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I've to say I've only been here once for a coffee and a bagel, and would not be a good judge of the consistency of the food&drinks quality here. But for the one time I was here, the bagel – crisp on the outside and soft on the inside – was one of the rarely well-done ones I've tried in Singapore and the cream cheese they offered was not frozen as at Starbucks though it could have been improved on. As for the latte I ordered, I was served hazelnut instead of the caramel one I ordered. The friendly staff did offer to change but looking at the lunch crowd, I stuck to my hazelnut one.

In all, a very pleasant ambience to sit back, relax and read at book at. I’ll be back to give the rest of the menu a try!

Ambush is one of my all-time favourite restaurant, and a brainless choice when we can't decide where to go for dinner in town. Not entirely cheap for a Taka's basement with several other alternatives, but definitely one worth every penny paid. Well, at least that's for me!

One of S and my favourite is the Japanese baby scallops pasta in cream fish roe sauce. The pasta encrusted with big, delectable and juicy scallops (!), and sprinkled prettily with sparks of fish roe in generous servings of the creamy sauce. Just writing about it is making me crave for it!

Second on my list would be any one of the tomato-based paella at Ambush – always the top choice when famished after shopping around Takashimaya. From my many, many times there… I would recommend the pesto dory fish or the creamy cod. Both tender and yummy in their own right. Choosing between the two of them is always a headache for me. Maybe they should start have half-and-half's for greedy people like me!

And before I forget to add one important reason why I keep returning, we never fail to top up the meal for the soup of the day and focaccia bread ($3.90). The aromatic bread, well endowed with spices, is crispy on the top and goes so well with the minestrone soup.

Gosh, it is seriously value-for-money for the price of a main, soup and focaccia bread at about $10-$15. You need to give Ambush a try!

SGD 14(Dinner)

What Bergs Gourmet Burgers failed to deliver, Burger Bench and Bar in a more convenient location and cheaper prices did it all. Even the latter's benches are way more stylish than the former's.

I could think of many B's to describe it: Best, Burgers, Beer, Bewildered... I've tried almost all burgers here and I must say there's hardly one that disappoints. Well, just that one. The fish one was pretty bland and that's it. My favourite would be the sauted mixed mushroom beef burger! Accompanied by relish (as for the rest of B3's burgers), a generously coated with mayo and served with thick juicy patty. Top up the meal with handcooked chips and a drink (better, a beer) and you are in heaven. No, wait a moment, to attain the heavenly feel after a great meal, you'll first have to try the gourmet soft serve ice cream. Unlike the usual cheapo ones with a weak milky chocolate taste, B3's soft serve is made from the real dark bittersweet stuff. For just $3, it's well worth it.

I was just thinking how this place came about to do such great food when I noticed on the receipt that it's under the same company as Wild Rocket and Relish. No wonder.

SGD 12(Dinner)

Been to Tampopo for a couple of times since I heard about this great family restaurant in Clarke Quay area. It's a great place to makan for big groups since the food's not too expensive for the poor ones and neither is it too cheapo-looking for the rich kids.

The ramen is not the best I've ever tasted but having tried out more than 10 ramen restaurants in Singapore it is one of the better and value for money ones. There's quite a few varieties and most would go for their kurobuta katsu ramen (Ramen 2 in my picture). The katsu is nicely fried, crispy and tender enough. The ramen on the other hand might disappoint the ramen fans. Like other ramen places, there's other choices between shio, miso, and shoyu but compared to other ramen places, there's a lot more choices as well - be it starters, sides or desserts. The salmon sashimi I had there was yums! Though I have to admit, I have absolutely no idea what goes inside...

And the ultimate acid test for a ramen place would be... the onzen egg! That's the amazing egg the Japanese came up with - runny yolk and soft boiled whites. Tampopo served me 3 good ones out of the 4 times I had them.

In conclusion, I wouldn't mind coming here for the average food at average prices but you won't see me craving for ramen or onzen's here.

A few months ago, enroute to hot yoga at River Valley Point we zipped past this place and decided to cool down with some Swirl Art after the exercise. And we have never looked back since. In fact, it's now our motivation for yoga!

There are several flavours such as taro, chocolate, cookies and cream but my favourites are the fruity ones like mango, peach and definitely green apple! The concept is simple: Get a cup, fill it up with as much froyo as you wish, dress it in toppings like nata de coco and chocolate rice, head to the counter, cross your fingers as you weigh your yoghurt ($3 for very 100grams), regret your compulsive yoghurt making, settle down in the beanbags at the back of the shop, enjoy your yoghurt!

SGD 6(Supper)

Had a craving for burgers with another hungry boy and we headed down to BERGS with high expectations. Upon entering the place, we were instantly disappointed by the decor – sparse spaces, rowdy wall designs that could be likened to KFC walls, and bench seats. So much for gourmet burgers. But I thought, for good food, ambiance is secondary.

Not much of a service, no menu either. You order from black board near the counter, get a number and wait for your sides to arrive or collect your brown bag of burger from the counter. Prices range from $8-$25 for the burgers. The burger's better be good for the lack of ambiance and service I thought.

And finally, the burger. We both ordered The Berg, cheapest at $8. It was not that bad but not that good either. Greasy, insufficient sauce, beef was juicy but not tender enough to be as thick as it was. I liked the bacon though. Iced tea was normal, and the onion rings was good. Then again, for the price, it should be. I liked being spoilt for choices in the dips department though. They had aioli, sweet chilli, wasabi mayo, dill tartare and Bergs sauce. Liked the aioli one!

Nonetheless, I wouldn't return for just the onion rings, which Burger King does a satisfactory job of, and Carl's Junior's cheaper. Neither would I return for the burgers – not value for money, not-so-convenient location, unfriendly staff, and what ambiance were you talking about?

2010-07-08

SGD 15(Dinner)