so while my dear aussie pig is sleeping..let's put in a little blog post shall we..

but first up..the patriotic side of me wants to stand up and shout

HAPPY 41ST BIRTHDAY SINGAPORE!

*ahem*. yes well, what do you expect when i've been put through a good 13 years of national education? oh well. i think everyone has a love-hate relationship with this little dot on the map (oh what a cliche description)*kat looks around..hmm..i think i had better stop here before i get into trouble with any lurking blog-gahmen-spy.

ok remember the post before the last? the one where i talked about the upstaging relatives and their spark of buffet indulgences? yes that one. im sure you remember what im talking about now.

well, it's...

*drumroll

Verdict time!

and away we go...

The Line
Shangri La Hotel Singapore

first up, some shots of the lobby. (yes i know they are lousy shots, i had to use my hp camera, but they are shots no less):

the very grand reception area with a huge chinese emblem thingy
the bar/lounge area with more chinese motifs in the back
our typical ginormous hotel floral arrangement (and my uncle on the right)


and then we move on to the interiors of The Line:



i was quite blown away at the interior initially only because it wasnt typical of a hotel restaurant and a world-apart from the chinese-influenced lobby area of the hotel. however, i quite like the way u have to take an escalator down to reach the entrance of the restaurant. this allows the first-time (a.k.a swaku) diners to be totally mesmerized (a.k.a unglam open-mouthed) as they take the escalator trip down. must be a marketing ploy. oh well.

another thing that i immediately noticed was the loud orange used throughout. very obvious is the colour palette of orange against white white and more whites.

everything was pretty at first but after a while it got darker as the sun set and i realised the lights were really dim. it wasnt just where we were seated but all the seating areas included. i and everyone else in my family found it uncomfortable and beyond the ambience/mood/romantic level of lighting.

ok now on to the more interesting bits..the food:

plate number 1 - the cold creatures of the deep
well, i was mighty excited when i saw the variety of seafood. but after tasting them, i regret setting such high standards for the food. the thing in the miniature fish-bowl is seasoned raw scallop and it just tasted salty. the oysters were fresh and erm, yeah, fresh. the alaskan crab leg was so salty i drank an entire cup of water at one go (and i dont like drinking water) and the shell thingy (sorry! i just forgot the name! argh!) tasted, tasteless.

plate number 2 - a little jap, a little italian and a little of the unknown
again, i wasnt impressed with the food. starting at 12 o'clock, the quality of the salmon sashimi and swordfish sashimi was on par with any mid-priced japanese outlet (to make matters worse, the wasabi wasnt hot at all), the mushroom cheese gratin was completely tasteless, the avocado salad was the only saving grace on this plate, the unidentifiable salad not worth comenting on and finally the smoked salmon with cream cheese and spinach was plain blah. let's move on shall we...

plate number 3 - fishy dishes and a pizza
since its the odd one out, lets start with the pizza on the left. generous with the cheese and a cripsy thin pizza base. pity i couldnt really taste much of the toppings. at 12 oclock, the dory was dry and pretty much tasteless. but thankfully, just when i was about to give up and run to the nearest hawker centre, the grilled salmon with cream sauce gave me reason to remain seated. perfectly cooked without being overdone the salmon reamined juicy and tasty. the cream sauce was light and complimented the freshness of the fish wonderfully.

plate number 4 - i love desserts!
as u can tell, i gave up with the main courses and went straight for my favourite part. honestly, its hard to go wrong with desserts. at 12 o'clock is their signature tiramisu and i can taste why. creamy, melt in your mouth with just the right amount of coffee liquer. delicious. at 6 o'clock is the cream puff and at 9 o'clock is the jam-filled chocolate layered cake. both of which are lip-smackingly good.

plate number 5 - chocolate overdose
i love chocolate. im a chocoholic. there ive said it. actually, thats not true because i basically love any type of dessert (except mint) but id take chocolate over anything else anyday. hence, my choices on this plate. honestly, i have no idea what these three items are because they dont label the individual desserts. but trust me on the taste. each and everyone are fudgy, gooey, chocolately, rich and oh-so-sinful. yum.


platebowl number 6 - siew mai noodles
i read a review on Asiaone and it said to try their wanton noodles because it costs a whooping $20 on the a la carte menu. by this time i was already really stuffed so i shared a bowl with my dad. and im glad i did because it wasnt worth bursting my seams open for. the soup was alright, the quail egg just tasted like good'ol quail egg and the char siew was just chewy without being sweet enough. the worst has to be the wanton. i felt like i was eating siew mai in a bowl of soup. bah.

plate number 7 - rabbit food
sorry about the half-eaten carrot cake. i was clamouring for something to take away the awful taste of my previous dish i dug in the minute i sat down. and a good choice it was. it was a huge slab of chocolately (see! i told u i lurveee my chocolate.) carrot goodness. not overly sweet with a gorgeously light cream cheese topping, i devoured the cake easily though i was supposed to share it with my mum. oopsy. heh. and see that colourful ruler-like thing? thats a piece of white chocolate. pretty huh? 100 points for presentation.

platecup number 8 - the shocker
let me clarify. i call this the shocker not because it was shockingly good. the waiter explained that it was a promotional drink and so we tried it. tasted alright. like fruit punch that you can make at home with pineapple syrup, lychee syrup and 7up/sprite. but here comes the shocker. it costs an alarming and shocking $13+++. i rest my case. it is well-deserving of the title.

all in all, i wouldnt go back again. the number one reason is that the food doesnt warrant the pricetag at all. $65+++? give me a japanese buffet anytime! although service is top quality and the desserts are to-die-for, burning such a deep hole in one's pocket is just not..not..not ethical!

to sum it all up, let me quote my cousin,
"it looks just like a fancy foodcourt."

well said cousin.
well said.