Wendy's @ Wheelock Place

I finally had the chance to go to the relatively-new fast food chain called Wendy's earlier today. Each time I passed by at the Lau Pa Sat outlet, it was always packed to the brim, so when I was around the Wheelock Place area, I thought to pop by for a look.

My first impression is that it is not as crowded as I thought. Or maybe because it was five in the afternoon on a Saturday, hence the dining crowd had not come in. I took a look at the counter and saw that a set meal of a burger, fries and drink cost about S$6.00 - S$7.00. Not too bad, just about the normal price of a fast food chain like McDonald's or Burger King.

Since I was not that hungry, I decided to share a burger. So we ordered a Fish Fillet Burger, complete with fries and an iced tea. The burger looks in the shape of a flower on top, with the fish fillet and then cabbage and mayonnaise in the middle. The serving is just right, not too big and not too small.

The fries taste exactly like the McDonald's fries - the same texture, the same amount of salt, the same colour.

The iced tea is a tad sour. So far, the best fast food iced tea I have ever taken is the KFC's Iced Lemon Tea - sweet iced tea with a slice or two of lemon inside.

Being a typical fast food joint, the food is to be expected - burgers, fries and whatnot. The food is not bad overall since each fast food joint has its own way of cooking the burgers. I will not say Wendy's is bad since I have my own preference. Some may find Wendy's better than the other fast-food joints in town. Personally for fish fillet and fries, I still prefer McDonald's, and for iced tea, KFC's still the best!

Food : 3.5 out of 5
Price : 3.5 out of 5
Service : 4 out of 5

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

A Shangri-La Wedding

A cousin got married yesterday, and her dinner banquet was at Shangri-La. For all the hype about Shangri-La, when I went in, somehow I was not impressed. The ballroom seems ordinary, like any other ballroom in any other hotel. The table setting also seems ordinary. The serving staff seems inexperienced, nervous and no product knowledge at all.

The worst part is that the food is not good at all! For the price the bridal couple is paying, it is totally not worth it! If I am the bride, I will feel absolutely ripped off, as they are paying top dollar for less than mediocre food, ambience and service! I will not recommend this place for any banquets whatsoever! For this kind of price, St Regis is a much better choice in terms of food, service and ambience!

The table setting

First dish - cold cut combination of suckling pig, salad prawns, spring rolls, duck and jelly fish

Second dish - Shark's fin

Third dish - I believe this is a cod fish, but the sauce is a tad salty. And for such a soggy dish, the serving staff did not even bother giving us an extra spoon!

Fourth dish - I think it is cereal prawn of sorts

Fifth dish - Poached chicken with a few sticks of vegetables
 

Sixth dish - Abalone with vegetables

Seventh dish - Fried Rice, which is the worst I have ever taken

Eighth dish - Dessert

At least the wedding ceremony itself was beautiful. I was there for the wedding, not the food, hence stayed throughout, but many left before the fried rice was served as it was too long a gap in between courses and the whole dinner became too draggy. If I ever get married, this will be one place I will not consider!

Mel's Drive-In @ Universal Studios

Last night, I was priviledged enough to get invited to Universal Studios for free, complete with a meal voucher of S$10.00 per person. After the rides and exploring the place, we went to Mel's Drive-In, which I had heard about, for dinner. The entire meal for two cost S$19.90 in all, so we did not need to pay a single cent after utilising the vouchers!

My first impression of the place is that it kind of reminds me of Billy Bombers - the concept of an American eatery in the 1950s to 1960s, where there are jukeboxes, popstars and milkshakes. In fact, the set meal consists of a burger, fries and iced tea.

We were lucky to get a place by the window, which overlooks out into the water and the lights reflecting upon it. The thing is, it does not look like it is an outside view, it looks like an interior view!

The exterior of the restaurant

This retro car is parked outside the restaurant

The food counter

The interior of the restaurant

Because it is a fast food joint, I ordered a chilli burger set and he ordered a double cheeseburger set. When the food arrived, I was surprised. The burger is big! It is almost an American size burger! Luckily it is not so big that I could not finish it, although after the burger, I could not eat the fries anymore! Even the iced tea was huge, like the McDonald's large cup of Pepsi! At least it is still not as big as the burgers in Carl's Junior!

His double cheeseburger

My chilli burger

The fries

The big cup of iced tea

The other side of the iced tea cup

Normally I do not go for fast food joints unless it is McDonald's or KFCs, but Mel's Drive-In is good! The food is great and filling. Although the set meal is a bit on the high side, still the price is pretty worth it, as compared to those overpriced yet small portions places. Worth the try!

Food : 4 out of 5

Ambience : 3.5 out of 5

Price : 3.5 out of 5

Bei Shan Chuan Spicy Steamboat Buffet (北山川) @ ViVo City

I am not a big fan of buffets or steamboat. As far as I am concerned, it will be a waste of my money going for a buffet, as I only eat certain kinds of food. Hence, having a all-you-can-eat buffet simply defeats the purpose as I will be full after one course.

The same goes for steamboats. I like my food cooked in a certain way, and if I am to go for a steamboat where it is mass cooking, somehow the taste is not up to what I desired.

Still, we met some friends for a steamboat buffet lunch earlier since it is a public holiday. One thing good about this steamboat place is that there are two different kinds of soup - so I chose Hot and Spicy soup and Chicken soup. The soup is then poured onto a pot and the gas is then switched on, leaving the pot to boil.

The steaming pot

While waiting for the soup to boil, we then went to collect the food. I must say, there is quite a big variety of meat (chicken, fish, beef), seafood (prawns, squid, salmon, threadfin), vegetables (cabbages, green vegetables), mushrooms (shitake, button, long), noodles, bee hoon, even ice-cream, fruits, puddings, cakes and whatnot! Simply put, it is a feast!

We filled up our plates with the food and went back to our seats. We put in the food in the soup and let it cook. Some things can cook instantly, like the mushrooms, while others may take a longer time, like the prawns. We had a variety of hot and spicy as well as chicken.

The different kinds of meat

The food cooking away

The different kinds of vegetables

Cooking noodles

The cooked food

 

We had about three courses, and then it was as much as we could take. As I said, buffets do not work for me as my appetite is too small. Hence I much prefer a la carte or set meals where I can just order enough for my stomach.

In any case, after eating, I was intrigued by the bandung ice cream, and decided to take some to try, together with mango pudding and some fruits. The bandung ice cream has quite an interesting taste, but I much prefer the drink since it is tastier and sweeter!

The bandung ice cream

 

The meal wrapped up around an hour and a half. In any case, the buffet is only limited to two hours, as every hour or part thereof will be charged a nominal amount. All in all, it cost about S$25.00 per person for two kinds of soup, all-you-can-eat buffet (as long as there are no leftovers) and for two hours! Pretty worth it!

Food : cannot comment since we cooked it ourselves, but for variety, I would give it 4.5 out of 5

Service : 3.5 out of 5

Price : 4 out of 5

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Aston's Specialities (Part 2) @ Suntec City

Singaporeans are quite a predictable bunch. There are only a few kinds of food they like. Besides sushi joints, the most popular Western food is Botak Jones in coffee shops, or for those who prefer air-conditioning comfort, Aston's Specialities.

It was not the first time I ate at Aston's Specialities. I wrote about the Cathay branch some time back, which was quite good. Last night, we ate at the Suntec City branch, and it was not as good. I am not sure if it is because the standard had dropped, or the Suntec branch happened to be a paler comparison to its sister branch.

One thing I do not like about Aston's Specialities is its queuing time. There is always a long queue no matter which branch you go! And we are not allowed to do any reservations since it is on a first-come-first-served basis. To save time, the waiter asked us to pick our food first. Even then, when we finally got a table, the food took so long to be served!

Each of us ordered something different - medium-well lamb loin chops, medium sirloin steak, fried chicken chop, and medium extra cut steak, as well as different sides. When the food arrived, it was a disappointment.

First, according to my friend, the lamb loin chops seem hard to eat. She said she would have much rather stuck to the medium done than to take the medium-well, as she did not see any difference.

Second, the sirloin steak I ordered seemed more medium-rare than medium. When I sliced off a piece, the steak still looked pink. Yet it was a tad tough, as if it was well-done.

Third, the fried chicken chop seemed a bit hard.

Still, despite all these glitches, it was a rather enjoyable dinner. However, if I am to choose, I will still much prefer Aston's Prime any time!

The supposedly medium-well lamb loin chops, with coleslaw and onion rings

The extra cut sirloin steak, with french fries and garden salad

The fried chicken chop, with french fries and fried beans

The supposedly medium sirloin steak, with mashed potato and coleslaw

La Cantina In Venezia @ Changi Village Hotel

There is this cosy place on the top floor of Changi Village Hotel (formerly Le Meridien Changi) that overlooks the sea. It makes for a fantastic sunset view overlooking the Changi Boardwalk. The restaurant is tucked in a corner facing the swimming pool. It is called La Cantina In Venezia, serving Italian food and wines.

The view is spectacular, especially if you take alfresco seating! We could see the sea on one side, Changi Golf Club on the other side, and perhaps Pulau Ubin too.

View of the sea from the restaurant

Changi Golf Club

The golf course

The serving staff are courteous. A waiter would come to us and recommend us the special of the day. We ordered a pizza to split, and shared two plates of pasta amongst us, as well as bread for starters.

The order came at just the right time - not too long, not too short. The bread basket consisted of three slices of olive bread, with 4 packets of butter and a butter knife at the side. The bread is smooth and soft, just nice!

The bread basket

The dishes were all served together. The spaghetti bolognaise was a tad tasteless and too dry, even though the quantity is just right. The pasta sauce is few and far in between and did not seep into the spaghetti. There was no mined meat in the spaghetti, only sauce and a sprinkling of parsley. I think I can make much better spaghetti!

Spaghetti Bolognaise

The other pasta is an aglio olio. I did not taste that, but according to my friend, it is nothing much as well.

The Crab Linguine

The worst of the lot is the Parma Ham pizza. The pizza looked like a big roti prata, and the ham looked like it was just placed on top of it as an afterthought. The pizza had been sliced, but the ham had not. It looked as if someone forgot the ham and put it on top later on. It was hard to slice, and we ended up slicing more than the required ham pieces, or less than the required ham pieces. And it was quite tasteless too!

The Parma Ham Pizza

My verdict? This restaurant is great for the ambience and good for dates. If you like to experience rooftop alfresco dining facing the sea and just a bit of a nibble, this place will be great to chill out for drinks, that is, if you do not care so much about how the food taste like! For such a price, one would expect worthy food, but the food was indeed a disappointment and not worth the price!

Food : 2 out of 5
Price : 1.5 out of 5
Service : 3.5 out of 5
Ambience : 4 out of 5