Tuesday, June 01, 2010

Seafood Paradise (樂天海鲜) Again @ Defu Lane

Yes, it's Seafood Paradise once again! I think my blog has been most loyal to this restaurant with at least three dedicated entries (including this one)!

What more can i say about this place?

The food is good, pricing is within our hard earned budget and most importantly, my family loves it!!

Enough has been said and reviewed on Seafood Paradise (via HERE and HERE). So........ let's make this the pictures galore post (a lame but fabulous excuse for weak bloggers like me)!

The industrial building that houses Seafood Paradise (at the ground level). What's the best thing to have an eatery in an industrial area (Defu Lane in this case)?

Ample parking at night!!

My baby holding on to the restaurant's name card while playing a game on iPhone.

His adorable yet total concentration on the game. He knows how to play my favourite Angry Birds too! Hahaha. And yes, he is still drooling at this age! Playing with him entails having the ocassional splashes of saliva!

BEWARE!!

Kangkong in Sambal Style!

The best way to eat kangkong in sambal style (Singaporeans call it 马来风光 or directly translated as the malay glory) is to have it with plain white rice!

Very delicious pork ribs! Sweet and peppery! The best pork ribs i ever have! Uncontrollable salivary glands just thinking about it!

The full monty!

Pig mother's favourite dish! Since this meal was in celebration for her birthday, the "big" serving was ordered specially for her. Looks good?

The real story? The number of wasabi prawns was pathetic for a "big" portion! 

Loves the wasabi prawns for its deep fried crunchy shell and sweet juicy meat!

Some tofu thingy! I prefer hot plate tofu! The pork floss was a nice addition though.

Fierce Mee Goreng!!

"Medium-size" but the amount of seafood was comparable to the small serving.

Moral of the story? Order small next time!

The must-must-must-must-try!
Butter crabs!!

Initially we wanted a small crab but only medium was available! The price of this dish depends on the weight of the crab(s)! The price has increased!!

From S$38 to S$42 per kilogram!

By themselves, these golden buns are almost useless!

Even if the inside is fluffy, its use is limited unless you are really hungry.

With the butter gravy however, the buns taste heavenly!!

*nods head* 
That's the reason why we always prefer to have a small crab. To fully utilise the gravy at a minimal cost!!

Our order list (in Chinese).

Total Damage
S$180.00 - S$190.00

Sunday, May 30, 2010

Magnum Mini @ Joyce's House

Food is never not available at my sister's house. At times, you can find some really good stuff that you crave for, yet cannot bear to part your money to pay for it!

A classic example is the insanely expensive (at least by my standard) Magnum ice cream. Though mini with a slightly more economical pricing, the sucker in me will never pay for it.

And the last time i was at my sister's place, i found 4 huge tubs of ice cream from Scoops!!!!

=_=!!!

With two tubs being the super pungent durian ice cream (which her husband detests), I think she wants to fatten up her brother (me) and hopes that he loses focus on his weight reduction plan!!! Haha.

Friday, May 28, 2010

Marina Bay Sands (Building/Construction Phase) @ Singapore

Singaporeans love acronyms and Marina Bay Sands is now affectionately called MBS by many of the citizens, confusing many academia with Masters of Business Studies!

The casino lobby

The second "official" casino in Singapore is situated in MBS and though the integrated resort was officially open on 27 April 2010, it was purely a minuscule gesture nicely termed as the first phase.

 Unfinished Works!
Yes, i know the all important casino is fully operational! Construction work is however still ongoing (loud and clear for all to see) for the rest of MBS!

My heart goes out to the group of solicitors who attended the embarassing lawyers convention (they are currently in the midst of suing MBS and being counter-sued by them)!

Dramatic indeed!

Big pots of plants towering over the pedestrians!

Huge barrel-like structures!

That aside, MBS caters more to a high end cluster (thanks to its close proximity to the central business district) and that can be seen by the expenditure splurged on external and internal designing and decorating.

Heck! Even the toilets looked so posh!

I usually use toilet paper as an indicator on the luxury level of hotels (top of my list is Raffles Hotel). Unfortunately i did not have an urgent need to use the toilet then.

No doubt, the whole integrated resort will be an imposing icon for the Singapore's skyline (as viewed from Marina Barrage) in the future.

But as of now, my recommendation is not to go until it is fully completed! Unless you are in some addictive need to donate your money to MBS.

Their Deadline for Completion?
December 2010.

Thursday, May 27, 2010

Kim Gary (French Toast, Vitagen Ice Blended) @ Vivocity, Singapore

I seldom patronise the Kim Gary in Singapore since i can always get the same type of food from the same restaurant at roughly half the price across the causeway in Johor Bahru, Malaysia.

Today is different.

Because my mom was with me.
And we happened to be at Vivocity for brunch!

Here comes our orders

French Toast
The first and best French Toast i ever had came from Kim Gary in Kuala Lumpur.

Singapore's version of the same brand name did not disappoint with a healthy amount of peanut butter smacked between two slices of golden fried bread! 

That tiny dob of butter can be bigger though.

Vitagen Ice Blended
Love the Lactobacillus bacteria? 

Then i believe you will adore this ice cold drink! Especially thirst quenching in the super hot and humid weather Singapore is having recently!

Combo Hot Plate Set Meal
The mother loves fish and this was the only dish containing non-fried fish! The combi of grilled pork chop, fish fillet and chicken chop was doused with a generous serving of garlic sauce (three other sauces are available).

Overall, it was pretty okay with the heavy garlic content upping the taste test.

The combo came with a slice of garlic bread and a bowl of savory borsch soup (either this or cream soup)!

======

Unless really necessary, i would still prefer to dine at the Kim Gary in City Square, Johore Bahru due to its promixity to Yishun and the unbeatable pricing!

Pricing
French Toast - S$3.00
Vitagen Ice Blended - S$3.90
Combo Hot Plate - S$17.50

Subject to 10% Service Charge and 7% GST

Location
1, Harbourfront Walk,
#02-128, Vivocity

Wednesday, May 26, 2010

Toast Box @ Resort World Singapore (RWS)

It was one pm and the sleeping bug had kicked in, swaggering our footsteps and confusing our minds. 

The hot, humid weather was not helping and both of us (mother and son) desperately looked around for an air conditioned place to have a cup of Singapore coffee.

The saviour?
Toast Box from BreadTalk!!

While i was making payment for my kopi and kopi O, my eyes caught the price tag of this kaya cake, beautifully placed in a glass cabinet just beside the counter.

S$1.20 a slice.

Woooooh. Such good pricing in a touristy area!?!?!? Sentosa is notorious for selling food and drinks that are priced way beyond the usual!

I had to have it!

And it tasted so delicious with such a thick layer of cream!!! It would have been better if the layer of kaya was thicker but well, i would not expect too much for a piece of cake that cost only S$1.20!

I should instead be thankful they did not cut the amount of cream.

Yum Yum!!!

Monday, May 24, 2010

Helix Bridge - An Iconic Structure @ Marina Bay (Beside MBS: Marina Bay Sands)

Mathetically named as Helix, this newest kid in the Singapore's bridge-scape is situated right across the Marina reservoir and was officially declared open on 24 April 2010!

Kanasai!
Should make it 25 April mah!
More auspicious!


Besides having a DNA-strain inspired design, the pedestrian-only bridge should have been named DNA Bridge due to the heavy focus the gahmen places on the biomedical industry.

It's highly probable that the design for the next bridge in Singapore will either be sperm or egg inspired (as an educational tool for encouraging Singaporeans to pump up the falling fertility rates).

Disregarding the debate on its name (which was already set in stone), this curved bridge serves a key role in connecting Marina Centre with the latest and hopefully last casino for Singapore, Marina Bay Sands.

With five viewing pods facing the panoramic city skyline, it shall be another platform for people to squeeze, sweat and view (and awwwww) the annual Singapore Fireworks Celebration!

It may look pretty out of place with most of the surrounding area undergoing construction but i bet you this will be an exciting area in time to come, when the Marina Bay Sands and Gardens by the Bay are completed.

And that is the right time to pay for a ride on the Singapore Flyer.