Tower Of Power

May 31, 2013 Ivan Teh - RunningMan 0 Comments

Tower Of Power

Team building activity, Tower Of Power.

Tower Of Power by Ivan Teh

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Feast @ East Buffet Restaurant

May 24, 2013 Ivan Teh - RunningMan 0 Comments

Traditional Peranakan Food That Lacks Authentic Flavour

(Ratings: On a scale of 1 to 10, with 1 = Worst and 10 = Best)
Overall: 7
Ambience & Setting: 7
Food & Beverage: 6
Service: 9
Value for Money: 8
Spent about SGD $33 per person.





Feast @ East Buffet Restaurant is a heritage buffet that celebrates the best of traditional Peranakan cuisine by serving up a mouthwatering spread that changes daily amid old-school, traditional settings. Feast @ East Buffet Restaurant used to have a much wider selection of international food available, but they have since narrowed their focus to Peranakan cuisine with a smattering of fresh seafood. Personally, I think it's a good move, because there are much better buffets with an international offering, but few that specialise in Peranakan cuisine.

Ambience of Feast @ East Buffet Restaurant is styled after the interior of a Baba-Nonya house, with kebaya print placemats on the tables and Nonya clothing on the walls. A well-stocked display spice racks sits in the corner next to the open show kitchen. Staff wear traditional kebayas, with the more senior staff looking like matriarchs.

Service is excellent. Staff keep a constant watchful eye for empty plates and clear them quickly, which is always critical for a buffet. They also top up water without being asked. Buffet trays are kept filled with food, when the trays are about four-fifths empty, chefs remove them to the kitchen to replenish. Feast @ East Buffet Restaurant also has an ongoing credit card promotion, check with staff for details.

The cooked food at Feast @ East Buffet Restaurant revolves mainly around traditional Peranakan dishes. There is a good variety of cooked food available for the buffet. However, the fast-paced demands of the buffet concept means the food uses a lot of mass-produced, commercialised ingredients and cooking methods, resulting in a lack of authentic taste. Feast @ East Buffet Restaurant also has a wide spread of traditional desserts, as well as bottles of traditional sweets and biscuits.

I would recommend Feast @ East Buffet Restaurant for those looking for a cheap buffet in Singapore, or for those who wish to sample a wide variety of traditional Peranakan food and desserts. However, those who wish to have a taste of authentic Peranakan cuisine may wish to give Feast @ East Buffet Restaurant a miss.





The restaurant projects a traditional Peranakan vibe, with table settings and staff uniforms reflecting the theme.

Feast At East Buffet Restaurant Spice Rack

Feast At East Buffet Restaurant Table Setting

The Papaya Titik Pong Tahu Soup is a light soup / broth that features prawns, shrimp, fish and papaya as the main ingredients. However, this version is sadly missing on the seafood aspect, making the overall taste much lighter and less tasty. The Tomato Soup fortunately, tasted great, and isn't prepared solely from a can.

Papaya Titik Pong Tahu Soup

Tomato Soup

The cold starter salads typically consist of Achar, which is a mixture of pickled vegetables. There are 2 versions of Achar here, one version uses pickled carrots and cucumbers, while the other uses pineapples and cucumbers. Both are freshly pickled, and very good. The Bosomboh Squid Salad has fresh squid, with beansprouts and spinach. Also pretty good. However, the Tauhu Goreng was quite poorly done, with firm cold beancurd and limp vegetables. The Sambal Cucumber Salad while fresh, didn't have much flavour despite the shrimp paste... Could have been better if they used better quality shrimp paste.

Achar

Pineapple With Cucumber

Bosomboh Squid Salad

Tauhu Goreng

Sambal Cucumber Salad

I personally felt that the 3 best dishes here were the fragrant Nasi Ulam, the well braised Chap Chye, and the flavourful Sweet Potato Leaf And Sweet Potato with its addictive gravy.

Nasi Ulam

Chap Chye

Sweet Potato Leaf And Sweet Potato

The Tempura Tenggiri is a rather large slab of fish for a buffet spread, but its fresh and quite tasty. The Babi Ponteh has a rather strong, off-putting smell of pork. The Udang Lengkong is properly spicy, but the prawns weren't fresh. The Babi Buah Keluak was quite well done though, with fragrant, fall off the bone meat on the pork ribs.

Tempura Tenggiri

Babi Ponteh

Udang Lengkong

Babi Buah Keluak

I thought that the Laksa Nonya Style was pretty good.

Laksa Nonya Style

The Sago Pudding, Pulut Kaya, Steam Tapioca, and Kueh Koswee were the better desserts available.

Sago Pudding

Pulut Kaya

Steam Tapioca

Kueh Koswee

If possible, avoid the Ondeh Ondeh, Agar Agar, and Ang Ku Kueh as these totally lack the authentic Nonya taste, and are more commercialised in nature.

Ondeh Ondeh

Agar Agar

Ang Ku Kueh

The strong and potent Durian Penget lingers on your breath long after you've consumed it, but it's so good!

Durian Penget

A throwback to childhood, the White Rabbit Creamy Candy is available as part of the buffet as well. You can actually squirrel some away if you wish.

White Rabbit Creamy Candy

W Hotel Singapore

May 23, 2013 Ivan Teh - RunningMan 0 Comments

Indifferent Service Spoils Great Ambience

(Ratings: On a scale of 1 to 10, with 1 = Worst and 10 = Best)
Overall: 7
Location: 8
Service: 6
Room: 7
Facilities: 8
Visited: May-2013




W Hotel Singapore is a mix of modern contemporary artistic influence, natural beauty, and elegant extravagance. Somehow, it all manages to work together, making a visit to W Hotel Singapore both impressive and memorable at the same time.

Ambience at W Hotel Singapore is energetic and quirky, with sculptures, paintings, lights, pattens and shapes combining and clashing to create various spaces. Walk from one end of W Hotel Singapore to the other and the decor changes along the way. Beautiful in a somewhat madcap way. However, it's rather difficult to find a nearby trash bin in the public areas.

As we were preparing for a corporate event, we faced problems with the service staff, and their lack of initiative. This caused frustration for our people. During the actual event though, the staff at W Hotel Singapore performed much better, and were both visible and helpful to our guests.

The room and facilities at W Hotel Singapore are good, though not the best I've seen for a hotel of this class. The exterior facade is somewhat unattractive, but the view from the rooms is great. The in-room facilities for the Fabulous Room is good as well. However, W Hotel Singapore doesn't have much in the way of activities, and they rely more on the attractions around Sentosa to entertain guests.

W Hotel Singapore is a nice place to stay, or to hold an event, though the service can be inconsistent as the majority of the staff are quite junior / not so experienced. Even if you're not staying at the W Hotel Singapore, it's still a nice place to visit.

Open Door Policy

May 20, 2013 Ivan Teh - RunningMan 0 Comments

Open Door Policy
19 Yong Siak Street

http://www.odpsingapore.com/


Fine Dining With A Good Show

(Ratings: On a scale of 1 to 10, with 1 = Worst and 10 = Best)
Overall: 7
Ambience & Setting: 9
Food & Beverage: 6
Service: 8
Value for Money: 6
Spent about SGD $30 per person.


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Open Door Policy, developed by the Spa Esprit Group, has certainly managed to draw in the crowds daily with their rustic chic ambience, beautifully presented and great tasting dishes, and casual and friendly service.

Ambience at Open Door Policy exudes a casual chic vibe, but the classy dinnerware give away its fine dining status. And while the floor space at Open Door Policy is limited, they've managed to comfortably space out their rustic, wooden-looking furniture well. The glass-walled show kitchen concept is fantastic, and its great to be able to watch your food being prepared by the counter. However, ambient noise levels do tend to get quite loud during peak periods.

Service staff at Open Door Policy are friendly and polite, and do show initiative. For example, offering bag hooks, or asking for feedback on food. Staff are able to handle crowds well, being able to still offer attentive service despite being busy with a full house.

Open Door Policy features a menu produced by acclaimed chef Mr. Ryan Clift, putting a modern twist on rustic European comfort food. Food is arranged and presented thoughtfully. And while each dish is simple and uncomplicated, the freshness of the ingredients shines through. Drinks are also a specialty here, with cocktails, wines and coffee being the most popular. Be prepared that all this comes at a price, as dining at Open Door Policy is more expensive than other cafes, befitting of a fine dining status.


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The Latte is excellent, as it's from the award-winning 40 Hands cafe nearby, which is also managed by the Spa Esprit Group.

Latte 01

Latte 02

The Smoked Salmon And Scrambled Eggs On Toasted Ciabatta Bread With Spinach And Fresh Herbs is only available on their weekend brunch menu. The eggs were light and fluffy, and the spinach was fresh and still slightly crisp despite cooking. However, while the toasted ciabatta bread was fresh, crisp and tasty, it began to soften throughout the meal, due to the dampness of the eggs and spinach on top.

Smoked Salmon And Scrambled Eggs On Toasted Ciabatta Bread With Spinach And Fresh Herbs

The ODP Pancakes With Grand Marnier And Orange is only available on their weekend brunch menu. While fluffy, I felt the pancakes were too thick, which made the dish very filling. The sauce of grand marnier and orange lent a fruity, light taste to the dish.

ODP Pancakes With Grand Marnier And Orange

Having a show kitchen is a great idea, as it provides dining entertainment as well. Watching the chefs prepare the orders is both appetizing, as well as interesting. From my experience here, it seems The ODP Burger, as well as the ODP Panckes, are very popular items.

Building The ODP Burger 01

Building The ODP Burger 02

Open Door Policy Decor

Open Door Policy Kitchen 01

Open Door Policy Kitchen 02

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