Simply Salads

Wanted a quick lunch and I often crave for salads. Why? I think it's just a pure desire to clear out my system sometimes.

So I was pretty happy to see a new salad place just opposite my place especially since there aren't any other salad joints in the vicinity.

Pumpkin Salad and Beef Salad

I know the above picture really looks messy.
That is because this salad bar has ready made salads at the bar instead of creating it only when you order. In my opinion, this does not make a fresh crisp salad the way I like it.
The pumpkin salad was tasty enough as pumpkin baked in advance does not go soggy in the bar. However, the lettuce and raw vegetables in the beef salad have gone soggy with the dressing.
This place has broken the number one salad rule- only add in the dressing before the customer is going to eat it.

Also, strangely enough the counter staff asked me if I wanted to add sauce when the salads already had sauce.

What I can't complain about is the price- $6.50. The meal wasn't measly in size and it filled me up. For that price, I may still go back if I just want a salad.

Location: Orchid Hotel

Bubble Tea at Orchid Hotel

I wanted a quick lunch and grabbed a salad next door to this joint.

I call it Bubble Tea at Orchid Hotel because I can't find a English name for this. My bad Chinese means I can't read the Chinese characters on this bubble tea shop. Can someone help out?

Lemon Tangerine tea

Anyway, I got a lemon tangerine tea. This is my second time in this place, the first time I tried a milk tea. Both times, I could not taste any tea.

In fact, I call this lemon tangerine water.

Location: Corner shop at Orchid Hotel

Noodle Bar

One can probably get a good cheap bowl of prawn noodles opposite the road at Blk 5 Tanjong Pagar Plaza. But if you want to enjoy the comfort of slurping a bowl of prawn noodles in aircon, this is the place.

I ordered a Kopi C and prawn noodles. Paid about $7.

Prawn Noodles

This wasn't bad. The prawn and pork stock was sweet. I prefer my stock to be more "prawny" in taste but  this days, it is harder and harder to find that. After all, prawn heads and shells need to be used to achieve that making it a potentially very expensive dish. 

This portion is not large. So if you are looking for a large lunch, I don't recommend this place. But otherwise, i think its a good size for lunch.

Other dishes they have are laksa and other variations of the prawn noodle.

Location: 1 Tras Street #01-16 Orchid Hotel, Tanjong Pagar

Price: Usually under $10 for Noodles and a Drink

Massage Culture

This place does massage. I used them for my baby shower. A friend of mine said they weren't very good after they massaged her.

However, I felt like some pampering and they are so close to my house.

I did foot reflexology of 30 mins for $24. This was their January special

After I did it, I have to concur that I didn't think that they were good. I didn't feel any different from when I walked in...

Location: 1 Tras Link 01-05 Orchid Hotel, Tanjong Pagar

Ramen Keisuke Tonkotsu King

Soup base comes in plain, black spicy and red spicy.
My favourite is black spicy. It gives a Szechuan peppery kick to the rich pork broth.

Black Spicy Ramen

You can choose the strength of your broth base, texture of noodles, amount of chicken fat (tastes good but can give you a heart attack).
There is also free complimentary stuff like boiled eggs (this is not the one that is runny inside), marinated bean sprouts and sesame seeds.

Complimentary sesame seeds and boiled eggs

The broth is excellent but pork slices are ordinary. But the key to any good ramen is the broth! Hearty, strong and favourful, it makes for an excellent meal.

There are always crowds outside, so get in eat and move on somewhere else for a chat. Otherwise, you may see plenty of unhappy people queuing outside and glaring at you through the glass.


Location: 1 Tras Link, #01-19 Orchid Hotel
Opening Hours: Daily 11:30am- 3pm, 6pm-10:30pm
Prices: About $12- $17 per pax