I got Trapped

I won't name this under Cafe hopping but I did do this on the same day. (Shows how much you can do in one day hahah.) After coming from Lavendar we headed over to Bugis which didn't take long but what took a while was trying to get there FROM BUGIS. Well you can go out by the exit more towards the Raffles Hospital side. Then walk along Victoria Street (you will see this painting on the right) until you reach Jln Pisang turn right into it.

At the end of the road turn left and then into Kandahar Street. ANDDD after a few bars you will eventually reach this door. Welcome to Trapped, one of the many escape room companies in Singapore. 

So a little back-story on why we decided to get here. We were still in Windowsill around 2-2:30pm maybe? And with the afternoon left I decided to have an impromptu escape game session. One of my favourite past-times this year. Luckily for us we found out about Trapped where they have a student discount of $14 (non-peak only)!! Considering that usual prices for escape rooms range from $18-$25 (non-peak), that is a really good price. You can walk in but you may not be guaranteed a room so the best you should do is make a reservation online or call them up too. Payment can then be made on site.

Some dos and don't of the place.

The main lobby is pretty small.When you walk in you'll be greeted by the front desk and as seen from the photo above there are some lockers where you can place your belongings. Don't worry if your bag is too big because their seats double as a storage unit as well but of course it would be safer to lock your valuables up in the lockers or just bring a smaller bag.

Now for the moment of truth. 60 minutes. 3 people. 1 room. Time to get cracking. We chose the "Trapped in Hostel" which (unbeknownst to me until we got there) has the LEAST lighting. And when they mean bad lighting. They mean they will turn off pretty much all the lights in the room leaving maybe some creepy yellow fluorescent lighting in a corner and just hand you two torches. (one torch per pair but they round up) It is really quite hard to see. Umm the ambience is pretty creepy with the music and all. No jump scares for you thrill seekers unfortunately (maybe try out the Friday the 13th room–it's the scariest apparently) but it is quite a brain teaser. Downside is that the room is quite small and there isn't a lot of mind-blowing discovery in here. Without revealing too much I would say there was a good mixture of game mechanics and not just numbers and numbers to deal with padlocks. (my pet-peeve whenever I go to an escape room) So good on them! In my opinion it was a pretty challenging room, probably on the moderate side of difficulty. I have to admit we went through several brain stumping moments when we had to resort to hints but otherwise we managed to figure it out. I'm looking forward to trying out the other rooms by them because it is an affordable option for those who don't have the fund for bigger rooms by companies like Xcape Singapore. (I'll blog about that another time)

Trapped Singapore

1st Outlet: Kampung Glam Shop Houses, 42 Kandahar Street,

S198896 (Near Arab St)

Email: enquiry@trapped.sg

Tel: +65-6292-2177

2nd Outlet: *SCAPE

2 Orchard Link, #02-20/21/22

S237978

Email: enquiry@trapped.sg

Tel: +65-66369722

Opening hours

Mon to Thur: 11am - 11pm

Fri to Sun: 11am - 2am
www.trapped.sg

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Cafe Hopping I: Get Lost In The Woods– Windowsill Pies

Dessert time!

(Pre-note: To all, I had gone cafe hopping to the three wonderful places I blogged under the title CAFE HOPPING I all on the same day, November 14 2014, I've just been really busy with other things so please bear with me.)

Take a cab. That's right. To all those who can afford it please please take a cab. It is so easy to get lost goin here if it is your first time. ..........-realizes there is a shorter way- okay let me be clear. Unless you know some way I didn't go or you're with someone who has been there before, don't walk from Farrer Park MRT. My bro told me it's within walking distance but holy bleep that was like a walkathon man. We got lost and misdirected countless times as well. However, it was totally worth every drop of sweat. (Only when we headed home did we realize it is soo much easier to come from Lavender MRT station. Why so dumb.)

 

I actually  noticed this cafe but I let us walk right past it because I thought it was a place called "IN THE WOODS". DUMB. I was even thinking to myself: maybe we can stop by here later it seems pretty cool! SUPER ULTRA DUMB. I made us walk around another 20 minutes.

LOOK AT THE DOOR. MEMORIZE THE DOOR. And you will definitely be able to find this place. It has by far the coolest and swankiest interior I've ever seen.

 Follow the cafe on social media!

Cool ass ceiling.

 Very classy and still a hint of rustic-ness goin on.

 Of course we are here for the pies. Give US PIE. 

I didn't know I could love a banana pie until I ate Windowsill's Banana Cognac (One of their best sellers, along with Strawberry Lemon pie and S'mores pie.)

On top is a light sweet banana mousse and the bottom layer is banana with crunchy nuts mixed with salty caramel. It isn't excruciatingly sweet so it makes you want more. Though it still can please those with a sweet tooth. But my favourite part is really the crust. (I love my pastry.)  Light, crispy and slightly sweet. I could eat it all day. Seriously.

Due to time constraints and still being full from the ramen at Santouka's, we only ate one pie there and took the two other pies to-go. (the strawbery lemon and s'mores pies)

Packed in a very cute brown box it is placed in a brown bag for you to bring home the goodness to your family or just eat it alone in your car or something. Either way, Windowsill Pies is one of my favourite places to go for dessert now and coffee too. Not only is the food superb but the environment is very relaxing and it isn't too packed either. The price is comparable to other pies/cakes out there in the mainstream market so I think it is more than worth it.

What are you waiting for? Go grab a bunch of friends and have a pie tasting fiesta at Windowsill Pies today!

Windowsill Pies | Artisanal Pies and Tarts

78 Horne Rd, 209078

9004 7827

Tue-Thur: 11am-9:30pm

Fri: 11am-10:30pm

Sat: 10am-10:30pm

Sun: 10am-9:30pm

Closed on Mon

http://windowsillpies.sg/cafe/

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Cafe Hopping I: Santouka Ramen for lunch

Hey there, so on to lunch:

We headed over to Clarke Quay after the interview by MRT which didn't really take very long. It's not too far from Farrer Park. Located on the second floor of the Blue area, it is pretty easy to get lost and not be able to find. But after a series of circles and incessant map reading together with the help of some of the shop owners, we managed to get there. Easiest way to find it is to get to the Blue area and cross to the other building, and it's in the corner after a Malay padang restaurant, Rendezvous Restaurant Hock Lock Kee.

This is what you would see when you reach there.

We arrived around 12-1pm and didn't have to wait long to be seated. If you intend to visit Santouka, come a little earlier maybe 11am-12pm in order to avoid waiting in line for a bowl of ramen. Trust me though, it's worth the wait if you do get stuck in line.

I was quite surprised when we went in because the place was much smaller than expected. Explains the long queue because the service was pretty fast and there were waiters ready to take our orders.

I apologize to the great waiter we had for he patiently waited for us fickle-minded teens to order. In the end we settled with a small sized bowl of Shoyu (soy sauce) ramen and Chicken ramen. Shoyu ramen is one of their more popular flavours and they only serve 15 bowls of chicken ramen each day so I HAD TO try it. (Since I'm not really a beef person anyways– almost every other bowl comes with their signature Toroniku Cha-shu which is simmered pork cheek meat.)

Shoyu Ramen: pork broth mixed with soy sauce, this flavour is not very salty. And I've had my share of super salty ramen. Urghk. The Cha-shu is also simmered in soy sauce to bring out more flavour. Once you bite into the meat you can taste that the meat is so full of flavour and very tender not fatty. It comes together with pickled plums, their signature topping which is slightly sour but crunchy, bamboo shoots and Kikurage (jelly ears). Size-wise, the small bowl we ordered is probably enough for those who aren't really heavy eaters because just one bowl of this is sure to fill you up. But do note that the increase in the size of the bowl only increases the amount of soup and noodles inside the bowl– not the meat.

Chicken Ramen: This dish taste totally different from the Shoyu one. I think it's a bit saltier but also more wholesome. Truth be told they both have such unique tastes. Both are great to try. So here was where the problem stemmed: the chicken ramen only has one size which is equivalent to a medium bowl. BUT I am not a heavy eater so I was afraid of not being able to finish it. I'm glad I did try it though. It comes with a mollet egg (an egg which is more cooked than a soft boiled egg) bamboo shoots and spring onion garnishing. Although one of my pieces of chicken was pretty tough to bite into, the rest were tender and once you bite in you can taste the juice infused into the chicken. The taste was something like a teriyaki-ish taste but a wee bit saltier.

Surprisingly we managed to finish the two bowls and one more mollet egg. (it is nice so buy it if it's not already in your soup for just another dollar)

We shared both bowls of noodles to get a taste of the two and yes I liked my chicken one more!!

I was realllly full afterwards. And it was so worth the money. The total bill was about $31+? with the GST and all. Not too bad for what you get. I've been to places charging you $16-$19 a bowl for some salty yuck asdfghjk.

So yeah head on down for you bowl of ramen today or if you're in the Clarke Quay/Chinatown area, this is a place you ought to visit.

Santouka Ramen
6 Eu Tong Sen Street, #02-76 The Central, Singapore 059817
6224 0668
Daily 11am-10pm (kitchen closes at 9:45pm)
http://santouka.co.jp/en/index.html


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Cafe Hopping I: Breakfast at Sarnies'

The day started off with breakfast before a job interview at City Square Mall for the SITEX 2014 and yeah I got the job. (But when we got there, surprise surprise– apparently more people knew about it too hahah. Oh well I'm just into the job experience yeh.) 

Look at the friendly staff (and carrot dude)

So Sarnies is a little cafe which my bro had recommended to me. A few must-indulge foods/drinks would be their f*cking good brownie ($5) and their coffee. 

Cool table number concept

Firstly I tried the brownie and wow is it ahmayzang. It is so moist and crisp on the outside. Base isnt hard or burnt like some brownie places. It is so moist it melts like a chocolate bar in your mouth. You might be thinking: but $5 for a brownie??!?@?# Stop thinking about it and go try it if you have that $5. Skip that starbucks frap just once.

Secondly, we ordered the ham and cheese crossant.  ($7.50) I have to say, their crossant pastry had a unique taste, it was buttery and there was a hit of cheese (?i think) in it that made it really yummy even just from eating the little crips that brpke off from trying to cut it. The ham was thinky sliced and paired with fresh parmasean cheese (from the taste of it). It took me a while to put my finger on what cheese was inside. Yum yum yum!!! I kept wanting more. 

Other thing one can try is their wraps as well. I heard it's pretty good. Their cafe has a rustic feel like all the wooden furniture inside and even using poker cards as table numbers. The guy cooking was wearing a carrot hat. What could be more mesmerizing than that, right?

Sarnies' is pretty easy to find once you get out of Telok Ayer (Blue line) MRT station. It takes less than five minutes to walk to though their cafe name isn't too obviously plastered on the glass so I guess you might miss it if you're not paying attention. Despite it being 9:30am when we got there, there were a lot pf people at the cosy cafe. It is packed pretty much the whole day according to my bro so it's definitely worth checking out. Oh and all prices stated are inclusive of GST.

Sarnies' cafe

136 Telok Ayer St. , 068601

Mon-Fri: 7:30am-10pm (kitchen closes 9:30pm)

Sat-Sun: 9am-4pm

Breakfast until 11am

6224 6091

www.sarniescafe.com

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Freedom: Cat Cafe and BH6

Test run with the camera on the bus hahaha

The day started off early with the LAST PAPER bio MCQ. I really hope that the fact that I went to sleep almost half the time does bit me in the ass.

After that I headed to Bugis and here comes the two highlights of the day: The Cat Cafe and Big Hero 6!!@$#%!!

Entrance of The Cat Cafe

 Now this post is going to be very photo based be deal with me please. (Trust me the cats are really cute)

The Cat Cafe is really hard to miss but it is actually in a place where many people pass by especially if you frequent the Bugis scene. It is righhtt above the Burger King outlet next to the entrance of Bugis Street on the third floor.

Right from the moment I entered I felt the place was really homey and cozy. Loved the lighting, shiok air-conditioning and all the little nicknacks on the counter. (They even have a cat clock which I regrettably did not take a photo of) Entrance fee is $15 and it comes with a canned drink (yay passion fruit tea!). One of the owners briefed us about the dos and don'ts, we sanitized our hands changed our shoes to cute green slippers and headed right on in!

They have quite a number of cats and boy are they cute. The cats were so friendly and just wanted to be loved hehe. Some cats liked a good back rub while others favoured head scratching. I just loved the wide range of breeds of cats that they had here. Oh and they also have comfy chairs so you can put your stuff down and maybe even cuddle a roaming kitty. The cafe is pretty spacious so no worries about feeling claustrophobic. [PHOTO TIME]

Love the interior!

Missy is my favourite cat there, she's got such a unique pattern on her face and loves head scratching.

Swanky bandanas are always a plus.

And ties.

Don't disturb sleeping cats yeh!

This is Ginny she can be easily recognised for her orange coat but also the "8" tattoos on her ears.

I love the nicely framed photos of all the cats and their little bios below it!

They even have these things where the cats can climb across the room which is pretty cool to see.

ahhh too cute

In case you forget what the rules are.

I think this is patches haha I am obsesses with it's eyes.

All in all, my friends and I spent a good one and a half hours there. (Would have totally stayed longer if we weren't rushed for time, as the entrance fee has no time limit for your visit– and the cats are just too cute.) It was a really good experience because the atmosphere is very relaxing (Props to whoever choses the acoustic music!) and the owners were super friendly too telling us which cats liked what and what their actions meant. (Like some cats sway their tail around and sit quitely meaning they really wanna be petted hahah) I'd definitely wanna come back soon and I recommend it to others looking for such an experience. Before going I actually searched up several other cat cafes and there was one review I saw where the cat cafe looked really bare and super cramped up! I'M SO GLAD THIS WAS NOT LIKE THAT.

The Cat Cafe

241 Victoria Street, 188030
Nearest MRT: Bugis
Monday: 3pm-10pm
Tuesday-Sunday, Public holiday: 10am-11pm
63386815
thecatcafe.sg


Big Hero 6 is a must see with a group of friends! Funny, action and even as a good element of tear-jerking moments. Well thought out and of course, my weakness, all things adorable and cute– Baymax. I won't want to spoil much but it really is a good film so check it out yourselves yeh haha. Oh and also before the movie they showed a short which was really good too! I'm so happy they did this cuz I haven't seen a good short like this before a Disney movie for a while now.

->Big Hero 6 trailer for those who have not seen it yet.

Enjoy your weekend!

Live. Laugh. Love.