I Wander

Travel, Itineraries & Guides, Hotel Reviews

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Food Review: Jia Wei Chinese Restaurant at Grand Mercure Singapore Roxy – One of the Most Underrated Chinese Restaurants in Singapore

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Tucked away at the second floor of the Grand Mercure Singapore Roxy in Katong is Jia Wei, an unassuming Chinese restaurant in the chain hotel. Although most of Singapore’s best Chinese restaurants are usually located in town, this Katong gem piqued my interest after an acquaintance on Instagram posted a couple of mouthwatering dishes from the venue. A quick check at various websites also revealed a few value-for-money deals so the decision to come was really a no-brainer.

Get a 20% discount voucher at Jia Wei here

As of this writing, I have been to Jia Wei five times. The first two times were for the value lunch sets. Portions were quite big and I was amazed by the 4 courses that came with the meal I chose. Following that, I was invited by the restaurant for dinner to check out the ala carte menu. I also dropped by a couple of times for their seasonal menus. The restaurant has a special dish that changes each month.

Jia Wei uses locally sourced ingredients whenever possible and that includes the greens in its vegetable dishes and even some of the seafood. Believe it or not, Singapore does have a thriving agri/aquaculture sector.

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Best Mothers’ Day Chinese Food for Takeaway & Delivery

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Even with dining restrictions fully relaxed, takeaways and deliveries are still expected to play a larger part in our lives than during the pre-pandemic days . Many restaurants have now put their focus back on dine-in menus but the infrastructure built over the last 2 years in handling takeaways and deliveries stays for the most part. For now, most Chinese food lovers can still look forward to enjoying their favorite dishes at home, with families or close friends, especially since hosting at home has also become more popular.

Like everyone else, I have had my fair share of food takeaways and deliveries for the past 16 months (and counting). Among these takeaways, I would say that Chinese food is probably the most frequent cuisine I go for. For this update, I have compiled this list to share some Mothers’ Day Chinese food takeaways and delivery offers. They are arranged in no particular order.

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Hotel Staycation Review: Conrad Centennial Singapore – Renovated Rooms & Two Types of Executive Lounges

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Conrad Centennial Singapore underwent a progressive refurbishment in 2018 that encompassed the guest rooms, executive lounge plus a couple of new facilities by the swimming pool. I have personally stayed in this property quite a few times and always found the deliberately high beds one of the most comfortable among hotels in Singapore. Recently, I returned for a staycation – this time to experience what the renovated rooms and executive lounge have to offer under the current situation.

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The Grandeur of Penang’s Eastern and Oriental Hotel

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Despite not being a chain hotel, the Eastern and Oriental (E&O) Hotel in Penang needs no introduction. It is to Penang as the Raffles is to Singapore and the Strand is to Yangon. And rightfully so. These 3 hotels were built by the same folks – the Sarkies Brothers – with the E&O actually being the oldest of the three. Part of a larger list of Southeast Asian heritage hotels that also includes Manila Hotel and Sofitel in Hanoi, the E&O as locals call it, brings a colonial touch to the already laidback and historical air of the UNESCO World Heritage town of Georgetown in Penang, Malaysia.

I stayed at the Eastern and Oriental Hotel, Penang following a short sojourn to Perlis and Alor Setar. As my last visit to Penang was some 6 years back, I wanted to spend some time to check out the new attractions in the old town, particularly the 3D art works that are scattered around the heritage area. The Eastern and Oriental Hotel is located at Lebuh Farquhar and is conveniently in what is considered the “buffer zone” of Georgetown. It’s also a short walk to some of the major sights such as the Cheong Fatt Tze Blue Mansion and the colonial-era municipal hall right by the padang.

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Hotel Staycation Review @ PARKROYAL COLLECTION Marina Bay – Garden in a Hotel

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The PARKROYAL COLLECTION Marina Bay is perhaps the first large hotel to open in 2020. Although not entirely new – the property was formerly the Marina Mandarin Singapore – the overall feel is a marked departure from the hotel’s Meritus days. Under the PARKROYAL COLLECTION branding, this upmarket hotel now sports a rather calming warm tone as well as an inviting garden theme.

This garden theme is palpable the moment one enters the property. At the ground floor reception area, a high wall filled with hanging plants acts as a focal point while the bubble lifts that take guests up to the main lobby on the 4th floor provide glimpses of pavilions surrounded by lush greenery and an iconic hanging sculpture conceptualized by the late architect John Portman. The soaring atrium is a trademark of his design and this property is one of four that he conceptualized in Singapore – the others being Regent Singapore, Pan Pacific Singapore and Mandarin Oriental Singapore.

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List of Hotels in Singapore With Free Minibar

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Make what you will about hotel minibars but there is no denying that having a selection of goodies and drinks in the comfort of one’s room, especially if it’s free, still brings a sense of delight (and convenience) to guests. In Singapore, a number of hotels take the notion of a standard minibar one notch higher by making it a free inclusion in the room. Here, I try to list out those hotels that provide this amenity, including my own experiences of the same. Surprisingly, this amenity is found across different tiers of lodging in Singapore – not just in luxury hotels but even in boutique hotels.

If you know of other Singapore hotels not listed here with free minibar, do let me know in the comments below!

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Book Your Travel Experiences / Activities With Pelago & Earn 5X KrisFlyer Miles (S$40 Off til 30th April 2022)

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Pelago is a travel experiences platform launched by Singapore Airlines in 2021 with more than 450 curated experiences under its wing. Many of the travel activities they offer were carefully chosen and a large chunk can’t be found in other major travel booking platforms. In Singapore for instance, some of the notable experiences include a Nyonya heritage tour led by an actual SIA cabin crew or an eye-opening tour around the back streets of Geylang. 

As they form the online travel arm of Singapore Airlines, one can expect the bulk of the carrier’s routes peppered with similarly carefully chosen activities – from an in depth tour of Kuala Lumpur’s last centrally located kampong to a sunrise trek to Bali’s Mount Batur or even a tour of Phillip Island in Australia’s Victoria state by helicopter.

Booking is straightforward. Activities are grouped by destination and travelers get to choose the date and time (where applicable) for the experience of their choice. Do note that for first-time bookings, Pelago offers a 10% discount with the promo code: PELAGOWELCOME10

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