Teh:
Dear Readers (and Spambots),
sorry we haven't been very active on the blog. We got lazy =( But it'll change soon! Bear with us!
Here's Merry Christmas to you! Wishing you and your family good health and happiness!!
p/s: watch out for the new year resolution post, coming soon lah!
Tuesday, 24 December 2013
Wednesday, 30 October 2013
Lim is going to be faaaa-moooooos!
Teh:
As title suggests, Lim is going to famous soon! But will it be for the right reason?
Maybe I can do an interview with him soon. Here's what I imagine it'd be like: -
Teh: So Lim, tell me, how does it feel to be famous?
Lim: First you have to say it the right way. Its "Faaaa-mooooos!"
Teh: Ok let me try that again. How does it feel to be "faaa-moooos?"
Lim: No comments.
Teh: No comments?!?!?!
*Teh storms off to lim teh (drink tea)*
Stay tuned ;)
As title suggests, Lim is going to famous soon! But will it be for the right reason?
Maybe I can do an interview with him soon. Here's what I imagine it'd be like: -
Teh: So Lim, tell me, how does it feel to be famous?
Lim: First you have to say it the right way. Its "Faaaa-mooooos!"
Teh: Ok let me try that again. How does it feel to be "faaa-moooos?"
Lim: No comments.
Teh: No comments?!?!?!
*Teh storms off to lim teh (drink tea)*
Stay tuned ;)
Monday, 7 October 2013
Vegetarian Laksa
Teh:
Are you tired of disappointing tasting food? Was lunch just somehow not satisfying it? Is it the same old greasy and tasteless meal? My dear readers, i implore (yes implore!) you to cook something yourself! That will end all dissatisfaction. Yes of course it may not taste fantastic but the fruits of your labour will definitely add a sense of appreciation and a promise to try harder in future!
This is the Vegetarian Laksa i cooked over the weekend. Another premix experiment. For $3.20, this premix is a keeper!
The cooking method is fairly simple. This pack of premix will serve 7 servings. This is what i did:
1. Stir fry 1 pack of Laksa premix in a pot you will be using to cook the laksa until it is fragrant. Add some laksa leaves (like 10 or more) if you have. I suggest you buy it. For a few cents, it really enhances the whole awesome laksa flavour.
2. Add in 2 litres of water, mix, bring the soup to a boil. At this point in time, you can remove the chilli oil that floats to the top of the soup if you want. I removed the oil because i didn't want the soup base to be oily or too spicy. You can reserve the oil and add it to individual servings as desired.
3. Add as many sliced tau pok (fried beancurd) as you want. I used 8 pieces of regular sized tau pok for this. You can use all 10 pieces that came in the packet if you want. The more the merrier. My mum likes the tau pok to be really soft. So i ended up simmering the soup for an hour. When the tau pok sinks to the bottom of the pot, you know it is soft enough!
4. At this point in time, add 750ml of coconut milk. Now, the issue of the coconut milk is a little tricky. Do you use thick coconut milk (store bought pack) or squeeze your own fresh one? What happened to me was i squeezed my own coconut milk. But it ended up as pretty diluted because i didn't buy enough coconut to squeeze milk from (ya, what the hell was i thinking?). I added 750ml of not thick coconut milk to the soup and realised something was very wrong! The colour looks bad, it is diluted, the laksa taste was bland (but salty). I was worried. In the end i decided to go buy a pack of 250ml of thick coconut milk and added it to the pot. The above mentioned lacklustre soup magically transformed into REAL LAKSA. My mum also added 3 small cubes of rock sugar into the pot and i think that was a nice trick. The laksa soup came out wonderfully tasty. So what i suggest is to add 750ml of thick coconut milk slowly until the desired soup thickness is achieved.
5. Blanch yellow noodles or thick bee hoon as you prefer. Blanch bean sprouts. Add any ingredients you want. Here i used vegetarian otah and sliced mock prawns.
6. To top it all off, i add some chopped up laksa leaves. That was really the icing on the soup!
I'll definitely buy this premix again when the laksa craving strikes.
Are you tired of disappointing tasting food? Was lunch just somehow not satisfying it? Is it the same old greasy and tasteless meal? My dear readers, i implore (yes implore!) you to cook something yourself! That will end all dissatisfaction. Yes of course it may not taste fantastic but the fruits of your labour will definitely add a sense of appreciation and a promise to try harder in future!
This is the Vegetarian Laksa i cooked over the weekend. Another premix experiment. For $3.20, this premix is a keeper!
 |
| Vegetarian Laksa Premix |
 |
| Vegetarian Laksa |
The cooking method is fairly simple. This pack of premix will serve 7 servings. This is what i did:
1. Stir fry 1 pack of Laksa premix in a pot you will be using to cook the laksa until it is fragrant. Add some laksa leaves (like 10 or more) if you have. I suggest you buy it. For a few cents, it really enhances the whole awesome laksa flavour.
2. Add in 2 litres of water, mix, bring the soup to a boil. At this point in time, you can remove the chilli oil that floats to the top of the soup if you want. I removed the oil because i didn't want the soup base to be oily or too spicy. You can reserve the oil and add it to individual servings as desired.
3. Add as many sliced tau pok (fried beancurd) as you want. I used 8 pieces of regular sized tau pok for this. You can use all 10 pieces that came in the packet if you want. The more the merrier. My mum likes the tau pok to be really soft. So i ended up simmering the soup for an hour. When the tau pok sinks to the bottom of the pot, you know it is soft enough!
4. At this point in time, add 750ml of coconut milk. Now, the issue of the coconut milk is a little tricky. Do you use thick coconut milk (store bought pack) or squeeze your own fresh one? What happened to me was i squeezed my own coconut milk. But it ended up as pretty diluted because i didn't buy enough coconut to squeeze milk from (ya, what the hell was i thinking?). I added 750ml of not thick coconut milk to the soup and realised something was very wrong! The colour looks bad, it is diluted, the laksa taste was bland (but salty). I was worried. In the end i decided to go buy a pack of 250ml of thick coconut milk and added it to the pot. The above mentioned lacklustre soup magically transformed into REAL LAKSA. My mum also added 3 small cubes of rock sugar into the pot and i think that was a nice trick. The laksa soup came out wonderfully tasty. So what i suggest is to add 750ml of thick coconut milk slowly until the desired soup thickness is achieved.
5. Blanch yellow noodles or thick bee hoon as you prefer. Blanch bean sprouts. Add any ingredients you want. Here i used vegetarian otah and sliced mock prawns.
6. To top it all off, i add some chopped up laksa leaves. That was really the icing on the soup!
I'll definitely buy this premix again when the laksa craving strikes.
Friday, 27 September 2013
Out of the norm
Teh:
Lim and I will be doing something different and exciting tomorrow! But I cannot say what we are doing. It'll be good to get some blessings from our dear readers (spam bots included)!
I tell Lim we'll have a good laugh about it tomorrow. Already we had some laughs this afternoon while poking fun at it. I think we make very good script writers. Our dramas are always exciting and entertaining, in our head!
There was once i made a typo in my text message to Lim. Instead of "Good Luck", i typed "Good Lick" and sent it off. It has since became a private joke between us. Whenever we need some good luck, we send "good licks" instead.
So we need all the good licks we can get now! If you can't give us any good licks, its ok too. Have a good weekend ahead! Do something different for a change. Feel the excitement! Feel alive =)
Lim and I will be doing something different and exciting tomorrow! But I cannot say what we are doing. It'll be good to get some blessings from our dear readers (spam bots included)!
I tell Lim we'll have a good laugh about it tomorrow. Already we had some laughs this afternoon while poking fun at it. I think we make very good script writers. Our dramas are always exciting and entertaining, in our head!
There was once i made a typo in my text message to Lim. Instead of "Good Luck", i typed "Good Lick" and sent it off. It has since became a private joke between us. Whenever we need some good luck, we send "good licks" instead.
So we need all the good licks we can get now! If you can't give us any good licks, its ok too. Have a good weekend ahead! Do something different for a change. Feel the excitement! Feel alive =)
Tuesday, 24 September 2013
Poulet
Teh:
Guess what? Yes you know it! It's another lunch adventure. This time we headed down to Vivo city for Poulet. Prior to heading there at my colleague's suggestion, i checked out on the internet what are the things that i must try. Needless to say, as the name suggest, Chicken. Yes poulet (pronounced as "poo-lay") means chicken in french. Things sound better in french right? Imagine if it called itself "chicken" or "鸡", maybe it'll attract alot less people. How about fish next? Poisson ("Phua-song" with a slient G please). Ok enough of poking fun at the name. Let's poke at the food next.
I order the roasted half chicken with champagne mushroom sauce. It's one of their signature dishes. Be warned, you will only be half a spring chicken with the mushroom sauce. That's all. No vegetables nor carbo to go along. At first bite, i thought the chicken was a little salty with a subtle nagging sweetness that i couldn't quite figure out why. The chicken was moist (the menu said it was brined in a secret recipe for 24 hrs) and fork tender. But it was lukewarm at best. Why do people insist serving lukewarm food? The mushroom sauce has the same nagging sweetness. What's up with this? I only found out after lunch. Let's continue first.
We order french fries and mash potato since we need our carbo. I like the how the fries are served. In a bucket. Nice. The french fries weren't exactly piping hot but they weren't soggy either. And i think they used good quality fries. I bet you didn't know there were different grades of french fries. Try to see if you can taste the difference next time you have fries. Some fries just taste better ;)
The mash potato was really rich and buttery. But i didn't like it because i didn't feel like i was eating potato. I suspect it is made from mash potato powder. Have you tried the real mash potato made from real potatoes and from scratch? Powder mash potato and real mash potato taste like 2 totally different things.
Please note that they only serve cold bottled water. Warm water is at $0.50 a cup but refillable. At the end of the meal, i must have had at least 3 glasses of those water. Why the sudden thirst i asked myself. Oh. MSG attack. Hence the weird sweetness.
Guess what? Yes you know it! It's another lunch adventure. This time we headed down to Vivo city for Poulet. Prior to heading there at my colleague's suggestion, i checked out on the internet what are the things that i must try. Needless to say, as the name suggest, Chicken. Yes poulet (pronounced as "poo-lay") means chicken in french. Things sound better in french right? Imagine if it called itself "chicken" or "鸡", maybe it'll attract alot less people. How about fish next? Poisson ("Phua-song" with a slient G please). Ok enough of poking fun at the name. Let's poke at the food next.
 |
| Poulet's Roast Chicken |
 |
| French fries, mash potato and Duck Leg |
We order french fries and mash potato since we need our carbo. I like the how the fries are served. In a bucket. Nice. The french fries weren't exactly piping hot but they weren't soggy either. And i think they used good quality fries. I bet you didn't know there were different grades of french fries. Try to see if you can taste the difference next time you have fries. Some fries just taste better ;)
The mash potato was really rich and buttery. But i didn't like it because i didn't feel like i was eating potato. I suspect it is made from mash potato powder. Have you tried the real mash potato made from real potatoes and from scratch? Powder mash potato and real mash potato taste like 2 totally different things.
Please note that they only serve cold bottled water. Warm water is at $0.50 a cup but refillable. At the end of the meal, i must have had at least 3 glasses of those water. Why the sudden thirst i asked myself. Oh. MSG attack. Hence the weird sweetness.
Thursday, 19 September 2013
Happy Mid-Autumn Festival
Teh:
Dear Readers and spam bots,
Lim and I would like to wish you all a very very Happy Mid-Autumn Festival! Please feel free to eat all the mooncakes and drink all the nice tea while spending time with your family or loved ones =)
On a side note, we are currently in preparation for something cool and adventurous! Not sure if it'll work out but what the heck? Just do it ;)
Dear Readers and spam bots,
Lim and I would like to wish you all a very very Happy Mid-Autumn Festival! Please feel free to eat all the mooncakes and drink all the nice tea while spending time with your family or loved ones =)
On a side note, we are currently in preparation for something cool and adventurous! Not sure if it'll work out but what the heck? Just do it ;)
Friday, 6 September 2013
McAloo Tikki
Teh:
I don't know what got into me. I went to try the new McAloo Tikki burger. WARNING - DO NOT ATTEMPT. Yes please don't eat it. Eat something else! Do not eat it. I've said enough. I took some pictures. See it for yourself.
I don't know what got into me. I went to try the new McAloo Tikki burger. WARNING - DO NOT ATTEMPT. Yes please don't eat it. Eat something else! Do not eat it. I've said enough. I took some pictures. See it for yourself.
Wednesday, 28 August 2013
Su Korean Cuisine (Far East Plaza)
Teh:
I had the chance to visit Su Korean Cuisine last week and was pleasantly surprised by the good quality of the food!
3 of us opted for one of the set meals for 2 pax. It came with BBQ Beef Short Ribs, BBQ Pork Belly, 1 kimchi soup, 2 rice, 2 drinks (ice lemon tea or lime juice) and the usual array of side dishes for $56++. Of top of these items, we also order the glass noodles, a seafood pancake and a bottle of souju (watched too man korean drama for sure!).
To save trouble, we decided to ask the kitchen to BBQ the meat for us. They came on the hot plates. A basket of fresh green coral lettuce was presented to us to wrap up the meat. Let me try to describe the food to you so that you can imagine you are eating it!
BBQ Beef Short Ribs
I only had beef short ribs on 2 occasions. 1st time was at a hotel buffet, the 2nd time was at Su. I know when you read "ribs", you'll think of "bones". So i want to tell you there were no bones! Boneless short ribs. Yes, take out the picture of the bones in your head. No bones about it! haha. The tenderness of the short ribs was amazing. When you put the short ribs in your mouth, you know instinctively you are eating a good pieces of meat. It's the way the meat feels in your mouth, each time you bite into the meat you are rewarded with the fragrant aroma of the marinate. This flavourful taste can only be achieved with a long marination process. Imagine all the cubes of short ribs sitting in their marinate soaking in the flavour. Thanks to the chef, the ribs was not overcooked. It was very delicious and i'm salivating as i'm typing this. You simply cannot stop at one piece. You'll need at least 5 at a go because you can't believe how good it taste. Do you know what made eating the short ribs better? Eating it with hot rice of course! I have this thing about good quality rice. It must be a Chinese thing. You can eating good quality rice even on it's own! Just like Gardenia bread. lol. Korean BBQ Beef Short ribs with rice = happiness. Try not to eat the whole plate by yourself. Share with your friends! Cos' you have to try the other things!
BBQ Pork Belly
You must be thinking what is so wonderful about BBQ Pork Belly. For starters, they used a different marinate from the beef. It was a milder marinate that didn't taste as intense as the beef. This is fine. I like the contrasting taste. A good choice on the chef's part if it was intentional. The pork belly was not cut thinly. At first i thought it may be abit tough when i saw the pork belly. But i was wrong! I believe they must have used some kind of tenderizer on the pork belly because no way José will the pork belly be this tender at that thickness (in my humble opinion) :x Oops. "Tenderizer" sounds like a bad word but you know what, I quite like the pork belly. I'm not sure if you have tasted over tenderized pork. The texture of the piece of meat is un-pork-like. Just recently my mum bought a packet of veg rice for my sis. Said over tenderized pork was in it. My sis was raving at the soft pork. I took a bite and declared it was full of tenderizer. lol. But i digress. The pork belly at Su was OK! Trust me. It paled in comparison to the beef but it was a good dish on it's own. The pork belly went well with the bean paste chilli sauce. Maybe because the marinate was lighter in flavour. You should eat the pork belly with the green lettuce and chilli sauce.
Glass Noodles
If you can only eat 1 thing at Su, (maybe you are dining alone? or on a diet?), i strongly recommend you order the Glass Noodles. WOW! It has intense wok-hei (wok smell?). You'd think it came from the Chinese Zichar stall instead of a Korean restaurant! For those who do not know what is korean glass noodles, please google. For those who know, yes its like thick tung-hoon. This thick tung-hoon has a robust flavour. I suspect some kind of soup stock (or powder seasoning?) is used to cook the noodles. It can be eaten on it's own or with, yes you guessed it, RICE! Many small pieces of meat and vegetables complete this glass noodle dish. It's so good. Forget the dry tung-hoon you order at the zichar stall. It's never as good as the one at Su. Of course it cost like 4x more than your average zichar tung-hoon but its well worth it. Why waste your calories on bad food?
Kimchi Soup
I must warn you something about this kimchi soup. The more you drink, the spicier it gets! But shiok! It didn't start out to be very spicy. But as you drink by the spoonful or mixed with the rice (like the koreans!), you will realise it does pack a punch. There were tons of cabbage in the soup. The soft cabbage really went out with the sourness and spiciness. Some beancurd (not tofu!) and a couple pieces of rice cake. I even found a piece of meat in the soup. But the meat has been cooked too long and squeezed dry of its flavour. It's probably from the stock.
Side Dishes
Look at the side dishes we had. I think the one that is worth a mention is the kimchi on the left bottom corner. This kimchi, unlike those we are accustomed outside comes in big pieces of fermented cabbage still wrapped/rolled up nicely. Not the small small lackluster pieces. I believe they made the kimchi themselves. And that's why it was still perfectly rolled =) Beware that it can be a little spicy since you are eating 1 big piece of chilli coated cabbage! Of course nobody is stopping you from breaking them into small pieces ;)
If you noticed, i did not take picture of the pancake or make any mention of it. Enough said. lol :x
Please head down to try. I know I'll be visiting the place again soon! Maybe i'll try the ginseng chicken soup this time. Oh, one more thing before i forget, we had the option to change the meat in the set meal. The waitress said some people do not eat beef. They can substitute it for chicken. How thoughtful!
Su Korean Cuisine
14 Scotts Road #01-21
Far East Plaza
Tel: 62350420
Opens daily from 10.30am - 11pm
I had the chance to visit Su Korean Cuisine last week and was pleasantly surprised by the good quality of the food!
3 of us opted for one of the set meals for 2 pax. It came with BBQ Beef Short Ribs, BBQ Pork Belly, 1 kimchi soup, 2 rice, 2 drinks (ice lemon tea or lime juice) and the usual array of side dishes for $56++. Of top of these items, we also order the glass noodles, a seafood pancake and a bottle of souju (watched too man korean drama for sure!).
To save trouble, we decided to ask the kitchen to BBQ the meat for us. They came on the hot plates. A basket of fresh green coral lettuce was presented to us to wrap up the meat. Let me try to describe the food to you so that you can imagine you are eating it!
BBQ Beef Short Ribs
I only had beef short ribs on 2 occasions. 1st time was at a hotel buffet, the 2nd time was at Su. I know when you read "ribs", you'll think of "bones". So i want to tell you there were no bones! Boneless short ribs. Yes, take out the picture of the bones in your head. No bones about it! haha. The tenderness of the short ribs was amazing. When you put the short ribs in your mouth, you know instinctively you are eating a good pieces of meat. It's the way the meat feels in your mouth, each time you bite into the meat you are rewarded with the fragrant aroma of the marinate. This flavourful taste can only be achieved with a long marination process. Imagine all the cubes of short ribs sitting in their marinate soaking in the flavour. Thanks to the chef, the ribs was not overcooked. It was very delicious and i'm salivating as i'm typing this. You simply cannot stop at one piece. You'll need at least 5 at a go because you can't believe how good it taste. Do you know what made eating the short ribs better? Eating it with hot rice of course! I have this thing about good quality rice. It must be a Chinese thing. You can eating good quality rice even on it's own! Just like Gardenia bread. lol. Korean BBQ Beef Short ribs with rice = happiness. Try not to eat the whole plate by yourself. Share with your friends! Cos' you have to try the other things!
You must be thinking what is so wonderful about BBQ Pork Belly. For starters, they used a different marinate from the beef. It was a milder marinate that didn't taste as intense as the beef. This is fine. I like the contrasting taste. A good choice on the chef's part if it was intentional. The pork belly was not cut thinly. At first i thought it may be abit tough when i saw the pork belly. But i was wrong! I believe they must have used some kind of tenderizer on the pork belly because no way José will the pork belly be this tender at that thickness (in my humble opinion) :x Oops. "Tenderizer" sounds like a bad word but you know what, I quite like the pork belly. I'm not sure if you have tasted over tenderized pork. The texture of the piece of meat is un-pork-like. Just recently my mum bought a packet of veg rice for my sis. Said over tenderized pork was in it. My sis was raving at the soft pork. I took a bite and declared it was full of tenderizer. lol. But i digress. The pork belly at Su was OK! Trust me. It paled in comparison to the beef but it was a good dish on it's own. The pork belly went well with the bean paste chilli sauce. Maybe because the marinate was lighter in flavour. You should eat the pork belly with the green lettuce and chilli sauce.
Glass Noodles
If you can only eat 1 thing at Su, (maybe you are dining alone? or on a diet?), i strongly recommend you order the Glass Noodles. WOW! It has intense wok-hei (wok smell?). You'd think it came from the Chinese Zichar stall instead of a Korean restaurant! For those who do not know what is korean glass noodles, please google. For those who know, yes its like thick tung-hoon. This thick tung-hoon has a robust flavour. I suspect some kind of soup stock (or powder seasoning?) is used to cook the noodles. It can be eaten on it's own or with, yes you guessed it, RICE! Many small pieces of meat and vegetables complete this glass noodle dish. It's so good. Forget the dry tung-hoon you order at the zichar stall. It's never as good as the one at Su. Of course it cost like 4x more than your average zichar tung-hoon but its well worth it. Why waste your calories on bad food?
Kimchi Soup
I must warn you something about this kimchi soup. The more you drink, the spicier it gets! But shiok! It didn't start out to be very spicy. But as you drink by the spoonful or mixed with the rice (like the koreans!), you will realise it does pack a punch. There were tons of cabbage in the soup. The soft cabbage really went out with the sourness and spiciness. Some beancurd (not tofu!) and a couple pieces of rice cake. I even found a piece of meat in the soup. But the meat has been cooked too long and squeezed dry of its flavour. It's probably from the stock.
Side Dishes
Look at the side dishes we had. I think the one that is worth a mention is the kimchi on the left bottom corner. This kimchi, unlike those we are accustomed outside comes in big pieces of fermented cabbage still wrapped/rolled up nicely. Not the small small lackluster pieces. I believe they made the kimchi themselves. And that's why it was still perfectly rolled =) Beware that it can be a little spicy since you are eating 1 big piece of chilli coated cabbage! Of course nobody is stopping you from breaking them into small pieces ;)
If you noticed, i did not take picture of the pancake or make any mention of it. Enough said. lol :x
Please head down to try. I know I'll be visiting the place again soon! Maybe i'll try the ginseng chicken soup this time. Oh, one more thing before i forget, we had the option to change the meat in the set meal. The waitress said some people do not eat beef. They can substitute it for chicken. How thoughtful!
Su Korean Cuisine
14 Scotts Road #01-21
Far East Plaza
Tel: 62350420
Opens daily from 10.30am - 11pm
Thursday, 25 July 2013
10000 views!
Teh:
We hit 10000 views! From the start of this blog till now (at least a good 1.5 years), we managed to hit 10000 views. Amazing! We would like to thank you for your relentless clicking, your curiosity, your resilience and of course not forgetting the ever hardworking spam bots!
Not sure if you remember, but getting 10k hits was one of my resolution for this year. Now that it has been achieved, i need to set a new resolution. I was at a course recently and the trainer said we should set goals first, then think about how we can achieve them. Instead of setting realistic goals that we think we can achieve. So just a random figure off my head, how about 100 000 hits by the end of 2014? If those popular bloggers can get a few thousand hits a day, i think 100 000 hits by the end of 2014 should not be a problem for Lim and I? There i go again, setting a goal i think i can achieve =p Or 100 000 hits by end of 2013? Now how in the world are we going to achieve that? That'll be something to think about for a few days!
On a side note, i managed to catch the musical "The Phantom of the Opera" on Friday. Without giving too much away, i want to tell you i loved the sets. The singing was pitch perfect and frankly, quite amazing. You should try to go catch it if you can!
On an even further side note, i still have a soft spot for "Wicked", especially the songs "For Good" and "Defying Gravity".
100 000 hits, here we come!
Monday, 8 July 2013
Trip to Kuala Lumpur
Teh:
Recently i gathered my friends for a weekend getaway trip to KL. Here's what we did. We hopped onto a no frills coach and zoomed our way up to KL. We stayed in Jalan Bintang area (a shopping stretch). It was basically an urban shopping, eating an drinking trip. The coach, hotel and travel insurance only cost us $140. What?! Yes, only $140 for 3D2N no frills getaway. What are you waiting for?
I booked our coach ride at www.easibook.com. It lets you see the bus schedules, pick up and drop off point. It was hassle free. You have an option to buy your travel insurance at the same time if you want. We took "Starmart" coach. The coach was comfortable. No cramped at all. But there is no entertainment on the coach. We saw Sri Maju buses had individual TV at their seats but i'm not sure if they are switched on.
First you book your tickets via the website. Print out the confirmation slip. On the day of departure, arrive 30 minutes before departure time to get your bus and seat numbers from the coach company located inside Golden Mile Tower (Do not go to Golden Mile Complex, the one with 5 starts travel). We booked the 8am coach. We arrived at 7.30am, got our numbers and waited out at the main entrance for the bus. We were lucky to be able to board an earlier bus to KL because it still had available seats. We went by the 2nd link (Tuas). The coach only made 1 rest stop during the journey (not at Yong Peng! So eat your breakfast first if possible). The entire ride from Golden Mile Tower to KL (including customs time) was around 5.5 hours. We alighted outside Berjaya Times Square along the road where the Starmart Kiosk is. That is the same place to board the bus back to Singapore.
We stayed at Sky Hotel. It is very near Berjaya Times Square but abit tricky to get to. Nevertheless, with the help of the locals and my faint memory from 2 years ago, we still made it to the hotel in good time. It is a no frills hotel. The walls are abit thin though. We could hear people talking along the corridor and doors closing at night. For S$70 a night in "KL Orchard road", i think it's a good bargain since free wifi is included in the room! Here's how the rooms look like:
Our hotel was very near Jalan Alor. The zichar food stretch! Tons of stalls there. I introduced my friends to this zichar stall. I patronised this place the last 2 times i went to KL. The food is reasonable priced and the lady boss is friendly. It is somewhere in the middle of the whole stretch. Four of 4 had salted egg squid (nice!), kang kong, chilli clams, hotplate tofu with salted fish (nice!), spring onion and ginger pork. RM70 only!
We also tried the lok lok on the 2nd night we were there. It is basically food on skewers that you choose. They can be boiled, deep fried or BBQ. You are supposed to eat them with chilli sauce, satay sauce or sweet sauce. Quite a new experience. Diff colour sticks are priced differently. We had about 27 sticks in all. It cost RM 70. Same price as our zichar dinner!
We had breakfast at Berjaya Times Square on the 2nd morning we were there. This cafe call "Rasa Utura" served really good nasi lemak with a coffee/tea for RM 7.90. Shiok! There is free wifi too!
It was quite a good weekend getaway doing what Singaporeans love - Eat and Shop. But you know what? My heart is still in Phuket~~~~
P/S: A word of caution. Avoid dodgy looking people who seems to be headed your way intentional. Always becareful of your belongings and try not to walk too close to anyone who isn't a tourist!
Recently i gathered my friends for a weekend getaway trip to KL. Here's what we did. We hopped onto a no frills coach and zoomed our way up to KL. We stayed in Jalan Bintang area (a shopping stretch). It was basically an urban shopping, eating an drinking trip. The coach, hotel and travel insurance only cost us $140. What?! Yes, only $140 for 3D2N no frills getaway. What are you waiting for?
I booked our coach ride at www.easibook.com. It lets you see the bus schedules, pick up and drop off point. It was hassle free. You have an option to buy your travel insurance at the same time if you want. We took "Starmart" coach. The coach was comfortable. No cramped at all. But there is no entertainment on the coach. We saw Sri Maju buses had individual TV at their seats but i'm not sure if they are switched on.
First you book your tickets via the website. Print out the confirmation slip. On the day of departure, arrive 30 minutes before departure time to get your bus and seat numbers from the coach company located inside Golden Mile Tower (Do not go to Golden Mile Complex, the one with 5 starts travel). We booked the 8am coach. We arrived at 7.30am, got our numbers and waited out at the main entrance for the bus. We were lucky to be able to board an earlier bus to KL because it still had available seats. We went by the 2nd link (Tuas). The coach only made 1 rest stop during the journey (not at Yong Peng! So eat your breakfast first if possible). The entire ride from Golden Mile Tower to KL (including customs time) was around 5.5 hours. We alighted outside Berjaya Times Square along the road where the Starmart Kiosk is. That is the same place to board the bus back to Singapore.
We stayed at Sky Hotel. It is very near Berjaya Times Square but abit tricky to get to. Nevertheless, with the help of the locals and my faint memory from 2 years ago, we still made it to the hotel in good time. It is a no frills hotel. The walls are abit thin though. We could hear people talking along the corridor and doors closing at night. For S$70 a night in "KL Orchard road", i think it's a good bargain since free wifi is included in the room! Here's how the rooms look like:
Our hotel was very near Jalan Alor. The zichar food stretch! Tons of stalls there. I introduced my friends to this zichar stall. I patronised this place the last 2 times i went to KL. The food is reasonable priced and the lady boss is friendly. It is somewhere in the middle of the whole stretch. Four of 4 had salted egg squid (nice!), kang kong, chilli clams, hotplate tofu with salted fish (nice!), spring onion and ginger pork. RM70 only!
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| Jalan Alor Zichar Stall |
We also tried the lok lok on the 2nd night we were there. It is basically food on skewers that you choose. They can be boiled, deep fried or BBQ. You are supposed to eat them with chilli sauce, satay sauce or sweet sauce. Quite a new experience. Diff colour sticks are priced differently. We had about 27 sticks in all. It cost RM 70. Same price as our zichar dinner!
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| Jalan Alor Lok Lok |
We had breakfast at Berjaya Times Square on the 2nd morning we were there. This cafe call "Rasa Utura" served really good nasi lemak with a coffee/tea for RM 7.90. Shiok! There is free wifi too!
It was quite a good weekend getaway doing what Singaporeans love - Eat and Shop. But you know what? My heart is still in Phuket~~~~
P/S: A word of caution. Avoid dodgy looking people who seems to be headed your way intentional. Always becareful of your belongings and try not to walk too close to anyone who isn't a tourist!
Tuesday, 2 July 2013
New Udon Thai Food - Mookata!
Teh:
Yesterday after alighting from the coach from KL (another story soon!) i was at New Udon Thai Food (5001 Beach Road, Golden Mile Complex. Opens daily.) to try their Mookata. Sorry i didn't take any pictures. I was too hungry to think about anything other than cooking them eat and eating them! If you are curious about how the place looks like, try googling. There are plenty of pictures out there.
Here's my two cents worth:
We arrived on a monday evening at 7pm. The place was about 3/4 full. There were still plenty of seats available. A set of $39 comes with the following: slices of hotdog, squid, pork liver, marinated chicken and pork, 5 prawns, crabsticks, fishballs, white cabbage, kang kong, chinese celery, xiao bai cai, tang hoon, 2 eggs. There is no other ala carte dishes you can choose from. So you either eat the set or you get out. You can pay to top up food if there aren't enough to eat. There were 3 of us eating, i felt the portion was just nice. We shared a bowl of rice. Yes, 3 ladies trying to cut down on our carbos but loading on the meat. lol.
While i think the meat marinate pales in comparison to Tom Yum Kungfu's, i quite like the wide variety and the tasty soup they have. They made the effort to de-shell and cut open the prawns' body (Head and tail still intact! Black intestine stuff removed. Alot of effort required). But no tom yum instant noodles here. Bummer. The clear soup at the end of the meal was quite tasty nevertheless. Maybe it is just my love for instant noodles.... Oh one more thing, they use a fire stove instead of charcoals =(
Be prepare to smell like bbq food after having your meal there. I do not suggest walking around or hanging out elsewhere after eating.
Verdict: Tom Yum Kungfu (http://comingsoonlah.blogspot.sg/2012/03/food-review-tom-yum-kungfu-boat-quay.html) is still my first choice but i don't mind coming back here again if i'm in the area when the mookata mood strikes.
Yesterday after alighting from the coach from KL (another story soon!) i was at New Udon Thai Food (5001 Beach Road, Golden Mile Complex. Opens daily.) to try their Mookata. Sorry i didn't take any pictures. I was too hungry to think about anything other than cooking them eat and eating them! If you are curious about how the place looks like, try googling. There are plenty of pictures out there.
Here's my two cents worth:
We arrived on a monday evening at 7pm. The place was about 3/4 full. There were still plenty of seats available. A set of $39 comes with the following: slices of hotdog, squid, pork liver, marinated chicken and pork, 5 prawns, crabsticks, fishballs, white cabbage, kang kong, chinese celery, xiao bai cai, tang hoon, 2 eggs. There is no other ala carte dishes you can choose from. So you either eat the set or you get out. You can pay to top up food if there aren't enough to eat. There were 3 of us eating, i felt the portion was just nice. We shared a bowl of rice. Yes, 3 ladies trying to cut down on our carbos but loading on the meat. lol.
While i think the meat marinate pales in comparison to Tom Yum Kungfu's, i quite like the wide variety and the tasty soup they have. They made the effort to de-shell and cut open the prawns' body (Head and tail still intact! Black intestine stuff removed. Alot of effort required). But no tom yum instant noodles here. Bummer. The clear soup at the end of the meal was quite tasty nevertheless. Maybe it is just my love for instant noodles.... Oh one more thing, they use a fire stove instead of charcoals =(
Be prepare to smell like bbq food after having your meal there. I do not suggest walking around or hanging out elsewhere after eating.
Verdict: Tom Yum Kungfu (http://comingsoonlah.blogspot.sg/2012/03/food-review-tom-yum-kungfu-boat-quay.html) is still my first choice but i don't mind coming back here again if i'm in the area when the mookata mood strikes.
Thursday, 20 June 2013
Hazy Haze
Teh:
Hi guys and girls, just thought i drop a note to remind everyone to drink more water and stay indoors! Yes the haze is back! Everyone is monitoring the PSI like the stock market exchange rate. I know i have no excuse for the lack of activity on this blog :x I have been busy wrapping bazhang (dumplings) and sun tanning at the beach. I have pictures to prove! But i doubt you are interested in them. No recipes, no reviews what-so-ever.
I'll try to post something good next week! Stay tuned!
Hi guys and girls, just thought i drop a note to remind everyone to drink more water and stay indoors! Yes the haze is back! Everyone is monitoring the PSI like the stock market exchange rate. I know i have no excuse for the lack of activity on this blog :x I have been busy wrapping bazhang (dumplings) and sun tanning at the beach. I have pictures to prove! But i doubt you are interested in them. No recipes, no reviews what-so-ever.
I'll try to post something good next week! Stay tuned!
Tuesday, 4 June 2013
Crispy Roast Pork!!
Teh:
As part of my ongoing experiments to achieve unbelievably crispy roast pork, i bring you yet another recipe/method of doing it! YOU MUST TRY THIS! This is by far the BEST method i discovered. Forget drying the pork belly in the fridge overnight. You only need to prep this 1.5 hours before baking it. Yes! Simple as that. Try it to believe the magic! Without further ado...
Ingredient:
0.5kg Pork Belly
Salt
Seasonings (i used all purpose seasonings, salt and some 5 spice powder)
1 tsp Baking soda
Method:
1. Score the skin (about 1cm apart) on the pork belly. The easiest way to do this is when the pork belly is slightly frozen so that the piece of meat is hard and its easier to cut. If not, just have a very sharp knife on hand. But becareful!
2. Rub baking soda and salt all over the skin and in between the cuts.
3. Let the pork sit for 1.5 hours. I just left mine out in the open to thaw.
4. Preheat the oven to 220 degrees celsius.
5. Rinse off the salt and baking soda on the pork skin. Wash thoroughly. If not you will end up tasting the baking soda!
6. Dry the meat and apply seasoning on the meat. Give it a good rub with the seasoning you are using. Do not be afraid to use slightly more. The seasoned surface area of each piece of meat you end up with after cutting will not be much. Unless you plan to eat big chunks at a go :x
7. Bake the pork for 30 mins at 220 degrees celsius. Turn down the temp to 180 degrees celsius to bake for another 1 hour. This cooking time is suitable for pork belly up to 1 kg. If you are using a much bigger piece, you should allow for more baking time.
Viola! I hope you'll try it soon! It's fantastic!
.JPG) |
| Crispy Roast Pork |
As part of my ongoing experiments to achieve unbelievably crispy roast pork, i bring you yet another recipe/method of doing it! YOU MUST TRY THIS! This is by far the BEST method i discovered. Forget drying the pork belly in the fridge overnight. You only need to prep this 1.5 hours before baking it. Yes! Simple as that. Try it to believe the magic! Without further ado...
Ingredient:
0.5kg Pork Belly
Salt
Seasonings (i used all purpose seasonings, salt and some 5 spice powder)
1 tsp Baking soda
Method:
1. Score the skin (about 1cm apart) on the pork belly. The easiest way to do this is when the pork belly is slightly frozen so that the piece of meat is hard and its easier to cut. If not, just have a very sharp knife on hand. But becareful!
2. Rub baking soda and salt all over the skin and in between the cuts.
3. Let the pork sit for 1.5 hours. I just left mine out in the open to thaw.
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| Raw pork belly (scored) |
4. Preheat the oven to 220 degrees celsius.
5. Rinse off the salt and baking soda on the pork skin. Wash thoroughly. If not you will end up tasting the baking soda!
6. Dry the meat and apply seasoning on the meat. Give it a good rub with the seasoning you are using. Do not be afraid to use slightly more. The seasoned surface area of each piece of meat you end up with after cutting will not be much. Unless you plan to eat big chunks at a go :x
7. Bake the pork for 30 mins at 220 degrees celsius. Turn down the temp to 180 degrees celsius to bake for another 1 hour. This cooking time is suitable for pork belly up to 1 kg. If you are using a much bigger piece, you should allow for more baking time.
Viola! I hope you'll try it soon! It's fantastic!
Friday, 17 May 2013
McDonald's Red Peri Scorcher
Teh:
Lim and i went to Mac to try out their new Red Peri Scorcher. This new burger (before it was revealed) got my attention when i saw the advertisement that McSpicy won (according to a poll) the other Black Pepper McSpicy in the Spicy faceoff. There was a pretty lady in red with a chinese cooking ladle (those big scoop thingy chefs use at the zichar stalls) as the mysterious (for the spice) "contender". On the next night, i saw the advertisement revealing her spicy - Peri peri sauce! We decided to go for it! (Sorry Lim, not Sze Chuan Pepper as you hoped and deduced from the red wearing chinese lady with the chinese ladle.)
At first i was afraid the peri sauce may be too spicy for it. It is a spicy faceoff after all. The normal McSpicy can be a little too spicy for me at times. But the Red Peri Scorcher was not as fiery as it looked and sounded. Naturally, the peri sauce is a little sourish and appetizing. It was more like a spicy version of an orangey looking thousand island sauce. My attention was on the breaded deep fried chicken thigh in the burger. My first thought was, did they change the McSpicy patty? Or is it the same chicken thigh but without the McSpicy seasoning? Either way, i quite liked the chicken thigh. I thought it was a refreshing change from the usual (dubious) chicken patty (e.g. McChicken). Dubious because you don't know what goes inside those patties.
Conclusion: If you are comparing spiciness, the McSpicy is still the winner. But i won't mind eating the Red Peri Scorcher because the spiciness was just nice for me. Lim and I finished the meal by sharing a set of McWings. Yummy!
P/S: Nothing beats KFC's Zinger!
Lim and i went to Mac to try out their new Red Peri Scorcher. This new burger (before it was revealed) got my attention when i saw the advertisement that McSpicy won (according to a poll) the other Black Pepper McSpicy in the Spicy faceoff. There was a pretty lady in red with a chinese cooking ladle (those big scoop thingy chefs use at the zichar stalls) as the mysterious (for the spice) "contender". On the next night, i saw the advertisement revealing her spicy - Peri peri sauce! We decided to go for it! (Sorry Lim, not Sze Chuan Pepper as you hoped and deduced from the red wearing chinese lady with the chinese ladle.)
At first i was afraid the peri sauce may be too spicy for it. It is a spicy faceoff after all. The normal McSpicy can be a little too spicy for me at times. But the Red Peri Scorcher was not as fiery as it looked and sounded. Naturally, the peri sauce is a little sourish and appetizing. It was more like a spicy version of an orangey looking thousand island sauce. My attention was on the breaded deep fried chicken thigh in the burger. My first thought was, did they change the McSpicy patty? Or is it the same chicken thigh but without the McSpicy seasoning? Either way, i quite liked the chicken thigh. I thought it was a refreshing change from the usual (dubious) chicken patty (e.g. McChicken). Dubious because you don't know what goes inside those patties.
Conclusion: If you are comparing spiciness, the McSpicy is still the winner. But i won't mind eating the Red Peri Scorcher because the spiciness was just nice for me. Lim and I finished the meal by sharing a set of McWings. Yummy!
P/S: Nothing beats KFC's Zinger!
Thursday, 9 May 2013
Glutinous Rice Picture
Teh:
Here is the glutinous rice and ang gu kueh i packed for my colleagues the next day. The lighting in this picture made the food look funny =( But i assure you the glutinous rice, cai por and fried shallots were popular!
Maybe i should post the recipe next? Yes i think i will =) Good things are meant to be shared!
Here is the Glutinous rice i made yesterday.
Here is the glutinous rice and ang gu kueh i packed for my colleagues the next day. The lighting in this picture made the food look funny =( But i assure you the glutinous rice, cai por and fried shallots were popular!
Maybe i should post the recipe next? Yes i think i will =) Good things are meant to be shared!
Tuesday, 7 May 2013
Cooking or Assembling?
Teh:
We haven't had one of these random musing posts for a long time so i thought i should write one =)
Cooking or Assembling?
Of late, whenever i eat out, i feel like my food on the plate has been assembled rather than cooked. Do you get that feeling sometimes? Whether its fishball noodles, economic veg rice, char kway teow, fish and chips or whatever you are having, did the food feel tasteless? Like no thought was put into the preparation or cooking process. It's an assembly of ingredients and sauces. Even the food my mum cooks sometimes taste like an assembly (don't say i said that)! I know she is very busy and doesn't always have time to cook. I appreciate her tremendous effort in putting dinner on the table every night. Mummy is the BEST! Oops, i digressed.
Yes, back to cooking. I love cooking. I love the whole thought process of it and the actual event itself. I enjoy thinking about what i'm craving for, what new recipes to try, how i can tweak things i already know how to make, how to make it taste and look better. I feel excited just thinking about going to the supermarket to pick the fresh ingredients and be surrounded by endless possibilities! (Do you know why fresh ingredients taste better? That's another story for another time) I think one of the BEST part of cooking is imagining how people's faces look like when they finally taste the food. "WOW SOoooo GOOD!" "How did you do this?" "When are you cooking this again?" Who isn't a sucker for compliments for the food they cooked? He/she is a liar ;)
Guess what i'm cooking tomorrow? Glutinous rice. You may be thinking it is such an easy dish. Initially i thought so too. Until i start thinking about how to make the dish better! I must fry my own peanuts because those bought outside just don't taste as good as freshly fried peanuts. I must fry my own shallots. Same reason as the peanuts. I suck at peeling shallots. It's going to be time consuming. I wish i had a microwave oven at home. They make speedy fried shallots. Almost effortless! But i don't so its back to the wok. I also must make my cai por! Because my family loves my cai por. I love my cai por on the glutinous rice. Cai por needs to be soaked and cooked. In order to serve it in time for lunch tomorrow, i have to start cooking it tonight and throw it into the slow cooker. It'll taste heavenly by tomorrow. Glutinous rice needs to be soaked overnight before i steam it in the morning. What else? We can't just be having glutinous rice right? So i made popiah filled with mango and nata de coco. I prepared those before hand on Sunday. Frozen and ready to be deep-fried tomorrow. I'm also toying with the idea of preparing a mixed vegetable dish. But i haven't had time to get the vegetables yet. Should i put garnish on the rice? Spring onion? Red cut chilli? So many decisions to make and things to do, just for the perfect dish! Or of course you can just buy cooked glutinous rice outside for $2 for the easy way out. Your pick.
So whats the big occasion tomorrow? My little nephew is coming to my house for lunch!
We haven't had one of these random musing posts for a long time so i thought i should write one =)
Cooking or Assembling?
Of late, whenever i eat out, i feel like my food on the plate has been assembled rather than cooked. Do you get that feeling sometimes? Whether its fishball noodles, economic veg rice, char kway teow, fish and chips or whatever you are having, did the food feel tasteless? Like no thought was put into the preparation or cooking process. It's an assembly of ingredients and sauces. Even the food my mum cooks sometimes taste like an assembly (don't say i said that)! I know she is very busy and doesn't always have time to cook. I appreciate her tremendous effort in putting dinner on the table every night. Mummy is the BEST! Oops, i digressed.
Yes, back to cooking. I love cooking. I love the whole thought process of it and the actual event itself. I enjoy thinking about what i'm craving for, what new recipes to try, how i can tweak things i already know how to make, how to make it taste and look better. I feel excited just thinking about going to the supermarket to pick the fresh ingredients and be surrounded by endless possibilities! (Do you know why fresh ingredients taste better? That's another story for another time) I think one of the BEST part of cooking is imagining how people's faces look like when they finally taste the food. "WOW SOoooo GOOD!" "How did you do this?" "When are you cooking this again?" Who isn't a sucker for compliments for the food they cooked? He/she is a liar ;)
Guess what i'm cooking tomorrow? Glutinous rice. You may be thinking it is such an easy dish. Initially i thought so too. Until i start thinking about how to make the dish better! I must fry my own peanuts because those bought outside just don't taste as good as freshly fried peanuts. I must fry my own shallots. Same reason as the peanuts. I suck at peeling shallots. It's going to be time consuming. I wish i had a microwave oven at home. They make speedy fried shallots. Almost effortless! But i don't so its back to the wok. I also must make my cai por! Because my family loves my cai por. I love my cai por on the glutinous rice. Cai por needs to be soaked and cooked. In order to serve it in time for lunch tomorrow, i have to start cooking it tonight and throw it into the slow cooker. It'll taste heavenly by tomorrow. Glutinous rice needs to be soaked overnight before i steam it in the morning. What else? We can't just be having glutinous rice right? So i made popiah filled with mango and nata de coco. I prepared those before hand on Sunday. Frozen and ready to be deep-fried tomorrow. I'm also toying with the idea of preparing a mixed vegetable dish. But i haven't had time to get the vegetables yet. Should i put garnish on the rice? Spring onion? Red cut chilli? So many decisions to make and things to do, just for the perfect dish! Or of course you can just buy cooked glutinous rice outside for $2 for the easy way out. Your pick.
So whats the big occasion tomorrow? My little nephew is coming to my house for lunch!
Wednesday, 24 April 2013
Huber's!
Teh:
I know! Where have i been right?!?! It has been a month since the last post! Shame on me!
Sorry readers and spam bots, i have been MIA. I'm back!
My boss recently said he went to this place that sells meat. "Raw meat?" I asked. He replied "Yes! You choose the meat you want and they'll cook it for you on the spot." In the end we managed to figure out its Huber's. And so off we went to Huber's for some fresh meat to be cooked on the spot.
You can choose the steak you want (from the display fridge), minimum 200g, add another 45% to it's cost for the addition of fries and salad, that will be the amount you need to pay for your cooked steak. But you know what? Neither of us had steak =( I should have tried it. But i only went into the store to look at the steaks (raw, but looking juicy with all the marbling) after i placed my order for a beef burger. Maybe next time.
I ordered the Beef burger ($15.00 excluding GST) that came with gruyère cheese, bacon and caramelised onions. For the portion and quality, i would say it is value for money. But my little disappointment was the fact that the patty was overcooked. It was abit tough and dry. Maybe it's my fault for not specifying the doneness i wanted it to be.
My boss had the Oxtail with pan-fried parmesan risotto ($13.80 excluding GST). It's the special for the month of April. The tomato based oxtail stew was nice, tender and big in size (there were 2!) but not the risotto. Initially i thought the risotto was a very bad tasting hashbrown :x Bad hashbrown? Is there even such a thing? Yup you can imagine.
The next time we go back, i want to try the steak!
Do take note they close at 7pm.
I know! Where have i been right?!?! It has been a month since the last post! Shame on me!
Sorry readers and spam bots, i have been MIA. I'm back!
My boss recently said he went to this place that sells meat. "Raw meat?" I asked. He replied "Yes! You choose the meat you want and they'll cook it for you on the spot." In the end we managed to figure out its Huber's. And so off we went to Huber's for some fresh meat to be cooked on the spot.
You can choose the steak you want (from the display fridge), minimum 200g, add another 45% to it's cost for the addition of fries and salad, that will be the amount you need to pay for your cooked steak. But you know what? Neither of us had steak =( I should have tried it. But i only went into the store to look at the steaks (raw, but looking juicy with all the marbling) after i placed my order for a beef burger. Maybe next time.
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| Huber's - Beef Burger |
I ordered the Beef burger ($15.00 excluding GST) that came with gruyère cheese, bacon and caramelised onions. For the portion and quality, i would say it is value for money. But my little disappointment was the fact that the patty was overcooked. It was abit tough and dry. Maybe it's my fault for not specifying the doneness i wanted it to be.
 |
| Oxtail with pan-fried parmesan risotto |
My boss had the Oxtail with pan-fried parmesan risotto ($13.80 excluding GST). It's the special for the month of April. The tomato based oxtail stew was nice, tender and big in size (there were 2!) but not the risotto. Initially i thought the risotto was a very bad tasting hashbrown :x Bad hashbrown? Is there even such a thing? Yup you can imagine.
The next time we go back, i want to try the steak!
Do take note they close at 7pm.
| Huber's Butchery & Bistro @ Dempsey 18A Dempsey Road Singapore 249677 Tel: 6737 1588 Fax: 6737 1488 Mail: info@hubersbutchery.com.sg
(Free Parking Available)
Business hours at the bistro & hot counter: Mon: Closed Tues to Fri: 1100 to 1900 Sat, Sun & Public Holiday: 0930 to 1900 Business hours at the butchery: Mon to Fri: 0930 to 2000 Sat, Sun & Public Holiday: 0930 to 1900 Closed on Christmas Day, New Year's Day and Lunar New Year. |
Tuesday, 26 March 2013
King Louis Grill and Bar
Teh:
We had a lunch outing at King Louis Grill and Bar recently. We took advantage of the weekday set lunch and are pleasantly surprised by the big servings. Most of us had problem finishing the food. It really was a pity to waste them. I think next time we have to share a set. Here are some of the stuff we tried.
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| Cream of Mushroom |
All set lunches comes with a drink, soup of the day and ice cream. There are the usual array of soft drinks to choose from, ice lemon tea, hot coffee or tea. This cream of mushroom is packed full with bits of mushrooms. While my colleagues liked it, i think they were not aware that the soup lacks mushroom flavour. You may be wondering how can it lack mushroom flavour if it is full of mushrooms? Well, you will need to have had a real decent bowl of mushroom soup chocked full of flavour before you can tell that real thing from the "fake". The real flavour come from within. It is strong and lingering. Nevertheless, i think it is a good attempt at making a cream of mushroom soup. I drank every last bit of it.
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| Roast Beef |
I picked the Roast Beef ($14.90++) for my set lunch. It came with 2 decent sized sirloin steak. Yes 2 pieces! Amazing. Most places only serve one. There were also boiled potatoes, coleslaw, asparagus and a garden green. The beef was moist and tender. Value for money.
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| Baby Ribs |
My colleague had the Baby Ribs ($13.90++, i think). Do not be fooled by the name. It should be called Giant Ribs for its sheer size! This dish came with roasted potatoes, coleslaw and garden green. 3 people ordered this. 2 girls and a guy. Only the man could finish this! Unfortunately the meat was not tender enough. The girls had a hard time trying to eat with the fork and knife. The guy was smarter. He used his hands and teeth! lol. I had a taste of it. If it were roasted for a longer time, i will pick this the next time. I love pork!
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| Beer Batter Fish and Chips |
Someone order Fish and Chips. If my memory serves me correctly, they used Stella Artois beer for the batter. The portion is again, generous. While i did not try the fish and it's batter, my colleague told me it was quite salty. Maybe too much salt was added.
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| Grilled Salmon |
Lastly, a colleague ordered the grill salmon. The salmon given was big! For this size, it will cost you over $20 if you order elsewhere. I think its $13.90++ for the set lunch. The salmon came with a mix of stir fried vegetables and mushroom. I cannot remember if this came with any potatoes but there is a piece of it at the top right corner of this photo. lol. My colleague praised the texture of the salmon to the type she likes. I think it is not too dry. Cooked just right. But because my mum cooks salmon at home frequently, salmon is not something i will order when i'm eating out.
I didn't take any picture of the strawberry (?) ice cream. It was a cross between an ice cream and a sorbert. Go figure. You can skip it to save some calories.
Here is a picture of the view you will be treated to at King Louis. I quite like the place. The food is value for money. Try to share the set lunch with someone if you are a small eater. I think we will be back again.
King Louis Bar and Grill
1 Harbourfront Walk
#03-07A Vivocity
Tel : 6276 0862
Opening hours: Daily from 12pm to 11pm.
Monday, 18 March 2013
Tom Yum Kungfu (Visit 2)
Teh:
In order to satisfy my Thai Steamboat craving (after the unsatisfying trip to MooJaa), i made a trip down to Tom Yum Kungfu (16 Circular Road) on a weekday. Please sms your reservation (highly encouraged) to this no. 9375 5736 with your name, time of arrival, no. of pax, preference for outside or inside seating. I recommend sitting outside as it can be really smokey and stuffy inside once the place gets packed. Please note they are close on Sundays.
My friend and i ordered the $38 set (came with marinated pork, pork belly, scallops, prawns, fish cake, tang hoon, xiao bai cai, golden mushroom, white cabbage, beancurd skin) and an additional packet of thai tom yum instant noodles ($1.80). The seasoning really gave the soup stock a different dimension! This serving is makes a satisfying meal for 2 hungry women. Just like my first visit, the pork is tender is well marinate, the prawns are big and fresh. We added the instant noodle seasoning to the normal soup and it instantly became tom yum soup! The chilli sauce goes very well with the cooked food. It was spicy and slightly sourish, a real treat for the taste buds. We finished the meal by cooking the instant noodles in the soup. It was most excellent! Look at the pictures i took!
In order to satisfy my Thai Steamboat craving (after the unsatisfying trip to MooJaa), i made a trip down to Tom Yum Kungfu (16 Circular Road) on a weekday. Please sms your reservation (highly encouraged) to this no. 9375 5736 with your name, time of arrival, no. of pax, preference for outside or inside seating. I recommend sitting outside as it can be really smokey and stuffy inside once the place gets packed. Please note they are close on Sundays.
My friend and i ordered the $38 set (came with marinated pork, pork belly, scallops, prawns, fish cake, tang hoon, xiao bai cai, golden mushroom, white cabbage, beancurd skin) and an additional packet of thai tom yum instant noodles ($1.80). The seasoning really gave the soup stock a different dimension! This serving is makes a satisfying meal for 2 hungry women. Just like my first visit, the pork is tender is well marinate, the prawns are big and fresh. We added the instant noodle seasoning to the normal soup and it instantly became tom yum soup! The chilli sauce goes very well with the cooked food. It was spicy and slightly sourish, a real treat for the taste buds. We finished the meal by cooking the instant noodles in the soup. It was most excellent! Look at the pictures i took!
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| Outside seating area |
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| Tom Yum Kungfu Steamboat menu |
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| Tom Yum Kungfu side menu |
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| Tom Yum Kungfu Steamboat |
Tuesday, 12 March 2013
Singourmet - Singapore Curry Sauce
Teh:
During one of my shopping trips to Singapore Food Industries, i can given a free pack of Singourmet Singapore Curry Sauce because i spent over $50 (or $60 i can't remember).
I decided to follow the instructions closely and not add any other stuff to see how the original taste like. When i read the instructions, i was puzzled. 60g of potatoes and 80g of chicken (or other meat) are to be added to this mix. In case you were wondering, 60g of potato is how much 1 medium sized potato weighs. 1 chicken drumstick will surely exceed 80g worth of meat. Now, looking back at the serving size, it says 3-4 pax. One word - W.E.I.R.D.
I followed my own good common sense and used 4 medium sized potatoes (cut into 2) and 4 drumsticks because i wanted to serve 4 pax! I first browned the meat and the potato. Next i added the curry sauce and some water. I did not add any other seasoning except for some soy sauce. I let the curry simmer until the potatoes and chicken are cooked.
During one of my shopping trips to Singapore Food Industries, i can given a free pack of Singourmet Singapore Curry Sauce because i spent over $50 (or $60 i can't remember).
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| Singourmet Singapore Curry Sauce |
I decided to follow the instructions closely and not add any other stuff to see how the original taste like. When i read the instructions, i was puzzled. 60g of potatoes and 80g of chicken (or other meat) are to be added to this mix. In case you were wondering, 60g of potato is how much 1 medium sized potato weighs. 1 chicken drumstick will surely exceed 80g worth of meat. Now, looking back at the serving size, it says 3-4 pax. One word - W.E.I.R.D.
I followed my own good common sense and used 4 medium sized potatoes (cut into 2) and 4 drumsticks because i wanted to serve 4 pax! I first browned the meat and the potato. Next i added the curry sauce and some water. I did not add any other seasoning except for some soy sauce. I let the curry simmer until the potatoes and chicken are cooked.
Although the package also says "Ready in 10 minutes", it is not true unless your chicken and potatoes are already cooked. Please give allowance for cooking time. 30 minutes more like it.
Conclusion: The curry was oily but it was ok after i scooped the red oil out. It's taste is acceptable and the sauce is relatively thick if you do not add too much water. However it is of course in no way comparable to those sold outside. But i suppose if you are staying overseas long term, it can be a substitute for the real thing. If you are looking to fix a quick meal, it is pretty effortless. There is no need to add coconut milk unlike some other brands. Since i have not tried any other curry mix, i am unable to compare the taste. My search for the perfect curry mix will continue!
What's your preferred brand?
Monday, 11 March 2013
MooJaa (Thai BBQ Steamboat) @ 25 Keong Saik Road
Yesterday i was out at MooJaa (Thai BBQ SteamBoat) @ 25 Keong Siak Road. We decided to check out that place because Tom Yum Kungfu was not open (now i know they are closed on Sundays) and after seeing some positive reviews of MooJaa online. That being said, i must say i was quite disappointed with the food. Maybe because i was thinking Tom Yum Kungfu standard, but MooJaa did not live up to my expectations.
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| MooJaa interior |
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| Thai Ice Tea, Cheese Balls and Fried Fish Skin |
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| Placing of ingredients on steamboat |
Half way through eating, i heard a staff telling a new table of customers behind us that they ran out of Kurobuta Pork. There were also other items that were out of stock, e.g. Pork belly, prawn balls etc.
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| Moo Kata @ MooJaa |
Unlike at Tom Yum Kungfu, there was no option to buy a pack of tom yum instant noodles to add to the soup for that tom yum taste. Although the place was relatively smoke free (they had those sucking air thingy near the steamboat), my clothes still smelled abit after our meal.
Owners of MooJaa, if you are reading this, I suggest making a few changes (in no particular order) for your consideration:
1) Please marinate all meat.
2) Ensure sliced meat are thin enough.
3) Always have enough food stock.
4) Sell tom yum instant noodles.
5) Always check with the customer what they want to order.
6) Bigger prawns please! More Kurobuta Pork and Angus Beef!
7) Instead of saying the set is not enough for 2 pax, why not suggest we order other a la carte items like your tom yum soup etc for a wider variety of food.
Conclusion: Definitely going back to Tom Yum Kungfu in future.
MooJaa
25 Keong Saik Road S(089132)
Tel: 6536 4780
Wednesday, 6 March 2013
My heart is still in Phuket!
Teh:
Yes, i was at Phuket!! It was my 2nd trip there and more mellow than my first trip. Here are some useful tibits of information you may like to read about if you are going for a holiday in that sunny paradise!
How to get from the airport to your hotel:
Once you exit from the terminal halls, there will be people asking you if you want to take their transport to the beaches (Kata, Patong, Surin etc). On both occasions, we took our transport with the company P.M.K. They have booths right outside the airport. If you are sharing a mini van (sits 9 people) to Patong, it cost 150 baht per pax. The van will only leave when it is full. You probably won't have to wait long. If you have 4 people in your group, you can opt to go in a private car. A trip to Patong cost 800 baht. Although taking the car will cost more than the van, i think not having to share the journey with noisy strangers is worth paying more for. Besides, the car will go straight to your hotel but the van will stop along the beach to drop tourists off, depending on which hotel comes first. The van or car will surely make a stop at their tour agency office. They will try to sell you some tour packages. It is ok to tell them you do not need any package. If they try to sell the ride back to the airport on your day of departure, i advise you not to book with them. I will explain why later in this post.
Hotel:
On my 1st holiday to Phuket, we stayed at Aspery Hotel. We loved it so much that we stayed there on the 2nd time too! If i'm going back to Phuket again, i will stay there! That's how much i love the place. Aspery Hotel is located at the quiet side of the beach, near to the road leading back to town. It is only a 2 minute walk away from the beach. The rooms are new and clean. No complains. On my 2nd trip, the hotel staff was thoughtful enough to suggest a family suite to us since the 2 rooms allocated to us were not connected and were on different floors. The family suite consists of 2 rooms (with individual doors that could be locked for privacy), 2 showers, 2 sinks but only 1 toilet bowl. Each room came with it's own safe, TV and fridge. One of the bigger rooms had a sitting area with table and sofas. There is an "infinite pool" at the rooftop. The pool is quite small. It's really a joke to call it an "infinite pool". But we had fun lounging on the deck chairs, drinking ice cold beer and eating Pad Thai when hunger strikes.
Eat:
Not too far from our hotel is a zichar place we frequented. Just walk towards the beach, turn left at the junction. The place is a little further up, on the side of the beach. I cannot remember the name of the place nor did i take any pictures of the signboard. But it is opposite a japanese restaurant call "Shou". All the staff there from Myanmar. They were very friendly! They'll even stop traffic for you to help you cross if you are on the other side trying to get to them. We had BBQ lobster there. It was 200 baht per 100g. Our's was 800g. 4 of us shared. We also other 5 other dishes including fish cake, vegetables, big deep fried fish (very fresh!), tom yam soup, stir fried beef with basil, rice (thai fragrant rice! sooo good!) and of course beer. The bill came up to 3000 baht. While it is not dirt cheap, it is value for money! Can you find a decent sized lobster for $50 in Singapore? In the evening from 5 to 11pm, they have outside sitting area right at the beach. You can enjoy the sea breeze and waves while having dinner under the open sky. You will be treated to mini firework displays when other tourists buy to set them off! One of the nights we had big grilled prawns. They cost 500 baht for 1 kg. There were around 7 huge prawns. Not the king prawns type of size. They were one size smaller. Very fresh and tasty. Try the fried squid (Calamari) if possible. All of us were craving for it when we got back to Singapore!
Shop:
There were plenty of shops that sells t-shirts, sunglasses, bikinis, slippers etc. Bargaining is a must. I suck at bargaining and hence, i did not buy anything at all.
Phuket Town:
Here's a short bit of information on how to get to Phuket Town. Stand along the road near the beach. You'll see a big blue bus coming. That's the bus to take to Phuket Town. You can flag it down along the road. There are no bus stops. If in doubt, check with the bus conductor before boarding. It is supposed to come every 30 minutes. We waited around 15 minutes before it turned up. It cost 25 baht each pax to go to Phuket Town. The journey takes about 30 minutes. This bus will also stop along the way at 2 big shopping centres. We didn't go there but we saw other tourists getting off. The bus conductor will announce when the bus arrives there. In Phuket Town, we stopped at this roundabout thing with a status in the middle. As we did not have ample information on how to get around Phuket Town, we only managed to walk the surrounding area. There was not much shopping to be done. The place reminded me of Malacca with it's shophouses. One thing about Phuket Town is the bottled water cost half of those in Patong!! After an hour, we decided to head back to Patong. But where is the bus? We happened to chance upon the "bus terminal" while walking around. At the roundabout where you were dropped off, look for a Marie-France ad. Look at where the lady in the ad is facing, that's the direction you should go to find the buses back to the beaches! There are many buses that are like covered lorries. They are all blue. On each bus, they'll state the beach they go to. Just board the buses/lorries. They'll leave when it is 75% full. The journey back to Patong cost 30 baht from 1 March 2013 onwards. The bus conductor will collect the fare when on the way to Patong. Be prepared to squeeze abit on the bus as it can get crowded. If you want to alight, just stand up and walk towards the exit. The bus conductor will know you want to alight. It was a good short local adventure for us.
Island hopping:
On my 1st trip to Phuket, we went for the Koh Phi Phi tour. We booked our tour with the tour agency beside the hotel. It cost 1500 baht each pax. The tour includes pick-up from the hotel at 8am (or 8.30am). They sent us to a marina to board the speedboat with 20 over other tourists. They provided motion sickness pills FOC! The ride to the first island took quite awhile. I'm guessing about an hour. We sat at the head of the speedboat and were treated to the blazing hot sun and a bumpy ride. It was very enjoyable nevertheless! We went to a few island. Maya Bay was very beautiful except it was overcrowded. What's new? I had alot of fun snorkelling at one of the last beaches we were at. Yeah, i can't swim. So i only dared to snorkel on the beach. There were fishes to be seen! Lunch and drinks were provided. The tour ended around 4-5pm and they sent us back to the hotel. Remember to put plenty of sunblock on for this! They tried to sell us a video (DVD) of our tour for 2000 baht. It is OK to refuse. Do not feel pressurized to buy anything you don't need.
Clubbing:
Yes, i was at Phuket!! It was my 2nd trip there and more mellow than my first trip. Here are some useful tibits of information you may like to read about if you are going for a holiday in that sunny paradise!
How to get from the airport to your hotel:
Once you exit from the terminal halls, there will be people asking you if you want to take their transport to the beaches (Kata, Patong, Surin etc). On both occasions, we took our transport with the company P.M.K. They have booths right outside the airport. If you are sharing a mini van (sits 9 people) to Patong, it cost 150 baht per pax. The van will only leave when it is full. You probably won't have to wait long. If you have 4 people in your group, you can opt to go in a private car. A trip to Patong cost 800 baht. Although taking the car will cost more than the van, i think not having to share the journey with noisy strangers is worth paying more for. Besides, the car will go straight to your hotel but the van will stop along the beach to drop tourists off, depending on which hotel comes first. The van or car will surely make a stop at their tour agency office. They will try to sell you some tour packages. It is ok to tell them you do not need any package. If they try to sell the ride back to the airport on your day of departure, i advise you not to book with them. I will explain why later in this post.
Hotel:
On my 1st holiday to Phuket, we stayed at Aspery Hotel. We loved it so much that we stayed there on the 2nd time too! If i'm going back to Phuket again, i will stay there! That's how much i love the place. Aspery Hotel is located at the quiet side of the beach, near to the road leading back to town. It is only a 2 minute walk away from the beach. The rooms are new and clean. No complains. On my 2nd trip, the hotel staff was thoughtful enough to suggest a family suite to us since the 2 rooms allocated to us were not connected and were on different floors. The family suite consists of 2 rooms (with individual doors that could be locked for privacy), 2 showers, 2 sinks but only 1 toilet bowl. Each room came with it's own safe, TV and fridge. One of the bigger rooms had a sitting area with table and sofas. There is an "infinite pool" at the rooftop. The pool is quite small. It's really a joke to call it an "infinite pool". But we had fun lounging on the deck chairs, drinking ice cold beer and eating Pad Thai when hunger strikes.
Eat:
Not too far from our hotel is a zichar place we frequented. Just walk towards the beach, turn left at the junction. The place is a little further up, on the side of the beach. I cannot remember the name of the place nor did i take any pictures of the signboard. But it is opposite a japanese restaurant call "Shou". All the staff there from Myanmar. They were very friendly! They'll even stop traffic for you to help you cross if you are on the other side trying to get to them. We had BBQ lobster there. It was 200 baht per 100g. Our's was 800g. 4 of us shared. We also other 5 other dishes including fish cake, vegetables, big deep fried fish (very fresh!), tom yam soup, stir fried beef with basil, rice (thai fragrant rice! sooo good!) and of course beer. The bill came up to 3000 baht. While it is not dirt cheap, it is value for money! Can you find a decent sized lobster for $50 in Singapore? In the evening from 5 to 11pm, they have outside sitting area right at the beach. You can enjoy the sea breeze and waves while having dinner under the open sky. You will be treated to mini firework displays when other tourists buy to set them off! One of the nights we had big grilled prawns. They cost 500 baht for 1 kg. There were around 7 huge prawns. Not the king prawns type of size. They were one size smaller. Very fresh and tasty. Try the fried squid (Calamari) if possible. All of us were craving for it when we got back to Singapore!
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| zichar place |
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| 800g lobster |
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| grilled prawns |
You have to try this Banana Pancake. Its like crispy roti prata with ingredients inside. It cost 50 baht for a banana nutella one. That's my favourite.
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| Banana Nutella Pancake with condense milk |
There were plenty of shops that sells t-shirts, sunglasses, bikinis, slippers etc. Bargaining is a must. I suck at bargaining and hence, i did not buy anything at all.
Phuket Town:
Here's a short bit of information on how to get to Phuket Town. Stand along the road near the beach. You'll see a big blue bus coming. That's the bus to take to Phuket Town. You can flag it down along the road. There are no bus stops. If in doubt, check with the bus conductor before boarding. It is supposed to come every 30 minutes. We waited around 15 minutes before it turned up. It cost 25 baht each pax to go to Phuket Town. The journey takes about 30 minutes. This bus will also stop along the way at 2 big shopping centres. We didn't go there but we saw other tourists getting off. The bus conductor will announce when the bus arrives there. In Phuket Town, we stopped at this roundabout thing with a status in the middle. As we did not have ample information on how to get around Phuket Town, we only managed to walk the surrounding area. There was not much shopping to be done. The place reminded me of Malacca with it's shophouses. One thing about Phuket Town is the bottled water cost half of those in Patong!! After an hour, we decided to head back to Patong. But where is the bus? We happened to chance upon the "bus terminal" while walking around. At the roundabout where you were dropped off, look for a Marie-France ad. Look at where the lady in the ad is facing, that's the direction you should go to find the buses back to the beaches! There are many buses that are like covered lorries. They are all blue. On each bus, they'll state the beach they go to. Just board the buses/lorries. They'll leave when it is 75% full. The journey back to Patong cost 30 baht from 1 March 2013 onwards. The bus conductor will collect the fare when on the way to Patong. Be prepared to squeeze abit on the bus as it can get crowded. If you want to alight, just stand up and walk towards the exit. The bus conductor will know you want to alight. It was a good short local adventure for us.
Island hopping:
On my 1st trip to Phuket, we went for the Koh Phi Phi tour. We booked our tour with the tour agency beside the hotel. It cost 1500 baht each pax. The tour includes pick-up from the hotel at 8am (or 8.30am). They sent us to a marina to board the speedboat with 20 over other tourists. They provided motion sickness pills FOC! The ride to the first island took quite awhile. I'm guessing about an hour. We sat at the head of the speedboat and were treated to the blazing hot sun and a bumpy ride. It was very enjoyable nevertheless! We went to a few island. Maya Bay was very beautiful except it was overcrowded. What's new? I had alot of fun snorkelling at one of the last beaches we were at. Yeah, i can't swim. So i only dared to snorkel on the beach. There were fishes to be seen! Lunch and drinks were provided. The tour ended around 4-5pm and they sent us back to the hotel. Remember to put plenty of sunblock on for this! They tried to sell us a video (DVD) of our tour for 2000 baht. It is OK to refuse. Do not feel pressurized to buy anything you don't need.
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| Our speedboat |
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| Souvenir pics to be bought on one of the beaches |
Clubbing:
Let the party animal out! My favourite club at Bangla Soi is the "Tiger Cave". Ok maybe that's not the real name but there are many tigers on display and they look like they were in a cave like thing. You can't miss it. It is probably one of the biggest clubs along Bangla Soi. I was there on both trips. There are pole dancing for entertainment. On our 1st trip, we got on very well with one of the bartenders. We even took some pictures together. On our 2nd trip, we found her still working there! And the most miraculous thing is she recognised us! What are the chances? She was very friendly and hospitable. Before we left, she said "see you next year".
Going to the Airport:
I suggest you book the taxi back to the airport with the hotel. If the taxi failed to turn up, at least you have someone concrete to give pressure to. It should cost 800 baht for a car. On our 2nd trip, we booked with P.M.K when they tried to sell us packages. We paid a 300 baht deposit but the driver did not turn up. We waited 40 minutes, got the hotel staff to call the number on the receipt but nobody picked up the phone. In the end, we decided to get another taxi. The lady at Aspery Hotel's travel desk was our savior. She made her call to her driver immediately when she knew we needed another taxi. She did not take the chance to jack up the price or anything. Her driver came within 5 minutes and we were off to the airport. As there was an accident in Phuket Town, we heard the main road was jammed. Maybe that's why the PMK driver did not turn up? Anyway, our new driver took another route to the airport. With his superb driving skills, he overtook cars and squeezed into impossibly small lanes just to get us to the airport on time. We made it in 50 minutes, in time for check in!
Conclusion:
Will i go back to Phuket again? You bet!
Conclusion:
Will i go back to Phuket again? You bet!
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