Tim Ho Wan - A well-earned star

I just ended my classes of Hot Abs & Hot Shape when I walked past the infamous Tim Ho Wan queue at Plaza Singapura...  

Wait. What queue?

It was surprisingly short so I decided to pop in and quickly called A. 

"B, no queue at Tim Ho Wan leh. FASTER!!!"

We were in before 15mins, shiokness.

Since it was our first time here, we ordered many dishes to try and we were astounded that none failed us, despite the high volume of people, as there was a high quality control with consistent freshness & all our baskets arrived steaming hot. 

And when one hears so much about the Four Heavenly Kings (BBQ Pork Bun, Fried Carrot Cake, Steamed Malay Cake, Pig Liver Roll).... that's it. 

MUST ORDER ALL. 

1) BBQ Pork Bun ($4.50): 

It comes in a set of 3pieces, with each piping hot. My first bite into the crumbly puff revealed its sweet yet savoury steaming insides immediately, showing how packed with roast pork it was. The soft pork sang a pretty song with the fragrant biscuit, making every bite truly enjoyable. 

We think this is exactly what would happen if Roti Papa met Char siew bak.

So yes, this is definitely our favourite dish.

2) Steamed pork ribs ($4.20): 

This was a tender and juicy rendition that was tasty and fragrant. Simple and traditional. We liked it well enough! 

3) Fried Carrot Cake ($4.50):

Smooth, fragrant and not oily at all. This was such a hit with both of us, especially when bits of fresh radish bit were found! It is good on its own but I also liked it with the THW chili (slightly spicy and quite kickass).

Our glorious spread of food:

4) Steamed siew mai($5.00):

It was known by another name on the menu - steamed pork dumpling with prawn - which suited us fine because they were really stuffed with these juicy meat. Whew, didn't get cheated. And I loved the dish for the plump & fresh flavours where each morsel danced sweetly on the tastebuds.

5) Steamed Chicken Feet ($4.00):

I wasn't expecting much, but it was surprisingly good and tasty with a spicy after taste, making it quite a shiok dish. Ps. For chix feet lovers, Canton paradise also does a mean dish of this "phoenix claws".

6) Pig Liver Vermicelli ($5.50):

Calling all pig liver fans, this is a dish you have to try. Being judgmental, I found the pairing rather squeamish. Pig liver wrapped in chee cheong fan, really?? But mai siao siao not bad leh! I like my pork liver plump, juicy and slightly raw.. and it was the way I found it in this dish. And the skin of the chee cheong fan was moist and firm, making the unusual dish complete. 

7) Steamed Beancurd Skin ($4.00):

Aka "fu pi juan" in Chinese. Normally I will go for the fried version but because I was too kan cheong in ordering, I didn't see the option available on the other side of the menu. Haha what a foodie faux pax! Anyway, I'm glad for that as it was stuffed with meat, prawns and crunchy vegetable with a juicy skin. It was still slightly crispy which was the icing on the cake. (Ps: On my 2nd time back, I've tried the fried version and I prefer this!)

8) Osmanthus Cake ($3.50):

If you are following WLF on instagram (it's @weelovefood) , you should have seen how bouncy it was... really shake until shiok. We decided to try it as a few tables ordered and also, the glistening skin of the jelly was rather irresistable. Boy, what a joy it was to eat this refreshing "cake", as it was full of the natural sweetness of wolfberries & osmanthus. And it was gone under 2 minutes. That good.

Just look at that shining skin:

9) Steamed Egg cake ($3.80):

Such a sweet fluffy item in the Heavenly Kings. 

We were rather reluctant to order it as it just sounded bleak to eat steamed cake in a Michelin star restaurant. But boy, we regretted not ordering more for a take-away! (P.s. you also have to queue to take away) This item was really fragrant, soft with a light coconut aftertaste and you just can't stop eating it. Another "must order" item!!

10) Chinese Pu Erh Tea ($1.20):

No need pictures lah. They only have one type available and it was aromatic with free refills. 

 

Go on, head on down to Tim Ho Wan now if you haven't. 

You have to.

Xx, wlf. 

Kraze Burger - Fresh ingredients on doughy goodness

It was a lazy weekend evening and we were in Plaza Singapura, scouring the area for a good dinner location when the name Kraze Burger came up. Since there were already plans to head to MBS for it, we thought, why not here instead? 

So we trooped there in a trio, and got ourselves promptly seated despite quite a crowd. Good job on the spacious seating area KB. The Korean brand specialises in hand made burgers and they were served fast and hot; I like. Luckily we were near the kitchen too, so the waiters got to us in under about ten steps :p

Items ordered to share were:

1) The  Semi Nude ($16)

It was basically a burger served without the top patty, with an egg sitting atop instead. At first I was skeptical, as it looked like any other normal burger but at an inflated price. 

Like...: "Take away one side of my bun and still charge limbeh sixteen dollars, seriously??" 

Ok.. That was the masculine side of me taking over. Anyway. My first bite into the patty got me a mouthful of fresh tasting meat that was easy on the palette. Couple that with the crisped edges of the sunny side up and the special Kraze sauce; it became a symphony on my lips. 

Pretty sauce swirls that cleverly fill up the half empty plate HAHA.

Side view of the semi nude: onions, bacon and egg layered over fresh beef.

2. Idaho Garlic Fries ($8):  

Was expecting thin fries but wuuu weet, in came fat sexy wedges drizzled with a kickass spicy and sweet sauce. The latter had a garlicky aftertaste which didn't overwhelm and   it went surprisingly well with the whipped cream that was served together. Shioknesssss. 

3. The Matiz ($13)

We were intrigued by the name of this as it sounded like "mati" (die) in Malay. Not very auspicious but we forgot about it after a while as we got too greedy eating heh. 

Also forgot to take more pics of it :/ but it was basically a semi- nude with a top bun without the egg. Not very creative here.... but I guess the name comes from the generous servings of sweet potato fries and salad. Full until "mati". Figuratively of course. My say? Go for this as it is definitely more value for money since they use the same patty. Got free fries somemore. WIN.

4. Chili Beef Dip ($5.80)

Sorry for the sore lack of pictures but this is a good dip to try, with it full of big meat chunks in an appetising hot sauce.

Ended off with some sweets from Nana's Green Tea as well: 

Imma sucker for all things green tea and Nana has never failed me thus far ♡

Kraze Burger

Plaza Singapura Atrium 

(aka New wing)

#04-63/67

Opening hours:

Not stated :/

Call for reservations:

656333538

Enjoy!

WLF signing out.

Bangkok Jam - simple & shiok!

Sorry for the loooonnng hiatus peeps; such a dedicated blogger I am... not.

Haha anyway, t'was my 2nd trip back to this spanking bright and loud place in Plaza Singapura, with my loverboy. WHOM WENT TO CHECK HUNGRYGOWHERE TO SEE IF MY RECOMMENDATION WAS CORRECT.

Which, by the way, was the worst insult one can ever give to a Foodie.
I know taste buds are subjective but if a Foodie says it's good, it's good. It did not help that all five reviews were bad, mainly due to lousy service. And they were around the Dec '12 -Feb '13 period. I call them teething issues, which are common for a new place, right or not.

Okay enough ranting. For me, I seem to have an affinity with the place, as I had a pleasant experience on both times. Or maybe cause I am more easygoing.... HAHA.

(Oops sorry, here comes rant part 2) 

But really, some Singaporeans can be so ugly. There was this young couple sitting next to us, (the seats were about an arm's length away) and the guy was bitching about how the waitress walked away while he was paying the bill. Yeah for 1 minute to attend to the next table. During that 1 minute, he went on about how she had hearing problems because he had to ask for the bill twice. Mind you, it was pretty noisy and I had problems hearing my own bf, not to mention the waitress who was standing about 1 metre away. 

And she was still very polite despite his offensive kiam pa face. Seriously, dude, grow up and try working.

Too bad I didn't have a tiara to crown you princess then. Thank goodness they left before our food arrived, if not I might have puked on him.

WHEW. FINALLY.

We ordered:

1) Olive fried rice - must try!

This was fragrant, fluffy and layered with aromatic spices x cashew nuts, making each bite rather delightful. After this dish, le bf said: "Good recommendation". Synne - 1, Augs - 0.

2) Fried chix wings, marinated in fish sauce - good comfort food

I didn't expect the wings to be so small, but the taste overcompensated for their size. Each mini wing was juicy and well marinated, and I love the fact that it was fried with garlic flakes. YUM.

3) Soft shell crab in mellow yellow curry (goes the name, cute right?) - must try?

A question mark because you cannot go wrong with soft shell crabs and good spicy, yet sweet curry but I found the dish a tad too salty, which made me think about the MSG content. Me: "No wonder so nice...." I'd say, go for it, but limit your servings.

4) Tom Yum soup - must try!
Their soup is the clear type, and I find it quite authentic, with fresh and plump seafood. Sorry, the soup was finished before I could snap a picture :p

5) Tom Yum fried rice - mixed feelings

If you like risotto, you might like this. Moist (almost reaching wet), spicy and tasty would be the best way to describe this dish. It almost felt like the chef poured tom yum soup onto the rice and fried it together, with the same fat prawns and spiciness. But I still prefer my rice fluffy so this was a no-go.

I would definitely come back again for my must-tries as I also like the vibe of the place; vibrant, fast paced, noisy, fuss free with efficient service.

Gotta go educate the hungrygowhere site now.

Happy eating peeps!

WLF.