Tomo Izakaya @ Esplanade

This was an Invited Food Tasting Session.

Last week, Camemberu, The Hungry Cow and I attended a Food Tasting session. We met up with Casey, the PR person from Tomo Izakaya at their Esplanade Branch. Their main branch with award winning interior design is at Clarke Quay. The Esplanade branch is also quite chic and stylish.

We sat outdoors, not because it's far away from others (it's the H1N1 season you know!) but Food Bloggers need light to take photos! :-p It was shaded and quite windy, so it was comfortable.

What is Izakaya? It's a Japanese drinking place where food also plays a role too, not just the drinks. Tomo means friends in Japanese. In short, it's a place to meet up with friends over food and drinks.



If you want to know what drinks they have there, you can take a look of their drinks menu at their website. It's a long list.

Now to the food. Here are some selection of the food that we tried. There's only 3 of us, we can't eat a lot, so here's some of it.

The California Maki. Beautifully done. Pleasant to both the eye and mouth.



If you are having friends, you might want to order the fancier version with the prawn tails at both ends. The orangy flying fish roe makes this Makimono looks tempting doesn't it?



The next 3 dishes were my favourites for the day. Diced Cut Cubed Steak. The three of us concluded that anything beef and mushrooms goes very well. We also found out, 'the hungry cow' really likes cow! We like the sauce of this dish that we ate it with the cold udon we ordered.



Buta Kanuni - Stewed Pork Belly. We were told this is one of the best sellers. We tried and we knew why it was. It's so 'melt in your mouth'. The meat and sauce when I first put it in my mouth reminds me of vinegared chinese pig trotters (tee kar chor). Not really like tee kar chor, but have this little hint of it, of my mum's version.

This is definitely not for those who do not like fatty pork. Fatty pork lovers will definitely rejoice!



Buta Soki - Pork Ribs Stew. It might put off those who are afraid of fats. But this dish is also another 'melts in your mouth' dish. It's like eating pork ribs without the bones. (Bak Kut without the Kut)



We thought we would try one of their ramen and picked the Kimchee Ramen. When you are chit chatting and taking photos, you tend to forget about time. I think it took us 20 mins before we touched the ramen. So it might be our fault that we found it a tiny bit soggy.

So a suggestion for slow food eaters, stagger your food ordering. When you are almost done with the first few dishes, then order more. If you are super fast and hungry eaters, disregard what I just said.



There's also the usual assorted sashimi for sashimi lovers.



Here's one of the veggies that we ordered. This is the Vegetable Tempura.
(as an onion lover, I think the tempura onions are nice!)



Thanks to Tomo Izakaya and Casey for your kind hospitality. Casey's a great entertainer, a hilarious guy too. Entertained us with not only food, but lots of stories about Tomo Izakaya and himself.

Tomo Izakaya @ Esplanade Art Centre
8 Raffles Avenue,
#01-09, Esplanade Art Centre
Singapore 039802

Tel: 6333 0012


Their main branch:
Tomo Izakaya @ Clarke Quay
3A River Valley Road
#01-04 Clarke Quay
Singapore 179020

Tel: 6333-0100
Fax: 6336-0092
Email: info@tomoizakaya.com

Sun - Thur [11.30am – 1 am] Last order at midnight.
Fri & Sat [11.30am – 3 am] Last order at 2 am

Udders Ice Cream @ Lorong Kilat

This first photo was taken a week ago. Spotted a new ice cream place not too far from where we live. We noticed it was new because of all the congratulatory flowers. So, we plan to come back another day. Maybe when they are more settled down.



6 days later, which was last Saturday night, we came here with friends after dinner. Wow, the place is so so packed! What a difference 6 days make! Every single table was full. We waited for a while (not that long, around 10 mins) before we got seats for the 13 of us.



One thing that caught our eyes was the 'scribble wall' they had. Can you spot what I wrote? The one all of us liked was the question: Why did the cow cross the road? Answer: To get to the UDDER side. LOL!



Last week when we arranged for our friends to come here, we were wondering... is this place OK? But guess what? On the Saturday morning, we saw a confirmation sign that it is. In our mailbox was this flyer. Free Ice Cream Voucher from the new ice cream cafe in your neighbourhood!



Today as I came home, I saw more on the dining table. I asked sis, they are giving more free ice cream? Sis said: "No Lah". Must thank our little bugs neighbours. Some neighbours must have treated it like junk brochures and threw them on the floor. haha...



I am getting old and absent minded. I forgot what is the flavour I ordered the other night. I think it's caramel with sea salt or something like that. I just remembered the sea salt in the name. I like the tinge of saltiness in this ice cream. It's something really different. I think I might go back for more of this.



Momo had Choya Lime Umeshu Sorbet. She like Choya, so she likes this. Sis and others think it's quite unique. As I don't like choya, I don't like it. LOL....



Ms Rach had the Bailey's and Bourbon. Many people seems to like Bailey's and ya, it never goes wrong right?



More ice cream photos. As we were too big a group, we sat at two separate tables. So the following photos are from the next table. I went over to snap some photos, but did no ask them the flavour.

My guess: this must be oreos and mango? I think the Yaps had this. Their two kids must have enjoyed this. ;-)



Oreos and Bailey's?
I think the Lees had this. Hey, Mrs Lee can have alcohol ice cream meh? After first trimester can eat anything? (I assume it is Bailey's haha)



That must be chocolate and I think vanilla? I think the Chungs shared this.

I read that their vanilla here is the made from real vanilla pods and not from essence etc.



Ice Cream costs between $3.20 to I think $4.90 for a big scoop depending on flavours.

Something I noticed is that the bowls, and spoons are all from the freezer! So your ice cream don't melt that fast.

Udders Ice Cream
17 Lorong Kilat,
#01-08 Kilat Court,
Singapore 598139

Tel: 64661055
Web: http://udders.com.sg (might not be very updated)

Hours:
Sunday to Thursday: 12 noon to 11pm
Friday, Saturday and eve of PH: 12 noon to 12 midnight

Cake Avenue @ Lorong Kilat

If you have follow this food diary, you would have realized that we celebrate lots of birthdays! Last Wednesday, we celebrated the birthday of our care group leader, Alex.

Sis bought the cake this time, and we kinda got tired of the usual cake we have. We ordered a cake from Cake Avenue instead. We self collected it. (They provide delivery to any part of the island for a charge). Look, it's nice blue ribbons!



If you have been buying cakes from the usual chain shop you buy cakes from, they don't ask "would you like a message on the cake?" They do here. So it's been some time since we have a personalized cake.



We had the 16cm Chocolate Fudge cake ($24). It was quite nice, very nice indeed. ;-)




Cake Avenue Pte Ltd
Main branch: 33 Lorong Kilat, Kilat Centre, #01-01, Singapore 598132.
Tel: 6877 9008

Branch: 56 Sembawang Road, Hong Heng Mansions, #01-06, Singapore 779086
Tel: 6554 0155

Cake Counter @ Mon Petit Pastry Bar: 110 Robinsons Road, HB Robinson, #01-02, Singapore 068902
Tel: 6220 2080

Web: www.cakeavenue.com

Nutella @ my office desk

This morning, my colleague brought out some Nutella mini packs. She was so nice to offer me 1 pack too!

Wow! The last time I had this (in the form of little packs) was when I was a little kid. Most of the time you only see the ones in transparent plastic jars. Just few weeks ago, I saw gigantic jars as well.

I thought these were Thai made because of the Thai words, but realized that they are actually from Australia after I read the small prints.



See the smooth texture of this hazel nut snack? Wanna have some too?



I remember the plastic spoon. Look, still the same style!




Maybe it's just me not being observant when I walked the aisle of the supermarket. Do you see these small 20g packs around?

I just realized they have no cholesterol too!
(I 'bing' and found that out from Amazon! I did not know Amazon sells nutella too! lol)

Island Creamery @ Serene Centre

I seem to have an entry for Island Creamery every year. This will be my quota for this year. We ate here a few times this year, the latest was the Father's Day weekend recently.

I am putting this in in because it's a quick post for busy periods. :-)

The place was so so busy when we got there at around 9 pm. We wanted to have the waffles, but they ran out of it. Sigh.... So we settled for 3 scoops of ice cream, and some coffee and tea. (Psst, this is a place for ice cream, the coffee's too 'light'. hint hint)

The Teh Tarik's nice. Love it.
The Chendol's nice too. We forgot about the "Pulut Hitam", that's very nice too. Another time. We were too lazy to queue up again.





Our cousin just had to have chocolate. :-)




We recently discovered another new ice cream place near where we live. Watch out for more ice cream posts coming soon. LOL....

p/s what's your favourite ice cream flavour?


Island Creamery @ Serene Centre
10 Jalan Serene
#01-03 Serene Centre
Singapore 258748

Chiharu Sake Bar and Seasonal Specialties @ Bukit Timah Road

The seasonal sets. It's summer now, so here's the summer sets that we had.

It's the chef who decides what we eat, so what you see here might not be what you get if you order this too. It's to the chef's mood. ;-)

The appetizers. They all tasted great. I particularly liked the one with azuki beans.



The sashimi that the chef prepared.



Not sure of the name of this fish, but it's a medium size fish that was really nice. The flesh is so sweet. Sis who don't usually like fish think it's nice too. Our cousin who is a fish lover, can be seen nibbling the fish so happily.



Fish broth? The white flowery thing is fish and the rest are like daikon etc. Err, after the fish above, I did not really like this dish.



This duck soup is nice.



The fish decided to serve us the following sushi. Nice nice.
I realise that half of us dont like uni. haha...



Another soup. Miso based soup.
We had so many kinds of soup, we realise that the guys like the salty ones, and the ladies the sweeter ones. I wonder why....



The set ended with Japanese Musk Melon. So juicy, sweet and fragrant!



We really liked this dinner. You can look at the menu and pricing at their website ;-)
www.chiharu.com.sg

Chiharu Sake Bar and Seasonal Specialties
779 Bukit Timah Road
Singapore 269758
Tel: 6769 1929

Chiharu Sake Bar and Seasonal Specialties @ Bukit Timah Road

This was what we brought our Uncle and family to for Father's Day. Uncle and Aunt has been a great blessing to us, we were thinking what to treat them and thank them. We asked aunt what uncle would like to eat, after 'probing' a few days, aunt said uncle seems to have found new love for nice Japanese food.

So, looking back at the blog, (yes, I refer back to my own food diary to see what to eat. haha) I thought Chiharu sounds good. So we booked dinner for Saturday night.

We ordered some summer seasonal dinner sets and some a-la-carte items. We were recommended to order a few sets and order some a-la-carte instead of sets for everyone. So, today's post is the items that we ordered a-la-carte. Multiple items of some of the following.

After you ordered your food, you get this little cute cup with mushroom. They are delicious and it makes you hungry instantly!



We had Zensai, assorted appetizers decided by the chef. Two little squids, Japanese baby abalone, yam, and things that taste good that I don't know the name. ;-)



Hizunamasu - Salmon white bone in sweet vinegar sauce.
This appetizer is also very nice.



Kabocha - Japanese pumpkin / winter squash. Inside the mashed pumpkin is minced meat bits. If you are a pumpkin person, you would like this! It taste so yummy!



Wagyu Amiyaki - the wagyu is oooo.......



Mategai - Razor Clams baked. It's spicy, creamy, savoury, etc, you can eat a few if it's not so expensive. LOL...



Macha Cheesecake. Super sour cherries on top, but the cheesecake is so fragrant with the macha taste. You would like it.



Shall post the special seasonal summer dinner sets tomorrow. Stay tuned.


Chiharu Sake Bar and Seasonal Specialties
779 Bukit Timah Road
Singapore 269758
Tel: 6769 1929

the canteen @ Shaw Centre

Sis, Momo and I was walking around at Isetan Scotts. After getting her stuff done, we were wondering where to eat and since it's just beside Isetan, we drop by the canteen.



We have never been to any Les Amis restaurant before and this might be our first.

We had the beef salad to start. The mix of greens and the dressing is nice, very lemongrassy. We like the dressing very much, but we did not like the beef at all. It was so tough and chewy.
(ie like the 'sliced version' of bak kwa that's from 'certain' brand that's known to be touch and chewy, we were thinking, how can??)



Momo had the Bak Kut Teh. The soup's the peppery and quite ok. Lots of meat though.





Sis had the Beef Noodle Soup.
That brings to mind, anyone where's the Scotts Picnic Beef Noodles now?



I had the XO Lo Shi Fun. Not too bad. Very spicy! Mince, mince century eggs and chopped green beans.



Mixing it up a bit, so you know what's Lo Shi Fun.
If I were to make it at home, I would add in a tiny amount of chopped pickled chai sim inside. That was what I was thinking when I was eating this. ;-)



They are having 25% off the food prices.
An average of approximately $15 per person incl of taxes etc.

the canteen
1 Scotts Road
#01-01B
Shaw Centre
Singapore 228208

Tel: 6738 2276

Chako @ Hong Leong Garden

Our colleague 'pirate' has been asking us to have lunch at Chako, one of his favourite places for Japanese food. We have been saying no because we have been very busy at work, it's one of those places that will guarantee a long lunch because of the wait while the lady chef prepares our food with the utmost care and dedication.

We are a bit free yesterday, so we thought why not? Half our lunch gang away on leave, childcare MC, etc. So there's only 3 of us today.

Here's the tea that you might drink 2 or 3 cups before lunch is served. Remember we have to wait. :-)



It's one of the places that you have to wait, yet will be satisfied when the food's served. The home cooked style Japanese food just makes you happy.

Pirate and I had the sets that had the following beautifully crafted side dishes. The pickles.



The tofu. (you got to pour the soy sauce over it)



And the clam miso soup.



Pirate had the Beef Oyako. The beef that is really tender. We took some from pirate's because we wanted to try it.



I had the Unatamaju. I ordered this because it's the broiled version that's really nice. I remember having some of it when pirate ordered it last time and I said to myself the next time I am going to order it when I come again.

The egg layer below somehow reminds me of how my mum makes the eggs on some occasions. The egg's semi-soft with a little peppery taste. The combi with the melt in your mouth unagi really makes it lovely.



For Almondjelly, this is her first time here with us. She had the Chicken Katsu Curry Rice. The curry looks different from what you usually see because it's Chako's proprietress' version. She mixes her own curry mixture from a mixture of local and Japanese curry powder etc. The difference we tasted was it is has a bit of ume / plum like taste that gives it a hint of tanginess. We wonder what she puts in it!



A different salad side dish that goes with the Katsu Curry.



It was a quiet afternoon, so the proprietress Mdm Hisako Okugawa came and sat and talked with us. She asked how we like the food, etc. We said it was lovely. We were chatting and the conversation led her to tell us about Japan, the places she goes to when she visits her other family there. It does make us wanna visit Japan too! She originates from Okayama. Hmm next time if I do visit Japan, I should visit Okayama eh? :-)


Approx of an average of $19 per person incl of taxes etc.


Restaurant Chako
134 West Coast Way
Hong Leong Garden Shopping Centre
Singapore 127064

Tel: 6776 3919 / 6776 4613

Oriole cafe & bar @ Pan Pacific Serviced Suites

Momo and I had dinner here in this hidden somewhere in Orchard Road, yet feels Dempsey-ish place. Modern & chic place, dim lights, peaceful and calm place.

When we entered, we could see people at the bar drinking, we were seated at the sides where there are people having meals. One of our friends, Sue recommended this place. So, here we are having dinner.

If you wonder how it looks like, click here for a photo I took in April last year.

We had dinner at Oriole Cafe & Bar. The little bird on the logo, looks very 'twitter-ish' right?



The place is really dimly lit, so my photos are a little off colour. I did not really bother to adjust the white balance, we were more interested in eating ;-)

The appetizer we had was Unagi Salad. Shoyu dressing which both of us liked.



Momo had the beef cheeks taglitalle. She likes beef cooked with red wine, so this was her dish. Tender and melty as Momo said.



I can't decide what to eat, so I took the Chef's Choice. Chef's choice tonight happens to be Braised Veal, named Osso Bucco in the bill.

I like the mushroom combi and the mash potato. It goes so well with the veal. I thought they were quite generous with the veal. I give it a thumbs up.



Thanks iPhoneGirl for the recommendation. It's a nice place indeed and the food's as you said, quite rustic, simple and satisfying.

Approx: $30 per person incl of taxes etc.

Oriole Cafe & Bar
Pan Pacific Serviced Suites
96 Somerset Road, #01-01
Singapore 238163

Tel: 6238 8348

Hans @ Buona Vista Community Club

We were going to have some Indian food at the Holland Drive market. Our office attendant said his uncle has a stall there and the food's not bad, and ask us to patronize lah.... (No, she does not know we go around eating and take photos) When we reach there, we can't seem to find the stall. We were told, the stall beside the vegetarian stall. Alamak! Don't have! We spotted no new stalls.

Anyway, those in Singapore know that it has been so so so hot. The food centre is even hotter! 'Old cat' suggested, can we just go to Han's next door? With thoughts of air-conditioning, our feet automatically brought us there!

So we are back at Han's again. But this time to have proper meals and not cakes :-)

Dpuk has the Hainanese Pork Chop. Not too bad, a tomato-ish and yet a little spicy. We wallop it all, not leaving even a single pea behind. LOL...



'Old Cat' had the chicken stew. The stew is very home cooked taste. Dpuk and I said, this is the same taste on how we cook chicken dish at home. 'Old Cat' loves food that has this home cooked food taste, so he happily ate it.



Both of the above came with rice with a tiny bit of sambal.



Just like McDonalds, they are offering the 'would you like to upgrade?' options. So both of them did. Soup of the day which was pumpkin soup.



A slice of chocolate cake, and garlic bread plus a drink.
(We must state, the upgrade option's cake is not like those we tasted the other day. LOL! Get the hint ah!)



I was thinking of grandma's mei cai kou rou suddenly. She used to make like this huge pot that we will eat for days! Sigh. When she was alive long ago, and cooked so much of this, so frequently, we were kids and did not appreciate it. Now, when you want to eat it, no more chances :-(

Anyway, I ordered the Braised Pork Belly with Preserved Vegetables.



I never remember eating it with Acar, but it does go well together. (for me. hehe)



Mine's only plain rice. ;-)



Approx of an average of $10 per person incl of taxes etc.

Han's
Buona Vista Community Club
Blk 36 Holland Drive #01-02
Tel: 6779-0180
Open 24 hrs

The Scholar @ Kent Ridge Guild House

Today we had lunch with one colleague (Stef) who's leaving and it's her last day tomorrow. So we got to grab her today before it's too late. haha....

We initially wanted to have lunch at Cafe by the Ridge at the KR Guild House, but we went downstairs to The Scholar instead. Why? We were not really happy with the waitress not giving us the seats we wanted, some tables were 'reserved' for much bigger groups, 7 of us is not considered big enough. We just did not like her attitude. Never mind.... We all just all decided to just leave. LOL...

We got a table that sits 7 of us comfortably at The Scholar instead. ;-)
The ladies ordered, while the two of us guys just wait to eat. LOL

Stef wanted veg and her choice was Kailan with Garlic.



Jlim ordered this combination. We think it's quite interesting and it tasted good. Jellyfish, fish bites, char siu and fried brinjal strips with floss.



Em another colleague wanted Sweet n Sour Soup.
It's full of ingredients! Just a bit too starchy, but it was good.



While we ponder what else to eat, I suggested a beef dish, but 'woonie' said no red meat please. Blood test indicates a bit high uric acid. White meat please. Pork or chicken...

Talking about pork, Stef said she wants Coffee Pork Ribs.
Well, it was a good choice. We liked it.



Since it's white meat, we can't have duckie. So we settled for San Pei Ji instead.
It was quite nice too.



Have a good rest and all the best for your new job Stef!


Approx of an average of $17 per person incl of taxes etc.

The Scholar
National University of Singapore Society
Kent Ridge Guild House
9 Kent Ridge Drive
Singapore 119241

Reservations: 6586 3710

Momo's Cooking for friends

Momo rewarded me by cooking for me for fixing up the wires at her home so that she can get Video On Demand although she has no Hubstation. It seems to many people do not know that you can have VOD without Hubstation. Oh yes, it's legal, if you are wondering that's it's hacking or something. You still need to pay if you want to watch VOD, but if you are subscribed to channels like VV Drama, you automatically get free VOD for all the shows shown on Channel 55 of Starhub TV. ;-)

Actually, she cooked because she invited a few persons over for dinner to catch up over the weekend. Just to catch up and chit chat.

Here's what she prepared. The apple and pork rib soup photos turned out all blur, it's not here.

The roast herb chicken wings. 'Gorilla' and I stole some to eat when it was fresh out from the oven, that's why some pieces seems to be missing. LOL...



Spicy Hae Bee French Beans. Someone nearly choke when he did not know it was spicy. LOL..



Bittergourd and Egg.



Must eat colourful food to stay healthy. There's yellow, red and green capsicum with mince. Traffic lights? LOL...



Momo's version of Babi Ponteh.



Black Pepper Prawns.



It was nice to catch up with friends. ;-)

Soup Restaurant @ The Centrepoint

Last week, we were 'window shopping' in Orchard and we were hungry and tired. We were around The Centrepoint in Orchard Road so Sis and Momo selected Soup Restaurant.

Just some 'homely' food to soothe tired legs and hungry stomachs.
Ah Por Fan Shu Leaves. Always spicy and yummy.



Soup of the Day. It was corn and pork ribs that night.



The Samsui Ginger Chicken.
I like the ginger part, I think many people do, that they sell the ginger in bottles now.




Approx of an average of $13 per person incl of taxes etc.


Soup Restaurant @ The Centreporint
176 Orchard Rd
The Centrepoint
#B2-110/111/112/113
Singapore 238843

Tel: 6733 6008

Han's @ Buona Vista Community Club

Colleagues and I ate at this Nasi Briyani place that we did not think was very good on Friday. We did not like what we ate there, so we thought we should comfort ourselves with some desserts to cheer us up.

We ended up at Han's. It's this new (not so new now) 24 hour place that is at the Buona Vista Community Club. Han's has been around so so long, some people seem to have forgotten about them.

We ordered our drinks and had 3 cakes to share.

This is the Chocolate and Banana cake that's quite nice.

This cake is not too bad too. I forgot the exact name, but it's chocolate something.

This is blueberry crumble. We ordered this because the few of us just bought in total 6 punnets of blueberry from Fairprice that's just next door.

(Blueberries are on sale at Fairprice if you think you need to pack up on anti-oxidants, around $4.80 for 2 punnets)

My favourite was this crumble.

Prices of cakes ranges from around $2.90 to $5 for the cakes that we had above.

Han's
Buona Vista Community Club
Blk 36 Holland Drive #01-02
Tel: 6779-0180
Open 24 hrs

Crystal Jade Kitchen @ Suntec City

What a coincidence, as we went to the IT Show yesterday, Momo and I met Nic and XLB. XLB has gotten herself a nice little present. :-)

After Momo and I walked around, and Nic and XLB bought their 'new toy', we met for dinner. Momo had this craving to eat duck. So she suggested going to Crystal Jade Kitchen where there might be duck.

But, alas, when we ordered, duck's sold out! So, this is what we had.
This was very different. The peanuts had hints of wasabi. I like it!

The 3 types of eggs & vegetable dish. It always so comforting to eat this.

The garlic pork ribs. Only for pork lovers because it's yummily fatty and porky.

3 cups chicken. (San Pei Ji) Another of the many dishes that people always eat at this place.

Two dishes that we ordered ran out. So they came back to us and ask if we wanted to substitute it. We could not really understand what he said. (We are what they call 'eat banana' type) But we knew it was fish. Some claypot fish that was not too bad.

It was nice to meet Nic and XLB.

Approx of an average of $20 per person incl of taxes etc.

Crystal Jade Kitchen

Suntec City

3 Temasek Boulevard

Suntec City Mall #B1-013/014

Singapore 038983

Roast Pork and Desserts @ Crab Party

Other than the crabs we ate, we also had fried rice and home made roast pork.

Roast pork seems to be one of our favourite meats around ;-)

For desserts, we had cherries and (i think) mango mousse. (for the birthday man)

And also Apple Struddle. (This is bought and not made.)

Quite delicious...

(Forgot where the Apple Strudel is from. I seem to have forgotten lots of details nowadays).

Maybe I need to eat more gingko. LOL...

Update:
The apple strudel was bought from The Strudel House near Cold Storage at The Rail Mall.

Crabs Party @ Aunt Annie's Place

Last weekend, our aunt said that we are going to have a Crab Party at her place, it was also to celebrate her bro-in-law's birthday. Her BIL loves crabs. So that will make him really happy!

So aunt ordered 6 crabs from the fish monger that she usually buys her seafood from. She ordered 6 thinking they were the usual tiny ones, but when we went to collect it, the fish monger has reserved the super huge ones for her! 6 huge crabs? Oh what a feast it will be!
(Last weekend's seasonal pricing for crabs were $90 for 6 crabs, ya, I know you all will ask)

The fish monger cleaned and killed the crabs for us. You can witness the killing of the crabs here. There are the crabs that's brought home, after further cleaning and ready to be cooked.



Usually when you ask the fish monger to kill it for you, they bash the shells for you too. But aunt preferred to bash it herself, and do it just before she cooks it. (so all the juice etc is preserved and can be used for cooking) Also it makes it easier for you to wash the crabs at home. Here's her with her stone pestle cracking the great pincers.



The kids can't really take spicy food, so we had two kinds of cooking style.

This is the garlic and butter crabs. Oh can you imagine the smell? Fragrant garlic and butter. Ahh....



Look, the shell's changing colour. The crabs are turning into the nice reddish orange delicious crabs we always imagine it to be.



Here it is, the garlic and butter crabs. It was good. We used our hands to eat and it was really finger licking good. ;-)




Here's Part II. We are also having chilli crabs. Here's the mix that we used. (From Prima Taste) Oh, when the chilli is being heated, oh.... the whole kitchen's choking with chilli. *cough cough cough* LOL...



Next, in goes the crabs. Coat it all with the sauce and simmer....



After adding about 1 litre of water and other mixes provided by the box, add in 4 eggs and the crab's almost done.



We had two big bowls of chilli crabs. That makes it 3 big plates/bowls of crabs for the party.

OK, next time we should not be too scared to add more water. It was a bit thick, but it was superbly spicy and delicious!



Oh, we know eating crabs are a waste of time, but when you got the weekend free and friends and family to chat and eat, it's quite OK! Everyone enjoyed the crabs. We had it with fried rice and bread.

Happy Birthday RF!

Tonkichi @ Shaw House / Isetan Scotts

Met with "Can Do" and "Gorilla" for dinner last weekend. Momo arranged it, and sis chose the place to eat. I just need to show up and eat! ;-)

We met at Isetan Scotts because there was some items that we are getting from the Isetan Sale. After getting them, we ate at Tonkichi.

At Tonkichi, the grinding and mixing the sesame seeds with the Tonkatsu sauce is always fun.



This sauce is tasty with the meats. It smells good too!

12 June Update:
A note of thanks to "Spiderx" who emailed. He taught me that I should not use the wooden stick to mix the sauce. Oops! Putting this note here, so that others won't be ignorant and do the wrong thing too :-)

The wooden stick/pestle is for pounding the sesame seeds only. We are suppose to use our chopsticks to stir the tonkatsu sauce with the pounded sesame seeds. (Not with the wooden stick).




Sis wanted something healthier, so she had the Udon Soup with Pork.



It still comes with something fried, but it's potato croquette.



Plus salads.



Gorilla had the Father's Day Set. It has almost everything! Comes with Japanese beer.
Yes, the Father's Day set are available now!



"Can Do" had the Hire Katsu Set.



I had the Cold Ramen set. I think it's delicious as I like cold noodles ;-)



You can choose any katsu on the menu to go with it for the set. I also had another side that comes with my set. I took the chicken karaage.



All of ended our meals with very sweet watermelon. ;-)



It seems every Tonkichi serves a slightly different menu. We saw a notice saying that their new branch at Orchard Central is now opened. Took a peek on another day and see that the Orchard Central branch looks very nice!

Tonkichi @ Isetan Scotts
4th Level, Isetan Scotts
350 Orchard Road
Shaw House
Singapore 238868

Tel: 68354648
Fax: 68353148
Web: http://www.pokkafood.com.sg/tonkichi/

Food @ Dover Food Centre

Just some photos of more usual lunch that most of us 'pin ming bai xing' eat daily. No 'shan zhen hai wei' everyday. These are food that my colleagues and I eat at Dover Food Centre recently.

One of our colleague's favourite. He always eat this and absolutely adores bitter gourd. It's only him, the rest of us gets bitter eating this. The rest seems to only like bitter gourd fried as a vegetable dish and not in bee hoon soup. lol..



Beef Hor Fun. We always wonder why the beef in the beef hor fun are always so tender. hmmm.. We always think they hammer the meat till its soft, but in fact we know there's this thing called 'tenderiser'. But tender beef and hor fun taste good right?



Another thing that annoys you when you order food is when they get the order wrong. This was meant to be 'DRY' noodles, and it came in 'SOUP'. Oh, our colleague was so angry because he told the person 3 times!



We think the CKT stall here has this special skill. He can whip up a super fragrant plate of Char Kuey Teow, but there's always no taste! (ie not salty or sweet, just totally bland)

Somehow whenever you walk past, the fragrance always makes you want to order it. We always 'give chance' and order hoping it will taste better, but it never happens. We wonder why we keep obeying our noses and never learn. (am sure one of us will go back there and try again)



A bowl of Mee Pok. Prices have remained the same, but portions have been shrinking. We have photos to even prove that they have shrunk! By 3pm, it's definitely tea time.

But we still come back. We have all gotten used to shrinking portions and cheaper ingredients. Sigh...



Typical for people living here, we love to complain...
It's Monday that's why.


Food from various stalls at:
Dover Food Centre
33 Dover Road
Singapore 130033

Eating Fruit Cake @ Workplace

This was sometime last week. We had one of the lunches where the portions are so small, you get hungry by 3pm!

One colleague brought out from his mini fridge "the fruit cake". It's made by his mum and he had poured like so much alcohol inside to 'preserve' it. Here it is, unwrapped from the layers of plastic and aluminium foil.



Each time we eat it, we can only eat 2 or 3 pieces of it. It's too rich!



I think fruit cakes eaten cold is nice. My mum makes them and we store them in our freezer and cut and eat them when we feel like it. Looks like many mums makes good fruit cakes.

Does anyone likes fruit cakes too?

Indonesian Panggang @ Engineering Canteen, NUS

Colleagues and I have not had this for months! Checking this food diary, it seems the last time we ate it was in January!

We bought 3 sets, with added curry vegetables. $3.40 (I think!)

Things that are 'panggang' always looks and taste so good ya?



This is colleague's lunch. I do not need to show the 3rd plate right? It's the same. LOL




Indonesian Panggang
NUS Engineering Canteen.

The Scholar @ NUSS Kent Ridge Guild House

So many of my food blogger buddies have been posting about the Dim Sum they have been invited to. Looking at the dim sums makes you hungry right?

Anyway my colleagues and I decided to have a Dim Sum lunch yesterday too!
We were initially thinking of Nasi Goreng at the restaurant upstairs but because we were lazy to go up, we ended up at this place downstairs. (i know you are all shaking your heads)

We left it to 'wire' and 'JSFR (jiao sou fu ren)' to do the ordering for us.
So we started with the Century Egg Congee. These few days the weather's cooler, so a nice bowl of century egg porridge is so comforting! Two bowls to share between the 5 of us.



The usual stuff. Not fanciful designs, but good old traditional Har Kow.



Filled with huge prawns inside.
Two bamboo steamers of it, so each of us gets to eat it. The hungry one can eat the 'extra' one.



The Pan Fried Carrot cake here is nice. Crispy outside, but very very soft inside.



Fried Fu Pi Prawn Roll. Very nice too! Crispy tofu skin always taste good ya, especially if you have prawns inside.

Suddenly we realise, are we going on an overdose of prawns??



The Char Siew Pow.
Times two again! We were so glad 'old cat' can eat. :-)



With my colleagues and I around, we will definitely have this.
Two steamers of delicious Phoenix Claws.
You know how we judge if a dim sum place has 'standard', by the quality of their claws!



Siew Mai. Mandatory dim sum order? Haha...
Two steamers of it. You must eat this while it's hot!



The other thing that we usually order too. Steamed Pork Ribs. Two plates of this.
By the time we reach this dish, we were already full.
Then we were told, wait! There's more! What?



OK lah. This BBQ Suckling Pig platter came out next.
Roast Duck, Soy Sauce Chicken, Char Siu, Jelly Fish and CRISPY SUCKLING PIG! yummy!




Our only vegie dish that seems to have lots of meat too!
4 seasons beans. Very nicely done, the beans were not under or over cooked, but the mince meat part a little salty. hehe...



And when we thought it was all over, there came Tai Ao Bee Hoon.
We never had this before and it was nice! Seafood Bee Hoon, with prawns, small scallop pieces and some other things that taste good, but we don't know what it is. LOL..




All this with our tea, a mix of Oolong and Chrysanthemum leaves. Lovely.
The Dim Sum portions here seems to be bigger than the ones outside, so don't over order! We have 'old cat' and 'wire' with us, that's why we can finish our food. :-p

The restaurant's called The Scholar. The rich and famous might not dine here but the brightest minds in Singapore eat here. Looking around, you can see many Acads eating here. We realise many local Acads bring their overseas visiting Acads here. Maybe when we dine here, we suddenly bring down the average IQ of the diners. LOL...



The Scholar
National University of Singapore Society
Kent Ridge Guild House
9 Kent Ridge Drive
Singapore 119241

Reservations: 6586 3710

Gelateria Venezia @ Guthrie House

We have a really really cute little niece and it was her birthday few days ago. This was after dinner and we had gelato at Venezia.

We each had a cup. We wanted to go Island Cremery, but at around 8.45 pm, our uncle figured it would be almost impossible to park there. Guthrie House will be less crowded and you get to park too.

Here are some of the gelato photos... :-)



The Belgium Chocolate that I had.
Need I say more? It's just so lovely.



Our uncle had Rum and Raisin, so did our cute little niece's parents.



Hey, my friends who always say I play with my food. See it runs in the family. The older ones also do the same!



This was Round 2 for me. Felt like having a bit more. Sis and Aunt said they will share with me, so I ordered a 2 flavour. Durian and Peanut Butter. (They have another name for the PB which I forgot). Yes, it does not go together, but the Durian's for aunt and we 'transferred' it to her empty 'bowl'.



The little girl had this. Her favourite Mango Gelato, on top of a waffle.



We had a hard time trying to figure out what presents to buy. But if you are attentive, you know what they want. I went out with her once and she was looking at 'food erasers'. We got her 2 packs of it and she was so so delighted. You should just look at her face and the scream when she opened the present. LOL.

We also got her an origami book and pack of origami paper. No, this did not excite her at all. Maybe origami are not for primary school kids?

What are 'food erasers'??? They are really cute erasers that is shaped like food. Sushi Packs, Western Food Packs etc. (Example from Flickr) You can get them at Popular Bookshops. I wonder what they do with it! Play 'masak-masak'?


Gelateria Venezia @ Guthrie House
1 Fifth Avenue
#01-01
Singapore 268802

Tel: 6468 3656

Astons Prime @ Joo Chiat

Last Saturday, we celebrated Momo's dad's birthday with a dinner at Astons Prime. We have never been here and so we thought we could come all the way here to the 'East' to try it out.

Momo's parents said this place looked a bit like a place where they used to hang out when they were young, a place called the Emerald Hill Steakhouse at Emerald Hill. That was like 30 over years ago. hehe... Not that this place is old and dilapidated, in fact it is very clean and modern. It's the high partitions between diners that reminded them of Emerald Hill.

(Anyone in that age group can verify? hehe...)

Do you see Moses Lim posing there? LOL..



Momo had the Porterhouse Steak. Medium done, and she liked it, but looking at what the rest of us had, she thought ours were better. (Grass/veg/food always look greener/delicious on other people's plate right?)



Momo's mum had Battered Fish. It was two huge fish and she enjoyed it with the baked potato and veg.



Momo's dad has the Rib Eye Steak. he ordered the XL version.
His asked for brussels sprouts and onion rings for his sides. (never knew Momo's dad liked Brussel Sprouts! I don't like it. haha..) Medium done and it was not bad.



I had the Kurobuta Pork Chop. Had it 75% done. It was tender and juicy.
I could have more of it! I am such a pork person. :-)



The next photo is good news for those living in Central / South / West of Singapore. They are moving to The Centrepoint from 15 June 09.

Easties, eat it while you can... They are moving away.....



Dinner was nice. We liked the mains, all done just the way we ordered. The sides ok lah...

Felt a bit stiff that night because I was eating with future FIL and MIL. LOL.....



Aston Prime
467 Joo Chiat Road
Singapore 427678
Tel: 6344 2447

From 15 Jun 09 it will be at:
The Centrepoint
176 Orchard Road
#03-45/47
Singapore 238843
Tel: 6235 0556

To keep up with the ever expanding branches, check out their blog at: http://astonsspecialties.blogspot.com/

Cafe de Amigo @ Funan Digitalife Mall

Pardon me for the dim light photos. The place had 'romantic lights'.

This was dinner that Momo, 'Gorilla', 'Can Do' and I had few days ago. Gorilla was a bit depressed over some issues, so we 'ate it out' with him. But we realized, he did not really like it. Read on to find out...

Momo booked the table at Cafe de Amigo at Funan Centre. Yes, in an IT Mall. So, those of us who were early were looking at all the IT gadgets. Sigh. New gadgets come out so fast, we look at the things we have at home, they are all so so obselete. Sigh.. Don't you all think so?

We ordered a family meal. (Coincidently, we ate this last Friday which was the 'eat with your family day' lol...) The family meal allowed us to choose 2 starters.

The person who took our orders recommended the Escargot A la Bourguignon. The way it is done and appeared on "Pretty Women". Oops 1: Found out that Gorilla don't take snails and he would not try it. We liked it because of the chopped parsley, garlic, shallots and butter. :-)



We were also recommended the Oyster Florentine. The spinach, cheese and oysters were delightful too! Oops 2: Gorilla don't eat them, and refuse to touch it too! Alamak!



The meal came with seafood pasta. It was not too bad. Gorilla can eat this. LOL...



The set meal came with a 1 kg rib. We requested medium for the doneness. Oops 3: We realised Gorilla don't like bloody stuff! So we ended cutting the parts that is more done for this plate before we ate the bloodier parts. LOL...

It was good though for the other 3 of us.



We liked the sides that came with it too. I like the caramelized onions with potato.



The set meals allowed us to choose 2 desserts as well.
We had the Normandy Apple Pie. Quite nice. It's so pretty too!



The other dessert we had was the Tiramisu. They do it semi frozen, so it's nice and cold when you put it in your mouth. We all liked it! We could have more of this too!



The 3 of us were quite happy with the meal, but think our dear friend gorilla did not really enjoy it. But we were there as a listening ear. I think he enjoyed our company.

Our listening ears extended downstairs where we watched him eat Mcdonald's fries. (2 packs of it some more!) LOL


Cafe De Amigo
Funan Digitalife Mall
109 North Bridge Road
#02-15
Singapore 179097