Marvelous Cream II

I was spoilt for choice. I was contemplating not between, but among, Cottage Waffle Place, Max Brenner's, Marvelous Cream, Andersen's Ice-Cream and even Ben & Jerry's (where Camyy might have been working the shift). Somehow or another, I ended up at Marvelous Cream, and I wanted to give it a second chance anyway, following my not-so-impressed first-time there (see link above).


I've heard more rave reviews about the parfaits than the cold-rocked ice-cream, maybe those are more worth the try. So what did I have?

(26) Caramel Nut Cappucinno: 4/10


HAHA. I think the thing about Marvelous Cream is that you've got to order a Large sized ice-cream just so your waffle bowl will not look so pathetic. Previously I had a Medium size, this time since Daphne did not want any, I got a junior. And see that?! A tiny sludge of... stuff.

As the name suggests, my ice-cream was made up of cappucinno ice-cream (I think they call it masala espresso something like that, I was a tad concerned it would turn out to be like those masalas at Indian restaurants), caramel sauce, whipped cream (horrors) and nuts. Unlike the vigorous mixing of my fav Cold Rock Ice Creamery, the mixing here is really, put everything on each other, roll a bit, and there you go. The ice-cream wasn't exactly cold, probably because of the whipped cream, but it just lost the feel of "ice"-cream then. Nothing fantastic, nothing impressive.

Maybe parfait next time. Maybe.

Service
Pretty good actually, friendly. They came out politely with your ice-cream as though it's a crown on a pillow, but I blinked when I saw my "marvelous" creation of course.

Price
$4.90 for a junior sized ice-cream
$1.00 for a waffle bowl

Remember, go for LARGE if you want to use a waffle bowl, else it will turn out looking like mine and nothing CLOSE to the pictures on display!

Place
#B1-04 CityLink Mall,
One Raffles Link
Website: http://www.marvelouscream.com
(Google the website, and have it translate the page for you)

e. Black Board II

On two sides of the Clementi MRT stands two Western food stalls. One is fast becoming a household name with at least five branches around the island, with a name as funky as Botak Jones. The other, caught in a sleepier part of the neighbourhood with little fanfare and oftentimes treated like just another coffeeshop Western food stall, lies e. Black Board. I have to admit that it has been a very long while since I've visited Botak Jones; in fact I wanted to interview them for a term paper but busy people as they are, they couldn't even have the courtesy to reply an email to tell me that they couldn't do one. But it's alright.

A couple of my friends were quite curious about this new place that I was talking to them about (for my previous visit, see the webpage here), and we finally found time to have a pleasant dinner here at e. Black Board.

e. Black Board Burger



Me and WeiJie had the beef burgers. We both agreed it's yummily beefy, with that sort of hand-pounded feel to it. I liked my mashed potato side a lot, and so did those who had their forks in it for a couple of times haha. Next time though, I wouldn't want the cheese, tasted a bit icky.

Signature / Cajun Chicken Chop



Huixiang and Daphne had these. They felt that the chicken was marinated well, and it was also tender enough for their liking.

Mixed Grill


Justin, the usual big-eater of the group, had this. A combination of lamb, pork and chicken.

Service
In contrast to our previous visit, the waitress was really very polite today. In fact, she was (acting) quite cute that we couldn't help grinning from ear to ear at her attempts. Most importantly, she got the orders down right and was very patient with our different orders. Good job.

Price
$7.00 for e. Black Board burger
$0.60 for an additional egg
$4.00 for calamari rings (not featured, but not very tasty)
$6.50 for a signature chicken chop
$6.50 for a cajun chicken chop
$15.00 for a mixed grill

*10% discount for students!

Place
San Po Food Court
Blk 431 Clementi Ave 3

Haato @ Ridgewood Close

I read about this little place in my one and only food guide book from Popular Bookstore. It seemed pleasant enough and was certainly a good place just to sit around for while, have a simple dinner and dessert before getting back to work. Most of the customers here are from the private condominium just walking distance away, and it's not exactly easy to get here by public transport. So if you want to get here, do drive, it'd make things simpler.

Add: A friend asked, if no car, how? Haha... I've checked and there's three other places you guys might want to try for Haato Gelato.
1) Wheelock Place #02-18A
2) Liang Court Shopping Centre, Meidi-ya Supermarket, Unit B1-50
3) Serangoon Garden Village, 9 Portchester Avenue, Unit 01-02

Chicken Katsu Don: 7/10


Pretty normal, nothing to shout about. Tastes almost like the one sold in school, but at least is not as oily.

Roast Chicken Spaghetti: 7.4/10


Daphne had this and kinda liked it. The chicken marinate was good.

Plain Waffles with Butter and Maple Syrup: 8/10


Daphne was cooing with delight over the crispiness of the waffles, as well as the good serving of butter, which is her fav. I read some reviews online about the waffles not being crispy enough, and were quite cold, but to be honest the waffles we had were nowhere near those reviews. They came hot and crisp.

Single Scoop Chocolate Hazelnut Ice-Cream: 9/10


Oooooh la la. Very very smooth ice-cream, and has a natural sweetness taste to it, even when it's nutella. Love it. The ice-cream cone didn't taste as good though, they could do better with a new type of cone. This is still one of the best gelatos I've ever tried and tasted in Singapore.

And oh, was just surfing around on the Net. Apparently there has been complaints about the cone as well! Change to waffle cones and bowls Haato! =)

Service
Friendly.

Price
About $7.50-$7.90 for our mains
Around $4 for the desserts

Place
5 Ridgewood Close
Unit G1.

Lau Pa Sat

Going to Lau Pa Sat on a Sunday evening can be a quite annoying experience, depending on your mood and depending how often you get approached by food touts. As I was telling Daphne, it's almost like Bangkok again, only this time it was slightly better because it was for food and not watch what a Thai girl could do with a table tennis bat.


We realised that many of the stalls within the enclosed area of Lau Pa Sat were closed, and it was only slightly over nine in the evening then. Of course, Daphne wanted some satay, so we headed out for some, waving off touts like flies as we went. I've never told so many lies at one go.

Chicken and Beef Satay: 7.4/10


These satay come from a stall named, "Best Satay". Well, it wasn't too bad, the marinate was quite good. Gone are the days of 35-40cents a stick though. These cost 60cents a stick.

Yang Zhou Fried Rice: 6.3/10


I have no idea from which stall this fried rice was ordered from. Some guy just came to our table and I ordered. The fried rice went very well with the sambal chilli, but it was a bit too oily for my liking.

BBQ Chicken Wings: 7/10


Too sweet, tastes too much of the honey marinate! Chicken is quite fresh and juicy though, so that's a plus point. I think there's only one stall that was selling chicken wings that night, it's located at the far end of the lane.

Cheng Tng: 7/10


We both had one each as a drink. I read somemore in the Mind Your Body section of the Straits Times that this is one of the healthier desserts or snacks that you can take if you're hungry. Sweet and pretty refreshing if you ask me.

Service
Too much touting. What we did was wave everyone off, then sat on one table in the middle of nowhere, and let the fastest man win. Haha.

Price
60cents for a stick of satay
$1 for "ketupat" rice to go with the satay
$4 for the fried rice
$1.30 for the chicken wing
$1.40 for the cheng tng

Place
Lau Pa Sat outdoor satay street.

Additional Comment
While the satay is naturally "Halal" because it's sold by Malays (in Singapore, the common practice is to relate race to religion and vice versa, and this is especially so in the case of Malays and Islam), the fried rice and other seafood type of dishes offered are not "Halal", though they have been declared as "no pork, no lard".

Ikea Restaurant II

Everyone's favourite Swedish meatballs right here at Ikea!

Fried Chicken Wings: 8/10


But first, chicken wings! No wonder this is a best seller. Everyone seems to be having at least one of these, with the usual order of six. Crispy, juicy and tasty. A bit oily but hey, indulgence once in a while is acceptable.

Vegetarian Fried Tang Hoon: 7/10


I was trying to make a choice between the fish fillet (Friday's special; for a list of Ikea's Daily Specials, see here) and this fried noodles, and went for the noodle because I've been having too much "western" food lately. The noodles were a little too dry, but the side dishes like the mock sausages and mock chicken fillet were delicious. And I have to say the chicken wings went very well with the noodles too.

And oh, this is not on offer now. For a list of November's vegetarian dishes, click here.

Swedish Meatballs: 9/10


Daphne's rating. She would be glad to give a full score for the gravy. These meatballs are a mix of beef and pork, that's why I can't eat them.

Kids Spaghetti: 5.9/10


Really small-sized ordinary pasta that I ordered for her to accompany her meatballs.

Daim Cake: 8/10



We were a bit too full to appreciate this, but I still think it's pretty good. Tastes a bit like Ritter Sport's Cornflakes chocolate. This cake is a bit nutty, a bit wafery, and very chocolatey. Nice.

Service
Very quick. Self-service though, and queue's terribly long for a Friday evening.

Price
$1.40 for a chicken wing
$5.50 for the vegetarian tang hoon
$6.50 for the regular meatballs
$2.90 for the kids spaghetti
$1.50 for a refillable soft drink (can share!)
$3.50 for a daim cake

Place
Ikea Restaurant
317 Alexandra Road