Provence

Provence

• 17A Lorong Liput, Holland Village
  Tel: 6467 6966
  Website: http://www.provence.com.sg/
  Opening Hours: 9.30am to 8.30pm, Mon to Fri; 8.30am to 8.30pm, Sat & Sun
• Petit Provence
  #B1-29 Central Shopping Centre
  6 Eu Tong Sen Street
  Tel: 6534 9029
  Website: http://www.provence.com.sg/petit/index.html
  Opening Hours: 11am to 10pm daily

It may be called Provence, but its European breads are given a Japanese twist. Owned by qualified Japanese baker Yoshiaki Matsumoto, 36, the bakery employs seven Japanese and local bakers in its kitchen behind. It uses high-quality wheat imported from France, and every loaf is measured, mixed, kneaded and finished by hand.

The Petite Provence at Central Shopping Centre has less variety - just cream & choco wasant and petit chocolat chocolat. Just 50 cents each and you can finish a single one in 2 bites.

The Provence at Holland Village has walnut raisins, chocolate twist, koshi an pan, milk bun, light pound cake, cheese bun, cream cheese seasame, walnut cream cheese and chocol & cream wassant.

Our advice is to call ahead and reserve the buns/wassant and collect it later. Else be prepared to have them tell you “Sorry, we ran out!”.

Baked Ideas

Baked Ideas
Website: http://halfbaked-ideas.com/

I know what you’re thinking. You’re just cupcaked out. Cannot look at another one, much less eat it. Maybe this one will revive your appetite.

This dark beauty from Baked Ideas, an Internet baking business, has everything going for it – soft fluffy cake and a yummy chocolate ganache topping crowned with a velvety raspberry. The cake isn’t too sweet, which is a good thing since the ganache is unabashedly so. But there is just enough, so it isn’t terribly cloying.

Two women are the brains behind the business – Karen Huang, 33, who runs a graphic design business, and Joanna Ong, 35, who works in the finance industry.

Aside from cupcakes, they also offer a chocolate cake called, quite endearingly, the Plain Jane Chocolate Loaf Cake. I found it too sweet, but the soft, crumbly texture was good. There is also a decorate-it-yourself Gingerbread Man kit, which comes with unadorned cookies and little pots of icing. Perfect for kids’ parties.

The cupcakes go for S$25-S$35. The Plain Jane Chocolate Loaf Cake (see above picture) goes for S$40 per pack of 5. They have other bakes like Raspberry Chocolate Pavlova/Pavlova with Mixed Berries and Creme Anglais (S$40 each), Cranberry and Pistacho Biscotti (S$25 for 320g) and Biscotti di Prato (S$20 for 320g).

Delivery service has been suspended until further notice. You can pick up your order from either Chip Bee Gardens or Sixth Avenue when it’s ready. Details will be given to you upon confirmation of your order.

To place your order, call either please call Karen (9747 2908) or Joanna (9749 3454).

Spizza

Delivery hotline: 6377 7773
Website: http://www.spizza.sg/index.asp

They have 6 outlets in Singapore, so check their website for the nearest outlet if you want to dine in. Else, just call the delivery hotline. Minimum order is S$30. Deliveries are subject to delivery fees and GST in some cases (the operator will advise you of this). Delivery hours are from 11am to 2.30pm and from 6pm to 10pm daily.

There are 23 mouth-watering pizzas all named after Italian women, 9 scrumptious desserts named after famous female opera characters and 12 equally tantalizing starters named after the emperors of Rome. All pizzas are wood-baked, so you can get that fragrant woody taste in every bite of your pizza. All pizzas are also thin-crusted.

Medium pizzas ($15) generally serve 2-3, while large pizzas ($18) can satisfy 4 average diners.

I’ve tried their Adriano pizza (smoked salmon with onion rings and capers) and hmmm….. hmmm…. hmm….. I’m a convert now and I will only fall back on Pizza Hut only in case of emergency.

• If you pay using HSBC Credit Card, you get 15% off your bill. Valid till 31 December 2007.
• If you pay using OCBC Credit Card, you get 15% off your total bill with a min. spending of S$50. Valid till 30 September 2007.

18 Lorong Mambong, Holland Village
Tel: 6467 3662

The largest Vietnamese restaurant chain in North America with a customer base that captures the insatiable appetites of customers well beyond the Vietnamese has its Singapore outlet housed in the bohemian enclave of Holland Village . Pho Hoa is the place to go for a bowl of hot and tasty Vietnamese national soup commonly known as “Pho” (pronounced fuh). And since “Hoa” means “harmony” in Vietnamese, its name also exemplifies the way the restaurant chain markets itself: a friendly family style restaurant where one can enjoy an affordable and nutritious meal.

Pho Hoa offers a substantially uniform menu consisting of Vietnamese beef noodle soups. Principal entrée items include various grilled meats with rice or vermicelli and starters, in the form of spring and fried rolls, supplement the menu. There are also helpful images of the food for the uninitiated and they serve to both illustrate the items on the menu as well as educate guests on the various beef parts available as choices.

Knowing your meat is useful when you order their Adventurer’s Choice ($11.00). A potent mixture of various beef parts such as brisket, flank, and tendon amongst others, boiled in tasty hot soup, how could you even miss it? With four different combinations available, order your favourite parts and savour them with vermicelli in hot steaming soup. However, the noodles could be thinner and smoother and the flavour of the soup thicker, which is truly regrettable as pho is what we often identify Vietnamese cuisine with.

Ignore the jerky start and try out their Cha Gio ($2.95), which is a fried minced chicken and vegetable roll. Do remember to dip the roll into the sauce before you take that satisfying bite into its crispy skin. On the other hand, the Goi Cuon ($3.95) is quite a disappointment. Rolled with shrimp, chicken, salad and rice vermicelli, the vegetables seem a tad not fresh and even with the sauce, the taste remains limp.

The Com Ga Nuong ($8.00) and the Bun Ga Nuong ($9.95) refers to the Grilled Chicken and Grilled Beef respectively. They turned out to be the pillars of Pho Hoa as both were just scrumptious enough to lift spirits. Tender and succulent, and served with the usual combo of rice or vermicelli and a generous portion of vegetables, pho can well take a backseat in our minds for now!

Also deserving of compliments is their Banh Mi/ Pho Bo Kho ($8.00), Carrot Beef Stew served with Bread or Noodles. Chunks of juicy beef and carrots bathed in rich gravy will impress the discerning diner. Enticing to the palate and delightfully different from the soupy pho, it is a totally inviting item.

A highlight in their desserts selection is the Vietnamese version of our “Chendol”, the Che Ba Mau ($4.00), also known as the three colours drink. Besides being pleasing to the eye for its attractive colours, it also rejuvenates your senses with its sweet and refreshing taste. Made with coconut milk, sweet corn, and red bean amongst other ingredients, it simply is just irresistible!

Recommended:

1. Pho Noodle Soup with Beefsteak
2. Summer Roll & Fried Roll
3. Vermicelli Bowl

• If you pay using your HSBC Credit Card, you get 50% off first drink with any purchase of main course. Valid till 31 December 2007.

Note: This review was extracted from Street Directory.

Holland Village XO Fish Head Bee Hoon

Blk 46 Holland Drive #01-359
Tel: 6778 3691
Opening Hours: 12pm to 2.30pm, 5pm to 11pm, daily

The most famous place you can enjoy the liquor laced dish is here although you will likely chance upon similar versions of the dish at restaurants or food stalls across the island.

A hot spot for both lunch and dinner, this Holland Drive coffeeshop is almost always packed. Animated chatter from the diners and the noisy whir of the wall-mounted fans add to the atmosphere, as bowl after bowl of steaming fish head bee hoon is served. You can smell the tantalising scent of cognac in the bowl of delicious X.O. fish head bee hoon even before it reaches your table. The dish, although a little too milky, comes with a generous serving of fresh steamed fish and thick vermicelli. For the price you’re paying, you’re definitely getting a whole lot of fish with almost 15 pieces of fish head! The price ranges from $7 - $25 (up to 5 pax).

Also not to be missed are crowd favourites like har cheong kai (Shrimp Paste Fried Chicken) (S$7 per plate) and Buttered Prawns (S$15 for 5 pcs).

Ragazzi The Italian Kitchen

Blk 10 Ghim Moh Road
Gim Eating House

The 8 days said it’s an inexpensive, decent Italian grub in a kopitiam whipped up by young chef, Gabriel Cher, ex chef-de partie from The Oriental’s Dolce Vita. The arrabbiata is al dente linguine tossed with smoky slivers of bacon and tangy tomatoes ($5.50). You can also have funghi alio olio ($5.50) with bruschetta ($3 or $3.50 for 2 thick slices).