The community’s new personalized lifestyle playground

Residents staying around the Serangoon Gardens enclave have something new to look forward to, as a new mall will be opening right at their “courtyard”.  myVillage, formerly known as Serangoon Garden Village, will signal a new chapter of history of this neighbourhood as the iconic Paramount Theatre used to be situated here in the 1960s.

Do you know that the developer for myVillage, Chye Lee and Sons (CLS), are headed by brothers Edmund and Edward Chye whose father owned the Paramount Theatre?  The brothers also grew up in this area and their company built the Serangoon Gardens Village Shopping Mall at the same site where the theatre once stood.

After a two-year hiatus, myVillage will be the heart of the community base on surveys and feedbacks from the residents to create something everyone would love.  More than 800 handwritten samples of the words “my” are written on the myVillage logo to let them have a personalized mall of their own.

On the top of the interactive touch screen e-concierge are the two cartoon mascots of myVillage, Marley and Jules.  They are modelled after the developer brothers, Edmund and Edward.  Their names come about interestingly from the road, Farleigh and Maju Avenues where the mall is situated.

The use of various colours, designs and speech bubbles in the mall aims to create a warm and inviting space in which people would feel like its their home.  From here we can see how thoughtful into details the developers are to put in every single bit of effort to reinvent a place like home!

Oh, did I mention that myVillage is a gourmet haven with 40 percent of the space dedicated to F&B outlets?  I was at the media preview and brought to visit some of them.

Our first meet up point was at Shin Kushiya where we tasted some of their signature Kushiyaki, which are also known as charcoal-grilled skewers.  Do you know that Shin Kushiya uses Bincho charcoal from Japanese, which burns up to 1,200 degrees Celsius?  That is why the fresh seafood, meat and vegetables on skewers has a smoky flavour on the outside yet retaining its juiciness within.

Next up, we were served 4 sicks of their popular Kushiyaki, which is a staple in Japan.  

Nearest to you, it’s the Ebi Shiso Maki ($3.60) - The whole sea prawn wrapped with thinly-sliced pork and shiso leaf.  It’s so crispy that you can consume the shell!

Next to it, it’s the Buta Bara Yaki Miso Ginger ($2.80) - Three-layer pork belly with miso-ginger marinade.  It’s interesting sauce balance out the meaty taste of the pork pretty well.

One of the most popular, Black Pepper Yakitori ($2.20) - Black pepper soy-glazed chicken.  It’s always a sheer delight to have a stick of yakitori by itself or with Japanese rice.

Lastly, the Tomato Maki ($2.80) - Cherry tomatoes wrapped with thinly sliced pork.  Do not belittle this stick of Kushiyaki, the hot juice within the tomato will explode right into your mouth when you bite into it.  Be caution when eating it!

We were told that the Kushiyaki served here are not as salty as those found in Japan as to suit our local taste buds.  If you like its original flavours, the condiments, curry salt(left) and plum salt(right) are available on the table to enhance the taste of Kushiyaki.

For desserts, we were served the Kuro Goma Heaven ($7.80) - Black sesame ice cream with homemade black sesame cream.  For some reasons, I love the black sesame cream compared to the ice-cream as it taste richer.

Shin Kushiya is having some promotions during the opening of myVillage, do check out their website for details.

After our Kushiyaki, we were hosted to a dinner at Old Hong Kong Taste by the boss, Victoria Li (seated right).  Being a Cantonese, it was a great pleasure to savour and learn about authentic Cantonese cuisine with the boss who came from Hong Kong.

It’s always great to start a meal with some tea to warm up the body before having a meal.  This Longan Tea, is specially prepared for the younger crowd who prefers sweeter drinks as it is brewed with the natural sweetness from the longan itself.  Of course, they do have other classic teas such as the Wolfberry with Chrysanthemum tea.

The first dish, Fried Prawns in Japanese Wasabi Mayonnaise Dressing with Fish Roe is served with another that is Coated with Salted Egg.  It’s a great start to a meal as it taste so tantalizing on the taste buds.

Forget about your usual Shark’s Fin soup.  Try this Wanton with Chicken in Shark’s Bone Cartilage Soup, which is served in a Korean hotpot.  According to Victoria, the soup is being brew for more than eight hours and all of the Shark’s bone cartilage has dissolved totally.  It is a great source of protein and calcium this way.  There is also a huge shrimp wanton in the soup with shredded chicken. Where else can you find such a nourishing soup brewed with love at only $9?

The food is on fire!!  This Flaming Kurobuta Pork with Dang Gui is cooked piping hot on the hotplate and with Chinese wine, which evoked the flames.  The Kurobuta pork, also known as black pig, is so succulent texture and soaked with the goodness of the Chinese medical herb, Dang Gui (Chinese Angelica Root).

Good food is always best enjoyed while its hot, notice the trend for most of its dishes?  This Braised Soon Hock Fish with Shark’s Bone Cartilage Soup served on a dish warmer  is extraordinary as it’s being steamed with Shark’s bone cartilage soup.  I love the smooth texture and the sweet taste of the fish meat. 

I can’t deny that Cantonese are always so good with desserts.  This Chilled Avocado Cream with Ice-Cream caught my sweet tooth by surprise as it uses Coconut Ice-cream instead.  The aroma of the coconut complements so well with the avocado cream which left me craving for more.

Victoria told us that Old Hong Kong Taste opens daily, 365 days a year.  Do check out their website for their menu and they have an Afternoon Tea Special from 2.30pm to 5pm where there’s 20% off all dim sum and snacks!

After an enjoyable and scrumptious dinner, we were brought to visit Obolo Estudio to have a look at their desserts.

The kiosk located at the basement has a selection of mini Cheesecakes, Mousse Cakes, Tarts, Petite Choux and Macarons to choose from.

We were each given a goodie bag filled with some sweet treats.

As well as some of their artisan cookies, jam and their delectable pineapple tarts!

They are known as the “Architects of Bliss” and now I know why.

After looking at all the petite sweet treats, we were brought to Da Paolo Gastronomia, which specializes in gourmet Italian cuisine.

Being famous for their pizza, the chefs prepared tried their signature Gorgonzola e cipolle caramellate ($23) for us to try.  It uses their special cheese and it’s topped with caramelized onions and baby spinach.  It taste simple yet delicious but this is not for those who do not like sour cheese.

Besides pizza, they have a wide selection of anti-pasti, pastas, sandwiches, pastries and desserts.  Oh, they do also sell special edition wine from Italy!

They are also very nice to give us something to try, one of them it’s their muffin.

For the last food stop of our F&B preview at myVillage, we were brought to Udders and I was as excited as my sweet tooth to get a sugar high.

Udders is very well known for their artisan ice-cream and they have a wide variety of flavours ranging from liqueur, Asian-inspired and cosmopolitan where each category have a different price tagged according to the colours.

The ladyboss was very kind to host us and gave us 10 different popular flavours to try across the 3 range of ice-cream.  Here are some of my favourite which, I would like to share with all of you.

This is the Strawberry Fields ($3.20) and the Awesomely Chocolate ($3.90) flavours which reinvented the classic strawberry and chocolate flavours in its own unique way.  The Awesomely Chocolate was very rich and creamy and the Strawberry Fields has bits of strawberries in it.  It feels just like eating the real fruit!

Here comes the liqueur flavours, Tira-miss-u ($5.30) and the Rum Rum Raisin ($3.90) flavours which are very generous on the alcohol.  I have to caution everyone that their liqueur flavours are only available to customers who are above 18 of age as the alcohol level is no child’s play.

If you’re a fan of vanilla and would like to try something unique, go for the Vanilla Beanz lashed with VodCar topping ($6.10).  The ladyboss told us that the vodka they use is only available here as the supplier do not supply it to any retailers or restaurants elsewhere.

This is the prized possession of Udders if you’re wondering.

For fans of durian, the Mao Shan Wang ($5.30) is a hit among many. After eating this, you won’t want to go elsewhere for their durian ice-cream ever again.  At Udders, you can always get the best price for quality artisan ice creams!

There are many more F&B tenants which will be opening soon such as Bakerzin Artisan Bread concept store, Berrylite Petit’s frozen yogurt and Chinta Manis’ Peramalam delicacies.  Relish, by local Chef Willin Low, will also be opening soon!

Besides all the F&B outlets, there is something for the ladies too.  Organic Basic sells beauty and cosmetics products which are safe to use, compared to products which contains chemicals.

They have a few on-going promotions with up to 30% sale on their Anti-Aging Essential Kit and Valentine’s Day Special, which stocks are limited.  You may love to pamper yourself or your girl to look naturally beautiful this Chinese New Year and Valentine’s Day!

Apart from all the retail shops and F&B outlets, myVillage also has this cosy corner located outside Coffee Bean & Tea Leaves at the basement where you can chill out with family and friends.

There’s also a open concept garden on the roof where you can take a stroll, relax and breath in the night breeze after a dinner or shopping.  There will be benches for you to sit and enjoy the beautiful ambiance of the garden. 

If you’re driving to myVillage, there are 45 car park lots with valet parking on weekday evenings and weekends.  No worries if you’re taking public transport, there are ample buses from Serangoon and Ang Mo Kio MRT stations with less than 15 minutes travelling time.

Do look out for the grand opening of myVillage happening on the Sunday, 20th February 2011 from 12pm - 9pm and will be hosted by celebrity host, Daniel Ong for the evening.  There will be games and carnival activities such as Pillow Fight Battles, Picture-Perfect Moments and Family Tree.

For more details and information of the programs lined up for the grand opening of myVillage, do check out their website!

*Special thanks to Christina for the invite and hosting this media preview.