magurodonya miura misaki kou, suntec city, 3.0.

Sunday, August 30, 2015 0 Comments A+ a-

this place is fast becoming my go-to lunch spot after the gym on fridays. third week running i'm back here for lunch. 

kind of made my way there with the hon maguro megumi trio set ($49) in mind, but then i got distracted by the mebachi maguro tekka don, which at $26, was so much cheaper. pondered for a while, before deciding to just get the trio. 

best decision ever. the set came with bluefin tuna done three ways- sashimi, chutoro steak (which was really more like a tataki) and grilled fatty tuna cheek. i started with the akami maguro sashimi, which was light and fresh tasting. then i tried the tataki. it was topped with spring onions and grated radish. the combination worked- especially the sweetness of the grated radish and the slight char of the aburi-ed chutoro.



the star, however, was undoubtedly the grilled fatty tuna cheek. it came with a crispy golden skin, yet the flesh was deliciously oily and juicy. it was a sizeable piece as well. i found myself hunting down the flesh until the bone was picked completely clean. utterly enjoyable. (yes i finished the entire thing on my own.)


the set also came with rice, miso soup, and another appetiser that appeared to be tuna as well. but to be honest i would be happy with just the grilled tuna cheek and rice. yum. 

it was well worth the price, given that it came with such a variety of things. can't wait to be back again to try another of their lunch sets. 

magurodonya miura misaki kou
#03-314 suntec city 

the daily cut, raffles place.

Thursday, August 27, 2015 0 Comments A+ a-

so many people have been raving about this place, but i've never been tempted to try it, until recently. i was craving steak, but also wanted some vegetables, so it sounded like a good choice.

i reached after the lunch peak hour was over, at about one-thirty, but there was still a queue. just that it was less formidable than what i've seen it to be at peak, so i managed to grab a seat easily.

was deciding between the regular ($12) and large ($15), the difference being one extra protein. eventually, being greedy, i decided on the large.

i got the steak (+$1) and chicken thigh as proteins. initially wanted the sweet potatoes, but then i got tempted by the brown rice- the grains were pearly and looked like exactly the kind of rice i like. as toppings i had edamame, sous vide egg and button mushrooms (+$0.50).


service was quick and efficient. the queue had at least fifteen people, but i got served within ten minutes. portions were generous, so i didn't mind paying $16.50. they had a row of sauces outside of the queue, so i could just pick whatever sauce i wanted; ended up trying the mustard and mint sauce. the box didn't actually need the sauces, i just wanted to try them. the sauces were both on the sweet side though. 

i did mind that the steak was overcooked, though. i like my steak medium rare, but the ends of mine was bordering on well done- there wasn't any hint of pink in certain slices. meh. the chicken thigh fared much better- juicy and succulent. i loved the rice though- it had an al dente bite that i enjoyed. 

will probably be back. i like the clean flavours- it's exactly my kind of thing. hesitant about trying the steak again though- my friend had it several times and never had a problem with overcooking, but... hmm. 

the daily cut
#b1-31 one raffles place

stamping ground coffee, club street.

Thursday, August 27, 2015 0 Comments A+ a-

picked up a cold brew ($6) from a hole-in-the-wall coffee place. tiny place- barely any seating available, so i got my drink to go. i remember this being another coffee place sometime ago, so it seems that it didn't survive. 


unfortunately i didn't quite like it. cool packaging, but seems that cold brew isn't my kind of coffee. way too mild, none of that kick i like. so give me my lattes and cappuccinos any day. 

stamping ground coffee
#01-02
31 club street

gastrosmiths, beach road.

Thursday, August 27, 2015 0 Comments A+ a-

i've been wanting to try gastrosmiths for a long time, so when they had a groupon, i immediately bought it. finally made it there for dinner last night, after making a rather last minute reservation.

we had seats outside, but i didn't mind because the restaurant itself was small. the tables were close together, making it difficult for conversation. the outside tables were much better; spaced out. the weather was also cooling, so coupled with the fans they'd switched on, it was nice being seated outside.

i ordered the 220g angus 150-day grain-fed striploin ($33.50) and my sister got the signature hokubee beef bowl ($28). we were pondering over what appetisers to get, so we got the waiter to recommend, and ended up with the roasted bone marrow ($15).



i first had bone marrow at burnt ends, with their bone marrow bun, and loved it. so it was with that kind of expectation that i tried gastrosmiths' version. this paled in comparison. the bone marrow was good, but it got scary after a while- too much, i suppose, without anything to cut through the fattiness. the bread helped, but was way too light for that purpose. interesting dish to try, but we ended up not finishing it. too much for two people to share as it gets cloying after a while- probably better for a bigger group.


my striploin fared better. wasn't mindblowing, but it was a passable steak. would've liked a bit more char on the exterior, though. it came with pomme puree, roasted cauliflower and salsa verde- i know they're meant to be sides, but they really could've given more of it. 


this was my sister's hokubee beef bowl, which she really liked. she's not a steak person, so for her to like it, it was a huge compliment. i tried a couple of bites of hers, and what struck me was that the steak was really juicy. the texture was excellent. i know it's manufactured to be so, by injecting oil into a normal cut of beef, but it was surprisingly good. it came with furikake rice and a wobbly onsen egg- i took a liking to the furikake rice. reminded me of wafuken's.


decided to add on another main, because we got tempted by the mee sua after googling what was good at gastrosmiths. we got the fisherman's mee sua ($25.50), which came topped with a delicious tumble of prawns, scallops and crabmeat. but the kicker was the bisque that the mee sua was soaked in- it was rich and full of seafood flavour. it reminded us somewhat of chili crab, but in a good way. so glad we decided to be greedy and order this- really good. i would come back just for this. 


of course we had desserts. we got the valrhona lava cake ($15.50) and the beet & cheese ($14). 


my sister was saying that $15.50 for a lava cake was really expensive, but then it came beautifully plated. we cut into it and it was perfectly oozy. it was a pretty good rendition of lava cake. even the vanilla bean ice cream that came with it wasn't an afterthought. 


ordering the lava cake with the beet & cheese turned out to be a good idea. one was rich, while the other one was lighter. it was also gorgeously plated- like artwork. all the elements worked well together. smooth cheese parfait, sour beetroot gel, a light beetroot foam cake, vanilla bean ice cream, and a surprise- a thin slice of beetroot pickle. it was a play of textures and flavours that worked.


portions were on the small side, but everything was prepared with care. prices are on the expensive side though. not sure if i'll be back- if i do it'll be for the mee sua.

gastrosmiths
103 beach road
http://www.gastrosmiths.com

magurodonya miura misaki kou, suntec city, 2.0.

Friday, August 21, 2015 0 Comments A+ a-



came back to try another of their lunch sets. the previous time, the manager recommended the hon maguro hikkaki aburi don ($36), and so i was drawn to it today. the sushi sets looked pretty good too (and cheaper to boot), so i took a while to decide before finally settling on the maguro don.

it turned out to be an excellent choice. it's pricier than the other lunch sets, but oh so worth it.



admittedly it doesn't look like much, but it made up for it in terms of taste. it was a bowl of bluefin tuna scrapping and slices, over japanese rice. the torching was done right at my table, by the manager himself. it was quite theatrical really, what with the sizzle of the fish and the flame. the manager explained that the torching would bring out the oils of the fish, allowing it to soak into the rice below.

the aburi-ed tuna was brilliant. it really brought out the freshness and flavour of the fish. i've never liked maguro, but i take that back. good maguro is in another category of its own. i found myself savouring every bite, especially with the japanese rice. the rice was awesome, with every grain defined- i could eat it on its own. in fact, it was so good i finished every bit of the rice, even though the portion of rice was generous. the don also came with pieces of seaweed under the tuna, and on a separate plate, pickled ginger and spring onions.



yet another very satisfying meal. i left feeling that the amount i paid was absolutely worth it. i really like this place- this might just become my go-to japanese restaurant.

magurodonya miura misaki kou
#03-314 suntec city 

mazazu crepe, liang court.

Thursday, August 20, 2015 0 Comments A+ a-

this crepe place has always tempted me on the way to meidi-ya. so since the food trail coupon included one for quick bites, which included the crepe, i jumped at the chance.

we wanted to add on bananas or some other things, but they said that since we were using the coupon, we weren't allowed to do so. can't understand why, since we'd be paying anyway.

chose the fresh cream custard. in retrospect, maybe we should've just gotten the butter sugar one, because really, what can go wrong with butter and sugar?

lots of things, it turned out, can go wrong with custard. the custard had none of the fragrance that i usually associate with it. it just tasted off and bland. given that the entire crepe only had custard and cream... it didn't bode well. we ended up just taking a couple of (small) bites each; didn't finish it.



doubt i'll be coming back to try this place. i would much rather have doughs of crepes over at cineleisure.

mazazu crepe
liang court
#b1-30

pecori japanese egg restaurant, liang court.

Thursday, August 20, 2015 1 Comments A+ a-

i've always wanted to try the omurice at this place, but there are too many other temptations at liang court...



finally got down to it that day, with the food trail coupon as motivation. shared a spicy tomato omurice with ebi fry with L.



the omelette, usually the star of omurice, was just okay- it wasn't the fluffy type that i like, but it wasn't crap as well. the star was the sauce- it reminded us of japanese curry, and we couldn't stop eating it. liked that the rice wasn't just plain rice or even butter rice, but a tomato rice. though it probably didn't need to be, given how strong the sauce was. the ebi fry was pretty good as well- crisp and not greasy.



























the set also came with free flow salad bar, including corn, beansprouts, kimchi, potato salad and soup. dessert was also included- it was moi lou chocolate. i didn't know what to expect until we were served. looking at its appearance, we were guessing that it might be lava cake, but it wasn't (was that too much to hope for?). instead, it was a chocolate cake that i was undecided about, but L liked. it wasn't sweet, but the texture straddled biscuit and cake, which i couldn't decide if i liked.

it was an alright meal- quite value for money, given the unlimited sides. i wish they had better omelette though. i'd come back if their egg was better done.

pecori japanese egg restaurant
liang court
#b1-31/50

ryoshi sushi ikeikemaru, liang court.

Thursday, August 20, 2015 0 Comments A+ a-

did a liang court food trail with L. there were three set meal coupons available, so we used up two at ryoshi sushi, since they were offering the bara chirashi set. L had had the bara chirashi at the westgate outlet recently, and had nothing but good things to say, so we were interested in making a comparison. 

the first thing that struck us, though, was how lacklustre the service was. i had higher expectations, given that it was their flagship outlet. 

the food came quickly. it was a generous mound of diced sashimi, with bits of pickle and cucumber mixed in. L commented that the dice of the westgate outlet's chirashi was bigger and much more generous though. still, it was a respectable chirashi- good for the price, but i wouldn't go out of the way to have it. i would, however, want to try the westgate outlet though. 



the set also came with miso soup, salad and dessert. annoyingly enough everything came together at one go- including the ice cream. so by the time we got to dessert, it was already half melted. i wouldn't mind them serving dessert together if it was something that would be okay at room temperature, but ice cream?! 

won't be back in a hurry. food was okay, but the service was such a turn off. 

ryoshi sushi ikeikemaru
#b1-31/50 liang court

doughs of crepes, cineleisure.

Monday, August 17, 2015 0 Comments A+ a-

came for the savoury burrito crepe, but apparently they don't do savoury crepes anymore, so i ended up getting a sweet crepe instead. they had a variety of choices for bases and fillings. bases included milk chocolate sauce, which i got, as well as white chocolate. they had pretty interesting fillings- oreo crumble, crushed peanuts, brownies, fruity pebbles, marshmallows, etc. i chose crushed peanuts, banana and crushed cinnamon cookies. it came with ice cream (which also came in a variety of flavours) but i decided to go without. it was supposed to come with a sauce on the outside of the crepe as well, with a choice of things like butterscotch and strawberry, but i chose not to have that.


it turned out to be a surprisingly good sweet crepe. the crepe itself was perfectly crisp and fragrant. the filling was a good match as well- i especially liked the cinnamon cookie crumble. i finished the entire thing easily. only wish they wouldn't serve it with a paper plate- i would much rather hold it in my hands and eat it. it was cumbersome to eat it with a fork. 

business didn't seem good though- hardly anyone in sight, which is a pity because they actually do a pretty good crepe. i'll swing by to get one of these again easily. 

doughs of crepes
#b1-07 cathay cineleisure 

dulcet & studio, liang court, 2.0.

Monday, August 17, 2015 0 Comments A+ a-

ever since i saw on instagram that dulcet & studio had a matcha roll cake, i've wanted to try it. so when i was at liang court one night and saw that they had it (it's been elusive- i haven't seen it each time i walk by) i jumped at the chance.

they were having some sort of promotion, so i ended up getting more than i had originally intended to. it was 3 for $12 for selected items, including the matcha roll. being the aunty value seeking person that i am, i hesitated for just a moment before deciding to just get three items. so i got the matcha roll (usual price $4.50), mont blanc (usual price $6) and corn eclair (usual price $5.20) for just $12- a pretty good deal i would say. never knew that dulcet and studio did such deals; i should pop by more often!



i liked the matcha roll best. it was on the sweet side, but the texture of the cake was fluffy enough to save it. the corn eclair was... strange. liked the filling inside well enough, and it was certainly visually appealing, with the corn bits on top, but they should've taken more care with the preparation of the corn. the corn was still attached to bits of the cob, making for a difficult eat. i didn't mind, but my sister and mum did, and they left the corn untouched. i didn't like the choux pastry- it was doughy and didn't taste fresh.

the mont blanc though, was a disappointment. it was way too sweet, and i could barely discern the chestnut taste. i like desserts, but i don't have that much of a sweet tooth, so i couldn't appreciate it.

the cakes were certainly pretty (as are all japanese cakes) but i think i'll stick to the milk puddings (mm...) and cream puffs next time.

dulcet & studio
#01-41/42 liang court 
https://www.facebook.com/DulcetNStudio

magurodonya miura misaki kou, suntec city.

Friday, August 14, 2015 0 Comments A+ a-

i've been wanting to come by for a while, and finally managed to today. dropped by for lunch after the gym today (just right across! really convenient), and the place was pretty much empty. 


after some pondering, i decided to get the bara chirashi set lunch ($18.80). the manager was introducing stuff to me on the lunch menu, and i was briefly tempted by the aburi maguro don as well as another seafood don that came with uni (!!), but decided to be more budget conscious and try out their cheaper offerings first. 

the set came with chawanmushi, miso soup, salad, as well as fruits. hot tea was provided the moment i sat down. 


the bara itself was awesome. i'm usually not a bara fan, because the fish is diced so finely i can hardly taste it. in this one, however, i could taste the freshness of the fish. it came with generous amounts of ikura as well! the wasabi that came with the bowl was the freshly grated type. the rice was perfectly cooked and vinegared as well. the manager, who came to ask if i enjoyed my food (a resounding YES!), revealed that they use rice from hokkaido, but the difference was that the rice was freshly dehusked- only before the rice is flown over do they remove the husk. i loved the rice; almost finished all of it. 


even the sides were good. i liked the wobbly chawanmushi, and was surprised by how soft its texture was when i took my first spoonful. it even came with bits of chicken and prawn! 

they obviously take pride in their food. i will definitely come back to try their other lunch offerings- the aburi maguro don calls out to me (even though i'm not a maguro fan). a really promising place with excellent service. the manager was friendly and helpful, but not overwhelmingly so. appreciated the nuggets of information that he provided- it made me appreciate the food so much more (even showed me how to have soy sauce with bara chirashi!). can't wait for my return visit- so many things i want to try on their menu. 

no service charge, only gst. one of the places that i actually want to pay service for- excellent service and excellent food. 

magurodonya miura misaki kou
#03-314 suntec city

the vietnam experience, broadway coffee shop, lavender.

Friday, August 14, 2015 0 Comments A+ a-

wanted a quick lunch, but didn't have any cravings to satisfy, so it was hard for me to decide what to eat. had just about given up on grabbing lunch, but then i happened to walk past this coffee shop and saw that there was vietnamese food available! since vietnamese food isn't readily available in coffee shops, i took that as a sign and stepped in to order. 


wanted something fresh and light, so i got the vietnamese chicken salad ($4.50). it was a generous tangle of shredded lettuce, basil leaves and onions, topped with fried onions and peanuts. the dressing was light, just slightly sweet, and just enough for the amount of vegetables (i hate it when salads are overloaded with dressing). i even didn't mind the raw onions! was pretty pleased with the chicken salad. it was exactly what i needed. 


i was still hungry, however (i'd underestimated my appetite). was initially contemplating ordering the beef pho, but got waylaid when i saw someone ordering the vietnamese crepe ($4.50). 


it was a good decision. it was a sizeable portion, and i liked that it wasn't too oily. the filling was interesting- a mix of minced chicken, shredded lettuce, wood ear mushrooms, beansprouts, and green beans. i've never had green beans in a savoury way before, but i liked it. the soft, eggy crepe was pretty good too. flavours were on the light side, but that's the way i prefer it anyway. that's probably why it came with a vietnamese dipping sauce, which provided a good balance. 


only i can manage to spend $9 eating at a coffeeshop. but it was really satisfying! and to think that it was a random find. i'll drop by if i'm in the area; probably will want to try the pho next time. 

the vietnam experience
broadway coffeeshop
100 tyrwhitt road

merely ice cream, sunshine plaza.

Sunday, August 02, 2015 0 Comments A+ a-

we wanted ice-cream after dinner, so i did a quick search. i realised that there are really a lot of ice-cream places in the bugis/city hall vicinity. competition is fierce! there were three places that we could check out. initially wanted to see which one we liked best, but because it was getting late, we ended up just eating at the first stop.

we got seats- pretty cramped, and we initially had a spot at the giant communal table that was so wide it was difficult to talk across. almost wanted to leave though, when i realised they'd run out of waffles (what?????). then i decided to settle for a waffle cone... but they didn't have it either. okay... so all they had was ice-cream.

in the end, after some trying, we settled for a triple scoop of salted butterscotch, chocolate stout, and apple yakult ($9.20).


the scoops were generous- so generous, in fact, that it was difficult to eat out of the cup without bits of ice-cream falling out. we ended up getting an extra empty cup and transferred one of the scoops over. i liked the salted butterscotch best, especially the lumps of digestive biscuit. (i found myself digging through the ice-cream for those lumps.)

still slightly annoyed that they could actually run out of waffles and cones. i need a little something to go with ice-cream, else it gets a bit cloying. then again, i'm probably just not an ice-cream person. not sure if i'd want to come back- their ice-cream was okay, but not spectacular, and there are so many other options in the area. 

merely ice cream
sunshine plaza #01-13

ned's crepe, tampines mall.

Saturday, August 01, 2015 0 Comments A+ a-

C and i are always wondering what to eat at tampines on wednesday nights, so we were happy to find that a new crepe place had opened in the basement of tampines mall.


i think we were just so glad to have something new to eat that we didn't expect too much. this turned out to be surprisingly good- very generous with the cheese, and the crepe itself was crisp and light, the way good crepes should be. i got the jessie's special ($4.90)- melted mozzarella cheese, chicken ham and mushrooms. C got the cackleberry ($4.30) and added on mushrooms for an extra $1.20. it was also surprisingly filling, probably because of the copious amount of cheese. good for a light meal. will be back to try the sweet options. 

ned's crepe 
#b1-k18 tampines mall 

mitsuba japanese restaurant, the central.

Saturday, August 01, 2015 0 Comments A+ a-

L and i were craving sashimi, so of course we had to have japanese buffet. i've been to mitsuba several times way before they introduced the à la carte buffet option, and have always had a pretty good impression of their haru chirashi (thick and fresh slices- doesn't get any better than that). so we decided to try out their à la carte buffet one weekday evening.

we got a table by the window, giving us an awesome view of clarke quay.


scallop mentaiyaki were served complimentary. promising start- these were good. so good, we wished we could get some more.


the sashimi came generously sliced and fresh. it even came with a few slices of salmon belly! liked that portions were small and they did let us know how many slices came with each order- one serving of sashimi was two slices.





we also got their cooked food, trying out a few from each section. happily enough everything we ordered was pretty good. especially the beef enoki maki- came with a slightly charred, crispy crust. mm.


off the makimono section, we tried the mitsuba maki (breaded prawn with chicken floss, below) as well as the ebi tempura. each serving came with three pieces. it was average, nothing to shout about. probably one of the weaker items on their menu. i also tried their soft shell crab temaki, which i did like.


my favourite item of the night was surprisingly enough the century egg tofu. the pitan sauce was sweet and savoury at the same time; paired with the smooth tofu and pop of the tobiko, it was a brilliant match. i probably had four or five of these, they were so good. 


also tried the tempura. it came piping hot and crispy. the batter was light and not too oily, just the way good tempura should be. 


of course we tried a bunch of other stuff (given our bottomless pits) and found the food in general to be pretty competent. service was also attentive. they refilled our tea without our asking, and kept our dirty plates promptly. food was also served quite quickly.


one of the better japanese buffets around, at this price point. i'll be back- this might just be my new favourite japanese buffet. we paid about $37- the usual price was $36.80++ but they were having a 15% off promotion for dinners. 

mitsuba japanese restaurant
#03-88 the central 
http://www.mitsuba.com.sg

shibuya omakasei & sushi bar, seah street.

Saturday, August 01, 2015 0 Comments A+ a-

read about this place (cheap sushi!) and i'm a sucker for value for money set lunches, so since i was nearby, i headed over.

it was a really small space, with only counter seats inside, with a couple of tables outside. but of course i wasn't about to brave the heat. it was surprisingly crowded, so what i got was a seat facing the window near the door.

i was hoping for a quick lunch, so after flicking through the menu for a bit, i got the aburi mori set ($20) and ocha for an additional $1. menu description was basically nonexistent, other than stating that it came with a salad and soup, so i asked what was included when i placed my order. what i got was a vague reply- pickles and a listing of the various aburi sushi included in the set, so i gave up and waited to be surprised. from the blog post i read regarding the set lunch, i did expect sashimi and a cold udon, but weirdly enough, i got neither. hmm.


the salad was served first, after about ten minutes of waiting. i was getting antsy so i asked how long the rest would take. after another bout of waiting i got the aburi sushi and a pitan tofu. there were six pieces of aburi sushi, along with a piece of tamago. i'm a sucker for most things aburi, and this was not bad considering the price point. my favourite was perhaps the salmon mentai one. what i really liked was the pitan tofu though- it's one of my new favourite things, so i was happy to be surprised with it.





only after i finished my aburi sushi and tofu did the rest of my items arrive. weirdly enough, the watermelon came first, before the mori soba and miso soup. would've liked to have the miso soup together with my aburi sushi, though. the soba was alright, nothing to shout about, but i was hungry so i finished it easily.



i'm wondering if they change the items in their set lunch every day; would've liked to have had more information in their menu.

i think they're relatively new, which explains the conspicuous lack of google results. but they were also majorly understaffed (only two people running the whole place!) which led to a less than stellar dining experience- i like my food served all at one go when it comes to japanese set lunches. i would come back if i had the luxury of time- this is hardly the place for a quick lunch. i'll agree that their food is value for money, though.

shibuya omakasei & sushi bar
39 seah street
https://www.facebook.com/SHIBUYAOMAKASEI