Brunei Restaurant Review: Badi’ah Hotel Restaurant Weekend Buffet

Badi’ah Hotel recently opened at Jalan Batu Satu, just behind First Emporium supermarket. If you’re unfamiliar with Batu Satu – popular landmarks here are Freshco Supermarket, Lucky Restaurant and Charcoal restaurant. To get to Badi’ah Hotel, the entrance is just right after the entrance to Pertama supermarket.

 

Look out for this sign – turn left and you can either park in front of the hotel or park in their basement parking – plenty of parking space.

 

The grand entrance ~ lobby of Badi’ah Hotel.

 

Delifrance is actually on the ground floor of the hotel if you’re in a mood for their pastries and breads.

 

Some friends were confused on where the restaurant is – It’s not on the hotel lobby where Delifrance is. It’s on the ground floor. You can take the lift or use the escalator from the ground floor.

 

The restaurant is pretty spacious and there’s two sections for seating – one section I think is the family seating – featuring big round tables and placed next to the kid’s section.

 

One of the main features of Badi’ah Hotel Restaurant is their kid’s corner – which is just next to the family table settings to cater to family with kids. Parents can enjoy the buffet while the kids can play with other kids.

 

Oh to be a kid again – I was tempted to jump on this but I don’t think it can support this fatty food blogger ~~ sigh ~~

 

Don’t have children or have a smaller group? No worries as they have another section with seating catered to smaller groups. This area is seated quite a distance from the kid’s corner so you’ll have some peace and quiet.

 

On to the highlight – the buffet spread ~~ The Weekend International Buffet features a mix of Japanese and Chinese cuisine, paired with Western pastries and desserts.

 

Yummy stuffed croissants – Tuna Mayo or Eggs croissant? Take your pick!

 

Mini appetizer tarts ~~

 

Dinner rolls with butter or soup anyone?

 

Hmm ~ yes ~~ a comforting Chinese corn soup to start ~~

 

If you’re a lover of Japanese food like me , you can begin your dinner with Japanese Sushi ~~ ooooh yess ~~ Attack the Salmon sushi!

 

Rows and rows of delicate Japanese Sushi ~~ grabs wasabi and soy sauce ~~ Itadakimasu!

 

Sushi sushi makes me happy ~~ nom nom nom ~~ *swoooons* I love sushi ~~

 

Aburi sushi – lightly seared (blow torched) salmon, Inari and some others ~~~ loving their Japanese section!

 

Some who don’t fancy sushi (yes – not everyone loves sushi!) can start with Chinese style appetizers too – fancy some steamed Dim Sum like Crystal Shrimp Dumplings or Siew Mai? Or how about those crispy deep fried prawn wontons ~~ Hmm ~~~

 

If you’re a fan of Chinese Roasted meats – they have a good selection here – Chicken Char Siew, Roasted Duck (ohhh yessss!), Roasted Chicken and last but not least – Char Siew Lamb!

 

My fellow blogger friends Marul, Reedah and Alin really enjoyed their Char Siew Lamb! Have you ever tried Chinese Style Char Siew lamb? Try it and you’ll be hooked!

 

My first plate from the buffet line – noticed I took quite a lot of sushi and some roasted duck ~~ hmm ~~ my appetizers~ ahahahah~ pass me some wasabi and soy sauce please!

 

I had some yummy dum sum and chow mian afterwards ~~ still on appetizer mode! HAHAHAH!

 

Now we move on to their Chinese Main Dishes! Fancy Mussels served in sweet spicy sauce anyone?

 

Stir fried Broccoli Florets Chinese Style ~~  gotta eat your vegetables!

 

Really rare to see Chinese style steamed fish with ginger and soy for a buffet but I’m not complaining! It’s actually pretty good! Thumbs up!

 

If you love to add some crisp texture to your fish – they serve Deep fried whole fish too!

 

I am loving the idea of more whole fish as part of the buffet spread! Hot and Spicy Fried Fish!

 

Crispy battered Squid for those who love fried stuff!

 

Crispy Salt and Pepper prawns anyone?

 

Noticed they served quite a lot of seafood! Check out their Spicy curry sliced fish ~~ These are refilled midway during the buffet – offering new dishes

 

Another new dish during the buffet spread. Lovely crispy fish fillets with spicy acar.

 

The buffet line refills quite promptly during my meals – at around 8 – they started to serve child friendly snacks like these stuffed crab claws ~~ yum!

 

Kids love chicken wings – but so do adults like me ~~ Hmmm ~~

Note: The buffet spread for the Main Courses changes from time to time – and they refill with different dishes throughout the night. The pics shown here are just some of the dishes I had for the night.

 

Their beverage section ~~

 

Coffee and Tea – to match the desserts ~~

 

For desserts,  they have assorted fruit tarts ~~

 

Plus fruits skewers to dip with the chocolate fondue fountain.  A great treat for the kids ~~ and making them eat more fruit ~ by dipping them in chocolate ~ win win situation ~~

 

Cakes are of course – part of their International buffet ~~ mostly Western style cakes at the moment though I hope they’ll add some Japanese or Chinese desserts in future.

 

The Cookies and Cream Cheese Cake ~~ A crowd pleaser dessert ~~

 

Blueberry Cheesecake caught my eye ~~ *smacks lips*

 

They have a freezer with a variety of Ice Cream to choose from, and you get to choose your toppings. Who can say no to ice cream? Hmm ~~~ One tip: Take their croissants and use it to spoon up your ice cream ~~ indulgence!

 

Now the big question is ~~ how much do I need to pay for the buffet? ~~ It’s currently $28.80 but the management is giving a 20 percent discount for the month of March, so it’ll only be $23.04. Quite a good price if you consider they serve expensive items like Sushi and Dim Sum in their buffet spread. For children aged 6-11, the buffet will be 14.40 and children below 6 dines in for free.

Considering that Sushi and Chinese Dim Sum on average costs $2-$5 a plate, and you tend to spend about $8-$12 for a small portion of Chinese food in a typical Chinese restaurant, the discounted price of $23.04 for a buffet spread like this is quite a good value for money! It’s too bad they only have them on weekends!

 

The Weekend buffet will be available starting at 7pm every Friday till Sunday.

Note: There is also a special lunch time set promotion valued at $9.90 throughout the week except Fridays. For the month of March, customers who dine in the restaurant will stand a chance to win gadgets like tablets, LED TV, Laptop and mobile phones.

 

Badi'ah Hotel Restaurant,

1st Floor, Badi'ah Complex, Mile 1,

Jalan Tutong, Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei-Muara,

BA1712, Brunei Darussalam

Call: 2220073 or 7292221 to make reservations

Brunei Restaurant Review: Phongmun Restaurant

It’s amazing that Phongmun Restaurant is celebrating it’s 30th anniversary this year. I remember vivid memories of having dim sum here with my family as a little kid as I used to live in Kampung Ayer.

 

Besides dim sum during the weekends, I’ve also attended countless wedding celebrations here. Notice that this place is pretty child friendly as they got quite a number of baby chairs in this picture.

 

I would say Phongmun is a family restaurant, catering to weekends for the common tradition of a Chinese family having dim sum together and having quality family time together.

 

I guess because a lot of us grew up coming to this restaurant, we did not stop to appreciate some of the carvings and décor in the restaurant, which otherwise – we would marvel in awe if we were in a new restaurant or in another country. Have you ever stop to marvel at these dragon sculptures?

 

They also have a VIP room and these other traditional Chinese structures. Perhaps the younger generation need to drag themselves out of bed to have early Dim Sum, they didn’t really appreciate the ambience.

 

My camera doesn’t do justice for this beautiful sculpture in their VIP room. It’s quite a majestic sight!

 

Now Phongmum restaurant is not just about the Dim Sum ~ they do offer plenty of options when it comes to Chinese food. For starters, they have  Lunch Specials for every Tuesday: Chicken Rice and every Thursday: Suckling Pig w/ rice. While they also serve Charsiew/ Roasted Pork/ Roasted Duck/ Roasted Chicken from Monday till Friday. They are pretty popular during lunch, as there’s quite a big working population around Bandar Town area.

 

One thing you might not know is that they serve pretty good Chinese Fine Dining at Phongmun restaurant, or some might call these – Kung Fu Cuisine! For this post, I will highlight and show you some of their delicious, time consuming dishes that require real Kung Fu/Cooking Techniques. They usually require you to make advance orders for these dishes – usually one or two days in advance! Check out this huge Lobster Salad!

 

If it’s a special occasion where you want to celebrate – or a big client you want to impress – you won’t go wrong with this exquisite lobster salad. Confirm very ‘got face’. Beautifully decorated and bound to catch anyone’s attention.

 

Lobster meat ~~ oooh yes please!

 

This is the Double Boiled Chicken Ginseng soup – using carefully selected Kampung Chicken cooked with Chinese herbs and Ginseng. A very hearty soup with tons of health benefits!

 

Double Flavour Chicken or Bai Hua Xuang Wei Chi is a combination of two dishes: Buttermilk chicken cubes & Fish Paste topped with Crispy Chicken Skin.

 

The chicken skin is carefully taken out and turned into this crispy top for the fish paste. Yum! The headchef really showcases the technique of Chinese cooking in this dish that looked so simple.

 

Phongmun Signature Beancurd – The Phongmum’s version of home made seafood beancurd served in a thick gravy – unlike typical ones which is usually served with mayonnaise.

 

Braised Abalone, Winter Mushroom & Sea Cucumber served in Phongmun Signature sauce. This can be served on individual plates equally divided for your guests. Look at that delicious abalone! I bet you would love to take a picture with that now and instagram it!

 

#abalone #huatah #likealousai #finedining #foodadventures

 

Mei Ting and Poh Chuan enjoying their posh Chinese fine dining experience ~~

 

One of my favourite Chinese dishes - Braised Pork Knuckle with handmade Mantou – *slurps*

 

One simply does not say no to these gelatinous fatty pork – after longs hours of braising to absorb the flavours of the sauce and softened to a jelly like texture! Hubba hubba!

 

They are even better – served with your choice of steamed or deep fried mantous (all homemade by the dimsum chefs of Phongmun restaurant)

 

That awesome moment when you use the fried mantou to *kiap* (sandwich) the pork fatty part with meaty part with the oozing gravy ~~~~~~ OMG! HOW CAN YOU RESIST THIS! NOM NOM NOM NOM NOM!!! ATTACK!!!

 

Another Kung Fu dish for the night is this Steamed Chinese Pomfret, Qiling-style, with crispy fried fish bones.

 

The bones had been removed – fish sliced and arranged perfectly with ham, carrots and mushroom and served with sauce.

 

A beautiful dish that requires a lot of knife skills and preparation. Another great dish to impress your guests or to treat your loved ones.

 

The crispy deep fried fish bones are deep fried till cracker like texture and dipped with sauce for a good crunchy snack to accompany the fish – I have to admit I really enjoyed this dish. A dish that can put a smile on your face.

 

I’ve heard good things about their Yangzhou Fried Rice and I’m not disappointed. It’s pretty good and served as a good accompaniment tonight to the fine dishes we have.

 

We end our fine dining experience at Phongmun with a delicacy you often see in Chinese Wedding banquets – Sesame balls with lotus paste. I know a lot of friends who really loved these! ~~ bon appetit!

 

Phongmun restaurant does have other common Chinese dishes in their menu if you wish – but that’s for another blog post. This post mostly highlights the availability of Chinese Fine Dining dishes suitable for special occasions and weddings – or just a foodie culinary journey.

Good news:

Phongmun 30th Anniversary Promotion (1- 31 Mar)

15% discount off total bill for orders above BND$100 if you dine in during dinner time from 7pm – 10pm daily during the 1st till 31st of March!

 

Phongmum Restaurant

Opening hours: 7am to 10pm daily

Address: 2nd Floor, Teck Guan Plaza, Jln Sultan

Tel: (673) 2229591/ 2229562