Fruit Paradise Fruit Tart Shop and Cafe @ Vivocity

Singapore is a fruit paradise with the importation of fruits from all over the world. In 2007 alone, we import an impressive 358,177 tonnes of fruits (refer here)!

We are, however, talking about another fruit paradise, a cafe that specialises in selling fruit tarts.

From memory, those cute and small fruit tarts we were given for a relative or colleague's baby full month celebration should be the standard, normal dimension. Fruit Paradise introduces a bigger version that i thought has minimal differences from the many fruit cakes for sale in neighbourhood bakeries.

There's one BIG difference though.

The amount of fruit (or fruits depending on what you order) within a single slice of cake tart was amazing! But again, price counts. An S$8.00/slice cake has to have more ingredients than a S$3.80/slice one!  

Thankfully, the servings were pretty big too!!

Okay, there's another BIG difference; the taste.

Before commenting on that, i admit that the delicious display of numerous fake tarts looked so enticing; my saliva was excreting at a faster pace before i even ordered.

Coming back, my preference is with the fruit cakes (or tarts) from the neighbourhood bakeries.

One major issue i had was with the cream (or mousse). It was too rich, too generous and all i felt eventually was the oily layer down my throat. I like my cake to be sweeter and have more bite in the middle; a longer breather amidst all the creamery. 

Maybe i should try the other tarts (we had mango, chocolate banana and caramel banana) to have a fairer comparison but there's only so much our stomachs can hold.

The saviour for this cafe was no doubt its beef rice (forgot its official name).  

You know the feeling when you eat a very simple dish with not much garnishing, very simple ingredients and yet it warms your heart (and your stomach of course)?

It's that kind of feeling i had while having this dish. 

This beef rice will be the strongest reason for me to patronise this cafe again.  

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Location

Look Above

Price

A typical slice of fruit tart will set you back by around S$7 plus to S$8 plus. A set meal will be more economical.

For roughly S$16 plus, you get a slice of fruit tart, drinks (Italian Soda, coffee etc) and in our case, a plate of beef rice.

GST (7%) and service charge (10%) have not been added.

Nihon Mura (日本村) @ Revenue House (Novena)

I can never forgive myself for not knowing the existence of this restaurant.

According to my most esteemed mummy, she had patronised this restaurant at least 4 times whereas her beloved son (me, the glutton!) has never been there before!!

In celebration of the prestigious mother's day, the family decided to dine at this almost deserted restaurant in Revenue House, a building i thought has nothing except departments handling taxes.

Pictures!

Trays of sushi at only S$1.19 each (non-red)!

Where can you find such good deal in a restaurant setting?!?!

Scallops sushi!

Big (luckily) with normal taste (unluckily).

Chawanmushi that's better than Sakae and Ichiban Boshi

Takopachi or the three-balls that my family is accustomed to calling them. Better than the ones in Sakae Sushi although my favourite comes from those takopachi specialty counters in Takashimaya or Bugis Junction.

Sashimi!!

More Sashimi! Have no idea why I am craving for raw food nowadays! It must be the animal in me! Wahaha.   

This pork belly [correction: salmon belly] soup had such an awful smell! But who am i to complain when my favourite snack is the smelly tofu. Which, by the way, smells heavenly!

Shishamo aka Pregnant Fish! Being a sensitive man, I felt a pang of cruelty whenever i am eating shishamo...

They were so good...

Stewed eel! Everything was delicious except for the eel. =_= It wasn't fishy but tasted a bit off. Fake one ah? 

Salmon! Love this with the sweet teriyaki sauce!

Enoki mushroom wrapped with bacon.

A perfect combination when the correct bbq style is adopted!

Some seafood cheese thingy.

Really cheesy!

Beef Shabu Shabu! Would have been fabulous if the sesame sauce (aka goma) was less salty and more fragrant.

Avocado Juice. Nothing can compare to the one in Indonesia! Within the context of Singapore, it's quite good. Slurp!

A normal dessert with ordinary ice cream and a burnt looking waffle. Surprisingly delicious and we ordered another one!

With such a mundane name (Jumbo Roll), we were amazed by its elaborated display!

Tempura prawn wrapped with rice and avocado, topped with fish roe! The stomachs (us) were bursting but we had to finish it! 

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Belonging to the same group that manages Sakura, i was very pleased with the food and service in this restaurant, in view of the really economical pricing. Its direct competitor, Sakae Sushi, will be facing extreme difficulties if its quality continues to deteriorate further with ever increasing prices.


Location

55, Newton Road,

#02-02, Revenue House


Opposite Novena Square.

Price

So many dishes were ordered!
Total damage at a reasonable S$168.00 for 7 adults and 1 kid.

Additional Information

Ordering is pretty unique with no menu.

A cup with your table number is placed on your table. You are required to walk around the food preparation areas (sushi, desserts, drinks, ramen, bbq, udon etc) and pick up ice cream sticks to put in the cup!

After which, bring the cup to the order counter.

Unsure of what to order?

Randomly grab twenty ice cream sticks, place them in your cup, hold the cup with two hands and using the momentum of up-down shaking... the first five sticks that fall out shall be your choice.

Henderson Waves - Linking Telok Blangah Hill and Mount Faber park

Travelling along Henderson Road a year or two back, i saw a giant, wavy yet pregnant looking structure being constructed high in the sky, connecting the hills by the sides of the road.

Back then, i naively thought it was going to be a research structure for the National Parks, inaccessible for the public. 

Apparently, it is the highest pedestrian bridge (yes, for the general public) in Singapore at 36 meters high!

Connecting Mount Faber Park and Telok Blangah Hill Park, this 274 meters long bridge has attracted families, joggers, nature enthusiasts and even wedding couples hoping to capture memories of this distinctive platform.

Surrounded by nature on the sides, a bird's eye view of the concrete jungle can still be seen from the front and back.

The designer has even incorporated sheltered areas (that's where the waves are) for you to rest and take in the scenery!

At night, the illumination of the bridge provides an entirely different feel from the daytime.

Romantic enough?

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Henderson Wave is disabled friendly and the lights are switched off at 2am daily! Be prepared for pure darkness and maybe some hauntings after that.

The House of Steamboat @ Tan Quee Lan Street (Bugis)

Steamboat (or hot pot), to me, is best eaten at home.

The mummy can prepare the ingredients satisfying for each and every one of the family members. And quality is almost guaranteed (mistakes do happen) if you have a mum who knows exactly who to buy from and what she is buying in the wet market.

In addition, the smell that stuck permanently to your clothes makes it really uncomfortable to go any other places, except home.

Due to the above, i detested going for those steamboat buffet eateries that have sprouted all over Singapore in the past few years. And with my bloated (aka fat) stomach in its current glory, a heavy dinner is a no no.

Until recently. 

The House of Steamboat was selected out of the numerous steamboat restaurants in Bugis due to its familiarity and quality attested by my friends. Plus, there were still seating available.

With eight different soups bases (Ginseng Chicken, Laksa, Herbal Chicken, Sichuan Mala, Thailand Tom Yum, Fish Bone, Pork Belly and Spicy Sour), it boasts a "No MSG" tag for those health conscious and people who are deathly allergic to them!

While waiting for the soup to boil, servings of fried buns sparingly drenched in condensed milk and drumlets fried with a supposedly hot chilli paste will act as appetisers and curb that aggravating hunger. 

At the same time, plates of raw meat and seafood (replenishable) were placed on our table. I was taken by surprise the high quality of the meat and took pleasure of eating slices and slices of them....

Yummy!! 

Grateful that a TV is available (which means i can still catch snippets of the taiwanese drama), the main purpose of this picture is to show the queue in front of the self service free flow counter where you can get your crabmeat, meat balls, vegetables, noodles etc etc.

Unlike 10 years ago where most patrons will use tomato or chilli sauce to complement their cooked food, the trend nowadays is to mix your own sauce with the arsenal of condiments available. And to tell the truth, my handmade mix that comprised of mostly peanut sauce tasted much better than my otherwise favourite chilli sauce!

At the end of the session, be prepared for more food; ice cream and fruits!

When will i ever lose weight?

*shakes head*

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Location

7, Tan Quee Lan Street.

Opposite to Bugis Junction and,

Parallel to the famous Liang Seah Street

Price

S$18.80 nett per person for dinner.

With free flow of very diluted drinks!