Greenhouse @ Ritz Carlton, 31 March 2010

Yes, I went back to the Greenhouse to celebrate my cousin's birthday. It was a quiet affair with just the two of us. I saw this bowl of chocolate on the way in and just could not resist it. I needed something chocolaty to boost my mood and started with this. It was not chocolate mousse or pudding as expected. Instead it was a light sponge-like cake underneath the liquid chocolate which was not sweet nor bitter. A chocolate mousse or truffle would have hit the spot.
It was off to the cold section. I decided to skip the Japanese this time and headed for the raw oysters (super fresh) which were plump and juicy. The clams were average to me and the prawns were sweet.

I was tempted by the naan and Indian selection. Unfortunately the naan was a bit tough and not as good as those served in Indian restaurants. The beef rendang was a bit on the sweet side but it was nice, likewise for the fish tikka which was fresh and a bit spicy.

I was super hungry since I only had a light meal for the entire day, so I decided to get a plate of mains ~ greens with wolfberries (yummy), garlic prawns (crunchy), steamed fish, ee mee, mushrooms and roast baby potatoes and sweet potatoes. Carbo overload :p
I decided to try the chili crab again. Unfortunately this batch was not as good as the one I had the week before. The gravy was more watery and lacked the punch of the chili taste. Quite watered down. The spinach cheese gnocchi was good though.

Finally, dessert time. Strangely the spread was mostly filled with chocolate items. My kind of heaven :p The chocolate truffle cake and creme brulee were divine as usual. But the surprise was the small pyramid chocolate.
It was peanut butter inside the chocolate casing. Sublime. Salty peanut butter mixed with the sweet chocolate. It was like Reese's peanut butter cups.
I ended the feast with two scoops of ice cream ~ rum and raisin and chocolate. I'm glad they changed the bowl into a smaller one with smaller scoops as I just could not finish it. I just wanted a few spoonfuls for a taste.

The Soup Restaurant, DFS ScottsWalk

I was in the mood for Chinese food and finally decided on The Soup Restaurant. It was pretty rare for me to want to have Chinese food when with friends since that was what I usually have if I eat out with my family.

In any case I only have Chinese food at a few places since I am not that familiar with it. The Soup Restaurant is one of the usual suspects, and Dian Xiao Er is the other. Then I found out they are under the same management. That probably explains why I like these two places, and the similar decor too.

The must-have samsui ginger chicken. The chicken was so tender and the meat was slippery smooth which made it a pleasure to eat it with the ginger and lettuce.

We decided to try the steamed hand-chopped minced pork with salted egg. This was a new dish for me and I liked it. Apparently it was really "hand-chopped" and thus they only made 30 of this a day. The pork did not have the porky taste and it was really good over rice. There were 3 types available ~ salted fish, salted egg and water chestnuts.

This was the place for me to get my sweet potatoes leaves fix. Somehow I was no longer that enamored with kang kong now. I much prefer this spicy "fan shu" leaves dish.

We decided to have the teochew olive rice instead of plain white rice as not many places served it. It came in a fairly big serving and was enough for 3 persons to share.

I had the double boiled chicken soup. I could not remember what herbs went into this soup though.
Celest had the black chicken soup which was to boost relieve stress or boost the immune system. Whatever it was, the soup was clear and tasted good, which was probably the most important thing.

Greenhouse @ Ritz Carlton, 24 March 2010

It was back to the Greenhouse over at Ritz Carlton again and the dinner buffet was still as good. Maybe I was there quite early, so the sushi was still fresh. I pretty much OD on the salmon sashimi and thus was not that interested in the other cold seafood items. I liked the tomato with cheese too. It was a bit tart and juicy, and the creamy cheese filling created an explosion of flavors when popped into the mouth

I liked the spread of the hot dishes this time round as it featured things which I liked. The chili crab was really good. It was spicy (not watered down) and the gravy was perfect to be soaked up with the steamed buns. The butter prawns were also sweet and buttery.

I did not have much of the meat or fish dishes at all as I was more enticed by the fried hokkien mee. It was surprisingly good. The spinach gnocchi with cheese and bacon bits were also nice. The marmite chicken was a bit too tough for my liking, or maybe it was the piece which I took which was tough. The tart was quite average.

Then it was onto the desserts which we shared. The creme brulee and chocolate truffle cake were so nice. They were pretty much my favorite items of the dessert spread.

I am not sure what this is but it was creamy and sweet and pretty much decadent. At least the topping was not chocolate fudge as expected but a more coffee chocolate liquid which made a good foil against the sweet mousse.

We ended with cheese and crackers and coffee. Yummy feast.

Borders Bistro Dinner in March 2010

After that pretty delightful dinner at Borders Bistro in February, I decided to go there again with another friend for dinner last month. Somehow the food we ordered was not as nice as previously.

The fried chicken wings as appetizer were quite average. One could not really go wrong with fried chicken wings but maybe the batter coating the wings could be better. My favorite type of fried chicken wings is still the Malay style with the tumeric seasoning.

We shared the prawn pasta which was still very good. I guessed the signature dish is really safer to order. At least you will not be disappointed. The prawns were crunchy and sweet and the pasta was al dente tossed in olive oil and chili flakes.

The chicken (can't remember actual dish name) was not very nice. Maybe we left it for too long before eating it. The mashed potatoes were very sticky and tasted like it was from a mix. The cream sauce congealed after a while. The chicken was stuffed and it was alright but nothing exciting at all.

Local Bento Set at Ah Hoi's Kitchen, Traders Hotel

Ah Hoi's Kitchen at Traders Hotel is still running the local bento lunch set promotion which is a very good deal. At $15 nett, you get 6 dishes in the bento set. And the promotion is 2 for the price of 1, so each set works out to $7.50.

There are at least 6 types of bentos to choose from ~ Singapore, Noodle, Hainanese, Cze Char, Thai, Oriental and vegetarian. So far I have only tried the Singapore and Thai sets.

The lotus root pork rib soup was served on my first visit in early January. This was fabulous. The soup was clear, smooth and sweet. I liked it.

I decided to try the Singapore set which came with nasi goreng, satay, curry vegetables and beef rendang. It was so-so only as the beef rendang and satay were a bit tough. The curry vegetables were not outstanding, likewise for the nasi goreng.

I do think they take feedback in consideration as this set was apparently much better when I went there again a week later with some friends and they said they beef rendang and satay were tender. I had told the server only the soup was nice during my first visit as the meat was too tough when he asked how was the food.

It was chicken and peanut soup during my 2nd visit. Again, the soup was very good. I am beginning to think Ah Hoi's Kitchen specializes in soups since they were good the two times I was there.

I tried the Thai set which came with broccoli and mushrooms (yummy), pineapple rice (could be better), green curry chicken (not too bad) and fried fish which was ok.

The last dish in the set was dessert - just cut fruits.

I believed for the Oriental set, it came with Bak Kut Teh, carrot cake and some other stuff.

This promotion has just been extended to 30 June 2010 and is available everyday I think. Check the website or call them for more details. I went there on both a weekday and a Saturday for the two meals.

Old Town White Coffee Ipoh Hor Fun

I am pretty happy to discover Old Town White Coffee is in Far East Plaza. Now there are two places in town serving affordable local food (the other being Pontian Wanton Mee) ~ under $10 is considered affordable for town prices :p

I am beginning to like the Ipoh horfun from Old Town even though it is totally unlike what I am used to. It is soupy and is not dry like those served in food centers. Despite the boring appearance, it is surprisingly very tasty.

The broth is sweet (maybe due to msg?) and it has quite a generous serving of shredded chicken too. Add the silky soft slippery flat rice noodles (kway teow/horfun) and couple of prawns and the cut chilies, this is a dish for days when you want a light meal or when it is raining.

The other dish I always like at Old Town is still the chicken rendang rice but that is usually too heavy for dinner.

Oomphatico's Surprise

SC made a surprise visit while I was at work and dropped off this box. Yum! I want! Hahahaha.
This brought to mind the cartoon girl used for Miss Clarity Cafe over in Purvis Street or of the numerous cutesy doodle girls.
This one is for the men though lamingtons popped into my head too. Lol.
Finally, what was inside the box ~ 2 cupcakes. So sweet of SC to bring them over. The cupcakes were of different flavors though I could not really discern them. One had blueberry or something berries in it. I did not really like the frosting as it was too buttery rich like those used in the cakes of the old neighborhood type of bakeries. The chocolate topping of the yellow cupcake was not very nice either. I think they just use low quality ingredients.

The location of the place. I have never dined there though I see it all the time when I am at Tanglin Mall. Somehow it never gives me the vibe that it serves good food. But the place sure is very pretty.

Thank you SC for such a lovely surprise gift. I do love the box.

Breakfast or Dinner?

Bacon. Check.

Toast with jam. Check.

Omelette with portobello mushrooms, onions and shredded cheddar cheese. Check.

So was it breakfast or dinner? This was supposed to be my breakfast but I decided to have something else instead and it became dinner instead. It was a simple meal and went well with a cup of coffee and juice.

I guessed I am not that particular about what I have at certain hours of the day. Well, except sushi and sashimi. I draw the line at ingesting raw fish in the morning, but otherwise I am pretty flexible about food.

I need to learn how to make a pretty looking omelette. Maybe it is my pan since I am using the square grill-pan to make the omelette. Somehow my egg tend to flow in all direction, making it hard to wrap the ingredients inside.

I do so love the grill pan that I use it for almost everything. Making grilled sandwiches, toasting the bread and frying bacon. The oil just collected at the bottom of the pan and it made me feel better that the food was not coated in oil when cooking.

Grilled Ribeye Steak Lunch

I was inspired to cook again after the magnificent lunch made by AN. Also I was home alone today and it was either eating out or making my own meal. Since I eat out almost everyday (for most meals), I decided to just cook. It was nice to be able to plan my meal and do the grocery shopping.

I bought yellow onion and baby portobello mushrooms which I sliced to be used for flavoring and topping for the steak. I found that I much preferred portobello mushrooms which gave a smoky and stronger taste than the usual button mushrooms. I also stopped eating/using canned mushrooms now.
I love my grill pan from Meyer. This is much smaller than my previous one from Tefal but it works just as well. I drizzled the pan with olive oil (though usually I don't do that since it is non-stick and the fat from the steak would prevent it from sticking but I just watched a tv program where the chef sprayed vegetable oil on the grill and then wiped it down to prevent the veal from sticking to it) before putting on the ribeye steak to grill. I left it on for maybe 3-5 mins for each side.

I cheated by buying a seasoned meat instead of doing it myself. It was surprisingly pretty good.

2 potatoes were boiled and then left to simmer in the pot before I peeled them and mashed them up. I added milk, butter and pepper to taste. No salt since it was salted butter.

Frozen sweet peas waiting to be boiled before I drained them and seasoned with some butter.

And voila ~ my late lunch of grilled ribeye steak with mushrooms, onions, mashed potatoes and peas with onion gravy (from a mix "Continental" ~ not very nice as you could tell it was not freshly made. Maybe it is the brand too.). I need to learn how to make gravy without drippings from a roast.

The steak was perfectly done. Medium well. Just a light pink in the center and not bloody at all. The meat was tender and tasted so good. I realized the cut really made a difference. Ribeye is expensive but well worth the money. I bought this cut for about $12 (around 220g to 240g I think) but it was a bit pricey also because it was already seasoned.

Add a glass of sweet wine and it was bliss. I picked this up at the supermarket too. Orange muscat and flora from Brown Brothers. It is a dessert wine so a glass is more than enough to savor after the meal.

What a nice way to spend the day at home.

Amazing Fish Burritos by Chef AN

It was another wonderful time getting together with the girls (missing 2 girls), exactly a month after the last gathering. We try to have a meet-up at least once a month for all of us, just to catch up and gossip. Of course some of us also meet up on other days/weeks as and when. That required less co-ordination work than the monthly get-together. All of us made the effort to try to make it though sometimes it can be tough to get everyone together.

We don't really need an excuse to meet but it is nice to have a theme too :p So March is to celebrate AN's move to her new abode plus watching I Love Lucy dvds (our gift to her). I love how AN has done up the place and it is a very inviting home.

Our lunch ~ a simple meal of fish burritos and cucumber salad and lime mayonnaise + fries ~ made by AN. Home-cooked food is still the best :)

We had bubbly too ~ Zibibbo Rosa from Brown Brothers. My favorite brand of wine. A sparkling fruity pink wine with strawberries and watermelon. So good and refreshing on such a hot afternoon.

Fish burritos ~ tortilla with snapper fillet and cucumber salad and lime mayonnaise. Recipes from Bill Granger. I love the scent and taste of cilantro which was in both the fish and salad. It simply made the mouth water in anticipation.

After a very satisfying and tummy bursting lunch, we moved over to watch some episodes of I Love Lucy. One episode "Job Switching" got us commenting that some things never change in the role of men/women. Even though almost 50 years separated that episode and now, it is still quite universal that there are 2 types of persons when it comes to money ~ spender and the earner aka wife and husband. Hahahahaha.

It just happened that of the 4 mummies, all are stay-at-home moms, so I guess they (we) could really relate to what happened in that episode where the men thought it was easy to be a housewife and just cook and clean and wash and iron. It was funny.

Then it was dessert time. Home baked brownies using Bill Granger's recipe with a pot of floral fruity tea.
The brownie was sticky chewy with crispy edges. So delicious especially when served warm and paired with vanilla ice cream. It was so good that I had another helping.

Thank you AN for inviting us to your gorgeous new pad and for making a wonderful lunch.

One down...one more to go

After being busy with night classes for the last few months and burning my weekends, it is now exam time. I need to sit for 2 papers before I can start the process for my career switch into the financial sector.

I scheduled to sit for the first paper (supposedly easier one though a classmate failed it when he took it 2 days after the course ended) yesterday and I PASSED!

It was truly by the grace of God that I was able to remember what I had studied. It has just been soooooo many years since I last sat for anything.

Now it is on to the next and final paper. That is the most difficult one where only 2-3 out of 10 persons will pass. This is also the one where I have the most problems in understanding the subject matter.

After so many years of avoiding numbers, I now have to remember all the formulas and know when and where to apply them. I also need to know more in details of what the things in the balance sheet or P/L mean rather than the cursory understanding which I currently have.

Here's praying that I will be able to remember everything and pass the next exam.

Praise the Lord!

Souvenir from Winter Olympics 2010 - Vancouver, Canada

Nothing says how well a friend knows you than by the gift given to you. JC was back in town for a visit and he gave us a lanyard. Not just any ordinary lanyard but it is the Team Canada Hockey for the Winter Olympics 2010 lanyard.

We have been talking about making it back to Vancouver for the Games but it just never happened. Surprisingly Channel 5 showed the highlights 2-3 times a day for about 1-2 hours each time (even though the subsequent highlights were usually repeats).

Due to work matters, I could not attend the Great Canadian Breakfast (to watch and celebrate Opening Ceremony of the Winter Olympics 2010 that was to be shown live at a ballroom in the Raffles City Convention Centre) which was organized by the High Commission of Canada. But I did get to watch it when Channel 5 did a condensed version during one of the highlights.

For that 2 weeks plus, I was basically living and breathing the Winter Olympics via the internet and friends' updates and tv when I had some free time to watch. I always loved the Winter Olympics ever since I caught it on tv when it was held in Nagano, Japan in 1998. Winter was the time I got to watch my favorite games ~ Figure Skating and Hockey (NHL).

So it was thrilling to know that the Canadian Hockey Team (Men) won the gold medal after a nail-biting game against the USA as it was an overtime win (it was the way it went into overtime which made it a very tense game). And that was truly the medal which mattered most to any Canadian. Hockey was THE game. It sure didn't hurt that Canada also set a record for getting the most number of gold medals (14) for the host country (I think it was also the most ever in any Winter Olympics ~ Norway and Soviet Union had 13 gold medals each which was the previous record for # of gold medals).

And now to get the lanyard with the printed signatures of the team was just awesome! A very nice souvenir indeed. Thank you JC :)

Team Roster for 2010 Winter Olympics

Goaltenders

1 Roberto Luongo (Montreal, Que / yay! also the goalie for the Vancouver Canucks ~ Go Louuuuuuu!)

29 Marc-Andre Fleury (Sorel, Que / Pittsburgh Penguins)

30 Martin Brodeur (Montreal, Que / New Jersey Devils)

Defence

2 Duncan Keith (Penticton, BC / Chicago Blackhawks)

6 Shea Weber (Sicamous, BC / Nashville Predators)

7 Brent Seabrook (Tsawwassen, BC / Chicago Blackhawks)

8 Drew Doughty (London, Ont / Los Angeles Kings)

20 Chris Pronger (Dryden, Ont / Philadelphia Flyers)

22 Dan Boyle (Ottawa, Ont / San Jose Sharks)

27 Scott Niedermayer (Cranbrook, BC / Anaheim Ducks)

Forwards

10 Brenden Morrow (Carlyle, Sask / Dallas Stars)

11 Patrick Marleau (Aneroid, Sask / San Jose Sharks)

12 Jarome Iginla (St. Albert, Alta / Calgary Flames)

15 Dany Heatley (Calgary, Alta / San Jose Sharks)

16 Jonathan Toews (Winnipeg, Man / Chicago Blackhawks)

18 Michael Richards (Kenora, Ont / Philadelphia Flyers)

19 Joe Thornton (St. Thomas, Ont / San Jose Sharks)

21 Eric Staal (Thunder Bay, Ont / Carolina Hurricanes)

24 Corey Perry (Peterborough, Ont / Anaheim Ducks)

37 Patrice Bergeron (Sillery, Que / Boston Bruins)

51 Ryan Getzlaf (Regina, Sask / Anaheim Ducks)

61 Rick Nash (Brampton, Ont / Columbus Blue Jackets)

87 Sidney Crosby (Cole Harbour, NS / Pittsburgh Penguins)

The Hookup (for your bags)

The Hookup - a hanger for your purse. Of course many must have heard of a purse hanger or own at least one or a few. I have two and they were courtesy of Elle magazine and Scholls. Maybe because they were "free", I always felt they were a bit flimsy and did not seem to be able to hold a heavy bag. Plus they were not that attractive at all.

Then I saw the version at The Hookup and I pretty much fell in love with it.
In a heart-shape design, it is not that small or big and you can clip it onto your bag and make it look like a bag charm or at least be part of the design of the bag. Twist it open, and voila! It becomes an "S" hook, and you can hang your bag and place it at the edge of the table or chair.

The Hookup can hold up to 30 lbs which is a very big selling point for me. Reading the specs of the various other purse hangers available in the market, they typically can hold between 15 and 20 lbs of dead weight. Seeing that I usually carry big bags which weigh a ton, I need one which is strong and secure.

It is finished in 2 colors - gold and platinum - which will go very well when attached to the bags. Plus it is about 40g, not too bad.
I am still thinking if I should get it as it is US$48 each. Add in shipping, it will be around US$62. Would you pay close to S$100 just for a bag hook? It does sound a bit extravagant, doesn't it? Plus, I just have to trust the specs that it can hold up to 30 lbs and the tip of the hook can really stay on the edge of the table and not slide off.

In the mean time, I will just survive on the old-fashioned way. Bag on chair or lap.

ETA: I just realized it is available in Singapore too. Now I just need to go check it out at the stores.

All images from The Hookup.

Kit Kats - Tea or Coffee

I must confess. I always liked to read about the snacks Hsueh recommended in Urban every Friday. I kinda filed away the information in my head and when I happened to see the stuff, I would want to try them.

So when I saw the Royal Milk Tea from Kit Kat at the supermarket at Isetan Scotts, I just could not resist it. Then I saw the other Kit Kat featuring milk coffee, I had to get that too.

It probably helped that the packaging was so pretty too. I tried them and I was a bit disappointed. It was nice, but just too sweet for me. I guess I do not really have a sweet tooth even though I do like desserts.

The royal milk tea and milk coffee kit kats were coated with white chocolate flavored with the tea and coffee. The white chocolate was probably what made it too sweet for my liking. I often preferred my desserts to be chocolate and the darker (bittersweet) the better.

The royal milk tea was reminiscent of the actual english breakfast tea with milk and sugar. You could taste the subtle aftertaste of the tea. For the milk coffee, it had a very light aroma of milky white coffee.