A friend treated me (to thank me for my help) for brunch at the canteen in Orchard. I mean, THE CANTEEN. This canteen is no canteen, and its food are not canteen prices. They serve local dishes like Laksa, Mee Pok, XO Lou ShiFun, Fried Rice and desserts like Cheng Tng etc... and everything there does NOT shout "canteen".
I ordered their so-called specialty which is the Crab Mee Pok Dry. The Mee Pok was garnished with soft shell crab and few pieces of crab meat, towgay (beansprouts) and the chilli and sauce. The taste was ok I guess ( I mean anything with crab meat will make the dish taste sweeter) and I finished my mee pok in a jiffy.
The down side of this place is, the food portion tend to be small and so may not fill your stomach unless you order more stuff and the prices are too high. For this small portion, it costs S$ 16.90 (or maybe anything with crab in it is pricey?). My main grouse is, it did not even come with a small bowl of soup!
The up side of this canteen is, the service is impeccable. The waiters all speak English fluently, and were very attentive to your every need. They take orders fast, serve food promptly and prepare the bill promptly too. They also remember their regulars by names. And they even ask you if you need a glass of cold water even before taking our order.
The next impressive thing is, the serviettes they used are of very good quality. It was very very thick, macam almost like cloth. And this is impressive because for a small cafe that pays attention to these small details (which normally only high-end restaurants do), is quite commendable.
Food-wise, I would not pay $16.90 for a small bowl of Mee Pok. I rather have my $4 Tai Wah Mee Pok in Crawford Lane anytime. Reminded me of the famous and very expensive Hainanese Chicken Rice in Chatterbox - Mandarin Hotel. But that's Chatterbox, not Canteen.
I ordered their so-called specialty which is the Crab Mee Pok Dry. The Mee Pok was garnished with soft shell crab and few pieces of crab meat, towgay (beansprouts) and the chilli and sauce. The taste was ok I guess ( I mean anything with crab meat will make the dish taste sweeter) and I finished my mee pok in a jiffy.
The down side of this place is, the food portion tend to be small and so may not fill your stomach unless you order more stuff and the prices are too high. For this small portion, it costs S$ 16.90 (or maybe anything with crab in it is pricey?). My main grouse is, it did not even come with a small bowl of soup!
The up side of this canteen is, the service is impeccable. The waiters all speak English fluently, and were very attentive to your every need. They take orders fast, serve food promptly and prepare the bill promptly too. They also remember their regulars by names. And they even ask you if you need a glass of cold water even before taking our order.
The next impressive thing is, the serviettes they used are of very good quality. It was very very thick, macam almost like cloth. And this is impressive because for a small cafe that pays attention to these small details (which normally only high-end restaurants do), is quite commendable.
Food-wise, I would not pay $16.90 for a small bowl of Mee Pok. I rather have my $4 Tai Wah Mee Pok in Crawford Lane anytime. Reminded me of the famous and very expensive Hainanese Chicken Rice in Chatterbox - Mandarin Hotel. But that's Chatterbox, not Canteen.
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