Oceans of Seafood

Oceans of Seafood consists of two restaurants - Japanese Restaurant and International Seafood Restaurant. They are opposite each other..

Japanese Restaurant

International Seafood Restaurant

I chose to sit at the Japanese Restaurant as I was tempted by the setting and ambience..

I was given two menus - the menus of both restaurants: (^O^)

(Click here for PDF)

*Please note that there is different menu if you are seated at the International Seafood Restaurant. (^__^)

I have mixed feelings for Salmon Chirashi ($18).

Thumbs up: Visually pleasant aside, the salmon was quite fresh. It was of generous portion and the slices were thick and big.

Small flaw: the rice sticks to the bowl! I found that the rice was a bit dry, thus it gets glued to the bowl. Perfect Japanese rice does not glue to the bowl.

Oceans' Taster ($178) was probably the best seafood platter I had in recent months.. (the ones I had in Japan were probably the best I ever had).. The platter arrived with three sauces - black pepper sauce, butter and garlic sauce. See pics below for a better view of the crab, lobster and king prawns..

The words to describe the humongous crab, fleshy lobster and big prawns are only.. only.. only.. Succulent, Sweet, Satisfied! It's such an "Sss" platter!

I did not dip the sauce for the crab and lobster because it would be such a waste! The seafood were so fresh.. There was no need for the sauce..
Also, because the seafood were so fresh, there was no need to cook it in a complicated way..

I guess the seafood was cooked simply with salt, garlic and butter/oil..

The crab had a strong buttery taste which complements the sweetness of the flesh.. Awwwwwwesomeness max!

The lobster comes off the shell easily.. no hassle.. proves FRESHNESS! Without dipping any sauce, I stuffed half of the lobster meat in one mouthful.. O.M.G.. all my stress from work was relieved in one bite!

I had fun shelling my big prawns because they came off so easily.. I had some of them without dipping any sauce.. They were so springy! hahahaha...

For some prawns, I tried dipping the sauces.. Personally, I thought they did not go well with black pepper because it overpowers the prawn and diminishes the sweetness of the fresh prawns.. Wasted! Some might like the creamy and fragrant butter but I'm not a fan.. I preferred the garlic sauce that brings out or even enhances the sweetness of prawns.. (^O^)

How fresh were the seafood?

The waiter came to me and said: "Fresh right? Like they are alive!"
Hahahahaa...

Ambience: Above average. Suitable for many, including family with children, group gatherings, couples and friends.. There is a crowd but the seats are rather spaced out.. So you will have a personal space to talk to your group/friend(s).. The dim lightings makes me feel comfortable.. I mean everyone is psychologically 1/4 drunk/relaxed under dim lightings..

Hygiene: Though there is a display of raw seafood like a wet market, there was no stench of fishiness and the environment was kept dry and clean.. No worries about slipping and falling on wet floors.. Also, because the place is still new.. so there would be a standard of cleaniness.

Verdict: Second visit? I'm planning to plot a date on my schedule already! I've decided to invest more on the seafood from the International Seafood Restaurant and probably just order sashimi from the Japanese Restaurant. (^O^)


Oceans of Seafood
PasarBella @ The Grandstand
200 Turf Club Road
Tel: 64661005
Operating hours: (Daily) 09:30 - 21:30
Website: http://oceansofseafood.com.sg/

Plaza Brasserie

less than 10 minutes walk from Bugis MRT Station, i arrived at PARKROYAL!
location: unless u drive, it's kinda out of the way.. but able to navigate with my BFF who is good with maps and directions..

Buffet Dinner - CRAB Fiesta~ for August 2012!
Crabbies available on my visit: Chilli Crab, Black Pepper Crab, Cold Crab, Salted Egg Yolk Crab, Soft Shell Crab and Thai Green Curry Mud Crab..





Best: Salted Egg Yolk Crab (finger-lickin' - literally)
Most Fragrant: Black Pepper Crab (Spicy but shiok!)
Could be better: Chilli Crab (Zi char can do better)
Pleasant Surprise: Thai Green Curry Mud Crab (tastes like curry chicken!)
Hit and miss: Soft Shell Crab (too flour-ful)
Give it a miss: Cold Crab (bland and bland)

besides free flow CRABS.. the international buffet spread offers a wide range of sumptuous dishes which is more than u can eat.. (note that the list is not exhaustive).. such as Sashimi, sushi, tempura, roasted chicken, teryaki chicken, oyster omelette, spicy squid, butter prawns, cold seafood, salad bar, cakes, ice-cream, ice kachang and etc..





verdict: quite worth it if u're a seafood lover.. especially if u are a skilled eater when it comes to crabs.. besides their crabs, the buffet spread is quite up to standard.. frankly, it was above my expectation.. the thick and generous freshly cut salmon sashimi.. the endless supply of prawns and oysters.. and the cakes were OMG.. waaah~~ *drools*

oh! their hot beverages - espresso, hot chocolate, teh tarik, cappuccino, various tea of your choice, are all free flow!

enjoy 15% off with many credit cards such as DBS, UOB, Standard Chartered and more.. Try before August 2012 ends~~

Mondays to Thursdays: Adult S$52++, Child S$31++
Fridays to Sundays: Adult S$55++, Child S$33++

Plaza Brasserie
PARKROYAL on Beach Road
7500 Beach Road, Singapore 199591
Restaurant tel: 65055710
Hotel tel: 65055666

Rise (Marina Bay Sands Hotel)

LOVE THE SALMON SASHIMI!!! the salmon is really fresh and thumbs up for the smoked salmon (top center of the above pic) at the salad bar section. the rest on the first plate was pretty normal except for the octopus salad (right bottom of the pic). first bite: surprisingly creamy seafood taste. second bite: sweet and pleasant. third bite: ... okay next dish pls.



LOVE THE BLACK PEPPER BEEF CUBES!!! it was so good that i filled my plate quarter full of beef cubes in my second round.. (^O^) i didnt really like the beef cheek (top left of the pic, slightly darker than beef cubes).. it was tooooo soft.. *personal taste* the lamb rack was over-cooked but passable, it could be more seasoned and flavourful.. next to lamb is roasted chicken.. hmmm.. missing a pinch of salt maybe? skipping the turkey ham.. i mean its just processed meat.. steamed slice fish.. disappointed.. i think it was over-steamed.. wahahahaa.. last on the plate (left bottom of the pic) is spinach salmon.. the spinach neutralised the salmon taste and vice versa.. in the end.. no taste.. grrrrrrrr...



yummy!! i had two bowls of this - pork ribs lotus roots soup.. the sweetness of both pork ribs and lotus roots is so addictive.. anyway i had no choice but to have this soup.. there were other two - curry soup and green pea cream soup (something close).. hahaah.. i dun take spicy food and i hate green peas!!



i enjoyed their dessert variety to the max! see that choc tart there? it's chocolate caramel.. waaaaaah.. the creamy fudge just spreads and fills my mouth.. so rich.. so thick.. it was the best!



there were four ice cream choices.. sorbet - passion fruit and strawberry (pic above).. have a few spoonful would keep u going for another few more rounds.. refreshing! i enjoyed praline and skipped raspberry..

Verdict: hmmmm.. overpriced ($48++ daily) for lunch buffet with this spread.. but consider that it's at MBS.. well.. nonetheless, for the same price category, i would consider having a lunch buffet at certain hotels in town which would provide a better spread..

Note: i skipped spicy dishes such as Chicken Curry, Fish Curry, Chilli Crab etc..

FAIL: no prawns! there were nooooooooo prawns, crayfish, baby lobster, crab at cold seafood section! only mussels, scallop, clams.. saddened..

Rise (Marina Bay Sands Hotel)
10 Bayfront Avenue
Tower 2, Lobby Level Marina Bay Sands Hotel
Tel: 66885525

Triple Three

i had buffet lunch (weekday) at Triple Three (Mandarin Orchard Hotel).. let's start the food journey bah~~

Sweet Corn Soup



dun be deceived by the normal appearance of the above labelled "Sweet Corn Soup"! it was cooked and filled with crab meat! not just only bits and pieces of real crab meat.. there were chunks and chunks of sweet tasty crab meat in that big silver pot.. u'll just have to be skilful and tactful when it comes to digging the good stuff~~

I FORGOT TO SNAP MY Pumpkin Soup!!! tsk! it was reaaaaaaaally creamy and thick - the way i like it to be.. nonetheless.. another pinch of salt could have added extra flavour and bring out the sweetness of the pumpkin..

Sushi + Sashimi



folks, you can totally skip the maki because of two reasons - ingredients are not exquisite enough to take up that limited space of your stomach, and it can be quite filling.. HOWEVER! please please try their sushi! they were prepared so professionally.. FIY: i picked up the sushi with my lousy chopsticks technique and turned the sushi upside down.. guess what! the prawn and salmon were firmly knitted to the rice.. OMG! yet the rice was still soft and separates when u put them in your mouth.. ~ so touching ~ next, the sashimi.. only two words - - - FRESH! Good! *salivating*

Tempura



if u are hoping for ebi tempura.. be ready for disappointment.. coz they only have Sweet Potato (as seen in photo above) and Swordfish Tempura (which i forgot to snap).. both are on unlimited supply coz the chef at that counter kept frying and frying.. so people who enjoys tempura can knock yourselves out..

Prawns



all buffet-goers know one golden rule - to make your deal worth, attack the seafood counter! hmmmm.. i saw prawns, oysters, errrr... more.. prawns and oysters. . . . . WHERE'S MY CRAB? LOBSTERS? OR MAYBE BABY LOBSTERS? EVEN CRAYFISH????? *angry face* why??? really.. srsly! why? though the plus-sized juicy cold prawns did comforted my broken heart a lil bit.. but i can't help but to question it over and over again.. what's with that ridiculous limited selection of seafood?!

Fried Squid + Tori Karaage + Veal Sausage



Surprise Surprise~ what a nice surprise! the fried squid is so crispy on the outside yet soft and chewy on the inside!!!!! okay.. there were two squid dishes.. one is the delicious fried ones.. the other is the stir-fry ones - which were super rubbery and tasteless *bleh*.. so just stick to the fried ones k! next, the tori karaage were okay - at least not dry and really got meat one lor.. well.. the sausage was a big fail to me.. not nice.. i frowned when i took a bite lehz.. it was slightly heated up and served only.. do i need a chef for that?

XO Sauce Fried Rice



LG lor.. looks good.. but *sigh* not even pass the golden standard of the definition of fried rice.. the fried rice dun have 锅气! literally means the fragrance of the wok.. -in short: bad. small fail. can skip.-

however, pls pls pls (even if there is a queue) try their pasta! the chef was super generous with the toppings and sauce and the pasta.. it was nice! the pasta was about 90% cooked.. the standard pasta.. just nice.. with huge scoop of toppings (choice of beef/seafood).. and u might have realised i dun have that photo coz i was so captivated that i forgot to snap! (>_<) Lamb Chop with Potato



soft, tender, juicy, tasty, delicious lamb chop.. hmmmm.. it was so well-marinated that u won't even have the feeling that u are eating mutton wor.. heehee.. but pls dun be kiasu like me and take the potatoes.. i think they were just for display.. wahahahaa.. kidding.. it was on the big label.. so i guess they were part of the dish.. but they were really awful! to the extent that i swallowed the first bite with gulps of water..

Teppanyaki Beef



at first when i saw the bloody water coming out of the beef, i though they were too raw and.. well bloody.. but but but.. the beef was tender and just nice!! i could stuff the whole big slice of it and chew it well and swallow it.. those who eat beef must have the bad experience of unable to swallow one small bite of badly prepared beef and kept chewing.. but not this.. it's that good.. (^O^)

Roast Duck



really generous portion and the skin was still crispy.. however.. i thought it was too salty.. but if u are a carbo person.. pls eat this with white rice (available there)..

Dessert



Cakes + Puffs + Tarts were all above-average compared to other hotel buffet restaurants.. i meant all.. really all.. coz i tried almost all.. wahahahaaaa~~

oso u gotta have these sweet treats with a cup of coffee or tea right? (i forgot to snap again) i had cappuccino and it was good.. but i wanna point out that their coffee machine sucks! i think some bloggers had pointed this out already.. and it seems that they are still stuck with that faulty, malfunctioning coffee machine.. LOL..



the Longan and Sea Coconut was not very popular wor.. because many ppl only take the ice-melted water on the surface with those floating longan and probably didnt realise got sea coconut.. see! buffet-goers are not lidat.. we dig out the good stuff! look at the longanssssss and sea coconut i dug up.. with sensible taste of sugar syrup..

finally.. my verdict: go only when there is one-for-one deal, or 50% off..
based on the spread and quality.. dun go bonkers and pay $70++ during festive seasons..
Triple Three
333 Orchard Road
Level 5 Mandarin Orchard Singapore
Tel: 68316271