Tag Archives: maki

Good 1-for-1 S$55 Lunch Buffet @ Furama Riverfront on 23Feb2016

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maki, prawn, tako, salmon sashimi, pickled ginger

maki, prawn, tako, salmon sashimi, pickled ginger

a friend bought lunch today. we were to meet at the square @ furama on 23.2.2016.

silly me did not find out that it was furama riverfront at havelock road (did not come to mind altogether) & just went to furama at eu tong sen street. & i parked at clarke quay for free parking 12pm to 3pm, and walked to furama. that was rather inconvenient since it was the wrong hotel. so i took a cab to furama riverfront & my friend sent me to clarke quay after lunch. 🙂

the square on level 2 serves buffet. there is 1 for 1 promotion at S$55 for lunch, so quite ok, not too pricey.

we were seated near the window area, very pleasant.

salmon sashimi

salmon sashimi

started with the sashimi station. with the current GBS (Group B Streptococcus) scare, there was a sign stating it was “salt water salmon”.

salmon was very good sweet & fresh. i took very few by my usual standard, just 4 slices.

sashimi

sashimi

had the cooked prawns (good), tako, skipped the shell fish.

smoked salmon & cold cuts

smoked salmon & cold cuts

took a pieces of slami & some smoked salmon.

sushi

sushi

& 2 maki – a reverse roll & a spider maki.

root veg confit, asparagus, amerircan prawn salad, sundried tomatoes, salami, turkey salad

root veg confit, asparagus, amerircan prawn salad, sundried tomatoes, salami, turkey salad

i wasn’t expecting much of the buffet actually. there are usually so so.

but these were quite good. turkey salad best, asparagus was good, the prawn salad was good (nothing unusual but good), sundried tomatoes, and the vegetables confit tasty too. i didn’t quite like the beetroot, had much better beetroots before.

tasty curry chicken noodles (not the real curry chicken noodles)

tasty curry chicken noodles (not the real curry chicken noodles)

i had to try the curry chicken noodles. it was nothing like (no comparison with) the ah heng curry chicken noodles of course. i would say basically 2 quite different dishes. still the curry was very tasty as a curry dish.

main courses

main courses

i was surprised by the main courses too. i almost w/o fail avoid main courses in buffet except for semi-buffet as a single alacarte order. i guess buffet main courses have improved!

i tried nearly every dish.

main courses

main courses

pork rib was good, tasty. roast prime rib was competent. fish au gratin was good, but the steamed fish was overdone (both were the same cheap sutchi fish. i am thinking of doing this for my community meals so tried both). oxtail was competent, the braised sauce & vegetables were good. my friend especially liked the deep-fried belly pork. it was just ok for me. there was a mid-eastern lamb preparation i think, very nice too.

pork collar & ham casserole

pork collar & ham casserole

& the pork collar casserole, surprising quite good. meat looked (& felt when cutting) tough & overdone ut it was actually quite tender.

fish au gratin

fish au gratin

as said earlier, fish au gratin was the better preparation.

cheese platter, dried fruits, nuts

cheese platter, dried fruits, nuts

i took the 3 cheese – a brie, a blue & another cheese, some dried apricots, sultanas & walnut.

dessert - water melon, new york cheese cake, jelly shooter

dessert – water melon, new york cheese cake, jelly shooter

not impressed with dessert. anyway not expecting much.

peanut paste (unedible)

peanut paste (unedible)

the peanut paste was unedible & should not be served. need a hong kong chef.

i quite enjoyed this lunch, chat with friend & trying out different food. one of the few times i actually bordered to try out the main courses, usually just took lots of sashimi…lol..

c.h.e.f andy

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Enjoyable Kurobuta Kimchi Nabe @ Shirokiya Cuppage Terrace on 12Oct2014

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kurobuta kimchi nabe - groupon S$22.80nett

kurobuta kimchi nabe – groupon S$22.80nett

had a nice kurobuta kimchi nabe at shirokiya cuppage terrace on 12.10.2014. 🙂

last time i came here was on 11.6.2014.

we had a groupon voucher at S$22.80. the usual price of a nabe (there were 3 choices) was S$38.80++ = S$45.70.

my wife & i love kimchi chigae, so we selected the kurobuta kimchi nabe.

additional order of kurobuta (S$9) for kurobuta kimchi nabe

additional order of kurobuta (S$9) for kurobuta kimchi nabe

we later added an extra order of kurobuta pork at S$9++.

broiled kurobuta S$10.80

broiled kurobuta S$10.80

broiled kurobuta S$10.80

broiled kurobuta S$10.80

we didn’t want carbs, so decided against the bibimbap & the dons like ikura shake don, and ordered the broiled kurobuta. it was like a very tasty chashu that came with a good chashumen. 🙂

kurobuta kimchi nabe - groupon S$22.80nett

kurobuta kimchi nabe – groupon S$22.80nett

the sake were expensive & my wife decided against ordering them. iced water was free.

service was great, and there was a tablet order pad which you could also call for service.

dinner including my groupon voucher was about S$46nett, and we had 3 servings (90g per serving) of kurobuta (2 for the nabe + 1 added).

it was good price. the other items on the menu other than kurobuta though did not excite us. sashimi, maki were expensive c/w what we could get at better restaurants like mikuni & sun with moon wheelock etc. overall, we had better satisfaction at aburiya, though that was more expensive. the kimchi chigae at aburiya was small & actually tastier (of course with very little pork) & we love grilled meats. shirokiya though is not a yakiniku restaurant.

it was pretty ok just for a change.

c.h.e.f andy

Great Kurobuta Kimchi Nabe Dinner @ Shirokiya on 11Jun2014

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kurobuta kimchi nabe

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

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

broiled kurobuta

broiled kurobuta

broiled kurobuta

broiled kurobuta

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

Wonderful Japanese Food @ Mikuni on 31Mar2014

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truffle kampachi

had another wonderful 4pax dinner – great food & company – with my wife & 2 close friends at mikuni on 31.3.2014. 🙂

i ordered the usual “Andy’s kaiseki” items per the mikuni 24.3.2013 blogpost…lol.. with some new additions, namely lobster teppanyaki & teriyaki cod.

#1 we started as usual with the truffle kampachi. this fusion sashimi dish never failed to impress, both presentation and taste, a perfect start to the evening meal.

#2 next up were 2 maki – mikuni maki topped with unagi (eel) & a salmon belly maki. they were ok but not as good as the UN futomaki & the spider maki. i did not take photos.

20130324_195940 20130324_195835

#3 next was the botanebi. as usual we had the excellent sashimi (these were large prawns larger than aka ebi & >4x  size of amaebi) & had the prawn heads deep-fried – you could eat up everything basically, it was that good! 🙂 there were 3 prawns per serving @ S$45, so i asked them to make it 4 prawns @ S$60

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tako sous vide

#4 after that we had the sous vide octopus tempura served with a wasabi mayo which we sprinkled with the red chilli powder. this was again very good, the sous vide meat was tender not tough & totally consistent, and contrasting texture with the lightly battered surface.

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lobster teppanyaki

#5 then we had 2 lobster teppanyaki to share among 4pax. 🙂 the preparation was varied somewhat from the last time – instead of uniyaki i.e. with uni (sea urchin) sauce, it was a melted cheese mayo. this was excellent. the cheese could make it “jelak” = easily satiated, otherwise it was just perfect. i ate up everything! 🙂

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teriyaki cod

#6 we ordered the teriyaki cod as well. this was one place where i took my inspiration for my own teriyaki cod, which by my kindly friends acclaims was almost there but i guess the one here was still somewhat better. 🙂

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kagoshima wagyu sukiyaki konabe

#7 lastly, we had 2 orders of kagoshima wagyu sukiyaki konabe to share among 4pax. the beef looked different, more marbled & slightly thinner. taste-wise it was par excellence, as were the ones previously.

with 50% FAR (feed at raffles) discounts for food & 25% on liquor, the bill for 4pax including a S$50 sake was S$284 nett=S$60pax++ after discounts. and for such an excellent meal. no wonders that we keep going back. 🙂

c.h.e.f andy

Great Brunch Mini Kaiseki @ Keyaki (quick update) on 27Oct2013

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teriyaki cod

teriyaki cod

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(we had a superb S$58 november lunch kaiseki @ kuriya dining on 16.11.2013 & the food was much better than this).

a quick update. last had excellent brunch here on 18.8.2013. everything was good as before. the mini kaiseki brunch was truly good quality & great value. thumbs up! 🙂

kobachi 小钵 - some pickled radish

kobachi 小钵 – some pickled radish

sake

sake

sashimi moriawase

sashimi moriawase

good tempura moriawase

good tempura moriawase

aussie beef teppanyaki

aussie beef teppanyaki

kagoshima pork

kagoshima pork – better than beef!

maki

maki

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kuro goma ice-cream

kuro goma ice-cream

menu items same as before. sashimi (kajiki, sake, maguro) were good quality – sweet & fresh! cahwanmushi was very good – very smooth & tasty! tempura also was among the good ones. the teriyaki cod was the best – good helping & really nice! i must try this at home! 🙂

the teppanyaki beef tenderloin rare was good, but the kagoshima pork was better! 🙂

& we had 3 pieces of maki. nice too.

we asked, & they let us changed to black sesame ice cream, but the macha ice cream was good here too! 🙂

for S$60++pax, it was really very good value for the quality of food. 🙂

c.h.e.f andy

Excellent Kaiseki Lunch @ Keyaki on 18Aug2013

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teriyaki cod

teriyaki cod

see also keyaki update on 27.10.2013.

pan pacific hotel had undergone a period of retrofitting last year.  we used to head for kaiseki at keyaki especially during year end where the menu items were more attractive (with lobster, Jap wagyu etc). i had not been back to keyaki since end 2011. the only other time i visited pan pacific was for the buffet lunch at the edge, though at S$58pax i did not find it a compelling offering even with 1 free for 3 paying.

recently i noticed that keyaki has a S$60 8-course weekend kaiseki brunch (we had tried the brunch there a while back but didn’t find reasons to return). this time i also had added incentives to redeem some accumulated points which would expire Jan 2014, it was an excellent lunch (or brunch?) – don’t quite see how was it brunch? 🙂

sashimi moriawase

sashimi moriawase

we had a otoshi starter – a small simmered pickled fish dish. next was mixed sashimi comprising salmon, hamachi & akamai (lean toro). it was good. 🙂

chawanmushi

chawanmushi

the chawanmushi was good too – very smooth & tasty for a ordinary chawanmushi though many places like (say) hokkaido sushi serves one with ikura which is much sweeter.

20130818_140929 20130818_140915

the tempura came with 1 prawn, 1 fish & 2 vegetable items. it was a good tempura, the batter was light, fluffy & crisp. 🙂

the teriyaki cod (top photo) was best! i don’t like sweet teriyaki sauce much but this was lightly flavoured which enhanced the very flavourful cod.  excellent dish! 🙂

beef teppnyaki

beef teppnyaki

the beef teppanyaki was good too. on this day though the service, usually impeccable, left much to be desired. the kitchen had somehow missed our order (or misplaced the beef? haha) & they served it to 1 of us while the rest (4pax) waited good part of 1/2 hr before we were served the dish.  we had all ordered medium rare but it came all effectively well done. still surprise, surprise the USA sirloin was tender and tasty, not superb but quite ok really. 🙂

maki

maki

maki was quite ok too,

the set came with macha ice cream (& it was good here NOt the cheap sweet variety).  i asked for 2 kurogoma (black sesame) ice-cream & they served to us. that was really good 🙂

the food items were of good quality & standard, & good value for S$60++. will probably go back again. 🙂

c.h.e.f andy

Japanese Dinner @ Mikuni at Fairmont Hotel on 24Mar2013

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truffle kampachi sashimi

Note – see also update = FAR Card 50% for up to 5pax. 🙂

I go to Mikuni a lot as my wife & I really enjoy the food there, and with Feed@Raffles discounts (50% discount for 2pax), that is the best value eat we can get anywhere. 🙂

We always order ala carte so we pick only dishes we like and also it is much better value than ordering the Seasons Menu or the Grand Tour Tasting Menu. We explore the menu quite a bit & zero in on the dishes we like. In fact, we have now taken the same few dishes so many times that I can almost call it a “Andy Kaiseki Menu”..haha…just kidding. 🙂 It is just 5 course, but while it may not have like 10 courses to be a full kaiseki menu, every dish is very substantial when compared with individual course of a kaiseki or mini kaiseki.

My selected courses (shared by 2pax) as follows-

  1. truffle kampachi (S$28)
  2. botan ebi sashimi (3 large prawns for S$35)
  3. united nations futomaki (9 ingredients 6 pieces maki S$28)
  4. sous vide then deep-fried octopus (S$30)
  5. 2xkagoshima wagyu sukiyaki konabe (individual hotpot at S$48 each)
  6. 1 plain rice to share – they will split for you (S$5)

As you see, the price comes to S$222, and at 50% discount, it is S$111 or S$55.50++pax. 🙂

Now to the dishes.

The first dish, a truffle kampachi is a wonderful, wonderful dish, and as you can see in the top picture, it is so pretty. It is in a small way a fusion sashimi dish by the Korean Chef with kampachi sashimi fanned out in probably tsuyu sauce as the sauce is not so salty, and a dash of truffle oil – so very fragrant, fresh, sweet & tasty! 🙂

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botan ebi sashimi

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botan rbi heads deep-fried

The second dish is botan ebi sashimi – you get 3 prawns for sashimi & 2 if you order sushi. These are large (3x the size of regular ama ebi), plump & sweet prawns with the same pleasant slightly sticky to the bite texture as regular ama ebi.

and they deep fry the large prawn heads. We eat up almost the entire crispy deep-fried prawn heads every time so no need to elaborate la…haha. 🙂

united nations futomaki

united nations futomaki

Next the united nation futomaki. The name sounds like a disaster but there are 9 ingredients (I can see there are unagi, ebi, tamago, avogado, different fish roes, maybe crabstick etc) & it is good – may not be the best as there are many specialist maki in many restaurants these days, but it is good!

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Then we have the tako (octopus) sous vide & deep-fried in light batter. This is really very good as the meat is totally tender & consistent throughout because of sous vide (vacuum low temperature slow-cooking). it goes very well with just a little wasabi mayo (provided) – we always add more wasabi on our own.

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kagoshima wagyu sukiyaki konabe (小钵)

& the the finale – kagoshima wagyu sukiyaki konabe (小钵).

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It is very, very good! there are 3 pieces of wagyu, and you can see from the photos that they are large & thick pieces – I reckon the 3 pieces to be at least 80g, probably 100g! these are Jap wagyu NOT australian wagyu, & they are so, so tasty,  the sukiyaki also comes with the usual vegetables, thick Japanese glass noodles & mushroom, and oh such great flavours! you can add the soup to the rice afterwards (and remember to add wasabi to it as well).

c.h.e.f andy