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Suanthai Restaurant
Thai food is largely popular because most of us resonated well with spicy food. not to mention, Thai fare used to be a fairly economical fix.. I recall joining throngs of people queuing for popular Thai restaurants like Aloy Thai (Beach Road) and First Thai (Purvis Street) back in the day. Alas, the forces of inflation caught up with them, plus these days, we have alot more choices.
SuanThai restaurant along Killiney Road remains largely popular because you get to enjoy good variety, at a value-for-money price. Their weekend dinner buffet at $20.90++ is a crowd favourite; pick up some deals from the online shopping sites for a good discount and it would certainly be worth it.. 
the buffet itself comes with a good assortment of popular Thai dishes. however, the ultra popular ones were limited to one-time ordering whilst you could have repeat servings for the others. we were glad that the Chicken Laab (minced chicken with basil leaves and eggplant) was allowed multiple orders. 
with a small top-up fee, the buffet is served with free flow of pineapple rice, which went well with the dishes. in fact, the rice was so flavourful that most of us enjoyed it as a dish in itself. other repeat order dishes that we enjoyed included the sweet and sour fish, spring rolls and deep fried beancurd. 
then came the one-time orders. a true test of Thai cuisine for me would be based on their soup based dishes, such as Tom Yum Goong and Thai green curry. the clearer the Tom Yum soup, the more potent it is, or so they say. SuanThai's version is not exactly red-hot spicy, but had a good tinge of sourness that brought out the taste from the seafood ingredients. the green curry was great, and can be compared to those served at Aloy Thai's. with that said, the other one-time orders were normal only. didn't find the Thai rice-crackers or the fried chicken in pandan leaf particularly exciting and i'm sure we'd have had better. then again, this experience was about the complete package, and to have so many popular Thai dishes for a fixed price is still certainly worth it. the restaurant is not exactly very big, with limited tables. due to their attractive pricing, the place is often packed quickly on friday evenings and weekends. would definitely encourage anyone to call in to make a reservation earlier in the week if you're intending to head over. do give it a try though, hard to find a good assortment of no-frills Thai fare these days. 
SuanThai Restaurant 101 Killiney Road Singapore 239544 Opening Hours Lunch: 11.30am - 2.30pm (Last Order) Dinner: 6.00pm - 10.00pm (Last Order) free roadside parking after 5 pm and on Sundays/Public Holidays.. Keisuke Tori King
people who know me will understand that my craving for ramen never stops. so i'm glad that finally, i am writing about my pet topic today. tried the latest addition to the Keisuke ramen chain which has been drawing crowds to all its outlets in Singapore - Keisuke Tori King.
Located at 100 AM (beside Amara Hotel) and founded by Keisuke Takeda (Tokyo ramen champion 2011), this outlet is now getting a strong following, just like its other 2 outlets - Keisuke Tonkotsu King and Keisuke Ramen. 
As its entrance suggests, Keisuke Tori King focuses on chicken for its broth and main ingredient for its ramen. Similarly, if you head to Keisuke Tonkotsu King, its curtains will read 豚骨王, as the ramen there is mainly served on a pork base. just like the concept at Tonkotsu King, this outlet at Tori King also comes with free flow of boiled eggs, beansprouts, chilli powder and other condiments that you could add onto your ramen.. 
all of Tori King's ramen comes with chicken based broth and a grilled chicken thigh. you could choose to have the original Tori King ramen, or have it on a black-spicy broth or green-spicy broth.. you could choose the toppings you want to go with the ramen and even the texture of the noodles that you'd prefer it to be done.. 
i bravely took up the challenge to try the green-spicy ramen, which was effectively the Tori King ramen with wasabi sauce. i like my ramen done "hard", threw in slices of chashu, with tamago, seaweed and the serving was exceptionally delicious. the wasabi taste blended into the soup but it wasn't too strong, and you could still taste the richness of the chicken broth. the grilled chicken was tender and easy to eat. those who choose the original and black-spicy versions all agreed that the Keisuke brand lived up to its name.. 
special mention to their very own beverage which i particularly liked. their green-tea cola was a refreshing drink that may be a little too fizzy for some, but as somebody who loves coke, this drink was tops.. on the whole, all of Keisuke Takeda's offerings in Singapore have never failed to disappoint. the wait could sometimes be long, and you are often requested to wait outside if some members of your group have not arrived; but still, you'd soon find that any delay is worth the wait, as you'd be treated to a splendid ramen treat. 
Keisuke Tori King 100 AM #03-15, 100 Tras Street Singapore 079027 Opening Hours 11.30 am to 3 pm; 5.30 pm to 10 pm (daily) seriously need some lessons on how to take photos of ramen Dal In Korean Restaurant
i must first reiterate that i am not really a fan of Korean food. hence there wasn't much excitement when the friends dragged me back to Raffles Place on a Saturday to satisfy their craving for Kimchi and Korean ramen.. Boon Tat Street could be a ghost-town on the weekends but the atmosphere changes the moment we stepped into Dal In. the place was bustling with activity and had a substantial Korean clientèle presence (which means its probably accepted as more authentic)
this "Army hotpot" is a popular dish at many Korean restaurants. said to have originated from the warring days where the soldiers would dump their rations into a pot to keep themselves from hunger and cold. at Dal In, this mix of ramen, sausages, pork, mixed vegetables in kimchi soup probably gives that comfort-food feeling. i was afraid that the broth would be too spicy for my liking, but surprisingly, it was just right and went well with the ingredients.. 
Korean meals are accompanied by their variety of side dishes, and Dal In was no exception. However, special mention has to be reserved for their serving of steamed scrambled eggs which was superb. I'm not sure if they serve this together with the lunch-time set menu, but if you're doing dinner, do look out for this awesome side kick.. like other authentic Korean restaurants, Dal In comes with the full range of Korean dishes from barbecued meat, steamed pancakes to traditional rice wines. we ordered a bowl of Jinseng chicken soup and topped it off with a round of Makoli wine. they gave us these giant bowls to pour the wine into, which i found amusing, like what they used to proclaim their brotherhood back in the day.. 
don't forget to order this melon ice-cream for dessert, its probably the best popsicle you'd have in awhile. in all, the overall experience was actually quite enjoyable. i guess being managed by indigenous Koreans makes the dishes more unique and less mass-market. and if you're into the real-deal for Korean fare, i'm sure you'd love this place. so why not drop by for lunch with the colleagues; if you prefer something quieter, this place is open for dinner too. 
Dal In Korean Restaurant 17 Boon Tat Street Singapore 069618 Opening Hours Mon to Fri: 11.30am to 3pm; 5.30pm to 10.30pm Sat: 5.30pm to 10.30pm Sun: 11.30am to 10.30pm Coupon parking along Boon Tat Street, where you could still see your car while eating.. Quan Le Yan Seafood
i am pretty sure the Chinese characters on the signboard reads 泉乐园 (Quan Le Yuan), so whoever did this to their official name must have gotten lost in translation. nonetheless, family-run Teochew restaurants like this are fast-becoming endangered, and a really authentic one certainly deserves special mention..
the harmless looking exterior actually conceals the fact that it was packed on the inside. anyone intending to come here should certainly have made a reservation before hand. their signature dishes are traditional Teochew servings and are limited in supply. we were fortunate to be able to order their popular cold steamed-crabs.. 
steamed crabs can be a relatively foreign concept to the Singaporean clientèle when eating-out. but Quan Le Yan's serving of their signature dish exemplifies why crabs do not necessarily need to be prepared with other famous condiments often found here (note this, Ramsay!). the crabs were fresh and well-blended with eggs, giving it a very refreshing flavour.. 
other must trys include their braised duck (above), hay cho (or deep fried prawn meat-roll) and oyster egg omelette. everything you'd need to please a teochew girl's parents if you're taking them out for the first time. sadly, we missed out on their famous chai-po kway teow because their kway teow was sold out by the time we arrived. to ensure you get to savour all the popular Teochew dishes whipped up by this crack-in-the-wall joint, don't forget to call them up to make a reservation, not only for the seats, but also for them to set aside the crabs, duck and kway teow for you.. 
Quan Le Yan Seafood 721 Havelock Road (Beo Crescent) Singapore 169645 Opening Hours: Daily – 11.45am to 2.15pm; 5.30pm to 10.00pm (closed on Tuesdays) Tel: 62734960 Buttercake N Cream
it is not often that you associate heartland F&B joints with being a dining experience. and even though we half-expected Sunset Way (near Clementi town) to have some unique offerings, we still found our brunch experience at Buttercake N Cream to be very tasteful indeed..
tucked along a quiet row of HDB shops, you may find it difficult to locate Buttercake N Cream if you don't live around the area. should you be going for brunch, it could be abit easier considering the other restaurants do not trade till much later in the day. the inside isn't exactly very big (they do have an alfresco area too) and if you're going on a weekend, it should be buzzing with the locals around 12 pm (Clementi people brunch late) 
stepping into the shop, you'll be greeted by a distinct aroma of coffee, something that instantly makes me more awake. the barista does put in a little effort to differentiate the beverages and my flat white coffee (above) came in a very different form compared to the iced latte, which was served in a glass jar.. 
the brunch menu options were moderate, but each option was quite elaborately presented. ordered the Fish and wedges which consisted of breaded fish served with buttered mushrooms, wedges and their own interpretation of thai chilli-mayo sauce. i love a good serving of fish fried with battered breadcrumbs, and this one went well with the tangy sauce that they came with.. the servings were generous and would have made for a very hearty breakfast. we also had a BCNC Overload, which as the name suggests, was loaded with scrambled eggs, cheese pork sausage, bacon, french toast, salad and bolognese dips. their concept of local fusion was also interesting and we saw some matured customers ordering their 1990s dish, a mix of fish & prawn otah with "Heh Bee Hiam" biroche toast and salad.. we told ourselves that we'd go back to explore their dinner menu and desserts (which is supposedly award-winning), but for now, we'd recommend folks living in the west to check out this place for a nice quiet brunch, or a weekend hangout for good family fun.. 
Buttercake N Cream 106 Clementi Street 12 #01-52 (Sunset Way) Singapore 120106 Opening Hours Daily: 12:00 noon to 11:00 PM Scrumptious handmade macaroons *available online* Canopy
Brunch has increasingly become a national pastime in recent years, understandably so as it is indeed a luxury to be able to spend an idle late-morning/ afternoon lazing around and still having breakfast.
the thing about brunch hangouts is that we'd like it to be relatively accessible, and yet in a not-too-crowded yet off-the-beaten-track location. Canopy at Bishan Park is able to meet these criterion.
Since the revamp of Bishan Park, the place has developed beyond your typical neighbourhood park. some spas, a few cafes and McDonalds have sprouted. of which, other than the latter, Canopy proved to be a favourite. whether you had been working-out at the park or have just made your leisurely stroll from your bed, Canopy seems to attract a broad clientèle. we have the ang moh walking the dog taking the al fresco area, a bunch of tai-tais catching up whilst leaving their kids with their colouring blocks on another table, couples having their quiet breakfast.. the indoor/outdoor areas seems to have space for everyone. 
their brunch spread is no less than what you'd find at robertson quay. we tried their scrambled eggs with salmon and roe, throwing in some pork chipolata sausages for good measure. i tend to judge brunch food by the quality of their eggs and this one passes with a warm serving, well scrambled with milk. we saw many orders of eggs benedict on the day as well, it's one of their popular dishes and something that probably won't go wrong. 
the desserts are a different story though. tried their buttermilk pancakes with maple syrup & banana, felt like someone pinched the hotcakes from Macs to use it for the dish. good pancakes/waffles are supposedly warm, flavourful and crispy that can be eaten on their own. this one really needs a good dose of ice-cream, maple syrup and fruits to save the day. i itchy-hand went to try the Affogato (single shot expresso with vanilla ice cream). enough said, the best one I've eaten is still at Oriole Cafe. 
i think the good thing about canopy is the ambience. you could tuck yourself in a cosy air-conditioned indoor area or enjoy dining with nature out in the garden like this. Vegans would love to know that they have a vegan section as well with a decent spread of vegan dishes. why freshly squeezed vegan juices cost $12 per glass is beyond my comprehension though. it probably is specially prepared because we must qualify that other dishes are offered at very regular prices. brunch places within heartland parks are always welcome when you don't intend to travel very far. if we are looking for a slow-paced lazy breakfast treat with the folks or to catch up with an old pal, Canopy is where i could find you next Sunday. Just stay away from the Affogato. 
Canopy Garden Dining Bishan Park II 1382 Ang Mo Kio Ave 1 Singapore 569931 Opening Hours Mon - Fri : 9am - 10pm Sat, Sun, Eve of Public Holidays & Public Holidays: 8am - 11pm Offers #Brunch, #Vegan, #Dinner, #Happy Hour Free parking at Bishan Park |
..ThE lEgEnD..
Last Movie: Ad Astra
Golden Village, Singpost Centre 
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