[S] HIDDEN GEM IN THE WEST - FUKUYA JAPANESE RESTAURANT

In Japanese, Fuku means Happiness while ya refers to House, and when directly translated Fukuya simply means Happiness House. This happiness house silently reside in Jurong Country Club. I would never had expected good food to  be inside a Country Club since I stereotyped it as where the rich golfers will go until I personally tried the food there myself. It's like a hidden gems waiting to be discovered by food lovers.

Fukuya offers a wide variety of options for those craving authentic Japanese cuisine in utterly perfect presentation. The dishes served are photo-worthy as it's often decorated with flowers or edible garnishes on exquisite dining wares. Jap-food lover you just had to add this one in your 'to-eat-list'. 

It's best to start off with Zensai, another term for Appetizer

Seafood Mayo on Fresh Salad - $10.80

Mixture of two types of seaweed, the green and brown one which I hardly see it in the market (probably just me), topped with my favourite seafood mayo~ The seaweed is really salty but crunchy if you tried eating it separately. However, once combined with the seafood mayo, you won't really feel that it's overpowering, instead it brings out an unique taste to the dish.

Dobin Mushi - $10.80 

Teapot Soup

I had never tried something like this before, and it's quite a cool concept of having your soup served. It's sweet and refreshing. Ingredients looks simple, mainly consisted of mushrooms and oysters, but brought out the best of out it. Two ways to savour this, by adding the lime or skipping it. I tried both methods and preferred having my soup without lime.

Sashimi - $68.80

Fukuya Tokusen Platter (7 kinds)

Toro, Uni, Botan Ebi, Salmon Belly, Katsuo Tataki, Shima Aji and Tai

Not a fan of raw food, and my favourite food in a sushi bar is all the cooked food like crab-sticks, unagi and stuffs, but decided to give it a chance and I'm glad I did. All their sashimi are super fresh as it's all imported from Japan. It brings out the true definition of 'fresh saltwater' because you literally can taste it. It's worth every cent in your pocket, and everyone is all like I am going to come back to get this after they get their bonus.

Yakimono - $20.80

Gintara Mentaiyaki (All time favourite)

It's the store's all time favourite, and no doubt mine as well. Grilled fish with mentaiyaki on banana leaf. Their mentaiyaki is thick and creamy and the banana leaf underneath gave it a little burnt feeling which enhance the taste and smell even better like how food being cooked under charcoal flames.
Absolutely a must-try vote from me.

Fukuya Aburi Sushi Mori (5 kinds) - $28.80

Salmon, Anugu, Akami, Buri Belly, Unkun Uni & Ikura Topping

Everyone there was trying to convince me it wasn't spicy and stuffs, and I did finish all the sushi that are sadly all coated with wasabi except the unkun uni(sea urchin) one, by gulping water. I have to say that they are using authentic wasabi as it's not spicy and does not sting the eyes, it's just that the smell of wasabi that I disliked about. Nevertheless, the dish is much raved about and each sushi has its individual sauce and there is no need for soy sauce. I guess it's bad luck I couldn't enjoy this pretty much.

Menrui - $26.80

Fukuya Seafood Ramen (Small)

This bowl of awesomeness is called small, and I think it takes two to finished it. Now I cannot imagine how many could their 'big' portion feeds. Do not be fooled by the colour of the ramen, it's not spicy at all, and surprisingly it's sweet. Vegetables, seafood are all tossed inside to create this sweet yet rich flavouring pumpkin-taste-alike soup. As you can see, the ingredients  are super fresh and generously spread around the chewy noodles.

Kyoho Ice Cream with Kuri Kanronni - $8.80

Japanese Grape Flavour with Boiled Chestnuts

As usual, something I have been waiting for since the start because I am a sucker for desserts and I love KYOHO GRAPES. The sweetness is just right for me and it is as smooth as Gelato, while the chestnut adds texture to the smooth ice-cream. It's a unique combination as I have never expected chestnuts to go well with grapes but it did.

Look at how happy everyone is after the dining experience at Fukuya. For me, food is not necessary the most important key attributes to define a good restaurant, instead the service is. Their Chef Ah Beng is really humorous and friendly around us, get to know him well and he will provide you with special dishes that are not listed in the menu. Chef Ah Beng enjoys having close relationships with his customers.

 I had a great yet different kind of experience there, and I believe you guys should try it too. It's always more difficult to find places with good food and good services. If you happened to be hanging around Singapore Science Centre or Jurong Country Club drop by and enjoy a feast of authentic Jap food.



FUKUYA JAPANESE RESTAURANT

Location : Jurong Country Club, 9 Science Centre Road, Jurong East, 509078

Phone : 6897 1990
Mon to Sun: 1200 - 1500 (last order by 1430)
Mon to Sun: 1800 - 2200 (last order by 2130)

LADY M - HYPE OR TRUE BLUE AWESOME?

Lady M Confectionery seems to be in the hype and a dessert lover like me will never missed it.

I head over to Marina Square with Michelle to try out the taste. We ordered four slices of cake, including their bestseller. Do drop by early because by 8 pm  the store would get slightly crowded and their cakes will sells like hotcakes. 

We wanted to try their Strawberry Mille Feuille, which sadly was sold out. Eventually we ordered their best seller and their boss/in charge recommended us Gataeu Nuage(cheesecake) but we are overdoses with cakes so we don't want something so heavy, instead we choose their fruit cake which is popular among the diners.

Cake #1: Lady M® Mille Crêpes $7.50

Paper-thin handmade crêpe, layered with ethereal light pastry cream.

The crêpe literally melts in the mouth and easily blend in with the cream with every bite, furthermore it's not overly sweet. However, the so-called ethereal light pastry cream tasted like normal whipped cream to me. It wasn't surprise to see that it's their bestseller as it has a great finishing to it except for the cream. It feels like I'm overdose on cream than crêpe, which apparently preferred the latter.

Cake #2: Strawberry Shortcake $7.50

The classic strawberry shortcake made using Japan's superfine flour, no wonder the sponge part taste super fluffy and soft. The cake isn't too sweet and overpowering, brings out a soft and light sweet taste in your mouth. Perfect for non-sweet lover.

Cake #3: Checkers $8

The cake turns out to be Black & White like its name has suggested. It's a combination of vanilla and dark chocolate sponge cakes coated with dark chocolate. The sponge isn't as soft as the Strawberry Shortcake and the cake turns to be too heavy as you savor it.

Cake #4: Tarte a la Mangue $7.50

Lady M's classic shortbread crusted filled with passion-fruit curd and topped with sweet mango. Best combination and I strongly recommend people who has a thing for sweet + sour to have it. I even take away an additional slice home (:

Overall, I find Lady M located at a decent location where it's not so crowded but at the same time it's not very accessible since it's at Marina Square. I think their layout kind of weird because of its open concept. However I find their cake decent and probably worth your time and money for a try. I strongly recommend their Lady M® Mille Crêpes & Tarte a la Mangue!

They even sells cake in whole, so if there's any celebration you can drop by and get your friend/family this fabulous cakes! 

Lady M

Marina Square Shopping Mall
6 Raffles Boulevard
#02-103
Singapore 039594

BEAR BITES 熊の食

誰說魚與熊掌不可兼得

Exactly

Bear Bites prove that you can definitely have the best of both world in their shop.

Bear Bites 熊の食, located in the heart of Singapore, right at Scape.

It's the concept where east meet west - Chinese version of burger.

Best thing, you get to choose from various option of bun & sauce!

How to Order?

Step 1: Select Main

A: Karaage Crispy Chicken $4.80

B: Oishii Fish Fillet $5.80

Step 2: Select Paw

Milk / Brown Sugar / Yam / Curry / Whole Grain / Squid Ink / Strawberry (Seasonal)

Step 3: Select Sauce

Black Pepper / Tar Tar / Golden Cheese / Mushroom / Sweet & Spicy Thai / Honey Mustard

Add on: Sides & Beverages

Smoked Salmon Salad w Japanese Yu Tzu Sauce - $6.80

-

French Fries - $2.60

Cheese Fries - $4.00

-

Bear Paw Gelato - $3.80

Chocolate / Green Tea / Salted Biscuit

-

Assorted Drink from Pokka - $2.50-$3.00

Chicken Karrage Meal (Fries + Drink) - $7.80

Oishii Fish Fillet (Fries + Drink) - $8.80

Top up $1 to upgrade fries into cheese fries

Highlight in Red are the combination I have tried.

It was lucky that I head down during non-peak period and there's not much people around. I was able to dine in and get my burger fairly quick.

However, it's really a risky idea to be dining in, as you know the birds tends to be overcrowding the entire Somerset - Orchard areas.

You never know if you gotten something extra in the bun.

Even if there isn't birds around, the place is still infested with houseflies.

I had such a bad time eating there.

Okay and that's for the atmosphere, it can be solved by taking away the food.

It's hard for cheese fries to go wrong, simply because it's cheeeeeese.

I like thick fries but I would suggest them being more generous with the sauce.

Boyf's Karaage Chicken + Curry + Golden Cheese 

As you can see it's quite messy to eat with the sauce leaking all over the place.

It's soft like braised pork mantou and I like that the bun has light curry smell.

Sadly, the cheese taste diluted and so much for calling it golden cheese.

 Mine's Karrage Chicken + Milk + Sweet & Spicy Thai Sauce

Okay, after I removed tomato & lettuce (I don't eat them) and it looked like this.

seriously? the meat is barely half of my bun, utterly disappointed.

They should at least do QC on the size of the meat before serving to customers.

I must say the sauce and bun are quite good for mine, it's just that the chicken is too small ):

Bear Bites is a store with ultimate potential if they know how to handle it well. The concept is great but need more improvement on the quality and price-wise. In my opinion, it's still a store you must at least visit once in your life.

Bear Bites 熊の食 Singapore

2 Orchard Link #02-42 *SCAPE

Singapore, Singapore 237978

[S] ABSOLUTELY PUR-FECT NAILS TO MATCH MY PURPLELICIOUS HAIR

I am going for an all purple trend, been a little obsessed in purple recently.

It's absolutely time to paint up my plain, ugly long nails which hasn't been done since May? 

Lazy is my middle name and I always hated to do-it-myself so I always find someone else to do the job. Furthermore, cousin's wedding is this week and I really need to get myself all pretty :3 for his wedding.

Absolutely Nails, located at Marine Parade Central. It's situated opposite the market outside of Parkway, for non-east-siders might be a little difficult to find but I have been to the market a couple of time so I found it in no-time. I'm a road idiot fyi so if I can find it, so can you!

It's along the stretch of shops at Blk 82. You will see their shop instantly.

Picture is taken from Absolutely Nails

First impression of the shop is I find it a little small but nevertheless cozy. It gives me the feeling like I entered a home based salon. It's definitely better and neater than the home based salon for sure. Additionally, they have T.V to keep customers occupied. I was busy watching the 7pm show while having them do my nails.

Since there's no customer around except for me (p.s it's pretty late appointment), so yay, I have both pretty manicurist for myself! 

Doing both classic manicure and pedicure for today.

Look at the colors and range to choose from, I took super long before deciding on an all-purple nails to match my hair color.

I actually made an effort to count the no. of nail polish in the shop.

326 normal nail polish & 111 gelish nail polish

Mostly consist of China Glaze, Orly, OPI and Perfect Gelish.

After the basic-classic manicure care, my nails are looking pretty and healthy even without any paint on it.

Don't you wish your finger is long like me /flicks

Taken by Absolutely Nails

For finger nails, I choose pastel purple and my manicurist added designs to make it less plain.

Toe nails are done pretty fast, and it's in my favorite shade of purple. 

Shimmering purple w a hint of secretive mystic fweeeeeling

Both purple, yet different. Colors are amazing.

Don't you think so too?

Meow!

Both classic manicure and pedicure done within an hour. Purrrrfect.

One of the manicurist left after doing pedicure for me, leaving this cute and shy manicurist. Her service is really good, helping me roll down my jeans, wear my shoes, take a picture for me etc etc. I was so 'paiseh' that she have to help me with my shoes. Felt a little handicap but really thankful that she's so kind. I would rate her 80/100 because she's quite quiet throughout the whole manicure session, I have to entertain myself through T.V but overall it's all good for me.

Absolutely Nails

Blk 82, Marine Parade Central

#01-620 Singapore 440082

Absolutely Nails FB

Absolutely Nails

[S] POW SING - TRADITIONAL NYONYA DELICACIES WITHIN REACH

P.s this post took me almost a week to finish drafting because I'm working and studying everyday ._.

Traditional Peranakan delicacies goes a long way back in history, and it's getting extremely difficult to find authentic restaurant serving Peranakan delicacies anymore.

Pow Sing manged to uphold its traditions over the years by serving the oh-so-famous Hainanese Chicken Rice as well as their Nyonya delicacies that kept customers coming back for more.

Situated in Serangoon Garden, its inaccessibility really do turns me off at times but yet you know it's worth it because of the food. I really do have this love-hate relationship with Pow Sing. I even kind of got lost in the process of finding this place ._. #roadidiot

Anyway, that's not the main point, I believe everyone is more interested in the food than me right, so let the pictures speaks a thousand words.

Nyonya Cabbage Roll - $10/$15/$20

Cabbage wrapped in my favorite otah, topped with laksa-liked gravy sauce. It does not taste too milky nor spicy, just the perfect taste I'm comfortable with. Cabbage did not get all soggy even after soaked in the gravy for some time.

Prawn with Nyonya Traditional Sauce $18/$27/$36

It's one of my favorite dish of the day. I love prawn so much I named myself 'Prawn Chua' - gotten my idea from Fish Leong. This dish tasted like Assam Fish Head, spicy yet a little sour but on the good side of the scale. Prawn is fresh and I love its sauce. (Y)

Nyonya Chap Chye - $8/$12/$16

It's Pow Sing's award-winning dish but because I'm a carnivore, I can't appreciate the goodness of it, it feels soggy and I think it's more for elderly reminiscing the old times where they have this dish at home as well as those that have difficulty chewing food. This is for them.

 Hainanese Chicken - $5/pax

Another of their 'best-seller' dish in Pow Sing. I think it just tasted normal, nothing like 'oh-so-awesome' but just traditional white chicken. The meat is not tender enough but the sauce added some point for this dish.

Crispy Nyonya Tauhu - $8/$12/$16

Crispy Tauhu that doesn't feel crispy, it's rather disappointing that it's not what I expected.

Instead of crispy, it's more like taupok ._.

Fish Head Curry - $32/$36

Okay, the main dish of the day, their curry fish head. Their fish is very fresh, all you get is tender white meat melting in your mouth. Their Assam sauce is powerful enough, not too spicy nor sour, best among those I ever eaten. (Y)(Y) It's the best among the rest (whoo)

The ambience is more family-like, having big tables like those 'zi-char' place. It's very noisy during peak period because everyone come in big group and they chat loudly so perhaps choose a better timing before dropping by. Beside Pow Sing Restaurant, they have one along the same stretch of road, namely Pow Sing Kitchen. It's their sub restaurant but mostly selling stuffs like 'Hor Fan', 'Chicken Rice' all these. If you are not in groups, maybe that is more suitable for you.

I had a great time eating all these dishes though I can't say I really appreciated them but they have a long way coming, maintaining their Nyonya spirit. It doesn't come easy but I believe for them it's worth it. They were featured in newspapers, given awards for their various dishes. 

Ending of with my not-so-nice Lemon Tea, I suggest y'all choose Tea instead (: