Old Hong Kong Kitchen @ Novena Square 2

Located at Level 2 of Novena Square 2. Usually crowded during lunch hours. This place serves dim sum, and was there to have some.

dim sum menu

interior

chrysanthemum tea (@$4.80++ per pot) and cover charge

Actually wanted to order fluffy cha siu bao (叉烧包) but accidentally ticked the bolo cha siu bao instead, without realising it till the order arrived. -_-''

bolo cha siu bao (@$6.80++)

sweet cha siu

The quality had deteriorated. Had this a few months ago at the same place and it was much better. Now, the ratio of bun is very much higher than the fillings plus it was not even warmed up before serving.

rice rolls, deep fried mango prawn and steamed beancurd skin with chicken and fish maw

The chee cheong fun was three thick slab of flour, with honey cha siu, shrimp and scallop fillings.One taste stood out from the chee cheong fun dish. It was sweet. The deep fried mango prawn roll was nicely crunchy but it was tiny.

deep fried breaded mango prawn roll

Colleague said wanted to try the steamed fish maw, chicken, mushroom and pig stomach in beancurd skin.

steamed chicken, fish maw, pig stomach in beancurd skin

Hmm, didn't find any pig stomach in the dish though. Apparently it had been substituted with crabstick instead, and this was done without informing the customer. Tsk tsk.


Also had a basket of salted egg yolk custard bun (流沙奶黄包). The version here is a tiny ball of bao, with thick lava that's full of those salty sweet sandy goodness. Eat it while it's hot.

salted egg yolk custard bun

Prices of dim sum here are averaging from $6 onwards. Very steep. Expect to pay about $18 per pax for ala-carte dim sum, with drinks and cover charges (towel and pickles). If there's any consolation, that price bought me quite a filling dim sum lunch (but am not a big eater anyway). But satisfaction wise...

BangkokJam @ Wheelock Place, Orchard Road

Finding an impromptu dining place around Orchard on a Saturday evening, saw us moving from one spot to another. Queue was too long? Place too expensive? Shop too crowded?

Hence, finally came to a place where we could rest our tired legs. BangkokJam, located at Level 2 of Wheelock Place.

colourful coasters

interior

What's your usual order when doing Thai food? For me, its Thai milk tea.

Thai milk tea (@$4.80++)

The rendition here was quite enjoyable. Iced cold tea on a hot stuffy evening. Not overly sweet and good tea strength.

Another popular drink, would be lemongrass tea.

lemongrass drink (@$4.80++)

Quite surprising that we didn't order any phad thai that night. Instead, we had Stir Fried Egg Noodles with bacon and crabmeat. This plate tasted very similar to Singapore beehoon (新洲米粉).

stir fried egg noodles with bacon and crab meat (@$11.90++)

Another perennial favourite would be the olive fried rice. My friend's choice of carbs.

olive fried rice (@$11++)

seafood in red tomyam soup (@$7.90++)

The sourness of the tomyam soup was just right. However, it could use abit more heat.

Spaghetti in Thai cuisine? Seems like fusion. Prawns with spaghetti in coconut base sauce.  The spaghetti tasted like thick bee hoon and the coconut base sauce was quite yums albeit a little watery. Good for slurping while its still hot~

prawns with spaghetti in coconut base (@$11.90++)

Most of the dishes are non-spicy. Very tamed down version. For sharing, we had a plate of  mixed grill.

Bangkok Mixed Grill (@$23++)

grilled chicken, squid, beef and prawns

The grilled chicken and squid were good and tender. Too bad the beef was overdone and was quite tough. The chili sauce had kick but in general, food here was abit on the high sodium side of things.

For desserts, we had red ruby. Not the usual watery kind with coconut milk. This version had coconut ice cream instead. Pretty good, the ice cream and the rubies. We liked.

red ruby (@$4.50++)

The meal fed the five of us (with 2 not very hungry) and costs about $20 per pax. There's a 10% discount for Stanchart credit card if the total bill (excluding taxes, gst) is above $80.

Spageddies @ Orchard Central

Located at Level 4 of Orchard Central. This place was rather peaceful during weekday lunch hour. Was enticed by its OCBC credit card 1-for-1 main course offer.

One can choose any two main courses and the lower priced one shall be complimentary. After placing our orders, noticed that we had covered everything from land to the sea, and with carbs and vege. Not bad. Not bad at all!

lamb shank

The lamb shank was quite a hunk. Served with broccoli, yellow zuchini and carrots. Mostly tender although there are dried out parts too. Good to share.

tenderloin

The beef tenderloin looked quite nice. Served with small potatoes and grilled vege. But at medium, it was already quite tough. Probably medium rare would fare better?

spaghetti with lobster and chicken

Lobster? Hmm. A small one perhaps? The spaghetti was al-dente but overall, this dish was a tad too dry for me. Not much flavour from the fried chicken breast.

seafood sizzlelini

The seafood sizzlelini boasts of scallops, mussels, prawns and crayfish. Served in spicy neopolitan sauce which was not spicy at all, but tangy and savoury sweetish. Liked the doneness of the pasta here, as the heat helped to soften it further but not till too soggy. Good dish to share.

Hence, for a party of two, the lamb shank and the seafood sizzlelini would probably make a good meal.

Spent about $17 per pax.