The Grand Mercure Roxy, a quiet hotel nestled in the heart of historical Katong, just opposite the bustling Parkway Parade shopping mall, recently launched its brand new renovated facilities at Level 4. A bunch of bloggers and myself were invited to a networking session to peek at the new facilities. Katong is actually quite a long way off from my work place, but I used to stay in the area some 20 over years ago, and I haven’t been there in a long while, so I thought I’ll head down to breathe the East Coast air for one evening and see how the area has changed.
The newly renovated Level 4 is where they have a pool, an outdoor Jacuzzi, and a cozy upper deck to hold small functions like what we’re having. It’s quite generously sized considering the size of this hotel. The hotel has a total of 569 rooms and suites, with (I think) 11 of them on Level 4 having a door opening into a private area leading to the pool.
Indoors, there’s the Breeze Bistro.Bar and a fitness centre. There are also two private function rooms where you can host dinners, seminars, or other functions.
We were shown the newly renovated guest rooms on this level, those than open up into the pool area. The rooms are a little small (about 32sqm), but comfortable and cozy, and complete with all the amenities you would expect to have. There are two very fascinating highlights. The first, of course, is that it opens up into a private area that leads to the pool.
The other highlight is its see-through bathroom! A huge glass window replaces the typical solid wall, so you could see through into the bathroom from the bed!
But in case you’re wondering, there is a roller blind that you can pull down to cover up the glass. The catch, however, is that the roller blind is on the outside of the glass (i.e. in the room space itself, not in the bathroom).
There’s free Internet access too, ever so important nowadays that we’re so connected online, even if you’re overseas on holiday.
After the room tour, we were treated to some finger food from the “Breeze Bistro.bar”:
- Cod Fish with Miso
- Mini Wagyu Pate with Quail Egg on Toast
- Crab Cake with Mayo compote
- Ribeye Cube with Mushroom Ragout
The Ribeye Cube with Mushroom Ragout and Crab Cake with Mayo compote were really nice.
Then, we headed downstairs for dinner at the Jia Wei Chinese restaurant on Level 2. There is also a Jia Wei Express outlet that serves takeout from Jia Wei’s menu, very convenient for those of you who prefer to eat in the comfort of your own home (or you just need to impress your guests). You can place your order online at http://www.jiaweichineserestaurant.com.sg/express and then drop by the hotel to pick them up.
This is our dinner menu:
- Dim Sum: Deep-fried Seafood Roll with Mixed Fruit, Steamed Scallop Dumpling, Siew Mai with Cordyceps Flower, Deep-fried Prawn Dumpling with Shark’s Fin
- Double Boiled Fish Maw Soup with Cordyceps Flower, Abalone and Conpoy
- Peking Duck
- Braised Beancurd with Luffa Melon, Crabmeat and Crab Roe
- Deep Fried Butter Prawn (Looks like curry gravy but it’s actually pumpkin puree with some curry leaves.)
- Laksa
- Durian Cake Delight and Durian Paste
Everything was delicious! But if I had to pick something specifically to recommend… go for the Laksa (there’s hum in there too!) and the Durian Cake Delight and Durian Paste. They are absolutely wonderful. Durian lovers are going to go crazy over the Durian Paste. These two items are actually from the Feast@East Buffet Restaurant in the hotel.
I hear the Feast@East Buffet Restaurant serves a pretty good buffet too, all day. Dinner goes for $44++ on weekends and $42++ on weekdays. The spread comprise mainly “local delights”, although you’d also find other types of foods that locals delight in.
There are a total of five F&B establishments in the Grand Mercure Roxy. The last one, which I’ve not mentioned thus far, is the Wave Cafe & Wine Bar located at the lobby level.
The Grand Mercure Roxy seems like a good getaway for a staycation, particularly if you love feasting. If the hotel doesn’t have enough for you, you’ll surely find plenty more to feast on in the surrounding Katong area.
Thank you, Jennifer, Tika and Georgina from the Grand Mercure Roxy for hosting us, and Omy.sg for organizing this blogger event!
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