Monday, March 10, 2014

Food is my best friend.

The lack of time to cafe-hop these days led to the hiatus on this tiny space of mine =( My Thai class resumed several weeks ago and class normally ends at 1.30pm on Sat, which means, by the time theBF and i met up, brunch hours for most cafes are over!!! Boohoohoooo.

That was what happened that day when i suggested Lola's Cafe after my class that Saturday, in an attempt to revive this blog of mine. haha. However, when we reached Kovan at 3pm, we were told their cafe was closed for brunch and will only be serving desserts and coffee from then on *Insert big sigh* 

Thankfully, Mr. GoogleMaps showed that another restaurant/cafe is also within the same vicinity - Ice Edge Cafe

The place was visibly bigger than Lola's so we found seats for us immediately =) 





Fish and Chips for theBF. We like the batter used for the fish because it was light and crispy! Nothing much to complain/rave about this dish since it's such a safe (and boring. Hear that BF? =P) choice. haha.



Tom Yum Seafood Linguine to satisfy my cravings that day for something spicy and sour!! Really enjoyed the tangy and flavorful tom yum-flavored sauce that went well with the seafood and pasta. Thumbs up for this Asian-Western fusion dish!



We found so many posting pictures of their waffles on Instagram so we decided to give it a try as well! What is waffles without ice cream right? We got to choose from the array of Gelato ice cream flavors and opted for the Bailey's ice cream after test-tasting the other flavors. Hehe.

Fresh from the kitchen!!! =D

I thought this waffle was quite well-baked with its crispy exterior and fluffy texture. The Bailey's gelato ice cream was like the icing on the cake as it added the necessary sweetness to this dessert and made it less one-dimensional. TheBF, on the other hand, thought the legendary Stranger's Reunion waffe was better as he felt this waffle would taste a little bland if not for the ice cream. Since i have yet to taste S.R's waffles myself, maybe i will do a comparison next time on the blog? =)



To me, i think Ice Edge Cafe is an unpretentious cafe that exudes a laidback vibe just perfect for couples and friends looking to hang out while avoiding the crazy crowd in town on weekends. It was another Saturday afternoon well-spent and perhaps all we needed was a good cuppa to complete the meal ;)

Until next time~


Monday, February 3, 2014

Bangkok - Cafe-Hopping Edition

With an avid coffee addict (aka my brother) following me on my cafe-hopping adventures in Bangkok this time round, I decided to make sure we visit at least a cafe that serves good coffee to satisfy that fussy boy's tastebuds!

Starting the day late on our 3rd day in Bangkok, we took the BTS skytrain to Thong Lo station and walked (it's a distance away tbh) to our first stop of the day for brunch!



There is an abundance of cafes/restaurants at Thong Lo/Ekamai districts so even if you go there unprepared, i am quite sure you will still end up at a pretty decent restaurant somehow. haha.

Brunch stop: Audrey Cafe and Bistro
136/3 Thong Lo soi 11 (i.e lane 11)
*Note: They occupied one of the bungalow space for this cafe so just make sure you walk all the way into Lane 11 of Thong Lo and you will find the restaurant*

Such pretty interior right!!!!! Blown away by the matching monochromatic furniture that exudes the "Audrey Hepburn" feel  =)



Penne in Lobster Sauce, with River Prawns
Extremely affordable (Ard S$10~) and delicious, this pasta dish was so satisfying after that long walk from the BTS station. The river prawns were huge and the penne pasta was cooked to al-dente perfection *Thumbs up*


One of the more expensive appetizers on the menu (i think this was more expensive than my pasta!), we ordered this to share since it was widely raved about online. It's none other than their Crab Souffle with Lobster Brandy Sauce!
My brother enjoyed the fluffy texture created by the generous portion of crab meat and egg white. The rich brandy sauce complemented the dish very well too. However, this dish is definitely meant for sharing because i bet anyone would be sick of this after a few bites!


Butter Crumble Pork Chop for my brother. The pork chop looked tough when it was served but tasted surprisingly juicy and tender! This was priced at around S$15 but well worth every penny =D


Ending the brunch with Thai Tea Crepe Cake that is yet another highly-recommended dish there. Not overly sweet (it did look like i was going to die from a sugar high when it was served though. haha) and has this wonderful layered texture which i love!



We attempted to walk from Audrey Cafe and Bistro to our next coffee destination at Ekamai area but even though it did not seem very far from the Google map on my phone, it involved crossing several roads that erm, did not have pedestrian crossings. Hence, after standing at one end of the busy road for 10 mins with absolutely no idea how to cross, we hailed a cab. hahaha. 


Our next coffee destination was: 
One Ounce for Onion cafe
19/12 Ekkamai soi 12, Sukumvit 63 Road
Note: This place turns out to be tucked at one end of lane 12 of Ekkamai and can get really confusing so do remember to tell your cab driver the unit number (19/12) as lane 12 is one helluva long and whining lane. haha. 



A relatively small cafe-retail store concept, this place is perfect for hipster and coffee-lovers who just want to get away from the busy city life.


While we were there, some film-art students were doing a short film on this place (well, that's what i figured after "deciphering" what the host was rattling on about with my broke thai. haha) 


Iced Cappuccino, single and double shot respectively. Roasted coffee at its best. =) 



We hailed a cab at the main road to Terminal 21 after our afternoon tea (or more like coffee) since it's just a few BTS stops away! I would highly recommend all cafe lovers to source out some cafes/restaurants in Thong Lo and Ekkamai area and spend a day in Bangkok kick-starting your own cafe-hopping adventures!!

Until next time~

Tuesday, January 28, 2014

Bangkok - Buffet Edition

Bangkok food entry again!!! =)

As usual, i will be covering the new food places i discovered during my recent trip and not touch on the usual "touristy" places yup! Going to split the entry into 2 - Buffet edition and Cafe-hopping edition as i realise i do have alot of pics to share. haha.


Red Oven, Sofitel So Bangkok
2 North Sathorn Road, 
Bangrak, Bangkok 10500
Tel: +66 02 624 0000
http://www.sofitel-so-bangkok.com/en/red-oven-restaurant.html

I was tasked to find a new buffet place to try out before this family vacation and by sheer chance (and lots of google-ing), i found this restaurant located within the premises of Sofitel So Bangkok hotel. Made a phone reservation a day before our meal in Thailand itself (all their staff speaks fluent English as it's a 5-star hotel!) so do consider doing the same thing if you are heading there on a weekend? I'm not sure if it will be crowded as i went on a weekday evening instead.


Price points for all their buffet slots. It might be a little pricey as compared to most food in Bangkok but given their excellent food choices and ambience, this price is wayyyyyyyyyy more worthwhile than similar buffets in Singapore.



Kiasu us were too early =/ haha. Check out the beautifully done-up interior!!

Love their red drinking glass cups! So cool with that dent eh?


First counter i headed to: Bread/Ham/Cheese counter. Blown away by the number of bread/breadsticks (omg, my favorite)/cheese/ham varieties they offered. Given that their head chef is French, it pretty much explains the extensive range. 




Seafood and salad counters




Their hot food counters consist of western delights (seafood chowder was so tasty!!!), thai food choices and some dim sum items as well. They also allow you to customise your own pasta! Got to be one of my favorite areas in the restaurant. hehehe.



Then, just as you thought it couldn't get any better....


You find the sashimi and teppanyaki counters at the other end of the restaurant!!!!



Beef slices with teppanyaki sauce from the teppanyaki counter. The beef was tender and tasted extremely well with the sauce. I didn't manage to photograph the duck slices i ordered later in the night but they were delish as well!


Wanton soup from the soup counter was probably the only few disappointments of the night. The tomyum didn't rise up to expectations too so erm, maybe skip all soups altogether yea? haha. 


Oh yes, how can i forget the highlight of the night?
FREE FLOW FOIE GRAS ERRRBARDY!!


Desserts are not my must-haves at any buffets to be honest as i don't have a sweet tooth (i know i know, im so not a girl) but i was still pretty excited about their dessert booths because everything looked so pretty there. hehe.



The rich chocolate lava cake that was heated up by the staff on the spot after you order it =)


And they have Thai tea ice creammmmmm =D


Verdict: As long as the buffet has more yummy food items than "eww" ones, i would say it's well-worth the money. This is exactly the case for Red Oven =) Been telling all my friends about this place and i'm sure i will be back for more buffet dinners/lunches the next time i visit Bangkok again!



Be back soon for my cafe-hop entry alright! In the mean time, enjoy your upcoming CNY holidays everyone~ HUAT AH!!

Until next time~


Monday, January 6, 2014

I am back!!!

Ops, so i realised i have been disappearing from this space for longer than i anticipated. haha. My final few weeks of 2013 had been filled with a whirlwind of events, from celebrating my birthday with my fave people...








 to attending that very important meeting that might change my life for the next 2-3years to playing 5-10-15 with the crazy gang on new year's eve to welcome 2014...



 Still in disbelief that i am finally 25 years old, and that would be a quarter-of-a-century old with erm...basically nothing but a far-fetched dream. Lol.

Oh wells, before i digress, this "comeback" post shall focus on my favorite blog topic: Food. haha.

-----


Visited The Landing Point, Fullerton Bay Hotel a while ago with my girlfriends to try their high-tea set which was so highly raved about online. 

It was pretty crowded that day so we couldn't get the sofa seats that would overlook the beautiful Marina Bay Sands =( Oh what luck!


You get to pick from a wide range of refillable TWG tea when you opt for their high-tea set so we each had a small jug of hot tea to start off our meal =D


Plain/raisin cinnamon scone to be sent over by their waiters right before the main set arrives...


And then the most important part of this high-tea set arrived!!!!!!! *Throws confetti*
A three-tiered display rack filled with both sweet and savoury high tea pastries!! 

Top tier: Mainly sweet pastries like chocolate cake, christmas cookies, sweet pies.
All the items on the racks were refillable but we barely refilled any item on this top tier because they were a tad too sweet to our liking. Chocolate lovers might find themselves in love with the rich and moist chocolate cake though.


Middle tier: All my girlfriends would agree that the middle tier is definitely the highlight of the high tea set that afternoon! Filled with mainly savoury bites, each and everyone of the pastry was delish!! 
We particularly enjoyed the lobster tarts (omg, so delicious im drooling now T.T), truffle egg sandwich and smoked duck sandwich. The least popular sandwich would probably be...the cucumber and tomato sandwich because it's just bread, cucumber and tomato? LOL.

Last tier: Another row of extremely sweet and sinful cakes and desserts. Which as predicted, were not very well-received among us girls that day because they were so sweet you kinda get sick of it after your second bite =/ 
Just in case you are wondering what choices were we given that day, they were Christmas fruit cakes, macarons (they were my least favorite that day. Apart from being sweet, there is simply no other word to describe them), pistachio cake with chocolate and raspberry and cream mousse.


As for their service, i wasn't all that impressed, especially with what would be expected of such a reputable cafe. The manager that day did appear to be aloof (should have seen his face when we simply asked if there is really no more seats near the window panes) although the other staff were quite polite. However, service was a little slow as well when it comes to refilling the tiers so much so that we had to request for a refill because we simply waited too long for the staff to walk over with the refill trays. I think when you ask customers to pay S$49++ for a high tea set, we would naturally be expected to be treated better too? Just my two cents. 

Ending my post with my eating buddies aka taitai-wanabes. hahaha.



Until next time~~