Hic'Juice Level 2 Restore Cleanse Day 1

Juice Cleanse is all the rage these days with the many juice companies sprouting up and beauty/lifestyle bloggers promoting the juices. Well, here is a food blogger/serial snacker's perspective on juicing. Granted I may not be the best normal person around to give you sound advice (yes I'm already skinny and I eat lots of veg and I exercise an average of 10h/wk) but you can bet on the tastiness of the juices if I tell you so right?

So the story went like this. A close gf of mine W was gonna get married and I thought that it was opportunity for bonding time if we do a juice cleanse together. Of course I kinda forced her into participating in my Ms Skinnyfat boot camp, which I paired the juicing with some hard core hot yoga in preparation for the big day (of course I don't believe in crash dieting duh). 

We looked at a couple of juice companies like Beauty Cleanse, Sana, Joob and decided on Hic'Juice because their glass bottles looked so pretty. Yes we're superficial like that and that's perfectly ok. :P

We did the 3 day intermediate cleanse aka Restore. Hic delivered all 18 bottles at 1 shot (6 bottles/day). If storage is an issue for you, you may want to find a company that delivers your juices daily. Thank god I have a spare fridge at home. And gosh the glass bottles are damn heavy. Probably not the choice of juice company if you're on the go the whole time. Also, the bottles are slippery when wet and W broke a bottle before we even started on our cleanse.

S only found out about the juice cleanse when it was delivered and complained about the ridiculous amount W and I are paying for the juices (it's $318++ for 3 days). Well but for the benefit of you guys and my curiosity in the taste, I guess it's ok? 

My only concern was the amount of fluids I had to ingest. 3l of juices a day?? Hello toilet bowl. My pea size bladder is certainly not gonna be able to hold much. 

HIC juice sent us our juicing guidebook to help ease us into the cleanse. It was advised that we eat more greens (preferably a raw diet) and sleeping early the day before the cleanse. Well none of that happened for me as i went for a tasting prior and then slept at 1am because I was writing. So day 1 started with me feeling like a train wreck. 

Day 1 39.5kg (my weighing machine makes me lighter so I'm probably 40kg). 

Got a reminder from S to start on my juices. BAH. Breakfast at 940am and I started on the Popeye Smoothie, a dense pulpy concoction of red dragonfruit, pineapple, banana, spinach and ionized water. I loved the color of this one and also the taste of the juice. Feeling good!

1140am

Juice 2 was Lemon n Spice. I read that many people can't take this juice because of the cayenne pepper but i like it! A hint of apple, mostly lemon and some spice. I did feel some burning sensation though but it wasn't entirely uncomfortable. But I did feel some burning sensation. My toilet breaks are started to become more frequent due to the fluids. 

1225pm

Had to run errands at the shopping mall and all the snacks were tempting me! I was feeling pretty full from the juices actually but I'm just being greedy I guess.

1pm
The horrible S was happily tucking into his Yu Kee Duck rice. The zen master will not be tempted and so I worked on the blog instead. Productive distraction turned out to be useful.

155pm
Started on Juice 3. Green Lemonade is made from Apple, Cucumber, Kale, Celery, Romaine Lettuce, Parsley and Lemon. The taste was quite cool due to the high cucumber content. This tasted a bit like herbal tea but was quite drinkable. Thankfully celery is not a huge feature in this one. 

Juice 4

4carats is a carrot, celery, cucumber and apple mix. I used to hate raw carrots and cucumber but I've learned to enjoy more vegetables as I grow older. This drink had a cooling igh carrot content. This went down easy too.

5pm 

Went for a short run under the sun. Feeling energetic! The Coconut water was a nice cool relief at the end but it's probably the most expensive coconut water I've paid for and yes it's just regular  coconut water.

8pm
Ended the day on Juice 6 which is Nut Milk. It's made from Raw Cashews, Raw Almonds, Vanilla, Medjool Dates, Himalayan Salt, Cinnamon and Ionized Water. Everyone said that this is tasty but I found the high oil content to be rather disturbing after a day of clean juices. It had a bit of the unappealing oily taste. Good thing there's only 1 bottle of this.

Yay to the end of day 1. It was pretty easy but i was already missing my snacks! 

Stay tuned for day 2 and 3 coming up!

For more on Hic'Juice, here's their website link with pricing and all (click here).

Peach Garden Restaurant The Metropolis

My concept of steamboat/hotpot has evolved over the years. It used to be the cheapo $10 eat-all-you-can buffet in the sweltering heat at Marina Bay (what to do, i was a poor student). I believe the potential of anyone getting salmonella from all that exposed food was pretty high.

These days, i prefer a cleaner and more refined steamboat dining. Imperial Treasures rank high up there for ambience; Jpot is still my all time favorite (read why here) and recently i checked out Peach Garden Restaurant's steamboat offering at their latest outlet at The Metropolis Buona Vista (just above the BV MRT circle line exit).

Peach Garden is well known for their high quality Cantonese cuisine and i had decent dimsum at the OCBC outlet (read about it here) but i believe the steamboat option is pretty new to them. We started with some cooling drinks. The Watercress Honey ($3.50) and Ribena with Jasmine ($5) are recommended. 

We couldn't resist ordering some of Peach's signatures and we were not disappointed. The Roasted Pork Belly (8 cubes, $10) had the right amount of fat to meat and that crackling was extremely addictive.

The Roasted Peking Duck ($30/$55) should not be missed. We had half a duck to share and it was done 2 ways. I liked the lightly seared egg crepe which was used instead of the usual steam rice roll/paper. It lent some additional flavors and texture to the otherwise bland roll. Love this one.

The rest of the duck was chopped up and stir-fried with crunchy and refreshing chunks of water chestnut and mushrooms. Have this on the keropok or wrap it with fresh lettuce and pop it in. I've never had this style before but it's certainly my favorite option now!

The Fried XO Carrot Cake ($9) was just so so though. 

Ok finally moving on to the steamboat! Sorry for the digression. There are set menus catering to groups of different sizes. Or you could also go with the a la carte menu. 

We decided to do the mixed pot so that we could try 2 soups. American Sliced Beef, Live Prawns and Pork Neck Meat

Beef Balls, 

The Tomato Pork Bone broth was really good. It's a delicious savory broth flavored with the sweetness of the tomato and hence it was also tangy. I liked that it had just that little bit of spice. The Superior broth was more bland and milky but still delicious. The flavors are more well balanced towards the end after cooking all the meats.

The prawn items were good too. We had the freshly made prawn paste which was squeezed into the boiling soup. The fresh prawn dumplings were fat and succulent too. Peach Garden's live prawns were also sweet and juicy. 

Meat wise, I enjoyed the American Sliced Beef the most. Marbling could be better but this was decent enough. The beef balls had a powdery texture inside and was missing the meaty texture. 

Along with the vegetables, we had the deep fried gluten puffs. I was actually looking for the fried beancurd skin (腐皮卷) but they didn't have that. These were a favorite with my group though. Eat it simply or give it a quick soak in the pot before biting into it.

For desserts, we had the Mango Sago Pomelo with some special jelly. I loved the rich mango cream which wasn't too sweet. The osmanthus jelly was rather plain in my opinion.

Of course, never conclude the meal without the famous 流沙包! Stellar salted egg custard as usual. 

The Peach Garden @ The Metropolis dining experience was enjoyable. In fact, my friends made a dinner reservation for their family the next night! I'd pick this over the Holland Village Crystal Jade steamboat anytime!

Peach Garden @ The Metropolis
9 North Buona Vista Drive
#02-02, The Metropolis Tower 1
Singapore 138588
Tel: +65 6334 7833
Daily: 11am - 10pm

OZ Specialty Coffee

I used to hang out around Thomson when I was in sec school. Its lovely laid back charm is quite like Siglap, Serangoon Gardens and Holland V. Not forgetting to mention, it's another food enclave which now offers more cafe and brunch options like One Man Coffee, Habitat Coffee. Joining them is OZ Specialty Coffee, an independent coffee boutique located just slightly off the main Upper Thomson Road, in the haphazardly organized Thomson V Two.

OZ is a really (really) small outfit but it provides a wide variety of beans from Brazil, Ethiopia, Guatemala, Indonesia, Thailand etc. Pacamara Coffee Roaster beans are used here.

You know they are serious about their coffee with the arsenal of brewing products on sale. Japanese Kalita home brewing products are available here and other commercial coffee equipment as well.

I had the House Blend latte which had notes of milk chocolate, ripe fruits, roasted nuts with mild floral hints. It's mellow and smooth. Go for this if you want something strong.

Light bites are also on offer, including waffles (from $7) and sandwiches (from $8.50). Their breakfast dishes look run-of-the-mill though. I spied on the next table's scrambled eggs, which seemed runny enough but everything else was just heated/pan friend and thrown in I guess.
What you must definitely have is OZ's Belgium waffles! I swear it was actually a compressed croissant masquerading as a waffle. I died and went to waffle heaven when I bit into the dense buttery pastry (yes I can call it that!). The browned parts had a puff pastry exterior while the inside had the pull of a well made croissant. And that salted caramel was rich and thick without being cloying. Commercially produced New Zealand Natural vanilla ice cream was paired with it but even that didn't take its shine away. Ok NZ Natural isn't that bad I guess (there could be worse).
I really dig their waffles but the hole in the wall is too small a spot even for the little me. An indoor bar top against the wall seats 5 uncomfortably (it's a squeeze). There're about 6 tables for bigger groups along the sheltered corridor but do go prepared with your own mini fans or other cooling devices you may fashion out of paper napkins. Guess it's good that OZ opens till late at night.

So go forth and have the insanely delicious waffles with a cuppa. It's the best Belgian waffles I've had so far. :)

OZ Specialty Coffee
#01-13 11 Sin Ming Road
Thomson V Two, Singapore 595629
Weekdays: 12pm - 12am
Weekends: 9am - 12am

Kimchi Korean Restaurant

It's been a while since i visited Suntec City, mainly because i really hate the space and how far everything is from each tower and i often get lost (yes i'm hopeless). I would avoid Suntec at all cost but now there's a reason to visit and that is Kimchi Korean Restaurant. Kimchi is a brand new Korean restaurant offering authentic flavors along with regional favourites from Busan and Andong. It's guaranteed authentic because Executive Chef Choi Minchul and his all-Korean team of chefs are behind the delicious creations. 

Do not expect free side dishes at Kimchi because the cute boss Hayden doesn't want to hide the cost in the price of your meal. The portions are also healthier sized and more affordable than the usual Korean restaurants.

Bean Curd Kimchi ($8.90) is like a minced meat croquette served on top on a piquant and flavorful kimchi salsa. This snack is certainly a great way to whet our appetites!

The Andong Jjimdak ($15) was a satisfying hot pot of braised boneless chicken thighs marinated in Korean light soy sauce. This dish is inspired by Chef Choi’s own family recipe. Be careful not to inhale any of the sauce! The fresh green chilli pepper called cheongyang gochu (청양고추) has a ghost chili kinda silent burn that will get to you if you're not careful. The dish also had a nice smoky sesame oil taste as well. Diners can also enjoy this unique dish in the form of a chicken dolsot bap or as a marinated option for Korean barbeque. Must order!
I rather enjoyed the Pork Dolsot Bap ($12), which had a well balanced flavor as they did not add those cloying red sauce to the rice.

The Kimchi Soup ($9.80) was prepared as a jigae instead of a guk which is a thicker broth with a rich, deep flavour. Stir-fried with pork, the kimchi is left to simmer and enrich the accompanying broth. The spicy concoction is very addictive and reminded me of the one i had in Korea.
For a lighter and healthier option, i highly recommend the Ginseng Chicken Juk ($12). Chef Choi prepares chicken stock the day before and selects premium Korean ginseng and Chinese herbs such as dang gui, kamcho (Korean licorice), and red dates to simmer with Korean rice. I love how there is a light sweetness from the dates. S promised to buy this for me every time i fall sick. Yay! Super comfort food i must say.

Kimchi also offers Korean barbeque where built-in electric grills allow diners to grill their food without smelling of smoke. Choose from a selection of premium meats which include the delicious Wagyu short ribs [$29 non-marinated; $29.50 marinated. I'm definitely coming back for this.

From the dessert menu, Kimchi offers a native Busan street snack called Hodduk ($9), a light, fluffy and slightly crisp hotcake stuffed with red bean paste and topped with nuts and Korean black sugar syrup. I couldn't ask for a better end to the meal. Kimchi also serves an afternoon tea set ($16.80) daily from 2 to 5.30pm and it comes together with tea and handmade Korean ice cream.
Kimchi Korean Restaurant is easily my favorite Korean restaurant in Singapore at this point. Yes it has overtaken Togi as my favorite now. Head on down for some really awesome Korean food now. :)

Kimchi Korean Restaurant 

Suntec City Mall Convention Tower 

#02-387, 3 Temasek Boulevard 

Singapore 038983 

Tel: +65 6337 7811
Daily: 10am - 10pm

Taratata Bistrot

Taratata Bistrot is a charming little French restaurant along Keong Saik Road which I've been meaning to try for sometime. I finally made time for it when i saw that it was on the Restaurant Week listing (yes i'm slow in updating) and it was only $25 for a 3 course meal. The prices are very reasonable even if you didn't make the RW bookings though.
We were served starters from their regular menu, which is a good thing i feel. I hate it when restaurants serve a completely different (usually substandard) menu for RW. That kinda deters repeat visits especially if the food sucks.

The Half Dozen of Snails Baked in Herbed Garlic Butter ($25). I found the escargots to be succulent and well flavored with garlic herbs. 

The Baked Eggs Casserole with Duck Gizzard Confit and Mushrooms ($24) had nice runny eggs that are best soaked up with the delicious baguette Taratata serves. Generous pieces of foie gras were swimming in the eggs but i thought they would be better seared first before thrown into the ramekin.

Even though the mains were not from the regular menu, we were very happy with our dishes. The Salmon Coulibiac with Watercress Butter Sauce was lovely! The puff pastry was buttery and flaky and the salmon was cooked to a nice pink. 

The Pan Roasted Kurobuta Pork Tenderloin with Mustard sauce was done simply to allow diners a taste of the tender and non fatty meat. It's the first time i thought that pork could taste so clean and healthy. K thought it was a little too bland though.

Dessert was the highlight of the meal! The Baked Chocolate Tart with Crisp, Caramel sauce and Ginger bread ice cream was out of this world. The crunchy tart held the intense chocolate lava and the pastry skin twirl made us twirly whirly in our seats as we devoured the dish without speaking (but we did make a lot of oooohs and aaaahhhhs. God they need to put this on their menu.

Service was attentive and quick, maybe because they wanted us out fast for their second lunch service. If you're up for some quick lunch, Taratata Bistrot does a 40 minutes Lunch Express at $25 which includes a soup and a main course. 

For a more leisurely lunch, there's the $30 2-course set lunch and they also serve a 3 course set meal for $38. I'd recommend Taratata Bistrot for a charming and affordable French meal.

Taratata Bistrot

35A Keong Saik Road Singapore 089142

Tel: +65 6221 4506

Wed-Fri, Sun Lunch: 11.30am - 2.30pm
Tue- Sun Dinner: 5.30pm - 11pm
Closed Mon

Jamie's Italian

I rather enjoyed my meal at Jamie's Italian the last time despite all that noise about how their food isn't good. Trust me that's not true (read my review here). This time I headed back to sample more from the updated menu and they added another 14 items.
Starters first. The Cauliflower and Parmesan fritters ($12.50) were simply amazing. I swear cauliflowers are the best replacement for potatoes in mash! These creamy and cheesy cauliflower croquettes were fried to a golden crisp, garnished with crispy sage and finished with a fiery Arabiatta sauce. I had to finish this one! The Italian Spiced Chicken Wings ($12.50) didn't do too well though. The char grilled spicy wings were piquant but bland and a little dry. (Sorry the lighting was way too dim so no pics!)

It was a lasagne dreaming for me since I tasted the fabulous Jamie's lasagne with squash (I've a weakness for pumpkin!). Well... The Pumpkin Tortilini ($13/ $22) wasn't quite exciting enough. The pasta skin was too thick and that overshadowed the pumpkin-ricotta filling. The sauce had an oily mouthfeel as well. I'd say stick with the lasagne while it's still around.

Thankfully, the pasta portion of the meal was salvaged by the beautiful Truffle Tagliatelle ($15/ $23). The sheets were cooked to perfection and emulsified with a lovely sauce of truffle cream, vegetable stock and butter, finished with grated Parmesan, truffle oil, grated nutmeg and shaved black truffles. Simple but perfectly luxurious. The dish was served a little cold though (hmmm) but we still enjoyed it tremendously.

For mains, we had the Baked Salmon ($23.50), a Norwegian Salmon coated with a semolina crust, pan fried in olive oil and finished in the oven. The whipped ricotta mixed with horseradish, lemon and mint was simply amazing with the fish and the spring greens.

The delicious memory of the Prime Rib caused me to order the Rump Steak ($28.50) just to see if it would be better. Well, i concluded that i don't like this cut because it's tougher. Well fatty wagyu is still my favorite i guess. Skinny fries are served on the side with rosemary salt.

If you're a porky fan, try the Jamie's Italian Signature Porchetta which is a slow cooked pork belly filled with herbs, garlic and spices with fennel crackling. Regretted not ordering this. :(

For desserts, skip the Chocolate and Espresso Profiteroles ($9.50) which was a boring and grainy choux puff stuffed with Chantilly cream. The ice cream was icy as well. I took some obligatory bites because the chocolate sauce was rather decent. 
An interesting dessert is the Rippled Pavolova ($11.50) which had a crispy light exterior and a slight chewy center. Jamie's version is topped with macerated berries, smashed hazelnut praline and finished with honey cress and lemon zest. Great contrast with the sweet meringue. However, I found parts with sugar clumps. Meh. I swear i will order the Brownie and Tiramisu next time!

For drinks, remember to skip the Ginger Beer. L didn't wanna listen to me and she regretted. The Amalfi Lemon and Basil Iced Tea ($5.50/$15) and Homemade Italian Lemonade (same price) are better options. Not that much faith in their cocktails. 

With regular changes to the menu and extensive options, it's hard not to find something you like at Jamie's Italian. So head on down for a decent and hearty meal. Thank you Jamie's Italian for having me! 

Jamie's Italian
1 Harbourfront Walk #01 165-167, VivoCity
Tel: +65 6733 5500
Sun - Thu: 12pm - 10pm
Fri & Sat: 12pm - 11pm