SINGAPORE: Haidilao

Okay so recently, Nick told met that Haidilao is worth 12 Billion ! 

WTF. Okay, initially Nick told me that haidilao has an annual turnover of 12 billion a year in Singapore only, that was unbelievable so I did a quick google search and they clarified that his total net worth is 12 billion. 

See la. Perfect example of fake news. And this shows that everyone is succeptible to fake news, even highly educated with an MBBS degree Nicholas is sharing wrong information around.

So moral of the story: Doesn't pay to be more careful, please double, triple, quadriple check any information that is passed on to you. 

I have... never eaten Haidilao in Singapore before. I've heard great things about their service ( which includes free manicure ! :o omg, I think I've been to a manicurist less than 5 times in my 27 years ), I've checked out their Shanghai branch once, I thought it was pretty ordinary... hmmmm. 

So few weeks ago, Shannon, Michelle, Nick and myself wanted to grab hotpot for dinner. But guess what, THERE WASN'T ANY AVAILABLE RESERVATIONS !!!!!

We practically called the whole singapore - we're talking about more reputable chains here like haidilao, beauty in a pot . Not your open air geylang or bugis ones ah. All 4 of us probably have a different gut flora to the majority of singaporeans here because we've lived in Australia for so long, so better go to a place where they are likely to practice higher hygiene standards hmm.

Nick managed to get a table for 2 last week and asked if I was keen for dinner. It was also at a convenient branch ( Bedok Mall), so why not right?

The moment I arrived, I was greeted by service staff who promptly wanted to serve me tidbits while I waited for Nick to arrive. We were both then ushered to our table and was introduced to our table service stuff for the night and was given a hot towel, an apron each and a plastic protector for our phone. 

Our service staff - He was pretty good looking eheheheheh. 

And then we ordered the food, and ate the food. 

The food was good; I do find it rather pricey so I'm not sure if I could afford to eat here every week like some of my friends hmmm. Especially not with my current doctor paygrade lol. 

But will I return again? Definitely! 

The service was good, I liked the noodle dance, and most importantly, the restaurant manager gave me his mobile number and said " If you want to come over to eat, even if it's last minute, just give me a call " :p

SINGAPORE: Tipo Pasta Bar

8 years in Australia and I've been semi converted into a western meal lover. Previously all I knew my whole life was asian food. That is because my mom only eats asian cuisine. She doesn't like pasta, she doesn't eat steak, she definitely would never make a sunday roast. 

Since I've came back to Singapore, I haven't had pasta at all. And to be honest, I'm really craving a good pasta from my favourite Italian restaurant in Adelaide - Chianti. 

A new initiative from F&B group - the black hole, the pasta at Tipo are handcrafted. Interestingly their pasta isn't plain boring, instead subtle flavours are infused i.e lemon, beetroot, garlic

First up, the order form !

Nick and I decided to get a starter each - I had the carprese salad which was amazing! Whilw nick had the bruchetta. it was also delightful 

They were $6 each

We then decided to build our own pasta.
Below is Nick's pasta with alfredo sauce, king oyster mushroom, sauteed prawns and sous vide egg

I really enjoyed the alfredo sauce. I'm usually not a creamy sauce person because I feel sick of it really quickly. But this one was good !

$17.90

I had the beef ragu with sous vide egg $12.90

I guess this would be a good place to go to for a pasta craving. It's not as fine as Valentino's but price point also much cheaper than valentino also right. I mean, the older generation always say 一分钱一分货. If you're paying less than $15 for a pasta you also need to adjust your expectations a little bit right. haha.

Tipo Pasta 
785 North Bridge Road
12pm-10pm everyday

SINGAPORE: Yardbird Southern Table & Bar

My gosh, I really get anxious just thinking about the number of backlog travel posts I have 

 2018 Japan trip, 2018 Korea trip, 2018 New Zealand trip, 2019 Japan trip, 2019 Bangkok trip ....

HOLY. IT'S SIX.

How am I going to ever finish posting about them goodness. I probably have around 50 posts more to draft omg omg omg omg. 

Nicholas and I have been back in Singapore for awhile already and really, we have been going around trying new places, old places. And I think Singapore in terms of its food scene its much more exciting than Adelaide. There's just so many restaurants! And new restaurants are popping up every week it's just so difficult to stay on top of everything. I dare say in Adelaide that Nick and I would have already checked out a new place by 1 month post opening. 

Voted Best American Restaurant by Time Out Miami, Yardbird Southern Table & Bar was founded on the principle of farm-fresh ingredients and traditional American flavours. We decided to dig into Yardbird Singapore’s mouth-watering dinner menu last week.

Goodness, I 've just realised that Singaporeans are a really greedy bunch. The problem with Nick and myself is that we are super last minute people. We hardly ever plan our meals ahead ( unless we are travelling then I get very uptight), we only decided on yardbird a couple of hours before dinner. I couldn't get a table on chope. Nick called the restaurant and was unfortunately told that the tables are all fully booked out. But Nick is always very resourceful and he is a sweet talker so somehow is managed to sweet talk a table out of the manager.... lollollol

Some singaporeans I realised... are also a strange bunch. There was a young couple beside us. I think it's an army boy celebrating his gf's birthday. They ordered ribs and lobster mac and cheese. Wah, I held myself back so badly, I really felt like tapping them on the shoulder. I mean.... the restaurant's called yardbird... the restaurant's mascot is a chicken.... the restaurant is known for fried chicken...

WHY ARE YOU EATING RIBS AND LOBSTER?

It's like me going to a fisherman and asking him to sell me pork.

Anyway... rant over.

heheh Nicholas is SO CUTE !

For starters we had the chicken wings ( left $20)

I LOVED IT. The chili spice was on point. It's the best chicken wings I've ever had. I am a huge fan of korean chicken wings, but this is better !

Fried green tomato, cripsy pork belly, pimento cheese, smoky tomato jam, frisée, pickled lemon vinaigrette $18

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED. 

Chicken and spiced watermelon and waffles for mains $40 

It's a huge portion so if you are getting sides and appetizers, I really think 1 main is good to share between 2. 

The chicken was so well marinated. I brought some back for Beefe and the moment i opened up my takeaway box my mom was like " WHATS THAT? SMELLS AMAZING" obviously Beefe had a fantastic supper. 

The spiced watermelon was refreshing. The waffles... meh. 

Really nice Mac and cheese $14

Overall, the food was good, price wise a little expensive but hey, it's housed in marina bay sands so.... I guess it's priced appropriately for venue.
The good thing is... if you are a marina bay sands member just like I am, you are entitled to 15% discount at yardbird until march 2020!!!!!

It's a heaps good deal !

I don't know about you, but I did enjoy the chicken very much and Nicholas and I are definitely going to be back for brunch another day. I really want to try their chicken and egg biscuit sandwich :p

Yardbird Southern Table & Bar ( click)

BANGKOK: Streetfood outside Platinum Mall

I'm always super cautious when I'm eating in a developing country because from a medical point of view, our gut flora may not be conditioned to accept their level of hygiene. And the last thing you want to happen on your holiday is to come down with a bad case of gastro. I had that once in Nagoya 2 years ago and I never wish for it to happen to anybody. It was so bad I almost wanted to check myself into the hospital. Can you imagine spending the night on the toilet floor?!

Anyway, I think most well lit, aesthetically pleasing streetfood in bangkok are all controlled by the same head company. I say that because the design are all similar, and they sell the same food. 

There's always a shop selling this.

and this.

and this. This crocodile is like the star attraction or something. Everybody who walks past will definitely stop to take another look and 80% will whip out their mobile for a picture. 

Nick and I were tempted by the colour and fragrance of the food and so.... we decided to share a pad thai and a grilled squid

It wasn't like Restaurant quality. But it was an enjoyable experience. It's convenient located just outside platinum mall so yeah, once youre tired from shopping, just pop by outside for some food. 

BANGKOK: Go Ang Pratunam Chicken rice

I am always very cautious when travelling to developing neighbouring countries. Like I'm always paranoid that I will be a victim of pickpocket or something. And I never buy things that are super valuable like jewelleries because I have been cheated once! My mom and I were in China 13 years ago and the tour guide brought us to this Jade jeweller. Each piece of jade comes with certification and etc. My mom bought a nice pendant for a couple of hundreds. Few years later, the colour turned. And our hypothesis is that, the jade was probably of a bad quality and colour and they colour injected it. And so after a few years because of chemical reaction or something, the colour fades back to its original bad colour. 

So yeah, the lesson my family learnt is : Never buy jewellery from developing countries. 

The reason why I brought this jewellery thing up is because while we were making our way to Go Ang pratunam chicken rice for lunch, we were stopped by this thai dude who was fluent in English. He said " Where are you all going? " And Nick's father said " To eat chicken rice " 

Thai dude: Do you know today thai government is having a sale, 1 day only for tourist, ends at 12noon. Alot of thai souveniers. It is very near, just go down this stairs towards that building. Go there and see before lunch at chicken rice because chicken rice not open yet, Still cooking. 

At that point I was thinking.. No way... Chicken rice open from 6am

But Nick's dad decided that perhaps we should check this place out first since the thai dude said it was near. 

We went down the stairs and the building beside was actually a hospital... Super weird, red flag number 2. 

But just as we were about to turn back, a thai woman approached us and said " Do you know today thai government is having a sale, 1 day only for tourist, ends at 12noon. Alot of thai souveniers.I just come from there. I call you tuk tuk, very cheap only 40 baht. 

And Nic's father thanked her and off we went on the Tuk tuk

WTF It was so far. And when we finally reached the place I was thinking okay... this is a huge scam. The building was was gem pte ltd. And nick's dad walked into the buildng and....

We were just so pressured to buy gems and jewellery. The thai chinese dude kept saying " you are chinese, I am chinese I give you good price you will say thank you to me when you go back to your country " 

I refused to be entertained and we left the building after 45 mins ( Because Nick's parents were looking at the jewellery, the thai chinese dude was trying to sell at SGD 12000 Ruby necklace)... very far away from our chicken rice...

Nick then later did a google search and many people had listed them as a SCAM.

So yeah, I then later told Nick that I had my suspicion since we walked down the stairs after talking to thai dude. And I told him how I think the thai dude and the thai woman are in cahoots. And possibly the tuktuk driver as well. I mean, the thai woman could be saying anything to him because we didn't understand thai, she could be saying " you drive them there I give you commission later " 

So... As I mentioned before in my previous post (click) , Nicholas is a HUGE chicken fan. And I assure you if he could, he will have chicken rice everyday for both his meals. 

Unfortunately as much as how I always say everybody's taste buds are subjective and to be honest I've had some disagreements with the recommendations of Michelin guides....... I still inevitably turn to the guide for meal ideas. I mean... it's the most convenient way isn't it? But I still do my cross check with blogger reviews and such. But lets be honest, if you're reviewing a place as a blogger, you will be recommending the place right? I mean alot of time is actually spent on drafting a post and the last thing I want to do is to waste my time on a restaurant that I don't like. Plus... taste is subjective isnt it? My poison may be your food. 

The only time I will ever write a bad review on my blog is when a restaurant is seriously terrible and ought to close down and is poses a risk to the health and mental wellbeing of mankind. 

Anyway, so I consulted the Bangkok Michelin Guide and found a bib gourmand chicken rice that is near Platinum mall. I do note that they have newly opened a branch in Singapore NEX mall, but from experience usually overseas branches don't do main shops justice. 

There was a queue but it moved quite quickly despite it being lunch time. We only waited perhaps 15 mins for a table.

We ordered a whole chicken, 4 rice, chicken bone soup and liver + gizzard. We had thai milk tea for drinks 

Nick's parents REALLY enjoyed the meal. 

I on the other hand, would choose our singapore hainanese chicken rice over this anytime. 

See, my personal experience of one man's poison is another man's food. 

Nick's dad really like the chicken meat, he says it tastes like Kampong chicken. For me I felt that the meat was a little tough. I guess Kampong chicken run alot, so they are more muscular hence their meat are more firm and tough. 

I do however have to admit their special black sauce with cut chilli that you can dip your chicken meat in is really good ! 

I spent an extra 20baht ordering chicken bone soup but actually they do serve you a small bowl of soup each, so perhaps you can hold off the extra chicken soup order unless you really like the soup. It was nice though! 

Thumbs up for their thai milk tea !!!! But then again, thai milk tea everywhere in thailand is nice. 

Go Ang Pratunam Chicken Rice 

960 962 Phetchaburi Rd, Khwaeng Makkasan, Khet Ratchathewi, Krung Thep Maha Nakhon 10400, Thailand

Opens everyday 6am - 2pm, 5pm -2am 

BANGKOK: Nittaya Kaiyang

There's not many restaurants that uses animals for their mascots ( I think). I mean, I really am finding it hard to name any restaurant that I know of. Like Mcdonalds uses Ronald Mcdonald ( A human), KFC uses Colonel ( An old man)... 

This restaurant was recommended to us by Beefe's breeder, Sasin. He brought us to the main shop on our first trip there. It was SO delicious that my parents and I took a taxi there the next day to eat their food again. 

Subsequent trips to Bangkok also saw my parents visiting this restaurant again. 

The main shop is quite far la, I really wouldn't recommend taking a taxi all the way there. But fortunately, there's many branches all over bangkok and I'm sure you will be able to find a branch nearest to you for less than 200baht taxi/tuktuk. 

"From our love of healthy Isaan food (a North-eastern Thai cuisine), Nittaya Kaiyang came into

existence in order to improve a typical, old style cuisine, into a modern high quality dish. With our

commitment to good service and quality control, Nittaya Kaiyang is the perfect restaurant for both

Thai and foreign customers who love the unique taste of Isaan food.

Nittaya Kaiyang Restaurant was founded in 2000 as a small restaurant with only 280 square meters

on Rattanathibet Road, Nonthaburi, Thailand. The restaurant rose to popularity when it was highly

recommended by M.R. Thanadsri Svastivadhana (a highly-renowned Thai food guru) and his son M.L. Sirichalerm Svastivadhana. Since then, Nittaya Kaiyang has become one of the most beloved

restaurants in Thailand, and has been able to retain its popularity over the years. "

It's mostly all locals visiting this restaurant, the price is REALLY REASONABLE - you may check out their menu here ( click) 

You know what i love most about their menu - there is a FULL page of recommended signature dishes. And trust me, they all are really good

We started off with Thai fish cake, it's not on their recommended/signature  menu, but I never let a thai fish cake slip away from my mouth. 

Stir frried beef in southern fried curry

* note it's really spicy, so if you don't handle spice well, remember to tell them to make it only a little spicy. 

Tom yung goong 

papaya salad with salted eff

grilled chicken 

Mince pork ball in tong sab soup

Deep fried snapper with sweet fish sauce

Omelette

We each also had a lemongrass drink. 8 dishes + 5 drinks, we only paid 1600baht all together, this works out to only $68 for 4 people. 

Our taxi ride cost $8 round trip so... total bill is less than $80 for 4 people with so much food

Definitely thumbs up !

Nittaya Kaiyang ( click to redirect to website)

Multiple branches 

BANGKOK: The House on Sathorn

My last trip to Bangkok was 7 years ago when my parents and I flew over to choose a bulldog puppy. And the lucky bulldog puppy who happened to be chosen by both the breeder and us is......
if you were to check out my live instagram strip you would know.. Isn't he the cutest thing ever ?!?!

Nick and myself decided on a last minute trip to Bangkok because we were bored. And we got a good deal on Singapore Airlines. And AMEX gave us a wonderful deal to stay in W hotel, Bangkok.
So off we went, booked the tickets 3 days before departure and our 5 days of amazing experience in Bangkok started.

Aiya, cheap things no good, good things no cheap. Our cheap deal to Bangkok were crap timings. We reached bangkok at 8pm and we were to touch down Singapore at 12am. But cannot complaint right, i mean, we are after all paying only $240 per person for Singapore Airlines, round trip.

Anyway, it's my first time staying at Silom area. Previously I stayed at Pathumwan and Sukhumvit. We didn't know if the plane was going to be delayed or how traffic was going to be, so we decided that we were just gonna wing it for dinner on the first night.

By the time we finished checking into W and doing abit of camwhoring ( btw, I love the vibe at W. The aesthetics were amazing and I absolutely adored these 2 huge muay thai boxing gloves) , it was 8pm.

Quite tired after the flight so we decided to eat at The House on Sathorn which is part of W dining. It is a colonial mansion and Thai national heritage home in the heart of Bangkok built in 1889. 

Only later did I discover that it has been making the list for Asia Top 50 Restaurant over the last few years. Their most recent 2018 ranking is #43. 

The conversion rate for SGD To Baht is $1: 23.5 baht

A picture of the menu - it's was a romantic night with minimal lighting hahaha I suggest you go online and check their menu out. 

Started off with some bread - free

Crispy squid with tom yum mayonaise 400baht

Yellow Fin tuna cerviche 450baht

stir fried massaman lamb chop, hot basil, long bean, coconut served with steamed rice- 1200 baht

I don't usually eat lamb, but this was really yummy!

crispy duck leg, fermented black bean soy, dried shitake, kailan served with steamed rice - 850baht

i highly enjoyed this duck as well. 

Jumbo tiger prawn salad 550baht

We skipped dessert because obviously we ordered quite a bit and we were so full! But we did make use of how 1 for 1 cocktail voucher from W. We had what they recommended - Nick had some garden herby thing which really tasted grassy. I had... Idk, I didn't enjoy it haha. 

A place to definitely visit if you are staying in W and want to be entertained by a live band or want to dine at a place with a romantic vibe. The food was also great tho on the pricier side . I would definitely recommend all the dishes I had that night

The house on Sathorn ( click to view menu and for reservations) 

106 North Sathorn Road, Silom, Bangrak, Bangkok 10500
+66 2 344 4025