On our first night in Jakarta, me and my colleagues went to Plaza Senayan Shopping Centre for dinner. The choices of restaurants inside the mall are quite limited. Since we have a Thai colleague with us, we ended up in Long Grain Restaurant. The menu initially caught my atttention as it's presented in a cook book style. As I perused it, it's like browsing through a typical cook book with good food shots. The food here generally tastes good. Almost all that we've ordered were consumed with much gusto. Some however, were slightly far from being authetic as told by our Thai colleague. Nonetheless, it'll keep you filled and gastronomically satisfied.
Chicken in Pandan Leaf

Hofan Noodles with Shrimps & Vegetables


Hot & Spicy Chicken with Basil Leaves

Singapore has proven countless times that it owns a wealthy gastronomic pot. Yet, all good eats do not necessarily be pricey. A colleague introduced me to Teban Garden which apparently is quite popular for good and cheap eats. The place is a typical hole-in-the-wall eatery. The food offerings range from favorite local noodles to chinese dishes. Apart from the cheap tag price, the servings are pretty generous too. Here's what your S$5 or less can give you.

Last weekend, we tried the after hours promo of Universal Studios Singapore valued at only S$5 per person. From 7 - 10 pm, visitors can enjoy the holywood strip for shopping and dining with a bonus fireworks display at 9 pm. For a mere pay, this is a great entertainment to have with family and friends. We had dinner at the Holywood China Bistro, the famous chinese restaurant in the US that serves cantonese cuisine. Generally, the quality of the offerings are acceptable. The meat platter ( a combination of roasted chicken, roasted duck and roasted pork) is a winner. You would expect a typical oily and a bit salty dishes though. Nonetheless, it's one good choice of restaurant inside the park.

The weather last weekend was extremely hot! Could this be the start of the hottest months in Singapore? If so, that means we will constantly be in need of something that'll keep us refreshed amidst the scorching heat. Timely, the newly opened Cold Stone Creamery along Orchard Rd offers the right companion. The ice cream house is packed with mouthwatering choices of shakes, smoothies, cakes and ice cream. My family sampled some last weekend, and we were delighted with just the right gusto.

This interactive menu board will tell you how to make your order.

Cheesecake Fantasy - a combination of cheesecake ice cream, graham cracker pie crust, blueberries and strawberries

Banana Caramel Crunch - a combination of French vanilla ice cream, roasted almonds, banana and caramel

There's actually one more reason to celebrate this day apart from Mother's Day. It's my blog's 4th year anniversary!! It's been four years of sumptuous blogging experience and it's really amazing to be counting on the days of Our Taste of Life from the past, to present and the future. I am thankful to all the people who have shared with my foodie journey on this humble abode. Your continued support keeps me going and dreaming for something bigger and better for Our Taste of Life.

To celebrate Mother's Day, we perused a number of Singapore blog posts and the book Singapore's Best Restaurants 2011 to find a place to dine. We've narrowed down our choices to Aquamarine of Marina Mandarin Hotel, The Line of Shangrila Hotel and the Dining Room of Sheraton Towers. We received a lot of not so good reviews from colleagues and friends on The Line, so we immediately dropped it off the list. So off we went to our first choice at Aquamarine. Apparently, the restaurant was well known for staging a nice seafood on ice spread and that's the primary reason why we put it on first option. Lo and behold, beyond dismayed and disappointed we were when we saw what's on offer for the Mother's Day Buffet. The seafood on ice selection was nowhere to be found. Choices are generally limited. Hence, we didn't have second thoughts from backing out. We headed instead to the Sheraton Towers since I've already tried it once and I know that they serve cold seafood there.

The best tasting beef noodles that I had so far was that of Taiwan's Din Tai Fung. It was so good that consuming it is synonymous to a gustatory oblivion. Before you even know it, you're already down to your last slurp. Personally, my preference for a great tasting Beef Noodles be it stewed or braised goes for the rich, juicy, fatty and flavoursome type. In addition, soft and succulent beef chunks is prime. It's the heart and soul of this dish ergo, it should be as heavenly as possible. Fresh from my disappointment of Crystal Jade Kitchen's Beef Stew Dry Noodles, I was prompted to find another version that might be worth another attempt to try.

Fortunately, my quest found its success in one of Food Republic's stalls in 313 Somerset. The chewy -thick texture of the noodles gave an enjoyable nibble. The mixture of herbs and spices used (fried shallots, spring onion, coriander, celery) complemented each other. In short, everything in the dish (the soup, noodles, flavors and beef) is a complete delight to the palate. I'm sure I'll be coming back for more.

Who wouldn't be lured by these mouthwatering selections of Fruit Tarts? Though merely just a display from the glass shelf, it's already way too hard to resist. With Singapore having a relatively low threshold for sweets, finding a place that serves delightful treats is synonymous to unearthing a treasure. Thus, sampling Fruit Paradise's repertoire of elaborately decorated tarts is a drooling experience to be had.

Every slice of this pastry creation consists of three layers of refreshing mélange of flavors from the natural taste of fruits, handmade cream and pastry base. Appeal wise, it's definitely sublime. Down to the taste, it bears simplicity. The melding of all gustatory sensations from the three layers is just enough to satisfy a typical craving for a tea break. Some lip-smacking choices are the following:

Mango Banana

Mixed Berries Chocolate