The Green Room Cafe (Bishan Park)

I've been told quite a few times that there was a nice restaurant in the middle of bishan park but i've never personally been there. Upon arrival, i noticed there were 2 such restaurants side by side and was forced to make a choice, feeling a wee bit exotic, i opted for the Green Room cafe instead of the Acacia which i will revisit at a later time. The Green Room cafe is a concept cafe from Asmara Spas to promote healthy eating habits which inexorably links back to the spa treatments they offer. How good is the food there though?

Location: Bishan Park (Directly behind the carpark)

Price Range: $20 per head

In the middle of nowhere has new meaning here

Enough said.

The outer alfresco hall

Menu and mission

Trees? Indoors?

Interior Shot

The location in the middle of the park is reminiscent of Bliss which is located a Punggol Park. Its interior was decent and casual with the exception of 2 rather large trees located right smack in the middle of the restaurant, making it an interesting decoration of sorts.

Vegetarian Mutton Curry with organic brown rice ($12.80)

Vegetarian mutton curry has been done many times and i have never had a good opinion of it since i perceive such foods to be filled with artificial flavorings and being totally unhealthy. This rendition was quite decent however, with the flavorings kept to a minimal and still having slight hints of mutton in it. It was not very spicy despite the use of curry leaves, cinnamon and ginger but complimented the organic brown rice really well. That said, the rice is very different. Thick, moist and chewy, this is akin to japanese rice only bigger. Interestingly good.

Indochinese Spring Rolls ($6.80)

Spring rolls. Why did i order this? Well, i figured they simply can't go wrong with spring rolls in vegetarian cuisine and i was proven right. Served piping hot, with a tangy lime, ginger and red chilli dipping sauce, this was easily enjoyable as finger food. Crunchy vegetables, spicy and sourish sauce, whats there not to like?

Portebello Field Mushroom ($12.80)

Ever since my first introduction to this big fungus, i have grown quite fond of it and its various permutations. This time, it was served with aged balsamic vinegar, homemade potato relish on a warm baked bun. The nachos went well with it as well along with the fresh salad that gave it an sweet, raw and healthy feeling experience. I was only disappointed with the size of the mushroom which really could have been bigger.

Bill

The bill for this meal came up to $38.13 which is quite a big sum to pay for the amount of food we had.

Overall Score: 6.75/10

Last Word:
After all the good things i have said about the place, why is the score so low? Well, the fact that the food is easily prepared and the contrast between the offerings and the price is the reason, it simply doesn't feel like value for money even though the food is actually quite nicely done. Reduce the price by 30 or 40% and i'll probably return. Moving forward, if anyone wants to try the place, it might be a good idea to go during noon to enjoy the casual surroundings better.

HK Wang Zhai Tea Room (White Sands)

Hong Kong food in Singapore is more or less dominated by a few names which i feel personally, still have not done the subject matter much justice. Wan Zhai Hong Kong Tea Room is a new addition which has yet to be highly commercialized but is it any good or does it fall into the same trappings as all its predecessors?

Location: Pasir Ris Central Street 3 #02-04/01 White Sands

Contact: 6581 8804

Price Range: $8 per head

A humble namecard

Peanut Ginseng Soup (Free with Baked Rice)

I have to say, i'm totally surprised at how tasty this soup is. It doesn't look like much but its packed with taste. The ingredients inside are plentiful (peanuts and some chicken meat) for a free item. No points for presentation but looks can be deceiving indeed.

Wasabi Seafood Baked Rice ($8.20)

Another Look

The serving of baked rice is reasonable though hardly big. The reason i ordered this was because i've never tasted wasabi baked rice before so it was a novel concept for me, plus the fact that i quite keen of wasabi. The ingredients used are exactly the same as the HK Signature Hor Fan featured below, 2 mussels, 2 prawns and a smattering of fish. The unfortunate thing is that the ingredients definitely did not taste fresh to me. Prawns were powdery and lacks any crunch whatsoever, fish wasn't sweet and the mussels were a tad rubbery. The rice was normal and the wasabi was toned down for local tastes so it didn't have the kick i wanted. Average at best.

HK Signature Hor Fan ($6.30)

As mentioned above, the ingredients are the same 2 mussels, 2 prawns and some fish and the freshness is still below average. Taste-wise, the hor fan looked blackish and had a lot of pepper in it. My gf didn't finish this so thats a testament of how 'good' it is. To me, it wasn't worthy of the word 'signature' at all with its not-too-fresh ingredients, bad looks and worst of all, simple inadequate, salty and overly oily taste. The baked rice was better and that was already only an average offering.

Bill

The bill came up to $14.50 for 2 people but somehow, i still found it too expensive. The only good thing for this place is the soup sadly.

Overall Score: 5.5/10

Last Word:
Hong Kong food is just not getting the attention and franchises over in sunny Singapore. To date, i've tried a few Hong Kong cafes and honestly, they are either too expensive, food offerings average or just plain bad. If anybody knows of a good place i can review, please let me know. Till then, my word on Hong Kong food in Singapore is that there is yet to be one worthy of the name yet.

Phin's Beerhaus and Grill

Phin's beerhaus and grille is an unassuming, open concept eating place set on the 4th floor of Tampines mall. First looks did not impress and honestly, i've passed by this place so many times but never had the urge to try it till today. An offshoot of its bigger upmarket cousin, Phin's steakhouse, how does this lone restaurant fare? Read on.

Location: Tampines Mall #04-23/24

Contact: 65871911

Price range: $30 per head

Phin's

Ice Cream Corner

The first thing i need to say about this restaurant is the service. We were served by a waiter jovial and professional waiter who required nothing to jote down our orders while being able to tell us exactly what they had and did not have for the day. He was also kind enough to introduce a different cut of meat which turned out rather well in my opinion. If only waiters in other establishments could be as good as him, i'd gladly pay service charges. (La Noce is another place where the service staff is simply excellent.)

Australian Grain Fed Tenderloin ($28.90)

Cross Section

As recommended by the waiter, i took the Australian grain fed tenderloin which was a time limited offer. According to him, the meat is superior, better marbled and contains less fat as compared to the normal offerings. I don't presume myself an expert on this matter, but i must say the meat was pretty good. Done medium rare, slightly charred on the edges with a small lump of butter sizzling atop, this reminds me of the good days when Jack's place was still making good food. That said, the meat was juicy and the butter added much to the already succulent and tasty steak. Pity about the portion size which i felt was rather small (even though it took me 15 minutes to finish.)

Soup of the Day, Garlic Bread and Salad ($19.90 set meal)

My gf's set meal, which means i got to try everything a little again, no prizes for guessing if my girth is increasing. The salad was fresh, sweet and crunchy while the garlic bread fragrant and went well with the accompanying creamy mushroom soup. A good starter.

Seafood Pesto Carbonara

Another Look

This came as a surprise. The serving was quite generous with 2 huge scallops, 1 pan fried dory fillet and half slipper lobster set atop a bed of fettucinne cooked with pesto carbonara and mushrooms. The serving alone is worth commending and this is further accented by the fact that it tasted pretty good. It was quite spicy and tasted simple at the same time, allowing for an appetizing feeling without being overwhelming. The ingredients used were also equally fresh and everything tasted juicy and sweet. Nicely done.

Brownie Surprise ($8.90)

The brownie surprise really did come as a surprise because i saw more ice cream on the dish then brownies which were actually cut into small pieces and served as an accompaniment rather then the main draw. The ice cream was creamy and and smooth. The flavors served were cookies and cream, mocha and one which i can't quite make out. The brownie was rather dry but the melting ice cream made up for that oversight.

Dessert of the day (Mango Pudding with sugar icing)

The final part to the set meal was this mango pudding. Light, refreshing and sweet, this was a good ending for the meal.

Bill

The final bill came up to $67.90 for 2 people, its not cheap but the service and food quality made up for it.

Overall Score: 7/10

Last Word:
I'm really quite surprised with how good this place is. I went in with very little expectations and was pleasantly surprised with the service and quality of food given its unassuming and rather small outlet. The lack of customers was also a plus for me since i dislike jostling with people when i dine, and that is difficult in a place like Tampines mall. Nonetheless, i'd recommend a try for people in the vicinity. Try it once to see if you like the place. (Though i'll say it first, the place definitely needs a cosmetic makeover and location change. *winks*)

Fish And Co

Another long belated post, this chain of restaurants have been around since 1998 ever since a group of entrepreneurs decided to mine the niche that is the mid-level casual diners. Positioned as a casual and fun eating place at mid-level prices, Fish and Co has since opened multiple outlets throughout Singapore and overseas with new franchises such as "The Simple Life" opened to further boost their business. The question is, is the food really that great? I finally got this answered when my boss brought the crew out for a birthday lunch for a fellow team member. Thanks Boss!

Location: 3rd Level Terminal 2 Viewer Mall South #036-058

Contact: 65464485

Price Range: $25 per head

Website: www.fish-co.com/main.htm

Fish And Co

The "private" room

Outer Hall

Fits the mood perfectly with the subject matter immortalized

"One bite and you're hooked" ??

Pseudo Shot

Casual and slick best describes the interior of this restaurant with its soft lighting and wooden separators. Our group managed to get a personal function room all to ourselves which would have been great had the walls been soundproof. Unfortunately, that was not the case and the function room served little purpose in insulating our little gathering from the crowd that thronged outside.

The Singing People

Menu

Prawn Fettucini ($13.90)

Soup of the day (comes with complete meals)

Salmon Cajun ($16.90)

Grilled Seasonal Fish ($14.90)

Swordfish Collar ($14.90)

Mussels Penne ($12.90)

Peri Peri Prawns ($14.90)

The above are items had by my colleagues and boss. The food seems alright to me though a little too generic in preparation and the serving size has shrunk since i last remembered it. I did not get to try most of it so i'll be reserving my comments on these items. There is, however, a service issue with the company on this day. We kept getting wrong orders coming into our "private" room due to the fact that the entire of Fish and Co seemed to be booked by another company for their lunch function. Major points deducted on that hiccup because it didn't happen once, nor twice but as many as 4 times.

Seafood Platter for 1 ($18.90)

Aha! Finally something i had the honor to try. (In all honesty, i had a go at the fried calamari ($8.90) before this but i did not take any pictures. The calamari was pretty nicely fried and lightly battered but wasn't quite chewy nor fragrant as it should be. Decent, nothing more) This platter contained grilled herbal calamari, a healthy smattering of chips, grilled prawns, a dory fillet and rice. High points for variety and the fact that most of its items were grilled and not fried. I liked the calamari for its strong peppery taste and chewy texture but it chilled quickly in the strong air conditioned room. The prawns were quite forgettable while the dory tasted sweet but nothing too special. Overall, the seafood platter is passable but somehow did not quite satisfy my craving for good seafood.

Bill

Total bill for 7 people came to an astonishing $166.40. This is a shock to me as it certainly did not feel like we ordered enough to fill that amount.

Overall Score: 6/10

Last Word:
I'm grateful for the opportunity to try out this restaurant but its probably going to be the last time i visit it or maybe second last since my gf has yet to try it. Service and room problems aside, i simply wasn't impressed with the food that was brought to the table. It came across as a underwhelming on many points. My previous impression of Fish and Co was years ago when my mom brought me there and i remembered bigger fish and smaller prices. Better yet, the fish tasted good. Guess i'm simply not "hooked" by their food anymore.

Le Xin Live Seafood Caterer

On this particular day, the family was too lazy to step out of the house so we decided to try out a food caterer that shoved its pamphlet right under our doorstep. I never had a good impression of caterers but since i'm not paying, i can't say anything till much later.

Location: Various/ Sengkang/ Sembawang/ Punggol

Contact: 63129096

Website: www.lexin.com.sg

Price Range: $20 per head

The Pamphlet

Yam Ring ($15)

In a word, tasteless. Despite its rather nice outlook and the generous servings of prawn, chicken pieces and mushrooms, this yam ring did not have what it takes to make a good impression. The yam ring itself was soggy, the meat tasteless and hard and the prawns are a far cry from the word 'fresh'.

Fried Battered Prawns ($12)

Having a bad start with the yam ring, i didn't hold high hopes as i chowed down my first serving. Yet again, they have outdone themselves by serving a badly made dish. The prawns were powdery and the batter too thick for its own good. The word "terrible" doesn't quite pin the feeling down.

Coffee Pork Ribs ($8)

This dish was fouled up with it being overwhelming in its taste of coffee so much so that its bitter. In its defense, at least the meat was tender but still, something i would not order from them ever again.

Vegetables with fish ($5)

Yellowish vegetables, flour like fish and a sauce that tastes just like soy sauce. Need i say more?

Fish Soup ($10)

I'm beginning to find myself at a loss at how to describe the food we ordered. Alike with all the other offerings from this particular caterer. The soup's redeeming grace is that it was at least warm when i had it. Apart from that, it did not contain much taste and is simply a let down like the rest.

The bill came up to exactly $50 for this meal of 5 items.

Overall Score: 3.5/10

Last Word:
In all honesty and in their defense, the food is still warm when it arrived which is quite an accomplishment for the kind of food they offer and i do applaud their brave attempt at stepping out. However, they definitely need a better cook and a better way to get their items to customers. I'm still not ordering from them ever again though. This is just not good enough to consider for a second chance.