I went to J65 with my friend recently, and we had a conversation about eating our money’s worth at the Buffet.
How do we eat more at a buffet to eat our money’s worth?
Option 1: Walk all over the buffet and take all the food and lay it out on the table, and then eat everything in one sitting, or,
Option 2: Take one plateful at a time, sit and eat it, and then get up to repeat the process.
I’ve been to J65 so many times that I’ve managed to put this one to the test under different settings, and I’ll let you know the outcome of my little ‘experiment’ with my friend at the end of this blog post on J65 Lobster Rock’n’Roll night.
They say to always start with the end in mind so this is me (and my table) at the end of this dinner buffet. What you are seeing here is a stack of 15 lobsters cooked with many different flavours. This was not the maximum that I could have eaten. I went to this same Lobster Rock’n’Roll Buffet about 2 years prior and my stack was wayyyyy higher.
What did I do different back then compared to now? Well that’s for the end of this post.
Here’s a J65 sporting their National Day look, since I visited them in August for their weekly Lobster Night.
On the daily, there are many counters that make up this buffet – the dessert counter, sushi counter, seafood counter, the show station, the chef’s table and the mains counter. Some of the items are fixed on the menu and will make an appearance every night. Some others may be on rotation to keep things fresh. Whatever I share in this article is what I experienced while I was there – don’t be surprised if you get something a little different during your visit, okay?
This is the show station. It houses the dishes from the Indian Cuisine, my favourite laksa, the grilled lobster, and the poppadom on the side. This is where I look for my Prawn Masala, Fish Curry, Dhal and sometimes, even butter chicken depending on which nite you’re dining at J65.
As usual, I grabbed these chips and snacked on them as I walked around the buffet deciding what to eat first. Almost always, I will choose to start with the small bowl of laksa that’s soooo creamy (berlemak) and savoury – your typical wholesome nyonya laksa. #ravingreviews.
After enjoying laksa, I walked around some more, and decided to ‘start’ proper with sushi, and the cold dish. During this visit, I felt like I was already behaving, because otherwise, the next thing I would have taken would have been the desserts.
I have been to J65 so many times. These 2 tables are the most constant with their offerings – but during this visit I spotted something special: The King Crab. (bottom right most of the photo). This king crab felt like treasure on my table, it is soooo rare to have it on the buffet spread.
Staple dishes are a mainstay at the J65 buffet, usually mixed vegetables and many many savoury asian dishes, but the one that really got my attention is the Mussels with Kaffir Lime, Coconut cream and bird’s eye chili. Creamy, light and spicy, and very new flavours to me which I absolutely love!
On the Chef’s table is a huge whole salmon, which has been a main stay at almost all the different dinner buffet menus that I’ve attended here. This version is made with Tomato Basil Coulis. The other dish that I will absolutely never miss is the Black Angus Prime Beef Ribs. It is rich and savoury, with meat that is so soft, and tender. #ravingreviews and #highlyrecommended every single time.
Here’s a Pro tip: Get the mashed potatoes (also on the buffet line) and enjoy it with the sauces from the Angus Prime Beef Ribs. It will bring a new meaning to mashed potatoes, I promise.
Now it’s time for the Lobsters
Off the bat, you’ll see a handful of visibly lobster dishes when you walk down the buffet line, which will make you wonder, where are the rest of the lobsters? They are hidden, of course. On the top left, that’s the Lobster Aglio Olio, and on the right is the Lobster Thermidor (which would be seafood Thermidor on other nights. Special mention has got to go to the Lobster Thermidor with the hidden lobster meat. 10/10 #ravingreviews.
The highlight flavour of lobster for me, surprisingly, was the with Percik Sauce (right), with a spice Rating 2/5. It’s legit percik sauce, with its signature rempah and creaminess, I looooove!
The lobster with Black Pepper Sauce also gave a good flavoursome fight with the rest of the flavours, but I think the most flavoursome of them all has got to be the Kam Heong Lobster which was both spicy and savoury – just look at the chilli padi topping all the lobsters calling out to me.
When you’re done with all the flavourful versions of lobster, it’s time to visit the show station for the Grilled Lobster with Tarragon Butter. If you arrive at the right time, you’ll see the chef grilling the lobsters for you fresh. There are sauce to go with this grilled lobster, I would recommend a simple soy sauce and chilli padi combination for this for best enjoyment.
This version of chilli sauce is is most popular with chilli crab, so I’m not gonna dwell too much on it. Suffice to say, it was good, moist and fresh! Don’t forget to grab the mantou bread along with your serving of Norway Lobster with Chilli Crab Sauce.
The dessert table at J65 remains spectacular with every visit, and I will always look out for the Pengat Durian in the chiller. You’ll probably see alot of that on my other videos with J65, so for this round, I’m showing you the other spectacular cakes, pies, nyonya kueh and jellies.
Don’t judge me, but my favourite combination from J65’s Buffet table, is kek lapis with the chocolate fondue. Haha!
Full video here: https://www.instagram.com/reel/DAM18qoBVx8
The verdict
So, how do you get your money’s worth at the buffet? Option 1, or 2?
Option 1: Walk all over the buffet and take all the food and lay it out on the table, and then eat everything in one sitting, or,
Option 2: Take one plateful at a time, sit and eat it, and then get up to repeat the process.
My findings point to option 2. Haha! Let me know in the comments if your findings are the same!
✨ Lobster Rock & Roll Dinner Buffet ✨
➡️ Available on every Wednesday
➡️ 6:00pm to 9:30pm
👩🦱 Adult $118++
👧 Child $59++
Address:
J65 @ Hotel Jen Tanglin
1A Cuscaden Road, Level 1, Singapore 249716
