[Tasting] Meatilicious Carnivores Weekend Buffet @ Cafe 2000 M Hotel Singapore

Craving for meats? Satisfy 'em all at the Meatilicious Carniores Weekend Buffet at Cafe 2000, M Hotel. 

Meatilicious indeed

Each table will have order chits for diners to indicate the item(s) and the quantity. Like ordering dim sum. For the meats, order a few at one go and it will be served together on a wooden platter. If you were to ask, I'd say, don't waste time and let's jump right into the meats!

meats

No worries, while waiting for the items to be served, each pax will get a complimentary serving of baked cheesy sea scallop to snack on.

Baked Cheesy Scallop (complimentary starter, 1 serving)

There are add-ons for drinks too. A glass of Prosecco, please. Though beer came close since the weather was so humid these days.

choose your muse

drinks top-up

Piccini Prosecco @$10.80++

small sides

crackling pork belly, pork ribs, roast prime rib of beef

It's been ages since I last dined at Cafe 2000, so we began with a modest order of 3-meats for 2-pax; Grass-fed Roast Prime Rib of Beef, BBQ Citrus Flavoured Baby Back Ribs and Crackling Pork Belly. Came with a side of fries, and served with beef gravy, Thai Pineapple dip and mustard.

The fries was so good! The best I've tasted from a buffet. The sio-bak (crackling pork belly) was nice too especially those fatty parts. Crunch on the skin, and enjoy the mouthfeel of the melty fats and tender meat.

very good fries

lovely tender meat, with crackling skin

The BBQ back-ribs was superb too. Fork tender and easy to clean off the meat from the bone.Just didn't detect the citrus part though.

Beef was enjoyable and lovely with the gravy. Now, I need that glass of M Wine Red...

how about some carbs?

Linguini Vongole with M Wine 

The pasta portion for one pax was actually just the right portion for sampling if you're in a party of 2. Now, we opted for more meats as a finale as befitting the buffet theme!

Norwegian Salmon, Roast Black Pepper ChickenSwiss Cheese Pork Sausage, and Cajun Spiced Garlic Lamb Leg 

The salmon was nicely moist with a hint of turmeric. The pork sausage makes a good pair with beer. Roast chicken was a tad dry and the lamb was good. Mint sauce was pretty sweet!

Thank you Kris for the invite, and Matilda and M Hotel for hosting the tasting.

OCT LAUNCH SPECIAL 30% OFF

ADULT: $50 (U.P $72) Child: $25 (U.P $36)

Complimentary starter: Baked Cheesy Sea Scallop (1 serving per guest)

Available from Fri – Sun, Dinner 6 – 10pm

For reservations: call 65006112 or email Cafe2000.mhs@millenniumhotels.com

Chefs preparing the delicious meats

for the sweets

M Hotel

Address: 81 Anson Rd, Singapore 079908

Web URL: https://www.millenniumhotels.com/en/offers/asia/m-hotel-singapore/dining/cafe-2000/meatilicious-carnivores-weekend-buffet/

Contact: 6224 1133

[Tasting] Birds of a Feather - Contemporary Western Cuisine with Pronounced Sichuan Influence @ 115 Amoy Street

Back for more. Thank you Kris for the invite and Eugene for graciously hosting us. Dinner with Tiara and Kris at Birds for their newly launched Menu GSB (Golden Sun Bird). A 7-course meal that's specially curated for the single or couple diner. Was excited to see what Chef Eugene has up his sleeves for this menu.

interior

special menu

Liked that diners have the option to request for multiple courses to be served at once, or at a slower pace for maximum enjoyment. 

ready to dine

For starters, it was Home-made Pickled Vege Focaccia with Sichuan Compound Butter. Bread was nicely crisp on its outside and with just a slight hint of pickled vegetables. Slap on a generous amount of that delicious Sichuan Compound Butter onto the bread, chew on it and tell me if that didn't bring a smile to your face.

Would love to get my hands on a bottle of those butter~

Am impressed by this strong starter that's full of umami flavours.

Home-made Pickled Vege Focaccia with Sichuan Compound Butter

Next, was the Birds Snack, and meant as a surprise dish. Depending on Chef's inspiration for that day, this dish is anticipate to change as and when.

Birds Snack - Foie Gras Ravioli

Chef made us ravioli that day, and boy... I loved it! Textural contrast, harmony of many flavours that complemented each other, and thus made this dish such a joy to eat. Flavour profile was still on the stronger side, and that piqued my interest for more.

lovely foie gras ravioli

One thing about dining at Birds, is that you get to feast on the visuals too. Beautiful plates, one after another.

Octopus Carpaccio

The octopus was tender, but I found the flavours of the Sichuan Mustard Dressing was rather subdued. It was probably my first time eating saffron mung bean jelly!

The next course, was rather "Wow". Stunning visuals. Have a look.

'Yu Xiang' (鱼香) Carabinero Prawn

Lovely, plumpy carabinero that tasted of the sea, laid daintily ontop of a deep fried polenta. Best paired with wine. In fact, this menu has a pairing option. The first three dishes are likely served with white wine, while the next three would be paired with red and for dessert, it will be paired with a cocktail.

The fourth and fifth course, would be slightly heavier, but hey, am not complaining! The broth for the Sichuan Fish Stew was poured table-side and look at its colour! So vibrant in green.

Sichuan Fish Stew

Lovely barramundi, with bits of sea cucumber, and served with healthy pearl couscous. I think if you like boba, you'll like pearl couscous. The broth was mildly spicy, lightly tangy and tasted rich with cream. 

Next up, for the meat lovers, let's indulge in Wagyu Striploin,

finishing touches

Wagyu Striploin MBS4 (top up $25++ for MBS9 wagyu)

The spice butternut puree was a surprise. It was insanely sweet! Chef Eugene explained that it is its natural sweetness that had been intensified naturally. Liked that there was a dash of hot oil on the puree to balance out things. Lovely lightly charred brussel sprouts too. Dab the meat with a bit of the Sichuan Pepper Salt for that East meets West feels.

Last dish, dessert; named simply as Mandarin. We tried the cocktail that's paired with this dessert and it was a good match. Basil cocktail with gin based. Mildly alcoholic, refreshing and not too sweet.

Mandarin, paired with cocktail

The dessert was essentially Baba au Rhum without the rum. A focused flavour of citrus on this plate. The vanilla cream was lovely combined with the soaked baba.

Overall, GSB menu with its tasting portions, offers a good experience to diners who are curious to try a variety of the culinary delights from Birds without worrying about feeling too full after the meal.

Menu is priced at $89++ and Pairing at $60++.

Once again, thank you Eugene and Birds of a Feather team for your hospitality. 

Birds of a Feather

Address: 115 Amoy St, #01-01, Singapore 069935
Website: https://www.facebook.com/birdsofafeathersg
Contact: 6221 7449
Business Hours:
Daily:
Mon - Wed: 10.45am to 3pm, 5pm to 11pm
Thurs: 10.45am to 3pm, 5pm to 12am
Fri - Sun: 10.30am to 12am (10pm on Sun)

Summerlong @ The Quayside

Brunch. Where to? How about place with beach vibe and Mediterranean food? Let's go!

menu

Bummer 'coz I was late and the place was getting busy by the time I arrived. "We got some bread and cauliflower hummus dip, that's more cauliflower than anything." They said while shoving a plate that's left with one triangular slice of pita. Okay, not that I can understand a word of those, but I think my friends meant, they had started with the breads and left one piece but more is coming and eat it with this dip.

open kitchen view

pita bread replenished

Water is chargeable at $1 per head at this place, and you'd get the option of sparkling or still. Free-flow thereafter and the staff does a good job in making sure we are hydrated.

Oh, seems like there's a 2-hours limit for the table during weekends. Hence, we will need to return the table by 2pm for our 12pm reservation.

not sure what my friends had ordered, but it's one or two of these things

Tried The Venetian, which is made of Prosecco, soda water and a select apertivo, which turned out to be campari, I think. Nice colour and thankfully, not that bitter.

The Venetian @$17

Soon, the food rolled in. Glad that we didn't over order this time round! Sausages were nice and mildly spicy. Friendly service staff reminded us to be careful with the Shakshuka pan as it was hot, and the soulvlaki looked kinda cosy wrapped in fluffy bread.

Garlic sausage @$10

Shakshuka Red @$24

Onion bread for the Shakshuka

Lamb Soulvlaki @$17

The red shakshuka tasted more tomato-ey than of spices. Lovely when hot, and bread was useful to mop up those sauces.

The lamb souvlaki was lean and loved the fluffy bread with yoghurt spread. There was some tomato slices in there along with fries. Interesting mix of carbs on carbs.

To end, we had the citrus millefeuille. A lovely looking dessert. Sweet.

Citrus Millefeuille @$15

of greek yoghurt, orange cream, filo pastry, orange compote and tarragon

Thank you Elle for organising and the treat! Brunch with Elle, Hence and Tracy, and Ivan.

Summerlong

Address: 60 Robertson Quay, #01-04, Singapore 238252

Website: https://www.summerlongsg.com/

Contact: 6235 1225

Business Hours:

Mon - Thurs: 11.30am to 10.00pm

Fri-Sun: 10.30am to 10.00pm

[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