Whenever I pass by the area, I usually stop by at Rochor Beancurd for a cheap and soothing tau huay fix.

The beancurd here is consistent in quality, and always delights me with its superb smoothness. Have it warm ($0.90) for the traditionalists, but you may want to have it chilled ($1) on a warm day. The beancurd is just sufficiently sweet as well.

Some members of the older generation enjoy dipping you tiao into their soya bean drink.
The crispy but practically oil-free version sold here will provide them with a nice relief from their everyday troubles, but for people who's not fond of crullers like me, the stall does sell other snacks like portugeuse egg tarts as well.

The only downside of this place would be the windy roadside location, with only a few tables and chairs for those who choose to dine in. It's not too busy, but you may find yourself having to wait for a table ocassionally.

Although the information on the establishment's website stated that dinner would commence at 6pm, I had to wait till 6.06pm before being granted entry, as the staff had to set up the cutlery for dinner. Although I was invited by the staff to wait at the plush chairs outside the main dining area, as a person who values punctuality, I was still not quite pleased with this matter.

Being very much the greedy goose, l felt the dire need to sample everything offered in the buffet spread. And I almost did, save for the (1) ang ku kueh, (2) lapis sagu, (3) mini ondeh ondeh, (4) the ice-cream toppings, (5) the unsliced green apples and oranges which she's guessing that almost no one eats anyway.

The dessert-cum-durian buffet goes for $24.80++ per person, or for $18.80++ with any ala carte order. FYI the cheapest item on the menu goes for $6++ (chicken tenders?). Note that the food available on the menu, with the exception of the durian ice-cream which goes for $6.50++ per scoop, are all savory items. I was hoping for all the durian pastries to be included in the menu as well, as I was looking forward to trying the durian strudel, but this was not the case. Only the durian puffs, durian oreo cake, durian pudding, durianmisu, as well as the durian roll and durian pancakes which are exclusive to the buffet were available.

To save stomach space and hence make the most out of the price paid, we chose to go for the dessert-cum-durian buffet exclusively.

Goodwood Park Hotel's famed durian puffs feature smooth, rich durian cream sandwiched between light choux pastry. Definitely the most decent ones I've ever had!

Durianmisu (the photo's too ugly haha, why don't buffets serve tiramisu in small individual servings instead of leaving diners puzzled over how to scoop out a portion?): The pungent durian pulp combined well with the smooth mascarpone cheese, but the equally strong flavor of the espresso in the sponge layer did not blend in with that of the former... Have two portions of this, like I did, and I guarantee that you'll be quite bloated.

One of my friends described the Durian Oreo Cake to be very similar to Goodwood Park's famed Durian Mousse Cake, except that it is coated in cookie crumbs. Comprising smooth and creamy durian mousse sitting on a soft sponge base, I would have taken a second slice if I had the stomach space to do so! However, I don't think it deserves its reputation as 'legendary'. Being a durian fanatic, I would have liked a stronger durian kick.

The cheesecake was smooth and light, but was too mild in flavor.

The brownie with mousse (?) was slightly too sweet, so was the Hazelnut mousse with chocolate flourless cake.

Apricot mousse tartlet: Ordinary- it was simply a square of mousse on a stiff tart base.

Bread pudding: Just average, I should have just taken a smaller slice...

Chocolate Crumble Tart: Probably the best non-durian confection around. Note that it was not particularly good though... get what I'm trying to imply about the quality of the non-durian desserts served?

Green tea cake with red bean: The sponge was soft, but lacked in the taste of matcha.
Durian pancakes: The star of the buffet! Save for eating it on its own, having durian in the form of a cold, creamy and pungent oozing out out a thin warm pancake is the best way to enjoy it IMO!

Panna Cotta with Madeleine: Where's the madeleine? The panna cotta was placed in a small cup but there were no suitably-sized utensils provided. Poking through the cup with a fork of almost the same diameter as its opening,

Mango Pudding: More like mango-flavored pudding, average.

The Durian pudding was smooth and revealed generous portions of durian pulp inside. While I enjoyed it, the pudding got a bit overwhelming after a while... perhaps it was also because I was really full then.

There was also a small selection of fruits, Movenpick ice-cream and Nonya kueh. Two traditional soup desserts were served as well: pulut hitam, and gingko nut and barley with beancurd skin and quail's eggs. The pulut hitam was alright, but the latter was not bad at all. The savory quail's eggs matched surprising well with the silky barley soup!

Verdict: Come to this buffet only if you fancy durian desserts available. And do order some savory stuff to go along, I was surprised that I soon got sick of eating sweet stuff although I love my desserts!

Go past the glass door fronted by the sign 'Keyaki' on the fourth (?) floor of Pan Pacific Hotel and you'll find yourself stepping into a charming Japanese garden, complete with a pond filled with koi. You can choose to dine inside the classy, air-conditioned restaurant, or enjoy your meal outside with the great cityscape view.

The interior of the main dining area is divided into two sections- one for diners seeking a teppanyaki fix, and the other for those planning to order other dishes. So if you're planning to order mainly grilled dishes, do request for a seat in front of the iron griddle and enjoy the novelty of watching the teppanyaki chef fry up your food.

We started off our meal with a platter of exquisitely-presented sashimi, adorned with daikon slivers that served as a palate-cleanser. I particularly enjoyed the sweet and succulent hotate sashimi! I think this costs $45++.

We too ordered a set lunch to share ($58++), comprising of salad, seafood tempura, seafood teppanyaki, rice, miso soup and fruits.

The tempura course featured a humongous prawn, one shitake mushroom, eggplant, julienned carrot and a piece of fish. Encased in feather-light and flaky batter, they were fried to a crisp, golden perfection. (On a side note, don't you find the substandard, oil-logged tempura sold in many food courts disgusting?) The star here was the Ebi tempura which had a lot of bite!

In addition to salmon and bean sprouts, the teppanyaki course also included two pieces of prawns and scallops that were simply divine. The very thought of their flavorful juices perpetually resurfaced in my mind for the rest of the day, and even haunts me as I compose this way overdue review...

My dining partner and I also sought recommendations from the chef and subsequently ordered Hamachi and Kanpachi sushi ($6 and $7 respectively) as the two types of fish were freshly flown in that day.

The freshness of the fish was highly commendable, and the moist, fluffy rice grains blew me away! The top-quality short-grain rice, flavored with a balanced vinegar to sugar ratio, were definitely the most memorable part of the meal.

Boy I'm really glad that I chose to have a bowl of rice instead of udon or soba... Keyaki's rice is superbly delish! But the best way to enjoy it here would be to have it moulded into an elegantly-shaped sharidama, with the rice grains packed to the perfect firmness, and topped with a thick slice of fresh sashimi.

We ended off the meal with sweet, juicy slices of melon and watermelon.

The service was brisk and very good. The kimono-clad waitresses were attentive but unobstrusive, polite and helpful. A walk around the garden made a great ending to the pleasurable lunch outing.

We came here for the set lunch, which includes a drink, salad and a main course for around $12.

The salad was a small, simple combination of fresh lettuce, julienned carrots and corn kernels, livened up by the refreshing dressing.

My Pineapple Yakult (add $2 to upgrade the free drink included in every lunch set) was served with a slice of orange. It was okay I guess... Oddly tea was only served then.

Tako Satsuma Age ($5.80) is basically a crispy fish patty with octopus, and was listed as a signature dish on the menu. It was served with a small mound of minced ginger. There was a rather generous serving of octopus studded inside. However, it was a tad tough so I probably won't order this again.

Torinegi Teishoku ($9.80) is described on the menu to be crispy fried chicken with spicy sauce. The chicken tori was not bad-being crispy on the outside and tender inside. However it would have been even better if it was juicier. The leek slices served with the dish did the perfect job of mopping up the yummy sauce. Like the other lunch sets, this was served with a small bowl of rice, pickles and miso soup.

The Sukiyaki Teishoku ($12.80) then made its appearance. The waitress served up a metal bowl filled with a fresh assortment of vegetables, tofu and large slices of raw beef, all immersed in stock. The bowl is placed on a hotpot and is then cooked in front of you. You can control how long you want your food to be cooked. The stock was intensely flavourful and was addictive. The onion slices caramelized wonderfully inside the broth, and the leek simply melted in my mouth. The small serving of tang-oh included in the hotpot was also very delicious. The beef was pretty good, it's similar to the beef bowl from Yoshinoya- tender and chewy, full of the essence of the broth. There was also enoki, cabbage, a shitake mushroom and carrot slices.

However, after a while, one does get sick of the very sweet broth. Perhaps the chefs could cut down on the mirin? (However I may not be a good judge here as this is my first time eating sukiyaki)

The Kimchi Nabe Teishoku ($9.80) was the daily special. Similar to the beef sukiyaki, the dish came with a lot of veggies, tofu and generous pork slices, along with a mound of kimchi.

Watami's got affordable food and polite service. I'm not sure how the speed of the service is like now, but our food and drinks took a very long time to arrive during our visit there last year when they were still trying out a new PDA ordering system.

Fish soup is one fish I often order, being both healthy and clean-tasting. Having read excellent reviews of this Han Kee Fish Soup's rendition, trying out this dish was a must-try for me when I swung by Amoy Street Food Centre for lunch before an impending medical appointment.

The verdict? At $4, this fish soup beats the mediocre renditions served in most food courts hands-down, both in the generosity of the fish slices and definitely in the taste factor. Not only were the Batam fish slices flaky and tender, the soup they were swimming in was also flavorful, bursting with the sweetness and freshness of the fish. The rice ($0.30) could have been more moist and fluffy though- there's nothing better than a bowl of pearly, fragrant rice grains to complement a tasty broth.

What I dislike about this stall, aside from the perennially long queue (which was fortunately relatively short when I joined in), is the . Fortunately, fish soup doesn't take too long to prepare, especially with the quick-handed chefs helming the stove. With 7 people ahead of me in the queue, and only 15 minutes to spare, I asked the auntie in charge of taking orders for an estimation of the waiting time. Instead of directly replying my query, she brashly told me to look at the rate at which the queue was moving. Even if she did not wish to provide me with an estimation, there was no need for her condescending attitude and rudeness.

Perhaps she might have neglected treasuring her customers, since she's got many to serve. Was this a case of arrogance rearing its ugly head?