Chatterbox

Hawker classics (chicken rice, laksa, nasi lemak) that are pale imitations of what you can get on the street, but yet still ten times the price.  I'm not sure what you are paying the premium for because since they moved down from the top floor you don't even get the view any more.  If you somehow find yourself here against your will, whatever you do, do NOT try the nasi lemak - it is so bad that it will make you angry.

<Link to review on my blog>

Wow.....from top floor to the 5th floor. The new decor is fresh for sure as the old location did look very jaded! However, somehow I find the new decor a bit too cheap and plasticky; it feels like they are trying too hard but didn't pull it off. The service, though, is fabulous, very attentive indeed. A lady, probably the managress, came over twice to see if all was ok which was a nice gesture.
We had one chicken rice and a lasi lemak and a seasonal veggie. My lasi lemak was very average, nothing to talk about... The chicken rice did look good but not sure if it tasted great. I also had a cendol in the end but thought it was too sweet and somehow otherwise sugar I really couldn't taste much.
Given the choice, I prefer Grandma's in Paragon should I fancy local food as it's a lot more reasonably priced and the food is probably better as well.

Perhaps i should have checked things out properly before going for the buffet. My friend told me we could take the chance to try the famous chicken rice as part of the buffet spread. But no chicken rice in sight at the buffet  table. A little disappointed... the rest fo the items are nothing to shout about. Satay was pretty good. Thats about all i could say was good...

Good view of orchard road nevertheless...

 

 

Recently renovated, Chatterbox is now located in an inconspicuous corner on the 5th level of Meritus Mandarin. One has to walk through a long stark white narrow passage that might set claustrophobics in a hyperventilating panic attack before reaching the entrance of the coffeehouse that paralleled a high class food court than an esteemed eatery in an established hotel.

Chicken Rice Set ($22) came with a bowl of soup, rice, steamed chicken garnished with cucumber, cherry tomatoes and lettuce topped with light soy sauce enough for 2 to share and 3 small dishes of chilli, dark soy sauce and ginger sauce. I’ve heard so much about the legendary fare since I was a little girl and was eager to just try a bit. Well, I didn’t exactly have a meal here. I stole a few bites from someone else’s dinner cos I had mine already. :p

The soup assayed of potent herbal broth and I had no doubt exquisite ingredients, care and time had been taken to simmer the consommé. The stock would be so perfect on a rainy day.

The rice was very fragrant! One of the best I’ve had. It was moist without actually being oily.

Now for the lead item of the evening, the Chicken itself was lacklustre. The meats I had weren’t exactly tender, even though I tried to pick the thigh. This was so disappointing. I definitely could get better Hainanese chicken rice in hawker centres without feeling being ripped off.

Service was horrendous for a 5 star hotel. Waters were only served 15 minutes after we asked for them. One of the waters was served iced cold instead of warm. I asked for a change and it came boiling hot. :/ A side dish order was placed along with the chicken rice but we were told it was not available along with my arrival of hot water. We realised an order of Iced Rambutan Shave never showed up and asked for it. The waiter left and came back in a jiffy. I think it had been left forgotten on the counter without anyone attending to it. Seriously, where's the pride, soldier?

Iced Rambutan Shave ($8), btw, conjures up image of an iced blended drink but it came in a small glass with rambutans soaked in what looked like syrup.

Amex cardholders have 15% off.

So the question is, would I be returning? I think I have done well without Chatterbox's Chicken Rice for the past 20 odd years of my life and I hadn't missed anything. Now you tell me.

I must say this was a rather decadent day for me, because I'd just had a huge dim sum buffet lunch at this same hotel earlier in the day. But my friend and I finished our spa treatments at close to 9pm, and since her car was still parked at the Meritus Mandarin (I'd got her a complimentary parking ticket at lunch), and since I have the eat@Meritus card, we figured this was probably a sensible place to have a late dinner.

Gone are the days when Chatterbox used to have that familiar, cosy air on the ground floor. It has also moved from its temporary abode on the 38th floor, and now sits on Level 5, where Coffee & Crust and Triple Three are also located. You now have to walk to the end of a long, antisceptic corridor (yes, it's really like a hospital) to get to the entrance of Chatterbox. I think it's because the renovations are not finished, as there were still some canvases around the place.

The dominant colours are now grey and green, and the restaurant looks more polished and efficient - in a word, modern, than it used to. Both my friend and I chose the chicken rice set. We were asked if we wanted the thigh or the breast, and we both said thigh :-) Now, I have to say that when I first tried the chicken rice here years ago when I was in secondary school, I was awestruck and thought it was the most wondrous thing ever. I'm not sure if it's because my tastebuds have since been spoiled by so many other culinary experiences, or because the standard of this dish here has indeed - as everyone claims - fallen... at any rate, this chicken rice is definitely good, above average, but would you pay $22 for it?

There are generous pieces of chicken, far more than you'd get at $3 food courts. And a few cherry tomatoes and slices of cucumber. Beside this, you get a deep bowl of fragrant rice (very tasty), a bowl of soup with some tofu, and separated chilli, ginger and soya sauce. We both finished everything.

Then she had a coffee ($8) while I chose Chendol ($10) for dessert. This had a nice flavour and had lots of those green bits and kidney beans, but it was a bit too watery. Thanks for caring about my health, but I'd have preferred it thicker!

The tables are set a little too close to each other, which isn't ideal since I believe this is a place that tends to get crowded. At past 10pm, there were still many people eating, some of them in large groups. The service was professional and courteous. With a 50% discount for two diners because of my Meritus card (but the coffee only gets 15% off), the final bill was $39.80. You pay for the ambience, presentation and service, but I very much doubt if I'd pay the full price for the food here!

the restaurant is situated on top of meritus mandarin. to get there, you go to the penultimate floor (32 or 38, can't recall, sorry) but the lift button says 32/33 (or 38/39, or some other numbers with a slash in between); 32nd floor is a bar/pub that serves drinks with a lounge singer/band. you will immediately see someone waiting there to seemingly serve you by taking down your details (number of persons) and asking you to wait at the tables in front of the lift.

they didnt leave a good "first" impression. me, the wife, and the wife's best friend were made to wait 15-20 mins for a table (one other party ahead of us waited only 3-5 mins). we were not told we had to wait that long, and even when we asked after 10 mins, it was a non commital "we're preparing your table". all the while watching parties of 4-6 leaving (surely they dont take 15 mins to prepare a table!!).

when we reached the restaurant proper.... empty tables aplenty! grrr...

we ordered the famed chicken rice, laksa, spaghetti and fried hokkien noodle. the chicken rice was quite bad. chicken was not smooth and the rice didnt even taste good. the standard has dropped drastically. we used to complain its the most expensive chicken rice, nice but not 7-10 times as nice as any other decent chicken rice stall outside (comparing with the fact that its 7-10 times the price...), but if you have a foreign guest, its not a bad place to bring them, right? not anymore... make them sweat and wait for a table at wee nam kee and they'd understand more why singaporeans like chicken rice, or they'd think we're a nation of terrible taste buds, famed for its food but has the worst food ever!

the hokkien mee... if you're "ham sup" (sex pervert/maniac in cantonese, but it uses the words salty+wet), you'd love it. salty and wet, so salty i understood why the cantonese use ham sup, so salty i was made to feel a sex crazed parchness in the mouth after a few slurps....

laksa. again, not the best, and not really good. lemak enough but sheepishly, i might say it wasnt salty enough... heh. not a dish i'd order even if i feel like being torturing myself to come back to this restaurant.

the spaghetti was the safe choice. not fantastic and actually quite similar to what i'd prepare at home. hmmm.... let me re-do this, the spaghetti was excellent! just like the way i'd cook it! haha. to be honest, it was just a safe choice. nothing to complain but nothing to write home about. it's probably desinged as kid's food, esp as it came with the pasta cut into short strands.

SERVICE: once we got to the top, staff were friendly and cheerful. our orders were taken with zest and teeth showing smiles. that's good service for some but hey, it didnt make the food taste better!
1. we were made to wait 15-20 mins only to see ample empty tables all around.
2. iced water glasses were not filled for long periods when empty
3. laksa leaves were given to me despite me asking them to leave it out (the waitress remembered to smile and nod when i say that but somehow the message didnt get thru!)

THE VIEW: nothing much to see if you get the wrong table. it wasnt revolving when i was there, so we didnt have much of a view. it shows the quality of service they have, ample free tables but gave us one with not much of a view; loose with the smiles but forget your orders.

unless forced to eat decent local food in air conned environment "in this heat" again, its very unlikely i'll return. but then... thanks to this experience, i might save myself a lot of bob by just thinking about it and the hunger will disappear together with the appetite next time i feel like local food but the weather is too hot!

Went for my dad's birthday celebration.. and took advantage of the HSBC promo..1 for 1..so total cost ard $130 for total 6 pax cos one for one..

prices wise is definitely a catch considering that you are having high tea at the 39th level haha..

but food wise is not as great..no seafood or japanese food..just pure local stuff..little spreads of cakes..satay..

but then again..worth to go for a try cos of the view haha..

Was here for the high tea with a friend some time ago and I do apologize for writing this review until much later.

We arrived early at around 1.30pm and so instead of waiting at the hotel lobby, we went straight up to the holding area at 37th floor to wait. I must say there are many lifts around but only 2 that will go up to the 37th storey. So you will have to wait quite a while especially if there is a big group of people waiting to take the lifts, be it coming down or going up.

Luckily for us, as we were early birds, it was quite a breeze for us to get up and we found ourselves sitting at the comfortable sofa seats at the holding areas (but we did register with the duty staff as we had place reservation few days ago). Within the next 20 mins, we saw bug groups of people coming up and within a short while, there was a small crowd at the holding area.

The staff on duty was surprised by the large turn out and so initiated to let the diners go in early although the high tea was supposed to start at 2.00pm. After a short while, we were showed to our seats. In order to get to Chatterbox, you will need to walk a flight of staircase to the 38th floor.

Wow, I can say it was fantastic view! You can have really a good bird eye's view on Orchard and the island of Singapore. You could walk around and see different part of the island! It was awesome and nice! You will feel you are really at the top of the world looking down on small building, cars and people walking around, with birds flying near you at the windows pane outside.

The spread of the high tea, to be honest, was not fantastic and was limited. Main dishes included the black pepper tiger prawns (very tasty and well marinated), nonya curry chicken that come with bread (gravy was good as it was not too thick with coconut milk), satay (chicken, which was good), nice roast duck, nonya laksa (which I feel was good too) and self made rojak. Shark Fins and Fish Maw soup was served that day which made our day! It was great!

Other dishes include fried popiah, curry puff, baos, pastries and nonya kuehs, salad, hams, siew mai, desserts of agar agar, black glutinous rice and longan in syrup etc, all the latter were normal.

My friend and I enjoyed ourselves with the food. Although the high tea was supposed to end at 5pm, but we stayed there to chit chat until about 6.15pm before we took our leave. We were not being chased away by staff who were busy clearing the place to get ready for the dinner to be started at 6.30pm.

Service wise. Needs improvement. Service was slow. We had to initiate and waited for quite a while before a waiter came forward to fill our glasses with cold water. Clearing of used plates was slow and we also had to remind waiter a few times for our coffee and tea! Even we had to wait for quite a while for our bills!

One thing which was unique was the coffee and tea containers. They came in a look like 'soy sauce bottle' container, which was in red and black colour. Very creative and interesting!

As for the price, as my friend had some discount kind of privilege, we paid about $38 for the 2 of us, which we felt was quite a value for money!

During our makan there, we noticed quite a good number of the diners order the famous chicken rice which most could not finish it. Either it was too filling or the standard had dropped, we don't know. (of course we felt paying $25 for a chicken rice set is not worth it as we can get good and cheaper one elsewhere)

We may not go back here for the chicken rice but for buffet, maybe next time for lunch or dinner!

Ever since Top of the M closed down with much fanfare in early 2008, Meritus Mandarin's iconic coffeehouse, Chatterbox, has moved up the levels (literally) to occupy what used to be the crowning glory of this centrally located hotel in Orchard Road.

Perched on the 39th floor of the hotel, the interior now sports bright red tables and pillars to give a very traditional coffeeshop feeling, yet still offering a panoramic view of the surroundings. Note that the restaurant doesn't revolve anymore, leaving that honour solely to Prima Tower.

Chicken Rice Set - Chatterbox has been known for its excellent chicken rice and of course its exorbitant prices. Consisting of only a bowl of rice, soup and a relatively generous serving of chicken meat, this dish is definitely not for the value conscious.The soup was very tasty probably due to the high MSG content while the chicken was sufficiently tender with an appropriate amount of bite. Personally I felt that the rice wasn't fluffy or tasty enough, coming across as a tad dry and limp.

Flowering Chinese leaf cabbage - The Cai Xin was as normal as it gets but portions were really small for the price ($9++).

Apple & Raisin Tart - In all honesty, I was quite surprised to find a "western" dessert on a menu that featured mainly Chinese/local fare and since my initial choice of homemade coconut ice cream was out of stock, I settled for the tart. Which wasn't exactly a bad choice considering that the tart was quite crusty with a nice oven baked taste to it. Add a couple of sweet apple slices, raisins and a scoop of ice cream for a rather nice ending. But hey, its $12++.

I shudder to imagine the ridiculous price I would have to pay in the absence of my 1 for 1 chicken rice voucher. Even so, the bill for 2 pax came up to about $53 ($81 without voucher), which is really quite off the chart if you ask me. Service was decent but I seriously doubt I will return, not for the food and definitely not for the high prices.

See all my pictures here.

I can think of many places that serve chicken rice at a fraction of the price Chatterbox charges. After all, I love this dish and have had the opportunity to have some wonderful and yet inexpensive chicken rice meals at places like Far East Plaza (5th floor), Alexandra Village hawker centre, Maxwell hawker centre etc etc.

Having said that, eating at Chatterbox can be considered an experience. Yes, it is extremely pricey and most would consider it "not value for money". However, I would encourage chicken rice fans to give it a shot. There is a hugh serving of chicken (enough for 2 if you're having supper) which is tender and tasty, but could have been more delicately sliced. (please order the drumstick!) The rice is grainy and tastes good, without being too oily and heavy. The set comes with a clear chicken broth (nothing fantastic) but I would give a special mention to the ginger. It is fragrant without being overpowering. Dunk a slice of chicken into the ginger, with some dark soya and rice and you will be able to experience the joy of a $20 plus dollar plate of chicken rice! The chilli is not bad as well (although I don't really fancy it with my chicken, ginger will do just fine).

I don't think many locals would actually make their way to Chatterbox to order anything else other than the famed chicken rice. Their lobster laksa costs in excess of $40, the prices of drinks and desserts are just way too high! But since the establishment is famous for the chicken rice, do give it a shot if you're feeling in the mood for a little indulgence.