[MULTIPLE OUTLETS, SINGAPORE] I finally understand why there's a constant queue at @nonggengjisg almost all the time. All of the dishes we ordered were hits, prices were affordable and service was not bad!

Out of all the dishes my family ordered, the one that stuck with me would be their Sauerkraut Fish with Soup 🍲 ($25.80)... The soup is very tasty & drinkable, and the fish slices are absolutely phenomenal. Soft yet bouncy, they were so sweet omg I LOVE.

I seldom talk about vegetable dishes, but the 2 we had, Stir-fried Cabbage 🥬 ($9.80) and Dry-fried Green Beans 🫛 ($12.80) were glorious. They were flavoured very well with garlic and pork lard, which made them super addictive. Give me one of those and a bowl of rice and it's enough for me 😂

Another must order for dessert is their Sugar Dumplings 🥟 ($5.80). It's sweet with a really satisfying crunch and chewiness within!

This is a great place for family gatherings! If you have a bigger group, do reserve in advance 😊

P.S. I think many might want to know how it is compared to XX... I like both! XX is slightly cheaper but the quality of dishes here is slightly better!

[KATONG, SINGAPORE] A relatively new omakase restaurant in the hood, the Niji Lunch Course 🍣 ($118 per pax) at @hikaruomakase would be described as simple, balanced and thoughtful.

Throughout the whole journey, you will realise that everything is done simply so that the natural flavour of the fish shines through. Indeed this works as their fish quality is excellent, with natural sweetness and umami coming through strongly.

I also realised that their flavours are balanced, neither too sweet nor too salty. The texture of the fish was just right as well, with a slight bounce when you chew. The chefs really know what they are doing.

Everything was thoughtful throughout the course, from the small service gestures from the servers, to the chefs asking for wasabi and rice amounts. We left the place just adequately full, without feeling too bloated.

Honestly this is a solid course at quite a reasonable price point. If you are new to omakase courses, this is a good start.

[VIVOCITY, SINGAPORE] I'm so glad @seoulnoodles_sg has so many outlets now, especially at the main B2 area at Vivocity! Their stews were absolutely comfy, and their seafood pancake was chef kiss 😍

The Yukgaejang Noodles 🍲 ($19.50) boast a robust beef broth, with an earthy taste due to the bracken present. The shredded beef was really soft and the noodles were al dente with slight sticky feel. The texture of the noodles is very similar to the kalguksu ones I've had in Korea! Spice level was manageable.

The Half Chicken Noodles 🍲 ($19.50) can be interpreted as samgyetang without ginseng but with a HEAVY chicken flavour. The soup itself is really thick and the umami flavour is really inviting. The chicken meat itself is tender and the flavour is locked all the way in.

The Dumplings Noodles 🥟 ($18.50) have an entirely different broth, and this time is probably an anchovy base. This is much more savoury forward, with a heavy fish umami flavour. The kimchi dumplings were huge and so filled too! To me, I actually prefer this soup base the most 😋

The Seafood Pancake 🦐 ($18.50) was fantastic, with a really crispy exterior and soft fluffy dough within. Really satisfying and it was wiped out within minutes.

Each main comes with side dishes and a small amount of seaweed rice, which were all good. The kimchi was very memorable, with a crunchy texture and heavy shrimp flavour. I'm definitely coming back as it's really authentic 😍

[CITY HALL, SINGAPORE] If you like to see mountains of juicy tender fried chicken, then please come here 😍 we were all like "omg why is the chicken so juicy??"

I've had Daily Chicken before, and the fried chicken here is equally as impressive. The Honey Glazed Whole Chicken 🍗 ($34) was huge, and each piece was full of tender juicy meat. The skin was still crispy, and the sauce had an addictive honey richness.

We got another half Soy Garlic half Red Spicy Whole Chicken 🐔 ($35) and once we looked at its size we knew we over ordered 😂 while the red spicy flavour delivered its heat, the soy garlic flavour was still the best flavour. The sweet and savoury flavours really complemented each other so well.

We order Fish Cake Soup 🍲 ($28) and Spam Fries 🍟 ($16) which were awesome too! Drinks were even better though, I got the Seoul Weizen 🍺 ($13) in a freezing cold mug and it was so darn SHIOK omg. It was really light and refreshing it's MADDD.

I think I've come to either daily chicken or beer thrice in 3 months, so I guess it's many more visits for me in future 😂 @dailychickensg @dailybeersg

[SIGLAP, SINGAPORE] please come here for their Chinese desserts, especially their Orh Nee, because it might be one of the best I've had 🥹

@withinthewalls.sg is a cozy traditional HK themed bar with really decent food and delicious desserts. They just released a new shao kao menu, and the meats we tried were tender and flavourful!

They also sell dishes with sharing portions that are quite large, and we liked the Shrimp Fried Rice 🍤 ($8.80) and Dry Style Shrimp Garlic Vermicelli 🦐 ($15.80) as it was quite addictive!

I saw many people ordering their desserts and I can see why. The rendition of their Yam Paste 🍠 ($7.90) is a combination between the sweet and savoury variations, resulting in a really rich and smooth paste that isn't too sweet.

Overall, the food was really decent and prices were reasonable. They have outdoor seats too to accommodate your furry friends 🐾

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[MULTIPLE OUTLETS, SINGAPORE] I've been to @calligraphcoffee previously for their winey Kenyan coffee which was really good, and I'm glad to be back for their matcha variations and other coffee cuppas.

To be honest I don't drink matcha often, but I can tell they are passionate in ensuring you get a good cup. From generous amounts given to their quick but effective whisking techniques, the 2 blends I've had (Ryokan & Setsuna) were nothing short of amazing.

The Ryokan Usucha ($11.20) was really refreshing, with a smooth grassy note that isn't unpleasant at all. Definitely light on the palette and easy to drink still. The Setsuna Latte ($9.20) was surprisingly buttery and full bodied, with a rounded flavour more familiar to most people. You can really taste the matcha more than the milk itself which is already better than most places!

As for their coffee, Iced White ($6.90) on the smoky chocolate blend was very smooth and well rounded. Achieving such flavour with little to no astringency present is really difficult, especially with darker roasts. The result is a smooth, nutty and chocolatey flavour with a little smokiness at the end. Splendid cuppa that I don't mind sipping away in the afternoon.

So glad that they have another outlet in International Plaza as well for the working crowd! Definitely will be back again 😍

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[TELOK AYER, SINGAPORE] From the dishes I've had, I can tell that @katanashi_an are using really solid ingredients to create new renditions, but they have so much potential to do more by sticking to the classics.

I think ochazuke as a dish is familiar to many and they do offer quite a few variations. The Wagyu Truffle 🍖 ($26.18) was quite well executed, with it being not too salty, comforting and the truffle not too overpowering. The beef slices were really soft too. The Premium Hokkaido 🐟 ($25.18) boasts a variety of fresh sashimi slices that were just too precious to eat with the hot tea. In fact, I ate the bowl just like a kaisendon and it was pretty darn delicious even without vinegared rice. I tried to find kaisendon in their menu and there was none 🤯 really really wished they have it!

As for their hotpot options, the Bear Nabe 🍲 ($18) was presented really cutely, and all ingredients were well seasoned in the light collagen broth. The soup itself was really comforting and tasty, pork slices were of high quality, really tender and vegetables were fresh. Cotton Candy Sukiyaki 🍲 ($24) was an interesting one, because it would have done very very well without the cotton candy, but unfortunately it was way too sweet with it. It was quite a pity because once again the ingredients used were good! Especially the Wagyu slices which were rich and tender.

One of the popular ramen flavour was their Spicy Tonkutsu Ramen 🍜 which indeed packed a HUGE amount of spice. This is definitely for the spicy lovers!

I really think they can do so much better if some of the dishes can be done the classic way. We still find the dishes delicious in the end, but really loads of potential to do much more!

[BUGIS, SINGAPORE] If you are craving some solid Korean fried chicken, look no further as @dailychickensg really will deliver. From darn hot crispy juicy fried chicken parts, to delicious sauce and large portions, we left the restaurant really satisfied 🤤

Their Daily Bone-in Whole Chicken 🍗 ($34) can be ordered with 2 flavours, and both their red spicy sauce and crunch flavour were lovely! The red sauce was proper sweet spicy and the crunch flavour had a sweet touch to the chicken. I liked both, as the chicken is really well executed due to its crispy exterior and juicy interior.

If you want a more snackish type of dish, their Dakjeong 🐔 ($18) will do the trick. We got the soy garlic sauce, which turned out to be the best among all the variations. The chicken cubes were so moreish and yet not dry, and the occasional rice cakes and gyoza provided a good break.

Even the Daily Kimbap 🍙 ($12) delivered, with loads of vegetable stuffings and kimchi that was a good in-between break with the heavy tasting chicken dishes!

Portions were huge, food was delicious and affordable, what can I say? Definitely be back again.

[MANY OUTLETS, SINGAPORE] Finally tried our very own rendition of mala stir-fry or soup, but I might be saying an unpopular opinion here 🙃

As much as the ingredients were fresh, noodles were done right and the sauce was flavourful and spicy, it's really quite expensive 😲 especially if you were to get the potato and lotus root to fry. The freshly fried lotus root and potato chips were indeed addictive, especially with the special spice powder, but the weight of the whole potato or lotus root was equivalent to about $7-10 each 🤯 I cannot imagine paying so much just for lotus root or potato chips 😂 my bowl was like $30 hahaha how do students afford them??

Still, I'm glad to have supported local businesses and tried it, but will I go again? Maybe not, there are other much cheaper mala stalls that are still as good. The lotus root or potato chips might be unique, but it's not enough to entice me.

What do you all think?

[TANJONG PAGAR, SINGAPORE] Thank you @sippin_n_munchin for discovering this place because it's such a gem. It's this kind of hidden finds that truly excites me 😍

This relatively new ramen shop is located with PSA Tanjong Pagar Complex, an old run down building filled with coffeeshops that are mostly closed at night. It can be abit of a journey to get to from Tanjong Pagar MRT, but it's worthwhile 😍

Their Grilled Fish Ramen 🍜 ($9.90) hits you hard with their intense fish broth, that was made through simmering fish bones, various meat part and vegetables over 24 hours. The umami flavour is insane, though it might be overly flavourful for some.

The grilled fish itself was very meaty, with a light yuzu marinade that made it really refreshing to eat with the soup. Noodles were al dente too!

Their Gyoza 🥟 ($3 for 2) is also worth mentioning, due to its large size. Please eat this carefully, as it was so juicy I scaled my tongue from the hot liquid bursting out 😂

With no service nor GST charge, the value you are getting out of their ramen tops most places. Can't wait to be back!

[TAI SENG, SINGAPORE] Among the many eateries located around Grantral Mall lies @kushidining, a Japanese buffet restaurant with a huge variety of food to choose from, and order as ala carte options as well.

Their limited edition Mixed Seafood Shabu Shabu 🍲($25.90) was indeed quite comforting, with an interesting tomato soup broth that's quite refreshing due to its tangy profile. Several seafood options like tiger prawns and scallops were given, and they were quite fresh!

Another item to order is their Salmon Yaki 🐟($14.80) as it was grilled well such that the skin is crispy, with the meat perfectly cooked. The fat in here is glorious.

My gripe is that their sashimi and sushi isn't that great as it isn't of high quality. I would lean towards getting their cooked dishes more.

Interestingly, they also serve speciality coffee that is surprising for a Japanese buffet restaurant. The Pour-Over Truffle ☕($4.90) was surprisingly decent and smooth!

All in all, I think it's ok~ considering there are bound to be hits and misses in buffet restaurants. They have cheap deals like daily 50% dishes and lunch sets from $11.90 that you can check out!

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[LAVENDER, SINGAPORE] I think the experience can be summed up by a comment we overheard from a dining customer: "your durian may be expensive, but you have not let me down before." 😲

We tried the Durian Buffet ($76.80 per pax), which consists of 1 hour of free flow freshly opened durians, and free flow pastries and ice cream thereafter. As we came at the end of the current durian season, only Black Thorn and Mao Shan Wang are available. Not complaining though, as these 2 are the most expensive variants. You can really tell that their durians are different as compared to other stalls by the quality of their Mao Shan Wang. The meat was creamy, but yet had a very good bouncy mouthfeel. The flavour is beyond just bittersweet, with an interesting funk that is almost nutty. Really hard to describe that flavour, but I loved it! Can't get that flavour anywhere else. Their Black Thorn is really sweet, just that I prefer a more bittersweet profile.

Their pastries and ice cream were all good as well, just that at that point of time I was already full from eating 1.5 whole durians 😂

Don't think I will recommend people eating the buffet as it can really get quite cloying, but I will definitely recommend people buying their durian to eat within the cafe or to buy back home. They were really honest and their durians are of high standards. If you are a durian lover, you really need to try their curated produce!

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