Old Airport Road & Maxwell | Singaporean Food

5th September 2013.

One of my studio mates was relating his design to food during critique and the tutor retorted, "its so Singaporean!" in a demeaning tone. What's wrong with that?

This semester my studio have 3 foreign exchange students and I have brought to them to some of my favourite hawker centres : Maxwell Food Centre and Old Airport Road Food Centre.

At Maxwell Food Centre, we tried Guotie from Shanghai Special Tim Sum which was not bad. Crispy, fried dumplings with generous fillings. Then there was Marina South Delicious Food's Banana Char Kway Teow and Tian Tian Chicken Rice. I prefer their plain chicken rice more than the ones with skin (half chicken) which often turned out to be too fatty for my liking. The skinless chicken was tender, juicy and the rice was nicely cooked and good on its own. The only problem if you want to eat Tian Tian is the queue which has became longer now thanks to the Gordon Ramsay thing.

Next we went to Old Airport Road Food Centre after our interim critique. Pity Chuan Kee Satay was closed, so we went for Toa Payoh Satay instead. The satay was not bad, meats were nicely grilled and both the chicken and mutton satay were fine but the portions was miserable, some sticks only have 1/10 of the stick's length. At 50 cent per stick, that is a reap-off.

We also had Char Kway Teow from Lao Fu Zi which was good fried noodles with wok hei flavour, and seems like it has its own loyal following judging from the long queue.

The stars of the dinner are the Chilli Crab and Sambal Stingray from Mattar Road Seafood BBQ recommended by ieatishootipost. The seafood here is very fresh. The sambal for the Sambal Stingray was really tasty (and spicy).

The Chilli Crab gets spicier and spicier as you dig in, both foreign and local diners were seemingly defeated by the chilli crab towards the end. But, it was a good chilli crab (with a nutty flavour), it is best enjoyed with some Fried Mantous (6 for 3SGD). The crab meat itself was rather sweet too. We ordered a portion for 3, together with the mantous and sambal stingray, it cost us 76 SGD.

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Maxwell Food Centre
To get to Maxwell Food Centre, you can take an MRT to Chinatown MRT or Tanjong Pagar MRT and make your way there on foot. The food centre is located next to the Buddha Tooth Relic Temple and the URA City Gallery.

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Old Airport Road Food Centre
To get to Old Airport Food Centre, you can take an MRT to Dakota Station on the Circle Line and walk there. Alternatively if you don't mind walking further, it is also possible to walk from Aljunied Station on the East West Line.

Penang Food with George of Georgetown

30th August 2013.
Penang food seems to be everywhere now in Singapore. You have seen 10 at Claymore, Upper Boon Keng Road and Spice Brasserie…from the high-end to the hawker centre, Penang cuisine is readily available (for a premium of course when compared to 4 RM in Penang).

After reading about George of Georgetown on Ho Chiak, I am delighted to know that there is one such eatery just next to my school at West Coast Plaza and one Friday, my mum and aunts decided to drop by for dinner. The sight of empty tables worried us but the food spoke for itself.

The Penang Char Kway Teow (7.90 SGD) was decent, quite close to the actual thing in Penang. However, my aunt felt that it lacked the wok hei flavour and a quite oily which I agree. Nonetheless, it was still an enjoyable plate of char kway teow.

I also tried the Assam Laksa (7.90 SGD) after falling in love with it at Spice Brasserie. The Assam Laksa here is not as sweet but very fragrant. My normally picky aunt enjoyed the flavourful, sour and spicy broth which was made with mackerel. The laksa came topped with torch ginger flower, prawn paste, julienned cucumber, mint leaves, onions and pineapples. Not bad at all!

Out of curiosity, I also ordered the Cai Boey, a spicy vegetable stew with pork.

Their desserts are worth trying as well. The Penang Ice Kachang is pretty much like the actual thing we had in Penang, but still not my cup of tea.

My favourite dessert however would be their Chendol which was one of the best I had thus far with the right ratio of gula melaka and coconut milk. Their green jelly noodles was different, not the firm, rubbery ones I had and their red beans (in both desserts) was big and sweet.

While George at Georgetown might not be the cheapest place to enjoy Penang Char Kway Teow (partly because it is located in a mall), the food here is honestly not bad. If West Coast Plaza is too far, they do delivery too.

George of Georgetown
154 West Coast Road
#02-25/26
Singapore 127371

Last order at 9.30 PM

Rochor Thai — A Thai Adventure In More Ways Than One

Xin Li, and myself attended the event. So dashing, in his Wong Kar Wai moment. 

Greeted with the vibrant orange interior and numerous pictures of Thai street scenes, this place exuded a homely vibe. It was a vibe that was further extended by our warm host, Kenny, and his young team of chefs, headed by Joel. 

Nam Tak Krai Kab Bai Toey - Pandanus Lemongrass Welcome Drink

This was a refreshingly sweet and cool drink, with the intensely aromatic and sweet flavour of pandan accompanying the refreshing citrus flavour of the lemongrass. A great drink, probably a hit with the kids with it's bright green colour as well. 

Cha Yen - Thai Iced Tea

Using good tea is a key to making thai iced tea. The smoky taste of tea filtered through the richly bodied milky tea, and it wasn't too sweet or heavy. Pretty good. 

Kanom Jeen Sao Nam - J's Cold Sald of Kanom Jeen Noodles

While this amuse bouche tasted pretty good, I was expecting a sharper, perhaps more uplifting start to a meal. The noodles had been sprinkled with grated coconut and dried shrimp, resulting in a interesting medley of savoury sweetness. You can imagine the slight "hay bee hiam" taste (acquired taste, this one, I like it though) being quite well-balanced with the full-bodied, slightly salty creaminess of the grated coconut, all gone along with the refreshing vermicelli. Not too bad. 

Som Tum - Green Papaya Salad Central Thailand Style

I have to be honest and admit that this wasn't anywhere near the best of papaya salads I've had. It tasted overtly wet and soggy, over-marinated in something that tasted too heavily of vinegar. The carrots tasted slightly raw and it didn't go very well with the long beans at all. Although the accompanying nuts was a good effort, it fell quite short as the characteristically associated flavours of sweet, sharp, spiciness of a thai salad didn't come through.

Tom Yum Talay - Hot and Spicy Seafood Soup with Thai Herbs

First, the good stuff: It wasn't as oily as I expected, and it was quite spicy enough to give me a good kick, like a good tom yum soup should. However, the prawns weren't too fresh, and the offerings inside didn't play the part of revealing the fresh seafood flavours that were masked under very heavy spices in this tom yum soup. Additionally, the overwhelming saltiness (presumably an overdose of fish sauce) made this a very confusing mix of flavours — it sort of kicked away the spiciness of the tom yum, but it also masked the seafood that wasn't very fresh.

Po Taek - Clear Spicy Sour Soup with Holy Basil and Kaffir Lime Leaves

This was a deadly spicy soup, so I was wow. The lime and citrus flavours that presumably came with this was sadly masked by the very heavy overdose of fish sauce. Not good at all. 

Pla Nin Pao - Salt Baked Whole Tilapia served with Spicy Coriander Sauce

I am actually not a very big fan of fish even though I eat it quite regularly (happens when your family is Teochew). Tilapia is one of those freshwater fishes that can taste very muddy and fishy (utterly nasty) if not chosen properly — after all, it is a bottom feeder fish, residing at the bottom of the riverbeds feeding on plants and algae. However, I was very pleased to say that this was an excellent tilapia — so good, you could actually eat it on its own. The salt-baked crust ensured that the moisture was packed in, avoiding those situations where you had an awfully dried fish I've had at some tze char restaurants. It had a nice light saltiness to it, presumably because of the crust, and tasted wonderfully fresh, even evoking the taste of the water that it was in. I was okay with the spicy coriander sauce, which was not very spicy despite its namesake. The tilapia was so good in fact that I just ate it on its own, which is something I don't usually do with freshwater fish. 

Kor Moo Yang - Seared Pork Collar served with Aromatic Dried Chilli Sauce

This was quite salty, especially for some of my dinner companions on the table. While the pork collar was fairly tender and well-layered with fat (not too much, thankfully), it went well with the dried chilli sauce in my opinion. If I could suggest any improvements to this, I would suggest that the sauce be made sweeter to balance out the salty nature of the pork. 

Gaeng Kaew Wan Gai - Chef's Special Green Curry with Chicken Thigh and Thai Eggplant (right) This did taste surprisingly sweet for a green curry — not that I minded, though. The chicken was not dry (always a good thing) and the eggplant was not too disgustingly mashed and overcooked. Above average, but nothing to write home about other than it being exceedingly thick and creamy, which gets a bit gelak after a while. Gaeng Phet Pla Krapong Daeng - Dry Red Curry with Red Snapper Fillets I think this was personally one of my favourite dishes of the night. The slight sweetness accompanied the sharp saltiness of the red snapper well, in a robust medley of textures assaulting my mouth. There was a wonderful smokiness to this dish that added an extra dimension to the interplay of sweet/savoury, and the snapper was sufficiently moist to say the least. This was quite well done, and I would recommend this highly.

Goong Pad Nam Prik Pao Kab Horapa — Stir Fried Prawns with Thai Chilli Jam and Sweet Basil Didn't remember much about this dish other than the slightly sweetness of the thai chilli jam kicking in with the robust flavours of the sauce, which was very heavily wok hei-ed. Hoay Lai Pad Prik Pao - Clams Flambe in Chilli Jam and Chef's Stock The clams weren't too bad — fresh, and went well with the robust, wok hei flavours of the stock.

Khao Niew Ma Muang - Mango Sticky Rice

With the coconut milk sauce copiously absent, it was replaced with toasted sesame seeds instead. I did miss the full-bodied creaminess this sweet dessert is known for, but I also did appreciate the very soft and mushy texture of the rice going well with the mango that wasn't too sweet. It was an interesting take on the traditional dessert, perhaps from reminiscient of the variant made in Thailand. 

Tab Tim Grob - Thai Red Ruby

Tasting just like strawberry milk and red beetroot, there were complaints on the table that the chestnuts weren't big enough. That aside, there was a creamy, fragrant sweetness overwhelming your tongue, and definitely a dessert that the kids would love to go into a sugar high for. 

While certainly not the best Thai restaurant I've tasted, I am tempted to give it a chance on the virtue of it being 2.5 weeks old (at time of tasting). It does show a very raw potential, and the passion for such a young team of restauranteurs trying to strike it out in an intensely competitive culinary landscape is quite commendable. 

The food, with some misses, was largely above average and the commitment to not using MSG and things like no service charge and GST make the deal a tad bit sweeter here. An honest restaurant wanting to strike it out, I am tempted to give it a chance. 

As with most Thai food, actually.

Our deepest thanks to Joel & Kenny for the invite for this tasting and for hosting us. 

Rochor Thai
340 Joo Chiat Road
Singapore 427592

Email: rochorthai@modasflame.com.sg

Opening Hours
Daily: 11.30AM-10.00PM
Last Order: 9.45PM
Closed on Mondays

Sapporo | Sushi Zanmai (すしざんまい)

5th July 2013.
Sapporo, Hokkaido, Japan.
Here in Singapore, we have Itacho Sushi, but in Japan, there is Sushi Zanmai where you can get sushi at an affordable price. Sushi Zanmai’s outlet in Sapporo is located in Susukino, near the Nikka Building and the station itself.

Here are Sushi Zanmai you could order just about any kind of sushi from the usual classics like tuna, mackerel, sweet prawn and scallop to more exotic items like squilla and abalone nigiri sushi.

It is my first time trying Squilla also known as shako in Japanese. It is a kind of mantis shrimp and tasted really good, like a meatier version of the ebi and comes served with some sweet sauce drizzled on it.

Along with the squilla, we also had an assortment of sushi such as Aji (Horse Mackerel) and Saba (Mackerel), most of them costing 148 – 400+ Yen each.  Overall, I had an enjoyable meal with my Japanese friends whom I met during my exchange in Korea.

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Sushi Zanmai (Susukino)

すしざんまい すすきの店

〒064-0804

北海道札幌市

中央区南４条西3-9　北星ビル1F

Sushizanmai Susukino-ten

Hokusei bldg1F 9 Minami4jyounishi 1

Tyuou-ku sapporo-city hokkaidou 047-0027

Sapporo | Asahi Beer Community Hall Yoyotei

5th July 2013

Sapporo, Hokkaido, Japan

When you think of Asahi, you probably think of Japanese beers but they also have restaurants named Asahi Beer Community Halls around Japan. It is not so much about drinking beer at these restaurants but more of eating meat either by grill or shabu shabu. Our dinner on the first day with the Chan Brothers’ Hokkaido Passion tour was at the Asahi Beer Community Hall Yōyōtei (アサヒビール園 羊々亭) at in the Susukino district of Sapporo, just opposite the iconic Nikka Building.

The thinly sliced pork slices here are really tender and doesn’t have any of that strong “meaty” aftertaste. It is best enjoyed with vegetables and condiments such as their goma or ponzu sauce. Dinner’s not bad in short.

Outside, political parties are trying to pull some votes for the 2013 Upper House Elections.

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Asahi Beer Community Hall Yoyotei

アサヒビール園羊々亭

松岡ビル5F, 4 Chome Minami 4 Jonishi, 

Chuo Ward, Sapporo

Hokkaido Prefecture 064-0804

Japan

Stellar at 1-Altitude | Dining Above All

20th August 2013.
The last time I visited Stellar at 1 Raffles Place (OUB Tower) had been a long time ago. It is not the kind of place one visits everyday but rather to celebrate a special occasion and a rather impressive choice if you want a great view (just check the weather forecast first).

The best time to visit is about 6.30 pm – 7.30 pm when you can hang around 1-Altitude, the alfresco bar located on the top of OUB Tower designed by Kenzo Tange. Taller than the Marina Bay Sands and one of the 280m trinity of Singapore, you can be quite assured that you could get a good 360 degrees panorama of Singapore, not just downtown and Marina Bay Sands but also Jurong Island, the Southern Islands, 1-North and Bukit Timah

Cocktails before dinner.

After getting hyped up with fantastic panorama, we went downstairs to Stellar for our dinner. I was informed that after a couple of years, Stellar might be getting a facelift in the near future. The dinner started off with some really good bread paired with olive oil and balsamic vinegar as well as butter.

Then there was the amuse bouche, a mini starter of Hamachi,sake sorbet and shiso leaf. The combination of the light, herbal shiso leaves, fresh Hamachi and refreshing, mildly sweet sake sorbet was a great start for the meal.

Next up was the Scallop (28.00++ SGD), Open Ravioli of Scallop, Parmesan Custard, Pear and Zucchini Paper. It was a rather unique combination which has succulent, nicely seared scallop covered with layers of thin ravioli served on savoury parmesan custard and cubes of sweet pear. The zucchini paper was sweet and raisin-like. It was one of my favourite dishes for the dinner.

The Bone Marrow (24.00++ SGD) Bone marrow fritters, Crispy porky bits, Parsley salad and sauce gribiche has a more familiar range of flavours. The preparation, for a start, sounded tedious. The bone marrow was dug out and steamed with egg and cream before putting them back into the bone marrow again while the pig trotters was mixed some ingredients before deep-frying them with a coat of breadcrumbs. It was served with a salad sprinkled with crispy pork bits. I appreciate the contrasting textures but flavour wise, it was kind of monotonous.

The other dish that I enjoyed a lot was the Aglio Uni (44.00++ SGD) which is Chef Millar’s re-interpretation of the classic aglio olio. Instead of the usual butter, he uses Smoked Sea Urchin Butter which gives it a rather savoury, mild briny flavour to the pasta not to forget, buttery fragrance as well. The combination of ikuro, chopped leeks, ebi sakura, capellini and sea urchin butter went extremely well with the wood fired king prawns. However, my only gripe with this pasta is that it tends to get overwhelmingly salty towards the end.

The dish that didn’t work for me as part of the dinner menu rather than dish was the Yellow Fin Tuna. The Yellow Fin Tuna (44.00++ SGD), Wood Fired Yellow Fin Tuna, Rissoni, Broadbeans, petit pois and mint with fromage blanc and pickled cucumber on the other hand has a distinct, Mediterranean flavour that doesn’t quite fit the “oriental” taste profile of the preceding dishes. As a standalone dish however I thought it was rather interesting and I enjoyed the rissoni as well as the perfectly grilled yellow fin tuna a lot.

The Yellow Fin Tuna demonstrates how you could configure your menu to your own personal taste. Out of several items featuring a star ingredient, you are given the freedom to pick a number of them to form a 4 – 6 course menu which gives a better value than a la carte orders.

While some of the dishes earlier had a “Japanese” slant, Chef Millar, explained that he actually draws his experience from his Australian roots such as the abundance of fresh uni back in Australia for the Agilo Uni.

Meat Lovers can enjoy a trio of prime meats such as Mutton, Beef and Pork with the Meat Platter (120 – 140++ SGD, min.2 pax sharing). Diners who ordered this get to pick their choice of Studio William Meat Blades as well. Gimmicky in my opinion but these blades are really sharp and great for meat dishes. Our meat platter featured 4 kinds of meat including 2 kinds of beef cuts, Victorian lamb rack and US Yorkshire Pork Rack.

These were served with an array of sauces and condiments as well such Dijon mustard,blue cheese sauce, morey sauce. Foie gras sauce and chili jam. My favourite item in the platter was the Victorian Lamb Rack which was excellent on its own. The meat was very tender, very fragrant with a nice smoky flavour from the grill. Oh, the seasonal vegetables served as side was wonderful too. The US Yorkshire Pork goes quite well with the chili jam which has a distinct cumin taste.

Finally, the meal ended with a sweet bang. The Sweet Experience was a theatrical experience itself as a pastry chef (in this case Chef Millar himself) crafts a beautiful piece of cuisine art on the spot for you. Chef Millar mentioned that he tries to create a kind of magical “Harry Potter” experience for the dinners in the Sweet Experience.

Featured in the Sweet Experience is the Valrhona Chocolate Bomb, Flaming Baked Alaska, Caramel Crème Brulee, Ginger Raspberry Tart, Amazing French Strawberries with rhubarb glacee. The climax of the ‘show’ was the revealing of the valrhona chocolate bomb as warm raspberry sauce was poured on the chocolate globe, hence melting its chocolate dome.

My favourite among the various sweets presented on this dessert platter was the Flaming Baked Alaska with its contrasting textures (and temperatures). Last but not least, for dinners who ordered coffee or tea, you get to enjoy specially crafted truffles such as Mango Sorbet coated with White Chocolate or a Berry Sorbet coated with Dark Chocolate.

Service was excellent, the server, Nicole was very attentive and tries to interact with us throughout the dinner service. While I was fine with the service, some might find it bordering on the line of over-attentive service. Overall, I had to admit that the prices here ain’t cheap, it is easily within the $$$$$ range but if you are looking for somewhere to enjoy the panorama 280 meters above ground with decent food, Stellar is somewhere you can consider. Come October, Stellar would be participating in Restaurant Week too.

Stellar
Former OUB Centre
Level 62
1 Raffles Place
Singapore 048616

The nearest MRT Station is Raffles Place MRT Station.

Thank you Immelia from the 1-Rochester Group for the invitation!