Thanks to Steph, I had the fortune to visit Bandung, Indonesia for a short 3D2N trip last week. It was kindly sponsored by AirAsia and organized by OMY.SG. I was also lucky enough to be able to get away from work because it was a *relatively* quiet week.

On the Day 1, after arriving at the miniscule airport (read about the flight experience on Steph's), we went straight to a man-made lake, then a volcano crater (no, it wasn't at all Lord of the Rings) and a tea plantation before checking into our hotel in the "art deco/western style" district.

On Day 2, we went for an awesome brunch at Hummingbird (review here!), filling our tummies before we fill our other appetite - for SHOPPING! I think next to Bangkok, Bandung would be the best alternative to get clothes at an affordable rate already! Check out Steph's post about our buys!

Now, some pictures and captions.

Day 1

The Floating Market. Quite idyllic. Had our lunch there.

Followed by the volcano crater! Even if it looks pretty, try to imagine the smell of rotten eggs (sulphur) that goes with it. And 21 degrees wind. Still, it was quite cool when we first went to the fence and looked down. Totally didn't expect it.


Lifestyle bloggers Estelle and Agri were part of the tour group too, and they rented albino horses for a quick ride. The taller horse is called GaGa, very trendy.

The tea plantation was our last stop. Steph's face, introduces it all.

Our hotel, Gino Feruci, is in the "Braga" district, which has really cool architecture that made me feel like I'm walking down some streets of New York.


The room. Small and cosy. By then we were bushed! (But not before going to the convenience store nearby to buy Qtela Cassava aka Singkong chips and Tora Bika coffee.)


Day 2

Decided to go for nice brunch. Hummingbird Eatery was probably the best place I've eaten at during those two days. And perhaps the month, to be honest. Check out my review of it soon!

Next, shopping. It was surprisingly good. So good, I bought too much. That's because my maths is really not that good, and the conversion is so difficult to calculate! Excuses..

Here's the list of places we went to, in case you wanna go. 5 stars means great. Zero means don't bother. 

Jl. Setiabudi
- Rumah Mode *****
- Mode Plus *
- Fashion World ***

Jl. Dago
- Anthropology **
- Grande ***

Jl. Riau
- Heritage 
- Summit *
- Cascade 


This was what I ended up with. SGD400 of STUFF OMG WTF WHY DID I SPEND SO MUCH.

We also took a public bus that we hopped on to get from Area 1 to to Area 2 for like 30 cents sgd. Steph's usage of Bahasa really helped a lot. One thing we realized - it's actually not as easy to get a good taxi in Bandung as you would in BKK or SG for example. There are also a lot of rogue taxis that charge a minimum 20,000 Rupiah even if they have the meter on (which starts at 5,000 rupiah). We just paid anyway.


Then we had super awesome street food - the BASO MIE. Which means meatball noodles. The soup was clear chicken stock, has the umami flavour, chicken feet (yucks no), a big juicy meatball and tofu (they love tofu).


We had 2 bowls of noodles, one with sweet sauce and one with pepper/clear seasoning. Steph preferred the sweet one, but I liked the clear one!

We also tried the fried tofu and wanton dumplings from a street stall nearby. It was quite tasty too. They really liked their fried tofu because they sell it everywhere.


Then, as our shopping dwindled due to quality of shops, we decided to go back to the hotel as dusk approaches. We then came out a short while later for our pre-dinner snack. It was supposed to be our tea time plan, but we were there at 7pm. Oops.

The cafe is called SUGARUSH. With a name like that, do you already know what they sell?

Love the interior and decor! It is literally 3 doors down from the hotel.

And they sell pastries and sweet things. Of course. Apparently famous for churros, macarons and rainbow cake. Also, look at the Elmo and Cookie Monster Cupcakes!


And here is the famous rainbow cake. Had to take so much pictures because if I am eating all that stuff, I better milk the prettiness out of it. The sign on the cake says "Diet? Forget it!" Very apt, don't you think? 

It was surprisingly good though. Tasted like vanilla, very uniform flavour and soft chiffon texture. The cream coating was also pleasant enough. We finished it :O


The food there is not pricey at all. The churros we ordered were quite good, though it would be better if there was cinnamon! 


Finally we went to Kampung Daun for dinner. It was located ONE HOUR away from the city - but had a very chill Dempsey vibe to it when we got there (after rickety roads and potholes). It was also significantly cooler than the city.

 We ordered some local food - they were great, but if we had a local we might have ordered even better dishes!


Day 3

The next morning, our flight was delayed, so we did what 2 people stuck in an airport with 2 hours to spare during lunch time would do - we fled immigration (they kept the passport they have already stamped with the "exit" chop), hailed a taxi and told the driver to go to the nearest KFC. LOL.

It was really yummy by the way, though not like our chicken is that bad. Theirs is just better.

When we got back to the airport, we found that AirAsia had arranged for everyone to have a McChicken (not the burger) drumstick/thigh meat with rice lunch box. How thoughtful! It was also very dericious, perhaps even more so than KFC!

A short 1.5 hour flight later, we touch down to see THIS. #sghaze, welcoming us with its PSI 300.


Despite the haze, it still feels great to be home. I feel so blessed to be able to experience Bandung like no other though. What a trip!

Read my review of Hummingbird Eatery here!

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I'm glad to introduce to you guys a new eating place near Bugis area which is very good! I was invited by the kind folks of the original Arbite to try out their new branch at Aliwal Street, called A for Arbite.

In case you are wondering, "arbite" is actually German for "work". Their philosophy is in fact - Work Hard, Live Well.

I have previously blogged about brunch, and dinner at the Serangoon Gardens branch.


What I really liked about the place is the decor. Being in the Aliwal Arts Centre, it was themed as a school-room to fit into the place. The familiar legos carry on from the original branch at Serangoon Gardens.


Back to school! Very spacious and roomy, with no smell at all. That is my favorite - proper ventilation to a restaurant is very important but often neglected. It always bother me if I left smelling like what I just ate.


We had some specialty Gryphon tea to start. This was the Mango and Mangosteen Tea ($6) and very fragrant and good. You can't get this flavour outside!

Next up, some beer samplers! One of the key difference between this branch and the original is the emphasis on beer pairings. As a wine/beer/coffee idiot, the tasting notes that comes with the sampler was really helpful.


Here's my friend Steph aka stooffi who was dining with me. Look at her "WAH beer!" face. Lol!

Anyway, we were treated to an extravaganza of food thanks to Marc. It gave me a really good idea of the menu. When I asked him what is the difference between this and Arbite, he mentioned that there is more care taken to plate the food, the ingredients are slightly more upclass, there is more variety and of course the prices might be slightly higher. 

However I find that it is still very good value for money for the food you are getting!

The first dish to try is one of my favorites among the appetizers. The Kueh Pie Tee ($7.90) small bites is a modern take on a traditional dish - the filling is made with Japanese curried pulled chicken and you can add in lettuce, chopped nuts and apples julienne. The Japanese curried pulled chicken was so yummy, I can eat it straight, though the "container" is very crispy and enjoyable.

The Fingerling Truffle Potato ($10.90) was exciting - it's rough cut potato, tossed with truffle oil. Like wet fries, very satisfying. It wasn't exactly super mind-blowing though.

The next appetizer was the Beef Onglet Tataki ($13.90) which should definitely be consumed immediately because it does not do well when cold. The beef was a little chewy and raw as well. I would say if there's a toss up between this and another dish, choose the other.

The favorite of the night, and among the appetizers is the next dish. MUST TRY! It's the Scotched Egg ($7.90) which is actually a soft poached egg wrapped with minced bacon and pork, breaded and deep fried served with yuzu and wasabi hollandaise. Doesn't the ingredients sound exciting already? Because it tastes AMAZING. 

It is poached, so the egg yolk oozes out. If you are a fan of poached eggs and all the unhealthy and sinful but so good fringe ingredients, this is perfect.

The last dish among the Small Bites is the Eggs En Cocotte ($14.90), which is probably a tie for second place with the Kueh Pie Tee as my favorite appetizier. Made with foie gras pâté, spinach and eggs layered in a casserole and baked, served with croutons. 


The foie gras filling was generous, not too overwhelming and just very enjoyable when coated with the yolk of the egg.

And then we get to the mains! The carbs superstar here is the Smoked Duck and Porcini Fettuccine ($25.90) with slices of smoked duck breast, porcini mushrooms and baby spinach in a cream sauce. I really liked Arbite's pastas (their green tea fettucine at the Serangoon branch still remains one of my fav pastas of all time) and this smoked duck fettucine is no different. The pasta's al dente and the sauce is not too heavy so as to nicely complement the textures of the pasta and the saltish smoked duck, which was tender and juicy.

The next dish was the mini beef truffle burgers ($15.90) which turned out unfortunately to be the least liked dish of the night for me. It looked really cute and enticing with the mini pan fried quail egg on top, but sad to say I find the beef too dry and the truffle infusion (as written on the menu) non-existent. The  kriek onion jam did add some flavour to the meat but didn't do much to help with the texture. I did feedback this to Marc though and we both agreed that it is a personal preference thing -- some people actually like their burgers slightly on the drier side. 

Lastly for desserts! The very innovative and exquisite dishes really surprised me. First there was Edith's Mess ($9) which was made with crumbled meringue, fresh berries and bananas folded in whipped cream. It was named after Marc's daughter, Edith of course, which is so sweet. The dish was light, sweet and fresh. Great for a palate cleanser after all the sinfulness.

And finally, the highlight of the desserts section was the off-the-menu specialty item which is available at the Gardens branch, but on special request at Aliwal's. It is the Ginseng Panna Cotta ($10) that is made with cream infused with ginseng and wolfberries served with a honey and chrysanthemum sorbet and yuzu foam. It was super interesting. Initially we were apprehensive to ginseng, but the combination of the sweet and refreshing chrysanthemum sorbet and tart yuzu foam complemented the healthy and fragrant ginseng taste. YOU MUST TRY IT to know it. Really. It's not that weird.

There is currently a UOB 1-for-1 lunch set deal which is really value for money because it is 

Soup of the Day + Salad + 
Choice Of Smoked Salmon tossed with spinach tagliatelle in a light cream sauce 
OR Grilled Ribeye with condiments of the day and a black pepper sauce 
OR Roasted half spring chicken marinated in Cajun spices with condiments of the day 
+ Choice of Coffee, Tea or Soft Drink for $30+ only! Means $15+ per person!

Overall I must recommend A for Arbite if you are looking for good food, great space and little surprises to your meal. Thanks to Marc for the invite and hosting us to the very excellent dinner!
A for Arbite
28 Aliwal Street #01-01 Singapore 199928
Tel: 83212252
Tue - Fri: 11:30 - 23:00, Sat: 11:00 - 23:00, Sun: 09:00 - 21:00 

Food Review: A for Arbite at 28 Aliwal Street, Singapore 199918

I'm glad to introduce to you guys a new eating place near Bugis area which is very good! I was invited by the kind folks of the original Arbite to try out…