Monday, December 21, 2009

Happy Holidays From Europe

I am now in Venice, Italy where the temperature is a freezing 7 degrees!

Sparkling or Still will be returning in 2010 with a special food spread from Europe.

Enjoy your holidays!

And Merry Christmas!



Saturday, December 19, 2009

Sushi Yoshida @ Devonshire Road

Sushi Yoshida was not our 1st choice for lunch. Wanted to eat at Barstop which is next to Sushi Yoshida, but it was not opened for lunch.

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The restaurant was quite empty. Chefs were busy cooking and preparing food, most likely for dinner crowd.

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The restaurant is situated between SPC petrol station and SingTel comcentre. It is like a small box squashed in between 2 buildings.

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Onsen Tamago - The egg white is still in liquid for but the yolk is already solidified. A simple yet satisfying appetizer.

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Unatamadon (S$30) - Grilled sliced eel with omelette over rice. Didn't think this dish was good. Perhaps the unagi was better on its own than mixed with the egg omelette.

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Pickled cucumbers and radish. The cucumbers were nice, and the radish tasted like a super big chunk of chai-por.

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Ebi Tendon (S$27) - Prawn tempura over rice. The 4 crispy prawn tempura were good, but then I feel that the prawn tempuras at Waraku were much better, especially the ones at the Marina Square branch. But still, the Ebi Tendon was much better than the Unagi one.

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Clear soup - This is the fish stock. It was steaming hot. Not much fish meat as most of it were fish bones. Soup was sweet though.

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Juicy sweet watermelon slices.


Sushi Yoshida
10 Devonshire Road
Tel: 6735 5014
Daily,
12noon – 2.15pm,
6pm – 12mn

Thursday, December 17, 2009

Thai Thai @ Mandarin Gallery

Had wanted to try out the famous ramen shop at Mandarin Gallery on its 1st day of official opening, but the incredible long queue made it quite impossible. So we had lunch at Thai Thai instead.

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Thai Thai is a chain of Thai restaurants in Malaysia. Thai Thai being their top tier restaurant, and they have a chain of Bangkok Jam restaurants in Malaysia too. However, the Bangkok Jam at Singapore's Great World City is not related to their Malaysia chain.

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The serving staff is very polite and not intrusive. With its years of culinary experience in Malaysia, our expectations were high.

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When you see Sparkling or Still ordering sparkling mineral water, you know free tap water is not available here. They don't serve free water. I also ordered a glass of Ice thai tea. It was refreshing with hints of lemon grass inside.

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Creamy chicken soup (Tom Kha Gai) - S$12. This is my 1st time having this soup. And it was good. The creamy milky taste of coconut went well with the chicken stock and faint hints of spices.

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Tom Yam Goong soup (clear) - S$15. On the other hand, the Tom Yam Goong was not as good. The prawns were sweet and crunchy though.

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There is a big cage at the centre of the restaurant. I like how the lights created beautiful patterns above the cage.

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Green Curry Chicken (Geang Leow Wan Gai) - S$17. Huge portion and can easily be shared among 4 diners. the curry was quite lemak yet different from our usual red curry. Generous amouts of chicken pieces. I was very pleased with this dish. In fact, could have just ordered a bowl of green curry with white rice for a budget meal.

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Brown Rice (Kaow Kong) - S$3 (unlimited serving). The white rice also costs the same amount.

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Roast Beef Thai Salad (Yam Nura Yang Lum Yai) - S$18. They were generous with the beef. Tender and juicy. The salad had some special vegetables. Overall, quite a healthy dish.

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Pandan Chicken (Gai Hor Bai Tuey) - S$13 for 4 pieces. I am a huge fan of Pandan Chicken. In fact, a lot of Singaporeans love this dish. And Thai Thai's version did not disappoint. The chicken was juicy and succulent. Full of flavours and not too oily. The accompanying sweet and sour sauce with bits of pineapple went well with the juicy chicken pieces. If you find it a hassle to open up the leaves, do ask the serving staffs to bring it back to the kitchen so that they can help you to open the leaves.

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Crispy Pork Knuckles with sour vegetables (Kha Moo Pa Loh Thod Krob) - S$22. Some parts of the pork knuckle came out cold. I suppose the chef did not fry it till it was warm. The skin was crispy though. Even though some parts were cold, but meat was tender and not dry. I also like the sour vegetables served under the pork knuckles.

Overall some hits and misses. But the food is good. Will return.


Thai Thai
333A Orchard Road
#04-08/09/10
Mandarin Gallery

Wednesday, December 16, 2009

Whole Earth @ Peck Seah Street

Had lunch at Whole Earth near our offices last week. It was along Peck Seah Street.

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Whole Earth originally was at Geylang before moving to Tg Pagar area a few months ago.

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It is a fusion of Peranakan and Thai vegetarian food. Whole Earth also does buffet catering too.

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The serving staff provided us with a small portion of crispy crackers, sambal chilli and pickled cucumber. this crispy crackers (tasted like fried tau kee) is very crispy. I also enjoyed the pickled cucumbers a lot.

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Crispy fried tofu with oatmeal flakes - Fans of Cereal prawns will like their version. The oatmeal tasted like crispy cereal flakes and I like to nibble on the fragrant curry leaves. Tofu was average.

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Braised mushroom with vegetarian meat. The mushroom had a fragrant smell and taste to it. The sauce was a bit salty but went well with our rice.

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We "upgraded" our white rice to organic brown rice. The brown rice was soft and not too tough to eat.

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Finally our serving of Peranakan curry arrived. The curry was a bit on the salty side. But it was thick and the potatoes and mock meat were good. Again, the gravy goes well with our rice.

Whole Earth is having lunch promotion. It costs S$9 (before taxes) for a bowl of rice plus a portion of mains. We had 2 set lunches (2 rice + Curry + Mushroom meat).


Whole Earth
76 Peck Seah Street
Opens Daily
11.30am–3pm, 5.30pm–9pm

Tuesday, December 15, 2009

O'Gambinos @ Raffles City Shopping Centre

Went to O'Gambinos for dinner on a weekday night. It is situated outside of Raffles City, facing the junction where Carlton Hotel and Chijmes are. (next to Brozeit)

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It is quite dark inside, and they are playing those black and white "Dick Tracy" kind of movies inside! Totally reminded me of this 1920s Great Depression era in New York. The food served here are a mixture of Irish and Italian food.

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Roasted Peppers with Anchovies (S$12) - Marinated roasted peppers, anchovy fillets, provolone cheese. Quite a few Italian dishes use anchovies as ingredients. I like the roasted peppers as it tasted tangy, most likely marinated in vinegar before. A healthy and refreshing dish. I like the generous black peppers over the salad.

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Pork Scallopine (S$24) - Pork tenderloin sauteed, lemon, butter, onions, mushrooms, white wine(served with pasta). Generous amount of vinegar is used all over the pork and pasta. One of the more tasty Italian pasta I had in recent months. Pork was really tender.

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Gambinos Irish Stew (S$29) - Lamb, carrots & Foccacia. Stews and rainy season goes hand in hand. The lamb is tender and flavourful. Would be better if more gravy was given to allow the bread to soak up the goodness.

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Cannoli (S$12) - A Sicilian dessert from Italy, is a fried dessert with an outer fried crispy dough pastry shell and filled with creamy fillings such as ricotta cheese and chopped succade. I am not sure how authentic this dessert is, but I like the different texture such as the crispiness of the shell and the creamy fillings.

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Around 8:30pm, a guy starts to play the sax. Quite a special weekdau treat for diners in the restaurant.

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One of the better Italian and Irish restaurant in Singapore. Food portion are hearty and price is average. Great for friends gathering or for couples to dine.

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O'Gambinos also serves bar food all day long.


O'Gambinos
252 North Bridge Road
#01-17A Raffles City Shopping Centre

Monday, December 14, 2009

Thunder Tea Rice & Gloria Jean's Coffees @ Vivocity

My first time having Thunder Tea Rice. And gave my 1st time to Food Republic at Vivocity.

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I actually enjoyed the rice, vegetables, peanuts, crispy salted fish mixture. Tasted quite good. But I could not get used to the green soup mixture. It tasted like a bitter version of toothpaste soup. Mint was used, and it tasted bitter. For 1st timers like myself, perhaps you should not add the soup into the rice. Eat the rice and try a little soup with the rice. Bits by bits. My set also comes with fried omelette with basil leaves and a fried tofu.

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Adjourned to Gloria Jean's coffee for a short coffee break after lunch. The cafe was 50% filled during lunch time.

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Had this cinnamon gingerbread chocolate drink. Not enough cinnamon powder, so added more to my drink. Gingerbread taste was strong. Faint hints of chocolate only.


Food Republic
1 Harbourfront Walk
VivoCity

Gloria Jean's Coffees
1 Harbourfront Walk
VivoCity

Thursday, December 10, 2009

Oriole Cafe & Bar @ Somerset Road

danieru弁~~V(^o^)V met me for lunch and we decided to take the MRT out to Oriole Cafe for a nice lunch.

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I have reviewed Oriole Cafe many times. It is situated at the hidden corner of Pan Pacific Suites along Somerset Road. However come January 2010, when the "Discovery Walk" of 313 Somerset is opened, this cafe will be very visible. So expect this quiet corner to disappear next month.

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There is a set lunch at S$16, but we opted for ala carte menu. Ice water is served free of charge.

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danieru弁~~V(^o^)V ordered this Harissa Prawn salad (lettuce was used because they ran out of Romaine). The salad had juicy grilled prawns, chickpeas, tomato, mint, and pomegranate dressing. I didn't try this but the grilled prawns smelt really nice.

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Each of us also ordered their signature dish of Philly Steak & Cheese with onions, peppers, swiss cheese inside a warm and crispy baguette.

I enjoyed this a lot, but danieru弁~~V(^o^)V felt that perhaps the bread was a bit too dry.

If you want to find a quiet place for lunch on a weekday, do come here. But this place is very very crowded at night.


Oriole Cafe & Bar
96 Somerset Road
#01-01
Pan Pacific Serviced Suites
Tel: 6238 8348

Wednesday, December 09, 2009

Epicurious @ The Quayside

I have longed to visit Epicurious after it was featured in many food blogs and food websites. So here I am.

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It is situated at The Quayside, which is next to this colourful bridge along Robertson Quay. It is quite crowded during noon time on a lazy Sunday morning.

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The serving staffs served us cold water in Vodka glasses. quite cool.

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Carrot soup with ginger and coriander served with cheesy garlic bread - The garlic toast when dipped in the soup taste wonderful.

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Pancakes with butter and maple syrup - It's average. Still prefer the one at Wild Honey. The one there is great!

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Beef fajita sandwich – flank steak strips grilled with onions & bell peppers; melted cheese - Again, good but prefer the one at Oriole.

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Sicilian-style pasta with sardines and raisins, tomatoes and breadcrumbs - this is good. maybe I have not eaten sardines for a long time, but the mixture of sardines, tomato, onions, raisins and breadcrumbs is good!

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Sticky date cake with butterscotch sauce and ice-cream - Totally cannot compare with the ultimate one at Marmalade Pantry.

Bottomline: Maybe my expectations were too high, but the food here is only average. But will return for the sardines pasta.


Epicurious
#01-02 The Quayside,
60 Robertson Quay
Singapore 238252