I'm still checking out the Chatime outlet near my home. Heard their mousse tea is popular. I've tried their Honey Lemon Aloe. All I can say is that I'll definitely be craving for that, should the weather get any hotter.

Somehow, this ShareTea doesn't go down well with me. A tad bland.

Personally, my fave drink has got to be the humble pearl milk tea. Yeah, just that. Enough to make me happy.



Frozen Coke

In all honesty, I didn't really order this. Not voluntarily, actually.

The lady at the BK counter misheard my 'Coke ZERO' for 'FROZEN Coke' somehow. Not that I was mumbling or anything like that. And they weren't even busy!

Maybe she heard, "Sub-Zero??"

Anyway, I'm not fond of these icy drinks. I've never even indulged in my own cup of Slurpee! I get brain-freeze too easily and my sensitive teeth always cry for mercy.

I can't help comparing to the ones sold in Australia. To start with, the Coke there is less sweeter. And when made into this icy slush, the taste was more refreshing because it wasn't cloyingly sweet.

Needless to say, I waited a bit for this one to melt a wee bit before I dare to really suck on it.



Ginger Ale

My remedy for flatulence. Ahem.

I much prefer Angus O'Neills over Bundaberg, though.


Thursday, August 04, 2011

Ayam Penyet Ria - Bedok Point


Crazy soda & 'Lava Girl' drink

My bro always ordered their 'Happy Soda' (known also as Soda Gembira). It's something like the popular Bandung which is mixed with carbonated drink which could be either 7-up, Sprite of Ice-Cream Soda.

This time however, he spotted this 'Crazy Soda' and wanted to give it a try. Seem like a purple version of the usually pink Happy Soda, though.


'Lava Girl' drink

I was curious about this drink. Okay, so there's also a 'boy' version which is, well, blue. I'm not a fan of blue-coloured food so I chose this red one instead.

I figured out that the name 'lava' was because the dense coloured syrup in the water makes the drink look like a lava lamp. Besides, there are other ingredients like multi-coloured tadpole jellies & canned longans inside.

It's actually a fancier version of Italian soda. Reminds me of the 'Diabolos'. Not bad. Very refreshing!


Sup Buntut (oxtail soup)

My parent's favourite. We can't dine at an Indonesian eatery without ordering this.

Love their version. Light, yet beefy broth. Plus they put in whole, round pieces of the oxtail.


Sup Sayur Asem

Another one of my parent's fave, the Javanese that they are. Sour and slightly spicy with a hint of sweetness.

Filled with long beans, cabbage, sweet corn, other veggies and a chockful of peanuts. They love the peanuts to bits.


Tahu Telur

Seems like a new addition. The shape, taste and texture was just nice (ahem, I used to work at Sanur, where they serve on of the best 'tahu telur' around, u c).

But they used peanut sauce, which I assume, is the same sauce used for their gado-gado? I wish they had stuck to the norm and prepare the seasoned soy sauce instead (not that I'm a purist but I just prefer it that way).


'Boneless' Ayam Penyet

My bro wants his chicken and he wanted the easier way to consume them.

Been a long while since I had ayam penyet Ria, so I've forgotten how generous they are with the sides. A generous clump of blanched kangkong, nicely battered, sizable tempe and a thick slab of tofu. Plus a leaf of white cabbage and slices of cucumber.

And on top of the sambal terasi (belacan/shrimp paste) that they already spooned onto the mains, they also have a condiment counter where we can take more of those fiery chili paste. They also have kicap manis, which I'm more than happy to take. I love, love, love the kicap manis-sambal combo!


Bawal Penyet

My dad almost always ordered fish. So it's either this or the 'Ikan Lele'. He ain't too fond of freshwater fish so the pomfret it is.


Lele Penyet

My mum, meanwhile, ain't the choosy sort and she suddenly felt like having this popular freshwater fish so I ordered it for her. It's actually part of the catfish family, also known as 'ikan sembilang', to the Malays.

And my gosh, I end up sharing this with her. Because of the size and shape, this fish had a lot of parts where the crispy batter resided, making it a delight to dig out the meat together with the crispy bits and consume them. She also fed this to my son because of the cottony soft, white flesh.

Even though I like this, I'll never order this for myself. I find the head and tail portion to be a lil' gross and it'll be such a waste if I never finish it up.

--------
I realised that I forgot to take a pic of my own order. Got myself the 'Empal Penyet', which is beef steak that's battered and fried. My hubby love this dish and my curiousity about it eventually made me love this dish and I ordered it (almost) everytime I dine at an ayam penyet eatery.


Jagung Bakar

My bro is someone who loves his sweet corn, so he can't really resist ordering this. I was wondering, just how an Indonesia eatery will serve this grilled corn.

When this was served, I was like, "Whoa!" The corn was easily 20cm long. And it was slathered with this fiery red chili sauce. To bad, it was only slightly charred. I love my sweetcorn to be somewhat charred all over.

Then we realised that the corn was not warm. Almost cold, actually. Guess it was prepared in advance. So instead of diving straight for it, we decide to have it at the end of our meal.

That chili sauce seemed similar to the famous Indonesian ABC brand. And it sure is spicy. When my bro took a bite of the mid-section, where most of the sauce was concentrated at, he almost yelped before gulping down his drink. Then he hurriedly took a spoon to scrape off most of the red sauce from the surface…

Don't say I didn't warn you… ;P

Their website HERE.

799 New Upper Changi Road
#01-05 Bedok Point
Singapore 467351
Tel: 64410025

Wednesday, August 03, 2011

Kublai Khan Mongolian BBQ Restaurant

I have to say that this restaurant is very popular. VERY. Guess the commercial on Suria channel really draw in the crowd, ever since they obtained their Halal certification.

Besides, we went on a Friday night. Despite early reservations, we were later informed of 2 separate timing options; 5.30-7.30pm and 8-10pm. They're very much packed out, it seems. Since we're coming after work anyway, we naturally chose the latter. But seriously, if you have a choice, choose the earlier timing.

We came at 8pm and saw that there were people waiting outside. Turns out, the peeps from the previous batch has yet to finish dining and we need to wait for their spaces to be cleared out first. At least 1/2hr of potential dining time wasted, just by waiting outside.

When I finally walked in, I saw that the buffet area looked like world war 3 had just taken place. Pretty messed up, I'd say. Some sections were quite emptied out. Then with the mix of existing diners, new diners and I'm-hungry-can't-we-hurry-up-and-eat diners...

Psst.. this post gonna be picture-heavy. Bear with it, ya?


Passed by the famed Mongolian BBQ area on my way to our seats.


Queuing for the fresh ingredients for BBQ

No. 1 rule of buffet dining. Always, ALWAYS consume the cold foods (sushi, sashimi, fresh seafood, salads etc) first. This is to prevent any stomach upset. I can't explain why just that it's something tried and tested.

Yet that night, I happily joined my cousins when they gun straight for the Mongolian BBQ section. :P


Meat selection

The red meat were those thinly sliced ones, like those found at hotpot places. Both beef and mutton are available. There's also chicken.

The rest are vegetable options like cabbage, bean sprouts, spring onions, mushrooms, cut chillies etc.


Sauces

They poured a scoop each of every type of sauce available. I wish I can remember all the sauces but I only recall some ginger-thingy.


Raw stuff

The thing about making such selections; I over-indulged and my choices add up to become a tall mound in my bowl.


The cooking

I read reviews on their website where the chefs supposedly dance around the hot plate as they cook. But really, by the time I came by, I must have been the #456985th customer. The poor chap (yes, only 1) only manage to stir my food around and briskly move them 360deg around the hot plate.

For me, I don't really care much for those fancy-schmancy stuff. I'm just happy if my meats are nicely cooked.


The end product

Despite the variety of stuff in here and the various sauces, this bowl of meat still taste slightly... bland. Nice but could do with a little more seasoning. Maybe because the proportion of sauce to my more-than-normal selections was off.

Wish there were more charred bits, though. In fact, I think this can easily be done at home. It's called, 'stir-fry'. Oh wait. This is also very similar to the Japanese teppanyaki.

Now, on to the other food items…


Sushi, sashimi & salad bar

My favourite section in buffet lines, usually. The sashimi was on the trays on top. There were 4 selections: poached 'tako' (octopus), 'sake' (salmon), 'maguro' (tuna) and what I thought to be 'kanpachi' (yellowtail). However, when I read the label, it said 'tilapia' (a kind of freshwater fish). Erk??!

The slices of raw fish, they are nowhere near those served at Japanese restaurants. Or even those takeaway sushi shops. If you don't have a strong stomach, give this a pass.

On the left-most corner of this section is the 'cha soba' (cold buckwheat noodles). Had a taste of it. Not bad, actually.

In the white bowls are salad selections. By the time I was there, there were only a few pieces of greens left. I don't know if they top-up later on. In the last bowl was interestingly, some pickled jellyfish salad. Interesting, that one.


Sushi - up close

Those orange ones were crabmeat, sorta. At least these look and taste better than those ubiquitous red 'surimi' rolls. Then there's more of the poached tako, scallops and unagi...


Plates at our table I


Plates at our table II


Seafood

The mussels were plump. Not sure about their freshness, though. The size of the scallops seemed measly. The tigers prawns were really fresh. Firm, plump and sweet. Nice!


Cereal Prawns

This was superb. Freshly prepared and topped-up. The tiger prawns were fresh and there was an abundance of the cereal bits. Also tasted just right.


Chili crab

This could have been nice, had they not been cold. Almost like eating Teochew cold crabs. Plus the crabs were on the slightly small side, not considering the thick shells. And some parts weren't properly pre-cracked so it was a waste that I can't get to some of those claw-meat.

No 'mantou' buns in sight, though.


Oyster gratin, some dim sums, satay & sambal mussels

ALL those above could be potentially good eats, if only they were still WARM. Seriously.

That oyster gratin would have be so delightful! No wonder they were being ignored on the buffet spread...

I didn't try the dim sums. My cousins gave them the thumbs down.


(Mock?) shark's fin soup

This was tasteless... even with the black vinegar.

In fact, my cousin asked me, "Are they trying to serve healthy dishes or something? Why are most of the food bland??"


Cakes & jellies

The ones left that is. They didn't top-up any more. I wonder what kind of varieties there were, at 5.30pm.

I could have kicked myself for not taking any of those cakes after I took this picture (even if I was only 1/2 through my meal). For when I was ready for some desserts, there were NO cakes left. Nil. Nada. Null.

Luckily, my cousin went there earlier and got the final piece of that lemon-cheesecake so I got a taste. Not bad, la.


Ice-cream

THANKFULLY, they replace these ice-cream tubs. By the time I queued for these, the tubs were back to being full. They use the Wall's brand here. Flavours available are: Vanilla, Yam, Mango, Strawberry & Chocolate.

For once, I was glad I didn't really check out their website for the available food selections. Cos' I'm bound to be really disappointed. Seems like only 70-80% of the food listed was actually there (at that time).

Perhaps, the first batch of diners already finished up some items and they totally ran out of it (like the fresh oysters and battered squids etc). Some items they only topped-up once and that's it (the mushroom soup topped w/ pastry etc). Some items had already turned cold and they didn't freshly prepare more (the fried chicken, satay etc) or even heated up (chili crab etc).

Wished I had enjoyed this buffet in its full glory cos' I feel like I've missed out on a lot of things that could have made this a much enjoyable experience.

However, if this is what the actual food standard here is like, head to Sakura for a much better option. Even the reviews at HGW seemed poor.

Their website HERE.

9 Penang Road
#04-01, Park Mall
Singapore 238459
Tel : 63344888 , Fax : 63342324

Email : reservation@kublaikhanbbq.com