Shima Restaurant- the most expensive fruit juice ever drank!

I was busy preparing for my essay 3 weeks ago when my sister L asked me whether I wanted to join her, R and Y for a meal at Shima. She ooed and arrrr-ed over it and told me how it was one of the best teppanyaki restaurants around (not that she had eaten there before but she was already bought over by the strong convictions of R and Y!). Apparently both of them had eaten there on separate occassions but they found the food to be so good that they wanted to go back again.

I declined to join them initially as I was over my head in my work. But the idea of spending a Sunday afternoon working away daunted me. Also, the idea of missing out on a gastronomic feast upsetted me. So I agreed after a while. SH joined us too on a very last minute note, as I had initially decided against going.

Shima restaurant is located within the compounds of the Goodwood Park Hotel, at the new wing.

Goodwood Park Hotel
To get to Shima resturant, walk to the left of Goodwood Park hotel. After passing the newly renovated wing (you will see a building with a modern glass exterior), you will see the restaurant a few steps away.

The Grand Entrance to this old regal hotel

The entrance to the restaurant

The interior of the restaurant
The interior of Shima Restaurant is very authentically Japanese. Seats are arranged around the teppanyaki counter where the chef works on. There is another sitting area in the restaurant, but we didn't head there as we had chosen the teppanyaki lunch buffet.

Our Teppanyaki Area
Our chairs and plates are arranged around the counter where the chef works on. You get to see how the chef cooks.
A very nice thoughtful touch was that as we sat down at our places, the waitresses came over and helped us wear on these plastic-aprons. We all looked so cute eating our meals! The aprons helped prevent clumsy L from spilling things onto herself!

Tempura Prawn

A Closeup of the Tempura Prawns
The Prawns were very crisply fried. Just nice. Not over-fried. The batter is light and crisp, and it wasn't soggy (unlike other prawn tempuras I've eaten). Prawns were fresh, very nice. The sauce accompanying the dish was good too, though I felt it could have been less salty. I still feel that the prawn tempura at Tonkichi @ Suntec was still superior in taste, freshness and size! 3.25/5.

Salmon Sashimi
With each platter you get about 4-5 pieces of sashimi. I can't remember how many pieces there are actually because we attacked the sashimi the moment it came! It was very fresh. The meat is firm, yet very tender at the same time. You bite into each piece and as you chew on it the flavour just immerses. It's just hard to describe. Oh, how about the adjective 'tantalising'? It was indeed very refreshing! Good sashimi has a very distinctive fresh taste to it. Still, it couldn't beat Sushi garden's sashimi. :( (Sushi garden is located in Vancouver, Canada. Shall do a review on it another time) 4/5
(I shall give Sushi garden 5/5 for the sashimi next time I review it!)

The California Roll
The rice was done just nice. Not too sour, complemented the mayonnaise used in the roll (well I'm not sure if it's really mayonnaise. But it tasted like mayonnaise to me). Cucumber was fresh, seaweed was crisp and tasty (not too msg-tasting like some seaweed you eat). Salmon eggs was good. Can't really remember the other ingredients because the food came so fast I was trying to keep pace. Everything blended well to give a crunchy texture. The roll on the whole was good. 3.5/5

Teppanyaki in progress- Prawns, Salmon and Chicken being cooked

The Teppanyaki Prawns
The prawns were very fresh, succulent and big. A pity the seasoning was too salty. I would also have preferred my prawn to be a little undercook. Then you can taste the tenderness of the meat. 3/5

The Teppanyaki Chicken
I apologise for the poor shot. It was rather embarrassing trying to take shots of my food.
The chicken meat is tender. Again a tad too salty. 3/5

Fresh salmon simmered in brown sauce
I think this is the salmon belly. Not too sure though but this is my favourite dish of all! It was just so OOMPH-good! The sauce was just nice, not salty at all! Nice balance between sweet and salty. The salmon belly was so fresh, soft, tender and succulent!! (I keep using the word succulent, but no other adjectives seem to be able to describe the meats I eat better! Not "moist", not "luscious", not "scrumptious"...
We kept asking for seconds! The sad truth was that by the time we reach the end of our teppanyaki course, we were so full with all the dishes that I couldn't gobble down the resturant's supply of salmon belly and salmon sashimi!
This dish is a sure-winner! 4.75/5!!
It really deserves the marks because when you bite into it, it's sooo soft, tender AND juicy all at the same time. It seems to melt in your mouth!

Another closeup of the salmon
So good! I like my meat to have fats! Plus salmon fats are healthy!

Sizzling Oysters
Bad shot again. The lighting in the restaurant was so dim! The oysters were really good too. So yummylicious!
In this restaurant, it was the first time I heard of oysters being cooked "medium, medium-rare or rare"!
I asked mine to be done medium-rare and I love it! I actually like eating oysters fresh, raw, uncooked. But this dish was good in a sense that it's cooked on the outside but when you bite into the oyster, the juice oozes out from the centre! A great dish! 3.75/5

A closeup of the delicious oyster
Pure gastronomic heaven.

Garlic Fried Rice
I didn't quite like this dish because I felt that the garlic taste overpowered the whole dish. The rest of the ingredients tasted bland. It was just not tasty and moist enough for me. It could be me though because the rest seemed to like it. I just prefer it the Ding Tai Feng way for fried rice. 2.75/5

The tender beef- cooked medium rare the way I like it!
Can you see just how good this beef is? It's cooked soooo medium-rare! The perfect balance! You can see the pinkish centre of the beef. The beef was very tasty, chewy and savoury. Tender too. But I would have prefered it to have consisted of some fats within it! I love my beef the keg-way (Alas, Keg is in Canada)! Tender, juicy and with a healthy combination of fats! Such that when you eat it, the whole bite seems to literally melt away in your mouth! This beef was tender, just that it could have been even more tender!! 3.5/5

Our chef for the day!
He was a very friendly guy who cracked up at our jokes and inquiries. We kept asking him things like where he learnt cooking from, how he cooked the dishes... etc etc... unfortunately, I've since forgotten what he told me! haha. We complemented him for a job well done! Deliciously nice!

An interesting thing happened during our meal. Y had gone to the toilet and she overheard a chef being scolded for his cooking techniques. Apparently the older chef had observed his table of customers and realised that they were not very satisfied. He noted this from observing how the customer was poking his chopsticks at his meal, as if the dish was very unappetising. The older chef chided the cook for failing to note his customers' expression and for not performing up to standard. Woah... this restaurant really prides itself on its high quality!

Verdict:

The bill for 5 came up to $317 which totally blew us away. I was too shocked to say anything so I just paid for the group with my card (Woah... first time my account actually has that much money!) They must think that we are some bunch of rich kids that can afford to walk into any restaurant on a sunday afternoon for brunch.
The teppanyaki buffet lunch was $199.50 for 5 of us. But the Fresh Orange Juice cost a whopping $42.50 for 5 cups, and the mango juice cost $30 for 4 cups!

There was 10% service charge, 5%GST as well as 1%cess! As if they had not conned us enough!

After my expert calculations,
The orange juice per cup= $8.50x1.16=$9.86!!!
We actually paid $10 for a cup of orange juice I could have squeezed myself! They labelled it "fresh" orange juice. Machiam they really squeezed by hand. (Machiam= singlish for 'As if') Then how come I never see any pulp in the drink (oh right!! They even bothered to filter the drink! I bet that's why it's so expensive. We are paying for their heavy labour!)
The mango juice per cup= $7.50x1.16= $8.70

We spent a grand total of $84.10 on juice. Could have bought 28 cartons of Freshtree Fresh at NTUC.

*Fuming mad*

I would go back to the restaurant another day only for the fish meat- the sashimi and the salmon. Both are served exceedingly fresh.
AND I would avoid the juices at all cost. They DO serve plain water by the way. Plain free water.

Ambiance: 2.75/5 (A nice cosy restaurant for a nice family brunch. Definitely not your typical romantic date for 2. You might end up sharing a teppanyaki counter with another couple. I wouldn't go there for a group gathering also because the sitting around the chef's teppanyaki area makes it difficult to hold a conversation with your friends on the other end of the counter.)
Service: 4/5 (Very very prompt and very very efficient. My clumsy sister L accidentally spilled the miso soup onto the counter and the chef immediately handed her his counter towel which he was using for the teppanyaki stove. When the waitresses didn't notice the spill, he clapped his hand to demand their attention. Upon realising the spill, they hurriedly rush over to help L clean up every single drop of the spill and to change her plates. Very attentive to detail. Plus where else do you get staff helping you tie the apron on?)
Food: 3.5/5

As for whether this place really serves the best teppanyaki, I would say not. Food is generally good and delicious, but I found the dishes to be a tad too salty (agreed upon by SH). Sometimes the seasoning used tends to overpower the taste. Also, I would have preferred my meats to be more tender and succulent. As it is a teppanyaki buffet, there isn't much varieties as compared to other buffets, but the focus here is on quality and service. All in all a good place to go for lunch. But where prices are concerned, it's definitely not an average cheap lunch.

Location:

Shima Restaurant
Goodwood Park Hotel
22 Scotts Road
Tel. no: +65 67346281

They have another branch at Esplanade
Shima Aji Japanese Restaurant
Esplanade Mall
8 Raffles Avenue
#01-13A c/o Colours by the Bay
Tel. no: +65 63419985

Check out their website for more information.

____________________________________________

Despite my threats to write in a complaint letter, which I always never get around to doing, I didn't.
Things I would have complained of:
A lack of transparency in their prices- their staff acted as if the juice was part of the buffet by asking us "Do you want any refills?"
From what I know from the dictionary, refill= second, subsquent filling. We were there on a buffet.
Your menu didn't indicate the price of the juices (or it was not clear enough). So by asking whether we wanted a refill, it meant that the orange juice/mango juice were part of the buffet. It's like asking us "Do you want some more salmon?"
Which buffet actually separates the drinks from the main buffet? In all the resturants/hotels I've been to, drinks have always been a part of the buffet! We thought the freaking orange juice was part of the buffet! Tsk tsk, the misleading english used is an indication of poor english.

How dare they con us!!

We poor students.

P.S. Maybe I shouldn't complain about the prices. I'm afterall aspiring to be a rich tai tai next time. I should get used to being charged exorbitant prices for cheap useless worthless things. Woaaahhh... so cheap ar? *Note sarcasm.*

Now who's the one being cheap?

Now that's a thought for you.

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Room for Dessert?

I love the cakes from Room for Dessert. I first heard of this cakeshop from SH, who's friends with the owners of the shop. We had wanted to eat this for the longest period of time, having heard about how popular their carrot cake and choc-a-lot cake were. SH and I had a vote and he was to eat the carrot cake and I was to eat the choc-a-lot cake (which is another dreamy story reserved for another time). This suprised me alot because SH isn't the type to appreciate cakes, what's more the less-common carrot cake. Chocolate cakes, black forest cakes, tiramisu cakes, Strawberry cakes, Fruit Cakes etc. are all commonly seen in most bakeries (i.e. breadtalk, four leaves etc). But the Carrot Cake? You only see it in serious cakeshops. The carrot cake is not appreciated as much as the other cakes, so you know that when you hear of a good carrot cake, it must really be good. Good carrot cakes always manage to convert the less serious cake-eaters! Forget the average chocolate cake (oh but first try the choc-a-lot cake), try something different today!

I finally realised why he wanted to eat the carrot cake.
It was along the lines of this...
(See pictures)

He had thought it was Singapore's chinese carrot cake!
Googled and reproduced from www2u.biglobe.ne.jp/.../chinese/carrotcake.jpg

Googled and reproduced from foodlane.sg/VendorAsset/1173/Image/main.jpg

He had mistaken the carrot cake for the chinese carrot cake! In Singapore, somehow, this local hawker dish has been named carrot cake which is really odd. (Do you mean to say they really do put carrots in chinese carrot cakes?

I laughed so hard at SH. Well, let's just say that before he met me, the food connoisseur, he was pretty happy eating the usual stuff!
The scenario reminded me abit of this simplistic character 'Jingjing' in the Singapore Chinese Drama Series Holland Village. I only watched one episode of that series, and it was that particular episode in which she was to meet her rich boyfriend's parents at a high-class hotel. Being the country-bumpkin that she was, she got scared by the expensive prices in the menu. So she decided on the carrot cake thinking that it was a cheaper alternative to the other mains. Lo-and-behold... the carrot cake arrived, and no, it wasn't her carrot cake. It was an ang moh carrot cake. She got snubbed by her rich boyfriend's highclass ex-fiancee (I can't really recall whether they were still together or not, it was the typical *rich parents did not approve relationship* story) and everyone was astounded by her lack of 'general knowledge'.

Ok, I shouldn't make fun of SH. But after that incident, he was enlightened of the fact that the term 'carrot cake' didn't necessarily refer to his well-loved hawker dish.

Being the poor students we always are, we only bought a slice of carrot cake. The choc-a-lot cake had sold out (thankfully I did manage to get to eat it later on). So SH and I could only get the carrot cake. Something to note for would-be cake buyers, the cake shop isn't a sit-down place for you to eat your cakes. Rather it's more of a pick and go shop. You could however sit yourself down at the foodcourt or HDB seats around the void deck.

Anyway, on our 2nd Anniversary, SH suprised me with the carrot cake from Room for Dessert.

Without further adue, the pictures...

Summertime Carrot Cake
The website of Room for Dessert described this cake as its house speciality and best-seller.

"Moist & wholesome, our house-favourite is packed with crunchy walnuts, juicy raisins, and comes topped with a crowd-pleasing velvety white-choc cream cheese frosting. Get ready for a second helping!"- Room for Dessert

For this 6 inch round cake, pay $18 for 500g. Serves 4-6. If you have a bigger party however and want to serve a party of 8-10 people, get the 1kg, 7 inch round cake.

Our 2nd Year Anniversary
SH lit up the cake and it looked so gorgeous.

Another shot of the beautiful and delicious carrot cake

A slice of heaven
The above picture of the cake-slice evidently shows how much good quality ingredients go into their cake. They don't skimp on their ingredients because every bite you take, you can taste the walnuts, rasins and finely grated carrots. The overall taste is fantastic- the cream cheese frosting melts into the moist texture of the cake, with the sweetness and smoothness of the frosting complementing the wholesome aromatic cake. The cake is really very aromatic because you can taste the cinammon in the cake. Cream cheese, cinammon combine with the chunky raisins in the slice packs a flavourful bite. The walnuts also give texture and crunch to the cake. SH said that his mum commented that there was alcohol used in the cake but I couldn't taste otherwise. Unless the raisins were soaked in brandy or something. I felt that it could have been a taste of the cinnamon rather than any alcohol being present. Maybe I should ask Room for dessert. :) Overall, 4/5 for this piece of delightful, moist, fragrant cake. Yummy.

Verdict: I will definitely go back many many times for their cakes. I want to try their Bananas about chocolate (banana chocolate) cake and the Ultimate Indulgence Chocolate cake (Dark chocolate cake layered with Belgian white chocolate frosting, chocolate ganache and strawberries)

Check out Room for Dessert's website for more information on their cakes. It's always advisable to make an order in advance! Their cakes are so good they always sell out!

Operating Hours & Location:
Blk 261 Waterloo St #01-42 Waterloo Centre S(180261)
Operating Hours: 3pm to 7pm (Mon,Tue), 11am to 7pm (Wed - Fri), 2pm to 7pm (Sat).
Tel. no: +65 63377 637

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Valentine's Day Part Two- Sunar Indonesian Restaurant + Max Brenner's

After lunch at Botak Jones, it was Chinese New Year Shopping! SH did the guy thing again- grab and buy. So it wasn't much of a shopping. o_O I wanted to buy a few more pieces of new clothes as I had apparently worn all my new clothes. But a shiny new bag lied in the fate of my hands. So I decided against buying anymore clothes in favour of the coveted bag. The funny thing about guys is that they do get tired from shopping easily. Luckily I had arranged to meet up with my girlfriends J and Y. We decided on a girls' Valentines this year.

As the 3 of us girls sauntered down orchard roard, the street was abound with couples carrying flowers, chocolates and balloon. Y concluded that she was oblivious to those couples after a while. When we finally decided that we were hungry enough, we were at Takashimaya. As J's feet were hurting considerably from her new shoes, we decided to have dinner there. Apparently, out of naivety, we believed that we were able to just walk into any restaurants and plonk ourselves down. Alas, that day was also Valentine's Day and every smart guy out there had already made his reservation. Most restaurants were arranged into the 2-2-2 formation for couples. As there were 3 of us girls, most restaurants told us we had to wait a considerable time for our table.

I had wanted to try out the Crystal Jade Korean Ginseng Restaurant but that was a 45 min wait. We went to Imperial Treasure restaurant too and that was another 30 min wait. In the end, Sanur Indonesian Restaurant won with the 20 min wait. We received our call, whisked ourselves off and settled down.

Sanur Indonesian Restaurant

Keropok-$3.00
In the past, I didn't really have a habit of collecting the receipts after footing for the bill, but now I think I should make it a point to remember. I just realised that we were charged 3 bucks for the Keropok! Wasn't it supposed to be free? *The evils of Valentine's day*?
Yes yes, it was crunchy and tasty, but this was like an appeitizer to keep us busy before our orders arrived! The hidden costs you never know till you pay! And then even if you do realise these hidden costs exist, you still pay for them because you are too busy being shocked to protest.

Ayam Go Bumbu (Grilled Chicken Dish)- $13.95
We were deciding between the other chicken dish and the Beef Rendang initially. But upon the waitress' recommendation, (she said the Ayam Go Bumbu was very tender and tasty) we settled for this dish. Boy was I glad we did, because the chicken was very flavourful and aromatic. The whole dish was not too oily, the skin provided a nice crisp contrast that was salty enough against the tender aromatic chicken meat. The chicken was indeed very soft and there was not a part that I hated to eat. Well marinated. I love the herbs they use. 3.75/5

Kangkong Belachan- $8.50
This was the one dish that I HAD to have. It's been so many months since I last ate Kangkong! In Canada, there was no Kangkong in sight, not even in some Singapore-Malaysian Restaurants we went to.
The Kangkong Belachan was a nice balance of spiciness and saltiness. Yummy! Eat it with rice, and it's just awesome! I like my kangkong to be crunchy (not too much stems though), leafy and spicy enough to give me a kick out of eating it. It wasn't terribly spicy though (unlike some dishes that are so spicy, they burn your tongue till you can't taste what you are eating!) and I like that! 3.5/5

Just in case you guys do not believe the "there's no Kangkong in sight in Canada*, here are some pictures of the vegetable section in Safeway Supermarket in Vancouver, Canada.

I can't believe they only have Ang Moh vegetables like salads and lettuces.


And organic vegetables. Organic Ang Moh vegetables to be precise.


Lost of fruits too.


Look at the vast greenery of fruits and vegetables! Yeap... no Chinese vegetables.



They do have this kind though. Olives... ewww... are olives even vegetables?


Nope, I don't like to eat olives.
So there you have it guys, being in a foreign country meant that getting fresh chinese vegetables was tough (since the chinese supermarkets were always 1 hour bus rides away). We learnt it the hard way when we saw our vegetables rotting in our fridge. It was then that me and my Singaporean friends realised that "Oh wow... vegetables only last for 3 days?" Hey, we wrapped them in newspapers and refigerated them too! But by the 4th day, they started oozing slime! Eww.

Tahu Telur- $10.50
This is one of the restaurant's signature dishes.
Here's a description of the dish- "Beancurd and eggs deep fried until golden brown, garnished with shredded cucumber and served with special sauce."

J, Y and I felt this dish was the best. We gave it the thumbs up!
To eat it, you have to cut it up with the knife provided. Upon the incision, the cripsy beancurd fell apart to reveal the brown sweet sauce that had infused the centre to give a delicious sheen. The beancurd was packed with this floss-like shreds, thus I thought that I was eating beancurd with pork floss initially. J and Y enlightened me and told me it wasn't pork floss. I just wonder how they get the floss-like texture- can it really be beancurd? Anyway the whole bite was packed with taste. Each bite was a spoonful of crispy beancurd, with the soft crispy floss, and with the special brown sauce drizzled over it. The 3 of us liked this dish so much we cleaned it out!
Oh there's something to note too! The portion was huge! It was really a big piece of delicious beancurd! This was welcomed by us, as the other few dishes' potions were really small. Guys will surely finish the chicken and kangkong in a few mouthfuls.
All in all I would rate the Tahu Telur a 4/5!

A funny incident to note though: Halfway through eating the Tahu Telur, we suddenly heard loud clapping and cheering. We thought that a game was going on. And then we realised that it was a PROPOSAL! Ooooo.... the girl said 'Yes' and there were loud claps for them. They were both very shy and bashful after the *going-down-on-one-knee-to-propose* incident. Cool Vday event!

Sop Asam- $4.95

We ordered this hot and spicy soup as J had a craving for soup. :) It was really good. Unlike some hot and spicy soups which tend to be milder and more sourish, this soup really packed a nice spicy punch! It wasn't too salty either. 3/5

Verdict: Despite the small food portions of some dishes, the Tahu Telur really rocks! I like Indonesian food alot because they tend to use alot of spices and herbs which make eating these dishes really flavourful.

Ambiance: 3/5 (It wasn't the most romantic of ambiances. Someone proposed here, so it can't be that bad right? Though I would plead with my future proposal-guy to NOT propose in such a family-friendly restaurant. I would prefer something to the tune of a Chijmes restaurant!)
Service:3/5 (Maybe it because it was Valentine's Day. But the service tended to be a little slow when it came to ordering our dishes, and when asking for the bill.)
Food:3.6875/5

I would go back for the food again, but I would think twice about that. Because letting someone charge me $3 for the Keropok (when I can get it for $1 from the Mama store), $3.60 for 3 plates of rice (when rice is so dirt cheap), and $1.20 for the towels (when I don't even need them at all) isn't a very pleasant feeling. Plus do you guys realise you actually pay 10% and 5% for these useless items (because the service charge and gst is only calculated after the subtotal!)!! The very nerve of them! Maybe other restaurants do this too, but I've never really noticed this till today!

Anyway, they have 4 other outlets too!

Sanur Indonesian Restaurant

#04-16 Ngee Ann City
Tel: 6734 3434 Fax: 6734 5627

#04-17/18 Centrepoint
Tel: 6734 2192 Fax: 6734 2337

B1-10 Suntec City
Tel: 6338 6768 Fax: 6338 6769

#02-47/48 Parco Bugis Junction
Tel: 6333 9339 Fax: 6337 7068

#03-43 Causeway Point
Tel: 6893 7555 Fax: 6893 5690

After such a good meal, it was still an early night (only nine o'clock)! So we decided to have desserts at Max Brenner's Chocolate Bar. Y had never eaten here before and I just found it out-of-this-world to not have ever eaten here before. My, they've been here like forever! 4 years? 5 years? It sure seems like a long time.

Anyway as you all would know, Max Brenner is the Mr Chocolate-isLove guy. So on Vday, there were like only a hundred couples there. Ok, so I'm exaggerating. But we did have to wait a good 10 min for our table and then wait for like forever before we could finally get the attention of the waiter to take our orders. It was really exasperating trying to get our orders taken because each time we waved at this particular waiter, he would nod his head, yet walk past us, oblivious to our frustrations. He would then guide the people waiting outside to their tables but not take our orders. Repeat this cycle 3 times and you got 3 very frustrated girls. Y concluded that that particular waiter must have had something against us because he tended to walk past our table each time he refilled the other tables' glasses of water. Needless to say, I feel like failing them for their service, but the other waiter that finally took our order made it up with his apologetic smiles and sincerity. Still, service deserves only 2.5/5. AND Vday is no excuse to cover up for bad service!

I browsed through their website and I saw this jingle that said "Chocolate by the bald man" and bells started going off my head. Where did I hear that before? And I realised ahhhh Botak Jones!!! Well, the bald man concept seems to be everywhere these days. Hmm to be concise, it's the bald ang moh concept. Haha... wonder if the bald chinese girl concept will work if I go to America or Europe? *Snigger* Isn't that how we exploit the Caucasians' perennial fascination with the exotification of the East? Anything exotic sounding and they fall for it? *Sound of cash registers ringing*

You realise how well Max Brenner has learnt to exploit lovey-dovey couples when you see lines of "I don't invent anything in chocolate. It all exists in people's minds and hearts."- quoted from Max Brenner's website.

Ahhh... that's where we get the "chocolate is love" mentality from. No wonder girls get fat, and guys go poor! The manipulation of the subconscious... why you evil evil capitalists!

The exterior of the oh-so-chic chocolate restaurant.

Couples couples everywhere!
No wonder J, Y and I were feeling like lightbulbs! They practically squeezed all the couples in there- as many as they could. Do you see it? I see it! Everyone's gazing into everyone's eyes! *Shudder*

Oh my, the lilt in their voice, the spark in their eyes, the laughter everywhere (how come dating couples find every sentence their love ones utter sooo amusing? Maybe it's nervous laughter? *giggle deliriously*)
No, I'm not jealous. :)

Suckao- a chocolate drink you get by melting the chocolate bits in the plate in the egg device. You drop the chocolate bits in, stir, and add some milk in if you wish. Or you could just indulge in pure chocolate heaven.
Some people might find that over-indulging and that the drink would become rather sweet and thick. So they add milk in. But I feel that if too much milk is added in, it tastes alot like chocolate milk. o_O

We ordered the dark chocolate Suckao. You can choose from white chocolate, milk chocolate and dark chocolate. Y's preference was for dark chocolate though. The unique thing about this egg-device is that there is a flame in below the metal container and it resembles an aromatic burner is alot of ways! The metal stirrer is actually also a straw! Very cool! But the bad thing is that being metal by nature, if you leave it in the suckao for too long, heat travels through conduction and the whole straw feels very hot. Sometimes, if you are not careful, the hot straw sears your tongue, and the hot chocolate burns your tongue further!

A closeup of the Suckao
It was really good quality chocolate. Very thick and consistent.
For those who have never tried this, the novelty of the Suckao will excite you. When Max Brenner's first came to town, the novelty of drinking something called the Suckao created a stir. But for me, having drank it a few times, it's really alot like drinking a chocolate drink. 3/5 (Novelty winning more points than the whole drink actually.)

Belgian Waffles
We had actually wanted to order the Chocolate Fondue (since anyone who ever goes to Max Brenner must try it) but due to the romantic herds of guys before us, the fruits were out of stock. After a while, they ran out of chocolate too. So it was goodbye Chocolate Fondue and hello something else.
In a panic, we looked at the other tables to see what they were eating. We didn't want to wait for another forever for the waiter to come. The couple opposite me was having the Chocolate Truffle cake which looked good to me. But Y found it very normal and boring. So we went for something big and nicer looking. The table next to us were having this waffle thing which looked good. So we played the copycat and followed them.

Result? Notice I highlight the phrase looked good. It tasted arggghh yucky. Maybe that's too strong a reaction. But when you bite into the waffle, you will notice how floury the taste is. It's not crisp or fragrant-waffle-smelling like other waffles and it was really a mish-mash or soft, squishy flour drenched with Belgian chocolate. The only saving grace was the ice cream which was really good. Smooth, rich flavour, with the taste of good quality vanilla, rather than some cheap, artificial vanilla ice cream I've eaten. 2.5/5 It just passes because the ice cream saved it from being a disaster.
I don't know if it's because it was Valentine's Day and that's why the quality was really bad. Maybe the waffle-guy didn't bake the waffle long enough?

A closeup of the Belgian Waffles
Darn. It looks deceivingly good.
Maybe we should have eaten the Truffle cake. It would have surely tasted better than this flourish dessert.

Verdict: Max Brenner's is always a nice place to hang out with your love ones or girlfriends for an after-dinner treat, or just for a quick after shopping tea. The novelty of its desserts will be a pleasant suprise for them. The chocolates are always of a good quality and you can be sure you will be satisfied by this chocolate heaven.

Ambiance: 3.5/5 (Why do you think so many couples go there?)
Service: 2.5/5
Food: 2.75/5 (Just don't eat the Waffles!)

Next time any of you ever head there, I would recommend that you try the Warm Chocolate Fondue (for two)-with seasonal fresh fruit, frilled marshmallows and banana bread.

Max Brenner's Chocolate Bar is all happening at:

Singapore 8 Raffles Avenue, #01-06/08 Esplanade Mall

Phone number: +65 62359556
Opening Hours:
Sun-Thurs - 11:00am to 11:00pm
Fri-Sat - 11:00am to 12:00 (Midnight)

How cool is this? They also have branches all over the world! In USA (New York!), Australia, Philippines, Singapore AND Israel! Woahh places where all the action is happening eh? haha... check out the website for the locations if ever you are in any other parts of the world.

J and I saw this love-declaration while walking to One Fullerton. Cool... when do you see such patience, dedication and courage?

Just to end off, Happy (belated) Valentine's Day to all!
Or if you were like me... haha... Happy Friendship Day to all of you!!

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Valentine's Day Part One- Botak Jones got no hair? :)

Yesterday was Valentine's Day. To some, it's a day of love. To others, it's a day of 'commercial gimmicks'. Of course depending on which category each of us fall into, there are other subcategories wherein each of us embrace different philosophies and attitudes towards Vday. For some, it's a day to remember their love, to celebrate and appreciate, for others, it's a day of rejection, and yet others, it's a day where good money is wasted on girls, flowers and food.

But then again, everyone should consider this line of "What you give is what you get". Spend good money and see it as an investment in your future? OR save the good money and spend it on your oldage fund (since you are most probably going to be a nice spinster/bachelor)? Then again, it need not go to such extremes. Perhaps there ARE people out there who really believe that Vday, is a commercial exploitation of the average men, and as such should be eschewed. I do have many good friends who believe in this philosophy, but my belief is that no matter the amount of $ you spend, it's a day to remember your love ones and friends.

Happy Friendship Day to all!
_______________________________________

SH and I decided not to celebrate Vday since firstly, he can't stand crowds, and secondly, he believes that everyday is a Valentine's Day. *So cheesy!* haha. Anyway, we decided to have lunch at Botak Jones. For those out there who are clueless about Botak Jones, it's actually this Western Food store run by this Ang Moh guy at our friendly local coffeeshops. For my clueless non-Singaporean friends out there, Ang Moh= Caucasian.

Apparently, it sells really famous fish and chips. In fact, it was apparently so famous, that everyone seemed to know about it, except me. Fantastic. So SH and I decided to finally check out this stall, since, the last time we went there, it closed pretty early and punctual at the stroke of ten o'clock. I was rather skeptical, since all this publicity (word-of-mouth thing and the tonnes of newspapers adorning the stall) could actually be a result of the Ang Moh in Coffeeshop phenomenon rather than a case of genuine good food.

The first sign of Botak Jones.

Botak Jones in our typical Coffeeshop! Tucked away in the corner of a Clementi Kopitiam (Coffeeshop).

But to order you can't go to the stall. There is a special standalone booth just to take orders! You see newspapers clippings of Botak Jones plastered around on the booth and at the stall.

Chili, Malt Vinegar and Tomato Sauce.
When do you get your condiments on your table?
And it's not everyday you see Malt Vinegar for your average fish&chips! But I dislike having Vinegar... ewww... Ang Moh taste so weird.

Ferrero Rocher for Valentine's Day! (Free!)
Which Coffeeshop gives you chocolates for Vday? Well Botak Jones does! It's really a special feeling because their staff (apparently BJ is such a big thing there are loads of staff!) went round giving chocolates to the females in the coffeeshop (regardless of whether they were ordering from their stall or from the other stalls)! Now, that's a way to win loyal customers for sure! I'm a happy camper! :)

Botak Jones' Cajun Chicken- $6.50
The portion was hugemongous. Big fat chicken, loads of salad, and a pileful of fries.
I had to seek help from SH to finish this.

The chicken was drizzled with cajun sauce and cheese. A yummy combo!
I really like how the chicken was very aromatic and tender. The cajun sauce and cheese went really well with the tender chicken meat, and it was a pleasure to savour every piece.

A close up of the yummy chicken.

I would have to say that the only minus side was that the chicken meat was breast meat? The kind of white meat I dislike to eat. Basically, I adore fatty meats with succulent juices and loads of fats. The good thing was that the chicken was marinated well so it wasn't too dry. But I tend to prefer chicken thigh or chicken drumstick meat. Dislike chicken fillets usually because of the white meat. Haha.. I am really very fussy.
The salad was good too. I love this kind of salads because when I was in Canada, it was really hard to find salads drenched in mayonnaise sauce like this! Apparently the KFC there only had potato salads... not this kind of white, creamy, salad! Keg in Vancouver had great salads too though!
The fries were nice too. It tasted different from the usual fries you get. The seasoning was different from the normal salt-seasoning fries get.
3/5 for the chicken meal! (Could have been 3.5 or higher if it wasn't white chicken meat!! :P)

A closeup of the fries.

Fish & Chips- $5.50
When Western food is mentioned, 'fish&chips' is often uttered along the same breath. You get this everywhere, anywhere and 24 hours everyday.
Yet SH loves fish & chips! I'm not so fond of fish&chips because I've eaten it at least a thousand times in my life. SH loves fried stuff AND fish. So I guess this was a perfect combination for him. The fish was really fresh and tender. The fried batter was a crispy, tasty shell for the fish. SH kept raving about this dish (he's still raving about it!) and he just loves the taste! Plus the price gives you a better quality than most restaurants. The mayonnaise that came with this dish was the highlight for me. It tasted different from the usual mayo, and it gave the fish a refreshing taste. Rather than cover up the taste of the fish like most cloying sweet mayo do, the mayo went well with the fish.

See, the texture of the fish shows how fresh it is.
(Because unfresh fish has a slimy texture, unlike the smooth, firm texture of fresh fish)

Another closeup of the fish.

My only gripe was that I didn't like this dish as much as SH did because I always think that frying your meat covers up the taste of the meat. I prefer my meats to be left untouched with the original taste intact, so I can savour the freshness of the meat.

I would give this dish 3.5/5, but SH would surely rate this dish 4/5 (or 5/5 if he has the password to this blog)!

Verdict: All in all a nice place to have your meal. It beats paying fifteen bucks to go to some restaurants.

Ambiance: 2/5 (What Ambiance? It's your average daily coffeeshop!)
Service: 3/5 (A very fast, efficient service. Plus they gave out free chocolates to the ladies! Your friendly Kopitiam server! Go there to get to know them better!)
Food:3.25/5 (Go back for the food! It's cheap and good!)

I heard that the burgers are famous too, and that the fried Jalapenos are good.

I took the operating hours and location off from their website at Http://www.botakjones.com
Apparently there are 3 branches!

Hours and location for Botak Jones Tuas

32 Pioneer Sector 2, Sungei Kadut Eating House
at the junction of Pioneer Sector 2 and Pioneer Sector 1
Phone / Fax: 689-89-225
Monday - Friday 10:00 am til 7:00 pm
Saturday 10:00 am til 5:30 pm
Sunday closed

Hours and location for Botak Jones Ang Mo Kio

Yue Hua Food Place
Block 608 Ang Mo Kio Ave. 5
Phone / Fax: 6755-1-225
Tuesday - Sunday 12:00 noon til 10:00 pm
Monday closed

Hours and location for Botak Jones Clementi
Block 325 Clementi Ave 5 (Kopitiam) #01- 129 Singapore 120325
Phone / Fax: 677-41-225
Tuesday - Sunday 12:00 noon til 10:00 pm
Monday closed

We visited the Clementi Branch.
It's just next to Clementi MRT station actually.
Facing the MRT control station, it's on the right side of the station.
Cross the overhead bridge, get down to the covered walkway (you should be on the side opposite the Clementi Bus Interchange), and you will see the Blue Botak Jones sign at the first coffeeshop you see (the first picture posted).

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