[Staycation] Experiencing Beach Club Pool Access Loft @ Pan Pacific Orchard Singapore

Decided to stay at Pan Pacific Orchard at the very last minute, so made the bookings just hours prior. Last stay was in 2023. Arrived for check-in at 130pm and the room was ready. 

Thanks to GHA Discovery Titanium membership, received the double room upgrade. Was informed that the room is at Level 5 and right beside the pool. Makes sense as it is a room with direct pool access after all, keke.

Beach Club Pool Access Loft Room

bed

ta-dah~

similar concept with the balcony room with the air-conditioning

sheltered area

view from the pool lounge

The pool water was slightly warm from the weather. Guests who had completed their swim would walk past the room on their way out of the pool area. So, for the dad with his daughter in his arm whom we made eye contact, glad you had a good swim. Keke.

Let's go check out the loft area.

let's go upstairs

The steps on the loft stairs is slightly smaller than my foot and there is only a couch up there. No TV, no table.

couch on the loft

think downstairs is where I'll spend more time at

ironing board, clothes hangar and place to store luggage

bedroom slippers in here

Bacha coffee

regular coffee

coffee capsules

The coffee capsules were nice and I loved the decaf option. The minibar was well stocked with still water, coconut water and soda.

minibar

bathroom

shower

Bath amenities from Jo Loves

oh, there's a plant in there

The bathroom has a sliding door which only closes halfway so, just so you know.

GHA Discovery Welcome Amenity and Pan Pacific Orchard Birthday Delight

Found the chocolates in the room at the small side table next to the bed after returning from outside.

surprise~

so pretty

praline

think this one had mint inside

spot the difference

birthday chocolate mousse cake

Thanks to Pan Pacific Orchard and GHA Discovery for the chocolates. Definitely added to the happiness during this birthday staycation!

saving some for later

Pacific Club Lounge

Afternoon Tea

Pacific Club Lounge

plenty of sweets

afternoon tea drinks menu

indoor seats

outdoor seats

The afternoon tea food selection seemed to be salads, cheeses, fruits, breads, sandwiches, scones (with whipped cream and jams), cakes and the savoury dish was fried fish fingers.

smoked salmon sandwich, blueberry scone and salted caramel tart

blueberry scone 

mocha

fried fish fingers with mayo and chili sauce

The first piece of the fish fingers was good as it was still hot but the next pieces were lukewarm.

Evening Cocktails

evening cocktail drinks menu

Mimosa, fried rice, takoyaki and chicken siew mai

Best dish during the evening cocktail, was the takoyaki. Not much choice for the canapes.

Breakfast

breakfast table

ala-carte choice

jams selection on table

Thank goodness for the ala-carte option for breakfast at the lounge as I had been disappointed with the evening cocktails food options.

Was mildly surprise by the plain looking eggs benedict. Taste-wise, the sourness was barely detectable which is good and the muffin has some crispy edges so that was nice.

Signature Eggs Benedict

runny yolk mandatory shot

Also ordered the prawns wanton noodles soup which suits the weather. It had begun to rain heavily.

prawns wanton noodles with char siew

al-dente egg noodles

prawns wanton

The soup was good and hot, but the prawns wanton tasted like those ready-to-eat type, with slight doughy wrapper skin. The pickled green chilies were good.

pickled green chilies

Thank you Pushpa whom always greeted the guests with a smile at the Club Lounge.

In-Room Dining

Check-out was extended to 1pm, and I was looking to find a way to finish the dining credit. Was supposed to use some for dinner at Mosella but had skipped dinner. So, decided to place order for in-room dining. It's lunch menu items only started appearing at 11am. The invoice stated that food would be ready within 40 mins.

The doorbell rang at 1145am and the food was delivered, complete with a table! Thank you to staff who brought the table along, complete with table cloth and small flower decoration. Fine dining in the room. So cool.

in-room dining

The laksa broth was in the flask to maintain its temperature. 

Singapore Heritage Laksa @$28++

Plenty of sambal provided to add extra umami and kick to the lovely laksa broth. Plenty of bean sprouts, tau pok (beancurd puffs), fish cake slices and quail eggs in the bowl. Was happy with the good sized prawns which wasn't overcooked and with its middle part thoughtfully peeled for easier eating.

Taittinger Brut Reserve @$28++

A glass of Taittinger to accompany the food for that touch of luxury.

Charred Temptation Lamb Chop @$22++

well grilled lamp chop

I see cheesecake, I ordered. Cheesecake was dense! Meal complete.

Milo Dinosaur Cheesecake @$16++

Pan Pacific Orchard

Address: 10 Claymore Rd, Singapore 229540

Website: https://www.panpacific.com/en/hotels-and-resorts/pp-orchard-sg/

[Staycation] One Night Executive Room @ Mondrian Singapore Duxton

Read more about previous stay here. This time round, I chose the Executive room with hope to experience the premium Club Benefits. Similar to the Skyline room, the Executive King room is similar in size and layout.

Managed to check-in around 2plus in the afternoon after the lunch at Araya. 

first look at Executive King room

nice to have that space beside the bed to lounge around or to do work

Oh, looks like the welcome amenity (fruits?) has not been delivered to the room. 

coffee machine

love love Lavazza coffee capsules

tea for you?

The bathroom is smallish. The door to the bath area needs to be opened so that the water on the floor can dry up.

bathroom

The MALIN+GOETZ body wash and shampoo had lovely scent.

view from room

Took a 2 hours nap. I think I drank a tad too fast during lunch.

Went down to Christina's for evening cocktails and finger food.

evening cocktail menu

Looked like not many are at Christina's during the evening cocktail hours on a Thursday evening, or maybe the party was elsewhere?

truffle cheese sandwich, potato samosas and chocolate

Aperol Spritz

additional order of truffle fries (not part of the evening cocktail)

We enjoyed the truffle fries as it was served piping hot and well fried with crisp outer layer and soft insides.

fruits platter

dragonfruit

Got a complimentary slice of cake for my birthday, thanks to Mondrian Singapore!

yummy chocolate cake

Breakfast was a quick affair as there were people waiting outside for a table.

Still the same setup as per previous visit, so it'll be juice and porridge for me. Didn't take the coffee here as I still have the Lavazza capsules in the room.

favourite things for breakfast; porridge with scrambled eggs and condiments

watermelon, salad, cheese and tomyum fried rice with a sausage

I must say, the tom yum fried rice was tasty. 

It was a super short stay at Mondrian Duxton. Till the next time, take care!

A Quiet Lunch @ Araya Singapore, Duxton

My cousin-in-law recommended this place when I told her I was doing a staycation at Mondrian last year, so when the opportunity arises again, decided to give Araya a try.

Since I was available on a weekday, decided on the Business Lunch menu ($58++). A three-course menu comprising of bread, starter and a main. Decided to upgrade the starter to Rainbow Ceviche (+$12) and chose Duck as the main. Both the starter and main options were chosen as part of the reservation process. 

entrance

Was a few minutes early for the lunch appointment and was just looking at the entrance to figure out if this is the right place when suddenly the door opened, and the hostess gave out a soft greeting of "Hola~" Hehe, I guess she can see who's standing at the door.

Once the guest name was ascertained, I was quickly ushered to my seat. Ah, counter seats.

beautiful space

Once seated, Vikram introduced himself and I was presented with the business lunch menu and also the  beverage options. Empanada was highly recommended as additional add-on (+$12), so I went with the recommendation. 

Discovered that there is a wine package ($48++) that would be good pairing to accompany the food and for me to get acquainted with Chilean wines.

ready for lunch

Hand sanitizer was offered prior to the start of the meal.

Montes Sparkling, Central Valley Chile NV

just a little sip

fresh and crisp

my POV

LA PANERA / BREAD

with merkén chilli butter and cochayuyo seaweed butter

Chef introduced the merkén chilli in its ground(ed) form, and I also got to see it in its pepper form. 

merkén chilli

cacho de cabra

left to right: bocado de dama, marraqueta

interior of the marraqueta

Marraqueta has a crusty exterior much like a baguette. According to Wiki, marraqueta is the most widely consumed bread in Chile.

with lots of merkén chilli butter

The bocado de dama or nori-wagyu roll, is a soft roll flavoured with nori. I liked the softness of this bread. Both flavoured butter were lovely but my favourite was the merkén chilli butter with the soft roll.

cute tiny flowers - close up view of cochayuyo seaweed butter

cochayuyo (kelp)

Was rather intrigued by the cochayuyo on the table. Normally fresh kelp looks green in colour but cochayuyo is a brown kelp. 

Bread and butter, with sips of crisp Montes Sparkling Angel wine; was a good start. I had a few bites when the starter arrived.

ENTRADAS / STARTERS

RAINBOW CEVICHE

Ceviche Rainbow (+$12)

The Ceviche Rainbow dish has Hokkaido scallops, oca, daikon, leche de tigre and avocado sorbet.

oca (root vegetable native to the Andean highlands of South America)

Oca is said to be somewhat similar to small potato with a tangy, nutty flavour. Chef advised to mix everything together to enjoy the Rainbow Ceviche.

closer view of the scallops

The avocado sorbet was creamy and the sweetness from the scallops was made more prominent with the Sauvignon Blanc.

Los Vascos Sauvignon Blanc (Casablanca Chile 2022)

CHEF'S FAVOURITES (Add-On)

EMPANADA

Wagyu beef, pebre (+$12)

PRINCIPALES / MAINS

DUCK

Duck (aged cacao sauce, seared foie gras, cherry chimichurri)

Los Vascos Cromas Carmenere Gran Reserva 2021

The cacao sauce was interesting tasting with more of the bitter profile at the fore, and balanced with the rest of savoury-sweet. Loved the lightly seared foie gras that's soft and wobbly texture, with that bit of crispy from the buckwheat. "It tasted like mini popcorn." I thought.

closer view of foie gras and duck

POSTRES/ DESSERTS (Add-On)

RHUBARB & WILD STRAWBERRIES 

Rhubarb & Wild Strawberries (+$12)

delightful morsels

The rhubarb dessert was not what I had expected initially (maybe I was thinking more of rhubarb pie or something?). It has a slight tartness and overall not too sweet. The dessert came with a small cup of sweet tea.

dessert tea

My first time having a cacao infused pisco and I liked it.

cacao infused pisco

Somehow, in Araya, one loses track of time. As the meal came towards an end, staff brought out the cake with candle and a continuation of well wishes.

happy birthday~

Thank you to all whom I met at Araya especially Vikram, Cecelia and the two lovely Chefs who emerged from the kitchen; lovely Chef who introduced the breads and another Chef who enquired on overall meal experience. Not forgetting Chef who was at the counter seats. 

Thank you for the good meal and for the well wishes.

chocolate bon bons (coconut coated was my favourite)

ps: I needed a nap after all the feasting and drinking

Araya

Address: Mondrian Singapore Duxton 83 Neil Road, Duxton Hl, #01-08 Access via, 089813

Website: https://www.arayarestaurant.com/

Contact: 88700871

Business Hours:

Sun: Closed

Mon: 5:30–11 pm

Tue - Sat: 12–3 pm, 5:30–11 pm