Set Lunches @ Kim Gary, Vivocity

A good energy meal is a "must-have" before the lengthy tortuous walk for Sentosa Flowers 2011 begins and though dining choices are extensive in Vivocity, i cannot pinpoint the reason for choosing Hong Kong Kim Gary restaurant over the others!

Judging from my last post on Kim Gary, i have to throw out my principles before i can continue writing this post! Well, when good food is concerned, slight inconveniences can be excused.

The more than 10 different set meals could be the decisive factor; especially the steak in tomato sauce served with spaghetti! Some of my hungry brain cells were reminding me at that time how delicious it was!

With a cup of drink and a small mug of savoury Borsch (or cream) soup thrown in for the set lunches, it was definitely a great deal until it dawns on many that the same set could be have had for the same price in ringgit (RM) across the causeway.

Lunch K - Steak in tomato sauce served with spaghetti

Just the look is enough to agitate my saliva glands!! The spaghetti was apparently fried with the appetising tomato sauce, resulting in a unique wok hei flavour and the tomatoes were cooked so well; they were no longer a disgust for the taste buds!

Unlike most steak, this was soft and tender and didn't require a lot of effort to cut up and chew!

Lunch B - Fried Egg and Minced Beef Rice

This was the first set lunch i had in Kim Gary; back in Sungei Wang, Kuala Lumpur (KL). Looking like those classic pictures of canned dog food, this was definitely far off from canine feed!

Breaking up the egg yolk is an initial step before mixing up everything. The flavour is only good upon a good mix! And if you are thinking what i am thinking, yes it is looking more and more like leftover food for dogs!

Surprisingly, the taste isn't as memorable as i recollect from KL; it is too bland.

Having said that, the Gang of Three (Alex was working that day) is no food waster!

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Location

1, Harbourfront Walk,

#02-128, Vivocity

Pricing

Set K - S$9.50

Set B - S$8.50

Subject to 7% GST and 10% Service Charge

Additional Information

Besides coffee and tea, there are 19 different drinks you can choose to go with the set lunch. Some may require additional top-ups. For example, Vanessa paid S$2.00 extra for this peppermint with aloe vera.

You may read my first post on Kim Gary Singapore at http://cavinteo.blogspot.com/2010/05/kim-gary-vivocity-singapore-i-seldom.html.

Herbal Steamboat @ Restoran Kwan Kee (Brinchang, Cameron Highlands, Malaysia)

One of the things i regretted not doing when i was in Cameron Highlands back in 2009 was that i never had any steamboat! And this time, i swore to try it no matter what! Having my parents with me made it easier since my mom loves any hot, soupy stuff!

The problem was; which steamboat restaurant should i try? With almost every Chinese restaurant in Brinchang town having the steamboat option, the Teo family was spoilt for choices!

Eventually we settled for Restoran Kwan Kee partially because of its colourful facade and the use of charcoal (instead of the usual gas or electricity) for steamboat. Charcoal, according to my mom, almost always guarantees a better broth.

Offering up to three different soups, the popular Yuan Yang (combination of two soup bases) steamboat favoured by Singaporeans was not available for charcoal. Herbal soup was selected purely due to the uncertainty of what to expect.

At a great deal of only RM15 per person, you get a wide range of raw ingredients; meat, vegetables and noodles! The three pictures above should be sufficient to give you a rough idea of what we had.

The strong herbal soup base coupled with a sweetness from gou qi zi (Chinese wolfberries) was fulfilling for the family and especially suitable when it started drizzling in the cool Cameron Highlands!

Now's the reason why Kwan Kee was selected out of the many steamboat restaurants; this long and thick phallic funnel! Besides preventing the charcoal sparks from jumping into your soup, it has the cool function of hyping the overall dining experience!

For one, it was really exciting as i was under the impression that it will topple anytime! Like "Spin The Bottle", you never know who will be the lucky one!

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Location

In Brinchang town. Along the shophouses right beside the only KFC in Cameron Highlands!

Additional Information

Like many other steamboat restaurants, tze char dishes are available for ordering - with some that cost almost the same price back in Singapore! Seriously, it's enough (and filling) to just order the steamboat.

Replenish Luck (蒲运) @ Shuang Lin City God Temple (双林城隍庙)

I was supposed to post an entry on Shuang Lin City God Temple (双林城隍庙) but the 200 pictures i have will take up too much time (and effort). Basically, laziness prevails!

Anyway, the Chinese New Year is a great time to visit the Taoist temples for a fresh beginning, financial prosperity, good luck and fantastic health for the whole lunar year!

There are various ceremonies available only during this period - notably the prayer ceremony for Tai Sui (which i hope i can explain more in the future). Today, we are going to focus on this festive ceremony (Replenish Luck) i started partaking in two years ago.

I am no expert in the millions of ceremonies performed by Taoists all over the world and have to rely on my mom for a simple summary. In a nutshell, it's in the hope of replenishing/increasing your good luck so that everything goes smoothly for the new year.

The family package that cost S$25.00 - an empty ang pao packet for the monks performing the ritual, the pink slip that lists down the names of your family members and a bright orange paper for burning at the end.

In the front of the temple's main altar are rows of seemingly low seats for the devotees to participate in this good luck ceremony.

Queuing is necessary for entry.

People in front of me sitting uncomfortably on the low seats; anyhow, it beats getting your pants dirty on the floor!

The supposedly 'seats' are in fact for our knees! Elderly person or those who are unable to kneel for long period of time can choose to sit on the chairs provided at the sides.

One monk will chant the scriptures (yes, weird to have Buddhist monks performing a Taoist ritual but i have seen such practice before) and include those names on the pink slip in his chanting while the other will go around sprinkling holy water on us.

After 30 minutes, the ritual ended with a Cavin who was almost about to doze off! The above was the bright orange paper for burning. On it was Chinese characters that translated to "Samaritan Guides" - meaning (also taken from the figurines on the paper) is that there are a few types of samaritan who will guide you (positively) in life.

New discovery of Taoist deities or characters never fails to amaze me! How can there be so many!?

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Anyway, according to mum, 蒲运 is better performed within the 15 days of the new year.

Taoists may note that there are only 4 days left!

Seoul Yummy (Korean Food) @ Square 2, Singapore

Square 2 was touted to be the place for anything "Korean" with the opening of a few Korean restaurants, supermarket, beauty shops and even a shop selling the traditional Korean dress; hanbok.

And the Korean theme was exactly the reason for attracting me to this place; a supposedly extension (it's not) to the Novena Square.

Seoul Yummy, as the name implies, is a Korean restaurant that enticed me to give it a go with some pretty worth-it promotions a few years back! My defence for not blogging this earlier was that i was too lazy and by the time i decided to post it, a year has passed!

This time round, i was shopping for shoes with my mom at the Adidas shop and as usual, the heavenly smell of stone-cooked bulgogi beef was just too irresistible! After checking out the menu outside the restaurant, we decided on the special set for two.

Side Dishes

Piece of advice; never order too much food in a Korean restaurant! Hm.... or you can try not eating too many side dishes before the grand arrival of the main dish!

With appetising side dishes that can usually be replenished, i had seen how Alex was almost full just by gorging himself with them.

In Seoul Yummy, i especially enjoyed these peanuts. They were in a semi-solid state that seemed to have gone through very slight stir frying. I could be wrong but nonetheless, even my mom liked it!

Hotpot Korean Bean Paste Soup

Mom thought this was too bland whereas i preferred to term it as simple without any complicated, overpowering flavour. Stirring is recommended since the taste became better halfway through the slurping!

Hotplate Grilled Salmon

Fresh grilled salmon is always good so long freshness is not compromised (gosh, i have said this so many times)! In addition, it's difficult to lock in the omega-3 which dries up fast when grilled.

Luckily, Seoul Yummy was smart enough to include the savory teriyaki sauce on top of the salmon!

Beef Bibimbap

Korean stone pot rice is my first Korean dish! The influence was so great, the healthy looking bibimbap used to be my measuring tape for the delicious factor for every Korean restaurant i patronised.

Now, i have many other Korean dishes to use as a gauge but bibimbap remains the top choice for my first order unless there are alternatives recommended by other reviewers on the internet.

Making a mess is necessary to fully savour this dish! And it's as simple as putting in the sauce and mix whatever that is in that hot stone pot.

The sizzling sound is an appetite enhancer and also a hint that the rice is getting burnt!!!! For me, crunchier bite is always favoured! This preference will change (definitely) when my teeth start to lose their enamel touch... :(

An empty pot is a truthful testament to how i view this dish in Seoul Yummy.

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Shall be back to Seoul Yummy; as always despite some negative reviews.

Location

10, Sinaran Drive,

#03-69, Novena Square 2

Connected to Novena MRT Station

Price

Special Set - S$40.00

Inclusive of 7% GST and 10% Service Charge

Refillable Barley Tea is included in the price.

Additional Information

The dining area is a new annex to the existing restaurant just a meter or two away! Finding a seat is seriously not difficult.