A Hodgepodge of Sweets

Who doesn't love pretty cakes, yummy pastries & sinful chocolates?  Let me show you a collection of all the good stuff I have tried in the past year of which added inches on my waistline & made my sweet life even sweeter!

Octa Hotel Cafe - Is an imaginary hotel located in the imaginary 8th District of Paris which is actually located inside Parco Marina Bay. Octa Hotel first opened 1989 in Fukuoka, Japan.  Love the ambience, the Parisian cozy cafe feel to it, from the pretty chairs & wallpapers to the lovely dessert plates. It is a place worth checking out! We shared Gateau Au Fromage (Cheesecake) which was pretty good but I wish it has a thicker crust. We also had the signature Blueberry Pie which was not overly sweet, lovely flaky crust & the generous fresh cream topping!

http://www.octahotel.com/news/octa-hotel-singapore/

1-Caramel - I had a sweet craving whilst waiting for our movie to start.  This cozy cafe at that time was then located in between Cathay Picturehouse & Plaza Singapura. We shared a slice of Mango Mascarpone which was refreshingly light & tangy & the Chocolate Praline Tart (not really sure if I got the name right) just simply answered my sweet craving.  Overall it was a pleasant treat!  You can get your sweet treats at 1-Caramel Espresso Bar located at 1 Raffles Place OUB Centre or at 1-Caramel Dessert Boutique located at the 2nd floor of 1 Rochester Park.  http://www.1-caramel.com/

Korean Food Cravings

After watching Anthony Bourdain's Layover show "Los Angeles" it gave me a sudden craving for Korean food. My cravings almost always gets pumped up whenever I watch my fave food shows.  So I told my husband, next weekend we are going to feast on Korean food.  Here's what we had...

Octupus Stir Fry on Rice was delish but I wish there's more of them!  It just hits the spot, I love the flavor and not overly spicy.   

The Banchan (side dishes) are served buffet style so you can take as much as like.  We went a tad bit early for lunch and so the banchan buffet was not really what a buffet banchan feast would look like.  Either they are not expecting a lot of customers that day or it may have always been like that.  I was a bit disappointed.  But I'm happy for as long as there are loads of kimchi!

We also had Spicy Pork Stir Fry which was pack with Korean chili sauce goodness!  I love this dish so much that I plan to try and make it at home.   I'm still looking for recipes and will blog about it for sure!

Maison Kayser - Boulangerie & Patisserie

When I saw this bakery from a far, I can almost tell that I'll be spending some money on good bread.  Since childhood I have always been a huge fan of breads and pastries.  Growing up around my grandfather's bakery, the smell of freshly baked bread is home.  So whenever I see a bakery or just passing along one I always end up checking what they have and more often than not, walk away with a bag of bread.

Hubby and I came about Maison Kayser on our way for brekkie at Wild Honey.  Maison Kaiser is located at the basement of the new Scotts Square Mall just right next to Fairprice Finest supermarket.  We came really early to avoid the crowd at Wild Honey as it's almost always have a long queue.  Unfortunately, we are not that early and the waiting time was 30 minutes!  So, we decided to have croissants and coffee instead at Maison Kayser and I'm so glad we did!  

All breads are freshly baked on location and since we came early some are still baking in the oven!  If only I can try them all!  I'll definitely be coming back.  

Oh My Crab Bee Hoon!

This has been brewing in my draft box for weeks and imagine if this is real food stored in my draft box it'll start to smell already!  Eeek!   Anyway, I only had Crab Bee Hoon twice at the same restaurant and really I've got nothing to compare it with.  So, note to self -- to try other Crab Bee Hoon!  I hope this post will also help me find other yummy Crab Bee Hoon to try through the help of my not so many readers or followers.  

Just our luck we got a female crab with lots of roe! The gravy is not too thick and just perfect for the bee hoon. If you don't want to get your hands dirty, this is not for you.  I'm lucky I have a husband who does all the cracking and shelling for me...haha!

The best part is when the bee hoon get all soaked up and absorbed the yummy goodness of the gravy.  Slurp away!

Pique Nique - All Day Breakfast

I finally get to try Pique Nique! 


Whenever hubby & I are in town I always keep in mind to either have breakfast or lunch at Pique Nique but more often we kinda end up having a grub somewhere else.  So finally one weekend, we decided to have a quick bite to eat before heading home.  

We came at such weird timing I think it was close to 4pm...I was torn between having breakfast (after all they serve all day breakfast) or just try those that I know are yummy based on what I read on reviews & whatnot. Unfortunately, the popular mac & cheese was no longer available for the day...ugggh!  I was so looking forward to it.

So I decided to try the French Toast with salty caramel sauce which was delish by the way, while hubby had the Hottest Dogg (pork sausage, hot meat sauce, relish, shredded cheddar cheese & homemade bun).  My French Toast was surprisingly very good!  I love the soft homemade bread it's very light & fluffy.  I would definitely have it next time.