Greenwood Fish Market Bistro

Reservation: best done beforehand
Go if you want: good food with competent service, and arrangements for special occasions.
Parking: Free around Greenwood, if you can find a space.
Tel: 6467-4950
Menu avail @ http://www.fishshop.sg/


It was the family's first visit to the Fish Market, but my second in a week - both times to celebrate birthdays. I've read raving online reviews about their fish and chips, but what took the cake was the unparalleled service standards, product knowledge and attention to detail demonstrated by every server - all of whom happen to be male.

Having had a foretaste of their service excellence at the first visit, I called the next day to make a lunch reservation for a party of five for May Day. Upon arrival, we were ushered a few doors away from the main bistro to a surprisingly quiet and private dining area beyond the fish market [yes, the area where they actually sell fresh seafood]. The smell of fish was very strong at first, but the privacy and cozy ambience soon put us at ease and in happy banter and photo-taking mood for the ocassion. 

Two bottles of drinking water were served swiftly without our asking, followed by delicious and warm homemade pre-meal buns and breads. We would have been happy if the good service had stopped here... but it didn't!

The three girls had to try the House Fish & Chips, and I, having had that a few days ago, chose the Hervey Bay Whiting Fish & Chips. The sides of vegetable salad with olive oil and French fries were generous. Kenny had Pacific Cod, pan seared served with mashed sweet potato and vegetable salad.

One of the birthday girls commented that this was the first  time the batter did not overwhelm the taste of the fish fillet or her digestion. I rather like the less fishy taste of the Hervey Bay Fish.

After our mains, a server named 'Key' discreetly suggested a molten chocolate with ice-cream dessert with candles and inscriptions for the birthday girls. Key took down the full message given: "Happy Birthday to Krystle and Tessa." and even asked if we would like to add an exclamation mark to that! I wasn't sure how he was going to put all that on a single serving of molten cake but his confidence assured me of his competence. And he and his team delivered! THAT was the real birthday treat for my whole family!

At a time when simple, pleasurable dining often turns out to be a complex and frustrating experience with poorly trained foreign servers with poor knowledge of menu and accents that are hard to understand, this trip to the Fish Market today keeps us hopeful that conventional good service, though scarce, is still to be found in modern Singapore.  



Informative Placemats that made waiting pleasurable



Fresh homemade breads [not in picture: bun in a bowl]




Brisk serving of drinking water in glass bottles - at no extra charge!

 

Seafood Chowder



Lobster Bisque [yummy!]



Cream of Mushroom Soup

Escargot [kway pietee style]

Tartar sauce, Thai sweet chilli sauce and ketchup for Fish & Chips

Hervey Bay Whiting Fish & Chips

House Fish & Chips

The birthday surprise!

Molten chocolate cake with ice-cream, decorated with fresh fruits

The Birthday Girls

  

Budget $50 nett per pax for a meal with a starter and dessert and coffee/tea.

Union Farmhouse @ Clementi

Reservation: not required, ample seating
Go if you want: nostalgic open air kampung ambience. The main structure and gaudy green colour of the restaurant has remained the same for decades.
Parking: Free, at open-air gravel ground in front of the restaurant.


It's been a long time since the family visited the farmhouse. Sadly, the critters that originally formed the family farmhouse - dogs, roosters and other domesticated animals - have now given place to altars and objects of worship. It looks more like a backward temple than a farmhouse now.

Nevertheless, the food and kampung ambience that offers a break-away from modern life has remained unchanged through the years - though of course, at a higher price than before. Our all-time favourites: oyster sauce mian and mee fen, paper wrapped chicken [chi bao gai] and deep-fried pigeon. Our two younger daughters, however, thought it too impolite and inhuman to eat a bird.

Samy's Curry @ Dempsey

Reservation: Not required as there's ample seating in large dining hall and alfresco outside facing mature trees and greenery.  

Go if you want: A more local feel compared to other updated and glitzy airconditioned Indian restaurants elsewhere. A great place to sweat out a spicy meal and wrap it up with superb teh tarik. It's never hot here because of the fans and foliage around that keep temperatures low.

Parking: Free, at open-air parking area at the foot of the restaurant.

Tel: 6472-2080

Menu avail @ http://www.samyscurry.com/

There's nothing like the combination of light showers, cool breeze and being surrounded by trees dripping with rain that make the perfect setting for a spicy Indian meal with teh tarik! But the crucial thing about eating Indian is: you gotta go with someone who knows the food and knows what to order so you don't get ripped off with 'chef's recommendations'. Service today was fast and attentive, and we noticed more Chinese nationals than before which warranted the comment: 'You would never imagine having Chinese servers working in an Indian restaurant 10 years ago.'

For a group of three, we had 5 dishes for lunch [black squid not shown], plus generous servings of dhal and longbeans. We even had a basket of parpedum today [some days, they are simply deposited on your banana leaf aka plate, and not even crunchy]. No wonder our bellies were burning hours after the meal!

Deep-fried Pomfret

Chicken Masala and Curry Mutton

Curry Fishhead

Generous dose of Dhal and Longbeans

Kenny Rogers Roasters @ Great World City

Reservation: not required
Go if you want to: feed and delight hungry teens. Adults would be happy when youth are fed and satisfied.
Tel: 6734-9492


Seriously, I don't remember ever going to a Kenny Rogers' eatery till a friend took me to the one at Great World City recently. I imagine eating with a Kenny at a Kenny Rogers' restaurant would be an overkill. However, risking the 'overkill' one Sunday with the family, we headed for KR @ Great World City. The girls were impressed with the large serving of sides and fell in love with the corn muffins. Kenny himself had to explain who Kenny Rogers is to the girls who had never heard of him before. Tessa, 14, asked daddy why there were so many record discs and music memorabilia on the walls. The generation gap is jarring. But it's equally endearing to see them bonding over the music career of KR.

Must-haves, must-tries are these:

Brunch @ SPRUCE, Tanglin Road

Reservation: Best done beforehand, otherwise be prepared to wait up to 30 minutes especially for Sunday brunch.
Go if you want to: Enjoy alfresco dining surrounded by mature greenery of Dempsey.
Parking: Free, at open-air carpark at the foot of the restaurant.
Tel: 6836-5528
Menu avail @ http://www.spruce.com.sg/


Checked out a new venue for lunch at SPRUCE. We drove past the usual Dempsey rendezvous to this new place embraced by natural botanics around it. Without any reservations made, we waited 20-25 minutes for a table for 5. It would not have been an ideal situation if anyone of us were moody or grouchy. Cheerful chatter made the wait bearable... and it was well worth waiting for. Food was above par for brunch, better than our usual places at Da Paolo Pizza Bar and PS Cafe. Service was efficient and speedy... water served promptly without being asked.

Turkish Chicken Egg Benedict

Soft Scrambled Eggs with Avruga, Caviar

& Basil-cured Salmon

Spruce Breakfast Sandwich

Spruce British Brekkie

And the finale? A great cuppa latte! And then, we were off to SBR and Praying for the Nation at the Sanctuary, PL.

Sunday Brunch @ RELISH [before renovation]

On a Sunday we didn't want to go far from home for a decent meal, and hopefully with decent coffee for me, we finally checked out RELISH at the Cluny Court. Surprisingly, at brunch time, there was only one other family in the restaurant. We took the larger table in the centre and  quickly became comfortable.

Servers were mainly youths and were milling around the counter. Hungry as usual at this time, we were pretty lost as to what to order. Good thing was, the food turned out very decent and tasty; that is, apart from Krystle's over-salty pasta which I requested a change.

The Menu board at the entrance of RELISH

The Brunch Menu right at the back of the dinning area

A graffiti wall

My juicy burger - think it was chicken

Tessa's Blood Orange with her burger patti with octopus,

fries on the side

Kenny went for the bite-size Kid's Meal fare

Krystle's over-salted shrimp spaghetti

Taiwanese Porridge at Goodwood Park

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!

While waiting for the food, Krystle took out origami papers and got all [except me because I had a book to read] to fold hearts that stand. I thought it was a brilliant idea - doing something new as a family!

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.

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.