the dishes while waiting for the fish soup

my good RI friend organised a 6pax lunch at ng soon kee fish soup on 15.12.2016. ^^

we arrived at geyland east centre food centre, 117 aljunied ave 2, about 11.40am.

ng soon kee only starts 12pm. so we ordered medium 4x$5 fish soup + S$10 braised duck, got a table at the nice airy outside next to ng soon kee, & few of us went round to look at other stalls.

aik kee haslet soup

S$1.50 ngoh hiang

the ter huang kiam chye = pig organ soup stall, aik kee, was listed as one of the fav 5 in this geylang east centre fc.

we considered roastmania, but decided to pass on that this time.

$5 ter huang kiam chye = pig innard soup

the pig innard soup was quite tasty, good standard.

the ingredients not too bad too, quite ok for S$5.

S$1.50 ngoh hiang

the nogh hiang used to be like such great thing in some reviews.

but really, it is nowhere near the standard of any ngoh hiang stalls, or even some S$1 beehoon mee stalls.

i guess it was passable but even our friend’s helper did a better, tastier ngoh hiang i had recently at his housewarming lunch.

S$4 hokkien mee

the S$4 hokkien mee was ok, above average.

stock was tasty, prawn was ok, belly pork strips & lar pok were all good.

quite good, not overly. eg a friend’s brother did better hokkien mee when we had gathering at her house in nov2015.

*******

actually talking about this, my own experimental hokkien mee also better than this la..

ng soon kee fish soup

this arrangement was quite perfect.

as ng soon kee does not start serving until 12pm.

so just nicely after we finished the ter huang kiam chye & hokkien mee, the fish soup & braised duck were ready.

S$5 fish soup

i had originally not intended to take the fish soup. i wanted to just try the duck though i know it was NOT the usual lor arh – brasied duck – that i prefer.

fish soup not my favourite, usually soup quite bland. i don’t mind the fish but it is nothing special to me.

S$5 fish soup

this fish soup though quite tasty.

there were quite a good serving of fish for $5, and the soup was tasty. i am happy that i took the fish soup.

S$10 braised duck

the braised duck was quite what i expected.

nice braising sauce. duck was tender.

S$10 braised duck

its was NOT the lor arh – braised duck – texture & feel that i prefer, just a cooked dish, like braised chicken pieces, very different experience from eating lor arh…

overall i would rate the fish soup best, the ter huang kiam chye next, hokkien noodles & braised duck about same for me.

bee chiam kueh

after lunch we adjourned to the inside rows for coffee.

a friend bought some bee chiam kueh to try.

the peanut sauce was quite good, but the dough was not soft, not fluffy, not fragrant..

after lunch, we drove in 2 cars to bukit batok to attend a very close friend’s mom’s wake.

c.h.e.f andy

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

NG SOON KEE FISH SOUP

ADDRESS

#01-11 Aljunied Market and Food Centre, 117 Aljunied Ave 2,380117

OPENING HOURS

Mon – Sat: 12:00 – 21:00
Closed: Sun

ohmi wagyu mabushi set

went with wife to taka to polish my car today on 14.12.2016.

we decided to walk over to japan food town at wisma to have lunch while waiting for the car to be ready.

last time we had lunch at hokkaido izakaya on 27.7.2016.

it was ok, pretty good..

nabe seizan 2 michelin star lunch menu

this time wife wanted me to try nabe seizan. she had nice wagyu don here last time with daughter.

seizan is 2 michelin stars in tokyo, listed at 22 in japan top 50 restaurants.

ohmi mabushi set – S$38

server told us beef is ohmi, one of the 3 top japanese wagyus after matsuzaka & kobe.

mabushi is basically wagyu don, plus there is a dashi you can add to the rice & eat like a chazuke (tea poured onto rice), so described as dashichazuke.

prawn & spinach aapetizer + garnish

there were garnishes of chopped scallions & seaweed, & freshly grated wasabi to add to the don.

prawn & spinach aapetizer

& the set also included a prawn & spinach appetizer, which was ok, good not overly.

dashichazuke – wagyu mabushi set S$38

i must say we were slightly disappointed with the wagyu don.

we knew from the photos it was not steak quality, more like the gyudon kind of cut.

the beef i guess was pretty ok being ohmi, but it really has no “wow”.

just compare this with the S$88 omakase lunch at hachi i had recently on 3.11.2016, which is a 8-course lunch including 4 ohmi wagyu dishes, & each/every ohmi wagyu dish was just stunning!

here the overall taste of the wagyu don was mediocre, and overall experience/enjoyment actually poorer than the okinawa agu buta don.

it was better when i added the dashi. at least that made it a more tasty, delicious dish where before it was quite bland…

creme with pear & jelly

wagyu mabushi set came with pear & jelly on custard dessert. it was pretty ok dessert.

very good okinawa agu buta don – S$25

the okinawa agu buta don was very good!

very good okinawa agu buta don – S$25

the lady server replied that it was not kurobuta.

still the taste was excellent. great texture for the belly pork & overall very nice taste experience.

the buta don did not come with appetizer or dessert which were S$3 & S$5 respectively, which would add up to S$33. we ordered the $3 appetizer.

overall, this place was pretty good but would not be my preferred lunch choice.

& while i am generally very much partial towards ohmi wagyu, if i lunch here again, i would pick the S$25 buta don w/o appetizer & dessert over the S$38 wagyu don set because overall the taste experience enjoyment was better.

c.h.e.f andy

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

Nabe Seizan @ Japanfoodtown, Wisma

roast duck portion – S$16.80

wife was back from a mission in cambodia after 11days. we decided to have dinner at crystaljade kitchen @ hollandv. eldest daughter joined us so we had 3pax dinner on 11.12.2016. ^^

crystal jade kitchen hollandv

crystal jade kitchen hollandv 

there was a good crowd on level 2 at 6.30pm on a sunday.

roast duck portion – S$16.80

duck was quite ok, the good standard fare, not quite comparable to-

1. the london duck at tunglok signature orchard parade,
2. the roast duck at xin cuisine &
3. the royal london duck.

pomelo drink – S$5.80 dessert with drink 

my daughter ordered a drink set. i was quite happy to pay $0.60 for warm water.

xiaolongbao 小笼包 – S$4.80

xiaolongbao 小笼包 was special S$4.80, usual S$5.80.

was good standard, very tasty soup.

har gao 虾饺 

har gao 虾饺 likewise good standard.

steamed chicken feet

like the steamed chicken feet here, skin nicely deep-fried & tasty sauce.

dumpling soup S$9.80 

dumpling soup was nice too. tasty dumplings, 4 of them. S$9.80 was quite expensive leh by my standard.

crispy fupeiquin 炸腐皮卷 

crispy fupeiquin 炸腐皮卷 was also nice, crispy, tasty.

3 combo porridge 三拼粥 S$11.80 

the 3 combo porridge 三拼粥 was quite ex for me at S$11.80.

it was tasty, not super smooth so not quite there yet…2 large meat balls, qute a lot of shredded chicken & century egg.

3 combo porridge 三拼粥 

anyway, nice la…

aloe vera jelly – S$5.80 dessert with drink 

aloe vera dessert was refreshing.

aloe vera jelly – S$5.80 dessert with drink 

3 of us shared. i took just a little to taste.

3pax dinner was like S$71. kind of ex, but we had a serving portion of roast duck. anyway food was quite nice & we enjoyed dinner.

c.h.e.f andy

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

Crystal Jade Kitchen @ Holland Village

S$5 fish + wings = 4 ikan kuning, 1 chicken wing, 1 egg, ikan bilis, kachang

passing by adam road food centre, decided to pick up some nais lemak, 9.50am on thursday, 8.12.2016. ^^

selara rasa already long queue about 10pax.

S$5 fish + wings = 4 ikan kuning, 1 chicken wing, 1 egg, ikan bilis, kachang 

adam’s nasi lemak only 2pax in front, so i lined up there.

there was this S$5 fish + wing.

i asked makcik “2 fish”? she said “don’t worry i give you more”.

anyway, 4 ikan kuning, 1 chicken wing, 1 egg, ikan bilis, kachang = that’s what i got for S$5….

4 ikan kuning (albeit 2 smaller ones) a bit of overkill, but i “ngiau” so more ikan, merrier la…

S$5 fish + wings = 4 ikan kuning, 1 chicken wing, 1 egg, ikan bilis, kachang 

i bought 2 packets.

but today, taste-wise so-so leh.

2 larger ikan kuning quite tasteless. 2 smaller ones quite nice especially with chilli…i think my helper can do better la..

the chicken wing ok but again my helper can do better la…i can can also do better…

chilli & fragrant rice always good, and ikan bilis & kachang also so.

cannot be too picky la..for S$5..

son likes the second stall, selara rasa, which is a lot more popular & forever longer queue.

i like that selara also la, just not enough to queue long long…

c.h.e.f andy

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

ADMA’S NASI LEMAK

ADDRESS

#01-01 Adam Road Food Centre, 2 Adam Road, 289876

OPENING HOURS

Mon: 08:00 – 14:00
Wed – Sun: 08:00 – 14:00
Closed: Tue

S$3 prawn noodles dry 

went to blk 353 clementi ave 2 food centre to get a phone card, but shop was closed today monday on 5.12.2016.

ah meng delicious food 

there was this ah meng delicious food stall selling big prawn noodles, fried hokkien mee & char kuay teow.

it was 8.50pm & they were closing, there are 4 other customers waiting for their food, makan there & tapao.

S$3 prawn noodles dry 

i thought i gave the prwan noodle a try. ordered S$3 beehoon noodles dry.

3 small prawns, some fish cakes, sliced porl.

but mainly the soup & chilli cannot make it!

soup, thin some taste but not smooth no deep flavours. my own prawn stock just for cooking would beat this…

S$3 prawn noodles dry 

chilli is such an important ingredient!

this one totally non descript, no taste no fragrance…

S$3 prawn noodles dry

i think even for a market stall, this prawn noodles still tak boleh la…

S$3 prawn noodles dry

i finished less than 1/2. anyway i bought it just to try no need to finish.

it was quite far from adam road noo cheng prawn noodles standard.

really miss the why eat har! (now closed)

this ah meng delicious food seems to have some regular customers from the nearby blocks. maybe the fried hokkien noodles is good?? certainly the prawn noodles cannot pass!

c.h.e.f andy

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

Ah Meng Delicious Food

Address:

blk 353 clementi ave 2 market & food centre, #01-67

bakuteh  

my 2 close OPS primary school buddies came over for dinner on 2.12.2016.

it’s an impromptu dinner. i whatsapped them in the morning, & we decided to have 3pax home dinner.

i did not go out to do marketing, just used whatever i had in the fridge, so just 家常便饭.

bakuteh 

i had some frozen pork prime ribs. sheng shiong about 500g, not quite enough, so i added some from qbfoods.

i washed them with salt & scalded them to remove scum & clean thoroughly. then just added them with a whole bulb of peeled garlic cloves with “ilc bakuteh spice packet” in 1.5 litre water & cooked for 50mins.

bakuteh is so very easy la…

bakuteh 

& the simple dish was so delightful.

my friends were surprise how sweet & tasty the soup was, and quite natural meat sweetness. nothing else added, just ilc spice packet + garlic + pork ribs.

& the frozen prime ribs were very good too. granted cannot compare with fresh pork ribs, but for me the prime cut is more important, so a frozen prime ris with some fat better than fresh spare ribs for me…

bakuteh 

recently i ate twice at tuan yuan bakuteh. it was very good.

one bowl = S$9. whereas i had nearly 1kg for S$9. of course not as good, but almost leh…

black bean sauce song fish head 松鱼头  

my fish head was so very good! ^^

the black bean paste was excellent. my friend said better than the chinatown shops. i quite agree actually. it was as good as most song fish head places out there.

black bean sauce song fish head 松鱼头 

again it was quite easy to do.

i had two frozen 1/2 song fish head in the freezer. so i took out one & washed with salt thoroughly.

then i made the black bean sauce paste-

• 3 tbsp flat lee kum kee spicy black bean sauce
• 1 tbsp lemon juice
• 2 tbsp olive oil (or vegetable oil)
• 2 tbsp mirin (optional)
• 2 tbsp light soy sauce
• 1 tbsp flat sugar
• 1 tbsp flat corn flour

heat a bit once paste starts to coagulate off fire.

black bean sauce song fish head 松鱼头  

i added cut spring onions & chilli padi, and steamed for 13mins. added some longer cut spring onions when almost done.

garlic fried kang kong 

to balance the meat dishes, i fried a kang kong.

salted fish fried celery 

& i had some leftover celery, the more tender shoots inside.

i fried with salted fish, like my sis always do.

both vegetables were quite good la…celery was crunchy, tasty, nice salted fish flavours. kang kong was very good too.

a simple dinner for 3pax, no much preparation or effort required.

c.h.e.f andy

wed ladies night S$2 oysters

wife been buying dinners lately. i oso bought quite a few la…^^

there is this momor izakaya she & the children had been to which has this free lobster promotion. she was going away for 11days for a mission trip & wanted me to try before the promotion ended.

so we had a wonderful 5pax dinner at momor izakaya on 30.11.2016. ^^

mussels with garlic toast

a japanese izakaya with more modern european food. anyway japanese does all the french & italain food very well & french desserts too.

wed ladies night S$2 oysters

it was ladies night on wed. wife & 2 daughters had their free 1st drink cocktails. i tasted pretty good.

so we ordered the max 3 oysters ea for 3 ladies = total 9 oysters.

yuzu jelly to complement shucked oysters

oysters were good. & came with yuzu jelly, nice citrus condiment.

wed ladies night S$2 oysters with yuzu jelly

very enjoyable, wouldn’t mind more but this S$2 special limited.

excellent pork jowl 

pork jowl was among the best dishes for me this evening!

really so good, so tender & smooth & flavourful, will order 2 next time. 🙂

mussels pot with garlic toast

wife liked the mussel pot a lot.

mussels pot

& it was very good.

mussels were the small french ones & very tender & sweet, not the large local ones. i asked & server said about 500g for the serving. i think about S$34.

mussels pot with garlic toast

the gravy or almost like a very tasty veloute (soup) was excellent.

it didn’t wow me as much though as i thought it was very competent but not special, certainly i have had this before equally good in other places.

ika sugatayaki – grilled whole squid – really good!

the ika sugatayaki (definitely japanese) wowed me a lot though.

it was really very good. the excellent flavours with bbq, slight sweet & great texture.

wonder how i can do this.

i experimented on this dish a few years back, none too successful, and miles from this wonderful dish. lol!

grilled cauliflower

grilled cauliflower always very good in many places including indian restaurants. a great complement to the savoury dishes.

grilled grass fed ribeye

my youngest daughter was greatly enamoured by the australian grass fed ribeye.

for me it was quite mediocre la! so on this dish our opinions vary widely.

grilled grass fed ribeye

the cooking, grilling, beef sauce condiments, salad all great, but the quality of beef was mediocre, so it was tough, has residue (connective issues) & way below any good beef.

grilled grass fed ribeye

any of my tagliata would be far better than this…

of course i used mostly 150day grain fed balck angus ribeye, sometimes 400day grain fed wagyu 3/4 or 6/7.

but even my grass fed black angus ribeye is better. black angus quality of meat quite different la…

so for me, this dish ranked second from bottom after the cauliflower, not including dessert. of course i am talking here about ranking among all great dishes!

crabmeat linguine

crebmeat linguine for me a competent dish, no more…

i have had equally good if not better crab linguine or other good wine sauce or creamy pastas in other restaurants, even say a place like alfresco gusto.

crabmeat linguine

so this was ok but not overly impressive for me.

wife liked it a lot, so manybe i should try it again. a lot of crabmeat & good canned crabmeat very ex.

carbonara

the carbonara was very good. it’s not among our preferred pastas so we seldom order this.

so in a way this impressed though as a pasta dish it was not better than the crabmeat linguine which i still prefer.

complimentary grilled mentaiko lobster

& here it is the complimentary grilled mentaiko pasta.

it was very good! the grilling was very well done, lobster meat cooked just right, not overdone, bouncy, plump & tasty.

complimentary griled mentaiko lobster

reminded me of ash & elm’s lobster.

ash & elm’s of course better, fine dining standard la…

creme caramel with ice cream

wife & i not much into desserts, but this evening she fancied the creme caramel with ice cream. daughter said becos there was liquor in it. lol! ^^

for me the lobster, pork jowl & ika sugatayaki were the best dishes!

the oysters, mussels, crabmeat linguine were good too…

dinner still came to about S$350 i think for 5pax, including a sake wife ordered. the place not cheap la…but maybe ok if go for food only.

anyway, a very enjoyable family dinner. 🙂

c.h.e.f andy

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

sungei road laksa S$3 + S$1 extra cockles 

was on the way home along jln besar after a-

1. nice lunch treat at 祥源记xiang yuan ji; followed by
2. expensive flat white & hot chocolate coffee treat at CSHH Coffee Bar.

by my OPS primary school buddies.

sungei road laksa S$3 

passing jln berseh food centre, last minute, decided to turn in kelantan lane & passed by the sungei road laksa stall at jln berseh.

carpark was full at 3pm, but i managed to park along the roadside, also jln berseh.

laksa is now S$3. I asked for extra cockles, now S$1, so total is S$4.

sungei road laksa S$3

there was not much queue, so 2 pax ahead of me.

gourmet street 

the place is named gourmet street. quite bright & airy, and the ngoh hiang stall next to the laksa looked quite good. maybe try next time if coming here with friends.

sungei road laksa S$3 + S$1 extra cockles 

the laksa still good, still lemak & tasty. the extra cockles were quite a fair bit, & they were large & plump.

on my FB, i recorded-

On the way home I decided to stop by for sungei road laksa $3+$1 extra cockles

Ok but just don’t have the shiok factor like ah heng curry chicken noodles…not as shiok as the 生煎包lunch

so maybe i am less attracted to the dish nowadays la…

& c/w with the much more savoury taste & for me far more shiok ah heng curry chicken noodles, this sungei road laksa has less shine.

still one of the best laksa for me, but maybe i still prefer weiyi laksa which is slight less lemak & more savoury.

c.h.e.f andy

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

flat white & hot chocolates

after 祥源记xiang yuan ji, we decided to walk over to chye seng huat – CSHH Coffee Bar for a cuppa. ^^

another of my OPS primary school buddy boguth coffee.

i had a flat white. it was good as expected, very strong & good flavour coffee & velvety smooth.

& my 2 friends had the S$6.50 expensive hot chocolate.

CSHH Coffee Bar

this was the hardware stall turned coffee bar which my daughter introduced 2 years back.

CSHH Coffee Bar

CSHH Coffee Bar

CSHH Coffee Bar

this place quite busy.

the interior was a nice chill-out ambience. at 2.15pm there were quite many customers but not full & we sat at the back wall with a ledge & tall stools.

CSHH Coffee Bar prices

hot chocolate S$6.50

prices not cheap.

my small cup flat white i think was S$5.50, & the hot chocolate was really expensive at S$6.50. something anyone can make at home.

cakes & pastry

cakes & pastry

they sell decent looking pastries but we just had a good lunch & didn’t need the cakes.

nice place, ambience, crowd & nice coffee. if it is taking hot chocolate better have milo at coffeeshop la…lol! 🙂

c.h.e.f andy

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

生煎包 S$5

my OPS primary school buddy bought lunch at 祥源记xiang yuan ji 405 jln besar on 1.12.2016.^^

祥源记xiang yuan ji

祥源记xiang yuan ji 

we were there at 1pm.

we heard a chinese customer at the next table saying the food here more 道地authentic than in china!

haha oxymoron maybe! but guess that means it is really good la…

祥源记xiang yuan ji – menu 

the card menu. very few items, basically both sides of the card.

生煎包 S$5

the 生煎包 the best i have eaten (i haven’t eaten many though…lol!)

there’s a lot of soup inside, & very very tasty soup (better than many xiaolongbao), so eaten like xiaolongbao, just bite a hole & suck.

the pork filling very tasty & the dough not too thick & great texture & taste.

have to say it’s very very good 生煎包!

咸豆腐花savoury bean curd dish S$4.50

& the 咸豆腐花savoury bean curd dish, was impressive too.

the bean curd is smooth, but the savoury sauce is what made it tick…

拌三丝 3 veg salad S$4

the 拌三丝 which looked like carrots, cucumber & 百叶 fried gluten puff.

spring rolls S$4.50

the spring rolls was quite excellent.

unlike usual spring rolls which are quite packed, these ones quite empty in the crispy shell, yet very tasty.

breaded pork chop S$6.50

the breaded pork chop like any good hainanese pork chop, as good as loo’s curry.

breaded pork chop S$6.50

quite unusual really, anyway it was very good.

curry beef tanhoon S$6.50

the curry beef tanhoon a dish i can pass.

but really quite worthwhile trying for first time.

curry beef tanhoon S$6.50

not that it was not good.

in fact it was more than competent, quite a nice dish actually.

maybe the best way to characterise it is that it is a very good curry beef tanhoon dish, just not my kind of dish.

must say the beef (i think just 3 pieces) was excellent. very very tender..i think better than most taiwan braised beef noodles.

the soup is ok, not the style we are used too. would prefer the intense kambing soup.

祥源记xiang yuan ji bill

lunch was S$38 for 3pax.

we all enjoyed it thoroughly.

c.h.e.f andy

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

excellent granita

we had 3 citibank 100gourmet dinners this year, and they were all very good.

not to say one is better than the other, but they all offered new surprises & met expectations, which is not easy as each dinner experience is always compared with those previously & that can often disappoint.

100 gourmet menu @ pollen

wife booked 3pax dinner at pollen on sunday 27nov2016, the last 100gourmet for 2016. ^^

wine pairing (6 wines for 6 course!!)

& she took the wine pairing, w0w, 6 wines! 🙂

excellent granita

in terms of fineness & taste, this again easily met expectations, among the best even c/w the other 3 fabulous 100gourmet dinners we had-

1. Superb Sumptuous 100Gourmet Dinner @ Ash & Elm Intercontinental Hotel on 26Aug2016
2. Superb 100Gourmet 6-course Degustation Dinner @ Salted and Hung on 21Jul2016
3. Excellent Citibank 100Gourmet Degustation Dinner @ Lewin Terrace on 24Jun2016

the sorbet starter was quite exquisite!

multigrain & sourdough

freshly baked bread was excellent! low carbs me actually had a second serving.

sour dough was great. mulitgrain was even better!

sesame butter was superb

sesame butter was very good.

but i had a seaweed butter before, not sure if here, & that was really good!

#1 snacks – bouillon of duck (a consomme)

there were 3 snacks-bouillon of duck, toast of beef tartare & mushroom crackers.

the duck consomme was intense yet smooth & tasty. wife found it a bit robust to her liking. daughter & i liked it.

#1 snacks – toast of beef tartare + mushroom crackers

#1 snacks – mushroom crackers

mushroom crackers also tasted great, especially with the cepe mousse & feta.

#1 snacks – toast of beef tartare

toast of beef tartare good too, less wow..

#2 scottish langoustine with cod roe

langoustine was real wow!

#2 scottish langoustine with cod roe

like a botan ebi sashimi, the sweetness & bite were quite “superlative”!

& the sides, the mousse, all incredible combination look & taste.

#3 spiced pork with rose apple shavings

the pork with rose apple shavings & roasted fennel was good too.

#3 spiced pork with rose apple shavings

looked great, tasted good…just more ordinary, more average.

#4 tarte nicoise with basil sorbet

the tarte was quite extraordinary.

#4 tarte nicoise with basil sorbet

the very thin crust pastry, the basil, oil & different flavours.

#4 tarte nicoise with basil sorbet

this must be the best vegetarian dish for a meat eater like me.

#5 confit of hokkaido scallop

the confit of hokkaido scallop was of course great, with the foam & all.

#5 confit of hokkaido scallop

among the best we had in many restaurants.

the one at disgruntled chef was different, but just as wonderful, perhaps even better.

#6 roast pigeon with winter berries

the roast pigeon was superb, & the winter berries just wonderful.

reminded me of the equally superb quail at beulings, amsterdam.

and of course the sous vide pigeon at jaan!

#6 roast pigeon with winter berries

this pigeon dish was prettier! & i think better even…

& the sides were all fantastic (except the beetroot-i’ve tasted much better ones) & overall such a wow dining experience!

pear compote with ricotta sorbet

the dessert was refreshing, & tasty.

pear compote with ricotta sorbet

very smooth white chocolate + ricotta sorbet below & some granita on top.

petit four

the petit four valrhona chocolate was fantastic.

complimentary giftbox (a great gesture)

& pollen gave a complimentary giftbox for every dining guest, a really great gesture. these were good too, but the petit four chocolate was better!

the other attraction of dining at pollen by jason artheton is of course the complimentary entrance to the flower dome.

since the restaurant is located within the confines of flower dome, once you enter the restaurant, you can access the flower dome (bypassing the ticketed entrance), which is what we did. we went earlier at 6.10pm & walked around the flower dome before proceeding to our table at 7.10pm.

looking back at my blog post, the first & only time i came for a set lunch at pollen (though we had been to pollen in london for lunch several times)was >3yrs ago on 22.7.2013.

that was great too of course, but it was like most good set lunches, not the same fineness & wow as this dinner.

c.h.e.f andy

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

Pollen

Address:

Flower Dome, Gardens by the Bay
18 Marina Gardens Drive, #01-09
Singapore 018953

Contact:

+65 6604 9988
info@pollen.com.sg

RESERVATIONS 

Opening Hours:

Main Dining Room – Level 1

Lunch 12pm to 3pm (last order 2.30pm)
Dinner 6pm to 10pm (last order 9.30pm)
CLOSED ON TUESDAYS

Pollen Terrace – Level 2

9.30am to 9pm daily
Muffins and Coffee/Tea 9.30am to 11.30am
Terrace Menu 11.30am to 9pm
Afternoon Tea 3pm to 5pm CLOSED ON TUESDAYS

claypot tofu prawns – S$18

went with 2 close OPS friends to paradise inn at west coast plaza on 28.11.2016. ^^

50% off for 4 dishes at paradise inn, west mall plaza

saw the advert earlier & whatsapp the friends, so we all went at a moment’s notice.

order 4 dishes for 50% discounts, lunch or dinner, not bad leh! ^^

claypot tofu prawns + string beans

server said fish head (looks like 1/4 seabass from photo) sold out!

anyhow we ordered the required 4 dishes from the menu. we ordered all small.

claypot tofu prawns – S$18

the claypot tofu prawns was very good.

maybe cannot say better than sek bao sin, a bit different but this was really good.

tofu very crispy & 4 large prawns for “small” order – fresh, plump, bouncy& sweet. bagus la!

chicken soup – S$24.80

the chicken soup was very good.

maybe not better than tunglok’s various lie tongs, but equally good.

very very tasty. the pot has 1/2 chicken & served 6 full (small) bowls.

bitter gourd pork ribs – S$13.80

the bittergourd pork ribs again very good.

pork was tender, tasty, excellent, as good as kok sen’s.

OR that at sik bao sin.

string beans – S$13.80

string beans just as good too, competent as any good restaurant.

string beans – S$13.80

overall the food, every dish in fact, was very good, and with the 50% discounts, came to S$43 for 4 dishes.

really superb value for money deal, but most importantly, the dishes were very good. like the hong kong people say “先要好吃，然后抵得吃”.

very enjoyable lunch with good friends.

afterwards we had coffee at coffeeshop opposite, then went to ah seng & bought some D13 durians to eat there.

c.h.e.f andy

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salad

there are 2 november birthdays among our group of close RI friends.

Unagi donburi set meal for 2 people for $49.90

one of us bought a groupon deal & arranged a 8pax lunch at santaro by gion at amara hotel tangjong pagar on 18.11.2016. ^^

he also arranged the cake & gifts. 🙂

salad

we took the unagi don set – S$49.90 for 2pax.

we were lucky today we had a private room by ourselves.

first was a refreshing salad. 🙂 good.

potato salad

& a potato salad with tuna rillette. ok.

chawanmushi

also a chawanmushi.

chawanmushi

chawanmushi was competent. but it was plain not crabmeat or ikura so just dashi for flavours. texture was good, nothing special though.

adegashi tofu

adegashi tofu likewise. not too bad

adegashi tofu

crispy tofu soft inside, nice sauce, garnished with radish, scallions & nori (seaweed).

sashimi moriawase

sashimi moriawase was ok – tuna, salmon, hotate, atlantic surf clam. quite decent.

tempura

tempura was competent. crispy. my second best dish for this lunch.

tempura

prawns & veg. i would say about ichiban boshi standard, not as good as sun with moon.

sishamo

sishamo karaage.

sishamo

quite ok. fresh fish. good batter. sishamo just not my favourite.

tori tonkatsu

the best dish for me was the tori katsu.

tori tonkatsu

the plate was shared by 2pax.

chicken cutlet was tasty, crispy. chicken was tender.

unagi don

unagi don was so so.

unagi don

unagi was pretty ok. the don (rice) though was quite poor.

not sushi vinegared rice, plain rice & no tasty sauce.

yogurt

yogurt dessert not much to say i guess.

food spread & quantity was pretty good, many dishes.

food standard & taste quite mediocre. with the groupon promotion, pax lunch was just S$25nett. we paid S$3++ pax for the ocha but i guess you can don’t order tea.

birthday cake from flor patissierie

service was quite good. we had a room by ourselves, and the servers took photos for us & also brought the cake & serving plates etc.

we had a good time among close friends. for one, the birthday gift was 2 bottles of wine. for the other, we decided to get him some electronic stuff, so the organiser was going to the IT show the following week to get something.

as always, a great time with old buddies…this time with the added entertainment of musing over the biggest con in american history.

c.h.e.f andy

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bakuteh

my OPS primary school classmate bought 4pax lunch at tuan yuan bakuteh today on 23.11.2016. ^^

pu er tea 普洱茶 S$6

we had a pot of pu er tea 普洱茶. maybe 铁观音still the more common tea for bakuteh if i am dining with my sis. i am ok with pu er tea 普洱茶 myself, like in any chinese restaurant.

Tuan Yuan 团缘 bakuteh restaurant

Tuan Yuan 团缘 signifies reunion & fate, the philosophy of the owner mr gwee song how who owns ya hua bakuteh. this one is a new venture by his children. 🙂

service buzzer

they have the service buzzer.

& according to sethlui.com, they also have a mobile app “TuanYuan” on appstore & playstore, where you can order in advance. i am yet to try, certainly good service oriented philosophy & innovations.

bakuteh

what stood out was the soup.

really tasty, the natural meat sweetness!

this one not so peppery which i like also. apparently you can order 3 different pepper level for the soup on the mobile app!

the prime ribs were good too. texture & bite just right, not so soft like falling apart.

i still prefer the texture of the large prime rib at rong cheng though. i have not been there for a while so not sure how it is now.

kidney

the kidney soup was good.

tasty kidney just the right doneness & texture. 🙂

liver

liver soup was good too.

pig trotters

pig trotters was i guess competent. but not among the best i had. will try again next time when i go.

chye sim

the chye sim was a bit off.

a bit “siap”, not so crunchy. it was blanched, maybe slightly over.

side dishes

the sides were quite standard – taukee or knots, chye buay & peanuts.

i forgot to take photo but what deserved a special mention was the you tiao 油条.

i never take you tiao 油条 at bkt. they are invariably precut, left on bowls ready to serve & oily, dry & not crispy.

these ones here the boss mr gwee told us they made themselves, & truly it was not oily, very crispy & yet fluffy.

one of the best you tiao 油条, better even than many market specialised you tiao 油条stalls.

tang yuan 汤圆 － 三代同堂

the boss offered us complimentary tang yuan 汤圆 mochi dumpling dessert. it was supposed to signify 3 generations together 三代同堂, with the smaller & differently coloured mochi dumplings.

ok for me, nothing special. i don’t think it was better than the frozen mochi dumplings i had from giant.

another thing, the service at tuan yuan was really superb!

the son, his wife all came to chat with us.

the owner mr gwee himself came couple times, & to offer the free mochi dumplings.

& the servers kept offering to top up the soup & also top up the tea.

prices here not cheap. my OPS friend paid. i didn’t ask how much, but i estimate around S$65 for 4pax???

but if food & service are good, i will go back & i guess most folks do too.

c.h.e.f andy

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TUAN YUAN

lor arh – braised duck 

had a S$20 birthday voucher to use at guild house.

went with sis for the teochew muay buffet at cafe on the ridge at jent ridge guild house on 22.11.2016. ^^

kent ridge guild house

krgh ambience is pretty ok for a cafe.

teochew muay buffet – kent ridge guild house 

they made use of the covered outdoor area for the teochew muay buffet display.

lor arh – braised duck station 

first thing i go for was the lor arh – braised duck! 🙂

braised duck, kong bak, pig skin 

it was pretty good. good texture & flavour, not especially “pang” so not better than my own braised duck la…

kong bak, pig skin, taupok 

kong bak, pig skin & taupok all good. basically texture was great & the same braising sauce. 🙂

teochew muay buffet items 

there were quite a good spread of buffet items.

abve photo you have pig trotters, ngoh hiang, steamed pork, otah, chicken feet, taukee chap chai.

stemed minced pork & otah 

steamed minced prok & otah ok, average.

teochew muay buffet items 

chicken feet, taukee chap chai good. pig trotters quite good. ngoh hiang pretty ok.

teochew muay buffet items 

the prawns were good. normally i wouldn’t go much for prawns in buffet but these ones were tasty. 🙂

chicken & peppers passable but can skip.

fish can skip also.

egg quite good.

teochew muay buffet items 

sis like all the side dishes.

they were all good actually – peanuts, gluten, luncheon meat, fermented beancurd, salted egg, & the best of all the pickled lettuce.

bringing back our childhood days! ^^

chilled sotong, marinated raw cockles, pig trotters 

there was also chilled sotong, & marinated raw cockles.

chilled sotong 

chilled sotong was ok, quite good actually especially with the “kek you”桔油, some tangaine sauce.

marinated raw cockles 

the raw cockles were really nice. maybe i should have taken some more, but nowadays a bit wary.

pig trotters 

we had another serving of pig trotters.

popiah 

& tried/shared the popiah. it was ok but cannot c/w my friend’s wife’s popiah la…

nonya dessert 

i had just a little to try, 2 tbsp. quite ok.

fruits 

fruits were very sweet, both water melon & rock melon.

rock melon especially had that special fragrant flavour. very good!

talam cendol & kueh salat

i had 1/2 of each of the talam cendol & kueh salat also. pretty ok!

the buffet was S$14.90+pax, no service charge but got GST.

so about S$32 for 2pax. just S$12 after the S$20 voucher.

anyway the buffet is really pretty good for S$16nett pax.

there are so many very expensive & so so teochew muay places & the plate of duck etc alone would cost S$15. & here in nice cafe environment & can take more if desired.

c.h.e.f andy

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Cafe on the Ridge @ Kent Rudge Guild House

Address:

9 Kent Ridge Dr, Singapore 119241

Contact:

zi char dishes

my OPS primary school classmate bought 8pax dinner at banana leaf seafood this evening on 21.11.2016. ^^

the host came kind of late, so we were at liberty to order the food. 🙂

banana leaf seafood bbq stall @ kopitiam blk 450 clementi ave 3

banana leaf seafood bbq stall @ kopitiam blk 450 clementi ave 3

banana leaf seafood bbq stall is located at kopitiam blk 450 clementi ave 3.

according to one friend, the stall selling pig trotters also good.

no photography!!!

there was a sign – no photography!!!

though we were taking photos with impunity throughout dinner.

no outside food understandable…anyhow we also took some ming ang pastry after dinner…

satay

the satay was pretty good here also.

satay

satay was tasty. chicken satay was tender. beef/mutton satay ok, just slightly tough.

satay 

another friend paid separately for satay, she said about $15 for 20 satays & 2 ketupat. 🙂

otah

we ordered prawn & fish otah.

otah

otah was ok for me. some friends said not so good.

cannot really c/w the thick chunky otah at restaurants, & some cheaper burnt leaf otah also very good, but otherwise ok for me.

lala – little neck clams

lala to me was non-descript.

lala – little neck clams

sauce not anything, not spicy no specia flavours (like curry leaves)…clams not succulent.

my own manila clams with curry leaves

no comparison with my own manila clams leh…..

har jeon gai – prawn paste chicken

some friends liked the har jeon gai – prawn paste chicken here.

for me it was quite ordinary. not great.

fried kang kong

fried kang kong was ok.

thai kailan

thai kailan quite ok too.

chilli bbq sotong

the bbq sotong so so for me. maybe it was just chilli sotong & baked in the leaf.

no bbq flavours.

chilli bbq stingray

the bbq stingray was excellent!

chilli bbq stingray

very tasty, tender, juicy.

and chilli very good & great complements to the bbq fish.

dinner for 8pax, 7 dishes was S$112. pretty ok…

ming ann pastry from JB

ming ann pastry from JB

ming ann egg tart

a friend brought some ming ang pastry & egg tarts from JB…we had that after dinner…

i guess as long as you eat your fair share of food purchase at the kopitiam, they let you consume outside food.

wimi coconut ice cream dessert

after dinner a friend suggested we have the wimi ice cream dessert.

coconut ice cream dessert – S$5

the $5 serving came with a choice of 2 ice creams, plus 3 toppings, all served in a coconut & also a free coconut water drink.

i didn’t try it.

it looks pretty look for a $5 dessert, nice combo.

a pleasant evening with old friends of 51years…great bonding..

c.h.e.f andy

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#1 uni ikura on king crab + botan ebi with corn veloute 

wife bought 3pax dinner at hachi this evening on 20.11.2016. ^^

never fail to have the best kaiseki, best dinner experience here….we had so many best here. 🙂

kaiseki menu 

for us this place is better than or equal to most of the ryokan kaiseki we had in japan.

really excellent stuff & always thrill the palate, everytime la….

#1 uni ikura on king crab + botan ebi with corn veloute 

the sensai 前菜came with 2 delicacies.

#1 uni ikura on king crab 

a generous serving on uni & ikura atop a tarabagani (king crab) with apple vinegar jelly.

uni superb & ikura was like my daughter said – taste of the sea.

strangely though i though the king crab wasn’t that sweet, or not as sweet as i expected (like the lobster was). wife & daughter thought it was great, so maybe just me.

#1 botan ebi with corn veloute 

the botan ebi was wonderful, as expected.

the corn veloute felt more like a chawanmushi than a soup, very nice la!

#2 uni isobe age 

the uni isobe age was very good this evening.

excellent isobe age (a seaweed flavoured fritter) to complement the very sweet & fresh uni.

on a bed of edamame mousse.

#2 uni isobe age + kinoko mushroom consomme 

there was a kinoko mushroom consomme, but really that was non-descript.

not that it was not good or tasty. but it was ordinary by comparison.

jaan’s amuse bouche 2 – cepe mushroom tea 

how i miss jaan…& the “out-of-this-world” cepe mushroom tea!

#3 canadian oyster with ponzu jelly 

the large canadian oyster, quite a permanent fixture in both lunch & dinner kaiseki.

always good, plump & great combined with the ponzu jelly.

#3 canadian oyster with ponzu jelly 

daughter & i both commented that the oyster this evening not as sweet as what we had previously. still excellent la… 🙂

#4 sashimi moriawase 

we had a great chef’s selection of sashimi.

though i wouldn’t mind if we had some shell fish like akagai, hotate, or some uni or botan ebi…haha! can always be better….

#4 sashimi moriawase

every fish was very sweet – bonito, chutoro, kampachi, hirame, a grouper (tai??), & kinmedai.

all wonderful!

a hirame millefeuille dish (complimentary)

we were served a complimentary dish – don’t see it in the menu la..

the server saod layer hirame with nori (seaweed)..

a hirame millefeuille dish (complimentary)

don’t see the millefeuille layers here, just hirame stacked together – 4 slices..

this hirame (flounder) very sweet & no residue…usually hirame has residue..

there was some sauce…the entire dish very tasty..

#5 grilled lobster done to perfection 

the lightly grilled lobster was fantastic!

so sweet, so tasty, perfection la!

ash & elm’s superb grilled lobster with foam 

the lobster was as good as the superb grilled lobster at ash & elm’s 100gourmet dinner on 26.8.2016. ^^

#5 grilled lobster done to perfection

& the serving tray!

never seen one so beautiful! the maple were encased in glass, the lobster & the tiny fish fritters displayed on top! 🙂

some tiny fish fritters 

very nice tiny fish fritters to go with the lobster.

#6 truffle miso cod + A5 ohmi wagyu 

wife doesn’t take saba. the chef knows well so served her a truffle miso cod. quite excellent!

#6 pacific saury (saba) 

daughter & i had our saba.

it was very very good! just could not match the cod la…

#6 A5 ohmi wagyu 

& the A5 ohmi wagyu was just resplendent la! the bestest!

#6 pacific saury (saba)+ A5 ohmi wagyu

was having a conversation with the young chef, a friendly young man, came over from the hachi izakaya side we were yet to try.

he was talking about A6, A7, A8 wagyu that are only available in japan.

not sure he is right though. never heard of A6, A7, A8 wagyu. always thought A5 was the highest grade. couldn’t find anything on google. can be though that they are in japanese & google only turns out overseas info which only list A5 as highest grade.

#7 uni + hotate + chutoro sushi

wife got her hotate sushi.

chutoro + saba + uni sushi

daughter & i had saba sushi, along with uni & chutoro.

chutoro + saba + uni sushi 

they were all just so good la………

#8 lemon jelly with kuromame + black sesame ice cream

for dessert, we had the lemon jelly with kuromame. japanese sweetened black beans always so nice, & perfect with the jelly.

lemon jelly with kuromame + black sesame ice cream

the black sesame in a macha cone also very nice.

this a place we enjoy & will come back repeatedly.

though dinner kaiseki is expensive c/w with the excellent value lunch kaiseki, it was very good so well worth the price.

c.h.e.f andy

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