Rise :: And Shine...in Marina Bay Sands Hotel

Hard at eat work.

The Marina Bay Sands Hotel is this marvellous piece of modern architecture in the heart of Singapore (heart, kidney, lung..one wonders). It is 3 awesome buildings connected together with a huge platform on top that looks like a surfing board and I had the priveledge of having a buffet lunch there right under the second tower with hubs and his colleagues on a good working Wednesday.

Honeycomb and nuts to eat
with some dry biscuits

Desert was a vast selection

Strawberries for the chocolate fountain.
I know if my kids see this they go crazy

Little tiny sauces of condiments

I do not think Rise is halal, so I had only the seafood and fish dishes. And some biscuits and honey. And salads. Regardless, I am still putting in an entry here, because you might get some fantastic ideas when you (or I) open our own restaurants in the kitchen. Five stars to Rise. It is the best lunch buffet I have experienced to date. And that's not even touching their meat dishes.

They had sushi--mostly fish and fish eggs, salads and sauces of all kinds, indian briyanis and curries, italian and pasta, western dishes, seafood raw, biscuits, breads and cheese, soups and lots and lots of desert and one very happy selection of chocolate fountain dippers.

Mine!

And again.

Hubs!

This all cost SGD$57/pax which is around RM130. For the beautiful scenary, presentation, food selection and comfortable table and chairs, I would say that RM130 is okay (and I shouldn't even be thinking in ringgit!). Perhaps a tad expensive for paying out of your own pocket, but for coperate meetings and lunches (i.e., on the company), it is just perfect. If my vendor treated me to lunch here, lets just say, it would take a lot of effort to say no to the proposal.

Fresh fruits for grabs...

Sweets and cookies. These remind me of my kids. They would go crazy I am sure..

Bread pudding. Eat with vanilla and chocolate sauce. A++

So many types of bread. But I was too full already..

Array at Indian section

Salmon in Teriyaki sauce

Prawns

Fresh seafood

cous-cous

I don't know what this is. I think Tuna and feta cheese..

Loved it, definitely loved it and what started out as a formal business meeting turned into very lively friendly conversation. Rise, when you go halal, please let me know and I will put you in my top recommended list!

Here it is from afar. The three buildings with surf board on top.

Rise
Marina Bay Sands Hotel, Singapore

Cleanliness: A
Food: A++
Price: Expensive. But it's buffet. In Singapore, of all places!
Service: A
Atmosphere: A. Very comfortable. There were trees inside. It was like a giant greenhouse.
Satisfaction Level: A.

Seafood @ Morib :: time to relax

Click on images to enlarge.

This entry is sponsored by MM.

This excursion took place last month and I had blogged it in my little phone. If I finally do publish it you are reading it now. Naturally.

Back in March there was a bike jamboree that kicked-off here and I accidentally forgot to pay one of the makcik's who works here for some services. I returned for the sole purpose of finding her, like a Jejak Kasih adventure thing, ya know, except we are not related and I owe her money. 

Ala Kassim!! (best ikan bakar in Malaysia--for now)

There's the ikan, and the squid and the udang, and the nasi lemak :)

I guess I have extended my hunting territory beyond Cyberjaya, Kajang and Bangi because in this post I am going to cover Melaka. To warm up for the big review, you know how in the movies, the deliriously sensitive guy sweeps the middle-class girl of her feet and takes her for a day trip to another city for dinner--in a private jet--to some high-rise restaurant with a view of the entire city on a starlit night? Well this is a supremely washed-and-ironed-down version of that movie. It was a trip to the state next door for ikan bakar, who according to my business partner is the best ikan bakar in the whole of Malaysia (that's bold and italic right there for emphasis)... and worth the 2 hour-commute one-way in a road vehicle, in the rain. Yes, that's how special the ikan bakar is.

Sotong goreng.  My favourite! A+

Udang panggang. Nice and fresh.

We arrived right before maghrib to this row of open-air restaurants, somewhere in the middle of Melaka, supposedly by the sea or river (though I couldn't see it). The raw seafood is on display on a table near the front, fish-market style and you get to pick which one you wanted. We got a fish, some squid and a basket of prawns.

Nasi lemak paling sedap di Malaysia, kalah
nasi lemak Antarabangsa..

So here's how the grilled fish is eaten. They load a basket of small nasi lemaks onto the table in front of you and you can eat however much you want with your seafood. The rice, I must say was simply delicious. The sambal in the rice was awesome too, though you can barely taste it, it was so sikit. The sauce for the fish was kicap with cili's and onions. And the fish was simply cooked but heavenly ---I forgot all about the rice when I had it and ate it on its own. But it could also be that I was really hungry from the very long jet ride.

For now, I will say this is the best ikan bakar in the whole of Malaysia, until I try that glamorous Ana Ikan Bakar one in Bangi first for comparison purposes. The place did crowed up a bit after dark and the atmosphere was friendly and Melaka-ish, possibly because the main topic of our conversation was mostly Hang Jebat and Hang Tuah and who was guilty of treason. Will possibly come back again, try the restaurant next door  insya'Allah, and perhaps discuss a more interesting subject matter during dinner. :P 

Ala Kassim

Medan Ikan Bakar Alai, Melaka

Cleanliness: C (forget the surau in the compound, use the masjid)

Price:  I wouldn't know. Around ~RM60 I guess. Thank you Izham :)

Satisfaction Level: A++ (the fish was just right with the nasi lemak)

Service: A (fast and friendly) 

Atmosphere: B+

Manhattan Fish Market (for that fishy feeling...)

Nings. Baked fish with chips.
SUPERB

I am at my hairdressers on a Friday night..can you believe it? I cannot find the time to go during office hours. So, as the pretty hairdresser blows my wild hair, I am busily typing this in on my smartphone; the latest lunch escapade we had today. Manhattan Fish Market at Alamanda Putrajaya.

I remember missing breakfast this morning because of a 9 am meeting. So by the time we went off for lunch, I was a hungarian on a roll with all problems/chores/responsibilities on hold and phone on vibrate.

I ordered the starter suggested by the waitress: fried mushroom that came with salad. And fish and chips...because i missed the UK so much. *sob*. Ning, my health guru, ordered baked fish with chips. She doesn't eat anything thats battered and fried. That's where we differ. Except for chips. That's where we're similar. And I am talking real chips here. Not anything like those skinny french fries they serve at Mc'Donalds that has twice the amount of oil drenched in them.

Fried mushrooms with salad. Y E S

Ning says I sometimes have a fit of verbal diarrhea (in her defense, she didn't grow up with 5 siblings and 2 toilets), so this time around I am going to beat around the bush and employ more elegance in my choice of words- and lets see if that'll increase my fan base (I think not). 

Lets just say: Manhattan did not disappoint. Everything was not bad, not spoiled and definitely not been in the freezer long before you ordered it. OMG, now I sound pessimistic. What I really wanted to say is, and I say this with much gusto and enthusiasm: Manhattan fish market is the best western seafood place to date. Their Dory (that fish you get everywhere in Malaysia), can even pass for Cod, its that fresh. And if seafood turns you cold because your doctor says go easy on the cholesterol, skip the battered-fried fish and go for baked or grilled. They are equally as good and healthy. Just the right blend of herbs and olive oil. I had a stab at Ning's fish and it was heavenly. (I would have stabbed all of it but there was a nerdy bloke sitting on the next table and I had to keep appearances). 

Manhattan rocks. And though its from America, the fish and chips are just as good as the ones from Britain,  albeit it's missing the vinegar. And if you're really in tune with your dining partner (same taste palate and all), go for the double platters. They (freaking) rock. True and tested.

Manhattan Fish Market, Alamanda, Putrajaya

Cleanliness: B

Food: A (left smiling)

Price: ~RM18 per pax (this was appetizer and main course for me. With warm water. Ning paid the same for her baked fish)

Satisfaction Level: A-

Service: B (a bit of a wait. But well worth it).

Atmosphere: Hustle and bustle. Quite a crowd during lunch.

P/S check-out www.groupon.my regularly for coupons to save more at Manhattan.

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