OK S$40++pax Robatayaki Lunch @ Mikuni on 14Aug2018

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miyazaki wagyu & kurobuta skewers

went with GCM for 2pax robatayaki lunch at mikuni today on 14.8.2018. ^^

have been been to mikuni for the longest time since i refused to renw amex lovedining when they started charging S$321 annual fee.

recently wife got the card. so i got the supplementary card la…

robatayaki menu S$80 

little has changed at mikuni except prices had gone up.

the robatayaki/teppanyaki set lunch used to be S$68, now it is S$80!

for ala carte i saw lobster is now S$68. was S$48! mikuni maki gone up to S$32. i think it was S$28. etc…

& now they charged S$3 for water? how ridiculous is that…seriously? i asked waiter who was very polite & good service, he said the lovedining 50% discounts apply. ok la pay S$1.50 for tap water won’t die, so i agreed.

when the bill came it was S$3 no discount! I apointed out to the server, and restaurant was good enuf to do service recovery, so we still got the water but no charge.

anyway i think charging S$3 for tap water no discount is wrong policy in the first place, but they have prerogative what they want to do…consumers just vote by their feet or don’t order, that’s all, very fair wad! lol! 🙂

my friend wanted robatayaki so we ordered 2 sets.

3 kinds of sashimi

we started with the crackers.

& then sashimi..the salmon, hotate & kampachi were all good, very fresh & sweet.

robatayaki set 

the robatayaki set came with miso soup & garlic fried rice.

miyazaki wagyu & kurobuta skewers

the miyazaki wagyu & kurobuta skewers were good!

the scallops on the shell was pretty good & tasty. the corn was nice. a pretty good set, not a big serving.

miyazaki wagyu 

bets was the miyazaki wagyu, marbled, tender, tasty.

the kurobuta skewer was ok, but minced meat skewers can only be that la…

garlic fried rice

garlic fried rice doable, carbs not for me..

yuzu ice cream

yuzu ice cream good.

miyazaki wagyu & kurobuta skewers

overall S$40++ (after 50% discount) lunch set, good quality food very small serving, i guess so-so la…nothing wow!

not much excitement for me to come back like in the past!

c.h.e.f andy

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Mikuni @ Fairmont Level 3

Address:

80 Bras Basah Rd, Fairmont Hotel 3/L, Raffles City, Singapore 189560

Contact:

6431 6156

Opening Hours:

Mon-Saturday: 12-2:30pm, 6:30-10:30pm (closed sunday)

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Superb Value 1 for 1 9-course Wagyu Dinner S$68.80 @ Maru on 13Aug2018

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#1 beef carpaccio – this excellent!

had a superb value 1 for 1 9-course wagyu dinner with my OPS bro WT on 13.8.2018. ^^

beef carpaccio was excellent with the truffle ponzu sauce, tasted better than many western retuarants.

1 for 1 9-course wagyu dinner S$68.80

the 1 for 1 9-course wagyu dinner S$68.80 menu.

2pax dinner with WT

they really give you quality stuff here. 🙂

& the serving size was substantial not meagre.

maru

but “bo business leh”!

F&B in singapore very “pai ton”, restaurant quite empty at 7.30pm on a monday evening.

#2 beef salad on toast

the toast came with tasty beef, peppers & pine nuts…very nice bruschetta really. 🙂

#3 foie gras tofu

foie gras tofu very crispy. it’s quite nice maybe non descript among the other tasty dishes…

#4 ikura onsen egg

#5 ikura onsen egg

ikura onsen egg was nice texture & experience, needed a bit of the ponzu sauce from #1 dish to bring out the flavours. 🙂

#6 shabu shabu salad

#6 shabu shabu salad

the shabu shabu salad very nice too, & good amount of shabu beef. dressing quit esimilar to the ponzu sauce.

wagyu beef steak

wagyu beef steak

the wagyu beef steak was unexpected as it was not on the menu…not sure if this was served regularly or some changes this evening…

a huge difference bamboo skin & a good 200g serving of wagyu beef steak served on a banana leaf, similar preparation to a oba steak.

this was excellent too, medium rare, tender & sweet, on a enoki mushroom bed & with some shitake mushrooms & leek.

wagyu sushi

wagyu sushi

wagyu sushi also very good, though i have taken better ones at hachi but those were ohmi A5, these were what restaurant said australian equivalent to A2/A3.

got such thing meh? they couldn’t tell me what MBS marbling score for the australian wagyu…

yakiniku don

the yakiniku don came with a tiny bowl but a massive serving of yakiniku wagyu. it’s like a full bowl serving.

yuzu ice cream

yuzu ice cream always nice la…

yakiniku don

the entire dinner all wagyu beef, which they said are australia wagyu equivalent to Jap A2/A3 wagyu.

whatever, every dish was very nice, from carpaccio to steak to yakiniku don. i think a really fantastic value omakase dinner.

i had the other 1 for 1 omakase set with wife the other day at S$78 & it came with free 250ml sake.

when i asked server she checked & pointed to menu the sake was S$34. so i guess coming with wife we would go for the free sake. for myself, i think this wagyu omakase is even better.

c.h.e.f andy

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Maru Dine & Bar  丸 

Address:

Icon Village, 12 Gopeng St #01-05 to 11, Singapore 078877
Contact:
marusg.com
6327 1123
Opening Hours:
daily
  • 11:30AM–11PM

Lovely Walk at BTNR & 3pax Home Dinner on 12Aug2018

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1hr walk @ bukit timah natural reserve (BTNR) 

wife arranged with her good friends J & H to go btnr.

.they couldn’t make it in the end so 2 of us went ourselves around 4pm..

this tie we walked in all 3.9km 1 hr 11mins. 🙂

start @ BTNR 

4pm on a sunday. we found parking at hindhede walk, not mych problem.

the route was mostly shaded so no problem but ambient temp was still high & humid & oppressive, but ok we manage that all the time.

dairy farm loop @ BTNR 

we walked BTNR summit often.

it is just 25mins up & 20mins down, so 45-50mins.

this time we decided to try a short portion of dairy farm route which takes  total1.5hrs (didn’t have time as had to go home to cook dinner)..

going down rengas path @ BTNR

we took part of the rengas path steps down.

rengas path & jungle path @ BTNR 

then returned from jungle path steps which were tougher..we could not finished in one go..

it was only 5.20pm when we returned to the visitors centre.

sicc bukit ice kachang 

new service buzzle

we decided to go sicc bukit for high glycemic ice kachang not that we needed sugar boost just greedy.

today ice kachang was poor. not enough gula melaka. sicc ice kachang had always been good. if this standard then koufu at tanglin halt commonwealth MRT better la.

service also not good. hardly 3 tables, no service, don’t refill water. i was going to place 1*, wife pressed 3*. we asked the server casually about the new service buzzle when closing bill. she said if 1*, it’s like a complaint, manager has to come down to speak to the staff. maybe that would do them some good. 🙂

nonya steamed ang kueh (red snapper) head

then went home cooked 3 dishes &  daughter came to join dinner –

  1. nonya steamed ang kueh (red snapper) head
  2. claypot wine chicken with taupok
  3. fried prawns with yellow chives

all very nice, quite perfect!

put back all the calories too!

reached home 6.10pm. told daughter 7.30pm dinner.

not much to do anyway, so quite ok.

ang kueh (red snapper) fish head 1mins to steam, just minimal preparations.

wine chicken with taupok

wine chicken with taupok took 30mins, but mostly to cook the taupok so it was soft & infused the stock taste.

chicken i had deboned & marinated earlier (1tbsp fish sauce, 1tbsp sesame oil, 1tbsp cor flour, 1tbsp oyster sauce, 2tbsp hua tio wine). just fried high fire with cut ginger, chilli padi, minced garlic, then added chicken stock, covered claypot medium fire about 8mins.

removed chicken & just cooked taupok like 20mins & added back chicken when serving. always reduce & taste stock is flavourful, intense, not dilute.

yellow chives with large prawns

fried yellow chives first, with cut chilli padi, minced garlic.

then added large prawns (seasoned with fish sauce & white pepper), and fried till cook. do not overcook.

quite a perfect dish.

an active & fun sunday with wife & family.

c.h.e.f andy

 

Recipe = Flavourful Japanese Slow-braised Pork Soft Bones on 6Aug2018

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made an excellent slow-braised pork soft bones (first time) for 5pax RI bros ichiran ramen party this evening on 6.8.2018. ^^

it was by the standard of our imperial mouth TCH, so very tender, tasty & flavourful, so even the good chashu i made this evening was of no comparison. 🙂

the slow braised pork soft bones i was trying to emulate the best ramen at hanamaruken ramen (花丸轩) at dotonbori osaka. 

while nothing can really match that, my first slow-braised pork soft bones was very successful by my meagre standard la…perfect enuf?? for me la…

i had earlier used pork collar for an ichiran ramen lunch at HC, our OPS bro, new place on 8.6.2018. 🙂

i didn’t know where to get  long soft bone like that at hanamaruken ramen (花丸轩) at dotonbori osaka. 

so i opted to use collar. i used a different braising method, 2hrs on stove covered braising…result was pretty good.

both the chashu & the braised pork collar were excellent! really delicious! ^^

then i chanced on a packet of long pork soft bones at sheng shiong clementi ave 2, about 5″ long.

they were not the 10″ long monsters at hanamaruken ramen (花丸轩) at dotonbori osaka but good enough. 

the pork soft bones were so flavour alos because of the collagen released from the cartilage & soft bones which were excellent texture to the bite & very flavourful.

i used seriouseats chasu recipe = 4hrs in 130degC oven. 🙂

c.h.e.f andy

Ingredients:

  • 600g pork soft bones
  • 1/2 cup mirin
  • 1/2 cup sake
  • 1 cup water
  • 1 tbsp flat sugar
  • 3 tbsp light soy sauce
  • 1/2 tbsp dark soy sauce
  • 4 cloves peeled garlic
  • 1 shallot quartered
  • 1 stalk spring onions
  • 3cm ginger (sliced)

Directions:

  1. put pork soft bones in boiling water to remove the scums & then clean with slow running water.
  2. prepare the braising sauce which comprises 1/2 cup sake, 1/2 cup mirin, 1 tablespoon sugar, 3 tablespoon light soy sauce, 1/2 tbsp dark soy sauce and 1 cup water. add sliced ginger (3cm block), 4 peeled garlic cloves, 1 stalk spring onions, 1 shallot quartered.
  3. add the belly pork & transfer oven dish to a preheated oven at 130degC for for 4hrs.
  4. remove from oven, let it cool & pack pork soft bones in ziploc bag & kept in chiller for use.

Recipe = Ika Sugatayaki (various from) 10Dec2017

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finally did my most successful ika sugatayaki on 10.12.2017. ^^

it was a delightful, delicious dish. superb chow tar (BBQ) flavours, just the right texture, tender & tasty…

previously i used the oven. but there is the great difficulty of getting a dry enough squid w/o overcooking it. very difficult. 

so i decided to switch to flaming with a torch.

as flaming not enuf to cook the sotong, i steamed the sotong first about 90% cooked, then put in the fridge to dry overnight & dried with kitchen towels before flaming.

when about to cook, i added sea salt, 1 tbsp olive oil, then drizzle honey (or agave nectar) on the squid, on aluminium foil on a metal tray. then i flamed it.

i did that several times for dinners for my family & friends afterwards.

a very well received dish for everyone, everytime. 🙂

during the mar/apr period, i gotten large frozen ika from donki at orchard central B2.

that was the best.

 

now i don’t see it, but the squid we can get here, pick the large & thick standing up ones, they are good too. 🙂

at the recent 11pax RI makan group dinner on 3.7.2018, all the friends loved the ika sugatayaki (grilled whole squid). ^^

basically steamed to cook 90%, put in fridge to drain dry, then added olive oil, sea salt, drizzled with honey & flamed to give the bbq “chowtar” flavours.

really lovely dish….diners cut themselves, good audience participation…hahaha! ^^

c.h.e.f andy

Ingredients-

  • large squid 1x400g or 2x200g
  • sea salt
  • olive oil
  • honey or agave nectar

Directions-

  1. cut rings on squid (w/o cutting through), wash squid with salt & clean inside.
  2. skewer squid with long bamboo skewers to hold them straight
  3. steam squid about 90% cooked & place o rack in fridge few hours or overnight to dry..pat dry before flaming.
  4. pace squid over aluminium foil on metal tray.
  5. add sea salt 1 tbsp olive oil & 1tbsp honey
  6. flame the squid

 

Recipe = German Knuckles on 11Aug2018

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german knuckles – crispy skin & tasty meat

did a german knuckle today on 11.8.2018. ^^

this my first time. i saw the the german knuckle recipe at curiouscuisiniere & thought i could try it.

and it turned out very well. skin very good crackling, meat moist & tasty..wife & son said very good..son was taking a sausage pasta for dinner & the crackling pork went very well with it indeed! 🙂

i would like to see how to improve & make it more tasty… 🙂

pig knuckles (hock) in fridge

pig knuckles (hock) in fridge

for the preparation-

  • i placed the hock in boiling water to clean & remove the scum, washed & cleaned
  • rubbed 2tbsp flat mustard on meat & rubbed 1tbsp flat salt on skin..
  • placed in 8×8 baking dish on bed of sliced onions (2 onions) & & chopped garlic ( 6 cloves)
  • added 1tbsp olive oil on skin; & 1 bottle regular coke (beer too expensive) & 1/2 cup sake (don’t have red wine) in the dish
  • added 1 cup water
  • then 3hrs in 175degC oven..

german knuckles

quite a pretty piece after 3hrs.

need to add water. i added  water from airport twice, but still burnt the bed of onions. have to adjust a bit next time.

german knuckles

german knuckles

german knuckles

anyway, the skin was very crackling, the meat was tender & moist, especially the parts with a bit of tendon, fat etc…so quite nice.

it was salty enough & not too much & the flavour was good. anyway i will see how i can improve on it.

german knuckles

not difficult to make, and quite a satisfying dish…& taken with pasta like my so did, it was really good.

c.h.e.f andy

Ingredients-

  • one pig hock
  • 2 sliced onions
  • 6 cloves chopped garlic
  • 2tbsp flat mustard
  • 1tbsp flat salt
  • 1 can regular coke
  • 1/2 cup red wine (i used sake)
  • 3cups water

Directions-

  1. put the hock in boiling water to clean & remove the scum, wash & clean
  2. rub 2tbsp flat mustard on meat & rub 1tbsp flat salt on skin..
  3. place in 8×8 baking dish on bed of sliced onions (2 onions) & & chopped garlic ( 6 cloves)
  4. add 1tbsp olive oil on skin; & 1 bottle regular coke & 1/2 cup red wine or sake in the dish
  5. add 1 cup water
  6. then 3hrs in 175degC oven..add another 2 cups water at interval

Recipe = Anago for Sushi or Donburi on 10Aug2018

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anago

experiment making anago (conger eel) first time..

anago very ex in jap restaurant..saw in sheng shiong a fillet piece S$3+

googled recipe and found one at umamimart here.

i fillet (cut away from the bones) so i had 2 fillet pieces, and cleaned with salt.

decided to make my own braising stock concoction below-

added 500ml water, 2tsp sugar, 1/2tsp salt, 2tbsp sake, 1 tbsp tsuyu, 1 tbsp white vinegar

i decided to add the cleaned fish bones into the stock.

added drop lid using aluminium foil. this was to ensure the anago fillet were evenly braised by the stock….

boiled low fire 20mins, removed & dry in fridge then ziploc for use..for sushi or donburi…

reduced stock further, discarded the fish bones, kept the sticky sauce for use..

anago

anago 

i tried a piece.

added the sticky reduced sauce on the anago. it was ok, pretty good, just no real comparison with the very nice anago at jap restaurants. not sure i can improve it to anywhere near actually. maybe it was the anago fillet that was somehow different. seems thicker somehow…

anago

it was good enough i guess for 1 S$3.70 or so experiment for own consumption especially with donburi. i have not tried that yet will update when i do.

c.h.e.f andy

Ingredients-

  • 300g anago fillet with bones
  • 500ml water,
  • 2tsp sugar,
  • 1/2tsp salt,
  • 2tbsp sake,
  • 1 tbsp tsuyu,
  • 1 tbsp white vinegar

Directions-

  1. fillet (cut away from the bones) into 2 fillet pieces. clean with salt. place in pot. add the cleaned fish bones for the stock.
  2. add 500ml water, 2tsp sugar, 1/2tsp salt, 2tbsp sake, 1 tbsp tsuyu, 1 tbsp white vinegar
  3. put a drop lid using aluminium foil. this to ensure the anago fillet were evenly braised by the stock….
  4. boil low fire 20mins, remove & dry in fridge then ziploc for use..for sushi or donburi…
  5. reduce stock further, discarded the fish bones, kept the sticky sauce for use..

RI Bros 11pax World Cup Results Lunch @ HK Street Old Chun Kee on 10Aug2018

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bittergourd pork ribs very good very tender 

had a very nice world cup knock out stage results 11pax lunch @ hk street old chun kee at Commonwealth crescent on 10.8.2018. ^^

we ordered 9 dishes including assam fish head & song fish head 松鱼头 for S$157 for 11pax 👍👍👍

only the mixed vegetables & oyster egg mediocre or below par..the rest dishes all good👍👍

(just a note=the barley water here undrinkable, totally diluted no barley taste at all & sweet!)

after lunch OBT bought cheng tng at the market food centre & LKY & DSingh joined us

bittergourd pork ribs very good very tender

bittergourd pork ribs very good very tender CL liked the black bean sauce taste. 🙂

minced pork eggplant good 👍

minced pork eggplant good 👍

minced pork eggplant good 👍

mixed vegetables average not worth the price

mixed vegetables average not worth the price

mixed vegetables average not worth the price…

oyster egg below par..

oyster egg below par..

oyster egg was much below par..i think they use frozen oysters…

cannot c/w a good orh lua at hawker centre where they add very large, plump, very fresh oysters.

salted egg 排骨王not as good as last time

salted egg 排骨王not as good as last time

salted egg 排骨王ok, just not as good as last time. i think everyone still liked it. 🙂

sambal sotong..sotong done well not overcooked.

sambal sotong..sotong done well not overcooked

sambal sotong..sotong done well not overcooked..sambal taste standard. 🙂

song fish head always good

song fish head always good 

the song fish head 松鱼头always good here.

assam ang kueh fish head

assam ang kueh fish head 

since we had 11pax, i ordered a larger dish, assam ang kueh fish head.

assam ang kueh fish head..many YKK J etc like the assam gravy..a change from the usual curry… 🙂

best har jeong gai 虾酱鸡 

YKK added  a large order har jeong gai 虾酱鸡14 pieces – like the best i had..lightly flavoured, chicken wings felt fresh but not likely? batter was excellent!

complimentary strawberry ice cream nice touch

hk street gaev complimentary strawberry ice cream nice touch.

best har jeong gai 虾酱鸡

the best dishes for me were bittergourd pork ribs, har jeong gai 虾酱鸡, and  song fish head 松鱼头.

overall everything was good, a very nice & enjoyable lunch for 11pax of us just for S$157! 🙂

c.h.e.f andy

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Kopi Kia  (hong kong street old chun kee 香港街老珍记）
Blk 117 Commonwealth Drive #01-733 Singapore 140117
Tel: 83606663
Email: enquiries@kopikia.com.sg
Operating Hours:
12.00PM – 10.30PM (Monday to Sunday)

 

 

DP made 5pax Mee Siam Lunch on 8Aug2018

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5pax mee siam lunch

DP made mee siam lunch for us 5pax lunch on 8.8.2018. ^^

he had to come back from school (3buses & 15mins walk each way) and cook for us so he arranged for 2pm lunch.

i met KY & KH at ikea tampines. we had the S$0.50 soy soft ice cream & bought curry puffs (S$4 for 5) and chicken wings (S$8 for 6) to bring along to DP place.

5pax mee siam lunch

fried mee siam

fried mee siam was nice.

we talked about sambal chilli 5 times but didn’t manage to get DP to do for us. lol! ^^

prawns

eggs

tau pok

the prawns, eggs & taupok went well with mee siam, and there were lots of tasty gravy.

6 chicken wings for S$8 from ikea

the ikea chicken wing not so good. there were 6 for 5 of us.

we also took the curry puff. that was good!

c.h.e.f andy

The Best Beef Brisket Noodles 牛腩面 @ Noodle Place on 7Aug2018

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8pax RI bros lunch @ noodle place

my RI bro organised a 8pax RI bros lunch @ noodle place at orchard gateway on 7.8.2018. ^^ the restaurant is owned by his cousin chef xu..

i had been noodle place only one time in 2013 also by invitation of KY.

at the time i wrote-

” i was lamenting that we were missing hk standard 牛腩面. the shanghainese/ taiwanese version 牛腩面 at crystal jade lamian xialongbao & sicc were well & good, but not my preferred hk version. the ones here though were excellent. they did not quite serve the beef belly type cut, but the brisket was indeed very good & it is true that most Singaporeans would prefer this leaner cut. 🙂”

that was still true today..in fact i was more impressed today with the beef brisket noodles 牛腩面, maybe because i forgot already how it tasted here & i still hold singapore  beef brisket noodles to be substandard vs hk beef brisket noodles.

1/2 roast duck

the 1/2 roast duck was exceptionally good, so flavourful.

it was a large serving for 1/2 duck. i not sure if this was the regular serving or the chef gave us a larger portion because of his cousin?

this one of the best i had in singapore, comparable to –

  1. tunglok’s roast london duck &
  2. xin cuisine’s tea flavoured roast duck,

very authentic hong kong taste like eating in HK.

char siew & siew yoke

the char siew & siew yoke also very good standard, just that many restaurants do it just as well.

i asked chef xu why hawkers & restaurant here do not serve the belly cut with 胶 layer which they served in hong kong 崩沙腩 (=according to wiki a skirt steak)?

(see the incredible HK kuen kee ngau lam meen 牛腩面 in above photo)

his reply was that those were frozen. i still think more likely that singaporeans would prefer the leaner beef brisket.

noodle place 坑腩 beef brisket noodles 牛腩面

he said he served 坑腩（=according to wiki a boneless short rib).   he said it was not stated on the menu but he would serve us that.

of course a short rib cut would be more expensive & better than a skirt. but for the beef brisket noodles 牛腩面 i guess for me, 坑腩would be the second best. 🙂

& this was really good. either it was better this time or i forgot how good it was in 2013. lol! 🙂 very 爽口 ie tender not sinewy excellent bite & mouth feel. fantastic!

i will come back a lot more i guess….

mixed congee 及第粥

fish, cuttlefish congee 艇仔粥

both the mixed congee 及第粥 & fish, cuttlefish congee 艇仔粥 were very good, but i guess no better than say crystal jade kitchen…

porridge not my favourite even in hong kong & shenzhen..i guess this would come close or same standard as in hong kong. 🙂

chai sim

all my friends thought the chai sim was better than the kailan, more crunchy, juicy less dry & “siap” = astringent…

complimentary dumpling soup

chef xu served us a complimentary dumpling soup. competent. not special.

bill S$170 for 8pax

the bill came to S$170 for 8pax include drinks even after 15% discounts. not really cheap, but i enjoyed the lunch very much.

will come with family & OPS friends.

noodle place 炕腩beef brisket noodles 牛腩面

the 炕腩beef brisket noodles excellent, just not sure can get this normally, or only serve to us because of KY.

i will be back soon.

c.h.e.f andy

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Noodle Place Restaurant

Address: 
277 Orchard Road, #01-17 Orchard Gateway, Singapore 238858

Opening Hours: 

daily 10AM–10PM

Ichiran Ramen with My Best Tasting Slow-braised Pork Soft Bones on 6Aug2018

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ichiran rame with braised softabones, chashu & runny yoke egg 

had 5pax RI bro ichiran ramen party this evening on 6.8.2018. ^^

bakuteh prime ribs 

we started with bakuteh..super tender, sweet & excellent bite..

had very good indonesian fresh prime ribs from sheng shiong for this evening.

i had 10ribs so just nice 2 servings pax.

bakuteh was excellent. soup & ribs were delicious, very sweet & tasty & excellent bite texture, quite perfect la…everyone liked it. ^^

salt baked chicken2

salt baked chicken 盐焗鸡

salt baked chicken 盐焗鸡

& today my second attempt yim coke gai （salt baked chicken）盐焗鸡

the result was excellent- tender, moist, sweet not too salty, quite perfect..

LKY brought siew yoke

and LKY brought a very nice crackling belly pork..i took many pieces…

i going to try a german knuckle later so will revisit this siew yoke recipe…

ichiran ramen

ichiran rame with braised softabones, chashu & runny yoke egg 

HAB came in time for ichiran ramen….we had 2 packets for 5pax…

i didn’t have any ichiran ramen..so my OPS bro WM came by late morning just to pass me 2 packets of ichiran ramen. & together with WT we went to  kopitiam at cheong chin nam opposite beauty world for coffee. 🙂

6mins runny yoke eggs

6mins runny yoke eggs

i made the 6mins runny yoke eggs.

ok just this time not as good as what i did for OPS bros at WM house on 1.8.2018. 🙂

chashu

chashu

i made chashu, better than what i did for WM place, but this was beaten hands down by the slow braised pork soft bones.

the latter was by the standard of our imperial mouth TCH, so very tasty & flavourful, so chashu was no comparison.

ichiran rame with braised softabones, chashu & runny yoke egg

the slow braised pork soft bones i was trying to emulate the best ramen at hanamaruken ramen (花丸轩) at dotonbori osaka. 

while nothing can really match that, my first slow-braised pork soft bones was very successful by my meagre standard la…perfect enuf?? for me la…

what an excellent evening! 🙂

c.h.e.f andy

 

 

 

 

 

Excellent 14 RI Bros Birthday Dinner for QTC KY @ Tasty Loong at Orto on 3Aug2018

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one for all, all for one 

we have this 14 RI bros dinners we organised to celebrate birthdays of our bros.

this evening KWL & YKK were the 2 main protaganists, and we had a really nice 14pax dinner at tasty loong by chef pung in orto on 3.8.2018. ^^

orto is a 5 hectares multi-recreational park that is open to the public 24 hours a day, formerly bottletree park. there is prawning, futsal, paintball & go-karting etc…there is a lake & lakehosue with  old kampong charms and rustic feel.

in fact several bros went for the go-karting before dinner.

i went for dinner, had some difficulty finding tasty loong as the the signboard at the orto lakehouse shows long jiang chinos among many eateries but not tasty loong…seems that they are one & the same as the address is the same #01-06…maybe chef pung rebranded or there was some restructuring…whatever..

it was a great experience. food was good, there was a lake backdrop, pleasant ambience, good service & a engaging humorous server – my understatement. 🙂

great find by KWL! seems that he came specially to try the food, a jolly good excuse to enjoy good food. lol! 🙂

deepfried fish skin

deepfried fish skin 

KWL ordered the food. good stuff…👍👍👍

deepfried fish skin not so much my favourite. this was very well done, crispy, good salted egg flavours..

kurobuta char siew 

the kurobuta char siew very tasty…means very unhealthy la..

kurobuta char siew

kurobuta char siew 

heavenly sinful delicious…made sense?

crispy sotong 

crispy sotong…also not my favourite…a long time seafood restaurant popular dish..

crispy sotong

again done very well…

claypot sea cucumber 

the claypot sea cucumber very average for me…

i guess all the 一品煲kind of dishes doesn’t quite excite me, unless they are very tasty…

this one somewhere between competent & pedestrian..

beef cubes chinese style

chinese style beef cubes was well done too.

i am the western steak or yakiniku or tagliata type, so chinese style mostly tenderised (this one maybe a good cut not tenderise not sure) doesn’t excite me also…

smoked duck 

the smoked duck was quite excellent, very tasty smoked flavours.

probably not the ntuc type i think?

smoked duck 

i would certainly order this again…

roast london duck 

the roast london duck was very good, very tasty & the was a nice mago sauce…

roast duck in hawker stalls & coffeeshop in singapore cannot compare with hong kong or london or even JB. the restaurants served better roast duck & this roast london duck among the better ones.

the best roast london duck (irish duck) i had was at tunglok signature.

& the tea flavoured roast duck at xin cuisine is just as good but different from tunglok (not the small fatty irish duck but just as good).

1/2 salt baked chicken 盐焗鸡

the 1/2 salt baked chicken 盐焗鸡 was very good, very tasty.

quite coincidentally i just made my first experimental salt baked chicken 盐焗鸡 few days back on 31.7.2018. 

and subsequently i made a second time & it was very good, though still not as good as this one…will put up a recipe later…

sliced fish soup

sliced fish soup 

the sliced fish soup was very tasty & the fish were firm & sweet.

i thought it might be snakehead but i think it was seabass. anyway a good dish a bit expensive side i think S$40+

sambal kang kong

kang kong was good..

QTC birthday cake

LKY birthday cake

and of course the organisers got 2 very nice birthday cakes for QTC & LKY. 🙂

we all had a wonderful evening, fun & chill with RI bros.

dinner came to about S$400 for 14pax, quite ok price but we also did not order fish or other expensive dishes. quite ok for such nice food, ambience &fun.

c.h.e.f andy

++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Tasty Loong by Chef Pung @ Orto
Address:
81 Lorong Chencharu #01-06/07
Yishun, Singapore
Get Directions
Contact:
Call 9472 6210
Opening Hours:
Mon-Fri 5:00 PM – 11:00 PM
Sat-Sun 11:00 AM – 11:00 PM

Turtle Soup & Trotters at Jln Berseh FC + Sungei Road Laksa on 2Aug2018

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S$30 claypot trutle soup @ very lucky turtle soup 

had turtle soup at very lucky at jln berseh food centre with RI bros on 2.8.2018.^^

some bros had tennis & squash at CL’s condo. there were 8pax for lunch. 🙂

i don’t come often but always take from this stall when i do.

the S$30 was quite ok, very substantial for 2-3pax, good amount of meat & gelatinous parts.  soup was very good. i asked & the stall gave us a a refill. we shared among 4pax.

S$5 pig trotters @ kelantan kueh chap 

added a S$5 pig trotters shared by 4pax. very good standard, good taste & texture, a substantial portion & good braise.

the other 4 bros took kueh chap from the opposite stall, kelatan kueh chap. and some took char kuay tiao etc.

sungei road laksa 

after that we walked over to sungei road laksa at jin shui kopitiam, 27 jln berseh. 🙂

there was a queue about 8-10pax…we order standard S$3laksa + S$1 extra cockles (above photo). 🙂

laksa was still good, very lemak, but i feel lack a strong savoury flavour like weiyi laks at tanglin halt.

cockles were really large & plum & juicy & sweet, quite excellent! 🙂

sungei road laksa

sungei road laksa 

there was like constantly a queue…but i guess during peak hours queue must be very long that’s why they had the tape & stand for queueing.

rojak 

CJ bought a rojak to share.

somehow today’s rojak like not so good.

sungei road laksa

the laksa was well worth the detour after a nice turtle soup lunch.

my friends & i liked al like the laksa, but i would not come specially for this.

ate too much, but really quite fun…i enjoyed the turtle soup, pig trotters & also the laksa.

c.h.e.f andy

++++++++++++++++++++++++++

(1) Very Luck Turtle Soup

Address: 35 Kelantan Ln, Singapore 208652
Hours: 

daily (closed on wed) 9:45AM–9:50PM

(2) Kelantan

166 Jln Besar #02-39 Singapore 208877 Jln Besar, Singapore 208877
Closed
daily (closed on Tues)
  • 8AM–8PM

(3) Sungei Road Laksa

Address: Blk 27 Jalan Berseh #01-100, 200027
Hours: 

daily (closed on wed) 9:30AM–5PM

 

 

Reflections on Autumn 立秋寄情 on 7Aug2018

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this morning my OPS bro WT shared the following writings –

亲：早上好，今日21点30分立秋，属晚立秋，天气至少会持续炎热半个月以上，问苍天什么季节最忙？ 秋天，多事之秋； 什么季节最公平？ 秋天，平分秋色； 什么季节最简单？ 秋天， 一叶知秋； 什么季节最长？ 秋天，一日不见如隔三秋； 什么季节最爽？ 秋天，秋高气爽；什么季节最险？秋天，秋后算账: 什么季节最暧昧？ 秋天，暗送秋波！哈哈，祝立秋快乐！

haha! didn’t know today 立秋!

anyway in the past never really notice such things like 立秋, singapore having no seasons to speak of. lately there were lots more messages sharing on 立春， 立冬 winter solstice (so i did a post sometime back 冬至吃t’yuan汤圆)etc.

as one RI bro commented on the message –

“Fasinating – the word 秋 can be used in so many ways to describe people, events, activities, beliefs, aspirations, nature, the environment, the atmosphere and of course the weather. And almost if not all in positive ways. English words which can be used in a similar fashion? Some not so nice words come to mind”.

triggered, i did a rejoinder on my own-

秋去春来，回首50秋，我们一起走过了多少春花秋月，此时春华秋实，正是春秋鼎盛，迈向百岁千秋，放眼哥们虽不说千秋大业，也然是春花秋菊，各有千秋，自能洞察秋毫，不会老气横秋，不羡秋水伊人，秋波传情，不叹秋风落叶，月过中秋，无需千秋万载，凡事过耳秋风，无视春蛙秋蝉，念惜春露秋霜.

not that i know so many chinese phrase, i just googled them…

but i do understand the meaning, so just string them together to portray our time, our mood, our perspective, our past, present, future and for me most importantly our inner peace!

c.h.e.f andy

So So North Indian Food – Daughter Bought 3pax Dinner @ Dabbawala on 4Aug2018

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butter naan

daughter suggested 5pax family dinner at firebake. wife had her old coursemates get together. younger daughter had her dinner engagements. so it’s left with me.

daughter decided to go somewhere nearer, so we met at dabbawala at robertson quay for 3pax dinner – daughter, SIL, me on 4.8.2018. ^^

i decided to park at quayside, very convenient as dabbawala is right there on level one, but horrendous ramp & very narrow lots. anyway these days i just drive slowly & “inched” down & up the ramp, guided always by the outer curve ie near to the outer curve as that is easy to judge.

daughter has the entertainer app so 1 main course free. she ordered butter chicken, malabar fish curry, lamb biryani, one butter naan. SIL ordered a bee.

S$22 butter chicken

butter chicken was ok, i would say pedestrian.

daughter & i agreed the butter chicken we bought from delhi restaurant like 15yrs-20yrs ago for children home parties when they were young was much better. this one has no much favour & the chicken breast also quite plain & tasteless.

i think my own butter chicken using dancing chef paste is much better la.^^

S$21 malabar fish curry

the fish curry was much better tasting. the fish though was soft & not so great, not sure what fish it was….

with the entertainer app, this lower priced S$21 fish curry is free.

my own masala fish curry using house brand ready gravy is a lot better.

i use batang fish (ikan tenggiri or spanish mackerel), fried first, firm & tasty & sweet. the curry also very good but can’t say better than this malabar curry flavour.

i did this as part of a 7 indian dish dinner for 10pax RI friends on 19.9.2018. ^^

S$26 lamb biryani

the lamb biryani also pedestrian. good enough biryani i guess but nothing great. the lamb was soft & sinewy rather than tender with nice bite.

again, my own chicken biryani is really much better, both the very tender chicken & very flavourful biryani.

S$81 for 3pax dinner

daughter bought dinner, S$81 for 3pax after entertainer app 1 dish discounts, inclusive of S$15 beer.

“no lava”! cake at laurent

after dinner we walked over to laurent..

i had a piccolo latte (not as good as the silky smooth one at tiong hoe).

daughter ordered a lava cake..

the 15mins (they say) became 1/2hr wait & there was ZERO lava (see above photo)..so brownie isit?

i told the server..she confessed that first time they took out of oven cake not ready so they did again in oven second time! no wonder no lava!

really not the right thing to do for a specialty pastry shop especially for a S$14.80++ lava cake. anyway they refunded so got back like S$16….

north indian dishes

it was a wonderful evening. we chatted usual family stuff & chill over dinner & coffee.

c.h.e.f andy

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Dabbawala @ Robertson Quay (formerly curry culture)

Address:
60 Robertson Quay #01-10/11, Singapore 238252
Contact:
dabbawalla.sg
6235 6134
Opening Hours:
Sat-Sun
  • 12–2:30PM
  • 5:30–10:30PM
Mon-Fri
  • 5:30–10:30PM

 

 

Good S$3 Wanton Mee and Very Good 牛车水 Braised Duck on 4Aug2018

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wanton mee & braised duck

my OPS bro WT dropped by, pick me up & we decided to go Commonwealth crescent food centre on 4.8.2018.^^

S$3 wanton mee + S$1 braised pork soft bones

queue at jian kang noodles

we took jian kang S$4 wanton mee = $3+S$1pork soft bones..i asked for more chilli..

the noodles, chilli, char siew all very nice, & the braised pork soft bones especially..

i added a spoon of larpok for each bowl, very crisp & tasty too.

4 wanton 

and the 4 wantons very good too. 🙂

S$8 牛车水braised duck

S$8 牛车水braised duck 

WT went to order the 牛车水braised duck.

they basically closed shop liao, so we got whatever leftovers, looked like a wingstick plus bits & pieces. for S$8. 🙂

didn’t look like much but it was in fact a good serving & duck was very good 👍

i do a very flavourful (“pang”) braised duck myself but this meat was really very tender & sweet, unusual, among the best braised duck i think. ^^

wanton mee & braised duck

after lunch we went to my place for a cuppa.

a great time with a very close friend.

c.h.e.f andy

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

(1) Jian Kang Wanton Mee #02-77

(2) 牛车水braised duck #02-95

31 Commonwealth Crescent S149644, Commonwealth Crescent Market & Food Centre

Briased Wine Chicken with Vegetables – 67th Teban Gardens Community Breakfast on 3Aug2018

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braised wine chicken with vegetables

made braised wine chicken with vegetables for teban gardens community breakfast this morning on 27.7.2018.^^

this my 67th friday breakfast community meal dish at teban gardens community service centre.

i first started doing a community meal dish for teban gardens CSC on 8.1.2016.

the centre was started in 2002 after much effort & challenge by our RI friend who is a pastor of pasir panjang hill brethren church (pphbc) which owns & runs the CSC.

2kg boneless thigh 

i fillet a 2kg pack of 8 boneless chicken thighs.

washed with salt & drain dry in fridge overnight.

chicken fillet & vegetables

in the morning, i marinated the chicken (3tbsp fish sauce, 1 tbsp heap corn flour, 1 tbsp sesame oil, 1tbsp oyster sauce, 3tbsp hua diao wine 花雕酒).

& cut 3 large carrots & 1kg size cabbage.

fried vegetables with oyster sauce

fried vegetables with oyster sauce

then i fried the vegetables with chopped garlic & oyster sauce.

the vegetables were very tasty on its own.

braised wine chicken

braised wine chicken

braised wine chicken 

i then placed the cooked vegetables in the aluminium carrier.

then cooked the chicken, with chop garlic & high fire. 🙂

braised wine chicken and vegetables

the chicken was very tender & tasty. made sure not overcooked.

braised wine chicken with vegetables

braised wine chicken with vegetables

then i placed the chicken on top the vegetables in the aluminium carrier.

i placed the dish in 40degC oven while i get ready to leave for teban gardens.

it was a very tasty dish, both the chicken fillet & the vegetables.

the 140 residents enjoyed their wonderful breakfast. today they had chui kueh as well, and the usual nice braised beehoon which was very tasty too.

c.h.e.f andy

 

Durian Bonanza (Corporate Invitation) @ Fruit Monkeys on 1Aug2018

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D24 i think

had corporate invitation for a durian tasting evening at fruit monkey on 1.8.2018. ^^

so after a shiok! ichiran ramen & bakuteh dinner at WM place

we came by to fruit monkey in rangoon road.

fruit monkey aircon area

fruit monkey has an airocn area.

there were like 25-30 other guests including ourselves. and some other individual customers.

D24 i think

we were told they chose fruit monkey because the durians were good & also they have aircon place…google review seem to be good..

we were served first D24 i think.

not yet MSW, but these durians were good, if they were D24. 🙂

there were 7 of us on the table. i think we were served 5-6 durians.

MSW

next came the long awaited MSW.

the MSW however were NOT good!

the first one we had was very good (above photo left side!).

there was one other durian pretty good. one or 2 more ok. and 2 others were literally not ripe. we didn’t eat!

the service recovery was NON EXISTENT!!!!!

the lady came to ask if durians were ok. we showed her the unripe MSW durians. she didn’t react at all, then she said she could bring us very good MSW (means she brought us not good MSW?). and one durian WT went to return, the guy said “can eat”, so WT told him “you eat lor”.

if it were Ah Seng at ghim moh, the unripe durians wouldn’t even be served, and anything below par Ah Seng will just replaced with more good ones, no question asked.

durians & rambutans

can’t understand these people, how they do business like that?

anyway it’s their prerogative how they want to run their business. customers will just vote by their feet.

perhaps they were good with usual individual buyers, don’t know how to handle big groups?

MSW

but there were at least 3 decent or better MSW =1 very good MSW, 1 good and one or two more MSW (except for the unripe ones) also quite ok edible.

after durians, we were served mangosteens & rambutans…on our table we were all quite full with the durians so we just took 1 or 2 to try…there were ok..the 2 mangosteens i had had the yellow patch part not edible..it does happen with mangosteens…

thanks to the invite, we OPS bros had a great time, a nice durian bonanza (cannot hiam really since we were invited), a nice home makan before that. a really pleasant evening to spend with very close friends & bros.

c.h.e.f andy

Very Shiok! Ichiran Ramen + Bakuteh Home Dinner at WM Place on 1Aug2018

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ichiran ramen

we had ichiran ramen + bakuteh 5pax dinner at WM place this evening on 1.8.2018.

my OPS bros HC & WM bought ichiran ramen packets when we were in kyoto/nara/osaka 5-13.4.2018.

we had a first round of ichiran ramen at HC new place on 8.6.2018.

WT was in shanghai then. this time, WT is back & also we got PK to join us for 5pax dinner. 🙂

6mins runny yoke eggs for ramen

6mins runny yoke eggs for ramen

i made the usual 6mins runny yoke egg. very good indeed!

i use the braise for braising the chashu & also the braised belly pork

(to replicate the excellent braised long soft bones experience at hanamaruken ramen (花丸轩) at dotonbori osaka).

ichiran ramen

ichiran ramen

beautiful, lovely ramen by ichiran! ^^

incredibly tasty tonkotsu broth, and ramen just al dente perfect texture..i made it 2.5mins.

we on low carbs, so shared 2 ichiran packets for 5pax.

the best bakuteh

i also did bakuteh.

i had a very good almost 900g prime ribs from sheng shiong last week, so this was a good occasion to have it. 🙂

just using the usual 30g pack of “ilc” bkt stock pack. all my friends use this, simple & really nice everytime.

the best bakuteh

i like prime ribs with layers of streaky fat.

heavenly sinful la! 🙂

the best bakuteh

i cooked it in the morning.

soup very sweet & tasty, natural sweetness of the pork.

& the pork tender & sweet, especially with the top grade chicken rice dark sauce with chilli padi.

the best bakuteh

placed ribs in boiled water, cleaned to remove scum. then added clean water, whole bulb of peeled garlic cloves, the ilc stock sachet, & the ribs, boiled for 1 hr.

after cool, i placed in carrier & kept in the fridge & transport to WM in the evening, after picking up WT.

chilled trotters

chilled trotters

i also did a chilled trotters.

this was to replicate the very nice crystalline trotters dimsum lunch at 苏小柳, basement of crystal galleria 晶品.

texture of my chilled trotters was good. the way to do this is to overcook the trotters a little (i had it in a 130degC over for 6-7hrs), with a good marinate that became very tasty with the gelatine from the trotters…

then i kept in chiller overnight, so the trotters were tender yet had a good bite. 🙂

but to replicate 苏小柳’s pig trotters, i will use hock instead the next time.

chicken rice dark sauce for bkt + white vinegar mala sugar & stock dip for trotters

i had some chicken rice dark sauce for bkt + white vinegar mala sugar & stock dip for trotters.

trotters were ok, i like it..not the favourite dish for my friends though.

romaine lettuce & spinach

romaine lettuce & spinach

i fried 2 vegetables – romaine lettuce & spinach.

taste was good. the spinach a bit “sek” though ie a bit old & tough stems…

ichiran ramen

dinner was fun with close bros.

especially the ramen & bkt. not too heavy & really nice food.

after dinner, we rested a while & went to fruit monkey for durian tasting, courtesy of UOB. 🙂

c.h.e.f andy

Claypot Liver, Salt Baked Chicken, Pigskin Jelly 4pax Dinner on 31Jul2018

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6 dishes + jelly pigskin for 4pax dinner 

made 4pax dinner for sis & bil, and this evening on 31.7.2018. ^^

salt baked kampung chicken 盐焗鸡

I cooked my first experiment 盐焗鸡, claypot liver, jelly pigskin & 4 veg dishes

salt baked kampung chicken 盐焗鸡 (recipe here) was very good, tasty, moist & tender. 🙂

 

pigskin jelly

pigskin jelly (recipe here) was superb this evening, very flavourful, and perfect texture.

everyone finds the 3 dishes (claypot liver, pigskin jelly, salt baked kampung chicken 盐焗鸡) tops.

egg plants

eggplants so so..

long beans 

the lady fingers not quite edible=I bought this in packet from sheng shiong..there were no loose ones to choose..& the lady fingers were “sek” too old & tough..

salted egg bittergourd

the long beans & salted egg bittergourd were good…

for this evening, long beans were best…very sweet & tasty.simple dish.just fried with oyster sauce…

claypot liver 

the claypot liver was excellent as before. very good, tasty with hua diao wine 花雕酒flavours…

all in all a really enjoyable 4pax dinner.

after dinner, sis made gongfucha 功夫茶as always.

c.h.e.f andy