Archive for the ‘Snacks’ Category
Pasar Bella – A Farmers’ Market
Pasar Bella
After months of anticipation, Pasar Bella has finally opened at The Grandstand! Spanning a total indoor area of around 30000 square feet, with more than 30 permanent and weekend traders, Pasar Bella is Singapore’s answer to the concept of farmers’ market found commonly in Europe and USA.
The most important to remember before heading to Pasar Bella is to go with an empty stomach, as 90% of the stalls sells food, drinks or fresh produce.
Le Patio
Le Patio
Nutella Crepe
We were enticed by the enormous tube of Nutella on the counters of Le Patio and promptly ordered the Nutella Crepe ($3.50). We were slightly disappointed with the crepe. The crepe itself was bland and seemingly just a doughy mixture. The Nutella wasn’t sufficient enough to satisfy us. On the whole, the Nutella crepe was pretty amateurish and underwhelming.
Nibbles by Rabbit Carrot Gun
Scone
Our next stop was Nibbles by Rabbit Carrot Gun. Touted to be the stall that sells authentic British snacks, Nibbles sells quiches, pies, cakes and most importantly, scones! Priced at $4.50 each, the scone was pretty expensive. Unfortunately, the standard didn’t match up to the price. The scone was tasteless, floury and lacking in aroma. The inner core was clumpy and a little damp – making the scone pretty heavy and hard to swallow.
Huber’s Deli
Huber’s Deli
Chicken Cheese
Perhaps one of the more popular stalls was Huber’s Deli, evident from the number of people carrying the Huber’s Deli takeaway boxes. Coupled with the fact that Huber Deli’s hotdogs were grilled on the spot, it is no wonder many visitors were enthralled by the aroma and looks of the hotdogs. We ordered the Chicken Cheese ($7.80), with pickles, gruyere cheese, parsley, spices and sauce. The cheese was slightly charred; though the cheese wasn’t particularly salty or strong in flavours, the spices atop the cheese did add some extra flavour to it. We felt that the cheese could have been a little more melted, which would then provide this extra gooeyness. There was also cheese inside the hotdog, which was like the extra burst of surprise. The hotdog was, as usual, of high standards from Huber’s Deli. Authentically meaty and juicy! In addition, the bread had been toasted and hence exuded a fragrance crisp. Thankfully, Huber’s Deli didn’t disappoint!
Dutch Colony Coffee Co.
Seasalt Peanut Butter Chocolate Cake
Our final conquer of the day was the Seasalt Peanut Butter Chocolate Cake ($5.50) from Frootkeyk, which is sold at the Dutch Colony Coffee Co. We especially enjoyed the peanut butter as it provided that salty, nutty fragrance to the cake. The peanut butter also increased the moistness of the cake. The combination of peanut butter and chocolate can never go wrong.
Pasar Bella
200 Turf Club Road
Bukit Timah
Sophie Bakery
Sophie Bakery
Sophie Bakery is a French traditional bakery, offering affordable authentic French breads, pastries, salads and sandwiches. Newly opened at Telok Ayer, the attraction and popularity of Sophie Bakery is evident from the early morning queue forming outside the shop even before the doors are opened.
Pain au Chocolate
The Pain au Chocolate ($2) was slightly sweet and buttery. The chocolate filling was semi-molten, aptly described as finger-licking good. Texture wise, the Pain au Chocolate wasn’t exactly very flaky and crispy, but was more towards being soft and fluffy.
Chocolate Chip Bun
The star attraction of the Chocolate Chip Bun ($2) was the plentiful huge chocolate chips! The bun was unexpectedly sweeter than the Pain au Chocolate. We could really taste the freshness of the bread. The soft chocolate chips melted in our mouths when we bit into it, exuding a rich dark chocolately goodness.
Sophie Bakery
167, 169 Telok Ayer Street
The Lawn Grill and Salad Cafe – Meat your Greens!
Riding on the notion of healthier eating habits, salad cafes and bars have been popping out all over Singapore, particularly in the region with the highest density of office workers – with the aim of targeting the busy lunch crowd where office workers are more than happy to grab a simple quick lunch, not to mention a healthier and less palate-heavy alternative.
The Lawn
Nestled in the research town of Singapore aka Biopolis, is 15-months-old The Lawn. The Lawn prides itself on its unique and home-made from scratch using fresh ingredients dressings. In addition, to cater to the meat lovers while still advocating a green diet, The Lawn combines their fresh mesclun with tantalizing premium grills!
The Lawn
The Lawn currently offers only 1 serving size at $9.90, consisting of the basic mesclun salad (Romaine lettuce, arugula, cabbage and spinach), 5 toppings, 1 grill item and salad dressing of your choice.
Toppings
The selection of 20+ toppings included nuts (almonds, walnuts, cashew nuts, crushed peanuts), cheese (parmesan and cheddar), raisins, corns, olives, fusilli pasta and other vegetables like carrots, bell peppers, cucumbers, broccoli, celery and alfafa sprouts. Once you have made your 5 choices, you move on to the grill!
The Grill!
At the grill, you can choose your protein selection – prawns, chicken, fish, duck, beef or mushrooms, marinated in different ways. And finally, you get to decide on your salad dressing!
Salad Dressings (left to right, from top left corner: wasahonie, beachy peachy, manly mango, red island, me so spicy, citrus, maple peanut, honey ball and sesame ginger)
9 different salad dressings! All concocted from scratch using fresh ingredients! Unique flavours for everyone! And finally, we have our customized salad bowl!
Customized Salad Bowl!
Our 5 toppings consisted of almonds, cashews, cheddar, raisins and croutons. The nuts and croutons provided the extra crunch and fragrance. The raisins were pockets of sweetness and the cheddar cheese added that lingering savouriness to the salad. As this was an invited food review, we had the opportunity to try all 9 different sauces.
Our top favourites were the me so spicy, wasahonie, maple peanut, honey ball and citrus. Our number one choice was the me so spicy. The dressing won us over with its spicy and sour tom-yum like flavour. It was also comparatively more viscous than the rest of the dressings. Thick, rich and savoury – it added considerable flavours to the otherwise bland mesclun. The wasahonie was a fusion between wasabi, honey and a tinge of mayo. The honey brought down the pungent spiciness from the wasabi, making it more acceptable to the palate. We enjoyed that little swing between sweetness and the characteristic spicy kick from wasabi. The maple peanut and honey ball were suitable for those with the sweet tooth. The maple peanut, in particular, exuded the fragrance and saltiness evident of peanut butter – a definite hit for nut lovers. On the other hand, the citrus was a lighter and more refreshing dressing, with a sour and mouth watering flavour.
Typically, each salad bowl came with 1 grill serving. But we had the lucky opportunity to try 5 of their grill offerings!
MOJO Chicken
Portobello Mushroom
Grilled Chicken breast with Maple infusion
Char-grilled Garlic Prawns
Butter Seared Pacific Dory with Parsley Rub
*Note: As this was an invited food review, the portions of the grilled items may differ slightly from typical orders.
The MOJO Chicken was marinated with Italian herbs and cumin powder, exuding a faint herb fragrance. The chicken meat was tender and succulent, nicely grilled. The Grilled Chicken breast with Maple infusion was slightly sweeter. Both grilled chicken items weren’t overly impressive, but were still decently prepared to satisfaction.
The Char-grilled Garlic Prawns was the one that won us over! The prawns were fresh, juicy, crunchy and very thoroughly seasoned. It was the most flavourful and savoury grilled item that we tried. The strong tasting prawns were simply addictive.
The Butter Seared Pacific Dory with Parsley Rub was very fresh and flaky. The grilling created the slightly charred and crispy outer crust on the fish, which was a good contrast to the inner soft and flaky fillet. Nicely rubbed with black pepper and parsley, this fillet was also another of our favourites.
Finally, the non-meat grilled item was the Portobello Mushrooms. The juicy mushrooms were stuffed with minced garlic, which kinda covered up the earthly taste of the mushrooms. This would definitely hit a sweet spot with garlic lovers as the taste of garlic was quite overwhelmingly rich.
Cream of Mushroom
Besides salads, The Lawn offers soups as well. And the Friday soup of the day was the Cream of Mushroom. The Cream of Mushroom was very rich, thick and had a grainy texture that we enjoyed. It was a slight downside as we felt that the milky taste was a tad too much. But it was still a decent Cream of Mushroom – fresh and not from the can!
On the whole, we were quite impressed with The Lawn’s offerings, in particular the freshly made dressings and the grilled items. The serving size was also very value for money. Who says salads are only for herbivores? The Lawn’s unique pairing of grill and salad is just the right thing for the carnivore in you.
*Note this is an invited food review.
The Lawn Grill and Salad Cafe
#01-07, Nanos
31 Biopolis Way
Paris Baguette Cafe
There has been much hype surrounding Paris Baguette Cafe. Tiong Bahru Bakery, Paul, Donq, Maison Kayser – There’s just one after and another of such bakeries.
(from left to right) DDUK and Chocolat Blanc
DDUK ($2.70) – Sweet rice cake with various nuts toppings. Breaking apart the DDUK was such a surprise as what welcomed us was a generous centre of sweet molasses filling. It was a gooey and sticky filling, a complement to the soft bread. The DDUK was coated with almonds, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds and white sesame – adding crunchiness to the soft and sticky bun! In fact, the combination of nuts and the sticky centre reminded us of the traditional five nut lotus paste mooncake!
Chocolat Blanc ($2.50) – Bread filled with white chocolate. The Chocolat Blanc would definitely be a hit with lovers of white chocolate. There was a decent amount of white chocolate fillings in the middle of the bun. Rich and sweet, with a slightly overwhelming milky taste – finger licking good!
Paris Baguette Cafe
#02-48/53, Wisma Atria
435 Orchard Road
Mooncake Special – Gin Thye Cake Maker
Teochew Mooncake
Compared to the typical baked mooncakes, the traditional Teochew mooncake consist of a more flaky and crispy skin encompassing the lotus paste. Gin Thye Cake Maker’s Teochew mooncake was very fresh and did not taste too oily or overly sweet. The lotus paste was also much lighter, silkier and smoother compared to the other common lotus paste mooncakes. This resulted in a quick polish of this rather huge mooncake.
Mooncake Special – Four Seasons Durian
Durian Mooncake
Widely known for its durian pancake and puffs at the Takashimaya food hall and the basement of Ang Mo Kio Hub, Four Seasons Durian has introduced its house brand of Durian Mooncake. The highlight of the mooncake was the thick and rich durian paste within the snowskin layer. There was no infusion/integration with the lotus paste, but was solely the good old plain durian paste. The snowskin itself could be improved, as it tasted rather grainy and sandy. The durian mooncake had to be kept in the freezer and thawed for 20 minutes before consumption. In its partially thawed state, the durian center tasted akin to durian ice cream which was equally tasty as well!
Mooncake Special – Raffles Hotel
Snow-Skin Mooncake with Champagne Truffle and Ganache 冰皮香槟巧克力月饼
We finally had the chance to try Raffles Hotel’s perennial favourite mooncake – Snow-Skin Mooncake with Champagne Truffle and Ganache 冰皮香槟巧克力月饼. The white lotus paste was creamy and very smooth, and blended almost perfectly with the soft, tender snow skin. There was a lingering background champagne taste which was evident, but not overpowering the sweet lotus paste. In the middle of the mooncake sat a white chocolate truffle. The white chocolate truffle did seem a little detached from the lotus paste and appeared to be a separate entity.
Crabtree and Evelyn Biscuits
Crabtree and Evelyn Biscuits
(from top to bottom) Strawberry and Cream Biscuits; Double Chocolate Chip Biscuits
Crabtree and Evelyn‘s Double Chocolate Chip Biscuit was the crunchy sort, similar to those of Famous Amos’. However, it did not have a strong buttery scent compared to Famous Amos’ cookies. Nevertheless, we were pleased with the slightly melted chocolate chips. Surprisingly, we actually preferred the Strawberry and Cream Biscuit. Our initial thoughts was that it would be butter biscuit sandwiching a layer of artificial strawberry cream. On the contrary, what turned out was crunchy biscuits with a strong strawberry scent. It was lightly salted and not overly buttery, unlike the Scottish biscuits which Crabtree and Evelyn carries as well. The bits and pieces of the dried strawberry fruits scattered within the biscuit delighted us. To made it better, the cream came in the form of white chocolate, studded atop the biscuits. The Strawberry and Cream Biscuit make a sweet and savoury afternoon snack!
Thorntons Chocolate Collection
Thorntons Chocolate Selection
Thorntons Chocolate Selection
Thorntons is hailed as a slightly more upscale chocolate brand in UK, compared to Cadbury, possessing their own retail shop but yet garnering the same amount of mass market appeal. We were delighted to find this UK brand in Singapore. A box of Thorntons’ indulgently creamy truffles, light mousses and smooth pralines from the Premium collection combined with a range of classic favourites from the Classic collection covered in milk, dark and white chocolate. There were a total 30 chocolate pieces, of 10 different flavours. And strangely, these turned up to be dirt cheap, unlikely most other UK imported snacks.
Vanilla Velvet – A delicate mousse with a hint of vanilla coated in white and dark chocolate
Caramel Divine – Deliciously soft and creamy caramel truffle in a double layer of milk chocolate, with ruffles of white chocolate
Cafe Latte – Roasted coffee and cream whipped into a light mousse, encased in white chocolate and sprinkled with ground coffee
Dual Layered Praline – A layer of white and milk praline, smothered in milk chocolate
Lemon Mousse – A light and zesty mousse made with lemon puree and double cream covered in milk chocolate
Honeycomb Crunch – Velvety milk chocolate bursting with crispy honeycomb and sugar-roasted hazelnut croquant
Orange Zest – A zingy centre combining delicate orange peel pieces and a luscious orange preserve smothered in dark chocolate
Chocolate Truffle – An indulgently smooth chocolate truffle with a hint of vanilla covered in milk chocolate
Special Toffee Truffle – Deliciously rich caramel truffle with our special toffee pieces sprinkled between two layers of dark chocolate
Creamy Fudge – Melt in the mouth light and creamy fudge smothered in milk chocolate
The honeycomb crunch was the winner in this series due the variation in texture arising from the introduction of crunchy honeycomb bits into the fillings. The lemon mousse and orange zest caught us by surprise. They were unexpectedly delicious and refreshing without any hint of artificial flavoured lemon or orange taste. The creamy fudge was the typical chewy sticky Scottish fudge which was coated in milk chocolate. The box of chocolates were so sinfully attractive and satisfying that we easily cleaned off the 10 different flavours at a go.
Sarotti Tiamo Feinste Truffel
Sarotti Tiamo Feinste Truffel
The box contained 32 truffles with 5 alcoholic flavours at a humble price of $24.90. The five flavours included Marc De Champagne, Truffel-Praline Gepudert, Bourbon Vanille, Ameratto and Cognac-Sahne. The chocolate was not of premium quality but the alcoholic flavoured fillings made up for it. The alcoholic centre in all the chocolates was a soft thick gooey creamy paste. In particular, the alcohol in the Marc De Champagne, Truffel-Praline Gepudert, Ameratto and Cognac-Sahne were very strong to our satisfaction. The Bourbon Vanille was disappointing though, as the sweetness and the milkiness of the vanilla overpowered the milk chocolate and Bourbon. Costing less than a buck per piece, this was a very value for money alternative to alcoholic pralines from brands like Jewels and Wimbly Lu, that is if we were to close an eye to the freshness of the chocolate.
Meiji Meltykiss Rum & Raisins
Meiji Meltykiss Rum & Raisins
Tearing apart the wrapper, taking in a deep breath, our sensitive noses immediately picked up the strong rum aroma. The chocolate was best eaten when it was soft and semi-melted. Allowing it to sit in our mouth cavities for a while, the chocolate gradually melted, releasing the rum. This is a good replacement to the Ritter Sport Rum and Raisin which is no longer commonly placed on sale here.
Galmopan Dulcissimo Cookies
Galmopan Dulcissimo Cookies
These cookies were very crunchy and hard, similar in texture to the those from Famous Amos, whereby one could feel the element of heatiness and the inevitable arrival of a sore throat with excessive consumption. However, they did not give off the same buttery fragrance as Famous Amos’. We felt that the overly tiny peanuts failed to make their presence shine. They failed to add more crunchiness to the already crunchy cookie nor did they provide the cookie with more fragrance. The saltiness from the typical peanuts were also barely present. Overally, these cookies did not taste that bad but were the average hard crunchy chocolate cookies. A sizeable pack came relatively cheap at $2.50.
Vicenzi
(clockwise from top right) Millefoglie d'Italia; Vicenzovo; Glassatine
Vicenzovo – Italian cookies/lady’s fingers. This traditional Italian pastry is a light cake with a crumbly airy sponge like texture. Such lady’s fingers are commonly used in Tiramisu as the coffee liqueur infused base. Vicenzi’s Vicenzovo was a little sweet with fine snow sugar sprinkled on it. However, the Italian biscuit was nothing too spectacular on its own, and should probably find more use in the making of Tiramisu.
Glassatine – Sugar icing coated puff pastries. These puff pastries were made up of layers of flaky crisps. The sugar icing had a mild lemon flavour, typical of those lemon flavours from Khong Guan biscuits with lemon cream. The sugar icing was not overly thick nor cloyingly sweet, making them ideal for light afternoon snacks. One could easily consume four or fives pieces at a go since these were not too taxing on the palate.
Millefoglie d’Italia – Puff pastry sticks with butter. These puff pastries were essentially the same as Glassatine, save for the lack of lemon flavoured icing and its replacement with sugar bits. However, the butter taste was barely detectable.
AmericanSoft
AmericanSoft Chocolat Classique
The cookies were indeed soft as indicated, but it was lacking in the chewiness to give the biscuit a delicious finish. In fact, it had the texture of half baked cookie dough which are slightly moist and soft. There was dense fudge mixed evenly within the cookie, and a couple of macadamia nuts and small chocolate chunks stubbed onto the cookie surface. Given such standards, these cookies should be satisfying, but yet somehow our taste buds weren’t exactly impressed. At $8.50 for a packet of 8 puny biscuits, we felt shortchanged and we would better off with freshly baked ones from Subway.
Ph.Ds of FOOD 