ARTICHOKE

Location: 161 Middle Road Singapore 188978
How to get there: Bugis Mrt/ Douby Ghaut Mrt (It's after NAFA campus and beside Fortune Center)
Opening Hours:

Tue - Fri: 18:30 - 21:30

Sat: 11:30 - 14:30

Sat: 18:30 - 21:30

Sun: 11:30 - 14:30

Contact Number: 63366939

Hello!!!!! May&FJ are back once more with a new food review for you lovely people!!! This time round, we visited Artichoke, a Middle Eastern Cafe and Bar. We chanced upon this place while trying to find some place to settle down for dinner yesterday.

We gotta say that the ambiance is great. We love the artsy feeling of this place, its like a mini getaway from the bustling city literally as it's located at a tiny corner. We would say that this is an awesome place to chill and drink with a small group of friends. However, the menu wasn't very enticing to us in terms of the food they offer and the prices are ranging on the mid-high range.

So we decided to sample their desserts after consulting the internet on what Artichoke's good at. We had a Date Pudding ($14), an Overdough Baklava Sampler ($10) and a Local Small Batch Gelato- Pistachio($6). The bill came to a total of $35.30.

We will lump the overall advantages and disadvantages this time round.

Advantages:

• The Pistachio Gelato was very creamy and rich. It's almost like eating the pistachio itself. We LOVED it!!!!
• The Date Pudding was awesome, something we'd recommend for you all to try.
•  It had a very moist cake, full of crushed nuts scattered and solid caramel to provide the crunchiness of the dessert, it has small pudding cubes that melt in your mouth, the condensed milk mixed with gula melaka provided all the sweetness and they top it with peanut butter which gave a salty touch to this whole dessert. There might have been more ingredients that we have left while busy chewing and swallowing; pardon us for that.
• The Overdough Baklava Sampler was a surprise. There was this Fig paste sampler that had May going "No, NOT eating it" because her first experience with a Fig was sadly a healthy and nutritious Fig that tasted tooo healthy for her liking (thanks to me who told her to try that healthy fig hahahas). For those non Fig lovers, this Fig sampler is fine, the crust is sweet and they kinda mixed the Figs into a paste so it doesn't taste very weird.
• They had this dessert with the greens on top. It was my personal favourite. I found it unique and there this slight nutty taste to it and of course, it's SWEET.
• Like we said above the place is pretty, we love the alfresco area. They have BIG fans swirling to keep the air cool.

(Date Pudding) 

(Pistachio Gelato) 

 (Overdough Baklava Sampler)

Disadvantages:

• We didn't really liked their dish menu; sadly. It's a personal preference thing, and hence no orders on those. But heard that they have an awesome brunch menu,  we might head down to try them someday. 
• Not all of the Overdough Baklava Samplers agreed with us, we didn't really like brown croissant and the one that looks like a slice of cake had a slight flowery taste. (We think it's Lavender, not sure and hence; we think) 

Note:

• GST and Service Charges apply
• Do take note of their opening hours carefully, they are not open on Mondays at all.

If you guys have been to Artichoke and have something to say about their food, ambiance or your personal dinning experience there, we're more than happy to hear from you all! Comment or email us! Thank you lovelies for reading! Till the next food trip to come! Ciao!!!

<3 May&FJ

SPR MKT

Location: 2 McCallum Street Singapore 069043
How to get there: Tanjong Pargar Mrt Station Exit G, walk towards telok Ayer and turn into MaCallum Street.
Opening Hours:
Mon - Fri: 0800am - 2100pm
Sat:         0900am - 1600pm (Brunch)
Contact number: 6221 2105

Hi all!!! It's been awhile!!!!!! May&FJ are here to introduce you peeps to one of our new finds: SPR MKT! It's a place that includes art, retail and food into one space that allows you to have a one of a kind experience in this interesting concept. We have to say that we were wowed by their architecture. We love the tones used on the walls and shelves and how they used their products and art to brighten up the space. This place was somewhat homely, with the wooden tables and chairs bringing a slight country ambiance. 

This is a relatively young place where the chef (Chef Joseph) who is one of the co-founders actually cooks in this very kitchen. Not only do they sell you food here, they sell you lifestyle products like notebooks and baking utensils as well.

So what did we order? We ordered an Eggs Benedict ($14) , Smoked Duck Sandwich ($10) with additional poached eggs ($2.50) and a cup of Latte ($5). We paid a total of $31.50. Their main menus differ daily. I will upload the one we had on that day itself and you peeps can view their daily menu here.

Smoked Duck Sandwich:

• They allow you to have a choice over your bread: wrap, baguette, croissant and toasts. We had a baguette which was kinda crusty but hard as well.
• The sandwich includes smoked duck, loads of vegetables and pickled cucumbers which incidentally tastes awesome. First bite got us wondering what this awesome unknown dish was. After staring at it for some time we came to a conclusion that it was pickled cucumbers. You peeps should have a go at this, it's awesome!
• Their smoked duck was very chewy and it comes in rather thick slices that makes the consumer an entirely satisfied one.
• We gotta say the add ons for poached eggs comes in a VERY reasonable price of $2.50 for 2 poached eggs. These eggs were perfectly poached. We were essentially very happy diners.

Eggs Benedict:

• Appetizing sauce complimented the greens, with slight pepper fragrance.
• 2 PERFECTLY poached eggs with freshly toasted English muffins. The muffins were soft! (unlike some places that dished out hard ones)
• There was generous servings of ham and Hollandaise sauce. 
• The Hollandaise sauce tasted very unique and upon asking their staff we realized that it was made from scratch by their chef. (we were very impressed)

(Check out the oozing egg yolk of perfectly poached eggs)

Latte:

• It's first taste was light together with a little bit of milk taste.
• It's final taste was between medium to full bodied. (Can taste the beans)

Advantages:

• This place is rather good for mini gatherings (4 people)
• They make their food from scratch, no microwaving ready made stuffs.
• Most of their food are reasonably priced.
• Their service is really tip top. The service staff knows their products. We were also asked on the food when they came up and cleared the plates. The chef himself even came out personally to clear the plates on some occasions. (We were kinda amused at it and realized that the culture Supermarket has is one that has no hierarchy, just one family.)
• There was a slight error made during the order and the staff quickly corrected and offered their apologies. We really felt that they do have the attitude for a service industry.
• We really love their Citrus mint water!

Disadvantages:

• They only have one large table that can fit like 7 people. So big group gatherings would be slightly hard.
• Their cakes are slightly pricey. About $9 a slice!

Note:

• No GST and Service Charge included.
• The staff will serve you the food. As for water and other condiments it's on a mini counter where you can serve yourself.

(Their Citrus Water)

Overall, SPR MKT is one place May&FJ will definitely visit constantly as we really love the food and the ambiance. Do give SPR MKT a try and let us know your opinions too!

<3 May&FJ

BIG MAMA KOREAN RESTAURANT

Location: 2 Kim Tian Road
How to get there: Tiong Bahru Mrt Station, get out of it.. Cross the road at Anna's cafe and turn left. Walk straight and you'll see Kim Tian Road
Opening hours:
Daily: 1130am - 1430pm
Daily: 1730pm - 2300pm
Contact number: 6270 7704

Yoohooo! Loads of reviews in queue recently as holidays are here and I am finally sinking into holiday mood by hanging out with my friends and not caring how much money is depleting from my bank. (Not a good thing, better check my balance later.)

So yesterday, my friends and I decided on an impromptu meet up at Big Mama. I have heard of it's amazing food and seen several reviews online and hence I was really pumped up to make a trip down!  However, before having successfully settled our asses in the restaurant, we had a miscommunication with the staffs regarding reservations. I made a call inquiring if they had a table I could reserve at 7.20pm. The lady on the receiver's end told me they do not have one then, but they do have one at 8.10pm. I told her I'd consider and get back to her and when I did, I told her I'd like to have the table at 8.10pm for 3 people, and the conversation went haywire. So apparently, I thought I'd have a table at about 8.10pm (She didn't take down my name or contact information, it was kinda dumb until I realized that I may not have a reservation made since she did not do that, but I clearly heard okay and stuffs. Okay, I was just not in the right state of mind I guess) and she thought I'd just not make a reservation and try again another day or something. 
So I arrived with friends (already madly hungry) but with no table. After a few minutes of trying to sort things out, we were shifted to the 8.30pm slot. I was thankful that they even try and managed to slot us in, as from what she was trying to tell me, apparently, there was even a WAITING list after the reservations list.

Oh wells, so the waiting had the 3 of us HUNGRY, I think the stomach acids had burnt a layer of fat in our tummy just by waiting for our turn. Anyways, when we finally entered, we ordered a Dukgalbi ($15/person, we ordered a 2 person share), Sundubu Chigae ($14) and a Kimchi Jeon ($15) and our bill totaled to $64.90. We paid about $21.60 per person.

We were served with 6 appetizers:

• Spinach tasted good with a tinge of sesame and salt
• Their kimchi was slightly spicy than the usual ones I've tasted, but still yummy
• Japchae was less oily; they used less sesame oil (healthier in any case)
• They had this homemade chewy water-chestnut cake/kueh that tasted really awesome with the sauce it was served with. This was good!
• Their lotus was very crunchy with a nutty after taste.
• Their ilkan bilis was soft and slightly sweet.

(This was the water-chestnut cake/keuh I was talking about) 

Kimchi Jeon:

• Personal favourite. They provided this unique sauce that provides more flavour when you eat the Kimchi Jeon.
• It was slightly thin, floury, soft but not crsipy. (Personal preferences applies here)
• It had generous amounts of seafood (shrimps and squids)
• The serving size was worth the $15.

Sundubu Chigae:

• Had 2 big prawns and mussels inside
• Had a VERY strong seafood taste (think it came from the mussels they put inside)
• Because of the strong seafood taste, it made the Sundubu Chigae rather unique.
• I would say that it was slightly salty.
• We feel that it was a rather small bowl for the price we were paying for. But on the other hand it was not so diluted compared to restaurants that served bigger bowls. So it's a give and take I guess?
• I'm kinda sad as it did not have tofu inside. I mean it's not a must, but I'd really love to have some inside though.

Dakgalbi:

• This is their recommended dish and here I recommend you peeps to try!
• Consists of cabbage, carrots, chicken, onions and ddeokbokki (directly translated from korean letters, I know some people spell it differently)
• The ddeobokki was VERY chewy! Tasted nothing like the one I have tried in food courts before (which incidentally tasted EWWW) Here's the difference between authentic Korean food and those that weren't.
• Chicken was tender and chunky.
• Sauce was yummy!!!! But spicy at first bite and had us wanted more subsequently.
• We mixed the rice which came with the Chigae ourselves inside the Dakgalbi and it was good!
• One of my friends told me that the one she tried in Korea had more ingredients (mushrooms, bean sprouts etc) than this one.
• The staff there actually helped us mixed the Dakgalbi and informed us when we could actually eat it. It was a plus point for us as we concluded that none of us would be able to tell whether it was cooked or not and may end up eating half cooked chicken.

Overall Advantages: 

• Its a personal thing but their chairs were sooooooooooooo comfy.
• Authentic Korean food was served.
• While it seemed reasonable in serving size, our tummies were filled to the brim after the meal!
• Service was good. Even with the miscommunication, they tried to slot us in and gave us a table. This was good enough for me and they even said thank you (the one that sounds really sincere instead of those that say because they have to) before we left. 

Overall Disadvantages:

• It's rather small, space wise. They can hold about 8-10 groups of people at one go only. And it depends on your group numbers as well.

Note:

• It was written on their menu that customers should make reservations at least 2 days before their actual dinning date for them to serve you better. I would say, make it 3 days. And avoid the miscommunication I had by ensuring that they do take down your name and number. (It was a really dumb mistake made by me I have to say-.-)
• They only charge service charge, no GST on top of the price stated in menu.

Overall, I would say that my experience at Big Mama's was one of a kind as it was my first go at Dukgalbi which proved to be an awesome experience. I would definitely want to go back again and would definitely make a reservation! If you guys visited Big Mama before, I'd love to hear your experiences. Or if you guys have any awesome Korean places to recommend I'd love to hear them too! Till next time, ciao!

<3 FJ

HIFUMI JAPANESE RESTAURANT

Location: #04-68 Plaza Singapura 68 Orchard Road
How to go: Douby Ghaut Mrt Station, it's at the new extension of Plaza Singapura
Opening Hours: 1130am - 2200pm
Contact Number: 6338 4712

HI ALL! I'm here to do another review!!! Went out with Phyllis yesterday with the intention to do some MEGA huge shopping as GSS has started! But we walked in all the major clothes stores only to come out with one item each from H&M after our long walk. All I can say is that GSS has yet to reach its peak. We settled at TCC, had Devil's Chocolate Cake and did some real catching up the holidays allowed and headed straight to Hifumi for dinner. I had visited Hifumi once with Joey when my exams ended and was really happy as they offer you FREE appetizers (in buffet style) so long as you order their set meal.

Now, if you're thinking that their appetizer bar just serves you cheap stuff like garden salad and fruit slices, you are so wrong! As you can see from the pictures above, they offer you a variety of appetizers! From Cold Macaroni Salad to my all time favourite Japanese dish: Chawanmushi. Phyllis and I tried out a few!

Appetizers:

• Sweet Soup: it is a nice starter. But they do not always serve the same soup. The last time I was there, I remembered it was something creamy.
• Grilled Onions: I am a fan of onions so it is good for me! But it has turned kinda cold for it was left in the open air.
• Chawanmushi: Good, nice, flavorful and smooth. It has one slice of mushroom, crab stick and prawn. It has a slightly floury taste at the end but it is overall, something I'd recommend you all to save your stomach space for! I mean Chawanmushi at a restaurant outside costs about $5 and they are serving it to you FOC. Better eat your fill! I had 3!
• Fried Tofu: mini bite sized tofu is not bad.
• Brinjal/Eggplant: It is a cold dish. Salty and soggy; it's a good combination for Phyllis.
• Sweet Potato sticks: not bad.
• Broccoli: half crunchy half soft Broccoli soaked in Miso sauce is a weird combination for Phyllis too.

We had a Teriyaki Chicken Set ($14.90) and a Salmon and Salmon Roe Don ($17.90), the total bill added to $38.85. Here's their menu!

Teriyaki Chicken Set:

• Comes with boiled carrots and broccoli, bringal, a mini steamed potato and several types of mushrooms. This combination makes me feel very healthy while eating it and honestly, they taste awesome!
• The chicken was tender and drenched with teriyaki sauce. The sauce is sweet with an after peppery taste.
• They give you a LOT of rice. But it isn't as sticky as it's supposed to be. (I really couldn't finish it, but it may be due to the 3 cups of Chawanmushi as well)
• This is a great combination! The vegetables goes well the the chicken and you won't stop eating!

Salmon and Salmon Roe Don:

• Comes with tiny chunks of Salmon, cucumber, salmon roe, lotus and stripped seaweed.
• Dip the salmon into the soy sauce given. Without it, the salmon kinda absorbs the cucumber tastes and does not taste like salmon at all. Moreover, the salmon wasn't Q. It was just soft. (This is what happens when you dice the salmon into small chunks)
• Also, the salmon provided is too little, doesn't justify the price paid.
• Salmon roe was good and it bursts in your mouth.
• The lotus was soaked in some vinegary sauce before it was dished out, it tastes kinda weird to me, but I'm sure preferences differ for Phyllis felt that it was alright.
• The whole meal feels like a meal with an array of textures that do not match. Crunch cucumbers and lotuses with soft salmon and salmon roe that burst in your mouth. I think it would be better if they provided the cucumbers in strips, take away the lotus and perhaps have tamago or crab stick chunks in it.

Overall Advantages:

• You get FREE appetizers! FREE! (Just had to stress it)
• Prices are reasonable!
• Atmosphere ain't that bad.
• They have a huge space to accommodate many people.

Overall Disadvantages:

• Tables are slightly cramped, I could hear conversations from the tables on my left and on my right.

Note:

• We were only given an hour and a half to eat inside. (Perhaps due to the crowd?) But they didn't chase us out when we were there longer.

Overall, I would say that Hifumi is a MUST GO! Try it out people!!! Till next time! Love you all!

<3 FJ