Review:- The Mama Shop

Disclaimer: I am not sponsored to write this blog post in any way. It is purely written based on my VERY own opinions. You may disagree with me, but to each his own.

For a long while now, my colleague and I have been hoping to visit "The Mama Shop" located at 195 Pearl's Hill Terrace. It was near our workplace anyway, so we thought it would be a pretty nice idea to drop by the place during our lunch hour. (And we finally made it there yesterday)

Yes, if you haven't known by now, it is the cafe set up by Mediacorp's artistes, Felicia Chin and Sora Ma.

We have seen many photographs of the cafe online, and boy, did it pique my interest!

I mean, it appeared to have a concept that was so TOTALLY my style. I LOVE everything retro, and the cafe was the definition of that.

I'm a person who digs oldies, so this is surely a must-go place for me. No doubt about it.

Unfortunately, we did not have a really positive first-time experience there.

Firstly, the location was a bit off and certainly not the most convenient location one can expect. In fact, both my colleague and I spent quite some time figuring the way to get to the location (There was not even a single obvious sign near the area). If it wasn't for the publicity through media coverage, I am pretty sure nobody would be aware there IS actually a business going on there.

In order to get to the location, we had to walk up a slope (or "hill", if you prefer to call it) that appeared isolated. It was a small one-way route that I would definitely not walk alone at night.

It did not help that the sun was scorching hot during the time we went - so hot that I believe a raw egg would turn cooked under the natural heat of the sun.

When we finally reached The Mama Shop, we were surprised how small it actually is in reality.

There were only 3 tables outside the cafe, and 2 extra ones directly under the sun without any shelter. (I assume that the 2 tables were meant for customers who patronize in the evening as there was definitely NO way any sane human is able to sit there for more than 5 seconds without being set on fire from the sun. Hell no, I am NOT exaggerating!)

So we managed to choose our table and sat down, with a cheery-looking guy serving us the menus.

I would say the customer service was good.

I've read that there was no physical menu before, but they do now.

The cafe serves light food that are suitable for small eaters like me (No, there isn't any rice, noodles)

There are burgers though, and I have to say that they aren't cheap.

I ordered a cup of regular-sized Red Bean Slush ($3.90 for the regular-sized cup and $4.90 for the bigger one)

It took quite awhile to arrive, but I have to say that the drink was quite good thirst quencher. Not to mention that red bean has always been my all-time favorite! 

(Do note that it is on the sweet side, so if you are one who does not fancy a sweet drink.. It may not be ideal for you)

I had to drink it fast as it was melting at a fast pace!

Here were the 2 dishes that we tried:-

(Supposedly Cheese fries?)

Their cheese isn't your typical liquid kind of cheese, but more of the dried kind. I was not sure what other ingredients were in it, but they tasted a bit weird. Not the best fries I have eaten so far, but I can't verify that much since I seldom eat fries to begin with)

On the other hand, my colleague is a fries fanatic but she did not like this one either.

Here's the second one I chose - I forgot what it is exactly called, but they were seaweed chicken wrapped in waffles and sprinkled in taco sauce (the similar sauce from taco balls)

Strong taste, I'll say. I felt like I was eating taco balls! Haha.

It was a refreshing experience tasting the combination of seaweed chicken and waffles.

Okay... ...The price isn't that bad - $4.90.

I've read from another customer's experience that she felt it was a "time-travel" experience being physically there as the set-up seems to lose touch with the current world of technology.

I was expecting the ambiance to be totally retro, so it was a little bit disappointing that I saw a  Macbook and english pop songs being played in the background. *shrugs*

I do, however, like the items that are sold there (of course, the prices are marked up to quite a large extent) - with many childhood stuff spotted, such as those "water console" games, snake and ladder boardgames, childhood snacks, just to name a few.

Probably it was just a wrong timing to be there during lunch time that spoiled our mood, but I guess we will not be returning there anytime soon.

I would say the cafe is overrated to a certain extent (mainly because it's opened by Mediacorp artistes and have garnered hardcore support from their fans).

Groupon Review: Oriental Spa Chamber [PERSONAL EXPERIENCE!]

You may not know, but I am a total fanatic of massages!

In fact, I have been to quite a few that I kinda' regretted not blogging about them - reason being that I always purchase them through Groupon deals, and I am sure many of you out there would be googling for some reviews before clicking that "Buy Now" button.

Right, right... Right??!!

As such, I have decided to be *kind* and start blogging down my experiences for each Groupon deal that I purchase for the benefit of anyone who may be considering about it.

Be rest assured that I am not PAID in any way to blog about their services, hence these reviews are definitely not any form of advertisement. If they are good, then they simply are.

 If they are not, then I hope they are now regretting how badly they treated me (Note: Never offend a blogger! *glares*)

I have always believed in the importance of REVIEWS. They form a huge part of the company's reputation, no?

OK, so here's one that I purchased and tried yesterday with my Shreky:

The Oriental Spa Chamber

I actually came across this place randomly once and was amused by its name. The chinese words "Huang Ah Ma" literally mean "Emperor Dad" (not sure if I translated correctly) back in the olden Dynasty times. I was tempted to visit the place; and my wish was somehow granted when I spotted it on Groupon coincidentally on another day.

 Ok, it is not really THAT cheap - I got the one that was on promotion for 2 pax and we paid $42.50 each for 90 mins of session with them. It's usual prices for ala carte are WAY, WAY more expensive than the deal price!

(The session includes 60 minutes FULL body massage + 15 mins foot soak + 15 mins Sauna)

What appealed me was its ORIENTAL interior design of the place based on the photos that were advertised on its website. (Not to mention that I am a huge fan of oriental style).

So you can imagine my excitement when I managed to secure an appointment with them after I purchased the deal.

However, the booking of appointment wasn't really a smooth-sailing one as I was unreasonably told that they do not offer massage services AFTER April (I had wanted to book for a slot in June). I was appalled as it was supposed to be valid till AUGUST as stated on the Groupon website! The person who picked up my call did not provide me any reason despite me asking; and just simply insisted that they do not offer the services after April.

Well then, I gave in and went for a slot in March.

And so we went - Fortunately, the place was easily located as it was within a short walking distance from Chinatown MRT (Purple Line) - Exit E.

Gosh, I love, LOVE this painting on the wall. Talk about oriental!

Kudos to whoever painted the wall. Haha~

The Oriental Spa Chamber actually resides INSIDE a hotel, so its unmistakable!

We actually spent some time admiring the exterior and taking some random photographs before heading in for our registration.

Gosh, I believe this is one of the rarer times I'm posting a non-makeup photo of myself - but heck. I am not gonna care what you think. Ugly then ugly, lor.

(I don't know why, but I am not into makeup nowadays unless there are really important events. Getting lazy, I guess? But whatever)

When we finally got our asses into the place, we were led to a small cozy room and Ginger tea was served! We were told to wait for our turn as it was a busy Sunday for them. Since their waiting area was VERY comfortable (it somehow reminded me of those small study room in an ancient palace)

Pictures unclear due to the dim lighting and we were using our front camera - my sincere apologies!

Here's a pic taken from my better camera:

Palace, palace!

When it was our turn, we were called in to a small room that consisted of 2 comfy massage-alike chairs:

We were told to soak our feet in the bucket of sea salt water.

(It was #(*$##*$ scalding hot and it took us awhile to adapt to the temperature before we could fully soak our feet in)

Here's a pic of me getting all panicky at the feel of the hot water~

That's my Shreky:

(Note that she did not insert her feet entirely into the water too HAHAHA!)

Ok, now that the water is not that hot...

(We were allowed to bring in our Ginger tea to drink & enjoy the feet soak at the same time)

Shreky's Crayon-Shin Chan manicure design that she did in Malaysia! CUTE to the max!

Look at this door that I love so much:

When our 15 mins feet soak was up, we were led to hall of different compartments where we could finally lie down and relax for our 60 mins full body massage. I was SO hyped up at the thought that  I couldn't wait to pounce on the massage bed so badly. Speaking about being desperate. HAHA.

We were given time to change and wrap ourselves with towels while awaiting our masseurs. (Don't worry, they are all female masseurs!)

Sorry- as much as we had wanted to take photos of us during the massage session, we couldn't as we did not have a photographer with us. (Not to mention that we were given lockers to lock our bags outside)

Both Shreky and I were lucky that we were in the same compartment (We actually bought the 2 pax meant for couples); hence we were able to communicate with each other more freely!

So... You might be wondering how well the body massage went, right?

To be fair, I have to say that it was OK-OK. The initial part started out being painful as the masseur seemed to have powerful hands (I did tell her that it was quite painful and she used lesser force. In fact, it is always important to let your masseur know the level of pain you are experiencing during the massage!) . Thankfully, it became slightly more comfortable soon-after and I almost did fall asleep.

I would give the massage services a 7/10. 

It is definitely not the "VERY SHIOK" kind of massage; but its still okay for the experience. I mean, if you are not able to take the pain... Just voice it out and the masseur will definitely respect you. :)

The masseurs were friendly people, and despite the fact that we came in using Groupon vouchers, they still gave us good service (There are some places that will totally offer you a not-here-or-there service if they see that you purchase their services using vouchers).

Fortunately, the service at Oriental Spa Chamber was great.

We were being taken into a small room for our 15 min Sauna (In fact, it was my VERY first Sauna experience!) I didn't like it at the beginning, but slowly adapted to the heat and I was amazed by the amount of sweat that came out from all parts of my body - including my face!Honestly, I felt like I was a pig being roasted in a hot oven - but the "after-effect" was awesome.

The moment when we stepped out of the Sauna room, I FELT LIKE I WAS REBORN AGAIN. HAHAHA.

Our masseurs came over and gave us our towels to wipe our bodies before proceeding back into our compartment to change.

The best part of all about the Groupon deal?

THERE WAS TOTALLY NO HARD-SELLING OF ANYTHING.

 No hard-selling of packages or products, etc. I was most impressed.

So if you were to ask me whether this is something that is worth purchasing, I would say.. 

GO FOR IT! :)

Even if its not for the massage experience, you may be interested in the oriental style of its interior.

So I guess that shall end my review here... Do bookmark my blog for more future reviews on the different deals I'm gonna try out! :)