A & W @ Jewel

After a very long wait, A & W is finally back in Singapore! You know the excitement if I have to queue 2 hours just to have this meal even after a couple of weeks since Jewel opened its doors officially to the public. This is actually a throwback post. I've been holding out for the A & W waffles but guess it is not happening in the short term. It was already 9pm when we got our food and I'm kinda on a diet so didn't want to push to eat waffles at this time.

My friend picked the cream cheeze chicken combo ($10.90) which comes with cream cheese burger,  curly fries and drink. I guess to be honest, fast food is fast food. The expectation cannot be out of this world. It's definitely a good burger as long as you know you are having fast food.

As for my 2 Piece Fried Chicken Combo ($8.90) it's very much an American fried chicken. For most american style fried batter, it has this distinct charred taste that isn't very oily. While it isn't my kind of favourite, it's authentic american fried chicken.

Personally, I was more excited with my root beer float (+60 cents from my meal). It is definitely what I imagined and reminded me of my childhood days. It's 100% A&W. This makes me happy because it's probably what I queued for. I couldn't remember the mains that A&W served because I was too young and there's no memory besides the waffles and the root beer float.

The million dollar question got to be is it worth the queue? Honestly, no. Queuing 2 hours for fast food is crazy. My friend was nudging me to queue for Shake Shack instead but I already tried it in London and no way was I going to queue for that in Singapore. In fact, I felt a little crazy queuing for this even. I mean, if you have the means to travel overseas, surely 2 hours can be better spent doing something else?

If not for the passion of blogging about food, there's no way I would have queued for this.

A & W
78 Airport Boulevard, #B2-209, Jewel Changi 

Hello Kitty Orchid Garden

It's weekends again! This week is pretty much holiday filled with Hari Raya Puasa smacked in the middle of the week. It's a rather lazy weekend for me not doing much besides reading up on some topics of interest and renewing some good luck at Full of Luck Club. I might write more about it another day.

The feature this week is my long anticipated visit to Hello Kitty Orchid Garden! I kinda waited over 2 months to visit this place but the queue still hasn't died down. I went there during Hari Raya Puasa so perhaps it's the public holiday effect. An interesting observation was that there were lots of families in the queue unlike most of the other long queue places I dined at. Waiting time was around 1.5hrs.

Given that we queued so long, Vain Pot and I endeavor to try as much food and drinks as our stomachs can take. We kicked off our visit trying their Cumbernade ($7.90) and Apple Cinnamon Tea ($7.80). The Cumbernade is a mock tail combination of cucumber syrup with lemonade and soda. It tastes refreshing if you like frizzy drinks. I quite like the Apple Cinnamon Tea which was light with distinct apple and cinnamon taste. I find the cookie at the side really weird though with its edges wet. 

One of the biggest plus points I give the Hello Kitty cafe was how the Hello Kitty Orchid Garden theme was incorporated into the food. The other theme cafes like DC Superheroes cafe at MBS didn't successfully achieve this to a large extent of their menu. I picked the Big Breakfast ($18.50) for its Instagramable presentation and a soft spot for waffles. It's a rather interesting dish. The maple syrup had a bit of fruity taste attached to it and the two waffles that came with the meal had different texture. 

One was crispy, the other fluffy cake like texture. One the whole, the meal was definitely decent but nothing fantastic taste-wise so don't expect too much.

Vain Pot's choice of Enchanted Forest ($17.90) was highly satisfactory. In her own words, "I don't know what I'm eating but this is really good." Haha! Basically it's quesadillas with prawns, avocado slices mashed with Hello Kitty cafe's very own wasabi sesame mayonnaise sauce. I tried it, it's really good. I especially like how the tangy wasabi taste was brought out. 

For desserts, we picked the overhyped cat in paradise. It's a combination of mango mousse with almond crumble and a hazelnut sorbet. It doesn't taste horrible but nothing fantastic. The biggest plus point for this dish is how the colors are pleasing to the cameras.

Summing up our visit, I would like to come back again to try the other parts of the menu. I felt the queue didn't felt as long as I waited perhaps because of my wonderful companion. The food exceeded my expectations for a thematic cafe and can definitely hold its own as a tourist attraction and even against other cafes. The aesthetics of the food and venue makes it a wonderful place for families and couples alike. 

Hello Kitty Orchid Garden

Singapore Changi Airport, Terminal 3, Arrival Meeting Hall Central, #01-22

(The fastest way to get a seat during peak hours is to visit the place in pairs)