Tim Ho Wan

So there's this new Hong Kong restaurant in town. 1 Michelin star restaurant Tim Ho Wan made its way to Singapore and it's making waves. Queues form everyday without fail even before its opening time at 10 a.m. 

I have never dined in a Michelin star restaurant before, and as a dim-sum lover, I decided to join the craze one Saturday morning to see what the craze was about. However, I would recommend everyone to NEVER EVER go on weekends (unless you feel REALLY free). 

I thought the average wait was going to be around 2 hours. But to my surprise, I queue for almost 4.5 hours just to get a seat. Fortunately the food came fast, so here's my review:

Chilli Free-flow

Comments: So-So. Does not really taste special. Not spicy enough, not sweet enough.

"4 Heavenly Kings"

 Char Siew Bao $4.50 

 Char Siew Bao $4.50

Comments: The downside of going on a packed weekend, the filling was not done well. Read how nice the fillings of the char siew bao was going to be, but unfortunately it did not really meet my expectations.

Carrot Cake $4.50

Comments: This dish is passable. Soft and tender. However, there's not much ingredients in it and not as tasty as I expected it to be.

Steamed Egg Cake $3.80

Comments: Nothing special about this dish though. Taste fluffy but I'm just not use to the taste, but it's not that tasty to begin with.

Chee Cheong Fun with Pork Liver $5.50

Comments: This dish is something different from the usual chee cheong fun, but definitely not for people who don't like pork liver as the taste is quite strong. Sauce not tasty enough though but worth a try, that is if you like pork liver.

Steamed Dishes

Steamed Beef Ball $4.20 

Comments: It was suppose to be a beef ball, but as you can see, due to the chefs being too busy, the balls turned out to be just a lump. But this beef ball is commendable. The meat is soft and it somehow feels like it will melt in your mouth. It's tasty too.

"Har Gao" Steamed Prawn Dumplings $5.50

Comments: The prawn was big but it was quite salty. Not the most delicious har gao I've eaten.

Steamed Pork Ribs $4.20

Comments: Not bad. However the meat was quite tough and not the tender melt-in-your-mouth type of dish.

Siew Mai  $5

Comments: The siew mai was really nice. On first bite, the sweetness of the pork filling could be tasted straight away. I believe the red date added a touch of sweetness to the overall dish. A must order.

Steamed Chicken Feet $4

Comments: I've tasted better chicken feet. The chicken feet from Tim Ho Wan lacked marination and therefore lacked that special taste to keep going back for more.

Steamed Beancurd Skin $4 

Comments: I quite like this dish. Just tasty and delicious, especially when it comes out piping hot.

Steamed Teochew Dumpling $4

Comments: Something like a crystal bun. The skin texture was nice. But the mixture of the filling is so-so. Very vegetarian type of dish.

Chee Cheong Fun with Beef  $5.50

Comments: I could not taste the beef in it. Either they put a measly amount of beef or the beef just has no taste. 

Chee Cheong Fun with Char Siew $5.50

Comments: The char siew cheong fun fared better than the other 2 cheong fun but it's also not very fantastic actually.

Rice Dishes

 "Lor Mai Kai" Glutinous Rice $5

"Lor Mai Kai" Glutinous Rice $5

Comments: To be honest, I really like this dish. I normally do not order Glutinous Rice at all as it is very filling. BUT THIS IS A MUST TRY! The filling is very generous, with the well-marinated pork and mushroom bursting with taste once you sink your teeth into a mouthful of its sticky and delicious rice.

Steamed Rice with Pork Ribs and Chicken Feet $6.00

Comments: Basically it's the pork ribs and chicken feet on top of a bowl of rice. The sauce in the rice somehow made the rice the main star actually. I found myself eating more rice than I was suppose to.

Fried Items

Spring Roll $4.20

Comments: Nice crisp but the filling is not awesome. Try if you want, but it's not a must order.

Fried Beancurd $5.50

Comments: The fried version of the beancurd skin. It's nice but slightly salty. Need not dip into the worcestershire sauce provided actually.

Desserts

Osmanthus Cake $3.50 for a set of 3

Comments: A dessert commonly seen only eaten by emperors and dowagers. This dessert is really delicious. Sweetness is just nice. Texture is smooth. A refreshing dish to end a heavy dim sum meal.

Yam Paste with Sago $3.50

Comments: Tasted more like bobur chacha. Not bad as it's not your typical yam paste dessert.

Overall Review: I really don't know what the craze about Tim Ho Wan is all about. Probably because it received a Michelin Star. It's quite reasonable but the standard is just not there probably the place is too busy and they prepare in a rush. I've tasted better dim sum elsewhere. Would go back some time later just for their har gao and glutinous rice but the queue would turn me off. And they took take reservations

Facebook: Like them here

Details of the place: Plaza Singapura 68 Orchard Road #01-29A, Singapore, Singapore 238839

10 am - 10 pm. However queue may range from 1 hr to 4 hrs.

Hatched

A placed known for their eggs, whether morning, afternoon or night. They do eggs all sorts of ways. Went there for brunch on Easter weekend

Billboard

Side Counter

The Menu

The Wagmeister $19

Comments: Eggs Benedict on a piece of meat and bread. This was a special dish during Easter period. The eggs were cooked nicely with the yolk able to flow freely once the knife drive into it. The sauce however is quite spicy. Love the fries. Use it to dip into the egg yolk.

Dippy Eggs & Soldiers $6

Comments: Soft boil egg with slightly toasted bread with bacon dipped in cheese. This dish is quite normal. The half boil egg is slightly over cooked, the bacon was also a bit burnt. Overall dish is so-so.

El Chorizo $16

Comments: The scrambled eggs were fluffy but slightly dry. The tuna was a bit tasteless to say the least.

Dessert of the week: Tiramisu $8

Comments: A different type of tiramisu. It's filled with egg "paste". Really filling. First few bites it tasted delicious, but after eating too much of it, I got slightly sick of the taste.

Overall review: A nice place to try out but the food is not that fantastic. Better suited to the western culture.

Website: Hatched | Rise and Dine!

Facebook: Like them here!

Details of the place: Outlets and Opening Hours

Kungfu Paradise

The paradise group have been making waves in Singapore with their chain of restaurants. Kungfu Paradise is one such restaurant that they own. A restaurant that offers Taiwanese food. Went to try some of their dishes at the Bugis+ outlet. Here is my review.

Signboard

Original French Toast $3.20

Comments: Tastes better than Xin Wang's. The bread is toasted well on the outside to give that crunchy taste  but is soft on the inside. The egg plus the butter on top make the whole dish really delicious.

Taiwan Sausage $4.20

Comments: Tasted normal. Nothing special. Prefer those from the "pasar malam". A bit oily though.

Liu Sha Bao $3.90

Comments: A nice liu sha bao has a free flowing inside and the photo below will show how good they made it.

Liu Sha Bao filling

Comments: The free flowing filling (I think is salted egg) is really nice. It's warm, sweet and salty taste mixes really well. Best to eat it warm.

Sweet and Sour Chicken Rice $8.90

Comments: Nice chunks of slightly fatty chicken pieces. Tasty sauce to accompany the meat. Quite delicious. Worth the order.

Poached Marble Beef with Korean Noodles $10.90

Comments: Really disappointed with this dish. It's just instant noodles with beef and sadly the beef was really tough. The lava egg was ok. The soup was just like those from packet noodles.

Overall Review: Overall food is affordable and nice. The staff at bugis+ offered great service. The place is also quite pack during meal time compared to other restaurants nearby.

Website: KungFu Paradise

Outlets: KungFu Paradise Outlets

Sushi Tei

There are many Japanese food chains in Singapore. Sushi Tei ranks as one of those at the top for me. Their dishes are different and really fresh. They also have seasonal menus which brings out creativity from their chefs from different outlets.These are some of the dishes ordered when me and some friends went to Sushi Tei.

Salmon Belly $8

Comments: Salmon belly tastes better than normal salmon sashimi. In fact most fish bellies taste more delicious, i.e Tuna, yellowtail. It may also cost slightly more expensive. Whenever I order bellies in Japanese restaurant, I would always request for the fatty parts as it contains all that juice and the fish will literally melt in your mouth. Don't worry as it's all omega vitamins.

Zuwai Gani Chawanmushi $6.50

Comments: Crabmeat with Chawanmushi. This dish is not bad.

Ikura Chawanmushi $7.80

Comments: Ikura, also known as salmon roe is one of the most important in the Japanese Cuisine. This dish is for people who love Chawanmushi and Ikura as it is a dream combo having both as a dish.

Mini Dragon Roll 

Comments: Did not really like the taste of this dish as the sweetness of the mango did not compliment the 

Hotate Mentai $9.80

Comments: Scallop covered with mentai mayo. Really delicious. Do try it. May be a little bit salty for some.

Kaisen Kaminabe $16.80

Comments: As you can see, the ingredients are really fresh. Boiled to cook with their tasty miso soup. Really good if it's on a rainy day. Don't forget to ask for refill of soup :)

Cha Soba $8.50

Comments: I always love cha soba above all other types of noodles as it is really healthy and tasty. I have a habit of adding a little wasabi in the soy sauce when eating cha soba. The correct way to eat it is to dip the green tea noodles in to the sauce and slurp it up from there.

Teriyaki Chicken

Comments: Tender chicken on a bed of rice. Didn't taste much of the dish as it was ordered by my friend. But a nice dish overall.

Overall Review: Delicious and innovative Japanese food. Do try their seasonal menu if you have the chance. 

Website: Sushi Tei

Facebook: Like Them Here (Singapore outlets)

Details of the place: Outlets

Domani

Located at the basement of Ngee Ann City is this small restaurant called Domani that sells Spanish and Italian Cuisine food. It's a really small restaurant, therefore during meal times, there may be a queue. The place is cosy with a nice ambience due to it's dark interior. The food is not that expensive too and it's quite nice. Below is a short review on the food.

Fritto Calamari $6

Comments: The batter was nice with its slight crisp on it. Not sure if their tar-tar sauce was home made, but it complimented the calamari well. If only they added a bit of their crispy crumbs.

Bruschetta Salmon

Comments: Part of the set meal, ordered the Bruschetta Salmon. Poorly done though. Just a piece of salmon on a baguette with butter. 

Ajillo Shrimp $5

Comments: A type of Spanish appetizer. Fresh shrimp topped with a little chilli powder with button mushrooms soaked in olive oil and garlic. It's a refreshing dish as it perks up your pallets. The shrimp is cooked just nice and taste sweet.

Iberico Pork and Cream Tomato Shrimp Spaghetti $26.90 meal with the Bruschetta Salmon

Comments: A combination of 2 main meals. Firstly, the pork is really nice. Cooked nicely with a little bit of fat. The sauce not too salty
The spaghetti was not bad too with it's freshly made tomato sauce and fresh prawns. Spaghetti cooked nicely.

Overall Review: A nice place to have dinner, but the staff there can be quite slow and un-attentive. The food is nice as it is a fusion of Italian and Spanish dishes. Not many places in Singapore sell Spanish food too. The pricing is also not as expensive although it is located in the town area.

Website: Welcome to Domani

Facebook: Like Them Here

Details of the Place: 391 Orchard Road #B2-37, Ngee Ann City Singapore 238872

Contact: +65 6734 1638

Lu Gang Xiao Zhen by The Asian Kitchen

As a roast pork lover, I was intrigued to try out this place when I saw a picture of their roast pork on their menu. The review is below. Also found out that this place is also mostly Taiwan food therefore went to try it out. Have a read below on the dishes I had. Sorry I don't have most of the prices for the dish because I misplaced the receipt and their website is quite lousy because their menu do not have the prices to the dish and they do not have pictures of their dishes.

Village Tofu

Comments:  The starch is slightly salty and thick but you can't go wrong with tofu. It still taste nice but the portion is quite small. Serving it in a claypot also keeps the dish warm.

Fried Glass Noodles

Comments: Quite a refreshing and nice dish. Easy to eat but not much ingredients in it.

Oyster Mee Sua $8.90

Comments: Quite salty and not quite the same as those in Taiwan. A very small portion for $8.90. Not worth it

Guitar Duck and Roast Pork Combo

Comments: The meat is slightly fat, moist but the skin of both the duck and the pork could be more crispy.

Crispy Duck Roll

Comments: This is quite good although could be quite filling. The duck inside is moist and soft and the roll is crisp.

Prawn Paste Chicken

Comments: Normal. Chicken was quite tender

Lemon Sliced Fish

Comments: The fish was fresh and the lemon gives a nice citrus taste to the dish.

Overall Review: In all honesty, this place is a nice cosy place to have dinner, but the downside of having it in ION Orchard means that during dinner time there would be this never-ending queue, plus the dishes would be expensive and their serving really small. The food is not that fantastic to die for also. There are other places that money could be more well spent. Their website is also not done up properly. So I'm not really gonna recommend this place to my readers out there.

Details of the place: 2 Orchard Turn #B3-22 Ion Orchard