[Food Review] Lai Huat Sambal Fish Restaurant

Some of you might have already heard of this restaurant which opened years ago.

However, this relatively new restaurant is opened by the nephew of Lai Huat Seafood Restaurant located at Horne Road. This is opened by chef/owner Patrick Lim and is located at Siglap. After years of apprenticeship from his grandfather and a burning desire and passion to pass down his grandfather's signature dishes, this latest Lai Huat establishment was opened.

[Food Review] The Boiler SG

Owned by bankers-turned restaurateurs, “The Boiler” is a Southern American-inspired seafood joint that serves up fresh seafood in Louisiana style known as Seafood Boil. The restaurant, despite being located in an industrial area, was almost filled to the brim on a weekday evening and is surprisingly spacious and provides not only fresh communal style seafood but also a wide range of alcoholic beverages too.

 Started off with some delicious appetizers. Clearly remembered the Southern Chicks and Waffles where a piece of tender chicken is placed on top of waffles held together by a toothpick.

[Review] chin-fillers-botox-one-point-v-face 2

More than a month has passed after my first session at  Dr Tiffiny Yang Aesthetic & Surgery Clinic. In case you haven't read yet, I did One Point V Face treatment which consists of chin fillers and botox to achieve a slimmer, v-shaped look.

Full review on my first session here: http://ilovedawn00.blogspot.sg/2014/09/chin-fillers-botox-one-point-v-face.html

The chin fillers showed immediate effects and around 20-30% of it would subside after about a week. However, for botox to take effect, it takes approximately 1 month after injection. So here I am again updating the results of my treatment because botox have fully kicked in by now.

[Food Review] Jin Long Seafood Restaurant 金隆海鲜菜馆

Jin Long Seafood Restaurant 金隆海鲜菜馆 has been established for decades in the cozy neighbourhood of Bedok. They started from a very humble stall in a coffeeshop and expanded their business into a full-fledged restaurant to provide a clean and comfortable air conditioned environment for their growing customers. 

I was introduced to this place earlier this year due to an invitation to a friend's birthday celebration. Was pretty impressed with their dishes and brought my family here few months later again.

Jin Long is now located under a HDB block facing the main road. With it's vibrant signage, it' s hard to miss it when you are at this area. There is a huge car park right at the block.

We were here on a weekday evening and the restaurant was about 80% full so be sure to make reservations before coming.

Nefertiti Restaurant & Cafe

Nefertiti is an authentic Mediterranean restaurant serving a the finest authentic Egyptian and International cuisine which is established in the charming district of Arab Street. 

This restaurant is named after the Queen of Ancient Egypt and helmed by an Executive Chef, Amr Elgohary who's experience in culinary art for more than 10 years and has travelled the world to hone his skills.

Doggie Food Tasting Session for Oven Baked Tradition

A couple of weeks ago, Water, my pet dog, if you haven't already read about him, attended a FOOD  TASTING EVENT! He's such a lucky chap, I didn't get to eat anything except for finger food during that event and he gets all the good and sumptious food to eat. :p

This event is held at Paw Pet-Radise, a cafe created by pet lovers for dogs, in conjunction with Eagle Territorial Agency, a global company distrubuting nutritious pet food and accessories and Clubpets, Singapore's longest running pet magazine.

The entrance of Paw Pet-radise looks like this, simple and cosy but vibrant in colours.

[Food Review] Sankai Japanese Restaurant

Sankai Japanese Restaurant is centrally located directly opposite Bugis Junction along Liang Seah Street.

Here, you can find decent Japanese food at very cheap prices during dinner time where they have their SUPER HOT DEAL promotion with discount up to 70% OFF!! (All prices stated in this post below are the discounted prices during dinner as of October 2014, unless otherwise stated)

Their dining area is divided into 2 sections. Upon entering, you will see the sushi bar counter in front of you and this leads to another room with more dining seats available inside.

A small private dining area is located right inside the restaurant. Good for a cozy gathering with friends and family.

Ordered my favourite Salmon Belly ($1.80/pc), Salmon ($1.20/pc), Salmon Roe ($4.50) and Swordfish ($2/pc) sashimi. They were all fresh and the juicy salmon roe playfully bursts in the mouth!

The Grilled Scallop with Spicy Cod Roe ($7.80). Succulent scallop baked with creamy, gooey cheese served piping hot, this was my absolute favourite dish of the night and it is definitely value for money.

Mixed Skewers ($14.80) is good for sharing. Most of the meat was nicely marinated, other than this, it's pretty normal and nothing much to rave about.

Their beef hotpot set is valued below $20 and it brings a warm and fuzzy feeling to the stomach due to the hot, flavourful broth. Comes with an egg for dipping, a bowl of rice, soup and watermelon. We found the soup a tad too sweet for our liking, after consulting the lady boss on this, we found out that the sweetness of the soup is actually catered to their regular Japanese customers here who actually preferred it sweeter. So, here, you can actually get authentic Japanese hotpot meals!

Another of the best sellers here is the Salmon Crabmeat Aburi Roll ($9.80). This was pretty well executed and nicely seared.

They have a wide variety of traditional Japanese fare like tempura, chawanmushi, handrolls and sushi to choose from. Besides food, they also serve alcoholic drinks and they have beer promotion too!

And to end it all, we were served a scoop of sesame ice-cream with a spoonful of red bean paste at the side. and OMG, this was SUPER FANTASTIC!!!! I almost asked if they have a tub of this where i could buy and keep it at home. As i'm typing this, i'm thinking of how yummy this is, perhaps I should come back here again some time this week for this ice-cream! MUST-TRY!!!

Thank you to the very efficient lady boss, Candy for hosting the meal. Service was fast and prompt. If you're looking for Japanese food at a very reasonable value in a centralized location, don't forget Sankai Japanese Restaurant!

SANKAI JAPANESE RESTAURANT

1. Address: 1 Liang Seah St, Singapore 189022

   Phone:6336 0384

   
   

   Hours:

    11:30 am – 11:00 pm

[Recipes] Soup using Cornell Slow Cooker!

***ALL SOUP HERE ARE COOKED FOR MINIMUM 5 HOURS USING MY CORNELL 1.5L SLOW COOKER.

WATERCRESS PORK RIBS SOUP 

Watercress is rich in fiber, anti-oxidants, vitamin C, beta-carotene, folate, potassium, calcium, phosphorous and iron, and is a good source of iodine as well. 

This vegetable is packed full of nutrients and has tremendous health benefits. It has Anti-inflammatory properties, Anti-oxidant and anti-cancer effects, Aphrodisiac effect, promotes strong and healthy bones, treats cough, aids the digestive system, good for nails, hair, eyes, teeth and skin, great for hangover and has a purifying effect.

Hence, this has become one of my favourite soup to cook! There are some variations to this and here's my version today:

[Food Review] Islamic Restaurant

The Islamic Restaurant has a long history which dates way back to the 1920s. Opened for as long as 90 over years and spanning 4 generations, it still serves one of the BEST NASI BERYANIs in SINGAPORE which is also it's trademark here.

[Recipe] Clay pot Rice using Happy Call Pan (HCP)

Wanted to try this out for the longest time and finally tried it today when I had some leftover chicken and shitake mushrooms.

Results turned out good, very yummy and it's quite a fuss free dish. Surprised that HCP can execute this dish relatively well :)

I found this recipe online and made a few adjustments here and there and here's my version of the HCP Claypot Rice!

RECIPE FOR CLAYPOT RICE USING HCP
(serves 2)

[Recipe] 3Ps Chinese Soup

3Ps Chinese Soup

Tried this new combi which I have never tried before today. 3Ps stand for 'Papaya', 'Peanuts' and 'Pork Ribs'. These are basically the key ingredients in this soup. Used a 1.5L slow cooker for this.

Got this idea from an instagramer and very glad that it turned out very well. Full of sweetness from the papaya combined with the earthiness of the peanuts. Soup was brought to further heights with the addition of oysters and dried scallops.

Recipe for 3Ps Chinese Soup

Used Cornell 1.5L slow cooker for this, serves 2-3.

INGREDIENTS: 200g pork ribs

                         ~ 70g peanuts

       half of medium green papaya

Handful of dried scallops

4 dried oysters

METHOD: - Scald and blanch pork ribs

- Soak peanuts, dried oysters, scallops for about 30 mins

- Slice green papaya into pieces, remove seeds and white parts

- Transfer everything into slow cooker and slow cook for at least 4 hours on high. (The longer, the more tasty the soup)

[Food Review] Chicken Up

]

Chicken Up is a casual restaurant at Tanjong Pagar serving Korean Fried Chicken, soju and beer. We visited during dinner time on a weekday and was very surprised to find the restaurant bustling with people. The crowd was made up of people of all age groups and the queue was snaking. This made us all the more curious about what this restaurant had to offer.

[Give Away] Free tickets to JAPAN vs BRAZIL!

Get FREE tickets to the Blockbuster Match of 2014 here! Watch JAPAN vs BRAZIL Live in Singapore at National Stadium on 14th October, 6.45pm. 

4 tickets to be given away. 

VISIT MY FB FOR MORE DETAILS HERE: 

https://www.facebook.com/ilovedawn

[Bangkok Food Review] Top 10 Favourite MUST EAT Restaurants in Bangkok!

After visiting Bangkok umpteen times for the past years, I have a personal favourite list of restaurants/places that I MUST VISIT whenever I am in Bangkok. Even when i have very limited or almost NO time, I will definitely try my best to squeeze some time out to visit these restaurants. 

And the list keeps growing....  Every time i visit Bangkok, there is always something new that is worthy of adding to this list, sometimes I wish I had more time to try out everything in a single trip!

 From humble roadside stalls to upscale fine dining restaurants, I'm sure this list has something for almost everyone.

And here you go, my list of favourite restaurants in Bangkok 2014. (Warning, this is a long list full of pictures)

[Food Review] IndoChili

INDOCHILI

Located along Zion Road, the owner of Java Kitchen Group, Mdm Wahyuningsih was inspired by her grandmother and God to create dishes using lots of herbs and spices proven to be very beneficial to health.

 IndoChili is a halal certified restaurant and is one of the rare restaurants in Singapore that brings you authentic, nutritious and traditional Indonesian food with a rich heritage.

Rustic, traditional decor of the restaurant gives it a very Javanese ambience to this place. I feel like I'm dining in Indonesia!

Jus Alpukat ($5.80), fresh avocado juice with chocolate syrup. An incredible combination that makes a very creamy and refreshing beverage. I strongly recommend this among all the other beverages here.

Sate Ayam Madura ($7.80). In Indonesian, the term, “sate” means a dish of marinated, skewered and grilled meats, served with a sauce or no sauce. Sate here is a popular item on the menu and meat is very tender with the grilled smokey flavour and sweet aroma from the sauce.

Tahu Telor ($8.80) This may not look too impressive but don't judge a book by its cover. Tahu Telor was deep-fried till puffy, creating a delectable textural contrast with the beancurd and the dark luscious chunky peanuts. 

Tumpeng Mini ($9.80). Inspired by the Javanese royal tradition, this tumpeng miniature us a special -dish that is not only famous due to its tradition but because it is truly delicious. The mountain-like shape of the extremely fragrant yellow rice symbolizes the gratitude and reverence of the Javanese towards God. Served together with ayam bumbu rujak, perkedel, potato peanut and pickles, a good mix of meat and vegetables.

Combo bakaran ($42.80). A heaping serve of grilled pomfret, squid, prawn, satay and chicken. Was very impressed by the grilled pomfret (Ikan Bakar Kecap) all covered in kecap manis (sweet soy sauce) which also comes in as a single dish itself. Prawns were also fresh and sweet.

Sop Buntut ($14.80). This was my favourite dish of all and it's a must order when you are here. A robust oxtail soup whose acidity can be managed with some squirts of lime and sambal belachan. Soup is light and clear without odour and very aromatic. I personally like it with more lime for their sourish kick.

IndoChili
54 Zion Road
Singapore 247779
Tel: +65 64451766
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/IndoChili
Website: http://www.indochili.com/
Nearest MRT: Outram Park (EW Line, NE Line), Tiong Bahru (EW Line), Orchard (NS Line)

Opening Hours:
Mon-Thu, Sun: 1130am -10pm
Fri-Sat: 1130am - 1030pm

Where to stay in Bangkok

Sawadeeka!

Last week, i visited the Land of Smiles again!

It was a very impromptu trip and thus, we had quite little time to decide on which hotels we wanted to stay at and to plan our itinerary. However, because we were only visiting for 4 days, planning the itinerary was a breeze as I have visited Bangkok many times. My main aim was to shop and of course eat! I super love Thai food!

Bangkok has many many many hotels and sometimes when I see so many choices, i get very confused. For me, location is of utmost importance. 

1) The hotel has to be situated in a place near the shopping and sight seeing areas. Having a BTS/MRT station nearby is a bonus because Bangkok's traffic jam can be really terrible and being on  a holiday, you won't want to waste too much time in a taxi (and this situation is highly possible when in Bangkok).

2) Must have many restaurants/road side stalls selling street food within walking distance and opens till LATE because my mouth forever itchy and I get hungry almost every hour. So supper is very important to me! 

3) Also must have massage parlours around the area so that the last thing I do before heading back to the hotel rest is a good foot or body massage.

But the thing is... Bangkok has many areas which I don't mind staying at... headache again.

Siam is a good location to stay cuz I love shopping around the night markets there.

Pratunum is good too because my favourite shopping mall Platinum Mall is there. Pratunum has many things to eat as well.

Silom is also good, it's very accessible to places of interest and near Patpong.

HOW TO CHOOSE????

One more thing I was worried about was that many of the hotels i shortlisted was already fully booked because my trip was so last minute.

After searching for a few hours, I came across PYOTravel (stands for Plan Your Own) and they actually had vacancies for some of the hotels i shortlisted!!! I was delighted and went straight away to book through this god-sent travel agency!!!

Booking hotels via PYOTravel was a breeze, I did it in less than 15 minutes with simply the click of the mouse. (I booked 2 hotels at 2 different locations because I really couldn't make up my mind). Their user friendly interface enables users to search and compare hotel and prices of holiday packages within a screen and this actually saved me a lot of time (I have limited time, lol)

What's more, they do not charge any booking fees and there are no hidden charges as well as credit card charges. I find this very attractive because many other booking agencies hide their final prices and you will ony get to see all the additional booking charges at the end of the booking process and I think this is totally wasting people's time.

So my final decision was to stay at I-Residence Silom and Eastin Makkasan.

I-Residence Silom Hotel

I-Residence is a boutique hotel situated just across Chong Nonsi BTS. It is very convenient taking the BTS around Bangkok, I could get to Siam and National Stadium (MBK) in less than 15 minutes. Patpong is very nearby too. AND THERE IS NARAYA at Patpong!!! This hotel is very reasonably priced, very affordable and value for money.

 Was greeted by the very friendly front desk staff. Their lobby is lighted up by purple flourescents, very chic and modern.

 My room was on the 8th level and to my surprise, IT WAS SO SPACIOUS! This is their Grand Deluxe Room. Can you see in my picture how spacious it is? 

 Toilet was also rather spacious with bath tub and complete toiletries.

 Everything was in perfect order and rooms were very clean too. Their breakfast was also delicious, staff speaks good English and were very efficient, when I asked them for extra pillows, they appeared at my doorstep in less than 5 minutes!

And i must mention that i had one of the BEST tomyum soup in Bangkok at one of the stalls steps away from the I-Residence hotel. It was spicy enough and sour enough!! It's a very humble hawker that has seatings inside. You won't miss it, it's less than 50m from the hotel along the main road. 

Interested in staying at I-Residence? You can book it here: http://bit.ly/1qosFIA 

EASTIN MAKKASAN

The next hotel i stayed at in Bangkok was Eastin Makkasan located right smack at Pratunum. Pratunum is an extremely busy area with many shopping malls, wholesale markets around and it is rather near MBK shopping mall too.

It has MANY ROADSIDE STALLS and MANY MASSAGE PARLOURS scattered all over. Platinum Mall is also about 10 minutes walk away only.

Lobby area was very spacious with many sofas for guests to rest and wait for other guests.

This place spells luxurious, I knew it the moment I stepped in.

Recommended by Zoover, I knew I made the right choice staying here.

Passed by their dining area too.

Loved the contemporary design of the room! The bed and pillows were very very comfortable! Wish I could sleep here for a longer time but shopping awaits me!

Complete with full amneties and WIFI throughout the hotel!

Was greeted by the city's skyline once i drew the curtains open. How wonderful!

 Luxurious bathroom has all toiletries as well.

Eastin Makkasan also provides free shuttle service to Soi Nana, Chidlom, Central World Department Store and Pratunam.

Discovered a good and decent massage place which is cheap too. It's called HAPPY, just cross the road from Eastin and you won't miss it.

Interested in booking a stay with Eastin? Click here for more info: http://bit.ly/1pbahDJ 

My next post will be about the amazing restaurants and food I ate in Bangkok!!! OMG i miss the food sooooo much, they were really really EXCELLENT :) Stay tuned.

THANK YOU FOR READING =)