Shanghai Ren-Jia

This is a really out-dated blog entry (December last year?) - sorry, I am slowly (but surely) clearing my back-log.

Both B and I both used to work in Shanghai (at different times - no, we did not meet there) so when his parents mentioned a "really good and cheap" Shanghainese restaurant at Geylang, we hurriedly gathered a group of friends to check out the place. It was a hole in the wall place - don't expect a fancy ambience or atas service. Run by PRC locals, I'd imagine you'd need to speak conversant mandarin in order to order the dishes.

Lucky for us, we already had a whole list of Shanghainese dishes we were craving for. For me, it was Hong Shao Rou and drunken chicken. We also ordered La Zi chicken (in dry wok style) and Duo Jiao Yo Dou (fish head in diced chilli). The latter was really more Hunan-style rather than Shanghainese but I don't think anyone was compaining, haha.


Ok, the verdict. It certainly doesn't beat my favourite restaurants in Shanghai but for the price and quality, I'd give it a thumbs-up. I love the fact that it's just in my backyard and I can get my fix of Hong Shao Rou anytime. Taste could have been more robust, but in the same manner they cut down on the oiliness and sweetness, the food has been prepared to cater to the Singapore palate.


We loved the drunken chicken though, it's a must order. Most authentic dish of the lot. The guys ordered a second serving! It's amazing how food can bring back so many good memories of our time spent in Shanghai.


I used to have my weekly fix at Xiao Yang Shengjian bao when I was in Shanghai, and when I saw it on the menu I almost hyper-ventilated. We were already stuffed but I couldn't resist ordering a dozen for ehem "desser". Unfortunately, I was sorely disappointed - the shengjian bao just did not deliver - the pan-fried base was not crispy enough and it was too dry - where's that burst of delicious soup when you bite into the bao?


Nonetheless, this is one joint I'd go back to. The other dishes were good.

Mookata

It’s been raining an awful lot recently hasn’t it? Perfect weather for steamboat!

We googled a (relatively) new Thai BBQ/steamboat place along East Coast called Mookata and decided to check it out. “Mookata” means pork BBQ – the boys were excited and looking forward to a meat fest. Finding parking was a bit of a challenge but we made it. The restaurant is a coffee shop-ish setup – simple décor, no air-conditioning and poor ventilation (seriously, be prepared to smell). Service seemed a tad sluggish and disorganized.

Luckily the food was good. It’s difficult to go wrong, when you put lard on a hot BBQ – everything tastes good! We ordered the meat platter and the “healthy” veggie platter, together with some ala carte sotong balls, squid and otah etc. The quality of the food was fresh, though the ala carte order quantity was a bit small for the 4 hungry boys at the table. I rather liked the accompanying sourish chili sauce, it gave the food some kick.

I was craving for wholesome comfort soup and was initially disappointed by how shallow the “steamboat” compartment of the BBQ stove was. Clearly, BBQ was the focus here. I later cheered up. Because, dear readers, you get some REALLY kick-ass soup post lard-BBQ – not the best idea if you are on a diet but omg I just kept pouring soup into the sinful stove and thoroughly indulged.

The bill came up to about $250 (including 12 beers) for the 6 of us. Not exactly cheap but oh vell, it was an enjoyable meal. Priceless, the look on A’s face when he mistook the piece of lard as squid and popped it into his mouth!

La Barca

First there was Bruno’s along Tanjong Katong Road. Then, came Antoinette and Kilo, nestled in the Lavender and Kallang area. Yippee now, there’s a new “Katong Kia” in town - La Barca at the Goodman Arts Centre – it’s literally in my backyard, 10 minutes’ slow stroll tops.

I had jumped at Vino Shifu’s invitation to attend Luce Della Vite winery’s dinner at La Barca. It was the perfect opportunity to check out the new neighbourhood Italian joint.

I was struck by how out of place La Barca seems in the middle of, well, nowhere. Almost like an elegant woman seated on a haystack at the back of a truck (erm, no idea why that came to my mind). It’s the same concept as Hosted on the Patio and District 10, but for some reason I think La Barca’s setting is much lovelier.

La Barca means “the boat” – check out the multi-layered roof that resembles flattened sails. The indoor dining space is warm and inviting, but I prefer the covered outdoor deck – It was so surreal hanging out there sipping the welcome glass of Attems Pinot Grigio 2010, nibbling on the amuse boche of Salvia Fritta, Verdure Fritte, Crocchette di Patate (Fried sage leaves and vegetables, potato croquettes) the wait staff came around with. Service was excellent, efficient and personable.

I wish the lighting was better so I could have taken some food pics. The cuisine at La Barca is Tuscany-based and I thought all 4 courses were quite unique. The starter of Le Quaglie Brasate con Uva Fresca (Braised Quail with Fresh Grapes) was a tad cold (some guests were late) but I liked how the grapes, quail went beautifully with the Lucente 2007 (50% Merlot, 35% Sangiovese and 15% Cab Sauv) – a soft explosion of cherry fruit. Some parts of the quail were a bit tough though.

The pasta dish was I Ravioli di Manzo con Salsa di Cipolle (Beef Ravioli with Genovese Onion Sauce). Now, THIS, was delicious. Generous pockets of beef and pasta was done perfectly. The Luce 2001 (45% Sangiovese, 45% Merlot and 10% Cabernet) was a much bigger wine and complimented this well – deep rich cherry and oak. I will definitely be back to try other pasta dishes.

At this stage I was already stuffed. But the main course sounded too good to resist - Il Controfiletto di Manzo al Forno, con Salsa di Vino Rosso e Timballino di Funghi (Oven-roasted Tenderloin with Red Wine Sauce and Mushroom Flan). OMG. The beef melted in my mouth. The mushroom flan too, was so flavourful. This dish definitely stood its own. I took my time savoring every bite. The Luce Brunello Di Montalcino 2005 they poured with this was simply delicious. Ripe fruit and pepper bouquet, sexy deep ruby colour, it evolved in the glass - I was impressed!

Dinner ended with dessert of Marquise al Caffé & Cantuccini con il Vin Santo (Coffee Mousse & Almond based biscuit). I surrendered after a bite – it was nice but I was so stuffed! There I was, holding my stomach and the nice waiter comes around with a bottle of grappa. “Some dessert wine, Miss?”

Heh, you know I don’t say no to wine.

Kilo

I never made it to Raw Kitchen Bar before it closed but omg I loved what the same owners have done with Kilo. Sure, it’s in an flatted-factory-like building along the Kallang River, a tad ulu for some people but fortunately for me it’s right on my home turf. Very minalistic décor but it's surprisingly given it some very trendy vibes.

The food was, in short, EXCELLENT. As you may know, I am a Japanese food-fanatic. And Italian, well, doesn’t everyone love it? Whatever they are doing with this “Japanese-Italian” cuisine, I say: please don’t stop.

It’s been a while, since I gushed. Forgive me.

We had two starters to share. There were the reliable sushi rolls which calmed our stomachs and left us wanting more. Then came the seared scallops with mushroom sauce, yums very fresh, every morsel was a delight.

The mains were impressive. I can’t decide what was the best of the trio but I really loved my salmon dish with the Chinese sauce which accompanied it. Also cooked perfectly was the beef Judy ordered. Check out that gorgeous pink!

I couldn’t resisted trying Andy’s ebi capelli – it looked so delicious and was calling out to me, haha. Sooo good, how did they get that lovely sauce to coat every strand so perfectly?

The wine list was limited, but competent. Wines by the glass, in particular, were poured generously into huge glasses. No complaints there! It’s also interesting, how they had a selection of about 5-6 types of sake, simply named “red”, “blue” and “green” etc. I couldn’t resist asking them why. “We don’t know our sakes, so we name them by the colour of the bottle” they replied.

Aha!

Quaraba'r (Siglap)

I was on half day leave and Dee was free, so we decided to pop by our friendly neighborhood bar for some happy hour one-on-one girly catch-up. We met at 6pm and were the first customers there – yay the whole place to ourselves! Not for long though, because by 7pm+ the place started filling up.

Quaruba’r is as good as neighbourhood bars come. They have excellent happy hour prices and the wine selection there is surprisingly quite varied. I had a very pleasant bottle of Errazuriz (Chilean) sauvignon blanc at $68.

The pub grub there is more than decent and portions are hearty. Yes that huge plate of nicely fried and fresh calamari was only $9! The fish and chips I had there the last visit was respectable too. I will try the beef burger the next time I’m there.

The jazz band comes on around 9pm+ and they are pretty good. All in all, Quaraba’r has never failed me. It is friendly, cosy and familiar, the perfect place for a can’t-be-bothered-to-dress-up night out with old friends. Gem of the east?

Definitely.

Dona Manis Cake Shop

Katong Shopping Centre was THE mall of the east when I was young. Those days, mum used to like shopping there and I used to tag along, taking in the buzz from the billiard saloons, food courts, computer shops, pet store and comics store. I remember there even used to be a bowling alley, how cool is that? Haha.

Then the new malls such as Parkway Parade came up and KSC slowly became defunct. In comparison, it seemed to be stuck in the 80s without any real exciting shops to pull in the crowds. That is, of course, for basement cake shop, Dona Manis. I grew up eating their banana pies. It’s touted as "Singapore's best pie" but to me, it’s just a slice of old fashioned goodness. They also do apple and peach pies ($2 a slice, $20+ for the whole pie) which are good too (but banana is still the way to go).

Almond nuts sprinkled on top of crisp flaky pastry, with coconut and banana baked inside. OMG it's just so good! Serve warm with a scoop of vanilla ice cream and be transported back to the wonder years.