Feeling happy on a cool Sunday afternoon after having lost his credit card holder and later returned to him in one morning, the man of the house decided to head towards Orchard Road for lunch. We had earlier agreed to no curries, nothing not tried and not tested, and no Japanese today. Just when we caught sight of Goodwood Park Hotel along Scotts Road, he suddenly had a fancy for some nostalgic Taiwanese porridge. Reasoning that the three girls had never heard of Taiwanese porridge at Goodwood nor been there, we felt compelled to enter!
We arrived at 1:20pm, and the coffee house was full but with prayer and favour, we got a great spacious seating with window view in 10 minutes!
They no longer have a la carte menu for Taiwan Porridge but a Taiwan Porridge buffet at a rather steep S$39++ with durian festival dessert buffet that ends at 2:30pm. When we sat down, we were told the last order for Taiwan Porridge was at 2pm! We wasted no time to give them our full order!
The girls & daddy folding heart-shaped origamis.
Familiar Favourites -
Egg fuyong, Crispy deep-fried squids (2 plates),
Sambal kangkong, Beancurd with pork & bean sauce
Salted Eggs
Chilled beancurd with porkfloss & sweet sauce
Fried Fish
Pork with preserved vegetables [only husband touched it]
Kung Pao Chicken
Dream Durian Desserts!!
[Clockwise from top] Durian Puff, Durian Crepe,
Duriamisu, Durian Oreo Cake
'Lesser' desserts for non-durian enthus!
The meal was great though the place seemed understaffed. What I noticed is that most people came in families or groups. Interestingly, the group beside us seemed intent on some serious bonding. We ate slowly and enjoyed some people-watching.
Unrushed, we stayed till my latte disappeared about about 4pm.
Unrushed, we stayed till my latte disappeared about about 4pm.
I love today's meal and time together with the family but sad that the old ambience and colonial flavour of the coffee lounge is completely wiped out by an odd mix of modern fixtures randomly put together. Like why did they put a glass (or is it acrylic) sheet at the lower bottom of the lovely wooden windows? Maybe marble floor is easier to clean and maintain, but I prefer the thick floral carpets at the window area years ago. It was a place that allowed for quieter and more private conversations that I had enjoyed.
On our way to the lounge earlier, we also passed by Ming Jiang Szechuan Restaurant that is so updated it no longer seems to have any oriental flavour, apart from the menu. The design is so run-of-the-mill that there is no Szechuan or Chinese character to it anymore!
Really getting harder to find places we had enjoyed before that we can bring the girls to. Somebody's talking about Race Course Road Indian restaurants for a while, but I have a feeling we're going to find there renovated restaurants that are beyond recognition. Thank goodness Samy's Curry remains unchanged and unair-conditioned.