Buddy Hoagies at Nee Soon South Community Club (Yishun)

Buddy Hoagies is a restaurant cafe specialising in western cuisine. I did not call it a restaurant became it has a friendly and relaxed ambience which is child friendly too. Moreover, the photo frames of English oldies singers and environment gave a unique warm comfort country feel. I visited Buddy Hoagies on a weekday evening for dinner at Yishun. They have two other outlets at Bukit Timah and Downtown East.

During my visit, I noticed that there were quite a number of children in the cafe. After walking around, I knew the reasons. Buddy Hoagies was a children friendly cafe! They had plastic utensils (spoon, forks, plates) for kids (not those disposable ones) and a corner filled toys for children to play. Some children even brought the toys to their tables where they could play while waiting for the food to be served. Not bad, I did not notice any children playing with ipad or any mobile devices! 

There was an option to upgrade the main course to a Buddy's Set Meal for $4.50 which would include soup & garlic toast, coffee/tea/ ice tea and ice cream.

We ordered a Fish and Chips and upgraded it to a Set Meal ($13.40), followed by a Western BBQ Chicken ($8.90) and Cheese Fries ($3.50). 

Tea

Cream of Mushroom & Garlic Toast

The Cream of Mushroom was average. It was too thick for my liking while the Garlic Toast was a tad too hard. 

Cheese Fries $3.50

The Cheese Fries $3.50 tasted quite good when it was still warm. When it cooled down, the cheese became hard and the fries at the bottom were soggy. 

Fish and Chips

The Fish and Chips $8.90 served with fries fared better. Though they could be more generous with their servings, both items were not overly oily. In addition, the fish was slight moist in the interior (not hard and dry). In fact, I like this fries better compared to the cheese fries. 

Western BBQ Chicken $8.90

The Western BBQ Chicken $8.90 was essentially grilled chicken in barbecue sauce with vegetables and baked potato. Initially, I thought that the portion was very little. But come to think of it, for the ambience and price, I really should not fault it too much as the operating cost of the F&B industry have gone up.

The chicken was nicely grilled and the interior was juicy and tender. There was a slight hint of smoky flavour. If the smoky flavour could be intensified, this would have been wonderful. There was a big chunk of butter in the baked potato. Needless to say, I took out most of the butter before they had the opportunity to melt. This main course was not bad and quite value for money. 

Ice Cream

The vanilla ice cream was well, simple and ordinary.

There were hits and misses at Buddy Hoagies. But generally, their main course seemed to fared better. They did quite well in creating a warm cozy ambience with a children friendly environment.

Buddy Hoagies at Nee Soon South Community Club (Yishun)
Nee Soon South Community Club
30 Yishun Street 81
Singapore 768455
Tel: 6752 8722
Opening Hours: 10am to 10pm daily
Website

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Manna Korean Restaurant (NTU Hall 13 Canteen)

There are quite a few hidden gem; cheap and good food stalls in Nanyang Technological University (NTU). Most of us seldom enter the university unless we are studying or working there. Since it was a rare chance that I was at the university, I had to make full use of the opportunity by having a meal there. The Korean stall called Manna Korean Restaurant at Hall 13 Canteen was strongly recommended by a member in our group.

Hence, we visited Hong Yun, more commonly known as Hall 13 canteen. 

Although it was during the semester break, the canteen was packed when we left. In addition, the Korean stall which was wanted to try was opened. 

The Korean Stall; Manna Korean Restaurant is operated by Koreans. As it was lunch time, we had to wait a fair bit as there was several NTU staff / students in front of us. 

Menu

The menu with a wide variety of korean food to choose from. 

BBQ Beef Set $4.50

I ordered the BBQ Beef Set $4.50 which consisted of hotplate BBQ Beef served with rice, soup and a very small serving of kimchi. The  rice, soup and kimchi were ordinary. Hence, I shall not write about them.

BBQ Beef Set $4.50

The hotplate BBQ Beef with cabbage and Korean rice vermicelli with sesame seeds sprinkled on top deserved some airtime. They were very generous with the ingredients, particularly the BBQ Beef slices. The beef slices were well marinated. The only issue I had was it was a tad too dry. More sauce could have been added. At $4.50, it was quite value for money as it would have easily cost $7.50 or more at food courts. 

BBQ Chicken Set $3.90

The rest of the items were ordered by others in the group. The BBQ Chicken Set cost $3.90.

BBQ Chicken Set $3.90

Unlike the BBQ Beef, there was no rice vermicelli in the BBQ Chicken. The BBQ Chicken was well marinated and it was the spicy version. It went very well with the rice. In addition, there were so many pieces of chicken and there were lots of sauce at the bottom of the hotplate. 

Bulgogi Beef (Korean Traditional BBQ)$4.70

The Bulgogi Beef (Korean Traditional BBQ) was quite good. This version is the soup version. The beef meat were marinated and then fried / BBQ with other ingredients (e.g. onion). Then the ingredients were poured into this Korean pot and cooked with golden mushroom and rice vermicelli. 

Bulgogi Beef (Korean Traditional BBQ)$4.70

Again, they were so generous with the ingredients. The amount of beef slices given was just so much. The soup was flavouful, though a tad too sweet. 

Dolsot Bibimbab (Chicken) $4.50

Dolsot Bibimbab (Chicken) $4.50

The Dolsot Bibimbab (Chicken) cost $4.50. Can't comment on this as I did not try.

Overall, I must say that the prices here are really cheap and the food are not bad. Yes, the main reason for the so reasonable prices was because this is a university and most customers are students. Hence, there's a need to ensure that its affordable. Worth a try if you are within the area. 

Manna Korean Restaurant (NTU Hall 13 Canteen)

Nanyang Technological University, Hall 13
32 Nanyang Crescent, Pioneer 
Singapore 637658

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Noodle Soup with Chicken at Chatuchak Weekend Market (Thailand, Bangkok)

At the capital of the Land Of Smiles, Thailand, the Chatuchak Weekend Market is a must visit place for tourist. This market is the world's largest market weekend market spanning an area of 35 acres, split into 27 different sections with more than 15,000 booths selling different types of products.

With its attractive prices and wide range of products, this market can attract up to 200,000 visitors daily on weekends. This is despite the narrow alleys and unbearable heat. Few than 1% of the stalls are air conditioned.

It is highly advisable that you wear comfortable clothes such as t-shirt, shorts and slipper.

We did extensive research on the location for our lunch and came across this eatery called "Noodle Soup with Chicken". It was not easy finding this place because Chatuchak is huge! Luckily, we managed to narrow down the search area to Soi 29 which is along this 'main road' (above photo). 

We were thrilled when we found this place. It was like how I would imagine a popular place to be. Brisk business, filled to the brim with people. Noodle Soup with Chicken is actually located at Section 21, Soi 29 facing Soi 47. The nearest gate is "Gate 3". You can refer to either the interactive or static map at the bottom of this post to better visualise the location.

Notice the empty pot at the left. It actually contained braised chicken feet/claws. I tried to order that, but I was a few moments too late! They had just sold their last bowl of chicken feet/claws noodle at 1230pm. So if you want to try it, you have got to earlier than 1230pm.

It was replaced by a pot of stewed chicken meat.

The Noodle Soup with Chicken shop offers different types of noodles including Kway Teow, Bee Hoon (Rice vermicell) and Yellow Noodles. 

Menu

I suspect this is the menu.. its all in Thai. We had to point at the next table to try to explain what we wanted to order. When it came to the type of noodles, we actually went to the shop front where they displayed the noodles and point the type of noodles we wanted. To be fair, the young man who took our orders was so polite and courteous despite the difficulty we had communicating with each other. Don't you love the service at Thailand? No wonder it is the land of smiles!

This eatery offers Noodle Soup with Chicken (meat/chicken feet).

Beverage Menu

Ironically, the beverage menu was available in English!

Thai Ice Tea 30 Baht (S$1.25)

For drinks, we ordered the Thai Ice Tea 30 Baht (S$1.25). I noticed that the stall owners collaborated with the drinks stall located just outside as the drink was from that stall. The Thai Ice Tea was very sweet! Even after the ice had melted, it was still too sweet for my liking.

Noodle (Kway Teow) Soup with Chicken 50 Baht (S$2.08)

We all ordered the same dish - Noodle Soup with Chicken. The only variation was the noodles.

This was the last bowl of Kway Teow Soup with Chicken 50 Baht (S$2.08)!

Noodle (Glass Noodle) Soup with Chicken 50 Baht (S$2.08)

Noodle (Glass Noodle) Soup with Chicken 50 Baht (S$2.08)

We ordered Noodle (Glass Noodle) Soup with Chicken 50 Baht (S$2.08)

Noodle (Bee Hoon) Soup with Chicken 50 Baht (S$2.08)

Deciding to try different noodles, we also ordered Noodle (Bee Hoon) Soup with Chicken 50 Baht (S$2.08).

The Noodle Soup with Chicken was delicious. Each bowl was accompanied by two pieces of braised chicken meat, one of which would be a drumstick. The braised chicken meat were so tender and flavourful. The (chicken) soup was rich, tasty and sweet with a slight hint herbal flavour which was just nice, such that those who do not fancy herbal stuff would not be turned off. Great find with satisfying and comfort food. Certainly a place to try if you are in Chatuchak Market.

Chatuchak Weekend Market Map

As mentioned earlier, this eatery is located at Section 21, Soi 29 facing Soi 47. Section 21 and Soi 29 is the clothing/fashion area while Soi 47 is the Home Furniture area.

Noodle Soup with Chicken at Chatuchak Weekend Market (Thailand, Bangkok)

Section 21, Soi 29 facing Soi 47
Kamphaeng Phet 2 Road
Chatuchak, Bangkok, Thailand

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Ban Khun Mae Restaurant at Siam Square (Thailand, Bangkok)

Ban Khun Mae located at Siam Square is just across the road (Zebra Crossing. Yes, they do have Zebra Crossings in Bangkok!) from Mango Tango. It is also located less than 5 minutes away from Hotel Novotel.

Ban Khun Mae when translated into English Language means "my mother’s kitchen". The restaurant opened for business in 1998 serving authentic Thai food has impressed many locals and foreigners. On its website, it claimed that the food it serves is made from secret recipes passed down from generation to generation. We visited the restaurant on a weekday for lunch.

The restaurant dimly lighted was clean, rustic with its timbre furnishing and Thai theme decorations (ornaments and paintings). 

Their timbre chairs were huge and heavy! Had a little struggle trying to shift it inwards. 

Menu

Ban Khun Mae's menu was in both Thai and English languages with prices clearly stated. 

Deep Fried Marinated Chicken Wrapped with Pandan Leaf 120 Baht (S$5)

Deep Fried Marinated Chicken Wrapped with Pandan Leaf 120 Baht (S$5)

The Deep Fried Marinated Chicken Wrapped with Pandan Leaf 120 Baht (S$5) served with sweet dipping sauce was superb. The chicken was well fried. Each piece was fragrant and incredibly tender and succulent. 

Green Curry Chicken 120 Baht (S$5)

Green Curry Chicken 120 Baht (S$5)

The Green Curry Chicken 120 Baht (S$5) was also top notch. It was creamy and had an appetising aroma and unique flavour. It had the right balance of sweetness and mild spiciness which hits the right spot making it a perfect combination with plain rice.  

Baked Prawn with Glass Noodles 280 Baht (S$11.67)

The most expensive dish which we ordered was the Baked Prawn with Glass Noodles 280 Baht (S$11.67). The prawns were all underneath the grass noodles. 

Baked Prawn with Glass Noodles 280 Baht (S$11.67)

Look at big the prawns are. The prawns were very fresh and the meat was firm. The glass noodles were pretty ordinary. Although the glass noodles were moist and springy, they were just way too peppery such that we could not detect any other flavours.. T&K Seafood's version was much better.

Every evening, there would be live entertainment / performance at the restaurant and that's the period when the restaurant would be most crowded. Although the Baked Prawn with Glass Noodles was a disappointment, the other two dishes were real good. Price wise, it was quite value for money for the quality of food. As for service, it could be improved. Sometimes, it could be hard to get the attention of the staff.  

Ban Khun Mae Restaurant at Siam Square (Thailand, Bangkok)

458/6-9 Siam Square Soi 8

Rama 1 Road

Patumwan District, Bangkok 10330, Thailand

Tel. 66 2250 19523

Opening Hours: Daily 11am to 11pm

Website

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Joom Zap Hut at Central World (Thailand, Bangkok)

Joom Zap Hut located at level 6 of Central World was located together with Bar B Q Plaza as both restaurant chains belonged to the same company, the only difference was the type of cuisine they offered. Joom Zap Hut specialises in Thai style (mookata) barbecue and steamboat while Bar B Q Plaza offers Mongolian and Japanese style barbecue and steamboat. 

Joom Zap Hut  and Bar B Q Plaza

There were lots of seating capacity at Joom Zap Hut and Bar B Q Plaza. When we visited during dinner time (on a weekday), the restaurant chain was half full.

Menu - Family Sets

Menu - Supreme Sets

Menu - Beverages

Part of the menus; Family Sets, Supreme Sets and Beverages menu. We ordered the Family Pork Set 435 Baht (S$18.13), Economy Beef Set 225 Baht (S$9.38), Garlic Fried Rice 42 Baht (S$1.75) and Soft Drink (Pitcher) 75 Baht ($3.13).

The Dome Shaped Skillet at the center of the table ready to be used by hungry customers.

The container of ice and bill was placed on a metal rack that could easily be pulled out from under the table. A good way to save space as our table was (later) filled to the brim when the food was served.

Lime, chilli, garlic and specially prepared sauce

The specially prepared sauce; a brownish sauce, mixed together with chilli, (chopped) garlic and lime was a superb dipping sauce.

Dome Shaped Skillet

The Dome Shaped Skillet was customised such that the centre could be used for grilling meat while the sides was used for soup. Upon ordering, the waitress would pour some stock broth over the centre and the broth will flow downwards to the sides.

Family Pork Set 435 Baht (S$18.13) (a)

Family Pork Set 435 Baht (S$18.13) (b)

The Family Pork Set cost 435 Baht (S$18.13) was served in two big plates filled with a generous serving of pork, liver, chicken, fish fillet, squid, shrimp, bacon, udon, kamaboko, narutomaki, sliced cabbage, baby corn, carrot and lettuce.

Economy Beef Set 225 Baht (S$9.38)

The Economy Beef Set which cost 225 Baht (S$9.38) consisted of beef slices, udon, sliced cabbage, baby corn, carrot and lettuce. We had practically no space left to put our bowls and plates to eat when these three big plates of food were served. They should consider having bigger tables.

Garlic Fried Rice 42 Baht (S$1.75)

Garlic Fried Rice 42 Baht (S$1.75)

The Garlic Fried Rice served in a small bowl was topped with chopped spring onion and pieces of fried garlic. It decent with a hint of garlic fragrant. If only fried egg was mixed into it.

Before putting any food on the hot metal pan (Dome Shaped Skillet), you would need to grease it with a piece of pork lard so that the meat would not stick to the pan. While grilling the meat on the pan, you should add in the vegetables into the soup broth at the side to enhance the taste (sweetness of the broth).

The beef, pork and chicken sliced perfectly were of great quality. So fresh and tender that it tasted simply delicious even without the dipping sauce. You may have noticed that the meat were not marinated, they were all raw so that customers can taste the original taste of the meat. I thought that the fish fillet tasted slightly fishy, dipping it into the special dipping sauce made a whole world of difference to the taste. The shrimp (prawn) and liver deserved a special mentioned as they were also fresh and tasted so good.

Over time, the oil and juices from meat and pork lard on the grill pan dripped into the soup broth enhancing the sweetness and flavour of the soup. Nothing is wasted! Souperlicious!

The advantage of the Dome Shaped Skillet was that one could have the best of both worlds; being able to grill the meat or shabu shabu it by dipping the meat into the soup. In addition, customers are able to cook the meat according to how cooked (well done / medium / rare) or charred they prefered.

The disadvantage would be that the cooking process was too slow for us although we tried squeezing in as many pieces of meat as possible on the grill pan.

The total bill was 777 Baht (S$32.38). There was no service charge or any other additional charges. The prices shown on the menu were all nett. The service at Joom Zap Hut was excellent! Every time when we required something, the staff seemed to have anticipated it and would approach us. There was no need for me to turn my head to look for a staff or wave my hands in the air frantically (exaggerating) to get attention.

Overall, I would say that I doubt I will be back anytime soon. Somehow we were not satisfied - did not felt full. Not because the food was lousy, but more of that the cooking process was too slow for us (maybe because the grill heat was not switched to the highest? or maybe we were used to steamboat where more food could be cooked at anyone time).

For fans of Thai style steamboat (mookata), overall the food here are of great quality. The dipping sauce is superb and the service is top notch. In addition, for the quality of food, it is value for money especially if you come from a country with high cost of living (e.g. Singapore). For me, I would rather go for other restaurant / street food.

Joom Zap Hut at Central World (Thailand, Bangkok)

Joom Zap Hut / Bar B Q Plaza

Level 6, Atrium Zone , A616 
CentralWorld 999/9 Rama 1 Road
Patumwan, Bangkok 10330, Thailand 
Website

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