Le Chocolat Cafe

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.

Otto Ristorante

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.

Spizza for Friends

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.

K Ki @ Ann Siang Hill

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.

Cugini Trattoria Pizzeria

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.

Sugar Granny Cafe II

Desserts. It's a bad habit, but how can you fault anyone who just love sweet endings? Dinner at Bonifacio was great and we were in the mood for something cool and refreshing to cap off our little meeting of three. There weren't many cafes or restaurants around that were open by the time we were done with our dinner, and so we decided to settle on something simple - Sugar Granny Cafe.

Peanut Paste


My sinful indulgence for the night, and I enjoyed every spoonful of it. The paste was smooth and sufficiently thick without being sore-throat-inducing. I liked the way it warms me up inside, very nice and fuzzy.

Slim Chendol


I initially wanted a cup of coffee, but this item on the menu caught my eye - Slim Chendol? How can chendol ever be non-fattening? Seeing that it was the perfect excuse to act ignorant and fall for the gimmick, I ordered it ha! Not surprisingly it turned out typically sweet and milky and there's no way this would have been any healthier than the not-so-slim chendol. Still, minus the health concerns, this makes for a good sweet treat.

Mango Sago


Xinli's choice of dessert - simple, fresh, smooth and refreshing. Nice.

Sugar Granny Icy Swirl


Lorraine's drink for the night. It's supposed to be a specialty but I guess it didn't quite live up to the hype. It's a passion-fruit drink with lots of nata de coco and aloe vera bits in it, though the plus point really is that you have fresh fruit pieces in the drink as well. I think Lorraine enjoyed it quite a bit.

Hope you're having a good time in the Netherlands Lorraine! This affable blogger has migrated to the land of tulips and windmills (lucky you!) and I do hope our paths will cross again, one day. Take care ya! :)

Service
Very good, though slight language barrier with a couple of the waitresses.

Price
$3.00 for the peanut paste
$2.80 for the slim chendol
$3.50 for the mango sago
$2.50 for the sugar granny icy swirl

Place
5 Teo Hong Road,
Near Outram Park NEL Station.

Additional Comment
1. No GST and service charge.
2. No main courses on the menu.
3. Opening hours: Sun–Thu 1pm – 11pm, Fri–Sat 1pm – 1am.

Pictures taken with the Canon EOS 500D.

Sugar Granny Cafe

Sugar Granny Cafe along Teo Hong Road was one of the "pit-stops" during my recent tour around Chinatown. After a good pasta at Cugini and a warm cuppa at Shots, I wandered around the area and eventually found myself at this new snack hideout close to the Outram Park NEL station. I did have my doubts about this place actually, especially after having read extremely rave reviews by people who have only posted once or twice on the Hungrygowhere forum - and all of those were on Sugar Granny Cafe. Hmm.


Still, it was a blazing hot afternoon and I was desperately in need of something cold to cool me off. Besides, I was already at the tail-end of Chinatown and there were few other options, and places like Absinthe nearby seemed to be closed for the mid-afternoon.


I like the cosy and charming interior of Sugar Granny Cafe. It had an interesting mix of the old and new, with the walls decked in old-school Chinese posters as well as LCD television screens. Pleasant English oldies were also being played softly in the background. Interestingly, there were also a couple of pretty Vespa scooters lying around for sale and rent.


The place was quiet for a Tuesday mid-afternoon, but quite a few people did come and go with takeaways. Service here is very good, with two middle-aged men (whom I gather are the owners) who were eager to help and please their customers. I chatted with them for a bit and learnt that this humble little cafe was opened just a couple of months ago, right after the Chinese New Year holidays. On weekends, it's open till 1am, so if you're in the area and you're hungry for some light snacks (but eager for air-conditioned comfort as well), you might consider dropping by.

Lychee Icy Swirl


This cooled me down real good. It's really sweet I have to admit, but it had nice little chunks of lychee (probably from the can) and nata de coco jellies. Slurp.

Sticky Muah Chee


It's something different to me, having muah chee (a glutinous rice snack) on a stick instead of on a bed of grated peanuts. Curious (and greedy) me went for the red bean, chocolate and peanut ones, and all-in-all I think they were quite alright. I do prefer the peanut muah chee as compared to its sweeter counterparts, and I took the time to roll the bits around the peanuts to make sure it has a tight peanut coat. Simple snack to wile away the afternoon.

Deboned Chicken Wings


Oooh, I quite like this a lot. Deboned, deep-fried (and a tad oily) chicken wings - comfort food material for sure. The harmless looking chilli sauce was maddeningly spicy... but like many Singaporean eaters, it just made it all the more addictive. Since many food stalls price their fried chicken wings at $1-$1.20 these days, I think the extra 30cents is quite reasonable since extra work has to be done to debone the chicken wings anyway.


I was walking around the area snapping away with my camera when I noticed this huge abomination building sticking out like a sore thumb. This is the Pinnacle @ Duxton by the way, where I hear that some people actually pay money ($5) to get a good view of Chinatown, Tanjong Pagar and the City. It sounds nice, all and good, but having this amidst the old, conserved buildings is just... odd. Oh well, guess that's what happens when you have limited land space.

Service
Very good.

Price
$2.50 for the lychee icy swirl
$1.50 for each stick of muah chee
$3.00 for two deboned chicken wings

Also: $4.80 for durian/mango on coconut sticky rice.

Place
5 Teo Hong Road,
Near Outram Park NEL Station.

Additional Comment
1. No GST and service charge.
2. No main courses on the menu.
3. Opening hours: Sun–Thu 1pm – 11pm, Fri–Sat 1pm – 1am.

Pictures taken with the Canon EOS 500D.

K Ki @ Ann Siang Hill II

Cakes cakes cakes. K Ki at Ann Siang Hill is to me the undisputed Queen of Cakes. Queen because of the gentle yet regal lightness of its simply divine cakes, and queen too because of how pretty these little, delicate creations look. Sweet dreams, my friends, are made of these :)


Ever since my first visit to K Ki a long while back, I've always been wanting to return for more of its heavenly cakes. And if you're interested, K Ki also shares the space with The Little Dröm Store, an artistic and dream-like shop that has an attractive range of vintage and quaint knick-knacks that are bound to grab your interest. A good place for a meaningful gift surely.


Well I've said it before, but I'd say it again: if there is one word that I have to describe K Ki, it's love. You can feel it from the warmth and coziness of the place, you can see it from the way oweners Kenneth and Delphine attend to their customers, and boy, can you taste it from their cakes. It's all about love and passion weaved in all forms, and you get to enjoy it in more ways than one with every visit to K Ki. For all of that, this long and sincere post is especially dedicated to Kenneth and Delphine.


In this entry, I've decided to post the rest of the cakes that I had before just so you don't have to keep switching back and forth with my older entry on K Ki. As such, I'm doing all the work for you readers; all you need to do then is to feast your eyes on the cakes, and then do yourself a favour, give yourself a treat, and make your way to K Ki at Ann Siang Hill as soon as possible.

Nespresso Coffee and Latte


Nothing like a rich cup of quality Nespresso Coffee to perk you up. People who like their coffee sweeter though would probably have to add more milk or sugar, but it suits just fine for me this way. At first I was concerned that the full flavour of the coffee would affect the taste of the cakes, but it turned out to be a good complement. Do try their Gryphon Camomile Tea too, it's really good if you prefer your teas. And oh, delicious coconut sablé cookie to accompany the drink, which you could buy in the pack too!

Pumpkin Pudding


Before we start on the cakes, let us begin with the Pumpkin Pudding. This is actually not sold regularly because of the strictest standards that Kenneth has set for the grade of pumpkins he gets every week, so you can say I was very lucky indeed to have this. I'm not very much a fan of pumpkins, but after this smooth, moist and rich delight, I'm a convert. It's so sweet and so good, even if you may think for a while that this could be awesome baby food too. That's how soft it is. If that's all not enough, why not a generous pool of caramel sauce too. Lovely.

Souffle Cheese


The Souffle Cheese is something you may want to try (there's a richer Cheese Tart variant available here at K Ki too) if you like your cheesecakes. "Soft and fluffy" was how my friends described it, and they were definitely spot-on. Nothing fancy to it, just beauty in simplicity.

Little Red Riding Hood


One of the latest creations from K Ki, the Little Red Riding Hood impresses not only with its sexy, bold look but also with the intricacies (passion, passion) involved in its creation. The real hardcore chocolate lovers would say "aye!" to this - 70% pure Guanaja dark chocolate - went into the LRRH for that addictive bitter chocolate taste. If the silky exterior doesn't charm you enough (trust me, it all looks so delicate you wouldn't want to put your fork through at the start), wait till you get to the middle - raspberry puree for that interesting mix of sweet and sour. It does seem like there's almost too many things put together here, but somehow, it just works. And it works wonderfully well too.

Mona: Nip-Tucked


The revamped and improved Mona was such a joy, to behold and to eat. Kenneth wanted more balance to the cake and went on to create a simple, dual layer, teardrop delight. The top layer was a perfect harmony of banana and milk chocolate mousse, while the bottom was a thick but delicious sablé-based crust. I love this so much more than the previous Mona.

Mona


So this was what the Mona looked like before the revamp. It was slightly richer (and thus slightly "heavier") then, but I remembered that I especially adored the light and sweet macaron at the top. By the way, this cake also happens to be named after one of Delphine and Kenneth's friends!

Antoinette


The owner of The Little Dröm Store loves this cake so much that Delphine and Kenneth decided to name it after her. The Antoinette is undoubtedly one of K Ki's bestsellers, and it's not hard to see why it is. Light and delicate white chocolate mousse wrapped around a sweet mango purée centre. This is a personal favourite.

Mont Blanc


Another one of K Ki's bestsellers, the Mont Blanc is a chestnut-flavoured cake (see the brown swirls) with soft sponge and sweet cream underneath. Always thought Mont Blanc as the snow-capped French Alps, but hey I love this even more because I get to eat it. Yums.

Kinabaru


Coconut mousse, passionfruit crème and chocolate daquoise, the Kinabaru is another one of my favourites. Kenneth was saying that since there's already a "Mont Blanc" why not one after Kota Kinabalu, but with a hint of something refreshing in "baru" (Malay word for "new"). While the coconut flavour could be just a little bit stronger, it still fits with the "light" theme of the cake and I like it a lot. You can probably have slice after slice of this cake and not go full at all!

Strawberry Tart


I'm not the biggest fan of fruit tarts, but at least K Ki's Strawberry Tart base made from its sablé cookies was a simple delight to munch on. The ladies adore this to bits.

Cafe Dumo


The name Cafe Dumo somehow reminded me about this adorable Japanese mascot Domo-kun, which happens to be of a similar brown shade as well. This cake is perfect for guys who want something of a stronger (maybe even manly?) flavour as it's a good, delicious mix of coffee and chocolate. While I'm not sure if non-coffee lovers would take to this easily, Delphine assures that the touch of coffee is light enough to not put them off.


Lovely cakes, lovely service and lovely company. There's certainly a nice charm to this place and I'm missing K Ki already, as always. It's not just about the good cakes, but also about the "spirit of joy and love" (as quoted from Delphine) that draws me so much to this little sanctuary along Ann Siang Hill.

Share the simple things in life. Come to K Ki, you know you want to :)

Service
Excellent.

Price
$4.50 for a teapot of Gryphon chamomile tea
$4.00 for the Nespresso latte
$3.50 for the Nespresso regular coffee
$7.00 for the Pumpkin Pudding
$5.50 for the Souffle Cheese
$8.50 for the Little Red Riding Hood
$7.50 for the Mona [Nip-Tucked]
$8.00 for the Mona
$8.00 for the Antoinette
$8.00 for the Kinabaru
$6.50 for the Strawberry Tart
$8.50 for the Mont Blanc
$7.50 for the Cafe Dumo

* Prices subject to 10% service charge.

Place
No.7 Ann Siang Hill.

Additional Comments
1. At the moment there's only seating room for six (more room on the way), so either come early or be prepared to take-away.
2. Opening Hours:
Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday, Sunday: 11am - 9:30pm
Thursday Closed at 7pm
Saturday Closed at 4pm
Closed on Mondays.

Pictures taken with the Canon EOS 500D.