Old Boys Gallery

The latest addition to the neighbourhood of Kampong Bahru, Old Boys Gallery serves western-fusion cuisine with more than 50 different variety of craft beers and ciders to suit every palate. This was formerly an art gallery but has now been transformed into a bistro where food meets art – from graffiti art and wall murals to canvas paintings.

Of course, I was not there to check out the alcohol or art, but for the food! Always for the food ha.

We seldom eat fried food but when we do, sweet potato fries usually top our list. I love the version here! Fried to perfection and that curry mustard dip on the side is a flavourful bomb in the mouth.

Potato Head ($7.90)
sweet potato fries, curry mustard dip

There’s a good selection of bar bites – think wings, meatballs and fried food like fish fingers. Go for the “make your own triplets” if you are in a group, or not in the mood for a full meal. For $27, take your pick of three appetizers from the menu. It’s great value for money! Speaking of which, there is no GST or service charge so the food is really affordable.

OBG Crab Cake ($11)
sassy flavors of special crab cake with mango relish

Cremini in Disguise ($11)
breaded portobello mushroom topped with louisiana spices

Our choices were most satisfying – filler-less crab cakes, savory crunchy breaded portobello mushroom and addictive fried baby squid that’s a danger to the waistline.

Crispy Baby Squid ($11)
fried squid with tangy sauce to go with curry leaves

Chef introduces a special dish every month and when I was there, it was a delicious slab of miso cod. For this month, it’s a massive Knuckle Up meat platter for $69 nett. You get a huge ~1kg pork knuckle, chorizo/lamb/beef sausages, Australian ribeye, German potato with crispy bacon, sauerkraut and sauteed vegetables, woah. Beer is a must to go with that, so for every 3 pints of beer, the 4th one is on the house!

OBG Special
cod fish, vegetables, miso sauce

For something equally hearty for just for 1 pax, the handmade beef burger stacked with cheese, bacon, egg and caramelized onion will fill your stomach and heart. I swear, K was super happy with this, especially on a TGIF night!

Manster Burger ($17.90)
cheese, bacon, egg, caramelized onion, served with fresh greens and fries

Desserts are the only letdown. We tried the tiramisu and a ramekin filled with mousse-like chocolate. Too sweet and not impressive, head somewhere else for a sweet ending!

Devil’s Double Choc ($9)
served with ice cream

Thank you for arranging dinner, Amanda and Yong Sing!

Old Boys Gallery
67 Kampong Bahru Road
9187 0756

Read Full Post »

P. Bistro

P. Bistro has come a long way. It began as a small shophouse space along Owen Road serving simple Asian-inspired Western fare and French classics, and gained enough loyal fans and regulars to open a second outlet at Palais Renaisaance. Don’t be put off by the atas location though; the bistro is still sticking to the basic values of offering tasty, wholesome food at reasonable prices.

K shocked me when he ordered two items which I absolutely will not order in a restaurant – garlic bread and chicken wings, omg!! Ha. To be fair, these are two of the most popular appetizers and light bites on the menu. Let me just say that both were very good – nothing beats freshly roasted garlic paste and well-marinated wings right?

Garlic Bread ($5++)
baked farm loaf bread, freshly roasted garlic paste

BBQ Chicken Wings ($12++; half portion show below)
fresh chicken wings, chef’s special homemade marinade, chilli sauce on the side

Salads here are substantial enough to be mains. I wanted to try the Thai-style pomelo salad but decided to go with the staff’s recommendation of prawn avocado mango salad. No regrets whatsoever! The colourful combination of juicy prawns, creamy avocado and tangy mango was a wonderful prelude to the real mains. Pomelo salad, next time!

Prawn Avocado Mango Salad ($20++)
cherry tomatoes, romaine rocket, japanese sesame dressing

One of the most noteworthy dishes is the dory fillet coated with a special nonya gravy (secret recipe!) and cooked on a banana leaf. Beautiful and flavourful! P.S. the spicy, sweet, sour and deliciously crunchy achar on the side was delish too.

Nonya Dory ($18++)
chef’s signature nonya, dory fillet cooked on banana leaf, fragrant duo jasmine rice, fried egg

K’s best burger to-date is Kua ‘Aina in Tokyo (even President Barack Obama likes it!) and the P.Bistro beef burger may be his second favourite so far.

P.Bistro Beef Burger ($22++)
open-faced burger, beef patty, pickles, caramelized onions

Served open-faced, the generous slab of beef patty was tender and juicy – but surprisingly not greasy at all. We did think that an addition of avocado will make this a killer burger!

When the salmon was served, I cringed inwardly because it looked overcooked. Wow, not only was I wrong, the fish was so moist and still pinkish in the middle! Lesson learnt, don’t judge a fish by its cover.

42° Sous-vide Salmon ($22++)
pan-seared 42° sous-vide salmon, crushed purple potato, seasonal greens

The homemade desserts selection looked very tempting. The croissants baked with original Lurpak butter and Elle et Vire dry butter were already sold out by dinnertime so we turned our attention to the cakes. Matcha azuki dome had weak green tea flavour so I didn’t enjoy it as much as I thought I would. Luckily the chocolate mont blanc (love the strands of chestnut mousse with a dark chocolate core!) and light pistachio chiffon cake made with organic coconut oil were as gorgeous to look at as they were delightful to eat!

Desserts ($6-8.50++)
matcha azuki entremet; chocolate mont blanc, pistachio chiffon cake

Special thanks to Pang for introducing P. Bistro to us!

P. Bistro
#B1-06, Palais Renaisaance
390 Orchard Road
6734 9268

Read Full Post »

May May

When I first came across the lunch bowls at May May, my first thought was “Kilo copycat!” oops. You already know I’m obsessed with the donburi bowls from Kilo at Pact so it’s a given that a comparison is inevitable. At May May, the bowls are more Asian-style with beef rendang, braised pork belly and butter poached cod stealing the limelight (also a vegetarian grilled miso aubergine dish which sounds lovely). We tried the latter two and I realized the futility of comparing Kilo’s bowls with these. Each has its pros and cons – I adore Kilo’s accompaniments (best corn kernels, radishes and quinoa everrr) but not so much the salmon which is always overcooked geez; whereas May May’s substantial mains of cod and pork belly are flavourful and have wonderfully soft texture. But the bed of quinoa and veggies on the side are nothing spectacular hmm.

Braised Pork Belly ($16++, additional $3++ for salad and coffee)
wasabi sprouts, asian slaw, oven roasted tomatoes, grilled mushrooms, pickled lotus root, soft centred egg

Butter Poached Cod ($18++)
wakame, oven roasted tomatoes, grilled mushrooms, pickled lotus root, soft centred egg, wasabi sprouts

May May
65 Tras Street
6221 4698

Read Full Post »

Sacha & Sons

K and I each have our own must-orders at Sacha & Sons, a New York delicatessen (opened by the Wild Honey folks) which has become our favourite brunch/lunch/dinner spot in town currently.

I love the thin and crispy latkes, or potato and onion pancakes which are essentially rosti. I’ve had them with silky smoked salmon and briny “ikura” (salmon pearls) numerous times, or on a slow day, with scrambled eggs and sturgeon when the staff kindly allows swapping of toasted bagels for latkes.

K likes them well enough but will never forsake the generously portioned grilled reuben. In fact, he has named the signature pastrami to be one of those dishes that will qualify for “what would your last meal be?” type of questions lol. Cooked for hours and then steamed in-house for the perfect briskets, the tender hand-carved pastrami always leave K raving and satisfied.

Smoked Salmon Dip ($12++)

Latkes ($16++)
smoked salmon, applesauce (default: creme fraiche), 10g salmon pearls (additional $5++)

Scrambled Eggs with Pastrami ($18++)
rye bread (default: bagel)

Grilled Reuben ($18++, reg 150g)
pastrami, swiss cheese, sauerkraut, russian dressing, rye/bagel/brioche, pickles, coleslaw

Scrambled Eggs with Sturgeon, Smoked Salmon, Caramelized Onions ($18++)
rye bread (default: bagel)

Sacha & Sons
#03-02 Mandarin Gallery
333A Orchard Road
6735 6961

Read Full Post »

Sin Lee Foods

We had our first brunch of the new year (as in 2015, not CNY haha) at Sin Lee Foods, a hipster cafe that’s so inaccessible that it’s not funny. Location aside, I’m game to go back anytime for broccoli! Now, my mom cooks broccoli for dinner at home almost everyday so you’d think the last thing I’ll order when I eat out is said veggie. Well, Sin Lee’s aburi broccoli salad is in a different league – smokey torched florets, acidic white balsamic, crispy papadum and fragrant red sugar. It’s beautiful. Only a real veggie-hater will hate it and he’s obviously missing out. Anyway, the other two items we tried are not very exciting. Sweet potato fries under a blanket of salted duck egg sauce have lost its newness by now (though still delish since I love salted egg anything!) and the smoked salmon hash is… Forgettable.

Aburi Broccoli Salad ($12++)
torched broccoli florets, white balsamic, papadum, red sugar

Salted Egg Sweet Potato Fries ($12++)
twice fried, house made salted duck egg sauce, curry leaves

Smoked Salmon Hash ($18++)
pan roasted bacon and potato hash, cold smoked norwegian salmon, soft centred free range hen’s egg, basil dressing, baby spinach, grated parmesan

Sin Lee Foods
#01-164, 4 Jalan Bukit Ho Swee
+65 6377 3170

Read Full Post »

Cotton Singapore

What used to be 1-TwentySix at East Coast Park is now Cotton, named after a real cotton tree planted outside the restaurant. The cuisine is “Asian fusion” and you can find an interestingly bizarre mixture of sushi, sashimi, pasta and grilled mains on the menu.

Honestly, the meal did not started on a good note. A couple of items (sushi rolls!) which caught my interest were sadly unavailable. And while our appetizer of bonsai salad was pretty, the miso dip for the crudites was extremely salted and we sent it back almost untouched. I just checked the menu online and looks like it has been removed from the menu, oh good.

Bad start aside, everything went well thereafter! The assorted sashimi were very fresh (even better than some Japanese restaurants, I bet) and the chef’s knife skill is apparent in how fine the small cuts on the top of the sashimi were. For something more substantial, K highly recommend either the lamb rack or ribeye steak (or get both!). The former had a tender texture with no gamey flavour and the latter was (I quote K) “a good piece of red meat, period” haha. For me, I was mighty pleased with the pan fried cod fish – generous slab, naturally fatty, my favourite! I must also give credit to the chef for pairing the meat/fish with delicious sides such as tempura corn, deep fried spinach and green pea/pumpkin purée. Definitely no boring mash potato!

I wish dinner ended with a bang (read: killer dessert) but alas, we were served a forgettable almond pudding. That said, we’ll be back again for the mains and hopefully by then, the sushi rolls too!

Bonsai Salad
no longer available

Assorted Sashimi Platter of 5 ($35++)
ika (squid), mekajiki (swordfish), tai (seabream), hotate (scallop), saké (salmon)

Amber Jack Carpaccio ($24++)
truffle and ikura

Lamb Rack ($38++)
green pea purée and tempura corn

Ribeye Steak ($35++)
asparagus and pumpkin purée

Cod Fish ($32++)
deep fried spinach and zucchini

King Prawn Angel Hair Pasta ($24++)
sakura ebi and garlic

Almond Pudding ($12++)

My thanks to Brenda for the kind invitation!

Cotton Singapore
#01-26, Big Splash
902 East Coast Parkway
96563126

Read Full Post »

Habitat Coffee

Needed an easy dinner one evening so Habitat Coffee was randomly picked as it is located near K’s house.

Probably won’t go back again as neither of us was particularly impressed with our choices – eggs tomato relish was downright forgettable (prefer Pita Pan’s version!) and K’s cheesynara was dry and errrr, not cheesy at all.

Eggs Tomato Relish
secret tomato recipe served in a hot plate, two runny eggs, baby spinach, country sourdough toast

Cheesynara
cheese cream pasta, chicken sausage, bacon

Habitat Coffee
223 Upper Thomson Road
6456 2567

Read Full Post »

Suprette

Suprette is such a gem! A compact restaurant/bar/cafe housed in the heritage Kam Leng Hotel along busy Jalan Besar road, Suprette offers a neat menu of food ranging from salads and sandwiches to pasta and burgers during the day and more substantial main courses for dinner. Breakfast is served till 3.30pm on weekends so mark this down as a brunch place on your to-go list!

The Suprette Burger with a beef patty and gruyere cheese is supposedly one of the best in Singapore but I can’t vouch for that. What I can rave about is the Chickpea Burger – omg so so good, definitely one of the best veggie burgers ever (I like Veganburg a lot but Suprette’s burger puts their petite burgers to shame)! I love how thick and chunky the spiced patty was and the grilled sesame buns were soft and lovely. Typing this now makes me crave for it haha.

Chickpea Burger ($17++)
tahini, beetroot, lettuce, tomato, cucumber, fries

K gushed about his Chicken Pot Pie as enthusiastically as I dig my burger. Freshly made to order (hence the wait of 20 minutes) and served hot in a pan, this was comfort food at it best! The pastry was beautifully baked to a golden hue and underneath the crispy crust was a pool of creamy gravy with pieces of chicken and root vegetables. K loved it so much that he asked for more gravy but alas was turned down. Note to self: put in a special request when we order next time!

Chicken Pot Pie ($15++)
carrots, peas, potatoes, cream, salad

Suprette
383 Jalan Besar
Kam Leng Hotel Lobby
6298 8962

Read Full Post »

Stirling

Stirling is the latest restaurant to set up shop along Cheong Chin Nam Road, offering a selection of affordable western dishes in a casual and comfortable setting. When we were there, a “Showcase” music event was going on where they had a live band (great singer!) and more importantly, 10% of the revenue was donated to Lee Ah Mooi Old Age Home to support the well-being of elderly folks. I hope it will be a regular event!

Our first starter turned out to be our favourite! K doesn’t like salads but even he was fighting with me over this haha. The cubes of pan-seared Greek cheese were firm with a crispy coating but still nice and soft inside.

Grilled Halloumi Salad
pan-seared greek cheese, baby spinach, tomato and capsicum salsa

The pairing of sweet juicy grilled watermelon with the salty parma ham made a good match. Grilling fruits seem like a brilliant idea – the caramelized sugar packed quite a punch!

Grilled Watermelon
fresh watermelon grilled till roast-sweet, parma ham, rocket salad

Fresh and well marinated chunks of salmon were elegantly presented in a cocktail glass, though I thought it would be even better if the salmon was sliced more thinly.

Salmon Carpaccio
special of the day

When my main of salmon was served, my mind went “crap, that looked overcooked” but alas, it turned out to be perfect! The meat was still pinkish and moist while the outer layer was crackly. Crispy salmon indeed!

Crispy King Salmon
potato and dill leek sauce

Charcoal-grilled steaks are the one of the specialties at Stirling so if you love your red meat, get it here! K was happy that his medium rare steak was not overdone, resulting in a pretty pink interior. Very reasonably priced for a big slab too!

Stirling Charcoal-Grilled Steak (Sirloin/ Ribeye)
truffle fries, summer vegetables

The tiramisu was moist enough though nothing spectacular. Not bad!

Tantalising Tiramisu
classic coffee-flavoured italian dessert

The owner’s mom is a home baker and she supplies cakes to the restaurant occasionally. I was lucky to try her custard cake – creamy, dense and simply amazing! Is this what magic custard cake taste like?

Custard Cake
dessert of the day

I’ve been craving for mud pies lately and this one was pretty good! It’s really hard to not like mud pies, unless you have a thing against chocolate, Oreo cookies and ice cream aye?

Muddy Mud Pie
vanilla ice cream, marshmallow, chocolate sauce, oreo cookie

My thanks to Elwyn for the kind invitation!

Stirling
15 Cheong Chin Nam Road
6469 9096

Read Full Post »

The Beast

BFF and I have an inside joke that The Beast is highly recommended for those who are going through a breakup and just want to eat/drink like there’s no tomorrow. Because not only do they offer comfort soul food, the portions are incredibly hearty and generous too. Plus the bar boasts one of the largest variety bourbons in the country, and has an extensive selection of American craft beers and bourbon+rye specialty cocktails. Jokes aside, I think this place is perfect for any occasion, happy or sad!

I unabashedly professed my love for the freshly-baked cornbread on Instagram yesterday – “This is the best one I’ve ever tried! So soft yet dense, like a castella cake! Of cuz, I can easily count the number of times I had cornbread in my life using one hand so I’m not the best judge. Can only say I REALLY LIKE THIS” – and yes, I’m still standing by my words!

Cornbread ($6++)
maple syrup, butter

We were really pleased with the crab cakes – 0% fillers, 100% crab meat! Well seasoned and deliciously paired with the refreshing sweet corn salsa on the side.

Maryland Crab Cake ($16++)
sweet corn salsa, honey mustard

The tomato soup was packed with intense flavour, a result of roasting the tomatoes I suppose. Anyway, K was totally blown away by the simple and unassuming grilled cheese sandwich! Lightly browned bread, gooey melty cheese, this is the amazing grilled cheese sandwich in the movie Chef!

Roasted Tomato Soup ($10++)
grilled pimento cheese made in-house

Fries are great pub grub but that’s too boring. Why not deep fried some green beans for a crunchy (and healthy?) snack? Very addictive and the seasoning reminded us of sweet potato fries!

Jack & the Beast Stalk ($12++)
deep fried green beans, secret seasoning

Okie, enough raving for now. Both soft shell crab and pulled pork sliders were admittedly average and rather forgettable to us.

Soft Shell Crab Sliders ($16++)
lemon, honey mustard, dill mayo, mixed salad, toasted buns

Pulled Pork Sliders ($16++)
slaw, bbq sauce, toasted buns

Most value for money dish for the night had to be the DIY catfish tacos! On the wooden platter was a heaping amount of fried catfish with hard corn taco shells and various condiments. An icon of Southern cooking, the white fish had a firm and moist texture. I’m definitely ordering this again!

Catfish Tacos ($24++)
cabbage, sweet corn salsa, cajun remoulade, sour cream, lime wedges

The gravy was too heavy and creamy, otherwise this was a competent dish (I think K wished that it was a full-sized portion of the grilled cheese sandwich instead haha).

Char-grilled Rib-eye Steak ($36++)
8oz rib-eye, bourbon mushroom gravy, fries

Grits are small coarse broken grains of corn and commonly eaten in Southern United States. Cooked grits are sort of like polenta – creamy, smooth and lacks crunch. It did get pretty monotonous after awhile, especially after all the shrimps were gone.

Shrimp & Grits ($24++)
garlicky shrimp sauce

Two of my food blogger friends told me that the mudpie here is not good but I beg to differ actually! True, it was unbreakable as a rock initially when served but after letting it thaw (while we attacked the other dessert haha), we polished off the whole solid block of ice cream! Love the combination of crumbly cookie crust layered with rich chocolatey ice cream~

Mississippi Mudpie ($14++)
oreo crust, vanilla bean & triple chocolate ice cream, chocolate fudge

My favourite pecan pie is from PS Cafe but the homemade version here is not bad too! Huge slice with lots of sweet crunchy pecans and topped with a lovely scoop of fig ice cream – the perfect finishing touch!

Bourbon Pecan Pie ($12++)
fig & honey ice cream

Special thanks to Jamie, see you again soon!

The Beast
17 Jalan Klapa
6295 0017

Read Full Post »