Time really flies, the last time I was back here it was during Christmas and look, it’s almost Yule soon. Before we start getting emotional and reflect on the activities for the past year, lets have some wine shall we?

The idea of pairing wine with food is not new for western cuisine, and there’s an increasing demand for wine appreciation with our Chinese cuisine too.

We started with the Jia Wei Deluxe combination which consisted of scallop dumpling, smoked duck, wasabi prawn, lobster paste roll and marinated octopus from top left clockwise. The ordinary-looking scallop dumpling was given a make-over with the touch of roe but otherwise it’s pretty much run-of-the-mill. And while I could never say no to smoking duck, I was actually eying the wasabi prawns that I had pleasant memories of, but unfortunately Jia Wei’s take of the famous dish had a choking sensation which I didn’t really take to. And I love the lobster paste roll simply because of the fact that it’s lobster paste roll.

The last time we were here, the superior shark’s fin soup in hot stone pot was fabulous. So I was rather skeptical when the shark’s fin arrived in normal bowl this time round. I mean, hot stone pot is like the best thing to keep the soup warm and nice, so how are you going to beat that? Well, they upped the stakes by throwing in a gigantic crab pincer and I had to admit – it was good. Well personally I would prefer it to be served in a hot stone pot, but stone pot or not, it’s not going to stop me from finishing the Braised Shark’s Fin with crabmeat in golden stock.

My, my, what a gorgeous photo. I’m so glad that the picture does justice to the Steamed cod fish with special sauce. Sometimes I get real irritated when a restaurant or chef says it’s top secret, it’s secret recipe – you know that kind of stuff. I mean even if you tell me what’s the secret ingredient, I wouldn’t be able to replicate it. But anyway, I figured that it’s of no importance to me since I rather enjoyed the food than to crack my brains over what the ingredients are. The special sauce, was all in all, rather special. It’s kind of sticky, yet tangy and sweet, and it actually blended well to give a refreshing change to the cod.

I’m just a pretty face. And I’m superficial. Whatever.

If there’s a dish to describe the line, this would be it. As much as the Broccoli with scallop and dry conpoy in oyster sauce looked pleasing to the eyes, it’s just another pretty face. There wasn’t anything special about it, but still, I appreciated the effort by the chef to make this thing so delicate.

Don’t ever, underestimate this thing you see here. I call this the Upper East side goreng pisang. The fried fritters retained the distinct banana taste, but with the addition of kiwi fruits and scallops – it just gets better and better.

We had five different wines to pair with the different dishes. There was the Famille Castel Sauvignon Blanc to go with the Deluxe platter, with the light acidity of the Sauvignon to enhance the intensity of the dish. And the Bascand Pinot Noir from New Zealand which you see in the picture here goes well with the braised shark’s fin. I was under the impression that in general you will have white wine with fish, but instead we had another red (Les Hauts De Goelane) with the steamed cod. The Terra Andina Cabernet Sauv was recommended for the Broccoli with scallop, and lastly I liked the Bascand Riesling for the fried rice wrapped in lotus leaf.

I’ll like to thank Keane from Grand Mercure for the invitation to the food tasting session. All the five wines together with a few other selections are available at Jia Wei restaurant, so if you ever want some wine to go along with Chinese food, this will be the place.

Jia Wei Chinese restaurant
Level 2 Grand Mercure Roxy Hotel
50 East Coast road, Roxy Square
(Opp parkway parade)
Tel: 6340 5678

I was pleasantly surprised when i knew that Jia Wei also served Chinese dim sum, so my companion and i couldn’t stop helping ourselves to some dim sum even though we were full having the oriental Christmas feast. A quick glance at their dim sum menu shows that almost all of them are priced at $4 per basket, a very reasonable price for a good Chinese restaurant.

The first to arrive on the dim sum platter, the siew mai ($4 for 3) was exactly what you’ll expect, fresh prawns with lean pork. The bigger-than-normal size also added brownie points to the overall taste. A staple.

While some will come across being overly dry and too oily, Jia Wei’s rendition of the fried prawn dumpling was well done. Fresh crunchy prawns wrapped in the midst of the crispy dumpling skin.

With dim sum mostly fried and steamed, it is common to see them coming in golden brown colour. But how about green colour? That definitely caught our attention and made our imagination ran wild! We were guessing the ingredient used to produce the green, was it pandan? Nope! The skin was actually naturally infused with spinach. No artificial colouring used! There was fresh prawns as usual, topped with a piece of scallop. I presented to you, the steamed spinach prawn dumpling with scallop!

Somehow or rather, mango and prawns always go well together, perhaps it’s the combination that brought out the unique taste. So the chef sticked to the winning recipe, and created this fried prawn & mango roll. The only hitch, the mango fruit was too sour!

For my regular readers, you’ll definitely know that i love my char siew sou ($4 for 3). Ever since i had my best char siew sou, i’ve been on the lookout for worthy rivals, and sadly, this one couldn’t match what i had before. While the char siew within was very sweet, the pastry could be more flaky.

As with most steamed prawn dumpling ($4 for 3), the main problem would usually be on the skin, since most places definitely used fresh prawns (well if the prawns aren’t even fresh, then simply get out of there!). Again, we see the continuation of crunchy prawns, enveloped within overly thick skins. You could even see the tearing of the translucent skin from the picture.

The Chinese restaurants always seemed fascinated by XO fried carrot cake ($12 for one portion). I mean what’s so special using XO to fry your carrot cake, when we couldn’t even taste the XO? Right, the one here, was very eggy, done exactly how i love it. If i were to see this as a normal plate of carrot cake, i’ll certainly rate it very high. Unfortunately, this was a serving of XO fried carrot cake, which meant that it had a high price tag of $12! Speaking from this new revelation, it was totally not worth the price, and i’ll rather order another three basket of dim sum instead.

When i tell you about BBQ platter, naturally you would assume there’s definitely char siew and roast pork, or even roast duck right? We thought so too, but it turned out that Jia Wei defined BBQ platter ($26) differently. It came in the form of char siew and soy sauce chicken. The char siew was fine, tasted sweet and it’ll be better if was slightly more charred. The soy sauce chicken was decent, but i still preferred roast chicken. And i didn’t get to eat roast pork, which was what i originally wanted to eat!

Towards the end, my companion and i were very full from all the food. But we couldn’t missed Jia Wei’s signature Peking duck, so we had a sampling portion of it instead. With the crispy skin, the duck meat was good, but not there yet. It’s only when you ate it together with the layer of fats which made the whole taste divine. Oh yes, with the slightly sweet sauce too!

Jia Wei’s dim sum is above average given the ones that we tried. While its not a whole picture of the dim sum served, we covered the basics, and the rest should be not too far away. For the price it’s rather reasonable since its a 4 star hotel restaurant, and i’ll go back to try the rest of the dim sum next time.

Read about the Oriental Christmas menu at Jia Wei here.

Jia Wei Chinese restaurant
Level 2 Grand Mercure Roxy Hotel
50 East Coast road, Roxy Square
(Opp parkway parade)
Tel: 6340 5678
Note: This was an invited food tasting session

They have been away for a long time now; the feel, touch, sight, smell were always in their mind, but its gradually fading away with each day passed. How they wished they could be back, but reality often gets the better of man. He missed the food, while she yearned for the familiar environment.

It struck them after entering the place, the comfortable and cozy environment, just like home. Jia Wei restaurant. How apt.

To have Christmas without the festive turkey and ham (both sets), it’ll be like to have the Mid-autumn festival without the mooncakes, or going through Halloween without pumpkins. He found the meat was too tough and dry, while there was the wasabi sauce, it was insufficient and wasabi didn’t exactly compliment the turkey meat well. Luckily there was the fresh fruits salad to save the day.

The highlight of the menu will definitely be Jia Wei Superior Shark’s Fin soup (Festive cheers menu) in hot stone pot. Thick and generous portions are discovered, the excitement just like discovering a treasure cove. The hot stone pot played a vital role in keeping the rich stock base warm and nice, a notable fact after they tried the other shark’s fin soup which wasn’t served in the stone pot. This bowl of treasure will most likely cost you a bomb if you have it elsewhere, but at Jia Wei, they do it cheap and good, its available on their a la carte menu too. Eating a Chinese delicacy for a frosty Christmas, the thought of home seem so far away.

While the superior shark’s fin soup with Conpoy (Christmas glow menu) offered the same ingredients as the previous one in hotpot, but the differential in price obviously meant that the higher priced festive cheers menu had slightly more shark’s fin. This one was lukewarm by the time they started eating, while the hot stone pot one remained piping hot. The dumpling-wannabe actually had water chestnut, vegetarian mushrooms and crab rob.

The layer of fats aroused her inner feelings. There was a struggle to ignore the calories and enjoyed the bliss. The grilled special rack of lamb (Festive cheers menu) made her succumb to temptation. If they were not to mention anything, you’ll never know the use of Chinese wine, together with a bit of Japanese Sake created a wonderful sauce which covered the usual strong lamb/mutton smell. Without the fats, the rack of lamb wouldn’t be as good, since they largely contributed the tenderness to the overall taste. And, the sweetness of the meat was actually extracted by chewing and sucking the bones. Sinful, yet so good!

One of the dish which he missed a lot from home was pork. The pan-fried fillet of pork spare-rib (Christmas glow menu) was exactly what he needed to satisfy his needs and homesickness. The special seasoning was very peculiar, the inital guess of fruits were proven wrong. Done in Japanese style, the sauce was slightly sweet and sour, which provided a tangy robust taste. The pork was pan-fried that the crispy layer was just right for the meat. It was very delicious. The downside? Portions were dainty considering it’s the main course.

While the braised bai ling mushroom with broccoli (Festive cheers menu) was what his mother used to prepare, he didn’t quite enjoyed the dish since the overall taste was a tad too subtle for his liking. Yes, although this vegetables dish was supposed to be light since the previous few dishes were rather strong in flavour, so i guess its more of different taste buds.

The similar dish on the Christmas glow menu, braised dry scallop with sea cucumber and bamboo piths. The vegetables were fresh, but being neither a fan of scallop nor sea cucumber, they didn’t know how to appreciate it.

There’s reasons for relatives to look alike. Was it baby lobster? Or is it crayfish? Gosh, wait a minute, it does rather looks like a big prawn instead! The home-made noodles were springy and smooth to the palate. The big prawns were fresh and succulent. But, there’s always the big BUT to look out for. Having used stock base for the Shark’s fin, the vegetables dish, and now the noodles. They couldn’t finish the home-made noodles with prawn (both sets) because the excess usage of stock base did seem a bit too much.

The simple, yet refreshing chilled lemon jelly (Festive cheers menu) was definitely a welcoming dessert. With the robust lemon sorbet, and the light lemon jelly, the all-lemon combination provided a sweet ending to the Christmas feast.

On the other hand, there’s the chilled mango pudding (Christmas glow menu) which wasn’t as good as it lacked the bouncy and chewy texture that a good pudding should have.The whole mango flavour was also not very strong, but you’ve to give credits to them for making the mango pudding so pretty.

The oriental Christmas feast at Jia Wei brought them closer to home, and the whole meal took 3 half hours to complete.

Christmas Glow ($78++)
Festive turkey, ham and fresh fruits salad
Superior Shark’s fins soup with conpoy
Pan-fried fillet of pork spare-rib with special sauce
Braised dry scallop with sea cucumber and bamboo piths
Homemade noodles with prawn and conpoy
Chilled mango pudding

Festive Cheers ($98++)
Festive turkey, ham and fresh fruits salad
Jia Wei superior Shark’s fin soup in hot stone pot
Grilled special rack of lamb with Chinese wine
Braised bai ling mushroom with broccoli
Homemade noodles with prawn and conpoy
Chilled lemon jelly

Enjoy a 30% discount on the Christmas feast from Monday to Thursday, except on 24, 25, 31 Dec 2008 & 1 Jan 2009. This was an invited food tasting session, I’ll like to thank Keane and Shu Ling representing Grand Mercure Roxy hotel for being a wonderful host. I’ll also like to take the chance to praise Jia Wei’s assistance manager, Jessica who was very professional and knowledgeable about the cuisines. And also to my dining companion for being a good company (you know who you are).

Read Camemberu review on the Christmas feast here
Hisfoodblog review here
and my previous visit to Feast @ East

Jia Wei Chinese restaurant
Level 2 Grand Mercure Roxy Hotel
50 East Coast road, Roxy Square
(Opp parkway parade)
Tel: 6340 5678

If you have been following through LIC, you will know that i never fancy buffet, because the greedy me will want to eat as much as possible to satisfy the price, and you need to fork out big money for quality buffet, think The line at Shangri-la, Wasabi bistro, Melt the world cafe.

Having said that, as my family wanted a weekend dinner buffet without being too heavy on the pocket, i did some research online, and decided on Feast @ East the buffet restaurant. Nothing mind-blowing, just the rather reasonable bill for a weekend dinner buffet, which can otherwise be very expensive.

Feast @ East is located at Grand Mercure roxy hotel at East coast road, just directly opposite Parkway parade. I do have doubts about restaurants in hotel situated in suburban area initially. But i guess there’s always a first time for everything.

The interior of Feast @ East is rather big, i think housing 80-100 shouldn’t be a problem. As the name implies, firstly the heritage feast in the east. And second, they are a buffet restaurant. Duh!

A gastronomic journey of food from a bygone area which many may have forgotten and also the familiar favourites. Truly authentic tastes from the various cultures and lifestyle of Singapore.

This is how Feast @ East describe themselves, and i do agree to certain extent. What really impress me about Feast @ East is the small little details they go into, to create the bygone area feel with some of the stuff that we used to see when we are just small kids. You will see them in the pictures later.

However, the food really is average, nothing much to shout about, and before the buffet here, i had Kampong chicken, went to Bark cafe, so i wasn’t very hungry.

Seafood selection, with mussels and big prawns.

“Authentic” local delights

Somehow i feel that they are more like Hawker food, and honestly, hawker food are best eaten in hawker, not a restaurant.

Roasted meat selections

Surprisingly the roast duck is actually quite good. I am more of a duck than chicken fan, and i must say the duck gets the thumbs up!

Gammon Ham

The gammon ham is too salty, not to our liking. Generous in serving, but wait, this is a all-you-can-eat buffet after all.

The chef will whipped out flavors like laksa and mee siam on the spot.

Mee Rebus

I had a taste of the mee rebus, i’m not sure how you exactly describe a good mee rebus, but i think this one is normal.

Laksa

The laksa is quite all right to be fair, nothing fantastic, but nothing bad either.

More local food selections

Now, this, is what i am talking about earlier. The biscuits are so old-school, totally nostalgic and it really bring out the fond memories don’t they.

Another one, the little details that Feast @ East actually bothers to look into, are what i credit them for.

There’s even an ice-kachang machine for you to satisfy your ice-kachang-seller-wannabe crave.

The desserts section are really the part that set me licking, literally. I am a sucker for desserts, and for feast @ east, i didn’t really try most of their local food, instead my efforts are all channel into, yes desserts.

How can one resist the warm and chocolaty, chocolate fondue. Definitely not me, put a marshmallow under the flowing chocolate, and its simply goodness, do it the same with different kind of fruits!

Especially so with big, juicy and yummy strawberries!

The desserts and cakes selections are rather comprehensive, there are hits and misses of course.

I always love fruit tarts, but obviously the fruit has to be my liking, i don’t fancy the blueberry here, kind of sourish.

There’s also tao suen with you tiao. Authetic taste yes? It doesn’t matter, tao suen is always one of my penchant among the chinese desserts.

Total Bill is $134.15 for 4 person which works out to be about $33 per head. The normal price for their buffet dinner will be $38, but we use the Citicard promotion, 1 dines free with 3 paying adults. At $33, i guess the price isn’t that expensive given its a weekend buffet dinner. But at $38, i might think twice before coming.

You can’t really speak of quality in the food, we felt that they are normal, at best a few dish stands out. Otherwise you are actually paying for the experience of eating hawker food in a restaurant environment. Dessert-wise i think its not too bad, with quite a repertoire to choose from.

Like what i mentioned earlier, credits to Feast @ East for putting in the effort in the small details which creates a truly heritage feel, the gastronomic journey of food from a bygone area which many may have forgotten. The concept is good, but the food just needs to be better.

If you are not too fussy about food, Feast @ East do makes a nice place to bring your family along for a buffet spread. But if you are particular about the quality of food, stir clear of this place.

Feast @ East The Buffet Restaurant
50 East Coast Road
Roxy Square
Tel: 6344 8000