(Regretted not bringing my DSL camera with me.)

When the ramen came, he told me, “Try the soup!” And when I took the first spoon, it was GOOOOOOD! Damn! The best ramen I ever ate! Ramen Ten or any other ramen shops are beaten, hands down! t was so good that I scalded my tongue (And I hate this feeling! and the feeling is still there today.) because I kept drinking and it was hot. But it was so good! Even the egg was so special! It is a hard-boiled egg yet inside the yolk is still partially cooked only! Amazing!

So I mentioned it was expensive. Yes hell is! That bowl I ate cost $17! And we ordered a plate of gyoza (Japanese dumpling) cost $6 with only 5 pieces. I think the total bill amounted to close to $50. That is not a place I will go back for “casual” dining. More like maybe a birthday event or with my parents. But why I go back to eat again? YES!

“Thanks Louis for the birthday dinner (and your controller)!” :)

Their ticket stated their arrival time to be 9:10pm. So I was at Tanjong Pagar Train Station at 9pm. While waiting for them I took some photos of the station. It was my first time there and this station will no longer be around in mid-2011 as it will be closed down. So after this day (and the departure day), these photos will serve as memories of the place.

Their train eventually arrived an hour late at 10:10pm. I was so eagerly waiting to see them that when I finally saw them, I forgot that I needed to take photo of them arriving! They were in a very joyous mood! Even though we have not met for 2 years, we did not have the stranger kind of feeling. Well, not to me at least. :) Immediately we left the station and I drove to Orchard Road. I wanted them to see the Christmas lightings along Orchard Road. Because it was a working day and that the next day is also a working day, I did not expect Orchard to be crowded. But when we got there, I was so wrong! There were still many people walking around and taking photos (just like us).

We did not walk the entire stretch of Orchard Road because that will be done on another day as I have planned. So we walked a short distance from Wheelock Place to Ngee Ann City before we turnaround and went back to the car. It was already almost midnight. But before heading for home, I brought them to have supper nearby my house. It was their first time eating fried hokkien prawn noodles. They said Malaysia does not have such a dish. And after supper, we headed home where my mum was staying awake into the midnight just to greet them! =)

I forgot to mention that this is Christina’s (in red) and Lee Xiang’s (in white) first time out of their country. And that was it for the first few hours upon arrival in Singapore. They slept at my house for the entire trip. I have a spare room in my house where they both had sofa-bed to sleep on and my laptop to stay connected with their friends. Full “hotel-like” service! “Haha!“

Never have I watch a movie of such a story line. Although totally lack of action packs scenes, this movie is slow yet meaningful and nice to watch. Salmon that is in the “in-between” (heaven and earth) get to see what is going on with her family and how to help her family deal with her death and eventually leading to the murderer. However I am quite disappointed with the ending though. -Spoiler Alert- The murderer was not caught by the police because he ran. And eventually fell to his death over a cliff. Disappointing because he should have been caught and punished for all the murders he committed to the young girls instead of such an accidental death.

Actually I expect to not understand a lot of the movie since is not an action pack movie and is from a novel. But thankfully there was not much I did not understand, just a couple of scenes. Like why did they show that Salmon ran out of the underground gen (where she was assumed murdered) when she already died? I can only assume that was her spirit running from her body.

When I got the ticket, I thought … “Bones?! I am not watching Doctor Brennen right?!” Anyway, go watch this movie with your love partner, will be nice experience!

The top left shift was bought from Domanchi in Bugis Junction. It was a nice piece and having 20% discount. Then I bought a Kobe Bryant t-shirt from B.I.R.D. Okay actually that and the next yellow shirt are not really for Chinese New Year. But because I wanted a Kobe Bryant t-shirt and more yellow shirts, so I bought both yellow. Bought a long pant from Messy in Bugis Village and so is another short pants. That pair of white shoes cost me only $29.90! I did buy a pair of white shoes at Tampines 1 not too long ago. Did not know why I spent to buy another pair. But I like this with the brown and since it was not too expensive, I bought it. Oh not forgetting the first ever pair of jeans I bought myself from Uniqlo! I really hate jeans but decided to give it a try since Louis said, “It’s a must to have one pair!” Now then I realised I forgot to take photo of the first shirt I bought from Orchard.

Oh well anyway I spent about $277.90 in total. Are you done with your Chinese New Year shopping? :)

Salad with Tomato Apple Sauce: Even Miss M who does not like vegetables, enjoyed this dish! At first sight, we thought it was chilli sauce. But the chef told us it was tomato sauce that had bites of apple in it. The salad is so fresh. The bowl served was cold, which tells us that the whole salad had been in the fridge and served chilled. Truly unique sauce we felt.

Assorted Mushroom: Only included in Sakae Set. I was afraid that the mushrooms would be bitter but I was wrong. The mushrooms were very soft. Mushrooms lovers will sure like the way this dish is cooked.

Teppan Chawanmushi: I thought it will just be those normal chawanmushi served in a cup at Sakae Sushi. But when the chef poured egg into the onion skin, I was stunned! Topped with a prawn and a slice of Japanese fish cake, this chawanmushi is the best! The onion skin gave the egg a little onion taste too. The egg was not overcook too. This is a must-try!

Beef Set: Served with Tofu Steak and Vegetable, Louis and Edward had their beef medium cooked. Louis let me have a cube of the beef. I always prefer my beef to be well done because I am afraid of eating blood. But this beef was cooked so nicely that it was not well done yet no blood.Very tender too. This is going to be the next set I will probably eat when I go eat again.

Sakae Set: Served with Tofu Steak, Duck Meat and Salmon. I thought duck would be an interesting choice since I have not eaten Japanese cooked duck before. Although the salmon was rather thin and nothing very special about it, the duck was not the same. Served with this special sauce that made the taste very special. The meat was easy to bite too. About the Tofu Steak, it was soft on the inside, kind of crispy on the outside! Never really like tofu but this is nice! Topped with a little steak and carrot. Another must-try side dish.

Chicken Set: Served with Half Shell Scallop. Miss M ate this but I did not try it. But according to her, it was good! Looks good anyway. I did however eat the scallop since she did not want it. I thought initially it was clam but Louis told me it was scallop. Both of the scallops I ate, I felt that there was kind of like sand inside. Not very pleasant for me although the taste was good. At least I tried something new!

The overall dining experience was excellent! I had to confirm with the staff if I could use my Sakae Dollar to pay and she helped me to check and double check. The chef asked if everything was alright. Did not have to call the waiter to refill water as the waiter went on her round quickly. The price was more affordable than I initially thought. I thought each person will cost about $20. But with $11.90, a set lunch can be eaten. Eating teppanyaki at a food court will already cost about $8 without drinks. I was told by the staff that there will be new dishes in the menu soon. So I hope by my next visit, I will see more varieties!