I had the pleasure to join in the company of some like-minded friends to break bread and share plates at the Halia at Raffles Hotel recently for their new Communal Feast ($260++ for 4 to 5 pax). The restaurant and chef had come up with the communal dining concept as a tribute to the Asian culture, where sharing food during meals is common, and also as a way to stand out from the notion that proper restaurants have to serve properly portioned individual servings. I find myself sharing food all the time as a food blogger even at the most proper of restaurants, so I like the fact that it is being catered for here at Halia. We had so much fun bonding over food, photography and more food!


Here's a look a the menu. There's really plenty of food to go around!

Apparently chef's philosophy is that he loves to see a table groaning under the weight of many many dishes, shared by everyone. Hence the idea.

We had a jug of the very Asian drink, barley, and started with some thick mushroom soup (DELISH!) served in a pot to go with soft fluffy bread (Halia's known for those!)



Next were the starters. Pick and choose what you like, and in this case I couldn't find fault in anything!





The famous chili crab sauce from their Chili Crab Spaghettini, now served as a dip for the toasted baguettes! THIS IS SHIOK max. Why have the crab when you can have the sauce?


Some baked kingfish collar, lightly flavoured with veggies, and so fresh.

And this, which is a modern and healthier take on the Chinese minced meat noodles. Instead of noodles, it comes with strips of finely shaved turnip and carrots! What innovation.


The steak, while spartan looking, is actually roasted with gunpowder, which explains the black exterior. Very interesting method that chef had wanted to try.

Lastly, some fun coconut popsicles, and one of the most delicious sticky toffee pudding I've had recently. I remember the desserts at the Halia Botanical Gardens to be of similar mind-blowing quality. Really, what a kicker to end of the feast!

MUST HAVE.


Here's the young and handsome chef explaining to us about his philosophy regarding food he makes, and experiments with.



Halia never fails to impress with their innovative approach to Asian cuisine in finding new ways to delight and tantalize, while keeping to the basic of very good food. It's definitely a top recommendation from me for anyone in the City Hall or Raffles Hotel area to visit Halia if you'll like to taste Singaporean flavors done in exciting and surprising manners. Go for lunch, brunch and then bring all your friends and family down for a communal feast in the evening!

The Halia at Raffles Hotel
1 Beach Road, #01-22/23 Raffles Hotel, Singapore 189673
+65 96391148
Mon – Fri: 11.30am to 10pm, Sat, Sun, PH: 11am to 10pm
The Communal Dinner is available daily from 6 to 10.30pm and priced at $260++ for 4 pax, inclusive of a communal jug of lemongrass or iced tea.

Thanks to FoodNewsPR and Halia for the invite!

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I am bracing myself to reactions to this post because it’s McDonald’s and HPB’s Healthier Dining Programme in one sentence. So I’m just going to say it upfront. McDonald’s is probably one of the most sneered upon food places that people see as unhealthy, so isn’t it preposterous McDonald’s to join in the programme?

Well, that’s one way to look at it.
But I prefer to choose to look at it in another way:

That by getting one of the most ubiquitous and popular food restaurants to join in the Healthier Dining movement, consumers now have more convenient ways to be healthier. Because over 120 McDonald’s restaurants in Singapore, of which many are 24/7 is now able to offer people healthier fast food at a very affordable price, conveniently.

Think about it. If HPB did not invite McDonald’s to join because they are afraid of repercussions from the public, we would be 120 restaurants short of places that offer alternatives or lower calorie meals as and when you want it (24/7, or delivery). So bravo to both for making this become a reality!

I went to try out McDonald’s Healthier Options last Sunday morning because I wanted to taste for myself what the Healthier Option combinations are like, for breakfast this time. When I arrived at the AMK Gardens branch (the one with the drive-in opposite the library), I noticed the HPB HDP decal on the door, right smack in the middle at eye level. I was surprised because I’ve never seen a sticker placed so prominently on the doors of any McDonald’s. It’s a good sign.


I had the pleasure to have another friend join me, and together we tried 2 breakfast sets. Both came with the Corn Cup (with whipped margarine on the side), and a black coffee. What is amazing is, I’ve never tried the McD corn cup before, nor the wholegrain Chicken McMuffin. And I almost never get the coffee when I am there for breakfast.


The Chicken McMuffin comes with a wholegrain muffin, something you can opt FOR FREE. To my surprise when I bit into it, it wasn’t hard or dry like one would expect of a wholegrain muffin. Instead it was soft and fluffy and I could taste a hint of grains in it, but it doesn't overpower the experience. It was so good (both taste and nutrition-wise), that I think I’ll order all my McMuffins in future with the wholegrain muffin. Again, it’s FOR FREE. Value for money!


 
Next, corn cup! It might sound weird that I’ve never tried this in my life (I’ve tried their Apple Slices before) but I think its because I’m always distracted by the fries or hashbrown. Again you can swap those out for a corn cup with your meal for free. And I LOVE CORN. Even better when it’s all taken off the cob (so there’s no need for gnawing) and ready to eat with a spoon! I tried it without the whipped margarine, and with it, and found that having it without doesn’t make much of a difference. So skip the margarine and enjoy the corn in its pure salty sweet and fragrant goodness. In fact, I wish they’d serve these plain corn kernels at cinemas in place of popcorn. 


Lastly, I tried the Sunrise Roll Chicken Ham! A relatively new breakfast menu item, I find the Sunrise Rolls to be perfect for when you don’t want too heavy a meal, but something just enough to nibble on. The Sunrise Roll is made with wholewheat wraps as well, which is not dry or tough at all and I always love it whenever there’s eggs and ham for breakfast. So it is a perfect and convenient breakfast!

What’s more, if you visit the McDonald’s website, you’ll see nutritional information for all their items. Here there’s the one for the Sunrise Roll.

 
Check out the Nutrition Calculator on the McDonald’s website now and also find out more about what you’re eating in terms of the breakdown. You can then compare that to your recommended daily intake on the HPB website’s Calorie Calculator (flash-only though).

Thanks to McDonald’s and HPB for introducing me to better alternatives and healthier options, proving that fast food can be healthier too!


This post is brought to you by HPB’s Healthier Dining Programme. For more info, visit eathealthy.sg

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