The Hungry Bunny

Takashimaya is shaping up as the primary war ground between Chinese chain restaurant behemoths Crystal Jade and Imperial Treasure. With the opening of their first Shanghainese Cuisine -centric restaurant, the Imperial Treasure Group now has a grand total of 3 restaurants (the others being the Cantonese Nan Bei on the 5th and Teochew Cuisine on the 4th floors) in competition with the Crystal Jade Group's 4 establishments (the casual Kitchen in the basement; while the fine dining Palace Restaurant , Korean Ginseng Chicken & BBQ and casual Shanghainese La Mian Xiao Long Bao are housed on the 4th floor), in just one mall alone.  We'd popped by for dinner on a bustling Thursday night after running some errands. Despite the last-minute holiday shoppers thronging the mall, the restaurant was surprisingly empty and we scored wonderfully cosy booth seats immediately without waiting. We loved that the booth afforded us some privacy from the other diners, something so lacking ...

Of all the million eateries in Bugis Junction, Crystal Jade La Mian XLB probably ranks as my first choice. This Shanghainese-style eatery under the formidable Crystal Jade Group consistently churns out decent fare at very affordable prices. It's recently undergone a mini facelift so it now looks spiffier and more contemporary. Hidden away in a little corner of the food basement in Bugis Junction, it's actually a lot bigger than it appears from the outside. Service here is like a well-oiled machine, efficient with a clockwork-like precision. The Pork Dumplings with Spicy Chilli Sauce  ($7.50) comprised 6 fat, juicy wantons in a pool of vinegar and soy and chilli mix. The wantons, stuffed generously with fresh pork mince and chopped leafy greens, was nicely lifted by the bright acidity of the piquant sauce. The Sautéed French Bean with minced pork and olive leaf ($12) is a must-try here. The greens are nicely charred with "wok hei" and the mei cai impart...

Ms PR and I both got hit with a bout of the Monday blues, and decided to get out of the CBD for lunch. We headed to Raffles City Shopping Centre. It's near enough to the CBD to grab lunch within our stipulated hour-long lunch break, yet far enough to feel like we're getting away from the hustle and bustle of work stress. Although it seemed like every restaurant at Raffles City was a full-house and/or had a long queue of diners waiting to get into the restaurant, Din Tai Fung was ideal because the turnover's high and food gets churned out real quick. We started off with the Stewed Beancurd Cubes with Honey Sauce ($4.30), the beancurd had a delightfully soft spongy texture and this was served refreshingly chilled. Black fungus and Chinese black mushrooms grounded the sweetish beancurd with their moreish undertones. And followed up with the must-try dish of Steamed Pork Dumpling ($6.50 for 6 pieces). It's little wonder why every table ordered this Din Tai Fung si...

Ms PR and I drove out to Novena Square for lunch as we needed to get our final cervical cancer vaccination at the clinic there. We both wanted something quick and light so we headed to Lao Beijing , a Tung Lok restaurant specialising in Shanghainese and Beijing cuisine. We got the Braised Spinach Beancurd ($12) to share. Even with the starchy oyster-based gravy, this still felt light and healthy.  The beancurd was soft, clear and silky, complemented with mashed spinach and topped with yummy matured shimeiji mushrooms. We also each got a serving of the Double-Boiled Royal Nourishing Soup of the Day ($10), Chicken Soup with Fish Maw. This was incredibly delicate, but with great depth of flavour. Pure comfort soul food.  While we're on the topic of cervical cancer vaccination , I would strongly encourage every woman to get it. This is THE ONLY cancer that women can get protected against because cervical cancer is caused by viruses, unlike other forms ...

As Ms PR's hubby was away, we hung out with her after work one night. I was craving some double boiled chicken soup, so we headed to Crystal Jade La Mian Xiao Long Bao at Taka for a simple dinner. The BF had the Fried Noodle with Beef and Mixed Mushroom ($12) which was quite delectable. The noodles were fried to a crisp, and drenched in a savoury oyster sauce gravy, topped off with sliced beef and an assortment of white button and shimeiji mushrooms. Ms PR wasn't too hungry, so she got the Pork & Vegetable Wanton Soup ($4.80) sprinkled with coriander. Wantons were plentiful and juicy, and the chicken stock based soup was light and delicate. Ahh, my favourite comfort soup, Double-Boiled Chicken Soup ($7.50), light, familiar and delicate. Crystal Jade La Mian Xiao Long Bao 391 Orchard Road #04-27 Ngee Ann City Tel: 6238 1661 Open daily from 11am to 10pm Website: www.crystaljade.com/

We stopped by here for a quick tea break while grocery shopping at Suntec. We started off with a Drunken Chicken with Wolfberry and Huai Shan ($7.50), served refreshingly chilled. The heady hint of alcohol, the subtle sweetness of wolfberries and the bitter huai shan herb was a balance of flavours with the juicy chicken. This was the BF's first time trying the classic Shanghainese appetizer and he loved it. We also had the Sauteed Beansprout with Pork and Salted Fish ($10.80), crunchy and mild, lightly flavoured with peppery capsicums and re-hydrated dried salted fish. I couldn't resist the Double-Boiled Chicken Soup ($7.50), delicate and light, a steaming hot concoction of simple comfort food. Crystal Jade La Mian Xiao Long Bao 3 Temasek Boulevard #B1-028 Suntec City Mall Tel: 6337 6678 Open daily from 11am to 10pm Website: www.crystaljade.com

We went to Crystal Jade La Mian Xiao Long Bao at Holland Village for dinner after hitting the gym. It was a little late so there was not many dinner options at Holland Village. The Sauteed Egg White with Fish Meat and Conpoy ($11.80), a delicately flavoured dish that was wonderfully light and fluffy. I loved this, but the BF, who prefers stronger flavours, thought this was a little plain for his liking. The BF also got the Double-Boiled Chicken with Noodle ($8). The handmade noodles were fresh, soft and slightly bouncy, set in a chicken and pork based soup stock. The soup was sweet and thick, but still delicate and light. I got the Double-Boiled Chicken Soup ($7.50), very light and clear. Crystal Jade La Mian Xiao Long Bao Holland Village 241 / 241A Holland Ave Tel: 6463 0968 Open daily from 11am to 10pm Website: www.crystaljade.com/

We went to Crystal Jade La Mian Xiao Long Bao at Holland Village after our workout. We ordered almost the same stuff as at Imperial Treasure to make a comparison between the two.   Crystal Jade doesn't have the Teochew-style porridge offered at Imperial Treasure, but they have a handmade noodle version, the Double-Boiled Chicken with Noodle ($8). The soup base was slightly sweeter and thicker. Crystal Jade uses canned champignons instead of the white button mushrooms used at Imperial Treasure. I prefer the porridge version at Imperial Treasure, because the soup base is lighter. The noodles at Crystal Jade also got a little soggy towards the end, but I guess that's to be expected of fresh handmade noodles. They'd run out of the double-boiled chicken soup, so I got the Pork and Vegetable Wanton Soup ($4.80) instead. There were 8 pieces of huge wantons in the slightly MSG-sweetened broth. Still, the soup was light enough. The mince had a finer texture than I'd lik...

We had a quick bite here before heading to the gym for a workout. I like their clear and light Teochew-style porridge. We shared a Soup Rice with Vegetable and Mushroom ($5), with a milky-coloured broth infused with collagen extracted from pork and chicken bones that were simmered for hours. Fresh baby cabbage and white button mushrooms cut through the otherwise heavy soup base. Smooth succulent chicken chunks added texture to the dish. This was very yummy and delicate. We also got a Double Boiled Chicken Soup ($8) which was very light and clear, but with that depth of flavour that comes from hours of simmering chicken bones. Imperial Treasure La Mian Xiao Long Bao 6 Raffles Boulevard Marina Square #02-138J Tel: 6338 2212 Open daily from 11.30am to 2.30pm for lunches and 6pm to 10.30pm for dinners

I met up with Cho, one of my best friends, for coffee over the weekend. I've known him since we were young tots in Sunday School. He's one of the most loyal, funny, honest and easy-going guys around. He stays in the west area, so we met up at Holland Village, the hangout du jour of the westies. It's been a long long loooong time since I last had a leisure coffee cum people-watching session with a friend. That's the thing about work, you no longer have the free time to sit down for hours and do things like this, sitting down at a coffee joint and watching the world go by. After coffee, we went for a light bite at Crystal Jade La Mian Xiao Long Bao . We shared a Noodle with Minced Meat and Mushroom in Spicy Sauce ($7.50), or zha jiang mian, with handmade noodles. The noodles were suitably soft and chewy, the sweetish, chilli oil-infused sauce blended well with the minced pork and diced mushrooms and the julienned cucumbers added a refreshing crunch to the Shanghaines...

We went to Holland Village for dinner after the gym over the weekend. Instead of the usual Crystal Jade Kitchen, we decided to go to its sister restaurant, La Mian Xiao Long Bao, which was just beside it. While the second floor is reserved for customers having the steamboat buffet, the first floor of the restaurant is where one would go to if ordering from the ala carte menu focusing on Shanghainese mainstays such as xiao long bao and la mian. The BF wanted the protein so he ordered the Sauteed Egg White with Fish Meat and Conpoy ($11.80), a delicately flavoured dish that was wonderfully light and fluffy. We shared the Poached Rice with Prawn, Chicken and Ham in Shark's Bone Soup ($7.50). I've never been that huge a fan of the milky, collagen-rich, shark's cartilage soup. Which was why we needed to share this. It got cloying after a while, and left a thin sticky milk film on the tongue. Still, this was nice. We just needed to share this. The rice is deep-fri...

Imperial Treasure La Mian Xiao Long Bao is to the Imperial Treasure group of restaurants what Crystal Jade La Mian Xiao Long Bao is to the Crystal Jade group of restaurants. It focuses primarily on Shanghainese cuisine, so you get your Shanghainese mainstays such as la mian (hand-pulled noodles) and xiao long bao here. We ordered the Fried Rice with Crab Meat and Egg-White ($12), a lighter version of the usual fried rice, with scrambled egg-whites, shredded fresh crab meat for sweetness and diced melon for some crunch. This was really quite delectable. The Rice Soup with Vegetables and Mushrooms ($5) caught my eye, and this turned out to be absolutely delicious. It's Teochew-style porridge, where the rice grains are still intact, in a delicate soup base with chunks of baby white cabbage (nai bai) and sauteed button mushrooms. We also ordered the Braised Beancurd with Assorted Mushrooms ($10.80), with shitake, shimeiji and white button in a sticky gooey oyster sauce gr...

I felt like having Cantonese soup today and the BF felt like having char siew bao, so we headed straight for Imperial Treasure after our run to Suntec. I got 2 different types of soups, the Sweet Corn Soup with Crabmeat ($7), a gooey but lovely soup with the sweetness of crab and wholesome goodness of corn. The BF got addicted to this and promptly ordered another bowl. The other soup was the Beancurd Thick Soup with Seafood ($7), a delicate soup chock full of diced melon, beancurd, prawns and scallops and laced with luscious egg-drops. The BF got his Steamed BBQ Pork Buns ($3), that were soft and fluffy and filled with sweet, sticky and smoky bbq pork. We also ordered Wantons in Hot Chili Sauce ($4.20), pork and vegetable wantons doused in a tangy vinegar and chili oil-infused sauce. Instead of the usual chicken and mushroom congee, we decidedly ordered something different, the Fresh Scallops Congee ($9.50). I love how the light and clear f...