Hog's Breath Cafe

The western food at the hawker did not satisfy my hub's craving at all. Not one bit. I suggested going to Vivocity to appease his anger for the lousy food he had and he agreed. We went straight to the information counter to grab a piece of the street directory to scan through the list of restaurants. I saw Hog's Breath Cafe and told him that I read somewhere that the food there is good. He took my words for it almost immediately. I guess I have gained the trust from him for making good recommendations ever since I started reading food blogs. :P

As I stepped into the restaurant, I seemed to be teleported back to US. It was a good feeling as memories of the good food and time I had in US came back to me almost instantly as I sniffed the familiar smell of the food in the air.

This was the seat that I wanted to take (as it is nearer the windows), but was taken by someone who has reserved it. :P



Type
Western

Mushroom Soup (7/10)
Nothing special about this soup. It tasted ordinarily good.



El Grande Prime Rib (8/10)
It's Ladies' night. (also evident from the 80% ladies patronage). 50% for all prime ribs and grills. So we had to order one of it to enjoy the offer, never mind who eats it in the end. In any case, my hub was the one who had the medium rare prime ribs. He was full of praises for the dish, claiming that it was cooked in just the way he wanted. No bloody liquid oozing out, as he cuts across the meat or things of that sort, as what he has previously experienced. So I suspect he would give a 8 or 9 for that.



Jamaican Chicken (5/10)
It's dry. It's tough. Even worse than my hub's first attempt to cook western food for me. :P I would have left the whole plate intact, if not for the rice and crispy fries. Gosh, I can still remember how bad it taste just by looking at the photo. >_<''



Ambience
A casual, good dining place for a group of friends. Lights and benches have a nostalgic feel to it.

This place is catered mostly to guys, or so the feeling it gave, as the TV channels were all showing sports and soccer. :P Besides, Hog's breath, Hog's breath. Not many girls would want to initiate a visit to a restaurant with such a boorish name, unless of course, they have been there before and liked the food/ambience.

Service
üüüüü
The speed of serving the food is slow, man. More than half an hour wait... -_-''

If there is any reason that make me boycott a Hog's Cafe again, it has got to be the chicken.

However, if there is any reason that made me come back to this place, it has gotta be the personalised service. The waitress actually asked me if there is anything wrong with the food when she saw me leaving 2 big pieces of chicken behind. Although the chicken tastes awful, the waitress's concern and her promise to feedback to the kitchen made me feel like giving them yet another chance. :)

Price
$$$$$
$50+ for two main course and a big bowl of soup. Quite a good deal, considering that the price of a main course is $30+ on usual days.

Place
Vivocity
#03-07A

Club Chinois

We were just a street away from Orchard Parade Hotel after my gown-fitting session. My hub suggested having lunch at Club Chinois and to use the $70+ credit we have in our Tung Lok First card.

We decided to order the set menu at 28+++ per person.



Type
Chinese

Taste
Appetizer - Achar (8/10)



Both of us looked at the waitress with a lot of question marks on our face when she served us this. I, for a moment, wondered if this is the first course and all subsequent courses will come in this pathetically small portion. She smiled at us and said it's Achar. Hee... we looked like two mountain tortoises back then.

Just when I was about to bring the spoon into my mouth, I saw my hub using a chopstick to pick up the food from the spoon. Not too sure what is the usual way of eating this, but he did look more poised doing that. So I followed suit. Geez... I am just a country pumpkin lor. >_< Dim Sum Trio (9/10)

Did I mention that I didn't like those Dumpling thingy? But this trio thing is such a treat! I took the scallop dumpling (I thought it's a vegetable dumpling) first because I thought the others would taste better (I always save the best for the last). But it was exceptionally good. The prawn in the prawn dumpling was fresh and the skin, thin. The chicken siew mai was good too, just as expected. Yums!

Dried scallop dumplings in consomme (5/10)

Ok, I have to say I didn't like this dish. Not that it's not nice, but it's just not my type of 'soup'. There were too many ingredients inside. Scallops la, prawn? la, crab meat? la. Ok, I heard people calling me crazy. For most people, these are the 'good stuff' (Hanyupinyin: hao liao hokkien: ho leow). But I really don't like it lor, no matter how expensive these stuff are. The soup is not too bad though.

Pan-seared Spring Chicken Drumstick with Boletus Mushroom Jus (9/10)



I guess it must be the special sauce. I have hardly eaten anything like this. :P

Four words: Jin Jia Ho Jiak!
Three words: 赞的啦! (copy onthebeat2. Hee!)
Two words: Simply delicious!
One word: Oishii!

Stir-Fried Jasmine Rice with Seafood and Preserved Vegetables (8/10)

The fried rice (notice how I simplify the dish name? :P) was good but a tad too dry. Oh ya, that's a very special bowl isn't it? It's skewed at an angle to the back. I guess it is to allow easy scooping of the rice. Interesting. :)

Chilled Aloe Vera topped diced mangoes (6/10)

I don't take aloe vera (though I heard it's beneficial to the face). Not mangoes either. Seldom take strawberry too. Put them together and you'd think I will take it? Of course! The presentation is so nice, I had to take a few spoons, no? In any case, this is a good dessert to top off the good meal I had today. Here's a close up.



Ambience

The restaurant looked pretty much different from the last time we came. The chairs were more classy. About 8 chairs have their backing so high up, I thought it came from the Shrek's Father-in-law's dining room. :P The deco are classy and more functional after the minor revamp. Heard from the manager that they can remove some of the dividers easily whenever a function calls for that.

Service
üüüüü
Service is commendable, with the staff attentively serving to our needs with friendly smile. :) I think they waited for our discussion with the manager to finish, even though we have gone past their working hours. We really didn't mean to keep them behind. We were just too engrossed in our discussion. :P

Price
$$$$$
$80+ Piece of advice. Never, ever buy the drinks. My hub's mango juice costs $8 and my watermelon juice, shockingly, costs even more - $10! The next time we come, I will definitely ask for iced water. -_- Without the drinks, the set meal itself is value for money.

Place
Orchard Parade Hotel
Level 2

Rocky Master

I have read on the forum about how particular my gown designer is about punctuality, so I repeatedly told my hub that we have to be there early. And yes, indeed, we were early. We were there at 1045am for a 1130am appointment. Just how kiasu are we! >.<> Since we were early, we decided to have our breakfast at Rocky Master at Level 1.

Type
Western

Taste
Pottie Pie (Mushroom and Chicken) 8/10
It's as nice as it looks! A bit too difficult to manage the crust though. It was all over the table, my lap and the floor when I cut through it. So unglam. :P



Ambience
A good place for a quiet chat or just to watch people passed by the walkways of Orchard Road.

Service
üüüüü
Not too good. The waitress were too engaged in their chatting that they gave me a knife (instead of a spoon) and a fork to have my pottie. :(

Price
$$$$$
$20 for American breakfast, Pottie Pie and a cup of tea.

Place
Orchard Delphi
Level 1 (just next to the entrace of the building)

Imperial Treasure La Mian Xiao Long Bao

I have been balloting for NDP tickets since it started (in 2003?) but was never successful. I especially wanted to get the tickets for last year as it would be the last time NDP willl be held at the old National Stadium, but dang, I didn't get it again. This year, I tried going for the preview tickets and I got it. I almost screamed into the phone when the NDP officer called to inform! 3 yeahs for winning the NDP tickets! ^_^V

After collecting the NDP tickets at Marina Square Link Bridge Atrium, my hub and I took quite a while to decide on the place to have our meal. He just had a superdog whereas I was famished for a good decent lunch. I convinced him to go Imperial Treasure La Mian Xiao Long Bao, where I can have my staple food - La Mian and he can have small bites like Dim Sum.

Type
Chinese

Nowadays, kitchen with open concept are pretty common. It's very tempting to look at the helpers work when we are just a thin glass window away, but I try not to, because I do not like to be watched either especially when I am preparing ingredients or cooking a meal. I can't control myself from taking a quick snap at the kitchen though. :P Btw, the chefs are all in an enclosed area, out of the watchful eyes of the public. Perhaps they are afraid that their receipes might be revealed or something?



Taste

Shredded Pork and Preserved Vegetables La Mian (7/10)
This does not look appetizing at all lor. Even my hub have the 'I am sorry that you are gonna have this for lunch' look. But heh! It's not THAT bad. Of course, not that tasty either.

Shanghai Dumplings (7/10)

These dumplings are not bad. At least, their skin are not very thick, like those I have tasted before.




Ambience
Warm, dim lights. Semi-Open Concept for the kitchen.

Service
üüüüü
So-so

Price
$$$$$
Normal

Place
Marina Square
#02-138J

Claypot Rice @ Alexandra Food Centre

My hub wanted to have dinner at Ikea, but changed his mind when we got down the cab at the Entrance of Ikea. He suggested having Claypot Laksa at Alexandra, which he claimed was very popular and good.

However, when we went there, the stall was closed for the day. It's already 8 plus when we reached there, so I wasn't surprised. The hawker was still very crowded as many other stores were still opened. We saw many taking Hokkien Prawn Mee, so we presumed it is good. I didn't really want to settle for that, even though it's my favourite, as it is too common.

We both agreed to have claypot rice. Still a claypot dish that we came here for. ;)

Type
Chinese

Taste

Claypot Rice (9/10)


Boy, aren't we glad that opted for that! It was thumbs up and feet up for this claypot dish. The rice were well covered with savoury sauce, the chicken was tender and most importantly, boneless! I mean, what could be better than spending more time enjoying the meal than to separate the bone from the meat or spitting it out if you had accidentally taken it with the meat? Some part of the rice was burnt, which I heard is the favourite part for some people. Not for me, but it's not that important, because I enjoy it all the same. I am certainly coming back for this!

Chye Sim Soup (9/10)


The man asked if we wanted soup or vegetables to go along. I thought a Chye Sim Soup would make the meal more balanced somehow, as the claypot rice might seem too dry and 'heaty'. It was a good addition for the soup was really very tasty. The only grouse is that it is too small a size and we glurped down the soup right to the last few drops within minutes. :P

Whatever! (9/10)

I usually don't do review on beverages. But this beverage is kinda cool. You never know what you are going to get, except for the fact that you can get to choose whether it is a carbonated or non-carbonated drink. And this name couldn't be any more apt. Just refer to the advertisements on TV/Radio and you would know what I mean.

'Whatever' is the non-carbonated drink, which may contain either Ice Lemon Tea, Peach Tea, Jasmine Green Tea, White Grape Tea, Apple Tea and Chrysanthemum Tea.

'Anything' is the carbonated drink, which may contain either cola, cola with lemon, Apple, Fizz up, Cloudy Lemon or Root Beer.

I don't know if this is just another fad, but I am pretty sure the founders of this company and busy counting notes and coins this very moment. Not physically counting of course, but you know wat I mean! ;)

I ordered 'Whatever'. My hub wasn't too impressed, but I was. It's not too sweet and has got the fragrance of the tea. The thing is, I am not too sure what I have gotten. I know it is certainly not Apple Tea and White Grape, but was it Ice Lemon Tea, Peach Tea, Jasmine Tea or Chrysanthemum that I drank? I couldn't really tell. :P

Maybe they should improve by indicating the name of the drink at the bottom of the can or something? I know it's supposed to be 'Whatever' (with that heck-care-what's-inside attitude), but I am sure there will still be some curious cats like me out there? And oh ya, they should also improve on the supply chain and logistics aspect. I couldn't find it in most places, not even NTUC.

Other than that, Kudos to the founders of this drink!

Ambience
Normal Hawker Centre environment, but it was well ventilated and windy.

Service
üüüüü
Normal

Price
$$$$$
Definitely value for money. $5 for shared clapot rice for 2, $3 for soup.

Place
Alexandra Village Hawker Centre
Claypot - #01-31

It was one of the best meals I ever had. It was so satisfying that my spirits went uphill after my first few mouths of rice and soup and it was kept high throughout the night. I am definitely coming back for more. Wait for me, Alexandra! ;)

Qi Ji

We (I, actually) do not want to go to a Japanese restaurant. Neither do we want to spend too much to dine in a restaurant for just a simple lunch. Qi Ji fits the bill for having a simple, quick and cheap meal.

Type
Malay? Although they do sell food like chee cheong fun, etc, the majority still belongs to the the Malay cuisine.

Taste
Nasi Lemak (9/10)


This has always been my favourite in Qi Ji ever since I first tried it years ago. My favourite side dishes are the ever so tasty and crispy but sinful chicken wings, the common but good hotdog, the smooth omelette, the heavenly matched peanut and ikan bilis. Together with the fragrant pandan rice, this dish works perfectly for me. The above was ordered by my hub, so the side-dishes I mentioned were slightly different. I took a bite of rice and ikan-bilis/peanut and it was still as good as before. Yuuuums!

Mee Rebus (8/10)


I ordered their Mee Rebus, which was just as good. The sauce was one of the best creations, in the malay cuisine, I felt. It was a bit too spicy for my tongue this time round. I downed the lime juice down my throat to ease the 'fire' but was enjoying the 'heat' in my mouth. It was rather shiok actually. Heh!

Ambience
It was a rather small shop, as with all other Qi Ji outlets, but that's pretty ok, given the price and the good food it is offering.

Service
üüüüü
It was pretty normal and has got that factory mass-production kinda feel, but again, it's ok.

Price
$$$$$
Pretty value for money. $3.20 for the main dish, $1.50 for drinks. Pretty much like a food court price eh?

Place
Tiong Bahru Plaza
#02-11

Cafe Cartel

It has been a long time since we visited Cafe Cartel. There used to be long queus forming to get into this restaurant, but I guess the fad has died down, as there wasn't any when we were there last saturday lunch time.

Type
Western

Taste

Teriyaki Chicken (7/10)



















It was a new item and the picture on the menu looks extremely appetizing... and erm... quite different from the actual showpiece above. Everything was ordinary. Ironically, the chips was the tastiest among all the items on the plate. :P

Dory Fish (8/10)


















This is good, I tell you. It has got the taste (with a slight crisp on the crust), but not as oil-ladened as that of Fish and Chips. I wonder why my hub has been ordering the 'right' dishes recently as it always appear that his is better. I was telling him that I should follow him in his subsequent orders so that I will be on the 'right track' too. :P

Ambience
Nice cushion, cozy environment.

Service
üüüüü
The service was not that good as the waitress were not smiling (in fact, they looked rather fierce) and showed slight impatience when we asked them questions. It does help explain a little when we looked up and saw signs that show 'No service charge' dangling across the ceilings.

Price
$$$$$
$20 plus for two main course.

Place
Bishan Junction 8
#01-33

Sakae Sushi (Teppanyaki)

Both of us have a coincidental, sudden urge to go to Parkway Parade for our dinner tonight. Love it when we have such good chemistry! :D

My hub was very hungry and wanted to settle for steamboat because that was the first place we passed by when we reached the shopping centre. However, I told him that we should look around for things we have not tried before. Drats! Sort of regretted making that comment because we ended up in a Japanese restaurant, again!

He was drawn to the Teppanyaki corner in Sakae Sushi, something that we have not seen in other Sakae restaurants. We thought it's good to have something for a change. After we were seated, we realised that we were the only ones at the Teppanyaki counter and that we could order Teppanyaki food without being seated there. So we requested to change our seats.



















My hub ordered the Teppanyaki set.

Type
Japanese

Taste

Teppanyaki Chicken Set (7/10)


















Fried Rice and Teppanyaki Chicken (7/10)

I didn't order the set because it comes with squid and salmon, which I don't take. I ordered a fried rice and a Teppanyaki chicken. The fried rice was somewhat different from the usual fried rice - in Japanese style, I guess. Overall, the two dishes were not too bad, but nothing fantastic.

Ambience
Cosy, yet nicely spaced out seats. Only grouse was the very crammed entrance. While queueing at the cashier, we had to constantly move and give way to people moving in and out to the dining area.

Service
üüüüü
The staff were very friendly and obliging when we requested for a change of seat.
Price
$$$$$
$31 after 10% discount from UOB.

Address
Parkway Parade
Basement 1

Xiao Xuan Feng 2

It was already 830pm after we watched 'Ocean's Thirteen'.

My hub suggested going to Xiao Xuan Feng for dinner. It must be the praises I sing so often about Xiao Xuan Feng after my first visit with my mother. :P

As it was rather late, we didn't want to go for a heavy rich-and-dishes meal. So we opted for La Mian. We both had Dan Dan Mian.

Type
Chinese

Taste

Dan Dan Mian (8/10)


















The sauce was plentiful! Yums... Although it was indicated on the menu that this is a spicy item, it actually wasn't. Take my words for it because unlike my family members, I can't really take spicy food.

Sour and Spicy Soup (3/10)



















My husband only took maybe, two? spoonfuls of it. I have never liked sour and spicy soup, but I gave it a try anyway. It further affirms my dislike for this soup. :P

Ambience
As per previous entry

Service
As per previous entry

Price
As per previous entry

Address
As per previous entry

Superdog

If there is any food that would make my day right now, It has to be a Plain Chicken Ripper meal from Superdog... Boy, do I crave for it now! >_<

I was first introduced to this fast food restaurant by my friend. Ever since, I always have this urge to visit Superdog whenever I set my foot in Vivocity. For health reasons, I usually will avoid taking processed meat. But with superdog, I am just a helpless addict.

Even as I blog, I drool at the thought of my teeth slowly sinking into a crispy outer crust of the hotdog and then into the savoury tender meat. Munching the meat together with the hotdog bun, popping two crispy fries into my mouth in between my munches and sipping zappel after each bite just make me wanting to ask for more.

Type
Fast food

Taste

Chilli Fries


















I did not try this because it contains beef. I believe it's goood because my hub ordered this all the time!

Chicken Ripper (10/10)




















The plain Chicken Ripper reminds me of those small pieces of hotdog I used to have when I was in Primary school. This stall I patronised almost everyday sells the best hotdog and laksa I ever know. The hotdog is coated with batter and when dipped into the wok full of smoking oil, surfaced as lightly-browned, mouth-sized chunks of hotdog that is so crispy that it sounded like potato chips when you bite on it. I love it so much that even when I went on to secondary school, I still buy the 30 cents hotdog from the stall owner through the back window (coz outsiders are not allowed in the school compounds). I only stopped being a loyal fan of the food after the school implemented a rule to curb such 'back-door' food selling. Good ol' foodie days... Ok, I digressed. Back to the ripper...

I always ask for plain Chicken Ripper because the sauce would usually soften the outer crust of the hotdog, making it less crispy and that is not acceptable to me. :P

Fries (10/10)



















Fries, whatever shapes and sizes they come in, I love them all the same. Of course, with the exception of those that came in soggy, like those from McDelivery. But this fries I am talking about here in superdog is heavenly good. It has got the crispyness between Long John's and Mac, and yet, is almost as thick as Mos's. A perfect combination, I would say!

Zappel (10/10)
A Zappel's a Zappel's a Zappel. Nothing to rate about actually. But this beverage really complements the good food I have. It's a heavenly add-on for a complete and total dining experience!

Ambience
Very inviting, with cushion seats around. Nice setting.

Service
üüüüü
Not too bad. But could be better in terms of promptness and taking the right orders. I was given normal rippers, when I asked for plain ones on my previous visit.

Price
$$$$$
Considered to be on the higher end, where fast food is concerned.

Place
Vivocity
#B2-40/41

I guess this post is the closest to my theme of goodfood-goodmood so far. I always feel ecstatic and fully satisfied after each visit. It's a matter of preferences, really, because my hub always gives me that indifferent, 'Got THAT good meh?' look. :P

Shredded Chicken Hor Fun

Type
Chinese

Taste
8/10



















It was savoury. The sauce was good, the hor fun springy, the chicken not rubbery.

Ambience
Normal Kopitiam Environment

Service
üüüüü
No complaints

Price
$$$$$
$2 only. Cheap and good. :)

Place
Redhill Road Blk 75D

Kublai Khan Mangolian B.B.Q

Finally. My hub kept his promise of bringing me to this restaurant after sooo many years! >_<
I had a rude shock at the entrance. We had to pay upfront first (which was ok), but the price was actually $68 for two pax! Grr... and to think it's my turn to give the treat. :P

Type
Mongolian

Taste

Anyway, we headed straight to the BBQ section, or whatever you called it. We were given three types of meat and quite a few variety of vegetables to choose from. After which, a staff added sauces into the bowl. There are four different jars of sauces: One unlabelled (I suspect it's a secret sauce that makes the food so savoury), ginger juice, garlic juice and dang, I forgot the last one! We were supposed to pass the bowl of ingredients with sauces to the man behind the glasses, so that he could cook for us on that big stone grill. It was all done in a jiffy!

BBQ meat and vegetables (10/10)


















Ok, I know it looks rojak and it's not very convincing if I say the food was fantastic, but that's what it really was! One bowl is enough to keep my fill, but I actually went for another big bowl before I go for my desserts. Although I can physically feel (no kidding!) my stomach intestines bursting, I carried on to stuff the goodies into my mouth. Yeah, it's THAT good.

Ee-Fu Noodles (8/10)





















Ee Fu Noodles has always been my favourite, so almost all the Ee-Fu noodles I have tasted are nice to me. This is no exception. However, it does have that extra thing that makes it better than the usual Ee-Fu noodles. Not bad!

There were many other food varieties, but not all were as good as it seems. Like the chilli crab, sharks fins soup, sushi, teppanyaki chicken etc... so I shan't be listing them here.

Ambience
The first feeling that I got after entering was similar to that I had of a typical restaurant in Taiwan we went to more than 15 years ago. :P Well, that's around the time my hub first came to the restaurant. The deco are a mixture of 80s' wooden furniture, modern ceiling lights and dangling christmas balls (yes, they have not removed it yet!)

Service
üüüüü
Quite difficult to get the attention of the staff, but once gotten, they were pretty prompt in getting what you want.

Price
$$$$$
Ex lor! *complains* but for that bowl of bbq, it was well worth it. ;)

Place
9 Penang Road
#04-01, Park Mall

Out of the Pan

Type: French. This shop's speciality is in crepe. And according to the definition on the web, a crepe is "a type of very thin cooked pancake usually made from wheat flour. The word, like the pancake itself, is of French origin, deriving from the Latin crispa, meaning 'curled'. "

Taste

Cream of Mushroom : 8/10
Rich and Creamy


















Green salad (5/10)
Too bland. Oh wells, it is fresh and healthy.


















Fruitti Tutti Salad (8/10)
Nice and sweet! :)


















This in a appetizer indeed! It's not only appetizing in terms of the colourful look, but also very appetizing to the tongue

Cheese Chicken Sausage Normal Crepe (7/10)


















It's really nice. I was expecting it to be very heavy and cheesy, but it wasn't. :)

Korean BBQ Pork with Kimchi Tomato sun-dried Crepe (8/10)
This is really fragrant and tasty! I have not tasted Kimchi before, but if kimchi tastes like this, I can only give thumbs up for this korean specialty!


















Ambience
Quite an open area, with many onlookers from the level above and those taking the escalators. Not suitable for people who prefer private corners. What I liked was the fountain and the wave-like gushes just next to our seat. It gave us a different feel and something that we can look at when we had nothing better to do.

Service
üüüüü
Friendly and prompt service

Price
$$$$$
I spent about $50 plus for the above.

Place
City Hall Basement 1