Our favourite Fresh Fruits Lab (FFL) is back at it again. They have opened a second cafe—Fresh Fruits Lab Z Edition—in Clementi just behind NUS.

The new outlet is nothing short of amazing. Just like their previous branch, they stick to the core of incorporating fruits into their menu as much as possible, being kid-friendly, and serving up absolutely delicious food at even more reasonable prices than before.

We already know what’s great at their first branch, so what is it about The Z Edition that makes it fantastic? A bouncy castle for kids during the weekends! And on top of that, there are some tweaks to the menu and here is everything we love.

From now until 30 Nov 2018, kids below 8 dine for free during weekends at Fresh Fruits Lab Z when you quote ‘ladyironchef’. Every order of a main course comes with a complimentary kid’s main (from the kids’ menu).

Calling all mommies: this is also the next brunch spot you must bring your kids to for a jolly good time!

BANGING APPETISERS

Just like before, FFL serves their signature cold-pressed juices in a small test tube for you to sample, and in an adorable beaker should you order the full-size ones (averagely S$5 per glass).

We ordered the Spam Fries (S$8) as well as the Golden Brown Chicken Wings (S$8)—both served with homemade sweet chilli sauce.

The chicken wings had a lovely crispy skin that readily soaked up sweet garlic taste of the chilli. It was well seasoned down to the bone, and juicy without being oily. The light batter coating the spam fries also had an interesting texture to it, that provided a pleasant contrast between it and the soft spam inside. Despite being deep fried, it wasn’t greasy at all.

VALUE-FOR-MONEY MAINS

We’ve said it before, and we’ll say it again. The Classic British Fish and Chips (S$12) is our all-time favourite main at FFL.

As plain and boring as it sounds, the portion size is massive, and the fish remains firm, flaky and delicately soft, encrusted by a thin layer of white ale batter. Their homemade tartar sauce boasts a slight spice to it that made the whole dish even more enjoyable. As if the generous serving is not filling enough, it comes with a side of fruit salad and truffle fries.

Another main to try is the FFL Baked Rice (S$9). The rice is cooked in buttermilk before being baked with a layer of mozzarella cheese, and it is pleasantly cheesy without being cloying or heavy. With bacon, chicken ham and mushrooms in it, kids are bound to love this dish of baked rice for sure!

The Grilled Pork Loin (S$15) is also a chef’s recommendation. Tender, thick and juicy, each morsel was a delight in itself to eat.

Served with mashed potatoes, eggplant pesto and green zucchini, the flavours intermingled with one another to highlight and emphasize the natural sweetness of the meat. It also comes along with pesto mayo sauce and apple chutney that helped to change up the flavour profile as we ate it.

Cafes are usually not known for their steaks, but FFL’s Angus Rib Eye (S$22) is definitely worth its price. It is a genuine 250gm of Angus ribeye that’s tender and soft, with the perfect amount of chew before easily sliding down your throat.

We loved how with every chew it released more of that beef flavour we all know and love, which melded well with their brown sauce that was slightly sweeter than the typical chargrill or mushroom sauce.

We also enjoyed their Cajun Chicken (S$10), which is really a simple yet comforting roasted cajun chicken served with grilled vegetables, sweet corn and mashed potatoes.

BITE-SIZED FUN FOR THE KIDS

Just like their first branch, FFL aims to cater to the entire family. Treat your kids to deliciously adorable meals such as FFL’s Teddy The Daddy (S$8), Little Miss Koala (S$8) or Chicken Little (S$10).

Their kids’ menu is prepared with less salt, without compromising on any of the other flavours for the children to enjoy. That is, if they’re willing to cut into something so cute.

From now until 30 Nov 2018, kids below 8 dine for free during weekends at Fresh Fruits Lab Z when you quote ‘ladyironchef’. Every order of a main course comes with a complimentary kid’s main (from the kids’ menu).

They also offer cake decorating to allow your kids to have a hand at crafting their own desserts. Choose from a range of their signature and have your children’s creativity flow from the tip of their chocolate pens.

For those kids that just can’t sit still, there’s a bouncy castle out in their backyard—set up at Fresh Fruits Lab Z on weekends. Boy, won’t the kids get so excited about this!

Your kids will absolutely love the bouncy castle where they can bounce and run back and forth. Fresh Fruits Lab Z Edition is the perfect place for parents to kick back and relax with good food while their children entertain themselves.

During lunch hours from 12pm to 3pm (except on public holidays), FFL offers a set menu consisting of a drink, salad and main for only S$10.90++.

For the alcoholics, you’d also be glad to know they have daily beer promotions. The most bang for the buck ones being Wednesdays for students, with beer towers at only S$39 (U.p. S$49–53), and Fridays with two towers going for S$89! Worth it!

Fresh Fruits Lab – The Z Edition
28 Clementi Road
Singapore 129754
Tel: +65 6803 7472
(Closed on Mondays)
Tues to Fri: 12pm – 12am
Sat & Sun: 11am – 12am
Nearest Station: Kent Ridge

Fresh Fruits Lab
351 Changi Rd, Singapore 419818
Tel: +65 6677 6741
Tue to Fri: 11am – 10pm
Sat & Sun: 10am – 10pm
Nearest Station: Eunos/ Kembangan

This post was brought to you by Fresh Fruits Lab.

When visiting Singapore, one should go for things that are unique to our island. Hawker food is definitely right at the top of the list. Chicken rice, hokkien mee, char kway teow, and laksa – Singapore is a foodie paradise.

One of the more popular hawker centres in the West is Clementi Market and Food Centre. Besides Bukit Timah Hawker Centre, this is the place that I always frequent when I want a cheap and simple meal.

Like other hawker centres, Clementi Food Centre has its own star tenants: stalls with extremely long queue throughout the day. Tanglin Halt Western Food, Clementi Fish Soup, Nam Kee Hokkien Mee, Chen Ji Ke Jia Niang Dou Fou, and Yong Fa Hainanese Curry Rice have been around for quite some time, and they are among the most popular stalls in the market.

My favourite is definitely Tanglin Halt Western Stall (#01-11) which has good Western Food. I’ve been going back for many years, and I’m pleased to say that standards have not dropped.

When you mention Clementi Food Centre, the famous Clementi Fish Soup (#01-41) immediately comes to mind. There’s a perpetual queue for their Fish Porridge, Sliced Fish Soup and Fish Head Bee Hoon; the only way to beat the queue is to go during off-peak hours.

Just behind the Fish Soup stall, there’s Nam Kee Hokkien Mee (#01-12) where you need to wait at least twenty minutes for a plate of Hokkien Mee, which by the way, is basically fried noodles cooked in Hokkien (Fujian) style. The good thing is you don’t have to stand in line as they will take down your table number and serve it to you. I like Hokkien Mee, but I don’t really fancy Nam Kee’s version as I find it a little too dry.

Chen Ji Ke Jia Niang Dou Fou (#01-27) – known for their Yong Tau Foo – only opens during the day. Their business is so good that they usually close after lunch.

Just a few stalls away, you can always find a madding crowd waiting in line at Yong Fa Hainanese Curry Rice (#01-25).

There are a few chicken rice stalls in the market, and it can be quite a headache if you don’t know who to order from. I usually go to Song Xing Chicken Rice (#01-25) and stall #01-18, simply called ‘Hainanese Chicken Rice.’

If you feel like having Prawn Noodles, check out Kim Meng Prawn Mee (#01-38). They also have Lor Mee and Laksa.

At night, Chai Ho Satay (#01-10) is the place to go for satay – a dish of skewered and grilled meat (chicken/pork/beef/mutton), served with a peanut sauce.

The famous Bedok Chwee Kueh (#01-32) also has a branch at Clementi Hawker Centre. Chwee Kueh – a steamed rice cake topped with fried preserved radish – is the perfect way to start a hawker feast.

For Pig’s Organ Soup and Bak Ku Teh, I’ll go to Zheng Zhi Wen (#01-19). Right beside it, there’s this stall – Snow Mount (#01-17) – selling fried Pisang Goreng. Speaking of which, they also serve Char Kway Teow (I know, it’s a little weird). I had it once and I thought that it was okay. Otherwise, I’d satisfy my Char Kway Teow craving at Stall #01-34, the only vender in Clementi Food Centre that sells Oyster Omelette, Carrot Cake, and Char Kway Teow.

Clementi Central Market & Food Centre is located at Block 448 Clementi Avenue 3. It is just a few minutes walk away from Clementi MRT Station.

Clementi has lots of good food. Besides the newly opened Clementi Mall, there is also the popular Clementi Food Centre and various coffee shops.

I recently had Tze Char at Ban Tong Seafood restaurant at Clementi ave 5, which is a few minutes walk from the train station. The food is generally good, and prices are what you’d expect from a typical tze char place.

We shared five dishes between the four of us, and we were so full after finishing everything.

Whilst Ban Tong Tze Char did a good job with its Prawn Paste Chicken (Har Cheong Kai), my favourite is still the one from Holland Village XO Fish-head Bee Hoon. There was a slight twist to the ubiquitous Hotplate Beancurd ($10) – it was done spicy. Even though I was perspiring all the way, I loved the dish!

I thought the Sweet & Sour Pork ($6) was only average. But at just six dollars for the small portion, it is certainly one of the cheapest amongst the tze char places in Singapore.

The highlight of the meal at Ban Tong Seafood Restaurant is definitely the Cereal Crayfish ($16 for small). What’s there not to like about de-shelled crayfish that is generously showered with cereal?

Which is your favourite Tze Char Stall in Singapore? Give me some recommendations!

Singapore Food Blog Review
Ban Tong Seafood Restaurant
Blk 378 Clementi Ave 5 #01-334
Tel: +65 9047 9428

Whenever someone mentions about the best claypot rice in Singapore, the same few names will always appear: the famous Geylang Claypot rice at Lorong 33, Golden Mile Claypot rice, Old Mother Hen’s at Geylang, and of course New Lucky Claypot rice at Clementi.

I don’t usually eat a lot of rice during dinner. The only time when I eat a lot of rice, is when we are having claypot rice. I like the idea of putting-everything-into-a-pot. It’s not only convenient, but just imagine all the actions happening inside: flavors of the different ingredients mingling together, like a cocktail party of sorts.

But do you know what’s the best part about having Claypot rice? They give you a large mug of oil and dark soy sauce. I don’t know about you, but I’m always tempted to pour as much as I can into the claypot. This isn’t the time to worry about calories and high cholesterol. But if you feel guilty, have a tomato after dinner – that’s what I usually do after a heavy meal.

At New Lucky Claypot rice, prices start at $10 for two, and there’s the $20 serving for a family of four. We had the $10 portion, with more than enough of lap cheong (Chinese sausages), liver sausage (darker in color), chicken chunks, and salted fish to go around.

It is absolutely necessary to call and make your reservation (let them know what time you will arrive, and the number of people) before going, otherwise the average waiting time is typically around 45 minutes.

Where’s your regular place to go for Claypot rice in Singapore?

Hawker Food Review
New Lucky Claypot Rice
328 Coffee House
Block 328 Clementi Avenue 2
Singapore 120328
Tel: +65 6778-7808
// Closed on Wednesday

Decided to have a quick lunch at Uno after reading fatpig review on it. Didn’t know that the Jumbo coffee shop at Dover has Uno as its new tenant since the last time i went to the coffee shop it wasn’t there. Anyway for the introduction, Uno Beef House is something like Botak Jones, (and Botak Jones second visit here) ”restaurant-style” western food sell in coffee shop environment.

Actually from the name Beef House we can tell that Uno is famous for its steak, but then feeling rather full i wasn’t quite ready to eat steak for lunch, so i had fish & chips ($5). I think nowadays go out eat quite a lot fish & chips already (cos at tekong always eat chicken!!), i try not to eat fish & chips next time : )

The fish wasn’t too exceptional, quite normal like those normal coffee shop western food. The coleslaw was nice though. Prehaps u really have to try steak at Uno, they aren’t call Beef house for no reason.

Mister Ang had chicken chop ($5). I felt the chicken chop was okay, nothing too special but still slightly above average.

Overall, the food was quite okay, mayb we didn’t try its signature steak. But considering the rather cheap price at $5 for most of the items, it is still acceptable. Most importantly it doesn’t has a long Q like Botak, and it is near my home : )

19A Dover Cresent
Jumbo Coffee Shop

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