foodieah's Reviews
1=SGD 0.058733 Yebbers Online!
Double Yebber Dollar Category for April:
Arts & Entertainment
Click here for future month
WELCOME TO YEBBER
You can use your Facebook Account to register in Yebber and start reviewing your favourite or least favourite businesses
Please click the login button below and proceed to create a new Yebber ID at the next step.
My full review can be found at: http://foodieah.blogspot.com/2009/03/indulgence.html
Indulgence proposes a distinctly different style of desserts as compared to its neighbour competitors. Their chef was trained in France, and he produces a good range of classic French desserts. The initial impact is not as convincing of their closest rival, Canele'. However, once you will try some of their deserts, you won't regret of having indulged.
Apparently the most popular choice, the profiteroles ($1.50 each) are filled with a choice of custard or nougat cream. In my opinion, these should be eaten on the first day that they are delivered from their kitchens (deliveries happen on Sundays, Wednesdays and Fridays), otherwise they tend to dry up a bit.
I find their chocolate pavlova particularly exceptional. I love the way the meringue is internally layered with Valrhona chocolate, topped by a creamy contrast of milk chocolate and nougat mousse. A crunchy "chocolate caviar" tops the creation, adding an extra layer of texture.
It's not actually that easy to find a good Creme Brulee, even when you try it at some French Restaurants. Sometimes it's too 'eggy', sometimes too creamy, rich or soggy. Their vanilla creme brulee has the right balance of creaminess, sponginess and consistency, without feeling too heavy towards the end. They caramelise the top as you order, although they recommend that you should have it within a maximum of 2-3 hours since it's been caramelized in order to enjoy the crispy caramel topping. They also have different flavours besides the original vanilla, including Earl Grey, chocolate, coffee and cinnamon.
My second favourite is their version of tiramisu. It might be the Italian in me, but I can say that although this is not actually a tiramisu (it's a patisserie version, inspired to the original dessert), it's an extremely tempting variation. Like the original dessert, their tiramisu, exposes different layers of textures and flavours, keeping your interest throughout the eating experience!
Finally, I tried some of their pannacotta's, topped with fruit coulis. This has never been my favourite dessert in the first place, although I believe that they do it well. Maybe I am just not too keen on the traditional sweet/sour coulis topping , and I am waiting to see the launch of a more innovative pannacotta in Singapore.
I am extremely delighted to see new businesses such as this opening in Katong, especially when they are genuinely offering authentic, quality, adequately priced products as Indulgence does. They are still working on some new creations, so keep an eye on this space and pay them a visit!
Login to add your comment. Or, Register for an account now. It's free!
Besides serving what I believe is the best sushi in town, the restaurant has a "family restaurant" kind of feeling. The staff is very friendly and most of the customers are regulars.
Mr. Matsuo is indeed Japanese and he personally prepares the sushi. He has been in Singapore long enough to speak English like a local. Without a doubt you would never even suspect he is Japanese unless you were told!
The menu includes 3 different set dinners, but if you want the best, you can ask for a "Chef's selection" and let the chef serve you what's best on the day. That's indeed what I chose, and I was served a selection of seasonal vegetables and seafood: sunomono broccoli in miso sauce, an incredibly crispy spring onion (or perhaps it was something similar to a spring onion, as it was too good for a spring onion), tamagoyaki with eel, and raw oyster. I thought the spring onion was superb: the perfection and freshness of it, enhanced by the light seasoning, was just incredible.
The following dish was a duo of delicacies: uni and negitoro. These are by far my favourites, and I love them with rice domburi style. Obviously, when you have the opportunity to taste such quality, you would rather have them on their own, with a drip of soy sauce and a tiny lump of fresh REAL wasabi. Yes, at Matsuo they only serve real wasabi, not the powder version.
The sashimi selection was of course as good as it can get. The highlights, in my opinion, were the Aji and the O-Toro. I have been eating Aji quite regularly at most sushi restaurants in Singapore, but this is unlike the rest. It brought back memories of my trips to Japan. The O-Toro was really as it's supposed to be: not a messy and soft lump of fat, but a hard-textured squarish slice of delicately marbled fish. When you raise it with your chopsticks, it shouldn't 'hang' like any other sashimi fish slice... and when finally you put it in your mouth, you don't need to chew. Instead, you can just juggle it in between your tongue and palate, and most of it will dissolve in a matter of seconds. I can really say this is heaven in your mouth!
I really enjoyed these seasonal broadbeans, simply steamed and sprinkled with salt. This is Japanese cooking at its best: a seasonal ingredient selection, served without altering the original flavour.
The grilled fish head was also very well done. The fish was undoubtedly fresh, lightly grilled and salted throughout, while maintaing the delicate texture and flavour. This is the best part of the fish, moist, slightly fatty, soft and meaty.
The Wagyu beef with fried garlic was served quite raw with its own sauce. The meat was tasty and tender, and adding a couple of slices of garlic gave it that slightly bitter favour that made this dish quite unique.
Another highlight of this meal was the Grilled Otoro nigiri sushi. You can only imagine what a prime toro slice lightly grilled so that the marbled fat melts releasing an extra layer of flavour would taste on top of sushi rice!
Finally, we were served a miso soup with assorted mushrooms and the heads of the Botanebi that we had for sashimi. The fruit platter included some mango, watermelon and Japanese strawberries.
I can only dream of the next time I will be visiting Matsuo. Due to the pricing, it's not a place you can visit too often, but I would if I could afford to. The bill came up to $411, including some extra Hotate (scallop) and Anago (eel) sushi. It is certainly not cheap, but then again the Chef's selection is the most expensive meal you can have at Matsuo, as you are given the best. The service is very friendly and attentive, and the Chef himself is extremely skilled not only at preparing your food, but also reading what you like and when to serve you next, as well as remembering your favourites if you are a regular.
The conclusion is, if you can afford it this is the best in town. But it's only worth it if your taste buds are well trained on the subtleties of flavours and textures of Japanese fresh ingredients. If that's not the case, don't waste your money and invest a 10th of it into a meal at Sakae sushi :)
Login to add your comment. Or, Register for an account now. It's free!
The 'Lunch Unlimited' menu seemed like the best deal, and I went for that. The restaurant has a very cool and modern design as you would expect from a nice eatery within the Esplanade. Although I visited the restaurant during the day, I could imagine that the outdoor bar with patio could be a nice spot for evening drinks and dining.
Soft drinks and juices are free flow, as well as the food. They keep serving new dishes until the courses are over, but you can always ask for extra portions of any dish you like. They opened up with a potato salad with beetroot and asparagus. A well presented dish, with a nice combination of textures.
The pasta salad was Japanese style pasta with sesame seed, nori seaweed and a guacamole sauce served on the opposite side of the plate. Nothing surprising, but quite pleasant.
I found the tomato tart a little confusing. The sweet tart base topped with mozzarella and tomatoes and complemented by a sweet basil ice cream was a little bit of a clash of flavours. Being Italian, I believe that there are better ways of combining beautiful flavours such as basil and tomatoes. Well, they tried something different!
The fresh salmon with mango cubes had a smokey flavour and a smooth and firm texture. I thought the salmon was nice, although the mango was more of a decoration than anything else, as it didn't pair up with the salmon. Once again, proposing fusion and innovation is not as simple as it looks...
The squid tempura was without a doubt the worst dish out of all. Quite disgraceful, actually, as you can tell from the picture. This rock-hard, oily lump of batter gave me no reason whatsoever to eat it. Pretty frankly, I can have better deep fried seafood at a MacDonald!
Luckily, the next deep fried dish, the cheese croquettes, was much better. Nicely fried croquettes with melted cheese inside, topped by a sweet chutney.
One of my favourite dishes was definitely the beef roll. A roll of raw, tender beef Italian style, filled with tomatoes, rocket and Parmesan, served on a hot stone. Obviously the more cooked you want it, the longer you have to leave it on the stone. I enjoyed mine as raw as in the picture and ordered another one!
Ranking second for disgracefulness were the risotto and the pasta. I returned them both. The edamame pasta was worse than what I can imagine "spagheddi's" would serve you -although I never adventured myself in there and never will :) It was just a mass of spaghetti, drowned into a creamy sauce that tasted so intensely of garlic I had to spit out my first (and only) mouthful of it.
The mushroom risotto on the other hand, was not what you can call a risotto. I would rather call it a lump of melted cheese. There was no taste of mushroom in that whatsoever, beyond a lump of creams and fat with Parmesan-like taste and overcooked grains of rice emerging here and there... Obviously, these are dishes that you can't really prepare in advance and there is no room for cheating!
On a positive note, the lamb shoulder with polenta was tasty, tender and well balanced by the sauce, herbs and polenta bed underneath. This was a dish worth having!
The red snapper on carrot puree' was also quite nice, although the extra serving that we ordered was a bit salty. This dish consisted in a crispy pan fried fillet of red snapper, served with a sweet and sour think carrot sauce.
The beef brisket with mashed potatoes was my favourite dish overall. The slowly braised meat was incredibly tender and juicy, the sauce was rich and tasty, balanced by creamy and buttery mashed potatoes. I ordered this dish a second time and it was just as good!
The first dessert I was served was a coffee trifle, which included sponge cake, mousse and coffee ice cream topped by caramelised rice crisps and milk foam. I enjoyed this dessert the most out of the three. Cooling, nice textures, light.
The pineapple crumble was a combination of diced pineapple topped by ice cream and crumble. I am not a big fan of pineapple or crumbles, so this was definitely not my 'cup of tea'.
Finally, the well presented chocolate cake was a rich, thick and intense chocolate cake topped by a chocolate sauce and served with a scoop of vanilla ice cream decorated by a wafer of white chocolate. This was a nice cake, although I was so full when this was served, that I just couldn't afford to have more than 2 spoonfuls of such a rich cake... what a shame.
The total bill, including all the dishes described and free flow of juices, came up to a total of $87.10 for 2 people. At about $44 per person, I would say that this is a reasonable deal. You won't love the whole range, but you are served a reasonable variety of dishes and it can be fun tasting them one by one if you are with the right company. However, I doubt I would go back for this. For the same price, I can have a lunch at places like Cassis or Petite Salut (also reviewed on this blog), and although you don't get 14 dishes, you can have 3 well made dishes and you will walk away well satisfied. Personally, I would rather have 3 quality dishes made with care than 14 dishes out of which 4 are bad, 8 are so-so and 2 quite nice. However, I am not discouraging you to try this place as it's good to have a such new offering in Singapore, and I am sure there is a public for it.
Login to add your comment. Or, Register for an account now. It's free!
Looking at their dinner menus, priced at $48 for 3 courses and $58 for 4 courses, I decided to go and check this place out. The ambiance is modern, elegant and very softly lit (which made taking pictures a challenging affair). The kitchen is visible through a window at the end of the dining room. The service was professional and friendly. As we were shown to our table, we were given the menus together with verbally described daily specials.
The menu included a variety of extremely appetising dishes. Rarely I came across a menu with such a great selection of dishes, so much that choosing my courses was a bit problematic. For this reason, I opted for the 4 courses dinner menu, which entitles you to a selection of 2 starters.
On top of the usual bread and butter, we were soon served a complimentary terrine with salami and French bread. A nice and tasty opening.
Following that, they served the first couple of starters. The first dish to arrive was the 'Seared hotate scallop'. I am not a big fun of this new trend of repeating the same thing twice in Japanese and English. Hotate means scallop, so why write 'scallop (Japanese) and then scallop (English)'? I say make a choice and stick to it. Besides this digression, the dish was phenomenal. The scallops were juicy, accompanied by small tortellini with kaffir lime and coriander, served into a saffron emulsion sauce.
The Traditional beef tartare 'Au Couteau' was also very good, served with a meslun salad and parmesan chips. The meat is roughly chopped so you can still enjoy its texture, and it's marinated in what I think is a red wine sauce, which adds a sharp and distinct aroma. It felt like I was eating at some rustic trattoria in the middle of France, despite the elegant presentation. What more can you ask from a French restaurant in Singapore?
The dish that I found most memorable was the Strozzapreti pasta, with grilled kurobuta (there is a mistake on the menu, as it states kurabuta) shoulder and Morel mushrooms emulsion. I have to say that the only complaint I had about this dish is that it's too good to be served as a starter. I would have wanted it to be my main! The delicate emulsion fantastically brought together the flavour of the mushrooms with the rough homemade texture of the strozzapreti and the juicy pork shoulder slice. I will go back for this.
The last starter was a special of the day. Linguini with clams and mushrooms in an asparagus sauce. The taste of the asparagus was very distinct. I didn't really taste the clams, which I thought were a bit redundant, but overall this pasta was very well done as the sauce was creamy without being rich. Although I am generally not a big fun of creamy sauces, I could make an exception for this.
The first main dish was a Braised Victoria lamb shank with 'couscous style' rosemary jus.
This dish initially tasted slightly under salted, but after having a few mouthfuls of the tender meat accompanied by the grainy texture of the aromatic couscous, it tasted just perfect. This dish wouldn't have normally been my first choice, but I wanted to try something with couscous as I haven't been having it for a while.
The Rack of lamb with blue cheese mousse was beautifully presented and cooked to perfection. A perfectly carved rack of lamb, tender and juicy, was served on a bed of lamb jus and accompanied by a cup decorated with mixed herbs and filled with a smooth mousse that had all the aroma of the blue cheese without being as overwhelming as the original product. Unfortunately there was an extra charge for this dish, but then again the meat itself is so expensive in Singapore (as I noted in one of my previous recipe posts), and the dish was worth every penny.
The Warm Guanaja Chocolate Fondant with Vanilla ice cream was another one to die for. Both the ice cream and the fondant were so light they were unbelievable. The ice cream had this mild flavour that tasted beyond a common vanilla ice cream, while the fondant was fluffy and rich, mildly sweet just the way I like it, and it really didn't feel heavy at all. We also ordered a Creme Brulee' (not pictured as I was unable to take a decent shot of it due to lighting conditions) which was as good as the fondant. Once again, great textures, creamy and light, sweet to perfection.
The total bill for 2 people with 2 bottles of water was $179. This included $5 extra for the scallop and $15 extra for the rack of lamb. Choosing regular dishes that carry no extra charge would bring the bill down to about $150, which is very reasonable for a 4 course meal of this calibre.
I will go back for more, and I will also try their lunch menu, priced $34 . The service was also friendly and efficient, although I was a little disappointed by the fact that when the specials were announced, they didn't clearly state that there was an extra charge for the rack of lamb. I highly recommend that you explicitly ask if there are extra charges for the specials offered on the day to avoid disappointment when you finally receive your bill.
Overall, considering price and quality, compliments to the Chef. I am extremely excited about this restaurant and I highly recommend it to all the fans of traditional French cuisine.
Login to add your comment. Or, Register for an account now. It's free!
My full review can be found at: http://foodieah.blogspot.com/2008/09/cassis-sunday-brunch.html
Cassis is located at Rochester park on the upper side of the hill within a black&white colonial house. The spacious and busy kitchen is open and visible from the outside, exposing the high level of hygiene maintained within.
I had dinner at Cassis once, and it was an amazing experience. Their lunch deal is actually available also on weekdays. They have two options: one including dessert and priced at $40 , and the other one only including starter and main for $35 . Drinks are not included.
As at their dinner course, we were first served a loaf of warm bread with garlic and herbs flavoured butter on the side. You can ask for more bread at no extra charge.
For starters, I ordered a tuna carpaccio topped with fresh tomatoes and vinaigrette. Although beautifully presented, I was quite disappointed by this dish. The seasoning was excessively sour, which made it rather unpleasant to the taste. I am still not sure if it was meant to be that way or they just got it wrong, but a more gentle seasoning would have made this dish a success.
The smoked salmon was as good as the one I had at their dinner set menu, only presented differently. Same quality of salmon and thick, creamy sauce, topped with extra leaves of baby spinach.
The rib eye steak, garnished with roast potatoes and caramelised onions, was as good as it can be. Well cooked, tender and moist, topped by real gravy. Unfortunately this particular selection required an extra $8 dollars on top of the standard price, but it was well worth it.
The red snapper was just as nice. Juicy white meat topped by its exceptionally crispy skin, suspended on a bed of assorted vegetables. The sauce was delicate but tasty, and wisely laid below the fish, giving you the option to combine it with the meat.
The nougat ice cream was beautifully served in a well sized portion. Its nutty and creamy texture was interleaved with extra-thin layers of dark chocolate.
These fabulous chocolate profiteroles were served split into two, filled with vanilla ice cream, covered in chocolate sauce and topped with almond flakes. Rich but refreshing.
The mini-desserts pictured above were served with compliments of the chef, which I thought was nice.
Overall, the bill came up to $143.60 for 2 people, including water and an extra tea. The otherwise pleasant experience was slightly ruined by the fact that we were charged $27.00 for mineral water ($9 x 3 bottles) unknowingly. Apparently, they kept opening new (small) bottles behind the scenes without informing us, while we thought we were only having one bottle. The bottle is not displayed, so it's hard to track when a new bottle is being opened.
Water incident aside, I still believe that the Cassis business lunch menu is an excellent opportunity to have some well served great food in a relaxing environment at a fairly reasonable price.
This is their website for more information: http://www.cassis.com.sg/
Login to add your comment. Or, Register for an account now. It's free!