Chocolatey Mr Bean

It’s official, I’ve got a lifelong addiction to Mr Bean soya semi-soft serve!

Original soya, check.
Chocolate, check.
Green tea, also check. This I had in Tokyo last year!

What flavour next, Mr Bean?

Mr Bean
#B1-69, Raffles City Shopping Centre
252 North Bridge Road

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Nana’s Green Tea Cafe –> Giveaway!

So.

A couple of months ago, I was lamenting how far out west Nana’s Green Tea was. Now, it has moved from JCube to the new wing of Plaza Singapura, a remarkable improvement in terms of accessibility for us easties!

BUT.

I was devastated (drama mama, I know haha) when I saw that my favourite galettes have been axed from the new menu, nooooooooo!!! I checked with the staff; it seemed like those wonderful buckwheat crepes were not selling well (why why why!!) in JCube, hence an overhaul of the menu, sigh.

In order to cater to us Singaporeans, Nana’s is serving a wide range of “proper” Japanese food, from donburi and udon to sushi rolls and salads. I was given free rein to pick whatever I wanted to try so please see below for my choices. All of them, with the exception of unagi don (I love unagi so I don’t care whether it’s recommended or not; I just want it) are proudly stamped with triple stars “best recommended” on the menu. And all of them, with the exception of salmon carpaccio (which was an easy dish to love), are decent and safe (read: average).

Okie, to the good part: desserts and drinks. These are a must at Nana’s! You can skip the main courses for all I care, just don’t leave without trying the green tea beverages and parfaits! That’d be real sad, since Nana’s is a pioneer of Japanese cafe dealing with matcha (think: “Japanese Starbucks”). Both the matcha azuki shiratama latte ($9++) and roasted hoji-cha latte ($7++) are perfect thirst quenchers, the type of semi-healthy drinks I don’t mind having every day! No pictures of them since I take ugly photos of drinks, yikes. Matcha shiratama parfait and matcha anmitsu have essentially the same ingredients; just that the former looks more impactful, induces more of that “wow I need to eat that!!” feeling.. That said, give me either one of them and I’ll be a happy girl!

Nana’s Green Tea, can you please bring back the galettes soon? Pretty please with sugar on top?

Salmon Carpaccio ($8.80++)
fresh salmon, daikon sprout, sesame salad dressing

Salmon & Maguro Don ($15.80++)
soy marinated tuna, salmon sashimi, Japanese rice, mayonnaise

Ebi Fried Curry Udon ($14.80++)
udon noodles, fried prawns, Japanese curry

Unagi Mabushi Don ($16.80++)
grilled eel, Japanese rice, nori, sesame

Matcha Shiratama Parfait ($11.80++)
kanten jelly, matcha syrup, vanilla soft serve, matcha ice cream, red bean paste, mochi, whipped cream, corn flakes

Matcha Anmitsu ($8.80++)
matcha ice cream, red bean paste, mochi, kanten jelly, brown sugar syrup

Yay, to those of you who have persevered through my longer than usual long post, here’s a giveaway for you! Nana’s Green Tea has launched a special lunch set at an affordable price of $13.90++, featuring a complimentary matcha latte and a main course of your choice.

All you have to do is like Nana’s Facebook page and share your favourite matcha drinks/desserts (or what you’d like to try or anything you’d like to tell me, I’m flexible shhhh don’t let the organisers know) by leaving a comment below before 31st January 2013.

I’ll randomly select 5 winners for this giveaway and each winner will win a complimentary lunch set of their choice. Good luck!!! : )

Terms and Conditions:

• Voucher must be redeemed by 15th March 2013
• Valid from Monday to Friday, 11am to 2.30pm
• Voucher must be presented to the staff upon ordering

Big thanks to Alisa and Melvyn from Publicist PR for hosting lunch and sponsoring this giveaway!

Nana’s Green Tea Cafe
#03-80/82, The Atrium @ Orchard, Plaza Singapura
68 Orchard Road
6684 4312

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Croûte by Hummerstons

While big brother Hummerstons is modish and dashingly cool, Croute is the laid-back and casual little sister. Opened a few months ago in Valley Point, I’m happy that Croute does away with the double ++ charging policy, opting for self-service affordability instead, yay.

Croute is French for crust (of bread, pie etc) so artisan bread is naturally the star here. The menu is simple: hot/cold sandwiches, salads, dips, and one lone eggs benny rounding up its “all-day breakfast” section.

Forsaking my usual boring smoked salmon sandwich, I chose the spicy tofu on multigrain rye and it was love at first taste~ This is one veggie chick that can seriously turn some carnivorous heads with its myriad of flavours and textures <3

The pulled pork on soft white pain de mie didn’t impress as much as the one from Smoke Shack.. Too bad, I’m not sharing mine, heh.

Spanish Pork BBQ ($11)
pulled BBQ pork, slaw, chipotle BBQ sauce

Spicy Tofu & Veg ($8)
spiced tofu, gobo (burdock root), greens, onion sprouts, pickled cabbage

Croûte by Hummerstons
#01-11, Valley Point
491 River Valley Road
9724 0781

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Chye Seng Huat Hardware

Chye Seng Huat Hardware, the blogged-to-death, not-so-latest-now addition to the Papa Palheta’s mini coffee empire in Singapore.

Enter via the side grey gate (on the left hand side) and be prepared to see and be seen in the supposedly hip and cool coffee bar.

Coffee is coffee to me.

So pardon me when my untrained palate can’t taste what the hype is all about, haha.

From left: Espresso + Milk ($5.50); Cold Brew ($7).

Chye Seng Huat Hardware
150 Tyrwhitt Road
6396 0609

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Alkaff Mansion Ristorante

In life, we need to have some crappy brunch to appreciate the good ones elsewhere.

This is one of those times.

From left: Alkaff Mansion Breakfast Menu of scrambled eggs, grilled bacon, pork sausage, served with brioche and coffee ($15.80++); eggs benedict with smoked salmon on waffles ($13.80++).

Alkaff Mansion Ristorante
10 Telok Blangah Green
6510 3068

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Hoshino Coffee

Can anyone tell me whether the pancake souffle (circled below) at Hoshino Coffee is as solid (in urban terms) as it looks??

It’s the only thing I really really wanted to try at Hoshino but alas, it’s already sold out by the time we devoured the mains, sob! Lesson learnt: MUST order everything at one go right from the start. Due to miscommunication, we also ended up with zero dessert cuz the kitchen closed without processing our orders.

Emo~

Hoshino Blended Coffee ($5.80++)

Iced Matcha Latte with Softee ($9.30++)

“Fuwa-Fuwa” Hoshino Souffle ($15.80++)

Hoshino Spaghetti with Eggplant, Bacon, Shimeji, Sausage ($14++)

Lobster Bisque Soup Spaghetti ($15++)

Hoshino Coffee
#03-84, Plaza Singapura
68 Orchard Road
6338 3277

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Dolcetto by Basilico

I really like Dolcetto by Basilico!

Housed in a quiet corner of The Regent Hotel, Dolcetto is the sorellina of popular Italian restaurant Basilico, in town yet far farrrrrrr (especially if you walk from Orchard MRT) away from the hustle and bustle. Though it’s operating as a takeaway gourmet deli, there’s comfy tables and chairs strategically placed outside for customers who wish to dine-inout.

I’ve been lusting after the squid ink panini for ages, and the real thing didn’t disappoint! Sure, the fillings of king crab and prawns were downright miserly, but the splendidly black sandwich was extremely fresh and tasty. Another savoury hit was the spinach gorgonzola torta rustica, hearty and robust. I was really happy that we chose this even though quiches and cheesy tarts are never high on our foodie wish list!

Don’t leave Dolcetto without desserts, please. That will be too cruel. There’s plenty of pretty pastries and cakes on display; take your pick! Petite hazelnut aragostina was impossibly flaky and crispy, with lusciously smooth ferrero rocher-ish cream within. There’s also a version piped with pistachio cream, I want that next!!

And saving the best for the last, there’s an unpretentiously moist and lovely fig cake that’s absolutely a must-try! The other day, while I was editing the photo of the fig cake, my sis walked past and suddenly exclaimed, “I want to eat that again!”~ I guess that nicely sums up how we feel about this simple but no less delicious buttery treat!

Squid Ink Panini with King Crab and Prawns ($13)

Spinach and Gorgonzola Torta Rustica ($10)

Fig Cake ($8)

Hazelnut Aragostina ($2.25)

Dolcetto by Basilico
1 Cuscaden Road
Lobby Level The Regent Singapore
6720 8000

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Esmirada @ Orchard

Esmirada at Orchard seems to be one of those stalwart Mediterranean restaurants that’s been existing forever ages.

Start your meal with a tall order, the famous Esmirada garlic bread, served whole and piping hot from the oven. Break off a chunk, savour the crusty bread on its own or dunk it into Kakavia, a traditional Greek fisherman soup generously loaded with seafood (what else, duh). For a stronger garlic breath, get the sizzling garlic chilli shrimps on hot plate, a ho-hum but no-fail choice. Both the grilled lemon sole and seafood Paella come in huge portions, best to share! Though the tiramisu is award winning, I much prefer melting moments, essentially molten chocolate cakes with maple walnut ice cream (which tasted suspiciously like Movenpick) and juicy cherries.

Esmirada shares the same bartender as neighbour Amuse, so Austrian Klaus Leopold’s imaginative cocktails such as Hugo and Amber Bowl are available. Just for the record, my favourite is still P for Passion, Hugo second!

Top left, anti-clockwise:

Hugo ($12++);
sparkling wine, elderflower syrup, club soda, fresh mint, lime

Charcoal Grilled Angus Rib-Eye Skewer ($38++);
served on an iron frame

Garlic Bread ($7.50++);

Amber Bowl ($18++);
Rhum Vieux du Père Labat, apple juice, homemade vanilla and cinnamon syrup, Fee Brothers Orange Bitters, ice ball

Kakavia ($12++)
Greek fisherman soup, seafood, tomatoes, vegetables, herbs

Sizzling Garlic Chilli Shrimp on Hot Plate ($19++)
toasted bread

Paella Valenciana ($35++)
chicken, seafood, chorizo

Lemon Sole Grilled from the Josper Oven ($31++)
potatoes, caper-lime salsa

Tiramisu ($12++)
Esmirada’s award winning recipe with Kahlua

Melting Moments ($15++)
freshly baked chocolate tartlets, maple walnut ice cream, cherries

A smashing good time is guaranteed at Esmirada, literally! At 9pm every night, plates are distributed to all diners to participate in ‘Zorba’, an ancient Greek custom of smashing plates for good luck!

P.S. Remember to play safe though! I think I may be the first guest to get cut by a random flying shred of glass and caused the PR to freak out, haha.

Special thanks to Chenyze from Sixth Sense Communications for inviting and hosting!

Esmirada @ Orchard
442 Orchard Road
#01-00 Orchard Hotel Shopping Arcade
6735 3476

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La Pizzaiola

I wanted to like La Pizzaiola but I didn’t.

Rather bland and oily, the pumpkin ravioli was nothing compared to Pasta Brava’s wickedly gratifying version. Pizza was not bad with a thin crust, though I’m bothered that they don’t do boring smoked salmon here, haha. On hindsight, getting the specialty whole grain pasta was not too smart; the same pizza crust covered a medley of cooked brown pasta, potatoes and lots (and lots) of cheese. If that’s not an overload of carbs and cheese, I don’t know what is.

Tortelli Di Zucca ($13.90++)
hand-made pumpkin ravioli, butter, sage, parmesan

Pizza Mortadella ($17.90++)
tomato, mozzarella, Italian cured sausage

Pizzaoccheri Della Valtellina ($13.90++)
hand-made whole grain pasta, butter, sage, potato, cheese

La Pizzaiola
15/3 Jalan Riang
6282 5031

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7 KICKstart BREWiches

I have it on good authority that the burgers at 7 KICKstart BREWiches can seriously kick some ass!

We took the last chicken patty instead of the default beef, and what arrived was one toppling juicy and sloppily overly dressed (in a good way) killer burger, cutely stabbed with a knife, unceremoniously dumped on an unglam metallic serving plate (which I’ve got a few at home too!)~

Too bad the open-faced smoked salmon sandwich was too homely, skip.

The BEST-EVER (<– their printed word, not mine) Burger ($12)
chicken patty, cheese, fried egg, double turkey bacon

Smoked Salmon Sandwich ($8.70)

7 KICKstart BREWiches
50 Armenian Place
#01-02, Wilmer Place
8389 7877

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