I had long heard about Bay Hotel from E & C when they came here for a staycation last year and it had always been on my mind since then to go check this place out.
I came across STREET 50‘s (that’s the flagship restaurant of the hotel) Asian Weekend Lunch Buffet on Groupon and went ahead to purchase the deal for 2 persons (S$48) but I only paid S$36 as I had a 25% off coupon code. And the deal was made even sweeter as I accessed Groupon via Shopback which gave me extra cashback.
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Interior of the restaurant
Outdoor seating space
Let’s take a look at the buffet:
Combination of Chinese cold cuts – marinated octopus, jellyfish, spring rolls, smoked duck and century egg with pickled ginger
DIY Gado Gado
Ikan Kering Sambal
Carving station: Roasted Balinese Striploin
Sambal Mussels
Mutton Rendang
Sauteed Beef with Young Ginger and Spring Onions
Udang Petai Belado
Seafood on ice
Assorted nonya kueh and cakes
Of this plate, I loved the Balinese striploin most. The crust formed on the rim of its fat had a lovely smoky flavour. The meat was sliced thinly and had a nice pinkish middle but it was still quite chewy. The accompanying sauce was also salty but robust in flavour. However I was quite disappointed that this was not replenished even though we were barely mid-way of lunch hours.
The combination of cold cuts was like the cold dish of a Chinese banquet dinner. I liked the crispy spring roll that didn’t ooze oil and the smoked duck and century egg which I didn’t think will go wrong.
There were chicken and mutton satay that were beautifully marinated but not charred enough so there was a lack of smokiness. The mutton was chewy but the chicken was tender. Satay sauce was quite sweet.
The gado gado was not bad. Sauce was nutty and sweet.
The ikan kering was my next favourite. It was exactly the same as the mermaid or mei ren yu that’s sold at mixed rice or Teochew porridge stalls. It was so good that I took a separate plate of it and munched on it like a snack, lol. Shiok.
The seafood on ice was total rubbish. Crab was hollow inside with little meat and it was so tasteless and dry. The miserable looking bamboo clams oozed out dirt and didn’t taste fresh. Mussels and prawns were edible but not fantastic. Seriously, this seafood section could just totally go since this was supposed to be an Asian buffet anyway so might as well have a few more Asian dishes in the hot food section instead. What a waste of calories.
Sweet corn soup that was mainly starch with not much ingredients in it.
Fried Rice was normal. The Udang Petai Belado was very spicy. The Lemak Ayam Cili Padi had a delicious gravy but I couldn’t find any dark meat cuts, mostly thick breast meat chunks that was a bit dry. The Sambal Mussels didn’t have much of a kick. Mutton Rendang was chewy and on the sweet side. The Stir Fried Baby Kailan with Garlic was crunchy. Braised Tofu with Crabmeat and Egg White was decent. The Beef with Young Ginger and Spring Onions was tasty but the meat was just a tad too chewy.
Unfortunately, everything really didn’t taste as great as they looked.
These were what I got for second helping which were the only dishes I liked in the whole buffet besides the Ikan Kering. The Otak was dry with not much flavour of spices so I only had one bite of it and that was it.
At the outdoor seating area, there was 1 live noodle station. This was prawn noodle soup which came in a flavoursome prawn broth. Pretty tasty.
This was the complete selection of desserts. I was delighted to find durian puree at the bottom of the durian panna cotta which was really fragrant but just a little too sweet and cloying.
Of the rest, I only enjoyed the kueh lapis that had a nice consistency (not too hard or too soft) and the yellow tapioca kueh.
Pulut hitam was too sweet for my liking.
Regular coffee and tea were included in the buffet which you could just help yourself to. There was also free flow of Soda Gembira which was a carbonated Bandung drink that was refreshing and not too sweet.
Overall, I wasn’t too impressed by the quality of the food even though a few dishes did fare better than the rest. Perhaps because everything was on the sweeter side and I very much prefer Asian food to be packed with more spice and savouriness so this spread really didn’t appeal to me as much. But if you’re looking for an inexpensive Asian spread and if you also have a sweeter tooth, then this can be a decent buffet for you.
The Weekend Lunch Buffet price on Groupon has now gone up as there is a new menu.
STREET 50 Restaurant & Bar
Bay Hotel Singapore
50 Telok Blangah Road
Singapore 098828
Tel: +65 6818 6681
Website: http://www.bayhotelsingapore.com/dining/
Weekend lunch buffet is only available on Sat & Sun from 12pm to 3pm