Marche Christmas

Holaa! Feliz Navidad!

So last weekend, me, my sister – @noviabenny and her fiance – @yondythong had a Christmas Dinner at Marche, and it’s awesomeeee! Heard about it a few times and looking at the location and the always-there crowd, I always have the impression this place is one of those fancy restaurants with ceiling-high price, definitely not my everyday eatery! But hey, It’s Christmas!

Being a first-timer, I was pleasantly surprised by the restaurant concept. Turns out it’s somewhat like a European food-court where each person will be given a card upon entering [forget to take a snap of this card] and there are lots of stalls selling different kinds of European delis: Pastas, Pizzas, Paellas [their Seafood paella was AMAZING!], Steaks, Pork Knuckle, Rosti [apparently their rosti is quite ell-known], Salads, Soups, Drinks, Cakes, etc!

Take a peek at what’s inside:

THE famous Swiss Rosti

THE star of the night, Seafood Paella

DAT SEAFOOD PAELLA THOOO….!!
That’s arguably the best paella in town, but legit the best one I’ve had! By default, it came with prawns, chicken and mussel, then the guy asked if we want to add pan-fried calamari for $2.5. YAAAASSS OF COURSE!! and I’m happy we did! Very flavorful and rice was nice & plump. Not the kind where the rice is mostly dry and stick to the pan.

Now you might or might not have heard [or read] people talking about their Rosti, and some even went to the extent of saying it’s like a compulsory thing, it feels like there’s something missing if you go to marche without ordering their famous rosti. so, of course, we got Ourself one too! With sausages! IMHO, I’d say it’s not worth the hype. I mean it’s okay, eatable. Not horrible but not amazing either. How did it taste like? Pan-fried small-cut potato. That’s about it.

Other than these two, we had Salmon Steak, Mushroom Soup, Garlic Bread, and the Tiramisu Cake as well as the lemon tea too! Most of them are – as expected – not bad. These things feed the three of us well. We're tempted to get the pork knuckle as well, but I’m glad we didn’t, or else it’ll be such a burden to finish.

If I am to come back, I will definitely say it’s the Paella!

OH! one more thing, despite having a nice ambiance, it was quite hard to take a well-lit picture in there. Perhaps it’s for you to enjoy the moment – be there, talk, catch up – instead of being busy taking pics.

Here’s a little video of our visit:

Merry Christmas!! Have a Blessed one!

Marché Mövenpick 313@somerset

313 Orchard Rd, Level 1, Discovery Walk,
313@somerset, 313@Somerset

Open until 11:00 PM

Average/Pax S$30-40

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Merry Medley at Flower Dome

MERRY CHRISTMAAAASSSSS EVERYONEEEE....
YASSS... we're in the most wonderful time of the yeaaaarrrrrrr...
when Starbucks Redcup is everywhere, roads and shopping malls are ssssoo pretty full of Christmas decorations and lights, and of course, Christmas carols everywhere...

Have you visited Merry Medley at Flower dome by Gardens by The Bay???
I DID! and it was pretty...! [Hurry, it's only until 5Jan]

Here's the thing about Christmas decoration [or in this case, installations] they're pretty in bright day-light, but prettier by folds when the night comes -- talking about the magical feeling when those fairy lights shining in the dark. [Not to mention in a full air-conditioned dome, with christmas carols playing non-stop.

Now if you're like me -- love them both, but find it hard to take nice pics with the lights behind. I'd usually opt to take 'em while the sky's bright, and take some of the decorations itself when the sun's out. With this in mind, If you're planning to visit, i would strongly recommend you to come at around 4 or 5pm [like we did]. This way, you'll get to see the installation in bright day and night condition.

If you're a Singapore resident -- Singaporean, PR, and long-term pass holders -- you are entitled to buy the tickets at a local price [check the prices here]. Better yet, use your OCBC Card and enjoy a good 15% off of your ticket(s). In Our case, we choose to go to Flower Dome only -- cause they don't have any christmas installation in the cloud dome, and i've been there -- and the local price for single dome is S$12. with 15% OCBC discount, it's S$10.20 ONLY! #lovestruck

Here are our tickets:

However, for tourists, I wouldn't recommend buying the tickets on the spot. Take time and contact a travel agency, like seawheel here -- located at Chinatown. More likely than not you'll get better offer. Last time I checked, they sell a two-dome ticket at S$18 each [u.p. S$28 on the counter]. That's a direct S$10 off there..!

Here's some peeks:

sssooo pretty, yeah? 😍

Them reflections 🌌

PS: If you're going by MRT, make sure you alight at Bayfront station [not Marina Bay -- I know it's behind Marina Bay Hotel, but trust me. Bayfront.]

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HAMBAOBAO..!

Hi There..
Been yet-another while, hasn't it?

So i went to the newly-famous Hambaobao the other day, and here's how it went!

Located at the hawker centre on top of Beauty World Centre, this place can easily reached using MRT. Make your move and conveniently alight at Beauty World station [Downtown Line - Blue Line], walk under the sheltered walkway to the building, and take the escalator all the way to the top!

Surprisingly this stall has been around for quite a while, got famous recently -- mostly thanks to Night Owl Cinematic, Dee Kosh, The Smart Local [and EatBook SG], also tons of bloggers, intagrammers, and of course people who watch them. [Talkin' bout the power of SocMed].

I reached at around 12.46pm and here's how it looked like

Waited for around 40mins to GET MY ORDERS TAKEN, Here's the menu:

i mean, just look at the prices!!!!

My orders was taken around 1.40pm, upon taking my order i was informed that it'll be ready at 2.50pm! that's another 1hr+. Well.. being crazy hungry, it was too late for me to back off -- yet too long for me to wait, so i went and stuffed myself a good plate of pan-fried dumplings AND a few Xiao Long Bao from another stall.

Finally the wait was over, and here are our order:

Star of the day a.k.a their best seller -- Roasted Pork Burger.

Now about this one, they're slayin roasted pork game STRONG. Like let's not talk about this being a fusion food or sth, the roasted pork itself was winning compared to other roasted pork from most hawker centres [and possibly restaurants]. SO Crispy yet juicy, and flavourful! What interesting is, they make it on the spot. like literally, legit roasting it from raw meat.

Here's a closer look of the roasted pork:

Here's a short video on where to find them! :)

Do visit them on weekdays if you can, cause one of my friend told me he visited them on weekday lunch and there were NO QUEUE! Also take note of their opening hours and days below:

HamBaoBao
144 Upper Bukit Timah #04-49 Beauty World Centre
Singapore 588177

Open Wed-Sun 12-8 PM
Closed on Mon and Tue.


Lastbutnotleast, do follow me on instagram @anthony.ali for more recent updates and quick reviews! :)
Thankssss