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A Sanctuary for Nice Quiet Meal
2014-09-14 458 views
This is the place to be for a quiet & relax Sunday afternoon. There's no pipe-in music, customers chatted softly & staff just go about their business quietly. The seatings are well spaced & made complete with comfortably sized marble tables.It's almost like having our meal in a library without the shelves of books…The kitchen only serve vegetarian food on weekends.We ordered 2 plates of Hor Fun ($4 each), a Mock Chicken Pie ($1.50), a Mushroom Pie ($1.50), 2 cups of White Coffee ($1 each) & a cu
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This is the place to be for a quiet & relax Sunday afternoon. 

There's no pipe-in music, customers chatted softly & staff just go about their business quietly. The seatings are well spaced & made complete with comfortably sized marble tables.
It's almost like having our meal in a library without the shelves of books…

The kitchen only serve vegetarian food on weekends.
We ordered 2 plates of Hor Fun ($4 each), a Mock Chicken Pie ($1.50), a Mushroom Pie ($1.50), 2 cups of White Coffee ($1 each) & a cup of Teh-O ($1, refillable with hot water).

Everything is self service here, even for the payment…just drop the amount into the Donation Box.

The plates of Hor Fun were of rather big portion, filled with a good variety of veggies & mushrooms. It's a refreshing change to those heavily seasoned, non-vegetarian Hor Fun.

The Mock Chicken Pie was filled with stewed potato & mock chicken. It tasted like those non-vegetarian Chicken Pie although there's more potato than mock meat.

The Mushroom Pie is definitely a Must-Try Item!
It's packed with delicious, juicy sliced Shiitake Mushrooms.
Very satisfying.

We liked the crust of their pies very much. It's a mixture between the base of cheesecake & the crumbles on an apple pie. A little dry but very buttery. It goes really well with our hot beverages.

Verdict: 


A sanctuary for nice quiet meal.


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99 views
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103 views
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188 views
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(The above review is the personal opinion of a user which does not represent OpenRice's point of view.)
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Date of Visit
2014-09-14
Spending Per Head
$7 (Lunch)
Level3
46
1
Lunch Metta
2014-06-12 139 views
I'm here again! Today's mission is to escape from the humid apartment, to have my lunch settled & also to submit a few reviews for OpenRice while enjoying the free air-conditioning. Today, I have time to take a good look around this Cafe. Hmm...this place is filled with an extensive handicraft works from the students here...In fact, the whole Cafe is tastefully dotted with their handicraft artworks throughout. You can see interesting & unique pottery, paintings, detailed batik artworks, handmad
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I'm here again!


Today's mission is to escape from the humid apartment, to have my lunch settled & also to submit a few reviews for OpenRice while enjoying the free air-conditioning.
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 Today, I have time to take a good look around this Cafe.
46 views
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 Hmm...this place is filled with an extensive handicraft works from the students here...
In fact, the whole Cafe is tastefully dotted with their handicraft artworks throughout. You can see interesting & unique pottery, paintings, detailed batik artworks, handmade tote bags, paper flowers, tea-sets, bookmarks, etc...
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 Sales of these artworks will boost the students' self-esteem & increase their market value in a demanding world outside.


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 This bright & glass-partitioned room can facilitate Parties, Celebrations, Family Gatherings of all sorts & even small-scale Class or Company Events.
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 Watching the student & the Chef hard at work had made me even more hungry & eager to end the walk-about!


After a litlle struggle, I finally decided on having the Curry Chicken with Rice...ok...I was actually struggling very hard between the vegetarian dishes & the Halal (non-vegetarian) dishes. I collected the bowl of Gingko Barley Dessert Soup (Dessert of the day) & went to sit at my usual table. Yes, it's my usual table now...eventhough my first visit was only yesterday...


Curry Chicken w Rice (Non-Vegetarian Food) $4.80
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 This was served to me shortly as I settled down. The steaming hot rice & delicious looking chicken had me salivate as I was taking pictures of different angles...
The fluffy white rice was steaming hot & the grains were soft & chewy...you know, the type that one would even eat it on its own?...
Mmm...satisfying.
The chicken was cooked just right...although not the tender & juicy type, but firm & moist enough and you can even taste that it was lightly marinated!
The curry was the best, the fragrant hint of lemongrass in the thick curry gravy...you can also taste that the spices were subtly stir-fried, yet it is not oily. Mmm...& the fragrance of the coconut milk...I had to ask for more...to drench the rice with...heeheehee...


Gingko Barley Dessert Soup $1.20
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 The barley in the mildly sweet soup was soft & chewy. I counted 7 gingko nuts in my bowl & they were boiled till tender; the soft soyabean skin was lightly crushed before cooking & so no chewing needed...
This dessert will be my latest crush!


Verdict:


Though alone, I enjoyed my lunch very much.
I even had hot tea-o (hot water provided for refill) & a can drink ($1.10 with no charge for ice) for the 4 hours that I was there.

It was time well-spent, having completed typing 2 reviews & finished my sewing project.


(The above review is the personal opinion of a user which does not represent OpenRice's point of view.)
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DETAILED RATING
Taste
Decor
Service
Hygiene
Value
Date of Visit
2014-05-18
Dining Method
Dine In
Spending Per Head
$8
Recommended Dishes
Curry Chicken w Rice (Non-Vegetarian Food) $4.80
Gingko Barley Dessert Soup $1.20
Related Review
Reviews submitted by the same member to the same restaurant within 30 days.
A Simple Cafe with A Hearty Mission
Level3
46
1
A Simple Cafe with A Hearty Mission
2014-05-17 466 views
Mettā (Pali: मेत्ता in Devanagari) or maitrī (Sanskrit: मैत्री) is loving-kindness, friendliness, benevolence, amity, friendship, good will, kindness, close mental union (on same mental wavelength) and active interest in others. It is one of the ten pāramīs of the Theravāda school of Buddhism and the first of the four sublime states (Brahmavihāras). This is love without clinging (upādāna).- from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia* * * * * * *Mission:To train and create employment opportunities for the y
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Mettā (Pali: मेत्ता in Devanagari) or maitrī (Sanskrit: मैत्री) is loving-kindness, friendliness, benevolence, amity, friendship, good will, kindness, close mental union (on same mental wavelength) and active interest in others. It is one of the ten pāramīs of the Theravāda school of Buddhism and the first of the four sublime states (Brahmavihāras). This is love without clinging (upādāna).
- from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

* * * * * * *
Mission:
To train and create employment opportunities for the youths with special needs.
- from http://www.metta.org.sg/main/?p=4438
* * * * * * *

We knew this place years ago when it was "Happy Arts" & they only served vegetarian dishes. Hmm...we came here so often that we didn't hesitate to become their VIP members. There were plenty of occasions when we came in as late as 9pm (straight after work) for our very late zhu-chao 煮炒 dinners. This vegetarian affair lasted for a few years. Then, we stopped patronizing altogether ever since "Hanis" took over (which was about the same time when East Point Mall started their major renovation).
Recently, someone in our community FB page mentioned that this place had reopened & was aptly named, "Metta Cafe".
So I decided to rekindle my good old vegetarian affair...


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 As simple as a small cafe that you could find in our local swimming pool, community club or any study institute...this place is brightly lit, air-conditioned & very spacious...
Hmm...if only someone would start a "Wheelchair Friendly Restaurant" award...


The greenery of the little "Butterfly Garden" outside was refreshingly pleasing. Round marble-top tables with cushioned wooden chairs were neatly arranged in the restaurant. An exclusive dining area (for big groups, staff, teachers, monks & nuns alike) was set aside & could be easily partitioned into private dining areas.
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 As the other entrance is located next to a bus stop, it was convenient access to occasional groups of sassy mothers or agile grandparents with the adorable children.
To me, this was no doubt a comfortable sanctuary from the hot, sticky weather outside & a great place for study groups.


The staff (consisting of volunteers & youths with special needs) were friendly & efficient. Though a trainee would occasionally sat at an empty table & stared far-away...ignoring the untidy tables of used cups & plates. However, this would be the time where you would see that teachers, mentors &/or volunteers would walk over with caring & encouraging words. So nice...


That said, I decided that today's visit would be a recce mission (with the help of having missed lunch totally la)...

I ordered Lemonade, Chicken Pie, Tapioca Kueh, Curry Puff & Ham Bun.
Would you believe this whole lot only cost me $4.60!
Savory Pastries (Non-vegetarian)
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 I was quite surprised when told that the savory pastries were non-vegetarian but were Halal (pending issue of the Halal certificate).
Chicken Pie (non-vegetarian)
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 The Chicken Pie was a cupcake-sized pie. The pastry was delightfully buttery, it crumbled & melted in my mouth...I liked it.

The creamy stewed filling was mildly herbed & did not overpower the whole buttery crust.
Hmm...noticed the pie was not entirely filled with the yummy chunks of stewed chicken & potato. Perhaps, it would raked heaven if it was filled to the brim & the pie crust could hardly contain it!


Chicken Curry Puff (Non-vegetarian)
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 Although there's nothing fantastic to shout about, but the decent-sized Chicken Curry Puff & the slice of Steamed Tapioca Kueh cost only $1. You could taste the flavorful spices in the curry chicken filling though the thin pastry was chewy, air-conditionly chewy...but the combination still tasted ok wor...?!
Again, I would loved to have the fillings covering the lobang (empty hole) in the puff.
Steamed Tapioca Kueh
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 The kueh was firm, mildly sweet & packed with chunks of tapioca (more flour mixture found in other stores). This was suitably enhanced with the freshness of the grated coconut - a complex love that only the kueh lovers could understand...
Vegetarian Ham Buns
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 Initially, the Ham Bun was supposed to be a take-away as supper. But, I just couldn't resist the temptation to tear bits off the fluffy bread & bite into the vegetarian mock ham...
Ham Bun
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 The soft & fluffy bun had a mild sweetness that was completed with the interesting flavour & texture of the mock ham. Mmm...tasty!


Verdict:


I humbly declared this recce mission...a success!
This cafe is officially a desirable place for me to venture frequently with my library books, laptop, sewing projects...etc...


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 Oya...kindly bring exact cash for your bill as they've started using the donation box instead of the cash register. The staff has no access to the box & might need time to get you the change.

Well, I can't described it...it's a really different feeling when you pay as per the traditional businesslike way & when you slowly shuffle your payment into the donation box (witnessed by the staff). There's a tad of happiness...even a little blissfulness (that you're so blessed to be able to give). Can't say for you, but I liked that feeling...


(The above review is the personal opinion of a user which does not represent OpenRice's point of view.)
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DETAILED RATING
Taste
Decor
Service
Hygiene
Value
Date of Visit
2014-05-15
Dining Method
Dine In
Spending Per Head
$4.60
Recommended Dishes
Savory Pastries (Non-vegetarian)
Chicken Pie (non-vegetarian)
Chicken Curry Puff (Non-vegetarian)
Steamed Tapioca Kueh
Vegetarian Ham Buns
Ham Bun
Related Review
Reviews submitted by the same member to the same restaurant within 30 days.
Lunch Metta