Pre-Wimbledon Semi+World Cup France-Germany Dinner@East Coast Lagoon Food Village on 4Jul2014

Posted on July 6, 2014 by chefquak

bakchormee

went to a friend’s house for a marathon evening of 2 wimbledon semis – Federer vs Raonic & Djokovic vs Dimitrov aka baby Fed. 🙂

we took the pleasant stroll to east coast lagoon food village. the last we came was during roland garros on 8.6.2014. 🙂

bakchormee

braised pig trotters

this time we tried the supposedly famours pig trotters at han jia bakuteh & pork leg. i wanted bakchormee so i skipped the rice & just had the trotters. according to my friend, this stall was quite good except that it was less good in the evening as the trotters got to be too soft.

braised pig trotters, taupok, chai buay

my bakchormee was ok but not of the standard of tai wah bakchormee, jalan tua kong lau lim at bedok simpang, jalan tua kong meepok tar at 6th avenue etc.

my 2 other friends ordered also taupok, chai buay + peanuts & kidney, liver soup. all were ok except the pig trotters. partly because we ordered the lean trotters, but this was way below the standard of any good trotters stall like ng ah sio bakuteh, song fa bakuteh etc.

i had tried several stalls here after 4 visits including laksa, orh luah, satay, beef noodles, bbq chicken & now the pig trotters. except for the bbq chicken wings & orh luah which were good, i have to say that this food centre is way below par c/w with say maxwell road hawker centre, amoy street hawker centre, hong lim hawker centre & bukit timah food centre.

after dinner we enjoyed the top drawer sound system & music, this time jason mraz, & the wimbledon semis & world cup quarterfinals between france & germany. we left about 2am, skipping the brazil-columbia game. 🙂

c.h.e.f andy

13pax ala Carte Buffet Dinner @ Peach Garden Miramar on 30Jun2014

Posted on July 6, 2014 by chefquak

#1 char siew

#2 roast pork

our dinner group decided to have get-together at peach garden miramar on 30.6.2014. food was ala carte buffet at S$30.80++ and 3 paying 1 free, quite good deal really. 🙂

the food was generally good, better than our last group dinner at ban heng orchard central on 25.4.2014. the service was very good too, friendly & jovial, and we all decided to give a substantial tip afterwards. 🙂 it was also 1/2 the price & better quality than the one i had recently at restaurant home on 25.6.2014.

#1 char siew (a charcoaled grilled pork neck) was good as usual.

#2 roast pork was good this evening, crispy & tasty, with the mustard dip.

#3 pork floss egg plant

#3 pork floss egg plant was good here. the egg plant batter was very light & the texture & taste combination was excellent.

#4 drunken chicken

#4 drunken chicken looked processed in appearance. taste was ok with wine infused flavour.

#5 yuzu prawns

#6 wasabi mayo prawns

#5 yuzu prawns was very good, crispy, prawns were fresh & the slight citric yuzu flavour was great.

#6 likewise the wasabi mayo prawns.

#7 fish fritters

#7 fish fritters was average. fish was so so, the crispy batter was quite well done.

#8 sharks bone soup with lobster claw

#9 crab meat/roe sharksfin

there was a limit of 1 order of soup per person.

#8 the sharks bone soup was ok. i had it the last time. i thought the lie tongs (例汤), soup of the day, at tunglok & imperial treasure were better.

#9 i tried the crab meat/roe sharkskin this time, it was quite ok.

#10 deep-fried soon hock

#10 the deep-fried soon hock was good, better than when i had it last time. meat was fresh, moist & tasty. we had 2 orders.

#11 kurobuta pork

#11 kurobuta pork was ok.

#12 sauteed beef

#12 the sautéed beef was overly sweet & artificially tender, edible but not much in demand by the diners.

#13 braised beef briskets & tendon

#13 the braised beef briskets & tendon was quite good. we had 2 orders.

#14 pan-fried venison

#14 pan-fried venison. this not really a favourite for me, no different from any coffershop zichar stalls.

#15 pating fish

#15 pating fish was a favourite for me. this time it was quite well done, very fresh & tasty. i suggested to the manager that for a live fish, it would be better presentation to serve a fish head portion or 1/2 a fish rather than in cut pieces. he said the fish might be too big so they had it served in cut portions. hmm..actually most pating served here in singapore were 1kg or 700g fish.

#16 cauliflowers & brocoli

#17 string beans with sliced scallops

#18 spinach with 3 eggs

we had 3 different vege. they were all good.

$16 cauliflower & brocoli was simple & tasty & great colour combination.

#17 string beans were good too, though the thinnest of sliced scallops didn’t contribute anything to the dish.

#18 spinach with 3 eggs was quite standard, mediocre actually & a very large portion.

#19 杨支甘露

#20 bubur hitam with ice cream

#21 ice jelly

most of us ordered 2 or 3 dessert each.

#19 i did not try the 杨支甘露. it should be quite standard.

#20 the bubur hitam with ice cream was a crowd favourite.

#21 the ice jelly was kind of plain.

another joyous dinner with good food, company, fellowship & memories. 🙂

c.h.e.f andy

Good Value Lunch (with Amex Vouchers) @ Chui Huay Lim on 25Jun2014

Posted on June 27, 2014 by chefquak

ter kar tan – S$10

jumbo group have an ongoing amex promotion giving out voucher booklets for every S$120nett spend by amex card. i was given a booklet expiring 30jun2014, and 5 of us arranged to have lunch at chui huay lim on 25.6.2014. 🙂

i find chui huay lim kind of on the expensive side, but when there were substantive discounts like the good lunch we had on 4.11.2013, then it was pretty worth it.

for this time, we were using 1 S$60 voucher which require a total bill of S$150nett or above. i ordered the usual pig trotter jelly, hae chor & cold crab. also ordered 1/2 braised duck, 2 vege & a seafood meesua & ended with orh nee. including tea, bill came to S$111 for 5pax after the S$60 discount. & since we could get another voucher booklet if the net bills was S$120, we ordered 2 more ah bo ning (mochi dumplings) at S$4each. 🙂

#1 ter kar tan (pig trotter jelly) always good here.

hae chor – S$10

#2 hae chor good too, very crisp.

teochew cold crab – S$30

#3 cold crab was sweet, among the better ones.

1/2 teochew braised duck – S$28

#4 the teochew braised duck was also good, flavour, tender, moist. 🙂

kai lan with ti poh- S$14

#5 kailan with ti poh pretty ok, i guess kind of standard.

#6 i ordered another spinach also S$14 (no photo).

seafood mee sua – S$18

#7 seafood meesua quite ok, also standard issue.

orh nee – S$4.50

#8 the orh nee was much better than i expected, very smooth, not too sweet & nicely presented. better than ah orh which served a good orh nee too.

overall, though we did not order too many dishes or expensive ones, it was quite a good lunch for 5pax at only S$121nett & we took back a new voucher booklet include another S$60 voucher for chui huay lim. not bad la! 🙂

c.h.e.f andy

P.S. photo credits to my good friend, 1 of the diners as i did not take any photo.

Below Par (for the Price) 4pax Dinner @ Restaurant Home on 25Jun2014

Posted on June 26, 2014 by chefquak

mini buddha jump over the wall

was truly disappointed with the S$59.80+ ala carte buffet at restaurant home on 25.6.2014. 😦

probably had to do with wrong expectations, as the award winning chef tan yong hua has so many accolades, not least the first singaporean chef to win against iron Chef Thailand. also the price of S$59.80+pax would be quite ok if the dishes were good & not just mediocre.

mini buddha jump over the wall

#1 the mini buddha-jump-over-the-wall(bjotw) had a light decent soup base (not intense & maybe that was intended), a good flower mushroom, a quite small abalone which was ok & lots of chicken plus a cheap fish maw (not 花胶). i supposed average ingredients were quite ok if the soup was really tasty. it was not a bad soup. 1 of us commented any lie tong (例汤) soup of the day by tunglok or imperial treasure would beat this, so there was nothing much to say.

8-head abalone, mushroom & spinach

#2 the bite/texture & flavour of the 8-head abalone & also the flower mushroom were quite good. the spinach was just average, and perhaps it was more the method of preparation, but any brown sauce braised chinese abalones (ah yat, tunglok, xin restaurant etc) would be a better overall taste experience than this (not a better abalone). i guess this dish would be above average to good whereas the mini bjotw was just average.

salmon & maguro sashimi & mayo prawns

#3 the salmon & maguro (tuna) sashimi were ok, the lobster was buried in mayo. a wasabi or salted egg prawn would be better. the dish was ok but nondescript.

herbal prawns

#4 the prawns were big & fresh & quite tasty. i guess it was about as good as a herbal prawn could be. it was not a dish i would much fancy though, unlike the wow factor with the golden prawns at mikuni.

deep-fried red garoupa

#5 the deep-fried red garoupa was competent, good even. but as 1 diner commented, it was no better than ah yat though the garoupa tasted better than soon hock. i also thought it was not much better than peach garden miramar, not counting ban heng’s deep-fried soon hock which was very average.

roast duck

#6 the roast duck was to me about the best dish for the evening (& it was not among the chef selected dishes above limited to 1 serving). skin was crispy, meat was tender, moist not overcooked & very flavourful.

crabmeat brocoli

#7 the crabmeat broccoli was another better dish, looked good, tasted great, more like the standards of tunglok or imperial treasure.

sichuan beef with rice crackers

rice crackers (for sichuan beef)

#8 the sichuan spicy fish fillet (i forgot to take a photo) was ok edible not good but as 水煮鱼 it was a disaster! even the NUS canteen foodgle hub just above average S$6 水煮鱼 was better than this.

#9 the sichuan spicy beef with rice crackers was worse than the fish! beef was bad by any standard, the sinewy quite tasteless like rubber type. even the artificial tenderised beef at coffeeshop zi char stalls were better! not sure the thai type rice crackers qualified as 锅巴. if it were any zi char stall, i guess one could argue that’s just a choice of words.

osmanthus jelly

#10 the osmanthus jelly was pretty good, i guess not so far off timhowan which was better, but it’s just jelly.

rosella jelly with diced mango

#11 the rosella jelly was ok for a jelly but really a poor dessert c/w any of tunglok, xin, imperial treasure, i guess better than having red beans & green beans at ah yat.

#12 3 of us ordered the almond jelly (no photos). this was good restaurant standard.

i had earlier booked en japanese dining @ alocasia to try their S$56++pax queen crab wagyu ala carte buffet, but had canceled that to try this new restaurant. it was a manifestly wrong decision to take this ala carte buffet. it was not near as good as peach garden miramar’s (S$30.80++pax 3 paying 1 free) which was 1/2 the price. this 4pax dinner cost S$264nett. my recent fabulous 4pax dinner at mikuni cost only S$195nett. there was totally no comparison at all regards the food! 😦

1 Facebook friend who dined there recently commented that the ala carte orders – lychee wood smoked peking duck, claypot steamed fish, tofu egg, braised pork knuckles vermicelli in oba leaf – were pretty good. i guess a sound opinion & i am not totally ruling out trying ala carte here if there are takers among my friends(but i think not likely), but the ala carte buffet is totally out for me! & i think really the organisation is still not in groove to put up this below par level of cuisine for a S$59.80 ala carte buffet. 😦

c.h.e.f andy

So Very Nice 4pax Family Dinner @ Mikuni on 23Jun2014

Posted on June 25, 2014 by chefquak

oysters – S$28

dinners at mikuni are always so very enjoyable. see recent post on a wonderful mikuni dinner on 31.3.2014.

we were there again on 23.6.2014. this time we ordered the chirashi don, oysters & golden prawns, in addition to the usual.

the oysters were good. at 50% discounts, it was S$14 for 3 pieces. the ones we had recently at chikuwatei was better but more ex – 2 large ones for S$22. 🙂

chirashi don – S$90

the chirashi don was so, so very nice. this must the best in singapore or anywhere for S$45++ after 50% feed at raffles (FAR) discounts. 🙂 needless to say, it was far, far better than sun with moon or chikuwatei. not only there was uni, 2 pieces of chu toro, & a huge botan ebi, all the other cuts like salmon, tai, hamachi, hotate were so sweet & fresh & so very many. 🙂

it was kind of a late discovery for us, as we dined quite a bit at mikuni but we tend to take the cooked food rather than sashimi.

botan ebi – S$42 for 3

we had the usual botan ebi sashimi (S$42 for 3 pieces) & had the head deep-fried.

sous vide octopus tempura – S$30

& we all loved the sous vide tako kari kari age.

cold sake – S$50

the sake was ex… S$50 & only 25% discount.

golden prawns – S$40

& the golden prawns (basically teppanyaki large prawns with lots of mayo) was really good! each of us had about 5 prawns, so there must be 20 pieces. we took very little mayo but this mayo taste was very good. 🙂

lobster uniyaki – S$48

the lobster uniyaki today was below the usual standard. i had always liked the lobster but somehow this time the lobster meat did not have the usual bouncy fresh texture. couldn’t say it was bad but c/w the golden prawns, it was substantially poorer.

kagoshima wagyu konabe – S$48

& the kagoshima wagyu konabe was as good as ever.

the bill came to S$239nett for 4pax (c/w S$205 for 4pax at chikuwatei & such huge guff in quality of food). excluding the sake, it would be S$195nett or S$165++ for 4pax, really good deal. 🙂

i think i gonna go back just for the chirashi don. 🙂

c.h.e.f andy

Superb Sashimi & Unagi don Set @ Sun with Moon Wheelock on 22Jun2014

Posted on June 23, 2014 by chefquak

sashimi moriwasse for 2 = S$29.80

my wife & i were in between meals & decided to have “tea” (more of 2 meals dinner & lunch into 1, save time, money, calories..haha) @ sun with moon at wheelock. this is becoming our favourite restaurant. 🙂

we were not really interested in their tea menu. likely we were not the only ones so they provided full meal sets in their “tea” menu.

sashimi moriwasse for 2 = S$29.80

sashimi & unagi don set = S$34.80 (addition chawanmushi S$3.50, salmon sashimi S$3)

sashimi & unagi don set = S$34.80

i was already thinking of the sashimi at sun with moon after the not entirely fulfilling chirashi don dinner at chikuwatei on 17.6.2014, so 1 ordered a sashimi & unagi don set S$34.80. we did not want to have 2 sets so we added another sashimi moriawasse for 2pax at S$29.80.

(P.S. subsequently i had dinner at momoya on 6.7.2014 & it was 1 of the best value sushi & sashimi bento).

the sashimi moriawasse that came with the set had 9 pieces c/w with the ala carte sashimi for 2 (only missing 1 ama ebi & 2 slices of hotate in comparison) , and cost S$5 more. i would consider both quite reasonably priced & vis a vis each other. 🙂

as i mentioned on my post on chikuwatei, the salmon sashimi were sweeter, tastier here. the cut was also quite thick but perhaps just somewhat thinner c/w chikuwatei. the kajiki (swordfish) was a lot sweeter & there were ama ebi & hotate (missing in chikuwatei). for me it was a lot more shiok here. we also added a salmon sashimi side (3 thinner slices for S$3) & a chawanmushi (S$3.50). 🙂

sashimi & unagi don set = S$34.80

the set also came with the unagi don which i liked, side dish (vinegared unagi which my wife liked), soup, pickles & a drink.

we also added 1 small green tea parfait S$6.80.

there was a 15% card discount for ocbc, however it only applied to the ala carte order. since i had the members card (cost S$20 & you get back S$20 in points for redemption) which entitled to 10% discount for the whole bill, which came to S$82nett. its somewhat more ex c/w chikuwatei which was an overdose (not complaining!) of average to just above average thick cut sashimi for a S$25++ chirashi don.

c.h.e.f andy

4pax Family Dinner @ Crystal Jade Lamian Xioalongbao at HollandV on 21Jun2014

Posted on June 22, 2014 by chefquak

xiaolongbao 小笼包

just had a 4pax family dinner at crystal jade lamian xiaolongbao at hollandv. it was 630pm but i managed to get parking across the road at warna road side carpark next to the mrt exit. 🙂

this time i wanted to order the spicy beef lamian 水煮牛肉面 so forgo our favourite XO seafood fried rice.

xiaolongbao 小笼包

#1 xiaolongbao 小笼包 here was among the best i had tried. a friend commented on facebook that the skin look thick on the photo. but actually the skin was quite thin, and the soup in the dumpling was very tasty. 🙂

spicy dumplings 抄手

#2 spicy dumplings 抄手 was another favourite. enjoyed the spicy kick & also the vinegar flavour.

spicy beef lamian 水煮牛肉面

#3 i was not disappointed. the spicy beef lamian 水煮牛肉面 was not bad at all. fair amount of sliced beef, lots of vegetables & the soup was flavourful not over spicy & quite drinkable. of course it was not near to the real thing 水煮牛肉 or 水煮鱼 but that really is a different dish.

spicy chicken 口水鸡

spicy chicken lamian 口水鸡拉面

#4 & #5 we ordered both the spicy chicken 口水鸡 & the spicy chicken lamian so we could just share the noodles. this another favourite dish. chicken was sweet & the sichuan chilli sauce made it really flavourful.

wanton lamian

#6 my daughter ordered the plain wanton lamian. it was good too.

the total for the 6 dishes plus 3 barley drinks for 4pax came to S$68, quite ok for a simple family dinner. 🙂

c.h.e.f andy

Another Fabulous Degustation Dinner @ Jaan on 16Jun2014

Posted on June 18, 2014 by chefquak

amuse bouche 1

had another wonderful degustation par excellence at jaan on 16.6.2014. 🙂

regretfully jaan is fully booked for the rest of the year for feed-at-raffles (FAR) discounts. looks like only mikuni & occasionally equinox & prego to go to.

amuse bouche 1

the new amuse bouche of beetroot macaron, an eel mousse, (can’t remember the last) plus the rye cracker with very good hummus was good, pleasant & quite fine, though no better than previous.

amuse bouche 2 – cepe mushroom tea

the second amuse bouche, a cepe mushroom tea, was the best soup ever, so intense & flavourful & lingering. 🙂

#1 ocean – simply delicious!

# the ocean seafood composition was simply delicious! every item was excellent & there were so many – langoustine, oyster (yummy!), scallop, ikura (salmon roe), eel, caviar, another prawn. i could have this again! 🙂

#2 toast

not quite sure what the toast do? anyway a good toast.

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#2 zucchini, tomatoes, olive, burrata

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#2 zucchini, tomatoes, olive, burrata

#2 the zucchini trumbetta was nice, pleasant, refreshing, not quite a standout among so many excellent dishes.

64degC 55mins sous vide egg with iberico ham

#3 64degC 55mins sous vide egg with iberico chorizo

#3 the 64degC 55mins sous vide egg with iberico chorizo was quite a complete dining experience with the dry ice foam flowing down. the silky egg yolk added texture combination to the crispy iberico chorizo.

#4 foie gras

#4 the foie gras preparation/presentation had changed several times but texture wise quite the same. the inside was soft tender tasty. the outside though was different from the more caramelised preparation which we preferred.

#5 monk fish, white asparagus

#5 monk fish was pretty good – firm, bouncy. meat was slightly sweet. somehow all the monkfish i tried in singapore (& this was a better one) could not match the excellent sweet tasting monkfish ala plancha i had in barcelona’s bouqueria market & tapas restaurants. white asparagus was very good, very tasty & tender. 🙂

#6 hay roasted pigeon

#6 the hay roasted pigeon was as usual, nothing less than superb. the medium rare sous vide breast was the best. i couldn’t quite decide if amsterdam beulings’ quail was better or this. 🙂

the best dinner we had at jaan though was on 20.1.2014 where we had miyazaki beef in place of pigeon. 🙂

pre-dessert grape granite

the grape granite palate cleanser was refreshingly good. 🙂

#7 choconuts – taste & texture

#7 choconuts was supposed to offer different temperature, texture & taste. i supposed it did & its a good dessert, but i thought some of the previous choconuts editions were distinctly better.

petit fours

the petit four were good or competent for this level of restaurant, not a standout.

well, looks like i have to try the waiting list & see my luck play out.

c.h.e.f andy

Oysters & Chirashi Don @ Chikuwatei on 17Jun2014

Posted on June 17, 2014 by chefquak

japanese oysters = S$22 for 2

my daughter & jh bought dinner as return treat for my wife & i ‘lombang’ aka enjoyed collateral benefits. 🙂

they suggested chikuwatei, and now thinking back the last time i went there was 3yrs+ ago. these few days i had been thinking of going to chikuwatei again so the time was most fitting.

(P.S. subsequently i had dinner at momoya on 6.7.2014 & it was the best value sushi & sashimi bento, quality equal if not better than chikuwatei & much better value)

not sure if there was any change of ownership but the service was very much better. the lady taking charge at the front counter, showing us to the table, gave good recommendations and was not pushy. the oysters she recommended were excellent. when she was clearing the dishes at the end of the meal she tipped over my wife’s sake cup. later she came back with a full cup of sake. i guess we could have reasonably asked for that too but we did not, & did not really expect it. 🙂

chirashi don = S$25

teriyaki chicken = S$10

japanese oysters = S$22 for 2

we ordered 4 chirashi don for 4pax, 2 servings of oysters (4 oysters), teriyaki chicken & a 250ml house sake (S$16).

i was much looking forward for the chirashi don as i had not taken here for so long. in fact i was slightly disappointed. the helpings were just as large – 5 slices of salmon, 3 maguro, 3 kajiki, 2 hamachi & 2 tamago (egg), with a heap of ikura. rice was good, ok not the best. the salmon was not so sweet (2 of the 5 were sweeter). i thought that the salmon sashimi i had at sun with moon wheelock as a S$3 side dish for 3 pieces were better! the kajiki & maguro were also not very sweet, the hamachi was a bit sweeter. the ikura added a slightly salty, flavourful touch to the vinegared rice.

i guessed overall it was not too bad but a bit underwhelming for me & kind of below what i expected. if i were having just sashimi, the S$20 chirashi don lunch set i had recently at ginza kuroson was a lot better quality, but that was lunch. if i wanted combination then the sets at sun with moon would be more attractive than this.

must add though that the oysters were quite large & excellent, juicy, tasty with no metallic taste, very enjoyable. the teriyaki chicken was good too, though not really food i would order.

probably won’t come here too soon unless there are some other specials or promotions.

c.h.e.f andy

Quite Poor Ming Fa (明发) Bakchormee @ HollandV Food Centre on 17Jun2014

Posted on June 17, 2014 by chefquak

ming fa (明发) bakchormee

did some errands at hollandv. walking through the food centre & thought the bakchormee stall looked different. i had a good bakchormee at a commonwealth crescent fai zai eatery bakchormee here on 24.9.2013. now the stall is called ming fa (明发). i guess ming fa (明发) has acquired & franchised the stall. it used to be a middle-aged man hawking, now there were 2 women.

i tried ming fa (明发) at upper thomson road couple times recently & it was 1 of the best. the branding was the same so i decided to give it a go.

ming fa (明发) bakchormee

must say this was really quite poor. the meepok noodles were slightly soggy not enough qq (al dente), ingredients were less. taste was just passable but not great. the previous stall commonwealth crescent fai zai eatery bakchormee was a lot better than this, though the ming fa (明发) at upper thomson was far better. but this ming fa (明发) at hollandv is quite poor indeed!

i am not sure this thus the brand any good at all!

c.h.e.f andy

Great Lunch @ Boon Tong Kee Balestier on 13Jun2014

Posted on June 13, 2014 by chefquak

chinese cabbage with taupok

a good friend had a S$10 boon tong kee voucher to use & invited us for a 3pax lunch at the balestier branch. this a restaurant with 31 years history. 🙂 the stall at chinatown was started by a thian boon hua in 1979. and the very first btk restaurant opened at balestier road in 1983. 🙂

my friend wanted to book btk at 1pm (as we were all watching world cup soccer opener brazil vs croatia) but it was fully booked. we decided to go early instead at 11.45am, also there were limited kampong chicken so better to be early. 🙂

there is a huge carpark just behind balestier food centre which is adjacent to btk.

we got ourselves a table. the place was aircon-ed. it was full & a queue soon formed outside. about 3 tables were reserved for tourist busload!

chicken liver & gizzard

white-cut kampong chicken

HK steamed cod with wood fungus

chinese cabbage with taupok

S$30 HK steamed cod with wood fungus

my friend ordered 4 dishes.

#1 kampong chicken was very good, though my friend the connoisseur felt it was not as good as usual. for me it was very good, smooth, sweet & not so fatty. 🙂 & the rice was very good, flavourful & not too oily. the thinly chopped ginger oil dip was excellent! 🙂

#2 the chicken liver & gizzard were ok. i am partial though to chicken intestine which was not offered at this btk branch.

#3 the bean curd with nai bai (奶白) chinese cabbage was very good too, especially the beam curd!

#4 the hk steamed cod fish with wood fungus (木耳) was excellent, the best. 🙂

the meal came to S$84 for 3pax including 3 barley drink (S$2.20 each) before using the S$10 voucher. it was not cheap but it was really a very good meal for me.

btk is more like a zi char than just a chicken rice stall. i don’t take so much chicken rice these days but this was really good relative to many good neighbourhood chicken rice stalls like the ones i had at tanglin halt & 6th avenue. i will certainly come back both for the chicken rice & also the zi char dishes.

c.h.e.f andy

Great Kurobuta Kimchi Nabe Dinner @ Shirokiya on 11Jun2014

Posted on June 12, 2014 by chefquak

kurobuta kimchi nabe

bought a groupon voucher for a japanese hotpot at shirokiya cuppage terrace branch (S$22.80 voucher for a S$38.80++ nabe) & went with my sis for a 2pax dinner on 11.6.2014. 🙂

there were 3 choices of nabe for the S$38.80 price option, 2 were chicken. we picked the kurobuta kimchi nabe.

kurobuta kimchi nabe

there were about 10 large slices of kurobuta belly pork (the restaurant said 160g for 2 servings), and you could add another serving (80g) for S$9++.

kurobuta was quite excellent. nabe also came with 4 mussels (ok la..), tofu, lots of vegetables & kimchi. it was a good tasty & satisfying nabe.

broiled kurobuta

the other menu items though did not attract me. sashimi salad at S$20.80++, sushi & sashimi were quite ex, assorted sushi maki was S$25.80++. i would rather take these at mikuni or sun with moon at wheelock.

there was a (limited order) S$17.80 grilled salmon belly that looked great but was too large for 2 of us. we considered a S$13.80++ ishiyaki kurobuta don but decided we didn’t need the carb & selected the S$10.80 broiled kurobuta. this was really good! 🙂 a very tasty, flavourful, generous helping.

both items were very good. dinner came to S$35.50 nett (S$22.80+S$12.70). i bought 2 more shirokiya vouchers when i got home. 🙂

not sure i would do this at the usual price of S$38.80++, but at 1/2 price S$22.80, it was very good value. the very good kimchi chigae at aburiya cost S$13.80 for <1/2 portion & <20% pork (& not kurobuta) by comparison. azmaya used to offer 50% discount for pork shabu shabu ala carte buffer at S$12++. currently there is only a S$17.50 pork shabu shabu set, which comes to S$35 for 2pax c/w S$22.80. so shirokiya’s groupon offer great value. 🙂

c.h.e.f andy

Good Zi Char Dinner @ Keng Eng Kee (KEK) Restaurant & Teochew Opera on 9Jun2014

Posted on June 10, 2014 by chefquak

S$10 claypot liver

i had wanted to try keng eng kee (KEK) the last time the few of us were doing a hawker & zi char tour but had never gotten to it.

was watching a teochew classical tunes (operatic) concert at singapore concert hall at 7.30pm by ngee ann cultural centre, singapore teochew federation & nan hua opera (南华儒剧社) – program here, so decided to have early dinner at KEK on 9.6.2014.

i must say i really enjoyed the teochew opera singing. used to listen to them a lot when very young, so even though had not listen to some for decades, the songs were still familiar. 🙂

the singing was good & the ones by 孙小华 (芦林会) & 陈纬恬 (刘明珠) was outstanding, extremely emotive, moving & captivating. 陈纬恬, singaporean, is just 11 years old. she performed 小蝴蝶 in (莫愁女) in shantou, china when she was 5! this young girl is set to be a super star.

S$10 claypot liver

we were there at 5pm on a monday. the indoor aircon seating was fully booked, & 1/2 of the outdoor seating at the coffeeshop was also reserved with the names on the tables.

famous dishes at KEK includes claypot liver, moonlight nor fun, mingzhu rolls (明珠卷) & salted egg crab etc.

#1 i do like liver but am not particularly fond of claypot liver which is like a liver overkill. we ordered it anyhow & it turned out to be really good! the liver was not overcooked, had great wine flavours & very sweet & just the right texture. an excellent dish! 🙂

S$25 nonya song fish head

#2 we were deciding between black beans bitter gourd with sliced snakehead (生鱼) or a song fish head(松鱼头). the server recommended the fish head nonya style. it was very good, the sauce was the same as the very nice fish head at forture seafood but dryer & less curry. i would think that angkoli (red snapper) which forture used would go better than 松鱼 for this dish.

cuttlefish kang kong

#3 cuttle fish kang kong was competent & tasty, the sweet sauce though was kind of overpowering.

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明珠卷 mingzhu roll

#4 the 明珠卷 mingzhu roll (6 pieces) was good too. however we did not really need this dish. the other 4 dishes were already too big for 3pax, so we tapao (take out) remaining 3 pieces.

S$5 moonlight hor fun

#5 the moonlight dry nor fun was a good dish. it was a strange concoction combining char kuay teow with hor fun(河粉), and came with chinese sausage & also prawns & squid with thick hor fun. it was not really my favourite. i would prefer the usual hor fun or san lor hor fun (生捞河粉) to this.

keng eng kee alexandra village

S$25 nonya song fish head

there was no service or get. the bill came up to S$60 for 5 dishes for 3pax. the food would easily have served 4pax. i would rate KEK on par with kok sen & much better than two chefs. i would expect the song fish head(松鱼头) at 香港街珍记 (Hong Kong Street Chun Kee) to be better but then the menu range at the latter is small.

this definitely a eating place that i will come back again! 🙂

c.h.e.f andy

Squid-ink Seafood Spaghetti

Posted on June 9, 2014 by chefquak

squid ink manila clams with squid spaghetti

reserved the squid-ink pouch in the freezer when i was cooking a grilled large squid. there was also a defrosted squid in the chiller & couple prawns which needed to be used before the head turned black, so decided to cook squid-ink pasta. this my first attempt. 🙂

squid-ink seafood linguine-added 24.10.2014

i used the squid-ink from 3 squids, from the large one & 2 medium ones.

squid-ink linguine with clams & squid – added 24.10.2014

squid ink manila clams with squid spaghetti

squid-ink linguine with clams & squid – added 24.10.2014

as usual i browned a whole bulb of garlic cloves in olive oil over low fire, and set aside. i seasoned the prawns & squid in 1 teaspoon fish sauce & white pepper. i added 2 teaspoon butter to the pan & turned to high fire till it just began to smoke, then i added the squid & prawns & cooked to about 90%. i removed the squid & prawns & added back the garlic olive oil & added 1 chopped chilli padi and the squid ink. then i added white wine & 1 teaspoon sugar & reduced.

meanwhile i boiled some spaghetti till just before specified time (just before al dente). i added back the squid & prawns & then the spaghetti, off the fire & tossed.

it was a really good squid-ink pasta, really tasty. i would say matching in taste the squid-ink pasta at al borgo. well almost la. haha! 🙂

c.h.e.f andy

Hawker Food @ East Coast Lagoon Food Village then Music & Roland Garros Finals on 8.6.2014

Posted on June 9, 2014 by chefquak

orh luah (oyster egg)

went to a good friend’s house to watch roland garros finals between nadal & djokovic on 8.6.2014.

3 of us started with a leisurely stroll via the underpass to the recently renovated east coast lagoon food village for dinner.

we enjoyed nice music after dinner at my friend’s place with his amazing sound system & acoustics. mostly we listened to david foster, his guest artists & wonderful songs –

katherine mcphee (america idol 2005 runners-up) who also sang “the prayer” with andrea bocelli;
michael buble who sang the very nice song “home” co-written with his wife amy foster with country singer blake shelton,
jackie evancho (america got talent 2010 runners-up), &
lucia micarelli’s simply incredible moving mesmerising lingering violin instrumental with chris botti “emmanuel”.

another friend joined to watch nadal vs djokovic roland garros finals at 9pm. we are all nadal supporters though my friend’s son who joined us supports djokovic. we were not hopeful this time as nadal had lost 3 masters to almegro, ferrer & djokovic in the clay court build-up before roland garros. djokovic is deservedly on the rise & is nadal’s nemesis & tormentor as nadal had been to federer. nadal’s progress into the second week had also been tentative & less convincing than djokovic’s, and my friends & i were not convinced despite his thrashing andy murray in the semi-final.

as it turned out, nadal won again! & for the 9th times (& 5 times in a row, consecutively), something no one has ever done before. djokovic started perfectly. nadal was playing well but djokovic was 1 step ahead in everything, returning every ball & his backhand was simply lethal. nothing nadal did could hurt djokovic. nadal was simply being owned & prospects looked bleak, insurmountable. we were not hopeful. djokovic’s play however dropped towards the end of the second set which nadal won 7-5 & that proved to be the turning point. djokovic looked winded & regurgitated (like vomitting) in the 3rd set which nadal again won. in the fourth though nadal looked worrying, bending over & clutching his wrist & after 1 shot was bending over with back pain (he lost to wawrinka at the australia open finals, playing through his back pain).

there was a very unfortunate, most regrettable incident. at match point, as djokovic threw up the ball for the second serve, someone in the audience intentionally shouted & as a result djokovic double-faulted on match point. (i think with the extensive camera surveillance, the culprit(s) should be hauled up & banned for all future games). djokovic was extremely bitter (as can only be expected with the sweat & blood, hardwork & complete dedication), and applauded the audience in his usual cynical, wry, sacarstic manner (my friend did not like this trait of his but i am ok with djokovic, it is just his make-up & he is a really good sporting guy). djokovic was very gracious through the prize presentation ceremony. i actually quite like him.

a friend whatsapped me the headlines afterwards – “nadal in cloud 9”. yes indeed, nadal had resume 9 to 5 service (normal service). he won a record 9 times roland garros & 5 times consecutively, only interrupted by his second round exit by robert soderling in 2009, where he suffered tendonitis in both knees & laid-off for 2 months.

beef soup noodles

for dinner, we ordered a S$5 beef soup kuay teow mee each & a S$8 orh luah to share. 🙂

never taken this style of beef kuayteow mee before. only had the hainanese style starchy thick beehoon (which i don’t quite like), the vietnamese pho & thai thin kuay teow (i like the beef noodles at thai noodle house, even more so in bangkok siam centre or street etc, a lot more than the vietnamese), and nothing like the hong kong beef noodles, my favourite but cannot quite find in singapore, maybe noodles restaurant’s version comes just a bit close. still!

this supposedly famous leng kee beef noodles though was really nondescript. very average.

the orh luah had a long queue. it was pretty good but not special. & since i started trying out orh luah last week, i think it was no better than my own crispy orh luah & the wetter starchy version which i had not posted yet.

i also brought my tofu cheese cake & also some “sous vide” char siew, which we enjoyed before & during the match.

a most enjoyable evening!

c.h.e.f andy

Average Lunch Buffet @ Street 50 Bay Hotel on 7June2014

Posted on June 7, 2014 by chefquak

fried prawns

bought a S$20pax weekend asian lunch buffet voucher @ street 50 at bay hotel from groupon, so went there for lunch on 7.6.2014.

place is new. there is outdoor setting but it was hot & most part in the sun at lunch & very high ceiling (like 12m) so not useable when heavy downpour. it was fully booked so i could only get outdoors but i was there among the first few just before the crowd so managed to get seated inside anyway.

service was very good in terms of attitude & politeness, and i also got free parking coupon at the end. the food did not look exciting but did not look bad either. coffee was not included but iced water was quite fine. 🙂

pineapple curry chicken

fried beef average

mutton rendang

first foray

otah good

there was nothing to talk about in my first plateful. scallops & mussels were poor & tasteless (but they usually are even at say carousel for >S$60pax) w/o the thai? green dip sauce, which was also average. best was the otah (i had a second one later). the small octopus was quite good, and the long bean minced pork salad was ok. steam prawn was competent.

second foray

of the cooked food, curry chicken was quite good. curry was tasty, chicken ok but not really tender enough. mutton rendang was ok. fried prawn was tastier than the cold dish but just a competent prawn dish. mushrooms & spinach was pretty good. achar too.

beef ball beehoon soup

the beef ball beehoon soup was competent. soup was very tasty but too oily.

crispy yam

sweet & sour fish

third foray

fourth foray

the crispy yam was pretty good. sweet & sour fish was also good. 🙂

chendol good

mochi is poor

like the lapis sagu (九层糕)

and i liked the chendol & the lapis sagu (九层糕). pulut hitam ok but mochi was poor – skin was thick & the inside was hard.

indoor seating

outdoor seating

overall, i don’t really have much to comment about this place. food was competent. at S$20pax nett using groupon it was really very ok, though i am unlikely to return myself. at S$25++pax, hard to say, i mean, there are many alternatives like dinner@peach garden miramar for S$30nett pax.

c.h.e.f andy

Best Value Chirashi-don Lunch @ Ginza Kuroson on 6Jun2014

Posted on June 6, 2014 by chefquak

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mesclun salad

this truly the best value chirashi-don in singapore.

P.S. subsequently i had dinner at momoya on 6.7.2014. the sashimi selection were slightly not as good as kuroson (with amaebi & mirugai etc) but it was like double the quantity.

i had taken this ginza kuroson chirashi-don quite a few times previously, but had not been there lately. having lunch with my sis today & decided to go kuroson on 6.6.2014. 🙂

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iced green tea (free flow)

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miso soup & pickles

at S$20++, the chirashi-don alone was good value. the set came with free flow iced green tea, mesclun salad (& this had a lot of arugula & not a cheap salad), miso soup & a pickle.

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chirashi-don

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chirashi-don

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chocolate pudding

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chirashi-don

the chirashi-don itself was quite perfect as always. there were like 9 pieces of sashimi over the don. i counted 2 tai (or perhaps 1 tai, 1 hirame – the 2 white fish), 1 maguro, 1 shake (salmon), 1 katsuo (seared bonito), chopped aji (horse mackerel), 1 tako, 1 mirugai (geoduck) & 1 amaebi (sweet prawns), & piles of ikura, & some pickled ginger, sliced zucchini & chopped eggs. the rice itself was well vinegared & very tasty. this 1 of the worthwhile carbo I actually finished.

this would be much better quality & better value c/w the chirashi-don at tonkichi orchard central & the bara chirachi-don set at sun with moon.

lunch was very satisfying after quite long while. will come back soon.

c.h.e.f andy

Simple Nice Dinner @ Beng Thin on 1June2014

Posted on June 2, 2014 by chefquak

orh jian = oyster egg

went back to beng thin for dinner. we only 3pax, so just ordered their signature dishes = oyster egg, crabmeat fishmaw soup & sea cucumber duck. 🙂

was last here for a 10pax dinner on 23.12.2013, was pretty ok too, satisfying.

sea cucumber duck

crabmeat fishmaw soup

orh jian = oyster egg

crabmeat fishmaw soup

#1 the crabmeat fishmaw was a bit low on crabmeat. somehow it was not as tasty as before. 😦

#2 the orh jian (蚝煎) – very crispy oyster egg – was every bit as enjoyable (as always!) so much so i decided to try it at home myself. here’s my own oyster omelette. 🙂

#3 sea cucumber duck was also great. duck meat was soft not sinewy & sea cucumber & soup combination with the duck was quite good. there was a bit of tomatoes & celery. great dish. 🙂

there was a 15% discount for UOB cards. we paid S$77 nett after discount, quite ok for the 3 substantial dishes for 3pax.

c.h.e.f. andy

“Sous Vide” Char Siew

Posted on May 24, 2014 by chefquak

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sous vide char siew

as i mentioned in my recent post on a homecooked 11pax 11-course dinner for RI buddies on 5.5.2014, i always find chinese cooking to be much more challenging than western (re my “worthwhile to do?” philosophy). peking duck for example requires such fine & painstaking preparation as air-blowing the skin to produce a very crispy skin peking duck, and xiaolongbao (小笼包) & 石榴包 are such intricate dumplings c/w ravioli served in modern european fine dining. & while perhaps not quite fine dining, teochew braised duck, chicken rice chicken, 蒜泥白肉, char siew & roast pork are such simple, tasty & very cheap food one can buy anywhere in singapore that it is really challenging to make home-cooking such dishes “worthwhile to do?”. anyhow, i did have quite successful recipes for very cheap & easy to do teochew braised duck & chicken rice chicken, but am unable to make a good crackling belly pork thus far. char siew also was not easy, and i had made quite a few attempts. anyhow finally, i think i have developed a really good “sous vide” char siew recipe, that made for a truly fabulous dish. 🙂

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sous vide char siew

HEl5djPornAp4jd3kII25yuRRixiYUBdPxJxDlzvvQQ,EfS3a586u4LFj6lNISOIWJNDb5tufLuC4m-HovFahTk

sous vide char siew

i scalded the belly pork as usual to remove scum. then i cut into several 3in pieces & placed in a ziploc bag when cooled. i prepared a very good marinade after much scouring through internet recipes plus some adjustments of my own. this method is similar to my very good miso belly pork except that the marinade is an adapted char siew marinade & not miso. like miso belly pork, i let it marinate for 3 full days to infuse the wonderful flavours. then i placed the belly pork fully covered/drenched in a marinade bath in a pre-heated oven at 90degC for 5hrs. 90degC is the optimum temperature (fastest) for conversion of collagen the tough connective tissues to gelatine with excellent texture & flavours. 🙂 this made the char siew especially the fatty parts, totally tender & delicious, & melt-in-the-mouth, such wonderful texture & flavours combined. 🙂 the final step was just to char over a non-stick pan on high heat. i used butter (if you want higher temperatures, use vegetable oil). i then charred the char siew on all sides which took just minutes. that imparted even more intense flavours to the char siew. 🙂 c.h.e.f andy Ingredients:

500g belly pork

char siew sauce

1 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp fish sauce
1 tsp dark sauce
1 tbsp oyster sauce
1 tbsp mirin
1 tbsp cooking sake
2 tbsp brandy (or 2 tbsp shaoxing wine)
3 tbsp ketchup
1 tbsp honey
1 tbsp chopped garlic – 3 to 4 cloves
1 tsp sesame oil
1 tsp ground coriander
pinch of black pepper

Directions:

scald belly pork as usual to remove scum. then cut into several 3in pieces & place in a ziploc bag when cooled. make marinade by combining all the ingredients
marinade for 3 full days to infuse the wonderful flavours. place belly pork fully covered/drenched in a marinade bath in a pre-heated oven at 90degC for 5hrs. 90degC is the optimum temperature (fastest) for conversion of collagen the tough connective tissues to gelatine with excellent texture & flavours. this made the char siew especially the fatty parts, totally tender & delicious, & melt-in-the-mouth, such wonderful texture & flavours combined.
char on a non-stick pan on high heat. use butter or if you want higher temperatures, use vegetable oil. char the char siew on all sides, just few minutes. that will impart even more intense flavours to the char siew.

Excellent 5pax Birthday Dinner @ Sun with Moon Wheelock on 16May2014

Posted on May 19, 2014 by chefquak

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bara chirashi don set

daughter booked 5pax dinner at sun with moon @ wheelock to celebrate the birthday of our domestic help on 16.5.2014. 🙂

i really enjoyed the excellent lunch here on 7.5.2014. this the first time i came for dinner.

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salmon fish miso soup for bara chirashi don set

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bara chirashi don set

the bara chirashi don was very tasty, both the fresh sashimi & rice. i supposed in terms of quality of ingredients, it’s hard to beat the S$20 chirashi don lunch set at ginza kuroson, but that was lunch, this dinner. 🙂

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dobin mushi (teapot soup)

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okonomiyaki

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salmon maki

wife & another daughter did not want a heavy set, so ordered a dobin mushi plus a okonomiyaki & salmon maki to share. 🙂

dobin mushi was ok, competent.

okonomiyaki was very good.

& salmon maki was good.

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tori nabe for my unagi kebayaki set

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unagi kebayaki

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salmon sashimi with my unagi kebayaki set

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my unagi kebayaki set

i ordered a unagi kebayaki set for myself. we shared the food of course. 🙂

it was very good. the chicken nabe came with a ball of collagen, made the soup very tasty.

the unagi kebayaki was fresh eel. i had not taken unagi for a while & this one was good! 🙂

the salmon sashimi side dish here is always good. i always add that to my lunch set for S$3.

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teriyaki cod & tempura set

our domestic help ordered a teriyaki cod & tempura set. i did no try. the cod looked great & the tempura had 3 large prawns, really good set! 🙂

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great tea parfait

we were all greedy & ordered 2 parfaits to share for 5pax. this our favourite dessert here! 🙂

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tofu cheese cake

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tofu cheese cake

we were attracted by the tofu cheese cake so ordered take-out to bring home as birthday cake for our domestic helper. 🙂

after eating this tofu cheese cake, i googled & found an excellent internet recipe & made my own very good tofu cheese cake. that was really fun. 🙂

for me, both lunch & dinner sets here were excellent value for money. the 5pax dinner cost S$150 though we only ordered 3 dinner sets plus some ala carte to share.

c.h.e.f andy

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cook.hangout.eat.fun

Category Archives: Buon Appetito!

Pre-Wimbledon Semi+World Cup France-Germany Dinner@East Coast Lagoon Food Village on 4Jul2014

13pax ala Carte Buffet Dinner @ Peach Garden Miramar on 30Jun2014

Good Value Lunch (with Amex Vouchers) @ Chui Huay Lim on 25Jun2014

Below Par (for the Price) 4pax Dinner @ Restaurant Home on 25Jun2014

So Very Nice 4pax Family Dinner @ Mikuni on 23Jun2014

Superb Sashimi & Unagi don Set @ Sun with Moon Wheelock on 22Jun2014

4pax Family Dinner @ Crystal Jade Lamian Xioalongbao at HollandV on 21Jun2014

Another Fabulous Degustation Dinner @ Jaan on 16Jun2014

Oysters & Chirashi Don @ Chikuwatei on 17Jun2014

Quite Poor Ming Fa (明发) Bakchormee @ HollandV Food Centre on 17Jun2014

Great Lunch @ Boon Tong Kee Balestier on 13Jun2014

Great Kurobuta Kimchi Nabe Dinner @ Shirokiya on 11Jun2014

Good Zi Char Dinner @ Keng Eng Kee (KEK) Restaurant & Teochew Opera on 9Jun2014

Squid-ink Seafood Spaghetti

Hawker Food @ East Coast Lagoon Food Village then Music & Roland Garros Finals on 8.6.2014

Average Lunch Buffet @ Street 50 Bay Hotel on 7June2014

Best Value Chirashi-don Lunch @ Ginza Kuroson on 6Jun2014

Simple Nice Dinner @ Beng Thin on 1June2014

“Sous Vide” Char Siew

Excellent 5pax Birthday Dinner @ Sun with Moon Wheelock on 16May2014

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