Love This Place – Assembly Coffee (on 28Dec2014)

Posted on December 28, 2014 by chefquak

cafe mocca

son is back for 2 weeks winter break, & i am having more coffee breaks than i had for the whole year. 🙂

this time we had sunday brunch – roti prata at S.M.Aisha & teochew cold crab at di wei teochew restaurant at food canopy at botanical gardens. :-).

afterwards, we walked over to assembly coffee for a cuppa on 28.12.2014.

10885098_10152924700939494_7713975687876048375_n

assembly coffee

flat white

lemon meringue

assembly coffee is a nice cool place to chill. we had 2 flat whites, a cappuccino & a cafe mocha, plus a lemon meringue.

the young lady barista created a beautiful, delightful swan latte art on the cafe mocca. it looked so easy…

the coffee & milk micro-foam were smooth & nice flavour.

daughter ordered a lemon meringue. it was very nice. lemon was tangy not too sweet & combined well with the biscuit crust & cream. i think i can make this one. so definitely try it at home. ^^

bill

cafe mocca

i will put this on par with chye seng huat at tyrewhitt road & dutch colony at pasarbella @ grandstand turf club road, with the advantage that it served a really good lemon meringue. i will also try the waffle & the salted caramel nut cake? next time. 🙂

c.h.e.f andy

Roti Prata @ S.M. Aisha at Food Canopy Botanical Gardens on 28Dec2014

Posted on December 28, 2014 by chefquak

roti prata gosong

family went food canopy @ botanical gardens on 28.12.2014. 🙂

roti prata gosong

muslim food stall @ food canopy BG

we had roti prata at the muslim food stall S.M. Aisha. each of us had 2 prata gosong. son added a egg prata as well.

total for 4pax for 8 gosong + 1 egg prata = S$7.80.

last 2 times prata here was very good.

this time was ok but not as good. for me, whether crispy or doughy, most important is the taste. today it’s so so. daughter said recently she went back to mr prata, & it was good. these food do vary a bit.

c.h.e.f andy

Great Cuppa @ Dutch Colony Pasarbella on 26Dec2014

Posted on December 27, 2014 by chefquak

flat white small – S$4.50

family decided to go out for a cuppa on 26.12.2014.

ducth colony @ pasarbella

grandstand at turf club road is nearby. we decided to go to the dutch colony @ pasarbella. it’s quite a hip joint, nice cosy place, great ambience. 🙂

banana cake with cream cheese

flat white large – S$5.50

i don’t go out for coffee often. the last time i had a nice cuppa with wife was at chye seng huat at tyrewhitt road on 17.9.2014.

i have a good coffee machine at home & recently i ordered 8x1kg caffe aurora from qbfood (it’s like 40% the price of lavazza coffee from culina! mostly when i had coffee outside it would be the “kopi-c go song tilok” aka kopitiam kind. ^^

we had flat whites & the children had some banana cake. like chye seng huat the coffee here was quite good. flavour was great, frothed milk was velvety smooth & combined well with the coffee. this reminded me also of the nice cuppa i had in london with my son-

at monmouth cafe in covent gardens on 22.8.2014, and

at melrose & morgan during our walk along regent’s canal to primrose hill on 24.8.2014.

the 2 in london were much better but that could also be the colder weather & we were doing a bit of walking & the mood was right & perfect for a cuppa.

by comparison i feel chye seng huat is better but really not by much. CSH place is cool but dutch colony is nearer if i really want to place with good coffee to chill.

c.h.e.f andy

Nice Dinner with Son @ Arossa on 23Dec2014

Posted on December 26, 2014 by chefquak

1/2 dozen oysters

arossa @ scotts square

had a nice, quiet dinner with son at arossa on 23.12.2014. 🙂

was last here with wife on 3.9.2014.

we were given a corner table by the window overlooking scotts road with all the christmas decorations.

son wanted some oysters as starter. we decided to order a wagyu steak each & a lobster ravioli to share.

nice oyster

the oysters were excellent, very sweet, plump & tasty.

lobster blackened spinach ravioli

the lobster blackened spinach ravioli were tops too. 🙂 the restaurant split for us so we had 3 ravioli each. the lobster broth or emulsion was superb.

A5 miyazaki wagyu 150g

the A5 miyazaki wagyu was also top fine dining standard. so what’s missing?

first, it was now 150g instead of 180g. i guess that’s ok. wagyu was good, very tender, good tasting, presentation was good also, definitely equalled or beat any fine dining restaurant serving good steaks.

but i could tell instantly that the presentation, sauce etc basically everything was different from the japanese presentation the last 2 times – see photos of the kagoshima wagyu on 3.9.2014 & the miyazaki wagyu on 16.8.2014.

& taste-wise somehow it did not have the standout marbled fragrance of a top japanese wagyu cut.

dinner for 2pax was S$143 after 50% palate discounts with amex.

sadly, arossa is closing by end jan2015 & we were told watanabe-san, the grill chef helming the restaurant is returning to japan to start her own restaurant. good for her & all the very best! 🙂

i will probably return before end jan2015 to have a last go.

c.h.e.f andy

冬至吃汤圆 (Eating Sesame Mochi Dumplings with Arrival of Winter) on Winter Solstice 22Dec14

Posted on December 26, 2014 by chefquak

冬至吃汤圆 (eating sesame kochi with arrival of winter)

冬至吃汤圆 (eating sesame mochi with arrival of winter)

some korean friends were sharing with me on email about eating 팥죽 (red bean soup) & 동지 (winter solstice) on 22.12.2014.

i later posted on Facebook-

yesterday was 冬至means arriving of winter.

did not pay attention when younger..always thought it was “tan joyk” 冬节 but a friend on wechat 微信 said they are the same thing – 1 is a day the other an event. maybe?

my china relatives eating 汤圆 & putting out a table, i guess to pray?

some korean friends too eating 팥죽red bean soup – din understand that part (later i googled & saw that that’s what they do..& sometimes they also added 汤圆 to the 팥죽).

black sesame mochi 汤圆 – 2packets x 10 for S$2.95 only at giant

冬至吃汤圆 (eating sesame mochi with arrival of winter)

bought some from giant – 2 packets x10 for S$2.95.

i still like it now. ^^ 🙂

c.h.e.f andy

P.S. ok from wiki = http://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/冬至

冬至，又稱「冬節」、「賀冬」，台灣又稱「入冬」….因为冬至并没有固定于特定一日，因此和清明一样，被称为“活节”。…never knew that was the meaning of <warh joyk>“活节”

one friend said-

It is “活节” based on Lunar calendar. It is always fixed on 22 Dec based on solar calendar.

another friend found this-

http://www.yourchineseastrology.com/holidays/winter-solstice-festival/

the debate or musings continue…^^

So-So 4pax Dinner this time @ Kok Sen Keong Saik Street on 21Dec2014

Posted on December 25, 2014 by chefquak

claypot yongtaufoo

the family went to watch dimsum dolly at esplanade. after the show 4 of us decided to go kok sen for zi char food. we were early before 6pm on a sunday 21.12.2014, & was lucky to get a parking lot right next at kok sen right away. 🙂

claypot yongtaufoo

we ordered the usual. claypot yongtaufoo was very good.

deep-fried tofu drizzled with minced pork

the deepfied tofu dish though was much below par. tofu was ok, sauce very average. quite strange…just looked at the photo of dinner here on 7.8.2013. the dish did not even look the same.

blackbean snkaehead (tomen) fish belly with bittergourd

blackbean snakehead (toman) fish belly with bittergourd

the blackbean fish belly bitter gourd was a good as always.

sanlo horfun (生捞河粉)

but the sanlo horfun (生捞河粉) was also below par, not much of wok hae. there were a lot of snake head (toman) sliced fish though.

we had our favourite romaine lettuce (油麦菜) as well.

the 4 dishes with some lemon juice drinks cost $56. but mainly the food was a bit tak shiok! not so fun…maybe should try dongya (东亚) next time.

c.h.e.f andy

Average Too Ordinary Dimsum @ Timhowan 添好运 at Westgate Mall on 19Dec2014

Posted on December 23, 2014 by chefquak

crispy char siew pao

a friend cooked an excellent lunch today for 6pax on 19.12.2014. 🙂

after that 4 of us went to JEM (jurong east mall) to watch “exodus”. carpark was full so we parked at westgate mall which was linked to JEM at level 2.

after the movie we walked back to westgate mall & had a light dinner at timhowan 添好运 (still full from the excellent lunch).

we dutifully ordered the crispy char siew pao.

i must have had one too many of this. had much better crispy char siew pao at canton paradise several times. didn’t like it as much it now.

teochew dumplings, hargao & 马拉糕

har gao was good but for me canton paradise’s har gao & imperial treasure teochew’s har gao were better.

马拉糕 was never my thing, even at hong kong timhowan outlet – an enigma to me. tasted like “wa kor kuay”.

teochew dumpling 潮州粉粿 was competent.

fu pei quin 腐皮卷

fried carrot cake

fu pei quin 腐皮卷 & fried carrot cake were ok.

anyhow overall the food was really mediocre, which to me meant a disappointment.

dinner was just S$39 but we had very little food for 4pax.

for me, there is no reason to have these average food when i can get better food at canton paradise, imperial treasure & crystal jade for largely the same price.

c.h.e.f andy

Instant Chashu Mala Ramen (麻辣快熟面)

Posted on December 23, 2014 by chefquak

instant chashu mala ramen (麻辣快熟面)

had some 蒜泥白肉 belly pork ingredients leftover from my 14pax RI friends & spouses dinner on 18.12.2014.

added them to instant sichuan mala noodles (麻辣香锅快熟面) the next day on 19.12.2014, just putting 2 & 2 together.

instant chashu mala ramen (麻辣快熟面)

it said only mildly spicy on the packet. indeed this was just the ideal level of spiciness & still quite explosive flavours. & the chashu (slow braised belly pork using cold crockpot on low) made a perfect combination.

i am rediscovering instant noodles – this one just S$3.50 for 5 packets. the other very good ones i had were –

nissin kyushu black japanese ramen,

mykuali penang white curry noodles.

all 3 cost about S$0.70 per noodle packet, between S$3.50 and S$3.80 for 5 packets.

i liked all of them. currently i like this 麻辣香锅面 best! ^^

c.h.e.f andy

6hr “Sous Vide” Miso Lamb Shoulder

Posted on December 21, 2014 by chefquak

miso lamb shoulder

this (above photo) was my very first attempt on miso lamb, which I did for a 11-course dinner for 11pax on 5.5.2014.

i do a good pistachio crusted rack of lamb but no other variations. decided to do a 3-day miso marinade on a cheap frozen lamb cut & coincide the 6hr sous vide bath in 90degC oven with the char siew (to save electricity).

90degC (oven temperature) is also the optimum temperature (fastest) for conversion of collagen the tough connective tissues to gelatine with excellent texture & flavours.

160°F/70°C — Connective tissue collagen begins to dissolve to gelatin. Melting of collagen starts to accelerate at 160F and continues rapidly up to 180F.

miso lamb shoulder

i did again for a 12-course 9-pax homecooked chinese dinner for friends on 15.7.2014.

that was the best i did then, better than the last 2 times & w/o the gamey taste. the 3-day miso marinade & 6hrs “sous vide” in 90degC oven did the trick. many liked this.

miso lamb shoulder

most recent was a homecooked dinner for 14pax friends + spouses on 18.12.2014.

the miso lamb shoulder chop was ok, very tender, with strong lamb flavours nicely masked by miso.

lamb though is in general not much a favourite dish among my family & friends, and a tenderised lamb shoulder, even miso-falvoured, cannot really match a good rack of lamb.

after having the most wonderful rack of lamb i had so far at american club amarone wine dinner on 29.11.2014, i was thinking of trying out a herb crusted rack of lamb as a variation of my pistachio rack of lamb.

c.h.e.f andy

Ingredients:

packet of lamb shoulders from Giant S$4.95 (300g)
1 tbsp sugar
1 tbsp miso paste
3tbsp cup mirin
3tbsp cup cooking sake

Directions:

mixed saké, mirin, sugar & miso paste in a large bowl and whisk.
scald lamb shoulders with boiling water to remove scum. place lamb shoulders in a ziplock bag & pour in the cooled marinate and leave in fridge for 3 full days. turning over once in the morning & once in the evening to ensure all sides are fully coated.
take out lamb shoulders & place it in an oven dish with lid with the miso marinade just covering the lamb for 1/2 hr to get it to room temperature. place it in the preheated oven at 90degC for 6hrs. 90degC is the optimum temperature (fastest) for conversion of collagen the tough connective tissues to gelatine with excellent texture & flavours.
cut the lamb shoulders to bite size & serve.

Good Crab Dinner @ Momma Kong’s on 20Dec2014

Posted on December 20, 2014 by chefquak

crab beehoon soup

daughter & friend bought 6pax family dinner @ mama kong’s at mosque street on 20.12.2014 🙂

we were worried about traffic & parked 2 streets away at temple street, but actually there were quite a few lots at mosque street at 6pm on a saturday.

we seldom eat crabs. mainly because everyone is lazy to do the shells, and crabs are kind of rather ex in singapore. the last time my wife & i had crab at ming kee, very enjoyable of course – the 1.4kg sri lankan crab alone cost S$75.60++. not quite my thing but once in a long while i can be a bit crabby.

momma kong’s

the small restaurant was packed full. we had a table which was comfortable for 4pax but kind of cramped for 6pax.

stir-fried chilli squid

i guess everyone came here to eat crabs, so stir-fried chilli squid was the only non crab dish we ordered.

crab beehoon soup

chilli crab

butter crab

we ordered crab beehoon soup, butter crab & chilli crab = any set of 3-crab for S$118 on the menu, a small discount from ordering 3 separate crabs at S$42each.

later we added another crab beehoon soup. no prizes for guessing which crab we liked best. 🙂

all the crabs were good. they were smaller crabs, from vietnam or indonesia maybe, about 800g? not sri lankan crabs. all 4 crabs we ordered, the meat were firm & completely filled the shell and very sweet, so for me it was very good & not overly ex.

the chilli crab sauce was competent but i guess boring. the butter crab sauce tasted like the very nice salted egg pumpkin crab sauce at ah yat which i like a lot. it’s a toss up with the crab beehoon soup. usually the impression is that the crab flavours go into the soup (which it did) so the crab is less tasty. in this case though the crab was still tasty & i guess the beehoon soup trumped the butter crab sauce. ^^

we had buns of course, both deep-fried & steamed to wipe up the chilli sauce & butter sauce. 🙂

overall, it was an excellent dinner. excluding wine & beer etc (seems that corkage is only from second bottle onwards, so first bottle free). table was really cramped & i broke a wine glass when reaching out for food. crab! very sian! a server later broke another glass. maybe my table is jinxed.

i may actually come back again though i am not so very crabby person.

c.h.e.f andy

Delicious Dinner @ Tunglok Signature Orchard Parade on 16Dec2014

Posted on December 17, 2014 by chefquak

bamboo clam S$12.80pax

had a wonderful dinner with wife at tunglok signature, orchard parade last evening on 16.12.2014. 🙂

we had the amex palate privileges (50% discounts for 2pax). tunglok group though have this strange rule that it applies only to ala carte orders during weekdays & only to set orders during weekends.

so we did ala carte orders. 🙂

the bamboo clams with tanhoon was excellent!

lie tong 1/2 pot – S$16

& the lie tong 例汤 (soup of the day) was good, as always. this time it was pumpkin with pork rib, a really sweet, delicious soup. i am sure going to try this at home. 🙂

garoupa 2 ways – S$22pax

the garoupa in 2 preparations was good too. the steamed with peppery sauce preparation was very tasty, the deep-fried fish fillet was ok but ordinary.

lobster noodles – S$25pax

& the lobster noodles was always our favourite served in the excellent lobster 6-course set.

this was also the preparation that i replicated at home in my king prawn noodles (黄焖大虾面).

tube juice – palate cleanser

they always serve a tube juice – pineapple, watermelon etc. nice! 🙂

10857769_10152896297684494_3595959187571037298_n

雪中情怀mango pomelo dessert with 2 scoops ice cream

10340151_10152896297714494_1751929476232650517_n

雪中情怀mango pomelo dessert with 2 scoops ice cream

we had 1 order of 雪中情怀, a mango pomelo dessert with 2 scoops coconut ice cream, again our favourite here.

the dinner came to S$84.50nett, about S$72++ for 2pax.

well, we keep coming back! 🙂

c.h.e.f andy

Most Enjoyable Autumn Course Dinner @ Mikuni on 11Dec2014

Posted on December 17, 2014 by chefquak

#1 japanese taro, hokkaido uni in sesame tofu topped with ikura

had another splendid dinner at mikuni with wife on 11.12.2014. 🙂

we had the excellent autumn course menu, like a mini kaiseki.

i have never taken a course menu or kaiseki since the name changed from inagiku to mikuni some years back. instead we had been exploring the ala carte menu, creating our own Andy’s kaiseki (just in jest). and lately i am quite sold on mikuni’s chirashi don (i would say almost choutokusen 超特選 chirashi don). 🙂

cracker appetizer

mikuni autumn mini kaiseki

we were very pleased though with this autumn course menu. 🙂

#1 japanese taro, hokkaido uni in sesame tofu topped with ikura

#1 there was uni inside – hokkaido uni in sesame tofu topped with ikura

#7 complimentary drawer tray dessert

#1 japanese taro, hokkaido uni in sesame tofu topped with ikura

#1 japanese taro, hokkaido uni in sesame tofu topped with ikura – taro was just so so. the uni, ikura tofu was of course very nice. did not taste much of the sesame though.

#2 sashimi – hamachi, maguro & white prawns topped with caviar

#2 sashimi – hamachi, maguro & white prawns topped with caviar – sashimi was good cuts but otherwise ordinary except white prawn but that was kind of smallish.

#3 shell grilled scallops, & kagoshima beef robatayaki

#3 kagoshima beef robatayaki

#3 shell grilled scallops

#3 shell grilled scallops, & kagoshima beef robatayaki – kagoshima beef was heavenly. scallops was very nicely done too. quite excellent! 🙂

#4 chestnut tempura & sillago fish tempura

#4 chestnut tempura

#4 chestnut tempura & sillago fish tempura – the sill ago (whiting) fish tempura was par excellence. chestnut was ok, quite nice really if non descript.

#5 osaka styled barachirashi don – uni, maguro, tai, kampachi, kajiki, ikura, lily bulb

#5 miso soup with gohan

#5 the osaka styled barachirashi don – uni, maguro, tai, kampachi, kajiki, ikura, lily bulb was superb. came with pickles & miso soup

#6 chestnut ice cream & japanese honey dew

#6 chestnut ice cream & japanese honey dew was ok. i prefer yuzu ice cream & black sesami ice cream, and of course japanese rock melon to honey dew.

#7 complimentary drawer tray dessert

mikuni offered very good complimentary drawer tray dessert. 🙂

the 6-course dinner cost S$158pax. after 50% feed at raffles discounts, it was S$79pax exceeding sake/drinks. a quality & very good value dinner. 🙂

c.h.e.f andy

Great Mazechirashi Don @ Aoki Restaurant on 10Dec2014

Posted on December 11, 2014 by chefquak

S$40 mazechirashi don set

a friend bought me chirashi don lunch@ aoki today on 10.12.2014. 🙂

this like the gold standard of chirashi don, according to many reviewers. ^^

well was it for me? must say it was very good.

otoshi

we were served an otoshi. very nice. not sure what it was. some shellfish maybe. mirugai (geoduck)?? texture yes but didn’t look quite like.

salad

nice salad with ponzu sauce.

10346535_10152882837094494_3550865762275599733_n

S$40 mazechirashi don set

& the main event mazechirashi don.

there was uni (not much), chutoro (seemed quite a bit), & the usual hamachi, salmon, maguro, tamago, bits of anago (conger eel), and ikura, also some pickled ginger.

the sashimi amount was substantial & very tasty eaten with the rice.

basically it was a barachirashi don. it would beat tatsu’s very expensive & ordinary S$40 chrashi don hands down.

ginza kuroson S$20 chirashi don lunch set didn’t have uni or chutoro, so not really up for comparison but that was just S$20!

if i am just looking for a very tasty barachirashi don set, then the one at sun with moon was pretty good. it came with an excellent salmon fish head miso soup too. again w/o expensive uni & chutoro.

and recently i had very good chirashi don lunch set at sumiya for just S$18.80. it had thick cube cuts so it was more of a chirashi don than a barachirashi.

so i guess indeed aoki would ace them all. all except mikuni for me.

mikuni’s chirashi don had 2 thick slices of chutoro, hotate, uni, botan ebi, aburi salmon etc at S$45 (after 50% feed at raffles discounts). for me even aoki’s very nice barachirashi don was no comparison.

& it is available for dinner also. but of course feed at raffles 50% discounts only for up to 5pax on sundays & mondays & for only 2pax other days. no perfect deal.

pickles with gohan

nice pickles (not salty) & ginger.

trio of dessert

jelly

trio of dessert

quite nice dessert, a plum jelly, nice penna cotta & ice cream. 🙂

for S$40, i can definitely do this again!

c.h.e.f andy

Pleasant Lunch @ Ma Maison on 9Dec2014

Posted on December 9, 2014 by chefquak

S$12.90 tonkatsu set

friend bought a simple, pleasant lunch at ma maison @ central today on 9.12.2014. 🙂

he was taking good care & review of my tooth implant. after that we went for lunch at central below his clinic.

he ordered a tonkatsu set & i ordered a beef don set.

ma maison @ central

place was really rustic & pleasant. 🙂

salad

the set came with simple garden salad. olives were nice.

soup of the day

my friends laughed when he asked me to try the soup (came with his tonkatsu set. my beef don came with miso soup) and i said tasted exactly as i expected. 🙂

what to expect of soup of the day for a S$12.90 set include coffee?

S$12.90 tonkatsu set

i tried a piece of his tonakatsu. it was good. the pasta was ok also. 🙂

S$15.90 beef don set

my beef don was ok too. beef was flavourful & sauce was nice taken with a bit of rice. 🙂

it was a very passable lunch. there was also coffee with the set. ambience was great & food better than average. i would pick this over waraku (restaurant next to it).

c.h.e.f andy

Lobster Linguine in Spicy Pink Sauce & Lobster Bisque on 7Dec2014

Posted on December 7, 2014 by chefquak

lobster in spicy pink (creamy tomatoes) sauce

lobster linguine in spicy pink (creamy tomatoes) sauce

cooked lobster in spicy pink (creamy tomatoes0 sauce & lobster bisque for 4pax family lunch today 7.12.2014. 🙂 children are eating dinner out.

cooked lobster S$26.90 1 for 1 (i.e. 2x375g) from cold storage.

lobster pan-fried with butter & brandy

bought cheap cooked lobster S$26.90 1 for 1 (i.e. 2x375g) from cold storage. ^^

cut lobster in 1/2 and shelled the meat including pincers & legs. put those with prawn heads & shells to boil as stock base for lobster bisque.

put butter in pan on high heat, placed 1/2 lobster heads with tomaly side on pan, added brandy & flame & let it flamed off. then added in cooked lobster meat for quick stir fry. set aside.

pink (creamy tomatoes) sauce for lobster pasta

added 1 can whole tomatoes and 1 diced fresh tomatoes to 3 tbsp olive oil, some water (from boiling linguine) & some lobster bisque. added the can tomatoes & fresh tomatoes. added paprika & heavy cream to the tomato based sauce to create the spicy pink sauce, & added sea salt to taste. set aside.

lobster linguine in spicy pink (creamy tomatoes) sauce

cooked linguine to just before al dente, and drained.

when serving, reheat the pink sauce. added the lobster head & meat, off the fire & add the linguine & toss.

voila!

lobster bisque – lobster & prawn shell stock,carrots, potatoes, onions, brandy, heavy cream

1531886_10152875682989494_3846351472220237196_n

lobster bisque – lobster & prawn shell stock,carrots, potatoes, onions, brandy, heavy cream

10445464_10152875682954494_1192868515003862873_n

lobster bisque – lobster & prawn shell stock,carrots, potatoes, onions, brandy, heavy cream

for the lobster bisque, boiled prawn heads & shells & lobster shells for 1 hr or longer.

cooked diced onions, carrots, potatoes (i did not have leek & celery) in pan with olive oil & butter in a large sauce pan till soft. added 1 tsp turmeric for colour. drained the lobster stock into the sauce pan with a strainer, then used hand blender to blend to smooth. added heavy cream & 2 tbsp brandy & sea salt to taste.

i also prepared some caramelised shimeji mushrooms to garnish the lobster bisque.

a very tasty bisque & pasta lunch.

c.h.e.f andy

OK Food @ Relish Gardens on 1Dec2014

Posted on December 4, 2014 by chefquak

rocket beef burger

burgers not really my kind of food. i take mcdonalds very occasionally & once when i was travelling with son at lake tahoe. i guess i am quite ok with them at US$1 a piece for breakfast (lake tahoe in 2007) or if it is S$2. i have tried gourmet burgers sometimes. guess they are ok but not what i do when there is a choice.

we had this S$25 for S$50 groupon voucher at relish gardens expired 30.11.2014. i called some days before they agree to honour the voucher for dinner on 1.12.2014 as the other days were fully booked. quite sensible for the restaurant. if you want to promote the restaurant why be rigid & negative & upset the customers. unfortunately most restaurants do not think that way, so 1 point to relish. 🙂

anyway post promotion on 1.12.2014, restaurant was empty only 2 tables occupied at 8pm.

rocket beef burger

we ordered the rocket beef burger & char siew burger.

beef burger was ok, but honestly both my wife & i thought we each made a tastier burger than this. wife made a nice one recently, & i tried one maybe 1 year ago (the very first time) & both my daughter & her friend liked it. i think it was tastier than this.

wife thought the one at toast much better than this. probably. anyway i not so hot on toast kind of food either. if anything i would go for the S$11 D-I-Y steak sandwich at nassim hill bakery (after 1 for 1 promotion when they have it).

char siew burger

char siew burger? no char siew here…a sweeter tasting kong bak??? wife said like eating kong bak pau.

the braised belly pork was good, but again honestly kong bak pau tasted a lot better, both the braise (not so sweet) & the combination more to my taste.

fries ok la….

mesclunsalad

they forgot we ordered 1 fry & 1 salad, so they gave us a free mesclun salad. another point to relish(unfortunately no points for food).

nothing to comment this salad. they should do some japanese ponzu sauce.

relish gardens @ myvillage serangoon gardens

lychee mojito

wife wanted mojito. it was not included in the voucher, so we ordered separately.

the bill

deconstructed strawberry cheese cake

& wife remembered the deconstructed strawberry cheese cake we had in wild rockets of old, must be like 15years ago?

well this was very good. the biscuit felt like there was caramel in it. there was the cream cheese with hint of strawberries & the cream & strawberries. excellent. think i am going to try this at home.

c.h.e.f andy

Most Wonderfully Sumptuous Amarone Wine Dinner @ American Club on 29Nov2014

Posted on December 4, 2014 by chefquak

hors d’oeuvre (outside the main)

wife had an invitation for 2 to a zyme amarone wine dinner at amercian club on 29.11.2014, so i tagged along. 🙂

not that i even heard of amarone before (apparently it is quite well known), anyway it turned out to be quite an incredibly sumptuous wine dinner – the best i had! ^^

wine was so good (even for me) & food was just simply superb! 🙂

there was cocktail & hors d’oeuvre of prawn roll on sugar cane, oyster fritters, dumplings.

this was an american club wine dinner event, & the company which invited my wife piggyback on the event & reserve a private table of 10 – excellent decision!

==================
Saturday, November 29
The 2nd Floor
Cocktail Reception at 7:00 p.m.
Dinner at 7:30 p.m.
Member: $128
Guest: $148
5-Course Menu by Chefs Gary & Kelvin
Wine and food pairing by Matthew, Wine Director
Maximum of 50 attendees
— at The American Club, Singapore.

bread basket

there was a good bread basket of roll, baguette etc.

grilled scallop – amuse bouche

& a grilled scallop as amuse bouche to start the dinner. it was very well done, felt like sous vide consistency. 🙂

incredible zyme amarone wine dinner – the best i had

uni on tuna tartar, guacamole with pine nuts

#1 uni on tuna tartare, guacamole with pine nuts

for the 1st course, we had uni on tuna tartar, guacamole with pine nuts. uni was great, tuna tartare a bit lacking in taste, guacamole was good.

first red was a ripasso 2009, apparently not meeting the 5 year requirement to be an amarone? anyhow, i like this wine.

#2 – 2 ricotta & grana padona cheese ravioli with truffle & wolfberries, excellent sauce

2nd course was ricotta & grana padona cheese ravioli with a huge dollop of truffle & wolfberries. ravioli was good. truffle was very good. the shellfish sauce reduction was exquisite. 🙂

2nd red was a kairos 2008. it was a bit more full bodied & tannic. it’s a better wine but i liked the first one better.

$3 suckling pig – crackling skin on foie gras mousse, pork & mushroom tempura in deep-fried squidink pasta

#3 suckling pig – pork & mushroom tempura in deep-fried squidink pasta

suckling pig - crackling skin on foie gras moussesuckling pig - crackling skin on foie gras mousse, pork & mushroom tempura in deep-fried squidink pasta

#3 suckling pig – crackling skin on foie gras moussesuckling pig – crackling skin on foie gras mousse, pork & mushroom tempura in deep-fried squidink pasta

3rd course was suckling pig – crackling skin on a foie gras mousse, pork & mushroom tempura in deep-fried squid ink pasta nest. crackling skin was wonderful & the meat portions very tasty. most of us though would still prefer the chinese style suckling pig. 🙂

3rd red was a classico. it was a bit sweeter than the second. i liked this better.

#4 really superb lamb – no gamey taste, very tender & flavourful

& the lychee wood smoked lamb rack with herbal crust was really superb, the best i had – no gamey taste, very tender & flavourful…i am inspired to do my own again, but maybe not the pistachio crusted rack of lamb recipe, but a herb crusted one (thinking how to do the marinade).

this last wine harlequin was the best, even for me who don’t know wine. really wonderful taste.

the great wines – 3 amarone

i couldn’t really finish my wine, though they were very good indeed. i did finish off the harlequin, apparently S$300+ bottle. 🙂

#5 4 italian cheese platter

we had the 4 cheese platter, a bit unusual not to have dessert. usually in restaurant set meals, cheese is served before dessert as an option order. i liked especially the blue.

throughout dinner, we were treated to some expert discussion of amarone (in addition to the brief by zyme wine distributor rep) & especially whisky by a connoisseur diner on our table.

for this top quality food & wine, i would certainly be happy even if i were a paying guest.

c.h.e.f andy

Guided Food Tour of Old Airport Road Hawker Centre on 2Dec2014

Posted on December 2, 2014 by chefquak

hougang jing jia mutton soup – S$6

met an old schoolmate for early lunch at old airport road hawker centre 11.30am today 2.12.2014. 🙂

it’s strange. old airport road is such a famous eating place, but i can only remember once i came here with another friend probably 5 years back & he introduced me to a beef noodle stall. it tasted nothing like the hong kong 牛腩面 stalls. i must have been here some other time but there was nothing in my recollections.

this friend comes here like once a month so he gamely walked me round the hawker centre, pointed to the famous hokkien mee stall (no queue yet), past the lor mee stall (already like 15 people in the queue), the fish head beehoon stall (about 6 in the queue).

we ended up at the hougang jing jia mutton soup stall. i went to get 2 bowls 牛杂 mixed rib, tripe, tendon (S$6 each) & he queue for a char kuay teow (S$4 加料 with added ingredients of prawns & squid).

hougang jing jia mutton soup – S$6

hougang mutton soup – S$6

hougang jing jia mutton soup – S$6

it might be that my expectation was a bit high. i was expecting like chai chuan you 柴船头 @ bukit merah view standard. or at least the standard of yu ji@whampoa market or the other stall #01-75 at whampoa market.

but this hougang jing jia mutton soup was quite a let down actually. something was not quite right about the taste. soup was not as flavourful. i felt the meat was overcooked & too soft not the texture i like for mutton ribs and not as tasty, and chilli was simply too dilute.

for me, this was not comparable at all with the other 3 stalls. my favourite is chai chuan you 柴船头 @ bukit merah view but i like the 2 whampoa stalls too.

dongji char kuay teow – S$4

the dongji char kuay teow was good. very good wok hae. and S$1 加料 for all that added ingredients of prawns & squid was just incredible. this must be the most value-for-money S$4 char kuay teow.

still, my friend prefers this dry char kuay teow, but i prefer the wet one at hai kee teochew char kuay teow at telok blangah with lots & lots of cockles added – 加料.

dongji cha kuay teow

cho kee noodles wanton mee

we ought to be full by then. but my friend wanted to show me the 2 good wanton mee stalls which were just few stalls away from each other. 1 was closed, so we shared 1 bowl from cho kee. 4 wantons were good, soft, skin held together & tasty. char siew was good, and most importantly noodles was qq & taste was good.

for me i felt the chilli was not spicy enough. this was about same maybe slightly less tasty than the wanton mee at KPT coffeeshop 401 hougang ave 10, S530401, and for me the best wanton mee was still kok kee previously at lavendar food square (not sure where it moved too), & the one at temberling road & red ring wanton mee were pretty good too.

c.h.e.f andy

Cheap & Really Good for Economic Rice @ Joyful Palace Clementi Ave3 on 2Dec2014

Posted on December 2, 2014 by chefquak

economic rice @ joyful place clementi av3

economic rice @ joyful palace clementi ave3

went for early lunch with a friend (friend’s guided food tour of old airport road hawker centre)

later we drove back to my place for coffee.

i totally forgot my coffee meeting with another friend at commonwealth mrt koufu at 3.30pm on 2.12.2014. after i sent my friend out to bus stop & got back, only when i checked my phone which was charging that i realised i was very late. anyway i managed to get to koufu 45mins late & we had a good chat.

my wife was not back for dinner & this friend was free so we went together to try out joyful palace, a coffeeshop at clementi ave 3 (clementi central locality). i had seen the economic rice when passing & wanted to try this.

economic rice @ joyful palace clementi ave3

i had the steamed fish. it was probably the cheap vietnamese pangasius, a cheap catfish, the common supermarket sutchi fillet. i also had the belly pork & spinach.

the fish was very good. of course it was not fine dining restaurant standard, but it was equal or better even than what you get at zi char places. the belly pork preparation was not my preferred braise, a bit sweet sauce, but it was really good standard. very nicely done. spinach was quite fine.

& it was just S$4.50! and for that price & the quantity i had, this was excellent actually. 🙂

c.h.e.f andy

6pax Family Dinner @ Canton Paradise on 28Nov2014 (Update)

Posted on December 1, 2014 by chefquak

crispy deepfried tofu

6pax family dinner at canton paradise @ j-cube on 28.11.2014. 🙂

this a quick update, as we were just here 2 days ago.^^

not that we had a choice. did not read the small prints, & bought 2 groupons which (1) could not be redeemed at canton paradise star vista but at other outlets, nearest being j-cube, & (2) could only redeem 1 voucher per visit. & today the last day for redemption, so we had to come back again before voucher expired.

this time it was 7.30pm on a friday night & parking was near impossible. we came in 2 cars. 4 of us got into the carpark at 7.10pm. the second car was in the queue but decided to try for another carpark, unsuccessfully & returned to queue again after 20 cars lining the way down the car park ramp & outside. so never get out of the queue! they came to the restaurant like 40mins later.

we tried a few new dishes.

the crispy deep-fried tofu (S$5.80) was very good, crisp outside, smooth consistent inside.

crispy cod fritters

my daughters liked the crispy cod fritters (S$9.80). my wife & I taught sauce was a bit sweet.

crispy char siew pao

i am a bit tired of this crispy char siew pao, others still liked it.

prawn fun cheong

prawn fun cheong was ok.

xiaolongbao (小笼包)

so was xiaolongbao (小笼包), though all of us preferred crystal jade lamian xiaolongbao.

spicy dumplings (抄手)

liked the spicy dumplings (抄手). 🙂

har gao (虾饺)

har gao (虾饺) was the best, 2 large prawns, excellent skin & flavours, the best! 🙂

salted egg custard buns (流沙包)

i am getting tired of salted egg custard buns (流沙包) also.

mixd innards congee (状元及第粥)

this time the mixd innards congee (状元及第粥) below par. they ran out of congee at 8pm after we placed our orders & this was apparently the last bowl. ingredients a bit overcooked.

roast pork

roast pork was good.

roast duck

roast duck, as always, perfect! 🙂

char siew

char siew can skip.

beef hor fun

beef hor fun was oily, has wok hae, tasted more like sicc char kuay teow, not in my book for dishes here.

c.h.e.f andy

	chefquak on HK Steamed Song Fish Head 港蒸松鱼…
	Penelope on HK Steamed Song Fish Head 港蒸松鱼…
	Rosemary on 50% Discounts for 2pax Excelle…
	Braised Pig Intestin… on Teochew Light Braised Large…
	edmundc38 on 赠我 Gift to Me
	David Ong on 咖喱鸡面 Curry Chicken Noodles
	10 Must-Try Michelin… on Oyster Omelette (蚝烙) Starchy O…
	chefquak on SCG Bought Hill Street CKT and…
	Elli on SCG Bought Hill Street CKT and…
	chefquak on 思永恒 Contemplate Eternity

c.h.e.f

cook.hangout.eat.fun

Category Archives: Buon Appetito!

Love This Place – Assembly Coffee (on 28Dec2014)

Roti Prata @ S.M. Aisha at Food Canopy Botanical Gardens on 28Dec2014

Great Cuppa @ Dutch Colony Pasarbella on 26Dec2014

Nice Dinner with Son @ Arossa on 23Dec2014

冬至吃汤圆 (Eating Sesame Mochi Dumplings with Arrival of Winter) on Winter Solstice 22Dec14

So-So 4pax Dinner this time @ Kok Sen Keong Saik Street on 21Dec2014

Average Too Ordinary Dimsum @ Timhowan 添好运 at Westgate Mall on 19Dec2014

Instant Chashu Mala Ramen (麻辣快熟面)

6hr “Sous Vide” Miso Lamb Shoulder

Good Crab Dinner @ Momma Kong’s on 20Dec2014

Delicious Dinner @ Tunglok Signature Orchard Parade on 16Dec2014

Most Enjoyable Autumn Course Dinner @ Mikuni on 11Dec2014

Great Mazechirashi Don @ Aoki Restaurant on 10Dec2014

Pleasant Lunch @ Ma Maison on 9Dec2014

Lobster Linguine in Spicy Pink Sauce & Lobster Bisque on 7Dec2014

OK Food @ Relish Gardens on 1Dec2014

Most Wonderfully Sumptuous Amarone Wine Dinner @ American Club on 29Nov2014

Guided Food Tour of Old Airport Road Hawker Centre on 2Dec2014

Cheap & Really Good for Economic Rice @ Joyful Palace Clementi Ave3 on 2Dec2014

6pax Family Dinner @ Canton Paradise on 28Nov2014 (Update)

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this: