This is the 2nd time I have visited this restaurant and maybe because I had such an excellent meal during my first visit I have really high expectation this time round.
 |
| Chicken dum briyani |
 |
| Tandoori chicken |
 |
| My favourite cheese naan |
Wednesday, August 6, 2014
The Banana Leaf Apolo - Worth Coming Back
This is the 2nd time I have visited this restaurant and maybe because I had such an excellent meal during my first visit I have really high expectation this time round.
Rendezvous Hotel Singapore - A Memorable Weekend!
Book a Club Room under the Weekend Getaway Package. We were escorted to the Club Lounge at 11th floor for our check-in and being served by Guest Service Executive Ms Marjorie Anne Morlales who was very helpful and attentive to our needs and requests throughout our stay. We were really glad to be given a room on the same floor and complimentary late check out at 3pm.
As we plan to do some shopping at nearby The Cathay in the afternoon, we requested for our complimentary afternoon tea at the Courtyard to be postponed to after our checkout the next day, and Ms Marjorie contacted them to make the necessary arrangements. However later in the afternoon we changed our minds and decided to have our tea on the same day and again Ms Marjorie gladly make the necessary arrangements for us.
After our evening cocktail we requested to be given a tour of the Executive room and she personally bought us to the room and patiently explained the different designs concepts of the Club/Suite rooms located at each floor i.e. 9th to 11th floor.
On comparison the Club room might be slightly small but it has everything you need for a comfortable stay. But if you need to have a bathtub in your room you will need to book a Suite as Club Room does not come with a bathtub.
Other than the personalized service by their staff what I love about this hotel is the location. It is situated right within walking distance between Bras Basah MRT Station and Dhoby Ghaut MRT Station, and there is a 24 hours food court just next door so you do not need to worry about getting hungry in the middle of the night. I also love the fact that the hotel has a KTV studio in case you are in the mood to sing your heart out.
On a negative note, we found the Courtyard too stuffy for our liking. Although the Management have positioned several large fans around the café but it is not enough to convince us to revisit the café again.
Having said that the afternoon tea were delicious and the next time when I stay here again I will requested them to be enjoyed in my room which would be perfect.
Overall we have a great weekend and will definitely recommend this hotel to our friends. We will like to thank the staff at the Club Lounge, especially Ms Marjorie for a memorable stay. You guys are fantastic!
As we plan to do some shopping at nearby The Cathay in the afternoon, we requested for our complimentary afternoon tea at the Courtyard to be postponed to after our checkout the next day, and Ms Marjorie contacted them to make the necessary arrangements. However later in the afternoon we changed our minds and decided to have our tea on the same day and again Ms Marjorie gladly make the necessary arrangements for us.
After our evening cocktail we requested to be given a tour of the Executive room and she personally bought us to the room and patiently explained the different designs concepts of the Club/Suite rooms located at each floor i.e. 9th to 11th floor.
On comparison the Club room might be slightly small but it has everything you need for a comfortable stay. But if you need to have a bathtub in your room you will need to book a Suite as Club Room does not come with a bathtub.
Other than the personalized service by their staff what I love about this hotel is the location. It is situated right within walking distance between Bras Basah MRT Station and Dhoby Ghaut MRT Station, and there is a 24 hours food court just next door so you do not need to worry about getting hungry in the middle of the night. I also love the fact that the hotel has a KTV studio in case you are in the mood to sing your heart out.
On a negative note, we found the Courtyard too stuffy for our liking. Although the Management have positioned several large fans around the café but it is not enough to convince us to revisit the café again.
Having said that the afternoon tea were delicious and the next time when I stay here again I will requested them to be enjoyed in my room which would be perfect.
Overall we have a great weekend and will definitely recommend this hotel to our friends. We will like to thank the staff at the Club Lounge, especially Ms Marjorie for a memorable stay. You guys are fantastic!
Room Tip: Rooms at the 11th floor share the same floor with the Club Lounge.
A few days later ...
A few days later ...
Yan Leng K, General Manager at Rendezvous Hotel Singapore by Far East Hospitality.
Dear Alson_Teo,
Thank you for taking your valuable time to write this review to compliment Rendezvous Hotel Singapore. We are glad to hear that you have enjoyed your stay with us.
Our hotel is well located in the Arts and Heritage District, which complement well with our Art-inspired brand for travellers who are looking for a different experience. Other than this, we are also great for business leisure travellers as the Central Business District is just 10 minutes away and Orchard Road is just next to us. This presents our guests plenty of options while they stay with us.
Beside location, at Rendezvous Hotel, it is our pleasure to ensure every guest leaves with a great stay experience and the personalised service is key to our success. We appreciates that modern travellers are more sophisticated and we cater to the different needs of our guests by serving them as individuals. We will pass on your compliment to Majorie to spur her to continue with such great services.
On our revamped Club product, Club Rendezvous, we are pleased to hear that you find it great. We have spend a lot of effort in crafting the product as we do not want to provide products or services that our premium guests do not require yet have to pay. As such, we have carefully selected the right ones for our Club guests.
With regards to your feedback on the Courtyard. We take note of the heat in the Courtyard and we do have plans to bring down the temperature of the Courtyard to ensure it is comfortable for our guests. We will announce the plans once we are ready to do so.
Thank you for choosing to stay with us. We look forward to welcoming to Rendezvous again.
Yours sincerely,
Yan Leng
Thank you for taking your valuable time to write this review to compliment Rendezvous Hotel Singapore. We are glad to hear that you have enjoyed your stay with us.
Our hotel is well located in the Arts and Heritage District, which complement well with our Art-inspired brand for travellers who are looking for a different experience. Other than this, we are also great for business leisure travellers as the Central Business District is just 10 minutes away and Orchard Road is just next to us. This presents our guests plenty of options while they stay with us.
Beside location, at Rendezvous Hotel, it is our pleasure to ensure every guest leaves with a great stay experience and the personalised service is key to our success. We appreciates that modern travellers are more sophisticated and we cater to the different needs of our guests by serving them as individuals. We will pass on your compliment to Majorie to spur her to continue with such great services.
On our revamped Club product, Club Rendezvous, we are pleased to hear that you find it great. We have spend a lot of effort in crafting the product as we do not want to provide products or services that our premium guests do not require yet have to pay. As such, we have carefully selected the right ones for our Club guests.
With regards to your feedback on the Courtyard. We take note of the heat in the Courtyard and we do have plans to bring down the temperature of the Courtyard to ensure it is comfortable for our guests. We will announce the plans once we are ready to do so.
Thank you for choosing to stay with us. We look forward to welcoming to Rendezvous again.
Yours sincerely,
Yan Leng
The Elizabeth Hotel - A Romantic Weekend
Booked a Suite to celebrate my wedding anniversary at The Elizabeth Hotel under their Weekend Savers promotion which include breakfast for 2 persons at Modesto’s. The actual anniversary was in May but I have to postpone it due to work commitments and I briefly mentioned it when I make the reservation with the hotel. So imagine my surprise when I stepped into the room and saw the lovely decorations done by the hotel staff. Thank you!
Unlike most of the other hotels under Far East Hospitality, Elizabeth Hotel does not have Club rooms. Instead guests that booked Primer, Family or Suite rooms enjoy access to the Executive Pavilion that is stock up with complimentary drinks, cookies, cup noodles, muffins, apples, etc, so you don’t have to go hungry in the middle of the night.
The suite is very spacious and they even have an iMac in the bedroom and a air ionizer in the living room which is so cool! The only problem I have is the toilet bowl i.e. you have to flush several times in order to get rid of the toilet papers. Overall it was a pleasant stay I and will definitely recommend Elizabeth Hotel to my friends.
A few days later ...
Mohd Faharudin M, Manager at The Elizabeth Hotel by Far East Hospitality
Dear Alson_Teo
We are privileged to be a part of your celebration and turning your stay experience into a memorable romantic weekend.
It has been a pleasure having you with us and making The Elizabeth the choice hotel for your special occassion. We have highlighted the challenge with the flushing system and the Engineering team has sinced rectified the issue.
The team look forward to welcome you back and thank you for recommending us.
Have a pleasant week ahead
Best Regards
Mohd Faharudin
Hotel Manager
We are privileged to be a part of your celebration and turning your stay experience into a memorable romantic weekend.
It has been a pleasure having you with us and making The Elizabeth the choice hotel for your special occassion. We have highlighted the challenge with the flushing system and the Engineering team has sinced rectified the issue.
The team look forward to welcome you back and thank you for recommending us.
Have a pleasant week ahead
Best Regards
Mohd Faharudin
Hotel Manager
Monday, August 4, 2014
PARKROYAL on Pickering - Picking on Pickering
Stayed in an Orchid Club Premier Room.
We were directed to a separate check in/out counter just beside the main counter as we have booked a club room. The check in was fast, took less than 10 mins, not enough time to finish our welcome drinks (lime juice) and we were told that we can bring the drinks to our room.
The bed and pillows are very comfortable but we didn’t like the position of the bed as it is facing towards the wall instead of the window, and we were also disappointed that there is no bathtub in our club room.
We decided to let it go as we can still enjoy the view at the sitting area, and moreover we were allocated a corner room which is our favourite kind of room. Later we were told that if you really like to have bathtub in your room, you need to inform them before, or while you are checking in and they will made the necessary arrangements.
Another issue we had during our stay is the air-conditioning in the room. We woke up feeling cold in the middle of the night but could not find the control for the air-conditioner. We searched throughout the room but couldn’t locate it, and thus thought that the hotel is using a central air conditioning system and there is nothing we can do about the temperature in the room. We were only told during check out that the control is actually beside the bed, instead of on the wall near the room's entrance like most other hotels.
Another thing unique about this hotel is that it does not serve bottled drinks, and instead it offers drinking water bottled in glass container, which I hearty support since it is an eco-friendly hotel. My only concern is that I am not sure if the hotel's housekeeping team will replaced them every time a guest checked out as there is a risk that an ill-intentioned guest might replace the drinking water with some other forms of water for the next unsuspecting guest.
We next went to the club lounge for our afternoon tea and totally fell in love with the place. It is very spacious, cozy and relaxing, exactly what we need after a tough week.
The staffs stationed there are really friendly and we were surprise when they greeted us by our names during breakfast the next day.
However we were quite disappointed with the outdoor terrace. Not sure if it due to the weather, but we found a few houseflies at the terrace, and apparently one decided to make itself comfortable at the club lounge. We didn’t notified the staffs as it immediately disappeared out of our sights when it flew into the lounge.
After our afternoon tea we went around exploring the hotel and were very impressed with its unique design. I also have a great time chatting with other hotel staffs, and they gladly advised me on the best time to visit the hotel, where to find good restaurants nearby, etc.
Our adventure continues in the evening when we were about to enter our room, we heard moaning sounds, and other things that distinctly indicate that our neighbours next door were having a very intimate moments in their room. But we couldn’t hear anything in our room when we closed the door which I guess is a good thing.
Feeling bored as our dinner reservation at a nearby restaurant was still an hour away, I decided to take out the mini alcoholic drinks for some photos taking. Big mistake. I have no idea that there are sensors in the mini bar and each time you take out an alcoholic drink it will be recorded, and throughout the stay I took them out a few times. Luckily the nice lady who processed our check out was very understanding.
Overall it was a pleasant experience and we are definitely coming back.
A few days later ...
We were directed to a separate check in/out counter just beside the main counter as we have booked a club room. The check in was fast, took less than 10 mins, not enough time to finish our welcome drinks (lime juice) and we were told that we can bring the drinks to our room.
The bed and pillows are very comfortable but we didn’t like the position of the bed as it is facing towards the wall instead of the window, and we were also disappointed that there is no bathtub in our club room.
 |
| Speakers' Corner |
Another issue we had during our stay is the air-conditioning in the room. We woke up feeling cold in the middle of the night but could not find the control for the air-conditioner. We searched throughout the room but couldn’t locate it, and thus thought that the hotel is using a central air conditioning system and there is nothing we can do about the temperature in the room. We were only told during check out that the control is actually beside the bed, instead of on the wall near the room's entrance like most other hotels.
Another thing unique about this hotel is that it does not serve bottled drinks, and instead it offers drinking water bottled in glass container, which I hearty support since it is an eco-friendly hotel. My only concern is that I am not sure if the hotel's housekeeping team will replaced them every time a guest checked out as there is a risk that an ill-intentioned guest might replace the drinking water with some other forms of water for the next unsuspecting guest.
 |
| Afternoon Tea |
We next went to the club lounge for our afternoon tea and totally fell in love with the place. It is very spacious, cozy and relaxing, exactly what we need after a tough week.
 |
| Breakfast @ Club Lounge |
 |
| Outdoor Terrace |
After our afternoon tea we went around exploring the hotel and were very impressed with its unique design. I also have a great time chatting with other hotel staffs, and they gladly advised me on the best time to visit the hotel, where to find good restaurants nearby, etc.
Our adventure continues in the evening when we were about to enter our room, we heard moaning sounds, and other things that distinctly indicate that our neighbours next door were having a very intimate moments in their room. But we couldn’t hear anything in our room when we closed the door which I guess is a good thing.
 |
| Mini bar |
Overall it was a pleasant experience and we are definitely coming back.
A few days later ...
Gino-PARKROYAL, General Manager at PARKROYAL on Pickering, responded to this review
Dear Alson_Teo, thank you for taking the time to share your thoughts with us. I have noted your comments on the mini bar and rooftop terrace and have shared your feedback with the team for their immediate review. I am also delighted to read that you enjoyed your Orchid Club experience and it will be our pleasure to welcome you back soon for another memorable staycation. Gino
Sunday, August 3, 2014
Resorts World Sentosa, Equarius Hotel - Into the Equarius Zone
This is a great hotel if,
(i) You love having romantic stroll with that special someone after dinner.
As it is located quite a distance from the other hotels and the main attractions, it is advisable to take a shuttle bus to reach the hotel unless you are familiar with the place.
My wife and I decided to take a stroll after our dinner at the Hard Rock Hotel as it was getting late and we did not want to wait for the shuttle bus. It was quite a nice walk, took us about 15 – 20 minuets from Festival Hotel to get back and do look out for cars traveling towards the direction of the hotel.
(ii) You want lots of personal time with him/her.
The hotel is very quiet and it can be quite eerie at night. I can almost imagine a huge “DO NOT DISTURD” sign hanging at the hotel’s entrance. Hardly see any hotel staff within the hotel’s premises and most of them are minding their own business with minimal interactions with the guests. I wonder if anyone would stop me if I decided to take off my shirt at the lobby. Should give it a try if I decided to come back here again. We decided to stay very close together throughout our stay in case one of us got lost and left the other person alone in the middle of the mysterious Equarius Zone.
 |
| Breakfast @ Forest |
(iii) You prefer to gaze at each other during breakfast.
Breakfast spread was very limited and the quality quite average. I was not exactly sure what I was paying for but certainly not for the food. Since we are in a “Forest” maybe I should not be expecting too much.
Don't think I will be coming back again.
Ippudo - Definitely Worth Queuing!
Have been noticing this restaurant at Westgate for quite a while because of the long queues outside and I couldn’t help wondering if it is that good. So during one of the weekdays my wife and I decided to check it out and fortunately there was no queue that day.
Not really sure what to order we finally decided on Akamaru Special and Bonito Tonkotsu simply because they really look good from the menu. I was also surprise to be asked if I want the texture of my noodles to be soft, medium, hard or extra hard which is something new for me.
Anyway their ramen are really delicious! If I am only allowed a bowl of ramen a year, it will definitely be from this restaurant! Do take note that they do not do takeaway or packing of leftover food so make sure you only ordered what you can finished.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)