I'm always keeping a lookout for good places to have my pastas, I'm also always on my perpetual quest and food drinking expeditions for the best coffee too! I tried many cuppas, some are just beyond words and I just wish I could kick start every morning with such a wonderfully crafted caffeine quick fix. Wouldn't that be great? Then there are some I've tried, just couldn't steal my heart. I'm guessing they are just not my cup of coffee. No offense but it's just a matter of preference.

One such place that did manage to steal my heart and make me coming for more caffeine fix would surely have to be Oriole Cafe with their flagship store located just beside 313 Somerset. The drink's pretty universal; Long Black, Mocha, Latte or Americano. Trust me, the drinks are far from your ordinal cafes. If having award winning baristas brewing your coffee isn't enough to make you excited, then I hope the single-shot Cappuccino ($5.50) would be your saving grace.

I may not be a true coffee connoisseur but I do know of differ-shading a good cuppa from a not so good one and more importantly, appreciating the hard labor that went into my petite drink and the profound heart shape cast upon my milky foam.My lunch partner went for the set lunch offer and she got herself Spaghetti Carbonara, which was appeared to be pasta tossed in bacon and parmesan cheese. It was rich and creamy if not very salty too. My lunch partner couldn't be bothered finishing the whole plate. Not worth causing her kidneys to fail I guess? I graciously accepted my partner's offer to have her appetizer, Crab Meat Bruschetta which was prefectly executed but nothing really amazing in terms of taste.

We gave dessert a miss for my lunch partner has severe allergy to all things alcoholic and I didn't want her to go back home and wake up the next day with rashes all over her body. That would be bad right? Besides, I could always make a trip down myself, alone or with company. The two of us ended somewhere else for desserts instead but that would be another post by itself.

The set lunch was nothing out of this world and much less good to begin with but the coffee by itself is more than enough to set my foot upon Somerset just spending time with me and my cup of coffee. I have also long heard about their famous Fish and Chips but somehow, I never gave as much attention to the fried batter of fillets and hand-cut chips but I'm sure there's always a next time, surely with a good cup of coffee with me...

I like to think that I’m one blissful guy. I often find myself surrounded by nice and generous friends who wouldn’t mind a treat once in a while. I vividly remembered a good friend hosting a group of us over something we love lavishing our attention on; Fish sashimis. The apparent holy grail to some of my friends’ love for all things raw.

And it’s not just some cheap roadside sashimis but good and thick slabs of fresh fish cuts of a Japanese restaurant. The best part was we had a room all to ourselves and we just order whatever we feel like having if we still could spare a room or two.

Let’s not go into the bottles of sakes we down throughout the entire night as we feast like kings and queens of the medieval days. It was just a crazy night but the companions and the fun we had was nothing short of fond memories.So when I’m celebrating my 20th birthday with this bunch of friends, I too wanted somewhere nice to spend some quiet time catching up with them. But it ain’t always easy hosting such a big group of friends for dinners much less a birthday dinner.

Buffet was definitely on my mind since everyone can eat whatever they want at anything for a fixed price. But where should the place be?

I search and thought about all the potential places but none could suit the dinner quite like Shin Minori at UE Square, Clark Quay. The place fits my budget (I can’t expect my friends to pay since I say I’m hosting right?) and we have somewhere private and away from the noisy crowd.Once we settled down in our room which resemble a store room with tables and chairs stack by the side. Somewhat disappointing I must profess. It was such a pity that we couldn’t get the more spacious room since it was already reserved but for the free flow sashimis, I think everyone could just neglect the “sitting in a store room” dinner event.

First up was their complimentary side which were two fish heads sitting in a shallow dish of soy sauce. As with all fish heads, the best parts are always the eyes and cheeks. Even more enjoyable when the fish was fresh. Definitely setting the stage to impress us with the quality of their food.

Do note that the two fish heads are complimentary because we booked a room to ourselves. From the fish heads we were digging in and lavished in praise, we move onto to main delights. The sashimis, the sushis and what else raw! Since Shin Minori is an ala carte buffet restaurant, all you need is to indicate what you want on their coloured menu lists and request to be delivered right to you! Now that’s having buffet on a whole new level!

With close 100 over different variety of dishes to choose from, it can be quite a hassle to ask around who wants what. Like I always say:

Just order everything! Don’t worry about wastage because someone will bound to love and enjoy it!Almost everything was good but what I really enjoyed was their Kabocha Chawanmushi also known as pumpkin egg custard. The pumpkin taste gives an oomph! feel to the entire eating experience! Forget about your normal Chawanmushi and give this a try instead! I swear I downed a few cuppas that very night just to satisfy my cravings for eggs.

There were some stuffs that were really worth eating and there were some that weren’t but given the variety and the price ($39 per person for dinner), I think it’s a definitely Must-Try buffet that's worth your money!

If you ever find yourself having a craving for Japanese buffets, just do yourself a big favor and head down to Shin Minori.

But for me, I wonder when and where will be our next!

Well, They have made the right choice for when it comes to cakes, I daresay no one knows them best!

Of course being in Tampines, means being pampered by a a wide variety of bakery shops! I don't wish to go through each and every single one of them for I have my preferred shop. Let me give you a hint. It's starts with the letter R."I want that Oreo Cheese cake!" That was all I remembered before I plunged into my wallet... At $38.00, I swear it was all worth the calories. On top is a smooth, creamy cheesecake that is absolutely packed with grinded Oreo cookies bits while the top is a thick, substantial oreo crust. It was rich though I wished the cookies bits hidden in the cake was much bigger just to enjoy the dessert better.

Apparently, the folks at Steakout uploaded my previous visit onto their facebook wall and they have brought answers to my questions raised from my previous visit. In case you couldn't see the fine prints in the screenshot above, here's what I was informed.

1. They are still the same folks that ran the former ROS but taken on a new name (Steakout).
2. Their famed Lava Cakes is more sinful than ever and that's a good news for me!
3. In my previous post, I talked about their excessive use of butter in their baked potato? Well, they told me
they will look into the matter. Perhaps less cholesterol? I'm hoping so...
4. Now I know how a well-made Vanilla Ice Cream tasted like. Come to think of it, the Vanilla Ice Cream I had with over at Max Brenner tasted almost the same too.The Creamy Mushroom Soup that came with the set lunches ($2.50 to add on). Nothing out of this world but hey, expectations are always the root of all problem. I don't know about you but I think it's worth that $2.50.My partner went for the Grilled Chicken ($7.90) which was beautifully plated but I feel that the gaps in between could be managed better. I on the other hand, went for the Sirloin Steak ($14.90), medium rare as usual and I won't have it any other way! The beef cut was a fair deal. It's not your tender type of meat but it's also not that laborious to chew either. Definitely, filling unless you're a SUPER SUPER BIG EATER!I will go as far as to say this: "Steakout might possibly have the best Chocolate Lava Cakes in town."

I know my friends who frequent Max Brenner, Laurent Chocolate Bar and Three Inch Sin would disagree with me and a few of them might even stone me for making such an outrageous comment! But I'm speaking the truth! Best in terms of price. You're not going elsewhere and get a Lava Cake that's flowing really good molten chocolate and served with a scoop of Vanilla Ice Cream that I thought to be laced with alcohol at but then informed that that's due to the use of really good quality Vanilla Pods at $6.90.

I'm not sure if ROS has closed down or rebranded itself but all I know now is that a new steakhouse is reborn. Whenever I past by the same place, I see a new successor to the old republic. Steakout.

Upon entering the steakhouse, everything seems the same. The siting arrangements. The Australian desert backdrop. What about the food. Is it still the same or better? A glance at their menu, they may have a different design altogether but the name of most of their dishes still remains the same just as I remembered.Pan-grilled Dory ($8.90) smothered with brown mushroom sauce. Garlic spaghetti and baked potato accompanied the unpretentious dinner. Initially, my partner was skeptical about having fish for dinner but after trying his first mouth. The rest were history...Rosemary Pork Steak ($9.90) doused in thick black pepper gravy. There's nothing much for me to say since meat was well-marinated. Extremely tender when paired with the black pepper sauce, I daresay it's pretty darn good!

Nothing special about the baked potato apart from the fact that the unhealthy amount of butter on it but the apple salad was refreshing to my palette.Now, my friends would know how much I can eat. The sky's the limit or I should say the stomach's the limit!

Eating is my first love. Sharing is my way of communicating my love to my friends. Steakhouse Crispie ($6.90), thick fries and onion rings. Something out of the package but at least it's piping hot.

Now now now. How can we end of the night without some desserts right? I personally was eager to try out their lava cakes. I just wonder if it's the same as ROS or something different...Glorious Lava cake ($6.90). A good lava cake doesn't just trickle or dribble chocolate. No it sure doesn't. It's even better my dear. It's POURS out rich and warm chocolate! My partner on the other hand, got the Brownie ($5.90). Cute and cuddly. A dream come true if you ask me. Dense and chocolaty. But still Lava cake beats Brownie hands down. No competition that's for sure!

Now as the two of us indulge in our desserts, somehow we realized that there's something about the vanilla ice cream but we just couldn't lay out fingers on. We suspected it's laced with alcohol. A pretty strong one I have to say but just like my partner say:

"Does it matter? What is more important is we get to enjoy the desserts."