[Street 50 Restaurant & Bar]
First impression of Street 50 restaurant was cosy, elegance, with dark colored furniture used throughout the whole space. Quiet environment with mostly tourists dining here, it would be a perfect venue for meals without much disturbance.
This upcoming Christmas and New Year, Street 50 restaurant had come up with festive buffet for you guys to enjoy great food at affordable prices.
(1) Salmon Carpaccio with Corriander and Pinenut Vinaigrette- Love the start off with salmon carpaccio. Salmon was fresh and pairs well with the zesty pinenut vinaigrette dressing. I took my share in 1 whole bite and enjoyed the corriander leaves fragrance bursting in my mouth when chewed.
(2) Smoked Oyster & Crab cake- Crispy breaded batter wrapped with lotsa fresh crabmeat and smoked oysters. Smoked oysters was cleverly added in to provide the overall saltiness. Sauce drizzled on top was sambal chilli with pineapple bits. A unique combi to provide some asian touch to this dish. The best dish of the night.
(3) Bay scallop with Warm Tomato Essence- Tomato essence was too overpowering in this dish. I could only taste the sourness of tomato and not the sweetness of the scallop. Radish shreds were paired together to give that extra crunch.
(4) Seafood Paella- A beautifully crafted bowl of paella filled with fresh prawns, squids, white clams, scallops, mussels, tomatoes and olives. Pretty appearance but tasted otherwise. Spanish rice texture was mushy and tasted bland. Seafood were overly cooked and turned out dry, especially the squids which were tough to chew.
(5) Black Pepper Alaska Crab Claw with Gingko Nut- You heard it right! Alaskaaaaa crab claws at Street 50 festive buffet spread! The spicy peppery sauce made me kept going for more, it's never enough. The flesh were firm, although slight salty but I still love them. Kitchen staff were also sweet enough to pre-slit the claws for our easy consumption. Chef's idea of adding gingko nuts to this dish was just to add a little Asian twist to it. But was it necessary, opinions differ.
[Optional] Take the Spanish rice with this black pepper sauce, it's yum!
(6) Smoked Tandoori Turkey Breast- What's Christmas without turkey? This big sharing portion was enough to go round our table twice. Meat was soft but slight dry, common when comes to breast meat. Two different sauces were served: Cucumber Corriander and Pineapple Sweet chilli. Personally I preferred the cucumber corriander sauce but corriander can be heavier. The sweet chilli sauce was just common.
(7) Crepe Suzette- A french dessert with a very nice tangy aroma when served. Crepes were soaked in a sweet caramelized tangerine sauce topped with a slice of the fruit. Crepe was too chewy for my liking, felt like eating our chinese "min jiang kueh" but it does works well with this citrus sauce. Definitely a sweetness overloading dessert.
There were other highlights at this buffet such as Roasted boneless lamb leg, Crayfish printanier, Baked prawns with red current and ginger compote, Blue mussels bourguignon, Christmas log cake and many more. So what are you waiting for? Book your seats now.
"Bejewelled Christmas By The Bay"
Festive Buffet Promotion Period:
- 24 & 31 Dec '15
$68++ Per Adult
$32++ Per Child (6-12yrs)
- 25 & 26 Dec '15, 1 & 2 Jan '16
$58++ Per Adult
$28++ Per Child (6-12yrs)
Maybank credit cardholders enjoy 1 dines free with 2 paying adults privilege.
Street 50 Restaurant and Bar
Bay Hotel Singapore
50 Telok Blangah Road
Singapore 098828
Dining reservations: +65 68186681
www.bayhotelsingapore.com

This year, Intercontinental Hotels Group (IHG) collaborates with some renowned chefs to start a culinary journey of specially crafted creations for diners around Asia.
These specialties by IHG Ambassadors will be featured at all intercontinental and Crowne Plaza Hotels/resorts in Asia, Middle East and Africa.
In Singapore, diners whose interested in this culinary journey have a choice of 2 courses meal at S$35++ or 3 courses meal at $45++ per pax. If you like some alcohol to go along with your meals, you could order chef's favourite cocktails at S$15 each or selected wines at S$15 a glass/ S$80 a bottle. It's my honour to enjoy the 3 courses meal at Hotel Holiday Inn Singapore Atrium along Outram road. We chose Chef Vikas Khanna's Indian cuisine and Chef Sam Leong's Chinese cuisine.
Chef Vikas Khanna creations:
Appetizers
(1) Tandoori Malai Chicken- Chicken were prepared in small chunks, about 2" each piece and torched on the surface to get that additional char, smokey taste. Meat was well marinated with tandoori but texture abit dry, maybe because it's breast meat. Take the chicken with the mint chutney and pickled onions, not only it helped to reduce some of the dryness, it also brings your tongue to another level of your palate.
Main
(2) Chicken Tikka Masala- Personally, I love Indian dishes. I love how the many different spices were prepared to create a curry dish that carries a strong taste and delightful aroma. But this chicken tikka masala dish we had smells fragrant yet taste wasn't what I expected. Presence of masala and turmeric was strong and distinctive but this dish lacks spiciness. There wasn't any naan or prata to go with also. The oven baked vine tomatoes paired with this masala chicken were so sweet, overall causes this dish to taste sweet rather than savoury. This dish wasn't bad after all but still I preferred a spicier version to this.
Dessert
(3) Masala Chai Brulee- Creme brulee I tried a lot but with indian spices, this was the first. The appearance was ordinary and without torching on the surface therefore not impressed. It was served cold, with cracklines, seemed to be fridged for too long, not freshly made. Texture was slight coarse, not smooth nor creamy. Chai taste was mild and had a peppery aftertaste after consuming. Felt weird on my tastebuds but it was a new experience.
Chef Sam Leong creations:
Appetizers
(1) Signature Wasabi Prawns- Whole prawns were de-shelled and deep fried to golden brown, then tossed with creamy wasabi mayo sauce. The batter coating the prawns was very crispy, prawns were flesh and crunchy. Wasabi ratio was little therefore didn't make me tear. The mango salsa that came with this dish tasted like Thai sweet chilli dip. Slight spicy and zesty, together with the sweet mango cubes, it was awesome.
Main
(2) Pan-seared Lamb Chop- Marinated with lemongrass, the natural citrus flavour was cleverly used in this dish to cover the lamb stench that I hated most. Meat was well marinated, tender and pan seared to perfection. No complains, we really enjoyed this course.
Dessert
(3) Mango Pudding- Served chilled from a jar, it looked rather unprofessional for a dessert by renowned chef. Texture was firm, like those Japanese konnyaku jelly and mango taste not distinctive. Overall tasted more milky than fruity. Mixed berries were laid on top of dessert but I felt that it would be more appropriate if fresh mango fruits were used.
Verdict: Overall dining experience at this IHG Culinary Journey was pleasant. If I were to compare between the two chefs, my personal opinions were Chef Sam Leong's dishes flares better than Chef Vikas Khanna's Indian recipes. I'm more impressed with the chinese cuisine. And priced at $45 per pax for a 3 course meal, it's was quite affordable too.
As for the service at Atrium restaurant, it was good too. All staff on duty were very polite and attentive. Atrium restaurant do serves ala carte dishes and bbq buffet on weekends, do try them out.

[Purple Sage ]
A hosted dinner organized by Purple Sage Group , together with local foodies/ bloggers, to try out Purple Sage catering latest festive season menu at ifly Singapore, Sky Garden.
Purple Sage, 1 of the leading caterer in Singapore, has been in the market for more than 15 years. After they were awarded with halal certification in year 1999, their growth was rapid and from a used-to-be a small factory till today's large factory at Pandan loop. Determined to keep up with their 3 important values: "Prestige", "Perfection" and "Passion" so as to give their customers their best food quality and service with 100% passion put in.
The menu we tasted today was called "A taste of Christmas" (website states "Festive Tidings") Per pax is $38, min 30pax to order.
For appetizers, we have:
(1) Seafood Salad- River Prawn, Mussel, Squid, Dutch Cucumber, Tomato and Spanish onions tossed with Dill & Calamansi Dressing. An eye-catching starter with all the vibrant colours. The seafood were fresh and squid not overly cooked. Together with the sourish zesty dressing, it increased my appetite for more food.
(2) Insalata Di Asparagus- Romaine, Walnut, Cranberry and Asparagus accompanied with Fruity Dressing. I love my salad with walnuts and asparagus as they increases the crunchiness of my greens. Dried cranberries adds on to the overall sweetness and its antioxidants too. The homemade fruity dressing tastes very interesting, like a combi of mixed berries with caesar sauce. Nice aroma and not too sweet.
(3) Asparagus and Chestnut Volute with Cream Fraiche- This soup was smooth and creamy but a little too bland for me. Each mouthful filled with asparagus and chestnut bits, how I wished there were toasted baguette or croutons to go along. Take it pipin' hot as its a great tummy-warming starters.
For main dishes, we have:
(4) Steamed Saffron Rice with Raisins and Almonds- This rice tastes rather plain on its own and I could only taste the raisins. Almond flakes already lose its crispiness when we dig in..
(5) Baked Turkey Breast with Cajun Spice accompanied with Cranberry sauce- Turkey breast were well marinated on the skin and very thinly sliced for easy consumption. Texture was firm and slight dryness was common for turkey breast. Dip with the cranberry sauce to give that additional kick to your white meat.
(6) Roasted Potato with Pesto Sauce- These mini potatoes were nicely roasted with slight crisp on the skin while keeping the flesh soft and moist on the inside. Pesto sauce on the other hand wasn't really distinctive, I almost can't feel the existence.
(7) Roasted Australian Chill Striploin accompanied with Whiskey Peppercorn Sauce- Probably because beef were covered too long in warmer, they seemed to be overly-cooked. Fortunately it was sliced thinly otherwise it would taste even more tough and chewy. Whiskey peppercorn sauce did worked well with the red meat. The alcoholic sauce smells good and peppercorn taste not too overwhelming.
(8) Vichy Baby Carrots and Broccoli tossed with first pressed Olive oil, Parsley and Pine nuts- I find this tray the most cheery dish among all other dishes. The orange and green veggies were so pretty. I love the natural sweetness found in these french carrots. Broccoli were done well too, not over-cooked and slight crunchiness still remains at the stem portion.
(9) Oven baked Atlantic Salmon glazed with Red Miso and Furikake cereals
- The salmon were already soggy when we had it, all slices were clumped together. Like the beef, salmon were covered in the warmer for too long, the cereals' batter coated outside the salmon were wet and soft. Red miso marinades were also too salty. It's not a pleasant dish to consume.
For desserts, we are served with:
(10) Purple Sage Christmas  logcake- Without any complicated design or cream frostings, this Purple Sage log cake was only covered in a layer of purple glazed. Seems to be telling us "Simplicity is Elegance". Inside is chocolate mousse with cherries, sandwiched between layers of vanilla sponge cake. It's fluffy, soft and surprisingly not too sweet.
(11) Homemade Chocolate Mousse with Sangria Wild Berries- A very beautifully crafted plate of desserts filled with many elements that I love. Can you believe they're serving this at buffet? Wow! The chocolate gelato was creamy and the cookies crumbs gave the crunch. The sourish wild berries neutrals the sweetness of the whole dessert and trust me, it's really good!Verdict: This whole dining experience was pleasant. Although not all dishes were fantastic but for buffet catering, the taste were considered above average. The table setup for the whole event were great too.
Do give Purple Sage a call if you're planning for any festive parties. Quote "A taste of Christmas" to get 10% off for Roasted Traditional Turkey and/or Purple Sage Christmas Logcake.
Purple Sage Group Pte Ltd
157 Pandan Loop
Singapore 128355
Tel: 6396 6990
Find out more information at:
http://www.purplesage.com.sg/christmas-menu

[ BaliThai ]
It's been some time since I last visited Bali Thai restaurant so decided to meet my gal friend for lunch at Bali Thai Seletar Mall.
This branch space was very big and spacious, can easily cater 100 customers. Whole restaurant was also nicely furnished with displays related to taste of Thailand.
We skipped the lunch sets and ordered ala carte dishes instead.(1) Minced Chicken Stuffed Wings $3.50each
- These wings were crispy on the outside, the chicken meat inside were firm. A pity the taste was too bland otherwise it will be a great appetizer to start with. Take with the Thai sweet chilli dip provided, it'll help.(2) Glass Noodles with Seafood Green Curry $11.80
- When the food was served, the appearance itself already turned me off. Initially I thought the glass noodles will be swimming in a pool of curry but it turned out to be the drier version. Coconut content was too heavy, too gelat to finish the whole portion. And this pitiful "seafood" version has none other than 3 tiny prawns with lots of uncooked eggplant slices. I only finished 1/4 plate.
(3) Phad Thai with Grilled Chicken $10.80- Phad Thai flares a lot better than the previous dish. The grilled chicken thigh was well marinated. Meat was flavourful, texture was tender and not oily. Noodles were nicely done too. Texture was right for me, not too dry and they didn't clump together too.
Verdict: Food standards of Bali Thai seems to deteriorate over the years. I remember it wasn't this bad the last time I visited, or was it only this outlet? Manager on duty did came over to ask me why I left most of the glass noodles untouched, but after my explanation, her reactive was just a word of "orh". This type of service really has to improve. With only a few tables occupied during lunch hours in such a spacious restaurant, it's really unsightly. Hopefully the next time I drop by, there will be surprises.
BaliThai Restaurant
The Seletar Mall
33 Sengkang West Ave
Singapore 797653
Open daily
10am to 10pm

A brightly lit and clean place was the first impression I had when I stepped into this highly raved desserts place for the first time. All white is the theme. Pretty surprised that the whole place was empty on a Saturday afternoon around 2pm.My friends and i were introduced to the whole range of eclairs and parfait sets at the counter. As the name says it all, "Karafuru" which means colorful, so you can really expect to see many colorful eclairs available.There were at least 15 flavours to choose from and its not easy to decide which ones to get. In the end, we gave up (hahaha) and blindly chose 4 eclairs and a Hanami parfait set.
(1) Matcha Azuki $6.00- Matcha creme, azuki beans and matcha sables. Although I'm not a matcha person but this flavour do catches my tongue notice. The cream was smooth and matcha taste was distinctive. The soft azuki beans' paste blends in well with matcha creme, adds sweetness to the eclair while balancing the slight bitterness from the matcha.
(2) Cafe Au Lait $6.00- Milk coffee creme, chocolate sables and edible gold dust. I like this flavour most among the rest of our choices. Being a coffee and chocolate lover myself, coffee and chocolate combi usually works pretty well together for me. Coffee aroma was so fragrant and the milk coffee creme inside so creamy. The chocolate sables adds additional crunch to the eclair. Although gold dust wasn't any necessary but it does makes the overall looked prettier.
(3) Black Forest $7.00- Kirshwasser creme, candied wild cherries, raspberries and dark chocolate. Felt that the pairing of kirshwasser creme, dark chocolate and berries was a mistake. These elements doesn't taste good together. Brandy taste wasn't clear and when combine with sourish berries and chocolate, it's simply weird. I would suggest to skip this.
(4) Sakura Rose $6.00- Sakura rose creme and marzipan. Having the most pretty color among the rest 3 eclairs, this eclair smells really floral. First bite into it eventually stops me from having the second. Taste reminds me of pink cough syrup from clinics; A very strong dose indeed! Yucks! Sorry but I do not know how to appreciate this highly raved flavour.
(5) Hanami Parfait set $20.00- Sakura soufflé, Vanilla pudding, Sakuru syrup, cereal crunch, hanami dango, raspberries, strawberries, red fruits coulis and Sakura langue de chat. A detailed crafted plate of dessert comprising so many wonderful elements.
Milky yogurt softserve was smooth and creamy. Paired with the sourish red fruits coulis provided was brilliant. Sakura soufflé was very soft and cotton-liked. The fluffiness made me fell in love with it immediately. Vanilla pudding texture was coarse and the sakura syrup (cough syrup taste) drizzled over it made things worst. Hanami dango were really chewy and I liked the greeny piece most because matcha taste was distinctive. Not forgetting the cereal rice puffs that gave this dessert the crunchiness among all the soft ingredients on the plate. Overall look of this pinkish parfait set was pretty and attractive, girls will definitely choose this.This $20 parfait set comes with a pot of tea and we chose "Soba seed stem" tea to go along. Made using aromatic soba grains and stem tea, this blend was light with slight sweetness aftertaste. A great choice to have after all the sweet treats. The mini brown sugar madeleine that comes with the tea was yummy too!! (Better than the eclairs)Verdict: For me, their parfait set was more worth the calories. As for their eclairs, the choux dough texture were too soft and dry inside for me liking. Appearance definitely scores but as for taste, it's really subjective among all 5 of us. Not much to rave about this place but just another instagrammable dessert place with colourful instagrammable food. I might step into Karafuru again for other parfait sets as there are many selections but for their eclairs, it's definitely a "no-no".