reviews – Page 23 – Regina Chow

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Antoinette

July 29, 2011 by Regina Chow 4 Comments

Antoinette is another gorgeous cafe housed in an old office building at Penhas Road, right beside Fragrance Hotel. The location may be a little dingy, but rest assured that you will be transported into another world upon entering the cafe.

My eyes lit up the moment I stepped into this hidden gem of a cafe. I was first greeted by a plethora of colourful meringues, cakes and desserts at the entrance, which set my heart a flutter. And as I walked deeper in, an inexplicable sense of familiarity came over me. The beautiful decor, reminiscent of the baroque era, actually resembles that of my favourite cafe in Paris, Angelina.

I read that Antoinette was set up by Chef Pang, the ex-executive pastry chef of Canele and its rating on hungrygowhere.com has always been a perfect score of 100%. Excited to try as many items on the menu as possible, we went on to order 3 breakfast items, thinking that we could finish up everything and still order dessert.

How ambitious of us. In the end, we left without having dessert (what a punishment for being greedy!!:( ) and still had to pack half a crepe home. The same thing happened at Arbite previously, and still, I didn’t learn my lesson. Well, I’m definitely going back for the desserts!

The gratin with tomato fondue and the crepe were good, but the pancakes were divine! It is supremely difficult to find thick, fluffy pancakes in Singapore, and Riders’ Cafe’s pancakes are the closest you could get to that. Much to my disappointment, they have since removed pancakes from their menu. Thanks to Antoinette, I finally have a new favourite cafe for pancakes!

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Loysel’s Toy & Raw Kitchen

July 26, 2011 by Regina Chow 2 Comments

I realised there’s an interesting phenomenon in Singapore’s cafe scene recently. Increasingly, more and more cafes are being housed in obscure office buildings located far away from the heart of the city.

In Kampung Bugis alone, there are two quaint cafes in a refurbished standalone office building facing the Kallang River – Loysel’s Toy and Raw Kitchen. I can’t explain it but there’s an alluring old-school charm about this place which I love.

Loysel’s Toy, run by the same people behind Papa Palheta, was named after Edward Loysel de Santais, an engineer in the 1800s who was dedicated to the production of a magnificent coffee machine that made over 1000 cups of coffee an hour. In the same vein, Loysel’s Toy aims to produce a good cup of coffee for every customer.

I’m not a fan of coffee in general, but I was excited to visit Loysel’s Toy because unlike Papa Palheta, they actually serve food here! We were there on a late Tuesday afternoon, but surprisingly, the cafe was so packed that we had to sit outdoors.

Jw is an avid coffee lover and he felt that like Papa Palheta, Loysel Toy’s coffee is excellent!

The chocolate cake here is heavenly! I was pleasantly surprised, to say the least. The cake is rich and moist. If I’m not wrong, dark chocolate is used, hence the sweetness is not overwhelming and there is just a slight hint of bitterness. I wolfed down the whole cake, leaving just a small slice for JW. LOL!

Here I was, looking innocent and demure before I gobbled up the cake ravenously. 😛

After that, we ventured to the second floor of the building, where Raw Kitchen is now located.

I fell instantly in love with the decor. Cement floor and walls, put together with wooden and vintage, washed-out furniture create a very comfortable, homely atmosphere.

If you sit beside the grills, you’ll be treated to a breath-taking view of the Kallang River. The breezy, tranquil environment is sure to make you feel right at home.

I ordered prawn pasta with creamy mentaiko sauce. I can’t recall if this is a new item on their menu, because the last time I tried their mentaiko spaghetti at their previous premises during Karen’s birthday, I was bowled over by the wonderful flavours. This time unfortunately, the angel hair pasta tasted a little too dry for my liking. I would love to try the highly raved steak tartare one day though!

My parting photo for this post – my outfit for the day:

Dress from Jatuchak Market, Bangkok

Shoes from Zara

I bought this quirky cartoon dress from Bangkok. You can’t see it from the photo above but there are cute little yellow polka dots on the green skirt. 🙂 I love the cute cartoon bear in a pink striped t-shirt. It’s so adorable!

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Have a great week ahead!

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Peperoni Pizzeria (Binjai Park)

July 21, 2011 by Regina Chow 6 Comments

Peperoni is one of my favourite restaurants for dinner simply because their pizzas are one of the best around. Honestly, with the Les Amis brand name under its belt and a 92% rating on hungrygowhere.com, it is pretty hard to go wrong.

Unlike the thick, chewy pizzas that are a dime a dozen, Peperoni serves thin crispy crust pizzas with generous toppings. My favourite would have to be the parma ham and rocket pizza. It is so light and crispy, just like table water crackers topped with quality ingredients. I can easily finish a medium sized pizza all by myself. One of the specialties here is its XXL 21″ pizza, which is absolutely perfect for huge family gatherings! I don’t have pictures here, but their portobello mushrooms are not to be missed as well. 😉

We tried their Lasagna recently. Much to our surprise, it is not overly cheesy like most of the other lasagnas. It has just the right quantity of mozzarella cheese. If you’re a meat lover (like us!), you will be pleased to know that there are copious amounts of minced beef filling to go around.

I also like the casual, laid-back environment. It resembles Billy Bombers in many ways, with retro posters lining the walls and a juke box playing music from the 1960s. The only difference is, Peperoni definitely looks much classier.

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Arbite – A Chance Encounter

July 20, 2011 by Regina Chow 2 Comments

Arbite was a chance encounter for us. We were on our way to visit Grace and my God-daughter when we decided to make a pit-stop at Serangoon Gardens to grab a quick bite.

In fact, I would have missed the restaurant entirely if it wasn’t for the large signboard right at the entrance where you’ll find a flight of stairs leading to its premises on the 2nd storey.

And that was when my eyes lit up. It is just the type of restaurant that I like. The decor was simple and white-washed, not unlike the usual Scandinavian style of interior design.

It is cozy and unpretentious, a place where you can just be yourself and relax on a lazy weekend. I felt like I was eating at a friend’s place and that is precisely why I like Arbite.

I absolutely adore the collage of pictures on the walls. I’ve always wanted to do up one of the walls in our rooms in this fashion.

Coincidentally, I also bumped into two friends there who frequent the restaurant. They recommended the Grilled Moroccan Chicken for my mains while JW, who loves breakfast food (i.e. bacon, eggs, sausages..you get the drift) went for the Arbite Breakfast.

The food was distinctly flavourful and came in generous portions! The service provided was immaculate as well. Marcus, the owner of the restaurant was professional yet affable, always wearing a smile on his face.

My only grouse was that we were so full at the end of our main courses, we had no more room for dessert! I really wanted to try My Wife’s Chocolate Cake, so that gives me an excuse to drag JW there with me again!

That’s not much of a grouse, is it? LOL. I will certainly be back soon!

Before heading to Grace’s place, we passed by a gorgeous venue for photo-taking. Here are the additional photos that were not released earlier. 😉

Tiered Ruffled Dress in Cream from ClubCouture

It’s already mid-week, darlings! Two more days to Friday! 🙂

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Nantsuttei@ Parco Millenia Walk

June 17, 2011 by Regina Chow 2 Comments

Santouka at Central is my favourite ramen restaurant in Singapore and I hardly go anywhere else for ramen given my fastidiousness. Nonetheless, I was pleasantly surprised to find out that Natsuttei at Millenia Walk serves pretty decent ramen too.

The signature ramen here comes with a black tonkotsu soup base. Don’t be frightened by the black soup though, for it is really just roast garlic oil. The roast garlic oil enhances the overall flavour of the soup base and is the secret behind the rich, savoury soup! My only grouse is that every bowl of ramen comes with a very generous serving of bean sprouts, so you may want to alert the servers if you’re not a fan.

I prefer my ramen to be slightly spicy, so I went for the Dragon Ramen, which is only mildly spicy. For those of you who love very spicy ramen, Nantsuttei offers four levels of spiciness for you to choose from. Check out their banner below. Besides their ramen, I adore their sense of humour too. LOL

My outfit for the day was a simple striped dress given to me by Karen.

Transparent heels from Far East Plaza

Vintage Aigner straw bag from Dustbunny Vintage

Have a good weekend everyone!

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Halia Restaurant

June 16, 2011 by Regina Chow 2 Comments

Shihui, Rafidah and I met up at Halia Restaurant for lunch one scorching hot afternoon. It was so hot and humid I regretted suggesting meeting up at the botanic gardens the moment I stepped out of my door.

Despite the weather, the restaurant was so packed with patrons (all tourists perhaps?) we couldn’t even get seats in the air-conditioned area.

Having heard rave reviews about Halia, I found their main courses rather disappointing. What saved the day however, were their desserts and drinks. The desserts are among the best I’ve tried. Their wide range of ginger-infused drinks are also very innovative and surprisingly delicious. I would most certainly return to Halia for desserts and tea.

Thereafter, ready to brave the sunny weather with my trusty hat, we took a stroll in botanic gardens on our way to the carpark. I remember how I used to come here ever so often with my parents as a kid. The garden has changed so much since, but its beauty has always remained unrivalled. I’m thinking of going back soon for the upcoming Chopin and Liszt concert.

One note of caution though! If you’re thinking of taking a stroll here, remember to slather on some insect repellant for the botanic gardens is also a playground for mosquitoes!! 😉

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One Bakersworld

June 12, 2011 by Regina Chow No Comments

Craving for cakes but concerned about consuming too much calories? Well, here comes the cakes from One Bakersworld to the rescue. The cakes are made with little or no sugar, no preservatives and no trans fats, so you can satisfy your cravings without ever feeling guilty again!

There are so many flavours to choose from, you’ll literally be spoilt for choice. My personal favourites are the durian and chocolate truffle cakes. The durian is made from D24 durians and the chocolate cake is made from European chocolate. No sugar is added, but they are still amazingly delicious! Although no preservatives are added, the cakes can be kept in the freezer for 2 weeks. How very convenient!

I bought a party pack (60 pieces for S$40) for my colleagues recently and they had nothing but praise for One Bakersworld. The cakes have a light, fluffy consistency and the flavours are rich without being overbearing. Most importantly, they are healthy and very affordable.

Sushi, Karen and I also met up for tea at One Bakerworld and we absolutely couldn’t stop ourselves from devouring the sumptuous cakes. I am hooked!

We will definitely be making more trips down to One Bakersworld soon. For those of you who are working in Raffles Place, you are in luck because One Bakersworld is probably just a stone’s throw away from your office. It is conveniently located at OUB Centre, beside the Starhub shop. Here’s a map for your reference:

One Bakersworld was also featured in last week’s Sunday Times. So, what are you waiting for? Head on down to the shop today to try out all the delectable flavours!

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RSAF Open House 2011

May 28, 2011 by Regina Chow 4 Comments

Attending the RSAF Open House this year was a spontaneous decision as we happened to be around the vicinity. The last time I attended an air show was when I was 5 years old?

If you are into fighter jets and helicopters, this would most certainly be a feast for your eyes! On display at the Paya Lebar Air Base were the latest F-15SG fighter aircraft, F-16C/D fighter aircraft , AH-64D attack helicopters, as well as the AS-332 Super Puma and CH-47 Chinook helicopters

I was pretty excited about getting up close and personal with the F15 aircraft so off we went to fiddle with the cockpit! We spent about half an hour queuing for our turn but it was well worth the wait.

Took a photo of the F16 aircraft while waiting in line.

Magnificent F15 planes

Finally, it was my turn to go up to the cockpit!

I was amazed by the service quality and professionalism exhibited by the RSAF personnel. They were clothed in long sleeved jumpsuits despite the sweltering heat and unbearable humidity. I can only imagine how uncomfortable they must be, but nobody uttered a word of complaint and they genuinely seemed to be enjoying themselves, patiently explaining the various parts of the cockpit to visitors and even offering to take photographs for everyone.

I had fun playing with the controls, gears and pedals. Due to my lack of strength, I had to use both hands to move most of the gears, much to the amusement of the RSAF guy who told me that using one hand is the norm.

LOL I guess besides meeting the minimum height requirement of 1.6m, I don’t have what it takes to be a pilot!

Besides getting up close and personal with the fighter planes and helicopters, there are aerial displays, helicopter rides, arming demonstrations and games at the carnival! Tomorrow’s the last day of the open house, so you may want to drop Paya Lebar Air Base to take a look!

Finally, here’s what I wore to the Open House.

Mickey Mouse T-shirt from Uniqlo
Polka Dot High Waisted Shorts from www.kandykane.com
Boots from Bugis Village
Bag from Prada

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Prive & High Society Cafe

May 27, 2011 by Regina Chow No Comments

I was down with stomachache followed by cramps last weekend, but that didn’t stop me from feasting. Ironically, that was about the only thing I did besides catching Pirates of the Caribbean.

We had a long, leisurely breakfast at Prive, enjoying each other’s company and relishing the goodness of our breakfast staple – eggs. The eggs benedict here is one of my favourites.

For dinner, we headed down to High Society Cafe at Marina Bay Sands. High Society Cafe is a spin-off from The CD Shop and is marketed as a place for tea and cakes. Funnily enough, the cakes, though pricey, were not particularly tasty.

I found the main courses much better. If not for the meagre portions, I would probably rate the food 7/10. Save for the cafe’s lovely ambience, I think TCC and Coffee Club are much better choices in terms of affordability and food quality.