Phó 4A

Hello everyone!

I thought I would have more time to write since it's the holiday period but I have been going out to catch up with my friends whom I have not seen for a while (university really takes away your social life). Recently I met up with Jo and we decided to have lunch at Phó 4A. I was in the mood for noodles and this was the perfect place. This was my second time in Phó 4A and I left the place feeling really happy once again. 

If you have been reading my previous food reviews, you would know how much I admire interiors. Phó 4A was not an exception. I really love the cosy interior and the bamboo mats that were placed on the table made me feel at home. It was definitely the right place to catch up and reminisce all the good old times with great company. 

Upon arrival, we were greeted with a friendly staff who handed us the menu. They do not have an extensive menu - 7 mains and 6 sides. True to their name, the mains consisted of all Phó except for one fried rice. 

Jo ordered the Pho Bo Tai Nam ($8) - Beef noodle soup with half-cooked steak and well-done brisket.

I ordered the Pho Bo Chin Nam($8.50) - Beef noodle soup with well-done brisket and flank.

2. Pho Bo Chin Nam($8.50)

The portion is very huge and it really fills up the tummy. You can probably tell from the picture how generous they are with their portion. 

Both the dishes were served with a plate of condiments. To be honest, the soup was flavourful and did not require any additional garnish. But I like some spice in my food so I added the chilli padi. I used the sauces to dip my meat inside for extra spice and flavour. The sauce had the sweet and sour taste which normally do not like but this one surprisingly complemented the meat. Since my meat my well-done I was afraid that it might be a little dry. However, the meat was well-cooked and thinly sliced which was a treat for my taste buds.

Cha Qio ($7)

We also ordered a side to accompany our dishes. In simple words, they are spring rolls with minced chicken and mixed vegetables rolled with rice paper. It was served with a tangy sauce that really complemented this dish. I love spring rolls and this one was amazing. This one is a must-try!

Overall, I am really satisfied with the service, food and ambience. The best thing about this place is that you do not need to pay GST or service charge. What you see on the menu is what you pay which is awesome! Plus, it is very hard to find affordable halal Vietnamese Cuisine in Singapore, and I would recommend you to check out this place. Although the place is small and may not accommodate so many people, it gives a cosy and homely feeling that makes it an ideal place for you to catch up with old friends.

Venue

• No 7 Jalan Pisang
• Singapore 199074

(Located beside Hjh Maimunah and opposite Fluff Bakery)

Opening Hours

11:00 am to 3:00 pm (Lunch)

6:00 pm to 9:00 pm (Dinner)

*Closed on Sundays

Contact

Phone: 6294 0703

Email: Pho4allhalalviet@gmail.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Phó-4A-Halal-Vietnamese-Cuisine/

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21 on Rajah

Hello everyone!

I love May. Firstly, because it's the school holidays for me and it's the month of my best friend's birthday! Since it was her 21st birthday, we wanted to have a lunch buffet and after researching we decided on 21 on Rajah. The place received really good reviews and for the price of $32++ for lunch buffet on a Saturday seemed reasonable considering all the positive reviews.

Living in the NorthEast side, I must say it was a little inconvenient for me to travel all the way to Jalan Rajah. Nevertheless we were all excited to try the much talked about restaurant. When we first arrived, it wasn't so hard to locate the place as it was rather prominent from the bus stop near Moulmein CC. 

When we arrived I cannot deny how much I loved the interior, it was decorated in white tiles and bird cages were hanging from the top (how cute!). I wish I had taken a picture of the interior to show you guys. The place was big and it was able to accommodate really large groups. I was hoping that a large space will also be catered to display their food and I have to say I was really disappointed with the variety of food they had. Let me take you guys through what they really had on that day.

Cold Seafood Section - Prawns and Mussels

You can accompany the seafood with any of the 3 sauces available. They had garlic Garlic Salsa, Wasabi Mayo and Tomato Coriander Chilli Salsa. I went with the Garlic Salsa and some lemon as I am not a big fan of wasabi and I wanted something light.

I must say the seafood was really fresh and juicy. I was going back for multiple helpings because this was the best thing they had for that day.

4 types of Sushi

My hopes of eating some salmon that day was dashed. I love sushi and this was definitely not the best I've eaten but it was decent. The inari sushi and California sushi was not too bad. 

Salad Section

The ham used in the salad was very fresh and the cherry tomatoes were a delight to my taste buds. 

"Did you come here to eat tomatoes?" (Roslina, 2014)

But the cherry tomatoes were really yummy. They also had a DIY salad station where you could mix rocket leaves, romaine leaves and a few stuff with any sauce of your choice. 

Roasted Carrot and Baby Potato

I liked this dish but then again, how can anyone dislike potatoes. PLUS IT'S ROASTED MINI POTATOES.

Oven Baked Boneless Chicken with Mushroom Sauce

They also had Lamb Stew, Garlic Sautéed Asparagus and Baby Carrots, (Bland) Mac and Cheese, Sweet and Sour Fish, White Rice, (Unseasoned) Fish and Malay Style Mee Goreng which I did not get a picture of. 

Dessert Section

We decided to take the desserts last but this was what was left. I really wanted to try the Tiramisu but sadly it was all gone within an hour. I have high expectations for desserts (I secretly blame my family members for spoiling my taste buds with fantastic desserts). But this was nowhere near meeting my expectations. The Ondeh-Ondeh was really thick which did not give enough room for the gula melaka syrup. The Carrot Cake was so dry. The Panna Cotta lacked flavour and the chocolate syrup overpowered the taste. The jelly (Agar-Agar) was too sweet. 

"Even my worse attempt on agar-agar would taste better than this" (Roslina, 2014) 

The cheesecake and black forest cake was pleasant but not enough to salvage my opinion on the desserts. They also had a fruit section where you can select from 3 different fruits.

Nazreen baked a cake for Roslina and it tasted better than the desserts that they had on that day. 

Side note: Nazreen has her own business so do check her out. She has cakes, cupcakes and brownies (TRY HER BROWNIE)

Instagram: @nazspasteleria

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/nazspasteleria

The total bill came up to $112 for 3 people and DBS/POSB card holders were entitled to 15% discount. Overall, I was greatly disappointed with my experience with 21 on Rajah. They did have really fresh seafood and salad but the other food were of average standard. One would expect to have a wider range especially during a weekend but I guess I should not have dined in with such high expectations. 

"I am not full, but I do not know what to eat anymore." (Roslina, 2014) 

Roslina does not have a very big appetite and for her to say this just shows the lack of variety they offered.

The menu does rotate and perhaps some other day you may get better dishes but judging from my experience I am not very sure. 

For $32 it was definitely not value for money and it will probably be my last time here. This is just my opinion and preferences vary. If you would like to patronise them someday, the venue is below. If you are going in big groups or going on a weekend it is safer to make a reservation. You might want to consider going for dinner instead of lunch since most of the positive reviews came from Dinner experience.

Venue

Days Hotel At Zhongshan Park

1 Jalan Rajah

Tel: 68086868

www.dayshotelsingapore.com

Operating Hours: Weekdays

Breakfast - 6.00am til 10.30am

Lunch - 12.00pm til 2.30pm

Dinner - 6.00pm til 10.30pm

Operating Hours: Weekends

Breakfast - 6.00am til 11.00am

Lunch - 12.00pm til 3.00pm

Dinner - 6.00pm til 11.00pm

https://www.facebook.com/21onRajah

Comment down below if you have visited 21 on Rajah and had a different experience from me!

Till then, have a nice day!

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Bagus La Mian Yong Tau Foo

Hello lovely people!

I am finally blogging after 2 long months. It's been a hectic at school especially during April where I had to meet crazy deadlines and also study for my finals. Now, I am officially done with my Freshmen Year in University and I have a 3-month long holiday.

Anyway, I was looking back to today's post, I am going to do a review on my visit to Bagus La Mian Yong Tau Foo back in April. My sister turned 18 years old last month and we wanted to take her out for dinner. She was having this mad craving for noodles and it is so hard to find halal restaurants that sells noodles. My cousin had visited this place before and I have read positive reviews about this place. Yes, it's weird that we didn't go to some fanciful restaurant to celebrate her legal age, but the birthday girl wanted noodles.

The place was quite big and air-conditioned so it was hard for 6 of us to get a table. They had 6 different types of Yong Tau Foo - Original (Normal one with the soup), Laksa, Tom Yam, Hot and Spicy, Hakka and Ampang. We ordered the Laksa, Hot and Spicy, Hakka and the Original flavoured one with a few sides. For the Yong Tau Foo, we could have it without the noodles, but we all got with the La Mian since store is called "Bagus La Mian". La Mian is a type of handmade noodles.

Part of our spread

Hot and Spicy 

My sister got this. I expected this to be really spicy but it was more towards sweet and spicy. I thought that it wasn't that bad but my sister was a little disappointed as she does not like the sweetness of the sauce. Yong Tau Foo usually comes with the spicy sambal and sweet sauce, this was the combination of the two.

Laksa

The laksa gravy was good. I don't like my Yong Tau Foo with laksa gravy so I didn't try it with the noodles but my mother and aunt liked it.

Hakka

I thought that mine was the best among the 4 flavours that we bought. It was a little gingery and but I didn't think that it was overpowering. The hakka sauce is a thick, sweet and sour sauce. I wouldn't say that it was spicy but it reminded me of one the ramen I ate in Ramen Ten. 

I don't have a picture of the original Yong Tau Foo but that was a major disappointment. It was bland and it was lacking a lot of flavour. 

(I think this is some fried prawn and fish dumpling but I can't be very sure)

Deep fried chicken with Wanton Skin

(Fried bean curd with fishcake)

This one is best among the sides. It was crispy and it was served hot. But once it cools down the taste of the mayonnaise was just too much to handle.

Overall, it was definitely not the right place for a birthday dinner and my sister did not satisfy her craving for noodles because it wasn't fantastic. My mum always tell us "Food that isn't good, is the same as not eating anything." It wasn't bad but it wasn't fantastic either.

One thing that I like about the Yong Tau Foo is that the fried items are not mixed in with the soup and their huge portions. Also, they have interesting variety to choose from. You can have them with or without the noodles. The sides are generally not too bad. 

My family likes to eat Yong Tau Foo with chilli padi (yes, it may not be the traditional way but we LOVE chilli) and they didn't have any chilli padi available in the store which is a big minus for us. I guess opinion and preference vary. If you are around the area, give it a try because of the interesting variety that they offer!

Venue

276 Changi Rd

Singapore 419756

Contact: 6346 0276

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/bagusyongtaufu

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Kublai Khan Steamboat Buffet

Hello everybody!

It's been raining almost everyday and now is the time to finally put on your favorite sweater that has been kept in your wardrobe for far too long. A hot bowl of soup will always be the best meal choice in this cold weather.

Jo and I were waiting for our exams to end just so we could celebrate our holidays. The sad truth is that it is really rare to find a steamboat buffet that is halal certified. I have been going to Seoul Garden and I must say the standard has dropped over the years. I asked my cousin for some recommendations and she mentioned Kublai Khan Steamboat. I have heard about Kublai Khan Mongolian Buffet earlier this year but never got to try them as there were mixed reviews for the place.

But I thought I should give this place a try since it is fairly new and thehalalfoodblog gave a good review about it. It was not hard to find the place, it is just beside Simlim Square facing Laselle. The steamboat buffet only starts at 5.30pm and we were the first to arrive. We were welcomed by friendly staff and ushered to our seats.

We chose Tom Yum and Chicken soup base.

We could not wait to start on the food as we were really hungry.

A big bowl of rice was served but we wanted to save our tummy for the rest of the food.

All the items were fresh. We asked for a refill for the mushrooms several times.

The yong tau foo items that we were not able to try because our tummy were bursting from the meat and cooked food. 

The chili crab is a signature dish in Singapore. Every time celebrities visit Singapore they always rave about the famous chilli crab. This was my first trying chili crab in Singapore and I did not like this dish at all. It was too sweet for my liking. My mother cooks really good crab so I guess I am not used to this taste. Similarly, Joleen felt the same way about the crab as well.

I had this mussel dish all by myself. Firstly, the mussels were really fresh. However, the sauce was a little sweet but the more you eat the spicier it gets due to the black pepper.

This fried food platter is really good. I must say one of the best chicken satay I have ever tasted. Well seasoned and tender. Although the mutton/beef satay tasted good I felt like I was chewing on gum. The ebi, crab meat and scallops were all really good and fresh.

I love cereal prawns and this dish was an absolute pleasure. The manager told us that it is a popular dish and I totally understood when I had my first bite. Cereal prawns should be eaten hot with it's skin.

We had several refills and by the time it came to dessert we were too full. For desserts they only had 4 basic flavors of ice-cream and I am not complaining for the lack of variety because I would have been able to try them all.

Overall, my first dine in experience was an absolute pleasure. Both the soups and cooked food tasted really good with the exception of the chili crab. But I must really mention the excellent service. I am very particular when it comes to service and I was impressed with the service. The manager personally served us and he constantly checked if we had enough food.He told us that the tour groups frequently visits the place. The place is big enough to cater for big gatherings for friends and family. There is also a private room if you plan to celebrate birthdays or anniversaries there.

The best part is the affordable price for all these amazing food and service we got. Also, the price is the same during public holidays! How amazing is that?

Adult: $23.50 nett

Child (3 – 12yrs old) : $12.80nett

Student: $20 nett

If you have NTUC link card, you get an additional 10% off your total bill. Personally, I felt that it was really worth it. 

Royal Kublai Khan

Steamboat Buffet & Seafood Restaurant

175 Bencoolen Street

#01-56 Burlington Square

Singapore 189649

For reservations please call:

68362389

Website: http://kublaikhanbbq.com/royalkublaikhan/

You can walk from Bugis Mrt or Dhoby Ghaut Mrt.

Steamboat buffet is what you need in this cold and chilly weather. Visit the place with your close friends or families to celebrate this wonderful year!

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Jai Siam, Halal Thai Food Corner

Hello everyone!

It's June and GSS is everywhere which is the perfect time to go shop for all the items you've been eyeing for quite sometime now, myself included. I've been waiting for the big sale especially at H&M to get myself pretty printed pants which has been in my shopping list for a long time.

I met Roslina and Nazreen to shop at town. Since we were going to shop we decided to dine in somewhere affordable. It is rather hard to find cheap and quality food places that are halal in town but there is a small corner in Dhoby Xchange where you can find halal Thai Food called Jai Siam or Jai Thai.

I have been there a few times and I've been wanting to write about it but I didn't have enough pictures at that time. Now that I do, please refrain from staring at the photos if you are starving right now because I have done that many times and it is not fun.

Just a little information on this food corner, majority of the staff there are Thai. I found out from the accent and the service really good. For those muslims who have difficulties finding Halal food places which only sells Thai Food, this is a place you would want to visit.

This is part of their menu. They have individual set meal that comes with a main course, drink and a small dessert. They also have family set lunch where dishes are already preset. I find set meals so much easier because it definitely makes ordering faster.

For starters, you can consider getting this Mixed Platter which comes in 3 different sizes. This is the small one which costs $7. It consists of fried tofu, prawn cake, fried fish bites, spring roll which is served with the sweet and spicy Thai chili sauce.

Drinks comes with the set meal. I would recommend the lime juice. But I love the Thai Ice Milk Tea which you can get if you top up $1.50. Do not get mixed up with the Thai Ice Lemon Tea because I tried it once and it was a huge mistake.

I love this Pad Thai Dish. It is basically Thai noodle served with seafood, tofu, beansprouts and peanuts. Thai Food are generally spicy and if you cannot take the heat, try this dish because contrary to most Thai dishes the spice is this one is very mild.

I tried my first Green Curry dish at this place and I absolutely love this. For the set meal you can only choose the chicken but it comes with beef. It has the right amount of spice and richness and went so well with the white rice. If you are someone who can't take the heat, request for less chili. You can choose to have it either with the noodles or rice but I would recommend eating this with rice.

They have 2 types of Tom Yam soup. This is the clear based soup.

This is the chili based soup. Just like the green curry, you can choose to have this either with the rice or noodles.

This is the small dessert that comes with the set meal. Usually it is coconut jelly but it depends on what they have on that day.

Mango Glutinous Rice is one thing you must have when you go to Thailand. The last time I went to Thailand was ages ago and I can't remember eating this (kill me now). For someone who hasn't eaten this dish from where it was originated, I enjoyed eating this. But Roslina said it was okay compared to the one she had BKK. Once you have tried the best it is very difficult to match up to that standard.

As someone who pays frequent visit to this place, I must say they have tried their best to maintain the standard of the service and quality of food. If you decide to drop by do make a call because if I am not wrong on weekdays they are not open from 3pm - 6pm at Dhoby Xchange (not too sure about the other outlets). I would definitely recommend this place to my friends.

Check out their website for more information on their outlets, menu and even catering services.

I mentioned earlier that we were so excited to get our printed pants from H&M but sadly they are no longer available. It was so disappointing, so Nazreen treated us to Cold Stone at 313 (yay!). Plus the weather is being so mean we had to treat ourselves with something.

Just some unrelated pictures of ourselves. Take care everyone, the weather is so bad so drink up lots of water and try to stay indoors as much as possible. There are so many fun ways to spend your time wisely at home and I'll tell you how on my next post. So stay tuned!

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