Seasonal Taste @ The Westin Singapore, The Great Thai Feast.

It has been some time since the wife and I dined here. We first dine here when we saw the opening specials of Westin Singapore and booked a room for a short staycation. (Time passes so quickly as they are now 3 years old!)

We wondered into Seasonal Taste because there was nothing really opened at Asia Square at that time. During the weekends the restaurants at Asia Square were all closed then. We decided to have the a la carte items during lunch and they were good. All the Westins around the world has this healthy menu. Healthy yet tasty menu.

For dinner, we had dinner one night at Cook and Brew and another night at Seasonal Taste. We had their buffet then and somehow we never came back. If you watched enough restaurants reality TV, you know why you shouldn't come during the early days of opening. LOL.

We are back this time and this was an invite from the hotel and was also an unhosted tasting. You just dine like a regular guest, they foot the bill. If we liked it, we write about it. We were seated near a table of 4 hungry ladies, a couple on a date and a table of 8 businessmen on company dinner.

For 2 weeks till 31 July, they are having The Great Thai Feast.



If you are a SPG (Starwood Preferred Guest, not Sarong Party Girl lah...) member (which is free by the way, and I have it since 2003), you get a discount of 20% plus Starpoints for future hotel stay redemption.



One of the highlights of the Thai Feast is the Kor Moo Yang (Marinated Grilled Pork Neck). Yes, it's the fatty and muscled meat part of the oink oink animal and is used in Thai and Chinese cooking for melt in the mouth dishes. I am sure if you have been to Thailand, you have bought them to snack like me.

The dipping sauce Jim Jaew is an addictive sauce accompanies this dish. I drizzled it for most of the things I ate!



Another highlight of the Thai Feast is the Tom Yum Gung. Prepare to "cough /choke" on your first mouth. Recover from it and you will want more. I know my stomach, so I shared a bowl with the Mrs. If I have more of it, the body will tell me!

The table next to us really loved it from their chatter.  It's sometimes a joy to watch other people eat right? "Eavesdropping" on people who talk loudly and enjoying and laughing silently with and also at them. 



Marry a partner who peels prawns, and she will dish a bowl to share and then peel it for you as well.



Papaya salad - the 'live' station that has the chef pound your salad in the Clay Kruk mortar and wooden pestle. Do you think the clay mortar bruise the Som Tams and Nam Priks gentler so they are better flavoured?

It's recommended to eat it with the Grilled Pork Neck, fresh prawns and/or salted egg.



Pad Thai! There was once when a few of us visited Bangkok, we were on a Pad Thai discovery. We ordered and tasted Pad Thai from so many places, from streets carts and small eateries, chain restaurants and higher end establishments. We discovered that where the locals eat, the noodles are QQ / al dente. If it's a place where tourists go, it's soft like how we normally get in Thai restaurants here. I wonder if my observation was correct.

Well, this Thai Chef prepares it the QQ way here. Your parents might say it's undercook haha! A good thing about a buffet is you can add as much peanuts or chilli flakes or lime on it.

Many people will avoid the raw bean spouts and chives right?



I had many rounds from this station. Skewered meats, chicken wings and roast chicken with that dipping sauce that is addictive. 



I have a confession. I mostly skipped this station. Too much veggies for a pig out night.
I only took the Nam Prik for the veggies and used it for some rounds of cold seafood and meats.



Not Oysters Kilpatrick, but grilled oysters with Red Curry and Green Curry. 
I think they have this for those who don't like freshly shucked oysters! Somehow they tasted so good. 



The main staples of the Seasonal Taste buffet - Canadian Lobsters, freshly shucked oysters. (also mussels, prawns, scallops). For the Thai Feast, they have in addition to the usual dips and sauces, Thai sauces and dips.

This was the Mrs. She always love her lobsters and oysters.



This is my plate. I prefer Lobsters and Prawns. I had them with Jim Jaew.

Oh, if you like Pork Skin/Rind, they have a bag at the salad table and it disappears quickly. If you see it when you walk past, grab some and then top it with the spicy spreads. That's why there is pork rind on my seafood.



They have a quite a few Thai based desserts too. The colourful Khanom Luk Chup, it's mung bean filling inside the colourful outer layer. Like Ang Ku Kueh! 

They also have some Thai Pumpkin Custard which disappeared quite quickly! When I wanted to taste it, it's gone!



I had Khao Niew Ma Muang (Mango Sticky Rice), I know many people love this, but I am one who don't appreciate it. I like my Toffee Pudding with Toffee Sauce eaten with a scoop of Dark Chocolate Gelato, so good. I had a few more scoops of blood orange sorbet, mango sorbet and avocado gelato.

A photo posted by Philip Lim (@keropokman) on Jul 27, 2016 at 5:38am PDT

I had 6 helping of this addictive Cha Yen (Thai Milk Tea), made from black tea infused with condensed milk. The hungry ladies beside us, they were also thirsty! Instead of these small mugs that is placed at the dessert table, they used their big iced water glasses from their table to fill it up! That good! I think I haven't had anything with condensed milk for a long time that's why!
(Warning, very sweet! Thai style sweet, which I think some people can't take it.)

If you consider this for dinner this week if you are planning for some Thai food. On a Wednesday night, it was quite filled up.


Seasonal Taste
The Westin Singapore
Level 32,
12 Marina View,
Asia Square Tower 2
Singapore 018961

Tel: +65 6922 6968
Email: seasonaltastes.singapore@westin.com
Web: www.thewestinsingapore.com/seasonaltastes

Newby Tea-infused Dinner Menu at ME@OUE

There are those who love good wines, those who love good coffee. Are you one of them? Maybe you totally do not like coffee or wine and like tea? There is quite a huge following of good tea lovers in Singapore. We seem to be getting exclusive access to many hard to get teas here in Singapore. More about that in other posts.



This post is about Newby Teas and ME@OUE. I haven't heard of Newby Teas until recently and I am surprised it is a very much awarded brand. They are out to prove that they are good and it has won lots of recognition. You can read more about them and the awards at their website: www.newbyteas.com



My siblings live in the UK and they always bring various types and brands of tea for us when they are back. This hasn't appeared in our happy packages yet. Ahem, I might request it from them next time. You know teas are usually cheaper in the UK.

This box of tea showed in the photo above was so fragrant. It's something probably tea lovers will know. Inhaling the aroma before and after brewing it. I am beginning to appreciate tea more and have attended a few talks by different tea masters about tea and tasting them. Glad to know about this brand too.



Many first for this post. This was also my first time at ME@OUE and I just realised this place is not a fusion food place as I thought it was. It has an open kitchen concept (seen above) but it's 3 different kitchens serving Japanese, French and Chinese cuisine. You can order from any of them, but it's not fusion of the three.

ME@OUE is on the top floor of OUE Bayfront. The view from here is awesome, you can enjoy the beauty of Marina Bay and the new downtown area. Another place to bring the family for some special occasion meals or just a date with the wife.



Butter fanatics in Singapore would love to know the butter they use here. Look above!
Spread a thick layer on their warm rolls!



I was at ME@OUE to try a specially crafted tea-infused dinner menu. It's prepared by French Executive Chef Jérémy Gillon (left) and Pastry Chef Nicolas Vergnole (right), they worked magic and the following photos are what I had.

First Course:


Foie Gras Terrine, Mango and Strawberry Tea infused Vinegar Syrup. Mango and Strawberry Tea Gelée and Roasted Strawberries

The first dish consist of 2 plates. Foie Gras fans would love this. The Foie Gras Terrine that was very rich was nicely balanced off with the tea infused vinegar syrup. Spreading it on the warm roll was quite a delight.

Roasted strawberries are interesting. I always have my strawberries fresh and haven't tasted the roasted version for some time is a nice treat to the tongue. Roasting strawberries lets out some acid and it sure cut through the richness of the terrine.



The Mango and Strawberry Tea Espuma

The tea that has gone through the espuma or gassed looks quite captivating! The pink in it makes it so pretty as well. It was like a little fun added into the whole dining experience. The bubbles burst as you scoop it up, so you got to scoop up a full teaspoon and let it pop in your mouth.


Here's a short Instagram video I took. You will know what I mean by the bubble bursting as you scoop it.

The most common tea-infused food we have would be the 'cha ye dan'. Having the mango and strawberry tea infused into vinegar syrup, gelée or the espuma really makes it an interesting dining experience.


Second Course:


Beef Tartar with Smoked Beetroot, Toasted Peanuts, Lapsang Souchong and Beef Consommé Gelée

This dish sure doesn't look like any beef tartar that I have tasted. First thing that came to my mind, it's so beautiful. It indeed was! Looks elegant doesn't it?



I can't help not taking a few more photos to show it off! A slide of beet and basil as seen from the top. Now the 3 dots are the Lapsang Souchong and Beef Consommé Gelée. I bought some Lapsang Souchong 2-3 years ago and really could not take the smokiness. It was too strong and even after diluting it, I could not take more than 2 mouths of it.

Now, the chefs have mixed Lapsang Souchong with Beef Consommé and this was acceptable, more than acceptable that I think I know what I can do with the Lapsang Souchong at home, that's if it's still in good condition.



If I remembered correctly, I heard that the tartar was wrapped around by a thin layer of veal. You can see the texture and the hand chopped beef in it. If you love beef tartar, you might like how it's prepared here for this special menu.

Third Course:



Now we move on to the next course, the Steamed Dorade. The service staff pours the warm stock after the fish is served to you. Never fails to wow people or people with phones who will take photos of it!


Steamed Dorade, Fruity Berries Tea infused Balsamic Vinegar, Black Radish Skin Celeriac, White Cabbage, Buckwheat Seeds

If you like Dorade or also known as bream, this might look plain, but wait till you try it. It was served to the ladies first. When I got it and was told how to eat it, it really brought out the texture, aroma and taste of both the fish and the tea.



Chef said we were suppose to put into our mouth first the tea spoon. It was a mixture of baked buckwheat and the balsamic vinegar that has been infused with the fruity berries tea. The burst of flavour and texture hits you immediately as you put it in your mouth.

I tried to save some of it and only had half of it. I then use the same spoon to scoop up bits of the fish. It was so delightful. The soft and tenderly steamed dorade was just a delight to have with the balsamic vinegar. Wait, there’s more! On top of the fish were bits of salted fruity berries tea bits. More aroma from the berries on the fish.

Fourth Course:


Strawberry Tart Moderne - Sable Bretton,  Jasmine Tea Chantilly, Strawberry Variation, Jasmine Tea Sorbet

The dessert by Pastry Chef Nicolas Vergnole is just beautiful! So photogenic isn't it? It's a Jasmine Tea and strawberries show off in the ingredients. It's also to show off what the Pastry Chef can do and more!



Just another way of presenting a strawberry tart. It reminds me of the competition my sis and I participated in and we were taught how to make these things by different chefs. It's so time consuming to prepare all the individual items - making the sable bretton, the sponge, the chantilly, the puree, the sorbet etc. If you don't have patience, just eat it here!

If you want to try this same medley of 4 course meal that I had, it's only available in the month of September. It's only available for dinner service. There's about half a month more to try it.

It is served at $125 per person. Call and book if you know someone who will appreciate good French food and some good tea used to infused the food.


ME@OUE
50 Collyer Quay
Singapore 049321

Tel: +65 6634 4555

Special thanks to the folks at ME@OUE and Newby Teas for the invitation to try this.

One Night Only: Quique Dacosta in Singapore @ Sofitel So Singapore.

The wife and I were recently in Barcelona and Madrid in Spain for a holiday. This was the aerial photo that we took and we see lots of rectangular shape plots. We are missing Spain and all the Spanish food we had. Some of you probably ate virtually with us on Instagram too.



After we booked our flight tickets, we were browsing through the World's 50 Top Restaurant to see where we can go. It was a futile effort for us, the places required a few months of booking! It was also difficult to route the cities we wanted to visit to the restaurants as they are like 300 - 700 km apart from where we are.

Flying or taking a train to Valentia from either Barcelona or Madrid will means we will be travelling more than we get to eat and sight see.



105 km from Valencia is the coastal town of Dénia. It's also where Chef Quique Dacosta who is touted to be one to watch out for after El Bulli closed. The NYT says so!

Good News!

If you are into Spanish Avant-Garde cuisine, three-Michelin-star Chef Quique Dacosta will be in Singapore for a ONE DAY only dinner at Sofitel So Singapore. It's a specially crafted five-course menu priced at $538++ and every dish will be paired with fine wines from Spain’s Castell d’Encus winery. The dishes being presented will include:

The Haze – a dish that recreates the taste of humidity and warm of the earth after a storm – featuring pine nuts, raw peas, pig crackling crumble with mushrooms, black truffle and small flowers – paired with a Taleia 2012

Cuba Libre of Foie Gras – a Dacasta signature of melt-in-your-mouth foie gras with cream, veiled with coca-cola and rum and granita of lemon with brioche on the side – paired with Ekam 2012

The Hen of the Golden Eggs – a poached egg cooked at low temperature with a broth of chicken and vegetables, coffee and gold – served with Ascup 2011

Ashes Rice – soft senia rice with smoked black truffle, braised pigeon, chanterelle mushrooms, inspired by the rice of Valencia after harvesting and burning – paired with Quest 2011

Chocolate Sand – a signature delight of textures and tastes of chocolate – paired with Moet & Chandon Grand Vintage Blanc 2006


(This is a sampling of what you will get when you order the tasting menu at his restaurant. )

There's only spaces for 100 diners though. If you are interested in this dinner, you can call  +65 6701 6800


Xperience Restaurant
Sofitel So Singapore
35 Robinson Road
Singapore 068876

Tel:  +65 6701 6800

Pince & Pints @ Duxton Road

Is lobster your kind of food?

If you are not allergic to them, or you personally prefer bigger prawns because you think the texture of prawns are superior to lobsters, or you think think bringing your date to a lobster place will give him/her higher expectations for future dates, then sorry this place is not for you.

If you like lobsters and you think a place that only sells only lobsters will be able to do it well, then you might want to consider this place to dine in.



Your feed on Facebook or Instagram would have been filled with lobster dishes from this place in the months of July and August. I hope the mad queue would have died down now, and posting this now is a good time, i.e., you don't have to wait too long for a place in this restaurant and bar.

This place has only 38 pax seating and 8 pax on the bar. So, you would expect to wait a while before you can get a place. Either that, go earlier! It opens from 5 pm to 9 pm, and a bird whispered to my ears that if you go before 6 pm or after 9 pm, your waiting time is acceptable.



Since there's a crowd outside, the menu has been kept to only 3 things, one which can be done in 2 styles. So, don't take too long to decide, order, eat and let others have a chance to come in!

The 3 things on the menu:
1) Live whole lobster: You can have it grilled or steamed.
2) Lobster roll: For those of you who think prying up a lobster is too tedious, this gives you 160gm of lobster meat all pealed out for you.
3) Chilli lobster: For those who think crabs are too tedious to eat and think lobsters are sexier.

All the three items have the same price. $48++
The lobsters here are from Boston, Maine or Canada, wild caught and flown in live.



The menu is actually made from a lobster cage. I must admit I haven't seen a real cage before and this was a first for me. I haven't also seen the word "dorsal view" since secondary school days when I did biology! I remember drawing specimens and naming them, but we were only drawing prawns!


Menu Item 1: Live Whole Lobster



Whole live lobsters. You can choose if you want them grilled or steamed. It's personal preference.

Grilling will slightly dry out the meat, so if you like them this way, and with a nice char aroma, order them grilled. If you want them really moist, have them steamed. Why don't you try it and let me know which one you prefer?



My dining companion is an expert in prying out lobster meat. Here's a video of it that I loaded up on Instagram.



I have been told the lobsters here weight around 600-650 grams when taken out of the tank. So with the shells off, you can get around 160 grams of lobster flesh.

Also, it's only when you place your order, is the lobster taken out of the holding tank to be cooked.



This sauce served with it is called herbed butter sauce in the menu.
It's melted butter, with some mayo below and with herbs on top. It's extremely sinful, but it taste rather good with the lobster.

The lobster that I had just nicely grilled. I enjoyed it the natural sweetness of it and I prefer this to the cold versions at some buffets. Comes with a salad and shoe string fries.


Menu Item 2: Lobster Roll



Lobster rolls have suddenly become so popular in Singapore. Suddenly so many places are serving it. I haven't tried them all, so I can't tell you the best place to have it. I can tell you what I know about the lobster roll at this place though.



The lobster is steamed, then simply marinated with mayo and salt. It's also a whole lobster (body and also the claw), around 160 grams of it. The bun is sourced from a traditional bakery, spread with butter than pan fried, so you get a crispy side. The lobster is then stuffed into the bun. It's then topped with some chopped chives.



I didn't arrange the chunks of lobster. It came like this and I just took multiple angles of it. Just too beautiful that I took so many shots of it. Here's the lobster roll, done New England style.

The rolls comes with a salad, shoe string fries and very addictive garlic aioli.


Menu Item 3: Chilli Lobster



If you like to spice things up, order the Chilli Lobster. Doesn't it just look tempting?

No, the 'kepo' inside me asked if it was cooked inside a claypot. Serving in a nice claypot keeps it warm a bit longer.  We usually see big woks used to cook chilli crabs. Yes, they use big woks too, you can see it for yourself if you want, it's an open concept kitchen here.



Fried carbo, I mean Mantou are served with the chilli lobsters. If you need more, you can see they are quite generous with the sauce, order another set of 5 for $3.50.



Tomato-ish tasting, with enough spice level to bring the shiokness out. It all depends on your tongue, as our spice tolerance will be different. I will say "I like lah....".


I tell you, just use your hands and eat it. Don't worry about being messy. I tell you pulling out the lobster meat with your fingers make it taste extra nice! See I really used my hands, I have to asked someone else to take photos for me!

They have L'occitane hand wash for you to wash your hands. Yes, I spotted that.




I have people asking me, saying: "wah, so expensive at $48++". I have this photo to help me answer it. I took this photo at a Fairprice Finest near my home. This is the same Maine Lobster they serve at Pince and Pints. A frozen version, not cooked yet, no sides, no service staff to hire, no rent to pay, it already costs $25.50. If you are Lennardy, maybe you can transform this into beautiful meal in your home kitchen. For most people, I think your $48++ can be spent here, just don't come during peak hours and get yourself angry waiting at the queue. ;-)

Oh, for the geeks and engineers who always love to read about engineering news, the water at their storage tanks for the lobsters are kept at 5 to 7 Celsius. I didn't get to see the setup, but probably it's a simple thermostat controller that regulates the chiller. Oh yes, 5000 plus lobsters comes in every month. The lobster don't spend more than 7 days in the holding tanks, as to keep them fresh.

Pince & Pints
32/33 Duxton Road
Singapore 089496

Hours: 5 pm to 11 pm
Tel: +65 6225 7558

Gyoza King @ Orchid Hotel, Tras Link

The ground level of Orchid Hotel is becoming like a mini Liang Court. Tiny and compact Japanese eateries are opening here. One restaurant in the middle has a 3-4 months waiting time. The busy corner facing the Tanjong Pagar MRT still has long queues forming until today.



On this corner, which is shown in the photo above is the Gyoza King, the sister company of the ramen place at the other corner. Keisuke Tokyo is opening restaurants of very different format all over!



It's only a small place, with around 16 counter seats. You get to watch the chefs prepare your food as you wait. The simplest way to enjoy the food here is to get the Gyoza Set meal for $13.90. You will be given an order chit that guides you through the 3 Steps of ordering. Just tick!



Step 1: Choose your Gyoza, there's Pork, Chicken and Prawn.
Step 2: Choose your rice portion, Small, Regular, Large or Extra Large plus your Soup (Miso or Vege)
Step 3: Choose 2 side dishes from the list of 8.

Order your drinks if you want. I like the Green Tea Cola. 



No unlimited free eggs here like in the sister branches, but there is cabbage pickle here. There's still the unlimited delicious beansprouts that I like. They will periodically top up the pickled beansprouts and cabbage. It's nice and cold and really appetizing.



The gyoza dip is DIY. They have 3 sauces: soy, vinegar and chilli oil at the counter. The recommended ratio is 3 seconds of soy, 2 seconds of vinegar and 1 second of chilli oil. If you want it  more sour or spicy, just add more!

There's also chilli and dry seasonal for you to pour over your rice. 


Step 1: Choose your Gyoza, there's Pork, Chicken and Prawn.



If you look at the names, you will notice that it's the name of the sister restaurants.

My recommendation is the Keisuke (Prawn) Gyozas (top left). It's a mixed of minced prawns and pork that has been infused with strong crab stock. No crabs in the gyoza but they use it in the broth that is mixed into the meat.



The Tonkotsu King (Pork) Gyozas are made from mince pork mixed with rich and thick tonkotsu broth. It's for those who love the aroma of thick porky taste.



The Tori King (chicken) Gyozas are made from mince chicken and has thick chicken broth in it. This is a bit too salty for me.



Gyoza skin is not too thick or too thin. It's just nice for me. It has a nice crispy side and the soft tender side. As you bite into it, it's juicy and flavourful. It's nicely cooked and like in many places I have observed, they are very precise in the timing. You can hear timers buzzing now and then.
 

Step 2: Choose your rice portion, Small, Regular, Large or Extra Large plus your Soup (Miso or Vege)



This is my small portion of rice. We were told we can always ask for more rice anyway. I did not want to waste the rice.

If you notice when you are there, there is a row of rice cookers cooking. They are Induction Heating Rice Cookers. It's suppose to cook the best rice ever! The chef says that their rice is from Uonuma from the Niigata Region. The place in Japan that grows the best and most expensive Koshihikari rice. So don't waste the rice!

(Personally, I am a gadget guy, and I nearly bought one of the IH Rice Cookers! I have 3 rice cookers at home and the fav is the little Japanese rice cooker that cooks very good rice! I can replicate this at home. I use US planted short grain rice because the Japanese ones are beyond my budget.)



You can choose either a Miso or Vegetable Soup.
Both are very salty, the Japanese kind of salty. It's nice if you like the saltiness level.


Step 3: Choose 2 side dishes from the list of 8. 

If you go in fours, you get to try all 8 side dishes like we did!

It's an open concept, so you can observe what is done as you order. After ordering, you will see that they start to prepare the side dishes. Freshly made!



Deep fried chicken with spicy sauce and mixed sesame.
This is for you if you like deep fried chicken.



Stir-fried egg with Chinese chives. For those who likes chives. I know many people don't.



Stir fried pork and cabbage with miso.
This is my favourite of the 8! Order this, it's delicious.



Deep fried tofu with minced pork gravy.
Personally, I don't like deep fried tofu.



Chicken Nanban with Tartar Sauce. This is also very delicious.



Stir fried egg with tomatoes.



Stir Fried egg plant with Miso. This is also one of my favourite.



Deep fried potatoes with minced pork gravy.
You get a good choice to pick from.

It's a very filling meal! If you order the gyozas sets, it's not only gyozas but a meal with sides. You won't leave this place hungry. If you want more gyozas or sides, you can order them a-la-carte too.


Gyoza King
1 Tras Link #01-15
Orchid Hotel
Singapore 078867
 
Hours : 11:30am - 2:30pm and 6:00pm - 10:30pm.  Daily. (Incl. Weekends and Public Holiday)