Dining Out - Grub Noodle Bar

Brunch at Grub Noodle Bar with the Mum and the Sister after F texted us in the morning recommending the place.

Grub Noodle Bar

Mum got the Assam Laksa, I got the Beef Noodles (Soup) and the Sister got the Beef Noodles (Dry) with Pasture-Fed Chuck Eye Roll. We topped up $5 for the Lunch Set, which gets us an Appetizer and a scoop of ice cream each. For the appetizers, we picked Chicken Mid-Wings, Kang Kong Salad and Vermicelli Salad With Prawns to share.

Kang Kong Salad

Out of the 3 appetizers we tried, the Kang Kong Salad was my favourite. Blanched kang kong was tossed with nonya achar and house dressing, topped with crushed peanuts. This tasted like a healthy rojak - sweet, sour and savoury all at once. The kang kong was not overcooked so it still had crunch.

Vermicelli Salad With Prawns

The chilled Vermicelli Salad With Prawns featured glass noodles tossed in a chilli and sesame dressing, with halved de-shelled prawns and topped with crushed peanuts, cut chilli and coriander. This was also decent, though it would have been better if the sauce was spicier.

Chicken Mid-Wings

The fried Chicken Mid-Wings were so-so. I thought that the batter was not crispy enough, but I did like the curry leaves, garlic and sesame seeds scattered atop the wings as they added flavour. I could have done without the mayonnaise drizzle since I am generally not a fan of this white sauce. 

Beef Noodles (Soup)

The beef noodles featured fresh egg noodles and 100g of beef served in their beef broth and garnished with chopped chilli and coriander. This was not bad, but I have had tastier beef broth at other places. But it needs to be highlighted that this place does not use MSG in its soup, while I am pretty sure the yummier soups I have had at other places are spiked liberally with monosodium glutamate. The egg noodles were cooked just right and had a great texture.

The alcoholic sister wanted beer and since the place has an all-day 1-for-1 deal of their German craft beers (on tap), I agreed to drink with her. She got the Weihenstephan Original, which is a Lager and I went for the Weihenstephan Hefeweissbier, which is a wheat beer. I had only wanted to get the 330ml pint, but the greedy alcoholic insisted that the 500ml mug was a better deal.

(From left) Weihenstephan Original, Weihenstephan Hefeweissbier

Finishing the food and washing it all down with half a litre of beer made me really really full. 

When we were about to leave, the waitress reminded us we still each have a scoop of ice cream. I had asked for Green Tea flavour, which turned out to be a little too milky tasting for me. Since I was stuffed, I gladly left it to melt but Mum could not bear to see it go to waste and she finished it for me.

Grub Noodle Bar
Address: 221 Rangoon Road Singapore 218459
Phone: 6341 5631

Sweet Endings - Lickers

After our meal at Saturday House, we drove to Lickers, a new ice cream palour that opened up in the Hougang area, right next to Ciel Patisserie. I had learnt about the place from the 8 Day Eat App earlier in the week.

Lickers

The place is decked out in bright pops of colour, with cute hipster-chic framed posters on the walls. Stenciled on the concrete ground at the entrance of the cafe is the welcoming statement "Step in for licking good times".

Hipster Decor

There were interesting ice cream flavours on display, and the most interesting flavour had to be Yakult Oreo. I tried some of it and thought it was not too bad, but I did not get a full scoop of it. Instead, I picked Maple Latte (without trying), Mum got Mango Coconut and the little imp got Rockmelon Sorbet.

(From left) Maple Latte, Mango Coconut, Rockmelon Sorbet

I thought the consistency of the ice cream was smooth, but I found it to be a tad too sweet. For the Maple Latte, I would have preferred a stronger coffee flavour. Of the 3 flavours, I thought the Mango Coconut was the tastiest, with the sweet mango complemented by the fragrant coconut milk, much like a mango pudding. I am guessing the use of fresh Thai mangoes (which is in season now) is the reason why this is so tasty. The rockmelon sorbet is refreshing and also good, but again, I would have preferred it to be less sweet. A lighter hand with the sugar would have made this one even more palatable. 

The friendly owners handed us coupons which entitled us to 50cents off for our next visit (as pictured above). Considering a scoop of ice cream here costs $3.20, this is slightly more than 15% off your next scoop of icy treat.

I would be keen to return again to check out what other innovative flavours the owners introduce. Hopefully by my next visit, they would have tweaked their recipes and made their ice cream less sweet.

Lickers

Address: Blk 124 Hougang Avenue 1 #01-1446 Singapore 530124

Phone: 6284 7200

Dining Out - Saturday House

We picked up the younger one from school and went for lunch at Saturday House. The cheeky imp remarked that we should have visited tomorrow instead so we would be at the place on a Saturday. -_-

Saturday House

Us adults got the Chicken Chop with BBQ Sauce and the Sambal Fish to share, while the little imp got the kiddie Bolognese Pasta set, which came with a cup of apple juice and a scoop of ice cream.

Sambal Fish

The sambal fish was tasty, primarily because of the spicy and flavourful sambal chilli that was slathered generously on top of the fillet. The accompanying butter rice complemented the fish, but it was a tad dry and would have been tastier if it had been more moist and warm.

Chicken Chop With BBQ Sauce

You can choose 2 sides to go with the chicken chop from a list that includes salad, mashed potato, coleslaw, french fries and potato wedges. We picked wedges and fries for the benefit of the little one. The chicken chop was juicy and tender, served hot off the grill. As for the accompanying fries and wedges, they were crispy and warm, which is all one can ask for when it comes to these sort of sides.

I thought this statement decorating the wall of the restaurant aptly describes how I feel most of the time.

Saturday House

Address: 339 Upper Paya Lebar Road Singapore 534953

Phone: 6280 0338

Show Time - SINGAPORE STRIPPED! A Comedy Roast of The Lion City

This was a shitty show. For lack of a better word. Really terrible.

Singapore Stripped!

HC and I could not believe we paid $31 each for the tickets to the show. There were other patrons of the bar who sat further at the back, but were subjected to the same bad jokes for free. We were mentally kicking ourselves when we realised we could have done that and saved ourselves some money. But then again, this is not a show that I would have watched even if it was free.

The jokes are tired and cliched, and the topics are unoriginal. If you are a Singaporean, you probably would have encountered the same jokes many times already. Most of the jokes just relied on Hokkien vulgarities and mean attacks on other nationalities that are not even funny. The entire show felt low-class and dated. While they did try to update the show with material regarding recent events, some of the slideshow materials and jokes have probably been in use since the early 90s.

The sole saving grace is that the show is presented in a bar, so we could at least drink alcohol to try to remove the bad taste the show was leaving. But the show was so bad that even though we downed 2 pints of beer each, it did not make it any funnier or our night any more enjoyable.

I can honestly say this is one of the worst performances I have ever had the misfortune of enduring. I told HC I blame her for suggesting we watch this show. If you are reading this, know that you owe me an hour of my life I'll never get back.


Singapore Stripped! A Comedy Roast of The Lion City
Event Date: Wed, 1 Apr - Sat, 25 July 2015, 8.30pm (Wed & Sat only)
Venue: Paulaner Clarke Quay

Snack Review - Meiji Matcha Azuki Choc

After dinner at Yayoiken, we went to browse at MEIDI-YA supermarket so I could check out what's new in the snacks scene. I found this small box of Meiji chocolates which contains sweet dried red beans enveloped by matcha-flavoured chocolate.

Meiji Matcha Azuki Chocolate

Matcha (Green Tea) & Azuki (Red Bean) has always been a brilliant pairing, so this box of chocolates did not disappoint. The matcha chocolate was not overly sweet and the dried red bean centre makes the snack feel somewhat healthy, so it was easy for me to pop the chocolates one after another into my greedy oral orifice. 

I finished the box in less than 10 minutes and it satisfied my sweet tooth sufficiently.

Dining Out - Yayoiken

Before going for the comedy show, HC and I went to Yayoiken at Liang Court for dinner. This Japanese restaurant chain is popular and well-reviewed because they serve tasty Japanese set meals at prices that do not break the bank.

I got the Saba Shio set which costs only $9.90, which is a steal compared to other Japanese restaurants. HC got the Nasu Miso & Hokke Teishouku ($15.90), which has a portion of grilled hokke fish and a stir-fry of egg plant, green peppers and thin pork slices in miso sauce.

Saba Shio Set

I enjoyed my Saba Shio set. The mackerel was cooked perfectly, with the skin crisp and the flesh juicy and tender. The accompanying miso soup was not too salty and easy to drink. I stole a few bites from HC's selection and found her choice to be tasty too.

This is a great place to grab a healthy Japanese meal without burning a hole in the wallet. I can predict I will become a regular patron of this chain of restaurants.

Yayoiken (Liang Court)

Address: #B1-50, Liang Court, 177 River Valley Road Singapore 179030

Phone: 6338 7170

Cafe Hopping - Stateland Cafe

After lunch at The Hangar, we went to nearby Stateland Cafe for dessert, which is popular because of its waffles.

To share, we got the Blackforest Waffle, which is topped with Belgian chocolate ice cream, cherry compote and chocolate flakes.

Blackforest Waffle

The waffle itself was decent and the Belgian chocolate ice cream was rich and decadent. You will enjoy this if you are a chocolate lover. Even though I only ate half, I found it to be a little too much. But to be fair, lunch was finished less than 30 minutes ago when we started on the waffle, so perhaps that was why I felt this way.

Coffee was not available when I was there, which is disappointing for a place that has the word Cafe in its name. There surly waitress did not explain the reason why, but I am guessing it was either the machine broke down or she had no idea how to operate it.

Stateland Cafe
Address: 30 Bali Lane Singapore 189866
Phone: 9296 4997