Palate Pleasers N Tummy Teasers
Makan Post-it (5) - No heaven to be found here
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Papilles love home-made ice-cream. So naturally we had to check Seventh Heaven out when we read about this 2 month old ice cream cafe in the papers. All it took was that one-liner in the review, the revelation that they “specialise in ice cream with a kick [read: booze]” and we were off in search of a piece of heaven 
We arrived at a relatively deserted and (in terms of location) definitely far-out, industrial building of sorts, albeit with a modern exterior, and there in a tiny corner, hidden-away from the rest of the world was a sign that said:
Unfortunately, there was nothing blissful about our visit here 
For starters, the usual ice-cream counter where one can view the range of flavours available was notedly absent, leaving us to rely on the menu to decide our choice of ice-cream.
We were recommended the “Sample Menu I” by one of the staff, but as X was curious to find out just how “generous” their scoops were, we settled on a serving of regular and large.
Above: The regular (i.e. single scoop). I guess their definition of “generous” deviates from the norm; everyone knows nothing irks me more than false advertising 
They would have been better off sticking to the usual “single scoop” descriptor, and I would have also felt less of a scam victim. $5.80 for a scoop of this proportion isn’t the most wallet-friendly, but I would’ve no complaints if they delivered on taste and quality; which of course they didn’t, hence the gripes. X’s vanilla bean ice-cream looked promising, studded with those ever aromatic black bits from the pod. A pity the subtle scent of vanilla which we so love was overwhelmed by a predominantly milky taste. The little red ball in the glass was apparently an alcohol-soaked cherry which tasted nothing like it; it tasted, as a friend would say, “funky” and not in a good way too 
My double scoop of Baileys and Chocolate Coffee Crunch fared no better. I could barely taste the alcohol and having tried The Daily Scoop, I know this is a far cry from how alcoholic ice-cream should be. Notice how the ice-cream appears melted? It sure wasn’t cos’ we had left it aside; it was served as such 
I don’t think melted ice-cream requires much elaboration, the texture (or lack of it) speaks for itself.
Definitely a very disappointing ice-cream session and being 2 months old, they’ve got much to tweak if they wish to remain in the local food scene
Seventh Heaven
No. 10 Raeburn Park #01-24/25/26
Makan Post-it (4) - A meal below $10
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Times are bad and cutting back on expenditures is now the new trend. With it comes the inevitable shrinkage of choices of dining places, with the dreaded triple “+” being the key factor of consideration. So what’s a foodie to do?
Source for affordable fare with minimal compromise on the palate of course Tall order, being the fussy eater that I am; we’ve nevertheless managed to find a place which fits the bill (pun unintended).
Remember this name the next time you’re thinking of going good ol’ fuss-free Western 
A good and hearty meal can be had here at Astons Specialities for less than $10! On a side note, I can’t emphasise “Specialities” enough. Stay clear of Astons Express, their sister outlets, which imho give the Astons branding a bad name
Teriyaki Chicken with sides of baked potato and BBQ beans ($6.5o)
Grilled Fish with Herbs with sides of tasty rice and corn cob ($7.20)
Each main course comes with a choice of 2 sides. You get to choose from a pretty wide selection of hot/cold sides Pasta dishes come with a soup-of-the-day, though I would advise you to stick to their chicken/fish dishes. Same word of caution for their steaks.
Average fare but good value for money 
Where else can you find a pot of tea at just $2.50?! Oh and did I mention there’s no service charge?
P.S. Cheap and palatable food always attract a good crowd so head down at odd hours if possible (i.e. have a later lunch/earlier dinner) to beat the queue!
Astons Specialities
#04-03 The Cathay
2 Handy Road
Not so wild over this rocket
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I’ve been wanting to check Wild Rocket out for awhile now, after reading and hearing so much about it and I must admit, watching the camera-friendly lawyer-turned-cook/owner of this bistro whip up dishes on the tv screen just ups the appeal of dining there by that much more. Willin Low certainly qualifies as Singapore’s very own Take-Home Chef 
Now, if you think I was going to let myself be distracted by this eye-candy, you’ve underestimated the professionalism that is papilles. Ok, so he wasn’t there when we visited, but we always let our tongues do the tasting/talking for this blog. Wait. Doesn’t everybody? Right. But you get what I mean
The signature style that defines Wild Rocket or Willin’s cooking for that matter, is the combination of east-meets-west (short of saying it’s “fusion cuisine”, a term which I remember the chef/owner had said he disliked as “it sounds pretentious”) and the pairing of humble ingredients with quality ones. A classic example would be our appetizer of Escargot atop polenta ($12):
Unfortunately, there was nothing appetising about this dish. In fact, I was thankful this wasn’t my first time trying escargots or I would’ve sworn off it for life The famed french snails tasted fresh off the soil and the insipid polenta did nothing for this dish. In fact, the polenta, which is mushed cornmeal/wheat made into a pudding, is nothing more than a high-class version of our humble chwee kueh (rice cake); and an inferior tasting one at that.
A disappointing start. And I remember remarking to X that if this marked the standard for the rest of their dishes, I was not looking forward to our mains. Thankfully, things took a slight turn for the better with their Crabmeat Linguini ($19.80) and Chilean Seabass with congee ($32.50).
Slivers of crabmeat tossed with linguini in a tomato based sauce, garnished with a generous sprinkling of laksa leaves. It was sweet yet spicy but not remarkable. The linguini was what I would term “not-quite al-dente”; it would probably have benefited from a few more minutes in the boiling pot.
The Chilean Seabass though, was a star of its own Perfectly seared, the fish flaked easily with every contact of my fork. Lightly seasoned and garnished with just a bed of preserved radish (i.e. chai poh), it went well with the small serving of plain congee. Comfort food, fine-dining style
Rounding up the meal was our dessert of Red Date Ice-cream ($9).
Nothing too exciting, but then again neither were the rest of their dessert selections. X liked the grainy texture from the bits of red dates mixed into the ice-cream though I wouldn’t say the same.
The menu changes every couple of months so I’m hoping it’s just the current menu that doesn’t really cater to my tastebuds. Guess I’ll know when I make another visit once the new menu is ready
Hangout Hotel, 10a Upper Wilkie Road
Operating hours and map here.
