[Staycation] Pan Pacific Serviced Suites @ Beach Road

Stayed for 2 nights at Pan Pacific Serviced Suites One Bedroom Deluxe Suite. What I liked was that all bedrooms regardless of price, has the same size. Yay to 45sqm room!

The place is just right opposite of Haji Lane and there is an overhead bridge to cross over.

Was able to check-in by 1.30pm and went to nearby Noodle Thai Thai Kitchen for a quick lunch.

lobby

The room photos are pretty accurate. 

One Bedroom Deluxe Suite

view from Level 7

kitchenette area

teabags and bottled water

Nespresso is a necessity

let's have a cuppa now

After conjuring up the various delicious (albeit unrealistic) images of dishes that one could attempt to cook after checking out the well equipped kitchenette, let's head on to the bedroom area.

bedroom

Yes, there are two TVs! One in the living room and another in the bedroom. Both shares the same remote.

Cleanliness could have been better as there were discoveries of black stain marks (shoeprints?) on the bedsheet as well as hair. As it was written that housekeeping will not be available on Sundays, I quickly made a call at about 5pm to ask for a change of bedsheets. The call took about 20 minutes for it to be answered, but housekeeping did drop by promptly thereafter. Thanks to the young chap who helped to change the sheets.

bathroom

shower

The water strength was nice and no issue with the bathroom. Just need to roll down the blinds before taking off anything else, I suppose the occupants from the next building could catch a glimpse.

Metis brand toiletries

And, if you ever wanted to do your laundry during your stay, head back to the kitchenette area.

washer cum dryer underneath the oven

The washing powder is provided, and located under the sink.

washing liquid and washing powder

The operating manual is placed at the living room, near the TV.

how to operate the washing machine

Not sure what I did incorrectly, but after washing the clothes on my last day of stay, the clothes didn't get dry even after hours of using the dryer. So went home with damp clothes. Faints!

And in the event, that one does cook in the room, you may get this type of photos.

hearty breakfast thanks to master chefs and supreme assistant 

While we were there, we managed to try buffet lunch at Si Chuan Dou Hua Restaurant which was just a few minutes walk away. Read more about it here.

Overall, I liked the place for its close proximity to the nearby eateries and convenience store. The huge living and bedroom space were lovely. The kitchenette is well equipped. However, on Day 2, I discovered that one of the wine glasses had broken. Called the receptionist to inform and they sent a replacement glass. Thank you for the friendly staff who brought the replacement glass.

One thing to note is that the Nespresso capsule is limited to 3 per room and will not be replenished. Additional capsule is priced at $1.50.

Thanks to staycay buddies Ivan, Hence and Tracy for making delicious memories together. Till our next one, stay safe!

Super Late Lunch @ Noodle Thai Thai Kitchen Beach Road

Was around the area for a short staycation hence, decided to do a late lunch nearby prior to check-in. I was late though not fashionably so, hence friends had already placed the order when I joined.

shopfront

Khao Soi Curry Noodles, one of their signature noodles dish is stated as a Northern Thai cuisine. The curry was decidedly sweet and very very rich in coconut flavours (very lemak!) The noodles seemed to be similar to mee pok. Came with a large drumstick that was pretty tender.

Khao Soi Curry Noodles @$9.90 (L)

mee pok!

For other carbs, we got ourselves a plate of plain egg fried rice. Sometimes, simplicity is best!

Egg Fried Rice @$5.90

Thai Grill River Prawn @$24

grilled prawns

While the grilled prawns were delicious, we had to check the menu once again as it stated 4 pieces. What it really was, were just 2 prawns halved to be 4 pieces in total. That meant $12 per prawn.

Tom Yum Seafood Soup @$12

The tomyum soup packs a kick but my friends thought it wasn't sour enough. It was alright for me. Very appetising.

Singha Soda water @$2.80

The last item that we had was the BBQ Seasalt Seabass. That came after we finished everything on our table and cycled through 2 rounds of drinks. Definitely, more than 30-40 minutes of the stated wait time.

BBQ Seasalt Seabass @$32

It was rather interesting to eat the blanched noodles with the fish, but hey, it works! Pretty good on its own or with a dab of the dipping chili sauce.

I liked the fish on its own. Lovely moist meat and natural flavours.

popular item

On the next night when we walked past this shop again, we spied that most of the patrons ordered the BBQ Seasalt Seasbass. After our meal, we noticed that they have buffet as well, which include river prawns. Oh man, probably more worth it to get it as a buffet. Hahaa!

nice wall art

Thank you Hence, Tracy and Ivan for the company!

Noodle Thai Thai Kitchen (泰太)

Address:  327 Beach Rd, Singapore 199560

Website: http://noodlethaithaikitchen.com/

Contact:  8133 4959

Business Hours:

Tues to Sun:  11:30am–3pm, 5:30–10pm

Closed on Mondays

A Gastronomic Journey of Sichuan Delights @ Si Chuan Dou Hua Parkroyal Beach Road

Was staying at Pan Pacific Serviced Suites, and it was opportune to try out Si Chuan Dou Hua for lunch. Reservation is encouraged. This was before stabilisation phase where dining in groups of five was still allowed.

entrance

After all the necessary Safe-Entry check-in, and vaccination status verifications, we were led to our table.

table setting

The tea cup with the leaves are available on every table and the staff will enquire if you are having tea. Once affirmed, hot water would then be poured into the tea cup.

蒙顶黄芽 (Meng Ding Huang Ya Tea) @$6++ per pax

The tea was mild and pleasant, much like Long Jing tea. It is said that Meng Ding Huang Ya tea (a type of yellow tea 黄茶)  is from Mount Meng in Ya'an, Sichuan. Used to be drunk by the royals, now is available for us to enjoy.

QR Code menu

By default, the QR Code menu links to the ala-carte menu. Hence if you are there for the buffet, do request for the buffet menu.

Sichuan Buffet Menu

The thing about ala-carte buffet, we weren't sure of the portion served but reckoned, it would be similar to dim sum buffet dishes, meaning everyone can try a piece that kind of portion.

The premium item on the buffet menu is the baby lobster 小龙虾 (one serving per pax). Four flavours to choose from, so we got one each. There were 2 spicy and 2 non-spicy flavours.

Sichuan buffet menu arrangement, by flavours

Our strategy is to order at least 10 items each round, as the preparation takes time and staff informed that each order will probably need at least half an hour to be served.

To order, just state the reference number of the item. Quantity is determined by total pax of the guest table.

first round of appetisers

The appetisers:

• Sliced Beef and Tripe in Chilli Sauce 夫妻肺片
• Chilled Chicken with Spicy Bean Paste 口水鸡
• Marinated Black Fungus with Preserved Chili 泡椒木耳
• Sliced Beef with Five Spice 五香牛肉
• Sea Clam in Garlic and Chili Sauce 蒜泥鲍贝
• Diced Cod Fish Deep Fried with Sichuan Pepper 椒盐鳕鱼丁
• Fresh Scallops in Sichuan Peppers and minced Spring Onions Sauce 椒麻带子

All the above I liked, except the five spice beef and the cod fish as these two were somewhat lacking in flavours. We re-ordered the black fungus and fresh scallops. So good!

Fresh Scallops in Sichuan Peppers and minced Spring Onions Sauce 椒麻带子

Marinated Black Fungus with Preserved Chili 泡椒木耳

Chilled Chicken with Spicy Bean Paste 口水鸡

Sliced Beef and Tripe in Chilli Sauce 夫妻肺片

The beef tripe and salivating chicken (口水鸡) were both pretty spicy, so get ready with your drinks when enjoying these.

Baby Lobster 小龙虾

flavour is indicated on top with a small sticker

reveal

Steamed Baby Lobster with Minced Garlic

Stir-fried Baby Lobster with Spring Onion and Ginger

Baby Lobster with Chili and Peppercorn

It was quite troublesome to eat the Baby Lobsters, so gave away half my portion but the noodles inside were enjoyable.

let's eat~

After two rounds of the food, we sort of know which one would be good and which wouldn't. For example, prawns and scallops were good and consistent. Though the sizes differ even when we chose another sauce/flavour to try.

Chilled Shelled Prawns with Plum and Sichuan Peppers

Fresh Prawns in Tomato Sauce and Stir Fried Prawns in Garlic and Chili Sauce

Actually, doesn't matter which flavour/sauce, just get the prawns (and the fresh scallops).

And, how can we not eat tofu when we are at Si Chuan Dou Hua? It is a must-have. Slurpingly good.

Beancurd in Spicy Minced Meat Sauce

Beancurd with Sichuan Minced Peppers

For meat dish, I'd say our favourite was the beef. Lovely tender texture and not too spicy. But hor, the cubes was rather smallish.

Stir fried Diced Beef in Sichuan Pepper

Pork dishes, was more misses than hits. Tried the pork knuckles, stir fried loin, pork belly and braised sliced pork. 

Can't count the braised sliced pork because I actually thought the star of the dish, was the rice bubble and the assorted vege in it. Hahaa!

The best from this lot, is the Stir Fried Pork Loin in Sweet and Sour Sauce. Well fried, and meat had a nice chew but not tough.

Braised Pork Knuckle with Sichuan Bean Paste

Braised Pork Belly in Honey Sauce

Stir fried Loin in Sweet and Sour Sauce

Braised Sliced Pork with Crispy Rice Bubble

For chicken dish, I enjoyed the chilled chicken (salivating chicken) and the diced chili chicken (辣子鸡).

Chong Qing Diced Chicken with Dried Chili 

For finale, we ended our meal with soups, noodles and dessert.

Hot and Sour Vermicelli

Sichuan Noodle in Onion Oil

Sichuan Minced Meat Noodle

Chuckled when we saw the size of the scallion pancake. This is a super mini version, so cute!

Scallion Pancake

For dessert, the serving was one piece and if you say 3 dumplings, then it will really be 3 dumplings served together. One piece per serving.

Glutinous Rice Ball with Sesame Red Bean Paste

Crispy Glutinous Rice Ball with Sesame Red Bean Paste

Sichuan Glutinous Pancake

My favourite is the Sichuan Glutinous Pancake which was a fried item and inside was so mochi. Not too sweet and not too oily.

There was a promotion with the buffet and one could get a glass of sake along with it, or if you are not into alcohol, then can swap it out for juice.

complimentary sake

The buffet is priced at $68++ per pax and there was a 20% discount for payment made via UOB credit card.

Thank you makan kakis for the quality time spent! See you in November for our next staycay!

Si Chuan Dou Hua Parkroyal Beach Road

Address: 7500 Beach Rd, PARKROYAL on, Singapore 199591

Website: www.sichuandouhua.com

Opening Hours

Lunch - 11:30am to 2:30pm

Dinner - 6:30pm to 10:30pm