The meal repertoire includes pasta (Aglio Olio), greens and grill meat (chicken, pork, beef, sausage) or seafood. It's consumed as a set. My family's favorite so far are these...

Watami Singapore in Ion Orchard is a casual japanese restaurant that's becoming a favorite of the family. We dined here last Christmas and New Year's Day. And on both occasions (believe it or not) we ordered for the same food items. We enjoyed it so well that we never had second thoughts in trying out the same repertoire again.

TUNA LINGUINE with CAPERS

What you need:
500 g Linguine pasta, 4 cans of tuna chunks in olive oil, 4 cans of 225g whole peeled tomatoes, 4 tbsps capers, 1 large onion (chopped), 5 cloves garlic (finely chopped), italian herbs, salt & pepper, 1 can of cut button mushrooms, 3 tbsps olive oil, parmesan cheese

How to make:
1. Cook linguine according to package directions. Drain and set aside.
2. Heat olive oil in a sauce pan. Saute onion and garlic until fragrant. Add in the tuna chunks, capers and mushrooms. Saute for 3- 4 mins.
3. Add in whole peeled tomatoes and allow to boil. Simmer for 15 - 20 mins until the sauce is reduced to a slightly thicker consistency. Season with italian herbs, salt and pepper.
4. Stir in the cooked linguine and mix well. Serve topped with parmesan cheese.

I was looking for a good Chinese Restaurant as venue for dinner in celebrating my son's graduation in Kindergarten. When I browsed through the internet, the choices are quite enormous. However, the place Hai Tien Lo kept on appearing in a lot of food blogs and food reviews. This seemed to be a really popular restaurant then. After much careful thought, I yielded to give it a try. Fortunately, it did not disappoint me.

Armed with a recognition of being one of Singapore's Best Restaurant by Singapore Tatler and Women's Weekly, Hai Tien Lo must be among the creme de la creme of Singapore's dining scene. It basically offers cantonese cuisine and what the menu states leaves an impression of high expectation.

Since it's a rainy evening when we went, we enjoyed good food sans the good skyline. We had the Peach Flower set menu and the selections were real satisfying.

On the whole dining at Hai Tien Lo is a combination of good ambiance, superb view, great service and luscious food. What else can you ask for? I'm coming back for the Dim sum Brunch Buffet.

Dining at Equinox Restaurant in Swissotel the Stamford is definitely more than a feast in the tastebuds. It's a feast in the eye as well. Located at the 70th floor of the tallest building in Singapore, the view is just stunning.

  

On the food offering, it's generally a semi-buffet set up consisting of generous selections of appetizers and desserts. I particularly liked the sweets & desserts area. In terms of choices, it's not too overwhelming neither too few. I would say it has enough of the basics that you would expect for in a buffet.  

Life has been terribly busy this year. So busy it is, that I can no longer recall the exact time I last cooked at home. Saying that I really missed this usual hobby is beyond a restrained statement. Luckily, the husband celebrated his birthday recently and that gave me enough reason to reunite with my pots and pans. Without actual plannning, I prepared this pasta dish to add into our dinner repertoire last weekend. 

  

What you need : 250 g penne pasta cooked according to package directions, 1 med sized onion (finely chopped), 1 250 ml jar of bolognese sauce, 1 small can of condensed cream of garlic mushroom, 1/2 tsp ground-dry basil leaves, 2 tbsps olive oil, 250g ground beef, salt & pepper to taste, 1 cup of pasta water reserve, grated parmesan cheese for topping

How to make : Cook pasta according to package directions, drain and set aside. Take out 1 cup of pasta water reserve, set aside. Heat olive oil in a sauce pan. Saute onions and beef until tender. Add the cream of mushroom and bolognese sauce. Stir well. Allow to boil and simmer for 5 minutes. Season with salt, pepper and ground basil leaves. Stir in cooked pasta and transfer to a serving dish. Add grated parmesan cheese on top.

If the Philippines has Chef Tony's, Singapore has Garret. That's for a popular Popcorn I mean. Being enticed by its sweet, buttery pleasant aroma, I was tempted to try and discover this increasingly becoming Singapore's favorite popcorn. Since my palate is more geared towards savoury, I usually prefers the salty type of popcorn. Hence, induging into a sweet version is something new to me.

I noticed from the selection that most of the flavors Garret offers are nut based. Cashew, Almond, Pecan and Macadamia. I'm beginning to be partial on the later flavor. The crunchy - creamy taste of macadamia blends well with the caramelized popped corn kernels. Likewise, there are the usual classics such as Plain Caramel and Cheese. Overall, I find it too sweet. At times, the caramel note goes beyond satiating. I can only consume a handful. Nevertheless, it's an interesting snacking option.

I found another good mid-range Japanese resto in town. Tucked at the basement level of Raffles City, Osaka Town offers good tasting Chanpon noodles and Okonomiyakis.

Although a bit oily, the Steak Combo is a filling meal to have. It's a combination of pork, chicken, salmon, baked potatoes and some vegetables.

Seafood Chanpon Noodles - it says in the menu that this type of noodles originated from Kyushu in Japan. Chanpon means to mix various things. Several ingredients such as meat, seafood, vegetable are boiled in a signature thick noodle soup. The serving is huge but the noodle dish is surprisingly not overpowering. The soup is thick but not too satiating. It actually feels like a healthy food to take.

Apart from the famous Chicken Rice, there's a similar Chicken Dish that will leave you wanting for more - Samsui Chicken . I kid you not, you will love it for it's succulent, juicy and meaty character. When I first tried it at Soup Restaurant, I knew from then on that I would be a convert from the typical Chicken Rice. It's comforting to know that finally, there's a ginger chicken that I could eat sans the very oily rice. The dish is basically a steamed chicken. It's usually eaten dipped in a fragrant ginger sauce then rolled into a lettuce with some cucumber. The ginger sauce is key to this appetizing dish. It's that note that defines its overall appeal. For a more healthy bite, I usually take out the skin. Though if you would consider its simplicity and the way the chicken is cooked, it's indeed a healthier alternative from other chicken meals.

Literally, ice cream on a toast bread.  I think this isn't new at all concept wise. Perhaps an upgraded version of the local favorite one dollar ice cream? It's offered as a set with a choice of any drinks. I tried the Peanut Butter and Kaya Ice Cream. While the former was too sweet to the palate, the later was just ok. The sweetened red mongo beans on top of the ice cream added an enjoyable texture dimension. It's a definitely filling combination and the smooth mouthfeel of the ice cream gave a rich, fatty impression. With a selling price of $5.80, I would rather go for a serving of ColdStone Ice Cream though.