Teppei @ Orchid Hotel

Omakase basically means it's up to you and in a Japanese restaurant, it can be a gamble as it means you are leaving the entire dinner experience and food selection to the chef. At Teppei, the S$60 omakase set menu includes 14 dishes, which is one of the cheapest set menu in town without compromising the quality of the food.

The chef was pretty patient considering that we were a painful bunch of customers who had many different difficult requests/

Only the freshest ingredients were used and the sashimi is once of the best in town. The prawn tempura was one of the most humongous prawns that I've even seen (practically like a mini lobster). The deep fried fish head and deep fried fish tempura were so fresh that we were able to pick out the flesh from the bones with ease. The only not-so-good thing about the meal is probably that most of the dishes were very salty.

If you are a sashimi lover, this is definitely one of the restaurants that you would want to visit. The restaurant only serve omakase set menus for dinner. Do make a reservation in advance (you can choose either the 6.30pm to 8.30pm timeslot or the 8.30pm to 10.30pm timeslot) before heading down because there are only 18 counter seats in the restaurant and more than often, it'll be fully occupied. ^_^

Din Tai Fung

 

 

Must try

Steamed Pork Dumplings

Steamed Crabmeat with Pork Dumplings

Deep fried prawn cake

Skin of the steamed pork dumplings (and the many variations) were thin but had no problem holding the soup without breaking. The dumplings also did not stick to the "wet cloth". The crabmeat added a tinge of seafood sweetness to the overall taste of the pork dumpling. Take a small bite and enjoy the explosion of fragrant broth into your mouth!

Handmade noodle with steamed chicken soup - the clear soup with a tinge of fragrance of the herbs makes it suitable for both the young and the old.

The prawn cake is fried perfectly to golden brown with generous helpings of succulent fresh prawns embedded in every slice.

The red bean paste dumpling is generously filled with red bean carefully mashed into paste. However, i might have enjoyed it more if they reduce the size of the dumplings as the taste can get a little too overwhelming after awhile. I prefer the red bean paste dumplings from the Asian Kitchen actually.

Note: Be prepared to queue for at least 30 minutes to 1 hour during dinner time.

Le Le Pot @ Tiong Bahru

This is one of our favourite hangout to satisfy our steamboat cravings. You will be spoilt for choice with over 80 selections for the ala carte buffet, which include sliced meats, seafood, tofu, noodles, assorted mushrooms and vegetables. Choose up to 2 soup base from their list, consisting of chicken soup, herbal chicken soup, laksa, tom yum and coconut juice and chrysanthemum soup (if you are bold enough). You can also mix your personalised dipping from a decent variety of sauces (chilli, sesame oil, light sauce etc) and condiments (pressed garlic, spring onions, sliced chilli etc).

Buffet price (does not include drinks) is reasonable:

Monday to Thursday (except Eve and on Public Holidays)

S$20.80 for adults and S$12.80 for child below 1.3m

Friday to Sunday / Eve and on Public Holidays

S$21.80 for adults and S$13.80 for child below 1.3m

An awesome place for a group of friends to catch up over a hotpot with the freshest ingredients in town!