Tag Archives: good food singapore

Roast Paradise – Mountbatten, Singapore

September 22, 2015 Big Roy Leave a comment

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Recently I had the craving for kway chap cos I have not eaten that for a long time. Headed to my favourite stall To-richo but it was closed! Damn! So I went around to look for something nice for lunch and I came across this Roast Paradise which I haven’t seen around. So I decided to try it. I also noticed the guy behind the counter is pretty young hence I enquired some info from them via email.

I found out from them they just started on August 2015 only and the 2 partners, Kai and Randall, are in their 20s. Both of them used to work in the night life industry which made me curious why such a big change in profession. I was told that they realised that there are not many true char siew roasters who would spend hours slow roasting their meats to get the right texture. That is why their passion for char siew took over and hence entering the F&B market.

Hawker centre is the natural choice instead of some fancy shops due to keeping overheads lower. Char siew afterall is a traditional local dish which should not cost an arm and a leg. Starting out was tough for them as they have no prior F&B experience hence a steep learning curve for them from day 1. But most importantly, like in all trades, they must enjoy what they are doing and do it with passion. I wish these 2 lads all the best and I hope fellow Singaporeans can support budding entrepreneurs like them and support local businesses. #supportlocal #supportlocalfood #soshiokpork

Their version of Char Siew Hakka Noodles ($3.20). Noodles were good but a little bland. But I have feedbacked their minced pork could be a little more saltier, flavourful and saucier so that they can use that to spruce up the taste of the noodles. Char siew is really good, tender, well charred, and locking in the juices. Serving is around 50g which was a little small for me. So I added more char siew in the next dish.

Char Siew Rice ($3 + $1) Added $1 char siew. Price is definitely reasonable. Char siew is good as usual. Rice is made to taste like chicken rice style which I reckon was unnecessary. Plain white is good enough with some gravy over it. The little plate of sauce was just too overly sweet, which to me, destroyed the taste of the char siew. Keeping it simple is good enough and let the char siew do the talking. Chilli I would recommend the sambal version which I reckon will go well better with the char siew instead of the chicken rice type.

Rating: 4.5/5. Some adjustments will see them having a perfect score.

Taste: Char siew won me over. Good proportion of fats and meat which makes it more delicious. But the rest of the accompaniments are important too for a better overall eating experience for the customers, so I hope they will work towards improving them.

Portion: Slightly below average.

Service: Self-service.

Ambience: Hawker Centre.

Price: As indicated with the pics.

RTE: Definitely!

Location: #01-122 Old Airport Road Food Centre. Hours: Not given but I believe from morning till 3-4pm. Closed on Mondays.

Fine Dining, Fusion, Media Invite, Singapore

[Media Invite] G House Restaurant & Eatery – Dempsey Road, Singapore

June 5, 2015 Big Roy Leave a comment

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Recently I was invited to this G House Restaurant located at Dempsey Road, which I have not been for the longest time. I was quite fortunate my dining partner was driving so we made our way there in comfort. The restaurant wasn’t difficult to find, just behind Jones the Grocer and it’s facing the carpark.

A good selection of wine, not a wide range but sufficient.

They have a space at the back which holds easily 40 pax for private functions.

A Pattiserie chef from their dessert partner, Little House of Dreams, at work.

Cakes at the background, cupcakes at the front from the display shelve at Little House of Dreams

Sours for sale at Little House of Dreams

First up, Lychee Ice Blended ($6.90) and Peach Ice Blended ($6.90). Just what we needed, something refreshing to help cool us down before the tasting.

Satay Angus Burger ($28.90). Topped with onion rings, cucumber and an egg. Taste really good, love the satay sauce, patty is definitely hard-grounded and made as per order. Recommended medium rare to medium for the beef.

Grilled Spicy Squid ($26.90). Yummy squid grilled oriental style and accompanied by sambal jam (see next pic). Squid was left on purpose for about 10-15 mins to see how chewy it will become but damn, it was still tender! Highly recommended dish and totally love this.

Sambal jam was really nice and spicy. Spicy enough to make some sweat.

Asian Slow Cook Pork Belly ($26.90). One of my favourites for the night. Crackling skin and melting meat. Definitely a must-order!

Tom Kha Gai ($16.90). Coconut based tom yum thick soup with chicken is really good. I felt it should spice up a little more, so if you’re ordering this, you can request to spice up the level. Good to share with another pax.

Tender chicken chunks inside with the rich creamy coconut soup.

Pork Ribs ($29.90) – Bones fall off. Well marinated. Enough said.

Dark Chocolate Salted Caramel ($8.50). Rich, dense and very nice! Quite a large piece too!

Head chef wasn’t around so Sous chef Lionel on the right steps in with chef Gabriel. They are part of a small but dynamic team which whips up all the awesome food at G House!

Rating: 5/5

Taste: Totally enjoyed everything that was served. Great job!

Portion: Above average.

Service: Excellent.

Ambience: Great for romantic dates, groups and parties. The high ceiling will keep noise levels lower than usual.

Price: Affordable throughout.

RTE: Hell yeah!

Location: Block 10, Dempsey Road #01-21, Singapore 247700. Tel: 6479 8119.

Hours:

Monday to Thursday – 11:00 AM to 10pm.

Saturday, Sunday, Public Holidays – 9:00 AM to 10.30pm

(Oct 2015 – With much regrets, I was told G House has closed down. What a pity, food was really good.)

BBQ, Korean, Singapore

I’m KIM Korean BBQ – Dhoby Ghaut, Singapore

February 26, 2015 Big Roy Leave a comment

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Another attempt to write using my iPhone. I’m KIM is a Korean BBQ restaurant opened not too long ago at School Of The Arts (SOTA) just beside Cathay cinema. Conveniently located right in front of the bus stop, this restaurant occupies a couple of units at the ground floor of SOTA. I met an old friend there for dinner one day and was early so I decided to go around taking pics! 😉 The Manageress of the place was very hospitable and she made me feel comfy as soon as I entered.

FACADE & INTERIOR

Interior… looks empty cos i was super early

FOOD

Meats… love it when they use good cuts for their mains… check out their Volcano Chicken… those who love spicy food would enjoy that!

Had this starters while waiting for my friend… very filling! but love the Korean fried chicken!

I’m a sucker for this and super regretted it… the egg was the stomach filler!!! but nice lah! 🙂

The boss instructed the kitchen to fry these cheese coated wings for us to try. Very different and tasty… think they call it ‘smelly wings?’ Cheese lovers would love this!

Makkoli… best served cold and great with your grills! Less than 5% alcohol!

WEFIES

Photo with one of the bosses, Sulim. (middle)

Rating: 4.5/5.

Taste: Food wise, both raw and cooked, are very nice. In fact, just the cooked buffet spread alone was enough to fill me up! I heard there are even more selection now since I last visited! Time to revisit! 😉

Portion: N.A.

Ambience: Big and spacious. As per all BBQ restaurants, you leave the place smelling like the place. But most importantly, seating is spacious and comfy. Even for Big Roy!

Service: Very good. Service staff are very responsive.

Price: $19.90 promotion for dinner. Check out their FB page for promotions! (Link below)

RTE: Yes!

Location: 1 Zubir Said Drive, School of the Arts. https://www.facebook.com/pages/Im-KIM-Korean-BBQ/678774925505181

Fish Soup, Singapore, Steamboat, Tse Char Stall

豪鄉美味鱼头炉 (Hao Xiang Fish Head Steamboat) – Defu Lane, Singapore

October 16, 2014 Big Roy Leave a comment

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A friend had cravings for fish head steamboat one of the weekends and I remembered seeing some sort like that kinda stall in Defu Lane, not far from where I live. So we took a drive to check out the place around 5pm and was delighted to find the coffee shop within this industrial place opened. Apparently this stall is part of the Hao Xiang International Pte Ltd, which owns quite a number of tse char stalls around Singapore.

Found a nice table under the fan, and placed our orders.

Fish Head Steamboat S$28 – I ordered the snapper fish and look at the amount of ingredients in the soup. Very worth it.

Stir Fried Long Bean with Garlic S$10 – This long bean is really nice and crunchy. This slim type is quite rare actually.

Prawn Paste Mid-Joint Wings S$9. Crispy coating, juicy inside. Yummy!

Rating: 5/5.

Taste: Very good, the steam boat is very teochew style of using sour plums and yams in them to make the soup taste awesome. Chicken was awesome, long bean too. Yummy!

Portion: Average.

Service: Maybe because we were early, service was good and attentive. 🙂

Ambience: Coffee Shop.

Price: Total damage was S$47.60. Very affordable!

RTE: YESSSS!

Location: 4 Defu Lane 10 Singapore 539185. Tel: 8589 4882.

Cafe, Dessert, Singapore

Dulcet & Studio – River Valley, Singapore

September 1, 2014 Big Roy 2 Comments

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Came here after dinner one day for desserts and coffee, totally unplanned as I didn’t know the existence of this eatery in the first place. Looks cosy and spotted some specialty desserts, that’s why I ended here with my dinner kakis.

This place was rather crowded for a weekend evening, but we managed to grab a table nearer to the front as it was nearing closing time. Friends ordered the desserts and these are what they came back with…

Some orange jelly dessert which is really nice and refreshing. The orange is sweet and larger than normal oranges.

Earl Grey Cake is pretty good. Light with a fragrant earl grey tea aroma.

My Latte – Obviously from an automatic machine BUT, the beans used were good. Great aroma and body.\

Rating: 3.5/5.

Taste: Overall pretty ok. The strawberry cake was a let down. But the others were good.

Portion: Average.

Service: Pretty good.

Ambience: Nice and cosy.

Price: Average. Paid by friends so dunno. ;P

RTE: Maybe only.

Location: 01-41/42 Liang Court, 177 River Valley Rd, Singapore 179030. Tel: 6338 9248. Operating Hours: 11am to 10pm.

Fishball Noodles, Singapore

Li Xin Fishball Noodles – Tai Seng, Singapore

August 15, 2014 Big Roy 2 Comments

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Having my dinner here just and decided to write this post on the spot. The Fishballs here are really nice and soft so here goes my reviews:

Rating: 4/5. Non-Halal

Taste: Fishballs damn nice and soft. Noodles on the other hand is cooked to very soggy. Don’t really like the texture, not springy at all. But the crispy lard chunks are really nice.

Portion: Below average.

Service: Could be better

Ambience: Within Food Republic, Aircon food court. The tables in between Toast Box and Food Republic has a bad foul smell from the rubbish bins.

Price: $4.00 noodles with 5 Fishballs

RTE: Yeah when I have the craving.

Location: BreadTalk IHQ at Tai Seng

Singapore, Vegetarian

Hong Nian Vegetarian Food – Hougang, Singapore

July 31, 2014 Big Roy Leave a comment

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This vegetarian stall within a coffee shop has been there for ages near where I live. I’m sorry for not writing about them sooner as think all of you know, I’ve just moved back to home Singapore. My mother and myself enjoy their food there and here I am now, writing about them.