Starbucks is a delightful chain, filled with the most passionate and friendly baristas I've seen so far! But my favourite outlet of them all has got to be the NTU Starbucks.

First of all, it's spanking new, and directly connected to the Global Lounge. The Global Lounge in NTU is where you can choose between sipping your coffee in the comfort of the normal seating (tables and chairs) or opt to plug in your earphones and enjoy the programs playing on the split screen tv in front of many vibrantly plush red chairs. Now, tell me which other Starbucks have amenities like this?

Also, the baristas at NTU Starbucks are always so cheery and ready to meet your requests with a happy smile! I've always went to them in the mornings to get my breakfast wrap - and each time their good service manages to lift me from my tired funk. Kudos to the awesome team.

They also make killer frappucinos! Pictured is the salted caramel frappe from NTU Starbucks, one of the drinks I'm missing the most! Notice how the ice is blended well with the coffee (unlike the ION outlet, which serves frappes slightly too warm for my liking)

Sometime back, I had dinner with the bf at Hot Tomato, Causeway Point. food at Hot Tomato was surprisingly good, and cheap! bf got the steak, prawn 'n' aglio (pictured) at $12.90. Furthermore, for dinner times and weekends, an additional $3.50 gets you a drink, soup of the day & garlic bread - weekday lunches upgrades are a dollar less, $2.50. I've got the Steak n' Aglio at $10.90.*NB* I think the prices have gone up a little, with the drink replaced by ice cream in some outlets.

No matter, it still remains a great value for money! In fact, the bf even commented it's the first time his actual plate of food looks better than the advertised photo! XD After I was done with snapping my food pics, I was pleased to find that the spaghetti was still Al Dente, and moistly flavorful - coming from a no frills chain like Hot Tomato, it really is a surprise. I remember being disappointed by the service and food quality at their first small stall in Plaza Sing. Since then, their revamp has really revitalized the brand - Today, I'd still pop by for their lunches to get my steak fix. Oh! Did I mention the prawns are juicy and steak served to the right done-ness we requested for? Super awesome.

The service at Causeway Point was great as well, which all in all justifies the perpetually long queues for a table at CWP Hot Tomato.

just got my weekly fix of the delicious raisin cream cheese buns! for barcook virgins, I seriously recommend lurking around the area and coming back when a new batch arrives (it may seem like quite a wait, but really, even the freshly made buns usually get wiped out in 30 minutes, tops. much less the ones out in the open). nothing comes close to feeling the HOT (let this be my warning to you) and rich cream cheese oozing from the bun once you take a bite - it's the perfect combination of sweet and salty flavours, that can rival any salted caramel creation.

however, it's with no pleasure that i say the rest of the offerings aren't all that spectacular. of course, it's still better than the generic BREAD-droids that can TALK, if you get what i mean.

ahhh, what better way to enjoy the Yishun 925 Chicken Rice, than at the place of it's namesake?

ordered the affordable chicken rice plate at $3, and the nice uncle gladly acceded to my usual request of "no breast meat, no wings and no bones". of course, they do remove the bones true to the Hainanese style serving habit, but saying it just reassures me more. haha.

cliched as it sounds, the chicken is always really TENDER and JUICY. for folks who have no inkling of what tender and juicy means (yes, the people who use these two descriptive words too flippantly) - try the chicken rice and you'd know the real definition. the rice grains are fluffy, fragant and obviously well-loved by the chicken broth in the cooking process.

i'd come back anytime, despite the gross toilets. haha.

Arrived at around 9.30am for the bah chor mee, and a steady queue was already forming at the humble stallfront. Naturally i joined the queue, and basked in that addictive aroma of vinegar and noodles that Tai Hwa is so famed for. This time round, thanks to the early morning brisk, I got to my bowl of heaven in less than 15minutes. Therefore, always come early if you're hungry!

The best part of the experience (apart from the crazy queueing, of course), is that the whole bowl of bah chor mee is unwavering in taste over the years - everything from the noodle consistency (or bee tai mak, the way i like it), to the soupiness of the dry bah chor mee and the flavour of the vinegar, is standardized and SOOO YUMMY all the time.

Although I'd have to warn you, that prices are steep at $5 a bowl for hawker fare - not that I care, as I go for the $8 one all the time. Seriously. I'm such a bah chor mee addict that I embarrass myself sometimes. Join me, won't you?