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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Original Sin (Holland Village)

Original Sin is a Mediterranean Vegetarian restaurant located at Chip Bee Gardens less than 2 minutes walk from Holland Village MRT (exit A) station. The restaurant offers both alfresco and indoor (air-conditioned) dining. As we made reservations, we decided to sit indoors as the weather was scorching hot these days. In addition, we did not want to feed the mosquitoes. 

We visited during lunch time on a Saturday. During lunch hours, they had Set Lunch available during lunch hours. The set lunch consist of a Starter (choice of Soup of the Day/Green Salad), Mains and Dessert at $26. All of us ordered the set lunch. 

Minestrone Soup (Soup of the Day)

Most of us including myself ordered chose the Soup of the Day as our Starter. The Soup of the Day was Minestrone Soup. The soup was full of ingredients such as carrot, cabbage, tomato, spaghetti, etc. The soup itself was not well balanced in taste, I felt that it was a tad too sour and something seems to be lacking. 

Green Salad

A friend of mine ordered the Green Salad.

Spaghetti

For mains, I ordered Spaghetti which was cooked with zucchini, olive, cherry tomato, tossed in tomato basil sauce and parmesan cheese. The chef executed this dish quite well. What was lacking was that they could have been more generous with some of the ingredients such as zucchini.  

Tofu Burger

My friend ordered the Tofu Burger which was served with wedges and salad greens. This was a hit among us; in a league of its own. 

Tofu Burger

The Tofu Burger consisting of tofu and lentil pattie was surprisingly tasty. Although the patty was soft and crumbled easily, we love it! The potato wedges which came with potato skin was also nicely done. In addition, the entire dish was not soggy. 

Mediterranean Wrap

The Mediterranean Wrap which was essentially tortilla wrap filled with chickpea and pumpkin spread, grilled eggplant, feta and salad was a dish which most of us did not appreciate. The main reason was because we were not a fan of chickpea which had a unique taste and smell.

Warm Chocolate Cake with Vanilla Ice Cream

For desserts, we had Warm Chocolate Cake with Vanilla Ice Cream. The chocolate cake was a tad too dry. The molten dark chocolate that flowed out from the centre of the cake was rich and dense. It was so good that it made the chocolate cake seems inferior.

The set lunch made the meal more affordable compared to the ala carte menu. However, one should still note that even with the set lunch, at $26++, this is not exactly cheap. Nevertheless, it was an enjoyable meal.

Original Sin (Holland Village)

Blk 43 #01-62 Jalan Merah Saga Holland Village

Chip Bee Gardens 

Singapore 278115

Tel: 6475 5605

Opening Hours: Daily 1130am - 230pm & 6pm - 1030pm

Website 

.6475 .6475 56055605.6475 5605

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Liang Court Wednesdays' Food Tasting Trails: Tamoya, Shakey's Pizza and Dulcet & Studio

Continue on with my previous post on Liang Court Wednesdays' Food Tasting Trails, I made 2 trips down to Liang Court on the last day of the food trail for both lunch and dinner. 

Tamoya Udon

For lunch, I visited Tamoya Udon which is a Japanese restaurant that specialises in handmade Udon.

Tamoya Udon

With the Liang Court's Wednesdays' Food Trail Coupon, I was able to try the large Curry Udon (U.P $10.80) with Prawn Tempura (U.P $2.50), Fried Chicken (U.P $1.50) and Chikuwa Tempura (U.P $1). 

Curry Udon

The Curry Udon was delicious. The Udon handmade using three types of flour was the highlight. It was chewy yet soft and smooth. The curry with lots of onions added to it complemented the udon well. 

Prawn Tempura, Chikuwa Tempura and Fried Chicken

The Fried Chicken was decent, while the Prawn and Chikuwa Tempura were disappointing. Both the tempura were cold, hard and no longer crisp. They were also coated with too much batter.

For dinner, the Partner and I went for Shakey's Pizza.

The Liang Court's Wednesdays' Food Trail Coupon provided us with several choices:
(a) Slim Trim Caesar Salad (U.P $5) and Spaghetti Carbonara (U.P $13.80)
(b) Shakey's Baby Back Ribs (Full Slab) (U.P $19.80)
(c) Oishi Wasabi Premium Pizza (90-inch) (U.P $19.80) or;
     Hula Hawaiian Classic Pizza (9-inch)(U.P $18.80)

We went for option (a) and (c). 

Slim Trim Caesar Salad and Spaghetti Carbonara

We ordered the Slim Trim Caesar Salad and Spaghetti Carbonara.

Slim Trim Caesar Salad 

The Slim Trim Caesar Salad consisted of lettuce, egg, parmesan cheese, bacon bits and garlic bread was quite good. Considering the fact that we seldom take salad, we finish this entire dish!

Spaghetti Carbonara

The Spaghetti Carbonara served with bacon and mushrooms with creamy egg sauce may not be the best, but it as certainly quite decently executed.

Oishi Wasabi Premium Pizza 

As we wanted to try something different we decided to order Oishi Wasabi Premium Pizza which consisted of shrimps, scallops, pineapples and wasabi sauce topped with lots of bonito flakes. Surprisingly, the wasabi sauce did not overwhelm the taste and complemented this dish well. We both felt that the shrimps and scallops did not match up to this pizza. Both ingredients were not exactly fresh. What a waste.

Dulcet & Studio

After dinner we walked round the shopping centre and also visited Mediya, the Japanese supermarket while waiting for our food to digest. Before, we headed back home, we stopped over at Dulcet & Studio for its cakes.

The food trail coupon enabled us to order two pieces of cakes and also a cup of regular coffee. As we visited at close to 9pm, most of the more popular cakes had already been sold out. We were just left with three choices. =(

We chose the Rose Chiffon Cake (U.P. $7) and Macha Marble Chiffon Cake (U.P. $4)  with a cup of regular coffee.

Macha Marble Chiffon Cake

The Macha Marble Chiffon Cake was just average. It was soft and fluffy but too dry.  The macha flavour could have been stronger.

Rose Chiffon Cake

The Rose Chiffon Cake fared better. It was soft, fluffy and had a stronger rose fragrant.

The coffee was a huge disappointment. We took just two sips and left it untouched.

That's all for the Liang Court Wednesdays' Food Tasting Trails. I wonder if they will hold this again next year. It's so value for money!

Liang Court Wednesdays' Food Tasting Trails: Tamoya, Shakey's Pizza and Dulcet & Studio
Liang Court, 177 River Valley Road
Singapore 179030
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Liang Court Wednesdays' Food Tasting Trails: Marutama Ramen and Saizeriya

Liang Court is currently having an event called Wednesdays' Food Tasting Trails which will be held till 7 August 2013. Diners can purchase the Food Trail Coupon for $30 at the Customer Service Counter and get to enjoy 3 different set meals from 3 different restaurants in Liang Court and also a free beer. 

Wednesdays' Food Tasting Trails Coupon & Food Trail Guide

The first restaurant  has been pre-selected, diners can choose their second and third stops from  any of the remaining 11 participating F&B shops. I received a copy of the Food Trail Guide and two complimentary Wednesdays' Food Tasting Trails Coupons. As shown above, the coupon shows that my first restaurant (pre-selected) is Tamoya. 

Marutama Ramen

Looking through all the set meals in the Guide, I decide to try Marutama Ramen first (there is no need to utilise the coupon in sequence). 

Marutama Ramen

The Liang Court's Wednesdays' Food Trail Coupon allowed me to try the Zenbu-nose (U.P. $18). It was essentially the signature Marutama Ramen with all toppings! The toppings are the Kakuni (Stewed Pork Belly), Sliced Roasted Pork, Aosa (Seaweed), Negi (Spring Onions) and Half-Boiled Seasoned Egg. 

Those who frequent Marutama Ramen would know that the signature Marutama Ramen (without toppings) would have cost $12 and an addition $6 is required if all toppings were added. 

Zenbu-nose

 The Zenbu-nose; with all toppings added!

Roasted Pork (Char Siew)

Three big pieces of Sliced Roasted Pork (Char Siew) were given. The roasted pork had quite a good balance of lean meat and fat ratio. So much so that it was tender.

Kakuni (Stewed Pork Belly)

The Kakuni (Stewed Pork Belly) as it should be had a higher proportion of fats to lean meat compared to the Char Siew.

Half-boiled Seasoned Egg

The Half-boiled Seasoned Egg would have been perfect if its yolk was runny as they had got the marination right. It was a pity that it was slightly overcooked and the yolk was not runny.

Zenbu-nose

This bowl of Zenbu-nose ramen came with lots of ingredients like how it should be. If you were to take the cost of the Food Trail Coupon (i.e. $30) and divide by 3 restaurants, it means that essentially, you are paying for $10 per restaurant (do not forget, there's a free beer too).

Chew on this: Having this bowl of Zenbu-nose ramen would have covered more than 50% of your purchase of the coupon. 

The Italian Restaurant Saizeriya is one of the 12 participating restaurants.

Diners with Liang Court's Wednesdays' Food Trail Coupon can get to try the US Sirlion Steak (U.P. $11.90) with Salad and Free-flow Drink Bar (U.P. $3.90).

US Sirloin Steak

The amount of food served with this coupon was astonishing. So generous! There was even a plate of rice!

Salad

 The salad which was served almost immediately after I had ordered the food.

US Sirloin Steak

The US Sirloin Steak was average. It was the most expensive on Saizeriya's menu. I felt that the steak was a tad too dry and hard. The portion of the serving was big considering the price.

So far I have tried the set meals at two participating outlets. I am impressed by the portions. I would have expected that the servings would likely be 'downsized'. But well, I was wrong. I am glad that the serving was the same as what a normal customer (without coupon) would have been served. Kudos to Liang Court and participating restaurants! The little things that matters.

I must say, this Wednesdays' Food Trail Coupon is value for money. If you had not bought it and are interested in buying this coupon, its not too late. You can still utilise the vouchers on 31st July and 7 August 2013! I am definitely going back to try the other restaurants on 7 Aug!

Thank you Kase  from AsiaMalls Management for the two coupons. 

Liang Court Wednesdays' Food Tasting Trails: Marutama Ramen and Saizeriya
Liang Court, 177 River Valley Road
Singapore 179030
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Le Grill (France, Bussy Saint Georges)

Le Grill is one of the several chains of restaurants located in the pit stop / service station of the highways in France. We stopped over at Le Grill for lunch at one of the pit stop near Bussy-Saint-Georges while travelling along the A4 Autoroute aka autoroute de l'est from Paris to Nancy. The A4 Autoroute is a highway that is more than 482 km long and is also known as the Eastern Motorway.

It's concept is similar to our convenient stall (7-Eleven) with a cafeteria in it. The only difference is the size. It is so big. The section that is similar to our our local 7-eleven had such wide aisle. In addition, the cafeteria was spacious with lots of sitting capacity. It was a waste, I did not take photos of the interior as I was too hungry.

Potato Salad 4,90 € (S$7.68)

We ordered the Potato Salad from the Salad Bar. It was average. Looking back, this side dish is so pricey.

Assiette Jambon Cru 3,50 € (S$5.48)

Assiette Jambon Cru a french word means Ham in English. There were just three pieces of large ham that were thinly sliced.

Paella 8,90 € (S$13.95)

Paella a spanish dish consisted of saffron flavour rice cooked with meat and seafood. It was my first time trying the dish and I must say it was an eye opener. Overall, the dish was full of flavour and fragrant. Each grain of rice was well coated with immense saffron flavour and slightly moist. The more you dig into it, the more you would love it. If only more seafood (i.e. prawn) and chicken meat was given.

Steak Hache and Frites 7,50 € (S$11.75)

Steak Hache and Frites literally means Steak and Chips (Fries) to us. The term Steak Hache alone means a chop steak of quality and freshness. It is may be easier for us to think of it as a steak patty that is used in burger. But there are some differences. For example, the meat used is a prime steak meat that is minced and then formed into an oval shape without seasoning. It is then cooked with a little seasoning (salt and pepper) at the cooking stage. 

The Steak and Chips (Fries) was cooked upon order. Although I had to wait a fair bit for this dish, this was well worth the wait. The steak was delicious. As described above, the steak came in an oval-shape and there were little seasoning in the steak. One could easily taste the original flavour of the meat and it was so juicy. The fries were decent. Not cut too tiny and was not overly salty.

Le Grill is one of the many stop over restaurants located in the pit stop along the highway. We were not expecting fantastic food. Hence, we were pleasantly surprised by the quality of the mains at Le Grill. Generally, the food in Europe can be quite expensive, but in this case the mains were well worth the money. However, the sides were expensive. You would be better off not ordering the sides. 

Le Grill (France, Bussy Saint Georges)
Aire de Ferrières
77600 Bussy-Saint-Georges, France
Location

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