Basil Alcove @ Fortune Centre, Middle Road

Want an affordable french meal in the heart of the city? Go to Basil Alcove!

This nice french eatery is sited at a corner of the Fortune Centre, facing the junction of NAFA and Sunshine Plaza. Basil Alcove used to occupy a smaller location within the same building but has since shifted to this bigger corner.

When you are at Basil Alcove, try their duck dishes. We had this salad and duck appetizer ($12.60) which tasted great. We had already tried their pan fried duck earlier and so we ordered other main dishes instead.

While waiting for our main dishes to come, we had a pot of Earl Grey ($4.50). The pot comes with matching decorated cups that added a nice feel to the experience. Despite the eatery being touted as a no-frill dinning place, they had taken care to add some deco (i.e. the flower at the table).

We had poached salmon as one of the main dishes. The salmon is done just right, with the skin slightly crisp, while the fish meat is still succulent and not dry. I like the way they decorate the food that adds to the overall experience.

Here's a picture of my orange and shrimp pasta ($12.60). Not that well taken, but the food is tasty. There are quite a number of shrimps hidden underneath pasta covered with cheese.

The overall experience at Basil Alcove is good, except for the evening traffic noises that makes conversation difficult. However, for this kind of prices and the quality of food, the place is definitely worth a try.

It's Ben & Jerry Free Cone Day - 21 Apr 2009

The Free Cone Day by Ben & Jerry ice cream is here again! The event starts from 12 noon I suppose, but those who are interested better go and queue early!

The 8 participating outlets include the follow:

United Square,
The Cathay,
Singapore Zoo,
Jurong Bird Park,
Great World City,
Raffles City,
VivoCity

Parking fines @ Kallang Leisure Park

Sometimes I think the parking fines at certain locations are ridiculous. Yes I know it is the fault of the driver not to put his coupon. Honestly, getting car park fines at a car park where there are plenty of empty lots just doesn't make sense.

I was at Kallang Leisure Park during the weekend. I reached the open air car park at about 905pm. I was pretty hungry and thus forgotten about tearing parking coupons. So I lugged my stuff to a coffee place, sat down and ordered food. At 915pm I remembered about the coupons, and so after grabbing a few more bites of my bagel, I left to go back to the car.

I reached my car at 925pm. The parking fine was there! The fine stated a timing of 920pm. Sigh, the fellow giving my fine must have been lurking around the area.

I am pissed. I walk around, and noticed other cars with fines and a timing of 625pm.

So the car park attendants must have been damn diligent in checking a car park with plenty of empty lots.

This is the stupid result of focusing official resources at what makes money, and not what makes sense.

There are a high number of reckless drivers on the road nowadays, and I've seen many cars that dashed past red lights. Any remedies for these? Nope. Instead, there are a lot of parking attendants at the many car parks. The money to be earned from fines is more than the worth of lives I guess.

Anyway, does anyone know why there are 24 hours car parks, i.e. car parks which require coupons even past 10pm? I don't understand the rationale, especially when the driver needs to tear a $2 coupon just because he is parking there beyond 10pm. So if I parked at such a place from 930pm till 1030pm, it will costs me $2.50 ($2 plus $0.50).

Weird policies, and I am still pissed.

Foodcourt in Sweden, and Pizza pictures

Other than the roast ducks in London, and reindeer steak in Sweden, we had many chances to try other food.

It was quite surprising when we saw a foodcourt in Sweden, and it was really called 'Foodcourt'! I wonder if it is opened by a Singaporean. The foodcourt was located at Kista Galleria, a shopping centre located in the heart of a science park of sort. Thus we could see people from many different nationalities around. Interestingly, we could find 'Little India' food, and Chinese Dim Sum... etc etc being sold here.

During the trip, we tried other food. One of them was an Italian pizza in Stockholm, near the train station. This was what I had for dinner. The portion was big. Eating pizza with thin crust and lotsa of ingredient is definitely satisfying.

Others tried different varieties of the pizza. The pizza could be surprising spicy, and those with more delicate stomach should not take the spicy varities.

Other than food, we took many pictures during the trip. European cities are pretty fascinating, especially their architecture. Nonetheless, let me share something different. We passed by an Irish pub that just opened for business, and they had a band outside the pub to celebrate the opening. In Asia, we may find lion dance, but in Stockholm, we find music band for such purposes.

See related posts:
- Roast Duck - Four Seasons Restaurant @ Bayswater, London
- I ate reindeer meat - Stockholm Trip

Live 'food' at supermarkets, and impact on wet markets

I read in the papers that supermarkets are now selling live 'food', including bullfrogs and such. I guess it is about time they venture into live 'food' in a big way. I once saw Sheng Siong's live prawns jumping about in the tank and that convinced me about the freshness of their products.

What I think will happen is that the wet markets will find it harder and harder to compete against such fierce competition from the supermarkets. With all the bad publicity surrounding hawkers and related stalls recently (e.g. rats in the markets), people will want to find cleaner and safer place to shop for their live food.

Looking at the prices of live food between wet markets and supermarkets, I would say that the additional amount charged by the supermarket is worth it.

Yes I know, wet market stall owners offer more personalised service, e.g. he will chop / clean the food according to your preference, and reserve products for you, especially during hot seasons like the festivals periods. At times they will also stock up rare seasonal products for their customers. These are the remaining competitive edge offered by the wet markets.

I do feel sad to see them disappearing actually. I really hope they will clean up the rats problem and up the hygience level of wet markets and food hawkers. Hopefully after this period, the hawkers / NEA / workers will have a better system to keep things clean (and keep their loyal customers).

Afternote: I went to Sheng Siong on 18 Apr to check out the live products, and here's some of the pictures of the lobsters and oysters.

I checked out the live bullfrogs too. Next to the live bullfrogs are the skinned ones. A bit gross, but that is fresh food I guess.

Book Exchange at the NLB - 25 Apr 09

National Library is launching their first Book Exchange at the main National Library (i.e. the one opposite Bugis Junction, next to Bras Basah) on 25 Apr 09!

Bring your old books from 11 to 24 Apr to any of the libraries and you would be given a coupon, which can be used on the 25 Apr to exchange for other used books. Textbooks, magazines and such are not accepted though. Up to 30 books may be exchange per person. The Book Exchange event will take place at The Plaza, i.e. the first floor. I think there will be a huge crowd, just like the NLB old books sale events.

I do have a number of old books, mostly bought from 2nd hand book sales at Bras Basah, and I guess this is a good chance to get new 'used' books. More details can be found at NLB's news release.

Afternote: The event attracted about 5000plus people, quite a big crowd!

I ate reindeer meat! - Stockholm trip

Have you ever tried reindeer meat? I did! When I was in Stockholm, there were plenty of restaurants around their 'old town', i.e. tourist area, selling reindeer and elk dishes. So I got curious, and ordered one reindeer dish to try. Here's a photo of the dish. Looks good right?

There were two slices of the reindeer meat, on top of their potato gratin, with some cranberry sauce. It tasted a little like tender pork to me, but others who tried said it tasted more like beef / lamb. I think the serving was somewhat raw, and you could see the 'blood' oozing out of the second slice (left of the photo) of reindeer meat. The exterior was fully grilled and gave that char grill taste. Yupz I took these photos using proper digital camera instead of my handphone, and so do click on them to get a larger clearer view.

Overall I think the experience is nice, and the dish is worth a try. Other than the meat, their potato gratin is pretty yummy, with some cheesy taste. I don't think I will order the dish again because it is pretty pricey. That serving of reindeer costs about S$60. Oh well, I'm not sure if eating reindeer meat will have any repercussions with Santa Claus. Maybe I wouldn't get any X'mas present in December. Sob. Here's a menu that described the various dishes, but I tried the reindeer at another restaurant by the name of Glenfiddich.

Other than reindeer, they do serve other 'normal' food. We tried meatballs (made from game meat) and also salmon. Here's the photos to make you drool. I think the meatball tasted like those served by Ikea, but better somehow.

Now their salmon is good! The portion was big, and the fish tasted fresh. Of course the price tag is also more expensive than what you can find in Singapore. Oh well we get what we paid for. Overall it was a nice dinner with good food and Swedish beer to go along.

Roast Duck - Four Seasons Restaurant @ Bayswater London

One of the great food attractions in London is the delicious roast duck from the Four Seasons Restaurant @ Bayswater. Here's a photo of the half duck that we ordered. The skin is crispy, meat is flavourful, and of course the oil and fats of the duck pieces carry the aromatic fragrance that is hard to find elsewhere.

Other than the roast duck, we also ordered the roast pork, with crispy skin and tender meat. Actually I think there is more fat than meat, as shown in the latter photo below. It is amazing how the chef managed to find a cut of the pig that is so fatty. I guess the fatty parts allow the spices, sauces and other flavours to be captured in the dish.

We also ordered vegetables and some tofu to go along with these roasted dishes. The vegetables dish was great, especially as a complement to the oily fatty duck and pork. Simple crunchy fresh vegetables to rid the taste of oil is always welcome. The tofu is actually made from minced meats, vegetables and tofu, covered with bean sauce and bittergourd.

We had a short chat with the restaurant stff, and found out that the restaurant is operated by someone from Hong Kong. For those who intend to visit the Four Seasons @ Bayswater, do note that you have to squeeze into the restaurant (becasue there is always a queue outside) and let the waiter note down your name together with the number of diners. After a wait of about 15 mins to 45 mins, depending on the time of the day, they would be able to clear a table for you.