Nanyang Dao 南洋岛

Nan Yang Dao started by Malaysian Chef Jackson Chu with brothers Wee Liow and Vincent Liow, specialises in dishes from different parts of Malaysia, such as Penang fried kway teow and Penang assam laksa. The Malaysian cuisine embodies a rich fusion of diverse culinary traditions, just within a short span of few years they opened a number of outlets to share the authentic flavors.

We started our meal with their staple snacks like muffin, polo bun and egg tarts.

Pastries

The combination of flaky fragrant pastry crust cradling the creamy, rich custard fillings were simply yummy. 

Puff Pastry Egg Tarts 酥皮蛋挞

The custard is mild sweet, smooth and silky in texture. It has a hint of vanilla that gives the egg tart a pleasant aromatic note that complements the creamy custard perfectly. 

What an indulgence!

The combination of the sweet, crunchy topping and the soft, buttery bread creates a harmonious blend of flavors and textures. When enjoyed fresh and warm, with a cold slice of butter melting into the bun, it is an indulgent treat that is both comforting and satisfying. 

Butter Polo Bun 酥皮牛油波罗包

Kopi butter offers a rich and indulgent coffee experience that is both comforting and satisfying. The combination of strong coffee and creamy butter creates a unique flavor profile and a smooth, velvety texture that is enjoyable to drink. 

Nanyang Kopi Butter 南洋古油咖啡

A a delightful and refreshing drink that offers a harmonious blend of flavors. The bottom layer of grass jelly provides a subtly sweet and herbal flavor that pairs well with the more robust and slightly bitter taste of the black tea in the middle layer. The top layer of creamy milk adds a rich, smooth finish that balances out the flavors beautifully. When combined, these layers create a complex and satisfying taste experience that is both sweet and slightly savory, with a pleasant herbal undertone from the grass jelly.

3 Layers Milk Tea Grass Jelly 三色奶茶仙草

A good recommendation by Nanyang Dao for our dinner. The Classic Stir-Fry Beef Hor Fun is not only presentable and perfectly done with the "wok hei" flavours. Every bite was in consistent flavours and the pieces of Beef were not gamey. Ingredients were simple with onions, vegetables, beansprouts and carrots. 

Classic Stir-Fry Beef Hor Fun 金典干炒牛河

The Lala Bee Hoon is a delicious and satisfying dish with the strands of Bee Hoon soaking up the Superior Broth. Its balance of flavours and pleasant Bee Hoon texture makes it a favourite among us. Through the dish's simplicity in preparation, Lala Bee Hoon is still an impressive dish for its rich and savoury flavours. The bowl of Lala Bee Hoon was good for sharing as its generous portion may be too much for a single pax. The aromatic flavours from the Chinese Wine and cuts of gingers elevated the dish too. They have the Chinese Wine separated from the dish and we can include them according to our preference.

Superior Clam Bee Hoon Soup 上汤啦啦米粉

The Nanyang Dry Chicken Curry with Plain Rice was rich and delicious. The gravy was thick and comes with a tad spiciness. The chicken was tender and the curry was aromatic. 

Nanyang Dry Curry Chicken with Plain Rice 南洋干咖喱鸡饭

The curry paired well with the plate of white rice and half a boiled egg. The potatoes were boiled to soften and tasted good.

Bowl of Dry Curry 

Ending our meal on a sweet note. The icy Chendol is a staple dessert in Singapore / Malaysian Cuisine. The pandan-flavoured green flour jelly, coconut milk and red beans were served over the shaved ice creating a harmonious balance of sweet, creamy and refreshing flavours.  

Chendol 煎蕊

With the use of the caramelized taste of the palm sugar syrup aka Gula Melaka, it blends in beautifully with the slight saltiness of the coconut milk. The ice makes the dessert refreshing while the pandan jelly adds a subtle aromatic sweetness to each bite.

A spoonful of Chendol for you? 

The matcha provides a distinct green tea flavor that is both refreshing and sophisticated, while the azuki beans add a subtle sweetness and a hint of umami, creating a well-balanced and harmonious taste. The combination of these two ingredients results in a muffin that is not overly sweet, making it a perfect choice for those who prefer a more nuanced and less sugary treat.

Matcha & Azuki Beans Muffin

Food totally suits our tastebuds. On top of that, the staff are friendly and approachable despite working in a fast-paced environment with full house customers.

Nanyang Dao 南洋岛
Location: Thomson Plaza, 301, Upper Thomson Road, #03-46/47 Singapore 574408

SOD Cafe

 When we talked about Upper Thomson, what comes straight to my mind was the row of cafes and restaurants. With the recent development of Thomson MRT Line, the place was seen more bustling than before. 

SOD Cafe

I could not take my eyes away from such beautiful drinks especially they have color gradients. 

Tan Milk Tea & Dirty Matcha Latte - $4.70 & $5.60

Cream of Wild Mushroom Soup was yummy. A good consistency of taste with cream and we could even taste the chunks of the mushroom. The garlic toast which was served together was fragrant too. 

Cream of Wild Mushroom Soup - $7.90

Lovers of eggs benedicts can have options like Waffle Benedict, Salmon Benedict with Buttered Buns $13.90 or simply the classic Eggs Benny on Buttered Buns. The pillowy soft thick buns was fragrant and good enough. The classic eggs benny with hollandaise sauce was savory, not to mentioned the crispy bacon. Yums!

Eggs Benny on Buttered Buns - $13.90

Big Brekkie is the safest choice as we get to enjoy a variety of breakfast items on our plate, Bratwurst, brioche, bacon, fresh greens, ham, wedges and a choice of scrambled eggs/sunny side up. A good choice for a hearty breakfast. 

SOD's Big Brekkie - $15.90

Their food and beverages were surprisingly good. I do not mind returning back here for my brunch again.

Rating: 3.25 / 5

SOD Cafe
Location: Longhaus, 183 Upper Thomson Road, #01-05, Singapore 574429

Nummun Thai Kitchen

 We have cravings for Thai Cuisine from time to time and recently we came across some posting on Nummun Thai Kitchen and did a google on it. To our surprise, the rating is on the high side and we find no reason not to give it a try. 

Nummun Thai Kitchen

We went at the right hour just slightly before the peak hour when there are still ample of seats around and after settling down in no moment, the place was already full house. Phew! What a relief! The interior is spacious and the furnishings are rather simple with some Thai dishes poster up on one side of the wall.

Dining Area

While I'm expecting some sweet-tasting syrup drinks here, I was quite surprised that the drinks were in fact not sweet and on the contrary, Lemongrass is a tad on the bitter side.

Red Soda (Num Daeng Soda) & Lemongrass (Num Tak Krai) - $3 each

Their Phad Thai was flavourful and had a significant egg taste in it. Mixing it with the peanuts, chilli flakes and lime juice elevates the dish. Unlike other places, the sweetness was well-controlled here and not too greasy.

Stir-Fried Thai Rice Noodle (Phad Thai) - $8

The Steel Pot Vermicelli Prawn is flavourful with a distinctive peppery taste and mushroom fragrance. Vermicellis is springy and as a whole, the dish was better than our expectations. 

Steel pot Vermicelli Prawn (Goong Ob Woon Sen) - $20 

We came here for this! This Thai Crab Meat Omelette dish was made famous in the name after Jay Fai Bangkok got a Michelin Star on this. This dish was made up of a generous amount of fluffy egg and chunks of plump crab meat. 

Crab Meat Omelette (Kai Jiao Pu) - $28

Love this pillowy soft and smooth texture that cradles the sweet juicy and succulent meat. Once you pop them into your mouth, it disintegrates.

Chunky Crab Meat

Pandan chicken come in a plate of 4 and the tender chickens were wrapped under the leaves. The dish is pretty normal to me as the taste was kind of bland to me.

Pandan Chicken 4 pcs (Gai Hor Bai Dtoi) - $8

Moo Ping is well-marinated and the meat was tender with a slightly charred taste. 

Grilled Pork Skewers  4 pcs (Moo Ping) - $8

Dipping the savoury Grilled Pork Skewer into the sauce enhances the dish's taste.

Dipping Moo Ping

Simply love the authentic and homely Thai Food here. The pricing of the dishes was not at the high side too, in fact the pricing is pretty reasonable.  I will be back soon for other dishes. 

Rating: 4 / 5

Nummun
Location: Thomson Imperial Court, 200 Upper Thomson Rd #01-03, Singapore 574424
Nearest Station: Upper Thomson (TE8)

Tuk Wan Kitchen

Tuk Wan which means "everyday" in Thai serves authentic Thai Food. Besides running restaurant services, they are also doing food catering.

Tuk Wan Kitchen

We were early for lunch and patrons start streaming into the eating place. They do offer buffet at $28.80 per pax for over 90 items on the menu. However, there a minimum pax of 4 is required. Interior is modernly furnished with wall papers and poster.

Interior

Their menu is rather extensive with more than 50 items.

Tuk Wan Kitchen Menu

We will never leave Thai Milk Tea and Lemon grass drink out. Thai Milk Tea were not too sweet and have a strong tea taste.

Thai Milk Tea ชาเย็น & Thai Lemongrass Drink น้ำตะไคร้ - $2.50 Each

Enjoy the one mouth boat noodle offered in two different flavours, Thai Herbal Soup or Tom Yum Soup with the choice of Meat like beef Slice, beef ball, chicken slice, pork slice, pork ball and pork liver.

Our Boat Noodles Order - $1 per bowl

The noodle sticked together in both the flavours. Spending is $1 per bowl and you can simply finish this serving in just one spoon.

Boat Noodle in Thai Herb Soup with Beef Slice

The Thai herb soup tasted abit bitter and gave us a surprise if we were to compare to other Thai Boat Noodle eateries.

Boat Noodle in Thai Herb Soup with Pork Slice

It serves as a good choice for those who wanted to have a taste of it without the spice. Its actually quite fragrant with the use of herb, fried shallot and basil.

Boat Noodle in Thai Herb Soup with Pork Ball

We will prefer the spicy and tangy taste of boat noodle in Tom Yum Soup. It's rather appetizing and if we were not ordering other dishes, I would not have just stop at just one mouth.

Boat Noodle in Tom Yum Soup with Beef Ball

Boat Noodle in Tom Yum Soup with Beef  Slice

Though its a salad, we find it quite convenient to savour them down with our bowls of white rice.
It maybe a little spicy but you are able to taste the tartness from the fish sauce and the kaffir lime. Raw long beans, tomato and slices of cucumber were served in this salad bowl. On a side note, this dish has been sprinkled with smashed toasted rice, lending another level of texture to it.

Lab Moo - $12.80

Moo Ping, name in thai for Pork Skewer has been my favourite street food. The skewer had a blend of sweet and smoky flavours, what's more, its plump and juiciness flesh coated with a layer of aromatic glistening oil was incredibly addictive. Recommended!

Signature Pork Skewer หมูปิ้ง (4pcs) - $7.80

We had Tom Yum Clear soup with Seafood served in a earthen pot under a fire. Do not judge the book by its cover. Though the clear soup looks nothing fiery, its taste does. Ingredients include mushrooms, fresh prawns (yeah its big and not those processed prawns), tomato and fish.

Tom Yum Clear Soup (Pork / Chicken / Prawn / Seafood) - $10.80

Coconut based green curry tasted pretty standard with generous pieces of chicken strips. These gravy will give the boring plain white rice some flavours.

Thai Green Curry (Pork / Chicken / Prawn) - $9.80

Our appetizer was served last when we were finishing our meals. The crusty prawn cakes come in plump donuts size and were served piping hot. Its savory plum sauce give the dish a perfection. If you are looking for some finger food to start the meal with, don't leave this dish untouched.

Thai Prawn Cake served with Plum Sauce (3 pcs) ทอดมันปล - $6.80

Over, the everyday kind serves whipped up decent Thai food that suits our taste buds. It also allow some savings as there is no GST involve.

Rating: 3 / 5

Tuk Wan
Location: 10 Jalan Leban Singapore 577551
Website

Professor Brawn Cafe

I find it quite meaningful when Professor Brawn Cafe's Business has a cause which is we are actually helping by supporting Social Enterprises to fulfill a social mission of providing employment & social integration opportunities to Persons with Disabilities (PWDs) when we dine.



The founders of the cafe are parents and friends who want to make a difference to the special needs community by giving them a suitable job, showcase their talents, also to raise awareness to people around and getting contributions to support the cause. The character of professor brawn was actually created by a children with learning disability. The superhero, professor brawn had characters who is 'smart, kind and strong'.

Professor Brawn Cafe

The decors of the cafe had amused me with its welcoming and colourful chalk written wordings on the wall. Not only that, its interior was filled with lively bright colours such that everyone who walked pass will turn their head towards Professor Brawn Cafe.

The set dinner (6pm to 9pm) comes with Main course, soup of the day and House Drink. Soup of the day was Calm Chowder. It was served warm, cream based with calm bits and chopped celery (vegetables).

Soup of the Day - Calm Chowder

The server had gave us a bonus by offering us mushroom soup so that we do not have a repeat in our dinner menu. He was so thoughtful.

I like the mushroom soup as they were purely blended with tiny bits of mushroom filled throughout the soup which lends a good mushroom fragrance from every spoonful unlike most of the restaurant, they could have used the premixed powder in preparation of the soup.

Cream of mushroom

Drinks was part of the meal and tasted rather standard from the typical syrup mixture with water. They were served in a tall hour glass glass.
 

Orange & Lime Juice

This was one of the popular Main course for the night beside the enormous Fish & Chips. One glance through the restaurant and you will notice that many had grilled chicken thigh laid on their table. The grilled chicken was cooked to crisp golden brown with some burnt patches. Meat was tender enough and tasted refreshingly sweet with Orange marmalade. The grilled yummy thigh were stacked up on a bed of fluffy mashed potatoes while having salad as the appetizer, dressed sparsely with vinegar.

Grilled Orange Marmalade Chicken - $18.90

 A close up on the chicken leg. Woot Woot! How can I resist?

Grilled Chicken Leg

Although I would prefer its rosti to be darker in color than its current faint yellow as seen, the first bite of it had took my taste buds! I thought Marche had the best rosti so far but I was wrong. Their sour cream was lighter, refreshing and left a tangy taste on my buds. The rosti was cramped into a rectangle size, about 1cm in thickness. Yummy!

Gourmet Sausage with Rosti - $16.90

For sausage, there were a few types we can choose from and I had the Swiss Cheese Pork Sausage. I had tried the pork version as I thought it is hard to come by such meat in a westernized cafe when most of them are halal certified. Well, how the taste? It was pleasant, long in length and had a textural bite.

Have some privacy dining at a cosy corner in the semi sphere like environment. Just too bad I came to realise this place after I had done with my dinner. Looks like somewhere great to romance a date in a mall after office hours. Ha! What else can I say?

Alternative dining area away from the shop

The overview of the alternative dinning area

Having dined in Professor Brawn Cafe was a killing two birds in one stone matter. It's food is reasonable and had "substance" while service was better than average, thoughtful and polite. It's also good to know that we are helping the needies by dining in Professor Brawn Cafe. Do lend your mouth by helping them to achieve this mission.

Rating: 4 / 5 

Professor Brawn Cafe
Location: Novena Square, 238 Thomson Road #02-78/79 Singapore 307683
Opening Hours: 11am to 10pm Mon to Fri
Closed on Saturdays, Sundays and Public Holidays

Website