Red Pig Korean Restaurant

Source: google.com

Amoy Street is one of the areas whereby there are alot of hidden finds. And by that, I meant restaurants waiting to be discovered. Since my office is situated just afew streets away from Amoy Street, my colleagues and I decided to drop by a Korean restaurant for a lunch one day.

Was pretty disappointed when we found out that buffet is only available for dinner, and that only the ala carte menu is available in the day. And it certainly didn't help when the lunch ala carte manu is pretty limited. But it did cheer me up a little, to see the high volume of korean customers and of course, the bosses!

Budae Jjigae - Spicy Sausage Stew (S$45)

This comes in 2 sizes - Small (S$35) and Large (S$45). Since there were 4 of us, and all three of them were guys, we opt for the large sized one. I love maggie noodles. I love spicy stew. So basically, I love this dish. With a tinge of spice, yet not overwhelming, the stew was so good we ordered more noodles to be added in.

Doijibulgogi - BBQ Pork Hotplate (S$10

We ordered Dakbulgogi (BBQ Chicken Hotplate S$10) as well which I failed to take a close up shot. Personally, I prefer the chicken dish over the pork as the chicken pieces are really tender and tasty. The pork pieces tends to be a little dry and tough to chew after the dish is cooled.

Haemul Pajeon - Seafood Pancake (S$18)

This was served piping hot, and other than being slightly oily, I really cannot find fault with this dish. Many raved about this particular dish and how this is a must-try if you dine here. I wouldn't go as far to say it is a must-try, but this is definitely worth a try in my opinion.

And as usual, all Korean restaurants will serve you many sides during your meal. This is one of my favourite here.

Egg Roll

However, do note that although most of the sides are re-fillable, this isn't. Limited to one piece per person. A little stingy, I would say.

If you dont have such big appetite, then don't over-order! Because the sides can certainly fill you up. And be prepared to stink a little after dining here! Service wasn't very efficient and especially since we were seated in the room. The only time we can order/request for additional sides is when the waitress decided to pop by the room. Selection on the menu is limited, so don't expect too muh variety of food! 

Can't wait to be back for the buffet at night one of these days though.

Red Pig Korean Restaurant

93 Amoy Street

#06-9913

Tel: 6220 7176

Noodlestar

Last Saturday, I finally decided it's time for some Asian Cuisine in my system. So I brought both my mother & brother (poor daddy's working) down to bugis for a lunch before commencing our CNY shopping trip.

It didn't take me too long to decide where to go for lunch, since I wanted a place where we dont have to queue, and can enjoy our lunch in the air conditioned place. 'Noodlestar', which I had patronised for more than 3 times in year 2012.

Cramped Sitting Area

The only sofa booth seats available.

Please do not expect high end resturant setting, and be prepared to find yourself in a slightly cramped up sitting area.

There is a current on-going promotion for Lunch on Mondays-Saturdays (11.30am - 5pm) , which consists of  a main (la mian) + drink (ice lemon tea/ice green tea) + dim sum. Very worth it, I would say!

Lunch Promotion

Since I have been here before, I knew exactly what to order. And both my mummy and brother ordered almost immediately too.

The la mian before mixing

After mixing with the sauce given

Tender Chicken Cutlet

So we got ourselves 2 La Mian with Crispy-Fried Chicken Chop and 1 La Mian with Crispy-Fried Pork Chop. All the noodles are the same, but in my opinion, get the set with Chicken Chop as side. The Pork Chop is too dry and tough, becomes a chore to finish the tray of meat after afew pieces.

Dumplings with Hot & Sour Sauce

Steamed Pork & Cabbage Dumplings

Steamed Pork & Chive Dumplings

These dumplings are worth trying.The pork fillings in each dumpling is juicy and tender. Top it off with the usual vinegar and ginger slices, too good. However, you can try some of the better steamed dumplings over at Din Tai Feng & Lao Beijing.

We spent a total of $39.40 for 3 sets, due to the lunch promotion. Not expensive for a decent lunch at air conditioned place, but I have to admit the food disappoints. I remember the food quality was so much better in year 2012, which is the reason why I continued to patronise this store.

My advice? Hop over to Bugis+ (previously known as Iluma) for more variety of food.

Noodlestar

233 Victoria Street

Bugis Village

http://noodlestar.com.sg/

Etna Italian Restaurant and Pizzeria

Another new post. Another new post on Italian cuisine.

2 Saturdays back, L decided to bring me to Enta Italian Restaurant and Pizzeria! We took quite awhile to find the location, and the rain didn't help at all.

Entrance (courtesy of google.com)

There wasn't any set menus for us to choose, so we had to make do with the ala-carte menu. It took both of us awhile to decide on what we want because all the items on the menu are so attractive!

Funny how neatly presented dining utensils can affect my mood for the meal.

The traditional fire place where the chefs will prepare our pizza.

Fire place

While the chefs were preparing our mains, the waitress politely serve us some warm bread.

Bread was warm, and fluffy. Not the kind of usual plain bread served in other restaurants though. L and I finished all 4 pieces up in a jiffy.

Another cute container for the olive oil and vinegar just like that one we saw at Pasta Inc.

Our mains!
L got the Chef's Special of the Day. Pizza with Burrata, Parma Ham & Rocket Salad

Pizza with Burrata, Parma Ham & Rocket Salad (S$29.00)

This didn't quite score with me, though the thing crust did impress me quite abit. The saltiness from the parma ham is delicious with the crust, but sadly, the rocket salad dressed on top was too bitter for our comfort. But I must say that the pizza is worth trying still!

I opt for pasta, as usual.

Linguine con Polpa di Granchio e Crema di Aragosta (S$25.00)

Liguine served with chunky crab meat in a lobster cream sauce.

And I really meant Chunky.

One word : Delish. Although it does annoys me to find some shell (probably due to crab meat) in my food...

Total bill came up to a total of S$57.78 for just 2 mains. Not cheap, but not expensive for a decent Italian meal too. Afterall, you get what you paid.

Promotion: There is a on-going 3/4 course set menu which is only valid on Weekdays Lunch.

ETNA Italian Restaurant & Pizzaeria

49/50 Duxton Road

Singapore 089513

Tel: 6220 5513

www.ETNAitalianrestaurant.com



Pasta Inc

Hello to everyone, HAPPY NEW YEAR! Although it is already the 18th day into this brand new year, Livelifelovefood still want to do a newyear shoutout to everyone reading this space!

Thank you to everyone who is reading lllf. No, we are not people who want fame and be a celebrity bloggers or whatever of that sorts. We just want to capture memories of the nice and not-so-nice food and share with everyone at the other side of the computer. And we definitely wish you will enjoy our posts as much as we enjoy the food heh.

Back to food! L and I finally had the chance to taste some really tasty Italian food after afew weeks of humble eating. Decided that eating real tasty food every single week isn't a good thing for both our wallets and waistlines. Afterall, almost all yummy things are fattening.

So here we go, at Pasta Inc for our lunch one Saturday!

Panorama Shot of the street

Had a tough time finding this place, but thank goodness for smartphones and the maps app. We finally reached here. I have always wanted to explore this part of Singapore, all the shophouses and narrow street attract me somehow.

The first step into this restaurant was a pleasant one. Politely greeted by one of the staff and led to our table straight away. Love how the tables are all spread out neatly with a decent amount of empty area in between each table. Remember how some restaurants have uncomfortabley small narrow spaces in between each tables, and how you have to whisper to your date awkwardly over meals just so that the other tables won't have the chance to hear what sweet nothings you two are saying?

Panorama Shot of the Interior

Over at Pasta Inc, you don't have to worry about that.because each table is neatly spaced out.

We were served bread as well, just like how we were served in other Italian restaurants. The bread here wasn't warm, neither are they fluffy and soft like the ones served at Modesto's. Quite disappointed, but my disappointment turns into amusement immediately when I see this.

Container of Olive Oil and Vinegar.

Cheap thrill, yes I know.
Soups were served very quickly.

Soup of the Day - Mushroom Soup

Bisque Di Aragosta - Homemade Lobster Bisque Soup

To be very honest, I wasn't impressed by either of them. L had the Lobster Bisque Soup while I opt for the Mushroom one. The Lobster soup was abit too fishy for my liking. While the mushroom one didn't impress me either.

Main course is up next!

Linguine Carbonara - Linguine with bacon in cream sauce and egg yolk

Was disappointed when I realised that the squid ink based pasta wasn't in the menu, as I was dying to try that as there were many raving reviews. But my carbonara quickly turn my disappointment around. I love to have linguine as my choice of pasta when I am having carbonara, and the chef did up my order as what I wished without much hassle too. The linguine was done al-dente (the italian way), accompanied with fresh bacon slices and delish sauce. Perfect-o! Although the one at Modesto's/Michengalo are better in my opinion. But nonetheless, I wiped the whole plate clean.

Tagliolini Ai Brocolli E Funghi - Tagliolini with Brocolli, Mushroom and Cherry Tomato in Oil, Garlic and Chillies.

L's choice. To me, this is like the italian version of our chinese wanton mee, with different sides. A very refreshing dish, but it will be better if the chef drizzle more olive oil as it gets a little too dry after afew mouthfuls.

A sweet dessert will end your meal nicely, thats what everyone says. And of course, we are glad to live by it.

Dessert of the Day - Tiramisu

This tiramisu didn't capture my heart nor stomach. Abit too bland, and too watery. A better dessert will definitely make us happier!

The total bill comes up to only S$31.80 because I got this 3 course meal deal off groupon. Would come back for the pasta anytime, but I will be saving my stomach for better desserts.

If you're a pasta lover as well, why not check out our posts on Italian Cusine over here?

Pasta Inc

35 Keong Saik Road

Singapore 089142

Tel: 6297 7515

Two Chefs Eating Place

If you have yet to have tze char for at least a meal in your life, don't call yourself a Singaporean. Or maybe, it's time to change your diet plans and have tze char for the next meal.

In my opinion, tze char are ideal for gatherings or family meals. In fact, tze char will be one of the better options if you have to cater for large groups. This way, you get to order more dishes, without overstuffing your poor tummies or overspilling your poor wallets.

On one of the precious weekends ('Precious', since most of us are working already), we met up for lunch - Tze Char Lunch. As weird as it may sound, since tze char is always a choice for dinners. But if we can go for lunch/dinner at an all-day breakfast restaurants, it should be fine to have tze char for lunch too. And so here we are, at Two Chefs.

Paranoma shot of the almost empty place.

Typical Tze Char at neighbourhood coffee shops. Just come down in simple shirt and shorts to beat the heat.

For 7 of us, here's what we ordered

Fried Rice

Nothing to complain, nothing to praise either. Rice was fairly well cooked, fragrant and yummy. It was okay since we ate it with the dishes, but I am not sure if this will be satisfactory when you eat this alone.

Cockles

Not a fan of shell-food, but according to my friends, these don't make the cut. Considering that there are newspaper articles written about this.

Sambal Kang Kong

If you order this dish because you fancy the spice and taste of sambal rushing down your throat and even out of your nose, then trust me, you will be disappointed with this. The sambal/spiciness level of this dish is so mild, I wouldn't even call this Sambal Kang Kong.

Enoki Mushrooms Hotplate Toufu

Finally a dish which impresses my tastebuds. I am a huge fan of Enoki Mushroom, and I love dishes soaked in gravy. Only complain is that the toufu are in too huge chunks, so it gets a little too bland, unless you eat them with a spoonful of gravy.

Herbal Chicken Soup

Nothing fancy, just typical herbal chicken soup, with a limp tinge of herbal aroma. Half a chicken in each portion though.

Spinach

I see reviews about how tasty this dish is, but honestly, this is one of the worst spinach dish I had ever order/eaten. The whole dish is just bland, and yeah, obviously overly watered down. Maybe the chef left his seasonings at home.

Fu Yong Egg

This is one of the safest dish which will not go wrong. Unless, yours has egg shells in it. Afterall, what can go wrong with eggs right? Yummy dish, neither too salty nor bland.

Butter Pork Ribs with Milk Powder

This is the main highlight of the whole meal - Butter Pork Ribs with loads of Milk Powder. If you're lactose intolerant or you dont fancy the smell/taste of milk, I am sorry you will miss out one good thing in life. This is heavenly. The pork ribs are so well marinated, and the meat so soft and tender. The milk powder seems to complement the taste of the butter pork ribs so well, I can jolly well finish this whole dish on my own. Perfect. And not to mention, this is the only dish that nobody seemed to have any trouble finishing.

Here's our lunch for 7 pax, which comes up to a total bill of S$98, since we had the largest serving size for most of the dishes. If you're going in smaller groups and cannot afford to order so many dishes without having to risk exploding your stomaches, here are some of our reccomendations which you have to try : Butter Pork Ribs and Enoki Mushroom Hotplate Toufu. They will not go wrong.

Two Chefs Eating Place

116 Commonwealth Crescent

#01-129

Tel: 6472 5361

Canton Paradise - Time for some Dim Sum in our Systems

As you all should know, there is a new mall next to Bouna Vista mrt station - Star Vista. And I happen to live just 5-10 mins walk away from it, so this is where we landed up during one of our impromtu dinner dates.

Our Destination for Dinner

Being a dimsum lover, I had my eyes set on this restaurant the very first time we set foot in this newly furnished mall. So there wasn't much hestitation. We marched straight up to the reception and asked for a number, since the dinner crowd had already been formed.

Very very busy restaurant

Dining Utensils for the night

Cripsy BBQ Pork Bun (3 for S$4.80)

 

Quite a disappointment to both of us. We initally choose the steamed version of this, but change our minds to the cripsy one right before we pass the order slip to the waiter. I guess we were expecting the bo luo bun's cripsiness but this turns out to be not cripsy at all. But the BBQ pork filling is delicious though!

Mini Egg Tarts (3 for S$4.20)

They are not kidding when they name these mini egg tarts.

Disappointment sinks in yet again. Serving portions weren't satisfying. The taste of these mini tarts weren't satisfying too. In fact, I regretted ordering it.

Custard Bun (3 for S$5.20)

If you have noticed, there are tons of foodie photo on custard buns lately, either on facebook or twitter or even instagram! So how can we not order this?

Oozing custard filling

Just look at the photo. Makes you drool and want to try it, isn't it? I know it's hard to find a place where custard buns are served in this state, the piping hot custard filling all in liquid state and flowing. We had our virgin custard buns at Old Hong Kong restaurant, and it was a huge disappointment as the custard were in simi-solid state.But I have to add on, looks isn't everything. Though the filling appears impressive, the skin of flour were moist and heavy, it doesn't feel flufy at all. Just thick, and makes swallowing them a chore. Not a bad dish, but definitely doesn't create a long lasting impression.

Fried Prawn and Mango Fritters (3 for S$5.20)

Yet another disappointment. Far too oily for our liking. It's really too oily. Other than 'oily', I cannot think of anything else. Well, it's oily.

Xiao Long Bao (4 for S$4.80)

We nearly skipped this dish while ordering, and boy, I am so glad we didn't! This is the ONLY dish in the whole dinner which we really felt was worth the money. In fact, it's comparable to the ones at Din Tai Fung, and in my humble opinion, much better than the ones at Crystal Jade.

Fried Rice with Salted Fish and Chicken (S$10.80)

Not impressive. It tastes much better with vinegar in my opinion.

Mango Puree with Sago & Pomelo (S$4.50)

Last dish of the day! Mango is L's favourite fruit. In fact, he loves it so much that I often tease him that if one day, his basket of mangoes and I are in danger, he will rush to save the mangoes first before thinking about me. ):

Okay, back to the mango sago. There are mango pieces, sago and pomelo inside this little container, as the name has obviously suggested. Since it isn't the pomelo season, the ones we had have a bitter aftertaste. But the mango were very  sweet though. I like how they chilled the whole dessert - together with the container. Basically, I like my desserts chilled.

Total bill for 2 of us came up to a total of S$49.55. Given that most of the dishes are rather 'minature', the price we paid was steep. If you are giving this place a thought, do order the xlb, you will definitely not be disappointed!

Canton Paradise Tea House

1 Vista Exchange Green #B1-45/46

Star Vista

Singapore 138617

Tel: 6694 2915