Shinkansen- Life on the fast track

When fast food doesn't have to be supersize-me food.

A choice of transit, station and terminal.

Let's go straight for the Terminal.

A base, 5 toppings, sauce, 2 add-ons and a choice of meat.

This goes for $12 for a hefty serving.

This was my choice for today.

A base of soba noodles.

Almonds, mushrooms, carrots, tamago, pickled seaweed.

Apricots and Quinoa.

Tuna Tataki.

With sesame plum dressing. :)

Other than the fact that the tuna was sliced too thin,

everything else was a joy to eat.

A mix of sweet, salty, savoury yum.

Healthy never tasted better.

Ask the staff for their sauce pairing recommendations.

And if you still aren't too sure about your choice of sauce,

make a request for it to be packed separately.

They'll gladly oblige.

And you wouldn't have to worry that the sauce isn't enough.

They always make sure their customers are well fed.

And their takeaway bowls well dressed!

They have an opening promotion now for their branch at 100AM in the Tanjong Pagar area.

Get your bowls here with their one-for-one deal till the 25th of July.

Time to hop on the Shinkansen! :)

Hana Hana is?

Really just Teppei.

The newer, cleaner, brighter extension of Teppei.

And the strange thing is that there is so much talk of Hanare,

the restaurant just a 5 minute walk away which is managed by Teppei's wife.

But little that I've found written online about Hana Hana,

the restaurant in the next unit to Teppei.

Which is really probably why the queues over here are a lot more manageable.

To be honest,

I am reluctant to share this piece of information.

But as a fellow foodie,

there's nothing really to be selfish about sharing good food.

So there we go.

Hana Hana really is just the mirror image of Teppei, 

expanding the 21-seater restaurant to a 40-seater.

And Chef Teppei runs both kitchens simultaneously.

The people in the picture are just his assistants.

But this bowl of Bara Chirashi below, 

Chef Teppei himself served to us within a span of minutes from the time when we placed our orders before he went over to the kitchen next door.

A generous serving of salmon, tuna, swordfish, baby scallops and salmon roe lightly marinated in a sesame soy dressing atop a bed of deliciously fragrant Koshihikari rice from Toyoma, Japan.

$17.60 per serving.

 Of some of the best things in life.

 Which includes complimentary top-ups of iced tea served in beer mugs, miso soup, three kinds of sides which change regularly and pretty good service.

And as I was eating, 

I couldn't help but wonder about those 'die-hard' fans who are still sadly in ridiculous queues next door outside Teppei.

As a disclaimer, this is not to say that the queues here are non-existent.

It was peak lunch hour and we only got our seats at 1225pm after about half an hour.

So the people queueing here, are just the more initiated.

So queue less,

And still eat just as well.

Over here at Hana Hana.

Hana Hana

Orchid Hotel

1, Tras Link

#01-17

S (078867)

Drury lane on a dreary day

T'was a rainy day.

And we still went ahead to paint the town red.

With a cafe that had a brilliantly red shop front!

It was packed but not impossibly so.

They have a second floor for a quiet respite from the queues, cooking on the grills and the steady hum of the espresso machines downstairs.

With empty crates separating the tables, a skateboard haphazardly leaning off the sides.
I liked the rustic feel and spacious layout on the second level.

They have a crate right next to the sofa seat where diners can help themselves to condiments and sauces.
It's a nice touch to bottle their drinking water so that each table can have their own bottles to refill their cups.

Communal yet the line of privacy isn't crossed.

Unfortunately, they didn't have the peanut butter muffins I was looking forward to that day.
They do muffins on a 'pay as you wish' scheme.
And if you didn't already know,
Drury Lane is where the muffin man lives!

Oh do you know the muffin man,
The muffin man, the muffin man,
Do you know the muffin man,
Who lives in Drury Lane?

Oh yes, I know the muffin man,
The muffin man, the muffin man,
Yes, I know the muffin man,
Who lives in Drury Lane

They do indeed have some awesome muffins. :)

We skipped that and had sandwiches that day.
Steak and caramelised onions.
And chicken avocado.
With sides of mushrooms and a poached egg.

The mushroom serving was much too tiny but then, one cannot expect too much for their pocket friendly prices.
The egg though, did not come with hollandaise sauce.
Tragic but not unbearably so.
We were too hungry to go downstairs to ask.

The breads were crisp on the outside and soft to chew on the insides.
Dense enough to be filling, light enough to enjoyed.
Of course,
I wished for more fillings within just so I could finish my breads. :)

And who could forget dessert?
The chocolate salted caramel tart had a solid buttery tart base to hold all of that liquefied pleasure within.
Salty sweet.
Makes it nothing short of a perfect treat.
Mess alert though!

Flat white- the standard order.
Was good but I'd much prefer the one at Anthesis.

Affordability meets palatability.
Right here at Drury Lane.
Till the next time,
Mr Muffin Man! x