Penang Place

 

Penang Place

6 International Business Park #01-05

Atrium Building (off Boon Lay Way)

Singapore 609918

Tel: 6899 9446

Website: http://www.penangplace.com/index.htm

Opening Hours: 11.30am to 2.00pm (lunch) and 6.30pm to 9.00pm (dinner); Closed on Sundays

 

Went to this place for lunch one fine working day and first impression simply didn’t gel with the quality of food here.

First impression was hmm… ordinary. Got the feeling that it’s a Peranakan Jack’s Place. Went round the buffet table and ok, not too bad a spread for a weekday lunch.

Being at a Penang makan place, of course I had to try the char kway teow, the Penang laksa and the chendol.  These are after all the “die die must try” dishes when you are at Penang.

And oh boy, I must say that the char kway teow here is the most authentic Penang char kway teow that I’ve eaten in Singapore. It’s truly like having the same dish at Penang. Not oily, not spicy and don’t have too much of the black sauce that you find in normal char kway teow in Singapore. One helping is never enough of this good stuff.

The Penang laksa here is good but not as tasty as the ones that they serve at Chilli Padi.  It doesn’t have the oomph that I was looking for – a bit bland and not enough of the prawn paste (heh koh).

Chendol chendol chendol – I always love the chendol that they serve in Malaysia because of the pandan jellies.  The ones that they serve in Singapore are the dark green ones and has the plastic-like look that I never liked.  The ones that they serve at Penang Place here are the same ones that they serve in Malaysia – light green and has that tinge of pandan taste.  You basically have to make your own chendol (like all buffets).  The red beans that they served here are the big ones (small kidney like), but since I am not a red beans person, I typically skipped that stuff.  I had literally 2 full bowls of the chendol – just like the ones that they serve in Penang.

Don’t try the otah at this place – it simply does not taste nice.  They attempt to make it like the Thai otah by steaming their otahs but the coconut simply overwhelms the otah.

I managed to squeeze 1 seasame chicken – I couldn’t taste much of the seasame but the chicken drumstick is crunchy on the outside and moist on the inside.

Since I am a small eater and I think I did very well by eating quite a fair bit, I wasn’t able to stuff any more of their food in.  But am happy coz I had a taste of Penang here at home. Now I don’t have to fly to Penang any more to fulfill my char kway teow/chendol cravings. Overall, great but there are hits and misses.  Just simply enjoy those that you love.  🙂

If you are not a buffet fan, they also have ala-carte dishes available, so you can always order from the menu.

Prices are reasonable –  S$19.80++ for weekday lunch and S$21.80++ for weekday dinner.  Add another S$2 if you are dining on Saturdays, Public Holidays eve nights and on Public Holidays.

Nakhon Kitchen

Nakhon Kitchen

Blk 212 Hougang Street 21, #01-341

Tel: 62868785

Opening Hours: 10am to 11pm, daily

 

Saw the review in The New Paper on 18 March 2009 (http://newpaper.asia1.com.sg/guide/story/0,4136,196163,00.html).

Am “beo-ing” this place, so will put up my own review when I finally get there.

Anjappar Authentic Chenttinaad Restuarant

Anjappar Authentic Chenttinaad Restuarant
102 Syed Alwi Road

Tel: 6392 5545

76-78, Racecourse Road

Tel: 6296 5545

Website: http://www.anjappar.com.sg/

Bf and I visited the branch at Syed Alwi Road on 26 January 2009 for dinner.  They’re quite easy to find – directly opposite Mustafah Shopping Centre, along a row of shophouses.

Service was a bit slow; maybe because the place was crowded. We ordered 1 Mutton Biriyani (S$8.50), 1 paper dosa (S$3.00) and 2 cups of “masala” tea (S$2 each).

Bad choice of restaurant man! Bf’s mutton biriyani was tasteless and the mutton smell so strong that even he didn’t like it. My paper dosa was normal but I could get a cheaper one from Komala’s, with more sauce.  The tea was light with hardly masala taste.  The interesting part is that you get to mix the milk and the tea yourself (usually they serve it pre-mix).

Anyway, am not too sure if it was the tea or the dosa I had here but I had a wee bit of stomach upset the next day. Bf had no problem but we certainly won’t come back here again as the food was not tasty at all.  There’s no service charge but they charge GST on the total bill.

Yan Chuan Roaster (S) Pte Ltd

Yan Chuan Roaster (S) Pte Ltd

Blk 3020 Ubi Ave 1 #01-111

Tel: 6747 2623 / 6745 6396

Blk 507 Jurong West St 52 #01-164

Tel: 6565 0330

If you want to eat cheap and good duck, be sure to visit this place.  Nowhere else I think you can get a whole roasted duck for S$16!

The thing is this is a wholesaler, which means you can’t order duck rice to go and no half ducks for sale please. 

I also love their “char siew” (roasted pork) and “xiu yok” (roasted 3-layer fat pork). Not sure how much they charge (as I always get my dad to buy). But being a huge “char siew” fan, this one gets my thumbs up everytime I eat.

I will try to get you pictures of the duck & char siew before we hungrily attack them next time. 🙂

Zambuca, Italian Restaurant & Bar

Zambuca, Italian Restaurant & Bar

Level 3, Pan Pacific Hotel

7 Raffles Boulevard

Tel: (65) 6337 8086

Website: http://www.michelangelos.com.sg/Main/Default.aspx?ContentId=34

Opening Hours: 11.30am to 2.30pm (Weekdays – lunch)

                                  6.30pm to 10.30pm (Daily – Dinner)

Sweet sweet bf brought me here for  my birthday dinner celebration last year.  First impression was wow! this is a classy place and we were so underdressed.

Nevertheless, we were shown a nice table by the window.  Given it was a Saturday night, the crowd was not hopping at this place.  But this was great for us as we prefer to have a quiet dinner than one with all the noise.

The waiter came and gave us the menus and it was hard to decide what food to eat.  But eventually, we ordered:-

• 2 glasses of Umberto Bortol (S$16 each)
• 1 Zambuca salad (S$14)
• 1 Gnocchi (S$28)
• 1 Lamb Rack (S$42)
• 1 Tiramisu (S$12)
• 1 glass of Lemoncello (S$12)

Food was of excellent quality – I find the lamb very pricey as it was 2 small pieces of lamb chops.  But for someone who doesn’t eat lamb coz of the “lamb-y” smell, this lamb rack is excellent! Portions are sufficient for small eaters.  As in all classy dining places, don’t expect huge portions.  You get quality, and not quantity here. 🙂

Being a great tiramisu fan, this tiramisu is fantastic! Out of this world! Worth every cent! If I have to beg the chef for the recipe, I would have. But too bad, I don’t cook. 😛

The glass of lemoncello is not found on the menu but if you are a fan of Italian food (like bf is), you can simply order it to have after your meal.  Limoncello is traditionally served chilled as an after dinner digestivo.  It is made from lemon rinds (traditionally from the Sorrento lemon, though most lemons will produce satisfactory limoncello), alcohol, water and sugar.  It is bright yellow in color, sweet and lemony.  This one tastes a wee bit lemony sourish.

Overall, a fantastic dining experience. We spent a total of S$164.78 (including taxes & charges) for 2 pax; very pricey but worth every single cent. 

Vienna International Seafood & Teppanyaki Restaurant

Vienna International Seafood & Teppanyaki Restaurant

101 Thomson Road #B1-01

United Square

Singapore 307591   

Tel: (65) 6254 6686

Website: http://www.viennabuffet.com/welcome.asp

Opening Hours: 11.30am to 3.00pm (lunch) & 5.30pm to 10.00pm (dinner)

 

We had lunch here on 28 February 2009 (Saturday), thanks to a friend of bf’s who brought us here.

The name of the restaurant is quite deceiving as Vienna is the capital of Austria, and one would expect it to serve Austrian food.  But the rest of its name says “Teppanyaki Restaurant”.  Quite confusing, I must say.

But man! The buffet spread is a sight for sore eyes! Even at lunch, they serve sashimi, sushi, cold dishes such as oysters, scabis, crayfish, smoked salmon, pepper crab, oyster vegetables, clams, etc. For desserts, you can choose ice cream, cakes (American Cheese Cake, Blackforest Cake, Mango Passion, Tiramisu, Fudge, etc.), yang sheng jelly, etc.  Inclusive in the price are free flow of drinks (you can choose either soft drinks or juices – not fresh fruit juice but the cordial kind) and each diner gets a bowl of “Buddha jumps over the wall” soup (I put this in inverted commas as it’s not the real thing but quite tasty).

Now I know why the place was packed on the Saturday afternoon and we were lucky to get a place even though we had no reservations. I must say that the price you pay for is quite good value for money.  Don’t expect high-end quality.  Freshness of the sashimi is also acceptable.

Check the website for the menu details.  If I paste them all here, it’ll make this entry too lengthy.  This will be one place that I will be visiting again soon!

Mont Calzone

Mont Calzone

38 Pekin Street #01-01

Far East Square

Tel: (65) 6557 2304

Website: http://www.montcalzone.com.sg/

Opening Hours: 11.30am to 3.30pm and from 5.30pm to 10.30pm (Mondays to Fridays); 5.30pm to 10.30pm (Saturdays); closed on Sundays

 

Bf discovered this place as we were wandering around Far East Square, wondering what to have for dinner.

What caught his eye was the thin crust pizza that they had on a huge billboard outside the restaurant.  He, being an Italian foodie, wanted to try it.

On our first visit (we’ve been there two other times since), the waiter recommended the parma ham pizza (which has tomato sauce, mozzarella, parma ham topped with rucola salad and shredded parmesan).  I must say that the saltishness of the ham goes excellently well with the rucola salad and the thin crust pizza.  The crust is biscuit like and you can hear the crunch when you bite into the pizza.  Just be sure to catch the chef on a good day – he burnt the crust once.  The pizza is generously topped with the rucola salad.  At the cost of S$14.90 for an 8″ pizza (S$17.90 for 12″), it is suitable for 2 persons with small appetites to share.  Otherwise, just order a whole pizza for yourself.  I must declare that this pizza is the best value-for-money in Singapore.  Surprisingly, this is not a chef-recommended dish.

We also tried the Risotto.  Although the menu says their risotto is prepared with tomato sauce and seafood, we asked the waiter to inform the chef to prepare it with cream sauce and parmesan cheese instead.  But they served us the one with tomato sauce and parmesan cheese instead. 😦  Bf says that the tomato sauce is too heavy and masked the taste of the parmesan cheese.

We also tried the Aglio Olio but we had the chef do it in the classic style (i.e. with no shrimps but with dressing of olive oil, garlic and chilli).  I have to give this a thumbs down – the pasta turned out to be too dry and not spicy (even though we asked for spicy).  At S$12.90 a plate, portion is good for 1 person only (with small appetite).

Overall, I give the parma ham pizza 10 thumbs up for value and quality (if the chef didn’t burn my crust) but a so-so rating for the rest of the food.  But bf and I will continue visiting this place (because of the parma ham pizza) and we’ll continue to taste the other food items that they have on the menu.  I have my eye on their tiramisu already – just hope that they don’t disappoint.

Hua Kee Hougang Wan Ton Mee

Wan Tho Noodles

Hua Kee Hougang Wan Ton Mee

Old Airport Road Emporium & Food Centre

Blk 51 Old Airport Road #01-113B

Opening Hours: 12 noon to 12 midnight; closed on Mondays

 

 

There were a few things that caught my eye and prompted to try the noodles here.  First, I saw the char siew the guy was cutting – it looked red and a bit burnt on the outside.  My ideal char siew!

Second, there was a queue at this stall.  If there is a queue at a food stall in Singapore, the food must be good, right? And lastly, there were the numerous accolades pinned at the stall.  Must be really good, right?

Well, it’s half right.  The portion is really very good value for money.  See the picture above? That’s a S$3 portion!  The char siew didn’t disappoint me – it was really tasty.

But I didn’t like the noodles – it was too dry; not enough chilli sauce and other sauce to blend it in.  So that made the noodles kinda stick together.  The wanton was so so – not memorable.

Overall, if you’re looking for quantity, then go ahead and eat it.  Be prepared for a queue – I was in it for about 15 minutes during off-peak hours.  If you’re going for quality, you’re better off eating the Kok Kee Wanton Noodle at Lavender Hawker Centre..

Pagi Sore

   

Pagi Sore

Far East Square Outlet:

No 88-90 Telok Ayer Street

Far East Square

(Opp PWC Building)

Singapore 048470

Tel:  6225 6002

Opening Hours: Monday to Sunday (Closed on Public Holiday)

                         11.00 am – 3.00 pm   6.00 pm – 10.00 pm

 

Jurong Superbowl Outlet:

No 1 Yuan Ching Road #01-02

Jurong Superbowl

Singapore 618640

Tel:  6266 3200

Opening Hours: Monday to Sunday (Closed on Public Holiday)

                         11.00 am – 3.00 pm   6.00 pm – 10.00 pm

 

My parents and I visited their Far East Square outlet on Mother’s Day (11 May 2008).  Whenever we eat at an Indonesian restaurant, we never fail to order the tahu telor and the avocado dessert.  These to us are the representation of local Indonesian food.

We wanted to order the Petai Pedas but sadly they didn’t have it available.  So we ended up ordering the Kangkong Belachan (S$8.80), Tahu Telor (S$8.80), Ayam Bali (S$5.80 per piece; we ordered 2 pieces), Cumi Bali (S$13.50), 2 alpukat (S$4.20 each) and 1 chendol and of course, who can forget the rice!.

The food came pretty fast considering it was a lunch-time crowd and on top of that, Mother’s Day!  We barely had to wait for more than 15 minutes before the vegetables start arriving.

The level of spiciness in the food is indicated in their menu – 0 spoon means no chilli at all, 1 spoon means not that spicy, 2 spoons mean spicier, etc.

The first to arrive was the Kangkong Belachan.  This dish wasn’t too spicy (they only had 1 spoon) which is great coz you’ll have some people who can’t take spicy food.  Quite an ordinary dish.  I mean you really can’t go wrong with this dish unless you used really lousy belachan to fry the vegetables.

Next came the tahu telor (deep fried bean curd with egg).  Again another fail-safe dish.  The tahu (bean curd) is soft on the inside and a little bit crunchy on the outside (because of the egg).  Not spicy at all.  They poured a special sweet sauce over the tahu telor but you don’t really find it overwhelmingly sweet.  Wish they could make it a wee bit spicier so you can have the kick!

After a short while, the chicken and the squid arrived.  Both were cooked in the same style – bbq with a kind of sauce spread on top of the meat.  I find the chicken nice but it was a tad too sweet.  Too much of the sweet sauce!  Not so crunchy despite being bbq.  Tasted more fried rather than bbq.

I love the squid!  It was done just nice; you know if you overcooked the squid, it becomes too tough but this was perfect!  A bit on the sweet side but not as sweet as the chicken.  Pagi Sore also stuffed the tentacles inside the squid before bbq.  I don’t know if this made the squid a wee bit juicier but it was good.

The rice…. I love the rice too! Each portion was served wrapped in a banana leaf so that you get the nice fragrance when you unwrap the rice.  Somehow, you can never stop at just one portion.  Even small eater like me had 1.5! 😛  They charge you S$1.50 for unlimited servings of rice for each person, so if you are a huge rice eater, it’s really worth it.

The belachan… they charge you S$0.30 for each small plate of belachan so don’t be too happy and order as much belachan as you like, thinking it’s free.  The belachan is nice BUT not spicy at all!  You do get the taste of belachan but somehow, I would have much preferred it to be spicier.  No kick if it’s not spicy! However, if you love the belachan here, you can always buy it by the bottle – 230g for S$7 and 380g for S$10.

We had the alpukat (avocado dessert) which is nice but always too sweet!  Very thick and I wish they would go easy on the gula melaka (brown sugar) which makes the avocado too sweet.  Dad enjoyed his chendol – no bad comments so I guess it must be nice for him.  He has a sweet tooth so if you don’t, ask them to go easy on the sugar.

I must say that I am pretty impressed with the service here – very friendly!  Mom was even given a stalk of rose after the meal and as a Mother’s Day special, we were each given a bowl of dessert on the house.  It was a cold dessert – white fungus, wolfberry and 1 more item I can’t describe (we call it lian zhi but I can’t find the English word for it).  Nice but I liked better the one I tried before at Crystal Jade Shanghai Restaurant.

Overall, excellent service and good value for money.  We paid something like S$70 for the meal and we felt so stuffed thereafter.  Most importantly, my parents love the quality of the food.  A definitely will go again restaurant!

Tian Jin Hai Seafood Restaurant

Tian Jin Hai Seafood Restaurant

600 Ponggol Seventeenth Avenue
Singapore 829734
Tel: 9768 8818

Website: http://www.tjhseafood.com/

Opening Hours: Lunch 1130 – 1430 hours; Dinner : 1730 – 2300 hours; Weekend & P.H 1100 – 2300 hours

Tian Jin Hai is no newcomer to the food scene here. In fact, the seafood stall had quite a following during its 10-year tenure at the Kopitiam MacPherson at Jackson Centre.

When the hawker centre was closed in September last year, owner-chef Francis Yeo, 51, went on a month-long holiday in China and the plan was to reopen in the Rochor area after that.  But when he returned, he found that the shop space would not be ready for another four months.

Not willing to sit idle, he went hunting for another location. Chance took him to the Marina Country Club in Punggol where a restaurant space had been left vacant for more than a year since Taiwanese chef Huang Ching-biao’s Chinese eatery closed down. Yeo took it over and reopened Tian Jin Hai last December.

Although the seaside restaurant is not air-conditioned, it is a far cry from the cramped, sweltering Jackson Centre. It has a view of the Johor Baru industrial zone and the spacious premises can fit 30 tables and a bar counter.

And instead of hawker centre-type tables and hard stools, you now find tablecloths and cushioned chairs. But now that it is no longer a hawker stall, prices have gone up accordingly, from a couple of dollars to as much as $10 more.

Nonetheless, you can get a good meal here for about $35 per person, which is comparable to what you pay at other local seafood restaurants.

The dish to go for at Tian Jin Hai is the unique steamed shark’s head (starting from $30 each) which Yeo claims to have created.

It is an unusual dish as the head has no meat at all. Instead, stripped of its skin, it comprises a cone-shaped bone to which are attached thick slabs of what look like a firm gelatin and have the texture of sea cucumber.

Yeo steams the shark’s head Hong Kong-style in a lightly sweetened soya sauce. It sounds very simple, but the sauce is just perfect for the dish, covering up whatever bits of fishiness it might have without being overpowering.

The crab dishes here are pretty good, especially if you like your crabs huge and meaty. The crustaceans are priced at $40 a kg, no matter how they are cooked. Although the chilli crab here is very popular, I prefer the crab beehoon.

The giant crab (about 1 to 1.6kg) comes sitting on the beehoon and broth in a deep dish. It is not overcooked and you can taste the natural sweetness of the plump slivers of meat. The broth is delicious too and the beehoon soaks it up like a sponge.

Another winning dish is the salt-baked red tilapia ($35 a kg).  The whole fish, scales and all, is packed in salt and baked. When ready, it is removed from the salt crust and the scaly skin on both sides is carefully separated from the meat in whole sheets.

The fish is served standing on its belly, propped up by the sheet of scales on each side. This dramatic presentation, plus the white colour of the fish’s exterior, prompted Yeo to name the dish xueshan feiyu in Mandarin, which translates as ‘snow mountain flying fish’.

Looks aside, the fish also tastes lovely. It does not have any of the muddy flavour that characterises freshwater fish and the meat is smooth and moist.

Some of the cheap dishes are also done well here. The fried kangkong with cuttlefish ($10), for example, is cooked with just enough spiciness in the sambal.

The only drawback of the restaurant is its remote location. But there is a convenient way to get there even if you don’t drive.

The club runs almost hourly shuttle bus services from morning till 11pm to and from Punggol MRT station, as well as Compass Point, Rivervale Mall and Punggol Plaza during lunch and dinner hours.

Personal Note:

I’ve eaten at their stall in MacPherson Road for a long time and especially loves their chilli crabs there.  Standard has dropped a little over the years but still, it remains quite tasty. Am glad that I managed to find them again; although this time they’re located a bit further, I’ll be sure to visit them.

If you are adventurous, do try their famous steamed sharks’ head.  Personally, I have not tried it before because I find the smell of the dish too fishy to stomach.