Don Quijote

C says:

A’s cousin L recommended this place to us, and we managed to catch the tail-end of a very good Citibank promotion when we went on Tuesday.


We ordered a selection of Spanish hams, sausages and cheeses. This was quite a disappointment, maybe because we’d just been spoiled by the quality of produce in Vancouver’s Granville Island Public Market (more on that in our upcoming holiday post). The cured meats here didn’t have much flavour and were quite chewy, and the cheeses were quite basic as well.


It got much better after that, though. The smoked salmon roll with cream cheese and lettuce was wrapped in an omelette instead of a typical tortilla or spring roll-esque wrapper and was very interesting. The grilled scallops with bacon bits and chicken wings with tomato, chilli and garlic sauce were both pretty good. The wings came with an optional spicy dip that packed a good punch. The sautéed green beans with Serrano ham were an unexpected hit. The beans were crisp and tender, and the ham added a subtle smoky flavour to the dish.


We thought we’d have to order more cos the dishes were all pretty small, but then the Spanish pasta with squid ink arrived, and the small portion we ordered was already quite substantial. The pasta was possibly even thinner than angel hair pasta, and absorbed every bit of squid ink flavour. I liked that it wasn’t too heavy or oily, just very intensely flavourful.

Without the 50% off promotion, this place isn’t all that cheap. They do have an a la carte buffet Sunday brunch, but that doesn’t cover the entire menu, just a selection of 20 tapas. Still, at $33, or $48 with free flow sangria, it sounds like a pretty good deal and we’re definitely planning to check it out one Sunday.

A says:

The service is superb. The food is above average. It’s not cheap but really not crazy expensive either. We’ll be back.

Don Quijote
17 Lorong Kilat #01-09
Tel: 6465-1811
Open Tuesday to Sunday: 5 pm – 11 pm
www.don-quijote-restaurants.com

Qun Zhong Eating House

C says:

On the day that we left for our trip, we decided to have something light and Asian for lunch, what with the prospect of lots of Western cuisine on our trip. We ended up at Qun Zhong Eating House, also ‘affectionately’ known as the Dumpling Nazi because of the owner’s apparently gruff manner.

Pass by here either during lunch hour or in the evenings and you’re likely to see a snaking queue outside the tiny no-frills shophouse. We got there at 11.30 before the crowds formed so we managed to get a table immediately.

We ordered the la mian with minced pork (zha jiang mian), la mian soup with sliced pork and Szechuan vegetable, and an order of xiao long bao. There was a slight miscommunication and we ended up also getting an order of the vegetarian dumpling, but luckily portions are pretty small and we managed to finish it all.


The thickness and texture of the noodles here are unlike any la mian that I’ve tried here. They’re quite thick but still pretty light. The sauce of the zha jiang mian was good, but I really like the tasty simplicity of the soup one. That’s my version of comfort food and I could probably eat that every day.


For something that I’d never voluntarily order, the vegetarian dumplings weren’t too bad. The xiao long bao were again quite different from the ones at Crystal Jade or Din Tai Fung. The skin was very thin, and the dumplings were absolutely loaded with broth. Kudos to them for being able to achieve that, but purely taste-wise I think I actually prefer the ones at Din Tai Fung.

All in all, the food isn’t too bad but definitely not worth waiting in line for. I wouldn’t mind going back but only if we happen to be in the area and there’s a table available.

A says:

The service isn’t great but it isn’t as bad as I thought it would be. The food’s not bad with some interesting things on the menu. Still, I probably wouldn’t line up for it.

Qun Zhong Eating House
21 Neil Road
Tel: 6221 3060
Opening hours: 11.30 am – 3 pm; 5.30 pm – 9.30 pm (Closed Wednesdays)

Prima Taste Kitchen

C says:

I’m not quite sure how we found ourselves at Prima Taste in Centrepoint; I think it was more a process of elimination because we didn't feel like any of the other outlets there. After perusing the menu, I ended up being drawn to the promotional item – Laksa Seafood Porridge, served piping hot in a claypot.


Actually, this is more like mui fun than porridge. I really enjoyed it because when you think about it, what’s there not to like? Seafood (prawns, crayfish, clams, scallops), bamboo shoot, shredded cucumber, laksa gravy, and rice instead of noodles. Perfect for those who are paranoid about laksa stains on their clothes.

Surprisingly, laksa fan A didn't like it. He thought the rice tainted the flavour of the laksa gravy. I didn't think so, but I must agree that the rice tends to absorb quite a bit of the gravy after a while.


A initially wanted the Laksa Yong Tau Foo, but because I ordered the Laksa Porridge, he had the Satay Beehoon instead, after being tempted by the table next door. I really don't like Satay Beehoon so I can’t really comment on this.

Anyway, this is the last post from atetoomuch for a few weeks while we’re off on vacation! We’ll bring you highlights of our eating exploits in Vancouver and Las Vegas when we return.

A says:

Service was surprisingly good. Although when we got home and C checked the receipt, we found we were charged for the chin chow that was supposed to come free with the laksa porridge.

Taste-wise, it’s good, but not great. I’d say this place is alright but really not a destination.

Prima Taste Kitchen
176 Orchard Road #01-63/64
The Centrepoint
Tel: 6887 3786
Open daily: 10 am – 10 pm

Return to Verve

C says:

We decided to make a repeat visit to Verve for dinner tonight, since we weren’t in a particularly adventurous mood and wanted something quite fuss-free. For starters we tried their fried calamari, which came with a garlic cream sauce, and their smoked cheese wrapped with proscuitto.


This wasn’t as oozy as the one from Valentino or even Pietrasantra; I guess it's because they use a different cheese. The one here uses a smoked cheese that’s quite hard, so it was more chewy, and also quite salty from the combination of smoked cheese and proscuitto.


I thought the calamari fared much better, though A wasn’t as enamoured. The calamari was quite tender, and I really liked how crispy it was without being oily. The garlic dip was a bit overwhelming but ok in small doses.

A decided to be boring and ordered the exact same thing as the last time – linguine tossed in olive oil with sundried tomatoes and shaved parmesan. The last time we came here this was a special, but it’s since been included as a permanent menu item.


I decided to try the slipper lobster linguine with cherry tomatoes in white wine and lobster broth. It was a big plus that the lobster came deshelled. However, I found the sauce to be a bit too subtle. I couldn’t discern much white wine nor lobster broth, and as a result the cherry tomatoes all but overwhelmed the flavour. This is good if you want something very light, but I much prefer the duck confit pasta I had the last time.

There are still a few more pastas on the menu that I’d like to try before deciding if they’re a one (or two) hit wonder. As it stands though, I don’t think Verve will take the place of Pasta Brava as our dependable Italian option (when we can't get a reservation at Valentino’s).

A says:

Generally, I’d recommend this for a nice, simple Italian meal. Just don’t expect the food to blow you away.

Verve
Block 7, Lock Road
Gillman Village
Tel: 6473-3655
Mon – Thurs: 12 noon to 11 pm (last order 10 pm)
Fri & Sat: 12 noon to 12 midnight (last order 10.30 pm)
Sunday & PHs: 12 noon to 10 pm (last order 9 pm)
http://www.verve.sg/

Fromage

C says:

Our excursion to CityVibe wasn’t entirely fruitless though. Posh Nosh chick wrote about Fromage in last week’s Urban so we decided to kill two birds with one stone and check that out as well.

Fromage is just a kiosk on the ground floor, with just a few counter seats. Given that the seats are within close proximity of the deep fryers though, I’d recommend getting the food to go if you don’t want to end up smelling like oil.

The food is quite suited to take-out anyway. They have pizzas and baked pastas, but what got Posh Nosh raving was the deep fried cheese. Beside the usual mozzarella sticks, they have deep fried Edam wedges, Camembert wedges, and delicious little morsels of deep fried mac and cheese.


We tried all three (passed on the predictable mozzarella), and my favourite is the Camembert, with the mac and cheese a close second. I like Camembert anyway, and to have it hot, oozy and crispy is just heaven. The mac and cheese was pretty interesting too, though not so much cheesy as creamy. It was tongue-searingly hot but mighty addictive, and though each bite scorched my mouth, I couldn’t stop eating them. The Edam was a bit of a letdown because the cheese wasn’t very ripe so it just ended up tasting a bit plasticky.

What I liked was the fact that they got their oil temperature right, so the food wasn’t very greasy at all. They also have churros with chocolate sauce but we were way too full. I’m already dreaming of the Camembert so you can bet we’ll be going again in the not too distant future. The mall doesn't have a car park though, so it’s a bit of a bitch trying to find parking at Clementi.

A says:

Not exactly cheap by kiosk standards but definitely worth a try. We’ll be back. Maybe we’ll even take the train cause evening traffic and parking in Clementi is very frustrating.

Fromage
#01-K4, CityVibe
3151 Commonwealth Avenue West
Opening hours:
10 am to 10 pm (weekdays)
10 am to 11 pm (weekends)

Uncle Sam’s Claypots

C says:

I read in the papers recently that Uncle Sam’s, stalwart of the Robinson Road lunchtime scene for years, has finally opened a second branch at CityVibe, the new mini-mall that sits on the site of the previous Clementi cinema and McDonald’s. I was psyched to have this place as a dinner option, because the branch in Robinson Road only opens for lunch.


Unfortunately, for some reason this didn't have the oomph that the Robinson Road branch does. It somehow lacked the smoky flavour of the original. I would have attributed it to the fact that the claypot was just a serving vessel, but for the fact that there WAS a layer of burnt rice stuck to the bottom. So if the rice had in fact been cooked in the claypot, then what’s the difference? I have no idea; I just know that it didn't have that greasy shiok-ness that I remember from the original.


A tried the claypot Ipoh hor fun, which wasn’t bad but certainly wasn’t memorable. I guess I won’t be coming back here any time soon. I’ll stick to having the Robinson Road one at lunchtime.

A says:

I don’t like claypot. C made me go.

In the unlikely event that we return, I will have multiple desserts of bobo chacha, tau suan and pulut hitam.

Uncle Sam’s Claypots
#02-11/12 CityVibe
3151 Commonwealth Avenue West
Tel: 6778-3088
Open daily: 11 am to 10 pm

Casa Verde: Update

C says:

Casa Verde no longer has their set dinners that offer various permutations of Antipasti, Primi, Secondi and Dolci. Instead, they have a regular a la carte menu with prices averaging $15 for starters, $20 for pastas, $26 for mains and $10 for desserts. Do the math, and you’ll notice that a full meal of A, P, S and D costs a whole lot more now than the previous price of $58. To be fair though, portion sizes have increased and a full 4-course meal is likely to leave you stuffed.


They’ve also streamlined their crostini menu, which is a tad disappointing. Previously they had 2 crostini platters – hot and cold – with 3 types of crostini in each platter. Now they’ve combined them to just one platter of 3 types, a mixture of hot and cold. Given that the crostinis were my favourite part of the meal the last time we came, I’m a bit upset at their decision to merge them. The offerings are now a bit boring – tomato and basil (which was the best one), roast beef, and porcini mushroom with parmesan.


It’s not all bad though, because I think the standard of the food itself may actually have improved. The Vitello Tonnato that A ordered is one of the best versions of this dish that I’ve had. Most places slice the veal so thinly that you taste nothing but the tuna sauce, but here the veal slices were thicker and more substantial, so you actually got a good balance of veal and tuna flavours in each mouthful.


The Risotto with Sea Scallops and Bell Peppers that I had is also worth mentioning. The bell peppers actually gave colour and flavour to the risotto rather than featuring as an ingredient. There was a generous amount of scallops, and the flavour of the sauce was quite complex, tasting almost like a prawn or lobster bisque.

Unless the last time, desserts weren’t great tonight. A’s tiramisu wasn’t as good as Perla’s, and my chocolate and hazelnut cake was ok but nothing special. I’m not sure that I’m totally in favour of their menu restructuring, but there were enough highlights tonight to convince me that this place may still be an option. Only if we happen to be in the vicinity though, because there are definitely other places that I’d rather go to if I had a pasta craving.

A says:

Crostinis good. Veal slices in tuna paste excellent. Crab pasta disappointing (everyone said it tasted like high class mee pok which, depending on your tastes, may or may not be a good thing). Risotto very good. Tiramisu very average.

On a whole, I think the pizzas here are the best thing on the menu. So while I wouldn’t recommend coming here for a proper Italian dinner, it’s great if you want to chill out with some pizzas.

Casa Verde
1 Cluny Road
Singapore Botanic Gardens Visitor Centre
Tel: 6467-7326

Amoy Street Boon Kee Prawn Noodles

C says:

After our thwarted attempt a few Saturdays ago, I came here for lunch on Tuesday with Y and S. We got here at 12.15 and queued for a good 25 minutes but it was worth it.


The photo totally doesn’t do it justice (it was a rainy day and lighting was bad). It was the best bowl of prawn noodles I’ve had in years, specially since Wah Kee stopped serving liver with their noodles.

You can order all sorts of permutations involving prawns, pork ribs, small intestines and liver. Naturally I had a $5 bowl with the works, and man, was it satisfying. The soup stock was thick, rich and flavourful, the pork ribs super tender, and the liver was fresh and runny. With optional chilli padi and lard, this really is the perfect bowl of prawn noodles for me.

Since I came here on a work day at lunchtime, A wasn’t with me but anyway prawn noodles are really not his thing. So S and Y will take his place in a special guest post :)

S says:

Seeing the line that had formed in front of the stall even at 12.15, I had high expectations. The soup did not disappoint. It was thick as C said and really rich even though it did not have that red colour I like. I am not a fan of exotic ingredients so I had the $4 bowl with just prawns and pork ribs (no organs, thank you). This was fantastic and made for a very satisfying lunch.

I must admit that the greedy part of me was a little upset at first as the $5 bowls with the liver and stomach (or whatever else exotic parts of the pig C and Y were having) came in a huge basin whereas the $4 bowl was tiny in comparison. After standing in line (albeit gossiping) for 25 mins (felt like 40 mins), I felt I should have done myself justice with a basin of that soup. However the $4 bowl was more than sufficient. If you are a guy with a large appetite, make sure you go for the $5 bowl.

Glad I found another fun place to eat at lunchtime. Thanks C and Y for taking me there!

Y says:

I’m just so relieved that S and C liked the food because it is not often that I recommend eating places (especially to foodies like C and S) AND on top of that, make my 2 atas friends take the public bus (first time in YEARS for S) there with me as well!

I had the soup version the last time I came here with a colleague. While we were queuing up (it was definitely more than 25 mins lah), we spotted some people having the dry version, which was topped with a generous dose of tomato ketchup. That made me feel nostalgic so I decided to try the dry version this time. It was good, but slightly disappointing because I think there was too little ketchup but more chilli in the sauce, so it was more spicy than ketchupy. What’s good when you order the dry version though, is that the uncle gives you a big bowl of “pure” soup to go with it – shiok!

I ordered the $5 bowl because I wanted the liver and according to the Chinese signs in front of the stall which showed the various permutations you can order, you only get liver if you order the $5 bowl ($4 = prawn + pork rib + intestines, $5 = prawn + pork rib + intestines + liver). It was huge and I had to struggle to finish all of it (C seemed to have no problem with hers though heheh) [C says: Oi!]. Next time I shall try to see if the Uncle will entertain an order of a $4 bowl with the intestines (not stomach lah, S!) being swapped for liver instead.

Amoy Street Boon Kee Prawn Noodles
7 Keppel Road
PSA Tanjong Pagar Complex
Mon to Fri: 8 am to 2 pm

Kuishin Bo

C says:

What is it with atetoomuch and bad buffets this weekend?!

A’s friend KH suggested Kuishin Bo at Great World City for dinner tonight. We were told that it’s a member of the En chain, so we assumed that it would be similar to En’s fabulous shabu shabu buffet. Little did we know that (a) it’s part of the Kuriya group, not the En group, and (b) it was a generic Japanese buffet, with a wide range of offerings but lacklustre versions thereof.

On weekends the price is an astounding $43.90++ for dinner, which came up to about $50 per person! This was a huge rip off – there’s no way what we ate was remotely worth $50.

I need to go to En soon – I need to have a good quality yet good value buffet to restore my faith that you can have buffets without skimping on the quality of your offerings.

A says:

The sushi and sashimi aren’t bad by mass production standards. And there’s soft serve ice cream and a decent chocolate mousse for dessert. Having said that, this is in no way worth $50 unless you really, really eat like a kilo of sashimi. Not recommended.

Persimmon

C says:

My aunt gave us a dining voucher at Persimmon as an ang pow for Chinese New Year. My brother tried it before I had a chance to and highly recommended it, so on that basis I suggested it to L when she wanted ideas for her team dinner. Her feedback was lukewarm, so we decided to use up our voucher and try it for ourselves on Friday night.

Argh. My sincere apologies to L. This is the last time I recommend a place without atetoomuch’s stamp of approval first. Granted, it’s pretty good value, but the quality... well, let’s just say you get what you pay for.

Persimmon is located at The Link Hotel at Tiong Bahru, and is a division of Epicurious. They serve modern Singaporean food (think a lower end version of Wild Rocket), and until recently were a typical casual bistro. However, they’ve recently responded to the recession by offering a value-for-money a la carte buffet instead. Prices range from $20 for weekday lunches, to $30 for weekend dinners. Considering that those prices are nett, and you can order unlimited servings of all starters and pastas (main courses are limited to one dish per person), it’s definitely a very good deal.


Be warned though – this buffet is an Atkins diet nightmare, because you end up having loads of pasta and not much else. Even though the portions are tasting portion sized, A and I shared about 6 plates and were ready to explode by the end of the night. The pastas themselves are food court standard, nothing to complain about but nothing great either. The highlights were the chilli crab fusilli, the pork belly fusilli (which was both sweet and savoury) and the mushroom and miso spaghetti. What downright sucked was the vongole – A said the clams had been on a South Beach diet, and they hadn’t cooked off the alcohol in the white wine sauce either.


Amongst the starters, the only thing that stood out was the mini pork and beef burgers. The patty tasted just like an old fashioned Ramly burger, with a hint of curry powder. The rest of the starters paled in comparison.


A ordered the ribeye with satay sauce as his main, and I had the braised pork rib soto. A’s was heaps better than mine. The beef itself was pretty nicely done, albeit a rather small portion. My soto, on the other hand, was hot in some places and lukewarm in others. Definitely dished out from a pre-made pot and not heated through properly.

Overall, I can’t say that we won’t recommend it, cos I can imagine that this will appeal to some diners. Try it if you’re up for a value-for-money carb fest, and if you’re more inclined towards quantity rather than quality.

A says:

Don’t expect to be wowed by the standard of the food. It ranges from tasteless to just above average.

My worst dish was the vongole. All I got were clam shells with almost no meat in them.

Best dish is probably the mini-burger. This is closely followed by the steak (although my impression of the steak may have been tainted by my expectations being lowered substantially by the time we reached the main course).

The ambience and service aren’t exactly stellar either.

On a more positive note, you do get pretty good value for money if you’re a big eater looking for just a bit of variety.

Persimmon
#01-07 The Link Hotel
50 Tiong Bahru Road
Tel: 6227-2271
www.persimmon.com.sg

Home-made pizza

C says:

I have a Pizza Express Napoli pizza machine on loan from my aunt, so in anticipation of a pizza-making party at our humble abode in a couple of weeks to celebrate W’s birthday, I decided to give it, and some home-made pizza dough, a trial run.


I got the pizza dough recipe from the Pizza Express Napoli website, but I think I’ll try Martha Stewart’s next to see if it’s any better. I made 2 pizzas for dinner tonight – one with chargrilled artichokes out of a bottle, olives, sliced Portobello mushrooms and blue cheese, and another with shaved ham and sundried tomatoes. As you can see, the sundried tomatoes that I sprinkled on top of the cheese turned to charcoal.


The machine looks like a round barbeque grill, and consists of a pizza stone on the bottom and a heating element on top. It’s pretty easy to use – just plug in, preheat and you’re good to go. The challenge is to roll out the pizza dough thin enough that it’s crispy, but not too thin that it tears. And to get it in a perfect circle – mine were more, shall I say, artistically-shaped. It also took a bit of practice figuring out how to transfer the pizza, laden with all the toppings, onto the stone.

The pizzas didn’t turn out too bad, taste-wise. The stone inevitably gets dirty, which is apparently to be expected because it just means the stone is being well-seasoned, and you’re not supposed to clean it with anything except a damp cloth. I do feel a bit bad returning it to my aunt in this state though.

I’m planning another trial run next week, because I need to find a way to pre-make the dough or par-cook the pizzas otherwise I’ll be in the kitchen all night during W’s party. Maybe I’ll experiment rolling out the dough during the day, then storing it between sheets of baking paper for use later on.

Can I just say that after all my efforts in preparing a pizza meal for A, all he did was bitch about how I didn’t also make tiramisu for him for dessert. Hmph...

A says:

Toppings rocked. My only complaint is that the crust doesn’t get good and crusty.

Gunther’s

C says:

Next on our weekday value set lunch trail is modern French restaurant Gunther’s at Purvis Street. Their set lunch is the magic number $38 for 3 courses. We were there just after 1 on a Friday and it was surprisingly crowded.


A had the cold pasta with shaved Iberico ham, and I had the mushroom consommé with foie gras ravioli and a slice of seared foie gras. A’s pasta was ok – slight Asian in flavour and the ham had a nice nutty flavour without being too salty. My consommé was much better. It was clear yet bursting with flavour, and the foie gras was a good textural contrast to the clear consommé.


We were a bit indulgent – I saw the Roasted Bone Marrow on Toast on the a la carte menu and had to order it. I love bone marrow in any shape or form, and this dish showcased it at its best. You’re given a tiny spoon to dig out the bone marrow, spread it on the wafer-thin toast and season to your liking with sea salt, pepper and chives. The marrow was rich, creamy and insanely flavourful. This is a heart attack waiting to happen so it’s definitely a once-in-a-LONG-while treat.


There were 3 options for the main course. We nixed the garden pasta, so it was just down to the meat and the fish. The fish was grilled tuna, and the meat was called Gunther’s Creation on the menu. It was meant to be roast chicken but they’d run out, so they served roast Kurobuta pork shoulder instead, and man I’m glad they ran out of the chicken. The pork was fabulous – thinly sliced and grilled, the smoky flavour was quite apparent and the pork, being streaked with fat, was very flavourful.


The fish (which was plated very similarly to the pork, and indeed many of the other dishes that we noticed being served) was quite an enigma. It didn’t taste like fish at all. If you’d given it to me in a blind taste test, I might have said it was very tender chicken breast. The pork was better overall, but the tuna was good because it was such a novel flavour.

Dessert was a rather uninspired crème caramel, but generally no complaints about the food. Service was good but I felt that the main waiter was being just a tad patronising. Maybe it was just his manner – for the most part he was very polite, but I sensed some very subtle hints of condescension, especially when I was raving about the bone marrow and the consommé. This echoes another anecdote that I heard about the place, where the maitre d’ almost fell over trying to wrest a McDonald’s paper bag from S when she walked in carrying one.

A says:

I actually found the service to be excellent and not as snooty as I thought it would be. The food was excellent. It didn’t blow me away but it was very interesting. I’d definitely be willing to go back sometime.

Gunther’s
36 Purvis Street
#01-03
Tel: 6338-8955
www.gunthers.com.sg

Emerald Garden Thai Food

C says:

Emerald Garden is another stall within the Bar Bar Black Sheep establishment along Cherry Avenue. I can’t believe A voluntarily chose Thai food tonight, over Wishbone and the prospect of a chocolate milkshake! Will wonders never cease…


We had the pork pad thai, the stir fried chicken with basil and chilli and a bowl of steamed rice. I quite liked the pad thai – there was a very good balance of flavours, without any one flavour dominating, and it wasn’t too dry either.


In comparison, the stir fried chicken was a tad boring but I actually preferred it to the pad thai. I’m quite a sucker for a simple stir fry eaten with hot plain rice, so this just struck a chord with me. Also explains how I can crave take-out Chinese food when I’m on holiday (Panda Express in Vegas, for example).

This is by no means our default Thai place – that would probably be A-Roy Thai. But if we’re in the Bukit Timah area and somehow don’t feel like eating anything else in the area, this is a pretty decent option. Now we just need to try the Indian stall at the same joint; it was closed when we were there tonight.

A says:

I’d pay the $10 for the Phad Thai, but I don’t think the chicken is worth $13. A bit expensive but worth considering for a quick Thai around Bukit Timah.

The Fishmonger, Part 3

C says:

We finally tried the Ling fish fillets from The Fishmonger! Well, half of them anyway – the portion we got from J was a hefty 1.2 kg so we split it up into 2 meals.

Because Ling fish is much hardier and more distinctly flavoured than the Orange Roughy, we figured it could hold its own against some stronger flavours so I added some grated cheese to the flour for the crust, and served it with pasta in a tomato and gorgonzola sauce (bottled, courtesy of Marks and Sparks – I’m not that much of a domestic goddess).


I must say I’m less of a fan of these than the Orange Roughy fillets – I think I’ve just been spoilt by how awesome the latter were. Clearly the Ling fish is a much bigger fish than the Orange Roughy, so it simply didn’t have the same delicate, almost melt-in-the-mouth texture and subtle flavour. The Ling fish was much flakier and also had quite a distinct ‘fish’ (note: not fishy) flavour. It was also more challenging for me to cook it because the thicker portions really needed quite a bit of time before they were cooked through.

I would imagine that this would be good for fish and chips, kebabs/satay or even on the grill. Or perhaps cut up into chunks and served in a robust fish stew or chowder. Not quite my cup of tea, so I think we’ll stick to the Orange Roughy.

A says:

What C said.

The Fishmonger
Tel: 6851-6158
www.thefishmonger.com.sg/

Ya Hua Bak Kut Teh

C says:

We came to PSA Building at Tanjong Pagar intending to try the Amoy Street Boon Kee prawn noodles, after hearing Y rave about them. Unfortunately the stall was closed, despite reading online reviews that only close on Sundays. We wandered round and chanced upon the branch of Ya Hua Bak Kut Teh, the famous one at Outram/Havelock. At least our trip here wasn’t in vain then.


In order to make it as fair a comparison to Founder as possible, we tried to order similar items – the long pork ribs (which cost more), salted vegetables, you tiao and steamed rice. Taking each item in turn:

Pork ribs: These were remarkably tender. We thought Founder’s were tender but here the meat simply fell off the bone with absolutely no effort. Unfortunately, as you can see from the photo, they were also remarkably tiny and certainly not worth $7 a bowl. At least half the size of the Founder ones. So, a tie here.

Soup: The soup at Founder packs more of a punch. It’s more peppery, but it goes beyond just the amount of pepper. The soup at Ya Hua somehow lacked a richness and depth of flavour that Founder’s has. Winner: Founder

Chilli Padi: Available at both joints. Another tie.

Salted vegetables: I don’t know what Founder puts in their giam chye, but there’s absolutely no comparison here. Founder’s isn’t salty so much as slightly garlicky and very savoury. The one at Ya Hua was more like the very one-dimensional giam chye that you get at porridge stalls – just plain salty, and cooked until almost mushy. Clear winner: Founder.

Service: Yes, at Founder you have to queue to get a table, but once you’re seated they’re very efficient and your food arrives really quickly. At Ya Hua, they’re very keen to seat you but after that, it takes ages for them to (a) notice you, (b) come to take your order, and (c) actually serve your food. We overheard a table complaining that they’d been waiting for their food for over half an hour. I prefer the Founder system because it’s more transparent, so for me, winner: Founder.

Basically, the only thing going for Ya Hua is the tenderness of the pork ribs, but it’s not enough to switch my allegiances from Founder. It was worth a try just to see what the fuss is all about, but whenever I have a bak kut teh craving, there’s no question where I’ll head to.

A says:

I’d rather go to Founder.

Ya Hua Bak Kut Teh
Morning:
7 Keppel Road
#01-05/07 PSA Tanjong Pagar Complex
Tel: 6222-9610
7 am to 3 pm
Evening:
593 Havelock Road
#01-01/02 Isetan Office Building
Tel: 6235-7716
6 pm to 2 am

Tian Mi Mi

C says:

S’s husband KH has opened a dessert cafe recently, and since we were in the East on Sunday we popped by to check it out. It’s called Tian Mi Mi, and it’s modelled after an old-fashioned cafe, from the marble-topped round tables and wooden stools to the traditional desserts that mother/grandmother used to make. Indeed, the recipes for the desserts were all tested and perfected by none other than KH’s mom herself.


We’d already had lunch when we went there, so we could only manage to try 2 desserts – the mango pomelo sago, and on S’s recommendation, the baked baby coconut with ice cream. They certainly didn’t stint on the mango for the mango pomelo dessert. There was fresh mango puree as well as cubes of mango, along with very fresh segments of pomelo. I like that there wasn’t too much shaved ice too – I hate massive amounts of ice because I have to wait till it melts or risk getting brain freeze.


I really like the baked baby coconut, but I’m not sure if it was too subtle for A. It came with a glass and I was wondering why they gave A ice water but not me. Then we realised that it was coconut water! It was coconut ice cream, some kind of coconut jelly-like threads which tasted like nonya kueh, all within the coconut shell. The thin coconut flesh is still intact so you can also scrape that up and eat it too.

Besides the 2 that we tried, there are lots of other enticing desserts like tang yuan in ginger soup, milk custards, orh nee and white fungus soup. They also have a few porridges – chicken, century egg and pork, so next time we’ll come for a porridge and try a couple more desserts. I definitely want to try the tang yuan next and I think A is eyeing the milk custard.

The shop is open till midnight from Sunday to Thursday, and on Friday and Saturday it stays open till 2 am. The best part is while the shop is along bustling East Coast Road, there’s also indoor seating in airconditioned comfort.

A says:

Parking in the east is horrible. Grrrrr...

Anyway, the coconut ice cream is pretty interesting so I’d recommend giving it a try. The ice cream flavour is a bit subtle for my tastes though. I think I’ll try the ah balling or milk custard next time.

Tian Mi Mi Desserts
376 East Coast Road
Tel: 6346-0046
Sunday – Thursday: 11 am to midnight
Friday – Saturday: 11 am to 2 am

Chinese Box

C says:

Black Angus at One Fullerton has moved to a quaint colonial bungalow building within the NUS Law campus along Bukit Timah Road. It occupies the second floor of the building, and on the ground floor is Chinese Box. The owner of both also used to run Superbowl congee at Bowl Quay, so you can expect a wide variety of congees at Chinese Box too. Unfortunately, their noodles and congees are only available at lunchtime; at dinner time the menu offerings are more standard Chinese restaurant fare.

We came here for lunch on Saturday; unfortunately one of their starters (the signature roast pork square) wasn’t available, so we ended ordering 2 noodles and a congee to share. We had a honey glazed char siew noodle, beef brisket noodle and congee with 3 eggs and pork.



The noodles themselves are really good – thin, springy and no overwhelming taste of alkali. Between the 2 noodles, the char siew was much better, mainly because of the really good honey sauce which was drizzled over the char siew. The char siew was tender and the noodles had a really good bite to them – very Hong Kong-style. Instead of being drenched in the usual thick gravy, the beef brisket noodles here were just served with a very light, subtly-flavoured sauce. On the one hand it allowed you to really taste the flavour of the noodles, but it was a tad too plain for me. The dominant taste ended up being the chilli oil that I kept adding to the noodles. The beef brisket itself was really good, though. Very soft, tender and flavourful.


The congee that we ordered consisted of minced pork, pork slices, century egg, salted egg and a raw egg cracked on top. I’m used to century egg in Cantonese congee but it was quite interesting to add salted egg to the mix as well. This was very enjoyable and the congee was typical Hong Kong/Cantonese style – very fine and smooth with almost no discernible rice grains.

As far as the noodles and congee go, the standard here is way better than Crystal Jade, for similar prices. I just wish they had the noodle and congee offerings at dinner time as well, then this could really be a regular haunt whenever we visit my folks.

A says:

The service is excellent. The food’s good but not exactly spectacular.

Chinese Box
NUS Law Faculty
House 4, 1D Cluny Road (opp. Eu Tong Sen Building)
Tel: 6219-7877
Lunch: 11.30 am to 3 pm
Dinner: 6 pm to 11 pm

Classic Cakes

C says:

Classic Cakes at Clementi Arcade (couple of doors down from Daily Scoop) is best known for their sweet offerings, like the Mille Crepes, which now comes in a variety of flavours including apple and chocolate chip. Little did I know that they make a mean savoury Chinese-style yam cake too. I tried this at a party, was completely hooked and ordered it tonight to share with my family.


The version we had was Pumpkin and Yam – soft steamed yam cake with lupcheong (chinese sausage), dried shrimp and generously dotted with pumpkin, and sprinkled with fried shallots, spring onion and cut chillies on top. The cake itself is very light and be warned, it's addictive. The pumpkin adds a nice sweetness and prevents it from becoming too stodgy. Best of all, it comes with an absolutely kick-ass chilli sauce which accentuates yet doesn't overwhelm it.

They do a plain yam cake as well, without pumpkin, and a plain radish cake which I may try next. A 9-inch square cake costs $28 – advance orders are recommended if you want to order the entire cake, but they also sell ¼ portions of the cake over the counter for $7.

A says:

It’s not bad considering I don’t like this kind of cake.

Classic Cakes
41 Sunset Way
#01-06 Clementi Arcade
Tel: 6762-8019
Tue & Sun: 2pm - 9pm
Wed-Sat: 11am - 9pm(Closed on Mondays)
http://www.theclassiccakes.com/

The Fishmonger – Part 2

C says:

We had an impromptu dinner at home tonight, and decided to try one of the two fishes, the Orange Roughy fillets, from The Fishmonger. The fillets were delivered fresh last Wednesday, and we promptly froze them. After thawing them in the fridge for about 12 hours, I’m happy to say that I don't think they suffered from being frozen rather than eaten fresh upon delivery. They still tasted superbly fresh, with a firm yet slightly flaky white flesh that didn't have a hint of fishiness whatsoever.

Because the fish has quite a delicate flavour and texture, recommended cooking methods are simple pan frying or baking, with accompanying sauces that don’t overwhelm the subtle flavour of the fish. I soaked them in milk for a short while, then dusted them with some flour to try to create a bit of a crust. After seasoning with just salt and pepper, I pan fried them in butter and olive oil for just 2 minutes per side, and they were done. The fish is certainly very delicate – the larger of the two fillets broke in half as I was transferring it from pan to plate. Also I think I should have used more flour and a slightly hotter pan initially to get a thicker, more golden crust.

I made some pasta to go along with it, the sauce for which was garlic sautéed in the butter from frying the fillets, some white wine, lemon juice and milk (no cream on hand at home). Note to self: next time, a little lemon juice goes a long way. I added a perfunctory piece of grilled (or rather, steamed then blow-torched) corn on the cob to make it a balanced meal.


I’m very impressed with the fish, possibly even more so than with the mussels. Even with my amateur cooking attempts and slightly botched preparation, the quality of the fish was still evident. The main flat fish that I’m used to is the John Dory, and I’ve never been a fan of it because it tends to be fishy and the flesh a bit stringy (though that could be the fault of the produce rather than the inherent nature of the fish itself). These Orange Roughy fillets were moist, subtly flavoured and absolutely delicious. Plus they were completely boneless – a definite plus when cooking for A.

Each fillet is about 200g, which is a perfect portion size for one person. They seem to be quite popular too, because they’re sold out on The Fishmonger’s online store. After we finish the Lingfish fillets, I’m definitely getting more of these. If I can bring myself to use more olive oil and less butter, then this is a pretty healthy meal option and if I can convince A to have it with rice rather than pasta, it'll be simpler for me too. Pity the washing up is always such a pain.

A says:

The fish was great. And C’s turned out to be a good cook. But I’m going to talk about one of the issues I have with cooking at home.

Those chefs on TV who say it’s easy and quick to cook at home never factor in the time spent washing up. We probably spend about half an hour cleaning all the utensils.

I guess you get economies of scale when you’re cooking for large families, but for the two of us, it’s not very time-efficient to do on a regular basis.

It’s worth the hassle for special occasions though. And cooking seems to keep C happy and off my back.

The Fishmonger
Tel: 6851-6158
http://www.thefishmonger.com.sg/

Big D’s Grill

C says:

Big D, aka Chef Damian D’Silva, drew considerable flak when, after cooking in many a fine dining restaurant (his most recent venture was Soul Kitchen in Purvis Street), he decided to run a hawker stall, instead of moving on to yet another fine dining establishment, after Soul Kitchen was forced to close.

He moved to Bedok South to start Big D’s Grill, operating out of a coffee shop and serving both quality Western food as well as his signature Eurasian-Peranakan dishes. Well, West-siders rejoice, because as of a few weeks ago Big D’s Grill has moved to Holland Village – specifically the same coffee shop as the famous XO fish bee hoon. W’s friends L and B told us about this on Saturday, and we promptly headed there for dinner on Sunday.

The coffee shop is filled with XO fish bee hoon regulars, but dishes were being regularly churned out at Big D’s while we were there so while they’re not packed at the moment, they seem to be doing fairly steady business. I guess it’s only a matter of time before his regulars find their way here, and he gains new regulars in the West.

The menu is quite streamlined; there are 4 pastas, a selection of steaks (including Angus beef and Wagyu), Kurobuta pork and a few Peranakan dishes. We ordered the crab meat linguine ($10.90) and the anchovy pasta ($17.90).


The crab linguine is a very good deal. They’re very generous with the crab meat, the pasta is done just so, and the sauce is very well balanced. I daresay it’s comparable to the crab meat tagliatelle from Da Paolo.


Objectively, the anchovy pasta tastes really good, albeit quite salty (or maybe because of it?). Basically it’s a very good version of an aglio olio. My only problem with it is that I can’t quite justify why it’s $7 more than the crab meat pasta. Maybe they use fresh imported anchovies or something, but while it was tasty, I don’t think the end product really justified the price.

Next time I think I’ll try either one of the steaks (the fries looked really good – the big fat kind), or one of his Peranakan specialties. Apparently he does takeaway as well – just call with your order about 15 minutes before pick-up.

Update: I've since tried the Sambal Buah Keluak here. It's not what I expected - it's not the typical buah keluak with gravy, chicken or pork pieces. Instead it's very finely minced pork mixed with neat buah keluak flesh. Literally like a sambal which is served with plain white rice and some pickled tomato and shallot.


Yes it was unexpected but after getting over the initial surprise, this really grew on me. The sambal is very moreish, as you would expect from buah keluak, but also had hints of sweetness and coconut, which is I guess Big D's Eurasian spin on this classic Peranakan dish. A says: Wow, this buah keluak I can actually eat.

A says:

The portion sizes aren’t gigantic for the price and I really don’t think the anchovy pasta is worth the price. But I’ll definitely be back for the crabmeat linguine. I can’t see myself ordering anything else though.

Big D’s Grill
Block 46 Holland Drive
#01-359
Tel: 8120-0244