Find your satisfying steamboat time and the best chicken wings here!"What I am about to tell you is going to destroy your diet plans...

But it will be worth it."

Because GOROGORO is finally open and you can now have both super satisfying and value-for-money steamboat experience in town! So, gather round all your friends whom you haven't seen in a long while and catch up while you feast on the best chicken wings (hands down better than 4 Fingers), thinly-sliced meats in very nourishing and tasty soups, and many more.~ MEGA BUFFET SECTION ~

Everyone, pick up your plates and go attack the food section!The amount of side dishes are making my eyes @_@Your carbo bases...And your veggies - so many varieties!More than what you can eat in one seating, there's no way you can taste everything even though you can try your best! In total, there's 70 selections of fresh meats, vegetables and drinks available to savour.~ BEST HAJION WINGS ~

This is reason alone why I can't get GOROGORO out of my head.

Don't miss out on their chicken wings ("Hajion Wings") - it's seriously the best I've had, even better than restaurants selling Korean fried chicken in particular. I didn't think I'll find this quality at a buffet table. They refill them as fast as they are swept off the buffet table because everyone knows it's really good. Succulent and tender, the marinate goes through entirely into the chicken meat without being overly salty or sweet, I just wish I can have it everyday. My only regret is that I have one stomach.~ DELICIOUS SOUP BASES ~

Onto the soup bases... GOROGORO don't do 'ordinary', they cater to different taste buds with six choices of broth to select from: Ginseng, Chicken, Beauty Collagen, Mala, Tomyum, Tomato and Vegetarian! On each steamboat, you get to choose three soup bases. Of course if you have more people on the table and can have 2 sets of steamboats, you can try all the flavours. However, I would rank these flavours according to my preference as such:

1. Ginseng

2. Vegetarian

3. Beauty Collagen

I wasn't a fan of the Mala or Tomyum because they were just wayyy too spicy to enjoy for me! The Tomato was alright I guess, but.. I would prefer to go straight for these three flavours.

The Ginseng was an absolute joy to simply drink non-stop, with or without the meats, prawns, tofus and veggies to go along with. It was so thoroughly boiled and as we went along, it tasted even better as we put more ingredients in there. The Beauty Collagen broth is boiled for at least 12 hours to extract the very last taste and goodness from the stock and spices, making it really rich and tasty, without being overwhelming. The Vegetarian wins the hearts of most of us, with its homely and safe factor, it allows us to enjoy the meat slices without stealing the show too much.~REASONABLE PRICES~How to get there:
Go over to Crate and Barrel side of Orchard Road (ie. NOT 313/ Orchard Central side), take the lift up to 4th floor.

Dim sum buffets, all day everyday – possible right at the homely and classy new Bao Today, on the first floor of Hotel Rendezvous. It has taken the foodie world by storm with its extremely value-for-money buffet prices and not to mention – over 40 items on their dim sum menu that’ll surely satiate your appetite. What is the dim sum tapas experience like? What are the hits and misses? Dim Sum Tapas Buffet Prices
I would usually put the prices right at the end of the post, but I can’t wait:
Weekday (Monday – Thursday)
High Tea (1500 – 1700) – $16.80++ for Adults; $12.80++ for Children
Dinner (1800 – 2000 | 2000 – 2200) – $19.80++ for Adults; $15.80++ for Children
Weekends (Friday – Sunday) + Public Holidays + Eve of Public Holidays
High Tea (1500 – 1700) – $19.80++ for Adults; $15.80++ for Children
Dinner (1800 – 2000 | 2000 – 2200) – $22.80++ for Adults; $19.80++ for Children
Children is defined as aged 7 years old and below.What is the Dim Sum Tapas Buffet experience about?
With a range of 40 over dim sum items on their menu, you’ll never get bored of your buffet at Bao Today. The conscientious team behind Bao Today tells us that this menu is constantly being revised to ensure that everything on the menu is what their customers love to feast on.
You don’t have to go through the trouble of flipping the menu. The awesome Bao Today service crew will make their rounds, bringing you their hot favourites, recommending what they love. It was truly comforting and enjoyable, with one of the crew reminding me of an eager grandma to feed her grandchildren all the goodies in the world.
You don’t have to eat all three hargows in a basket if you want more variety (I know you ;)) You can simply tell them exactly how many – 1 salted egg yolk bun, 1 har gow, 1 siew mai and 1 char siew bao? No problem – this reduces food wastage and ensures maximum enjoyment at the buffet!
Freshness guaranteed – Bao Today literally means they do all their dim sum on the day itself.What is the best dim sum to try at Bao Today?
We Singaporeans love to strategize our stomach space whenever we go for buffets, because pragmatism and rationality runs in our blood. As with every other buffet, some are worth more to try than others. There are hits and misses and Bao Today – as they promise, they will remove the less popular ones and come up with ingenious new dishes to replace them, but meanwhile, there are enough delicious choices to keep you full and happy.Hit: ‘Abalone slices’ and pickled jellyfish
This pairing is commonly seen at Chinese weddings, but Bao Today does it so much better than most hotels, possibly because they insist on freshness. The ‘abalone slices’ are delicious, chewy, and the perfect appetizer because it really whets the appetite and prepares your stomach for more to come.Hit: Steamed pork ribs
If you can overlook how troublesome it is to eat it, the steamed pork ribs here is done to succulent, well-marinated and tender goodness, and worth every space in your tummy.Hit: Har gow & siew mai
You almost always see these dim sum best friends going hand in hand all the time… and at Bao Today, these are the star performers. While the har gow’s skin was slightly thicker than desirable, the freshness and chewiness of the prawns in there really shines through. The siew mais are one of the best I’ve had, and I am definitely not surprised that the boss at Bao Today introduced this unassuming dish with such pride. There is no musky smell of the wonton skin like how most places would have, and the pork used was so bouncy and fragrant, together with the prawn, it’s done very well.Hit: Prawn fritters
These prawn fritters are beautifully fragrant and fried to a crisp, with juicy prawns stuffed in there. I wasn’t expecting to like any of the fried items because I generally dislike fried food, but this.. this is an exception for sure.Hit: Salted egg yolk custard bun
It is no secret love of mine, or anyone’s for that matter. Ever since humankind learnt about custard buns, there has been a marked proliferation of these lovely buns across the planet. The salted egg yolk custard buns here are wrapped in fluffy pandan – distinctively so – bao, and the thick buttery salted egg custard flows. I wished I had more stomach space to eat this, because this was fantastic.Hit: Scallop prawn dumplings
Scallops and prawns? SET IT DOWN ON THE TABLE YO. I think this one needs no introduction nor hesitation, because by this time of the buffet, we’ve all acknowledged how fresh their ingredients, particular the prawns and scallops, were.Hit: Prawn chee cheong fun
Just the prawn version though; the char siew chee cheong fun didn’t score as well.Hit: Nonya sauce steamed codfish
Hands down my favourit-est of the lot (I say this because I was beginning to have too many favourite dishes) – the cod fish was so light, smooth and tender in its taste and texture, but the sauce was piquant, sour, sweet, spicy, with a touch of lemongrass… it was so addictive I actually found myself reaching for this again and again.. without shame.
Hit: Charsiew buns
I just realized I don’t have a proper picture of these lovely charsiew buns, but they are pretty good and worth a go even though they seemed so space-inefficient.We are divided on the pork chop – I personally didn’t enjoy it because it was quite tough and dry, but most of them liked it a lot. Maybe it was that particular piece that I had. I shan’t elaborate too much on the rest of the misses, basically everything else that weren’t mentioned were not particularly outstanding. Not that they are terrible, but only because it is a buffet and you know, strategy! As ambitious as I was, I really couldn’t eat everything as much as I tried… Go ahead and venture into the unknown, especially to your favourite dim sum items that I’ve not featured.They do have a lot of items on the menu and if you’re unsure if there’s any particular item you wanted, just ask one of the super friendly service crew. My personal recommendation is to definitely order those that I’ve pointed out as HITS because you really shouldn’t miss those… don’t leave any regrets, y’all. And maybe you can go upstairs and sing karaoke at Teoheng after the buffet – because that’s already on the cards of my future schedule. That’s how you enjoy life, yo. ;)
Read more food reviews on www.amiehu.com

This 2016, gather round your family at Eight Treasures Vegetarian. This restaurant of nearly a decade long history has ushered many Chinese New Years with their loyal regulars – and it’s not hard to see why with their family-friendly, creative vegetarian dishes alongside traditional classics.Eight Treasures Vegetarian is dedicated to ensure all their dishes are strictly vegetarian, yet contrary to popular belief, their line-up of dishes are appealing in taste, texture and variety. Their CNY Set Menu includes:
$168+ Set (3-4 persons)
Rainbow Yu Sheng
Prosperity Vegetarian Sharks’ Fin
Teochew Style Vegetarian Fish
Mushroom with Seasonal Greens
Cereal Vegetarian Prawns
Braised Yee Fu Noodles
Fruity Mango Pudding
$368+ Set (6-8 persons)
Rainbow Yu Sheng
Vegetarian Sharks’ Fin with White Fungus & Wolfberries
Fruit Salad Vegetarian Chicken
Thai Style Vegetarian Cod Fish
Vegetarian Abalone Mushroom & Tou Pau with Seasonal Greens
Cereal Vegetarian Prawns
Fragrant Yam Ring
Braised Yee Fu Noodles
Fruity Mango Pudding
$498+ Set (8-10 persons)
Rainbow Yu Sheng
Vegetarian Sharks’ Fin with Bamboo, Fungus, Wolfberries
Teochew Steamed Vegetarian Cod Fish
Ginseng Vegetarian Chicken with Chestnuts
Creamy Pumpkin Vegetarian Prawns
Vegetarian Abalone & Mushroom with Broccoli
Yam Ring with Golden Nuggets
Heng Hua Noodles
Red Bean with Sweet Lotus
This article focuses on the set meant for 6-8 persons.
Recommended: in-house Chinese herbal tea which is caffeine-free and lightly sweetened with rock sugar. It is healthy and remains appealing, with eight ingredients in it, including: chrysanthemum, goji, luohan guo and ginseng. Suitable for elderly and children. I love it so much, I had my cup refilled so many times!Toss to new sweet beginnings here with the colourful Rainbow Yu Sheng, dressed in classic sweet plum sauce! The friendly and affable lady at Eight Treasures blessed us with each of the greetings as she pour over the sauces and ingredients into the yu sheng adeptly. The ‘salmon’ used here is made of konnyaku jelly, so rest your worries about health issues on raw fish consumption. The yu sheng here is not too sweet like the usual, a welcoming change from previous years. This is a plate of yu sheng that we can all finish.I was pleasantly surprised to find an environmentally friendly version of the sharks’ fin. Some may still find it necessary to include sharks’ fin during important celebratory days, so here’s a fine compromise – the Vegetarian Sharks’ Fin with White Fungus & Wolfberries which included a tasty and hearty combination of enoki mushrooms, beancurd skin, white fungus, mock ham, wolfberries and konnyaku-jelly-made sharks’ fin. They did an interesting spin on the usual sharks’ fin dish with a sweeter ring to it, almost like a dessert soup.The Fruit Salad Vegetarian Chicken was a delight – from the moment it was placed upon the table, I was impressed how much it actually looked like chicken. Of course, most non-vegetarians might be skeptical:
Why would a vegetarian restaurant bother mimicking meat products?
Vegetarian cuisine remains quite an enigma for people who are used to having meat and dairy products in their daily diet. By having dishes that are similar to meat, it would provide a smoother transition for people who are thinking of changing their dietary lifestyle (completely or partially).
Eight Treasures Vegetarian does a good job at bridging this gap – I have never really considered trying vegetarian cuisine on a regular (weekly or biweekly) basis because I always thought vegetarian food would be very bland or strange.
This first main dish changed my impression.
Handmade from soy and wheat-based ingredients, the ‘chicken’ was so freshly crispy on the outside, stuffed with potato fillings on the inside, and drizzled with a generous amount of vegan mayo to go along. It didn’t taste like chicken, which would be a tall order, but it was still delicious in another way. It is a bit mind-boggling, but at the same time, I would imagine fellow non-vegetarians like me would be able to enjoy it quite well. The refreshing fruit salad is the bed upon which the chicken/potato was resting on, which makes the entire dish lighter and much easier on the palate.The Thai Style Vegetarian Cod Fish was my favourite dish of the entire set amidst the impressive luxurious items, because… how could this not be fish? I would love to have this everyday! The ‘cod fish’ had an extremely similar layered texture, smooth and soft, while the ‘fish skin’ was made of seaweed which assumes the taste of the oceans. The cod fish was amped up with the piquant sweet, sour and spicy Thai homemade sauce with a fragrant hint of lemongrass. The sauce was thick and extremely satisfying, with pangs of spiciness hitting the perfect spots on the tastebuds. It’s not overly spicy, just sufficiently so. This will surely win over the hearts of many, regardless whether you like spicy food or not.I like how the set menu actually paces our appetite, with a lighter dish of Vegetarian Abalone Mushroom with Tou Pau and Seasonal Greens made of shiitake mushrooms and blanched broccoli (done to perfection, no over-or-under cooking) with a savoury and appetizing sauce to go along.Before long, we were once again impressed with this jaw-dropping Cereal Vegetarian Prawns which could fool anyone to be real prawns in terms of texture and even taste! Of course if you were to look at the cross-section of the prawns, you can tell by sight it isn’t. At that moment, I realized that making vegetarian cuisine is really an art form.
It can easily vie with other cereal prawn dishes made with real prawns in terms of taste, with an aromatic and crunchy coat of malt cereal, with QQ bouncy texture of the prawns. For people with dietary restrictions that cannot eat seafood or prawns.. this is your chance to finally enjoy it again!Yam Rings! A well-loved dish in most family dinners or celebratory tze-char meals, this is of no exception especially with a restaurant who has chefs experienced in making it. Its deep-fried exterior ensures a crispy skin with a light oily fragrance without the heaviness. Cashew nuts, baby corns, mushrooms abound within it.I always associate the Braised Yee Fu Noodles with wedding dinners, and I would say that this is above average. There is much more heart and effort in making this as compared to the usual ones I’ve had which were probably ‘obligatory wedding dishes’.If you are coming by Eight Treasures, you have got to try the Dongpo ‘meat’ (not included in the set) which was an eye-opener. I have to reiterate that this is vegetarian and not real meat of course, but the chefs here managed to create a trilayered meat to mimic the fatty layers of the original dongpo meat. As it wasn’t fats, it was easy to reach for a few in without getting full.We ended the night with a dessert, the Fruity Mango Pudding which was simple and didn’t hide any more surprises. It looks like a small serving but it was just perfect for one person to finish nicely.

Most of the restaurant tables are located on the 2nd and 3rd floor accessible only by stairs. There is limited table seating on the 1st floor, so book early even for non-CNY periods.
Takeaways of Happy Reunion Pen Cai (Vegetarian) is available at $168, Lucky Yu Sheng at $28.80 or $38.80 .
Please note that a 20% cash deposit is required to confirm all reservations during the CNY period. A receipt will be issued and no cancellations are allowed.
CNY period lunch and dinner sessions
11am – 12.30pm
1-2.30pm
3-4.30pm
5-6.30pm
7-8.30pm
9-10.30pm
Call 65347727 for reservations.

What a time to be alive! The first Vietnamese BBQ and hotpots in Singapore at Lang Nuong Vietnam has landed on Foch Road… and dinners (or suppers, for you night owls) really cannot get more satisfying than grilled meats dipped in tantalizing spicy and savoury sauces, juicy prawns, squid and beer! Despite being run by Singaporeans, Lang Nuong has already achieved their stamps of approval from Vietnamese tourists and expats working here as well as fellow Singaporeans.I have been missing the land of pho ever since I returned. From the moment I entered Lang Nuong, all the memories came flooding back. From the low silver tables and chairs (imported from Vietnam for 100% authenticity), to the road signs – Bui Vien, Cho Lon, Ben Thanh – and the whole shelf of Vietnamese cuisine ingredients… it was as if I teleported right back to the country I love so much.

Although this post is to introduce to you their Vietnamese hotpots and BBQ, Lang Nuong will indulge your other Viet cravings like the delectable, refreshing bahn mi and piping hot comforting phos as well. You can say it’s like the one-stop shop for all things Vietnamese.Lang Nuong has an easy-to-understand system if you’re having both the hotpots and BBQ together (recommended for bigger groups so you’ll have variety) – the elongated trays are meant for the hotpot and round trays are for the grill. The hotpot requires much less attention as compared to the BBQ, because you simply throw the ingredients in and wait for it to cook. For a smaller group (2-4 pax), I would say that the Vietnamese hotpot is a good choice because you can focus much more on conversations while letting the meats and seafood simmer in the soup broth.
The charcoal fire that was used to boil their uniquely fresh clams lemongrass soup broth made the taste much more full-bodied even from the beginning. This is different from the usual hotpots or steamboats in restaurants that use induction cooking. As we threw in more ingredients like shitake and enoki mushrooms ❤, prawns, chicken and pork.. the soup became so unprecedentedly delicious and appetizing I had four bowls of the soup even after I was full.
Top-ups are always available, so drink all the soup you want! The service at Lang Nuong is very prompt and attentive, and the service staff are always walking around so it’s quite easy to catch their attention.
Pricing – SGD18.90 (1/2pax), SGD36.90 (2/3pax)
The set includes
Meat and seafood
– Pork collar slices
– Pork belly slices
– Chicken thigh
– Fresh squid rings
– Fresh prawns
Vegetable basket
– Cabbage
– Shitake mushrooms
– Golden mushrooms
– Ladyfingers
– Crabsticks
– Chicken sausages
If this set is not enough for your growling stomachs, you can add-on more from the ala carte or premium meat platter or seafood menu.For the full Vietnamese experience at Lang Nuong, there is Saigon Bia, Saigon Bia Special, 333, and even Vietnamese drip coffee in here. Of course I couldn’t expect 5,000 VND beers anymore since these beers took a plane over to Singapore. You can still opt for the wallet-friendly teas that are good at cleansing the palate while you indulge in the feast.Similar to the hotpots, Lang Nuong do it the charcoal-fired way. Brownie points for its authenticity and that smoky, mouthwatering texture it gives to the meat? Priceless. The meats are all extremely tender – I loved the chicken skewers especially! Each skewer range from SGD1.40 to SGD2.50 depending on what you order. The mushrooms also retained its moisture even after being on the grill.Special mention goes to the squid rings which are amazingly juicy, non-rubbery texture, and easy to bite… I surely didn’t expect to find such good squid rings in the middle of a Vietnamese BBQ, it was such a treasure to find – they do it much better than many restaurants around. Please get the squid rings (❤)!
The service staff changed the metal grill very often and efficiently, without us even asking. I guess it’s usual practice at Lang Nuong as I spied them doing this for other tables too.We finished off the meal with the caramel pudding with coffee, which looked rather humble but it definitely could hold its own as a good dessert. The pudding was firm yet melty, and the coffee complemented it so well. The boss from Lang Nuong sure knows how to make his customers’ tastebuds tick.

The Populus Coffee & Food Co. has to be one of the most popular (heh heh, excellent divination in its name) around the town area these days. From the team behind Department of Caffeine, this cafe adopts a more bright, airy and clean look.
The moment we stepped into The Populus, we were told we had to wait for a table.. and subsequently, they put our names on a waiting list. Well, this was to be expected – it’s a Sunday afternoon after all, and the last weekend before most folks head back to work and school. Ten minutes were all they needed before they shuffled us into the homely, cozy interior. We ordered their coffees (mocha for me, the usual, at SGD6) and their famous Buckwheat Pancakes (SGD20).
The mocha feels like a strangely thin version of DOC’s, which didn’t really hit the spot as much as I would like it to be, though it’s still good. Because come ‘on, I like DOC very very much.
Their Buckwheat Pancakes were quite expensive given its size. The texture of the pancakes felt more like cake than pancake, soft and more dense than fluffy. The rest of it can’t really go wrong – the berry compote, passionfruit curd, cornflakes, and maple syrup. Even though it was satisfying, I can’t help but feel it wasn’t that value-for-money.
Note: They have revised their menu since their soft launch and upped the prices of most items.