Dried Bean Curd, Barley with Gingko Nuts Dessert Soup

You will find this dessert in most of the dessert stalls/shops in Singapore.

Ingredients - serves 6-7 persons:
½ cup of pearl barley
1 large sheet of dried bean curd skin (available from Chinese dry foodstuff shops)
1 packet of shelled gingko nuts (30-40 pieces, available from supermarkets)
2 large eggs
1 large rock sugar (according to preference)
1 large pot of water (about 2000ml)

Instructions:
(1) Wash pearl barley. Pour barley into the pot of water. Turn to high heat. Bring to boil.

2) Add gingko nuts and rock sugar. Turn to low fire, cook for 30 minutes. Tilt the lid of the pot.

(3) Break dried bean curd into small pieces. Wash and add to soup. Cook for 10 minutes, or until bean curd pieces soften.

(4) Break eggs into a bowl, beat (few strokes) with fork. Pour egg into soup slowly in stages and stir until egg-drops form strips. Off fire.

(5) Serve dessert soup warm and enjoy!

Roszy's Tiffin House

Hubby and I did not know what to eat. It happened that we bumped into this restaurant located in a quiet part of Novena. Indonesian food is diverse and in Singapore, there are many restaurants serving Indonesian food such as Sudanese and Javanese food from various parts of Indonesia. Some of the Indonesian food are less spicy while the others are hot with chillies, grated coconuts and spices (ask for waiter/waitress's recommendations if unsure).

This restaurant is famous for its festive dish, Nasi Ambeng (mixed platter with Spanish mackeral fish steaks, cucumber pickles, long bean and brinjal fried with dried prawns, beef/chicken/mutton dish, just to name a few) at $18 per head. The environment was cozy, air-conditioned and clean. The service staff were friendly. Their dishes were freshly cooked upon ordering (unlike some Indonesian food stalls / restaurants which sell pre-cooked nasi padang (Indonesian dish with steamed white rice and served with various meat and vegetable dishes). So you got to wait for the food to arrive.

We ordered begedil (deep fried potato patties), beef rendang, sambal kangkong (Ipomoea Aquatica), chicken curry, botok fish (mackeral fish slices cooked with shredded coconut flesh, squeezed of its coconut milk and then wrapped with banana leaves and steamed), sambal godok (long bean, fried beancurd and tempe or fermented soybeans), stir fry bean sprouts, sayur lodeh (coconut vegetable stew) and white rice. The food was delicious. However, we thought that the begedils served were really 'miniatures' for the price of $1.20 per piece (It was the first dish served and I was too hungry and forgot all about the photo haha........) and the white rice was not free flow (need to pay $1.50 to top up). So my poor big-eater hubby did not eat enough.....

Overall, we still find this restaurant worth a try despite the negative points. The 8 dishes and rice costed us only $48.60 for 2 persons. It is recommended for gathering (families and friends who enjoy spicy food).




















Roszy's Tiffin House
51 Thomson Road
Goldhill Centre
#01-203
Singapore 307638
Tel: 6255 4788

Crystal's Food Diary: Giu Nui Restaurant (Ho Chi Minh City,Vietnam)

Crystal's Food Diary: Giu Nui Restaurant (Ho Chi Minh City,Vietnam): Hubby, brother-in-law and me were at...

Crystal's Food Diary: 3A3 Bun Bo Hue (Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam)

Crystal's Food Diary: 3A3 Bun Bo Hue (Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam): After a tired city tour and much walking on a hot afternoon, hubby, bro...

3A3 Bun Bo Hue (Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam)

After a tired city tour and much walking on a hot afternoon, hubby, brother-in-law and me decided to just settle our lunch in this restaurant that sells Hue cuisine. Hue is the capital city of Thua Thien-Hue province in Vietnam and its cuisine is regarded by Vietnamese as the best in the country.

We ordered rice roll, beef noodle (both dried and soup-base), oyster noodle and fried rice. The food were all aesthetically presented. We liked the rice roll. However, the soup-based beef noodle is a little too spicy for my hubby. Moreover, the beef was a little raw, but hubby was daring and he ate them. What we found interesting was that the oyster noodles did not come with fresh oysters as we had expected. Instead, the dish was served with an abundance of dried oysters that had been cut up into very tiny pieces and some crispy stuff that we were not sure what they were but they tasted like fried pig skin. The fried rice, on the other hand, had a tomato-liked taste with tiny pieces of dried oysters too. Though at the end of the meal, we concluded that we were not used to the flavours of Hue food, it was still a valuable eating experience that we would never forget.

3A3 Bun Bo Hue
39A Ngo Duc Ke, District 1, Ho Chi Minh City
Tel: (08) 829 3526

Yogurt Space (Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam)

This shop in Ho Chi Minh City served yoghurt with different flavours (plain, chocolate, strawberry, coconut, blueberry to name a few). I like their selling concept, you select a desired cup size, fill the cup with yoghurt from the different yoghurt dispensers - no restriction on the number of flavours and amounts. The cashier will just weigh the filled cup of yoghurt and determine the price to charge. The shop is spacious and air-conditioned, so you can enjoy your cold yoghurt in a cozy setting in the midst of a hot afternoon. Free ice water will be served too. Promotion: 20,000 VND for 100 grams.

Yoghurt Space
Tran Hung Dao, Phuong Co Giang, District 1
Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam

Giu Nui Restaurant (Ho Chi Minh City,Vietnam)

Hubby, brother-in-law and me were attracted to the hotel (Liberty 4) promotion. So we decided to try out this restaurant in the hotel. There was a wide spread of food, mainly vietnamese food, that ranged from staple food (fried rice, fried noodle, Pho), pork ribs, rice rolls, cold cuts, seafood soup, seafood (crabs, clams), BBQ (prawns, fish, scallops, clams, oysters, beef slices) to the less common item (escargots) and the most scariest food I have ever seen - Balut (fertilized duck egg - look at the second last photo)! I was shocked by the sight of it. I could see the dead duck with its eyes once the egg shell was peeled off. The meal was indeed an eye opener for me. The dessert spread was not fantastic though, mainly consisted of soy beancurd, red ruby dessert, grass jelly, cendol, ice-cream and cake. Service-wise, cleanliness and atmosphere were satisfactory. The restaurant also provided 1 glass of free beer/soft drink (non-refillable though) for each guest.

Weekend buffet dinner is from Friday to Sunday 1800-2130 hrs. Adult price at 245,000 VND and child price at 125,000 VND. Discount 10% on Fridays.

Giu Nui Restaurant
265 Pham Ngu Lao St., Dist.1, Ho Chi Minh City
Tel/fax: 08 38365172
Website: www.libertyhotels.com.vn

Pho (Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam)

Hubby found this restaurant. It served the best Pho (Vietnamese noodle soup) that I have ever eaten in Ho Chi Minh City. The soup base was simply delicious with tender beef slices. An abundance of Vietnamese basil was provided. The coffee shop was clean too. So for those who do not mind eating at roadside coffee shop, you might want to give it a try should you visit the city.

Pho Thanh Canh
55 Nguyen Cu Trinh - Q.1.

Tofu Mania

This restaurant serves both BBQ and ala-carte menu like Bibimbab and pancakes. My hubby and I ordered the BBQ buffet. I liked their cold dishes such as glass noodles, rice cake cooked in sweetened chilli sauce and ox's belly while my hubby preferred their BBQ stuff such as beef slices, beef ribs and pork belly. They are all well-marinated and tender and so they tasted good. The prawns and fish were fresh too. The BBQ buffet also came with Kimchi soup, free flow of ice water, fruit (water melon on the day of our visit) and salad. It was not smoky at all, so one could just enjoy a sumptuous BBQ meal in the comfort of an air-conditioned environment. The dinner only costed $48.40 for two persons. So you might want to try this restaurant if you want to have some authentic yet affordable Korean meal. The only negative point about this restaurant is that it is a little cramp, so I think it is more ideal for gathering among few friends and not so much for big families.


Tofu Mania
6 Raffles Boulevard #04-102
Marina Square, Singapore

Mixed Mushroom Soup

Ingredients:
Golden needle mushrooms
Black mushrooms (sliced)
1-2 eggs (according to preference)
Carrot (sliced)
2 cups of water
Salt (a little just for taste)
Light soy sauce (a little just for taste)

Instructions:
(1) Wash the mushrooms
(2) Cut black mushrooms into small slices
(3) Pour water into pot. Add in mushrooms. Ensure mushrooms are thoroughly cooked until soft.
(4) Break egg, stir egg in bowl until liquid and pour into pot
(5) Cook for another 5 minutes or so.
(6) Add salt and light soy sauce for taste. Cook for another 1 minute.
(7) Serve hot

Sweet Potato Patties

Ingredients:
Few sweet potatoes (depends on how many people you are serving)
Flour
Sugar (optional - add according to preference for sweeter taste)

Instructions:
(1) Peel skins of sweet potatoes
(2) Slice sweet potatoes and steam until soft
(3) Mash the cooked sweet potatoes. Add some sugar if necessary. Make into patties and brush surface with some flour
(4) Fry until golden brown

Note: This is a delicious finger food that most todders will like

Pig Trotters In Vinegar

Ingredients:
1.5 pig trotters
Black vinegar (1/2 bottle)
Brown sugar (according to preference)
Ginger (to be sliced)

Instructions:
(1) Wash/clean pig trotters
(2) Cut ginger into slices and fry until golden brown
(3) Roast pig trotters in oven until skin is crispy (about 45 mins). Check frequently for quality
(4) Transfer roasted pig trotters to pot and add fried ginger slices, brown sugar and black vingar
(5) Cook for approximately another 45 mins. Check frequently for quality
(6) Dish up and serve

Note: The brown sugar is to give the dish a 'neutralised' effect to prevent the trotter sauce from being too sour.

Bak Kut Teh (Pork Rib Soup)

After a movie at Shaw cinema, hubby and me decided to eat Bak Kut Teh along Balestier
Road. We chose 2 shops: Founder and Kai Juan for comparison.
Kai Jun:
(1) Smaller, less meaty ribs that cost $5.50 per bowl
(2) Tasty, peppery and hot soup that we like
(3) Open coffee shop environment
(4) Quicker service
(5) Will not return to the shop again as shop replenished my hubby's bowl with diluted soup when he asked for more of the soup

Founder:
(1) Big, meaty ribs for $6 a bowl (more value for money)
(2) Less tasty soup (quite salty and less peppery)
(3) Slower speed of service due to many customers
(4) Be prepared to queue during peak time (e.g. evening)
(5) Air-conditioned environment
(6) Friendly service



Founder Rou Gu Cha Restaurant
347 Balestier Road, New Orchid Hotel, Singapore

Kai Juan Bak Kut Teh
395 Balestier Road (next to Boon Tong Kee)

Saizeriya

This Japanese restaurant serves Italian cuisine. I have been to its City Square and Liang Court outlets several times. Some of the recommended dishes (clockwise from top left): Chicken Bolognese Doria, Mushroom and Bacon Risotto, baked Escargot, Chicken Stew, Clam Chowder and Pineapple and Bacon Pizza. The overall standard of food and service is good. My only complaint is that soup items came warm and not piping hot which I would have loved. Free-flow drinks are also available at only $1.50. These 6 dishes only costed me $29.70. So if you want to have some decent Italian food at affordable prices with your family or friends, you may like to consider this restaurant.

















Saizeriya Ristorante E Caffe
180 Kitchener Road, #B2-55/56 City Square Mall
Tel: +65 6834 4878
177 River Valley Road, #02-22 Liang Court Shopping Centre
Tel: +65 6337 9001