Superb Set Lunch @ Concetto on 23Sep2015

chilled capellini

chilled capellini

my RI friends decided to visit national museum & have lunch, so 3 of us met for lunch at concetto @ the cathay on 23.9.2015.^^

another 2 friends joined lunch afterwards, so 5pax. 🙂

concetto set lunch menu S$22.90

concetto set lunch menu S$22.90

last time i had the set lunch here was on 10.2.2015.

prices have gone up from S$20.90 to S$22.90, inflation i guess, but for me it’s still a good deal. 🙂

concetto @ the cathay

concetto @ the cathay

i missed the YMCA (that being nearest to concetto & national museum & cheaper parking rates) carpark entrance, so parked at park mall & walked over to the cathay. concetto looks out onto the road, and is bright & airy. 🙂

chilled capellini

chilled capellini

we all ordered the concetto pasta – an interesting chilled capellini dish.

it was not quite the famous chilled capellini at da luca or gordon grill or of course gunther.

still it was pretty flavourful & unique. & ala carte price is just S$4.90! 🙂

i like the previous version a lot better though – chilled capellini with crab & prawn tartare (tiny morsels) tossed in lobster oil & topped with lobster foam & ikura (salmon roe).

think they should just revert to the previous version, full-stop!

i pushed away most of the mayonnaise. this drier version was heavier, less refine but still tasty. 🙂

kurobuta pork cheeks

kurobuta pork cheeks

i had the kurobuta pork cheeks. 🙂

kurobuta pork cheeks

kurobuta pork cheeks

it had this impressive squid-ink calligraphy, haha! ^^

kurobuta pork cheeks

kurobuta pork cheeks

the kurobuta was super, melt-in-the-mouth. 🙂

& the gnocchi & sauce were very good. this for me was the best dish. ^^

salmon

salmon

we ordered different main courses to share & try.

salmon

salmon

salmon was done beautifully. 🙂

plating & presentation were top class!

salmon

salmon

with cous cous & pickled shallots, and the tasty & pretty crab bisque foam. 🙂

pollo allo

pollo allo

the chicken was good too & nice presentation too. 🙂

pollo allo

pollo allo

taste was pretty good, ok just chicken nothing special out of the ordinary though.

for me, kurobuta was no 1, salmon next & last chicken. 🙂

my good friend on the other hand liked the salmon best.

tiramisu

tiramisu

i only tried the pistachio panna cotta here before.

tiramisu

tiramisu

this time we ordered the tiramisu. again it was so pretty! 🙂

tiramisu

tiramisu

it was kind of deconstructed preparation…

as a dessert, i think it was rather good, and i would order it next time.

as a tiramisu, i think my own tiramisu is much better, both in flavours especially coffee & liquor, & also texture.

pistachio panna cotta

pistachio panna cotta

the pistachio panna cotta was as good as last time.

pistachio panna cotta

pistachio panna cotta

for a change, i will try the tiramisu next time though.

for me the only slight complaint was the poor service. the young guy was unhelpful, “tidak apa” & very poor in his service attitude. towards the end though he warmed up a little & his attitude improved from poor to ok. think he just needed some service training. the lady server was ok. 🙂

the 3-course set lunch was S$22.90, & for me that was great value-for-money! 🙂 there is a supplement of S$3 for the salmon. 🙂

c.h.e.f andy

Curry Miso Lamb

curry miso lamb

curry miso lamb

made an absolutely delicious curry miso lamb yesterday.^^

this my own created recipe. & i experimented it for the first time, 1/2 making up as i go. haha! 🙂

curry miso lamb

curry miso lamb

i had 1 of my best lamb with my son at honey & co london on 22.8.2014. honey & co’s braised lamb shoulder with cous cous was truly superb, a braised dish that was tender & very tasty & not so sinewy.

i had wanted to replicate this, and now i had! ^^

curry miso lamb

curry miso lamb

curry miso lamb

curry miso lamb

i seasoned with sea salt & black pepper & browned 400g of lamb shoulder chops in butter over high heat, then marinated with my own concoction of curry miso in a flat oven dish & kept in chiller for 2 days-

  • 1 heap tbsp curry powder
  • 1 flat tbsp miso
  • 2 tbsp mirin
  • 1 chopped onion softened & lightly browned
  • sprinkle of dry rosemary

i removed from chiller yesterday, added 2 cups+ vege stock (or can use chicken stock) to fully cover the lamb. then i added 1 cut onion, carrot & celery.

i placed in the oven for a total 10hrs = 3hrs at 90degC and 7hrs at 80degC. i read that 90degC is the optimal temperature to turn collagen (tough connective tissues) to gelatine, which made the lamb tender & gave the dish great flavours & umami.^^

curry miso lamb

curry miso lamb

curry miso lamb

curry miso lamb

& it was excellent, tasty & balanced, the vegetables & vegetable stock combining well & making the dish so very flavourful, delicious & not satiating.

this really excellent stuff!

c.h.e.f andy

Interesting Mid-Eastern Lunch @ Honey & Co on 22Aug2014

messe for 2pax

messe for 2pax

had a very interesting mid-eastern lunch at honey & co on 22.8.2014. 🙂

place was recommended by son. i knew little about mid-eastern food and didn’t think its the kind of food i would like much. but i googled about honey & co, and the reviews were all very good.

honey & co wareen street

honey & co wareen street

it’s a small restaurant by a husband & wife team, aarit packer and itamar srulovich. we were greeted by very friendly & cheerful staff. 🙂

messe for 2pax

messe for 2pax

messe for 2pax

messe for 2pax

we enjoyed a very nice GBP15.5 2-course lunch, which came with a messe appetiser dish & a choice of main course. as the main courses on the menu were like GBP14.50, it made sense to do the set. 🙂

the messe for 2pax included warm feta bread, chickpea hummus, beetroot with mint, kalamata olives & another dip with pomegranate & grilled corn on the cob. every item was very nice. i especially liked the beetroot with mint, and the pomegranate dip. the regular chickpea humus was good too. 🙂

roasted sardines

roasted sardines

braised lamb shoulder

braised lamb shoulder

braised lamb shoulder

braised lamb shoulder

we had 2 mains recommended by the server. the roast sardines was excellent, very fresh & flavourful & not liked the fishy stuff i usually associated with sardines, something i would take again. the braised lamb shoulder with cous cous was truly superb, a braised dish that was tender & very tasty & not so sinewy. just purely for comparison of a braised item, i would put this as better than the ox cheek at joel robuchon and about par with the wagyu at hkklondon.

cheese cake

cheese cake

cheese cake

cheese cake

& the GBP6.50 cheesecake with blueberries, almonds & a crispy fill like base was almost out-of-this-world. liked it a lot, so much that i had another order to take away. 🙂

love the food & the service. there was no service charge so we gave a like 15% tip. 🙂

c.h.e.f andy