[personal random] Dinner meet-ups with friends

RKM together with Meryl and her hubby, Joe decided to have dinner after work to end our 2025. We decided to re-visit the Lou Shang 楼上 - HDB Themed Café. This speakeasy bar/eatery is hidden behind a lift, and as Meryl and Joe haven’t been to this café before, we felt that this would be a good choice.

We saw a typical HDB building lift lobby, with letterboxes, dustbin, noticeboard, and pamphlets lying everywhere. It' a familiar scene for most Singaporeans!

The only way to enter the café, is to press the lift button. Once we entered Lou Shang, we were amazed by the décor which resembled hallways of older HDB blocks. I was impressed at the little details put into making the café feel as nostalgic and authentic as possible — You'll find various bamboo poles and wooden doors with nostalgic metal door gates as well as window frames! They looked exactly like those that you’d find in an old HDB estate.

The menu featured lots of fusion food and we were very curious about the menu items! 

Lou Shang has nailed its creativity well by recreating this iconic nostalgic HDB-inspired setting. The overall experience was enjoyable, and it is definitely worth a visit if you are looking for a unique dining spot in Singapore or simply wish to relive the charm of the OG days of Singapore! 

We ended our gathering with some traditional desserts at Yat Ka Yan Dessert which is located at the Fortune Centre. 

There are many Peranakan restaurants in the Katong and Joo Chiat area, but parking lots are usually scarce. However, I recently found a causal Peranakan restaurant - Godmama which is located in Parkway Parade, hence parking is much simpler in a shopping mall

We ordered our usual Peranakan favorites such as Bakwan Kepiting - crab, pork, prawn and bamboo shoots balls in a rich chicken broth, Babi Assam - Godmama’s signature belly of pork simmered in an aromatic tamarind stew, served with tau kwa and Kacang Panjang - stir fried with dry shrimps and sweet potatoes in fragrant coconut gravy. 

The damage was kinda on the higher side, but it was compensated by the delicious Peranakan fix! 

Lastly, before I end this post, I recently had a dinner gathering with my ex-colleagues. We had a delightful dinner with them at this very popular eatery place which has received the Michelin Bib Gourmand for several years. 

Sik Bao Sin/Desmond Creation 吃飽先 serves some of the best Cantonese-style zi char dishes in Singapore, and it is located at Geylang Road.