Ding Tai Feng

Today went to watch The Producers, no link here since I'm not recommending the movie. To lazy too link everything up also. I saw the trailer for Invisible Wavesthere. It starred Asano Tadanobu. I thought it would be a great film.

I came home to immediately look up the movie online, IMDb no less, and found a comment written by A Nutshell Review and he slammed that film. Gave it only 1/10. I posted a PM to him after finding out that Invisible Waves was produced by the same people who made Last Life in the Universe which was an art house hit. Personally I saw that and loved it. I gave it 10/10. So it's very hard for me to accept that with the same writer, director, cinematographer and lead actor, they'd produce a flop. The worst thing, Cathay's only showing it tonight at 12+ and 2+, can't finding any other listings. Cathay's listings just sucks. They bring in all the interesting films but show them always at the most horrible times and only for like a day. sucks...

Anyway, I'm supposed to do a food review today not a movie one, so I'll get on with it. After The Producers, we went to Ding Tai Feng to eat. First thing I did there was to pull out the handphone camera. One thing I like most about restaurants is ledgers, if they have one. I like posing with ledgers, railings, balconies, whatever...

I think Jinwei can be my personal photographer already. wahaha~

Sorry about the poorly done montages, I still haven't mastered photoshop yet though I'm really working hard at it, learning something new every night.

Of course, Joan's not only about camwhoring, she also does her best to capture things around. This is Ding Tai Feng in Joan's eyes.


I like the "long" word. I know I'm a big big big Ah Beng, but I don't care.

After ordering the food while waiting for the food to arrive, I realised that I've only had pictures of myself taken, so I took this video.

In Chinese.

I think Jinwei will kill me if he sees this, but well, I don't think he reads my blog anyway. Maybe come by once in a while, but definitely he won't read. Wait, the screenshot of this video is of him, damn... How does Youtube come up with those screenshots anyway ah? Do they have a guideline of how's it done? Anyone knows please drop me a little note~ Thanks~

Finally, our food came...

Looks not bad...

The fried rice came first.
It was a pretty disappointingly small portion, but had generous servings of prawns, so well, it was still okay. The rice had enough egg taste, not bad, lots of eggs too it looks. But the rice was wet and sticky. Some people like wet and sticky rice, but I don't, I prefer the hard and dry rice, like those from Crystal Jade, but I think people like my mum and my sister would probably prefer DTF's to CJ.

Then came the xiaolongbaos.
In four simple words: not nice to eat. The first xlb into the mouth was okay, the meat was a bit too rough, but it was hot and juicy, but the second one which I ate straight after the first was cold. The xlbs cooled down very rapidly, so the remaining xlbs weren't that nice. The skin of the xlb is too sticky yet thin, so don't have much of the bao taste, the meat as I've said is too rough, not minced properly I think, the juice was nice, but the texture of the meat and the bao was not able to save it. The bao was also pretty small. It's the worst xlb I've eaten other than the ones at Noodle Hut, Harbourfront. Even the xlbs from Asian Kitchen, City Link Mall (also got branch which I don't know where) were lots nicer. But no xlb beats CJ or Yum Cha.

Note to self, must go Yum Cha eat before I fly. Maybe fit in a buffet, Jinwei interested.

Lastly was the Prawn Siewmais.
It's more like xiaolongbao with prawns on top. But unlike the previous xlb, this one had thicker skin and finer meat, but the prawns were hard. And the bao or siewmai or whatever you call it is bigger so I can't put the whole thing in my mouth to savour the taste of the pork and the prawn together.

Food aside, the ambience of this DTF we were at was open concept, in the middle of the shopping mall, so it was a bit weird. Personally, I don't like it. I prefer my own private space.

The service was also not that impressive. The waitress who greeted us didn't catch my joke which was supposed to be very sacastic, so I don't know if she's dumb or just not humorous.

waitress: (in Chinese) Two people?
joan: (pissed, isn't it obvious? also in Chinese) No, there's three of us. Can't you see the friend behind?
waitree: Three people, here please.
joan: (very very pissed already)come, let's go in.
jinwei: (nice guy) No la, there's only two people.
waitress: (still didn't get it) Here please.

We need people in the service sector, no robots please. That waitress was a bloody robot with no sense of humour and apparantly also without eyes and brain to process information. I still prefer the service in Holland Village's CJ, the Lamian Xiaolongbao one. The store manager there is always friendly, conversant and damn damn shuai.

Another thing I don't like is going to the cashier to foot the bill ourselves. I didn't pay the 10% service charge and 5% Goods and Service Tax (GST) for nothing. What the fuck, I didn't pay service charge and service tax for no service at all. Not to mention that both Jinwei and I are bloody lazy people, we gave Pepper Lunch a pass because neither of us wanted to cook our own meal.

I don't think I'll ever go to Dingtaifeng again. I think I'll stick to Crystal Jade. Especially the Holland Village branch~