Daughter Bought Excellent Family Dinner @ Concetto by Saveur on 18Jan2015

Posted on January 22, 2015 by chefquak

chilled capellini, crab & shrimp tartare, lobster foam & ikura

daughter wanted to buy 4pax family dinner again & brought us to this happening place concetto by saveur at The Cathay on 18.1.2015. 🙂

i must say i am very pleasantly surprised, far exceeding my expectations. ^^

concetto by saveur

we had a reservation were there early at 6pm & were among the first few customers, but the place filled up quite quickly.

we ordered 2 appetisers & 4 mains/pastas to share. i liked everyone of them! ^^

grilled octopus caesar salad

the caesar salad was very good, not too creamy, nice bacon tips & overall flavours especially enhanced by the grilled octopus.

chilled capellini, crab & shrimp tartare, lobster foam & ikura

the chilled capellini, crab & shrimp tartare, lobster foam & ikura lagi best.

chilled capellini, crab & shrimp tartare, lobster foam & ikura

i can have this all by myself, excellent lobster foam, wonderful flavours, texture & looks.

funghi risotto

funghi risotto was very good, a good restaurant standard, intense aroma and taste.

crab risotto

i like the crab risotto even better than the funghi.

duck leg confit, pesto tagliatelle

& i am usually not so hot on duck confit but this was good, nice crispy skin & tender, soft meat, not sinewy which was often with braised meat & some duck confit, the reason braises are not my favourite.

i liked also the pesto tagliatelle, though pesto can be overpowering if taken much, but this was an excellent accompanying portion.

kurobuta pork cheek with gnocchi

the kurobuta pork cheek with gnocchi was another pleasing dish. i liked the tender & flavourful pork & also the gnocchi.

the bill

dark chocolate tart

we had a dark chocolate tart to share. nice too. deconstructed.

the bill for 4pax include 1 glass of wine (S$6) was $107 about S$27pax nett, a perfect family evening out, nice food & ambience.

food was mostly better or as good as petite menu, which my daughter said was now closed, and some chef had gone on to start portico, a new eatery. i guess that would be our next family go to place to try out.

c.h.e.f andy

Nice Bakuteh @ Rong Cheng 榕城 Sin Min Road on 20Jan2015

Posted on January 20, 2015 by chefquak

rong cheng bakuteh

sent my car to amazing glaze at sin min autocare for some treatment this morning on 20.1.2015.

decided to walk over to rong cheng 榕城 bakuteh at sin min road. i have not here here for many years liao. had been a regular previously. ^^

rong cheng bakuteh

the ribs are a bit softer as it was past 2pm. but i still liked it. ^^

for me, this is very much a personal taste & preference. many people prefer very soft ribs, the meat falling off the bone. so they may find rong cheng ribs a bit tough. for me, i prefer a texture where the meat is tender but there is bite & bounce, and for me i always find that the meat is sweeter when it is not soft & overcooked.

it is though very easy to do bakuteh at home, and i can get the fatter & more tasty indonesian prime ribs from sheng shiong. the result is almost as good, so i don’t really go much for the increasingly expensive bakuteh the last few years (I used to do a few times a week!).^^

c.h.e.f andy

Irresistible Curry Chicken Noodles @ Ah Heng on 19Jan2015

Posted on January 19, 2015 by chefquak

ah heng curry chicken noodles

went downtown to do some chores on 19.1.2015.

could not resist dropping by hong lim food centre to eat ah heng curry chicken noodles. ^^

this my favourite hawker food. used to be bakuteh but these days i don’t take that much & bakuteh is so easily done at home.

not that i eat curry chicken noodles often either. the last time i took ah heng curry chicken noodles was on 16.9.2013. but of course i had heng kee’s curry chicken noodle not so long ago on 7.11.2014.

of the two, i still prefer ah heng. for me, even the food photos for ah heng looked more appealing.

ah heng curry chicken noodles

i took the S$6 large noodle with chicken thigh (鸡尾). i mean the chicken was really tender & sweet, better than some chicken rice stalls. i can do the chicken pretty well actually (in my own curry chicken noodles), but there is just no comparing the curry! it is sweet, tasty, flavourful, spicy.

just as well this place not near my house. got to drive, park & pay ERP somehow just to get here.

c.h.e.f andy

OK Post-movie Dinner @ Shokudo Orchard Cineleisure on 16Jan2015

Posted on January 18, 2015 by chefquak

unagi tofu salad

went with friends to watch “the theory of everything” at orchard cineleisure on 16.1.2015. 🙂

it’s a movie about the lives of stephen & jane hawkings. really nice movie – wonderful script, acting, direction. i liked it very much! ^^

after movie, we decided to have a quick dinner at shokudo (食堂or canteen in japanese) at level 2.

we ordered 4 dishes to share for 4pax as we only wanted a light meal, and one friend had to leave shortly. 🙂 later we added a parfait for remaining 3 of us to share.

we had the unagi tofu salad. somehow we were chatting & missed the wafu 和风 dressing (a vinaigrette) or ponzu sauce until we almost finished. the salad was actually quite nice with the dressing.^^

saba tamago don

the saba don was quite tasty. saba was tasty & tender & the don (rice) was nice. 🙂

ebi truffle mentaiko ali olio

the ebi (prawn) mantaiko aloo olio looked anaemic when it came. my friends added the grated cheese & red chilli pepper & it looked a bit more appetising.

the truffle flavours were actually quite nice.

a deepfried tofu dish

we had a fried egg tofu with some cheese flavours topped with mentaiko. pretty ok. felt like the tako balls type preparation.

parfaitcc

parfait

i always like the parfait in japan & also sun with moon. this was good good, with yuzu sorbet. mochi, green tea jelly & cornflakes…didn’t see any chestnut? anyway i liked this best.

the food was ok. the bill S$66 also about right for the food we had. it was a fun time with friends – movie, makan & chat. 🙂

c.h.e.f andy

Excellent Yakiniku @ Omakaseya Azmaya on 15Jan2015

Posted on January 17, 2015 by chefquak

wagyu karubi

Expensive Mediocre Teochew Porridge @ Lim Joo Hin Eating House on 16Jan2015

Posted on January 17, 2015 by chefquak

teochew porridge dishes

went with sis & b-i-l to lim joo hin teochew porridge at bukit ho swee for lunch on 16.1.2015. 🙂

had not been here like forever, maybe 10years? reason is i always feel that teochew porridge is ultra expensive for nothing food. well, today was no exception, just a confirmation, so in a sense i was not overly disappointed since already expecting it to be so!

strange psychology!

lim joo hin teochew muay 潮州麋

place was bright & clean. not crowded yet at 12pm.

servers were rude & unhelpful, not rude in talking to you but rude in mannerism & ignoring you.

mullet 乌鱼

mullet 乌鱼 was still moist so soft. this not the usual style, her bun 鱼饭 or teochew chilled cooked fish should be cold & dry. meat was sweet & nice dipped in taojeo (bean paste), overall just average. unlike cold crab, we can do this easily at home ourselves.

braised duck

braised duck was ok average. my own braised duck though is a lot better, more “pang” i.e. tasty.

“kor” her -method of braising fish

“kor” her -this method of braising fish is rarely seen nowadays. the fish tasted like sardine (likely was) which was very different fish from the ones my grandma made 50yrs ago. the dish was just slight sour due to the sour dried veg, i think, which made it very appetising.

cabbage

lim joo hin teochew muay 潮州麋

leek

the vegetables were nice, especially the leek & “chiu kuay”, a gourd (my sis added 2 veg dishes later – “heng chye” spinach & “chiu kuay”).

3pax lunch cost S$47.40 for eating almost nothing. i am never coming back – well, maybe another 10yrs! ^^

c.h.e.f andy

Nice Light Lunch @ Crystal Jade Lamian Xiaolongbao HollandV on 11jan2015

Posted on January 12, 2015 by chefquak

小笼包

went for a light lunch with wife & daughter @ crystal jade lamian xiaolongbao at hollandv yesterday on 11.1.2015.

we ordered the usual xiaolongbao 小笼包. it was good as usual – great soup & tasty fillings, skin that held together & not thick. we added a second order later. ^^

抄手

ordered the other favourite spicy dumplings 抄手 too. today this was not too good. the sauce seemed dilute, overall not flavourful enough & not as attractive as canton paradise.

spicy chicken 口水鸡

spicy chicken 口水鸡 was good as always. i enjoy this dish everytime. ^^

beef brisket ramen 牛腩拉面

soemthing new for me was the beef brisket ramen 牛腩拉面. happy to note that this was much better than i expected. the beef brisket 牛腩 was really good. there was a bit of beef tendon as well.

this my daughter’s favourite. i didn’t think it was better than that served in sicc though. i used the spicy sauce from the spicy chicken 口水鸡 & the noodles were really nice & flavourful with the sauce.

a relax lunch on a quiet sunday. 🙂

c.h.e.f andy

Cool Place to Chill Out @ Wheeler’s Yard on 11Jan2015

Posted on January 11, 2015 by chefquak

wheeler’s yard

went to a friend’s relative’s wake at jalan rajah on 11.1.2015. was quite sad at the time.

a close friend & i left after the rites. at the carpark i was looking across at wheeler’s yard at lor ampas. we decided to go for a cuppa.

i have read about this place. my daughters had been there on separate occasions, and some friends had also posted on Facebook.

place was spacious & airy. i should add a really cool place to chill & unwind.

flat white

it was 5pm on a sunday & only a few tables were occupied. my friend bought 2 flat whites, & we walked outside & picked a high table facing sungei whampoa which flows into kallang river.

coffee was good, but no better than dutch colony, assembly coffee or chye seng huat. i think chye seng huat serves the best flat white, followed by dutch colony.

wheeler’s yard

i enjoyed the tete a tete very much. good coffee, relax environment, a good friend to share a conversation.

c.h.e.f andy

Best Bakchormee @ Changi Airport T3 B2 Kopitiam on 2Jan2015

Posted on January 11, 2015 by chefquak

bakchormee @ changi airport T3 basement B2

sent son to airport on 2.1.2015. he was back for 2 weeks short winter leave. 🙂

after checking in, i had also parked my car, there was a short time before immigration & boarding.

we went down to T3 basement 2 kopitiam food court & ordered a bakchormee at the lai heng fishball noodle stall.

for me, this is 1 of the best bakchormee. we had this many times before & it had always been good, no exception this time.

this the tai hwa crawford-style with mushroom sauce & lots of vinegar. it was very good, like as good as tai hwa’s. tasty, vinegar just right, good ingredients – liver & all. very satisfied.

it is different from the jalan tua kong meepok tar at 6th avenue, jalan tua kong lau lim @ bedok simpang, 132 marine terrace fishball noodles, but similar to ming fa @ upper thomson though that one has less vinegar.

c.h.e.f andy

Quick, Simple Home Dinner on 9Jan2015

Posted on January 10, 2015 by chefquak

manila clams

bought some live manila clams & mussels from sheng shiong in the morning.

manila clams

the manila clams were expensive this time at S$13.90/kg. mussels were priced as usual at S$3.50/kg. i bought 500g mussels & 600g+ manila clams. 🙂

manila clams

i decided to cook the manila clams & mussels differently.

for the manila clams, i cooked with curry leaves, chilli padi, sliced ginger, oyster sauce & starch, similar to the wok-fried manila clams i did last time minus the white wine, orange peel & butter.

mussels

for the mussels, i decided to use the western mussel pot style. i used butter, chilli padi, sliced ginger, sliced orange peel & white wine, & added a teaspoon sugar.

oysters

as my youngest daughter decided to join the 2 old folks, i added a oyster omelette. i used the large frozen oysters, fried the egg first, pushed that to one side, put pan to high heat & added the oysters, and stir-fried for short while (about 20secs).

very nice wok hae (flavours) for all 3 dishes. manila clams had the best flavours.

romaine lettuce

we also had a romaine lettuce to round off the light dinner with some plain rice.

nice evening & great simple food.

c.h.e.f andy

Nice Lunch @ Rendervous at Central on 8Jan2015

Posted on January 9, 2015 by chefquak

beef curry

went my to my close friend’s clinic for my troublesome implant. another close friend was scheduled for 6-monthly descaling, so we had lunch together afterwards.

our god-sis who helped out at the clinic, & my dentist friend’s daughter, also joined us for 5pax lunch at rendezvous at central on 8.1.2015. 🙂

lunch orders

friend insisted on paying. initially we ordered 5 dishes – mutton curry, beef curry (dentist friend’s daughter likes mutton & god-sis doesn’t take mutton), chicken curry, kang kong & sayur lodeh.

he later went to add orders of chilli eggplant, chilli tenggiri & another mutton. unfortunately i was too eagerly eating & did not take photos of the new orders.^^

mutton curry

chicken curry

i love all the curries, and especially the unhealthy sauces. this time i reneged on my no carbs policy. well, worthwhile carbs took over!

the chicken curry was lemak. but it was no comparison with the flavourful yellow or red curry chicken at river valley nasi padang at zion road (which is now sadly closed).

sayur lodeh

sayur lodeh was competent.

kang kong

kang kong was ok.

for the new orders, i always like chilli eggplants, great texture & taste. & i like fish in general so the chilli tenggiri was great too.^^

chendol

we had 1 mountain dew & 4 lime juice – very small glass & lots of ice, so very dilute, not sweet (good) but almost tasteless (bad!). for me, this item was a rip-off.

after the food we ordered 4 chendol. i had 1 by myself, very sinful.

overall, the company made for a very enjoyable lunch. the food was good too & i walloped all the rice!

was kind of expensive though. my friend paid S$127 for the 5pax lunch.

c.h.e.f andy

Our Favourite Hai Kee Char Kuay Teow at Telok Blangah Crescent on 8jan2015

Posted on January 9, 2015 by chefquak

char kuay teow 炒粿条

went with wife to hai kee char kuay teow at telok blangah crescent on 8.1.2015. 🙂

lasted time we were here was 1+years ago on 13.9.2013. waited just 25mins this time..there goes my diet plan! ^^

hai kee char kuay teow

char kuay teow 炒粿条

we still like it very much. 🙂

price was S$3, no adding of “hum” cockles. lots of cockles and very tasty. very sinful of course, lots of oil & lar pok aka deep-fried fat pieces. the cockles were quite a bit smaller this time. i had raw cockles for my plate. ^^

hai kee char kuay teow

there was a continuous, “never-short-of” queue.

not something i should have often, but most enjoyable when i had it.

c.h.e.f andy

Good HK-styled Beef Noodles @ Brisket King 牛腩大王 on 7Jan2015

Posted on January 9, 2015 by chefquak

beef noodles 牛杂面

went with friends to shaw lido to watch hobbit 3 on 7.1.2015.

i quite liked the movie though we all thought lord of the rings trilogy were better than any of the 3 hobbit movies. 🙂

after the movie, we went to food republic at basement of shaw house. 2 friends took the toa payoh teochew fishball noodles & one had the chicken rice.

i walked around & decided to try the beef noodles at brisket king 牛腩大王.

so far i had been unable to locate any stalls in singapore that could offer the standard of beef noodles 牛腩牛杂面 one could get anywhere on the streets of hong kong.

the few that came close?? maybe were-

lao jie fang 老街坊 cantonese beef brisket noodles at stall #02-15 @ mei chin market & food centre,

beef brisket noodles 牛腩面 at noodles place restaurant at centrepoint

S$5 mixed beef soup (牛杂汤) at hwa heng beef noodles@ ion orchard B4 food opera.

brisket king 牛腩大王

the mixed beef noodles 牛腩牛杂面 at brisket king cost me S$9, doubles the HK$30 one can get anywhere on the streets of hong kong.

the noodles were nice like hong kong. the soup was nice but maybe still not hong kong standard. the 牛杂 of beef tripes & tendons were good. somehow the briskets were just not (never) as good as hong kong’s. 🙂

otherwise, this would be the best of all the hong kong beef noodles wannabe. 🙂

c.h.e.f andy

Good Ter Kar (Pig Trotters) Lunch @ Han Jia East Coast Lagoon Food Village on 7Jan2015

Posted on January 8, 2015 by chefquak

ter kar (pig trotters)

i didn’t have great ter kar (pig trotters) the last time at han jia bakuteh & pork leg, east coast lagoon food village.

2 good friends took it upon themselves to convince me otherwise, so we had a 4pax lunch there on 7.1.2014. they felt that the trotters were overcooked & too soft at dinner time, and lunch time was the right time to try the trotters.

there was a short queue, my friend bought lunch & ordered 1 trotter each. there goes my 10km jog! ^^

was it good?

well, i couldn’t say it wasn’t. it was good,

but was it any special? i didn’t think it was. i think the ones at ng ah sio bakuteh, song fa bakuteh were just as good, and same for lao ah tee, rong cheng etc.

& the ones at 幸福潮州小食 pig trotter at whampoa market probably better in look & texture. the one i like most was at zion road hawker centre quite a while back, probably not there now.

one friend who generally has a better palate than i said it was very “pang”, and indeed it was. i put it down to personal taste. for pork trotters, i like it to be “kar kar” where the meat texture, the bite is gelatinous. this was indeed less soft than the last & overall pretty ok, but not near the perfect gelatinous texture i like. if anything i prefer my own braised pig trotters – the colour, texture & taste, and here.

anyway, it is a matter of personal preference. ^^

kidney liver soup

kidney & liver soup was good, not special also.

taupok

taupok was average.

buay chai

i didn’t like the buay chai much, prefer the chai buay at teochew muay stalls better.

ter kar (pig trotters)

cheng tng & soupsop jelly

soursop jelly

the soursop jelly was great! ^^

overall it was a good lunch, good friends, cool weather, nice food. i always like ter kar though don’t eat that often, and 1 ter kar is a big large portion for 1pax.

c.h.e.f andy

Very Good 6pax Suckling Pig Set @ Ah Yat Grandstand on 4Jan2015

Posted on January 5, 2015 by chefquak

#1 lobster salad

today my very close friend’s birthday.

last evening i arranged a birthday dinner for him at ah yat seafood @ grandstand turf club road on 4.1.2015. 🙂

happens that my god-sis & her husband’s birthday were also just past, so we had a 6pax dinner together with my other 2 close friends.

i ordered the 6pax lobster sharkskin abalone 9-course dinner. it was very good, quite expected. the place was crowded & noisy like a fish market, with 2 tables next to us having endless drinking challenge & making a din. we used to say that the place did not matter since we would be the table making the most noise. this time though we were not. ^^

anyway, the birthday boys & girl were all happy with the trade-off – good food for fish market noises. 🙂

#1 lobster salad

#1 lobster salad. canned fruit salad was refreshing, and a friend cleared off everything. 🙂 as a lobster dish, lobster salad always suspect to me, few lobster pieces & lots of fruit salad, could never really compared with a proper lobster dish.

#2 sharksfin soup

#2 sharksfin soup was sweet & tastier than i expected, but not quite the standard of ah yat abalones forum restaurant.

#3 suckling pig – this was so good

the #3 suckling pig was really par excellence. it was so good, crispy & tasty, equal or better than the suckling pig at hung kang or at summer garden SAFRA mt faber.

#4 fish maw with leeks

#4 fish maw with leeks was good too. not the expensive 花胶. still a tasty dish.

#5 abalones, mushrooms & chinese cabbage

#5 abalones, mushrooms & chinese cabbage another great dish. abalones were smaller & no comparison with the abalones in brown sauce at ah yat abalones forum restaurant. of course. still it was great dish. i liked the mushrooms & chinese cabbage too.

#6 hk steamed tiger garoupa

#6 hk steamed 港蒸tiger garoupa was tops. better than tau heung restaurant in HK.

#7 fried suckling pig meat

i enjoyed the #7 fried suckling pig meat too, but really i thought just chopping up the meat & head would be just as good.

#8 yee meen

#8 yee meen – passable i guess.

#9 bird’s nest

#9 bird’s nest was kind of forgettable dish for me, zero impact.

we had excellent company, good food & great memories..a most enjoyable evening. 🙂

c.h.e.f andy

Pleasant Dinner Chat @ Nassim Hill Bakery on 1Jan2015

Posted on January 4, 2015 by chefquak

crab spaghetti arrabiata (spicy tomatoes)

wife, son & i went to have a drink & some makan at nassim hill bakery on 1.1.2015. 🙂

earlier we had a homecooked 20pax family new year day lunch.

i was full & we had some leftover food.

wife ordered crab spaghetti arrabiata (spicy tomatoes) & bruschetta & a drink. i did not take any. iced water was free so we had 3 water.

bruschetta

a yuzu pimms drink

bruschetta

spicy crab spaghetti was very good, same as what we had last time on 5.10.2014 but w/o the 1 for 1 discounts.

there were lots of crab meat & a good arrabiata (spicy tomatoes) sauce.

wife liked the bruschetta with melted cheese, cherry tomatoes, parsley (or basil) & good bread. we can make this at home.

son was leaving for london the next day. this a good place to chill, not cramped & crowded like assembly coffee, and parking was free. we had nice, relax chat & good time together. 🙂

c.h.e.f andy

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c.h.e.f

cook.hangout.eat.fun

Monthly Archives: January 2015

Daughter Bought Excellent Family Dinner @ Concetto by Saveur on 18Jan2015

Nice Bakuteh @ Rong Cheng 榕城 Sin Min Road on 20Jan2015

Irresistible Curry Chicken Noodles @ Ah Heng on 19Jan2015

OK Post-movie Dinner @ Shokudo Orchard Cineleisure on 16Jan2015

Excellent Yakiniku @ Omakaseya Azmaya on 15Jan2015

Expensive Mediocre Teochew Porridge @ Lim Joo Hin Eating House on 16Jan2015

Nice Light Lunch @ Crystal Jade Lamian Xiaolongbao HollandV on 11jan2015

Cool Place to Chill Out @ Wheeler’s Yard on 11Jan2015

Best Bakchormee @ Changi Airport T3 B2 Kopitiam on 2Jan2015

Quick, Simple Home Dinner on 9Jan2015

Nice Lunch @ Rendervous at Central on 8Jan2015

Our Favourite Hai Kee Char Kuay Teow at Telok Blangah Crescent on 8jan2015

Good HK-styled Beef Noodles @ Brisket King 牛腩大王 on 7Jan2015

Good Ter Kar (Pig Trotters) Lunch @ Han Jia East Coast Lagoon Food Village on 7Jan2015

Very Good 6pax Suckling Pig Set @ Ah Yat Grandstand on 4Jan2015

Pleasant Dinner Chat @ Nassim Hill Bakery on 1Jan2015

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