Claypot Fun (East Coast)

I love, love, love food cooked in clay pots. It's that extra wok hei you get that just makes everything taste so much better. I feel ashamed of myself for just discovering Claypot Fun located at the Playground at East Coast - it's literally right under my nose when I go for yoga class!

It is officially going on my list of "comfort food" joints *grin*

Classic claypot rice with generous chunks of juicy chicken, moist mushroom and fragrant lap cheong - we ordered a second large-sized serving!

Old skool minced pork and salted fish rice tasted of pure nostalgia.  I prefer the claypot chicken rice though.

Fermented Shrimp paste lettuce in claypot - my very favourite dish! Very simple ingredients but I absolutely loved it. I think I finished one claypot on my own while my sis looked on in amazement (lucky she doesn't like veggies so no competition there).
   

The other star dish of the evening was the claypot liver. Sooo good - I couldn't get enough of that yummy sauce and soft tender liver slices.  The braised eggplant and sweet and sour pork in the background, on the other hand were just so-so. 

Verdict - A lovely venue for a hearty home-style meal. I thought the prices were pretty reasonable for aircon comfort too. Will definitely be back!

Communal: Diner. Bar. New American Restaurant

Think American food and images of burgers and milkshakes come to mind. Never mind that we all secretly love fast-food, but it's a bit of a stretch to call it American "gourmet cuisine". 

After my visit to Communal, I am still not convinced (haha) but hey, it was a fab meal in a nice ambiance which didn't burn a hole in the pocket so call it whatever, Communal is a great new addition to the Singapore restaurant scene. 

B is away in Geneva for work but here's the guys sending him their love from Singapore.

Yes we all missed you on this Friday night!

Well until they served the lobster mac and cheese ($22) anyway. Look at this. Food is the best distraction ever *grin*

I know some prefer their mac and cheese really cheesy but I much prefer Communal's version. Lighter on the palate but still flavorful. The lobster was fresh and sweet. Nice touch, the crispy bread crumbs. Good call, ordering not one but two portions to share among the 7 of us. 

Then came our mains. 4 of the gang all ordered the signature Communal Diner Bar (CBD) burger ($25) - with onion, bacon and eggs. I agreed to share AL's burger and also ordered the Braised beef cheeks ($26) on mashed potatoes to share with her. Ling had the Fried chicken ($18). Argh I just realized I was so busy taking pics of everyone else's food I forgot to take a pic of mine!

Fresh and juicy double beef patties simply done without too much frills on soft burger buns - yums. Only slight complaint was that the medium rare the guys ordered came a tad too bloody. AL and my medium patties were perfect!

The fried chicken was good too, though Jill's "as good as KFC" didn't do much to elevate the gourmet status of the dish haha. 

We really enjoyed the cozy yet industrial chic decor of the restaurant. Nice open concept kitchen, rustic brick walls, black leather seats and wooden tables. Conversation (and wine) flowed freely. Ryan the chef came by to chat with us and I was suitably impressed by how personable he was. Very earnest in asking for feedback - excellent attitude.

We got a complimentary lemon tart for dessert. It was alright. What impressed me more was the Monkey Bread - mmmm I've been thinking about it. So good. Sweet, sticky, gooey chunks of dense bread with cinnamon.  Match made in heaven with vanilla ice cream.

Verdict - Perfect pit stop to fuel up before heading up to Mad Men for our fave live band.  Great food and very reasonable prices - we paid $70 per pax for 2 macs and cheeses, 4 burgers, 1 fried chicken, 1 braised cheek, 1 monkey bread, 1 oreo cheesecake and 1 ice-cream sundae (catch breath), 2 bottles of red wine, a martini and 2 beers! B - let's go check out the $15 set lunch soon. 

Department of Caffeine

I've been on the hunt for cafes with good coffee AND food. When I read about this new coffee joint along Duxton Road, and the reviews seemed to suggest that the food was good, I prompted suggested it to Noe for our lunch date. Walking distance from both our offices!

VERY limited menu. The salads sounded interesting on paper, but when I looked at them displayed at the counter, they didn't look appetizing at all. The beetroot salad - it was just chunks of beetroot! The bean salad was well... just beans. Ditto the japanese noodle salad..

The coffee was ok I guess. Not amazing but competent. This is afterall, a coffee joint. 

So I ended up ordering the pulled pork sandwich which came highly recommended by the staff/owner (?). To xxx, I apologize for my disappointment in your salads - great service, btw. 

The pulled pork, though tasty, was a tad dry. Nothing a drizzle of BBQ sauce could not solve but still..  The sandwich scores on presentation (I'll give you that) but keep it moist sir, keep it moist!

Ok. That came out wrong. Anyways, you get my point. 

I would suggest having the morrocan carrot and raisin salad that came with the pulled pork sandwich as a main salad. Because it was the best part of the meal (seriously). I liked the texture and the raisins were plump and sweet. 

Verdict: I might return for the coffee since it's near the office, but likely after lunch.  

Spathe Public House (Dinner)

The S3's been slow and so I'm doing some housekeeping to clear the photo gallery. Whoops - I found a whole backlog of food pics to blog about. With so much to choose from, one must be selective.

Spathe (pronounced ‘speyth’) is named after the leaf-like bracts that encloses a flower cluster, meant to symbolize the start of something new. Well, that stretch of Mohamed Sultan is sorta new I suppose, having had a faceover with so many nice restaurants clustered there now. I for one, prefer the new Mohamed Sultan, compared to the bacardi-soda-littered days of Madam Wong and Wong-San's (no doubt there are some ehem good ol' memories there..).

That night, we had five pax, a good number for a dinner party, perfect for Spathe's "sharing" concept. I had read somewhere that there were certain off-menu items we had to pre-order, including beef tartar. B and Alf being huge fans of beef tartar (and all things moo), I pre-ordered two portions ($18 each - I think) so the boys wouldn't fight. 

The portions were pretty generous. Good. The rest of us get to try it too (no offence, B & Alf).

B, the BTT connoisseur thought it was pretty good though he insists "You haven't tried the one I make yet" - yes dear, I have been anxiously waiting to try but it's slowly becoming imaginery...

We ordered 3 of their Mammoth Signatures, though we only went with the elephant portion for the Sou Vide Octopus salad $38 ($18 for single portion). One of the best salads I've had in a looong time.  

Loved the texture from the octopus, spinach, honey, garlic, wholegrain mustard vinaigrette. Lucky we ordered the mammoth, otherwise I would have ungraciously hogged the huge salad bowl.  

We ordered the single portion of the Mohd Sultan Meter Dog ($18/ $55 for mammoth). Apparently there's a Mammoth Challenge – diners who can finish this enormous hot dog within 10 minutes will get to eat it for free! Hmmm. Diner or diners? If the latter I am keen to participate - who's in with me?

Take a deep breath. Say veal-and-chicken-spicy-curry-wurst. Yum yum. Loved the wasabi mayo and caramelized onions. I am seriously considering the challenge now.

We also had the 12 hour Slow Cooked Pork Belly ($24). It was pretty good (though not wow) - pork belly was tender and who doesn't love the runny goodness of a poached egg? The wholegrain mustard and bordelaise sauce went well with the mashed potatoes.

The Chicken and the Sea paella ($25 /$78 for mammoth) came with, well, chicken and seafood (surprise surprise). Perfectly al dente and a medley of flavours in the mouth. I would definitely order this again in a heartbeat, but I cannot imagine achieving the same level of consistency if they were to cook in a mammoth portion? Yes, that's a question for you guys.

Now, you'd think that a place that does its mains well would serve mediocre desserts but here's an exception. The Poached Pear Charlotte Royal with warm chocolate sauce ($11) was excellent, as was the Sticky Toffee Pudding with hokey pokey (?) ice cream ($12). My favorite dessert of the night was off-menu - simple, unadulterated buttery waffles with creamy vanilla ice-cream (can't remember price).

Verdict: I have so fond memories of this place I'm taking my sis here for her birthday brunch. Watch this space for my review!

The Sushi Bar (Far East Plaza)

I never thought I'd say this but after last weekend's meal at The Sushi Bar (#03-89 at Far East plaza), I am all sashimi-ed out. Talk about too much of a good thing. Don't get me wrong - no complaints - I just need some time to "recover" before going back to conquer the next Chiraishi Don. Burp.

Check out what I got for $24.90.

Chiraishi porn indeed. If you thought Chikuwa Tei was generous with the fish - you gotta check these guys out. There was just a thin layer of rice, mind you. "Omg there's another layer of sashimi here" the guys (yes, grown men) moaned.

B wanted uni so he ordered the Premium Chiraishi Don at $38.90. It's essentially the same as what we had, just with uni and ebi.

We were the face of gluttony that afternoon. The 4 of us (3 guys and a girl) also ordered:

The Slices of Rare Sirloin ($14.90 for 100 g - we ordered 200g!) was delish - great marbling for the price and perfectly cooked.

Scallop mentaiyaki ($13.90) - thinly sliced carpaccio of scallop lightly aburi-ed with delicious mentaiko mayonnaise. Loved this!

Aburi salmon/soft shell crab roll ($13.90 for 8 pieces) - this hit the spot for me. I love all things aburi-ed and these guys really know how to wield a torch!

Don't judge us, but 4 chiraishi dons and all of the above later, we ordered more sushi. I was craving anago - you understand how cravings work right? Erm, right?

Verdict: A totally over-the-board meal but pat-on-our-backs - we actually managed to finish all that food. Yes, I polished off my humongous Chiraishi Don! The bill for 3 "normal" Chiraishi dons and 1 Premium Don, together with all the above and 3 asahi beers, came up to $50 per pax. A darned good deal if you ask me. They were relatively crowded on the Saturday afternoon we were there. I hear weekday lunchtime crowd can get a bit crazy. And no wonder. Sheesh. Do they earn from this?

Turning 35 and Dinner at Brinj

I know age is just a number and I don't turn melancholic about turning a year older. But milestone birthdays like turning 21, 25, 30, 35 and (gasp) 40 are inevitably reminders that time is a passing us by and we need to seize the day. Birthdays are a good time to take stock of where you've been, where you are and, more importantly, where you want to be in life. Honestly, 35 is not that different from 34, but it feels different, it feels like turning the corner into adulthood for good. 

I love myself at 35. I have regrets, but I've also done a lot of things I'm proud of before turning 35. One of these things, is having met some really great friends and KEPT them in my life. I AM TRULY BLESSED. With my (actual) family, Shanghai family and Bear family. I probably don't say it often enough but:

I love you guys. Each and everyone of you beautiful people continue to inspire me everyday with your energy and infectious enthusiasm.   

Some pics here (missing some peeps but not forgotten - you know who you are)

I had a blast at Mad Men - the live band was awesome! Thanks to all who turned up and made the night truly special for me. One of the most original birthday greetings I received was from L, who told me - "Here's wishing you lots of good food ahead.."

Indeed. Birthday dinner at Brinj was AMAZING. 

There were 12 of us and I had pre-ordered dishes which were signature to this small nondescript restaurant at Cheong Chin Nam Road. Parking was a bitch but the food was definitely worth the pain. 

First up - the highlight of the dinner - Lechon, or roasted suckling pig. Wow. This little piggy made us all very happy - love love love the crisy fat and crackling, and the meat was so tender and juicy!

Close your eyes if you are squeamish - this is me butchering the pig's head muhahaha. 

The grilled corn salad which followed was refreshing. They added some spices me thinks, I liked the aftertaste. Next, we were served the lamb ribs. According to Patrick the chef, this was milk-fed lamb (available from Tekka Market wor) which is prized for its flavor and texture. Grilling is the best way to enjoy it and true enough - we loved it. B especially.

Next up was a roast duck served with carrots in an orange sauce. I was a bit disappointed because the duck was a bit dry. The carrots were nice and soft though. 

The grilled salmon and calamari was what cemented my respect for Patrick. It takes skill to perfect grilled salmon but when done well, I love how the natural oils in the salmon keep it moist but also create a slight crispiness on the outside of the fish. The grilled squid was impressive too - we were all stuffed but how to resist the perfectly charred yet melt-in-the-mouth tender piece of heaven? The pilaf rice which it was served with added even more texture to this dish. Excellent.

We then ended the meal with some carbo - Baba noodles. Basically hokkien mee in duck fat. It was ok. By then we were all stuffed!

Yes, dessert was sweeter than usual.

Verdict:I think I speak for all 12 at dinner that this might well be one of the best meals in 2013. Quote Joyce:

"The spread we had for our private dinner of 12 was sumptous - despite the cosy western set-up of the restaurant, I really enjoyed the Asian touches to every dish e.g. the hei bi hiam which accompanied the bread, the samabal balachan for the lamb.'"

Agree. I highly recommend Brinj so do go check it out - Patrick was talking about moving to NZ (noooo...) so hurry! Gather a group, bring a few bottles of wine (offer Patrick a glass to sweeten the no-corkage policy) or buy some from his very reasonably priced selection, and prepare to have a blast. I gave him a budget of $80 per pax to work with and the above was what we got - one fantastic night out with delicious food and good conversation.

Love you all my makan kakis. Muakz!