Fabulous Mother’s Day Lunch @ Majestic Restaurant on 8May2016

Posted on May 8, 2016 by chefquak

crab roe sharksfin soup (limited to one order)

bought wife & family a fab 5pax mother’s day lunch at majestic today on 8.5.2016. ^^

look at the crab roe sharksfin soup (top photo), a perennial favourite of ours at majestic. it was still so good! one of the very best soup i had, so sweet & tasty.

chilli lobster (limited to one order)

majestic does a mother’s day ala carte buffet lunch at S$68pax++ with 15% citibank discounts.

a new item on the ala carte buffet menu was chilli lobster (used to be a NOT great chilli crab). for me, still not great la…

majestic restaurant

we came early at about 12pm. restaurant was full by 1230pm.

majestic restaurant

i did not find a recent post on majestic on my blog. perhaps i did not record.

the one i had was 3 years ago, a world gourmet summit dinner in apr2013.

roast duck, roast chicken, char siew, siew yoke

for today, there was a self service station. the roasts were excellent!

roast duck, roast chicken, char siew, siew yoke

roast duck was especially good. we had a few individual helpings. char siew was good. siew yoke ok not as good as the usual cube roast pork servings in these kind of good restaurants.

lotus bun, pumpkin, braised duck wing

the lotus bun was good. we shared one among 5 of us. i took the braised duck wing. the pumpkin with 肉松was non-descript for me. wife liked it though.

century egg porridge皮蛋粥

i wanted to try the porridge. took a tiny bit. it was good!

braised belly pork卤肉

the braised belly pork was very flavourful. texture was tender though it didn’t look it in the large serving claypot.

har gau虾饺

from the ala carte menu, har gao was average. many dimsum places like crystal jade, imperial treasure better.

crab roe sharksfin soup (limited to one order)

the crab roe sharksfin soup was limited to one serving each. top draw stuff!

chilli lobster (limited to one order)

the chilli lobster was so so for me.

chilli lobster (limited to one order)

chilli gravy was good especially with the bun which was excellent.

lobster meat was not bouncy. did not feel like live or fresh lobster.

the thai lemongrass chilli lobster i had recently at red house was far, far better.

wasabi prawns

wasabi prawns were very good. tops!

did not look it though with too much of the green mayo. but the batter was very good, not like most places where they were thick, hard, tough. prawns were very fresh, water melon a great balance, counterpoint.

chilean seabass

i love chilean seabass, & majestic served very good steamed ones in their regular menu.

here it was non descript.

锅仔牛柳beef ribs korean style – galbi

the galbi style beef ribs were ok.

somehow it works better when served in individual small portion courses.

lobster crab roe broth

the sharksfin soup was limited to one order. there were like 3 or 4 other soups unlimited orders. we ordered 2 lobster crab roe broth to share.

a pretty good soup, though no comparison with the crab roe sharksfin soup.

spinach wolfberry in superior broth

the spinach wolfberry was good. this something i can do easily myself.

oyster mee sua蚝仔面线

wife love the oyster mee sua.

oyster mee sua蚝仔面线

it was very tasty with nice oyster flavour.

this also something quite easy to do myself-basically a good stock, as also for the spinach wolfberry, that’s about it.

salted egg custard buns流沙包

the salted egg custard buns流沙包 was very good here.

salted egg custard buns流沙包

the best!

deepfried durian ice cream

& the deepfried durian ice cream, another perennial favourite here.

deepfried durian ice cream

i ended up eating 1.5 portion.

really enjoyable lunch & family time on mother’s day.

after that, some of us had what my children called food induced coma.

not eating dinner this evening.

really!

c.h.e.f andy

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

Majestic Restaurant
New Majestic Hotel
31-37 Bukit Pasoh Road
Singapore 089845

Contact
Tel: [65] 6511 4718
Fax: [65] 6222 3379
E-mail: restaurant@newmajestichotel.com

Majestic Hours

Tuesdays to Sundays
Closed on MondaysLunch – 11.45am to 2.30pm
Last lunch order – 2.15pm

Dinner – 6pm to 10pm
Last dinner order – 9.45pm

A Pretty OK Wanton Noodle @ Kwong Kee Noodles East Village on 10Mar2016

Posted on March 12, 2016 by chefquak

S$5.50 wanton noodles

5 of us were visiting a friend in a ICU at CGH on 10.3.2016.

after visiting we went to east village where a friend has an apartment, and had dinner at kwong kee noodles at level 1.

kwong kee noodles was supposedly from dakota crescent previously. there was a news report mentioning them here.

kwong kee noodles @ east village

there were still congratulatory bouquets so they guess they were still settling in.

it was 8.30pm & nearing closing time.

the proprietor & his wife were very friendly & courteous. 🙂

kwong kee noodles menu

they had wanton noodles, chicken mushroom noodles 鸡丝面 etc also beef briskets & vegetables.

S$5.50 wanton noodles

the large noodles are S$5.50, small S$4.50. more expensive than food centres & around food court prices.

S$5.50 wanton noodles

wanton noodle was qq, tasty & very spicy (i like!), a lot of char siew & maybe 6 wantons (4 in soup). just a little salty for me.

soup with wanton

char siew was good. wanton was ok. both good not really special.

S$5.50 chicken mushroom noodles 鸡丝面

a friend took the chicken mushroom noodles 鸡丝面. looked good too.

S$4.50 dumpling noodles （small)

another friend took a small dumpling noodles 水饺面. 🙂

fried wanton

we shared some fried wantons.

fried wanton

pretty good too.

beef briskets

the beef briskets were complimentary. they were closing & basically the proprietor/proprietress were nice & very friendly people.

beef briskets

beef briskets were good like many served in chinese restaurants here. so they were good competent briskets.

they were though not the 腩肉 that i really liked with a layer of fat & lining that you get in hong kong.

sauteed mushrooms

we had a complimentary mushrooms too.

sauteed mushrooms

pai seh la…too many complimentary things…

mushrooms were very good. i liked them.

overall, a very competent wanton noodles. price a bit higher but i guess justified by the larger serving of char siew & wanton. and i liked the entire dish especially the spicy chilli though it was a bit on the salty side.

c.h.e.f andy

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

Kwong Kee Noodles

Address:

Good Hokkien Mee just OK Fishball Noddles @ 六十年代 on 21Feb2016

Posted on February 23, 2016 by chefquak

S$4 fishball noodles dry

went with wife to togoyo at CT Hub kallang avenue on 21.2.2016. bought some gardening & household stuff. ^^

came here with my primary school classmate earlier in the week. 🙂

六十年代fishball noodles

this stall 六十年代fishball noodles i never tried before.

the photo really evokes nostalgia la. ^^

chinatown

my friend pointed out the space in front of 大中国 tai chong kok in sago lane.

his dad used to run a stall there selling 烧腊char siew, siew yoke & roast duck. 🙂

六十年代fishball noodles

pricing quite ok i guess, more ex than hawker stalls but equal or cheaper than food courts.

S$4 fishball noodles dry

there was 2 fishballs. 1 meatball, minced pork, some fish cake. you add your own la pok (deep-fried lard cubes), spring onions, birdeye chilli etc.

S$4 fishball noodles dry

a friend on facebook commented it looked so good. unfortunately it was ok but not that good. chilli had no kick (better after adding some birdeye chilli), not enuf vinegar i think. noodles was qq, and la pok was flavourful if slightly soft (lau hong).

it was passable la & at S$4 better than many at food courts.

but for good tecochew fishball noodles, i point my friend to jalan tua kong meepok at 6th avenue.

for good mushroom sauce bakchormee to ming fa @ upper thomson

& for a very good bakchormee that also lacking kick in chilli & vinegar but very tasty, ah hoe mee pok.

S$5 fried hokkien noodles

the S$5 fried hokkien mee was very good, tasty.

S$5 fried hokkien noodles

i think i am going to try making fried hokkien noodles myself la… 🙂

c.h.e.f andy

14pax Homecooked Dinner for my Primary School Classmates on 22Jan2016

Posted on February 4, 2016 by chefquak

the dishes

had a 14pax homecooked dinner for my primary school classmates on 22.1.2016. ^^

as i was saying in another post –

we were not in contact for a long time.

recently another classmate came visiting from the states, so i joined a few of them at din tai fung @ gem after lunch on a saturday as i already had a lunch appointment that day.

one thing led to another & a group came to my place today for a 14pax homecooked dinner. ^^

the dishes

weather was not so co-operative.

it was almost like thunderstorm at the time my guests were arriving.

this was the first time these friends came to my place.

a friend brought excellent cookies & pineapple tarts, so we had a good chat & munch on the cookies & spanish omelette before all arrived. 🙂

#1 pumpkin tofu salad

i had a pumpkin tofu salad. taste was quite ok but presentation this evening was not so good.

#2 spanish omelette

spanish omelette were also tasty. texture for 1 was slightly out & not firmed up enough.

teriyaki cod, char siew, miso belly pork

the char siew was a taste i liked.

#3 char siew

colour & burnt part looked good too.

#3 char siew

but perhaps it was not the sweeter honeyed taste that some preferred. anyway it was mostly finished.

#4 miso belly pork

many in the group didn’t take much belly pork so there was a bit more left.

overall i think i made a bit too much food, especially the pasta & risotto.

#5 teriyaki cod

most friends liked the teriyaki cod.

#5 teriyaki cod

the taste was good but i felt the cod was NOT the best. it was hard to tell as i bought from the same source, usually giant, sheng shiong or ntuc.

i felt that the cod itself was not so great this evening.

#6 lemon chicken (son’s recipe)

son made an excellent lemon chicken on christmas eve home dinner 2014 when he came back for christmas holidays.

so i whatsapped him for the recipe. 🙂

#6 beer can lemon chicken (son’s recipe)

& i used the beer can method to give a more rounded roasting w/o using the rotisserie.

#6 lemon chicken (son’s recipe)

& it came out beautifully. a friend who used to sell chicken rice, commented she liked the chicken most. ^^

#7 prawn linguine in pink sauce

the 2 pastas were very good at the time of cooking. very tasty, as good as it looked.

i did them well in advance, thinking of putting them in the oven at 40degC to keep warm.

#7 prawn linguine in pink sauce

it was a few hours ahead of dinner. i decided to heat them up again.

i felt that the end result was not so good, not the very al dente pasta i liked.

#8 cheese sausage pasta

same thing with the cheese sausage pasta.

#8 cheese sausage pasta

another thing was that i cooked just too much pasta.

#8 & #9 cheese sausage pasta & prawn linguine in pink sauce

should have trusted my first instinct & not added more pasta.

#10 seafood risotto

the seafood risotto was also far from my best.

a friend said she liked the risotto most because it had very intense flavours (i used a prawn heads/shell stock moderated with lots of vegetables).

seafood risotto modelled after monterosso miky

my seafood risotto modeled after monterosso miky – this how it should look like la..

still it was really a very far cry from my best seafood risotto, which should look & taste like this one above!

cut fruits

a friend pre-arranged to bring cut fruits.

excellent almond cookies, peanut cookies & pineapple tarts

another friend really bakes very well (& i suspect cooks very well too).

i really enjoyed his almond & peanut cookies & pineapple tarts.

pineapple tarts

the friend who brought the cut fruits also brought pineapple tarts. both were very good but i liked the first version.

the pineapple fillings were less “in the face” (some commented drier) but excellent pastry. i reasoned that i liked that better as it was more differentiated from commercial pineapple tarts & i liked the pastry bits more than the pineapple fillings.

it was a fun evening. think of it we knew each other for 50yrs+ since 1965 (from primary one)…for me it was from primary 2.

for the food, i was actually not so satisfied.

it was quite below my usual standard, and some dishes might not suit some friends. for my cooking philosophy, it is not important what dishes i cook, but it should be dishes that everybody enjoyed.

so in all my dinners, there were hardly leftover food. this evening some of my planning & food amounts were a bit out, but i will adjust in future dinners.

c.h.e.f andy

Great Value Alacarte Semi-buffet (Beyond Expectations) @ Tim Palace SAFRA Toa Payoh on 24Nov2015

Posted on November 27, 2015 by chefquak

roast duck, char siew & roast pork 烧味

went with my sis & b-i-l to tim palace @ SAFRA toa payoh to try out their ala carte semi-buffet on 24.11.2015.

buffet is S$25.80pax. the added attraction is S$5 discounts for SC aka senior citizens! ^^

there’s a S$2pax for water, tea & peanuts (S$2.50pax or more if other drinks). so it was S$22.80pax for 3 of us, S$27nett each.

tim palace

tim palace is at level 3 of SAFRA toa payoh clubhouse building.

tim palace

it is quite large in capacity, good for functions, tour groups??

roast duck, char siew & roast pork station

i did not have high expectation of the roast meat 烧味 station.

but surprise, surprise, the roast duck was really, really good! very flavourful.

char siu

so was the char siu!. i think this one of the best char siu i had. as good as the excellent chargrilled pork neck at imperial treasure nanbei or (better in fact than) any other good char siu places.

roast duck － second helping

i actually went for a second helping of roast duck, after taking the other food! 🙂

roast duck, char siew & roast pork 烧味

i was quite tempted to taste the salt baked chicken 盐炬鸡, but really no space left. sigh!

appetizer station

nothing much to say about the cold station. prawns was large, plump, fresh & sweet.

scallops & mussels all the frozen type, nothing worth taking.

appetizer station

the scallop tips (front) were quite nice. the prawn & squid salad were ok. sos so la!

cold flower crabs

the flower crabs were soft, mushy “nua nua”, the frozen type, not worth taking also. all these i took very little just to try.

sushi/sashimi station

salmon sashimi was ok. quite sweet. colour didn’t look that great.

i skipped the sushi.

appetizers

so, mainly prawn was good, salmon sashimi ok too, squid/prawn salad & scallop tips passable.

braised small abalone with broccoli

i ordered most of the dishes that they allowed only one order.

small abalone with broccoli was good restaurant standard. no complaints. 🙂

sharksfin soup

sharksfin soup was better than most cheaper sharksfin soup, not very gluey & stock quite tasty.

sea cucumber with yam

sea cucumber with yam was decent competent dish.

scallops & celery in xo sauce

the scallops & celery in xo sauce was pretty good.

crayfish

crayfish was poor!

crayfish

meat has no taste. this dish (thumbs down)!

char siew pao

we did not order the char siew pao, but somehow it was marked on the order sheet, the marking very different from our order markings, think some previous customers marked on it.

anyway no big deal, so we took it. the char siu pao were good!

steamed seabass with sambal sauce

i read that the deep-fried flower garoupa not so good, so we ordered the steamed seabass with sambal sauce.

steamed seabass with sambal sauce

seabass not such a great fish. but this preparation quite ok…so again a competent dish. maybe i will try the garoupa next time. don’t mind coming back again. 🙂

honey ribs

the honey ribs were ordinary. as good as any zi char stall i suppose. not my favourite.

honey ribs

cannot really criticise thsi dish, but the char siu was many times better than this.

drunken prawns

surprisingly also the drunken prawns was very good. must be a very good quality shaoxing wine 绍兴酒.

braised lamb pot

the braised lamb pot was competent dish, but no more.

lamb still retain the gamey taste, and not specially flavourful.

braised lamb pot

i would say it’s a robust dish like a beef stew, so unless the herbs & preparation is special (like say at majestic), it’s not a dish i am particularly fond of.

dessert station

dessert station the usual fare, with fruits, custard puffs & red bean pan cake etc.

sea coconut & longans

i took the sea coconut…quite refreshing.

lotus seed red beans dessert

and a bit of the lotus seed red beans dessert. pretty ok.

the food quality & cooking were pretty ok, not that much different from (i would say better actually) say peach garden miramar’s ala carte buffet, and certainly better than the ala carte buffet at ban heng orchard central.

the outstanding dishes for me here were the roast duck, char siu(tops), drunken prawns, abalone.

the sea cucumber & scallops were pretty good.

c.h.e.f andy

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

Tim Palace

Address :	293 Lorong 6 Toa Payoh #03-01 Safra Club Singapore 319387
Hotline :	6253 5515 (Reservation is needed on Saturday and Sunday)
Fax :	6253 0266
Email :	timpalace@gimtim.com.sg

OPENING HOURS:

Mon – Fri: 11:30 – 14:00; 18:00 – 22:00

Sat, Sun & PH: 11:00 – 14:30; 18:00 – 22:00

Easy Char Siew (Encore)

Posted on September 23, 2015 by chefquak

char siew

did another char siew this morning. ^^

same recipe as what i used previously here.

char siew

this is a really easy recipe as there is no basting needed, meaning there is no need to take the pork in & out & turning over & basting with sauce repeatedly!

char siew

pork collar this time less fatty. i added 1/2tsp red colouring & reduced dark sauce to 1/2tbsp.

char siew

flavour was excellent! ^^

char siew

i also reduced oven time from 20mins to 18mins as the collar was slightly thinner.

char siew

anyhow it looks like 18mins would be sufficient for charring the outside, cooking the inside, and keeping it moist & tender. 🙂

char siew

easy recipe, no turning over & basting required, just 18mins in oven.

& very tasty & tender & moist!

c.h.e.f. andy

17 Courses of Delectable Dishes for 16pax Homecooked Dinner on 26Aug2015

Posted on August 31, 2015 by chefquak

#1 friend’s 清汤牛腩 – my favourite

had an exciting evening with my friends on 26.8.2015. ^^

we had 16pax. i planned to serve asian dishes mainly buffet style, and a pasta, beef & lamb dish during the course of dinner. 🙂

a friend brought 清汤牛腩. it was my favourite for the evening. i had a good beef brisket noodles at imperial treasure nanbei few days back on 23.8.2015, one of the few authentic ones. still, that was a bit more beefy. i personally prefer this 清汤牛腩 style. sometimes homecook is the best! ^^

#2 wife’s quinoa pumpkin tofu salad – i think everyone’s favourite

my wife could not join dinner this evening. she organised the quinoa pumpkin tofu salad for me & i mixed in the rockets when serving (so that rockets would not be soggy).

everyone loved the salad. 🙂

#3 spanish omelette

i did the spanish omelette. did not do this a the longest time & recently revived it when i served a 10-course vegetarian dinner for 8px for my niece’s birthday.

this was a very popular dish among my diners.

#4 char siew

i recently tried out a new preparation for cooking char siew & maybe found the right combination to reproduce easily very flavourful & tender, moist char siew. it is also easy to do, just put on a rack in a preheated oven for 20mins.

& it worked well, very tasty, well charred & quite tender inside. the ends were a bit harder than what i made previously because this roll of pork collar was thinner, so need to adjust the timing say to 18mins for thinner rolls.

ter kar tan 猪脚冻 on 26.8.2015

i made a ter kar tan 猪脚冻. it was a bit meaty & not as good as my head cheese terrine 猪头冻, but still a friend who cooked this also thought it was very good. i think the taste was good, i should use either pig’s head meat or a lot of pig skin as pig’s trotter is overly meaty & heavy. & the colour should be lighter, means less or no dark sauce.

#6 chicken ballotine

my chicken ballotine was very good today, mostly finished.

#7 thai yellow curry grilled chicken thighs

the thai yellow curry grilled chicken thighs were very good.

#7 thai yellow curry grilled chicken thighs

there was a bit left though, and when i heat the curry sauce in the microwave & applied it to the cold chicken the next day, for me it was still excellent. 🙂

#8 thai red curry sotong

the thai red curry sotong (squid) was just as lovely. it’s a bit spicier & very good with the rice.

#9 vietnamese chargrilled pork collar

i did the vietnamese chargrilled pork collar w/o the beehoon, just with pickled carrots & peanuts. i tried it after cooking. it was very tasty. i think it was just as good as what i had at mrs pho recently. i think better actually.

but for this evening, maybe there were too much food, it was only 1/2 taken.

#10 braised belly pork & bits of some unused trotter

the braised belly pork was done together with the ter kar tan 猪脚冻, so it was just a small portion. the braise was very tasty & the texture of the belly pork was superb by those who take belly pork. nothing was left.

#1 friend’s 清汤牛腩 – my favourite

the friend made 3kg of beef briskets & tendons. so i guess we did have a lot of food.

i am not complaining as this was my favourite dish for the evening. 🙂

#1 friend’s 清汤牛腩 – my favourite

there was some leftover, so i ate the next day & enjoyed it just as much.

#11 helper’s spicy black bean sauce pork ribs

my helper made the spicy black beans pork ribs. it was braised in the pan & then steamed in the steam oven. very tender & great sauce & flavours. it’s one of my perennial favourites. not much left afterwards.

#12 helper’s sambal sauce seabass – this everyone’s favourite

my helper’s sambal sauce seabass was another dish that was everyone’s favourite. seabass has a slight mud taste & powdery texture, but with the sambal sauce, it was a very appetizing dish. nothing left.

#13 helper’s blanched hk kailan with shitake

likewise the blanched hk kailan with shitake.

#14 tagliata di manzo – 150D grain-fed black angus ribeye from QB Food

it was time for the pasta, beef & lamb dishes. my friends were all very full so we decided to forgo the pink sauce prawn pasta dish.

#14 tagliata di manzo – 150D grain-fed black angus ribeye from QB Food

my tagliata was just simply fabulous. it was sooooo much better than the ones we had the other evening at the zafferano wine dinner, and haha i will say it again!^^ all my friends at zafferano were here this evening anyway. 🙂

#15 pistachio crusted rack of lamb – those who eat lamb all liked this

& the pistachio crusted rack of lamb. everyone just loved it! those who eat lamb anyway.

#15 pistachio crusted rack of lamb – those who eat lamb all liked this

actually we had the lamb at foc the next, and that lamb was a bit more tender than mine, but my lamb was a lot tastier. 🙂 also my pistachio crust was so good it was all mobbed up!

#16 queenie brought chempedak cake from singapore swimming club - very nice

#16 another friend brought chempedak cake from singapore swimming club – very nice

another friend brought a chempedak cake. i like the intense chempedak flavour. it’s a cake i like but won’t take often.

#17 my own banoffee (banana toffee) cake – cake is nice but this time whipping cream was too cold so cream part was a failure

the banoffee (banana toffee) cake was a bit of a failure. the whipping cream was frozen & i heat it up just so lightly, a cardinal sin of laziness. should have just waited for it to get back to room temperature. it did not whipped well & caked up when set.

fortunately the cake itself was quite excellent & many friends liked it. it is indeed a very good combination of texture & taste, banana & toffee. i used very small amount of caramel so it was not too sweet.

it was a very fun get-together. i enjoyed doing all the dishes, and i also had my friend’s excellent beef briskets & my helper’s nice dishes.

c.h.e.f andy

Very Nice Char Siew

Posted on August 21, 2015 by chefquak

char siew

i have tried char siew quite a few times using different meats & preparations.

a rather successful one was almost 2 years ago using belly pork & an oven “sous vide” method at 60degC or 70degC over 4 hrs to 6hrs.

i used the same method for miso belly pork which was very nice too.

i must say while the miso belly pork is a more unique dish the char siew by the “sous vide” method is a bit more tedious & not really my favourite as one can buy cheap & good char siew easily outside.

char siew

but now i think now i found the right combination to reproduce easily very flavourful & tender, moist char siew, like so. a really excellent char siew. ^^

char siew

the key is (a) the marinade to produce the right flavour (b) the meat & preparation to produce a tasty, tender, moist meat.

so far, pork collar is the best choice. i tried the same recipe on belly pork but it was quite inferior by comparison.

char siew

i marinated the meat for 3 days in the chiller.

then i placed the meat on a rack in a preheated 250degC oven for 20mins.

it was as easy as that.

char siew

& the result was just perfect!

c.h.e.f andy

Ingredients:

400g pork collar (i used frozen pork collar from sheng shiong S$9.90/kg)

marinade

2 tbsp dark sauce
3 tbsp light soy sauce
1 tbsp oyster sauce
1 tbsp heap sugar
1 cinnamon bark
2 star anise
2 cloves chopped garlic
2 chopped shallots

Directions:

scald the pork collar & wash under slow running water to remove scum.
add the marinade & transfer to a ziploc bag & place in the chiller for 2 or 3 days.
bring out of chiller for 1/2 to bring to room temperature.
place on a rack over a aluminium foil lined tray & place in a preheated 250degC oven for 20mins.

Good Authentic Thai Food @ Thai Gold Food on 10Jul2015

Posted on July 14, 2015 by chefquak

S$10 tomyam goong

had a good 2pax thai dinner with wife at thai gold food on 10.7.2015.

wife wanted to see some furniture at “space” located at bencoolen street. we thought might as well eat in the area.

Thai Gold Food

place was small with indoor & outdoor sitting. we were seated 7pm. soon a queue formed.

S$1.50 calamansi

calamansi was sour & not too sweet, S$1.50 a glass so quite ok. i refer the more intense lemon but this was quite refreshing.

S$10 tomyam goong

we ordered the S$10 tomyam goong (prawns). there were 6 fresh prawns, soup was good. of course not to be compared with patara which cost 2.5x more, but i liked this better than the clear tomyam talay at nakhon @ amk which i had recently.

S$10 red curry chicken

we liked the S$10 red curry chicken. this the “dry” curry version. it was very flavourful & the chicken was tender.

S$10 red curry chicken

i prefer though the soupy green curry at nakhon @ amk where i finished up all the curries.^^

S$10 bbq pork

the S$10 bbq pork was a recommended dish. it was good.

S$10 bbq pork

i am thinking whether i can come up with a version of this. my char siew & roast pork were not great, maybe i should try a different method of doing pork collar.

S$10 bbq pork

the total bill came to S$34. the dishes were slightly more expensive than nakhon @ amk. they were more satisfying for me though, it really depend on whether the dish preference & what we ordered. e.g. i prefer the red tomyam to the clear version. 🙂

c.h.e.f andy

Expensive Below-par Food @ Lei Gardens Times Square on 5Apr2015

Posted on April 12, 2015 by chefquak

venus clams with sweet peas

had expensive below par lunch today at lei gardens @ times square on 5.4.2015.

this was so different from the excellent lunch i had at 2 michelin star lei gardens at tsai yee street洗衣街 ‎mongkok outlet in 2013.

they had 2 seating & we booked 11.30am. we went to have a short walk at the mid-level escalators & stanley street & decided to eat some small portion of roast goose at yat lok.

so maybe we were a bit full & not great appetite.

lei gardens times square

service was quite polite actually. these days service pretty ok though they were always busy to have much time with you.

lie tong 鸡骨草例汤

we had a lie tong 鸡骨草例汤. HK$148 for 1pot, maybe should have the 1/2pot HK$98.

it was ok i guess, but these days, my helper made such great soup on the slow cooker at home. also my memory of 鸡骨草例汤 at imperial treasure nanbei was that it was such a tasty soup this one really paled in comparison.

chicken feet in abalone sauce

we ordered the hicken feet braised in abalone sauce HK$42. wife & son preferred the usual dimsum deep-fried chicken feet which we found out was just hk$32. 🙂

my son said he did not realise how nice the dimsum at timhowan were until compared with the much poorer ones here. in fact i think all of crystal jade, imperial treasure, tunglok & canton paradise are better.

radish pastry

the radish pastry was ok.

char siew fun cheong

the char siew fun cheong was poor. skin was very doughy & tough.

noodles in lobster broth

we took the recommendations which had the venus clams with sweet beans (top photo) & the noodles in lobster broth combination for HK$298.

the venus clams was the only dish that was good. the lobster broth noodles was tasteless, really a surprise for me. somehow the food did not agree with us.

c.h.e.f andy

Shiok Home Lunch for 9pax Friends on 9Mar2015

Posted on March 11, 2015 by chefquak

poached chicken 白斩鸡

did an interesting & fun 9pax lunch for my RI friends on 9.3.2015. ^^

this time i did –

“hong lim FC curry chicken noodles”

chilli crab angel hair w/o crab

crabless beehoon (with prawns & large oysters)

a char siew pork neck & curry miso belly pork (both first try)

achar

a friend brought very nice appetising achar made by his m-i-l.

crabless beehoon (with prawns & oysters)

i started the 2 dishes – crabless beehoon & chilli crab angel hair pasta when all my friends arrived at 1pm+.

all the ingredients were ready, so i just fried chopped shallots, garlic, chilli padi & sliced ginger to get a fragrant aroma then added & fried the beehoon which were softened in water. i then added the intense prawn stock & prawns (with shell) & the chinese cabbage & reduced under high fire. i added oyster sauce & corn flour & when almost done, i added the large oysters & some cooked prawns (shelled) which i had earlier fried in butter. voila!^^

it was delicious! the beehoon was well infused with very intense shellfish stock. prawns & oysters were plump & tasty. 🙂

chilli crab angel hair pasta w/o crab

chilli crab angel hair pasta was the easiest to do. i had earlier browned some garlic cloves in olive oil, & so emptied these to the pan. then i added the prepared chilli crab sauce & brought to boil (i was distracted & forgot to add an egg which is standard for chilli crab). then i added the angel hair & same pre butter-fried prawns, off the fire & tossed. then topped with fresh basil front he garden. that’s all to it!^^

the angel hair was great in soaking up the chilli crab sauce. my friends liked this dish a lot. 🙂

poached chicken3 白斩鸡

for the “hong lim FC curry chicken noodles”, this had to be served last. first its stronger taste would mask the other 2 dishes. second, it has to be served hot in individual bowls – would be completely cold after all the group photos etc.

1 of the key ingredient was the poached chicken 白斩鸡. & my was really good, among the best.^^

noodles, fishcake,bean sprouts

curry for curry chicken noodles

the curry was more difficult, but on this second try, i think it was quite close to the real thing.

curry chicken noodles

i am benchmarking hong lim FC ah heng curry chicken noodles. i have to say between the 2, i will still go for ah heng’s, but mine was pretty close la… 🙂

my close friend’s brother just started a prawn noodle stall Why Eat Har last week, and some of us had already tried it.

i was sharing that it was such a difficult thing to achieve. for me, his prawn noodles was already among the best & serving in large volume to paying customers, but for me, i can get close to ah heng’s curry chicken noodles but still not quite!

char siew

char siew was 1st time using pork neck & also this preparation. char siew sauce was the same recipe i used previously but i used slow cooking for 8 hrs in the oven (at 90degC for 2 hrs and 80degC for 6hrs), then browned slightly at 250degC for 15mins.

char siew was flavourful & tender. many friends did like the taste, but i felt it was not anywhere near a good quality char siew, so i may experiment a bit more with it.

curry miso belly pork

the curry miso belly pork was edible but many things were wrong with it. i made a very good curry miso lamb recently (1st try) so had wanted to experiment on belly pork. for the lamb i added stock & vegetables & the result was like a casserole, very flavourful, tender & moist. but i decided to do this using just the dry rub. the result was the skin was tough not quite edible & the curry taste was too strong & not moderated with the miso & vegetable sweetness. got to rework this.

tofu cheese cake

strawberries

we had my usual tofu cheese cake which everyone loved, and strawberries brought by our usual strawberry supplier.

c.h.e.f andy

8pax Ala Carte Lohei Dinner @ Mitzo Grand Park Orchard on 3Mar2015

Posted on March 8, 2015 by chefquak

lohei

a friend organised a lohei dinner at mitzo, grand park orchard on 3.3.2015. 🙂

don’t think i have even stepped into this hotel since crown prince hotel was sold to the park hotel group in 2005. vaguely remember there was some ala carte buffet at long jiang restaurant here back then eons ago.

coming out of the lift on level 4, the entrance was a bit hidden, right at the end of the hall way.

place looked atas, with a japanese sounding name mitzo, and the waiting staff including at the welcome counter were mostly foreigners, took us a while to spot a singaporean. we were served by a spanish guy. must say the service was very polite & cheerful, and the staff were well trained.

it was only later that i read that mitzo was supposedly inspired by “mat zoe” 蜜枣 – honey dates used in cantonese double boiled soup & lie tong 例汤。whatever.^^

mitzo is also apparently positioned as an inventive cocktail bar, serving some cocktails from a teapot. 🙂

lohei

there were 8 of us.

we ordered a medium lohei. the lady who served us was i think filipino, and she managed to say a few auspicious messages like 年年有鱼(余),大吉大利etc, and some of them in english translations. an interesting diversion was when she used a cocktail tumbler to mix the sweet sauce & oil, not that it would make any difference to the lohei.

c/w with the lohei at char, the amount of salmon here was a lot more, i think 2x more. in terms of taste though, char’s lohei was a lot tastier & more refreshing, and altogether more enjoyable.

here because the end result was a bit too dry, we asked for more sauce & lady came & added what looked like the char siew sauce instead of the sweet sauce & oil, the result was not the taste we associated with lohei.

roast pork

the roast pork was pretty good. i think better than char but it was quite standard & not a stand-out c/w any of tunglok, imperial treasure, crystal jade, canton paradise.

char siew

the char siew was good. it was featured in their website also i guess one of the signature dishes? it was tender moist flavourful, slightly different from the one at char, not necessarily better. for me though, i prefer this (char’s was unique but sauce slightly on the sweet side).

soft shell crab in curry floss

the spanish waiter recommended the soft shell crab in curry floss. in fact we ordered all his recommended dishes.^^

the curry soft shell crab was good, competent. i liked the curry flavour. though it was kind of unrelated, i just happened to be making a curry miso lamb that evening (which turned out to be fabulous) in the oven at 90degC then 80degC for 10hours while i was dining.

roast duck

the roast duck with truffle was good too, a good restaurant standard. my favourite roast duck though is the one at canton paradise.

eggplant

eggplant was good, competent.

scallop, crabmeat, egg white fried rice

the scallop, crabmeat, egg white fried rice though was a bit below par, not enough wok hae. this a dish that i always order in imperial treasure nanbei or imperial treasure teochew at taka, so it was rather poor by comparison.

the food was actually quite authentic & better than my first impression that we were walking into an expensive atas place to eat so-so chinese food. i guess we were quite full & ordered very few dishes for 8pax, so we only paid S$30pax for the dinner.

but from what i saw of the set dinner & ala carte prices e.g. 1/2 roast duck was S$36 c/w S$26 at canton paradise, this place is certainly quite a bit more expensive. again it’s not comparing apple with apple as the ambience & location are quite different. 🙂

this not my usual kind of place for cantonese food but i don’t rule out completely also. not coming back anytime soon la…

c.h.e.f andy

Very Good CNY Set Lunch @ Char on 3Mar2015

Posted on March 5, 2015 by chefquak

char siew

a fundonate partner organised a lohei lunch at char on 3.3.2015.^^

we had the S$38pax CNY set. it was good!

lohei

some staff were foreigners, so we waited for a chinese speaking local staff to do the lohei.

a friend asked the staff to drizzle just 1/2 the sweet sauce & 1/2 the oil. results was good.

the amount of salmon was puny, unlike what we had for dinner at mitzo. otherwise, i enjoyed this lohei.^^

fishmaw soup

the fish maw & scallop soup was excellent! very very tasty, 1 of the best i had!

3 roasts = char siew, roast pork, roast duck

the char siew with the special sauce (though a bit sweet) was best! 🙂

the roast pork was tasty, not quite crackling skin but skin was edible. the duck was forgettable, very below par.

steamed garoupa

steamed garoupa was good, fresh, sauce was excellent with a tinge of sesame oil, fish was fresh, sweet & firm.^^

brocoli with crab meat

broccoli with crabmeat was good if quite standard fare.

prawn fried rice

prawn fried rice was simple but good too!

red bean paste with lotus seeds

red bean paste with lotus seed was just ok. no 陈皮 old orange peel & lotus seed not cooked enough.

my friends said this place packed in the evening & he usually just call up & order the char siew.^^

c.h.e.f andy

3 Days of Non-stop Feasting @ Chinese New Year 2015 (19-21Feb2015)

Posted on February 24, 2015 by chefquak

buddha jump over the wall

as usual, had a very foodful chinese new year. it was just a spate of continuous eating, meals & snacks. no matter if i skipped meals, as there were continuous munching of snacks to fill the gaps, so weight watching was quite simply a lost cause.

my happy chinese new year blessings to all my friends here

CNY Eve

for CNY eve we had our reunion dinner at my elder brother’s place.

this year i made buddha-jump-over-the-wall(BJOTW), 1/2spicy duck 盐水鸭 & using the same marinade, a spicy belly pork.

buddha jump over the wall ingredients

buddha jump over the wall

the BJOTW was a poor man’s version. apart from a can of 6 pieces small abalones & good thick mushrooms, the other ingredients were cheap (limpets) and mostly unhealthy (pig trotter, pig ear, belly pork, pig head meat).

look was impressive (top photo), taste was pretty good. but i was not overly impressed with my own effort. there was too much food anyway & didn’t really need more unhealthy food – will skip this next CNY.

pencai 盆菜

my sis brought the pencai 盆菜. flavours was very good, and the small abalones much better than what i had. this year pencai 盆菜very expensive everywhere. hers was a very much cheaper one only S$138 for 6pax.

hoe see fat choy 蚝屎发菜（好事发财）

hoe see fat choy 蚝屎发菜（好事发财)

my wife made her usual hoe see fat choy 蚝屎发菜（好事发财), and as usual very nice, though the ones she made later on Day2 was even better, tastier.

braised pig stomach

my s-i-l’s mom made the braised pig stomach (though nowadays the person actually making it was the helper). this a dish i always like.

char siew & roast pork

my niece made very good char siew & roast pork. she made a small business of it, selling 20kg of the tasty dish over the internet.

spicy duck 盐水鸭

my spicy duck 盐水鸭 was good too. it was a lighter version c/w my teochew braised duck. in fact this dish is served as appetiser in shanghai, nanjing, jiangnan locality.

spicy belly pork

i used the same spice to do the spicy belly pork. this was ok but not great. i did this again on Day2 & that was miles better!^^

mantis prawn

chilli mantis prawn & pomfret

my brother bought very large mantis prawns, 5 pieces for S$35. i did not take any. it wasn’t too great also but certainly looked nice. the chilli though was very good, better than most chilli crabs. 🙂

pomfret

pomfret was usual. i did not try it either, just too much food.

tofu with leeks

tofu with leek, and broccoli

i liked all the vege.

my brother tried eating out for 3 years for CNY eve. we went to joyden (previously called west coast seafood). food was quite good & not too expensive, however with say 13pax or more, it still came to >S$600. all of us cook, so it was so much more fun just to cook some dishes & bring over. i definitely preferred our own homecooked CNY eve dinner. ^^

CNY Day 1

breakfast spread

again our family tradition, on CNY Day 1, we went over to my brother’s place for breakfast.

hoe see fat choy 蚝屎发菜（好事发财）

tanhoon fungus

many of the dishes were leftover from CNY eve dinner.

rabbit fish & salmon sashimi

there were too much food on CNY eve, so we kept the prawns for Day1 breakfast, and added the rabbit fish知县鱼 (very sweet) & the salmon sashimi my wife bought (very good too!).

tofu & leeks

leftovers from last evening!

mushrooms & greens

& some more vegetables. ^^

CNY Day 2

poached chicken 白斩鸡

CNY Day2 is my wife’s tradition. she would invite her brothers & sister & their families (nephews & grand nephews & grand niece).

this year we took a family photo. & there are 26pax + our dog rusty. ^^

poached chicken 白斩鸡

i made my usual poached chicken 白斩鸡. this time it was especially good – colour, texture, sweetness! everyone just loved this dish.^^

miso pork

the miso pork was very good too. this the longest i put in the oven, 8hrs at 90degC/85degC.^^ the result was excellent. the miso marinade gave it excellent flavours & the slow low-temperature braise an excellent texture. i have learned that 90degC is the optimum temperature to convert collagen to tasty gelatine & texture, so this made the miso pork texture & bite really good!

flavoured pork 风味五花肉

i did the same for the flavoured pork 风味五花肉, and this was excellent too, with a different sichuan spice marinade.

tanhoon fungus

we had the same tanhoon fungus.

chilli pork ribs

& my helper’s chilli pork ribs.

deepfried chicken wings

some chicken wigs for the young ones.

funghi linguine

for my niece & her husband who are vegetarians, i made a funghi linguine. also for my wife’s sister. it was really good. they all loved it, and there was a bit of leftovers for the nephews.

tofu cheese cake

tiramisu

after that it was my tofu cheese cake & tiramisu, which disappeared in no time.

ice jelly with longans, palm fruits

i especially liked the ice jelly with longans, palm fruits my wife’s sil made. she always bring that for our gatherings. very refreshing. i had several helpings.

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

Protected: RI G20 Monthly Dinner by Chak Joo @ Ban Heng Harbourfront Centre on 24Nov2014

Posted on December 1, 2014 by chefquak

RI Friends Monthly Dinner @ Ban Heng Harbourfront Centre on 24Nov2014

Posted on November 30, 2014 by chefquak

#10 roast pork

we had our november RI friends dinner @ ban heng harbourfront centre on 24.11.2014. 🙂

this was the smallest turnout, with 7pax.

i had not been to this ban heng outlet before. the last time G20 had a 23pax dinner at ban heng at orchard central, food was quite average.

this outlet has 2 ala carte buffet menu – one pried at S$28.80++ here, and the other at S$21.80++. from what i can see the main difference is for the S$28.80 menu you get to pick 1 order of abalones, crabs, froglegs, live prawns, scallops.

we took the S$28.80++ menu.

#1 roast duck

#1 roast duck was passable. but c/w the beautiful roast duck at both canton paradise star vista & canton paradise J-cube or with the noodles restaurant at centrepoint, this would be a poor & distant cousin.

#2 drunken chicken

#2 drunken chicken was average, competent.

#3 garlic spinach

#4 sambal kang kong

liked the vegetables, #3 garlic spinach & #4 sambal kang kong.

#5 deep-fried soon hock

#5 deep-fried soon hock was a standard dish. it was done well. 🙂

#6 beef with bitter gourd black bean sauce

#6 beef with bitter gourd black bean sauce was also done well. i personally would prefer fish head & meat with black bean bitter gourd, but this was as good as any good zi char, say kok sen at keong saik street or hong kong street chun kee at commonwealth crescent or ah orh at bukit merah.

#7 steamed prawns

#7 steamed prawns was good like any good seafood restaurant.

#8 sharks fin soup

surprisingly the #8 sharks fin soup though gluey like any served at weddings in yesteryears, had very tasty stock. this was much better than ban heng orchard central.

#9 frog legs with ginger & spring onions

#9 frog legs with ginger & spring onions was also a competent dish. not so different from what my family used to have often at ah yat turf city (now grandstand) long in the past.

#10 roast pork

#10 roast pork. all my friends liked this a lot. we had a second order. meat looked great, was tender & tasty & skin was crisp. i would say presentation & taste-wise still a tad below what i had recently at tunglok central.

#11 fried prawns with celery

#11 fried prawns with celery – passable, nothing interesting.

#12 char siew

#12 char siew looked & tasted great. of the 2 dishes, my friends liked the roast pork better.

#13 abalones with mushrooms & spinach

#13 abalones with mushrooms & spinach. this was quite good dish also. the braising sauce though was nothing like the really good brown sauce served in good cantonese restaurants say ah yat abalones forum restaurant for abalone dishes (also goose web & spiky sea cucumber dishes) or at chao yue xuan.

#14 deep-fried tilapia in thai sauce

#14 deep-fried tilapia in thai sauce was an interesting dish. it had less meat so some friends preferred the soon hock dish to this.

#15 scallops in yam nest

#15 scallops in yam nest. scallops were average & overall this dish was poor, below par, not even comparable with a good yam basket say at ah orh w/o expensive scallops.

#16 chai poh minced pork with steamed bean curd

#16 chai poh minced pork with steamed bean curd, i think this was really poor.

#17 sweet & sour soup

#17 sweet & sour soup. this was a pretty good soup.

#18 pepper crab

#18 pepper crab was quite the usual seafood restaurant standard, for sure better than spices cafe.

pulut hitam

aloe vera & jelly

self service dessert were quite standard. aloe vera with jelly was quite refreshing & pulut hitam the usual.

overall, food here was better than ban heng orchard central but not as good as (service especially) peach gardens miramar (menu had wider spread though at ban heng harbour front). for S$28.80++ pax it was 2/3 the price of spices cafe w/o the lobster. i guess quite an ok deal.

c.h.e.f andy

Good Hong Kong Food @ Canton Paradise Star Vista on 21Sep2014

Posted on September 22, 2014 by chefquak

1/2 roast duck

had an early 5pax family dinner @ canton paradise on 21.9.2014. last time we came was also early dinner on 22.2.2014.

it is first come first serve so we went at 5.45pm to avoid long queue. 🙂

it’s hk food. the hk roast duck looked particularly inviting & we decided to order 1/2duck at S$25. it was very good, genuinely hk standard. can’t say it was better than the roast duck at noodles restaurant @ centrepoint, but i would order this again anytime. 🙂

we ordered another roast 2-combo (烧腊双拼) of roast pork & char siew (did not take photos). it was competent but the char siew was not comparable with the excellent charcoal broiled pork neck & also the char siew at imperial treasure teochew ngee an city.

crispy char siew pao

tastebuds had not changed since our feb2014 visit. my daughter still likes this crispy char siew pao best & i still preferred the crispy char siew pao @ timhowan toa payoh. for me though, both were not of the standard of timhowan @ shamshuipo hk.

canton paradise @ star vista

har gao

har gao was good, the skin tore when i picked up one, but the prawns filling was excellent-fresh, bouncy, sweet. 🙂

charsiew fun cheong

charsiew fun cheong on this occasion was very poor, totally sub-par..the charsiew was not tasty enough & the cheong fun (肠粉) was thick & not smooth. this was the worse dish for me! 😦

we also had a xianglongbao. on this occasion the skin was a bit thick & the soup inside was not as sweet, so a poor second to crystal jade la mian xiaolongbao! 😦

porridge 3-combo=beef, pork live, kidney

porridge 3-combo=beef, pork liver, kidney

plain hk noodles

i did not try the noodles but it looked good & no different from hk standard & the children liked it too.

we ordered the porridge 3-combo=beef, pork liver, kidney. the porridge was excellent – velvety smooth & tasted great. the beef, pork liver, kidney were all great! i could come here just for porridge & roast duck. 🙂

salted egg bun

salted egg buns (流沙包)

daughter thought salted egg buns (流沙包) here was best. it was very good! for me, the 咸蛋流沙包 at imperial treasure teochew at ngee ann city was just as good. 🙂

c.h.e.f andy

Chwee Kueh & Char Siew from Chinatown on 14Sep2014

Posted on September 14, 2014 by chefquak

char siew

wife went marketing at chinatown complex market today on 14.9.2014.

she also bought chwee kueh from our favourite stall bedok chwee kueh (#02-43) & char siew from the stall next to it, mayflower roasted meat specialist. 🙂

chwee kueh

char siew

chwee kueh with chye por

love the chwee kueh here. soft & firm texture & especially the chye por & chilli condiments. my habit is to cut the chwee kueh in 2 (a bitesize mouthful) using a teaspoon, spoon the chye pro & chilli on top & spoon the whole thing in to combine the flavours & texture. 🙂

the char siew was a convenient buy, probably not the best stall there, and often touch & go. today it was fresh, tasty with flavourful fatty bits. other times meat could be a bit dry. it was not comparable with imperial treasure teochew char siew OR charcoal broiled pork collar, and about the standard of a decent neighbourful coffeeshop roast meat stall.

c.h.e.f andy

Very Satisfying Comfort Food @ Four Seasons Chinatown London on 25Aug2014

Posted on September 1, 2014 by chefquak

roast duck (烧鸭)

coming back from cambridge, we decided to go to the regent street nespresso outlet to get some capsules for my friend in singapore. we took the piccadilly line from king’s cross to piccadilly. i bought 50each of the black ristretto (intensity 10 arabica) & the purple arpeggio (intensity 9 arabica) capsules. 🙂

as we were near to four seasons in chinatown, we decided to have another go at roast duck just for the 2 of us. 🙂

son felt that the roast duck at four seasons was better & the sauce was sweeter c/w the roast duck gold mine. i could not tell the difference & i really love the roast duck at both restaurants. really shook! 🙂 price wise there wasn’t much to compare either – £12 at gold mine and £12.50 at four seasons.

roast pork (烧肉) & char siew on rice

as there were only 2 of us & we already had 1/2duck, we decided to have a roast pork (烧肉) & char siew on rice for £7.80. i guessed it would be a smaller portion but this worked out well for us & was cheaper than getting a meat plate for £8.50 + £2.50 for rice.

the roast pork (烧肉) at gold mine was distinctly superior to this.

my last experience with four seasons was in 2011 & as expected the service was brisk & business like bordering on unfriendly or even rudeness i had come to expect in chinese restaurants (or for that matter in any restaurants like this of so many nasi chefs in singapore, & at la botte in stresa where business was so good & they were always full & so busy).

i spoke cantonese with the 40-ish lady server i mistook as from hong kong. she was fast in words & thoughts & forceful. later when she talked about high teacher’s pay in singapore (which i guessed was misinformation) i realised she not likely to be from hong kong & she told me she came to UK from malaysia 22 years ago. anyway she was very nice to us & gave 10% student discount when my son asked. we were not expecting that as my son was dining with me & not his student friends. 🙂

well, for me, gold mine & four seasons are the places i will go back every time i am in london.

c.h.e.f andy

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Tag Archives: char siew

Fabulous Mother’s Day Lunch @ Majestic Restaurant on 8May2016

A Pretty OK Wanton Noodle @ Kwong Kee Noodles East Village on 10Mar2016

Good Hokkien Mee just OK Fishball Noddles @ 六十年代 on 21Feb2016

14pax Homecooked Dinner for my Primary School Classmates on 22Jan2016

Great Value Alacarte Semi-buffet (Beyond Expectations) @ Tim Palace SAFRA Toa Payoh on 24Nov2015

Easy Char Siew (Encore)

17 Courses of Delectable Dishes for 16pax Homecooked Dinner on 26Aug2015

Very Nice Char Siew

Good Authentic Thai Food @ Thai Gold Food on 10Jul2015

Expensive Below-par Food @ Lei Gardens Times Square on 5Apr2015

Shiok Home Lunch for 9pax Friends on 9Mar2015

8pax Ala Carte Lohei Dinner @ Mitzo Grand Park Orchard on 3Mar2015

Very Good CNY Set Lunch @ Char on 3Mar2015

3 Days of Non-stop Feasting @ Chinese New Year 2015 (19-21Feb2015)

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

Protected: RI G20 Monthly Dinner by Chak Joo @ Ban Heng Harbourfront Centre on 24Nov2014

RI Friends Monthly Dinner @ Ban Heng Harbourfront Centre on 24Nov2014

Good Hong Kong Food @ Canton Paradise Star Vista on 21Sep2014

Chwee Kueh & Char Siew from Chinatown on 14Sep2014

Very Satisfying Comfort Food @ Four Seasons Chinatown London on 25Aug2014

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