Enchanting Flavours of Thailand @ Cafebiz

April 24th 2010, Written by Xin Li

I had been to Cafebiz last year and I had a positive experience there for their Saturday Brunch. And since SAFRA has a 1-for-1 promotion, I did not hesitate to recommend Cafebiz to my friends for a mini gathering.

There is an "Enchanting Flavours of Thailand" promotion going on from 12th of April to 30th of April where two of their guest chefs, Wasana Talthong and Sunata Aepngoen from Shangri-La Hotel were here to cook up some Thai dishes for the month.

The brunch spread was adequate but as wide as the Carousel's. However, I am disappointed that the oysters and sashimi were not part of the brunch today. The last time I had the oysters there were really fresh. Another feature that was not part of the brunch today was the chefs moving around serving chicken wings, grilled pineapples or sausages to the diners which was something that sets itself apart from the usual buffets I had in the past.

I hope the absence was due to it being a Saturday brunch or because of the Thai promotion. I like how some efforts were given to the decor, Thai figurines, ornaments were being placed at some stations gives a nice touch to the ongoing theme of Thailand.

Nonetheless, the food was enjoyable today and I think we have outgrown from the usual buffet binge, eating enough is enough unless in the past we tend to eat the buffet’s worth (in JC or Secondary School or NS days). I like the Spicy Prawn Salad which was fresh, with a spicy kick and a sweet, sour finish to it. It was my favourite appetizer for today.

The Eggplant salad was okay. The chicken one was quite forgettable.

The Japanese section wasn’t their strength as mentioned before and the absence of Sashimi does not help. The sushi rice wasn’t good and most of the sushi tasted the same.

As there is a Thai promotion going on, most of the main dishes from the Thai Cuisine. The Green Curry Chicken was okay, while I enjoy the chicken meat, I find the curry slightly too oily.

The Pineapple Rice was alright.

The Fried Sea Bass was too tough.

I can’t have enough vegetables. Both the Mixed Sautéed Vegetables and Vegetables in Cream Sauce were delicious, not too soft and they were quite crunchy.

The Salmon Chowder is satisfying when you pair it with toasted bread with garlic spread on it, yummy.

They have a DIY Rojak Station, fun to make your own rojak.

What we enjoyed the most for the day were the desserts. The dessert I liked the most is the Pear Strudel. Nicely caramelized sugar top with a smooth and creamy, mousse-like custard underneath with a hint of pear flavour.

The Tiramisu Shooter and Mango Sticky Rice (above : nice but not as good as Flying Chillies’) were average.
We enjoyed the Chocolate Fondue, chocolate coated marshmallows, Coconut Ice Cream with Chocolate Sauce and waffles…classic favourites.

Service was decent. We were allowed to sit together even though our bills were separated. The drinks were refilled regularly and used plates were removed promptly and politely. While some of them might be a little serious, the attitude was still positive with some being very approachable and friendly too.

Overall, Cafebiz is still a nice place to have a buffet especially with the SAFRA 1-For-1 promotion. It also has a 20% Discount for Ah Hoi’s Kitchen.

The spread is reasonable and we haven’t really explored the meat station today. The quality and service were decent too. The price for this buffet was SGD48++ (apparently, it was cheaper with the Thai promotion.)

Today I had the chance to try out my brother's Nikon D-70 instead of my Olympus E-700 camera, still haven't get used to it.


Address
1A Cuscaden Road
GF Traders Hotel
Tel: +65 6831 4374

Operating hours
Daily
6.30am –12am

Cafebiz