Kyushu Pancake Cafe

I have to confess. I have a slight obsession with Kyushu Pancake Cafe, to the extent that I have been there once every weekend for the last three weekends, partly also because I was using the Burpple Beyond deal.  

A Mujiesque interior with a cosy feel. Wooden furniture and minimalist, with lots of sunlight.

There is a documentary showing on the television, which is played on loop. It was part of a year long project where the videographer's team visited each farm where the grains were grown as they traced the activities from the sowing of seeds to harvesting. It is a bit of a brain washing because after visiting it a few times, we now can hum the jingle at home, and who can ignore lyrics about pancakes!



Made from seven grains grown in the Kyushu province, and 100% raw sugar from Okinawa and Kagoshima, these deceptively simple looking pancakes are on different level. We tried a couple of pancakes so far, and my favourite is the Berry-Licious Waffle ($16.90). It is on the pricey side and we would have settled for the cheaper Kyushu Good Ol' Classic ($7.90) if not for the Burpple deal (I think Burrple Beyond is less transparent than many food apps but that is a story for another day). Once you eat them, you don't feel like eating McDonald's hotcakes anymore. They are dense in texture, yet light enough not to taste like cake. The generous berries compote and ice cream give the pancakes the necessary moisture. When we ate the Kyushu Good Ol' Classic on one occasion, we felt that the pancakes were a little dry.

This cafe is kids friendly where they have a collection of books for children available near the entrance. If you wish to make pancakes at home, you can also buy the premix. Other random goods like wooden plates for children are also available for sale. Good pancakes, just on the pricey side.

Kyushu Pancake Cafe 
Novena Regency
275 Thomson Road
#01-08
Tel: 6352 6265 

Read More

The Courtyard

As the birthday girl wanted to celebrate her birthday by going for high tea, we decided to go to The Courtyard at Fullerton. On Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays, there are two seatings, one from 2 pm to 4 pm, and the other from 4:30 pm to 6 pm. It costs $55++ per adult. 

The Courtyard has lots of natural light flooding in, although it can get a tad hot when the sun is in its full glory. 

The afternoon tea consists of unlimited replenishment of the food on the tiers and free flow coffee and tea.

Although the quantity of food did not look like much initially, we walked away from the table feeling very full. There was a mixture of savouries and sweets, and I preferred the latter.

Amongst the sweets, the ones that stood out were the Pecan Maple Orange Tart, Chocolate Moulluex and Ondeh Ondeh Macaroon. For the Ondeh Ondeh Macaroon, it was refreshing to take a bite and go, "Oh my, was that a gula melaka flavoured macaroon"? I seldom eat macaroons because I find them too sweet but this was an interesting spin to the dainty French pastry. The Pecan Maple Orange Tart was not too sweet and the pecans lifted the profile of the tart.

For the savouries, I kept replenishing the Five Spiced Smoked Chicken with Guacamole on Sesame Tartlet - check out the gorgeous beet juice coloured tart! The other savouries were decent, but nothing to shout about.

We rounded off the meal with some coffee- look at the cute Fullerton bear. The tea selection was also interesting. When I could not make up my mind on what tea to drink, the waiter said "Aiya, you just trust me, I give you a good pot of tea." He selected the Silver Moon for me, which was a herbal and fruit tea, and it was indeed a good choice because of the subtle fruit hints.

What really stood out was the service here. They helped to take a picture of us and put it in a unique Fullerton-themed folder. They were also constantly at hand to ensure that everything was ok. One of them even demonstrated his magic tricks to entertain my niece!



Overall, the food here is decent but limited in variety. Service stands out nonetheless, and great ambience for afternoon tea.

The Courtyard
The Fullerton Hotel
1 Fullerton Square
Singapore 049178
Tel No: 6733 8388 

Read More

The Terminal Cafe

I wanted to dine near Seletar Aerospace and came across The Terminal Cafe, which was not located within the Seletar Aerospace Park (where all the hip food places are). 

It is located in the Airbus Training Centre. Scandinavian decor, with lots of natural light flooding in. 

We were surprised to find out that only two tables were occupied on a weekend- while the rest of the eateries in Singapore were packed to the brim, here we were on a Saturday afternoon, taking a leisurely and quiet lunch. A rare find! True to its location, there is a table shaped like a plane wing- how cool is that. 

Their menu offers European / Asian food and based on what the cafe uploads on Facebook, the menu seems to frequently change, which means that the people who dine there pretty often will not be bored with the choices available.

The Handmade Tagliatelle with Wild Mushroom in Truffle Sauce ($18) was cooked al dente and the truffle sauce was fragrant, without being overpowering. There was a homely Italian feel to this dish.

We were rather intrigued by the Linguine in Chermoula Sauce & Prawn ($18) and had to google what chermoula sauce was. It turns out that it is a popular sauce in Morocco. The sauce was like a breath of fresh air (because we never tried this before) and the generous portion of prawns was fresh and bouncy.

We also ordered a muffin and a scoop of ice cream thereafter, both of which were decent.

While our initial thoughts were that the prices were a little steep for an office cafeteria, we realised that the standard of the food here was far superior to your usual office cafeteria- this is a serious cafe with serious food and their prices reflect the quality of the food. If you want good food in a relaxing environment without the craze of the usual Saturday lunch crowd, this is for you.

The Terminal Cafe 
12 Seletar Aerospace Crescent
Singapore 797566
Tel No: 6262 5038 

Read More

The Masses

I had wanted to eat at The Masses for the longest time and ended up going there twice in a month. After the Saveur group was sold to their silent partner, co-founder Dylan Ong went on to set up The Masses. 

As starters, I ordered the C&C&C&C Pasta ($10.90 for starter and $15.90 as a main) to share. This interestingly named starter is named as such because it contains crab meat, caviar, clams and chorizo. You also had the option of adding an additional C- the "C" urchin. Served cold (if you want it served hot, just let the waiter know), this C&C&C&C Pasta was a breath of fresh air. The C's were placed separately and the angel hair pasta was swimming in the slightly salty but flavourful lobster bisque. The crunchy texture of the chorizo added some texture to this dish.

I also ordered A Bowl of Dylan's Memories ($17.90). This is essentially premium hainanese pork chop rice. When the dish was served, the waiter introduced each component of the dish and said that it was all meant to be mixed together. My individual preference was, however, to keep them separate, so that the crispy iberico pork chop wouldn't become soggy. The iberico pork chop was crispy and had just the right amount of fats to prevent it from being too dry. It also came with some spicy bacon jam, pickled mushroom, 64 degrees egg and braised savoy. While these were interesting additions to the dish, the star was no doubt the pork chop.

The food here is good. The only problem is that we had to wait rather long for our food both times we were here. Also, if you want to get a seat in the restaurant, do call early to reserve as there was once we reserved too late and ended up sitting outside in the heat.

The Masses 
85 Beach Road
#01-02
Singapore 189694
Tel No: 6266 0061 

Read More

In an Instant: Polaroid At the Intersection of Art and Technology

I recently met up with a good friend whose boyfriend was very into polaroids. I always had the impression that polaroids were the same as instaxes but had this misconception roundly thrown into the bin. He showed us his polaroid cameras (and how to use them) and they were fascinating.

To learn more about polaroids, we headed to the National Museum. It costs $12.50 for adults (Singapore citizens and PRs)- more price categories available at the link above.

1. Edwin Land- Scientist, Inventor, Visionary

The first part of the exhibition introduced Edwin Land, an American scientist and inventor, who is best known as the co-founder of the Polaroid Corporation.

As to how the Polaroid came about, the story goes that he was on vacation with his family in Santa Fe, when he took along his camera to take a few pictures. His 3-year-old daughter asked, "Why can't I see the picture now?" And that was the inspiration behind Land's invention.

You would also come across the Polaroid Cinema: The Fishbowl Experiment.

When you first enter the room, you will see that the screen is white. However, once you put on a pair of Polaroid sunglasses, the images on the screen magically appear. The Fishbowl is a short movie about how Edwin Land fine tunes his invention, the polarizing filter.

2. Polaroid: Art and Technology at Play

Besides exhibiting a range of Polaroid cameras (and some prototypes as well), you will also get to see Polaroid artworks produced during the height of the Polaroid's popularity.

3. The New Instant

The last part of the exhibition is where the curator tries to tie in the Polaroid theme with something relatable- that of the experience of Singapore social influencers navigating through this digital world of instant feeds, uploads and hashtags.

Thoughts about the exhibition 

While the premise of the exhibition is interesting, I felt that it did not live up to its full potential. Granted that there were polaroids taken by superstars like Andy Warhol, I didn't feel like I got much information out of most of the polaroids.

While the last part of the exhibition involves interviews with social influencers, I felt that the link was rather tenuous. Yes, I see the link between the two- the instantaneous factor. But I wished the interviews could be with people who had a closer connection to Polaroids.

At the end of the exhibition, you can go into a photobooth where you get to take pictures with Polaroid sunglasses and send these pictures to your email. You can also get a physical picture taken at a token sum. If you are interested in the Polaroid eyewear or wish to buy a book about Polaroids, they are also available at the museum shop.

In an Instant: Polaroid at the Intersection of Art and Technology 
National Museum of Singapore
93 Stamford Road
Singapore 178897 

Read More

Ding Tele 鼎特乐

We visited Ding Tele 鼎特乐 when it first opened and have been back numerous times ever since. There can be a quite a queue on weekends so do come early. There is not much ambience to speak of in the restaurant and the tables are closely packed together. But it is definitely worth a trip. 

We started off with the Appetising Platter ($9) where you could choose 4 side dishes. We went for the Original Shanghainese Drunken Chicken Wing, Coriander with Bean Products, Wheat Gluten and Shiitake Mushrooms and Sweet & Sour Spare Ribs. This is probably good for 2-3 people to share. While these dishes were decent, they were nothing to shout about.

Ordering the Signature Steamed Pork & Soup Bun ($5.40) is always a no brainer. We saw a table of 4 have at least 6 of these bamboo baskets stacked up. It is difficult not to compare these to the benchmark of Din Tai Fung and these little dumplings certainly hold their own weight.

I find that the Signature Pan-Fried Crispy Pork Soup Buns ($5.40 for 4 pieces) are one of the best, if not, the best in Singapore. They are so good that I can't resist sinking my teeth into these little goodies once they arrive at our table, despite knowing that they will probably burn my tongue if I don't exercise some patience.

Five out of five times, I burn my tongue, each time knowing that this is the consequence of greed. Besides the fact that the soup inside the buns is incredibly hot, there is a lot of soup in each bun- be careful not to spill the soup on yourself. What I like about these soup buns is how they manage to be chewy at the top and crispy at the bottom, with generous pork fillings and soup, all at the same time. The soup is a little too salty for my liking, but it does not negate how delicious these pork buns are. We could each easily eat 3 pork buns each, even with other dishes.

We rounded off the meal with Crispy Rice Dumpling with Red Bean Paste ($4). After the fantastic sheng jian baos, these were again, decent but nothing extraordinary.

Value for money, and definitely come here for the sheng jian baos.

Ding Tele 
949 Upper Serangoon Road
Singapore 534713
Tel No: 6282 4380 

Read More

Mui Kee Congee

We thought that the infamous queues at Mui Kee would have cleared by 8+ pm on a rainy day. However, we could not have misjudged the situation more, as there were still around 10 people ahead of us when we reached the restaurant. Thank goodness, the turnover was quite fast and we got a table within 15-20 minutes. 

Mui Kee was bustling on a Saturday evening despite the rain. It started off in Hong Kong in 1979 and the shop today is helmed by the founder's grandson. The seating was a little tight and many had to share tables, but I guess it's better than waiting outside for a seat.

I went for the basic Homemade Pork Meatballs Congee ($9.80). Raw rice grains are mixed with century eggs, and pork and fish stocks added thereafter. I enjoyed the smooth and clean porridge. There was a generous portion of meatballs in the porridge as well. We shared some very crispy Youtiao (Dough fritter) ($2) to go along with the porridge. While the porridge was served quickly, the youtiao took some time to come as they were probably prepared in batches.

We also ordered the Fried Bean Curd Skin ($6), which was crispy on the outside and had distinct layers of bean curd skin within, accompanied by a mayo dip.

To end off the meal, we shared a Soursop & Passionfruit Shaved Ice ($5). This was certainly enough for 2 to share, and could even be shared by 3 for the smaller eaters. This was certainly worth it, compared to Korean bingsu which always charged an arm and a leg. It was a refreshing and cooling end to the otherwise piping hot meal.

Service was prompt and friendly. I recommend this place as it is value for money and serves good food. The only thing that would prevent me from coming back frequently is the time spent waiting to get a seat in the restaurant.

Mui Kee Congee 
Shaw Centre
1 Scotts Road
#01-12
Tel No: 6737 2422 

Read More

W Singapore Sentosa Cove

Every time I receive a wedding invitation from friends who are throwing a banquet at W Hotel, a part of me is reluctant due to the hefty angbao that I have to give, yet another part of me looks forward to the scrumptious food at the banquet. 

This time, thanks to my husband, we managed to get a one night free stay at W Singapore Sentosa Cove! 

1. Location

Honestly, unless you intend to hang out at Sentosa all the time, I wouldn't see why anyone would choose to stay at W Hotel, because it is far from the main attractions and even within Sentosa, it is rather far in. A taxi ride (without all the surcharge and all) to Vivo City costs around $7. 

2. Hotel 

The hotel exudes a hip and funky vibe, and this extends from the lobby to the rooms to the pool.

3. Room 

The room was spacious and trendy. At the bedside, there were several switches with different labels, one of which stated "Flirt"- if you switched that on, pinkish purple / purplish pink (whatever) lights would switch on.

We also enjoyed good views of the quay and the private yachts docked there- one can only imagine the lives of people who live at Sentosa Cove!

Very comfortable bed, such that my husband could not wake up the next morning and said that the bed simply sucked him in. The pillows were a little too soft for my liking- I had the option of choosing my pillow (there is a pillow menu) but I was too lazy to request for harder pillows.

4. Toilet 

There is a bathtub in the toilet. The panes could slide so that one could see the room from the toilet (and vice versa). Not sure why anyone slide the panes open though because you would almost certainly catch a cold.

There was a bottle of Evian in the toilet and it costs $5, so unless you really like Evian and don't mind splurging on it (in the toilet), by all means. Otherwise, you can drink the complimentary bottles of water in the room.

I loved these packaging which were simply shouting- "I'm too cool for you!" Even the colour of the toothbrush was neon, consistent with the vibe of the hotel.

Strong water pressure. The only issue I had was that I didn't want to use the rain shower, yet quite a bit of water continued to spray from the rain shower despite me using the handheld showerhead.

One could really fall in love with the citrusy bath products from Bliss. I love citrus bath products because they instantly make me feel fresher!

5. Breakfast 

I am glad I managed to wake my husband up, threatening him that if he didn't wake up, there will be no more food for him at breakfast. We ended up spending more than an hour at The Kitchen Table.

There were two sections- one offered Western food (think baked goods, cereal etc.) and the other side had Indian food, Chinese food, etc.

We started off with some baked goods and were mindful not to stuff ourselves with too much food in the beginning just in case we couldn't try the other food offered.

The pancakes were ridiculously cute- look at the smiley face, how can anyone resist those beautiful pancakes! That said, they weren't the most delicious pancakes around- a little too buttery for my liking. 

There was Christmas-coloured bread, a variety of jams and spreads, cereal etc. I liked the fact that there was soya milk offered as well, although it was a little salty.

At the other section, there was a small selection of smoked salmon, ham, cheese etc., and an egg station. Then, there are your usual suspects- mushrooms, roasted tomatoes, bacon etc. There was also Indian food, fruits and desserts. The desserts selection was quite small (and wasn't great) but I guess you shouldn't be eating too much dessert for breakfast anyway!

There was a Chinese food station, with porridge, dim sum, and assorted noodles cooked on the spot. One thing I didn't understand was why the dim sum wasn't available for all to take but had to be served by the chef.

We were so full after breakfast that we skipped lunch. 

The food at the buffet was more than sufficient and decent. The only issue was that it seemed like it was really crowded, and people had to wait to get their breakfast fix. Hint: The early bird gets the worm! 

6. Amenities 

To aid in the digestion of our heavy breakfast, we walked around the compound and visited the swimming pool. The swimming pool was rather big and lots of families were enjoying the pool facilities.  

We also visited the gym which was surprisingly empty. It was either because people who stay at W Hotel do not visit the gym (because they are at Sentosa) or because they are all stuck at breakfast!

It looked like a well-equipped gym.

7. Service

Service was pleasant and one felt like the hotel really wanted to go the extra mile. In the afternoon when we were just lazing around, a staff knocked on the door and offered us a box of chocolates- it was a nice mid-day surprise! Another staff came back later in the day and asked if we required any more water or shower products, which was a nice touch. I especially liked the fact that the room had 6 bottles of water- enough to keep you hydrated all day long.

8. Getting around 

Besides your usual suspects like taxi, one option getting around is to take the shuttle bus to and from Vivo City. Timings and routes available here. You would see that the frequency isn't great. For example, there is one shuttle bus at 5:30 pm and the next is 2 hours later. There is also the option of taking Sentosa Bus B.

W Singapore Sentosa Cove 
21 Ocean Way
Sentosa Island
Singapore 098374 

Read More

The Clifford Pier

More than a decade ago, whenever I took a bus to have lunch with my mother in the CBD, the bus used to stop near Clifford Pier. The Clifford Pier today, is a far cry from the Clifford Pier back then. 

Clifford Pier was built between 1927 and 1933 and was named after Sir Hugh Clifford, the former Governor of the Straits Settlements. It was a landing point for immigrants and other sea passengers. With the construction of the Marina Barrage, the Clifford Pier ceased operations on 1 April 2006. 

For my birthday celebration, we decided to try their Singapore Heritage Afternoon Tea.  From Monday to Friday, the high tea is between 3:30 pm to 5:30 pm, whereas on weekends and public holidays, the high tea is between 3 pm to 5 pm. 

Gorgeous setting, with high ceilings and colour tones alluding to the place's nautical origins. 

The Singapore Heritage Afternoon Tea ($48++ per adult on weekdays and $55++ per adult on weekends and public holidays), consists of one tea tray of sweet items, a buffet of savoury items and free flow of coffee / tea. The tea was from TWG.

It was interesting to observe the demographic of the people having tea here. They were either a group of well-dressed women (with a couple of groups organising hen parties for the brides-to-be), or reluctant men being dragged here by their girlfriends / wives. Women's money is always easier to earn! It followed that, a lot of the sweet items were left untouched by the women who of course were concerned with their waistlines.

The afternoon tea is not your usual Western high tea, but instead seeks to represent Singapore's culinary past and present. For the sweet items, there were Pandan Swiss Roll, Bandung Macaron, Honey and Mango Financier, Soft Centered Coconut Chocolate Cake, Mini Kopi & Almond Butter Buns, Bika Ambon, and Plain Scone with Jam.

Having the Pandan Swiss Roll and the Bika Ambon was like making a trip to Bengawan Solo, and the Mini Kopi & Almond Butter Buns were like those from local bread shops- the thought that popped up in my head was, why am I paying so much for food that I could buy from Bengawan Solo? Honestly, I could not tell much difference in terms of the taste. While decent, nothing in particular stood out.

There were also Plain Scone and Tropical Fruit Scone, which came with Passion Fruit and Mango Jam and Homemade Kaya. I am a sucker for scones and these suited me well. I especially liked the passion fruit and mango jam which was tart and gave a nice lift to the scones. My husband, however, found these little darlings not buttery enough.

Onto the savouries, there was a pretty interesting selection- more interesting than the sweets. There was the Chilli Bak Kwa Jam on Savory Egg Tart. While this was an interesting pairing, I did not particularly fancy the savoury egg tart, which tasted somewhat like egg quiche.

Deep fried food are always crowd pleasers, and here they have Calamari Ring (with a wasabi mayo dip) and Jalapeno Cheese.

These were the Cruffin with Masala Potato and Curry Leaves as well as Prawn Fritter. The cruffin was essentially a mini curry puff.

Other food items to look out for include the Chilli Crab Bao, which were mini mantous accompanied with Chilli Crab sauce. The Carrot Cake with X.O. Chilli and Scrambled Egg was so fragrant and delicious, we repeatedly topped up our plates with these . We did not have enough space for the Kurobota Pork Kong Bak Bao, but I think this is something certainly worth trying.

There was also a small salad section, which was pretty decent- seafood salad and smoked duck salad.

For drinks, there was a choice of soya bean milk or bandung, with sago, chinchow etc on the side. I particularly liked the soya bean milk as it did not have an artificial taste and was not too sweet.

There were also live stations dishing out food on the spot. There was one serving Kueh Pie Tee and Popiah- definitely get the Kueh Pie Tee as it is topped with crab meat. There was another station serving Prata and Roti Jala Wrap, accompanied with Nonya Chicken Curry. While the prata was not the most inspiring, the chicken curry is worth trying. There is also a station for making your own rojak and there was a wide variety of ingredients (apple, starfruit, jambu, guava, pineapple etc.) you could choose from.

There is definitely enough food at this high tea to fill you up. In fact, I was so full, I skipped dinner. However, I felt like I was paying more for the ambience than for the food. The food was decent, but I felt as though I could get more bang for my buck at a hotel's buffet instead. That said, this is still a decent choice for an afternoon tea.

Tip: Make your reservations a few weeks in advance (especially if you want to come by on a weekend), because the seats here fill up very quickly. We had to book 3 weeks in advance. Also, do ask about the available credit card discounts- there was a 15% discount for certain credit cards.

The Clifford Pier
The Fullerton Bay Hotel
80 Collyer Quay
Tel No: 6333 8388 

Read More