Everyday StoriesYYY
Tuesday, April 28, 2009,9:16 PM
Ramen in S'pore
remember my post regarding the ramen store I discovered hidden at the 3rd level of Marina Square? Kyo-Nichi
Beside this, Ajisen Ramen is the only place I will go to for Quality Ramen in S'pore.
I have been to
(in running order)- Ajisen (countless outlets)
- Sumi Charcoal Grill Yakitori (located at Centrepoint basement)
- Kyo-Nichi (located at Marina Sq, 3rd level)
- Ramen Ten (at Far East Plaza & Tampines Central)
- and the most recent one being Bishamon (Raffles City marketplace)
all solely for their ramen.. and I find that for some, their ramen CMI!
1) Sumi Charcoal Grill Yakitori was a shop that I chanced upon while walking through the new renovated Centrepoint basement. this was the 1st japanese ramen store that I tried besides Ajisen.
I remembered they were having a promotion for their ramen.
the shop ambience and seating was quite nice, rather spacious.
service was quick, I don't have to wait long for my ramen to arrive.
Gasp, their ramen was disappointing. the noodles lack the springyness and really is like maggi mee to me.
after reviewing their website after so long since that 1st and last visit there, perhaps their strength was in Yakitori, so they did not place much importance in their ramen.
http://www.sumi.com.sg/
2) Was wandering in Far East Plaza, lost at deciding on the food to eat, we saw Ramen Ten and went in. my thoughts was since this Japanese food chain outlet is called Ramen Ten, their ramen should be of some standard. I was proven to be wrong. once again, the noodles is like maggi mee. but at least their soup base is slightly better than Sumi.
I take it that because pork knuckles and bones are an essential item for brewing of ramen soup base, maybe that is the reason why the soup tasted slightly different from what I had before as Ramen Ten is a halal certified Japanese eatery, so I cannot complain much (:
The 2nd time I went to Tampines, not for the ramen but for the sushi. not bad, sushi is sushi, can't really get any difference unless it is not fresh. but still, I will choose Sakae Sushi anytime =X
http://www.ramenten.com/home.htm
3) went to Bishamon at Raffles City basement Marketplace yesterday.
the shop is suprisingly small and there wasn't much seats available. the seats were also not that comfortable, rather cramp and low back, hardly able to lean back. their specialty are the sapporo ramen series, but they also have clear soup base ramen.
I ordered the clear soup ramen (Shoyu Ramen), he ordered Special Miso Ramen from the Sapporo series. I had a rather high expectation for this shop as I have heard of it for quite some time only yet to try it for myself and also because of their pricing. it is more expensive than Ajisen ramen (ranging from SGD11.80 ~ SGD14.90).
I picked up my chopstick and poke at the ramen, and I know I'm in for a disappointment. It was in a deep yellow color, the soup was really like maggi soup and there wasn't much ingredients =( no seaweed, no tau gei, no egg.. boohoohoo..) then the cha shu is like Ajisen's, which I don't really like, tough and will get stuck to my teeth =X so all give to him, so my bowl only left the noodles and soup, really is like maggi. but this maggi very expensive and furthermore I think my maggi beehoon that I cooked at home tasted 10x nicer =X
his sapporo ramen had slightly more ingredients like seaweed and egg. I have to mention about the egg, they cooked it 50% only, so the exterior looked like a hard-boiled egg, but when you take a bite, the inside is still soft and the eggyolk can flow =X I didn't know at first, when I bite (I asked from him) and sensed sth amiss, I see how come inside is gor gor de.. eee =XX sua ku.. so I gave back to him. LOL~ hee
I also commented that this is a cruel way to kill a chick =( haha! of course there isn't any chick inside lah.
and! the serving was so little, around 3/5 of ajisen's servings (not that I can take more of their ridiculous maggi-treated-as-ramen noodles.)
throughout I was complaining and grouching about how expensive this bowl of maggi mee is.. and saying mine was like $0.60 worth and his was better, at least taste like fishball noodles (that was an overstatement) so maybe worth $3.00. hahaha!
no wonder, even though the shop was rather small, there was still plenty of unoccupied seats even though it was dinner time already.
feel like got conned! I will never be back again! >_<
http://www.bishamon.com.sg/
you can take a look at the reviews, and decide for yourself.
http://www.hungrygowhere.com/singapore/sapporo_ramen_bishamon_raffles_city_shopping_centre/
after having the tries on ramen at these supposedly famous ramen shops, I have realised that perhaps there is nothing wrong with them, maybe ramen are supposed to be like this in S'pore. too bad I have been to Ajisen Ramen many times and know what good quality ramen are supposed to be (if u study their ramen, they really have two cores! that is the secret to their springgy and delicious ramen!!) or maybe my expectations are too high.
but ramen in Tokyo, Japan are nothing like these.
not even Ajisen Ramen can be up to their standard. once you have tried the 100% authentic ramen in Japan, it will take you a few months to adjust back to S'pore Ajisen Ramen standard. it is still the best that you can ask for in S'pore though.
anyone who knows of any equal or better ramen in S'pore, please let me this ramen fan, know! =D
Labels: food
Saturday, April 25, 2009,5:35 PM
Marshmallows ღღღ
did I mentioned before that I LOVE to eat Marshmallows?
haha, i absolutely fell in love with them ever since the first piece of marshmallow melted into my mouth when I was still a kid. I still remembered it was chocolate flavour and the cute packaging showing a colourful wooden rocking horse on each individual wrapper.
not just any marshmallow will satisfy me but only authentic made in japan marshmallow.
those made in USA or european countries are often made with too much sugar and they tasted weird to me.
My love is for those with chocolate and strawberry fillings, not those with funny JAM fillings.
I have noticed many counterfeit products especially from a country 5hours from us via air, they made the packaging looked exactly the same and many a times people didn't realised that they were being conned into paying for more than what it's worth.
even though the packaging can be copied (completed with all the japanese wordings etc), their quality are definitely something they cannot match with.
the chocolate fillings of the China made marshmallows tasted more impure.
much less to say for strawberry fillings, for Japan marshmallows the strawberry used for the fillings are oftenly CREAM type, whereas for the counterfeit, they used JAM.
Of course, taste varies between individuals, but I very much prefer the Japan strawberry marshmallows as they tasted creamy and with just the right sweetness, the strawberry Jam fillings tasted sweet but also a little sour.
the biggest difference of the M.I.J and M.I.C marshmallows can be seen easily from the appearance, they will appear wrinkled whereas Japan made marshmallows are smooth textured and appear plumped.
if you are unsure, the easiest way is to check at the back of the packaging, the place of manufacture.
the creamy chocolate filled marshmallow that I have just devoured this morning afternoon, when I woke up ((:
Labels: food
Sunday, February 15, 2009,8:39 PM
Valentine 2009
This year I had a lovely valentine as I got to spend it with dearest dardar..
BB was so sweet on Friday, the day before Valentine.
He waited for me to knock off work and surprised me with a bouquet of flowers and a gift beautifully wrapped by him (:
I was surprised as I didn't expect anything since Valentine is only the next day.
He wanted to dine at Swensen's, but.. Western food isn't really my stuff, hence I suggested us to try the Ramen restaurant - Kyo-Nichi [Collagen Ramen].
Wow, I didn't regret, the Ramen is delicious, the serving is big, price is reasonable (similar to Ajisen) and it does not charge the 10% service fee.
I’m not a fan of Cha-Shu as I find them a tad too hard and too chewy (I’ve got lazy teeth and mouth) BUT their Cha-Shu is very tender, you hardly need to chew, very different from Ajisen.
I would recommend you to try it!
With each type of Ramen, you can opt for 3 different soup base - Standard; Spicy; Thick
The 1st two are rather explainable.
Thick means there are more collagen in the noodles and soup as compared to the other two.
They have Red Bean Crushed Ice Drink on their menu, it is actually like normal red bean soup (only that it’s more meshy), added with ice and instead of eating it from a bowl, you drink it from a glass! Haha, but I find this drink nice and slurpy.
Oh, and they provide each guest with a cup of hot green tea upon serving.
Why the hesitation? Go try the Ramen too alright! Located at Marina Square (opposite Pasta de Waraku).
Ok, got to get advertising fees from Kyo-Nichi dy.
Hmm, I don’t mind an unlimited treat at Kyo-Nichi (:
Btw.. Pasta de Waraku ... I think the food there sucks.
Their plates are damn big, but their servings are freaking little. moreover, the fried rice that i had ordered, tasted like salt is free in this world. not going there for a 2nd time. Waste money to torture myself. bleh.
Later on into the night, we opened the present together, he bought me the 100%
Be@rbrick Valentine 2009 Edition - a Collector item. ehh. it was a pair of cute furry bears with movable arms and legs. haha, i ain't got the passion for these collector thingy but this serves as a great memorable gift for this year Valentines for reminiscing purpose (:
Following which, he pulled out another wrapped gift and handed over to me.
He told me that was for my 21st birthday (ha-ha, i know it was like 45 days late).
I looked inside the wrapper... omg, it was an iPod Touch!! Just the day before, we saw it in epicentre and I was thinking to myself how nice it would be if I own an iPod Touch.
It’s like a wish come true, i was so overwhelmed that tears of joy flowed out of my eyes.. Mainly I was touched by baobei's action and thoughtfulness; it was totally unexpected as I had never let known to him my desire for this iPod Touch.
To sum up, I’d got flowers, 100% be@rbrick, watch and wallet from him for Valentine’s Day this year. All of which I loved!!!
It was surprise after surprises for me... awww... he is sooooo sweet :')
The next day... I went over to his workplace and passed him his V. day pressie!
And we spent the rest of the time together... hee...
Happy Valentine's Day 2009!!!Labels: *in love*, food, happy
Monday, January 05, 2009,11:13 AM
wah.. reached home like 3+ last night.. hardly felt my eyes close, and its time to wake up dy! >_<
got a gathering with baobei and his colleagues, last day working tgr due to certain reasons.. hah~ so anyway, ordered so much food, almost couldn't finish if not for that 'hero'. heee..
oh god, i cannot afford to stay out till wee hours so often, the cab fares are burning a huge hole in my pocket. my income is still not able to keep up with that ya, imagine midnight surcharge everytime i take cab (approx. S$20~S$24 per trip). freaking expensive! taking cab is still under my
luxury tab.
speaking about luxury, that reminds me of my new love (bag
lah; don't get the wrong idea).
finally laid my hands on my dream bag - LV Speedy 25 which my lovely mom bought for my BD. heh.
but
horrors! i saw others carrying the LV speedy around, the handles and leather parts had turned into a
rotten orange color! oh god, i don't want mine to be the same ya... cos i learnt that the leather that LV uses will actually changes color (to a warm honey brown as described by LV, but NO! to me, it looks like rotten orange) as the leather seasoned. i like my speedy to stay the color as it is - light beige handles and trims that looks most elegant. i might as well bought the
fake synthetic leather LV so that the color will stay like that FOREVER!
*p.s. baobei bought us a matching hp socks that is so cute! heh.. (:Labels: food, rumbling^
Friday, September 26, 2008,10:12 PM
Jack's Place
baobei's reservist eventually started this wednesday. so hate his schedule, damn lousy. think he used up all his luck during his last *pouts*
met up with him yesterday, and we had a tiff. well, i shall not elaborate much here, as it all started with sth stupid and the whole quarrel was seriously ridiculous. mostly, i was at fault, but just too stubborn to admit. and also seeing the way he reacted immediately caused me to fire up. shit, talk about two headstrong ones trying to stick together - they just don't compromise.
anyway, after one long and uncomfortable 'talk', we made up and went for our dinner (truth was, i was starving like i had not eaten for days). we went to Jack's Place @ The Heeren. It's been very long since i stepped into one, and i really lost touch with what they have to offer, i only knew there are steaks and more steaks.
i opened up their menus, and was at a loss, i can't make up my mind on which to order. i was hoping for a nice dessert, but their dessert menu was disappointing, nothing special or out of ordinary. no chocolate fondue too.. what was i thinking huh... =(
finally set my mind on ordering 'Steak and Catfish', whereas baobei ordered 'Mixed Steak', as he too can't make up his mind on what he wants =D it comprises steak, bacon, lamb chop, chicken, hot dog etc.. quite a nice combination for a meat eater.. heh heh...
they are sloooowwwwwwww in serving, my tummy was growling hard as the time ticked by, trying hard to not look at the deliciously-looking garlic bread that they provided us with. kept myself busy taking photos of my cute baobei..
- a little bit of sidetrack
haha, oh my gosh, he look so cute with his 'specially for reservist' haircut =P and i can keep touching his hair! yay! cos usually he will use gel to hold up his hair and i cannot touch it when he does that =( *baobei, i don't mind, you can must keep your hair this way for as long as you i like. hee..*
ahhhh... food finally arrived, sizzling hot on hotplate. i'm not sure but i think it's just me, i personally don't like their steak or their way of food serving. after a few mouthful, i felt sick of the taste. there isn't any coleslaw or salad or fries to go with their steak, only meat. i requested for 'medium well', but still tot it smelled a little bloody. sure there was this whole potato, but it doesn't have the refreshing taste that coleslaw offers. i don't like their catfish too.. tot the meat tasted a little fishy.
hmm~ frankly speaking, i did thought that those western food that you can find in foodcourt tasted much more better. and they are wayyyyyy cheaper than Jack's Place. hahaha. well,,, i guessed expensive food just doesn't suit my tummy and my taste buds.
baobei said that the food on his plate were not that nice too, but he like their steak.. hmm~ i just wanted nice and pretty dessert!!! =(
but their service was great! nice and helpful staffs, refilling your glass of water, any request was done promptly. good service!
-
while waiting for our food =)
- steak and catfish
- mixed steakLabels: *in love*, food
Wednesday, September 10, 2008,2:23 PM
Chocolate Fondue - anyone?
* Haagen Dazs's Chocolate Fondue!!!*i'm so so so craving for Chocolate Fondue!!
and the most important criteria is the fondue must have ice creams to dip!
otherwise it will just be a very normal chocolate dip, nothing special.
so far, i've tried New York New York's and Haagen Dazs.
of course! Haagen Dazs wins two thumbs up!!!
the chocolate is so smooth and thick. they have small balls of ice creams in about 4 flavours, cake cubes, chocolate chip cookies and the usual love letters and fruits.
whereas the New York X2 only have the usual dippers - love letters and fruits
chocolate is normal, don't make me feel like glurping down the chocolate. haha.
the quantity is also smaller, about 2~3 person, of course the price is also alot cheaper. that time i ate was about S$17. not sure if the price has been adjusted or not.
whereas, Haagen Dazs can fill about 4~5 person, price is like S$39.95. but i heard that there was a price increase, now should be like S$45.. not too sure though.
anyway, wanted to try Maestro Bistro/ Swiss Culture, but Swiss Culture does not have ice cream.. so Swiss Culture.
Think i'll go for Maestro Bistro.
or maybe back to Haagen Dazs.. wondering if they have a smaller set, like for 1~2 pax.
oh.. just saw that Andersen's Of Denmark has chocolate fondue with ice cream too! shucks.. now i'm confused again.
* Andersen's Of Denmark's Chocolate Fondue!!!*
-120908-
shucks! just found out today that the place where Maestro Bistro (Cine) is supposed to be, is taken up by Shokudo Japanese Pasta & Pizza. oh well.. one option down then.
Labels: food
Sunday, June 08, 2008,4:47 AM
Delicious Food Alert!!
went to a western restaurant on friday for lunch, a farewell lunch for one of our colleague who has been with the company for nearly 18 years.
one look at the restaurant, you can tell that it was not going to be cheap, something slightly higher than the pricing in Swensen's and comparable to Jack's Place.
BUT!!
when i was handed the menu.. wow! i couldn't believe my eyes, the prices were unbelievable.
you could get a black pepper chicken at only S$6.50; steak at only S$7.20!!!!!
it comes with 2 sides, which you get to choose; mashed potatoes, coleslaw, onion rings, fries, baked potatoes and the list goes on...
cream of mushroom soup was only at S$2.80.
drinks - S$1.80 only or you could order ice water at only S$0.30.
i ordered the salmon, which was S$12.90 and right after i ordered my sides (fries and coleslaw), i was thinking, oh shit, shouldn't have ordered the fries cos i thought that it will be those fat and soft crinkle cut fries, which i hate. and i also got the impression that with prices like that, the portion must be very small.
BUT!!!!
once again, the restaurant surprised me!!!!!!!!
to my amazement, the fries are straight-cuts and sprinkled with red chili powder, one bite and it went crunch in my mouth! YEAH! and to add to that, the sides were really huge!!! the big portion of fries, plus a big glob of tasty looking coleslaw laid in front of me... WOW!!!
not forgetting to mention that the cream of mushroom was really thick and full of ingredients that you can really bite it between your teeth. not like those that are too watery... eww.
the food was really delicious and the serving was big, and their service was not too bad, quite prompt. oh!!! almost forget one important detail!! you can eat as much as you like without worrying about the final bill as you pay what you see on the menu, because!!!! there are NO service charge at all AND GST are already included in the price!!!!! how great is this??!
this restaurant just enjoys giving us the sweet surprises eh?!
this restaurant is no doubt the best, better than Swensen's. i will definitely make a trip there again.. but, only problem now is, how to get there (cos went there in colleague's car). hahaha~
oh yeah.. forget the most important information of all,
the name of the restaurant is
Astons Specialties.
located at opposite Katong Mall (alongside East Coast Rd).
hmm, almost reluctant to share this piece of information. hee =P
for tempting food photos, click link below
AstonsLabels: food
He wanted to dine at Swensen's, but.. Western food isn't really my stuff, hence I suggested us to try the Ramen restaurant - Kyo-Nichi [Collagen Ramen].
It was surprise after surprises for me... awww... he is sooooo sweet :')
- while waiting for our food =)
- mixed steak
* Haagen Dazs's Chocolate Fondue!!!*
_-*Shamain*-_
