We woke up early in the morning in order to catch the shuttle bus that provides service route between Singapore Zoological garden and city area. This daily bus service takes visitor direct from the following pickup points along Orchard area to Singapore Zoo. A one-way trip costs $4 per adult and $2 for a child. For more details you can visit www.bushub.com.sg or www.zoo.com.sg under 'Visitors' Info\Getting Here\By Bus Hub Service (Daily)'. : )
The bus is quite comfort and hassle free for the journey to the zoo. This is a good option to consider instead having to take MRT and switch SBS bus which in fact take much time and troublesome. We choose to wait at bus stop B12 which is just opposite the Meritus Mandarin Orchard by 9:12am. The service is punctual and actually whole bus just have few ppl (tourist) including ourselves. Well, we treat ourselves as tourist too for that day ~ hihi.. After passing the last pickup point - The Claremont Hotel, off we go straight head to the Zoo! Whole journey takes about 30 minutes or lesser : )
We reached around 9.35am! Although today is weekday but we can view from far there is already crowd around the entrance! Since it is school holiday many parents bring their children visiting zoo. Here is a tips for all! You will entitle FREE admission to zoo on your birthday! No joking here although there isn't any info stated in official zoo website but this is the experience we get on that day! When hubby purchasing the admission ticket inform the staff any discount for birthday person? The staff took hubby IC and come back present hubby a 'special tag' with message "I'm having a Wild Birthday'! Hubby realized only pay the admission ticket for myself while his portion is FREE!!! Haha ... Great isn't it? Free entrance to zoo on your own birthday ... So do keep this in mind for whoever that having birthday soon this is an option to have a wild birthday! hihihi... On top of it, hubby got a complimentary free Ben & Jerry ice cream from Ah Meng Restaurant! : p yum yum ~ ~
The weather was so HOT that day! But we still enjoyed ourselves touring around the Zoo. It had been few years we last visit the Zoo. There is several changes compare to past. These are actually very good indeed! We managed catch 2 shows: Polar Bear feeding and Sea Lion + penguin splashing performance : ) These animals are really the STAR and Cute as well!! It is really enjoyable walking around in the nature park and having some close encounter with the animals that can say hardly come across in today busy city life. Definitely it is much more fun and meaningful than loitering around city shopping area which is kind of bored ... That is why my hubby insist want to go Zoo during his birthday ... haha ~
We had spend almost whole day in the Zoo till our feet scream for help! Started getting pain... Haha ... n_n
Sheep meeting Jack The Kangaroo... haha ~
As for dinner, I had planned one unique place for hubby. A new place we never dine before - located at Bukit Timah. It is an authentic Italian restaurant by the name 'AL BORGO'. Been there??
I was cracking my head where to bring hubby this year for dinner? Initially plan to go back Garibaldi but we had been there twice thus thinking why not try somewhere else. Been selected few choices like Prive (Keppel Bay), OSO Ristorante, Ristorante Bologna but in the end i choose AL BORGO! A small but cosy with authentic Italian cuisine ~
We reach Bt. Timah around 6.45pm which is just nice to my reservation timing. It was still very quiet inside the restaurant and we had been allocated to a private & cosy corner by Luigi, the manager. A friendly and bubbly Italian guy. The restaurant ambience is quite different from ordinary restaurant where it gives kind of 'country home' feel. Tranquil and comfortable ... I had done some homework note down the 'special' recommended house dish so that we know what should head to. Here the dishes that we ordered:
Wine (White)
Cesari Bianco delle Venezie igt 2007
Comment: Medium sweet, a bit citrus
Appetizers
Crostone Toscano
(Slices toasted bread topped with mushroom & cheese)
Comment: Crunchy bread with juicy mushroom cheese, wonderful!
Main Dish
Salse e Paste Al Borgo - Ravioli al Funghi
(Pasta Ravioli with delightful pumpkin sauce)
Comment: Presentation bit like Chinese wanton taste very unique and suggested serve while still hot/warm
Brasati - Brasato D'Agnello
(Chop lamb stew with vegetables, red wine & tomato sauce)
Comment: Tender & chewy and the red wine sauce managed to blend in very well. Nice work
Desserts
Panna Cotta
Tiramisu
Comment: Panna Cotta kinda like egg pudding with strawberry slices as topping. Slightly sweet but acceptable. Tiramisu is sweet. If the sweeten level lower bit will be much better.
Luigi personally gives us additional free desserts - 'Coppa del Nonno al Martini' and 2 small glasses of home made sweet wine. The dessert is like an ice cream+pudding+martini. Very refreshing and taste good! The sweet wine taste little like Yomeishu but still nice after serve the dessert. Haha... So kind of him! Guess what, he jokes that there is a Chinese inside him as he like Chinese food very much! He has a Chinese S'pore girlfriend and he like to blog all Asian foods he tried. He can take durian also ok!! haha : p
Overall we like the dinner. The ambience, food and service are excellent. Something different from what we had so far, a very authentic Italian food. A new taste for us : ) One thing that must be shared here, the PRICE! The price was really reasonable comparing those high-end/Italian restaurant in city area. O ya! 1 thing which is cute when we left the chef inside the kitchen wave to us .. It really just like having 'home' dinner and the person who cooked ' The Chef'' say goodbye
We had a wonderful day on 11.12.2009! Our 1 day trip to the Zoo and a lovely cum comfy dinner. Hope hubby love the arrangement, self hand made birthday card and 3D puzzle. This is how my budget arrangement plan for hubby 2009 Birthday! : )
Al Borgo Italian Restaurant
383, Bukit Timah Road,
#01-01 Alocassia Apartment Singapore
(near Robin Drive/Road)
Tel: 67373546
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