Food Review on Enchanted Garden's June menu @ V hotel

Aloha everyone, it has been since a long time I wrote on my blog after my grandmother has passed on. For this food review that was done on a weekday afternoon at Enchanted Garden at V Hotel, I was being invited by fellow blogger Jess aka JessSeasons to join her with courtesy from the boss, Mr Chris.

I loved the signage of the restaurant as it gives a very romantic feel. Here's how the signage of the restaurant looks like:

I guessed no one who has thought of that within the signage of a restaurant depicts words like with heart and soul. Let me tell you that I could see the effort in the whole team of people working in this restaurant is all great team players. This is the first time that I have been to a food tasting event whereby I could see all of them helping out one another.

This food tasting was jointly also joined by two other fellow bloggers.They are Isabelle and Yunzi.

Left to right: Yunzi, myself, Jess and Isabelle

Let's take a look at the array of food that Mr Chris and his team have taken effort to prepare for this food tasting

We had a total of 10 dishes for food tasting 

Allow me to list down all the dishes for your reference

Appetizers

Spicy Topshell -$8.80

Spiced Crispy Anchovies $8.80 

Korean Spiced Chicken Wings - $12.80 

Fish Fingers-$7.80 

Cheesy Pork Balls- $9.80 

Seafood Croquette-$12.80 

Mains

Grilled Pork Chop-$18.80 

Baby Back Ribs-$18.80

Miso Cod Fillet-$32

Lamb Shank -$26.80

Here's the up close and personal photo of each individual dish 

Spicy Topshell 

For this dish, I was not able to review due to abstaining from seafood after chicken pox for 100 days.

Cheesy Pork Balls 

For me, these cheesy pork balls were just nice in taste as they were not too overwhelmed with the cheesy taste. I did not dip the balls into the sauce. However, our host for the day, Rain told us that it was all handmade

Spicy Crispy Anchovies ( Photo credits to Jess) 

This plate of anchovies seems to be air-fried upon tasting cos there is not a hint of oiliness in them. Great to get them when you are having happy hour at the restaurant.

Seafood Coquette

This seafood coquette packs a punch on its own without having to add any more sauce. The crunchiness that comes out from the bread crumbs can give the cracker kind of feeling.

Korean Spicy Fried Chicken 

This dish is made with the head chef's special concocted sauce. It is more towards the sweet kind of spiciness rather than the kind of sambal spiciness that we are looking at.

Fish Fingers

This one taste a bit like chicken fingers just that it does not have cheese taste

Lamb Shank

This dish is well braised as the meat is able to be still stuck onto the bone and also it is tender when you bite it. If you take a look at each dish, you will be able to see the chef's effort to introduce vegetables to each dish for healthy living.

Miso Cod Fillet 

This dish is made from overnight marination of the special sauce which was concocted by the chef. What I like about this dish are the flavourful miso cod fillet and the mashed potato. The mash potato is something which does not give the very starchy kind of feeling after each mouth.

Grilled pork chop 

This dish was tasted cold as we were busy taking photos so can't really give an exact review for it. Probably when it is eaten hot, it should be more tender. Wished that it was tenderised more 

Baby  Back Ribs 

I did not taste this dish for the fear of dark soya sauce. The other ladies felt the taste was just nice.

For my personal opinion of this food tasting session, the top dish goes to the miso cod fillet which is a must try. 2nd dish would be the cheesy pork balls.These 2 are my personal favourites.

At the end of the food tasting session, we decided to check out the entire premises and realised that there are certain spots which are good for a wedding proposal, hanging out with bf/gf for a sweet whispering session and some photo taking.

Here are some photos which I feel good for wedding proposal and our photo taking session.

The fun shot that the other ladies took 

This place is catered for solemnization. The enchanted garden offers its premises for private events.

Great for catching up among friends.

Not to forget, just to share that Enchanted Garden offers happy hour all day long from 11am to 12 midnight daily. For current month's promotion will be 1 for 1 drinks  for happy hour.

For my readers, there will be a 15% discount for the main course and also 15% discount on soft drinks once you show my blog post.Promotional items are not applicable for the 15% discount

Food Review of Maggie Thai Chinese Restaurant at 1 Liang Seah Street

I am glad that I have been invited to this food review for Maggie Thai & Chinese Restaurant recently. The hospitable Ms Maggie made me and fellow bloggers so at home as she shared with us the history of Maggie Thai & Chinese Restaurant and a little about Liang Seah Street where no one knows.

History of Maggie Thai & Chinese Restaurant

  

Maggie Thai & Chinese Restaurant has been established since 1998. It was conveniently located at the heart of the city, only minutes away from Bugis Junctions .

Maggie started her first Thai food stall at Queen Street hawker centre. It soon became a famous eatery outlet. Customers packed up in an endless queue at busy hours. Encouraged by customers, Maggie and her family decided to move the business to Liang Seah Street in 1998 starting with only one shop unit. Maggie Thai & Chinese Restaurant was established since there. Years later, it was expended to two shop units. Despite the high rent of the city central area, Maggie insists to provide “cheap and good” food for loyal customers. 

Accolades won over the years by Maggie Thai & Chinese Restaurant

 

Upon arrival at the shop, one can see the decorations on  the walls via painting and the big sign board of their specialities.

 

 

Ms Maggie's hubby's collections~~~unique right

 

 

Here comes the actual food review of the food that Ms Maggie prepared for us

 

Thai Steamed Grouper

 

For me, this dish does not struck a chord with my taste buds even though I am someone who loves sour stuff. Perhaps, it was due to that the fish seems to be fresh water fish and not sea water fish. However, the sauce that was used to steam this fish was pretty good. The meat was very tender.

 

Rating of this dish is 3/5

 

Assam Fish

 

This dish is really appetising . The sauce when pour onto plain rice was so appetising that one could have a few bowls of rice if not controlled. The brinjal that was cook to just nice for its softness and lady fingers were well cooked that it was crunchy and yet not slimy. The fish meat was not filmsy at all and could taste the freshnesss of the fish. Ms Maggie also told us tat she used all the fresh ingredients daily from the wholesalers instead of the frozen ingredients.

 

Rating for this dish is 5/5

 

Salted egg prawns

 

What I liked about this dish is that the prawn is not heavily coated with flour when fried before stir frying with the salted egg .

 

Rating for this dish is 3.5/5

Cereal Prawns

 

As for this dish which I usually get to eat it at home, I feel that this dish is a bit not on par with my home standard. Perhaps it was the lack of the chilli padi in the cereal mix and the buttery taste.

 

Rating for this dish is 2.5/5 

Red Curry Beef

 

This dish though named red curry beef is not exactly spicy and the meat is really tender . I wonder if they have added any meat tenderizer. It kinds of melt in the mouth that kind of feeling.

 

Rating of this dish is 5/5

 

Thai Fried Grouper

 

The fish was deep fried till it was so crunchy and the sauce that was with it could not be more than awesome. 

 

Rating of this dish is 5/5.

Butter squid

 

This is one of the signature dishes in Maggi Thai. It does not taste like calamari cos it feels very qq and not a lot of batter was being added to fry. You are supposed to dip it with either the sweet thai chill sauce or mayonaise sauce to eat.

 

Rating of this dish is 5/5

 

There are also a lot of other items which are available for lunch time special. So people who is working around the gateway west or gateway east you guys can go and try.

 

Lunch Time Special Menu would be Black pepper udon noodles, Taiwan dry minced meat mee tai mak,  Thai mango fried chicken rice, Hong Kong style orange fried chicken rice, fried hokkien mee, Thai prawn paste chicken rice. This is solely applicable at the Liang Seah Street outlet.

 

For those working at the west, you may wan to head down to their food court outlet store for the cravings at  50 Jurong Gateway Road, Jem Food Court, #05-14 Singapore 608549

 

 

Address of the 2 outlets of Maggie Thai & Chinese Restaurant
(Main Outlet)
1 Liang Seah Street, #01-01/02
Singapore 189022

(2nd Outlet)
50 Jurong Gateway Road,
Jem Food Court, #05-14
Singapore 608549

 

 

For more info, please visit their website http://www.maggiethai.com. Do remember to make reservation on the weekends if u are heading down there.

 

Last but not least , I would like to thank Maggie for her generousity to treating us the bloggers for wonderful food and also street directory for arranging this event

 

*** Disclaimer: all the opinions of the food are of my own personal opinions.*****

 

Please remember to vote for me if you have yet to vote for me today ...Click on the finalist badge to link to the voting system.

 

 

 

Review of BoatHouse Gallery's Cheese and Mince Pie

Cheese and Mince Pie -$4.50

 

Today is considered to be my rest day and enjoying it with my gf, Veron. I was looking at the pies of Boat House Gallery and decided to get the pies. I decided to get the beef collection of pies.

 

Started off with the Cheese and Mince Pie, as it was nicely cut up to show you guys out there with the ingredients that is inside and also to share with my gf .Inside it is really filled with lots of beef and a little bit of peas and lots of mozzarella cheese. The first mouth was like having the juice from the beef oozing out. Each bite is really so mouthful.  For people who enjoy lots of fillings itself , they will enjoy it alot.

 

Boathouse Galley is a nice and cosy restaurant which serves quality food, beverage and drinks. Their range of 10 savoury pies are freshly baked on the site . There are also pie set meals, pastas , specialty coffee, salads, soup, breakfast menu and more.

 

There are also going to be new items to be launch from 24 June 2014 . They are boneless chicken rice leg set with drink at $10  and chicken or beef baked rice at $7.50

 

Boathouse Galley is located at Blk 81, Macpherson Lane , #01-53, Singapore 360081. Opening Hours are from 9am - 9pm (Tues- Sun). Tel: 68424838

 

For readers of my blog, to get discount please code andrea for discount . As for trinitarians, please show your membership card to get a 10% discount.

Review of Kin Kin Chilli Pan Mee

There has been much rave about Kin Kin Chilli Pan Mee. Thus I decided to try it after my church service last sat. I went in at about 7.20pm and I managed to get a bowl of their signature dry kin kin chilli pan mee. There is one staff who will shoo people away once it hits 7.30pm even though it closes at 8pm.

This bowl of noodle is served without the signature chilli inside. However, the noodle was not well cooked in a certain way. The noodles are sticking to one another so much ..can't even taste a strand on its own. Chilli wise you got to estimate how much u can withstand then you eat.

In my honest opinion, the ban mian is not as nice as the nearby one which I have been eating for years. It is located at 82 macpherson lane. Just a few streets down the road from Kin Kin Chilli Pan Mee. Over there, they have the dark soya with superb belachan kind of chilli for the dry version and also the soup based one for fish maw which is cheaper than the Kin Kin Chilli Pan Mee.

Overall rating , I would give this dish under Kin Kin Chilli Pan Mee  a  2 out of 5.

** This is my personal opinion and I am not doing the review as in being sponsored.

Chocolate Review~~~a dream come true

Recently , I have been invited by Choc Gourmet Chocolate to do a review on chocolates. However, I was really sick at that point before the tasting session so I asked one of my friend, Arifin who had done food review with me before to do the tasting.  Thanks to James and Mr Benny for the invite  and allowing my friend to do the tasting on my behalf.


Here's a little back ground of Chocz Gourmet Chocolate

Started by Mr. Benny Chua, who has had experience importing European ingredients, his goal of starting Chocz is to educate Asians on the art of appreciating fine chocolate.  By immersing yourself in the culture that the Europeans have cultivated, we can then reach a higher level of appreciation.  To that end, Benny has setup both a retail arm as well as wholesale business to reach his aim.  Also, by conducting Chocolate Appreciate as well as Chocolate Making Workshops, he hopes that more Singaporeans will be able to differentiate between fine chocolate, and the kind of additive-laden chocolates found in retail shops and supermarkets.  If you are interested in attending such a workshop, register at http://www.chocz.com.sg/chocolate-workshop/.  Because Chocz also caters to major hotel establishments in Singapore, don’t be surprised if you might have had a taste of the creation made by Benny’s company.


** Note: For the month of May except for Mother's Day , anyone who likes the facebook page of Choc Gourmet is entitled to a 10% discount.

Here's the link https://www.facebook.com/#!/chocz.sg

 

Here comes the review from the guest blogger for the day on his review for the chocolate tasting session.

Chocolate Heaven By Arifin

If you are a chocolate lover and are looking for seventh heaven, Chocz at Esplanade Mall might just be the place you are looking for.  Located at unit #02-13/15, it is next to the escalator from level 1 of the Mall.  Here, they serve not only just chocolate cakes, but also pralines, fondue as well as drink concoctions made from the best beans of cocoa on this planet.  As it is found in the heart of the Central Business District, if you need to have a meet outside of the office, make your way to this place.  It seats 20 to 30 people nicely.  They are also willing to host you should you need a place to conduct some discussions outside the office setting for 5 to 8 people.

How can you describe an establishment like Chocz, besides being a Shangri-La for fine chocolate?  Let me count the ways …

Firstly, they only use imported dark chocolate from Europe, Africa and also cocoa beans harvested in Java.  Chocolate was first introduced to Europe in the 1500s when the European explorers brought back the treasures from the New World.  Because the exploration business was expensive, it was mostly sponsored by the royal families and aristocrats. So, when we partake in these wonderful creations created by Chocz’s chocolatiers, we have to remember we are taking in something that is steeped in history.

Take for example, their Chocolate Drink.  Unlike a cup of hot chocolate you get from a fast food outlet or a coffee shop, at Chocz, they make it to order here.  So, instead of getting a drink that is in powdered form, what the staff will do is to making it from their imported chocolate bar.  They will make it from the finest dark chocolate (between 55% to 60% of dark chocolate) using a recipe from Switzerland.  For us Asians, unaccustomed to such quality products, we might find that the taste is too rich and bitter.  My first sip of this hot chocolate, it felt slightly bitter.  But a second sip, when the taste of cocoa gets to my palette, it is both rich and satisfying, and the luxuriousness of the chocolate envelops your mouth.  That’s when you want to wrap your hands around the unique cup that it has been served in.  The cup does not have a handle, so that you can wrap your palm around it.  If you were at Zermatt, a ski resort on Matterhorn (a mountain in Switzerland), you would welcome the warmth the cup of hot chocolate brings you!  Because they do not use vegetable fats, unlike the chocolate bars you might find at your convenience store or neighborhood supermarket, they achieved this result by using only the freshest of dairy cream.  Also, as this is unlike your typical Mars bar, it has a lower melting point.  A tip to enjoying such exquisite chocolate, it is best to eat these chocolates after you have let it warm up to room temperature.

If you like your hot chocolate to have a higher percentage of cocoa, you can create your own DIY hot chocolate too.  Add as much cocoa to your heart’s content!  You can even go up to as high as 72%!

 

 
                                           Figure 1: Hot Chocolate, in a handle-less cup

If you like dipping your food into warm liquid chocolate, then yes, they have got fondue too.  And they have 3 varieties to choose from – Standard, Venezuelan and Madagascar.  The differences are in the taste, color and viscosity of the liquid chocolate. 

The Standard, which uses a mixed blend of beans from Africa, is thicker and has a stronger taste, even though it uses the standard amount of dark chocolate, which ranges from 55% to 60%.  For us Asians who are used to spicy food, the Standard isis something familiar. 

The Venezuelan, using cocoa beans from the South American country, has a stronger aroma, lighter in color, even though it uses about 64% of dark chocolate, is more runny, and the tastes will linger in your mouth longer.  So if you are a health conscious chocolate lover, go for the Venezuelan, and watch the chocolate drip from your fruits and marshmallow. 

                                      Figure 2: Standard Fondue, using Dark Chocolate

Figure 3: Venezuelan Fondue, with a lighter viscosit of Dark Chocolate

Of course, the best is saved for last.  Cakes!  And they have a variety of cakes, and their signature line is, what else, a chocolate cake, it is topped with a ball of chocolate truffle!  It is a wider slice compared to other cake shops, and a slice retails for $6.50 for a slice of heaven!  It is rich and luxurious, but if you are sharing, 1 is not enough.  Weighing in at between 120 and 130 grams, it uses pure chocolate.  For me, having had 1 slice, makes me realize how much more time I have to spend at the gym and the extra laps in the pool!  But I would say, it is worth it.

 

                                          Figure 4: Chocz's signature line Chocolate Cake


I would call them a specialty shop, as they do not produce their cakes in large batches.  As such, if you would like to buy a cake for a special occasion, like Mother’s Day or Father’s Day, it is best that you place your order in advance, so as not to be disappointed!  This is because they want to ensure freshness in their cakes by producing only in small batches.

For Mother’s Day, they have made a special creation, a heart-shaped Chocolate Truffle Cake, made of dark chocolate and truffles, topped with shavings of white chocolate and nuts all over the side of the cake.

                                            Figure 5: Creation by Chocz for Mother's Day

Dark chocolate has been scientifically researched to be good for your heart and it helps to control your blood sugar, while being full of antioxidants.

So, if you are in need of some chocolate pampering, head down to Chocz today!  They are open from 11am to 11pm everyday.  The best time to pay them a visit is just after lunch at 2pm or before the start of any show at the Esplanade.  Then you’ll be able to enjoy such sinful pleasures that will only benefit your heart!


Pricing of the items tasted

Item	Price (Excluding GST & Service Charge)
Chocolate Cake (slice of 120 to 130gms)	$6.50
Chocolate Cake (heart-shaped) – ½ kilogram (14cm)	$33
Chocolate Cake (heart-shaped) – 1 – 1.2 kilogram (20cm)	$52
Fondue	$25 - $28
Hot Chocolate	> $10

 

 

 Location of the 2 outlets

Esplande Mall                                                   Leisure Park Kallang
8 Raffles ave                                                      5 Stadium Walk
#02-13/15                                                          #01-13 Leisure Park Kallang
S(039802)                                                          S(397693)
Tel/ Fax: 62380803                                           Tel/ Fax:62420135

 

Gelato Review at Mischiefous in Tampines

I did this review with one of my long lost chat friend, Arifin before I went on my impromptu Malacca road trip. It certainly feels good to catch up with long lost friend to do some catch up.

Mischiefous is a Homemade Gelato shop that is located at Blk 801 ,#01-261, tampines ave 4
Singapore(520801) 

Free reign drawing by some of the customers at Mischiefous

The range of ice cream offered at Mischiefous

Side view of the range of 20 flavours ice cream!!!

Normal Choco pepper mint

Taste like choco banana fudge

Taste like the normal Vanilla

Too rich in the Baileys ...not to my liking but was to my friend's arifin's taste buds

Taste too much liquor in it ..not to suitable for kids

 

 Pistachio - not that smooth still got the edgy taste

 Rich in its flavour

 

Ferrero rocher- taste like the real one

Chocolate

 

Highly recommended by staff for hot weather , lime sorbet 

 

 

 

Salted caramel - My favourite

Durian- one of the best sellers in the shop

 

 

 

 

 

Dragon fruit sorbet - My favourite too

 

Food Creations by the staff

                                                                      Cappucino

I wanted to try this cup of cappucino in the beginning . However since the coffee art done by the staff was so nice  I decided to let the boss take the chance to drink the coffee whereas I opted for affogato.
The boss even complimented his staff for perfecting the art as compared to the initial stage where Mischievous first started.  I really feel happy cos this is where positive and happy working relationships are there to last .

As for affogato, it was my first try. It was made up of ice cream with a strong brew of coffee, simply can be renamed to be coffee float in local context.

                                                                         Affogato

                       First time seeing a shop using air fryer to fry fries and nuggets~kudos to them

Must try !!!

                             Waffle with 2 scoops of ice cream - pistachio and salted caramel

This is my favourite for this review. The salted caramel ice cream is really nice. However, this is the first time i am trying out this flavour have yet to compare it with other shops like island creamy at serene centre . As the pistachio flavor ice cream , it is not as smooth as what  I have tried at Artisan Gelato or at Shloops at my church.

                                         various sizes for you to buy the ice cream home


Last but not least, I would like to thank Mr Yi Quan of Mischeifous and street directory for arranging me to do this review.

****Disclaimer: All the opinions are real as to what I felt during the review .