[Tasting] Riverside Weekend BBQ Buffet @ Food Capital

Grand Copthorne Waterfront is within walking distance from M Social where I was having my staycation. Hence, took the opportunity to schedule a dinner with a colleague to try out the à la carte Buffet Riverside Barbecue at Food Capital. Thank you Gilbert and Food Capital for extending the invitation!

dinner

Safe-entry and temperature checks at the hotel lobby and another safe-entry check-in at Food Capital. Inform the staff of your reservation and they will provide a tag for you to wear on the wrist. Staff will then lead you to your table.

our view for the night

i got tag

There is a Launch Special where diners could enjoy the buffet at 30% off. Below are the promo prices:

Lunch: $45.50++ (usual price $65++)

Dinner: $59.50++ (usual price $85++)

(Lobster for Dinner only)

Prices are subject to 10% service charge and 7% GST

Terms and conditions apply. Buffet menus are subject to changes. 1 serving of Lobster per diner.

To order, simply pick up the various order chit from the container on the table. We took some time to scrutinise the 'menu'.

order chit

Let's lay out the different food sections:

what shall we start with

As per usual, we were cautious with our first order since we are not so sure about the portion size. Ordered the Seafood On Ice (available for dinner only), 2 portions of salmon and tuna sashimi,  for the tempura, you could indicate the portion and circle the items that you like, and some spicy smoked salmon. I also had a jar of wood ear salad.

top left clockwise: Seafood on Ice, Sashimi, Smoked Salmon, Tempura and Wood Ear Salad in the center

wood ear salad

I ordered a glass of M Wine Red as the promotional price was $10++ per glass. For buffet, a cup of coffee/tea is included. For other beverages, just need to pay additional. 

my fav drink at Millennium Hotels

Was happy with the sashimi. Fresh and good! So we had second helpings of this. But in the second round, the tuna was of a different cut hence, not so satisfying as the first plate.

tuna and salmon sashimi

For the Seafood On Ice, the langoustine was rather difficult to eat with its pokey shell. Was trying not to get cut by it, the clams were quite good actually, and the prawns were as usual firm and nice. The scallops and mussels were... a bit tough.

prawns, scallops, langoustine, clams and mussels

Next, was the tempura. The brinjal and sweet potatoes were enjoyable. Ebi was nice too although a bit limp.

Tempura

Next up, was the anticipated arrival of the grilled seafood platter and of course, the limited serving of lobster.

Fusion BBQ Grilled Platter with 3 sauces

hello there, beef sirloin

Pro-tip: Must must get the chinchalok sauce. Best sauce ever!

there's pork belly and chicken drumstick too

Hmm, the least enjoyable was the pork belly. I'd pick the chicken drumstick over the pork belly. Let me know what you think if you had tried it too. The squid was flavourful but it'll give the jaw a good workout.

sirloin steak

The main highlight for me, was the lobster. Cooked just right, with sweet flesh. So satisfying!

lobster

look at that beauty

As lobster was just one serving, the next best, would be the live prawns. Yums! For me, all the grilled items except the squid and the otah, would go well with the chinchalok sauce. The sauce has quite the spicy kick, but so yummy and not pungent as thought.

Grilled Live Prawns

I like the laksa here, so introduced it to my friend.

laksa

Ok, by now we are stuffed. But not too stuffed for a sampling of the dessert.

waffle with yam ice-cream

choco fountain coated fruit skewer

And with that, we could eat no more. 

Once again, thank you Gilbert for the invite and Grand Copthorne Waterfront Food Capital for the à la carte Buffet Riverside Barbecue.

Grand Copthorne Waterfront lobby

Food Capital

Location: Lobby, Grand Copthorne Waterfront Hotel

Business Hours:

Lunch: 12pm to 230pm (Saturday & Sunday)

Dinner: 6pm to 10pm (Friday, Saturday & Sunday)

For reservations, please call 8168 1539, email dining.gcw@millenniumhotels.com or visit this link

[Tasting] I'M KIM Korean BBQ & Shabu Shabu @ Grantral Mall

First things first. Where in the world is Grantral Mall? Its address will lead most grab or cab to Clementi Mall. Not too far off, but not correct also. Now, knowing the bearings, alight at Clementi MRT Station, and once you've exited, move towards the left and away from the Clementi Bus Interchange (or away from McDonalds). After walking a few metres from Clementi mall, you'd come across a small junction or road between Clementi Mall and Grantral Mall and you'd notice another smallish building with steps leading to a sign that says "Grantral Mall". The signage is in blue.

Grantral Mall side view (the sushi shop is most noticeable once you are near enough)

Here's the YT video on the direction from I'M KIM website:

I'll admit that I didn't watch the direction video and hence, I was lost for about 5 minutes because I've headed towards Clementi Mall instead of the other direction, and had to seek direction from the helpful staff at the Bus Interchange.

Once in Grantral Mall, just head up to Level 2 and the restaurant large signage makes it easily locate-able.

There is a 90-minutes dining per seating and the 'buffet' table closes at 3pm and 10pm respectively for lunch and dinner.

Although it is 'buffet-style', due to current situation, the restaurant is offering table-service to get the 'buffet' item to the diners. All we have to do, is just to tick-off in the order sheet and hand it over to the friendly staff. They'll bring the items to the table for you. No need to get up from our table!

interior

order sheet

pencil holder

I was late, so my group had ordered a bunch of items. I was like whispering to them to ask if we had ordered one of each because it seemed like we had!

table-full of stuffs

While I had tried I'M KIM at SOTA, the concept here at Grantral Mall, is that this outlet not only offers BBQ, it has Shabu Shabu as well. Nice! For the shabu pot, diner could opt for miso or sukiyaki base. We opted for sukiyaki.

in goes the sukiyaki broth for shabu shabu

dipping sauces - ssamjang, goma, thai chili and thousand island

assorted side dishes

While waiting for the BBQ and Shabu Shabu to cook, one could indulge in their cooked food, especially the fried chicken wings!

Korean Chicken Wings

japchae

carbonara

Thirsty? There is an ongoing promo of "BUY 2 GET 1 FREE ALCOHOLIC DRINKS!" its Grantral Mall, SOTA and *SCAPE outlets. Do note that the free item has to be of lower value than the paid items.

Buy 2 Get 1 Free Alcoholic Drinks Promo

Hite beer

Makgeolli

Let's check how's the food doing, shall we?

ready, get set, go

turning up the heat

vegetable pot looking good

some chicken slices to shabu shabu 샤브샤브

ready to eat

The thin slices of meat cooks easily and quickly in the shabu pot, and the mixture of corn, mushrooms and seafood (prawns, mussels, clams, squid) added to the flavour.

marinated meats for BBQ

BBQ grill action

yummy black pepper chicken 후추 치킨

cheers to friendship and yummy food in our belly

make your own ssam 쌈

can't get enough of delicious meats 김치 삼겹살

The friendly staff would drop by once in a while to help change the grill paper or, if necessary, the grill plate. The sukiyaki broth would also be topped up periodically.

Overall, an enjoyable experience albeit a little hurriedly at the beginning. I felt so pampered with the buffet dishes delivered to the table. We were mindful to not over order and it was a good idea to order enough to start, and then to top up once we had cooked and eaten most of the lot.

reasonable price

Promotions at Grantral Mall Outlet:

• Students and NSFs Promo (Until 31st October 2020) Valid Student Pass or NSF card to be eligible. Minimum 3 pax to dine. Mon-Fri Lunch: $11.9++ (UP: $16.9++) Sat-Sun Lunch & Mon-Thu Dinner: $20.9++ (UP: $26.9++)

• 4+1 Free Promo (Until 31st Oct 2020): 1 pax dines free with every 4 full-paying pax. Valid for Sat-Sun Lunch & Sun-Thu Dinner. Have to reserve seats online and use promo code ‘4PLUS1’.

• Early Dinner Promo (Until 31st Oct 2020) $19.90++ Sun-Thu Dinner. To enjoy the promo, dining time will be 5.30pm-7pm. Have to reserve seats online and use promo code ‘EARLY’. Minimum 3 pax to dine.

• Healthcare Workers (Until 31st Oct 2020) 20% OFF Mon-Sun Lunch & Sun-Thu Dinner. Have to flash Healthcare Staff pass to be eligible.

Terms and conditions apply. Do enquire from the outlet itself.

Thank you Adrian and Kingdom Food Group for hosting the lunch, as well as a shout out to the friendly service crew at I'M KIM Korean BBQ and Shabu Shabu.

I'M KIM Korean BBQ & Shabu Shabu @ Grantral Mall

Address: 3151 Commonwealth Ave West Singapore 129581

Website: https://kingdomfood.sg/im-kim-korean-bbq-shabu-shabu/

Contact:  +65 62611936

Business Hours:

Weekday: 11.30am – 4.30pm, 5.30pm – 10.30pm

Buffet Counter closes at 3.00pm & 10.00pm respectively

Weekend/PH: 11.30am – 3.30pm, 5.30pm – 10.30pm 

Buffet Counter closes at 3.00pm & 10.00pm respectively 

[Media Invite] King's Laksa Steamboat @ 17 Teck Chye Terrace

Steamboat, we have eaten alot. What is your favourite soup base? Soup base such as chicken, tomato, mala soup are the common ones. How about laksa? At King's Laksa Steamboat, you can have that along with chicken/mala/herbal soup, and buffet-styled. On top of that, it offers tasty cooked food such as har jeong gai (prawn paste chicken wings), fried tofu, luncheon meat, spring-rolls, tiny fish balls and mini man-tous. Wow, and the price per adult is just $26.80++ for dinner with dining duration of 120 minutes. Really 一个价钱，吃到饱! Last order for dinner is 10pm. And, did I mention there's free flow drinks, ice-cream and pudding too?

after that, will diet?

Location wise, it is somewhere near Boundary Road, Serangoon area. Within 10 minutes walking distance from Serangoon NEX. The dining area is pretty spacious. However, the buffet and drinks area is narrow, so it could be rather cramped when many wants to take their food or drinks.

dining area

buffet counter

drinks area

There is calamansi, sour plum and water chestnut drink from the dispenser. Otherwise, bottled unsweetened oolong (for sharing) is also available.

The main items could be ordered via an order plastic sheet. Just tick whichever items that you fancy, indicate table number and portions to order. Must-orders for cooked food are the prawn paste chicken wings, the fried tofu and man-tou. For the raw food, must-orders are the flower crab, pork belly, fish dumplings and squid.

let's start with these

all ready

We had the laksa and chicken soup bases in our yin-yang pot. Happy to see fried pig's skin and fried beancurd skin for the laksa broth. So matching!

mushrooms and vegetables from the self-service section

The portion of meat was generous but most were lean meat, hence, try not to overcook them otherwise, it would be pretty tough to chew. I liked the thinly sliced pork belly the most as it had a softer texture than the chicken (breast meat only) and the beef (no fats!). The lamb was special and cut into pretty tiny pieces. Gamey but not overly tough.

bubbling away

While the raw ingredients are getting their sauna bath, munch of the freshly cooked items. For lovers of luncheon meat, you can eat till your heart's content. Liked the fried tofu too. It was drizzled with sweet Thai chili sauce.

repeated orders for this!

belachan chili for the prawn paste chicken wings

deep fried platter - prawn paste chicken wings, luncheon meat and fried fishballs

fried tofu with sweet thai chili sauce

fried man-tou that's good on its own

The flower crabs were fresh and cooks easily in the boiling hot broth. Enjoyed it and it was on our repeat order. Loved the smooth texture of the fish dumplings. So good but we discovered it a tad late, meaning, we were too full!

flower crabs

fish paste dumplings (foreground) and beef (background)

The secret to the laksa broth was of the more premium dried shrimps used. The laksa broth was rich and full-bodied. It could get rather salty towards the end, so it would be best to kept it topped up. It wasn't spicy, so it can be enjoyed by most.

the secret

One tip when ordering meat is to order about half the number of pax. If not enough, then order again. This will keep the meat fresh and not sitting on the table for too long.

After all the heaty fried food, it was time to cool down with ice-cream. The ice-cream is located at the cashier. There are about 5 flavours; corn, yam, mint, chocolate, and strawberry. My favourite was the yam.

ice-cream!

Thank you Ivan for the invite and King's Laksa Steamboat for hosting the tasting.

King's Laksa Steamboat website: https://kinglaksa.com