Gastrosmiths, Bugis

The Humble Loaf at Katong Shopping Centre has evolved and morphed into Gastrosmiths along Tan Quee Lan Street. I dropped by with SY and Stef one evening after work because the reviews sounded good. We did not make a reservation and was hoping that we need not queue for too long. Thankfully we were early enough to snag a table in a corner of the small cozy restaurant. As the night went on, the restaurant grew steadily more crowded but we were still able to sit around and chat over our meal and dessert.

The menu at Gastrosmiths was pretty extensive with a presentable variety of starters, snacks, mains, and desserts.

We had the Truffle Chopped Egg and Caviar Bruschetta ($12) as a starter. The truffle chopped egg was fantastic! Finely chopped eggs with the pungent aroma of truffle. The eggs slipped down my throat while I chewed happily on the crispy toast. 

Sea salt fries with Truffle Oil ($7.60 + $2 for truffle oil). This was decent. The fries were well-fried but they lacked the fragrance of truffle oil. I am guessing that Gastrosmiths did not fry the fries with sufficient truffle oil. Or perhaps the truffle oil was not fantastic. Either way, the truffle chopped eggs were definitely way more fragrant than the sea salt fries with truffle oil.

We had the Shio Koji Prawn Linguine ($16.50). This was a great pasta dish. Al dente linguine with a robust sweet tomato-based sauce paired with crunchy fresh prawns.

Skate and Cauliflowers texture ($24). It took us a long while to figure out that Skate meant Stingray. We decided to order this because it sounded unique and because a review said that it was good. Ahhh ok I beg to differ unfortunately. I liked the cauliflower mash because it was different from the usual mash that I was used to. But the skate was rather tasteless. I might have enjoyed it better if the skate was marinated before it was grilled. Or perhaps I was just too used to the usual sambal stingray....

We had the Apple Crumble ($12.50) for desserts. It was pretty decent with sweet caramelised apple which were deliciously soft as well as a light honey walnut ice cream. 

Service was good and attentive and the vibe in the restaurant was pretty nice and cozy. I am not sure if I would return though because I was not completely blown away by the food. But I guess this is a nice place for a comfortable chit chat session with good friends over dinner. So nice to hang out with good old friends!

103 Beach Road
63363689
11:30 am to 9:30 pm
Sunday: 11 am to 3 pm

Dulcet & Studio, Liang Court

Dulcet & Studio is a Japanese cafe in Liang Court which is known for their sweet treats. Lynda and I came by for lunch one day and it was such a yummy meal! We placed our orders at the cashier near the door, picked up a little number tag, collected our utensils, and found ourselves a table at the back of the cafe. Our lunch was served shortly after.

We decided to go for their fresh pasta. The menu states that the pasta is made in Hokkaido with high quality ingredients hence the pasta is more chewy and flavorful. With a description like that, how could we not try their pasta? Lynda also tried their pasta previously and provided good reviews, so we decided to go for pasta again that day.  

The Pork Katsu Curry Tagliolini ($15) was yummy and interesting! Such an interesting combination to have pork katsu curry with pasta. The pasta was lightly coated with sweet delicious curry sauce and tasted really good. The Pork Katsu was decent. Definitely not as good as the pork katsu at the usual katsu restaurants but still a good piece of pork katsu nonetheless. 

The Classic Black Pig Bolognese Fettucine was next ($13). The pork was very fresh and the sauce was delicious! This was a simple dish that was done very well. 

We had the Green Tea Chiffon Cake for dessert. The cake was light and refreshing, with pieces of sweet juicy strawberries within. Perfect end for our lunch.

#01-41 Liang Court
63389248

Tokyo with Zg Day 4, Shinjuku, Tsunahachi, Tokyo Metropolitan Building Observatory

Day 4 was incredibly wet and rainy. The sky was dark and gloomy for the entire day and while we hoped that the rain would stop in the afternoon, it never did. We were stuck in Shinjuku the entire day (only because it was close to our hotel) but that turned out to be pretty interesting too!

We headed to Tsunahachi for tempura during lunch. It was pouring so we decided not to search for the main outlet in Shinjuku. Instead, we made our way to Keio Department Store for the Tsunahachi branch there. We sat at the counter so we could watch the chef at work.

The tempura was fresh, the batter was light and crisp, and I loved how the chef served the items one at a time when they were fried. He did not just toss everything into the oil and fish them out at once. Instead, he took the time to fry each individual tempura separately.

We explored all the major shopping centres in Shinjuku such as Lumine, MyLord, Keio, Takashimaya and other random shopping malls. When we were tired, we found ourselves window seats at Dean and Deluca in Lumine and watched the pedestrians hurry along

We walked everywhere around Shinjuku, got lost in the rain many times because our GPS screwed up, were horribly wet and cold, and got bored of opening and closing our mini umbrella. I decided that we should buy one of those plastic transparent umbrellas that everyone was holding and join in the crowd. So I went into Comme Ca and grabbed a transparent umbrella with a pink handle. Such a life saver!

When it was dinner time, we decided that we were going to do yakitori on this cold dreary night. We were still lost and were not sure where would be a good yakitori place nearby. I spotted some Japanese salary men heading down a flight of stairs with the sign below and decided we should just follow where the locals go. 

Yakitatsu-Zen was a small hole-in-the-wall yakitori place. There was a counter which could sit about 8 and maybe 4 other tables that could sit 4 each.

3-25-10 Shinjuku

We ordered the Chef's Special which came with 5 sticks of yakitori, a starter, a salad, and a soup. The amazing thing was that we did not know which were the 5 sticks of yakitori. We were completely at the Chef's mercy and the yakitori he decided to give us. We also ordered some hot sake because we were so very cold.

This was the first yakitori and it took us a long time to figure out that this was Hatsu, otherwise known as chicken heart. Oh my. I'm not a fan of innards of any sort but I have to admit that the chicken heart was pretty good. Chewy, well-grilled, with only a faint bloody taste. 

The rest of the yakitori were more suited for us. We had chicken meat, chicken rump, chicken cartilage, and chicken with leek. All were extremely well-grilled, juicy, and incredibly tasty. They were also very salty. I went back to the hotel and guzzled two bottles of water subsequently. 

Clear chicken soup. 

We thought we might need some carbs so we ordered an Ochazuke each. Ochazuke was basically rice in green tea with salmon and seaweed toppings. This was a nice hearty end to our meal and we were so satisfied!

Took a nice stroll in the rain to Kabukicho which was the red light district in Shinjuku. There was nothing much to see because of the rain and we were just desperately trying to seek shelter and stay dry. The temperature was dropping rapidly (a screen on a building stated that the temperature was 9 degrees) and we were not dressed for that temperature so we left in a hurry. 

We ducked into the JR Shinjuku Station and walked underground (read warm) to the Tokyo Metropolitan Building from the South Exit. The Tokyo Metropolitan Building had two observatories and they were free, although only one was opened at night. The view was nice but not exceptionally amazing. It was pretty good for a free observatory though. 

We trudged back to our hotel, practically holding each other in the short walk from the JR Shinjuku Station to the hotel because it was just so cold! Was super glad to be back in the warmth of our hotel.

Read about Day 1, Day 2, Day 3, Day 5, Day 6 and Day 7.

Immanuel French Kitchen and Stew Kuche

The boyfriend and I used to drop by this coffee shop in Alexandra Village for De Burg Burgers once in a while for their yummy burgers. De Burg Burgers has since relocated to CT Hub (still closed though), and Immanuel French Kitchen now stands in the shop space previously occupied by De Burg. The coffee shop seems more lively now with a variety of stalls selling french food, ramen burgers, seafood, fried chicken, and of course the anchor tenant - Stew Kuche. My parents were keen to try the food in this coffee shop so we drove down for a family dinner one evening.

The coffee shop was super crowded that Saturday evening and we milled around aimlessly searching for a table. It was getting really chaotic and many families with small children were wandering around searching for a table as well. A middle-aged man eventually pointed us to a table outside. Once settled into our seats, we picked up the menus from Stew Kuche and Immanuel French Kitchen and studied them happily. 

The menu at Immanuel French Kitchen was short and simple. Stew Kuche's menu was extensive and I was lazy, so no picture of their menu.

We ordered 3 dishes from Immanuel French Kitchen (Pork Belly, Duck Leg Confit, and Smoked Duck Salad) and 1 from Stew Kuche (Linguine in Pesto Sauce with Grilled Chicken). I joined the long queue at Stew Kuche to place my order and received a little stand with a number on it which I brought back to our table. There was no queue at Immanuel French Kitchen so I placed my order quickly and received a buzzer. The buzzer rang when my food was ready and I returned to collect my food. 

The Pork Belly below ($16.90) braised in Kakuni Style served with mushrooms, onsen egg, and potato foam was delicious! The Pork Belly was very well-braised, tender, juicy, and the fats simply melted in my mouth. Fantastic dish! The potato foam was interesting too, it tasted like foamy mashed potatoes.

The French Duck Leg Confit ($15.90) was good too! I am always mildly amused by the small portions in French food but I was surprisingly full from the duck leg confit. The duck leg confit was very soft and tender inside, and nice and crispy outside. It was a good dish but if I could only choose one dish at Immanuel French Kitchen, I am definitely going back for the Pork Belly instead. 

My mum wanted her greens so we got the Smoked Duck Salad ($9.80) which consists of smoked duck breast served with mixed greens and tossed with orange mustard dressing. I am not a big fan of salads but I have to say that this was pretty good!

So the one dish we got from Stew Kuche was Linguine in Pesto Sauce with Grilled Chicken. We watched as people around us ordered the Pork Knuckle from Stew Kuche and contemplated doing the same. But it was not exactly a healthy dish and my brother was not with us that evening to finish up the food so we gave the Pork Knuckle a miss. We will be back for the Pork Knuckle! The linguine in pesto sauce was all right, not very tasty, and the linguine was slightly soggy. I guess pasta is not their forte. The grilled chicken was good though. Juicy chicken with a slightly charred crispy skin. 

We ordered one pint of Hoegaarden ($11) and washed all that meat down with ice cold beer. Fantastic dinner with the family! We will be back for the Pork Knuckle at Stew Kuche and more beer. 

Bukit Merah Lane 1

Immanuel French Kitchen

92973285

Tue - Sun: 12:00 - 14:30, 18:00 - 21:30 

Closed on Mondays

Stew Kuche

62766445 (you can call to reserve a table)

Tue - Fri: 11:00 -15:00, 17:00 - 22:00

Closed on Mondays, except public holidays

Choo Choo Chicken

Wow this post is long overdue. I think the draft somehow got buried in the long list of posts and I just kept missing it!

Met Eunice for lunch a long while back and we decided to meet in Bugis because it was a centralised location from our workplaces. Choo Choo Chicken is located along Bali Lane, just a lane away from the happening area of Haji Lane. If you are walking from Bugis MRT Station, you would reach Choo Choo Chicken in about 5 minutes.

When we reached Choo Choo Chicken, the place was crowded but thankfully, we managed to find a small table at the back of the restaurant. See below for the lunch menu! All sets are at $8.90.

I took the Garlic Set (Garlic Fried Chicken) while Eunice took the Soy Set (Soy Fried Chicken). Both of us added $2 for a mini rice burger and chose the tuna and kimchi rice burger.

The Soy Fried Chicken was tasty and savory, very crispy on the outside and juicy within. Unfortunately, the Garlic Fried Chicken was drenched in garlic sauce which caused the fried chicken to lose its original crispiness. It would have been much better if the garlic sauce was marinated into the chicken before frying instead of dousing it on the fried chicken. 

The Kimchi and Tuna Rice Burger was really yummy. Sweet tuna with spicy sour kimchi mixed with rice. 

I would recommend the Soy Fried Chicken if you visit Choo Choo Chicken. Even though Kko Kko Nara serves better fried chicken, the prices at Choo Choo Chicken are much more affordable.

33 Bali Lane
62990980
Daily - PH: 11:30 - 23:00

It is cold

Adele's Make You Feel My Love is playing on loop. It is a cold night, a chilly breeze drifts into my room through the windows. I am tempted to inch towards the window and shut it, but I'm too comfortably curled up in my chair with the bright light from my lap top illuminating my room. My head is on my desk. I am thinking about everything and nothing while I am typing this. End of 2014 is creeping nearer and I am arrested by this sudden... blank. I get this way every time we reach the end of the year. Perhaps it is the festive season, or the slower pace of life in general, or maybe it is just the cold rainy weather. 

I blame the cold rainy weather even though I love it.