*the simplest aphrodisiac

One Love Bite

2011-04-12T07:00:00.003+08:00

Hey all, hope everyone's doing good and has been eating well.

I know I have taken longer than expected but I'm glad to announce that it's finally here! The new blog is now up at onelovebite.tumblr.com.

See you there! :)

Yours Always,
Harris Chai

The Simplest Aphrodisiac: Epilogue

2011-02-14T09:05:00.004+08:00

After three amazing years of food blogging on the The Simplest Aphrodisiac, the time has come for this blog to bid you adieu. I know this announcement may come as a surprise to many of you, but I assure you that a lot of thought had been put into this and I'm ready to take this important step.

The biggest reason behind this decision is a happy one. I'm proud to tell you that someone very dear and special to me recently said "Yes", not just to me but really to us, and it was a memorable moment that was filled with the purest of bliss. We're now two people very much in love, and we share something that I know I would cherish with all my heart.

The question you would probably be asking now is: what does this have to do with the blog? The answer really is related to how this blog had come about, for it was started because of someone else in the distant past. That I would expect my loved one now to share this same space (and memory) would be insensitive, if not unfair as well. No doubt this blog had also seen me through the emptiest of days as it had given me purpose in otherwise silent and unforgiving moments; this is something that I would always remember and be truly grateful for. But the story now is no longer about me alone. A new chapter in life has begun and it is time to start anew.

Understandably, this blog has more than three years' worth of painstakingly written food posts, all of which were so meticulously organised from the title down to the individual blog labels. I would be lying if I said I couldn't be bothered or don't feel anything at all at this point; indeed many hours and sleepless nights had been poured into trying to take that perfect picture as well as trying to find the perfect words to illustrate and describe each meal, each spoon or forkful, and each bite. Moreover, I have made many friends through this blog and was also thrilled to have received so many emails and notes from individuals who would have been complete strangers to me if not for our common love and interest in food.

I should let you know however that this is not really goodbye, as far as my love for eating and sharing the love for it goes. Perhaps you would be able to find my words and pictures on food elsewhere, but in a space and style that you would not normally associate with a food blog. I must admit though that I have lost some of that eagerness to snap away at my food with my cameras, having returned to enjoying food as it is as well as in the company of others. When I do take pictures it's often with my iPhone, and only because I've been quite fascinated with the artistic effects created by some of the apps that I have.

Just so I do not ramble on any further, I would just like to thank everyone for all the support and encouragement that you've shown towards me and my blog these past years. It was a fantastic ride and I enjoyed every single moment of it. Last but not least, here's wishing everyone a most loving and happy Valentine's Day :)

Hanoi, Vietnam: Green Tangerine

2011-02-11T14:00:00.004+08:00

The remnants of French influences in Vietnam can probably be best felt in the numerous French eateries that have continued to stay on in this part of the world, with most concentrated in the cities of Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City. The Green Tangerine is a fine example, being located within a restored colonial French villa complete with an open courtyard and garden terrace. In many ways this charming sanctuary exudes a rustic, homely feeling, and one which is particularly accentuated by the unpretentious and hearty food that you can find here.

Australian Imported Steak

The "Australian Imported Steak" was alright, though pretty much on the fattier (and therefore, chewier) side of things. The three different types of potato served on the side were an interesting trio, with the plain and truffle ones delighting me much. The third, infused with some type of cheese which I can't quite remember, didn't appeal to me one bit because of its smell and sourness. Of course I have to admit that I'm not one who appreciate cheeses other than the typical cheddar or mozzarella, so others may fancy this much more than I did.

Lamb Shank

One of the bosses had the Lamb Shank, which he kindly presented to me (for me to take a picture) upon hearing that I have a food blog. Somehow I thought his dish looked a tad more appetising than that thick slab of meat on mine.

Mousse Cake

My dessert of a chocolate and blackcurrent Mousse Cake was quite uninspiring, and the flavours seemed to compete rather than blend with each other.

Service
Very good.

Price
About US$35 for a main and a dessert. Certainly not cheap by Vietnamese standards.

Place
48 Hang Be Street, Hoan Kiem District,
Hanoi, Vietnam.

Pictures taken with the Apple iPhone 4.

Hanoi, Vietnam: Foodshop 45

2011-02-09T10:35:00.001+08:00

Who would have thought that you could find good Indian food in the middle of Hanoi? I certainly didn't, and so was quite impressed by what was on offer at Foodshop 45. This restaurant is located along the peaceful Ho Tay (West Lake) and is one of the cleaner and more attractive options available on the stretch of eateries and drinking holes. It's also one of the Top 20 restaurants in Hanoi, according to my trusty Tripadvisor.com.

Choose to sit at proper tables and chairs on the first floor, or on tatami mats on the second. I did feel a little uncomfortable sitting cross-legged on the cushions (more so because the pants was tight!) and if given a choice would have preferred the usual tables.

The Plain and Garlic Naans were pretty good, albeit on a slightly more doughy side. What I liked more actually were the Vegetarian Samosas, which arrived crisp and piping hot. Surrounded by an appetising aroma, it was packed tight with delicious curried potatoes.

The Curries and Mutton Keema were decent, nothing much to fault on. The Beef Dum Briyani meanwhile was the highlight of the night for a number of us, as the soft and tender well-cooked beef chunks added much oomph and flavour to the fragrant rice.

Service
Very good. Menus are in English.

Price
It was a treat from one of the bosses. I think it shouldn't cost more than SGD10 per person. We ordered much more (particularly in quantity) than what you see above, with an assortment of curries to boot as well.

Place
59 Truc Bach Street, Ba Dinh District,
Hanoi, Vietnam.

Pictures taken with the Apple iPhone 4.

Hanoi, Vietnam: Cafe Tivoli

2011-02-07T14:00:00.004+08:00

Cafe Tivoli at Hanoi Club is a simple, down-to-earth coffee house offering both Western and Singaporean fare. It's one of the places where you can get a ready stash of The Straits Times as you enjoy your hor fun or chicken curry at a leisurely pace. My Ribeye Steak, as it was so called, was quite decent, with an average mushroom sauce and extra crisp (or perhaps, more than twice fried?) shoestring fries on the side. The colleague's Seafood Hor Fun was not too bad as well, but I suppose it was only because we were missing Singaporean food after countless "regional-themed" buffets at the meetings.

Hanoi Club is just a 5 minute walk away from Sofitel Plaza Hotel, which if you hadn't known was my "home" for almost a month when many of the major ASEAN meetings were being convened in Hanoi. Aside from its Chinese restaurant Ming Palace, it also has a Western restaurant in Brasserie Westlake. I only found time to try their Spicy Seafood Fettucine, which I have to admit was pretty good stuff because of how spicy it was. Not your usual mild pasta surely, but this is a good Asian rendition.

Two popular restaurants from Hanoi coming up for the rest of the week - one French, one Indian. I'm slowly going through my backlogs, and there's still a small load of posts left to be written on Malacca. Akan datang! :)

Place
The Hanoi Club
76 Yen Phu Street, Tay Ho District,
Hanoi, Vietnam.

Pictures taken with the Apple iPhone 4.

Quiznos

2011-02-02T14:00:00.004+08:00

We all know I'm not very much a sandwich eater, but when the time calls for it I would love mine plain and simple - lots of beef, melted cheese, and maybe some onions or mushrooms. It's not surprising then that I loved my belated but first bite of Quiznos' Zesty Steak sandwich, which had tender slices of beef, soft cheese and crunchy onions. And oh, let's not forget that delectable barbecue sauce and perfectly toasted buns. Amazin'! (*Move aside Subway*)

Place
Orchard Central, #03-31.

Picture taken with the Apple iPhone 4, with some help from Instagram.

Trattoria L'Ancora

2011-01-31T14:00:00.005+08:00

When the travel buddy got me to choose a lunch place, I turned up with only two options ten minutes later - pizza or pasta? With a raised eyebrow (he didn't have much of a choice on the cuisine clearly) he chose the latter, and we were off to Trattoria L'Ancora along Bukit Timah Road.

Complimentary Bread

L'Ancora's bread were simple but good. No one can really go wrong with warmly toasted focaccia bread, while the lightly flavoured and thin pizza-like slices were just as welcomed.

Calamari Fritti

At $24.90++, the lunch set (available on weekends as well) was quite a steal. My pick of the Calamari Fritti from the small range of appetisers on the set menu was just the way I wanted it to be - crisp, light batter and slightly chewy. The calamari went well with the mildly spicy Arrabiata sauce served on the side too.

Zuppa di Funghi

The travel buddy crossed out the bruschetta, garden salad and sautéed clams and went for the simple mushroom soup, the Zuppa di Funghi. I think he found it a tad too diluted and would have preferred it thicker.

Spaghetti Ai Frutte Di Mare

No surprises, I went for my all-time favourite. The Spaghetti Ai Frutte Di Mare was delicious, and what really stood out was the flavourful and adequately thick homemade tomato sauce. The fresh seafood ingredients - prawns, squids and clams - are also worthy of mention. Note that the portion for the set menu is slightly smaller than if you were to order this dish à la carte, but to be honest I thought the portion was just about right given that you've already got an appetiser and dessert to accompany it.

Branzino Al Lemone

The travel buddy had the Branzino Al Lemone, an oven-baked fillet of sea bass with lemon dressing. Not a frequent fish eater (but he do swear by Nobu's miso cod), he found the sea bass a little too "fishy" in taste and smell. He was thankful for the lemon sauce that helped to make it more manageable.

Tiramisu

The waitress (and chef) so politely allowed me to make a swap on the dessert menu with the Tiramisu, and moreover at no additional cost. I liked the tiramisu, it wasn't overwhelming and had a good balance of the holy trinity of flavours - coffee, liquer and chocolate. While not mind-blowingly impressive, this was still decently good.

Panna Cotta

I used to see this as an Italian tau huay, but that surely would be trivialising one of Italy's iconic desserts, the Panna Cotta. L'Ancora's rendition of this dessert was executed well.

Coffee

And with all that enjoyed, sit back for a bit longer and enjoy that cuppa :)

Service
Very good.

Price
$24.90++ for the set lunch.

Place
789 Bukit Timah Road.
After HCI, just before the turn to Sixth Avenue.

Pictures taken with the Canon EOS 500D.

Le Chocolat Cafe

2011-01-28T14:00:00.004+08:00

Le Chocolat Cafe is a new sandwich & pastry café within the new boutique hotel The Club, and is situated along Ann Siang Hill, right where you can find my favourite K-Ki as well. The café here is small and still finding a foothold in this seemingly sleepy but charmingly peaceful part of Singapore, and I noticed that service can be quite slow as well. Nevertheless, it is new after all, so some baby steps are understandable.

Chocolate Tart

I love the Chocolate Tart, I really do. The crust pastry was neither too hard nor was it too crumbly or flaky, and when cut right with the side of a fork it comes away cleanly with the chocolate intact. Wonder what I mean? Next picture please :)

Lovers of dark chocolate may be a little disappointed with the thin layer of dark chocolate, but I myself really liked the thick and smooth milk chocolate middle. It was what kept me going fork after fork at this simple yet greatly satisfying tart.

Nutty Chocolate

The Nutty Chocolate on the other hand was facing an identity crisis of sorts; it was neither nutty (extremely fine traces of nuts) nor was it exactly chocolatey (too light hazelnut choc mousse/sponge). The flavours were not distinct and neither did they blend very well.

Tell you what, I'll have another one of that chocolate tart please :)

Service
Very friendly and polite.

Price
$7 each.

Place
The Club Hotel
28 Ann Siang Road

Pictures taken with the Canon Ixus 80 IS.

Alfresco Gusto

2011-01-26T14:00:00.004+08:00

Facing Wheelock Place along Scotts Road is Ion Orchard's new Alfresco Gusto, previously known as Gusttimo di Roma and now back with a revamped menu. On the side Gusttimo's gelato bar is still up and running, but I was here for one reason alone and that was to satisfy that crazy, fortnightly craving of mine - pizza.

Bolognese-fresca Mozzarella, Salsa di Ragù

While Alfresco Gusto prides itself for wood-fired grills for its steaks, pizzas on the other hand are not from a wood-fired oven but electric oven-baked. Nevertheless, the Bolognese-fresca Mozzarella, Salsa di Ragù was quite good, especially the melted cheese and minced beef parts.

The pizza here is on the thinner side and would satisfy those who like their pizzas much less fluffy (but certainly not wafer-thin like those from Skinny Pizza). Good enough for lunch :)

Tiramisu

The classic Tiramisu was a hit and a miss. The soaked saviordi, topped with cocoa powder, was worthy of praise as it had the good balance of sweet and bitter.

The coffee gelato on the top however was too icy and bland. Perhaps a purer scoop of vanilla gelato would have sealed the deal perfectly.

Service
Excellent. Friendly and helpful.

Price
$20 for the Bolognese-fresca Mozzarella, Salsa di Ragù pizza
$14 for the Tiramisu

* Prices subject to the usual 7% GST and 10% service charge.

Place
Ion Orchard, #01-15.

Pictures taken with the Canon Ixus 80 IS.

Morton's Steakhouse

2011-01-24T14:00:00.011+08:00

Morton's The Steakhouse at the Mandarin Oriental is an institution in itself. Despite the likes of all those celebrity chef restaurants and what have you across the river at Marina Bay Sands, this legendary steakhouse has still held its own - and I'm sure will continue to do so for a long time. From the impeccable service to the thorough show-and-tell of the steak cuts, seafood and vegetables on offer for the night, Morton's is the place to be in Singapore for that perfect steak dinner.

Onion Loaf

Morton's mythical Onion Loaf is as huge as many have described it to be, and in all seriousness should be shared else you won't even get to appetisers. This soft, fragrant and considerably light bread is extremely addictive. With this baby on the table, you can't quite keep your hands to yourself in between all the courses - have it your way with olive oil, butter or soup. Oh, soup. Now, let's talk about soup.

Lobster Bisque

The Lobster Bisque was absolutely delicious. I couldn't have imagined that such a seemingly plain-looking soup could be this flavourful and rich. The generous serving of (what I believe to be) at least a third of a lobster was firm, fresh and sweet. Perfect.

Onion Soup

The travel buddy loves his Onion Soup, and if he couldn't get enough of it in Italy (or anywhere else) you can expect him to have another go at this as well. It was good meeting up with him after so long because we're already planning our next big trip to *___________* at the end of the year. It's still far away but I'm so excited! :D

Jumbo Lump Crab Cake

Morton's signature Jumbo Lump Crab Cake may be pricey, but such indulgences are more than justified with delectable fresh crab meat packed so tightly and neatly together. I liked the light hint of herbs that went into this as well.

Steak Fries

The Steak Fries were very much the wedges-type of "fries" compared to the shoestring or medium-cut ones, and would please those who love their fries more "potatoey" than crispy. It wasn't anything exciting, but the serving was impressive - even the two of us couldn't finish this.

Sautéed Button Mushrooms

The desperate attempt to balance an otherwise meat and carb-filled meal resulted in the (half-hearted) side order of Sautéed Button Mushrooms. In retrospect I'm glad we ordered this, because the mushrooms were moist and juicy and accompanied my steak well.

Did I say steak? :)

Presenting to you, the star of the evening!

New York Strip

When at Morton's, don't go kiddy and order a burger at the bar, or pretend to be shy and get the "smaller steaks". Go all the way and have that New York Strip! It's a big cut no doubt, but this was just amazing. Tender at every slice, and bursting with beefy goodness at every bite - I loved it from start to end. For those who like a little bit of bone, you're strongly recommended to try the porterhouse steak.

Filet Mignon

The travel buddy had his done the more moderate way, a Filet Mignon that is as good (but I'm sure, not necessarily as satisfying as mine haha!) as steak can get. As you can see, his is accompanied by the classic French Béarnaise sauce.

Crème Brûlée

Just too filled with bread, soup, crab cakes, fries, mushrooms and those awesome steaks, we shared a Crème Brûlée for that mandatory sweet round-up to the meal. While the vanilla-bean speckled custard was really good, the caramel crust was a little too thick and overwhelmed it quite a bit. Still, a decent attempt.

Service
Excellent.

Price
Newsflash! Morton's $95++ "Seafood and Steak Menu" set is back by popular demand, and will only be around till 31 March 2011.

* Take your pick and change your appetisers, sides and even steaks as you please!
1) No extra charge for change of Morton's salad (eek!) to Onion Soup; $5++ supplement for upgrade to Lobster Bisque.
2) No extra charge for change of "Signature Potato" to Steak Fries or Sautéed Mushrooms.
3) $22++ supplement for change of single cut Filet Mignon to the New York Strip.

$20++ for the Crème Brûlée.

Place
Mandarin Oriental Singapore, Fourth Storey.

Pictures taken with the Canon EOS 500D;
Pictures are blur because of low-light conditions.

SNSD & Super Junior: Seoul Song

2011-01-21T14:00:00.004+08:00

That I've not been to Seoul is entirely not the point here, because all I really want to do is share this adorable video of the Korean artistes from Girls Generation and Super Junior doing a promo tourism vid of the city. I thought the little romantic scenes were quite sweet (the kind that makes you go "awww...") and the lyrics itself isn't all too cheesy. And, it has my two favourite girls from SNSD in it so that's all good too heh. ;)

Bloggers Outing: NYDC

2011-01-19T14:00:00.004+08:00

Desserts are almost always a separate, special affair during our blogger outings, as you probably could tell in our past trips to Checkers Deli at Hilton or Lobby Lounge at Marriott. This time was no different, and we eventually decided on NYDC since most of the other nearby places where closing for the day.

Grandma Goes Nuts, Seriously!

If for real it's not a laughing matter, but if it's a NYDC mudpie, it's awesome. The Grandma Goes Nuts, Seriously! mudpie features nougat and macadamia nut ice-cream on an Oreo base, accompanied by (breathes in...) almonds, peanuts, marshmallows, hazelnut syrup, chocolate sauce and whipped cream. A guaranteed sugar shot, this would drive anyone high, courtesy of a crazy grandmother.

Apple Crumble

The Apple Crumble was sweet but lacked the X-factors of natural-tasting (caramelised) apples and a truly crisp crumble layer. Do choose to have a scoop of French Vanilla ice-cream as well to complement this - hot crumbles are really best eaten with ice-cream :)

Big O Cheesecake

Many people seem oblivious to what "The Big O" actually means in American slang, but I would leave it to you to look it up on Google. Or, I can quite simply say that the Big O Cheesecake wasn't much of an aphrodisiac and couldn't possibly give you The Big O. Decent but not mind-blowing.

Goldmine Cheesecake

I thought the Goldmine Cheesecake sounded promising - cheesecake with "chocolate chunks and slathered with irresistible chocolate fudge topping". Sure, it tasted great, but only when you hit "gold" (the chocolate chunks) at the bottom, but these were few and far. In the end, it didn't turn out too differently from the Big O Cheesecake.

Boo Boo

A house favourite, the Boo Boo was smooth and chocolatey, but can get too rich after a few forkfuls. Best to share. Or perhaps, get a scoop of vanilla ice-cream to accompany this macho dude.

Service
Good.

Price
$10.95 for the Grandma Goes Nuts, Seriously!
$6.95 for the Apple Crumble and a scoop of French Vanilla Ice-Cream
$6.95 for the Big O Cheesecake
$6.95 for the Goldmine Cheesecake
$5.95 for the Boo Boo

* Prices subject to the usual 7% GST and 10% service charge.

Place
Orchard Wheelock Place, #02-19.

Pictures taken with the Canon EOS 500D.

Bloggers Outing: Shashlik

2011-01-17T14:00:00.008+08:00

It's been a long while but I finally found time to meet up with some of the bloggers for dinner at old school Shashlik. I really did miss coming to such gatherings of food, cameras and good company, and was delighted to see them all again. The bloggers' roll of the evening is as follows:

Xin Li from The Four Moose
Frances from Foodies Queen
Jer Lin from Le Petit Connoisseur
Harris from The Simplest Aphrodisiac
Daniel and Lay Sian from Memoirs of Food
Fen and Yuan from Indulgence After Work-Out

And without further ado, let's head on to the food, food, food!

Buns with SCS Butter

The Warm Bun was soft and light, pure and simple.

Garlic Bread

The crispy Garlic Bread was a perfect accompaniment to the soups. Even more so when some of them were terribly bland and needed some finishing up to do (see below).

Mushroom Soup

The Mushroom Soup was sadly quite tasteless and diluted. It tasted like it was out from a can and had too much water added to it. I couldn't go past half of this.

Borsch Soup

Shashlik's Borsch Soup received more favourable comments from the table. The dollop of sour cream gave this tomato-based soup of potatoes, beef, carrots and cabbage a more creamy feel without being too over-powering.

Black Pepper Steak

My Black Pepper Steak, though tender, was overwhelmed by the thick sauce. There was nothing spectacular to it and in fact merely reminded me of a Jack's Place-type of steak, complete with the hot-plate. For the price I'm paying, I would take Astons Prime anytime.

Chicken Shashlik

The Shashlik, the Russian rendition of the Shish kebab, is where this restaurant got its name from, and is one of the most popular items on the menu. Here's what Xin Li had to say!

"The Shashlik of Chicken was served on a hot plate with mixed vegetables and fries. In humble opinion, it was palatable. The chicken was quite tender with a nicely charred skin. Unfortunately, at this price, I felt that it lacks flavor or the punch to set it apart from what a Western Food hawker can reproduce. In fact, certain parts of the chicken have a very mild gamey aftertaste." (Xin Li, 2010)

Chicken A La Kiev Imperial

Jer Lin's order of the Chicken A La Kiev Imperial was an interesting one, in large part because of that sprout of paper at the tip of the battered chicken. Lying on a thick toast, it seemed like a king on his bed.

"The chicken breast meat was satisfying tender, and was, interestingly, stuffed with butter. However, the toast was too stiff for my liking, though it was deep-fried to a golden crisp." (Jer Lin, 2010)

Chicken A La King

In contrast, Frances' Chicken A La King did not seem fit for royalty (unless perhaps it's for a really old king who needs a slightly softer diet). This is stewed chicken served with mixed vegetables and steamed rice. Not something I would order or enjoy.

Fish en Papilotte

Daniel and Lay Sian's order of the baked Fish en Papilotte seemed somewhat soft and healthy. I'll let you know what they thought about it when they get their post up heh.

Baked Ikan Kurau with Cheese

For a Russian-themed restaurant, they seem to have adopted the use of the Malay language too. The Baked Ikan Kurau with Cheese was like a baked rice dish but I'm not sure if it was good, or not.

Service
Good. On a packed evening, be prepared to wait a bit for your food to be served.

Price
$6 for the Mushroom Soup
$7 for the Borsch Soup
$26 for the Black Pepper Steak
$18.50 for the Chicken Shashlik
$19 for the Chicken A La Kiev Imperial
$19 for the Chicken A La King
$22 for the Fish en Papilotte
$21 for the Baked Ikan Kurau with Cheese

* Prices subject to the usual 7% GST and 10% service charge.

Place
Far East Shopping Centre, #06-19.
Note: This is beside Wheelock Place, not the Grand Hyatt Singapore.

Pictures taken with the Canon EOS 500D.

Rocks Urban Grill and Bar

2011-01-14T14:00:00.016+08:00

Rocks and sails may seem like an unlikely pair, but The Sail at Marina Boulevard is where you'll find Rocks Urban Gril and Bar, a chic and tranquil European restaurant by the Emmanuel Stroobant group. Rocks definitely ranks amongst one of my favourite places to dine for its good service and ambience, and may very well be a little secret at One Raffles Quay still unknown to many.

Warm Buns

By Warm Buns I really mean those edible, soft and fluffy ones that Rocks serve to set you going. It's simple - slightly crisp crust and soft centre - yet so satisfying, especially when eaten with creamy and lightly salted butter.

Scallop Carpaccio

The Scallop Carpaccio is a light starter for the light eaters, and therefore is not something I would personally order. Nevertheless, the serving of carpaccio was fresh and smooth and more than makes up for the lack of an amuse-bouche.

Crab Cakes

The Crab Cakes were more of my kind of thing, and I particularly liked the way the garlic, coriander and chili blended so well together. On taste, I have to admit it did not have the wow-factor, and was deeply humbled by the more impressive crab cakes from Mezza9 at Grand Hyatt and - no surprises here - Morton's at Mandarin Oriental.

Cote de Boeuf

A whole kilo of 150-day grain fed Australian beef, this is what we're talking about! The Cote de Boeuf is typically meant for two to share, but I do know of someone who can eat it all up on his own (no, that's not me either, no matter how much I adore my beef). This heavyweight dish was very well done, with the meat tender on almost all parts and the fats chewy where necessary.

Tenderloin Steak

For the classic lovers, the Tenderloin Steak (250gm) would do for you perfectly. Tender, well-charred and with an immaculate pink centre, this won praise at the table and pleased even the more seasoned steak eaters.

Lamb Shank

In contrast, the Lamb Shank was a tad disappointing as it turned out looking (and tasting) more like a stew. From the single forkful I had, the lamb wasn't as tender as the steaks either, so some improvements are needed here.

Duck Confit

The Duck Confit, which I tried on a return visit, was better than average but not something that would really blow you away. It was relatively small and may not be worth the price you're paying for ($32++), and even more so when the main dishes don't come with much complimentary sides. So if you like your potatoes, you could order a jar of fries to share with your dining partner.

Truffle Mashed Potatoes

I would think though that the ladies would appreciate the Truffle Mashed Potatoes a little more than the typical fries, in large part because it's smoother, healthier and more fragrant. Somehow, and surprisingly so, I found myself liking the mashed more than the fries as well.

Sauteed Mushrooms

The Sauteed Mushrooms were sweet, fresh and juicy. If you don't like your salads, you should have some of these to lie to yourself that you're having a "balanced" meal.

Chocolate Fondant

Desserts at Rocks is sadly a pricey (and tiny) affair. At $17++ the Chocolate Fondant was small and uninspiring.

Chessecake

I really liked the smooth and rich Cheesecake, which was topped with a delicious scoop of red berries sherbet and with apricot chutney on the side. If only this could have been bigger, because I'm sure it would have been even more memorable and satisfying.

Service
Excellent.

Price
$24 for the Salmon Carpaccio
$22 for the Crab Cakes
$110 for the Cote de Boeuf
$48 for the Tenderloin (250gm)
$44 for the Ribeye (350gm)
$40 for the Striploin (350gm)
$32 for the Lamb Shank
$32 for the Duck Confit
$8 for a selection of sides, including Fries and Truffle Mashed Potato
$17 for the Chocolate Fondant
$16 for the Cheesecake

* Prices subject to the usual 7% GST and 10% service charge.
* The full menu can be found here.

Place
The Sail, 2 Marina Boulevard.
Next to One Raffles Quay.

Most of the pictures were taken with the Canon EOS 500D.

Astons Prime

2011-01-12T14:00:00.004+08:00

There's a lot of good steaks out there, but many of them are often on the pricier side of things and may not work for you if you're on a budget. For the best bang for your buck, I'd recommend Astons Prime over places like Jack's Place or Republic of Steak anytime. The Angus Ribeye that I had recently for example was delicious - tender, juicy and with a robust beefy flavour that can satisfy that occasional craving. All without breaking the bank as well.

Service
Very good.

Price
$20.90. Inclusive of GST and no service charge!

Place
The CentrePoint #03-45/46/47.

Pictures taken with the Apple iPhone 4.

Michaelangelo's

2011-01-10T14:00:00.004+08:00

Michaelangelo's is a fairly popular Italian restaurant tucked along the peaceful Chip Bee Gardens lane of eateries, away from the more crowded Lorong Mambong stretch at Holland Village. So if you're looking for a quiet lunch on your own, or for an intimate dinner for two, this is one place that you could probably consider. Otherwise, maybe the sweep of Wine and Dine Top Restaurant Awards (1996 to 2010) could stir your curiosity a little more ;)

Frutti di Mare

The Frutti di Mare arrived with some measure of promise, with a fleshy slipper lobster, calamari rings, snapper fillets and mussels adorning this typical seafood pasta dish. I must add that it smelled really good too, and did wonders to get that appetite going.

On taste, it was decent, better than average but admittedly nothing to shout about. Of this "assorted seafood" genre, I would have to say that I prefer the ones from Pete's Place or Garibaldi a little more than this.

Tiramisu Tradizionale

The Tiramisu Tradizionale meanwhile was worth screaming and yelling (happily) over. This is one of the best Tiramisu that I've had in Singapore, with a very good balance of flavours and the perfect level of moisture.

The berries on the side added a tinge of sweet and sour that I appreciated quite a bit as it complemented the holy trinity of coffee, chocolate and alcohol beautifully. Really good stuff, I'm returning for more that's for sure!

Service
Very friendly and polite.

Price
$30 for the Frutti di Mare pasta
$13 for the Tiramisu Tradizionale

* Prices subject to the usual 7% GST and 10% service charge.

Place
Chip Bee Gardens
Blk 44 Jalan Merah Saga #01-60.

Pictures taken with the Apple iPhone 4.

Happy Lemon

2011-01-07T14:00:00.004+08:00

Happy Lemon at Ion Orchard anyone? :)

I know Gong Cha and Koi Cafe bubble teas have their own leagues of fans, but if I had to choose between the two I would go for Koi because of its more chewy pearls and richer milk tea (basics people, basics). I do know that Gong Cha is well-known for its special dual-layered milk-and-tea concoction (and has seen many loyal converts in the process), but somehow I'm still not too convinced.

Happy Lemon's Tea Latte with Oreos is a sweet, simple and fairly balanced milk tea with crushed Oreos for you to sip/nibble on. I liked it quite a lot and I think Oreo fans would be pretty pleased too. I would even add that it's much better than the basic milk tea I had from the Gong Cha outlet at Raffles City.

Place
Ion Orchard, #B4-35.
Next to Old Chang Kee and close to Yami Yogurt.

Pictures taken with the Apple iPhone 4.

Seafood International

2011-01-05T14:00:00.010+08:00

Happy New Year Everyone! :)

As a tradition that I've started and have since so faithfully followed, I made sure that the family shared the first meal of the brand new year together. This year we had our lunch at Seafood International, a popular seafood restaurant along East Coast Parkway and at the newly-launched Playground @ Big Splash. What I appreciated about Seafood International was not just it's à la carte buffet lunch, but more so it's "no pork - no lard" menu that is pretty much a rarity in the Singapore seafood scene.

Braised Mini Whole Abalone with Oyster Sauce

We decided to go along with the à la carte buffet lunch (menu available here) because of its decent variety - forty dishes - and amazingly affordable price. The day's appetiser, the Braised Mini Whole Abalone with Oyster Sauce, got the lunch off on a good start. While small, it was sweet, fresh and succulent.

Braised Shark's Fin Soup with Crab Meat

The Braised Shark's Fin Soup with Crab Meat served at this buffet was at its most basic (well, what do you expect from a $25.80++ buffet right?) and I found it far too starchy for my liking.

Sautéed Scallop with Asparagus

Nothing spectacular on the Sautéed Scallop with Asparagus either, and at most parts it was quite bland. I'm sure it started out as a big and juicy scallop but was sliced into much smaller pieces for this light dish.

Deep Fried Rock Garoupa with Soya Sauce

I liked the Deep Fried Rock Garoupa with Soya Sauce. It was crisp from the deep fry but was still sweet and tender inside. Although limited to only one serving, this is still something worth the money for what you're paying for in the buffet.

Steamed Sea Bass with Yellow Bean Sauce

Another one that is limited to a single serving. For a buffet item, the Steamed Sea Bass with Yellow Bean Sauce was fresh, quality stuff.

Crispy Soft Shell Crab with Garlic and Seven Spices Salt

The Crispy Soft Shell Crab with Garlic and Seven Spices Salt was delicious and one of the best items on the buffet menu. Crisp and sweet with a slightly spicy marinate. Munch munch.

Beef Steak with Black Pepper Sauce

I thought the Beef Steak with Black Pepper Sauce was good, but some may find it a tad too chewy because of its thickness. Commendable black pepper sauce.

Crayfish with Sichuan Dry Pepper Sauce

The Crayfish with Sichuan Dry Pepper Sauce was tasty and came out more meaty than I had expected it to be. Lip-smacking.

Deep Fried Beancurd with Conpoy and Mushroom

From here on all the items on a free-flow basis, and they would prove more than enough to fill you up. If you've got the young ones at the table, I'm sure they would love the Deep Fried Beancurd with Conpoy and Mushroom for its sweet sauce and soft fried beancurd.

Sautéed Mixed Vegetable

Only have the Sautéed Mixed Vegetable if you really must have your one serving of greens. Else, why waste space? Haha...

Roasted Duck with Hot Sesame and Garlic Sauce

The Roasted Duck with Hot Sesame and Garlic Sauce was really good. I liked the way it was fried, crispy on the top with the meat still tender underneath, and how the spicy sesame and garlic sauce worked its way with the duck and tantalised the tastebuds.

Crispy Roasted Chicken

In contrast, the Crispy Roasted Chicken was dull, dry and terribly boring. I wouldn't recommend ordering this.

Deep Fried Chicken Mid Joint with Prawn Paste

Have the Deep Fried Chicken Mid Joint with Prawn Paste instead. In fact, have many orders of this, it's pretty awesome. Crispy and juicy chicken mid-joints to please that fried food lover in you ;)

Steamed Crystal Prawn Dumpling

We ordered all five dim sum items on the menu, but only three managed to pass the taste test. The Steamed Crystal Prawn Dumpling was one of the three, but it was also the one that narrowly scrapped through. While it didn't scrimp on the prawn filling, I thought the skin was a bit too hard and chewy.

Steamed Chicken Siew Mai

The Steamed Chicken Siew Mai tasted a tad off, and like the har gow (above), the skin was tough and dry.

Pan Fried Carrot Cake

I like my carrot cake crisp (and even, flaky) on the outside, but the Pan Fried Carrot Cake here was just too smooth and soft. I suppose this depends on your personal preference really.

Pan Fried Prawn Meat Beancurd Sheet Roll

The tasty Pan Fried Prawn Meat Beancurd Sheet Roll was worth multiple orders. The juicy prawn filling went very well with the crisp beancurd skin, even more with the mayo dip. The third decent item (not pictured) was the Steamed BBQ Chicken Bun, which was quite pleasant really - soft pau surrounding a sweet and tender core.

Seafood Beancurd

We had to leave our initial plans to have chilli crabs for next time as we were too full, but somehow my sister insisted on ordering the Seafood Beancurd from the à la carte menu for herself. Don't ask me why. It looks good, but I suppose the only bonus is having the same fried beancurd with prawns and squids.

Stewed E-Fu Noodles with Chives

The all-typical noodles that you would normally find at seafood restaurants, the Stewed E-Fu Noodles with Chives was done satisfyingly enough, with a lightness that helped to go with the other items on the table.

Olive Fried Rice

Even better perhaps was the Olive Fried Rice, which was quite flavourful and aromatic. Have a serving or two for yourself, I liked this quite a bit as well.

Desserts

There's a Desserts buffet line at the main restaurant area with a small variety of Malay kuih, fruits and jellies.

If space permits, have some Green Bean Soup for dessert. Something warm and refreshing after all that seafood.

All-in-all, a very decent buffet lunch that's worth its price tag. You get what you pay for, and a bit more. I would choose this over similarly priced buffets at places like Sakura International Buffet, even if they may have a wider variety of items on offer. Not the greatest, but not too shabby either :)

Service
Very good. It was full-house on a public holiday weekend but the staff still tried to oblige as much as they possibly could.

Price
$25.80++ (weekend) for adults, minimum two to dine.

Place
902 East Coast Parkway
Blk A #01-01 Playground @ Big Splash.

Additional Comments
1. No pork, no lard menu.
2. Lunch buffet timing: 11.30am - 2.30pm.

Pictures taken with the Canon EOS 500D.

The Simplest Aphrodisiac: Best of the Year 2010

2010-12-31T10:30:00.008+08:00

2010 was a great year for this food blog, with a comfortable crop of over 200 food-related posts and hundreds more of pictures. It was also good that I was able to travel overseas more often this year, and in so doing got to see more of the world beyond Singapore and to eat more of what these amazing countries have to offer. Extra kilos aside, it was a lot of loving and pampering, but in a way that was happily shared with my fellow bloggers, friends and family. So as a toast to all the delightful and delicious memories of 2010, let me present to you The Simplest Aphrodisiac's best of the best of the year!

Best Meal of 2010: Otto Ristorante

It took a long while before we finally met, but it was well worth the wait and was truly a case of love at first bite. With the most amazing Boston Lobster pasta and the most divine crème brûlée that I could ever ask for, Otto Ristorante is the perfect choice for this blog's top position for 2010. [Review]

First Runner-Up: Mellben Seafood ~ Fresh, spicy and awesomely addictive, this is classic chilli crab at one of its finest. Just a little feistier and this would have been flawless. [Review]

Second Runner-Up: The Dunearn ~ A little sanctuary close to the Botanic Gardens, The Dunearn delights with its affordable set menus and its tranquil ambience. While monthly-themed menus may bring up hits and misses at times, this is still one place that is guaranteed to please your palates in one way or another, or more. [Review I & II]

Best Meal of 2010 (Overseas): Il Ristorante Trussardi Alla Scala & Cèpe

The force in the Italian is strong indeed. Coming in joint firsts, Il Ristorante Trussardi Alla Scala and Cèpe show how one cuisine, whether done in fine-dining or in pure simplicity, can produce equally fantastic results. While Trussardi impresses in overall dining experience, Cèpe scores on the perfect pasta. For that, they both share the top spot. [Review I & II]

Second Runner-Up: Da Dong Roast Duck Restaurant ~ Exquisite Peking roast duck, and quite possibly the best there is in Beijing. Have it in a hearty pancake roll, or better, let it melt decadently in your mouth. Gone to heaven and back in a single night. [Review]

Best Lunch of 2010

No surprises, Otto Ristorante claims this spot as well for all the charms that it had entrapped me with. No doubt more romantic and intimate in the evenings, this lovely eatery is also great for peaceful and leisurely lunches. [Review]

First Runner-Up: Black Sheep Cafe ~ This was where I savoured the best duck confit that I've had in the year, trouncing the more established brand names that just can't seem to hold up to something so immacutely done, from the perfectly crisp skin to the absolutely tender meat and to the tantalising apple rosti. Brilliant. [Review]

Second Runner-Up: PS Cafe @ Orchard Palais ~ Good burgers make my day. Awesome burgers, on the other hand, make the list of the best of the year. Another wagyu burger that deserves only the highest of praises. [Review]

Best Dinner of the Year: Mellben Seafood

It took me a while to decide on Mellben Seafood's more than stellar feature in this list for 2010, but I shall insist that sublime Singapore-style butter, pepper and chilli crabs deserve some of the limelight. Contrary to some remarks, service here was good and waiting times were pretty tolerable. Just focus on the crabs and you should be quite delighted. [Review]

First Runner-Up: The Dunearn ~ Praiseworthy main courses and delectable desserts are usually the order of the day, but you will be surprised by how delicious some of the appetisers can be as well. Nevertheless, always leave more room for desserts. [Review I & II]

Second Runner-Up: Imperial Treasure Super Peking Duck ~ This is the closest that I've come to authentic Peking duck in Singapore, and if I could tell a little secret, this was confirmed by a couple of officials from the Chinese Embassy here as well. If space permits, do try some of the other à la carte dishes on the menu, they are worth every cent you pay. [Review]

Best Dessert of the Year: Frigidarium

Fabulous gelato is hard to come by in this part of the world, but in Frigidarium we've ourselves a true gem. While it did well in core flavours like hazelnut and pistachio, it impressed even more in its innovative creations like sakura. I'm hungry just thinking about it. [Review]

First Runner-Up: Laurent Bernard Chocolatier ~ If you like your desserts in chocolate, you would adore Laurent Bernard to bits. Soufflé, tart, cake, ice-cream, pralines - you name it I love it. Chocolate desserts at their finest. [Review]

Second Runner-Up: Tampopo Deli ~ In particular, Tampopo's famed cream puffs, which has the smoothest and richest cream custard gloriously speckled with vanilla beans. Tastes even better when chilled; it's like having custard ice-cream in a soft puff! [Review]

Best Find of the Year: K-Ki

My love for K-Ki is immeasurable, and it leads the pack in this category by a long stretch. Delivering some of the lightest and most delicate cakes that you can ever possibly find, this is a little bit of heaven right here in Singapore. Antoinette, Mont Blanc and Kinabaru are long-time favourites. [Review I & II]

First Runner-Up: Oasis @ Grand Hyatt Singapore ~ I've been to Oasis a couple of times after my initial food-tasting session and it is still consistently impressive. Grilled Salmon and beef ribs are amongst some of the most delicious on offer. [Review]

Second Runner-Up: Kichn ~ Comfort food at its best, and one that doesn't burn a hole in the pocket for such pleasures. The chicken cutlet spaghetti with chilli crab sauce is a definite must-try, while the house recommendation lychee, Oreo and Milo ice-blend is a sky-high sugar boost. [Review]

Best Pasta of the Year: Otto Ristorante

Sometimes, minor tweaks to a dish can do wonders. In this case, the hint of spiciness in Otto Ristorante's Boston Lobster pasta, possibly in an effort to appeal to the local clientele, worked perfectly for the appetite and the senses. [Review]

First Runner-Up: Pete's Place @ Grand Hyatt Singapore ~ Pete's rustic seafood pasta, known as the Cioppino, exudes a homely and heart-warming feel that is set to melt your heart and please your tummy. [Review]

Second Runner-Up: Cugini Trattoria ~ The seafood pasta is a Cugini signature that is not on the menu, and is one of the eatery's bestsellers. Compared to the other two above, this actually tastes the most authentic in terms of pasta flavour, but loses out in its ingredients. [Review]

Best Pizza of the Year: Al Forno

Wrapping up this list and proving once again that Italiano is the flavour of the year, Al Forno is my pick for the best pizza in Singapore. Here you can expect to find excellent wood-fired pizzas with the right amount of dough, cheese and ingredients, and with a good balance that one would find truly admirable. [Review]

First Runner-Up: Da Paolo Pizza Bar ~ Finishing a (very) close second, Da Paolo serves up simple but extremely satisfying wood-fired pizzas. The light but crisp crust on the sides is a joy to munch on. [Review]

Second Runner-Up: Cugini Trattoria Pizzeria ~ I never knew electric-oven pizzas can come so close to those from the wood-fired ovens, but this did and was quite terrific stuff really. With Cugini now having a wood-fired pizza branch in Sole Pomodoro, Singaporeans have one more reason to feast on this Italian icon. [Review I & II]

So there you have it - the favourites and the best this blog has to offer for 2010. You may have noticed that several of the entrants this year are classics, but old is gold and I love them all the same. And for those who disagree, please don't hold it against me (or my tastebuds), it's after all based on my likes and preferences and I'm sure we're unique in our own ways. Finally, here's a big thank you to each and every one of you for standing by me and believing in what this blog stands for, which quite simply is to share the love for food, and for eating! It's really all about enjoying the simple indulgences and pleasures of life :)

With all that said and done, here's wishing everyone a HAPPY NEW YEAR! :)

Yours Sincerely,
Harris Chai
Author | The Simplest Aphrodisiac

Beijing, China: Air China Business Class Lounge

2010-12-30T14:00:00.008+08:00

Am I being too pampered? I hope not. But there wasn't anything else to do in transit anyway (I spent my remaining renminbi on a duty-free Tommy Hilfiger cologne) and I thought I might as well make use of my privilege access to the Star Alliance lounge. Two hours of waiting is a lot of time and I needed some place comfortable to rest my feet.

The Air China Business Class Lounge is a fairly new lounge in the Beijing Capital International Airport transit space, and is affiliated with the Star Alliance Group of airlines. It's relatively big when compared to other airport lounges, and has different areas with different types of seating to suit the traveler's needs, from the sofas to the armchairs and to the typical dining chairs.

For the hungry traveler, you have nothing to worry, there's plenty of food to go around (refreshed frequently by the hardworking staff) and to keep you filled. This central area in particular reminded me of a 7-11 convenience store, with a respectable array of drinks and snacks.

Cupcakes, sliced cakes, biscuits, cereals, nuts, cookies... You would have to be happy there's no overweight charge for passengers.

There's also cup noodles (which to my surprise was very popular with the people here; me, I didn't even want to pick it up!) and a bread tray for those who would like a bit more from the carbohydrate section.

I liked the mini fridges more because of the assortment of sandwiches (which interestingly were all Halal-certified) and chilled butter cakes. The healthy ones would be glad (or relieved) to know that there's also selections of cut fruits and yogurts available here.

My little stash for a late afternoon snack. One of er... many rounds; they're just great nibbles to have while wasting time away in transit. Besides, compared to the limited offerings at the Singapore SATS Lounge at Changi Airport Terminal 3, this was considered good stuff.

For those hungrier beings stuck in transit in Beijing, I'm happy to report that fuller meals can be found at the back of the lounge. I spotted dim sum as well as dishes like fried rice and spaghetti bolognese, but decided that I really wanted to snack more and stack up on the caffeine and sugars. Part of me was feeling tired but I couldn't let myself fall asleep, else I'm sure I would have overslept and missed my flight.

So I sat at the TV lounge with a couple other lone and bored travelers, cosied up on the spacious armchair, and thanked God and Steve Jobs for creating the Apple iPhone. As my fingers thumbed through the touch-screen, I thought about the holiday I've just had and realised that it was really more enjoyable than I had expected it to be. Travelling alone was an experience in itself, sure there were times when I wished there was someone beside me to share my thoughts and feelings, but at the end of it all it was really a trip where I had my own quality me-time. It gave me time to think about things that had happened the year before, things that have been swept away so conveniently because of studies and work, and things which I have now learnt to accept and move on from.

In more ways than one, I feel renewed, and genuinely happy.

Pictures taken with the Canon EOS 500D.

Beijing, China: Acting @ BCIA

2010-12-29T14:00:00.004+08:00

Traffic conditions at the city were smoother than I had expected, and so I arrived early at the Beijing Capital International Airport (BCIA) for my flight back home. Since there wasn't much to do at the airport, the only option left was well... to eat. There's a number of Western establishments here, such as Starbucks, Burger King and Häagen-Dazs, but I eventually settled for a Muslim restaurant called "Acting".

Chicken Curry Rice

I was surprised that the Chicken Curry Rice was literally chicken curry rice in that the curry was mixed with the rice. I would have preferred it on the side. The curry was a bit too sweet for my liking, and seemed more like a Thai green curry or Malay lemak. It's an interesting dish, and I can't say I disliked it because I actually finished it all up, but it wouldn't be something that I would order again, if ever. I would presume there was loads of MSG, sugar and what have you in that bright green gravy. Not cheap either.

Service
Good.

Price
100RMB for the Chicken Curry Rice
30RMB for a glass of Coke

Place
Level 2, Departure Hall
Beijing Capital International Airport
Beijing, China.

Pictures taken with the Canon EOS 500D.

Beijing, China: Cèpe @ Ritz Carlton

2010-12-28T14:00:00.008+08:00

My love for all things Italian knows no bounds. No matter where my journeys will take me, I am sure little Italy will have a special place in my heart. On food, there is nothing pretentious about the cuisine, for what you find is something both hearty and heart-warming, and one which takes pride in delivering richness in almost intricate simplicity. It is little wonder then that even in a roast duck-filled holiday in Beijing I craved for pasta, more than I thought I should and more than I expected myself to be, and for that reason alone I found myself in one of the best places in China that could possibly satiate that intimate longing - Cèpe at Beijing Financial Street's Ritz-Carlton.

Cèpe is a modern and posh Italian restaurant which prides itself in quality food and service that one would naturally expect from The Ritz-Carlton. Its setting, sleek and classy, is also at once cosy and even romantic, and is perfect for that special occasion you've been trying to plan all along. Pure love.

Bread Basket

There is nothing more welcomed than a warm Bread Basket to whet your appetite. From the all-too-familiar fragrant foccacia to the crisp breadsticks and to the soft and supple ciabatta, these breads were quite simply a delight to have and to indulge leisurely in.

Amuse-Bouche

The Amuse-Bouche arrived in the form of a smoked amberjack atop a small bed of greens and a piece of herb-crusted bread. It was delicate and pleasant.

Zuppa di funghi porcini con castagne e rustico di ragu’ d’anatra al tartufo
Porcini mushroom soup with chestnuts

That Cèpe was named after porcini mushrooms, a traditional mainstay in Italian cooking, was no coincidence or gimmick. Chef de Cuisine Eugenio Iraci takes this ingredient seriously, and even oversees a mushroom humidor which houses a premium selection of dried and fresh mushrooms. The marks of care and quality was immediately evident from the Zuppa di Funghi Porcini, as it bore the rich flavour of the mushrooms from the very first spoonful. Thick and savoury, this soup is undoubtedly one of the best mushroom soups that I've had the honour of trying.

Linguine con astice, pomodoro fresco e basilico
Linguini with Boston lobster, fresh tomato and basil

"Sorry, what was that?" I asked puzzledly, as the well-groomed Italian manager leaned forward and suggested something in Chinese.

"Oh," he blinked, and then grinned, "Would you like to have some black pepper?"

Chuckling, I nodded and watched as he sprinkled some pepper on the pasta. When he was done, I thought it would only be gracious to address him in a way more familiar to him.

"Grazie," I smiled.

Taking an about-turn, he looked at me and laughed, "I speak to you in Chinese, and you speak to me in Italian."

"But I'm not Chinese, I mean, I'm not from China," I explained, "I'm from Singapore".

"Ah, Singapore, you come all the way here? On holiday?"

"Yes, but I'm missing Italian food... a lot." Then I added, "Been having too much Peking ducks as well."

Nodding, he smiled, "Then you must enjoy dinner tonight."

And boy, did I.

The Linguine con Astice was nothing short of amazing. It may even be possible that this is even better than Otto Ristorante's rendition of the Boston Lobster Linguine. While similarly done to al dente perfection, the pasta scored on its rich sauce which was thick, sweet and most importantly of all, authentic. And although I ordered a serving for one, it seemed to me like a whole lobster was used, but not that I'm complaining of course. Firm, juicy and fresh, the chunks of lobster were simply delicious. At one glance this dish looks simple, but each forkful was a magical weave of flavours, and pure pleasure.

Apple Crumble Tart with Vanilla Gelato

"Can I get you some dessert then?" the same Italian manager offered as he wheeled in the dessert trolley.

I paused. Desserts are always difficult.

"I can't decide between the tiramisu and the apple crumble," I admitted, "But I'm leaning towards the crumble... I think."

"Ah, the apple tart." His eyes twinkled and he made small wave at the tart as if he was a magician. "I know the best way to eat it."

I knew what was the best way I would eat it, but I wanted to be sure. "Tell me."

Clasping his hands, he said, "I'll warm it up till it's really hot, and then put a delicious scoop of cold vanilla gelato on the side."

This man knows his desserts too.

"I would love that please," I smiled.

And true enough, the Apple Crumble Tart with Vanilla Gelato turned out to be a winner. The tart was crisp on its ends but not overly crumbly, while fresh caramelised apple slices adorned its middle like priceless gems on a crown. The cold and creamy vanilla gelato, so beautifully dotted with vanilla beans, matched the hot crumble tart wonderfully.

Service

"Excuse me," I waved to the waiter, "You left out my dessert in the bill."

The Chinese waiter took a look at the bill, frowned and disappeared for a moment with it. When he returned, he was smiling, "Our manager would like you to know that desserts are on him. He hopes you liked the dessert."

"Oh, I loved it," I said, as I got up, "But please, let me see him so I can thank him personally."

In all Italian warmth and hospitality, the manager put whatever he was doing aside and shook my outstretched hand with both of his. "If you return to Beijing, please come again," he said, "And maybe, try more desserts next time."

We exchanged cards, and with all honesty I said I hoped to return to Cèpe someday. Turning the card, I looked for a name - Alberto Michieli. A true Italian gentleman indeed.

This was definitely one of my best meals of the year.

Price
110RMB for the Zuppa di Funghi Porcini
325RMB for the Linguine con Astice
90RMB for a glass of Italian white wine
60RMB for a bottle of still water

* Prices subject to 15% service charge.

Place
The Ritz-Carlton Beijing, Financial Street
Xicheng District, Beijing.

Pictures taken with the Canon EOS 500D.

Beijing, China: Serve the People

2010-12-27T14:00:00.007+08:00

Chairman Mao would have been proud. His famous maxim "Wei Ren Min Fu Wu", literally translated as "Serve the People", has been put to good use by a popular Thai restaurant in the embassy district. Even the taxi drivers seem to know this humble eatery by name, which is no small matter given how big Beijing is.

Serve the People is primarily staffed by Chinese youths with a fairly good command of the English language, and I suppose it's because it needs to cater to the foreigners and expatriates here who make up the majority of its clientele. Cheerful, friendly and eager to oblige, these youths are a good bunch to have compared to some of the grumpier old folks I've come across. Eye candies are available too, if I may just add ;)

My Southeast Asian-inclined tastebuds were yearning for something spicy, and a quick check on Lonely Planet and Frommer's brought this place up with some pretty encouraging reviews. Reading the menu I realised that it has almost everything that you could get in a decent Thai restaurant in Singapore, and perhaps even more. It also meant that hungry (and greedy) me wanted almost everything on the menu, but since I was alone I had to make some choices.

Chicken Green Curry

The Chicken Green Curry was surprisingly good. Instead of leaning towards the Beijing-penchant for having things on the sweeter side, this curry was addictively spicy and flavourful. The gravy was rich and thick and had all the spices necessary for a good Thai curry. Served hot-pot style, it was kept warm throughout.

The chicken slices were tender and came in a generous portion. I'm quite sure this serving was meant for two but I suppose I was more than hungry enough to have been able to finish it all up on my own. I honestly never thought I could find such a good rendition of a Thai green curry in the middle of Beijing, not by a long mile, so this truly exceeded my expectations.

Phad Thai

The quintessential Thai noodle dish. The Phad Thai from Serve the People was just average, and lacked the authentic flavour that could have been helped with some grated peanuts. A big mistake was for the chef to succumb to the typical Chinese practice of adding cabbage to stir-fried noodles, which was what he did here and which was just odd. If you put that aside, it's alright I suppose, sweeter than I would have liked but at least the green curry was around to save the day.

Coke Bottle

We have not seen this served in Singapore for a long while now, it's all cans and PET bottles on our side, but at least they're more easily recyclable than glass bottles. Coke, is well, coke - probably the best soft drink in the world that's all.

Service
Very good. Friendly and polite.

Price
About 60-75RMB for all three items.

Place

No. 1 Sanlitun Xiwujie, Sanlitun,
Chaoyang District, Beijing.

Pictures taken with the Canon EOS 500D.

Beijing, China: Novotel Xin Qiao

2010-12-27T08:30:00.010+08:00

During my week-long holiday in Beijing I stayed at the Novotel Xin Qiao hotel, located just next to the Chongwenmen subway station and a leisurely 10-minute walk to the prime Wangfujing shopping district. I would have opted for Novotel Peace Hotel for its slightly better location, but it was fully booked so I made do. Since I had the Accor Club Gold Card (which gives me a free upgrade in Accor Group hotels) Xin Qiao turned out to be quite pleasant indeed. For your info, everything you see here was paid for (and earned) by myself alone, so you're not going to see a "Thank you blah blah blah" at the end of this post. You wouldn't think I would do sponsored tours and holidays and then be reduced to a sad mouthpiece, would you?

Fish and Chips

The breakfast buffet at the hotel can be pretty crowded on weekends, so on one of the days I decided to just sit in a while longer and order something simple from the room service menu. And when the Fish and Chips arrived, I was delighted - it really looked more promising than what I had expected it to be.

The fish batter was light and crisp, while the meat inside was amazingly fresh and sweet. It was, in short, delicious, and nothing you would expect from a room service meal. Fries were piping hot and filling, but it was really the well-done fish that was the highlight of the morning. Yums.

Price
98RMB for the Fish and Chips, including taxes.

Place
Novotel Xin Qiao Hotel,
Chongwen District, Beijing.

Additional Comment
In terms of location, Novotel Xin Qiao has its strong points. It's situated between Wangfujing Street and Tian Tan (the Temple of Heaven), so you could walk to either of these places with ease. Tiananmen and Qianmen Dajie are relatively close as well, but if you're tired there's always the taxi and the meter would hardly move from its 10RMB flag-down rate. The subway station meanwhile is a few steps away from the hotel front lobby.

Pictures taken with the Canon EOS 500D.

Beijing, China: Forbidden City

2010-12-26T11:30:00.003+08:00

I love this picture so much I thought I should share it. I was so affected by the crowds at the Forbidden City you see, that I decided to pay the authorities an undisclosed amount to have the whole place to myself for a whole hour before sunset. The things that only money can buy.

It's a different feel altogether when you're alone in such a vast space, so full of history, culture and of course, mystery. As you walk through the courtyards and alleys there's this sense that you're being followed, or even studied, by the ancient owners, guards and maids who probably were amused by my less than regal dressing. And yet with the fullest respect that you accord to them, so would they to you.

At sunset, the Forbidden City has a unique charm of its own. A camera alone cannot fully capture the beauty of it all, as the sun rays fall gently on the bright rooftops, one-by-one. It's a lot more about feeling than trying to put everything onto a picture - what you need to do is to just stop, admire and feel.

As night drew closer, I took my leave, out to the common entrance where everyone else were gathered. Some huddled around a pushcart selling traditional Chinese sweets, no doubt buying a sweet treat or two to keep their spirits up as the cold winter evening dawned upon the city.

Me, I had a hot cup of instant Xiangyue Yuanwei Milk Tea, and it was at once refreshing, and comforting. Turning the cup, the image of S.H.E brought back memories of my secondary school and junior college days, when I was quite a fan actually. How time flies. Holding the cup in my gloved hands I walked on, further and further away from the halls of emperors.

Pictures taken with the Canon EOS 500D.

Beijing, China: Wangfujing Street

2010-12-25T12:00:00.006+08:00

Merry Christmas Everybody!

This is the closest that I could get in this Beijing series to show something vaguely Christmas-y to usher in the holiday weekend. Starbucks in Beijing is a godsend by the way, because China is still very much a tea country and you would be hard-pressed to find a good cuppa. It's a perfect thing to have really in the middle of a cold, winter night.

Wangfujing Street is one of the oldest streets in Beijing, but it would be difficult to appreciate this historical fact when it's now lined with modern and well-established brands like Tag Heuer, Cartier and Hermès. You can find your delightful Starbucks here as well. Come to think of it, they're all not even Chinese, but there is that one Li-Ning flagship store if you're interested.

Beside Wangfujing is the Donghuamen Night Market, a popular tourist haunt featuring rows of interesting food and souvenir stalls. Everything here is up for a bargain, and so what you pay is really how much you want to pay. The souvenir stalls are pretty much similar in that their wares are the same, but you'd be surprised at how different the prices can be. Food stalls meanwhile have typical things like soup noodles, skewered meat and stir-fried dishes. Else, for the more adventurous of course, there's some interesting delicacies on offer.

Would you like your scorpion small and soft, or big, hard and (I suppose) crispy? How about a once water-galloping seahorse? Or maybe something absolutely mushy inside, a larvae perhaps? Food blogger or not, I did not venture into the unknown. I paid too much for dinner to want to be reminded of how it looks like (in abstract form) on the floor.

Still more posts on Beijing till the end of the year. Stay tuned! :)

Pictures taken with the Canon EOS 500D.

Beijing, China: Nan Luo Gu Xiang

2010-12-24T09:30:00.002+08:00

One of my favourite places in Beijing is Nan Luo Gu Xiang (or, Nanluoguxiang), a quaint little street packed with bars, café, restaurants, boutiques and souvenir shops. It's a blend of past and present with the iconic hutongs and siheyuan (courtyard houses) transformed into modern commercial spaces. In winter evenings its usually quieter and less crowded, which makes it all the more peaceful and alluring.

Do take your time to peer into the shops, they are all quite different and unique in their own ways, a far cry from those tourist markets where every stall seems to be selling the same things over and over again.

Food-wise I can't comment much, because other than the churros I had, it was just a cup of coffee and some cake - the latter of which was (terribly) forgettable. There's some eateries offering Western grub, while some others appear to be serving up a variety of Taiwanese snacks and sweet treats. Popular with the Chinese youths.

It was a cold night when the both of us were walking along Nan Luo Gu Xiang after our amazing dinner at Beijing Da Dong Roast Duck Restaurant. I didn't think I could possibly fit in anything else after all that food, but I saw this inviting little stall and did a double-take. Maybe I'm not so full after all ;)

In such cold weather, how does piping hot Churros and hot chocolate sauce sound to you? Sounds absolutely awesome right! This was something I could not resist one bit, and it was a good thing I couldn't because boy was it good. The churros were crisp and light, while the smooth, hot chocolate sauce was just a delight to slurp on as it dribbled down the wrapper. Pure comfort food.

Continue your leisurely walk to Hou Hai, Beijing's popular waterhole that's packed with lively clubs and pubs. Be prepared for some touting, but don't feel pressured and just take your pick on the type of music that you like. If pubs and live bands aren't your thing, be entertained by some sensual belly dancing instead, I enjoyed that quite a lot too. Clubs are beyond me now, but I heard some are worthy pick-up joints for a midnight tryst or two.

And since it's Christmas eve today, here's wishing a
Merry, Merry Christmas to one and all! :)

Place
Nan Luo Gu Xiang Street,
Dongcheng District, Beijing.

Pictures taken with the Canon EOS 500D and Canon Ixus 80 IS.

Beijing, China: Da Dong Roast Duck

2010-12-23T14:00:00.015+08:00

The top of the four, the best of them all. If you're looking for the best Peking duck in Beijing - this is it. With duck so fine and oh so divine, this is food for the gods. While I definitely would want to return to Beijing, it wouldn't be for the Great Wall or for the Forbidden City, it would really be for this. Without further ado, here's presenting to you - Beijing Da Dong Roast Duck Restaurant.

The accolades on the walls at the entrance speak for themselves. As though these aren't enough, you have various endorsements from Heads of States, Ambassadors and celebrities. In fact, we've even got an autograph from our very own - Singapore President S. R Nathan.

Reservations are a must, else the waiting time can be quite long. I thought having complimentary soft drinks and hot beverages at the waiting area was a nice gesture, though I could tell that everyone just wanted to have their duck as soon as possible. With such anticipation building inside each and every one of us, even the ceremonial presentation and slicing of the ducks was seen as coming between us and that taste of sheer heaven. And when I say heaven, I mean it's like hearing the angels sing.

Da Dong Super Lean Duck

The signature Da Dong Super Lean Duck was fabulous; I would even say it was flawless. When me and my friend had our first bite we were actually silent for quite a while, slowly relishing each second of the delicate duck skin as it melted in our mouths. There wasn't a need for words to describe what we were going through that very minute; that knowing smile said it all.

If you're thinking that a "super lean" duck means a "meat-less" duck, you're wrong. The duck meat, though lean, was sliced in such a meticulous manner that it balanced the delicious crispy skin perfectly. The tender meat was also surprisingly juicier than I would have expected from such lean slices, and was really such a joy to indulge so guiltlessly in. This is unbelievably good Peking duck, pure and simple.

Pancake

The Pancake was equally light and went very well with the roast duck. It was so smooth and moist that it made some of the other pancakes we had look like sandpaper.

Toasted Sesame Buns

I especially liked the thoughtful addition of Toasted Sesame Buns because they brought another welcomed layer of crispiness to the duck feast. With a generous amount of sublime roasted duck packed in between the buns, it was like having the ultimate duck burger, Chinese-style.

Sauteed Duck Liver with Black Pepper

Not exactly your exquisite French foie gras, but the Sauteed Duck Liver with Black Pepper was nevertheless another stellar dish and it stood its own ground as another highlight of the night. Fork-tender and has the tendency to erupt in emphatic flavour with each bite. Perhaps most importantly of all, the black pepper helped to mask the strong hint of iron in the duck liver, and instead went on to create an addictive spiciness that kept me going back for more, and more, and more. Yums.

Grilled Beef Steak

The Grilled Beef Steak was equally praise-worthy. Though the serving portion was small, it was good enough as an "ad-hoc" appetiser. I especially liked how the herbs and black pepper matched so well with the sweet (and slightly sour) lemon peels. Lovely.

Encore - Da Dong Super Lean Duck

I've certainly not tried them all, but I'm certain that Da Dong serves up one of the best Peking Ducks in Beijing, if not the world. This is my favourite Peking duck and I honestly think it would be difficult to find anything remotely close, much less similar. Perfect score on all measures, a gastronomic dream come true.

Service
Excellent.

Price
198RMB for the Da Dong Super Lean Duck
8RMB per person for the Condiments
68RMB for the Sauteed Duck Liver with Black Pepper
66RMB for the Grilled Beef Steak

* Prices subject to 10% service charge.

Place

No. 3 Tuanjiehu Beikou
(Opposite side of the road from Exit A of the Tuanjiehu train station)
Chaoyang District, Beijing.

Pictures taken with the Canon EOS 500D.

Beijing, China: Made in China

2010-12-22T14:00:00.010+08:00

Made in China at the Beijing Grand Hyatt is a gem. Great food, great service, great atmosphere, what's there not to like about this place? Even as I'm typing now I can almost taste the roasted duck and fried rice in my mouth, it is that memorable really. Coming in a very strong second in the best of four of this mini Peking roast duck series, Made in China has delivered remarkably and would have won praise even from the Emperors centuries ago.

The interior of the restaurant is classy yet not pretentious, and some may even say that parts of it resemble Straits Kitchen at Singapore's Grand Hyatt Hotel, albeit a slightly more refined one. Service here is very prompt and helpful as well, so that's an extra plus point.

The restaurant was running on full house that evening, and since I was alone I gave up my table to a couple who didn't have a reservation (I myself had made an earlier reservation) and was seated at a counter instead. While waiting for my duck to arrive, I spent the time watching the junior chefs learn how to make dumplings. It was quite funny to see them fussing over the details and making faces each time one of the senior chefs came by and made comments.

Peking Roast Duck

Of course, the real show started when my Peking Roast Duck arrived. I'll spare you the details of all that present the duck - cut the duck part, but instead would rather have you feast your eyes on the smooth and immaculate slices of duck.

Made in China's Peking roast duck is quite special indeed. It's crisp and fatty where it matters, and the duck skin here is one of the rare few that literally melts in your mouth. Dip it in sugar for that sugar rush and its like having candy, only better and more addictive.

The meat was tender, but it's best not to leave it out for too long lest it gets dry. Otherwise, it was adequately moist and flavourful, and went very well with the pancakes and Hoisin soy sauce. I was initially doubtful about getting half a duck as I was concerned I would be getting the leftover half. Thankfully it was a new one that arrived, so the moisture and all were still intact.

I should just add one more picture of that heavenly row of exquisite duck skin for good measure. It melts in your mouth, it really does (man, I'm like smacking my lips now). And if you do make a gentle bite on it, you can almost feel the tiny but discernible burst of flavour in your mouth. Simply divine.

Special Fried Rice

It's been a while since I've had some rice in Beijing and I was in search of a good plate of fried rice. The "Special Fried Rice", special only because it's not on the menu and was a small request made by me, was a plain and simple fried rice with eggs, shrimps and some (real) crabmeat. I asked for something simple, they added in the goods. The verdict? One of the best fried rice I've ever had really. It has that alluring smoky flavour (more affectionately known as "wok hei") that is a mark of fantastic fried rice. Full marks.

Service
Excellent.

Price
312RMB for the Peking roast duck (half), fried rice and a teapot of Chinese tea.

Place
1 East Chang An Avenue,
Beijing Grand Hyatt Hotel,
(Next to Wangfujing Street)
Chongwen District, Beijing.

Pictures taken with the Canon EOS 500D.

Beijing, China: Quanjude Roast Duck

2010-12-21T14:00:00.016+08:00

We return to Qianmen Dajie for what may very well be the historic street's most famous of all stores - Qianjude Roast Duck Restaurant. Many local Beijingers swear by the Peking roast duck from Qianjude, though some others may be more inclined towards Qianjude's long-standing rival Bianyifang. The latter's history can be traced as far back as 1416, but it has gradually lost its dominance over the delicacy following Qianjude's entry into the scene.

Opened in 1864, this branch at Qianmen Dajie is the original, and is perennially packed at mealtimes. Much effort has been put into renovating and refurbishing this flagship restaurant, with the last major works having taken place in late 2007.

The interior of the restaurant is pretty, without being too elaborate. You would normally have to let luck decide your seating whilst you wait for your queue number to be called, but if you're intending to make a reservation (minimum spending required) just make sure you're on the upper level - the tables here are larger, more spaced out, and thus more comfortable for a leisurely duck feast. Luck was on our side that day, and we squealed with delight when we were assigned to a table on the second floor.

As with all orders of Peking duck, the manager presented the beauty to us before leaving the rest of the show to the chef. We waited with much hunger and anticipation for our roast duck, one which particularly has the longest historical background compared to the other ducks we've tried in Beijing.

Quanjude Roast Duck

The Quanjude Roast Duck was good stuff, in its own way, and it would depend on how you like your duck. Compared to the rest, the duck here is meatier and more "gamey", not the lean and delicate kind that has gained much favour in recent years.

There was also a noticeable trace of oil layering the duck (and later, lining the plate), which I suppose would invoke that brief sense of guilt for indulging in something seemingly unhealthy and high in fat. Even more so when four ducks were consumed in a space of seven days. Nevertheless, pretty decent, better than standard roast ducks here in Singapore, but again not something that you would want to particularly return to Beijing for. The next two Peking roast ducks that you'll be reading about on the other hand are worthy of such return journeys - they're quite in a league of their own.

Pancake

The essential accompaniment to the Peking roast duck, the Pancake is an important component to the meal as it adds some measure of balance to a meat-dominated table. The plain and simple pancake from Quanjude also helped to ease off the oil from the duck, which was something much welcomed.

Cornmeal Pancake

Quanjude also serves a drier but more wholesome Cornmeal Pancake in its roast duck set. Both of us still preferred the usual one (above), and it had a lot to do with it being lighter and slightly smoother.

Chicken with Chilli Sauce

As though roasted duck was not enough, we had another from the poultry family. The Chicken with Chilli Sauce turned out much better than expected, in large part because of its spiciness that sufficiently worked up the appetite. I'm sure this would have gone very well with steamed rice, but we were dealing with too much flour already and made do with making our own ad-hoc chilli chicken dumplings.

Fried Pumpkin Dumplings with Stuffed Milk

Yes, we had room for these as well. I'm not sure if we meant to have the Fried Pumpkin Dumplings as an appetiser or dessert, but these came in the middle of the meal and we had it anyway.

I liked it a lot, it was soft yet slightly crisp, and came piping hot both outside and inside. Just one bite and the milk spills out, so lap it up and make sure nothing is wasted. Delicious.

Service
Excellent. Do come early to get your queue number, and for us it took about a thirty-minute wait. Enough time to shop around Uniqlo next door.

Price
268RMB for the Quanjude Roast Duck, including accompaniments
44RMB for the Chicken with Chilli Sauce
26RMB for the Fried Pumpkin Dumplings with Stuffed Milk

Place
No.32, Qianmen Dajie,
Chongwen District, Beijing.

Pictures taken with the Canon EOS 500D.

Beijing, China: Duck de Chine

2010-12-20T14:15:00.003+08:00

Seven days, four ducks. Ever since then, no other Peking Roast Duck outside of China comes close to the real deal. Follow me this week as I take you through four of the best that Beijing has to offer, beginning with Duck de Chine at 1949, to Quanjude at Qianmen Dajie, to Made in China at Grand Hyatt, and finally to my personal favourite of them all, Da Dong Roast Duck Restaurant. Same delicacy in four unique ways, I'm getting all hungry just having to think about them again.

We begin with Duck de Chine at 1949, a swanky "hidden city" close to the up and coming Sanlitun District. Many would understandably dismiss 1949 as an enclosed dining and entertainment venue meant to breed that sense of elitism in the rich to feel good about themselves, but this is also one amazing place to impress your date - get light-headed with an apéritif before soaking up the romantic atmosphere with some good food and good company. Of course, Duck de Chine has a more Chinese (restaurant) set-up, but it keeps with the theme and continues to win praise for its modern impressionist style and classy ambience.

Truth be told, I was actually here for its much-raved Duck Confit but was terribly dismayed to find out that they have discontinued the item for quite some time now. It doesn't quite make sense, surely not to me, that the establishment's top dish has been taken off the menu, but since it was cold outside and there wasn't anything particularly enticing at Sanlitun's The Village (where the young and rich / wannabes gather) we settled for the manager's recommendation - Peking Roast Duck.

Duck de Chine's Special Sauce

I'm only calling it Duck de Chine's Special Sauce because of the way they would mix the traditional condiments of sesame, peanut and fried minced garlic so prettily together. It's delicious done this way, though some may find it a tad salty and would more than readily opt for a serving of Hoisin sauce or a small dipping bowl of sugar to accompany their precious roast ducks.

Peking Roast Duck

The ceremonial slicing of your Peking Roast Duck is almost always somewhat of a show, from the presentation of the bird (which leaves you going, "Now, this is my duck") to the deft slices by the chef, and then to the delivery of different cuts of the duck in different plates. Here at Duck de Chine they begin it all with the sound of a gong, as if it were a virgin to a sacrifice.

The Peking Roast Duck (I know, some of you would rather call it Beijing Roast Duck after Beijing Kao Ya) was good, but not great. According to my friend Shuo, we have been too pampered with the ducks from the well-established Da Dong and Qianjude that our standards have shot up too high to be completely reasonable. The skin of the duck was crispy and smooth no doubt, but the meat was not the most tender and was even dry on some parts. The steamed flour wrap was too thick and dry as well, and so could not help much either.

Stir-Fried Ma Po Beancurd

Otherwise known as Ma Po Tofu, the Ma Po Beancurd was similarly tasty but not mind-blowingly so. It did reveal the Chinese penchant for having things either salty or sweet (in this case, it was more of the latter) but at least it was of a decent spiciness level to keep the appetite going. A good "side dish" to the Peking duck.

Service
Very good, but reservations are a must.

Price
About 238RMB for the whole Peking duck
8RMB per person for sauces and accompaniments
82RMB for the Stir-Fried Ma Po Beancurd

* Prices subject to 10% service charge.

Place
Gong Ti Bei Lu,
Chaoyang District, Beijing.
Located directly behind Pacific Century Place.
Note: Taxis don't seem to know 1949's exact location very well.

Pictures taken with the Canon EOS 500D.

Beijing, China: Babela's Kitchen

2010-12-19T20:00:00.008+08:00

In an interview with Babela's Kitchen founder Chen Xingwei, the millionaire entrepreneur said that he wanted to venture into "Italian" cuisine and try to tap on the market success of the Pizza Hut chain of restaurants in China, primarily in Beijing and Shanghai. Knowing how he could somehow confuse Italian with Pizza Hut is enough for you to understand why Babela's Kitchen remains at a loss of what its "cuisine" (if there's any to begin with) actually is, especially with a menu that features items from pizzas to fried rice to steaks to Taiwanese-themed desserts. Nevertheless, it still manages to draw crowds of the impressionable youth who seem ready to lap up anything remotely modern or "Western".

Spicy Beef Fried Rice

Me, I just wanted something Asian (but not Chinese), and since I was quite sure that the pizzas and pastas would disappoint I settled for the Spicy Beef Fried Rice instead. This turned out edible enough, with hints of lemongrass and lots of (I believe) chilli sauce and peppers. It's just to fill me up before I head off to the shops again.

Thai Tom Yum Shrimp Balls

I was more curious than hungry over these Thai Tom Yum Shrimp Balls because I really wanted to know what would the Chinese rendition of tom yum be like. They turned out quite alright after all, and tasted even better when dipped into the sweet Thai chilli sauce.

Babela's Supreme Ice Coffee

Babela's Supreme Ice Coffee can only be described as such: over-hyped. It's just shaken iced milk coffee in another name. All-in-all, average Asian food in a fast-foodish way. Completely no idea why it's so popular, be it here in Beijing or in Shanghai.

.
.
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NEXT UP! Four posts, four Peking Ducks. I'm hungry already.

Service
Average. Menu is in English.

Price
12RMB for the Spicy Beef Fried Rice
16RMB for the Thai Tom Yum Shrimp Balls
12RMB for the Babela's Supreme Ice Coffee

Place
Glory Mall, Level 1
Chongwen District, Beijing.

Pictures taken with the Canon EOS 500D.

Beijing, China: Lao She Teahouse

2010-12-18T14:00:00.005+08:00

Lao She Teahouse comes highly recommended by many travel guides and it's not too difficult to see why tourists, especially the Westerners, would be drawn to such a place. It's that sort of cultural immersion that you would want to experience in a foreign country, and even I myself thought it would be well-worth spending an evening sitting through 2+ hours of traditional Chinese performances. What I should have remembered is that I've already had the "privilege" of watching so many Chinese orchestra and opera performances as a young student, and so the overall experience at Lao She did not excite or interest me much.

This being a food blog after all, I should make brief comments on the snacks that were served for the night. ~~They were all boring, period.~~ The tea was decent, and was filled throughout the night. The candies and green bean soup were... oh forget it, they were all downright pathetic.

At the end of it all, you're just paying for the performances. Much of it was yawn-inspiring, but I did enjoy the acts by the Gong Fu Cha ("Kung Fu Tea Masters") and Bian Lian (literally translated as "face-changing", a dramatic mask performance). If I could say anything more, it's really to just keep the money and buy yourself another Peking Duck to feast on.

Price
180RMB per person.

Place
No.3, Qianmen West Street,
Chongwen District, Beijing.

Pictures taken with the Canon EOS 500D.

Beijing, China: Yi Tiao Long

2010-12-17T12:00:00.000+08:00

We begin this Beijing series of posts at the famous Qianmen Dajie, which extends from the southern gate of Beijing's historic wall surrounding the Forbidden City. While historically significant, massive renovations have virtually transformed this site of "old Beijing" into a modern shopping district, with well-known brands like Swatch and Uniqlo setting up shop along the well-paved street.

Of course, valiant efforts were made to reflect the traditional Chinese architecture of the early 1900s (the architects apparently used photographs from this period as a form of reference), so you have a bit of the new and a bit of the old. The restoration was quite well-done actually, and I myself was taken in by the bright colours and nicely decorated rooftops.

In the same spirit of "restoration", at least twelve Beijing "time-honored brands", with histories stretching back several centuries, have continued to keep their doors open to the public at the revamped Qianmen Dajie. Yi Tiao Long, established in 1785, is just one of them, and is a popular Muslim restaurant known for its hot pot and mutton dishes. If you're here in winter, as I was, I am sure you would agree with me that having ma la hot pot in such cold weather is just simply delightful.

Zha Jiang Mian

Zha Jiang Mian, literally meaning "fried sauce noodles", hails from Northern China and features thick wheat noodles mixed with minced meat and salty fermented soybean paste. The noodles were served with the meat and paste on the side, just so you can decide on how much you want to mix them in. There's a reason to this of course.

Not everyone can take to the saltiness, and if not for my can of Coke this would have been a little more difficult to go through. I must admit however that I found this tastier and tastier with each forkful, so much so that I cleared most of it when I was supposed to share. Not that Shuo, my friend on attachment at the Singapore Embassy in Beijing (and who joined me from time to time for meals), minded much, because she seemed to be enjoying her hot pot a lot more compared to this. Beef chunks were very tender by the way, something a beef lover would readily approve.

Ma La Hot Pot

The Ma La Hot Pot was evidently very good, it fitted the weather very well as I mentioned, and also because it was deliciously spicy without being too numbing or overwhelming. I admit that I have not eaten enough hot pots to be able to tell if this was average, good or great, but I liked it enough to say it's worth a try.

The highlights were definitely the lean and tender meat slices as well as the assorted meatballs, though I came to like the chewy beef stomach slices (pictured in grey near the middle) after a while as well. Spicy soup and salty noodles, somehow they clicked and I got myself a satisfying lunch :)

Another mainstay, and great attraction, along Qianmen Dajie is the famous Qianjude Roast Duck Restaurant. Look out for a post on this next week when I go through some of the best Peking Ducks in Beijing!

Service
Very good. Menu is in English.

Price
12RMB for the Zha Jiang Mian
49RMB for the Ma La Hot Pot

Place
No. 27 Qianmen Dajie,
Chongwen District, Beijing.

Pictures taken with the Canon EOS 500D.

Flying with SQ: SIN-PEK, PEK-SIN

2010-12-16T14:00:00.006+08:00

We start off this series of posts on Beijing with my flight onboard Singapore Airlines. Compared to my trip in Italy where I flew alone but traveled with a partner, this time round I was very much on my own. I did think that some independent travelling would do well for me before I get posted overseas in 2012, and to my surprise I realised that I enjoyed it quite a lot actually, much more that I had expected. Of course there were times when I did have the company of my colleague for dinner (she's on attachment at the Singapore Embassy in Beijing), but otherwise it was just me, finding my inner peace and really just taking in all the sights and sounds of a new place. If anything, I would say it was hugely therapeutic.

On the food onboard SQ, I thought it was very unpalatable to be honest. The Roasted Chicken on the SIN-PEK flight was terribly dry and was a chore to even swallow, while the cold bun served on the side could even pass off as rubbery. I opted for the "Muslim" option on the PEK-SIN flight back and got the Baked Salmon, which turned out to be ten times better but not necessarily amazing stuff either. It is in-flight food anyway, so what should I expect right? Still, I would really love to have something more than cold buns, dry chicken or even a sad pack of Khong Guan cream crackers from a multi award-winning airline.

I've noticed that there's two types of SQ travelers - one, the impressionable type who gets a ticket (free or otherwise) and tries to brag, and two, the passionate traveler who wouldn't mind trying out other airlines as part of the travelling experience, so long as the itinerary fits and it gets him to where he's headed. I've been travelling on SQ so much for work anyway that any novelty (if any) has long worn off, and things like the quality of in-flight food and the availability of short transits (to eat more? haha!) actually matter much more to me. The first group of SQ travelers would have you believe the food is stellar under all circumstances; me, I'm just being honest - it was very disappointing.

At least one thing is consistent though - my double shot Bailey's Irish Cream - grin- This has become somewhat of a staple on my flights on SQ, take it as chocolate milk with alcohol if you like. Smooth, creamy and served cold on the rocks, this makes for a perfect drink to ease you into your seat and get you absorbed in a movie or two on Krisworld Movies. If that's not enough, I usually have a small stash of chocolates to keep me sugared up as well ;)

Pictures taken with the Canon EOS 500D.

Bistro Du Vin

2010-12-15T14:00:00.007+08:00

With Les Amis' La Strada and Aoki ventured, the next logical step was to pay a visit to Bistro Du Vin, a casual French bistro along the same row of Les Amis restaurants at Orchard's Shaw Centre. If you're looking for some of the best Italian food in Singapore or the best Japanese food in Singapore or the best French food in Singapore -grin-, the Les Amis group of restaurants might just be one of the places to look at. Of course I'm not giving my personal stamp of approval to all of them, not by such a broad stroke, but aim for what they're good at individually and I'm sure you would be left quite satisfied indeed. Nothing ventured, nothing gained I'd say.

Toasted Baguette

It may seem odd to you, but I'm going to rave about Bistro Du Vin's plain and toasted baguettes. They're awesome. It's nicely crisp (but not hard) on the outside and soft (but not spongy) on the inside. Spread some butter on the hot baguette slices fresh out of the oven and before you know it, you might be through with your third, or even fourth. Simple pleasures.

Scrambled Eggs with Smoked Salmon

The Scrambled Eggs with Smoked Salmon was one of the appetisers on Bistro Du Vin's weekly set lunch menu, and it caught my eye because it has been a really long time since I had some good scrambled eggs (my favourite so far - Food for Thought @8Q).

Just like the toasted baguette, the scrambled eggs were downright simple, but good. It scored on the basics - texture and egg content in particular - which are good enough for me. It didn't quite match up on the third criteria in creaminess, but that's really a personal preference and I'm sure not everyone is so egged about this.

Duck Confit
Served with brussels sprouts and mustard sauce

Duck, duck, duck - I love my duck confits and Peking ducks. Bistro Du Vin does a pretty good Duck Confit, with enough crispiness on the top and tenderness on the inside. On most parts the meat fell apart quite easily with each gentle pull of the fork, and there were brief (nano)seconds where you could feel the skin melting in your mouth.

If I had to be picky, I would have to point out that there were a couple of burnt ~~spots~~ specks on my dear duck, and these did jar my tastebuds a little. Nevertheless, the rest of it was done more than decently enough, and a return visit may still be worthwhile. Duck confits aren't the easiest to prepare, so I'm always quite easy on them.

Mashed Potato

If you're on a "diet" or just hate your greens, go for the Mashed Potato, it's delicious. Smooth and oh-so-potato-ey with a hint of creaminess, this is guaranteed to delight the potato-lovers surely. I'm sure babies would love this too haha.

Caramel Ice-Cream with Selected Nuts

I really liked the Caramel Ice-Cream. It wasn't overwhelmingly sweet and had that slight bitterness which is a mark of good caramel. The nuts, pistachios being one of them, gave an added crunch to this little cool treat.

Caramel Custard

I can't say the Caramel Custard looked the most appealing of all the desserts on offer, but I suppose it's perfect for those who want something light to end of an already heavy lunch.

Crème Brûlée

I've been pampered with the best from Otto, so a simple Crème Brûlée such as this one here may fall a little short. I'm now a firm believer (again, after Otto) that a good crème brûlée should be accompanied by some berries to balance off the sweetness from the custard and caramel. This was decent, light and smooth crème brûlée, no doubt about it, but a dash of extra flavours would definitely help to make it a little less monotonous. Just a personal preference really.

Coffee

They need to make sure that you are awake enough to make your way back to work, and if possible, to last the next few hours before it strikes six or so. After so much sugars, this was a much welcomed drink as well.

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Wondering what's up next? It's time to start on Beijing! :)

Service
Excellent. Friendly and very helpful.

Price
$28 for the weekly set lunch
$3 additional/supplement for Duck Confit
$8 for the Crème Brûlée

* Prices subject to the usual 7% GST and 10% service charge.

Place
Orchard Shaw Centre, #02-12.
Opposite Pacific Plaza and HSBC Bank, Tanglin Branch.

Pictures taken with the Canon EOS 500D.

Aoki

2010-12-14T14:00:00.010+08:00

Les Amis' Aoki at Shaw Centre is widely known for its impressive sushi and sashimi, and so it's no surprise that this establishment has been on quite a few of the bloggers' "to-go" lists. Me, I'm not so much a sushi fan - in fact, I don't even eat it save for the plain inaris - so there was somewhat of a brief hesitation on my part when my colleagues suggested we head there for lunch. Glancing at the online menu I was prepared to unashamedly order loads of tempura, but after some deliberation I decided to go all the way and indulge in some solid beef.

Saga Beef Bowl with White Truffles

When I meant go all the way, I really mean go all the way - $123++ for this bowl, that's what we're talking. I'm not accustomed to splurging that much on a dish, I would rather save up to feed that insatiable wanderlust of mine to be honest, but I have to admit that there was something about this Saga Beef Bowl with White Truffles that intrigued me. And since you can't really love someone without loving yourself first, let's do some of that loving right now.

You're not going to find this baby on the menu, but it's available upon request. Hailing from Kyushu's smallest prefecture Saga, the Saga Beef is recognised as one of the most premium of Japanese beef (along with its equally renowned counterparts Kobe and Matsuzaka) and features a perfect marbled blend of fat and tender lean meat. Best to have it at medium for maximum satisfaction, or medium-well if you would want it more pink than red.

Aoki does an extremely good job with this expensive cut, so good that each slice almost melts in your mouth with just a single bite. And with White Truffles being in season, add it all in for good measure and I can guarantee that you would be rewarded with quite a treat of flavours. I must reiterate that going $110++ for 100gm of Saga beef is not something that I'm going to pull off again anytime soon, but if you've got the moolah and wanna do some self-loving, go on ahead.

Tamago

Since my beef bowl did not exactly fill me up (you shouldn't expect it to anyway, unless you have a small appetite), I ordered the Tamago as a side to do the deed. This sweet Japanese omelet was really quite amazing - soft, smooth and with a natural sweetness that's ridiculously addictive. Lovely.

Shokado
Sashimi, Nimono, Tempura, Yakimono and Sushi set, served with Miso soup and dessert

A colleague of mine was more than willing to let me have a few quick shots of her Shokado set, which I must add turned out more filling than it looks. She enjoyed it quite a lot and had much praise for the items in her little bento box. The rest meanwhile were having the popular Mazechirashi set, which had sushi rice topped with mixed sashimi and (that oh-so-delicious) tamago.

Service
Excellent. If you're in a small group of six, I would suggest you ask for the lower-level private room (note: a higher "cover charge" of $5++ - compared to the usual $3++ - is imposed per pax). Make as much noise as you want with the door closed, good food tastes even better with great company anyway. If you're in an even smaller group of four, I heard the ground level booth seats are quite comfy too.

Price
$110 for the Saga Beef Bowl (normal)
$123 for the Saga Beef Bowl with White Truffles (seasonal)
$38 for the Shokado
$35 for the Mazechirashi

* Prices subject to the usual 7% GST and 10% service charge.

Place
Orchard Shaw Centre, #02-17
Opposite Pacific Plaza and HSBC Bank, Tanglin Branch.

Additional Comment
Silver specks on the pictures are not a result of photo-editing, but rather the shine from the food. My i4 tried its best :)

Pictures taken with the Apple iPhone 4.

Otto Ristorante

2010-12-13T14:00:00.002+08:00

I'm really, really glad that I've finally found the time to pay a visit to the amazing and much-raved Otto Ristorante. Located within the bright Red Dot Traffic Building along Maxwell Road, Otto is a sophisticated yet alluring Italian sanctuary with some of the best that the cuisine can possibly offer. Whether you're here for a romantic dinner or even just to have a peaceful lunch on your own, this is one charming place that would definitely please and leave you with an experience worth cherishing for the next couple of months, weeks or days - not too long before your heart begins to yearn for Otto once again like a long-lost lover. My recent affair, no matter how ephemeral, was at times a tease of the senses and in others, a heady rush of sensuous pleasures. In short, Otto Ristorante was all lovely, and nothing short of spectacular.

Bread Basket

While some have written about their Bread Basket arriving cold, or others delivered from a tray, mine came warm and wrapped like a newborn. The assortment of breads was quite simply a delight to behold, and I savoured the first taste of each of them like an excited baby new to ice-cream. Without a care for the world (or tight pants for that matter), I took my time to enjoy each and every one of them, from the fragrant foccacia, to the soft, supple sweet onions bread, to the light baguette slices, and to the sweet, cranberry-speckled buns.

Amuse-Bouche

The Amuse-Bouche came in a spoonful of stewed mushrooms topped with cheese shavings, and it succeeded in whetting my appetite for a good whole fifteen seconds before I returned to more of the fluffy bread slices in the basket. It did not amuse as it was expected to, but this was after all the vegetarian option to the actual roasted pork belly hors d'œuvre that was served to the other diners. As some would say, appreciate it for being beautifully imperfect.

Baccala' alla Vicentina con Polenta Soffice
Vicentina Style Baked Cod with Soft Polenta

If the bread basket was love at first sight, the Baccala' Alla Vicentina Con Polenta Soffice was akin to a first kiss. Small, perhaps guarded, advances on the almost mashed cod pieces and smooth polenta were greeted with a certain amount of delight and curiosity. You go in for more, letting the flavours trickle through your grateful tastebuds. The baked cod, even when in such small pieces, somehow managed to retain some firmness, while the sweet polenta accompanied it deliciously. Pleasant appetiser.

Linguine all' Astice dette In Busera
Linguine Boston Lobster in Spicy Light Tomato Gravy

This was what it was all about. The Linguine all' Astice dette In Busera, one of the most famed of Otto Ristorante's dishes. All to myself only for the afternoon, with no invading forks and no need for any diplomatic pretense that I'm more than eager to let you have a try. I'm possessive, but it's only for the best.

The pasta was done to al dente perfection, in a tangy and lightly spicy tomato gravy that was nothing less than addictive. This is as good as pasta can get, be it here in Singapore or in authentic Italy. The slight hint of spiciness, possibly in an effort to appeal to the local clientele, blended perfectly well and worked wonders.

The generous serving of lobster meat wrapped it all up nicely. Firm and juicy to the bite, it bore the marks of freshness and quality. Well worth the price I was paying for, which to be honest is nothing compared to the gastronomic experience I was entitled to. Simply lovely.

Crema alla Catalana con Frutti di Bosco Marinati al Vincotto
Haitian Crème Brûlée served with Vincotto Marinated Berries

I'm in love, and not just because this is something pretty and alluring. I've not tasted anything better than this really, not in a long mile. The Crema alla Catalana con Frutti di Bosco Marinati al Vincotto is a sugar and dessert person's dream, a crème brûlée done to immaculate perfection from the thin, firm and crisp caramel layer down to the smooth and sweet vanilla custard. I loved it served in a wider pan as compared to a slightly deeper ramekin because it paired the caramel layer more evenly with the custard; as such, each spoonful was guaranteed a little of both.

Some of the best things do come in pairs, as was the crème brûlée here with its perfect accompaniment of fairly sour vincotto-marinated berries. This was pure love again and again and again, and I dare say I love this more than anyone else.

Cappuccino

As the hands of the clock wound down, we started to say our goodbyes, but not without promising that we will meet again soon. The affair, though short, ended on a heart-warming, even calming, note, the same way a smooth cup of good Cappuccino would warm you up inside. The froth, diaphanous and almost fluffy, was sweet from the added spoonful of sugar. A sweet ending, a happy ending.

It has been quite a while, but I'm delighted to have finally found another meal that scored flawlessly in all courses and areas. Service here was impeccable as well, and the timing in delivery was just about right. The ambience (I had a side room which only seated four separate tables, so there was some measure of peace and privacy) was good, and I am sure it would be even better in the evenings. Perfect for that special date.

This experience was mine, and mine alone to cherish. I do know that some would be bursting to share even their personal relationships with the chef or manager (I've heard one too many), but leave those for elsewhere and let's just concentrate on the food instead - because they are all worth an encore really. For those of you who have not been to Otto Ristorante as yet, I hope you do! :)

Because being in love is such a wonderful feeling after all.

Service
Impeccable.

Price
$26 for the Vicentina Style Baked Cod with Soft Polenta
$38 for the Linguine Boston Lobster in Spicy Light Tomato Gravy
$14 for the Haitian Crème Brûlée served with Vincotto Marinated Berries
$7 for a cup of Cappuccino

* Prices subject to the the usual 7% GST and 10% service charge.
** Citibank Platinum Cardmembers and above get 15% off on ala carte food bill.

Place
28 Maxwell Road, #01-02
Red Dot Traffic Building.
For Otto Ristorante's website, click here.

Pictures taken with the Apple iPhone 4.

Sole Pomodoro

2010-12-12T20:00:00.004+08:00

It's true, wood-fired pizzas are really starting to make their presence felt here in Singapore. I don't think anyone is complaining of course, save for the main pizza chains who are now given a huge run for their money. I'm glad to announce that one of the new kids on the block - Sole Pomodoro - happens to be the pizzeria offshoot of the original Cugini at Club Street, which I must say already does quite a fantastic seafood pizza with an electric oven mind you.

I can't claim to be a pizza expert and I won't bore you with pizza jargon either (not that I know many anyway), but what opinions I can try to share with you are from my experiences with pizzas in Italy, particularly in its birthplace in Naples.

Provinciale
Tomato Sauce, mozzarella, olives, onions and toasted chicken

Having had the seafood pizza previously at Cugini, I ventured for its poultry counterpart in the Provinciale pizza. The pizzas here at Sole Pomodoro are fairly close to the real deal in Italy in terms of the puffy and crisp sides and smoky flavour, but the dough in general seems to be lacking quite a bit. It was too moist near the centre (an inevitable outcome given its thinness), making each slice appear pretty limp and sloppy when you hold it from the top. But all that aside, still very good pizza, though I'm sure a seafood-based one would satisfy more.

Salcciaccia e Peperoni
Mozzarella, cherry tomatoes, sweet peppers and sausage

Random thought: Do you know the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (named after the four Italian Renaissance artists) loved peperoni pizzas (anchovies too I think)? Not sure what they would have thought about this Salcciaccia e Peperoni pizza, but we had the same little grouse that it could do with just a tiny bit more dough in the middle.

Sole Pomodoro
Mozzarella, sundried fried tomatoes, cream, potatoes, sausage and onions

With a pizza taking the name of the restaurant, you would think that the Sole Pomodoro has to be the house special. I don't think this impressed much though, but I would leave it to the person who ate this to make a comment later (Glenn, that's your cue).

All-in-all, we may not have been blown away, but I must reiterate that the pizzas here are good and amongst some of the best that I've tasted in Singapore. So quit waiting, pay this restaurant a visit soon and let me know what YOU think! :)

Service
Service was very good up till the point when I wanted to pay and mentioned this 20% discount tie-up that IeatIshootIpost has with Sole Pomodoro (just mention the blog or flash your mobile with the website on it; promo till Feb 2011). It didn't mean a big deal to me, but she was visibly irritated and told me I should have told her before I ordered. Wonder what difference that would have made - smaller pizza, or less ingredients perhaps? I've often asked if there was any credit card promotions at the point of payment and wait staffs have always been happy to oblige. Probably a slightly different system here.

Price
$24.90 for the Provinciale
$22.90 for the Salcciaccia e Peperoni
$24.90 for the Sole Pomodoro

* Prices subject to the usual 7% GST and 10% service charge.

Place
12/21 Mackenzie Road #01-01
Opposite the old (but now quite funky haha!) Rex Cinema

Pictures taken with the Apple iPhone 4.

Da Paolo Pizza Bar

2010-12-10T22:28:00.000+08:00

Naturally, I saved the best of the three for the last. Da Paolo Pizza Bar along Chip Bee Gardens can almost be classified as a hidden find in Holland Village, though it shouldn't be really because any self-proclaimed pizza lover ought to pay this place a visit. Make it a pilgrimage if you must if you're living on the other side of the island, this is certainly one of the best pizzas in Singapore that I've had the honour of tasting.

Pizza Bolognese

The meat-lover made an obvious choice - the Pizza Bolognese. I loved the way everything weaved together so beautifully that each bite was so simple yet so truly satisfying.

I'm sure it had something to do with the cheese, which was rich, thick and flowing, yet all without being overwhelming. The pizza dough was just right too, and wasn't too thin like those pathetic "skinny" or "thin crust" pizzas. It isn't truly Italiano, but it sure hit the notes right enough.

Pizza Salmone

I dubbed Jaslyn's Pizza Salmone "the healthier pizza" because compared to mine this was lacking in cheese and had fresh smoked salmon covering up for it. She seemed to like it, which is a good thing because I had made her come all the way for this.

It didn't win me over as much though because it had a slightly salty aftertaste. Or, as I tried to explain, it was just too healthy for me - I like my food sinful and comforting you know. Pizza bread dough was really good though, as you can probably tell from the picture here.

So this wraps up a mini three-part series of what I would call a good wood-fired pizza in Singapore. For another amazing find earlier in the year, I would suggest you hop on down to Al Forno at East Coast, guaranteed to delight as well!

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WAIT! There's one more post coming up this weekend! For those who have been following me on Twitter you would probably know where this next pizzeria is; for the rest, just hang in there and you'll know soon enough :)

Price
$21 for the Pizza Bolognese
$20 for the Pizza Salmone

* Prices subject to the usual 7% GST and 10% service charge.

Place
44 Jalan Merah Saga, #01-46.

Pictures taken with the Canon EOS 500D.

Spizza for Friends

2010-12-09T14:00:00.004+08:00

Pizzeria number two out of three for the pizza-filled weekend was at Spizza for Friends' main branch at Club Street, featuring some of the freshest and crispiest pizzas from a - you guessed it! - wood-fired oven. While Spizza has a delivery service going on for quite some time now, nothing beats eating it straight out from the oven really, when it's all hot and with the cheese melting at the right places. Sounds good? Probably good enough for some kid to start doing up a list of best (wood-fired) pizzas in Singapore, and then to put them down nicely as though he has even been to all of these places. Don't be too surprised, some people actually do it, for whatever sad reasons they have!

Moving on...

Sofia

My choice pizza, the Sofia delighted as a seafood pizza with a fairly generous serving of fresh seafood spread across the 10-inch wonder. I should add though that while it was adequately crisp on the right spots, I do wish there could have been just a little bit more dough on the sides to make up for its thinness. Since the Sofia scores on the ingredients, just a little tweaking of sorts could perfect the pizza - a little lesson could be taken from this Florentine osteria.

Parma Ham and Bacon

A special for the month, the Parma Ham and Bacon pizza drew praise from the best friend, not least because she liked the smoky flavour that surrounded it. It is quite clear that she feels and shares the lurveee for wood-fired pizzas.

Still one more pizzeria left to go for this mini three-part pizza series. It's crazy I know, but it's really one of the things I do frequently to give some meaning to my weekend(s). It's my form of therapy :)

Price
$17++ each for a medium 10-inch pizza.

Place
29 Club Street

Pictures taken with the Canon EOS 500D.

La Strada

2010-12-08T14:00:00.007+08:00

Not too long ago a massive pizza craving struck and I was hard-pressed to find at least three pizza places in Singapore to satiate this sudden craving within a weekend. You see, ever since my trip to Italy, I've been very much turned into a pizza snob and have only looked favourably towards wood-fired pizzas. There are admittedly some amazing oven-cooked pizzas (Cugini is definitely one of them) but my basic rule-of-thumb stays - wood-fired please. So when I heard La Strada continues to be one of the few in Singapore who has remained faithful to the tradition, I made a beeline for it.

Complimentary Bread Basket

The Complimentary Bread Basket was nothing to shout about, there wasn't even my favourite focaccia in its midst, but then I was wary of piling on the breads anyway since I was going to have a pizza all to myself. Chomped on the breadsticks, which were simple and nice.

Margherita Pizza

The Margherita Pizza was named after Queen Margherita of Italy, who visited Naples in 1889 and was served a pizza resembling the Italian flag - red (tomato), white (mozzarella) and green (basil). Don't we love Wiki (it might not even be true haha!) It's the perfect pizza for purists who just want to indulge in good mozzarella cheese and pizza dough.

The Margherita Pizza from La Strada was quite good, though I would have preferred it to be more "doughy" on the sides as it was relatively thin. Good enough cheese and tomato base for me to finish this up on my own.

Affogato

Since the theme was Italian, why not have some Affogato as well? A little piece of trivia that I found on Wiki: "affogato" means "drowned", very much the way you would pour the coffee into that cup of gelato.

I liked how the strong and bitter espresso blended with the milky vanilla gelato. I would still prefer a Tiramisu over this but after a whole pizza I only wanted some coffee to keep me awake for the rest of the work day!

Service
Very good.

Price
$23 for the Margherita Pizza
$8 for the Affogato

* Prices subject to the usual 7% GST and 10% service charge.

Place
Shaw Centre, #02-10.
Facing Pacific Plaza.

Pictures taken with the Apple iPhone 4.

Sogurt

2010-12-07T14:00:00.004+08:00

Of all the yogurt parlours that have sprung up in Singapore, Yami Yogurt and Sogurt remain my top two favourites. There's an added element of fun in Sogurt I suppose, because here you get to decide how much yogurt and toppings you want, and how much you want to mix them all together. I usually stick to 90% original yogurt and 10% of the peach-mango flavour, but if you want something more adventurous go ahead and spin in green apple, pomegranate, chocolate or even Irish mint. Loads of toppings on offer here as well, from the fruits to the nuts to the chocolates and to the biscuits. I hear they do buffets as well! :D

Price
Charged by weight.

Place
617 Bukit Timah Road,
Next to Coronation Plaza.
Other locations: United Square and Nex Serangoon.

Picture taken with the Apple iPhone 4.

K Ki @ Ann Siang Hill

2010-12-06T14:00:00.005+08:00

K-Ki at Ann Siang Hill is hands-down the "Singapore Find of the Year" for me. For someone who does not have the strongest preference for overly rich or spongy cakes, the little treats from K-Ki are like gifts from heaven. I'm sure you must have read about my escapades in this delightful cake sanctuary (for the 99% of you who haven't, go on ahead and read this!) and how much I simply love the cakes here. I do know of some who have hesitated to pay a visit to K-Ki because they "want to wait for the hype to die down", and all I can say is - keep waiting, it's not going to be anytime soon!

Emily

The pretty sister to the bright Kinabaru, Emily continues to delight with an amazing lightness that's really quite magical. The hint of lemon and champagne (yes, champagne~) matches the very sweet wild strawberry layer in the middle. Lovely.

Tiramisu

I have a personal preference for smoother Tiramisus, so I was naturally biased towards K-Ki's Tiramisu. While its owners were initially concerned that this Italian icon may not have fitted into their Japanese-French theme, I'm glad a decision was made to roll it out anyway because honey, it's so gooood. Admittedly pricey for its size, eating it bit by bit was an experience in itself as you go through the layer of mousse and venture closer to the liqueur-soaked ladyfinger centre. So light it's almost floating.

Soufflé Cheesecake

I made sure I had space for one more, and ventured for the Soufflé Cheesecake. I'm pleased to announce that I'm liking this as well because of its lightness and oh-so-smooth texture. Of course, this may not really match up to its other friends on display since it does not tease with a bevy of flavours, but it did go very well with the Nespresso Latte that I was having.

K-Ki is ♥.

Price
$9 for the Emily
$9 for the Tiramisu
$6 for the Soufflé Cheesecake.

Place
No.7 Ann Siang Hill.

Pictures taken with the Apple iPhone 4.

Manhattan Fish Market II

2010-12-05T15:55:00.001+08:00

Get crabby this Christmas, because we're gonna save some turkeys! Manhattan Fish Market gives a seafood-take on the traditional Christmas feast with a crab-filled menu featuring items like crab bisque, chilli crab spaghetti and even a crab platter. Alaskan King Crab, anyone? :)

Crabilicious Crab Bisque

The Crabilicious Crab Bisque was thick and creamy without being overwhelming. Not much crabmeat detected though, but I wasn't expecting too much for the price I was paying. Some at the table commented that there was a very slight sourish aftertaste but I didn't quite notice it since I spent most of the time dipping the fried mushrooms (below) in the soup. Thoughtful addition of croutons for the added texture.

Fried Country Mushrooms

I liked the Fried Country Mushrooms. These came fried to a crisp golden brown, and were all juicy and succulent inside. Nom nom.

Alaskan King Crab Platter

My favourite item at Manhattan Fish Market is actually the Flaming Platter for One, but I thought I should give the "dish of the month" a try. The Alaskan King Crab Platter comes with fried calamari, fried crab pincers (fishcake-like), chilli crab salad and of course, Alaskan King Crab legs. I thought this was okay, the crab legs especially, but the fried calamari and crab pincers were too... close on taste that it got quite monotonous after a while. My recommendation? Give an option to have your calamari grilled; I'm sure the staff would have obliged if you asked anyway.

Personally, I'm not a fan of having a cold dish side by side the other hot items, but this is what you get with the chilli crab salad right in the middle. I did feedback that MFM may like to consider having a hot salad option (same thing, just served hot instead of cold), but I was told it was really meant to be this way.

Grilled Gala Platter for Two

The table also had the Grilled Gala Platter for Two, which I thought fared much better than the other deep-fried platter - the Manhattan Seafood Platter for Two. I suppose it does come down a lot to personal preference, but grilled fish, prawns, calamari and mussels seem to go better with the (delicious) garlic-butter rice and fries. Hate to compare, but I prefer the rice here as compared to Fish & Co's.

Grilled Salmon Fillet

It's usually served with garlic herb sauce, but we asked for sambal instead and I thought it came out quite well actually. The thick slab of Grilled Salmon Fillet was sweet, fresh and very tender indeed.

Baked Fish in Garden Herbs

I'm afraid you will never find me eating something so healthy as this. Turned out to be a little too salty for the palate.

She's not meant for eating, but I couldn't resist posting a picture of my adorable niece Lucia here. Carrying her around made me want to be a Daddy as well haha!

*****

Thank you to Manhattan Fish Market for the earlier invite to a tasting session. As I (i) was leaving for Beijing when the email came, and (ii) had long quit the (free) food tasting scene, I left a note to say that I would be back in future. Of course you wouldn't expect me to have MFM honour its previous invite (and for me to bring more people now too!) and as much as they offered in all generosity to take the tab for all six of us I insisted otherwise. It's nice enough to have early info on their promotional menu, and for that I'm grateful :)

The Alaskan King Crab Platter may not have blown my mind away, but I'm sure I'm heading back to try that chilli crab spaghetti. The Pasta Shop's rendition of this is quite decent actually, but I'm curious to see what MFM comes up with. Look out for an update on this on my food-only Twitter.

Price
$55.90 for an Alaskan King Crab Platter Set (comes with two crab bisques, soft drinks and two servings of ice-cream)
$46.90 for the Alaskan King Crab Platter
$4.90 for the Crabilicious Crab Bisque
$7.90 for the Fried Country Mushrooms
$35.90 for the Grilled Gala Platter for Two
$17.90 for the Grilled Salmon Fillet
$14.90 for the Baked Fish in Garden Herbs

* Prices subject to the usual 7% GST and 10% service charge.

Place
Marina Square, #02-182.

Pictures taken with the Canon EOS 500D.

K.L, Malaysia: Restoran Min Max

2010-12-03T14:00:00.013+08:00

The four of us sure knew how to work up a finale and we saved the best meal of the trip for the last. A delectable dim sum spread brought the amazing K.L experience to a close, a food-filled holiday that we would look back and wonder how we could have done almost nothing else but eat, eat, and eat. More than anything else, good conversations flowed and we got to know more about one another not only as food enthusiasts, but as friends. Hopefully there would be more trips together next year with an even bigger entourage.

Restoran Min Max is a Halal-certified Chinese restaurant within the PNB Darby Park building, located a couple of minutes' walk away from Nikko Hotel at Jalan Ampang. Dim sum here is highly recommended of course (served during lunch and tea-time), and even if purists would argue that pork-less dim sum isn't real dim sum, there are many of those who would attest to its taste and authenticity. What's more, this Halal dim sum comes with a very affordable price tag as well, with most items going for just RM2.99-3.99++ a serving. Amazing stuff.

This is going to be a potentially long entry, in part because we dined here twice and also because we ordered to our hearts' and tummies' content. Much to the amazement of the wait staff too, who remembered us for our DSLRs and well, good appetites heh. So now that we've got adorable Zoelene giving you a preview of just some of the things we ordered, let's look at them one-by-one.

Steamed Har Kau

A perennial favourite, the Steamed Har Kau did not disappoint at all with such juicy prawns inside. Try not to leave it out in the open for too long (we did on the first serving because of our photo-taking frenzy) because the skin will dry up quite quickly. Take it fresh and let the juiciness and moisture spill through, yums ;)

Steamed BBQ Chicken Bun

I distinctly remember the others at the table asking one another how close the Steamed BBQ Chicken Bun tasted to the typical char siew (pork) buns. We all thought these steamed buns were one of the best that we have tried in our dim sum experience. Sweet, tender, and even smooth too if you like.

Steamed Shark's Fin Dumpling

The Steamed Shark's Fin Dumpling didn't impress much, and I think it had to do with the rather dry dumpling skin that gave the dumpling as a whole a "rubbery" feel when chewed on.

Steamed Stuffed Scallop Dumpling

If you like your scallops thick, juicy and chewy, you'd love the Steamed Stuffed Scallop Dumpling.

Steamed Chicken Feet with Black Beans

The Steamed Chicken Feet with Black Beans was the only item that I did not taste, so I can't comment much on this.

Steamed Siew Mai with Crab Roe

A staple for any dim sum meal, the Steamed Siew Mai with Crab Roe was quite satisfying without being anything out of ordinary.

Deep-Fried Wafer Prawn Roll with Cheese

Like the deep-fried stuffed mushrooms (below), the Deep-Fried Wafer Prawn Roll with Cheese seemed pretty out-of-place on a dim sum table, not least because of the cheese. But if you like hot melted cheese and juicy prawns in a crisp breaded shell, just have this either at the very start or the end and it'll be fine.

Deep-Fried Mini Custard Bun

The Deep-Fried Mini Custard Bun was a joy to have - mini deep-fried mantou-like buns with sweet custard insides for the sweet-tooth in everyone.

Deep-Fried Sesame Ball

The Deep-Fried Sesame Ball had a sweet yam filling in it that I really liked. I had a couple of servings all to myself, greedy me. Best eaten when just served, it's all smooth and hot inside :)

Deep-Fried Bean Curd Roll with Fresh Prawns

Everyone's favourite snack. The table saw multiple orders of the Deep-Fried Bean Curd Roll with Fresh Prawns as we chewed on it like crackers. The only thing about these crisp "crackers" was that they were deliciously filled with juicy prawns. Lovely.

Pan-Fried Shanghai Dumpling

I'm not the biggest fan of the Pan-Fried Shanghai Dumpling because of the slightly... bitter(?) vegetables used in its filling. This one from Min Max didn't seem to change my opinion too much either. Probably an acquired taste.

Deep-Fried Stuffed Mushroom in Black Pepper Sauce

The black pepper sauce for the Deep-Fried Stuffed Mushroom is served on the side, but the flavours are a little off from what we've been having on the table. Still, not too bad if you're particularly ravenous.

Pan-Fried Carrot Cake

One of the less impressive items was the Pan-Fried Carrot Cake, which was ordinary at best and tasted quite monotonous after a while.

Pan-Fried BBQ Chicken Bun with Vegetable

The Pan-Fried BBQ Chicken Bun with Vegetable was somewhat of a pan-fried rendition of the steamed BBQ chicken buns, and I kinda liked both the same. One's crisp and the other soft, and both with piping hot fillings.

Fan Choy - Glutinous Rice with Chicken and Mushroom

A top favourite surely, the Fan Choy delighted everyone with its moist rice, tender chicken slices and sweet sauce. One of the best that I've tried in my life too I'd say. Brilliant.

Price
About RM2.99-RM3.99 for each serving of each item

* Prices subject to 5% government tax and 10% service charge.

Place
PNB Darby Park, Level 2
Lot No. 2-1, Jalan Binjai
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Nearby landmarks include: Nikko Hotel, the British High Commission (PNB Darby Park is actually situated between these two buildings) and the Ampang Park RapidKL Station.

Additional Comments
1. Certified Halal.
2. Dim sum hours: 1100-1500hrs (Mon-Sat) & 0900-1500hrs (Sun).
3. Reservations number: (03) 2166-8669.

Pictures taken with the Canon EOS 500D.

K.L, Malaysia: Madam Kwan's

2010-12-02T12:30:00.001+08:00

One of the best lunches we had on our K.L trip was at Madam Kwan's at Suria KLCC mall, featuring some of the most popular dishes in the Malaysian food lexicon. Food prices here aren't necessarily cheap by Malaysian standards of course, there's always a premium to pay for ambience and setting, but I'm sure you'd walk away quite satisfied after your meal. Good place to bring your foreign friends too for a 101 on the cuisine.

Achar

A popular Malay-Indian pickle, the Achar here was sufficiently sour, spicy and crunchy all at once. A good side dish to have, but I'm personally not the biggest fan.

Nasi Bojari
Madam Kwan's tri-coloured rice with assam prawns, beef rendang and deep-fried chicken drumstick.

I was curious of what the "tri-coloured rice" from the Nasi Bojari really was, and it turned out to be something close to a typical Asian fried rice but with hints of garlic and shades of red and yellow from colouring or turmeric. The beef rendang came in a more shredded style (compared to the usual big chunks of beef that we are used too), which I thought was not too bad and made chewing all the easier heh. The (huge) deep-fried chicken was awesome stuff by the way, well-marinated and all tender and juicy inside.

Chicken Curry

The Chicken Curry had a very appetising spiciness and zest to it. There was only one serving of this on the table (three of us were having the Nasi Bojari) but we all stole a couple of spoonfuls of the gravy to go with our rice. It went very well indeed.

Otak-Otak

The Otak-Otak (to the uninitiated this is really a spicy, grilled fish paste in banana leaf) was delicious. I liked how it had bits of fishcake and shrimps in it for that extra crunch and flavour. The level of spiciness was just nice as well - high but not numbingly spicy. Great stuff.

Price
RM7.90 for the Achar
RM21.90 for the Nasi Bojari
RM15.90 for the Chicken Curry
RM17.90 for the Otak-Otak
RM6.00 for a glass of Coke

* Prices are subject to 10% service charge.

Place
Suria KLCC Mall, Ramlee Wing Level 4/20-21.

Additional Comment
Certified Halal.

Pictures taken with the Canon EOS 500D.

K.L, Malaysia: Palate Palette

2010-12-01T14:00:00.009+08:00

It's a nice play of words, Palate Palette - a mix of food, art and creativity all under one roof. We wouldn't have known about this place if not for some of the K.L food blogs, and I'm glad we made this one of our stops during our trip. There's a very laid-back atmosphere to this little hideout (bar included too by the way) and it makes for a very casual and pleasant venue for gatherings and good conversations.

Decor here is eccentric at best, there's nothing fixed or organised in terms of colours and types of furniture, but somehow or another it just blends together into a lively, artistic "mess" of sorts.

We liked the painted walls, with their floral and space-like motifs filling the otherwise plain white-washed walls.

For a breath of fresh air (and when good weather permits), have a seat outside.

Mushroom Cappuccino

The Mushroom Cappuccino was a slight variation from Palate Palette's mushroom soup, with foam milk on top of the lightly creamed (homemade) stock. I think the table had a preference for thick mushroom soups, so this came out as too diluted for our liking.

Chicken Lollipops

An appetiser to share, but the Chicken Lollipops were quite ordinary and were marginally saved by the roasted chilli mayo dip that's served alongside the dish.

Lamb & Onions

Not everyone takes to lamb because of its "smell" and "taste" (I'm using inverted commas here because I personally don't see anything wrong with lamb), but the Lamb & Onions helps in more ways than you can imagine with the delectable medley of Honey Worchestershire marinade, mint yogurt sour cream and dash of curry spices. This was our favourite dish for the afternoon - top marks for creativity.

Fish & Chips

A crowd favourite, the Fish & Chips was aesthetically pleasing with the skewer of potato and yam chips. I thought the chips outshone the otherwise typical breaded Dory fish. Interesting addition of fried wanton skins, but it didn't quite fit somehow.

Cappuccino Crush

Ease off the warm weather with an ice-blended Cappuccino Crush, guaranteed for that sugar and caffeine rush :D

Price
RM20++ for the set lunch, consisting of an appetiser/soup, a main course and a drink.

For more info on the menu, click here.

Place
21 Jalan Mesui
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Pictures taken with the Canon EOS 500D.

K.L, Malaysia: Kafe Snowflake

2010-11-30T14:00:00.005+08:00

Our short trip to Kuala Lumpur brought up three favourites, two of which we returned to twice. Kafe Snowflake is one of the two of course (the other is an awesome dim sum resturant: review out this Friday), and is really a Taiwanese-inspired chain of iced desserts which would satiate your sugar cravings as well as give brief reprieve from the heat and humidity outside. You might also be interested to know that everything is claimed to be handmade and cooked fresh everyday, with no artificial flavours, artificial colouring or preservatives added. Great reasons to well... order more :)

There's this beeping device (or as they would like to call it, Beeping UFO) that is supposed to beep and flash once your orders are ready for collection. I guess it does help to prevent congestion at the counter, though I'm really more intrigued by what it says on the device: "Psst... Now you know why Taiwan is so much more technologically advanced... ALIENS..." *speechless*

A lot of personal mix-and-matching goes on here, so you can take your pick of things like peanuts, red bean, yam and a range of jellies, as well as fruits like mango, peach and papaya. You ~~should try~~ must order the popular house-special Soy Shaved Ice as your base because it adds a delicious sweetness and milkiness to the dessert.

Grass or sea coconut jellies are also recommended for that added layer of texture. Some of the desserts come with an extra cup of creamer too, but I will leave it up to you on how much you want to crank up on the sugar rush.

If Singapore had such desserts, I'm sure I would have them often. We do have the soy ice-cream from Mr Bean (which I personally quite like) but soy shaved ice with red beans, peanuts and grass jelly seems like an even better deal.

For the less adventurous, there's always the traditional Cheng Tng on offer. Not as satisfying as the others for sure, but does the job of cooling you down too I suppose.

Price
About RM6.50-RM8 each. Pretty large portions by the way.

Place
Pavilion K.L, Units P4.01.00 & E4.01.00
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Pictures taken with the Canon EOS 500D.

K.L, Malaysia: Nando's

2010-11-29T09:00:00.000+08:00

There's one fundamental difference between the Nando's in Singapore and the Nando's in Kuala Lumpur - the price. With everything else pretty much identical, you can get say, a half portion of chicken for RM19.90 (slightly over S$8.30 compared to S$17.90 here) or a whole grilled chicken for RM38.90 (about S$16.30, again compared to S$33.90). You can't fault me for feeling somewhat cheated whenever I'm having Nando's in Singapore, but then to-date I've restricted myself to only a single meal anyway, just to make sure the taste is the same.

Since we've already been introduced to Nando's, and I must say it is pretty good grilled chicken, here's just a couple more pictures to (perhaps) get you hungry. Best if you're heading up to K.L soon to satisfy that craving though, else you're paying double here :P

Price
RM10.90 for a quarter portion of chicken
RM14.95 for a quarter portion of chicken with two sides
RM19.90 for a half portion of chicken
RM23.90 for a half portion of chicken with two sides

Place
Pavilion K.L, Unit 1.29.04
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Pictures taken with the Canon EOS 500D.

K.L, Malaysia: Ying Ker Lou

2010-11-26T14:00:00.010+08:00

Glenn wanted to try out some Chinese-Hakka cuisine in Malaysia, but since the more popular ones were too far off from where we stayed we settled for this restaurant at the posh Pavilion Kuala Lumpur mall. This is one of the shopping malls in K.L where you would be totally spoilt for choice for food by the way, just look at the food directory at the link here.

Salted Fish and Seafood Fried Rice

I didn't want to be a spoiler for the rest and stuck to my usual Seafood Fried Rice, as I would normally do at Chinese restaurants when others on the table are contemplating ordering pork dishes. The fried rice was quite good actually, with that "wok-hei" flavour and fresh ingredients.

Braised Basil Chicken with Three Cups Sauce

I may not have tasted this dish (commonly known as Sanbeiji), but I could at least let you know that the "three cups" refers to a cup each of soy sauce, rice wine and sesame oil that were added to it. One of the popular dishes of this cuisine.

Here's the rest of the pictures, no reviews though since I did not try them.

Hakka Style Yam Abacus

Dong Jiang Style Stuffed Beancurd in Hot Pot

Hakka Style Fried Pork Belly with Black Fungus

Price
RM17.90 for the Salted Fish and Seafood Fried Rice
RM24.00 for the Hakka Style Fried Pork Belly with Black Fungus
RM17.00 for the Hakka Style Yam Abacus
RM23.00 for the Dong Jiang Style Stuffed Beancurd in Hot Pot
RM24.00 for the Hakka Style Fried Pork Belly with Black Fungus

* Prices subject to 10% service charge.

Place
Pavilion K.L, Unit 1.03.00 & 1.04.00
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Pictures taken with the Canon EOS 500D.

K.L, Malaysia: Happy Meal

2010-11-25T14:00:00.004+08:00

Many Malaysian food blogs have raved about the durian puffs from Happy Meal at Petaling Street but these did not out to be as great as we would have expected them to be. Perhaps it was a case of overly raised expectations, but we do know it couldn't match up to some of the ones we have here in Singapore - most especially the king of all durian puffs at Goodwood Park Hotel. I'm not saying these blogs were "wrong" or "misleading" of course - taste after all is subjective.

To us, the Durian Puffs weren't as flavourful and rich as we would have liked them to be. The pastry would have been better if it was softer too. Similarly, the Pineapple-Coconut and Almond tarts were a tad hard and dry (beyond the intended crispy outer layer I'm sure) and we couldn't go more than half of each. The rest were quite forgettable.

Price
RM2.80 for four durian puffs
RM2.00 for each coconut tart
RM2.50 for each almond tart

Place
Kafe Happy Meal
143, Jalan Tun H.S. Lee
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Pictures taken with the Canon Ixus 80 IS.

K.L, Malaysia: Nasi Lemak Tanglin

2010-11-24T14:00:00.005+08:00

This Nasi Lemak stall took a little walking to get to, but since it was so highly recommended by some blogs and even a food guide endorsed by the Malaysian Ministry of Tourism we thought it would be well worth the time and effort. It's located near the National Mosque as well as close to the Kuala Lumpur Community Clinic. For Singaporeans, don't think this is a "food court" even if it has been described to be so, because it's very much a tiny hawker place.

Truth be told, I found nothing special about the Nasi Lemak, and was in fact apologetic to my peers for making them walk quite a bit to get to this place. The much-raved about Sambal Chilli was too watery and diluted, which didn't help it's star dish - the Sambal Sotong (in case you're wondering, "sotong" means squids).

The Paru Goreng (fried beef lungs) were disappointing as well, as they were too dry and came off as rubbery even. The Grilled Fish, also recommended by many, was the worst of the lot - it was stale and had a smell to it. Oh dear. The only thing that I think I should add is that, just maybe, the Malaysians prefer their nasi lemak and sambal chilli this way and we're just not used to it.

Price
About RM10 per person.

Place
Stall No. 6, Kompleks Makan Tanglin,
3 Jalan Cendarasari, Off Jalan Tanglin,
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Pictures taken with the Canon EOS 500D.

K.L, Malaysia: Restoran Chee Meng

2010-11-23T14:00:00.005+08:00

Chee Meng Chicken Rice has a fairly long history, dating back to 1965 when it first started out as a humble chicken rice and porridge stall at Old Klang Valley. It's most popular chicken rice shop is now located along the famous Bukit Bintang street in Kuala Lumpur. Chee Meng specialises in Hainanese-style chicken rice but I would leave it to the experts to decide if it is truly authentic, or not. Me, I'm just here to enjoy the food :)

What do you look for in your Chicken Rice? Some people say the rice is the deal-breaker, while others point to the chicken or even the chilli that's served with it. If you like your rice a tad drier and less oily, this one from Chee Meng would do well for you.

The Roast Chicken was disappointing because it was a bit too tough and dry for our liking. If only they had some steamed chicken available on the day we were there.

The Sambal Kangkong was not too bad, but would have been better if it was a lot spicier. We like to "torture" ourselves this way you know, go hissing with all the spiciness, keep going for more, and then come out of it commending the sensuous experience. It's an Asian way of life.

Price
About RM16 per person, including drinks. Not cheap by Malaysian standards.

Place
50, Jalan Bukit Bintang,
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Pictures taken with the Canon EOS 500D.

K.L, Malaysia: Krispy Kreme

2010-11-22T14:00:00.008+08:00

The donut craze has long gone and passed us, but the bigger chains are still trying to hang on here in Singapore and Malaysia. Krispy Kreme has yet to arrive in Singapore though (I doubt it even would in the near future), so the least we could do was try these much-raved about donuts during our little holiday in Kuala Lumpur.

It's no rocket science making these fried, sugar-coated treats, but you have to wonder how they could have started such a frenzy (long, long lines mind you) when places like Donut Factory and J.Co came up. Me, I like the chocolate or nutty ones. And oh, I quite fancy those with a berry filling in the middle too :D

Friends who have been to the States talk about Krispy Kreme as if it's the next best thing to say, Belgian dark chocolates or pizza from Naples. But the ones we got here weren't all too impressive or mind-blowing, and were pretty much similar to the rest of its counterparts.

The jam-filled ones were the best of the lot. Sugar-rush guaranteed.

Place
Berjaya Times Square, G-10
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Pictures taken with the Canon Ixus 80 IS.

K.L, Malaysia: Marrybrown Chicken

2010-11-19T14:15:00.002+08:00

Marrybrown Chicken is Malaysia's answer to the world-famous KFC, with a "global reach" of over 250 outlets in countries like Indonesia, China, India, Kuwait, Qatar, Syria and even Iran. The menu is identical to that of KFC's, with the main focus on fried chicken and chicken burgers. If I have to be blunt though, I would say Marrybrown was quite bad and fell flat on expectations - give me KFC and Popeye's anytime man.

Even the colour codes are the same as KFC's red and white! Speak about originality.

The chicken was tiny, thin, dry and tasted bland (uneven marinating I suppose?) on some parts. I wonder if they actually re-fried their chicken due to the low turnover.

The Marrybrown's version of KFC's Zinger Burger was not all too bad, except that it was really small. All-in-all, a waste of calories (and fats).

Price
RM9.50 for the chicken set.

Place
Berjaya Times Square, #03-98A
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Pictures taken with the Canon EOS 500D.

K.L, Malaysia: Restoran W.A.H

2010-11-17T14:00:00.005+08:00

Blogs, travel guides, websites, you name it, at one point or another, the popular Jalan Alor food street is bound to come up as you go through the pages looking for something good to try. Even more so, the famous Ayam Panggang (more familiarly known as barbecued chicken (wings)) comes highly recommended by many, so there was no way we could possibly pass up a chance to have a go at this much celebrated hawker treat.

Yet somehow or another, there was a measure of disappointment; or perhaps it was a case of having too high expectations. We've had better in Singapore (the ones at East Coast come to mind) because these were overwhelmingly sweet. Either too much honey or too much sauce. Zaylene did develop a liking for it after a while, so I suppose those who like their barbecued chicken wings sweet would love what Jalan Alor has to offer.

We also ordered some Satay, which to me were actually quite good. Still a bit sweet but not as much as the chicken wings.

The girls wanted some Grilled Stingray, but would have preferred it lathered with lots of sambal chilli instead. Still, I thought the stingray was really fresh and it tasted quite good on its own. If only we had space for more (this was supper mind you), we could definitely have tried out more dishes.

Price
Close to RM50 for all.

Place
Restoran Wong Ah Wah
1, 5 & 7 Jalan Alor, Off Bukit Bintang.
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Pictures taken with the Canon Ixus 80 IS.

K.L, Malaysia: Oblong Burger

2010-11-15T14:00:00.002+08:00

When we headed up to KL, I knew I would be stacking up the calories on the quintessential Ramly Burger. Malaysia is, after all, the motherland of the Ramly, and the burgers here come at half the price you would get at Singapore's night markets. A new kid has made its presence felt though, and for all its worth I think the Ramly has met its match. Never mind that it's just "90% pure meat", heck sausages are processed too. So ladies and gents, here's presenting: the Oblong Burger.

Because you already know that you're stuffing yourself late into the night with a mayonnaise-packed, oil-soaked burger, the only way to make things better is to do it with style by going double patty and adding a fried egg to top it off. Don't be confused by the Ramly packaging by the way, somehow that's all the wraps that the hawker had.

The result? A delicious supper treat that, for the lack of a better description, puts you on a high like no other local burger would - I dare say, not even the Ramly. Juicy patties (it helped that there were two of them) packed with mayo, peppers, and chilli sauce - it's a cardiac sin, but boy did it feel awesome.

Price
About RM8 for double patties and fried egg.

Place
At the tail-end of Jalan Alor, Bukit Bintang.

Pictures taken with the Canon Ixus 80 IS.

K.L, Malaysia: Lot 10 Hutong

2010-11-12T14:00:00.002+08:00

This series of posts is way overdue, almost six months now since the trip in May this year, and knowing the volatility of the F&B business in KL I wouldn't be able to guarantee that these places are still around now surely. Then again, many of the places that you will be seeing on this blog come well-recommended by the Malaysian food bloggers, websites and travel guides; some even were endorsed by the Malaysian Ministry of Tourism. Do all these live up to the hype? You will know soon :)

Of course, some introductions would be necessary. The two ladies on the left (above) are sisters Zaylene and Zoelene, in the middle would be me (much slimmer then I realise) and on the right is Glenn. We wouldn't all call ourselves food bloggers, but we're definitely food lovers. With all those out of the way, let's start with our first pit-stop: Lot 10 Hutong Food Court.

If you're a Singaporean (or at least, have been living in Singapore for quite some time) and you're walking into this food court, you would probably go - This reminds me of Food Republic - because of the predominant wood decor. Hutong also happens to pride itself for rallying some of the city's famous hawkers under a single roof, which is pretty much what Food Republic claims to do as well in Singapore.

For the "food lovers" that we made ourselves out to be, we were disappointingly conservative on our first meal in KL. A lot of it had to do with the fact that we were too hungry to bother to get in line with the more popular stalls. I settled for an unconvincing Nasi Goreng USA (American Fried Rice, whatever that means!) which had just too much tomato sauce in it.

The rest of the table weren't all too impressed with their orders either. The Singapore Hokkien Prawn Mee fell flat on expectations, but to be fair we shouldn't have expected much from something that supposedly originated from... where we come from. Maybe the word "Singapore" was added in as a disclaimer of sorts.

The Hor Fun was forgettable as well, and if my notes serve me correctly it was found to be too bland.

The Popiah (Asian spring rolls) were a tad better, but somehow there was just something missing that didn't quite cut it altogether. The (food) trip wasn't on the best of starts, but at least it can only get better. Hopefully.

Spotted this sign on the way out. I hope it was alluding to the "melting pot" culture metaphor and not for the fact that things were messy / messed up ;)

Price
Less than RM10 each.

Place
Lot 10 Hutong
Lot 10, Lower Ground Floor
Jalan Bukit Bintang
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Pictures taken with the Canon EOS 500D.

Sin Kee Famous Chicken Rice

2010-11-10T14:00:00.006+08:00

I may be behind the curve on this one, but I'll be honest and say I've not heard about Sin Kee Famous Chicken Rice (yes, that's the name of the place) till my colleagues took me there for one of our lunches. We've been back for quite a few times since then, and because good things are meant to be shared, here's something for you to chew on.

The winner here is really the chicken, and by that I mean the steamed chicken. There's this delicious succulence to it that just outshines its drier and less tender roasted counterpart. The rice itself is admittedly quite oily so I usually stick to a single plate. Less rice but more chicken please :D

Price
Me and my colleagues usually share a large serving of chicken and order a side of stir-fried vegetables as well. It should come up to no more than $7 per person.

Place
Blk 38 Commonwealth Avenue #01-02.

Pictures taken with the Apple iPhone 4.

Black Angus Steakhouse

2010-11-08T22:09:00.001+08:00

Someone in my directorate is leaving and she was so nice as to give the small group of us a treat at Orchard Parade Hotel's Black Angus Steakhouse. I'm sure we will miss her dearly. On to food, I thought my Black Pepper Rib Eye Steak was fantastic. It was tender to the cut and sufficiently thick to fill me up. Sides were great as well - haystack onion strings and fries - crisp, crunchy and most satisfying for any (fat) fried food lover. Whip it all together with an addictive black pepper sauce and you've got yourself a really good lunch :)

Picture taken with the Apple iPhone 4.

Imperial Treasure Super Peking Duck

2010-10-22T14:00:00.014+08:00

I may not have had much duck confits and roasted duck in my eating rampage (so chronicled in this blog) around Singapore, but I've developed a strong liking for both and would be delighted to have more recommendations on where I could satiate a craving when it comes up again. Well done duck (as compared to chicken, which when done well is still, you know... chicken) can be sublime I tell you. One meat, two cuisines, but the same type of gastronomic heaven. I'm getting all hungry again already ;)

It was not too long ago when a fellow foodie suggested we have dinner at Imperial Treasure Super Peking Duck. Tucked at a quiet corner of Paragon Shopping Centre along Orchard Road, this restaurant is often packed on evenings; table reservations are recommended. If you're doing a walk-in, as we did, be prepared that the waitresses may ask if you're fine with an hour's worth of dinner before the table is given up to the customer who had made an earlier reservation. But the food arrives fast so you have ample time to enjoy it.

So is it worth your time? Well I'm happy to report that yes, it is. Tasteful and immacautely done, the roasted Peking Duck was really quite divine, if not even R-rated as some others have put it. Even for my amateruish tastebuds for duck, I am sure many of you out there would appreciate the very tender duck meat and its accompanying light and crisp skin. It was served with the popiah wrap that you can fold the meat in, or, for a sweet treat (and something new to me as well), dip the meat in a saucer of sugar - delicious.

The waitresses recommended that we let half of the duck be cooked in Fried Rice, and we thought okay, why not. When it came in a huge plate before us, our eyes widened in amazement. I wouldn't be lying if I said my pants felt tighter just looking at that plate of carbo. It was quite nice actually, with that "wok-hei" touch and hint of white pepper. But that one plate could do for four, no make that six people. Between the two of us, there wasn't much that we could do. The friend took one bowl and was done; I had three.

We didn't stop there of course. We ordered the Cod in Ma La Soup as well, which helped to whet the appetite with its strong infusion of herbs and spices. Sour and spicy, this went quite well with the fried rice. Personally, it's not really my type of soup; then again, I've never been the biggest fan of soups. So don't quote me on any reviews on ma la soups, I really have little idea on how they should be done or how they should best taste. Sour and spicy, that's as far as it goes for me.

The Stewed Beef in Brown Sauce was even better. Stewed to tender perfection, you could feel each beef slice almost melting in your mouth.

In the end, the only "problem" we had was having to finish a whole duck between the two of us, which we couldn't. It's one of the things that Imperial Treasure sticks fervently to, to serve a whole duck and no less, which I believe has something to do with retaining the freshness of the duck.

All-in-all, a good duck-filled dinner that's definitely worthy of praise. And, if you're still wondering where I'm headed for my November holiday (isn't it very obvious already?)... It's Beijing! :)

Service
Excellent. But you have to wonder if the attentive service was only because they wanted to make sure that you could leave within the hour.

Price
$68 for the Peking Duck
$10 extra for Fried Rice
$20 for the Cod Fish in Ma La Soup
$15 for each serving of Stewed Beef in Brown Sauce
$1.50 for each pot of Chinese tea

* Prices subject to the usual 7% GST and 10% service charge.
** AMEX Cardmembers get 10% off.

Place
Orchard Paragon, #05-42/45.

Pictures taken with the Apple iPhone 4.

Cugini Trattoria Pizzeria

2010-10-20T14:00:00.005+08:00

After watching Julia Roberts stuff her face with pizza in Naples in the movie "Eat, Pray, Love", an enormous craving for a close-to-authentic (I'm in Singapore, I have to be realistic) pizza gripped me like a wild animal. Naturally, I found it cause to pamper myself, even more so when it was one of those weekends where I didn't have much work to be preoccupied with and had quite a bit of time to spare. I was looking for some place relatively quiet so that I could pour through my travel guides (where to? find out next post!), but at the same time needed the assurance that the food would be good - for all that I chose a familiar favourite - Cugini.

The pizza was wonderful. I was so surprised that this was baked with an electric oven that I had to ask the waitresses twice if this was really true. It sure tasted like it was fresh out of a wood-fired oven, with the pizza charred à la Italiano on its sides and a rustic-like aroma seducing senses. More amazing gastronomic memories of Italy came flooding back...

I had wanted to do a Julia and get the plain and simple Margherita pizza, as I did as well in Naples, but my love for the seafood pizza got the better of me. Squids, prawns and fish slices adorned the Mareggiata Pizza dutifully, but I thought it was delicious even on its own with the lovely melted cheese.

If this is the first time that you've heard of Cugini, well, here's something else that would charm you for sure - the Seafood Pasta. A signature and a crowd favourite, it's amazing that this remains off the menu. Read the full review here.

Craving well-satsfied. Now, it's time to build up a recent love for something... Asian. Stay tuned, that's coming up next!

Service
Excellent.

Price
$24++

Place
87 Club Street.

Pictures taken with the Apple iPhone 4.