Tag Archives: buffet

Apr 05 2013
3 Comments
Food

Equinox Restaurant – High Tea Buffet

IMG_9581

My maiden visit to level 69 of Singapore’s Swissotel The Stamford at Raffles City was a wonder. Equinox Restaurant had always been one of the buffet places on my list to tick off, and now it’s certainly not an easy task to sit down in front of my laptop and piece back the every bit smoothly.
IMG_9700-tile

The first thing you notice at Equinox is not its food. As you start to step on soft carpeted ground, the area is transformed into an orient setting of wooden frames matched effectively with velvet, light blue seat couches. This sleek setting, at 69 floors high, overlooks Singapore’s CBD and all over Marina Bay. A mandatory shot indeed.
IMG_9631

I had a hard time thinking if I should jump start on the array of desserts since they look especially good. But I decided to play it safe and went off to get the savoury. Despite it being a high tea buffet, I found the spread rather wide. Western classics include salmon sandwiches, duck wraps (which I loved a lot) and salads; the Chinese selection includes dimsum buns and dumplings; and there are bentos of sushi assortment for the Japanese lover.

There is a short coming though. The food quality for its high tea buffet will definitely pale in comparison to the lunch and dinner buffet. Their savoury finger food, although alright, was nothing much worth tasting or remembering. Some were slightly above average, while others fell short of it.

IMG_9605
IMG_9597
IMG_9654

To my surprise and delight, there is a completely different corner near the entrance specially for pastries and desserts. I’d name it “My World” or “Willy Wonka’s World”, but probably My World so I can have it all to myself. The cakes are definitely worth a shot. I had numerous slices of log cakes, from which I have come to like their chocolate mousse cakes. Other worthy bites are the mini lemon meringue tarts, chocolate fruit tarts and glass shooters. Not to forget their spread of pralines which are classic. Skip the ice cream though. They were nothing more than ordinary.

IMG_9697

IMG_9583

IMG_9625

Vague memories remain of my trip to Equinox. With only an hour and a half for the high tea buffet, I was literally chomping down on my food as fast as I can to try as much of the spread. If possible, I’d likely go for either a lunch of  brunch buffet so I have the luxury of time to slowly dine and admire the view. With that said, it’s advisable to go for brunch/lunch/dinner instead but of course they come with a higher price tag. With such an idyllic setting, view, service and spread, I don’t see why not (come back for more).

IMG_9615

Level 69

Equinox Complex

Swissotel The Stamford

High Tea: 1530 – 1700 daily

Brunch: 1100 – 1430 on Sundays

Lunch: 1200 – 1430 from Mondays to Saturdays

Dinner: 1830 – 2230 daily

Advertisement
Tagged , , ,
Feb 02 2013
Leave a comment
Food

The Square Novotel Clarke Quay: Are you hot enough?

IMG_0289

With Valentine’s Day cum Chinese New Year round the corner, I can imagine lots of Singaporeans scrambling around for the most suitable restaurants for a celebration. Look no further than The Square at Novotel Hotel Clarke Quay. In conjunction with the 2 upcoming seasons, The Square has a special, new concept buffet spread titled “Are You Hot Enough?“. New dishes cooked with none other than spices, spices and more spices are the main highlights. For just $98++ per couple on Valentine’s Day, this is the one place to consider. A few bloggers and I had their luxurious spread for buffet dinner that evening. 

IMG_0323

IMG_0376

One of my favorite counters there was the salad counter. This surprised me a lot as I wasn’t a salad or cold cuts type of foodie.   What made them interesting was the good use of spices which made them unlike the usual, plain old ones. The beef salad and chicken salad were memorable. Next to them was a huge parma ham which had me drooling.

Cold cuts/Mini tapas counter
IMG_0325
IMG_0319

Seafood lovers will be happy to find that their quality of seafood is rather high. Right at the front of the buffet line is the tantalizing fresh seafood counter of prawns, clams, oysters, mussels and salmon. Further on there are black pepper mussels and prawns with mayonnaise sauce which are worth the try as well.
IMG_0387

The cod fish with laksa and baby kailan served to our table was a good rendition of cod. The laksa was not spicy but brought upon a rather light feel on the cod fish which I thought was the right taste for me.

IMG_0334-horz

At the end of the buffet line for the main dishes were three dishes with three levels of spiciness tagged on their lids. They are the spicy pork (one level), fish with cream sauce (two levels) and chicken with brown sauce (three levels). I wasn’t too sure if I could handle that much of spiciness initially but after trying them, they were really not that spicy. There wasn’t a distinct difference in their level of spiciness too. Still, the dishes were enjoyable.
IMG_0380-horz

Another one of my favorite counters would be their risotto corner. There is a “grinder” sort of cookware in which they mix the risotto with parmesan cheese. We tried both renditions of risotto they offered that day: the normal risotto with cheese (left) and risotto with laksa mix.(right) Both were good risottos which can sink well into your tastebuds but I preferred the risotto with cheese for its more authentic taste.

The meats were also worth a mention. Their roast pork, roast beef and ham were juicy enough for the thumbs up. Other than that, expect to find dim sum, laksa, fried rice, noodles, sushi, breads, cheese and more.
IMG_0309

Moving on to the desserts, some of them are infused with spices as well: Fruit spicy syrup (fruits sunk in chocolate syrup with spices) and chili chocolate mousse (chocolate mousse with ground red chili) are the main ones. A while after tasting them came the sharp spicy taste so be careful not to gobble them too quickly. Interesting creations though.
IMG_0296

And of course, everyone loves chocolate fondue!
IMG_0298-tile

There was a spread of desserts which are pretty normal so I won’t elaborate much. From L-R top to bottom: Fruit spicy syrup, carrot cake (infused with spices as well), strawberry butter cake, assortment of glass shooters, orange tarts, green tea cheese cake.

I guess the bloggers and I should have this pretty same verdict about The Square at Novotel. With dinner buffets at other hotels costing at least $50 and over, it’s really hard to find somewhere more affordable with a decent spread these days. I’ve found the answer and The Square at Novotel is the answer. It scores high for variety and quality. For it’s price, the buffet would be absolutely value for money and worth it.

IMG_0375

Thank you John and Jean-Philippe for the kind invitation and warm hospitality.

177A River Valley Road

Novotel Clarke Quay (Level 7)

0600 – 1030 Buffet breakfast

1200 – 1430 Buffet lunch

1800 – 2200 Buffet dinner

Are you HOT enough buffet (only for dinner):

$58++ per pax for adults on Fridays & Saturdays 

$48++ per pax for adults from Sundays – Thursdays

$38++ per pax for child on Fridays & Saturdays

$30++ per pax for child from Sundays – Thursdays

$98++ per couple on Valentine’s Day

Tagged , , , , ,
Sep 03 2012
Leave a comment
Food

Ssikkek Korean BBQ Restaurant

IMG_4973

Ssikkek is always a popular choice for korean bbq buffet especially with its budget. So when I was asked by friends for dinner there I automatically said yes. Ssikkek is the restaurant with the most buzz along the stretch at novena ville. They are simply spotted as the eatery with the longest queue. On that night, we waited for an hour before getting a table so reservations are a must.
IMG_4983

For just a price of $12++ for lunch and $22++ for dinner, I can’t help but think that Ssikkek is no doubt a very good buffet of comfort prices. I find that it is a cool place for groups of people to hangout and have barbecue at the same time. Unlike some other Korean restaurants, Ssikkek takes on a very casual setting suitable for almost anything. Despite the heat from sitting in the outdoor area, everybody there seemed to be having a great time.
IMG_4982

The meat items here were quite of standard and definitely will make you go back for more and more. The assortment of chicken, pork and beef items are highly popular and quite of standard. This is of course together with side dishes (in which I adored the Korean rice cakes), kimchi fried rice and seafood.

IMG_4993

The whole experience is a satisfying one. That’s what I love about Korean BBQ. That to be said, I had probably ate about a week’s worth of meat – but it was worth the calories.

IMG_4985

275 Thomson Road

#01-01/02 Novena Ville

Monday – Sunday 1130 – 2230

Tagged , , , ,
May 17 2012
Leave a comment
Food

The Chocolate Bar – Marina Bay Sands Singapore

IMG_4052 copy

When you feel like having chocolate, eat it.

This started as an impulse, but the thought of a chocolate buffet is simply too irresistible. And hard to push away as well.

The Chocolate Bar operates from 8pm to 10pm daily at The Club at level 57 of the Marina Bay Sands and that’s a winning factor already. It’s location is gorgeous among the Sands Skypark and beside the lusting Infinity Pool. It was fascinating when we were led all the way up, out onto the deck by the pool of the skypark and eventually to the atmosphere of rustic charm.

To be honest, I didn’t know where to start as I stared at the massive array of mini dessert creations – 57 chocolate themed desserts exactly, created by executive pastry chef Alejandro Luna and his team. Seemed a little like heaven to me. Selections were vast, a regret of mine was that I couldn’t get my tastebuds over all of the desserts!

I grabbed some macarons. Three flavors were available: coconut, milk chocolate passion and raspberry. The coconut made an impression on me.

The dark chocolate raspberry mousse (below) was an excellent combination of bitter sweet dark chocolate and the slight sour of raspberry, I felt that it was a unique creation, soft and easily melting.

IMG_4042
IMG_4029

Two other items which I still remember distinctly would be chocolate bread pudding (shown below) and banana steamed chocolate, steamed with banana leaves. The former has started to become popular in the local food scene and I realized why. The soft mash of bread with chocolate can nearly melt in my mouth. The latter looked like a chocolate flavored “kueh”, but when bitten into it releases a strong banana accent which is amazing.
IMG_4028

Other creations include glass shooters of tiramisu, alcoholic desserts, dark and milk chocolate cookies, pralines, an assortment of nuts, pistachios, chocolates and macadamias.
IMG_4043

The dining experience was intimate with dimly-lit hues, akin to a candlelight dinner. Step right out and you would be offered a panoramic view of the city lights in Singapore. It was a great time lazing by the infinity pool after the full buffet. Yes, a downside of a full dessert cum chocolate themed buffet would be the heavy lingering of chocolate afterwards that stops sweet cravings for days. But it was an experience worthwhile, a chocolate haven at the top of the city.

The Club at Marina Bay Sands

Sands SkyPark (Level 57, Hotel Tower 2)

Operates 8pm to 12am daily

S$38++ per person ($54++ per person, including a glass of champagne)

Tagged , ,
%d bloggers like this: