Coffee Club - Gimme a Burger!

Skipper's Delight Penne ($14++)

I've never thought of dinning in O'Coffee Club; what nice food can a little cafe kitchen actually cooked up, right? So, it's their GSS 1-for-1 meal promotion that brought us here to have a try.

The penne dish was your average pasta drenched in a queer tasting lobster sauce; pan-fried fish fillets topped with aromatic lemon, garlic and rosemary crust was juicy and fresh, atoning the boo-boo.

O'Coffee Club Burger with Bacon ($13.80++)

And then, i fell in love with the O'Coffee Burger...! Or rather, it was the gloriously thick and juicy prime beef patty that it comes with. Heavenly French fries too!

We were at their Clarke Quay outlet, and their burger makes us returned soon - but visiting their Central Mall outlet a week later, was such an oversight. The burger and accompanying fries were disastrous.

 Chicken & Turkey Sandwich ($12.50++)

This was a nice crunchy toast plumped up by stuffing of Cajun chicken and healthy smoked turkey, moistures by a rich heap of fluffy scrambled eggs and melted gruyere cheese. This is enjoyable.

O'Coffee Club Coffee with Egg ($12.40++)

Where to watch the National Day Fireworks!

Tonight's our first visit to The Promontory at Marina Bay - we didn't know this place offers some of the best night scenery of the Singapore city! What's best? The vast open landscape provides lots of standing room to accommodate everyone!

And it is super windy! you could definitely fly a kite here. Perfect for an evening picnic; bet we'll be here more often ;)

It was just one of the Saturday of full-dressed rehearsal for the forthcoming National Day Parade and we didn't bother with tripod set up; Ric just snapped these photos with the automatic night scene mode on our Sony Alpha 550. Turns out pretty well, though not of professional quality and with most shots being over-exposed.

Tips: With camera on tripod, set your camera to ISO 100 and aperture of at least F11 to avoid over-exposure.

Update: Returned to the same venue for the official National Day Preview on 30 Jul '10 to catch the state flag fly-past with 5 thundering fighter jets and much grander pyrotechnics display! I later learned that it was just 50% of the total firework that would be released on the actual day! So, beat the crowd and consider to be there on 9th Aug ;)

Happy 46th birthday, Majulah Singapore!

茗香菜馆, Beng Hiang Restaurant

Well known for serving authentic Hokkien cuisine, Beng Hiang Restaurant is one of the oldest and best Hokkien restaurants in Singapore. Serving their customers quality ingredients and cooking with reasonable pricing seems to be always the order of the day.

We had ordered 3 of their signature dishes which we used to have; of course, there's much more on the menu that we wish to have on our next trip here ;)

蚧肉鱼鳔羹, Fish Maw Thick Soup with Crab Meat ($18+)

香脆蚝煎, Fried Oysters with Egg ($12+)

炒面线, Traditional Vermicelli, "Mee-Sua" ($7+)

Visit the restaurant if like us, you value decent, sincere cooking without an overdose of MSG and elaborated food presentations. The dishes were flavourful and tasted naturally seasoned; this is a trait we looked for in restaurant dining.

Red Bean Soup (Table charges of $1+ per pax include the day Dessert, Tea and Napkins! )

曾入几人离恨中。。

青青一树伤心色，曾入几人离恨中。  ~ 白居易 “青门柳”

I read this verse off a composition about "Learning the Departures of Life" in our Chinese Dailies, the 联合早报. Given my weak Chinese literature, the poem strike me as a beautifully sorrow poem about parting - i need source out its meaning online: -

The tree is the Willow, 柳树. Ancient men had a farewell custom of bending a stalk of its leaves; the action of such, sounds like and meant, "Don't wish you to go, but had to let you go." The great anguish shadows the greens of Willow in gloominess..

Fern Tree Cafe @ Hotel Miramar

Because of the poor publicity Miramar Hotel has, we had rather low expectation of our 1-for-1 International buffet lunch ($32++ per pax) at their lobby Cafe - the Fern Tree. But boy was i excited! as i inspected the spread; there was so much food!

"Let's start, there's so much food!" I told Ric after my photo shot of the buffet line ;) i couldn't wait!

 Seafood (Mussels, Prawns, Salmon) with White Wine Lemon Butter Sauce

 Lamb Leg with Garlic & Sauce

Besides the above western cuisine representation, there was also some fine Mini Steak with Red Wine Sauce and Mashed Potato bake.

 Sweet & Sour Cuttlefish

 Sweet & Sour Fish Fillet

 Braised Chicken Wings

 Mutton & Chicken Satay

Followed by some really delectable local selections; not forgetting their Roast Duck with Plum sauce which i don't have a photo to show for :(

 Salad Table !

Particularly indulged in this plateful of assorted salad Ric had assembled! I was amazed by the quality standard of the well-chilled salad mix; would certainly love a repeat if i wasn't saving my stomach for other samplings. 

The Roasted Pork and Char Siew were worth a special mention too! A repeat would be good if we could afford; with their fragrant Chicken rice :) Boy, i need a cow's stomach here.

Poached Prawns, Mussels and Salmon Sashimi

As an alternative to these light selections, there's also a deep fried area for Japanese Tempura of prawns, eggplants and sweet potato. I had enjoyed both.

DIY - Yong Tau Foo Laksa !

Braised Chicken Feet & Har Gau

Two Dim Sum representation from Hong Kong of well braised Phoenix Claws and passable Prawn Dumplings.

We believed Chicken Feet aficionado would have as good a time as our neighbouring table who polished off at least 10 saucers of these! - didn't mean to spy, but his frequent trips to the table were plainly obvious ;) Good for him. 

Chocolate Mousse, Nonya Kueh, Cookies and Cakes

When we reached the end of the meal, we could barely stomach a round of desserts, there was so much more than what's shown here! A nip and pinch about was all we could swallow as we struggled to leave after a full plate of fruits and cupful of thick coffee ;))

Blogging the meal makes me bloat with satisfaction; yet again. 

Cut Fruits with Chocolate Fountain options

LANXESS: A Musical Chemistry in the Woods

In celebration with the International Year of Chemistry, German specialty chemicals company Lanxess put up a Symphony Orchestra Concert with The Singapore National Youth Orchestra in the outdoor of the Botanic Gardens.

Together with guest conductor, Jason Lai, it was a rousing performance of:
Richard Wagner: Overture to "Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg"
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky: ‘Andante cantabile’ from Symphony No. 5
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky: ‘Allegro vivace’ from Violin Concerto in D major, op. 35 (Selina Tang, Violin)
John Williams: Harry Potter & The Sorcerer's Stone

As if the working of chemistry, i was overwhelmed by the pieces from John Williams & the Potter instead of my much anticipated Tchaikovsky; the Sorcerer's Stone does have that magical allure to the finale of the evening..

The Ongz Cafe, 王氏

"Mapo" Spicy Tofu; Value Meal for 2 ($20++)

Ongz Cafe was a westernized decorated cafe where a menu of both Chinese and Western cuisine were offered. Opting for their Chinese cooking, the waitress recommended their all day value meal of $20++ for a selection of 2 vegetables and 1 meat from the standard menu.

Armed with a $10 discount coupon from Superdeals, the value of this meal was thus very much promoted. Even before considering their quality of craft cooking. Yes, it was an enjoyable dinner, relaxing over a background playing of popular hits from the 80's..

Stir Fried French Bean/ w minced meat

Salt & Pepper Pork Ribs

Harvey Fresh, Carrot :)

Harvey Fresh Carrot Juice, 1 litre (Promotional Price $1.45)

How many types of packaged Carrot Juice have i tried? Not many actually. Used to enjoy the ones from Pokka Carrot Fruit Juice until Harvey Fresh from the Western Australia came along in our local market.

What makes it different from the usual sweetness of fruit juices was its distinct hint of raw, bitter greenness you taste in its carrot juices and i like that. It's like drinking juicy raw carrots. Very real. 

Given an option, it's Carrot over Orange juices.

And there's also something about the Beta-carotene in carrots that converts to vitamin A in the body and helps improve vision. Vitamin A helps vision by forming a purple pigment called rhodopsin that the eye needs in order to be able to see in dim light. The more vitamin A you get, the more rhodopsin your body is able to produce. In addition, Beta-carotene is one of the most antioxidants in the carrot, and helps the immune system to target and destroy cancer cells in the body, also protecting cells against free radicals!

In Paradise with Seafood

Signature Creamy Butter Crab, 1.1kg ($52.80++, $48 per kg)

Seafood Paradise, we heard so much about their much acclaimed Creamy Butter Crab and had yet tried them until today. Singaporeans are so spoil with all the good Chili Crab available island wide that we constantly sought out new recipe to have our crabs ;) 

And this is 1 really delicious recipe to please both the butter-loving Asian and Westerners! Mildly sweet, flavorful and warmly creamy with crispy coconut crumbs, you would wish to drink it all up! It's well worth our tireless effort of working the crab bounded by short lunch hour.

Fried Bee Hoon in XO Sauce ($12++)

The fried Bee Hoon was a good attempt of heated wok frying with glass vermicelli. It however pales in comparison with the Carbohydrate option of deep fried steamed buns, 馒头 ($0.60++ per piece) that would much compliments the Butter Crab.

Do order more fried buns as your choice Carbo ;) i would.

味香, Wei Xiang Lu Mian

Was i crazy to have Lor Mee two days in a row? Maybe :) But they can be quite different sometimes; and i'm not really tired of them - loving its vinegary gooey gravy.

This stall in Telok Blangah Crescent Food Centre has been in business for near 40 years! Yes, in this same hawker centre. I had some childhood memory of them and had asked the stall owner for confirmation.

Lor Mee ($2.50)

Wei Xiang does not serve my favourite rendition of Lor Mee though; they dished very traditional Hokkien Lor Mee of dark browned gravy rather than the common black ones - bringing them in league with the famous 源春驰名卤面 at Amoy Street. I was not accustomed to the taste but Ric could vouch its authenticity.

I however identify with their meticulously prepared ingredients of shredded fried fish fillets, ngor hiang and braised pork belly! They tasted as nostalgia as what i used to have at home.

Dining in Protected Area - the Jurong Island!

Oasis @ Sakra Building

There is a risk running this post as i wish to share about this noodle stall in the Oasis Food Court sited in Singapore Jurong Island. Why the risk? Cos this petrochemical invested island was gazetted as a Protected Place after the 911 terrorist attack; access into the isle was limited to registered employees and visitors only.

That left many baffled about the industrialised isle; have no doubt though, akin to our main land industrial parks, greening of the place has been active. You may be amazed by the beautiful vast vegetation as you drive along the island highway!

However, never waive your cameras about here. Due to very valid security reasons, photographic equipment brought into the island has to be declared and approved by the Island Security; exercise your discreet. We shall see more of the food photos and have just 1 'camouflage' photo of the Oasis building - where the island food court is sited. So shall you are invited here for business, and needing a place to lunch, you will know where to head to ;)

Newton Meng Kee Prawn Noodle House

And this is the stall! We used to patronise them so often when they were in Jurong Logistics Hub at Jurong Port Road. Missing them for a while as they quietly relocate into Jurong Island.

Ric found them. And i have my favourite Prawn noodles and Lor Mee once again! But only when i get to come into the island :( See the long queue? They are still the most popular stall here.

Meng Kee served a version of very palatable prawn noodles, popular on all days. But on every Wed, Fri, they have a special of Lor Mee! And we kind of got addicted to these too.

Be early! If you don't wish to be disappointed with a sold out by 1pm or 12pm! We suffered during our last visit and make it earlier today for lunch at 11am. Haha... ;)

Lor Mee ($3)