The Merry Men

Hungry. In need of dinner at 10pm. Where would you go?

Robertson Quay is the place to be if you have no clue. That stretch of road along the Singapore River was absolutely packed on a late Friday night. Bar Bar Black Sheep was my first choice but since no table was available, we went to The Merry Men instead.

I’ve got to admit, The Merry Men is a nice surprise. I was expecting awful-if-not-average pub grub or something like that since this is more of a drinking hole than a proper eatery. But nope, I’m wrong. This cool chill out place dishes out delicious food (those we ordered anyway) at very reasonable prices (read: no GST or service charge)~

While waiting for the food, I was fooling around with the camera and look how gorgeous this random shot turned out!

Tagliatelle with prawns in squid ink sauce ($18).

Considering that the pasta ain’t homemade, this is still quite wonderful. The deep flavours and fresh prawns are awesome!

Escargot in mushroom shells with garlic butter ($14).

My first time trying escargots!! I know, WOLS me. This is really good, nothing slimy like what I imagined cooked snails to be. Texture is somewhat like mussels and the garlic butter topping is plain delish!

Pan roasted halibut, grilled asaparagus, tomato mango salsa, potato mash ($26).

Great execution, the soft meat simply melts in the mouth, yummmm.

Homemade tiramisu infused with frangelico a.k.a. hazelnut liqueur ($8).

Ok, so this may not be the best tiramisu I’ve ever tried. But a girl has got to have something sweet after a meal, ya. Decent stuff, kinda sourish like yogurt and the serving is huge so please share. Too much calories and sugar after 11pm can’t be too good, haha.

The Merry Men 
86 Robertson Quay
#01-02 Robertson Blue
6735 6598 

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Food for Thought

I always turn up at restaurants happily without any reservations and expect to get a table. Ha, as if life is that perfect. Sometimes I wait, sometimes I walk away and tell myself that I will make a reservation next time. But next time never comes and I never learn, do I?

It happened again last weekend.

Food for thought was full for brunch and waiting time was 40mins to an hour! Geez, didn’t know they are so popular. Thanks to the friends who were that late (tsk tsk), a table was available by the time they arrived so the logistics worked out quite nicely, phew.

I think I ordered the most boring item on the menu but I don’t care, haha. Really loving the nutty gula granola with mixed berries and milk ($7.50+) even though there’s absolutely nothing homemade about this and everything is probably all store-bought.

I’d take cereal over eggs for brekkie anyday : )

But if you are an eggy freak (I admit I’m one on certain days), get the house works ($12+). It comes with generous portions of scrambled eggs, bacon, toasted brioche, hash brown and roasted tomato salad. Looks so colourful and appetising!

Recommended for kids or very very small eaters (like my BFF), basic works ($7+) will do, I think. It’s pretty much what you see is what you get: scrambled eggs, chunky chicken sausages (bacon by default, additional $2+ for change of ingredient) and brioche.

Happy weekend ahead, folks! And vote wisely, lol.

Food for Thought 
8 Queen Street 
6338 9887 

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KUMO Kaiseki

Nothing beats eating with the seasons and that’s why I love kaiseki. In layman’s terms, it’s a seasonal multi-couse meal; traditional cooking techniques, high level of creativity, exquisite plating, and frighteningly expensive (most of the time).

Enter Kumo. “Cloud” in Japanese. Kaiseki restaurant. Affordable dining. Professional service. Delectable cuisine.

Kumo, you made it to my list of favourite Japanese restaurants in Singapore : )

We had the 5-course lunch kaiseki ($58++).

First up was a trio of assorted appetisers of the day: sweet momotaro tomato drenched in yummy miso dressing, baked prawn with an interesting seaweed jelly, and my favourite unagi, all served in bite-sized portions.

Next, sashimi moriawase: fresh salmon and kampachi~

Third course: Japanese eggplant in thick prawn stock with shredded ginger bulb~ Normal Nice.

Main course was either grilled beef steak or cod with teriyaki sauce, served with rice and miso soup. The fatty cod was delicious, but what I love even more are the accompaniments on the side: fried edamame and corn, braised tuna, a sourish plum-like berry, and the sweetest sweet potato!

Dessert was a big glass of choya jelly. This I like a lot! They don’t stint on the umeshu (plum liqueur) and mixing berries and fruits in it is a brilliant idea.

Let’s go back for dinner next time! Shall we, shall we??? : )

KUMO Kaiseki
#01-58, Icon Village
12 Gopeng Street
6225 8433

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K Ki <3

Sweets taste sweeter when shared with a girlfriend you can click with : )

Especially when said sweets are from K Ki, one of my favourite local patisseries!

I had Onigiri ($9+), the new creation. Basil milk chocolate with bitter orange.

She had L.R.R.H. ($8.50+), a.k.a. little red riding hood. Dark chocolate mousse with raspberry.

Both are <3

K ki ケーキ
7 Ann Siang Hill
6225 6650

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Group Therapy Cafe

On Twitter the other day:

A: The yummy carrot cake. Me <3 better than RWAV or Heart Bistro cc.

Me: Really so much nicer??

A: Yeap. Go try it. Think you’ll like it too : )

Me: Okie I will! Trust u : )

And so I went to Group Therapy Cafe. And A was right, I did like the carrot cake ($8.50+)!

It’s quite incredible, considering that it’s neither homemade nor freshly baked (actually imported from the States). The cream cheese frosting is very light and smooth, and the cake moist and fluffy.

The pecan pie ($5+) ain’t half bad either, though I still prefer PS Cafe’s~

We spent the afternoon lazing at the cafe and the staff pretty much ignored us (at the right time), which was great since it made me feel like I’m at my own house, haha. And the service was good, friendly but not intrusive. Will definitely be back soon!

Group Therapy Cafe
49 Duxton Road
9173-4590

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Riders Cafe

Finally!!! Branch at Riders Cafe. It’s sooooo far out in the west that I’ve been KIV-ing Riders for close to 2 years, geez.

This is a drive-or-cab place. Unless you wanna make the 1.7km (thanks, gothere) trek from the nearest bus stop to Bukit Timah Saddle Club.

We occupied the table on the veranda, excellent for some horsie-spotting activity! And surprisingly, the smell ain’t that bad.

There’s the usual brekkie items on the new brunch menu, and the not-so-usual ones. Like my interesting soft-shell crab benedict with poached eggs ($16++). Scores!

Then there’s poached eggs with cream corn polenta ($15++). I’m generally a polenta fan but not this one here. Cream overkill, urgh.

‘The Usual’ ($16++): eggs, bacon, (tough) breakfast banger, mushrooms, sourdough.

Blackstone benedict with bacon and poached eggs on sourdough ($15++).

Lovely week ahead, people!

Riders Cafe
51 Fairways Drive
6466 9819

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Kyoto: Day 1

Day 1 in Kyoto started bright and early at Kiyomizu Temple (清水寺)!

It’s amazing that the main hall and veranda were built entirely without nails, merely supported by 139 pillars and 90 crossbeams! No wonder it’s a national treasure. At the base of the hall is the Otowa Waterfall, and it’s said that drinking from one of the 3 streams will grant wisdom, health, and longevity. I almost hit a poor guy with the heavy pole while trying to drink from the cup attached to it, oops.

Behind Kiyomizu is Jishu Shrine (地主神社), Japan’s dedication to the deity of love and matchmaking. There’s 2 rocks placed about 10m apart and if you walk from one to the other successfully with your eyes closed, true love will be yours. I did the walk so I’ll be back with an update if it really works, haha.

P.S. If you fail the rock test, write down your troubles on paper and submerge it in the ”magical” bucket of water, which will apparently dissolve the paper and your troubles. I passed the test so I didn’t try this, lol.

From the shrine, we walked downhill to the stone-cobbled streets of Ninen-zaka (二年坂) and Sannen-zaka (三年坂), with lovely wooden buildings reminiscent of old Kyoto~

Then we passed by Ryozen Kannon Temple (霊山観音) and Kodaiji Temple (高台寺) before heading past Maruyama Park (丸山公園), one of the most popular spots for viewing cherry blossoms in Spring. Too bad it’s summer now, booo.

Next, it’s to Yasaka Shrine (八坂神社), a tribute to the gods of health and prosperity.

We are now officially in Gion (祇園), the setting of Arthur Golden’s Memoirs of a Geisha! On Hanamikoji Dori (花见小路), Kyoto’s long-standing geisha district, we saw geisha wannabes, though no real McCoy spotted, sighhh. This is a very touristy area but once we walked away from the main stretch, it became very quiet and charming! I love the narrow side lanes dotted with traditional old-style Japanese houses~

Last stop of the day was Shirakawa Canal, extremely scenic with overhanging willow tree branches and so peaceful in the evening that even a crane decided to hang out with us :)

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Kyoto: CoCo Curry 壱番屋

The guys went crazy when they saw Curry House CoCo Ichibanya so we went in for supper~

It’s fast food curry Japanese-style, with outlets all over the country. Many choices on the menu, and you can also choose the toppings, amount of rice, the type of curry, spiciness level etc and basically customise your own plate of curry!

We had mushroom curry; they had hamburger curry.

I’m not a curry fan but I gotta say, the curry is very fragrant and I like that it’s not diluted at all~

Curry packs and condiments to bring home!

I’m no cook so gave them a pass, heh.

Within 2 hours, we had soba for dinner, croissants for desserts, and curry for supper. Our first night in Kyoto turned out well

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Kyoto: Choco Crooooooooo~

After dinner, we were walking around downtown Kyoto when I suddenly spotted Choco Cro, a self-service Saint Marc chain that does good coffee and delicious pastries. I’ve tried and tested them in Tokyo earlier in January so I know how awesome it is. There’s some promo going on so we bought 5 at one go and devoured all at once!

Ahhh, finally reunited with my favourite chocolate croissant (in Japan)!!

Small, flaky, bittersweet, mmmm. A fresh one straight out of the oven is a real treat, but imo it’s good at any time of the day too.

The other flavour available is a mix of chocolate and jersey cream. It’s nice, but still can’t beat the original chocolate version

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Kyoto: Ukiya Soba in Pontochō

An hour delay on China Eastern Airlines (with awful service, ick), another hour delay on the train from Kansai Airport (heavy rain in Nara screwed up the transport system), we finally reached Kyoto in the evening, exhausted and hungry. Very, very hungry.

Headed to Pontochō (先斗町) near Gion, apparently home to geisha houses (not that I saw any, sigh) and restaurants (these I saw plenty). 

This was once the red light district in downtown Kyoto~

Today, it’s a charming cobbled alley flanked with restaurants on both sides and filled with tourists and locals alike.

First place to be striked off my lengthy to-eat list: Ukiya (有喜屋)!

125 Ishiya-cho, 3 Jo Sagaru, Ponto-cho

Cold natto soba with tempura flakes and raw egg well whisked into foam.

My first dinner in Kyoto rocks!! Ultra tasty. And so unique, I like~~

Soba with tempura. Also with the special foamy raw egg!

Hot soba with chicken.

Soba making equipment.

Not sure whether it’s still in use or just for show.

Another branch spotted at Kiyomizu the next day!

Another day, Ukiya~ I’ll always remember you.

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