Xi Men Jie

Craving for some Taiwanese Cuisine? You can get a quick and good Taiwanese food fix just around the corner of Westmall shopping centre at Xi Men Jie. Located just before we enter the mall after exiting from Train station, Xi Men Jie had spreaded some chairs and tables for their customers to dine in front of the shop.

The staple item of Xi Men Jie is non other than their Mee Sua and Braised Pork Rice. Pork were cut into smaller cubes together with its sweet braised sauce, these were placed on top of the rice with "Suan Cai" (vegetables) and braised hard boiled egg.

Dishes were all contained in a paper bowl and somehow relate to what I had in Xi Men Jie in Taiwan.

Braised Pork Rice Set - $6.20

If you love the silky thin Mee Sua from taiwan, this is pretty close. The not so starchy gravy with its sweet clams and shredded chicken was ordered. Corilander stalks, spring onions as well as chilli was added to taste.

Calm Chicken Floss Mee Sua - $4.40

Another version of Mee Sua they offered was using crab meat. It tasted the same as the above and the only different was its crab meat.

Crabmeat Chicken Floss Mee Sua - $4.40

Xi Men Jie is another alternative for Authentic Taiwanese Street food at an affordable price. Since they are situated in the heart of bustling estate, it is real convenient for me to have a taste of taiwan without flying to the actual place.


Rating: 3.5 / 5

Xi Men jie
Location: West Mall, 1 Bukit Batok Central Link, #01-42, Singapore 658713
Website

Sushi Express

Skip the ridiculous long queue outside Sushi Express of West Gate by dining at the non peak hours! In case you are unaware, Sushi Express has drawn the hordes since its opening and always seen having "everlasting" queues especially during the weekends.

Sushi Express

Ginger, Wasabi and tea are complimentary. The service was polite and those who were first time there like me was given a brief that there are no Menu available and everything is display on the belt. The attractive part is that each plate cost only $1.50.

Items on Sushi Conveyor

While we thought we can eat till we drop but there was actually a time limit for diners. Look at the slip given, we were given only 50 minutes to gobble down the food.

Please Keep Within the time limit

While we were ushered to the sushi bar counters, Sushi Express had actually arranged teabags in the tray with cups, sauces, toothpicks and chopsticks. Please feel free to help yourselves.

On the counter bar

Packets of Wasabi are placed on a container and left moving on the conveyor. I thought the concept is better as we are able to gauge the amount of Wasabi needed.

Wasabi in packet

Turn over was pretty fast and given the limited timing in dining, I find that the conveyor belt was replenished promptly, moreover food were fresh too. Of course for the sashimi portion at $1.50 per plate, they were naturally smaller. No complains yah!

$1.50 Per Plate

 Boiled prawns, I thought it was quite unusual to show their appearance on the sushi conveyor.

Yummy!

Eel (unagi) were sweet with sesame sprinkled on them. Out of the 4 below, what I like most was its sliced abalone salad. Each plate comes with four slices paired with mayonnaise. 

Unagi, Sliced Abalone Salad,  Beancurd skin sushi and salmon sushi

 Miso Soup with salmon is definitely worth the money. Look at the notable chunks of salmon and toufu included :). However, to order this, one has to put up a request as they were not placed on the conveyor. Do remember, its tongue burning!

Miso Soup - $1.50

Though given the restriction in timing, overall, I quite please with the bar counter concept whereby each plate was only charged at $1.50 and no menu was given. They were also quite prompt in clearing the saucers from our tables while we had the dishes gradually stacked up. 

Rating: 3.5 / 5

Sushi Express
Location: Westgate, 3 Gateway Drive #B1-26, Singapore 608532

Little Grill

Little Grill is one of my favourite spots for dinner during those days when normal dinner hours had already passed due to the busy schedules I had and I was quite lucky to be just in time for their last order everytime before they called it a day.

I haven't been visiting them for years until recently when I found them on instagram which somehow reminded me to visit them again.

Little Grill's menu is different from a usual coffeeshop western stall as they have over 20 kinds for us to choose from, besides that each dish is illustrated on its menu with a boosting effect from the signboard's back lights.  At times, I find it very hard to decide what's for my meal as every item looks delicious and had that kind of "Come, Eat Me!" expressions.

Little Grill

Farm Chicken Chop is one of the dish that topped my list. At one glance, one would have realize that the bread or toast is missing from here. Well, to disappoint some, it is not included.

Though the portion had shrunk over the years, the taste remained unchanged. I'm still loving its tantalizing brown sauce that was spreaded on the chicken chop, allowing this essence to be absorbed by the juicy meat.

Farm Chicken Chop - $6.30

Another hit of my list is its Lemon Butter on its grilled fish. Reasonably fried till golden brown and sparsely dressed with a layer of melting butter, altogether, they lend a good aroma hit in the nose before we gobbled this delicate slab of fillet down.

While baked beans and fries as sides were the ordinary, I find that their coleslaw gave a cooling pleasure to the entire plate of "heaty" treats. This simple and straight forward side stands well alone in its mayonnise and salad dressing.

generously dressed with mayonnaise

Grill Fish with Lemon Butter - $6.50

And here's the break down cost for individual plate. Payment is to be make upon order and please indicate your table number.

Total Damage

Rating: 3.5 / 5

Little Grill
Location: Blk 215 Jurong East Street 2, #01-541, Singapore 600215

134 Ah Jie Rojak.Poh Piah

134 Ah Jie Rojak.Poh Piah is tucked at one corner of Fu Chan Food Paradise of Blk 134 Jurong Gateway Road facing facing the shops instead of the main road.

134 Ah Jie Rojak. Poh Piah Stall

The price of the Popiah falls within the standard market rate, each costing $1.30. It's  appearance was ordinary whereby the length of the popiah was proportionally divided into 5 sections with both ends as the toughest part to bite on especially with the folds.

Poh Piah - $1.30 Each

The fillings were well encased within the thin and translucent popiah skin. Each bite was sweet tasting and pack with a delightful crunchiness from the fresh juicy "Tau Gays" (beansprouts).

Cross Section of Popiah

Overall, the Popiahs were better than average with not too strong garlic smell. It definitely make a good snack over tea times.

Rating: 3.5 / 5

134 Ah Jie Rojak, Poh Piah - Fu Chan Food Paradise
Location: Blk 134 Jurong Gateway Road Singapore 600134

Xin Peng La Mian

Xin Peng La Mian is located at Blk 134 of Jurong Gateway road in the coffee shop of Fu Chan Food Paradise selling chinese delicacies such as La Mian and Xiao Long Baos.

Jin Peng La Mian

La Mian (Noodle) was pulled freshly on spot whereby customers can enjoy helpers showing off their talent. The noodle was soft coated with the savoury minced meat sauce lending an unctuous essence to the dish . Besides its delicious sweet broth, what I like about the bowl was its tender pork cutlet that was fried to perfection.Its meat was sliced into pieces, though it may not have the crispy batter over them, the flavour was good. Vegetables and big portion of black fungus were also added to the meal.

Pork Cutlet La Mian (dry) - $3.50

Another noteworthy item that one cannot miss is its XLB (Xiao Long Bao). Having tried the one in Bukit Timah Food Centre in Beauty World, I would say theirs is comparable, if not better. Enjoy your free loading of Shredded Ginger and vinegar at their counter.

Shredded Gingner

Xiao Long Baos were only freshly prepared upon order, from the creation of its translucent skin. It took us quite some wait before we can actually get hold of the freshly made end product. Served 6 in a Dim Sum Tray, these XLB were big and exciting.

Xiao Long Bao - $4 for 6

Its skin was delicate, with folds on its exterior well defined, finished off with a beautiful pleat on its top. The meat was intensively flavoured taseted with hints of chinese wine. While everything almost came to perfection, the only shout-out i had was its minced meat as they disintegrates too quickly in our mouth with the slightest pressure.

Look at its pleats

Before you chomp them down, do add some gingers with vinegar and enjoy these XLB with the delicious burst of flavours.

Yum Yum!

Overall, I would say that its really a hidden JEM in the coffeeshop. Its a definite run for the money!

Rating : 4 / 5

Xin Peng La Mian Xiao Long Bao - Fu Chan Food Paradise
Location: Blk 134 Jurong Gateway Rd. (Jurong East), Singapore 600134

Ah Guan Mee Pok

Look's what the crowd over in New Generation Restaurant? Ah Guan Mee Pok where a bowl of Mee Pok Cost as much as $10? Wow! Well that's the deluxe version of Mee Pok with crayfish.

Ah Guan Mee Pok

I didnt give the $10 Crayfish Mee Pok a try as I was skeptical. Instead, I had opted for its special Mee Pok which cost $3 per bowl.

I found that the Mee Pok used was different, not the usual thickness and looked a little translucent under the light.

The Mee Pok was splendidly cooked, tasty and aromatic. Special stock with minced meat was loaded into my bowl together with few teaspoons of vinegar added. Chewy meat balls and fresh prawns were added as well.The murky bowl of soup that comes along was exuded with seafood flavours.

Special Mee Pok - $3

The abalone liked slice added gave the dish another delectable dimension with its sweet savoury shellfish taste.

delectable dimension, with its sweet and deep flavour of shellfish. - See more at: http://www.soshiok.com/content/whether-its-guan-or-ah-guan-mee-pok-noodles-were-great#sthash.81vwGrwY.dpuf

Abalone Liked Slices and Ingredients

Now that I had tasted and agreeable with their standards, I would most probably give the deluxe version on the next try.

Rating: 4 / 5

Ah Guan Mee Pok - New Generation Restaurant
Location: Blk 501 West Coast Drive #01-244 Singapore 120501

Yeo Keng Nam Chicken Rice

Thanks to my foodie colleague who actually took extra efforts after our working hours by fetching us to Yeo Keng Nam Chicken Rice.

Yeo Keng Nam (YKN) has been established since 1953 with its authentic serving of Hainanese Chicken Rice.

Sharing the same plot of land with the car workshops and some old school looking provision shop, Yeo Keng Nam Chicken Rice stands out among the rest especially with their signature dishes and festive decors hanging all over the shop front.

Even though, it looked pretty traditional but at a closer look, one would actually appreciate that YKN had won some awards over over the years. On top of that, there were pictures of overseas celebrities who actually patronized them.

Yeo Keng Nam Chicken Rice

A step into the restaurant somehow had unwind me from the bustling city life. The place was calm and laid-back with the those traditional fore ceilings brightly install with down lights.

Dining Environment

A usual practice in the Chinese resturant, braised peanuts (appetizers) was served while waiting for order.

Appetiser - Braised Peanuts - $3

Barley Drinks - $1.70 per cup

Let's help ourselves with the power chilli, dark sauce and blended ginger in the condiments tray while waiting for the fowl to be served.

Condiments

Spot on! Expecting chicken stock in the bowl? No, it's more than what I can think of. It was actually a tasty serving of pig stomach soup, refillable with prompt service. Before dinner had arrived, my stomach was already filled with bowls of it.

Soup

The fluffy rice tasted exceptional,  each grain is whole and coated with a light layer of oil and the texture was good. Can you imagine that my colleague can actually finish a bowl of rice alone without any sides? Be-warn, its lip-smackingly good!

Fragrant Rice - $0.90 per bowl

Engulfed by the fragrance of dried shrimps use in this delightful baby french beans. What a wise choice! Though exterior looked abit dry but the crunch and taste was up to the mark, a very good dish to pair with the white rice.

Crispy Baby French Beans - $8

 Here's come the starring dish that we had been waiting for! Half a poached chicken!

Half Steamed Chicken - $15

Beside looking at the sensational texture of this glistening poached chicken, enjoy the plump and juicy flesh as you sink your teeth into them.Not only that, this sexy & voluptuous serving would definitely incite more helpings even if your stomach is about to fill.

Yum Yum!

 Having tried preparing Hainanese Pork Chop from home, I would say that theirs was very well done. The meat was tenderized and well seasoned with a light layer of batter that comes with crispiness which gave me the hint that they had adopted the use of crushed crackers pressed again the pork loin then fried it. It seemed that the slab of  meat was pounded with mallet by loosening the meat fibers so as to achieve such tenderized standard.

Hainanese Pork Chop - $11

The use of sauce was proportionate, not overpowering with taste and crispiness of pork chop maintained at the acceptable manner. Perhaps the only lacking portion was the green peas which looked abit dry and fade in colors.

Hainanese Pork Chop

Hainanese Chicken Rice is one of Singapore staples food which tourist would come hunting for. Where competitions were strong among the players, Yeo Keng Nam chicken rice is definitely one of the top 5 I had in my list now serving authentic Hainanese chicken rice and not forgetting its scrumptious plate of Hainanese Pork Chop.

Another highlight was that, customers are spared from the additional charges as no GST and service charge will be incurred. To add on, one can actually skip the wet towels and appetizers to save more cost.

Yeo Keng Nam's Wet Towel

Yeo Keng Nam Chicken Rice

Location: 8 Braddell Road, Serangoon 359898

Opening Hours: Closed on Mon, Tue to Sun: 1030 - 2200

Website