Re!Fill Restaurant

I couldn't find where can I write about the Mother's Day buffet, so I shall write it down here.

Disappointing was all I could say.

Was there with my girlfriend's family on Sunday, and maybe our expectations got way ahead of us since we are going to a hotel for buffet.

The buffet spread was nothing special at all, it seems more like the food was from a catering company, prepared last minute.

The chicken wings plus some of the food were cold, the taste of the soup as if tasting MSG only, and nothing stands out for the desserts.

Service was bad too. When one of the waitress was clearing our plates, some of the gravy fell onto the table and almost onto my girlfriend mom's clothes. While she was checking, the waitress just stood there and watched until we dismissed her saying it's okay.

How much does a lobster cost?

$50? $100?

At Hotel Re!�s Re!Fill Restaurant, you can have a Lobster Set for just $28.80! Created by Chef William Ang, the lobster set is available from March to May, which features 5-course dishes such as Smoked Duck Breast Salad with Walnut Roasted Sesame Dressing, Mushroom Soup etc.

The common salad dressings we have eaten includes caesar dressing, extra virgin olive oil, Thousand Island dressing, vinaigrette, wafu dressing etc. But Chef William Ang created roasted sesame dressing for Smoked duck breast and mesclun salad which was refreshing and started the meal on a good note.

Next, we had Trio of Mushroom Soup. I actually prefer the thick puree soup, but this warm and creamy soup was comforting.

And here comes the star of the night: Oven baked herbs infused Garlic Butter Lobster, Spaghetti fungi with medley of vegetables. The sweet buttery lobster spaghetti was complemented by occasional punches of robust garlic and hints of refreshing oven baked herbs.

End off your meal with Hotel Re! Temptation Delight which included a small plate of yam pudding, mint chocolate ice cream, mango sago and mango wrapped with coconut. The mangoes were sweet!

This lobster set promotion is available all day including weekends at $28.80++.

Want to try Re!Fill's Abalone Seafood Laksa? Click here to find out more!

Disclaimer: I was invited to this restaurant for a HGW event.

I haven't given Re!Fill a rating for Value, because I can't be sure that my experience there was a 100% accurate reflection of what the average diner would have experienced. If it was, though, then I think Re!Fill provides excellent value for money.

I can't recommend their signature laksa dish enough. The soup is suitably lemak, the liao is generous (with the abalone being a nice decadent touch) and at the current promotional price, great value for money.

Re!Fill is also currently offering a lobster set meal, although my favourite dishes were actually the two starters, the first being a surprisingly hearty smoked duck salad and the second being a mushroom soup that fell nicely on the generous side with chunks of mushrooms (i.e., not the roughly pureed version you'll find in many restaurants).

The restaurant itself is rather small, but they do take reservations, so you can be assured of a seat. There is also a private dining area which, with prior arrangement, the management can make available for as small a party as two. 

I'm clearly revealing my age here, but growing up, places like Ponderosa and Swensons were the height of fancy dining. While at Re!Fill I couldn't help feeling that hey, if kids nowadays look at Re!Fill in the same way, that's progress.

http://thechosenglutton.wordpress.com/2011/08/15/retro-refill-at-hotel-re/

Even before I begin with anything, boy do I love their innovation and creativity of their names. Hotel Re!, tagged along with their restaurant named Re!Fill and facilities called Re!Fresh. Oh yes, and it fits Re!tro too – the theme for this hotel. Secluded away, at the top of Pearl’s Hill, this boutique hotel, Hotel Re!, used to be a school building (a school called Pearl’s Hill School). And I was exceptionally thrilled to visit this hotel / restaurant because Pearl’s Hill School was my Primary School for 3 years back then. It was the tallest school building (12 storey, with a lift, and lift operator), and I was so proud to be a part of it. Unfortunately, it ceased operation after operating for 29 years from its opening on 1972. Former students of the school can definitely still see signs of Pearl’s Hill School – the shape / layout of the school, the staircase, etc. Nostalgic, very much.

The restaurant isn’t necessarily very retro in design, except for the rainbow wallpaper all around. Otherwise, the cushion seats were more than comfortable and suitable for the mood.

Service was outstanding, and very professional if I may add. The changing of utensils according to what individuals are having was done very neatly and attentively. The waitperson arranged and aligned it to perfection, which I was impressed (when I saw that she adjusted to align it).

Soups :: Once again, excellent service I say this is. Immediately upon expressing of interest on the mushroom soup, the waitperson asked which exactly. And pointed out that we ordered the above instead of the normal one (the price was either a $0.40 difference or of the same, I can’t exactly remember) as it’s more worthy of the money. Honesty of the waitperson always wins my heart. The Lobster Bisque was filled with chunks of lobster and prawn pieces – not the freshest of all, but generous a portion enough for me not to feel that the soup is not worth the money.

Hot Chocolate (Pot) ($5.50++) :: We were like ‘what is a pot of hot chocolate?’ We casually asked the waitperson and thankfully we did that – because we were then told that its serving’s sufficient for two. And so money was saved.

Z Wings (6pieces) ($12.80++) :: I thought the chicken wings was very ordinary. The only thing that is not about the dish are the fruits and salad by the side. I’ve never had wings served with fruits.

Vietnamese Spring Roll ($8.80++) :: Again, served with fruits. The dish is very forgettable, affordable to give it a miss, advisable to try other side dishes while you are there.

Seafood Abalone Laksa ($18.80++) :: Or at least that is the standard price for the bowl of awesomeness, especially on a rainy day (too bad it only rained the day after I had it, making me crave hard for another bowl of it). I had mine at a 1-for-1 offer, extended due to popular demand. So grab a friend (who eats laksa) and head down to Re!Fill. Although it doesn’t have my favorite clams, it does have a big fat scallop, 3 fresh prawns, and a small abalone (the size of the hole when you do an ‘okay’ sign with your thumb and index finger) – all cooked to perfection. For convenience sake, they have a small dish of sambal chili served with the big bowl of laksa, just in case you want more kick.

I’ve rated this a full 3 stars ✰✰✰ for the sheer fact that it gives me a good tingling feeling when in the building, the outstanding attentive to detail service, and the wide range of cuisines offered (italian / general western / asian / local), making it the restaurant to visit no matter with your westernized friends or homey family.

—> Note #1: They are having another offer as of now: 2nd Asian Delight dish ordered gets a 50% off.

—> Note #2: Last I checked, paying by UOB debit / credit card gives you a 10% off items that were not previously discounted.

—> Note #3: You can either take a short 10 minutes walk from Outram MRT Station (take Exit B, turn left, and you should be able to see user-friendly signs throughout the whole walk to the isolated hotel, starting on the right), or take the scheduled shuttle bus from Outram MRT.

—> Note #4: If you are going in a big group (of 8 and above), it’s better to make a reservation first because it’s a relatively small restaurant.

If you are into retro themed hotels, Hotel Re!, a rather new addition to the boutique hotel scene in Singapore, might just be what you are looking for. However, I'm not so much a hotel person and I'm actually more interested in what the restaurant (in this case, Re!Fill) has to offer.

Personally I think the cafe's decor is clean and cozy but I don't quite see signs or indications of a retro theme. Well, except maybe for the psychedelic strips of wallpaper that adorn the L boxes. There is a different lunch menu each day and you get to choose 1 of 2 main courses that are available each day. Everything else (appetisers and dessert) is pre decided, which can be good or bad, depending on your personal preferences.

Complimentary Bread - Decent but tasted not unlike a packaged loaf of bread off the supermarket shelf, nicely toasted and served up with a small container of SCS salted butter. Simple but satisfying.

Seasoned Baby Octopus, Egg Foo Yong, Sweet Potato & Taro Fritter - I liked how everything was presented in one long platter in bite sized portions. The baby octopus was a tad sweet and chewy whilst the Egg Foo Yong tasted savoury and all but had so much oil in it that it made my heart beat faster. Just imagine the oil from the egg sitting in a shooter glass. Gross. Luckily the fritter didn't turn out to be an oil sponge as well but I did find the flour a little too thick. Still crisp and enjoyable in small quantities though.

Braised Shark's Fin Soup with Crabmeat - Although I could make out respectable slivers of shark's fin and crab meat, the soup was too starchy and rather bland. But for the price of the set lunch, I really shouldn't be complaining.

Salted Egg Prawn, Parisienne of Fruits & Almond Flake, Garlic Fried Rice, Sauteed Asparagus - I'm usually a fan of salted egg prawns but this one seemed a little too moist and soggy for my liking. Flavour was also lacking and honestly, the salted egg coating was aesthetically unpleasing. But at least it was edible.

Wok Fried Duck Breast with Olive Vegetable, Garlic Fried Rice, Sauteed Asparagus - At first glance, I thought the duck slices looked uncannily like beef. Even the texture was similar to the beef slices you would find at a typical beef hor fun stall - chewy from the addition of lots of flour. Compounding matters was the fact that the duck just tasted salty with a dash of pepper. No inherent fowl taste whatsoever.

Hotel Re! Temptation Delight - It sounded grand but came as a flop. I liked the presentation but the taste left much to be desired. In short, everything tasted out of sorts and even something as basic as the lychee agar agar tasted artificial. Ditto the apple crumble.

I have read rave reviews online about the food at Re!Fill but unfortunately, mine turned out to be a disaster. Honestly, $49 nett for 2 pax for set lunch isn't over the top and service was decent. However, food quality really needs to buck up in my humble opinion. And the number of customers the cafe had that day was testament to that. We were pretty much the only table that afternoon. Only when we were about to leave did a couple drop by.

See all my pictures here.

First of

all, I must say that the 8 minute walk up to the hotel

from the mrt station can be a rather pleasant one (in contrary to other reviews

that put it on par with a level 10 inclined slope walk on the treadmill). With

the creamy warm shades of colors cascading down the sides and a little moist

breeze in tow, I was pretty much taken by the view most of the time as I trudged

the relatively level path. Kudos to the management for the eye-catching

direction signs along the way!

Upon

reaching the Austin-power inspired interiors of the hotel lobby, I was surprised

by the spirit and vibrant nature of the place despite it’s rather grey washed

walls on the outside; not to mention it’s overbearing predominance as an old

school institution.. yikes.

I

absolutely adore the Re! concept, with all its separate facilities and

restaurant named after words beginning with ‘RE’ yet effectively expressing its

function. Take for example, it’s restaurant Re!fill, no of course the food doesn’t come free flow (apart from the

international buffet breakfast) but at least you get to satisfy the hunger

pangs here!

That being

said, we had the opportunity to savor the food offerings by the restaurant.

Helmed by Chef William Ang, an extremely colorful and chatty character who

appeared an addict to the constant flow of coffee drippings; his vivacity

translating into a great spread of cuisine, all well executed.

For

starters, we tucked into a miniature bowl of Abalone Seafood Laksa. This was

intense. Especially for someone who had the impression that Re!filll was better

known for it’s western fare, this took the presumption out of the window! So,

if you choose the rebel from the usual western choices, you would definitely be

pleasantly surprised. For some strange reason, an image of Austin powers tucking

into a bowl of fiery goodness popped in my head. Groovy Baby!

The rest of

the courses arrived in quick succession. My favorites were the Pumpkin prawn with

fruits coulis almond flake and the pan seared foie gras medallion, prune and

walnut dressing (offered as part of Tues’s Italian set). The latter was a

perfectly executed piece of goose liver, a rather large portion should I admit,

with the gentle tippling of sweet prune dressing on the side. One of the best

foie gras dishes I’ve had in quite a while. By the time the mains were dished

out, my stomach was starting to disagree with me a little, the sheer amount of

food a little overwhelming; speaking volumes about the generosity of

hospitality of our management hosts. Sad to say, the salmon teriyaki was

mediocre at this point of time (could be attributed to my slightly depressed

appetite). I adored the Teppanyaki vegetables served on the side though. The spicy

seafood tom yum soup was divine, with a refreshing mix of lemongrass and lime

leaves with a hint of spiciness, this one definitely impressed.

Desserts?

Fear not, I had cleared my fourth stomach for it’s homecoming. Here we had the Tiramisu

and apple pie ala mode on top of the sweet temptations. The tiramisu could use a

heavier touch of alcohol on top of more coffee. The Apple pie on the other hand

was rather good with a buttery crust, lovely aromas of cinnamon and apple

chunks baked till soft and ethereal. Served with a scoop of vanilla ice cream, this

was the perfect ending to the meal.

So there it

was, a little secret place for great lunches and fun dinners at the outskirts

of the central city region. With value for money sets and a fun ambience, I’m

sure the restaurant will continue to draw in the crowds. For sure, I would be

amongst the throngs.

When I was invited to Hotel Re!

for

dinner, I must admit I had low expectations. I had anticipated

hotel food, mass- prepared, run-of-the-mill buffet food. And I am no

fan of buffet food.

Boy, was I in for a surprise! From the

minute I reached the hotel grounds, it was one whole series of

pleasant surprises. First it's free parking! Then a retro fitted old

school transformed into a retro back to 60's boutique hotel with

good old fashioned warmth and hospitality in the form of friendly

staff from waiters to managers to the chef, who welcomed us!!

Then the food! I Re!lished

practically every dish which was not only visually pleasing (see

photos) but imaginatively prepared with fresh and choice ingredients.

The first course was the signature

Abalone laksa. It had all the good stuff – fresh sweet abalone,

scallops, prawns and a good balance of santan and spices. I like

that there is an extra helping of sambal on the side for those who

want it with more 'ommph!' There is a promotion for this dish

currently priced at $18.80++, one for one. Great value for the $.

The 4-course set daily menu named

Re!cess, changes daily. The theme from

Monday to Sunday are respectively: Oriental, Italian, Japanese,

Western, Thai and then Nyonya for Sat and Sunday. A bargain, priced

at $20.80++ per set lunch or dinner, We ate a sampling of the daily

set menu which is excellent value for the dollar. We tasted the

appetisers (for Tuesday) which was a thick juicy chunk of foie gras.

For foie gras lovers, it's worth going on Tues (Italian) to have this

served.

The soup we tried - crab bisque which

tasted more like lobster bisque was also generously laden with crab

bits which attest to the freshness of the choice bits! The tom yam

soup was also chock-a-bloc with large chunks of fresh squid, prawns

and scallops. The spiciness and tanginess of the tom yam was just

right for me. The salmon salad, teriyaki salmon (main course) were

also memorable for the freshness of the ingredients. Prawns with

pumpkin sauce appetizer disguised the oiliness of the prawn fritters

and was truly moreish.

By now all of us were happily stuffed,

but we could not Re!sist

the desserts surely. The dessert served with each set meal is a set

of 4 tasting portions which again will make many value-conscious

diners Re!member this dining

experience. We had delicious warmed chocolate brownie served with a

scoop of vanilla ice-cream (They do know hot to pair and please),

strawberry mirror and mango pudding, the last 2 being tangy served to

counterbalance the surfeit of our overindulgence. The only thing I

Re!frained

from finishing was the mango pudding which was not up to scratch. Everything else was polished off. The chef told us that plans are

underway to Re!fine, especially the

desserts e.g. adding oriental desserts like black glutinous rice

with durian pengat! Re!joice

I am already making plans to Re!visit,

Re!tyre to the free car park (This one is

from you Chiew Mei) and Re!live my dining

Re!past.

The cafe Re!fill at Hotel Re! is a

must to visit for all the baby boomers in Singapore, you can easily

identify with the retro décor, small square tiles, bubble furniture,

and the choice of “loud” colour schemes. You'd think that Sakura

Teng and Austin Powers would leap off the walls and join you for a

meal. It's a time-travel machine that takes me back to the 60s,

altogether with Chef William, head chef of the hotel who traces his

cooking skills in kitchens of Hotel Malaysia (pre-independence days),

renamed Marco Polo hotel, which had my favourite restaurant - the

Brasserie, the first “French” bistro cafe in Singapore. Bedecked

with red and white checked table cloth, typical of French bistros, it

was my first exposure to that style of cuisine. Other than the cafe,

the hotel rooms are also similar themed, we wrangled a visit to the

green schemed Charlie's Angels suite and the décor of the room

smacks of the plasticy polyester finish popular then, togethr with a

bubble chain hung chair, round beds and towels shaped in a heart.

Sadly I am not here to review the hotel so on with the food.

For drivers Re!joice – there's free

parking !!

Ambience: This boutique hotel is not

well known but it's in a very central location – Pearl's Hill. The

cafe we visited is called Re!fill (it's not a typo, the exclamation

is intentional). The entire theme of the cafe is retro 60s, 70s and

I can clearly identify with the colour scheme, décor, choice of

tiles and the bubble furniture. Comfortable chairs together with a

centerpiece set aside this function room set aside for our dinner.

Food: The cafe has a $20.80 ++ set

menu each days, each day of the week offering a variety of themes

from western to Chinese to Japanese. They've named the daily set

menus as Re!Cess - Starting on Mon-Oriental; Tues-Italian; Japanese;

Western, Sat and Sun-Thai and Nyonya. They even serve Foie Gras on

Tuesday as an appetizer for the Italian set.

We managed to taste of variety of their

signature dishes thanks to a very helpful Chef William. For starters

we had the abalone and scallop laksa – delicious and not heavy on

the coconut milk, with a touch of dried prawns and went on to sample

their prawns with pumpkin sauce. Pan seared foie gras, chef's salad

with smoked salmon, crab soup, waldorf salad, tom yam soup, salmon teriyaki and on

to desserts. My favourite dishes were the prawn with pumpkin sauce,

chef salad with salmon, crab soup, foie gras and apple pie (will

order it without the ice cream next time I'm there).

The foie gras was a surprise for such a

non-French cafe, it was well done, crispy on the outside and soft on

the insided. The prawns were fresh, and not overly oily although it

was deep fried. Salmon well seared, tasty and with a well balanced

teriyaki sauce. My regular all time favourite is the apple pie ala

mode, chunky apple pieces with a thick buttery crust, with a touch of

cinnamon.

We will remember to bring friends and

families back to this cafe to savour all the set menus everyday of

the week since the daily menu is not Re!peated within a week.

Value: Other than the daily set menu,

the abalone laksa is priced at $18.80 per bowl, at present offering a

promo of 1 for 1 laksa bowl. Each bowl is enough to fill you up

without having to order anything else. Pizza's with skinny crust is

priced at $12 each. Overall good value of the quality and taste of

food, and the quantity of food.

Service: Friendly young

Singaporean/Malaysian waitresses (hard to find now), happy Chef

William's friendly company made it a memorable service affair.

It became a rather pressurizing Christmas Eve when I invited my future in-laws and my fiance's cousins to our original "a-table-for-2" reservation.

It became even more stressful to realise that the map that led us to the hotel was deceiving - there was a 15 min walk from outram park mrt station that included 2 slopes and one steep stairway. My future in-laws weren't exactly the sporty kind. Should have taken a damn cab like i've suggested, i thought, yet it's costly to get a cab to ferry 7 pple at the same time.

So we finally arrived at a very fashionably designed hotel... with an empty restaurant. I went 'oh-oh' in my heart, only to be directed to a huge ballroom at the other wing of the hotel. That was my 3rd mini-heart attack of the night.

My bf asked for directions to leave the hotel. We were offered concierge services as an alternative to making the same way back to Outram Park MRT station. (And that was my 4th.)

So Re!Fill offered a variety of food for the Christmas Eve $72 buffet (after 10% discount with the use of a UOB or HSBC credit card for payment). I saw a laksa booth, an abalone booth (only 1 portion per customer), 7 western dishes, a dessert area of cakes and jellies, a 4-5 cold dishes, a beverage corner that serves free flow of red wine, white wine, bottled Tigers, hot tea and coffee, and a sushi booth.

The free flow of wine was a plus point; they were above average.

Laksa was served hot; every booth had someone assigned to prepare the food. The sushi booth was a plus point because sushi has to be served freshly sliced, not already sliced up and exposed to air while waiting for people to eat them. Those fish were sitting nicely in display cabinets. I've always condemned inconsiderate Singaporeans who would fiddle with slices before putting one or two onto their plates. And half-dissolving wasabi in the shoyu buffet bowls before scooping some from them. Learn the right way to eat sushi, people!

The single portion of abalone was nicely cooked in chicken stock. It was tasty, soft and tender. So much better than those huge chunks I used to eat from. Sometimes, small is indeed beautiful. And sadly, only one portion per person.

The western dishes were very well cooked. I had lamb chop, chicken frikase (they all had names of at least 5 words @_@), beef, roast turkey, risotto, fish, and seafood. There were 1cm thick slices of ham available too. As a whole, they were enjoyable, but i don't see effort in presentation. Whenever I open the buffet tray I see a whole lump of meat in the centre and some garnishes swept to the side.

So I went over to the cold dish area. Again, a severe lack in presentation - just cut and mix and lump on a big white plate. For a moment I thought this egg-sardine wrap slice looked facinating. It did only look facinating. The cold dish area i remember had chicken salad, mixed fruit salad of mango, apples, raisins and cucumber with diluted salad dressing, cooked mussels, and steamed half-tomatoes.

Next i went over and found something facinating - salmon in pastry with hollandaise dressing. It was not bad - the salmon was juicy but not tasty. There were salmon and squid tempura. Plus point for the creativity.

Lastly, and fortunately, I had siphoned some bites of cake from my fiance's plate. My chocolate swiss roll cake was hard. My guess - too much flour. The jellies were hard and stiff and too synthetic on the tastebuds. The only sweet that was edible was the cream puffs that were more horrible than those you get from Emicakes. My fiance didn't want to waste food, so he poured some chocolate syrup over them before eating.

So i took some ice-cream to comfort myself. Alas! Only 2 flavours were available - strawberyy and chocolate mint. I took my bowl of mint ice cream and as I ate, I realised that the whole ambience was too sombre. The ballroom was dark except for some overpowering neon bulbs near the food and some glamorous christmas decorations put up. It was so dark that I couldn't tell my beef and my lamb chop apart.

I know that $72 for a dinner in a decent place with free flow of wine is rather reasonable when the other places i've looked up offered prices of at least $100 for ala carte meals, but no i don't think i'd be going back to Re!Fill.

Went to the place twice for dinner.  Liked the fact that the place is out of the way and less crowded.

The fact that the hotel used ti be my primary school added a touch of nostalgic to the dinning expereince.

Pasta dishes are quite good but the pizza is a little short on decent.  I believe the oven is not hot enough as the center of the pizza is soggy.