Good Food Heals packages nutrient dense bentos, detox soups, cultured food and cultured drinks. The foods are prepared with alkaline water, are dairy free and high in probiotics. However, not all ingredients are organic! Good Food Heals is trying to ensure their bentos remain affordable and nutritious.  How this concept came about was from the belief that consuming specific nutrients would help achieve certain health goals more efficiently. Most of the bentos consist of eggs, salmon, fresh vegetables as well as ingredients such as kimchi, quinoa, soba noodles or pilaf rice! You can even top up for their homemade dressings to go along with the bento.

This little place shares a space with a dance studio, taking part of the first level. The cafe has a padded grass flooring and is really small, with less than ten tables. The weather was a killer that day so we decided to dine in. We came to realise that they had three different categories of bento sets designed to cater to different needs, such as: 

Kyoto Glow ($11.90) is specially catered for skin care and is high  in Vitamins A, C, E and Biotin. It promotes collagen creation to slow down ageing all while helping to detox your system. It has cultured creamy golden cabbage (kimchi), cultured Japanese plum citrus tomato, quinoa, smoked salmon and sesame spinach all on a bed of chopped lettuce and drizzled with our choice of Yuzu Miso. The Kimchi, smoked salmon, spinach and quinoa were nothing extraordinary and it was of decent quality. The cherry tomatoes were unusually sweet and fruity for a cherry tomato, most likely cultured but we're not really sure how. The Yuzu Miso dressing was citrusy and umami at the same time, in overall, combination of the bento and the sauce was pretty refreshing and unique.

C: As a health food junkie, I do know how much this ingredients cost in the market. Personally, I feel that the bento alone is not worth the price however its alright if you are paying for convenience?

S: I surprisingly like the tomatoes though


 Tokyo Teri Tamago  

The Tokyo Teri Tamago ($12.90) was made as a post work-out food with the 36 hour marinated teriyaki salmon, egg, broccoli, tofu, goji berries, soba noodles, cultured guava-pineapple relish, and cultured plum citrus tomatoes. It apparently helps with muscle recovery, promotes optimum protein absorption and boosts metabolism! Well taste wise, this wasn't anything special, just like the Kyoto Glow. The salmon was unfortunately dry, and the soba noodles were soggy, but the seasoning was good. There was nothing too memorable about this either, so I guess it wasn't impressionable in any way. 

C: This is like your usual Mcdonalds vanilla cone with intensified creaminess! 

S: A little too creamy. And also, plastic or honey comb? Hmm 

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It can be pretty challenging to find good and authentic Japanese food that would not result in you eating grass for a week. So it is our greatest pleasure to present to you Orchard Central's Sumiya Charcoal Grill Izakaya! The spacious restaurant is located at the rooftop garden of the mall with glass walls, offering a great view of the city. And although we didn't get any alcohol, it was so cute how they served their soft drinks. 

Their ingredients are apparently all air flown from Japan, making it one of the closest Japanese dining experiences in Singapore. Of course, such top grade food would be rather costly which is why we are extremely grateful for their seasonal promotions. The best promotion would be their lunch set meals (available daily till 2.30pm), going from $15.90 onwards for a variety of Donburi (rice bowls) served with sashimi, tempura grilled items, little appetisers and even a dessert! To complete the meal, you can even top up $1.50 for a juice or soft drink, but of course green tea comes in free flow. Oh and the best part would probably be that you get to choose whether you want normal rice or the sushi rice!

We ordered the Mixed Bara Kaisen Don ($18.80) and the Assorted Tempura and Sashimi of the Day Set ($21.80).  It sounds a little pricey but let us justify the cost. 

Both sets came with standard things like a fresh garden salad topped with delicious sesame dressing, really silky and smooth Chawanmushi with gingko nut and chicken, a small dish of potato-meat stew that tasted like home, miso soup containing enoki mushrooms, and a single mochi that was honestly quite big. The salad's dressing was unlike any other we've tasted so far; the sesame dressing had a special taste to it making the dish feel so light and enjoyable. And even though it may sound weird that the set was served with a small dish of potato-meat stew, we could not fault them for it as it tasted perfect. It was rich and served cold (weird huh) but it gave it a refreshing feeling, kind of like a palette cleanser.

The Mixed Bara Kaisen was flavoured with seaweed, sesame, wasabi and sashimi sauce (served on the side). All the components came together really well every mouthful was fresh and flavourful. We especially enjoyed the sashimi sauce which was a mixture of soy sauce and miso that packed a delicious umami punch. However we do find it odd the sashimi slices were not served chilled enough and turned warm from the rice pretty quickly.

C: They are so generous with the sashimi every bite has chunks of sashimi in it!

The sashimi in the assorted set fared no different, the top slices were not chilled to the desire we would have liked, but fortunately for the ice, the bottom pieces stayed cool and fresh. The tempura was did not have any weird taste, like the kind you'd expect from re-using oil, and it was more vegetable/prawn than flour!

S: I'm not a fan of sushi rice mainly because it's so sour but this wasn't too bad  

The sushi rice they served was not overpowered by rice vinegar and was served warm, making it an excellent complement to the dishes.

Do not overlook the dessert though. It may look plain and simple but this mochi is the bomb! We loved it for its thin and chewy skin that could still hold the sweet bean paste and cream filling. Even customers around us were enjoying it. Weirdly, from its green colour you'd expect a matcha flavour, but we didn't get any of that. Nonetheless, it was still sweet and pleasant.

Here's another local froyo place hidden away in town. Glacier Frozen Yogurt Cafe is located at the Basement 2 of Orchard Gateway and is one of the first shops that opened along with the mall mid last year. Not known by many, we chanced upon it during its grand opening. Does anyone else remember the friendly uncle with a kind smile giving out flyers to publicise their opening?

Food: 8.5 / 10
It can be a little disappointing because they change their flavours so regularly that sometimes your favs may be gone. And a little pricy in terms of froyo, maybe because they go according to weight? But its still a great treat especially in this killer weather.

Ambience: 8 / 10
There wasn't much to the Orchard Gateway branch, it was an open cafe located quite far away from the main crowd so it may take some time finding.

Service: 8 / 10

We enjoyed the good service from the friendly staff especially the sweet aunty behind the counter who was always smiling.

Until next time!

C & S. 

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The Strawberry Bingsu ($15.90) was a mountain of shaved ice topped with a generous amount of really fresh strawberries, strawberry jam and whipped cream. The huge dollop of whipped cream at the peak was light without being too sickening; it was such a guilty pleasure. Most of the shaved ice was fluffy like snowflakes, but sadly its texture varied to the extremes - from powdery and dry to chunky huge pieces of ice. This was definitely not the melt-in-your-mouth dessert we were hoping for. Maybe their machine malfunctioned but is this really excusable?

C: I think they added a whole box strawberries in this.

S: Please, I think they added a whole crate of mangoes in mine. 

The Mango Bingsu ($15.90) similarly was completely covered in fruits. We have to admit, they were a lot more generous than we expected as every scoop of bingsu had at least a piece of fruit in it. To top it all off, there was a scoop of mango ice cream, and condensed milk on the side! The mango was like honey, with a few exceptions, but no mango is perfect so away with that point. What we really liked was how the mango ice-cream wasn't sickly sweet, because the condensed milk already made it sweet enough. Sadly, the ice was clumpy at certain parts, especially towards the bottom of the bowl, disappointing us a little.

S: I couldn't finish it though, and I'm not sure if its just individual preference but the combination of the condensed milk, mango ice cream and ice shavings just wasn't my cup of tea. 

Hm, well for a first try, I think we're kind of getting what bingsu is all about. And albeit an interesting dessert, it hasn't impressed us so far. So would you pay this much for a bingsu? I think we would rather stick to the good old froyo. Tell us what you think! (Or maybe recommend other bingsu places!)

Food: 6 / 10
Way too pricey for shaved ice, but for the amount of fruits and toppings given, maybe it's justified? We're not too sure. Good sharing dessert though!

Ambience: 7 / 10
Its an open cafe situated in the middle of an open space. Really airy and nice! And most importantly, not too noisy.

Service: 6.5 / 10

Service was rather slow, we waited for about half an hour or more for our order. This could be attributed to the fact that there was only one person at each station! One cutting the fruits, one preparing the bingsu and one taking orders. The staff did sincerely apologise to customers for the long wait though, so it wasn't too bad. But if you're in a rush and there's a queue, we suggest you move on. 

Until next time!
C & S.

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Red Velvet Parfait

Nookie

Located at:

1 Selegie Road 

#01-04, PoMo 

How to get there: 

Nearest MRT - Dhoby Ghaut 

Opening hours: 

Everyday - 1 p.m. to 10 p.m. 

They have value-for-money all day set meals going at only $12.80++, consisting of a main dish which is usually a noodle, a small side dish, a drink and a dessert. The only downside to their sets was a lack of choice because we didn't really get to mix and match, what was there was part of the package whether you liked it or not. With our eyes bigger than our stomachs, we ordered an array of things, most of which were their signature dishes, and some of which we may have regretted. 

First to arrive was their Signature "Zhajiang" Noodles ($8.00), which was basically wheat noodles served with a ground pork fried in Zha Jiang (fermented bean taste). Noodle Stories' take on this came with a generous portion of fresh edamame and bean sprouts, with the Zha Jiang sauce served separately from the noodles. It was a first for us to see the sauce being served separately but we tucked in eagerly anyway. 

We enjoyed the umami taste and the the crunchy bean sprouts that (thank god) did not have that pungent aroma others normally do. The edamame beans were not mushy while the noodles still retained some of its bouncy texture. The whole dish came really well together with every mouthful being flavorful and enjoyable. 

C: A little too much meat and too little sauce? This gets dry after a while. 

S: If only this was a little more spicy.

We were happy for a good start! So next came the 'Biang Biang' Noodles Set ($12.80), which included the Biang Biang Noodles, two Dumplings with Chilli oil, Lemongrass Jelly for dessert and Soya Milk. All at one shot. Including the dessert. We found it really odd that they would serve the dessert together with the main course. We were at a loss of which to eat first.

C: We should eat the noodles first, if they get cold it won't be nice 

 S: But if the dessert gets warm it'll be even worse 

In the end we went with the dessert first. The Lemongrass Jelly with Fruits (a la carte: $4.50) was served with some huge blueberries and fresh slices of strawberries and a few canned mandarin oranges. The first bite had us overwhelmed by the strong lemongrass taste. It was way too overpowering and not in a good way. Honestly, the portion was not worth $4.50 but it came with the meal so we guess we didn't have a choice.

The Dumplings with Chilli Oil is also sold on their a la carte menu as 'Wanton' with Black Vinegar and Chilli Oil (a la carte: $6.00) for 6 pieces. 

S: Chilli? Oh god somebody prepare the water 

The chilli oil was slightly sour with hints of some fermented elements and the dumplings filled with fresh prawns and black fungus. The dumpling skin was not too thick either and held everything well. This would have been perfect if the black fungus had a nicer crunchier texture to it. Oh and it wasn't that spicy, making it totally worth a try. 

We're not experts on Chinese foods but Wikipedia has taught us that Biang Biang Noodles is this dish known as one of the '10 strange wonders of Shaanxi' because of its thick and wide shape, similar to a belt! Noodle stories definitely was on point with its size, and they served it with a similar fermented bean meat sauce, just like that of the Zha Jiang Noodles, but spicier.

C: Wow I think you can slap someone with these noodles.

S: How do you even eat this?! It should be called the WAH BIANG noodles 

The 'Biang Biang' Noodles (a la carte: $10.80) was also served with a soft and creamy hanjuku egg and blanched vegetables. Being so thick in width, length and thickness, it was really filling and hard for one person to finish alone. Maybe it was because it was so chewy but it got really difficult after a while. We discovered the trick to finishing this is to eat fast without pausing for too long, but overall it was a good dish but still strongly depends on personal preference. If you don't like thick noodles, please don't get this.

This arrived when we were almost done eating. Strange, we didn't remember ordering the leftovers of an egg stuck to a pan? 

Oh haha, silly us it turned out to be the meat buns we ordered like an hour ago? We figured it out after we flipped it around. What a strange presentation style. 

These Pan-fried Meat Buns ($6) had a really soft and fluffy texture and the stuffing was fragrant, sweet and delicious! The meat was a little chewy though, maybe it was overcooked just by a little However, that fried base was so, so, so oily! The bottom piece was significantly darker than the rest of the bun and it was soaked with oil, and also practically tasteless. We didn't really understand how this worked, but the buns were attached to the thing, and when we say attached, we mean you can't even pull it off without breaking the beautiful buns. It was possible that the oil they used wasn't hot enough when they fried it, but we hope they touch up on this. 

Oh and just a side note but by the time we got through the buns, the parts attached or close to the bottom (near the fried piece) were turning translucent from sucking up all the oil. 

And of course we had at least one other dessert - their famous Red Bean Pancake ($6). 

S: Oh dear this is shinier than Edward Cullen

Not in a good way. Their Red Bean Pancake was made up of thin pastry sheets deep fried with red bean paste in the middle and topped with black and white sesame seeds. Perhaps we had too high hopes, being big fans of red bean, but this dish was a huge disappointment. The outer layers were crispy and extremely oily while the inner layers were uncooked? If you pressed down on it, even only slightly, you could see oil ooze out. Yes, it was that bad. The one thing that saved this dish was its red bean past, which did not disappoint. It was smooth and not too sweet.

C: Reservations recommended if you wish to get a good seat or risk being elbowed while dining.

S: I'm pretty sure you'll get elbowed either way, the space was tiny.

Oddly the starters arrived before the drinks.

Mexican Quesadilla ($6.50) was basically "Tortilla with grilled chicken slice, sauteed mixed bell peppers, mozerella and fresh tomato salsa". Honestly, it was a lot better than we thought it was. We were worried they would serve us some cheap microwave quesadillas but it was pretty good and enjoyable! The chicken, although diced pretty small, wasn't dry at all! Plus the tortilla wasn't oily and the sauteed bell peppers added an excellent sweetness to the combination. Although it did feel a little boring, maybe some jalapeños would have been nice to spice it up just a little. Refreshing salsa with a 10/10 taste, totally worth a try.

Finally, the drinks were here! Or rather, oh god the drinks were here. 

Iced Butterscotch Cafe Latte ($4.70), first looking at the menu maybe you'd think: "Oh my what cheap coffee" but caffeine addicts here for their daily dose would be so disappointed. It was very milky with a very weak espresso.

C:I rather be drinking Kopi from the coffee shop nearby.

S: Get me a milo while you're there  

The Iced Dark Chocolate ($4.00) suffered the same fate. It was terribly milky and the "dark" component of the drink was drowned out by the whiteness of the milk. How disappointing. If we had paid any more than $5 for these drinks, we may have thrown a fit. Maybe we should have gone for their teas. 

We have not quite gotten over our Carbonara Parmesan scare (See: Supply & Demand), so to play safe we stayed away from the pastas and ordered the Baked Salmon Fillet and Grilled Pandan Chicken Chop instead.

Grilled Pandan Chicken Chop ($8.90) was served with light Coconut Sauce, Pineapple Salsa, Fries & Fresh Salad. It has a lovely pandan aroma and the Pineapple Salsa did a good job from keeping the dish from becoming too cloying. Sadly, the chicken was too dry and tough and the fries were extremely inconsistent (look at the photo like come on man). The fries served under the chicken were drowned in a mixture of oil (did all that moisture leak out causing the chicken's dryness??) and coconut milk, and not to mention some were overdone on the outside but undercooked on the inside. But to "make up for it" we also had others the total opposite of the latter. Such a pity. It could have been a great dish.

C: Such variety of fries but not one perfect one. I recommend coconut milk and fries to only brave adventurous souls 

We also got the Baked Salmon Fillet ($11.90) which was served with lemon butter sauce, Mashed Potatoes & Seasonal Vegetables. Surprisingly, they asked how well done we would have liked our salmon when we ordered it but they didn't deliver. We requested medium but it came slightly over well. But it's okay because the sauce, mashed potatoes and seasonal vegetables were delicious. If they can perfect their salmon, they can perfect this dish. 

We hoped to end our trip here on a sweet note with their insta-video-worthy Matcha Molten Lava Cake ($6.90) and Homemade Chocolate Brownie ($5.90).

Yup they do use butterscotch in everything. The homemade brownie served with ice cream was delicious! One thing though, the nuts. They seemed a little off? But other than that, it was a fantastic dessert. 

We'll be back soon!



Food: 7.5/10
Well, for food this reasonably priced we definitely lowered our expectations a little! But they still met the standards!

Ambience: 5/10
Beautifully decorated but oh so squeezy. Everything was so crammed it kind of made us a little uncomfortable.

Service: 6/10

Service-wise, we found the staff really friendly but not as approachable as the previous cafes, but we did find the in charge that day to be a little unenthusiastic and insincere when showing customers to their tables.

C: Thank goodness there was no service charge

To-Gather Cafe 

Located at:
84 Bedok North Street 4
#01-25/27
Singapore 460084

How to get there:
Nearest MRT - Bedok
Buses - 9, 24, 31, 222

Opening hours:
Sunday to Thursday - 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.
Friday to Saturday - 11 a.m. to 11 p.m.
*Closed on Mondays*

Montana Brew Bar

Located at: 

1 Selegie Road 

#01-04, PoMo 

Singapore 188306 

How to get there:

Nearest MRT - Dhoby Ghaut 

Opening hours: 

Everday - 8 a.m. to 9.30 p.m. 

We visited Supply & Demand on a weekend for lunch and were surprised to find the place half empty! We chose a table near the entrance to have a view of the whole restaurant as well as the dining area outside. Supply & Demand is designed with a chalkboard, old books and all sorts of classroom paraphernalia. We loved how spacious the place looked and the little decorations they left on the table.

S: The shelves were so clean though gosh, very impressive. 

Supply & Demand offers a wide range of main courses from pizzas, pastas, and grilled meat, to Asian rice dishes and even brunch on the weekends (11am - 5.30pm). We had such a hard time choosing from their extensive menu so we went for their chef recommended dishes - Carbonara Classico and a thin crust pizza, half Provinciale and half Tartufo E Uovo (Truffle and Egg) along with the Crispy Chicken Drumlets. But of course, we started out with their homemade drinks.



Iced Spiced Peach Tea ($8) basically tasted like iced black tea with faint traces of warm spice, artificial peach flavouring syrup and pieces of canned peach. Not very impressive, but the Iced Mint Tea ($8) fared even worse. At all. It tasted pretty much like lipton tea except they threw in a lot of mint leaves. It didn't have the minty kick and aroma we expected it to have. Even the Spiced Peach Tea had more of a punch than the Mint.


The Crispy Chicken Drumlets ($12) was served with a spicy, homemade dipping sauce. The initial taste of their homemade sauce was sweet and then you get the kick of spiciness. It complimented the chicken so well, but without looking at its colour, it tasted very similar to the bottled Thai sweet chilli sauce. Coincidence? We sure hope so. What we liked about the chicken was its crispy perfection and the fact that the tender meat didn't soak up all the oil. Despite the fact that it was delicious, it could have been slightly juicier. Although this dish could pass as a decent appetiser, we are not too sure if we would pay $12 (not inclusive of GST and service charge) for these 5 pieces of chicken.

C: The base kind of reminds me of prata though. More dense than fluffy. The Provinciale lacks something though maybe it needs a more tangy tomato base or spices. The dry chicken is only seasoned with lots of salt and a little pepper.

Putting aside the great balance of the dish, we were kind of let down by the lack of a smokey taste in the crust. We don't think they mentioned making wooden-stove pizzas, but it would have been nice to have the smokey flavour that would have set it apart from all the other pizzas in Singapore.


Lastly, we got the Carbonara Classico ($14) at the tasting portion. The carbonara was done in a classic way, with sautéed with crispy bacon, fresh milled pepper, tempered egg yolk, splash of white wine and loads of shaved cheese.

S: My mama always said, if you have nothing nice to say, keep your mouth shut. Then again, I never listened to her.

The Carbonara was a huge disappointment. Don't let the picture fool you. They weren't kidding with the LOADS of shaved cheese; the sauce was rough with parmesan with a hint of white wine that stood out like a sore thumb, it failed to blend well with the dish. Someone must have spilled a whole bottle in cause the Parmesan was so strong, it was hard to even finish those 5 mouths of pasta. Plus, the pasta was overcooked and the bacon wasn't crispy. Disappointing, Just disappointing.

Maybe we'll give the Esplanade branch another try. After we've recovered from our Parmesan scare.



Food: 5/10
The price really didn't match the quality! The carbonara was just... disastrous. Tartufo E Uovo and well paired Crispy drumlets with Homemade (still doubtful about this) Sauce were their saving grace.

Ambience: 10/10
The place was beautifully decorated and it felt very comfortable and clean, so no faults.

Service: 6/10
We see Supply & Demand receive so many bad comments on their service, especially on their crowded days. Well although it was pretty deserted when we went, the staff had their faults. They were in a daze most of the time and not very responsive to customers. But there were a few of them that were really sweet, catering to all our needs.



Until next time!


C & S.


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