Author: Alex Chua
The wallet-friendly Hong Kong Sheng Kee adds a contemporary touch to its tasty range of Hong Kong cuisines with the launch Truffle Wanton Noodle. Available from 7 Nov onwards, the new Truffle Wanton Noodle is a refreshing new touch to bring an already perfected dish to an elevated gastronomic treat. Helmed by the experienced Senior Executive Chef, Mr Chan Wing Kin, he had skillfully fused all the well-like qualities of the original HK Wanton Noodle with a contemporary ingredient in which Truffle-phile would surely approve.
The Truffle Wanton Noodle uses fresh egg noodle which is springy and tastes quite eggy. Made with 8 ingredients including old hen, pork bone and sole fish, the Jinhua Ham Broth is both savory and refreshing. What I really love about this dish is the wanton – the hand-beaten meat is mixed with fresh prawns, premium tender kurobuta pork air-flown from Japan, and black truffle oil. Meaty yet with a tender bite, the wanton truly elevates this dish to a wanton-ful level!
Besides staples like noodles and rice, Hong Kong Sheng Kee Dessert also offers many other delicious HK grub, including a Dim Sum menu featuring Fried Dumplings, Glutinous Rice Dumpling, Mini Yolky Custard Pau and Siew Mai. Affordably priced and not lowering the ingredient quality, the dim sum here is a decent treat for those who suddenly has got an urged to have a dim sum affair.
Not to forget their desserts. First off I am biased towards their desserts as I am a regular diner there. But with the correct pricing, the numerous accessible location and the delightful desserts who wouldn’t? The SK Mango Pomelo Sago is one refreshing bowl in which I come time and time again. The mango taste is real, not artificial sweet, and the plating is simple, almost zen-like. My other go-to desserts include the Rice ball in Paste, Almond Paste and Yuan Yang Paste.
To get more bang on the buck, from 24 Oct to 30 Nov, diners get to enjoy $2 off HK Wanton Noodle or Truffle Wanton Noodle on the Plus app!
Hong Kong Sheng Kee Dessert @ The Centrepoint
The Centrepoint #B1-14
Timing: 11am to 10pm (Last Order 9pm)
dim sum
FOOD: Affordable Dim Sum & Cantonese Cuisines @ Canton Paradise, Marina Bay Sands Outlet
Author: Alex Chua
Canton Paradise is a pillar of the local Hong Kong cuisine for a reason – it offers the quintessential Cha Chaan Teng experience without feeling overly generic. The new spacious outlet at The Shoppes @ Marina Bay Sands exudes a more luxurious, exquisite vibe as compared to its five other outlets. While its facade may appear forbidden and scream pricey, rest assured that this sixth outlet offers the same affordable pricing and served your favourite menu with three new exclusive dishes.
Here are the five dishes plus the three new dishes that you must try at the Canton Paradise @ Marina Bay Sands!
The BBQ Pork Belly with Honey Sauce is on point. Tender and succulent, the all-time crowd favourite roasted pork belly offers just the right amount of meat and fat to give that meaty, textured bite. It is roasted four to five times over red-hot charcoal, so that the meat is perfectly caramelised yet remains moist and tender. While the Steamed Kampong Chicken in Canton Style is a Shunde specialty showcasing fresh kampong chicken marinated with simple condiments that accentuate the flavours of the meat.
Velvety smooth Handmade Meatball Congee is prepared by a dedicated chef who would constantly adjust the temperature and stirring of the high-pressured casserole to ensure uniformity of the congee density. The meatball is prepared daily and shaped by hand. The meat mixture features a good ratio of both pork meat, pork fats and bits of prawn meat, giving the meatball an overall springy texture.
Want to nourish your body after a busy work schedule? Try the Double-boiled Superior Chicken Soup with Penny Bun. Featuring penny bun mushroom – a premium ingredient used only in the most exclusive menu – and kampong chicken thigh, the soup is boiled for seven to eight hours. Resulting in a wholesome, smooth clear soup that is easy on the palate while delivering nourishing and tasty broth.
A crowd-pleaser especially for kids and to those young at heart, the Steamed Molten Salted Egg Yolk Custard Piggy Bun is a playful rendition of the salted egg yolk bun almost too adorable to eat. Naturally savoury and sweet, the molten egg yolk lava with a touch of vanilla essence will definitely tantalise the taste bud for all.
Let’s now move on to the 3 exclusive dishes, only available at the new Marina Bay Sands outlet.
First up is the paper-thin Steamed Rice Rolls with Preserved Turnip Filling (Chai Po), an offering inspired by the local favourite chwee kueh. The silky-smooth rice rolls are made freshly in the kitchen upon order. Perfectly proportionate rice rolls and preserved fillings drizzled with Canton Paradise’s special soy sauce made from first draw soy sauce, premium fish sauce and other secret ingredients, resulting in richer taste and exquisite aroma which you couldn’t find in the normal chwee kueh.
Using only mineral water for preparation of the tofu, the Dried Sakura Shrimps with Scallion Oil Tofu is a must-have dish especially for those who are more health-conscious. This leads to a smoother texture, topped with crispy sakura shrimps imported from Japan.
Capping the meal with a delightful local indulgence, the Durian Pudding can surely sway your family members with its creamy and smooth texture as well as piquant flavour. As the durians used for the preparation is seasonal, do check with the service stuff on the durian used for this superb dessert.
Why end the sweet surprise at the dessert? Diners can now enjoy 50% off all Dim Sum, Congee and Noodles when they dine in at any six Canton Paradise outlets on weekdays, 3pm to 5pm, which includes the newly minted outlet at The Shoppes Marina Bay Sands. A definite huge plus to visit this restaurant!
Canton Paradise @ Marina Bay Sands
2 Bayfront Avenue, #01-02
The Shoppes at Marina Bay Sands
Singapore 018972
Operating Hours:
Mon – Thurs – 10.30am – 10.30pm (Last Order 10pm)
Fri – Sun, Ee of PH and PH: 10.30am – 11pm (Last order at 10.30pm)
Facebook: @ParadiseGrp
Instagram: @paradisegrpsg
Website: www.paradisegp.com
Our 1st 2015 Lou Hei @ Xin Cuisine
Our first Lou Hei started off with a BANG at Xin Cuisine housed within the newly-renovated Holiday Inn Atrium Hotel! *Make sure you don’t make your way to the wrong one !*
Look at that BIG Bang on the table as the Goat has found its way right up to our table!
This amazing Lou Hei was delicately designed by the head chef himself! Can you see the Goat infused with the year 2015 within the Lou Hei? Really innovative & magnificent, isn’t it?
The second amazing thing is the extravagant ingredients they splashed within the Lou Hei! Some of you guys probably go “chey no big deal having salmon and abalone what!”. How about some Bird’s Nest then? ><
Ralph, the restaurant manager personally served us! I thoroughly enjoyed his enthusiastic hospitality during the entire dinner!
After making a HUGH mess at the table with our rowdy Lou Hei, we made our way back to our original table to enjoy some nice Chinese delicacies.
Starting off with the Chinese New Year Dim Sum Combination:
Pan-fried Yam and Pumpkin Cake with XO Sauce – For this one, i like the infusion of the XO sauce with the crispy Yam. The two tastes did not seek to overpower each other but instead infused to give a rather savory and flavorful taste.
Steamed Prawn Dumpling with Truffle in Egg White Sauce – Look at how real the dish mimics a goldfish in the pond. I almost couldn’t bring myself to eat this one down. The most memorable part of this dish was how fresh the prawns were within the goldfish’s “Belly”
Poached Whole Mable Goby with Hairy Gourd and Dried Shrimp
“Home Style” Roast Duck with Tea Leaves – My 2nd Favourite Dish of the Night! It was easily the MOST tender and juicy duck meat that i have tasted ! For tea lover, this is a definite MUST TRY cos you will be able to taste a mild tea flavor within the meat.
Xin’s Traditional Pen Cai – My personal favourite! I had 2 bowls because the entire pot was filled with goodness. Goodness beyond description! As you can see, there were abalones, scallops, mushrooms, fish maws, dried oysters, prawns etc. The portion was also very generous as portrayed below.
And the desserts…… Double-boiled Milk Pudding with Bird’s Nest!! Seems like Xin Cuisine is serving Bird Nest feast for CNY this year! Yum yum.
All in all, I thoroughly enjoyed the whole CNY menu food tasting experience @ Xin’s Cuisine because of its flavorful traditional chinese dishes & the delicacy in details they have placed into every dish to make them look as appealing as they tasted.
Xin Cuisine Chinese Restaurant is located at:
Outram Road, Holiday Inn Atrium, Singapore 169075
🙂
Dim Dim
I was craving for a whole lot of food and there was a line of food tastings recently. One of it was Dim Sum – by Dim Dim.
Dim Sum has become a popular common dish and is available almost everywhere at any time. Everyone is generally on the lookout for yummy and affordable Dim Sum.
With shops opening one after another, here is yet another good dim sum in town! Relish the finest of all time Hong Kong favorites Dim Sum, noodles and congee served in contemporary ambience, Dim Dim – The Hong Long Pantry, a local based Dim Sum is located at Marina Square, 100% handmade using the freshest ingredients and served piping hot with love.
I brought T along for this food tasting because he can be quite a country bumpkin. LOL.
We had iced lemon tea and iced honey lemon instead of the usual milk tea.
Being a prawn lover, I attacked the Ha Kau first. For me, my dim sum meal is never complete without Ha Kau and good Ha Kau isn’t easy to find.
The prawns were fresh and juicy. Each Ha Kau had 2 prawns inside and I asked if all their Ha Kau uses only nothing fresh prawns, and yes, the person assured me that none of them uses frozen prawns.
T’s favorite was the Deep-fried Shrimp in Beancurd Skin Roll which is also generous with their fresh shrimp. The skin was very crispy and it was achieved by using their own receipt which requires an additional step to make it look and taste better.
Do note that the congee are served in big bowls (not seen in my pictures).
Cuttlefish and Peanut Congee – The portion of the cuttlefish was quite a bit and they were chewy.
The congees are also slightly watery because of the continuous stirring.
I preferred the Century Egg with meat Congee more because I like anything with eggs.
How can we miss out one of the highlights in Dim Sum?
This is none other than Custard Buns – Liu Sha Bao!
The highly raved explosive Liu Sha Bao has to be enjoyed when hot for maximum pleasure. The handmade skin of the bun is just right. The custard filling is neither too runny nor too dry yet flavorful and smooth.
Either I have eaten too little dim sum or that the next dish that I am going to show you is too unique to be found in Singapore.
Steamed Cheong-Fun with Chinese Dough Fritters.
An interesting combination where the handmade silky and slippery rice noodle roll is tightly wrapped around the fried and cripsy golden brown dough sticks. This dish has lost its tradition and it is definitely an eye opener for people who have not seen this and it is best when eaten hot.
It is also served with their very own special peanut and seafood sauce.
Mini Egg Tarts served in threes, crunchy, warm and rich.
Crispy on the outside and savourite on the inside after two layers of baking with melted sugar and cream is none other than the Baked BBQ Honey Pork Bun Coated with Crispy Butter.
T loved this a lot!
We ended the meal with sweet desserts.
Overall, Dim Dim is a Dim Sum restaurant that will keep me going back again when I am at Marina Square. I was awed by the juicy ingredients and how hot every dish was served. Good job!
They are located at :
6 Raffles Boulevard B1-16
Marina Square
Singapore 039594
Sunday – Thursday: 11am – 9pm
Friday – Saturday: 11am – 9.30pm
Second Tim Ho Wan Outlet in Sg
If you have yet to try Tim Ho Wan because of it’s long queue, fret not, another outlet is here!
The second outlet at Toa Payoh is already opened since 8 Sept this year with new dishes launched!
And if you had already tried Tim Ho Wan previously, there is also another reason for you to join the queue again!
Also, Tim Ho Wan is also one of the most affordable Dim Sum restaurants you can ever find in Singapore! I can assure you that your bill will never have to explode!
Chef Mak Lwai Pui has added 6 new dishes to the menu and the monthly specials/line-up will change every few months. This means new surprises await patrons.
And the new dishes will only be exclusively available at the Toa Payoh outlet.
Steam Chicken Feet with Abalone Sauce ($5.00)
Fried Noodle with BBQ Pork and Soy Sauce ($6.00)
Wasabi Salad Prawn Dumpling ($5.00) – I LOVE THIS!!
Steam Spiach Dumpling with Shrimp ($3.80)
Baked Bun with BBQ Pork ($4.50)
I don’t fancy or eat pork. This is probably one of the nicest pork I have ever tried!
Prawn Dumpling ($5.50) – MY FAVOURITE SIDE IN TIM HO WAN!
Each dumpling has a few juicy prawns inside. Damn. IT. IS. A. MUST. TRY!!!!
Congee with lean pork, century egg and salted egg (4.20)
As mentioned above, I do not really take pork and this congee has a very strong pork taste, hence, I couldn’t take it.
However, I am sure people who take pork will love this because it has chunky pieces of pork and eggs in it. And the congee is really even out.
Yes, they have desserts too.
If you think it’s too far for you, the third outlet will be opened at Bedok Mall while the fourth outlet will be at the western part of Singapore.
Yay! North South East West!
Location:
ERA Centre, 450 Toa Payoh Lorong 6 #02-02 Singapore 319394
Opening hours:
11am – 10pm
For more information, please visit: https://www.facebook.com/timhowan
Tim Ho Wan, Michelin Star Dim Sum Restaurant
This is the restaurant’s first overseas outlet and it’s in SINGAPORE!!! Just at Plaza Singapura!
On average, each outlet in Hong Kong sells close to 2000 bamboo baskets of dim sum everyday. This is all because of Chef Mak for choosing only the freshest ingredients, made to order concept to retain its flavour and texture.
Chef Mak and me!
Yes, yes, a lot of Singaporeans are as excited as me. It’s official opening is TODAY at 10am!!It is located right in the middle of the new and old plaza sing at Level 1 #01-29A.You can enjoy good dim sum without the need of hoping onto a plane and fly to Hong Kong now!
They do not have a very big variety or dim sum, but most of the famous and popular ones are available.
Besides, their price starts from $3.80 only????
In time to come, the restaurant will also unveil special dim sum that have been adapted to local taste.
Bought a few blogger friends there but I forgot to take pictures with Jacelyn 🙁
Shall we start with the famous “Big 4 Heavenly Kings”?
天王，不是人人都能当！hahahaha.
Big 1: Pork buns
OMG!! MUST TRY!!! The exterior is crumbly and fluffy and the inside has Cha Siew with oozing sauce. Better than liu sha bao!! So the taste is more of a sweet-salty taste.
3 pieces. Price: $4.50
Om nomomom.
Big 2: Vermicelli Roll with Pig’s Liver
The liver is actually soft and tender and rather special as you don’t find zhu chang fen with pig liver anywhere else right? Well, at least it’s not that common.
It has a velvety texture while the liver lends a gamey flavor.
Price: $5.50
Big 3: Steamed Egg Cake
The cake is light and spongy and SWEET because it is caramelized. I think it’s a good choice to buy one and eat/chew it on the go. 1 portion is actually quite big (for me).
Price: $3.80
Big 4: Pan Fried Carrot Cake
This is quite special too. It doesn’t taste like carrot cake at all. It has big white radish chunks inside.
Yums!
3 pieces. Price: $4.50
Other than the big 4, here are the other dim sums that I personally would love to recommend!
Prawn dumpling!! I LOVE ITTTT I LOVE ITTTTT!!! It is totally filled with juicy and fresh prawns.
More than 1 prawn per dumpling!!
Price: $5.50
Spring Roll with Egg White. Very crispy. Yes, there’s prawns inside too.
Price: $4.20
Pork Dumpling with Shrimp. The meat is soooooooo tender!
Price: $5.50
Dumpling Teochew Style. It contains radish inside.
Price: $4.00
Beef Ball with Beancurd Skin.
Price: $4.20
Vermicelli Roll with BBQ Pork.
Price: $5.50
YUMS!!!
This dessert is quite special. Tonic Medlar and Osmanthus Cake (Cold).
It has this sweet floral taste that I don’t know how to explain but I quite like it.
Price: $3.50
As you can see from the picture below, the restaurant is divided into 2 sections.
The dine in area as well as the takeaway counter. The dine in area sits up to 100 customers and the takeaway counter offers an express service for customers who wish to bring home their food.
The takeaway counter also caters to express customers who eat fast (eg, rush hour, lunch hour) with the area in the picture below.
Tim Ho Wan believes in giving back to the society so on the 28 April 2013, they will only be selling Pork Buns and all proceeds will go to The Straits Times School Pocket Money Fund and aid the underprivileged children in Singapore.
Ohhhhh, how nice!!
Their opening hours are from Monday to Sunday, from 10am to 10pm.
For more information, please visit: http://facebook.com/timhowan