+66 Filling our tummies

Greetings! Bangkok is known as a shopping and food paradise. As I already explained in the last post that I'm not a crazy shopper (at least not in Bangkok, can't say the same on taobao), we spent quite a lot of time nomming on all the crazy nice food / refreshing coconuts!

Since I'm already on the topic of eating, the breakfast spread at the hotel was super sumptuous and I had something new to try everyday! Pancakes, waffles, charsiewbao, naan, sushi, cereal, soup noodles you name it, I had it! I remember I had 3 chocolate donuts and hashbrowns on the last day before check-out -_- However, I only captured 1 shot of my food, so there you go fried egg white with cheese, a croissant and tomatoes.

 

 

Prior to the trip, I had read on many other blogs on their café adventures in Bangkok, but the cafes seemed to be in off-the-track locations (you gotta understand me damn lazy). So imagine my delight when I realized that Siam Center housed a couple of them all under one roof! Siam Center is directly linked from Siam BTS Station.

The malls in Bangkok are very very stylish and the design themes flow from shop to shop. I think it's very important for the consumer to understand the concept of the mall he/she is visiting, and that's the major reason why Iluma failed and Bugis+ is thriving. In Siam Center, even the toilets are super stylish (although you can only find toilets on levels 4 and basement, so don't hold your bladder there!).

As we had a heavy breakfast at the hotel, we shopped around a little bit before lunch. All major brands are available at Siam Center, which is also sort of linked to Siam Paragon and MBK in case you get bored.

For lunch we went to the much blogged-about Greyhound Café. It's so famous now it even has a branch in Hong Kong, but that day we were at the original branch. There was a queue since it was lunch time, so we waited close to 30 minutes for a table. Lots of Singaporeans around us too haha. With affordable prices, great ambience and yummy flavours, I can see why this outlet is so popular with both tourists and locals alike.

 

Happily nomming on the free warm bread with unsalted butter. Also in this picture spot the prawn bisque and refreshing lychee shake!

The whole purpose of this trip was the chicken wings! Tasty but it tastes like har chiong kai to me. I found it easy to eat and rather addicitive!

The star of the day, however, was Nettie's scallops served with pesto on a bed of mash potato. It cost less than SGD20 and look at the size of the scallops! Albeit it could have been a teeny bit more flavourful but for the price I don't think you can get such standards in Singapore.

We shared everything as we didn't want to overeat. But after lunch, I couldn't resist going just down the corridor to Mr. Jone's Orphanage for desserts!! It's really the cutest place ever and so whimsical it hurts, but my conclusion, that's the only selling point. The desserts only LOOK nice but the taste is meh. I chose the apple pie with vanilla ice cream - it was a little bland but on the positive side it wasn't sweet haha. Nettie smartly stuck to free water. Come visit for picture purposes only. Desserts cost about SGD4-6 per serving.

 

Some other random meals we had - steamboat at MK and coconuts everywhere I walked. I don't remember being such a fan of coconuts ever, maybe because the coconuts in Singapore suck. But in Bangkok, especially the small ones by the roadside are really sweeeet, I want one now!!

Review: Bread Society

For the uninformed, Suntec City Singapore is now undergoing a major revamp, and some parts have been newly opened in the last few weeks. It's been a rollercoaster ride searching for food while working in Suntec, especially when everything was closed at one point, but the new stores slowly opening one by one have been pretty exciting to watch.

Just yesterday we headed to Bread Society to try out their lunch sets. Bread Society is part café part bakery, and is actually under the Bread Talk group. Headed by Chef Atsushi Murata (which Nettie enthusiastically said "Wow! Someone is actually called Sushi! -_-"), the Suntec outlet serves just a small selection of hot mains. You will either find the choices lacking, or if you're like me, happy that I don't have much to choose from. I always take forever to choose when faced with options.

 

We ordered the Scrambled Eggs with Brioche, Grilled Chicken Sandwich with Sesame Toast, and Katsu Curry Rice with grilled veggies. Raerae her fill of yummy cakes and pastries from the bakery section.

As an opening promo, you get a brunch/lunch set at SGD13.80 with a drink (coffee/tea/juice). Still kinda pricey when you can just dine at the food court, but just for variety's sake, it was a pretty good deal. I think what little they offer on their menu, they do it very well. I walked away with a very satisfied tummy! I also tried the apple pie previously from the bakery and I wolfed it down in a minute! They also sell freshly baked bread loafs to go!

+66 by the River

Last week we spontaneously went to Bangkok for a 4-day break by the Chao Phraya River. We got a really good deal with $0 airfare with Jetstar. Also we booked a room through Booking.com at Ramada Menam Riverside, with a free upgrade to the suite room. In total only $200+ each for flight and hotel! Love deals!!

It was a really good getaway. I know everyone is asking, did you shop a lot? Did you go for massage? Did you go clubbing?? My answer is ... Nooo...I did nothing but relax and walk wherever I feel like walking, sit whenever I feel like sitting, eat whenever I get hungry, talk a lot with my Baba. We did buy some stuffs, but I won't have any "Look at everything I bought laid out on the bed" photos. My kind of holiday, chill and comfortable!

Us being random at the airport. Apparently this social tree will keep our photo for 80 years and show it somewhere....duhzzz...

 

Finally arrived in Bangkok! Took the express city train, just 17 minutes to Phaya Thai! Got treated to some nice city sights (yes girl included).  

 



Changed to the BTS train to Saphan Taksin stop where the river pier is located. It's super busy you can't miss it! Hopped onto the free hotel river shuttle and was comfortably in the lobby within 10 minutes!  

 

Thank goodness for early check-in! Check-in was a breeze, we were given refreshing welcome drinks and a cold towel to cool off while the reception staff did everything for us. We were then led to our suite on the 11th floor, and it was a very long walk (2 corridors worth of doors we passed), before we came to ours...getting apprehensive already....and then.... 

 

OMG faint die me super nice view of Chao Phraya, and only for less than SGD100 a night! Best. Deal. Ever. 

 

Bed and pillows were so comfy!! My rainbow duckies also came out to take a nice long bubble bath with me. Shioks! 

 

Would have stayed in bed all day if not for my rumbling tummy, so we headed just outside the hotel for some Indian food. Interestingly I had read in the reviews that the Indian restaurant near the hotel was good, and there was only 1 just outside, so I reckoned that was it!

 

Was good though. Mmm mmm. Had sizzling tandoori fish on a hot plate, some spiced cauliflowers with potatoes, and one of the best butter chickens I had! Licked all the gravy off the plate!! :D 

 

And then....had a 2-hour nap before going out to Asiatique night market, which is just a 5-minute walk away. Even so, the hotel operates a free tuk-tuk service there so we hopped onto it!  

 

And were greeted within 2 minutes with the iconic ferris wheel of Asiatique!  

 

It was my first time there so I didn't know what to expect, but the place was really nice! Online it was described as a high-end night market, and I guess going by Bangkok's standards, it's more or less accurate. If you remember Suan Lum Night Bazaar, I think most shops shifted there, so think quaint boutiques, craft stores and souvenirs. Plus you can find about 40 eateries and restaurants so no worries about getting hungry! We went there almost every night! 

 

Asiatique is actually made up of several old warehouses, so you can spend some time exploring every single shop. By the time we made it out to the other end, it was already sunset and we just sat at the pier enjoying the breeze and each other's company. 

 

The ferris wheel was also all lit up and pretty with the dark blue sky as a backdrop :)  

 

For dinner, we had...what else....Thai food! Thai omelette, spicy Tomyum soup, veggies with pulled pork and fried squid, washed down with a refreshing coconut and Chang water (LOL). Mmm mmm mmmm! 

 



 BURPS! Stay tuned for Day 2 and 3 for more Bangkok food adventures! :)