Chong Qing Grilled Fish

Hello! Another post on fish after my Fish & Co post which I had friends commenting "Huh Fish and Co? Really?" Anyway this time this is Chinese fish, not Western. I love all fish, regardless of race or nationality. Meow.

As seen from the picture above, Chong Qing Grilled Fish is very popular, especially on weekend nights. In fact, there was a queue already waiting at 6.30pm on a Friday. Patronage was a mix of local and PRC. I would recommend you to call and reserve to avoid disappointment.

Ordering is a simple and idiot-proof (but not fickle-minded proof) three-step process:

So many choices!

We chose the sea bass in fermented black bean (甘香豆豉) soup, and beancurd skin and enoki mushrooms as our sides. We were so excited when the fish came in a huge saucer with the hot stove beneath! The regular size ($30) was huge and enough for two pax. A thin layer of chilli spice powder was sprinkled on top to give a kick to the fish which was grilled to perfection. The sea bass was very tender, fresh and tasty, evident of the oil, herbs and spices that were used to marinate the fish. We slurped all of the black bean soup which was aromatic, and packed a balanced punch of saltiness, savouriness and sweetness. We were very satisfied with every aspect of the fish and there was really nothing to nitpick. 

Sea bass in fermented black bean soup

We had the opportunity to try the authentic Chongqing spicy style - Spicy Fragrant 一品香辣(medium spiciness) on another occasion. OMG. I can only say the spicy fragrant soup is not for the faint-hearted. The chilli oil was very hot, spicy and numbing. I am not exaggerating. My fellow diner, who is a major consumer of the chilli industry, also found it too spicy and numbing. By the end of the meal, we felt our tongues did not belong to us. Good idea to bring a frenemy here if you want to do a kamikaze.

Sea bass in spicy fragrant soup (medium spiciness lvel)

But this is their signature lah. Chong Qing Ma La mah. Suggest you choose mild spiciness level. Just drink more water which is free. I think I drank more water than the soup. Or have some cooling desserts just opposite Chong Qing Grilled Fish. I highly recommend the durian shaved ice at Desserts First - read review here.

Indoors are air-conditioned but you are more likely to smell like grilled fish at the end. Outdoors might be too humid on a hot day. If you are lucky like us, you might get a seat that is indoors but close to the main door-less entrance which will grant you the best of both worlds - Cool air-conditioning and good ventilation. 

Address: 1 Liang Seah Street, #01-05/06 s189022
Tel: 63339148

Fish and Co

Fish and Co - a place which I have frequented since school days. And they never fail to meet the mark for me. Also, it's the only place where you can try all sorts of fish and chips. One of the things that has become my must-order at Fish and Co : the seafood platter. It's the closest thing to having a seafood feast without a huge price tag.

The seafood platter can be shared between two or three people, depending on which size you order. We ordered the platter for two comprising of grilled seafood, which cost around $40.

The paella rice was savoury, not too dry not wet, and I loved the plenty of raisins and tiny mussels that came with it. The grilled prawns were sweet and drizzled with very nice butter sauce. But I heard the Paragon branch serves tiger prawns, unlike Tampines branch that served smaller prawns. The dory fish was soft and fork tender, drizzled with creamy butter sauce that complemented it well. The calamari that was glazed with lemon butter sauce was too rubbery for me. Loved the fries which were crispy and a little spicy with paprika, one of the best fries I've had. As my companion does not take mussels, we had changed them to calamari. Hmm should have changed to fries. 4.25/5

I really like the Tampines One outlet. It has a mezzanine level which makes the ceilings very tall. And the full floor to ceiling glass windows make the place very inviting just to chill out on a weekend.

And I love how serious Fish and Co is about their service. They really make an effort to improve. You can see it from their latest campaign that if you happen to catch the waiter not smiling, you get to redeem a free fizzy drink. But I think better not lah.. people trying to make a living. 

Address: 10 Tampines Central 1 #04-11, S 529537

The Reading Room

The Reading Room is like a baby brother to the clan associations, trendy boutique hotels and the upmarket restaurants that lined up Bukit Pasoh road. 

During the day, it offers an avenue for reading and a reprieve from the hustle and bustle for the book-lovers. When dusk falls, the reading room is transformed into a happy hour spot for the nocturnal animals.

 

The walls are lined with floor to almost ceiling bookshelves, giving it a serious yet  at the same time relaxing feel. But unlike a real library reading room, you are allowed to talk freely without garnering the disapproving glares from your fellow patrons. There are also board games available for big groups. 

A wide variety of books await for the bookworm to indulge on. From children's books to love poetry. From chick-lit to serious political literature. There's genre for everyone.

Even the menu is made from a book's cover. Never judge a book by its cover.

This is my good read for the day:

As Frances Ann Lebontiz puts it accurately, "Think before you speak. Read before you think." Books nourishes the mind as to food nourishes the body.

Even though there weren't a lot of people, the service was rather slow. Waited quite a while before my food came.  The ang moh/ABC sitting next to me got their food faster than me. Hmmm why ah?

I ordered the Kro-battered fish fingers ($13.80+) which was served piping hot. The light, yeasty and crisp batter was a bit oily. The fish meat was soft and disintegrated when I cut it with the fork. Think this would go very well with beer. But the peach fizz ($6+) that I got did a good job to refresh the palate after the deep fried mouthful too. 3.5/5

I visited the cafe's toilet and was amused by this poster in the toilet.

They also have a separate room with a pool table. Good for gatherings if you are interested.

Although the food and drinks were nothing to shout about (standard cafe grub), The Reading Room is quite a decent cafe to hang out and have a date with a bf/gf/book.

Address: 19 Bukit Pasoh Road Singapore 089833

I'm a finalist for Singapore Blog Awards 2014!

Ever since I started this blog in June 2013, it has been a no-point-of-return journey. I've faced physical threats of being stabbed by my fellow diners' forks if I took more than 1 second to photograph the food, as well as emotional panic attacks from checking the weighing scale. But nothing can stand between me and my passion for delicious food and writing.

So I was touched and honoured to find out that my little corner on the WWW was shortlisted from almost 100 other blogs as one of the top 10 finalists for Best New Blog category in this year's Singapore Blog Awards! 

I would like to thank the judges for thinking that my blog has inspiring and entertaining content, as well as good presentation (that made up 70% of the total final score). The remaining 30% of my unknown fate lies in your fingers - based on public votes and voting starts now till 31 July 3pm. 

If you think my blog is not bad, or if you are in a good mood, pls vote for Weekend Eat What here, under the Best New Blog category. You can only vote 1 time each day. You can vote every day too. I'll love ya for that :)) 

How to save money on food

• Do you always find dining out at cool restaurants expensive?

• Do you always struggle to remember where you place your discount coupons?

• Do you dine out in big groups?

If you have answered "yes" to any of the questions above, this post will change your life.

The brilliant and helpful minds behind the Entertainer have come up with a great solution for everybody - 1 for 1 main course for all dining spots in the app. One does not have to be a maths genius to figure out that this means about 50% discount effectively. 

And it comes in the form of an app which you can install on your mobile device. So end of the cumbersome search for the hardcopy coupons in your wallet, or forgetting to bring them out.

Here's a video on how the app works: http://vimeo.com/74910124

There are two subscription modes in the app:

- 1 month for S$19 (and read below for a special promo code which allows u to get it at S$15 only)

- 1 year for S$95

Let me illustrate how it helps to save money for me. Assuming that 

- I dine out once every weekend

- that would mean 4 dine outs and hence 4 main courses saved in 1 month

- each main course is approx $20

- total savings = $20 x 4 = $80

- total net savings = $80 - $15 which is cost of app = $ 65 Savings!!

And this is just the most conservative illustration. You can dine out more than once a week. Each restaurant allows you to redeem three 1-for-1 main courses. So if you dine in bigger groups, the savings would triple! Great way to share the app with family and friends.

Click here for a full list of the participating restaurants. 

Besides food, there are other non-dining deals e.g. Spas, grooming, hotels. A total of 1150 vouchers waiting for you. If you use all of them, it will be a total savings of $153k!

To reward you for reading this post, I am presenting you a limited-time offer to purchase the Entertainer Singapore One Month Membership for just SGD 15 (usual price: $19). Please visit https://www.theentertainerme.com/trysgfor19/ and be sure to enter my unique promo code "weekendeatwhat" when you purchase. This promo is valid till 31 July only!

I hope you are downloading the app now. The Entertainer gives more bang for buck. Money is hard to earn. Let money work harder for you. I seldom write such posts but this is really something that I believe in. 

July promotion

And for the month of July, the Entertainer has collaborated with Kinki Rooftop Bar to offer app users unlimited 1-for-1 Belvedere cocktails when a voucher for main course is used. 

Located on the 3 floor of Customs House, Kinki Japanese Rooftop Bar is the answer to how-to-impress-the-crush. Be treated to a panoramic skyline of the Marina Bay area. Tastefully designed with Japanese murals, the bar is a convenient happy watering oasis in the middle of the concrete corporate jungle. The second floor houses the restaurant which serves modern Japanese cuisine. My suggestion for a perfect date: dinner at the restaurant followed by drinks at the rooftop bar.

With the upcoming National Day, my crystal ball warns you to make sure reservations are made to watch the fireworks. 

Address: 70 Collyer Quay, Singapore 049323