Hezhou Lingfeng Square (贺州灵峰广场) @ Guangxi Province [China]

I mentioned before that once you have been to a cave in China, you would have literally seen all the caves in China. That's maybe an exaggeration although my pet peeve is to be brought to a square / parade when i am overseas.

Not that i have much of a choice since this visit to Hezhou Lingfeng Square was part of the itinerary. It wouldn't have been that bad if we had not been travelling on the coach for almost three hours prior to our arrival. 

Obviously built in modern times, you can see from the expressions of my tour mates that they were plain bored and took the opportunity to stretch themselves. 

This solitary hill didn't result in the oohs and aahs as heard in the past few days since there were way more impressive ones at Yangshuo and Guilin. Nevertheless, this hill was the one that gave the square its name; lingfeng although there was a slight variation in the word feng. 

Legend told of a fairy by the name of Lingfeng who were captivated by the beauty of Hezhou and decided to turn into hill so that she can stay forever there. Guess she doesn't have the wanderlust bug that many of us are infected with nowadays. 

My dad and i were as bored as our mates; however, this stingy father-son combination would never have their money gone to waste and continued with being trigger happy with the DSLR on their hands. 

While most of our mates stayed near the square, dad and i ventured all over the place, within a comfortable distance from our guide, and chanced upon this stretch filled of trees with hanging hairy vines. 

A picture of dad; boy did he look refreshed. I was just grouchy and looking forward to a bed to rest as i could never sleep on a coach; even if i manage to, it would be a restless one. 

Found on the other end of square - restaurants surrounding a man-made pond. It exuded a happening vibe and i know for sure it is definitely a congregation point for the locals at night!

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Do check out my posting on the summarised itinerary of Chan Brother's tour package (guaranteed no factory shopping stops) to Guilin; it would give you a better overview of my trip. :)

On The Table (OTT) - Good Company Over Dinner @ 118 Pasir Panjang Road [Near Pasir Panjang MRT Station]

With dining establishments sprouting like mushrooms in forever-food-hungry Singapore, i do make a mental note every now and then whenever i chance upon a place worth patronising even though chances are high that i simply didn't have the time and / or the financial bandwidth to do so.

On The Table was one of them and i remember it vividly from my visit to Fat Boy's for its set lunch as it was situated just one or two doors away! 

Anyway, a friend suggested the cafe restaurant as the location for our once every few months meetup and i was of course agreeable as it would be an opportunity to blog about it; guess some of you are also sick and tired of my China postings. p.s. i still have two full days worth of photographs to go. 

Encompassing two shop-house units, there were well, the tables, for you to dine at; as usual, don't expect me to wax lyrical about the ambience although the feeling i gathered was sufficiently comfy for a meetup with friends! 

I absolutely adored the industrial fan converted into lights! Wouldn't want it in my house though as it would attract tons of dust and it would be a tedious chore to clean it up! 

Fries with Truffle Mayo

Not that i am arrogant but i think it would not be hard to create an exact same replica. Truffle mayo wasn't impressionable and the only memorable thing about the fries was their crispiness which were expected when served straight from the frying oil. 

Crispy Honey Wings

With fierce competition coming from South Korea fried chicken, i wondered if honey wings can surprise me; and yes they did. It was like having bulkier wings from 4Fingers; albeit with a new honey flavour that was fragrant yet wasn't overly sweet on my taste buds. 

Truffle Bacon Mac and Cheese

I have never quite enjoyed mac and cheese and couldn't fathom why some people can be quite obsessed with it (psst like tiramisu). Nevertheless, i liked the bacon bits and there's a strange phenomenon too; the truffle taste was only noticeable when the dish cooled down. 

Pulled Pork Burger

A burger without a patty isn't really a burger in my opinion.

However, this made the cut as the overall combination was just the right; savouriness of the delicious shredded pork, sweetness of the purple cabbage slaw and the softness of the bun! The only complaint; it was a bit dry. 

Confit of Duck Leg

Looking perfect in its pose, i have had numerous confit of duck leg before and thought this was a winner as far as display was concerned. 

Points deducted for the pool of yellow-orangey sauce surrounding the poultry; it was a fruity sauce of orange (as in the fruit) origin. Weird shall be my one-word description for the sauce.

Salmon & Mushroom Truffle Cream Linguine

Creamy, rich in flavour (loving the truffle in this case) and with many pieces of salmon, this was one delightful dish i would order just for myself if i return to On The Table! 

Don't just keep yakking away; eat it while it's hot as the cream would slowly solidify and you might find the taste a bit repulsive once the dish goes cold. 

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Location

118 Pasir Panjang Road, 

Singapore 118541

Map

As above

Operating Hours

Mondays - Closed

Tuesdays to Thursdays - 11am to 10pm

Fridays - 11am to 10.30pm

Saturdays - 10am to 10.30pm

Sundays - 10am to 10pm

Website

http://onthetable.com.sg/

Menu

As above

Price

Fries with Truffle Mayo - S$8

Crispy Honey Wings - S$10

Truffle Bacon Mac and Cheese - S$11

Pulled Pork Burger - S$15

Confit of Duck Leg - S$18

Salmon & Mushroom Truffle Cream Linguine - S$16

(No GST and No Service Charge)

A Place of Utmost Beauty in the Middle of the Ride towards Longji Terraced Fields @ Longsheng County, Guangxi Province, China

It was just one of the toilet breaks undertaken during our trip to Guilin and i was all ready to return back to the coach when i noticed quite a number of my tour mates loitering behind the coach. I had to be nosy about it as their eyes seemed to be fixated at something

 The above was the breathtaking view that took their breath away and made my heart fluttered and missed a couple of beats. 

There were mountains and there were rivers; two favourable conditions for a man looking forward to a period of calm and relaxation! If you ask me, this was exactly the kind of paradise that i envision heaven to be.

Location; unknown although i bet those travelling from Guilin to Longji Terraced Fields would pass by this place. Notice that river behind the building? I heard from the tour guide that it's popular with river rafters. 

That majestic looking building to the left appeared to be still-in-the-works; likely a hotel / resort / hostel / guesthouse / restaurant given its strategic location. 

The only place that gave me the chills even though there is an element of exaggeration here. Having lived in a kampong before, there are certain places that exuded a certain eerie vibe that are not obvious in daytime. 

Flowers always have the tendency to liven the atmosphere and here's dad with a weird pose. Pity the way down was quite a distance; if not, my dad would have climbed down for that closer and better pictorial backdrop. 

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Do check out my posting on the summarised itinerary of Chan Brother's tour package (guaranteed no factory shopping stops) to Guilin; it would give you a better overview of my trip. :)

Platform Shoes - Not for the High Ground!

I guess we all know that a comfortable pair of shoes is essential whenever long walking / climbing / hiking is required; hence, you can imagine how low my jaw dropped when i happened to chance upon a lady moving down the cobblestone stairs in a weird manner at Ping An Village @ Longji Terraced Fields.

She was careful alright but it would only take a mere light push to have her tumbling down the stairs. Lady luck was definitely shining on her as there was no kid pushing their way through along the same route. 

See how thick the platform shoes were! Spraining the ankles were a high likelihood although my sister would tell you that ladies can get used to using such shoes; she for one would have a higher risk of falling if she is in flats! 

Wild Honey 2016 - Bigger, Spacious, Brighter! @ Mandarin Gallery Shopping Mall [Singapore]

When Wild Honey first started operation, it boasted two advantages that its competitors didn't have; full day breakfast and options extensive enough to put others to shame. 

Fast forward to six years later since my last visit to its inaugural Mandarin Gallery branch; this time to a new yet much larger premise (it moved next door) and with us were the two mischievous brats! 

Frankly, i couldn't quite remember the old branch except that it was very much a squeeze, dark and the restaurant didn't accept reservations! The current environment was brighter with full length windows overlooking the intersection of orchard road and grange / cairnhill roads and yes, reservation is allowed (online or traditional way at 6235-3900)!

Mandarin Wilderness

Raspberry, banana, honey, mandarin orange and ice all blended into one; it was sorbet in smoothie form; refreshing but too sourish for my sweet-tooth taste buds. 

Wild Iced Tea

I thought i could never go wrong with ice tea; i was wrong. With unsweetened peppermint, lemon verbena, rosehip and hibiscus, it was like reliving a bad memory when i first had roselle tea! It definitely could benefit from another cup of sugar syrup! 

Scandinavian Breakfast

Let's talk about this breakfast first as i didn't manage to take a bite and had to rely on my mom's comment. She liked it as it's something special although the pricing was off-putting; couldn't blame her as she could get a serving of vegetarian bee hoon with three side dishes for less than S$4! 

Sweet Morning Breakfast

Looking just like french toast, the sweetness of the brioche bread was enhanced by the sweetness of mango hidden in between the bread; tasty yes and weird too. 

European Breakfast

The poached eggs were well hidden inside the walls of Italian prosciutto. Cannot imagine that Joyce ordered this as she had just returned from a 10-day trip to Europe and i thought she had enough of European food. 

Aussie Breakfast

Steak was typical of an Aussie breakfast?!?!?! *envious* The 150g Australian rump didn't surprise us and i personally thought this dish was the least exciting among those we ordered. 

Tunisian Breakfast

The savoury gravy remained a main draw for those at the table (saved for the kids); sadly, this came last and by then, most of us were half done with our meals and if you have noticed, most breakfasts came with two thick slices of extremely filling brioche bread! 

English Breakfast

Mine and given my character for going with the safer option, i kind of remember that English breakfast was the best i tried six years ago and it made good sense to recollect that memory. 

Strangely, it didn't evoke any exceptional feeling and the items that caught my taste buds' attention were the diced up breakfast potatoes (they were grilled so well). Others were passable (note, i dislike baked beans) and i could help thinking that the brunch offerings at Wawawa bistro were a notch better. In terms of service and speed of delivery though, Wild Honey had the indisputable upper hand. 

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Location

333A Orchard Road,

#03-02, Mandarin Gallery Mall,

Singapore 238897

Operating Hours

Sundays to Thursdays - 9am to 8.30pm

Fridays to Saturdays - 9am to 9.30pm

Menu 

As above

Website

http://wildhoney.com.sg/

Price

Mandarin Wilderness - S$10.00

Wild Iced Tea - S$8.00

Scandinavian Breakfast - S$28.00

Sweet Morning Breakfast - $19.00

European Breakfast - S$22.00

Aussie Breakfast - S$35.00

Tunisian Breakfast - S$22.00

English - S$25.00

(Subject to GST and Service Charge)