help yourself!

The concept of this stall at Golden Shoe Food Center is rather different. Instead of telling the stall assistant what you want, they just hand you a plate of rice and you scoop out what you want to eat!

Beef: Very tasty but a tad chewy. The egg-cake thing was a bit too flourly for my liking. But what spoilt it totally was the rice. Broken and thin, every mouthful tasted empty and watery. If better rice was used, the meal would be so much better.

making food look good

My church is raising money for our church rebuilding project and one of the initiatives is a cookbook with recipes contributed from all our members!

Dropped by to one of the photoshoots and I am amazed by the amount of effort everyone put into this book. From the cooks to the photographers.
Fussing over every little detail.... Each item took almost half an hour to shoot!
No detail is overlooked and everyone put a lot of effort into it. I felt a little guilty being there just to finish up the food they cooked. Hee...

my cheapest lunch ever!

My colleague took us to a hawker center on the which occupies the 2nd and 3rd level of Golden Shoe Carpark. I never knew this place existed - and I cut through this building every morning to get to my office!
This hawker center offers the CHEAPEST food in the heart of the city. Where else in Singapore can I get an egg, fried anchovies, fried fish, vegetables and coconut rice for a rock bottom price of $2??
It may not be the bestest nasi lemak I've eaten, but it sure is the cheapest. I think I'll make this stall the go to place when I'm feeling poor.

bad day means cupcakes for everyone!

My colleague was having a particularly bad day at the office. After a heated conversation on the phone, she stormed out of the office. When she returned, she came back with these pretty cupcakes!

She said that the had to buy something in the heat of the moment so she figured that buying cupcakes are a lot more cheaper than buying a dress.

The bite sized cupcakes were almost too good looking to be eaten. And there are good quality ones too - the chocolate ones were made from Valrhona chocolate no less.

I took the purple one - didn't quite figure what flavour it was, I think it was most likely Lavender. My friend who ate the yellow was said it was mango - not banana!

Well the cupcakes were gone pretty quickly and I was left dreaming of more. Am I evil to wish for more bad work days for my colleague so that I can have more cupcakes. haha

eat a bowl of soup

On a rare chilly afternoon in Singapore (coz it was raining from morning till 12) we were at the Golden Shoe Food Court searching for food. It's the same food court that houses the Italian Cai Peng and Curry Chicken Noodle stalls.

Then I spotted this stall that sells bowls of soup. I seriously did't know such a concept existed! Where people will order a bowl of soup and then eat it with rice. (I know, I feel so sua-ku when I was told it's quite common)

So I ordered me a Lotus Root Pork Rib soup with a side dish of fried spinach. Yup! Drinking the robust soup was heavenly in the rare cool weather. It really warmed me up from inside!

a noble cause but sigh...

Professor Brown cafe was set up to offer less privileged kids a place to work. Tucked in a corner of Velocity, is cafe has a charming interior and a cozy and relaxed atmosphere. Alas, the food is less than desirable.

I choose the dinner set which came with a soup, main course and a drink. The mushroom soup was thick and creamy. Comforting food for the soul - that is if it was not soooo salty.

Next was the main course: Pork Ribs with potato wedges and a side of wild rocket salad. Well, it's drenched in barbecue sauce that I cannot taste the ribs as it is. But on the whole, I guess it's passable.

But what I really don't approve is the drink: on the menu it says Orange Juice. But what came was a orange flavoured syrup drink. Sigh, I really wanted to like the restaurant for its noble cause and charming atmosphere but the food was quite disappointing.

perhaps not if it's a 20 minute wait

So on the last day in the old office, we were kinda in a restless mood because everything was packed away and we were just waiting for the movers to come to move.

So we decided to go off for a break. My old office was near Hong Lim Market and we ended up there. In Hong Lim is Ji Ji Wonton Noodle store. It's one stalls with the biggest and brightest sign boards. Can't miss it. The queue is usually at least 20 minutes long during lunch hour that's why I have never tried it. But when I was there, no one was in the queue! I had to jump in and get me a plate!

The plate of noodles was very satisfying. The chunky Char Siew was so tender, the noodles was cooked to perfection and the vegetables added a healthy crunchiness to everything! But will I wait in the humid hawker center for a $3 plate of noodles? I think not.

major mistake?

I haven't been joshuaisblogging recently coz I am busy studying for my exams. So to like my 3 fans out there, sorry!

Well, I haven't been doing anything exciting of late too. These exams of mine are really taking a toll on my social life. One that is already quite pathetic and making it non-existentant.

But as I was traveling home last Saturday night from the Mandarin Oriental, where I had one of the best wedding dinners ever (more on that in another entry), I passed the Marina Bay Sands. My thoughts were that this gigantic area still seemed like a work in progress. Construction was still going on right left and center. But that is not what this is about...

I read the sign at the entrance of the shopping arcade. Spelling mistake?!? At such a prominent area?
Then I checked the dictionary. Shoppes is actually a word: a deliberately archaic spelling of shop, used in the hopes of imbuing a store with old-fashioned charm or quaintness.

Well, to me it sure isn't the right use of the word! Everything in Marina Bay Sands screams modern! From the building, to the helix bridge to the glass and steel entrance of the shops. Definitely not modern. Shoppes? Should have just been shops.

$18 for this??

Went to Kado Man Japanese Restaurant at Circular Road - Not a pleasant experience.
First the food. I ordered the Saba fish set. I must say that although the fish is passable, the one at Chowon Garden is even better and it's at a fraction of the cost! And there is no consistency in the restaurant. The waitress that took our order told me that my meal was a set meal which comes with a tofu and salad. But when I asked the waitress that served my fish about my toufu and salad, she said that the saba dish doesn't come in a set. OH well... maybe I misheard the waitress earlier? But when I finished my meal, the waitress sheepishly pushed a plate of toufu and salad onto my table and said - oh, got promotion. So I had to eat my toufu and salad on on its own. Boo...

But what really was not worth the money was the $18++ curry rice pork chop set! Seriously, $18??? White rice, some curry sauce (that tasted like it came out of a premix packet) a thin piece of pork chop and some pickles for $18++??

Then when it came to paying the bill which was about $65, we took out our credit card. The waitress said: oh credit card, you pay full amount, cash you pay $60. huh? It's usually credit cards that gives discounts not cash! oh well, I don't think I am visiting the place again.

Fried Dumpling Noodles

Dropped by Market St food court to eat lunch the other day and I noticed that at every other table, there was someone eating this dish! Must be good. So I searched for the stall at the food court. Ahhh... now I know why everyone went there.

The stall was efficient in churning out their noodles. My queue moved very quickly. But they didn't compromise on quality. Kway Teow was perfectly cooked, vegetables were plenty and the dumplings, oh, the dumplings... crispy on the outside, nice and juicy on the inside. Yum!

Observations at Church

Churches used to be the place where people dress up to go to. I mean that was how the term 'dressed in your Sunday's best' came about. While people might not dress their best to go to church these days, my church is still the place where I see some of the more exciting things:

Like this gentleman above. Love is bow tie on short sleeve shirts. I wished I could pull it off but I think it'll look costumey on me. Look closely and you can also see a key chain clipped to his belt hoop. It's the details that count in men's dressing and he nailed it!
And then there are the quirky: like this radio bag, complete with knobs that actually turn!

Then runs in my god daughter with her sparkling shoes - gotta be seen in video!

Oh, and my godson who turns 1! Nothing really special about what he's wearing but he's soo cute and I want to put his picture here.

it's just bigger there.

On the left is an avocado from China.

On the right is one from Kenya.

While the Kenyan avocado was enough to make 3 avocado shakes, it wasn't as tasty as those from China. But it was really interesting so see such a huge and red avocado!

Ying Yang

I think I am beginning to appreciate Oriental Desserts and I have discovered a new range of desserts! Paste.

The latest find is the Yin Yang paste. Which is a combination of Almond and Black Sesame pastes. Here the almond and black sesame perfectly complements each other. And the viscosity (not too sure if viscosity is a food word haha) is just perfect. Not too watery or thick.

Mee Siam

In The Arcade at Raffles Place are many small stalls that sell food for the busy busy Raffles Place crowd. Stalls are cramped and people usually ta bao food away or grab a seat, eat then run off. No one sits to chat.

One of the stalls is a Malay stall with a certificate on some best food award for their Mee Siam. My verdict? Not worth the time & effort squeezing and finding a place and eating the Mee Siam. Noodles were already hard from being left on the display counter for too long and the Mee Siam sauce lacked the spicy, sour, slightly nutty punch. And at $3.50 a plate, I thought it was quite expensive. That lump at the side is a potato ball. Not fantastic either.

young at heart

I was minding my own business on the train home, checking my messages on my phone when from the corner of my eye, I saw a red shirt tucked into red checkered bermudas which were held up with a white belt! On closer inspection, the belt has perforated to show a guitar. Very rock & roll.

So I checked out who was wearing this and it was a man, in the September years of his life. It's quite rare & cool to see older gentlemen who still bother to spice up their dressing. But I wished he hadn't worn that cap. Does not go with his outfit.