Never knew that Costa Coffee was such a big chain in the international arena until my recent visit. My cup of Hot Mocha ($6.50) is brewed according to its golden formula of espresso to hot chocolate milk to foam. It was more intense and less sweeter than the Flat White. Besides coffee, they have a series of savoury food that are not only suitable for dine-in but also good for takeaway. Their new Summer Vegetables Wrap $6.90, is a filling roll of nicely grilled zucchini, eggplants that tasted better than its rustic looks.I was quite amazed to find Sous Vide Chicken at this cafe as this style of vacuum-steaming cooking takes place mostly at restaurants. Sandwiched between wholemeal ciabatta, the chicken had a smooth tender texture, though I wish there were more honey djon mustard.But out of the sandwiches, I would recommend the Grilled vegetables and mushroom panini ($7.20). The not-too-thick bread makes it easier to chow through and its pizza-like taste will ring a familiar note in many people.In fact, I also tried the (hopefully) healthy Caesar chicken salad that tastes as good, if not better than many other places. Desserts such as carrot cakes are rather passable so I suggest you to get their savoury food instead of sweets if you are really hungry. But that said, their muffins are quite special. Always overlooked Muffins at any cafe but the ones here actually comes with filling. For instance, this blueberry muffin($3.90) most likely won't catch your attention but it is unexpectedly fluffy with sour blueberry jam inside. After this, I am curious to try the triple chocolate one that boasts gooey chocolate filling.As I recall my favourite items that day, I realise they could make up a full course set menu (from Chicken Caesar salad to Grilled panini and end of with the Affogato or their hot mocha). Though the food might not be extremely fantastic, the cosy ambience and service did not give me a "mass-franchised" feel. A good location for not only work discussion but also leisure afternoon coffee just to spend time away.

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Helmed by Chef Lau who is the brainchild behind the award winning lobster porridge at 2008 Beijing Olympics, Wan He Lou serves up wallet-friendly Chinese cuisine within comfortable air-conditioned environment. After opening for about a month, the team has created new dishes that seek to capture local tastes.Of course, the all time signature dish was the Lobster Porridge (Good for 2 pax) - $29.90. Though the lobster meat was isolated from the porridge, the yellow broth enhanced with lobster roe had hints of freshness from the sea. It does lack a bit of peppery kick, but on the very least it did not taste full of MSG.The Crispy Lotus in Salted Egg Yolk - $10.90, with doses of chilli padi made a very good dish to go along with rice, or even a snack if you have high tolerance of salt. The extra bits of aromatic curry leaves were a bonus.My favourite dish was the Stir Fry French Beans - $8.90. It might be a common dish in many restaurants but skills and experience are required to execute it well. What made this dish stood out were the super fragrant dried shrimps, garlic nibs and chilli padi. It actually had milky scents that reminded me of cereal prawn! Not all the dishes served are perfect but this place is certainly promising enough for a casual gathering with family or friends. Apart from the Lobster porridge, the Crispy Lotus in Salted Egg Yolk and the Stir fried French beans are dishes not to be missed.

Understandably, the restaurant is still at its experimental stage. Given more time, I'm sure the experienced chefs will be able to neat out the minor details and deliver consistent Chinese fare.

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Visit: http://www.dairycream.blogspot.sg/2013/06/sakae-sushi-new-menu-vouchers-giveaway.html for full post. I tend to jump straight to the sushi or sashimi when I visit Sakae. But this time round, I realised that the appetisers were pretty tasty too, and in fact better than few of its sashimi items. For instance, the Asari Miso ($6.29) were tiny springy clams seasoned in miso paste that dominated the flavour. Perhaps I was the only one at the table who enjoyed the stickiness of the Ika Okura ($6.29)--ladyfingers mixed with squid. It was a light dish without need for extra seasoning.The Honey Sakura Ebi ($6.29) is simply a pot of sweet crunchy prawns that are so good for snacking that I doubt nobody will dislike unless he/she is allergic to crustaceans Marinated with soy and vinegar, the silvery sashimi ($4.29/3pcs) already has a mild sourish and salty taste, so I suggest you to enjoy the original flavour without soy sauce.Oysters fans may be delighted to know that there are mouthwatering raw oysters from Hiroshima here at $8.29(4pcs). I am not a fan of oysters but those who did found them fresh and deliciousI always thought that Sakae Sushi only served sushi but now it has a wider variety menu with some dishes like the Kohada sashimi and Smoked Duck Sushi that caught me by surprise but quality wise, there is much to catch up. For instance, The ramen tasted more like Korean style noodles rather than Japanese tonkatsu ramen. Both the Seafood and Wagyu Beef ramen used the same kimchi soup base that was not spicy. The mango pudding ($3.59) can be misleading as it was actually made with apple and mango purée. For the pear pudding($3.59) , the liquor was not strong enough but overall both are sweeter than average.......

Click : http://www.dairycream.blogspot.sg/2013/06/miow-sin-popiah-and-carrot-cake.html for full review and pics This is another famous stall at Lavender that used to be at Upp Boon Keng Road. But the popiah ($1.50) somehow failed to deliver the taste that day. Popiah ($1.50)
The portion was quite small and the filling did not had much texture nor flavors as the vegetables were too soft. I don't mind if they are using factory-made skin but it became a little soggy.However, the white carrot cake ($3) was REALLY tasty and crispy. None of the carrot cake chunks were too huge and the chye poh makes it even crunchier and aromatic. Must not miss the powerful chilli here as it gives that extra oomph!The same uncle who has been frying the carrot cake here. Only after this meal did I realise that the stall has been featured previously on Makan Places : Lost & Found Season 2. Wished my popiah experience had been really "pop!pop!" like what was shown on TV.

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Mouth Restaurant has revamped their menu since last year and the new items are reinterpretations of traditional dim sum. The Family went to its newly opened branch at Plaza Singapura during a weekend high tea session from 3-5pm but sadly, many items like the squid ink bun and their signature Xiao long Bao were not available. The Rainbow Har Gao in 6 ($9.80) mimics the concept of multi-flavor Xiao long Bao. The skin was of the right thickness but the individual flavor of shrimp meat was not distinctive as its pork counterpart in XLB. Do not mistaken this Squid Ink Seafood Soup 7.80 for herbal jelly. The base is a egg white custard, topped with a thick soup that is rich and tasty.The best thing I can remember is their Baked salted Egg Yolk (3 for $5) Unlike typical steamed bun, the mildly sweetened outer crust is crisp like a HK-style Bo Lo Bun, that released viscous and creamy golden lava. Though some might find it to be much more greasy than usual kind, but who will say no to custard buns?The Sweet Potato Roll $3.60 and Tako Cheese Croquette $4.80 sounded special but turned out to be dry, starchy and pedestrian. Instead of the usual Chee cheong fun, we ordered the XO-style Pan Fried version with prawn and charshu $8.80. It turned out to resemble stir-fried kway teow. I like the slightly browned surface of the rice rolls that makes this dish fragrant but the taste of XO-sauce was not amplified. Some of the mandatory dimsum items included the chicken claws w chilli $3.90 and the Spare ribs with pumpkin $4.50 and the Fried Beancurd skin roll $ 3.20. The Sauteed Premium scallops, wild mushrooms in XO sauce were slightly overpriced to me at $26 even though those jumbo scallops were fresh and not overcooked. The combination of crunchy celery and slimy fungi made this dish less boring.

Conclusion: Higher chances of securing popular dim sum items if we were to come in the morning. Would be more keen to revisit for their revamped ala carte dishes, which were in our memories, more delicious than the dim sum. Some items are creative but their quality vary. Hopefully my favourite egg tarts that were nowhere to be found, can appear on their dimsum menu one day......

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