Netflix, originates from the United States of America and started its first streaming services in 2007 and today, it is a global provider of streaming movies and television series. You would've known about Netflix availability in Singapore. However, there are a few things that you need to be aware of about Netflix content for this region. Read about it here.
Fret not, as there are still a wide variety of programs available and for families with children out there, good news as Singtel and Netflix believes that Entertainment and Education go hand-in-hand. Not only, one could get up to 9-months of complimentary Netflix subscriptions with Singtel this March, when you sign-up or recontract your Singtel services! The tiers of complimentary Netflix subscription are 3-months, 6-months and 9-months. To find out more and how to get this, read about it here: http://info.singtel.com/personal/netflix. Psst, once you have redeemed your Netflix complimentary subscription, you can even register for a chance to a meet-and-greet session with your favourite Daredevil, Mr Charlie Cox. Hurry (contest end date: 23 March 2016)!
Talking about children and how much television, or which are the suitable programmes that they can watch, Netflix provides parental controls where parents can set a pin code so that not all programmes can be accessed by the kids. There are four levels of easy controls for little kids, older kids, teens and adult.
Netflix - Children & Family Movies
so many choices, which one shall I watch today?
If you like Beatles-music and the movie"A Bugs Life", let it be known that Netflix will be premiering the Beatles-inspired "Beat Bugs" this coming August 2016. Here's the trailer:
For fans of the "Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt" (an American sitcom created by Tina Fey and Robert Carlock, starring Ellie Kemper) will be premiering its Season 2 on Netflix this 15 April. Watch the trailer here:
Thank you Singtel, Netflix and Darryn, Sarah from IN.FOM, for the invite to the Singtel-Netflix Family Fun Day at the Amazonia. Also, a shout-out to Wendy, Swen, En and Lev for being good sports!
You might have heard of Grand Mandarina, as it was touted as having roasts that are worth returning for, and this was when the restaurant was barely a month-old when it opened two years ago. Read more via this link.
Celebrity Chef Benson Tong has recently came onboard as its CEO, and this multi-talented man, together with Executive Chef Eric Yeo, will be introducing a total of ten new items into Grand Mandarina's menu, for a start. That is great news as it offers more variety while crowd favourites such as its roast pork, char siew and roast duck, are all retained. Also keep an eye out for increased options for vegetarians too!
Grand Mandarina entrance
This tasting invite is my first visit to Grand Mandarina and Cantonese cuisine (粵菜) is one of my favourites. When I'm old and gray and still has enough money, I'd like to think that I'd be going for yum cha (饮茶) every weekend and have leisurely dim sum while watching the antics of the other diners. Wahaha!
Getting there: The nearest bus stop to Grand Mandarina is the one opposite of Pearl's Centre. From Choa Chu Kang, one could take bus #190 to that bus-stop. That's about 70 minutes of bus ride on a weekend traffic. Here's a YouTube video on how to get to the restaurant from that bus-stop.
Was ushered to be seated at Level 2, but if your group is large enough, then you might want to request for their VIP room for slightly more privacy. Subjected to availability. In a group of 20-25 pax and would like to sit together in a round table? No problem. Just let the staff know during reservation and they can make the necessary arrangements.
interior
Chef Eric started us off with a palate cleanser; a spoonful of plum marinated cherry tomatoes. I like preserved plums (酸梅) in general, so this was very agreeable. The saltiness of the plum brought out the sweetness of the tomatoes.
plum marinated cherry tomatoes
Next, we sampled some dim sums. First up was the "Steamed Vegetarian dumpling with diced assorted mushroom and vegetable in black pepper". The skin of this dumpling was made from scratch in-house by the chefs. Elegantly translucent, with a chewy bite.
野菌蒸素饺 (3 pieces) @$4.80++
Actually, can you believe it that I have yet to taste the famed Hong Kong cheong fun of zha leung (炸两)? Haha! Well, finally had a taste of that, and at Grand Mandarina, it has the savoury fillings of smoked shredded duck. The dish is named as "Crispy rice roll filled with smoked shredded duck and bamboo shoot". Totally would recommend this dish. A must-order in my opinion. It has withstood the amount of time we took to take pictures etc, and a bite into these rolls yielded a satisfying crunchiness that was music to the ears and a tickle to the tastebuds. So good.
烟鸭脆肠粉 @$7.50++
so crispy, so yummy
Next up, was the "Pan-fried bun filled with minced pork and cabbage". Tiny parcels of two-bites. However, this was my least favourite of the lot. Much preferred the pan-fried buns filled with not-so-finely-minced meat.
椰菜生煎包 @$5++
minced pork fillings
Dim sums were good to start the meal, and now we were ready for the top stars of the restaurants. The roast platter that consist of a portion of roast duck, and two portions each of roast pork and char siew.
Roasts Platter of Crackling Pork Belly (@$18++ per portion), Signature Crystal Char Siew (@$18++ per portion) and Roast Duck with Summer Truffle sauce (@$32++)
perfectly caramelized fatty char siew, crackling roast pork, roast duck with tender meat and crispy skin
Understandably, the roasts were very enjoyable. Good ratio of fatty meat for the char siew, slightly on the sweeter side, thin crispy skin for the roast duck with tender flesh and perfectly crackly skin for the roast pork. For non-poultry dish, one could try the "Deep fried Chilean Seabass with crispy fish skin served with egg white crumble and golden broth". Plus points for presentation and an attractive hue of golden for its carrot broth. Had enjoyed this dish quite a bit.
芙蓉鳕鱼 @$26++ per pax
Liked that the edge of the fish was so crispy and its flesh so firm, yet has a slightly oily mouthfeel. The colour of the dish was already appetizing to the eyes and the combined taste did not dissappoint. Well executed.
well executed
If you prefer something meatless, one could try the "Steam wild yam in Imperial sauce". Wild yam/mountain yam/淮山 is usually more commonly found in soups. The version served here is as a cold dish, and the sauce is tangy soy-vinaigrette type. Appetising and most likely will do wonders for the body.
Steamed wild yam (淮山) in Imperial sauce @$12++
Next up, would be the finale for the main course. New item on the menu and it is called "King prawns in Coconut, coconut crustacean broth with silken longevity noodle". The description is pretty apt.
King prawns in Coconut, coconut crustacean broth with silken longevity noodle @$26++
Take deep breaths and inhale. The coconut fragrance was very evident from the smell. A sip of the soup, will kick in continuing actions of non-stop scooping and slurping of the flavourful, robust broth. Bordering on sweetness, but one just can't help but to slurp it up. The noodles were akin to mee sua and very soft. Best thing, each strand carries a good amount of soup when you slurp it up!
The prawn was of a reasonable size but the star of the dish, was really the soup. Wonderful!
For the finale, ended with something sweet. Not just any desserts but one that literally shined. Yup, a sweet local dessert of durian pengat, adorned generously with glittering gold flakes and served with coconut ice-cream. Was told that Chef made it for special occassions, so it may not be available to the general public. However, if really interested, you may want to check with the restaurant in advance.
Special Desserts -雪中送炭 (price unknown)
Personally, I really enjoyed the crispy cheong fun with smoked shredded duck, the roast platter, the deep fried chilean seabass, the coconut crustacean broth and of course, the exquisite-but-not-for-sale dessert of "sending charcoal in the midst of snowstorm".
Thank you Grand Mandarina, Benson and Chef Eric for having us.
Chef Eric Yeo and Benson Tong
It was a great introduction to the cuisine offered at
Grand Mandarina. And, Chinese cuisine is best enjoyed with family or a
group of friends.Bon appétit~ 食飯!
This year, decided to celebrate Wendy's birthday at Ryu's. We like to try new places, especially for occassions like birthdays. Hmm, however, we have yet to break the tradition of our limited meet-up of twice a year. Once for hers and once for my birthday.
Though Ryu's address is at Capitol Piazza, the restaurant is actually at the theatre side. Lots of dining and drinking places there. Naughty Nuri seemed pretty popular at the moment, judging by the its patrons.
restaurant
Quite liked that Capitol has free wifi for patrons to use. Thumbs up! Ryu's menu is available online, so it was quite easy to pick the food choices.
Arrived at the restaurant at the appointed hour, and while waiting for the birthday girl, I have started with a glass of beer. They serve Kirin here. Hmm, I think the beer head was too much in that glass of beer...
An おしぼり (warm towel) is brought out once you have placed your order.
view from our table
なまビル @$8++ (small)
Unfortunately, the tsukune (minced chicken skewer) took a long time to arrive, so didn't manage to have it as a snack with the beer.
Ordered a tendon as our main course, and supplemented by two ala-carte meats; pork and chicken. Was pleasantly surprised to be served with a bowl of cold soup. Amuse bouche? ありがと!
cold soup - complimentary
The soup was pleasantly smooth, and of mild clean flavours. Think this was the pumpkin soup, judging by its golden colour. The minced chicken skewer (つくね) was quite dense, and quite unlike the versions that I had tried elsewhere.
tsukune (つくね) @$5++ per stick
Tendon Set 天丼 @$25++
The Tendon Set was quite a big bowl and its tempura items had two prawns, sea eels (anago), pumpkin, brinjal and sweet potato. Served with pickles and a tiny teacup bowl of miso soup. We were too engrossed in our conversation, and hence, did not eat the tempura immediately after it was served. No, not because of picture taking, okay.
Grilled Chicken Marinated in Miso Sauce @$12++
Boiled Radish with Miso sauce and stewed Iberian Pork @$17++
Was most impressed by the portion of the stewed Iberian pork. Actually, I had mistakenly thought that the pork would be of slices instead of two huge chunks of pork ribs. The pork was well stewed and could be easily tore off by the chopsticks. The radish was so good as it had soaked in all the sauces. Liked the greens in the dish. Overall, a good dish to have with rice.
Wendy thinks that the miso was missing from the chicken. Might be true as there wasn't any apparent taste of it, and also unlike the pork dish where we could see a dollop of miso sitting atop of the radish.
Time flies when you are with friends, and before we knew it. It was time for desserts.
desserts
On the overall, it was a nice experience at Ryu's. One need not spend a fortune (if you don't want to) here as there are ala-carte dishes and sets that are of reasonable prices.
Happy Birthday, Wendy! May all your wishes, come true (soon!).
A place that is about 10 minutes away by cab from the office. Visited recently and they had updated their menu. Read more about first visit here before the change in menu. No worries, as items such as truffle fries, chili crab pasta were all retained.
The seating in P. Bistro is really limited. At one glance, it possibly could seat just about 14 pax. Menu items include pasta, meat and burgers. Most items seemed to be either deep fried or spicy. Was having sore throat, so decided to get the roast chicken.
The place do not serve complimentary water, so the next best option would be bottled water @$1 each, or go for coffee. Saw that they have kumquat tea, and thought that as an item seldom seen in cafes, so got myself one of those. Hot please, for the throat needed a whole lot of soothing.
The wait for food, was about half-hour that day. Hopefully, this is not the norm. Thankfully, the food was worthed the wait. Am loving the kumquat tea as well. Was pleasantly surprised to see that it came in a pot!
Kumquat tea @$4
My colleagues ordered chili crab pasta, salted egg yolk pasta and har cheong gai burger. Thought that the pasta portions were slightly smaller when compared to the burger or to roast chicken.
Salted Egg Yolk Pasta @$13
Gai Burger @$12
The Gai Burger looked slightly bigger than the one I had at Grub. Plenty of vegetables in there too. Served with shoestring fries.
Roast Chicken @$13
I think the Roast Chicken might be a misnomer. Perhaps, more apt to call it chicken chop? Anyways, the portion was good and lovely mushroom sauce where one could see those mushrooms. Yums. Served with small side of salad and shoestring fries.
This place serves up reasonably priced food that tasted good.
P. Bistro
Location: 42 Owen Rd, 218941 Contact: 6392 2333 Website: http://p-bistro.com/ Business Hours: 11am to 10pm
Dad wanted to lunch at Wong Kok Cafe but it was packed on a Saturday. Hence, decided on Vietnam Kitchen since it was less crowded. Moreover, parents and sis have yet to try Vietnamese cuisine. Service was courteous and friendly. We were ushered in quickly to our table.
Value sets are available and prices ranges from RM34.90++ (for 2 pax) to about RM86.80++ (for 4 to 5 pax). We decided to go ala-carte, and ordered three appetisers and two mains to share amongst 5 pax.
menu - set meal and ala-carte dishes
Dad ordered a crepe pork roll, which was basically a minced pork chee cheong fun topped with mushrooms. It also had two slices of what tasted like chicken ham. Quite nice actually.
crepe pork roll @RM10.50++
Mom and sis shared a plate of chicken chop rice. The rice set came with a bowl of meatball soup that was a little bit sourish to whet the appetite. The rice was topped with a sunny side up, served with pickles and a slice of pate. The chicken chop was of a good portion. There were also some shreds of stuffs which I thought was beancurd but was rather odd tasting.
Chicken Chop Rice @RM17.90++
Bro, of course, had a bowl of vermicelli to himself. A man needs to eat like a man. The bowl of noodles was quite huge and its of a dry version. Plenty of beansprouts, served with some fresh greens and pickles. The thin fried springroll has some minced pork in it. Served with a small bowl of tangy sauce.
Springroll with Lemon Pork Vermicelli @RM15.80++
The appetiser that we got was a lapcheong springroll.
Actually, it was my first time seeing the lapcheong roll and chee cheong fun in an original Vietnamese menu. Nevertheless, both tasted quite good.
For me, I went for the traditional prawn springrolls, with a glass of orange juice since my choice of drink; soda chanh, wasn't available. Hmm, the drink cost as much as my food! The orange juice was nicely sweet and has a sour plum in it. Yums. The springroll was healthy and packed with lots of vegetables. Served with a hoisin peanut dip.
Prawn Roll @RM8.35++ and orange juice @RM8.35++
Sis ordered a teapot of Atiso tea (Trà atiso) for RM6.25++. It was kind of unique as this was the first time we've tasted artichoke tea. Quite mild and light. The small pot contained two teabags and request for hot water refill was acceeded to without a fuss, though they had to boil some water first. Haha!
We spent about RM20 per pax. Service was friendly and food was served within reasonable time. If you are at Cheras Leisure Mall on a weekend and in the mood for some Vietnamese cuisine, then I would recommend to drop by Vietnam Kitchen.
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