Arbite

Thanks to the Entertainer app, we get to try new restaurants / cafes. 

Arbite was somewhere that I had always wanted to go but didn't because of its location. The stars aligned one day and I managed to get a ride to Arbite.

Arbite is a pun on the German / Danish word for work.

I ordered the Seafood Tagliatelle ($25) which consisted of handmade squid ink tagliatelle tossed with prawns, squid, salmon, mussels, chilli, spring onion, garlic and shallots. You could choose between tomato, white wine or aglio alio. I decided to go with aglio olio.

They were generous with the fresh seafood and I loved the fact that salmon was included, as salmon is typically not included in seafood pasta. The pasta was sufficiently moist and the garlic taste was not overpowering. A slight hint of chilli also upped the flavours of this dish.

No matter what, please get yourself a My Wife's Chocolate Cake ($8). I have eaten many chocolate cakes but few are impressionable- the last one I ate that left an impression was the Death by Chocolate Cake with Vanilla Ice Cream at Rider's Cafe. If this is indeed the chocolate cake made by the owner's wife, the owner is a lucky man.

There was an unexpected explosion of flavours. First, it was the moist chocolate cake, which was good on its own- unpretentious cakes are the best. Then here is where it gets fun. The accompanying ice cream is not your usual vanilla ice cream but salted caramel ice cream- you see where we are getting as the flavours build up? Then lastly, you have this base of bitter, crunchy cocoa bits. This is a must-order if you go Arbite!

The food on its own merits a return visit, although I have to say that parking at Serangoon Gardens is a complete nightmare. 

Service here was exceptional as well- the server was friendly, warm and genuine, it made our dining experience so pleasant.

Arbite
66A Serangoon Garden Way
Tel No: 62870430 

Read More

Lai Lai Casual Dining

We entered Lai Lai because the set meals looked pretty worth it. There was a 2-person set meal for $28++. It included your choice of claypot meat, vegetables, some side dish (we ordered deep fried sotong), 2 drinks, 2 bowls of rice and 2 bowls of soup.

the claypot herbal chicken was pretty good, although the portions were a little small.

the rest of the dishes were so-so. the sotong's batter wasn't the awesome kind of deep-fried batter, the veggies were very ordinary, and the soup was a tad oily.

The highlight of our meals were supposed to be our drinks though. We were highly anticipating it, because the waiter made it sound like it's the most awesome thing ever. Well, the banana kiwi was not bad. But the coffee hazelnut (i think) was far too sweet.

Although the food didn't live up to expectations, if you are looking for food that is relatively cheap, and will fill you up, this may be the place to come. Plus the service is good, the waiter who served us had good knowledge of the menu.

Rating: 3.7/5

Lai Lai Casual Dining

Nex Mall

23 Serangoon Central

#B1-30/31

Read More

Dorayaki @ Nex Mall

I always loved those Japanese pancake (fish shaped) with red bean inside. Yesterday I went to NEX mall (first time there- huge mall!) and I chanced upon this shop selling dorayaki. Dorayaki is doraemon's favourite food! okay that was besides the point.

Anyway, they make the dorayaki fresh on the spot. It was pretty cheap too, $1.20 for a original red bean pancake.

They had many flavours to choose from, including durian paste, peanut cream, matcha cream etc.

This small little pancake is good! Especially since it's done on the spot, it's still piping hot. And then you get the joy out of looking at how your pancakes are done. The pancakes are light and fluffy. And the red bean inside is not overly sweet, like how many people do the red bean stuffing! Oh and I must add, it's really quite intriguing when they use a heat stamp to stamp the picture of the cow onto the pancakes. A great little snack!

Rating: 4.5/5

Dorayaki

NEX Mall

Shokutsu 10 B1
23 Serangoon Central

Singapore 556083

Read More