Hosted on the Patio @ Alexandra Road

It has to be one of the funniest farewell lunch ever for a colleague!

1. It was 4 weeks late.
2. We already had a farewell for him.
3. The 'treater' was too busy few weeks ago and was giving a belated treat but did not want to have a 2 person lunch with the 'treatee'. So the treater asked a few of us were asked to join in as well.
4. The day before, everything had been arranged and we were to meet the 'treatee' at the lunch venue.
5. We waited, text, called the ex-colleague mobile when he did not appear half an hour after the agreed time.
6. We decided to order anyway because we were too hungry!
7. When our food arrived, a phone call also arrived, our ex-colleague was sick and he just woke up!
8. So we had a farewell treat for this ex-colleague without him being present!


Anyway, the farewell lunch was at Hosted on the Patio.
A quiet place hidden amongst the business of Alexandra Road / Telok Belangah.



It's located at the former ITE just across the new and upcoming Alexandra Retail Centre / PSA Buildling.

They have great set lunches at around $20 plus, but most of us did not really want to have such a big meal. So only 1 person which also happened to be the 'treater' ordered the  meal and the rest of us had the a-la-carte items.





This was the smoked Salmon Salad that came with the set meal.
It's part of the set, so it's smaller, but  we shared it as well. It was a very light and fresh salad. Mango julienne with smoked salmon and rockets does taste quite good!





This was the Warm Mushroom Salad that we shared. We all loved this salad. Assorted mushrooms that has been stir fried with some cherry tomatoes and topped on fresh salad. Very appetizing. That little bits of crunch on top gave it a nice touch too!




One colleague had Teriyaki Chicken Burger.
It smelled very good.  Look at this rustic burger. A decent size piece of chicken, with a ring of pineapple too!




If you have read this blog long enough, you would know we have a colleague who likes tofu!
She saw this Tofu and Portobello sandwich and ordered it.




My colleague told me that the tofu has been mixed with spinach. The patty was fried so it's soft and get a little springy. She loved the portobello mushroom the best. She said it was so tasty. The mushroom has been so well prepared, when you bite it, it comes off easily and not tough. It was also full of flavor she said. Makes me want to try it too!



I am the 'ribs person', so I ordered the Honey Bourbon Ribs. OK, some of you might say it's because of the word bourbon that you ordered it ya? Partly true.

When it arrived, we all got a shock! It was one big rib!



I feel like Fred Flinstone! It's as if I am a carnivore! Eating meat like that!
Well, I like the marinade. The parts that had the marinade that has been thickened into some paste was lovely. (OK, you can say it's reduced bourbon essence? haha)



One part of it the other side was soft, but this side, you can see it's a bit dry though.
Or maybe it's the cow! Big cows that have big ribs have tougher meat?



Another colleague had the pork cutlet burger.
It was served in a baguette!





The "treater" had the set meal. She had the chicken option.
I think it's OK lah. :-)



Oh oh... The burgers and the rib all came with a basket of fries.

We all liked the fries! It's very addictive! No, I am not sure if it's double fried but we just could not stop eating though we were all full. We finished 3 and a half baskets of it!




The dessert that came with the set meal.
The 'treator' said when she came previously they had chocolate fondant. But the menu has changed so we did not get chocolate cake with molten chocolate flow out this time.

The profiteroles was ok. We were by now too full to enjoy desserts. So don't order too much when you are here!

It's so funny that we had a free treat from this 'Prof' and the farewell person was not there. We are still laughing over it! Oh, their website has the price of the food, if you are interested to know how much it costs.


Hosted on the Patio
991B Alexandra Road
#01-10,
Singapore 119970

Tel: 6276-7337
Website:  http://www.hosted.sg

Prive - Bakery Cafe @ Marina at Keppel Bay

Just look at these luxury yachts berthing at the marina. If you own a yacht, it'll be great to have breakfast on board the vessel.

But if you don't own a yacht, having a lazy weekend breakfast with a view of these luxury yacht would be equally relaxing.




Momo and I met up with our bridesmaid Dino few weeks ago to discuss 'matters'.
As usual, having any discussion over food always ends up with a good conclusion or plan.





Dino wanted something not so heavy, so she ordered the Grilled Cajun Chicken Wrap. $15
It comes served with salad that's decent, you know what I mean by decent by looking at the leaves served.



The grilled chicken was wrapped with grilled mango, romaine lettuce and aioli.
Quite a nice combination and tasty. If you are making wraps at home, try this combi.




Momo was into fried foods and she ordered the Fish and Chips. $19.
Decent two pieces of crispy battered fish and salads on the sides. Momo enjoyed it because of the crispy batter. Inside was firm, tender steaming hot fish.




When I see burgers in the menu, I always want to try it! I was tempted because it said wagyu patty in the menu. This was the N.Y. Burger at $26.

The description said: 200g of wagyu patty, melted English cheddar, one big crispy onion ring on it served with aioli. It's simple and yet good. "I like!"

The large chips on the side was nicely done. Crispy outside, light and fluffy inside.

But I am pretty sure they are not double or triple fried. I have this sudden crave to try out Heston Blumenthal triple fried chips!

I am in a fries/chips mood today! I was just discussing about ultrasonic fries this evening at a friend's place! Anyone tried it before or know anyone with the equipment to make it in Singapore?




We know the desserts here are good. That was the reason we did not order other sides to go with our mains. We were saving our stomach space for desserts.

We know and have read what's nice here, but as usual, we will just pretend not knowing anything and ask the service staff to recommend. Well well, he recommended what we were going to try!

Flourless Chocolate Cake. $13.
It was so rich and dense, and ice cream on the side. The ice cream was fig and honey ice cream. Nice!
Note: if you are not a fig fan, you probably won't like the taste or smell of figs.




Our other dessert, the Sticky Date Pudding. $10.

Oooo.. Sticky and served with butterscotch. The ladies were happy with this dessert.
I think anything served with good ice cream makes everyone happy!


The view was nice, it makes you feel as if you are holidaying outside Singapore. Except of course with the humidity and heat.

There is indoor air conditioned seating and also outdoor seating. As usual, you know who sits indoors and who sits outdoors. ;-)


Prive
2 Keppel Bay Vista
Marina at Keppel Bay
Singapore 098382

Tel: +65 6776 0777

Bistro One Zero Three @ 103 Pasir Panjang Road

Our family was window shopping, enjoying the sights and air conditioning of the VivoCity shopping mall last Sunday afternoon. When it was around dinner time, our cousin asked her mummy if we could all go to Peramakan. Permission granted and we drove there.

When we got there, they asked if we had any reservations. We said no. They said they were sorry. They were fully booked! Alamak! I suddenly thought of Bistro One Zero Three and suggested we go there instead. It's nearby. We came here before and thought they were good. We are back for a re-visit.

Italian Bruschetta

Sis remembered the Italian Bruschetta ($4.80) that we enjoyed the last time and we ordered one to share.  Very crunchy toasted bread with butter and garlic topped with very juicy savoury bruschetta topping. It was really mouth watering!

We challenged our cousin whose age should be learning how to 'cook', to make this for us in the coming weeks. 

Pan Fried Norwegian Salmon Steak

Uncle had the Pan-fried Norwegian Salmon Steak ($20.90) and he enjoyed it. Balsomic Cherry Tomatoes looks good doesn' it?

Oatmeal Dory Fillet

Our aunt almost always order the same thing when we visit a western food place. We already knew what she wanted and recommended her the 'fish and chips'. She always go for fish and chips!

The fish and chips here is called the Oatmeal Dory Fillet. ($17.90) A huge piece of dory fish padded with oatmeal and deep fried till its golden brown. Crispy and crunchy. Served with tartare sauce that had tomato chunks inside and their coleslaw that we like!

Salmon and Crab Pasta

Teenage girls like pasta! We noticed that our cousin after certain age seems to always order anything pasta. This was her Salmon and Crab Pasta ($16.90).

She has been brought up well and always asked if we wanted to try her food? We disturbed her by all grabbing our forks and dive it into her pasta. Swirled the fork and took up a fork full. It was nice! Those who like tomato based pasta and those who like seafood with the slight crabby smell would love this. The portion today was quite big too!

Looking at the previous photo of this same pasta here, it seems to be bigger and nicer now! It's also more al dante now. ;-)

BBQ Baby Back Ribs

One of the reason I suggested this place was because I had cravings for BBQ Ribs! Sis and I had been nibbling the whole afternoon while at VivoCity earlier, so we decided to 'share our calories' for dinner. We had the ever so delicious BBQ Baby Back Ribs. ($26.90).

The ribs were tender, the sauce was addictive and really finger licking good! Even if you don't use your fingers, if you use your fork and knife, a slight nudge on the meat and it will fall off the bone. I like their coleslaw that goes with it too!

Brownie with Ice Cream

The home made brownie and ice cream! Warm brownie and ice cream. Ahh....

Sis asked if the ice cream was home made, the lady (we think is also the boss) who served us said yes! Sis added, er.. using a Cuisinart machine? The lady answered, yes! you use that too? We had a laugh. No, my machine is a partial automatic Kenwood and the freezer bowl is spoilt. Sis and Momo refuse to let me buy the Cuisinart Fully Automated machine I wanted!

Back to the ice cream, this lady makes good ice cream! Try it! It's a family business here and they serve great food and service is good too! Always glad to be back eating here.


(Now to get this teenage cousin of ours to make us the bruschetta. After the bruschetta, get her to make brownies. Another cousin has a great brownie recipe that is totally awesome. I need to convince the two ladies at home to let me get the Cuisinart ice cream maker. We can then have brownie and ice cream party! haha!)


Bistro One Zero Three
103 Pasir Panjang Road
Singapore 118531

Tel: 6476 6373

Honeymoon Dessert @ VivoCity

Two of our colleagues went over to Vivocity to shop during lunch time and came back with desserts for all of us!

They were so kind not to eat there, but buy them back so that we could have it as well!
Here are two takeaway containers of the dessert that my colleague and I who share an office had:

* Mango Pomelo and Sago Sweet Soup *

The pomelo was packed separately in a smaller container. The takeaway container was in a good portion size.




It was nice. The mango as you can see is a bit over ripe. (Is this the usual HK style to have it a bit ripe? I had something similar in HK a few months back and it's also over riped mangoes)

The texture is nice and smooth. It's rather creamy but with the sago, pomelo and mango chunk size, it was quite a delight to put in your mouth.

* I can't remember what this is called *

It's been some time and I forgot what this was called!



All I remembered that it was cold and nice bite with the little tadpoles in it.
I think the white pieces were tofu!



Honeymoon Dessert
1 Harbourfront Walk
#01-93 VivoCity
Singapore 098585

Tel: 6376 8027

Thaksin Beef Noodles @ Seah Im

If you want Halal Beef Noodles, this is a good place to try. Their soup base is very good, and it also says no MSG.

I usually eat at the one in Clementi Central, but 2 colleagues ate this instead. This is the original stall.









You should try it! I usually order medium size.

Shi Ji Noodle Stall @ Seah Im Food Centre

Few days ago, a colleague was bugging us to go to Seah Im. He wants to have Lor Mee. We resisted for a few days, but we relented after a few days. haha...

Our food guy die die want to eat from this stall. Shi Ji Noodle Stall.



All from the above stall, this is the Duck Noodle.



This is the Lor Mee.



I ate this instead, Tomyam Kuey Teow. It's actually quite nice! Spicy enough and totally shiok!



One thing about Seah Im is that it is super super hot! I think the fans there should not be made to point at humans. The air from the fans are super hot! Sit away from blowing fans! That's a big tip!

Hong Kong Kim Gary Restaurant : Gigantic Toasts & Stuff

Phew. Today's blogger lets me load without any glitch.
Here goes...

The big huge thick toasts. This is butter and condensed milk.



This is the peanut butter version. Also covered with condensed milk. This is delicious!



We ordered set meals. Some sets come with soup. Cute little bowls.



Not sure what's the name of this, but this is rice dish which colleague said is not bad.



Another 2 colleague ordered baked rice. This is the chicken that is baked on the plate separately from the rice.



3 of us ordered this dish. It's spicy korean noodles. It comes with sausages, ham, 2 portions of the chicken wing, sunny side up egg, 2 slices of pink fish cake. We did not know it would be so big!



This is the side dish we ordered. Baked Cheesy Chicken Wings.
If we knew that we already have chicken wings in our noodles, we would not ordered and had to eat so much! But its delicious, the wings!



We also ordered a few kinds of drinks.

Hong Kong Kim Gary Restaurant @ Vivo City

Instant noodles on steroids! That was what I wanted to put for the header! haha..

Yesterday, we celebrated one colleague's birthday by going down to Vivo City for lunch. Someone suggested Kim Gary, so off we went there...

That's colleagues in front of the shop. The address is there too.



We sat down and the menu came.



It seems this might be the only branch in Singapore. There are 10 branches in Malaysia. The famous one is in Sungai Wang Plaza, KL.

Sorry ah. Blogger is not allowing me to upload the rest of the pictures, been trying for the last 15 mins. I will post the food pictures tomorrow. Going to sleep liao...

Dian Xiao Er - Herbal Roast Duck

Welcome to this new series. This time it's food from Dian Xiao Er.

They have branches in both Marina Sq and Vivo City. The pictures here are from Vivo City. As usual, the pictures in this blog are taken so that you can see for yourself how it looks and not the "official version" from their website. The dishes in this series are all part of a set meal that we ordred.

The shop front at Vivo City.




This is the famed Herbal Roast Duck from this restaurant.


Well, it is actually quite nice actually. Heard that people queue up just to eat this duck. The duck has crispy skin, the meat is moist inside, and a very pleasant, not too overpowering herbal taste.

Crystal Jade Dining In - Mango Pudding

Crystal Jade Dining In - Mango Pudding

If you love mango pudding, you absolutely must try this version here. As you know, most puddings are just the pudding.

But this version has:
1. Pudding made of mango
2. Pieces of the mango fruit itself inside the mango
3. Mango Juice with Sago
4. Bits of pomelo sacs
5. A piece of mint leaf
6. A cherry on top



We were actually quite full, but our little cousin loves mango pudding, so we thought, make her happy and order one. Guess what? When it arrived, each of us took a bite each and it was all gone!

Crystal Jade Dining In - Ee-fu noodles with roasted port, preserved sausage and vegetable

Crystal Jade Dining In - Ee-fu noodles with roasted pork, preserved sausage and vegetable - $20

This dish is actually quite delicious. I like it very much



Do you all enjoy looking at the photos? Drop some comments to let me know if anyone's visiting :-)