Random Eats: January - March 2014

Item: Siauw Mai - $2.40
Location: Kopitiam (JCube, Singapore)
The siauw mai was not bad but nothing fantastic though. It was meaty and firm.

Item: Ayam Penyet - $6.40
Location: Kopitiam (Novena Square, Singapore)

The skin was crispy and the meat was tender. The tofu that was served with it also had crispy skin and soft tofu meat within. The ayam penyet was served with white rice and a small bowl of warm chicken soup.

Item: Soto Ayam - $4.90
Location: Kopitiam (Novena Square, Singapore)

The serving was generous a lot of  chicken meat and rice vermicelli. The soup was thin, light and had quite a unique flavor, although not very authentic.

Item: Spicy Korean Crunch Meal - $8.20
Location: KFC (Novena Square, Singapore)

I am a hardcore K-Popers who is addicted to everything Korean. As soon as I heard about the newly-launched KFC Spicy Korean Craze, I rushed to the nearest KFC to try it. The meal consists of 2 pieces of chicken, regular fries and Nestea lemonade. The chicken was just usual KFC's hot & spicy chickens, but with an addition of sweet spicy sauce and sesame seeds. The sauce turned out too fiery for my weak stomach! Spicy food lovers would probably laugh at me, but these Korean chickens had already tortured my stomach to death. I totally could not bear the spiciness! Even the cold lemonade still could not neutralize the spiciness.

Item: Lemon Chicken Cutlet - $4
Location: Fork & Spoon (Square 2, Singapore)
The amount of sliced chicken given was considered generous, it was tender and juicy, my complain was that they put only a little lemon sauce! The chicken rice was a bit tasteless - I could not taste the chicken flavor in it. The portion was fulfilling enough. But overall, I was quite disappointed with this dish.

Item: Shredded Chicken Porridge - $3.80
Location: Fork & Spoon (Square 2, Singapore)
The porridge was smooth in texture and it remained consistent throughout. The shredded chicken inside was pretty generous as well.

Item: Original Soymilk with Pearls - $2.50
Location: Mr Bean (AMK Hub, Singapore)
I like how Mr Bean's soy milk does not taste sickening, so I am pretty sure people who dislike soy milk would be a convert lol. The combination of soy milk and pearl is a unique yet great idea. The addition of pearls gave a nice chewy sensation to the soy milk. The soy milk had a nice aroma and sweet taste. Me likey!

Item: White Fish - $6.90
Location: Ajisen Ramen (AMK Hub, Singapore)

The actual presentation was totally opposite of what was shown in the menu. It was unappetizing at all, just plain fish meat coated with crispy batter and fried until golden brown.

Item: California Maki - $5.90
Location: Ajisen Ramen (AMK Hub, Singapore)

Standard sushi roll that you can find in almost all Japanese restaurants.

Item (left to right): Tamago Maki - $1.50 // California Roll - $4

Location: Umisushi (AMK Hub, Singapore)

The tamago was not really thick and it tasted just normal. Meanwhile, the ingredients used in the Cali roll were all fresh. The price was a bit expensive though.

Item: Mocha Ice Blended - $7.30
Location: The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf (AMK Hub, Singapore)

As there is no Starbucks in Ang Mo Kio, sometimes I have to substitute my favorite Starbucks' frappuccino with TCB's ice blended. I love their mocha ice blended! The mocha flavor was rich without being too bitter or too sweet. It made a delicious treat to cool down on a hot day. Although a bit pricey, this drink gave a good kick of coffee with balanced taste of chocolate.

Item: Chicken Rice - $3.50
Location: Frankie's Place Coffeeshop (Ang Mo Kio Avenue 10, Singapore)
At a decent price of $3.50, the amount of chicken meat given was generous. Instead of placing the chicken on top of the rice, the meat is placed on a separate plate and drenched with soy sauce (that is why the serving look big). If you go for quantity, this dish is recommended. The steamed white chicken was tender and juicy. The rice was fragrant with good texture too.

Item: Mini Churros Cup with Chocolate Sauce - $3.20 (regular size)
Location: Churrosity (Holland Avenue, Singapore)
It is not hard to find Churrosity stall as you will spot it right away near Holland Village MRT exit B. Note that Churrosity is strictly for takeaway, there is no seat available. I ordered mini churros in a cup because it was more convenient to eat in bite size. It comes with a choice of sauce (they offer chocolate, honey, strawberry, and dulce de leche) and I chose chocolate. The churros is coated with cinnamon power and sugar. It was not really warm served, but it was still crispy outside and fluffy enough to chew. The chocolate sauce was just alright, nice pairing with my churros. The price is reasonable as well.

Item: Spaghetti Carbonara - $14.20
Location: T.A.Z Cafe & Bistro (Jalan Leban, Singapore)
The spaghetti was served with bacon, mushroom, egg yolk and parmesan cheese, then tossed with carbonara sauce. The spaghetti was al dente, the sauce was creamy and they put generous amount of bacon inside! The egg yolk on top added a delightful silkiness to the dish. Yummy!

Item: Strawberry Shortcake - $3.50

Location: Four Leaves (Junction 8, Singapore)

I can never study without munching some food. Before going home, I dropped by Four Leaves to get a slice of cake. It was a battle between tiramisu and strawberry shortcake, and I decided to get the latter. It is vanilla sponge cake layered with strawberry slices and cream. It was not very sweet, just right for my tastebud. Overall, it was worth the $3.50 paid.

Item: Garlic Chicken - $4.50

Location: Hot Star (ION Orchard, Singapore)

I take away their large fried chicken, this time I opted for garlic seasoning. Their fried chicken was really large, until I had to divide my eating session into some parts haha. The only thing I dislike from Hot Star is that their chicken is not boneless. This is because Hot Star stays true to its own root by not providing cutting service, as eating the chicken as a whole helps elevate the juiciness. Nevertheless, the chicken overall was enjoyable. It was crispy, juicy, and the garlic seasoning was pungent.

Item: Bitter Nama Chocolate - $15
Location: ROYCE' (ION Orchard, Singapore)

I finally got to try ROYCE's famous Nama chocolate. An ice pack was included in the packaging to preserve the freshness of the chocolate. A box contains 20 pieces of Nama chocolate. Interestingly, a spoon is also included as an eating aid (it is pretty much useless to me lol). When I put the chocolate in my mouth, it literally melted and I could sense the bitterness of the cocoa powder. Then I was greeted by the silky smooth cream filling. I dislike the bitterness at first, but after a while it became addictive.

Item: Milk Tea with Pearl - $3.50 (regular size)

Location: I Love Taimei (Bugis Junction, Singapore)

I Love Taimei's milk tea is comparable to Gong Cha or Chatime. It was not overly milky and the pearls were big-sized.

Item: French Fries - $1.50 (small size)
Location: McDonald's (Bugis+, Singapore)

This time, their fries was not crispy like usual. However, I still could enjoy the delicious saltiness of it. By the way, I love the photo above. Feel like I was watching the world go by while enjoying my fries haha.

Item: Oreo McFlurry - $2.50
Location: McDonald's (Bugis+, Singapore)

When talking about ice cream, we simply cannot miss Mac's ice cream right? This is my all-time favorite McFlurry flavor, the Oreo one. The combination between soft-serve vanilla ice cream and Oreo cookie crumbs is just simply sinful. They say classic is timeless, so is this McFlurry.

Item: Original Blind Date with 1 Topping - $4.40
Location: Berrylite (Bugis+, Singapore)

I chose marshmallow for my topping, while my friend chose Oreo crumbs. The yogurt was super sour, but the serving was satisfying (in fact, the yogurt fulfilled the whole cup, no hole found at the center). The marshmallow also complemented the yogurt perfectly. Good news is, it is 100% fat-free!

Item: 2 pcs Chicken Meal - $7.80
Location: Texas Chicken (Nex, Singapore)

The chicken meal comes with biscuit, regular side dish and regular drink. I had my usual spicy chicken with mashed potato and coke. To me, Texas' spicy chicken has spicier kick and less greasy compared to KFC, but taste and quality wise, KFC slightly wins over Texas. I am not very fond of Texas' honey butter biscuit as I think it gets too sweet. Popeyes' biscuit is way better. As for the mashed potato, I will put it as a runner up, while Popeye being the winner and KFC being the third. Texas' mashed potato gravy is too peppery and it does not have chicken bits like Popeyes'. Again, it is all personal preferences.

Item: Famous Star with Cheese
Location: Carl's Jr. (VivoCity, Singapore)

Although it is slightly expensive, Carl's Jr. is the right place to go if you are craving for filling and good quality fast food. The Famous Star Cheeseburger itself is already so filling to me. The patty was juicy, tender, and the veggies were fresh.

Item: Yogurt with Marshmallow Topping - $3.85 (small size)
Location: Yami Yogurt VivoCity

Yami Yogurt could be said the pioneer of frozen yogurt in Singapore. The taste is light, not too sour like Llaollao. I added marshmallow topping for 95 cents, which was quite costly but blended well with the yogurt.

Item: 8 pcs Assorted Petit Doughnut - $4.80
Location: Sapporo Petit Doughnut (Ngee Ann City, Singapore)

The donuts here are not fried, instead they are baked so it they look more like Japanese taiyaki. There are eight flavors of donut filling to choose: red bean, sweet potato, custard, chocolate, raspberry cream cheese, and other three which I fail to recall. My friend and I bought eight pieces of donut to share and we asked the staff to mix all flavors except sweet potato. It is a bit dear to pay $4.80 for 8 tiny donuts (this Merlion-shaped donut looked so cute though). I felt it was not worth the price, since the donuts fell below my expectation. They were dry, cold and not soft as they were not served warm. They tasted more like a normal pancake shaped into mini donuts. I will not give it another try.

Item: Ichigo KitKat - $5.20

Origin: Japan

Once you open the individually-packed KitKat, you will smell strawberry. When you bite it, it also contains strawberry - the strawberry flavor was distinctive with real seeds inside.