Almost without fail, I'll order their signature red tea jelly cold dessert if I'm dining here. They do not use a lot of syrup for their desserts, so I'll recommend that you ask for more syrup else you might find that the desserts might be too bland. Hence I always ask for additional milk for my dessert - it's usually $1.50, but you add 20 cents more for that - trust me, it's worth it.

Generous slices of red tea jelly is given with 4 longans and some colorful round jelly bits. Once the taste of the milk and the red tea jelly mixes into the ice, the final taste is slightly reminiscent of a light bandung concoction. Quite a refreshing dessert to end off your meal

The other desserts are all priced really cheap too, one of the most cheapest I can find already nowadays.

After not visiting Turf City for years, I decided one day to head to Giant to purchase some baking needs. Behold! The compound was under renovation and there were a few new eateries. Most of these are not the typical chains or franchise you commonly find around the island.

I walked pass VeganBurg a few times and love the brightly lit and oh-so environmentally green setting. As shallow and superficial as I was, I was apprehensive of trying vegeburger as I have watched lots of American TV and heard how horrible they taste.

After multiple visits to the area and trying the other restaurants, I decided that I shall listen to the angel hovering over my right shoulder and give it a try. The restaurant was pretty empty except 2 tables (1 family of 5 and a couple). Gathering the courage, I asked the waitress what is good? I was expecting the typical, everything is good kind of answer. But she politely recommended the creamy pepper mushroom burger and the smokey BBQ burger.

In my attempt to eat healthier, I decided to go with the creamy pepper mushroom burger, with a side of seaweed fries and a drink. The choice in this case was Apple blackcurrant juice. It cost $11.85 for the set, which is actually quite expensive compared to the regular M..... Anyway, I was issued one of those pager device which vibrates when you order is ready, and headed to take a seat.

Less than 5 mins later, my food was ready. It was served in a mess tin, very much like those we use in army (refer to photos). I was expecting to see such a large burger (refer to picture with my finger as a comparison). Taking a bite, I was bracing myself for that fake-meat-wannabe-moldy taste to overwhelm my palate. But alas, it wasn't the case.

There was no weird after taste. Was it like beef or chicken? I don't think it does but it reminded me of crab otah. The texture, and taste was kind of like that, crab meat freshly removed from the shell and mashed together to form a patty. Was it good? I decided to take a second bite to re-affirm my suspicion. And boy... was it tasty. The patty was crispy on the outside and tender, juicy inside, which was really quite something and I found myself taking bite after bite of the burger to find something negative to say.

What I found was more positive things to write of. The ciabatta bun was very fresh and easy to eat. There no rubbery resistance like certain burger buns. It kind of just melt in your mouth. The mushrooms were fresh button mushrooms, topped with a peppery cream sauce. As much as I like button mushrooms, I am not a fan of very raw mushrooms. Unfortunately for this burger, some parts of the mushroom had that raw taste. However, if it was immersed in the sauce, it actually soften the mushroom and created a wonderful combination. The sauce was not overpowering and had a good balance of salt and acid to it.

The fries were alright, lightly salted with barely any taste of seaweed to be called seaweed fries. The one thing that really didn't do too well was the drink. The apple blackcurrant juice was basically very very diluted cordial and it really failed to be called juice. Don't order the juices unless you like coloured water that much.

Overall, my adventure to Veganburg has been largely positive and I highly recommend others to try. Oh by the way, I realize they have been around for a while now with outlets in other parts of the island.

Date : 2012-11-11
Time of visit : 12pm
What/Where : Shi Wei Tian @ 39 Joo Chiat Place
What we had : KL Hokkien Noodles,Chao Tar Bee Hoon,Signature Guinness Stout Pork Ribs,Signature Home-make Tofu,Signature Golden Pumpkin,Chai Poh Fish,Herbal Drunken Chicken Soup,Salted Egg Crab
Average cost/pax : Open Rice Makan Hunt sponsored. Didn't check.
Ambience : Well, Joo Chiat has little trees/wind so I'm guessing that's the reason this area is always hot as hell, but when we first stepped into the place, the fan/aircon combination made all the dining difference, you could even feel the "wall" of hot air whenever the glass doors open but staff quickly close the doors to maintain cool temperature. Too bad there's an 8 photo upload limit otherwise I got more to post. The ambience is excellent and brings you back to a memory lane of vinyls/vintage items/70s/80s/90s, Vinyl player, foot powered sewing machines, typewriter etc. It's the youth of uncle/aunties and the museum of the "good ol days" for the youth/young. Family after family comes in for a nice gathering as well as those business men dining at this location. Place is clean as well.
Service : Staff was attentive and responsive in clearing tables and making room for more "ho liao" as well as ensuring our glass drinks doesn't stay empty for long.
Portion : KL Hokkien Noodles - this is my first time eating this "udon-like" noodle, it's very soft and the sauce is just nice. not too salty nor plain.Chao Tar Bee Hoon - This caught my attention, it's very "dry" (ah boh, chao tar mah..) , "bitter" (chao tar) , and surprisingly "sour" (from the lime) . I didn't understand the concept behind it at first, but after when the pork ribs and the golden pumpkin came in, the combined taste is very appetizing!Signature Guinness Stout Pork Ribs - Perfect. Taste Smell Texture. Went so well with the Chao Tar Bee Hoon.Signature Home-make Tofu - Tofu was normal, the fried mushroom on top had this weird taste like you "overused the cooking oil" to fry other stuff then fry this. Could be an isolated incident cos I think the other OpenRicers may have enjoyed it more than I did. Signature Golden Pumpkin - Again. Perfect. Crispy on the outside and satisfying salt (egg) and sweet (pumpkin) on the inside. At the end of the makan, more than 30 mins upon being laid on the table under aircon+fan there were a few left , I washed my hands from eating the crab and got back to eating it again, surprisingly, it still tastes great / crispy.Chai Poh Fish - The fish is fresh, crispy , tender and not over cooked, the sauce isn't overpowering like some places really abuse their "fish sauce" inaccurately like I'd be trying to eat the non-sauce-soaked parts or avoid eating the fish all together.Herbal Drunken Chicken Soup - the soup had a light refreshing taste and the chicken meat is very tender. The "oil" on top looks intimidating at first but after a few sips it was fine.Salted Egg Crab - Generous use of the salted egg here. Taste is alright, the only disappointment here is "shell big but meat small".

Side note - Lime juice drink was great too, good for digestion/detox, so can keep on eating.

Location : Those not driving, the nearest MRT is Eunos then it's a quite a little walk in. It'll be hot mostly, so bring an umbrella and a makan mate to chit chat on the way with. those driving - Parking opposite at the public carpark where the temple is, Don't play play, the summon auntie here damn on the ball , trust me. Put an hour or two coupon and spend the good money on the food.
What's good in particular : Guinness Stout Pork Ribs and Signature Golden Pumpkin
What's bad in particular : A little ulu for those not living in the area or convenient mode of transport I guess.

Thank you OpenRice for organising the Makan Hunt event!

ABiteOfEverything.com

This udon dish was so-so but using of udon to replace the usual yellow noodles is rather special, there are bits and pieces of pork lard among the noodles but the whole dish could be more flavourful. This chao ta bee hoon was quite disappointing but it lived up to its name of just chao ta. It was dry and the prawns that were put in were hard and not very fresh. I would give a thumbs-down for this dish.This pork ribs were the best among all the dishes. The pork was not too tough and the sauce that accompanied was rather special, it was sweet yet slightly bitter and the taste lingered a while in the mouth before disappearing. This is dish a must-try when you go to Shi Wei Tian.This tofu with fried enoki was rather okay, the tofu was very smooth and fresh but the fried enoki had me sick of it after the second bite. This fried pumpkin was so-so as well, the batter was too much and the salted egg taste totally covered the pumpkin flavour. Also, the pumpkin was not very sweet as well and i had a hard time trying to taste the pumpkin in it. Accordingly to the restaurant representative, a maximum of two pumpkin pieces should be eaten per person (if not you will really get sick of it). This fish dish was below average. Firstly, the fish was over fried as it was not crispy and I had a hard time trying to cut the fish with the spoon provided. Secondly, the cai pok that was on the fish was hard and not juicy as well. So....i'm This soup dish was fragrant when hot, but salty when cold. As the chicken skin was put into the soup and cooked together, there were quite a significant amount of oil in the soup. The chicken was okay but slightly overcooked. Lastly, the salted egg crab! I had only a small portion of it, but according to my friend who ate a bigger portion, she said that the meat was slightly little for such a big crab. However, the salted egg sauce was yummy! This dish came with a plate of fried buns which were nicely fried and did not have the oil smell, and if you dip the bun with the salted egg sauce, you will go woooooooooooo....................

Tucked away in a cosy shophouse along Joo Chiat Place, 食唯天 Shi We Tian is one of the many restaurants you will find along that lively street. But one of the distinct features that sets it apart from the rest is an alfresco dining area that transforms into a cool hangout place for you and your soccer buddies to kick back and watch a match over some beer. The crowd that you will find here are mainly residents who live around the area and regular customers who frequent the restaurant for family gatherings.As you step into 食唯天 the first thing that catches your attention is the huge collection of antiques - an old sewing machine that my grandmother used to have sits beside a 19th-century vintage gramaphone. And as you venture deeper into the restaurant you'll find lots of old posters, paintings and even more antique items used to decorate the interior. Like taking a stroll through time, the decor of the place is very reminiscent of colonial Singapore.As you would imagine, the food served here is based on the heritage recipes that were passed down from the owner's grandmother, giving it a very homely and unique flavour. The Drunken Chicken Ginseng Soup was one of the dishes we had and the soup base was sweet with a rather strong ginseng taste to it. I rather enjoyed the soup since I had not eaten ginseng chicken in a long time, but it pales in comparison to the ginseng chicken soup that you get in Korea.

One of the more unique dishes that they served, and also a favourite of mine, is their Golden Pumpkin which is basically slices of pumpkin coated with salted egg yolk and fried in a light batter. The combination of the salted egg yolk and pumpkin leaves a very refreshing taste, and you can't help but want to eat more of it.To end off the feast was a magnificent Salted Egg Crab! You can tell just by looking at the size of that pincer that the crab is full of juicy, succulent meat. I'm not much of a crab lover, mainly because most of the crab dishes are spicy (Chilli Crabs, Black Pepper Crabs, etc.) and I'm one of the few Singaporeans who don't take spicy foods. Anyway, I took a smaller piece of the crab and while I had a difficult time prying open the shell (another reason I don't like eating crabs), the salted egg sauce was fantastic and probably very sinful. The thick yellow sauce was glistening under the light and its texture was velvety smooth probably because of the butter base. I completed my meal with a piping hot mun-tou (fried bun) dipped into that thick, creamy sauce.They even have a candy floss machine and will make one for you on request. It's one of those childhood snacks that you used to buy from the "pasar malam" (flea market) and you don't see many of these around very often nowadays. Having candy floss definitely adds to the whole nostalgic feel of the restaurant and the kids definitely love it too! Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed my meal at 食唯天 and will drop by again if I'm ever in the area.