A bit of Vietnam

Lately i have been trying out some vietnamese food because i'm under the impression that Vietnamese food seems a lot healthier?

I've tried out two places– Crystal Jade Viet Cafe and Sandwich Saigon. Can i just say that they are two completely different restaurants? The quality of food is also really different. I didn't like the Crystal Jade Viet Cafe at all and they should probably stick to Chinese food. Sandwich Saigon however was a really nice place to have Vietnamese food. They really live up to their name. I enjoyed their sandwiches so much.

So anyway, Gab and I headed to the Crystal Jade Viet Cafe at Bugis+. We decided to try this new place we saw for dinner since we were waiting for The Hunger Games to start. Unfortunately, this place really disappointed us. It did not taste like Vietnamese food. 

To be honest, the only saving grace of this restaurant was its really nice interior.

Vietnamese Vermicelli with Fried Fish Cake ($8.90)

This came with sauces which you could mix with the noodles as the noodles isn't seasoned. But even though i had mixed the sauces in, it still tasted bland. The sauce didn't look too healthy too. It was just oil? The fish cake was too fishy of my liking. This was served cold too. I definitely did not enjoy this dish at all.

Chicken Pho ($8.90)

Gab had ordered this and the soup was bland. I couldn't really taste the chicken broth. We couldn't really taste the chicken broth. The pho was not of good quality was well. It had a very rough texture compared to some of the phos we've tried before. I was thinking that Crystal Jade would actually serve something of better quality and we were both very disappointed with our meals.

Well, but this didn't stop us from trying Vietnamese food. We actually walked past Sandwich Saigon, which to our surprise was really crowded! We thought that the food must have been pretty good so we decided to head inside to try it out. The food was really great and we've been making trips back to this place for their very awesome sandwiches!

Menu

Fresh Spring Rolls with Prawns ($5.50)

We were in high hopes when we ordered this but it didn't meet our expectations. Sadly, although the sandwiches were perfect this didn't taste as good. The prawns were halved and there were only three of those halved prawns for one roll. Also, there's absolutely zero dressing in this and this was filled with vermicelli. Certainly not what we were expecting as we didn't want additional carbs to our meal.

Smoked Chicken Sandwich ($5.90)

This costs us only $5.90 with no GST and service charge! Yay! I really enjoyed this because the bread was so crispy and there was so little mayo but it still tasted really good? I liked how they added the Chinese parsley. It gave the whole sandwich such a refreshing taste.

Garlic Chicken Sandwich ($5.90)

This was even better than the Smoked Chicken Sandwich! I like how they seasoned the chicken in a really sweet sauce. There wasn't so strong a garlic taste. If i were to go back, this would definitely be on my order list!

In generally, i really enjoy Vietnamese food because it's really healthy. I'll definitely be on the look out for more Vietnamese restaurants in future! 

Crystal Jade Viet Cafe

201 Victoria Street

#04-05 Bugis+

Tel: 65099698

Sandwich Saigon (Closed every Monday)

93 East Coast Road

Tel: 63453849

https://www.facebook.com/SandwichSaigon

Food updates! More Sushi Tei and more Food For Thought

I remember mentioning that Sushi Tei was one of my favourite places to go. It so near school so i always head to the Raffles City outlet after classes. I have blogged about my experience at Sushi Tei at the Big Splash outlet. You can view that blog post here: http://doriateo.blogspot.sg/2014/11/sunday-at-sushi-tei.html 

We tried new dishes this time. I thought they were all equally fantastic and Sushi Tei really never fails!

Hokkaido Corn Cream Croquette ($8.60)

When this first came i was so impressed! It looks so presentable and even came with a sauce which we could dip the croquettes in. Although i'm not a fan of croquettes and not a fan of corn, i really enjoyed this dish. It was deep fried to perfection on the outside.

The inside revealed a very piping hot sweet cream with corn bits. I almost burned my tongue because it was so piping hot inside. The only drawback about this dish is its calories. Sigh. Deep fried and cream is such a diet killer.

Kani Mentai Mayo Roll ($8.60)

This is one of the sushis we usually order as well. I really like the mayo sauce on it. It's too good because they torch it over a flame and there is this smoky flavour to it. Inside the sushi is deep fried crab meat. So perfect. And such a good substitute for shiok maki because of its mayo sauce.

Yaki Udon ($10.80)

I'm a fan of Yaki Udon or Yaki Soba and i just thought that i had to try this. I've tried a lot of different kinds of Yaki Udon but i thought this didn't meet my expectations. Definitely not getting this again, it was such a disappointment. It was too sour for my liking; they had probably used too much of the tonkatsu sauce. I've tried better.

Sushi Tei
Raffles City Shopping Centre
252 North Bridge Road #03-13/14
Tel: 63347887

During the exam period, i've also been heading to Food For Thought. I've blogged about the outlet at Queen Street and you can read my blog post here: http://doriateo.blogspot.sg/2014/11/food-for-thought-queen-street.html

This time i headed to the outlet at National Museum instead of the one at Queen Street. It's closer to my school and SMU students get a 20% discount off from Mondays to Fridays. To relieve stress, i've been heading to Food For Thought in hopes that i could feel better after a good meal. Hahaha. I think food really affects my mood and good food makes me happy, of course!

Full Works ($22)

 I ordered their Full Works this time and i'm always so pleased with it. The hash browns are my favourite. It's unhealthy but so worth the calories. I suppose it's the same with bacon. The scrambled eggs are perfect. It's so fluffy and Food For Thought certainly got their consistency right. The bread is toasted but not crunchy. The edges are but the white bread is so soft. Probably my favourite part of this meal. It's good that this meal came with salad too. But to be honest, this dish is definitely still unhealthy, which explains why sometimes i have a love-hate relationship with Full Works– It's such a good breakfast, but such an unhealthy one. I hope i'm not stopping you from ordering this though, it certainly is worth the calories!

Also, the ambience of this place deserves 5 stars. It's quiet. In the morning, there are a lot of people having a cup of coffee and reading their books. It's cool as well as this place is air conditioned (unlike the one at Queen Street!). You can also hold events here as well. It's a very secluded and quiet place and they'll probably draw the foldable doors so that your event can be a more private one.

Food For Thought
National Museum Singapore
93 Stamford Road #01-04/05
Tel: 63389887

I'm a fan of Supply & Demand!

I spent my monday night with Gabriel checking out Supply & Demand. I've always wanted to dine here but never got the chance to visit this place during the school term. Since we were in the area, we finally decided to look up this place and give this place a shot!

It didn't disappoint and the food was fantastic– both for its taste and for its price.

I love the interior of the place. It had a very rustic feel to it and it was really homely. The orange lights were pretty dim as well and it was quite quiet. It's a really nice and relaxed setting to have a date.

They have this really long counter where they do some preparations of our meals.

Even their menu had such a rustic feel to it. It's so old school!

Pollo E Piselli

I had ordered this pasta dish and i was extremely impressed by this! I think this is very value for money considering that such good pasta dishes usually cost above $20? This only costs me $18! You can choose either spaghetti or penne pasta for this. I love how the penne pasta was al dente. The cream sauce that came with it was so so good. The menu describes it to be a cheese infused cream sauce and i found that the cheese was not overpowering at all. It was just right. I could also taste some blue cheese in it as well.

There were green peas in the pasta as well. Although i found this slightly odd, i thought it was an interesting twist. Don't worry, the peas aren't the frozen peas you normally get off the supermarket. The pasta came with sundried tomatoes and parsley as well which i thought was a good fit to the dish. I really enjoyed this so much and would definitely recommend you to get it if you really enjoy creamy sauces.

Roasted Chicken

This costs us $17. Compared to other places serving similar dishes this was definitely worth the price. You can find this under the "Carte Blanche" section of the menu. You can order any meat you want– fish, chicken, beef, pork, lamb, wagyu. The chef will prepare the meat according to however he wants to for the day. So if you order this, just a word of caution, you might not get the exact same dish shown in the picture above.

Gab was brave enough to order this even though we didn't know what we would end up getting. It turned out really great anyway! The salad was so well marinated in the dressing. It was a sweet dressing with a tangy tinge to it; nothing like what i've tasted before. This dish also came with potato salad (which is hidden in the photo above). The potato salad was average, pretty much like the one at Ashtons. The chicken was grilled and seasoned in a sweet sauce. Even though it was grilled, it was not dry at all! The chicken was also topped with olives, french beans and bell peppers. I thought this was a perfect mix.

I'll be ending this post with two photos of us just so you could have a look at the surroundings of where we were sitting and gain a perspective of the general ambience of this cafe. It's really laid back and chill. It really reminds me quite a lot of The Coastal Settlement at Changi. If you're looking for fanciful tables and chairs, you can't expect much from this place though; We sat on really plain looking metal chairs.

This place however is fantastic for get togethers or casual dining. If you're looking for good food around the area, this place is definitely recommended as well!

Supply & Demand (Near ThaiExpress)
#01-13 Esplanade, Colours by the Bay
8 Raffles Avenue
Tel: 63360588
https://www.facebook.com/supplydemandsin 

View my updated post at: http://doriateo.blogspot.sg/2015/01/christmas-day.html

Mucota treatment at Focus Hairdressing

VIEW MY UPDATED POST HERE: http://doriateo.blogspot.sg/2016/06/mucota-hair-treatment-by-headlines-by.html

I'm always on the look out for natural soft rebonding. Although my hair is naturally straight, it's very very frizzy and it always ends up in tangles. 

Just one year ago, i did my rebonding at Twister (under Monsoon Group) at Tampines One. I opted for their bodily straight treatment. It costs me a total damage of about $270 (including cut and wash)! I think it's very pricy for the length of hair i had during that time. The stylist told me that i had long hair? I mean… my hair looks more like a medium length… 

Bodily Straight at Twister

Even though i paid such a hefty price for it, the effects turned out really nice. My hair wasn't flat at all and there was still volume, considering that my hair was already quite flat. However, the effects were not lasting, after about 6 months later my hair started to become very frizzy and my ends were horribly dry.

The interior of Twister at Tampines 1

I sat here for about 4-5 hours. It was quite empty though because i was there during off-peak hours. The price for their bodily straight was really not value for money at all.

Fast forward 1 year, my hair was getting increasingly frizzy again. I had so many knots each time i washed my hair and every time i combed my hair, i was getting quite a bit of hair fall.

I wanted to try the Keratin treatments. IHowever, i've always been daunted by the fact that it contains formaldehyde (which is linked to causing cancer). I also considered Cosme rebonding at Shunji Matsuo, but i wasn't ready to fork out $280 for it! What's more it was only going to last for 6 months.

After much researching, i came across Mucota treatments. It's a Japanese brand and i thought this was great because it would definitely suit my Asian hair. Mucota treatment uses argan oil to treat your hair and make it straight. Mucota treatment at some salons costs $300 and above but i managed to find a salon which is definitely very value for money!

I  decided to head to Focus Hairdressing for my Mucota treatment. Focus Hairdressing uses Mucota products. It's at a very convenient location near Somerset MRT!

There are two types of Mucota treatment. Mucota Opera (which is more like rebonding) and Mucota Dyna. I opted for Mucota Opera. For Mucota Opera+treatment+cut, it only costs me $170, for my long hair. It took me a total of only 3 hours for the full process!

Credits to http://www.primegrp.asia/mucota/mucota-opera.html

From the website, it says that the Mucota Opera (which is what i did) offers:

• No strong chemical odour
• Improves hair texture
• Short period and limit damage

There are different types of Mucota Opera treatments (SNB Opera N, H, SH, or C) meant for different hair textures and the stylist will ask you a range of questions before deciding on what is suitable for you.

You can see that the final effect is very natural, soft and straight. I no longer need to worry about my frizzy hair or that my hair will become tangled each time i wash it.

You can also opt for a slightly pricey treatment. It is the Mucota Dyna treatment. The effect is just like soft rebonding and it'll last for 6 months. When i asked the stylist at Focus hairdressing, she told me they are charging $250, which is definitely less than what other places are offering. Mucota Dyna has a higher composition of Argan oil treatment product in it compared to Mucota Opera.

Credits to http://www.primegrp.asia/mucota/mucota-dyna.html

That really sums up my experience at Focus Hairdressing! They also informed me that i could colour hair for $130 (for long hair)! What's more, their products are ammonia free! I'm definitely coming back here again for any of their chemical treatments.

Focus Hairdressing
Cuppage Plaza
5 Koek Road
Singapore 228796
Tel: 68366608

https://www.facebook.com/FocusHairdressing

New hangout at Alt Pizza!

It's almost been a week since i last updated this blog! Exams are coming in a week's time and both Gab and I have been busy preparing for it.

I can't wait for exams to be over and i'll be free. I can't wait to start on my fitness regime again. And after that, we're headed to Australia for exchange! Oh and of course, who could forget that it's time for Christmas!

We headed to Alt. Pizza on our last day of school and surprisingly they serve very interesting flavors.

Menu

You can see from the menu that everything is pretty affordable! It's not too pricy unlike Skinny Pizza and definitely a better choice than Skinny Pizza!

I love the interior! They have a huge banner of all the Singapore icons.

What is this structure?!

Before our pizza came, one of the waiters placed this weird looking structure on our table and we were wondering what function this had…

When the pizzas came, we finally knew what it was for! It's such a clever idea, especially since our table was pretty small.

Garth Fader ($12)

I guess for $12, this was super affordable. The base was a generous spread of cream sauce. The pizza was topped with two different types of cheese– smoke cheddar and mozzarella. It came with roasted onions, artichoke and tomatoes. There was also pine nuts, which gave this pizza a crunch to it.

I can't get enough of their pizza base. It's thin crust, but not thin/biscuit like texture/crunchy like that of Skinny Pizza's. It's made up of a very thin but chewy dough and tasted so much more like a pizza crust.  The sauce of the pizza didn't drench the pizza base and the pizza base was not soggy at all. I guess they got their recipe right. The crust is perfect.

The pizza was sliced into 6 slices. I would say an average guy would probably eat 5 slices of this? Gabriel and I couldn't finish two pizzas on our own. We had over ordered!

Lean & Green ($14)

This tastes way better than it looks. The base was covered with pesto sauce. It had a good mix of two cheeses as well– Feta cheese and mozzarella. This pizza also came with bits of broccoli, baby spinach and roasted squash which provided somewhat a sweet flavor to it.

This is probably one of the most unique pizzas i've ever tried. And it tastes so good that i'm definitely coming back for more! Even if you're not a vegetable lover, you should try this. Trust me, this tastes nothing like vegetables. It was so flavorful and good.

The exterior of Alt Pizza

Alt Pizza wasn't that easy to find. It's at Suntec (near Marche) and you actually have to exit the building to locate it. Although it isn't that easily accessible, thank goodness there was a taxi queue just right outside and you can hop on a cab after your meal!

Credits to Alt. Pizza for this picture

One more thing, they're having a student promotion now from 2pm-6pm if any of you are interested.

Thanks for reading this! I'll be back after my exams and updating this blog with all other food hunts!

Alt. Pizza
Suntec City Tower 4
#01-602
Singapore 038983
Tel: 68369207
http://www.altpizza.com.sg/
https://www.facebook.com/AltPizza

Our regular orders at Din Tai Fung

Me at Din Tai Fung

Gabriel and I would routinely visit Din Tai Fung at least once a week. The food there is just too good! I've included in this post some of the usuals that we always get. 

Oriental Salad in Special Vinegar Dressing ($4)

I love this. I always get this. It's so refreshing and crunchy. Toppled with the tangy vinegar dressing is a hint of spice. The mix of seaweed, bean sprouts, bean curd, vermicelli is such a good mix.

Noodles with Spicy Sesame and Peanut Sauce ($7.30)

I like this a lot. It has a nutty and sesame flavor to it. It's also really spicy. I wouldn't recommend this if you are spice intolerant. Also, i do not think everyone would like this nutty flavor. I personally like this noodle a lot but if you're not the unconventional sort, i think you shouldn't order this.

Dry Noodle Tossed in Special Sauce ($8.50)

What you see in the picture is what you get. For me, this is a must try! It's very fragrant and well flavored with sesame and soy sauce. It's topped with a generous serving of chopped spring onions too. I always order this.

Fried Rice with Egg ($7)

This is yet another must try on the list! There is a hint of butter in the fried rice. It's probably cooked over a very big fire which gives it its smokey taste. When you bite into the rice, you'll find that it's of a rather starchy texture, which to me works perfectly fine.

Steamed Pork Dumplings ($9.80 for 10)

This is one of their signatures! It's also a must try! What i love about these steamed pork dumplings is that the meat is rather lean. These dumplings also contain soup which somehow is rather interesting and tasty.

Steamed Vegetable and Pork Dumplings ($9.80 for 10)

You'll be surpassed to find that this is 90% vegetable and only 10% pork. I wouldn't suggest you getting it. I personally like it as i find it very healthy (I am health conscious). Also, not many people would like the taste of it. It's pretty much an acquired taste- the more you try this, the tastier it gets!

Steamed Pork Buns ($1.60 for 1)

The filling is the same as the Steamed Pork Dumplings. I personally like their buns as i feel i'm getting so much more filling compared to the dumplings. It's really value for money because one bun is only about a dollar plus.

Steamed Chilli Crab and Pork Bun ($5.30 for 3)

For those who are not afraid of the spice and enjoy crab this is definitely a must get! I can taste the crab bits in this and having the bun there to absorb the spicy sauce is just divine. This is easily my top favourite on the Din Tai Fung menu!

The service at Din Tai Fung is always very efficient. They regularly top up your tea. They don't bring to you the bill though, you would have to go to the counter to pay for your meal.

If you're looking for a chinese restaurant with affordable prices and good food, Din Tai Fung will not disappoint!

Their list of restaurants may be found here: http://www.dintaifung.com.sg/locate-us.php.

How we celebrated our first anniversary

Me and Gabriel celebrated our first anniversary at The Lighthouse Restaurant. I was introduced to this place by my cousin. Surprisingly, when we reached The Lighthouse, we realized that it had won numerous awards. 

The view on the way to the Lighthouse

I can easily say that this is the best restaurant i have been too. It comes with a heavy price tag though but for the ambience and good food, why not?

I was very intrigued because we first had to proceed to the 8th floor of The Fullerton Hotel and then take a another private lift that leads all the way to the doorsteps of this restaurant. The Lighthouse is an extremely exclusive place and a perfect choice for an intimate dinner.

Since it was still early, we decided to explore their rooftop bar as well. It is just right above The Lighthouse and the setting of it is extremely casual. Think, alfresco. 

Going up the staircase which leads to the rooftop bar

View from the rooftop bar

The view is absolutely gorgeous. You get a perfect view of the whole Marina Bay. The weather was especially good that day too and it was in the evening so that was a cool breeze that was blowing. And Gabriel is holding the book he made for me. :)

What i wore

This is one of the rare few times i actually doll up. I stole my mum's pearl necklace for this date and paired it with pearl earrings too. I think dolling up is the best part about going on dates… well of course the good food that comes with it too. :P

Our view at the table was perfect too. You can request to choose a seat near the window, which is what we did. It was a good choice because we got to see the sun setting down and the night view was simply breathtaking.

Moscato Wines ($18/glass)

Gabriel and I are avid fans of wines and we had chosen Moscato wine to pair with our meal. At first, we were rather disappointed that we were served with a 2009 bottle of wine. We would have very much preferred an older bottle of wine for the price we were paying. But after drinking the wine, we had absolutely no qualms. The wine was superb. Probably the best wine i have ever tasted.

We were served with bread to start off our meal. There isn't anything special about the bread, then again it's complimentary so i'm not complaining.

Lighthouse Signature Antipasti Platter ($29)

This is a definite must try. If i were to visit this place again, i would definitely order this. It comes with a whole range of all the antipasti they offer. I like the idea of it because you get a whole variety of everything.

It came with their Fritto Misto, a  crispy fried seafood with smoked pepper sauce. I thought that this was alright, nothing special so i would not recommend ordering it.

Next up, we tried their L'insalata Misticanza. The grilled vegetables and marinated tomatoes in balsamic dressing was nothing more than normal. You should give this a miss.

We also tried their Burrata, an imported buffalo burrata with tomatoes and sweet basil and extra vigil olive oil. This is worth ordering. The taste is really light so you need not worry if you don't like the taste of cheese because it tasted nothing like that. The cheese was of excellent quality and well mixed with fresh cream.

Their Capaccio is probably one of the best appetizer that we had. The thin sliced beef tenderloin was perfect and it melted in my mouth. The wild mushrooms, roasted pepper with rocket which accompanied this dish was a good combination too.

We also had a taste of their Astice, which consisted of sweet marine lobster with roasted peppers and basil. The lobster was really fresh but nothing spectacular or mind blowing about it.

My favorite out of all was their Prosciutto, the 18 months langhirano aged ham with smoked scamorza cheese and preserved eggplants. It was a bit on the salty side but the flavors was perfect, especially if you have the ham together with the smoked cheese. It is absolutely mind blowing and quite like nothing i have every tasted before. Probably the best dish i have ever tried.

Clockwise (from top left), their menu special crabmeat pasta,  Deliza Al Tartufo and the complimentary chocolate cake we received
The light was getting dim because the sun had set and i did not bring a good camera that day. So the quality of the photos isn't that good and that's why i had combined all the pictures into a collage!

The pictures certainly don't do justice to the food. For our mains, we had ordered their crabmeat pasta (which was their special deal of the month). I don't think you can get this on the menu anymore but it's a good thing because i thought this didn't quite make my expectations. The Bruno's crabmeat pasta was so much better, and so much more affordable.

The Deliza Al Tartufo is a must try though! Its a mini ravioli with truffle and mascarpone cheese inside. The sauce is a thick truffle based sauce too. It's perfect. The exterior is soft but not soggy, neither is it as hard as al dente pastas. The moment you taste the ravioli and bite into it, everything just crumbles and melts inside your mouth. What's more, the interior consists of a warm, smooth and good stuffing of flavored mascarpone cheese. It's the most perfect pasta i have ever tried.

Unfortunately, the only draw back of this pasta is its prize. For 6 of those mini raviolis, i paid a hefty cost of $28. But trust me, you won't regret it. It's the best thing i've ever tried!

Later towards the end of our dinner, we were surprised with a complimentary cake! It was so sweet of the staff and it really made our night. It was a huge slice too and probably caused around $15? The service i must say is fantastic! The service staff were all patient, gave good recommendations and fast with their service. The moment we finished one dish, they would clear our tables and serve the next dish immediately while it was still piping hot.

I would definitely recommend The Lighthouse for a special celebration. Gabriel and I have even made it a personal commitment to visit this place again for every anniversary together. But since this place it just too good, we'll probably be heading back there again this December after our exams. I'll definitely update this post with much better pictures then!