Bi Feng Tang Shanghai

We went to Bi Feng Tang (避风塘) with L's sister for our last meal in Shanghai before the flight. Bi Feng Tang was opened in Shanghai since 1998, specializing in Hong Kong dishes and Dim Sum. 

We ordered some side dishes such as black fungus salad (香辣拌木耳), spicy liang fen (麻辣凉粉), kai lan (白灼芥兰) and braised beancurd and egg (潮式豆腐蛋). I particularly liked the black fungus and the liang fen salad, for their tint of spiciness and refreshing taste. 

Next was the rice rolls (肠粉). 

The plain rice rolls with sesame and sweet sauce (香麻斋肠粉) looked quite delicious on the menu, so we decided to order it. The presentation of the dish was also very good! However, the dish was a big letdown, as the rice rolls consistency were too chewy and thick, so much different from those you have in Hong Kong or even Singapore. 

 

The other rice roll we ordered was the Crispy Rice Rolls with Shrimp (脆皮锦绣虾仁肠粉). Upon tasting, it is actually deep fried spring roll wrapped with rice roll. Kudos to them for thinking of such a dish. 

Of course we also had to order the crab roe xiao long bao (蟹粉小龙包) since we are in Shanghai. Nothing special about this dish. 

However, the pan fried stone pot xiao long bao (石锅蟹粉小龙包) did have my thumbs up as the skin was crispy, and every bite oozes piping hot soup out, even if it was left there for a period of time. 

L ordered the roasted duck and char siew rice dish (琵琶鸭拼叉烧饭), as he had to have rice. I think roasted duck and char siew in Singapore tastes better than theirs. 

Lastly, L's sis ordered a steamed layer cake (迷你千层糕) which if you look closely are layers of rice flour steamed with salted egg yolk sandwiched in between each layer. 

Bi Feng Tang carries an extensive menu of dishes, but only a few of them stand out. The rest are only okay in standard, and given a choice, I would definitely choose Crystal Jade over Bi Feng Tang!

Crystal Jade Shanghai Xintiandi

Being highly recommended by L's sister staying in Shanghai, to try their roast pork belly (烧肉), we headed to Xintiandi (新天地) for our Sunday lunch at Crystal Jade.

L's sister mentioned that it is best to make a reservation, and I fully understood why she said so. The place is packed! Luckily as there was only 2 of us, we did not have to wait too long before we got a table.

And this is the roast pork belly! The meat is very tender and juicy, and the skin - super crispy. The portion of meat and fat in the belly are just right, not too fatty and not too dry while the skin is roasted just right. Some roasted pork belly skin are over roasted, causing the skin to be too hard. No wonder L's sister highly recommended it.

We also ordered the usual tim sum - Siew mai, Har gao and steamed pork ribs. Their dim sum prices are on the high side, same as the prices in Singapore, while their dishes are cheaper. However, the quality of the dim sum is much better than that of Singapore.

This is the fried nian gao (炒年糕), a popular Shanghainese dish. 

This is the claypot "yong tau foo" which has fish paste stuffed in beancurd, brinjal and green capsicum  A bit on the salty side though, Kok Seng's claypot yong tau foo is still my favorite. 

Overall we spent approximately RMB200 for the meal. As I mentioned, their prices are similar to Singapore, but definitely better quality food and service. 

After lunch,we took a walk around Xintiandi, which comprises mostly of cafes and restaurants with both indoor and outdoor seating. A very nice place to spend an afternoon at the cafes, enjoying a leisure read or some chatting with friends. 

Crystal Jade Restaurant, Shanghai Xintiandi

新天地广场南里2F-12A

Nearest subway station: Line 10 - Xintiandi

Breakfast at Sheraton Ho Chi Minh

The destination for our company trip was Ho Chi Minh. Some of my colleagues told me that the best meal they had in Ho Chi Minh during the trip was the breakfast at Sheraton. Does it really measure up? 

The entrance of Sheraton Hotel Ho Chi Minh. I remembered also staying at this hotel previously during a business trip. Located at the heart of Ho Chi Minh city at 88 Dong Khoi street, within walking distance to the various attractions and shopping, Sheraton is a good hotel choice when staying in Ho Chi Minh. 

Most of the international hotels in Vietnam have this signage outside which certifies their star rating by the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism. 

The hotel has a spacious lobby. At various timings, there are even traditional instrument performances by Vietnamese ladies. 

The lobby lounge. Good atmosphere for a cuppa or some light snacks. Oh did I mention, there is also free wifi available at the lobby area! 


Ok, back to the main topic - the breakfast. Like all international hotels, American buffet breakfast is served at the hotel. The breakfast area is segregated into various sections: 

The cooked food and cold dish section. 

As usual, they have the egg section. Besides eggs preparation, the pancake / waffle section is also here. What is unique is that they also have a selection sausages, beef, chicken and lamb available at this area as well. Tell the chef your choice of meats and they will prepare it in front of you. and don't forget, we are talking about breakfast here! 

The Asian / Japanese section. This is where the porridge, fried noodles, dim sum, miso soup and some Japanese foods are served. 

They even have a separate section which serves Vietnamese pho (beef noodle soup). 

The fruits section - get your quick fix of variety of fruits and juices here. 

When seated, as usual the staff would ask you if you would like coffee or tea. And to our surprise, the coffee and tea comes in a big pot - for you to pour on your own. 

I would normally look for the bread section when I start my breakfast, and I was immediately attracted to this structure. From far, it looks like a decoration with fake bagels on it. But they are actually real bagels! As what my friend Ms M calls it - Bagels do grow on trees! 

They offer a wide assortment of pastries and cupcakes. 

This is actually a toaster for heating up your pastries. Simply love it. Don't you hate those conventional bread toasters, when you try to heat up breads other than the normal sliced bread and they get stuck in the toaster? and you have to end up eating either burnt bread, or cold bread, which are both equally bad. 

Cherry tomatoes with pesto. The menu changes everyday, as when I went on the second day to take this, it was replaced by another tomato dish. 

The tomato lasagne. I was lucky to take a shot of it when they just replaced with a new plate, as it would be snapped up quite fast. As I am a cheese lover, this is just a great dish, with generous servings of cheese and bechamel sauce. Too bad this dish was not available on the next day. 

Crispy bacon. And I'm not joking when I say crispy. It's really crispy. One of my colleagues even took a portion of it as a snack by it's own. Remember  this bbq pork snack from Bangkok? Well it tastes just like the snack, only that it's the fresh version. 

Shrimp dumpling with chives. 

This is unique - salmon dumplings. Salmon is mixed with prawn paste and made into a dumpling. 

Steamed siew mai. 

Fried samosas and sugar cane prawn paste. 

My plate of Asian selection foods. They even have Japanese natto, which I so miss after coming back from Japan. Must have my natto. and it goes well with the cold tofu too!

Fruits are replenished frequently. The pink guava looks so tempting!

Yogurt - they offer original and blueberry flavour. 

This is the only food I remembered during my previous stay at Sheraton Ho Chi Minh. And after so many years, they are still serving it! It's actually Bircher Museli, served in individual glasses. Rich and creamy with hints of nuts and apples in it. 

And here's a close up shot of it. I had 2 servings of it! yummy. If you want to know how to make it, here's the recipe from Jamie Oliver's The Return of the Naked Chef cookbook:

Ingredients (makes around 4-7 portions)
8 large handfuls of organic rolled oats
2 large handfuls of ground bran
1 handful of chopped dried apricots
1 handful of chopped dried dates
1 handful of crumbled walnuts
1 handful of smashed or shopped almonds, hazelnuts or brazil nuts
milk (or soya/almond/oat milk) to cover
1/2 crunchy apple per portion, washed and unpeeled

Put oats and bran into a large Tupperware with apricots, dates and any other soft fruit. Add the walnuts, almonds, any other nuts and seeds. This mixture will keep for up to two months in an airtight container.

The night before you want to eat your pukkolla, put two portions of the oat mixture into a bowl and cover with the milk, grate in half an apple per person and stir immediately to keep apple from discolouring. When you’re ready to eat it, add some cinnamon or banana. 

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Good American buffet breakfasts are what I call comfort food. Best meal of the day, especially when you have all the time to enjoy. Also provides me with some sanity, amidst all the phos, raw vegetables, rice rolls and fish sauces in Ho Chi Minh. Thank you Sheraton, for serving such a wonderful breakfast.   

Sheraton Saigon Hotel & Towers

88 Dong Khoi Street, District 1, Ho Chi Minh

Breakfast served at Saigon Cafe
Daily 6am - 10am

Tao Heung Restaurant, 稻香超级渔港

After the unsuccessful attempt in having dim sum breakfast at the ever so popular Michelin star Tim Ho Wan in Mong Kok, we went to a nearby recommended dim sum restaurant Tao Heung instead. 

Watch out for the signage "稻香超级渔港" at the lobby entrance of the building, as the restaurant is actually located at the 3rd and 4th floor of the building. 

The waitress standing beside the lift urged us to go to 4th floor, where we would not require to "share" seats, as 3rd floor was more crowded. After probing more, prices at the 4th floor was actually more expensive, so we settled at 3rd floor instead. Turned out that the restaurant was not so crowded, as we also managed to get a table to ourselves. 

There was no push cart dim sum trolleys at Tao Heung, you have to order from the order chit. 

As always, we ordered the usual stuff, as Ms K and Ms V do not eat "acquired taste" food. 

Steamed rice roll with chinese chives and prawn (韭王鲜蝦肠)

Fried wantons (炸雲吞) - too oily !

If you don't know what dim sum to order, you will never go wrong with the 4 heavenly kings (四大天王) of dim sum - 燒賣，蝦餃，鳳爪，排骨 

As how they say in Cantonese - Siew Mai, Har Gao, Feng Zao & Pai Guat. This 4 dim sum are a must order for Singaporeans when we visit any dim sum restaurant. Not sure if they are the same in Hong Kong?

Steamed glutinous rice in lotus leaf (荷香珍珠雞)

We didn't have a chance to try roasted meat (char siew) in Hong Kong, so I took the opportunity to order a roasted chicken with char siew rice (燒雞叉燒飯). To my disappointment, the char siew was too dry, not juicy at all. 

Total bill was around HKD200 (SGD33), same as what we spent at Lin Heung Teahouse. The quality of dim sum was quite good, and Tao Heung is actually a popular chain restaurant found in many places in Hong Kong. 

Too bad I didn't have a chance to try the more "exotic" dimsum, or what Ms K and Ms V call it, such as the pork trotters with egg in vinegar (雞蛋豬腳薑) or the Pig stomach with beancurd skin (胡椒枝竹豬肚). These are what makes Hong Kong dim sum stand out, they have these unusual dishes which you can't find in Singapore. But still, I am also very satisfied with my "4 heavenly kings" as well. 

Tao Heung Restaurant, 稻香超级渔港 

639 Nathan Road, 

Shop B, 3/F Grand Tower, Mongkok

旺角彌敦道639號雅蘭中心3樓B號舖 

Open daily: 7am - 2am

Nearest MTR: Mong Kok exit E1