10 @ Claymore, Pan Pacific Orchard

I met up with ex-colleagues for lunch earlier this month. We decided to try the lunch buffet over at Pan Pacific Orchard (formerly the Negara Hotel on Claymore Road). It is always quiet when I go to Pan Pacific Orchard and it is no difference on a weekday afternoon.

Besides us, only about 2 or 3 other tables were filled. One was a big group, obviously on a company lunch bonding thing.
I started with a plate of salad ~ greens, grilled zucchinis, mushrooms, pomelo chicken ~ which was fresh and appetizing. There were more items available.

10 @ Claymore with its huge chocolate fountain in the background. It actually has a ring of food for you to dip into the fountain. Dried fruits, profiteroles, fresh fruits, marshmallows and many more. The buffet itself is not big but it is sufficient. I like that each chafing dish is spilt into two, so you get two types of foods in one. It saves space and the food is warm and fresh as they are not left that to harden over time. The food is replenish quickly and frequently too.

The table setting. It is quite dark with its warm brown color scheme. I like the glass all around the place, giving it quite a cozy yet modern feel to it.

The soup is served from the kitchen and the soup of the day is french onion soup. It was average. See the difference between what is served here and the picture I blogged about from Kelsey's which looked so much more appetizing.

There were many types of bread and the ones I had were warm and soft inside and crusty outside. You just sliced the bread to the thick you liked. I loved the butter though. Herb butter and tomato butter. So delicious on the bread.

The roast beef was very good. Super tender and almost melted in my mouth. The roasted sweet potatoes were very nice too. The fish was fresh and the chicken in some sauce was equally yummy. The carb was garlic rice which made a nice foil against the meat. Steamed veggies completed the mains. The grilled squids were not too bad, not too rubbery. There was also a pork dish and other stuff which I did not take.

I was quite happy to just eat the roast beef with roasted sweet potatoes and some fish. I think when you have good quality or decent food, you don't need a large variety to be satiated.

The dessert was a bit of a disappointment. It is obviously not their strong suit. The chocolate cake thing is meant to be a brownie but it obviously tasted like a chocolate cake and is good as that. So if you are really expecting a brownie, you will be disappointed. The strawberry cake thing was not that nice. The sponge cake was not too bad and the pineapple tart was not that good either. There was an apple crumble which I forgot to try. Fresh fruits rounded up the dessert section.

The weak dessert selection was probably the reason why the chocolate fountain had its place of honor right in the center of the restaurant and is the focal point for people walking into the place. If you are not a chocolate or fruits person, then you are totally lucked out for desserts.

I hardly go for the chocolate fountain now even at other restaurants as I am quite over it. Then again, most places only have the typical strawberries, marshmallows and melons to dip into the flowing milk chocolate. At least at 10 @ Claymore, you get the profiteroles which is a nice touch to counter the sweetness of the chocolate. It will be even better if they have two types of fountains ~milk and dark chocolate.

Another highlight is the coffee maker. You can choose the type of tea you like from the selection available. And for coffee, you get to select the type of coffee too. The waiter helped to make the cappuccino and brought it over to the table. That was a nice way to end the meal.

I would not mind going to 10 @ Claymore again to try the dinner buffet or just for lunch again. It is a nice place for a quiet meal. It is near town and yet is away from the crowd and madness.