The Replacement - Lodge & Kitchen (Malaysia, Johor Bahru)

 Eggs Benedict RM25.90

As new players continue to join the cafe scene in Singapore, a similar trend is taking place across the causeway. There are at least 10 cafes along the stretch of shop houses at Jalan Dhoby and Jalan Tan Hiok Nee. Both streets are just 15 minutes walk away from the causeway.

We visited The Replacement - Lodge & Kitchen which is a cafe along Jalan Dhoby. We arrived on a week day at around 11am. The cafe has a small seating capacity of around 25. When  we arrived, the cafe was half full. By the time we left at around 12 noon, the cafe was full and there was a queue! It as obvious from the tone and slang that all the customers in the cafe were Singaporeans!

Beverage Menu 

The beverage (coffee, tea, juices and chocolate) menu.

Brunch Menu

Brunch Menu

Churros with Salted Egg Yolk Dip RM16.90

We ordered the Churros with Salted Egg Yolk Dip RM16.90 for sharing. It was a pity the churros was not crisp. The salted egg yolk dip was delicious. But towards the end it became quite jerlak.

The Breakfast Platter RM29.90

The Breakfast Platter consisted of buttery scrambled eggs, sautéed mushroom, grilled tomato, chicken sausage and turkey ham pastrami served with museli bread. At RM29.90, it was so value for money considering that it would have easily cost around $18 in Singapore. Moreover, it was delicious. One of their best dish! Shiok!

 Eggs Benedict RM25.90

Eggs Benedict with beef pastrami which cost RM25.90 was disappointing. The egg (yolk) were overcooked and no longer runny. As for the beef pastrami, they were on the salty end.

Overall, the prices at the cafe was reasonable and we really liked The Breakfast Platter. Do give it a try! With the number of cafes nearby, we are so spoil for choice! =)

The Replacement - Lodge & Kitchen (Malaysia, Johor Bahru)

33, Jalan Dhoby

Bandar Johor Bahru

80000 Johor Bahru, Johor, Malaysia

Tel: 60 16 713 2714

Opening Hours: Daily 9 am to 7 pm

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Starry House Cottage 清境觀星園景觀山莊 (Taiwan, Nantou Country)

Complimentary Breakfast

 Starry House Cottage 清境觀星園景觀山莊 is a popular guesthouse (minsu) located in Cing Jing.

 We chose this guesthouse because of the following reasons.

1) It has the best view as it is strategically located at the highest point of Cing Jing

2) Great reviews on the hospitable and and friendly service

3) Complimentary steamboat dinner and breakfast that garnered good reviews

I am not joking when I wrote that it has the best view. Look at the sunset! We had an unblocked view as we were at the highest point. We arrived just in time for sunset. The owners immediately told us to go to the porch to view the sunset, and leave the luggage with them and pay the remaining payment later.

If you thought that this view was great wait till you see the photo on sunrise at the end of this post. 

Complimentary Steamboat Dinner

Located so high in Cing Jing, the temperature was so cold, making it perfect for having steamboat dinner. The portion of food was for 4 persons.

Complimentary Steamboat Dinner

The food was wrapped up in cling wrap to keep the food fresher till the guests were ready for dinner. Such thoughtful gesture from the owners! As for the meat and soup, they were served only after the guests were ready.

Complimentary Steamboat Dinner

Complimentary Steamboat Dinner

Complimentary Steamboat Dinner

Complimentary Steamboat Dinner

The ingredients provided were all very fresh. The only complain I had for the dinner was that there should have been more meat.

Complimentary Steamboat Dinner

This is their homemade chilli dip. Spicy and addictive.

Everyone staying at the guesthouse all woke up early and waited for the sun to rise. This is the photo of the sunrise. Beautiful right?

Complimentary Breakfast (Toast and egg)

After watching the sunrise, everyone went for breakfast which consisted of toast, egg, fruit, salad and coffee or tea. The breakfast was cooked by the owner's wife.

Complimentary Breakfast (salad and fruit)

The breakfast was simple yet delicious especially the toast. However, the portion was too little =(.

Nevertheless, we had a great stay at Starry House Cottage. Highly recommended! 

Starry House Cottage 清境觀星園景觀山莊 (Taiwan, Nantou Country)

台灣南投縣仁愛鄉大同村博望巷96號

No.96.Bowang Ln,Ren'ai Township

546 Nantou  Taiwan

Tel: 049 280 2242
Website

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BeefSteak Nam Son (Vietnam, Ho Chi Minh)

BeefSteak Nam Son also known as "Nam Sơn" among the locals is a no frills Vietnamese restaurant. I understand the locals love coming to this restaurant for breakfast and some visit as early as 6am or 630am!

BeefSteak Nam Son as its name suggests specialises in serving Vietnamese style western food; beefsteak (Bít tết). It has 2 branches. The branch that we went to was located along the Nguyễn Thị Minh Khai (main road).

After seeing the signboard, we turned in and found ourselves in a long alley filled with rows of motorcycles. At the end of the alley, we reached the entrance of the restaurant.

Entering the restaurant, we were greeted by rows of dark wooden tables and white plastic chairs that were arranged systematically to maximise the space. The above photo shows part of the outdoor dining area. There was also an indoor dining area with the same type of tables and chairs. In terms of furnishing, it was simple and basic. Although there was no air conditioners, the restaurant had high ceiling with many ceiling and wall fans. Hence, it was well-ventilated.

We were surprised to see that the restaurant was full when we arrived at 9am for breakfast as it had such a large sitting capacity. Despite the crowd, we were able to find a table shortly at the indoor dining area.

Menu 

The menu with most of main and side dishes. This should be for foreigners as it was translated in English language.

Menu

On the other side, it was the beverage menu. We noticed that most of their customers seems to be regulars as they did not need a menu and ordered on the spot. It was fairly easy ordering as they had many staff who were able to multitask. You could order through anyone (e.g. the person who is clearing or serving the food.

The condiments (chilli sauce, fish sauce, pepper) on every table.

Daily Homemade Passion Fruit with Ice (Chanh dây) 25,000 VND (S$1.50)

This was the Daily Homemade Passion Fruit with Ice (Chanh dây) 25,000 VND (S$1.50).

Baguette (Bánh Mì), Salad, Cucumber and carrot mixed with olive oil (Món Chua), French Fries (Khoai tây chiên) 

Although the restaurant was full, shortly after we ordered, these [Baguette (Bánh Mì), Cucumber and carrot mixed with olive oil (Món Chua), French Fries (Khoai tây chiên)] were served at our table!

The Baguette (Bánh Mì) and Salad were complimentary dishes. The Baguette deserves a mention. It was very well executed and it was so good that we requested for more after our main dishes came! (You can request for unlimited replenishment of Baguette)

French Fries (Khoai tây chiên) 15,000 VND (S$0.90)

We ordered French Fries (Khoai tây chiên) 15,000 VND (S$0.90) for sharing. Although it was average, this was a good side dish was soaking up all the sauce in the hotplate of meat!

Ostrich Steak (Bít tết Đà Điểu) 90,000 VND (S$5.40)

The partner ordered the Ostrich Steak (Bít tết Đà Điểu) 90,000 VND (S$5.40) which was served with a sunny side up egg on a hotplate.

Nam Son Specialty Combination of Steak, Sunny Side Up Egg, Meatball and Pate (Beefsteak Thập Cẩm) 60,000 VND (S$3.60)

I ordered the Nam Son Specialty Combination of Steak, Sunny Side Up Egg, Meatball and Pate (Beefsteak Thập Cẩm) 60,000 VND (S$3.60) which was also served on a sizzling hotplate which splattered the oil and sauces out. The serving was generous as the cut of the meat was fairly large. We followed what the local did and shredded our Baguette into small pieces and dipped them into the sauces and also spread pate on it.

If you are wondering what pate is, it is actually minced pork liver.

Never underestimate the influence of western breakfast in Vietnam. It was so crowded when we visited and majority of the crowd was locals except for another foreign couple. Despite the crowd, the service was prompt and efficient! In addition, the food was unique. This is worth a visit if you are interested in trying what the locals eat.  

BeefSteak Nam Sơn (Vietnam, Ho Chi Minh)

200 Bis Nguyễn Thị Minh Khai, 

District 1,  Ho Chi Minh

Tel: +84 (08) 3930 3917
Opening Hours: Daily 6am to 10pm

Website

BeefSteak Nam Sơn (another branch)
157 Nam Ky Khoi Nghia
District 3, Ho Chi Minh
Opening Hours: Daily 6am to 10pm

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Good Morning Nanyang Cafe 早安南洋 (Sembawang) 2nd Post

*Edited on Aug 2013: Good Morning Nanyang Cafe at Sembawang Shopping Centre has closed*

It has been almost one and a half years since I came back to Good Morning Nanyang Cafe. Good Morning Nanyang Cafe has a similar business model to Toast Box, Killiney and Ya kun, specialising in breakfast sets such as kaya toast, coffee, tea and half-boiled eggs. In addition, they also ventured into serving Local Delights such as Laksa, Mee Siam, Egg Noodles and Mee Rebus. A smart move as they not only capture the breakfast crowd but also ensure that they capture the lunch and dinner crowd with these piping hot dishes. 

As usual we visited its branch at Sembawang Shopping Centre on Saturday at 9am in the morning. The cafe was full of customers. We had to wait a short while before we could get a table. Although Good Morning Nanyang Cafe was not big in terms of floor area, they had many tables and chairs position systematically in rows. Coupled with the fact that the turnover was fast, I noticed that most customers did not have to wait more than 5 minutes for a table. 

The process to order and collect orders are similiar to their competitors (i.e. Ya Kun, Toast Box). Customers will be required to proceed to the counter to queue and make their orders. After that they would be required to collect their drinks, half boiled eggs and a queue tag number. The queue tag number is used by the serving staff to identify the customers who have ordered toasts and/or local delights items (items that would require sometime to prepare). 

Good Morning Nanyang Cafe decoration is simple with a rustic feel.

The Toast Sets.

Local Delights.

I ordered Set C - Orange Ciabatta Toast which is priced at $5.20. I was served with two half-boiled eggs, Orange Ciabatta Toast and a cup of coffee or tea. 

2 Half-Boiled Eggs 

Ya Kun's half boiled eggs are still the best. They are always big and perfectly cooked. In this case, I felt that Good Morning Nanyang Cafe's version is slightly undercooked as some of the egg white were still transparent. Nevertheless, this was still quite well-executed and delicious. I have encountered much worse off half boiled eggs. The main issue I have with Good Morning Nanyang Cafe's eggs were that I wish the staff would crack the eggs for us like Ya Kun instead of requiring customers to do it themselves. 

Orange Ciabatta Toast

Orange Ciabatta Toast

The Orange Ciabatta Toast was the highlight. This was the reason why we came back to Good Morning Nanyang Cafe.

Ciabatta is an Italian white bread made from yeast and flour, normally elongated in shape. In this case, it was flat and baked into a square shape. In addition, as it's name suggested, it was infused with orange flavour which is likely from to have come from orange peel. The Orange Ciabatta Toast was served with butter and kaya spread sandwiching two pieces of toast. The kaya is freshly made daily. It had a more aromatic compared to Ya Kun's with more coconut flavour. Shiok! This is a must try when you are at Good Morning Nanyang Cafe.

Coffee

The coffee was much better than the tea I had during my previous visit. In addition, it was aromatic.

If you are interested to read about my review on their Laksa and Mee Rebus, you may click here for my previous post.

I would strongly recommend Good Morning Nanyang Cafe's Orange Ciabatta Toast. It will be an entirely different foodie experience compared to Ya Kun's toast. 

Sembawang Shopping Centre Shuttle Bus 

Sembawang Shopping Centre Management has recently changed the free Sembawang Shopping Centre Shuttle Bus Service routes (effective date - 18 Feb 2013). Quite sad to note that the shuttle bus no longer ply the route near my house. It is now less convenient for my family and I to visit the shopping mall. Used to visit patronise Giant, Gong Cha, Daiso, Popular and of course Good Morning Nanyang Cafe quite often. With the change, I am unlikely to visit the shopping mall anytime soon. After all, I have another shopping mall 10 minutes walk away. I wish that the management will revert to the original bus route. But well, that's very unlikely..

Good Morning Nanyang Cafe 早安南洋 (Sembawang)
604 Sembawang Road
#01-01 Sembawang Shopping Centre
Tel: 8133 1882
Opening Hours: Mon–Fri 9am – 9pm
Sat–Sun & PH  8.30am – 9pm
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Good Morning Nanyang Cafe 早安南洋 ( Hong Lim Green Community Centre)

20, Upper Pickering Street Singapore

Tel: 8133 1882

Opening Hours: Mon–Fri 730am – 730pm 

                          Sat, Sun & PH 830am – 530pm

Good Morning Nanyang Cafe 早安南洋 (Turf City)
200 Turf Club Road
The Grandstand #01-34A
Tel: 8133 1882
Opening Hours: Daily 9am to 9pm

Australia Dairy Company 澳洲牛奶公司 (Hongkong)

I have heard so much about the Australia Dairy Company 澳洲牛奶公司 that it was on my list of must visit destination in Hong Kong.

Australia Dairy Company is a cha chaan teng know for it's legendary Scrambled Eggs, Steamed Egg White Pudding with Milk, long queues and cheap prices.

Signboard saying 澳洲牛奶公司

Australia Dairy Company 澳洲牛奶公司

During my 6D5N stay in Hong Kong, we visited Australia Diary Company not once. Not twice. But thrice! Yes, three times in total during such a short stay as we like the food too much.

In this post, I will cover my first visit to Australia Diary Company for breakfast.

There was a long queue at Australia Dairy Company at 9am. Despite the long queue, we got a table for the 6 of us within 10minutes! It's amazingly how fast we got a place considering we have such a big group. This gives a very big hint on how fast the turnover is as those who knows this place will recall it is not a very big shop.

Chiller displaying the cold Steamed Egg White Puddings with Milk!

A peek inside the cha chaan teng. Notice those guys wearing white (Men in White)? They are the waiters taking orders, serving and tallying the bill. Also, notice that they are all males!

Menu (a)

The menus are all pasted on each table under a hard solid plastic sheet. This helps as waiters do not need to waste time and get the menu.

They have 3 set meals; Breakfast Set, Tea Time Set and Fast Food Set. Breakfast Set is from 730am to 12 noon and cost HK$26. Tea Time Set is from 12 noon to 11pm and cost HK$30. Fast Food Set is for all day (any time) and cost HK$26.

Before we could warm our seats (less than 1 min after seating down), one of the Men in White was already at our tables waiting to take our orders. We decided to order the Breakfast Set which cost HK$26 (S$4.33). The Breakfast Set consist of toasted white bread with scrambled or sunny side up eggs, macaroni soup with ham slices and hot/cold milk tea. We all chose the legendary scrambled eggs!

Menu (b)

We also ordered two Steamed Egg White Pudding with Milk 蛋白燉鲜牛奶 which cost HK$20 (S$3.33) each.

Macaroni Soup with Ham Slices

The service here is amazing. Within less than 5 minutes after ordering, our Macaroni Soup with Ham Slices arrived. The macaroni was cooked perfectly, not too hard not too soft. The broth was clear but slightly salty. It was a heart-warming homecooked dish that certainty warmed my heart. Yummy.

You will need to eat the macaroni soup fast. Because before I could even finish it (by the way, I am a fast eater), the bread with scrambled egg and tea were served. It was a challenge to squeeze all the items on the tables.

Toasted White Bread with Scrambled Egg

Presenting the Toasted White Bread with Legendary Scrambled Egg. Many readers will be wondering what's the fuss with scrambled egg. After all it is simple to make and available everywhere. However, to make it to Australia Dairy Company's standard, it takes a lot of skill. You will need to try this for yourself to understand what I meant.

The scrambled eggs here are perfectly cooked. Light, fluffy, moist, buttery and well seasoned. This is certainly the best scrambled egg I ever had. Anyone knows how to cook it this way?

Hot Milk Tea

Hot Milk Tea was ordinary. You will need to add sugar. My guess is that fresh milk is added instead of condense milk.

I was greedy and thought this will be our one and only visit to Australia Dairy Company. Hence, I ordered Macaroni Soup with Ham and Sunny Side Up Egg.

Macaroni Soup with Ham and Sunny Side Up Egg

Steamed Egg White Pudding with Milk (hot)

Steamed Egg White Pudding with Milk 蛋白燉鲜牛奶 has a smooth texture with a strong aroma of milk and egg white. In terms of sweetness level, it was just nice. Delicious! Another must try!

Through this meal at Australia Dairy Company, I am very impressed with the food and it's operation. Certainty a 'Die Die Must Try' in Hongk Kong! In terms of food, it is like homecooked food. The must order includes Scrambled Egg and Steamed Egg White Pudding with Milk.

What was I impressed about it's operations? Australia Dairy Company reminds me of the concept of fast food and in fact, I think they did better than the fast food we know today. Despite there being a queue through out the day (I have visited Australia Dairy Company 3 times, twice for breakfast, once for supper), they clear the queue very fast. They are basically very efficient, in taking orders, serving, tallying of bill, paying of bills and clearing of plates.

The place is basically very small, but it is amazing how Australia Dairy Company squeeze the tables and chairs. Everything went with clock work precision. After you are assigned to your table and seats, one of the men in white will be beside you waiting for you to order. Within minutes of ordering, your food will be here(faster than fast food). If you do not eat fast enough, all the food will have arrived and there will be no more space on your table (stress?). And after you have finished it, your plates will be cleared without needing you to prompt to anyone to do that! And guess what? As you are finishing your last bites, one of the men in white will be next to your table asking if there's anymore orders. If you say no? He will count the plates and write the amount you need to pay. I am amazed by the waiter that day. We had six of us, ordering sets meals and also ala carte items. Yet, the waiter calculated the total amount MENTALLY in less than 20 seconds! We were all shocked. We tried calculating the bill to see if it was correct and we took so much longer. (Chew on this: My highest qualification is degree yet I took much longer.) Till today, I am still wowed by the efficiency of the operations in Australia Dairy Company.

Australia Dairy Company 澳洲牛奶公司 (Hongkong)
47-49 Parkes Street Jordan (near Jordan MTR)
Tel: (852) 2730 1356
Opening Hours: Daily 730am to 11pm'
Facebook (not official fb)
Location
How to get there: Exit C2 Jordon's MTR Station and walk towards Parkes Street

Location

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