I have a confession to make - I'm a Sakura-holic.

I guess I'm the typical Singaporean who loves food and buffets.
And because Sakura is perhaps one of the cheapest international buffets in Singapore, it makes me all the more a bigger fan.

Location
I've visited almost every Sakura outlet and the one at Dhoby Ghaut is one of my favorites. It is quietly and conveniently located away from all the hustle and bustle, yet easily accessible from the Dhoby Ghaut MRT station.

It was initially quite difficult to find because of how isolated its location is. But once you know where it is, you'll find no problem heading there at all.

Food
There's quiet a widespread of food, though not as good as most other buffet spreads elsewhere. You can find sushi, freshly sliced sashimi, western and asian-styled soup, appetisers (e.g. chicken wings, baked mussels, tempura), Asian fare (e.g. stir-fried broccoli, black pepper sliced beef, sweet and sour fish, cereal prawns).

There's also a corner where you can place your table tags to order on-the-spot prepared meats (e.g lamb chop, beef steak, dory fish, satay, squid), next to it is an ordering station where you can get chefs to prepare for you their dish of the day (sometimes laksa, chicken rice, etc), and of course, not forgetting the dessert and drinks corner.

Im always spoilt for choice when it comes to their dessert. There are assorted flavors of ice cream, cakes, brownies, cheesecakes, fruits, and even cream puffs. The drinks include coffee, latte, milo, tea, ice lemon tea, lime juice, etc.

It's quite mazing how they managed to fit so much into one small place, The variety is awesome. But i would only recommend this place to those who want a buffet spread without burning a hole in their wallets. If you are looking for great quality, this place may not be for you. The standard here is just ok, considering its price.

The dining environment is comfortable, and the service here is good and efficient.

If you are coming here in big groups, i would suggest you either come early or make a reservation.

When we say laksa, most of us would immediately think Katong Laksa.

For laksa connoisseurs like me, finding that perfect bowl is a never ending agenda.

It's such a pity that i only recently came to know of Roxy Laksa, which is a small stall humbly nestled at the corner of East Coast Lagoon Food Village.

To stand out among the other food stalls, you might think bright lights and vibrant colours should do the job. Well, no. Roxy Laksa will prove you wrong.

The store front is so plain and run-down, one would barely even notice its existence. But surprisingly enough, it draws in its own group of loyal customers.

When i first ordered it, i was a little disappointed at the fact that the bowl of laksa doesn't come with cockles (cos we all know, laksa isn't laksa without the cockles).

So i topped up $1 to have cockles added in.

I must admit, i am quite a food critic, especially when it comes to laksa. It is my favourite local dish - can't help it.

Upon my first mouthful, i actually expected to say an immediate, "nah, can't beat my favourite bowl!" But, i didn't. It was a tough choice cos this was really good.

Some of you might beg to differ with me. I don't know, could be the Singaporean mentality of more is better. Though they are not so generous with their portions, the taste and flavor was good enough to win me over.

I personally believe that a good bowl of laksa lies in the laksa gravy. As long as you have awesome gravy (and of course, the cockles), you have a chance of me visiting you again.

The uncle at this stall for some reason, gave me spoons full of laksa leaves! I think the leaves make the dish even tastier and definitely a whole lot more yummy!

Try it out! Laksa lovers should not miss this!

It was my birthday weekend and my all my boyfriend told me was that he had a great surprise in mind.

He psyched me up so much that i was overwhelmingly excited.
And when he brought me to Changi Village, it was a complete anti-climax.

I was about to tell him off, but before i could do so, we were standing at the doorstep of Changi Village Hotel. It was (and still is perhaps) the grandest architecture in the entire Changi village district.

Trust me, I was still dubious that old Changi was a good enough place to have my birthday dinner.

Things changed however, when he brought me into La Cantina, which was hidden deep inside the hotel (considering the hotel was hidden well enough).

We sat at the balcony, which has limited seating capacity, by the way. We could feel the refreshing Changi breeze and embrace the magnificent skyline from where we were.

The atmosphere was awesome.

We started with Minestrone Soup, and then ordered ourselves a Vongole Spaghetti (Pasta with clams in white wine sauce) and Linguine Al Grnachio (Crabmeat linguine in creamy tomato sauce).

The portions were very generous. And when i say this, i actually mean the seafood, such as the crabmeat and clams. Not like most places where they overload you with the noodles and give you small bits of seafood

The wine taste was also a pleasant touch to your taste buds - not over empowering, yet enough to make the flavor very distinctive.

I recommend this place for couples. It's romantic and makes the perfect place for a date.
P.s Try to reserve the outdoor tables, it's worth it.

I brought my boyfriend to Santaro thinking it would be nice to try top-quality authentic Japanese food for a change. I knew the prices were going to be steep, but I figured that the prices must mean that whatever's brewing in their kitchen, must be good.

Okay, so here's the thing. The meal was indeed delicious and authentic. The Sushi and Sashimi were extremely fresh and meticulously sliced to perfection. The Teriyaki Chicken and Unagi were beyond tasty, oozing with flavor, and melting in your mouth with every bite.

The Udon was heavenly. If you're a fan of this dish, you'll definitely have to try theirs. I swear I've never had soft and smooth udon noodles with such powers of seduction like this one.

So all in all, the food was amazing. But is it worth the price?

I personally don't think so.

The restaurant looked old, crammed and rundown. Maybe it's for the whole traditional Japanese feel - I don't know. But it felt lifeless and dull. We could even hear the kitchen from where we were sitting.

The service was much to be desired. They shouted to each other like we were in some hawker centre. Worse still, the waitress serving us spoke to us like we were in a coffee shop ordering drinks.

If the ambience was better and service up to standard, I might consider it to be a good place to go to for authentic Japanese food. But with all the negatives, I'd advice against that.

Visited Brizo at Park Hotel with my boyfriend for the first time... and most probably my last as well.

We made a reservation prior to our visit, but apparently, they did not record it down. The waitress at the entrance looked very confused when we told her we called to make a reservation. Worst still, she called another waiter, said something to him and he also looked confused. We ended up standing there with two bickering staff until the manager came and directed us to a table.

We were quite upset at the service because of her rude stare at us as if we were the ones at fault.

We put that aside and went to view the spread, which to our shock, was very limited. Definitely not worth the price paid.

They had sushi, oysters, salads, sashimi and other cold foods. All these were so-so for us.

They also had roast duck, pork belly, roast chicken, sea cucumber, fried rice, kuih pie tee, shrimp, squid, coffee pork ribs and soup.

The only two dishes worth the mention are the coffee pork ribs and roasted meat.