Dessert Art with Jasmin Chew at Stellar at 1-Altitude

I was thrilled when I received the invitation for this Dessert Art workshop with Jasmin Chew at Stellar! Firstly, that means I would get to meet the really young and talented pastry chef, Jasmin Chew, whom I’ve heard so much about her creativity on the presentation of her desserts, and the amazing flavors as well! Secondly, that was my first visit to Stellar at 1-Altitude, which is by the way, the prettiest restaurant I’ve ever been to in Singapore. My pictures DO NOT do justice to how breathtaking the place is.To enter Stellar at 1-Altitude, you will have to take a lift up to the 62nd floor from the entrance here at One Raffles Place! The cosy interior of Stellar.   Breathtaking view of our floating platform and MBS! IS THIS REAL LIFE?! Haha!

Constellations Menu

For a unique gastronomic experience, Stellar at 1-Altitude has recently launched their Constellations Menu, created by Executive Chef Christopher Miller! Besides featuring the best of seasonal ingredients, YOU will get to create your own constellation of dishes (stars), with 6 ($120++), 7 ($140++) or 8 ($160++) courses, where you can taste each of these exquisite creations, and also enjoy a dessert experience where the dessert art is CREATED RIGHT AT YOUR TABLE! SO COOL, NO WAY!!!

The Desserts

I’ve got to experience the decorating of my own dessert platter, featuring Jasmin’s signature creations like the Fire Ball, Cherry Alaska and Yogurt Creme Brûlée! And got to watch Jasmin’s magic at work! Looking at her plate her desserts is like magic, everything just falls right into place, and her movements are just so precise and swift. Super amazing! Even though this is not a very glamourous picture of her! I had to fight through the crowd to snap a picture, you see. You will have a chance to watch her close up, and have her exclusive attention if you were to dine at Stellar for their Constellations menu! I want! This is the Yogurt Creme Brulee I removed from the mould. First time of my life, and I got super excited! NICE RIGHT. I even sprinkled my own sugar and torched it hor! Like a masterchef.  This is the final product of MY creme brulee, with the help of 3 others. VERY NICE. But Jasmin’s demonstration owns ours hands down. Haha! The taste of this creme brulee is overpowered by the yogurt, not a dessert one would like if they are not into dairy or yogurt products. Otherwise, it was a really refreshing change from the usual, and it’s pretty light as well!
 Here’s her Vanilla Blancmange, dressed with the prettiest petals and topped with a crunch. This had a myriad of textures, and the part I loved most, was how light it felt, in contrast to what I thought it would be – really thick and milky.  The Cherry Alaska was indeed a surprise. I did not know what to expect honestly, but when we cut into this, the cherry from within flowed out, and it was definitely a pleasant surprise! Lastly, I honestly was not expecting much from the Fire Ball, even though we got to torch is on our own and it was really cool! Because I thought, chocolate is chocolate what. Boy, was I wrong. I’m always wrong. This turned out to be my favorite of the night. The thick, luscious valhorna chocolate captured my heart and held my palette in captive. This was definitely the BEST tasting chocolate dessert I’ve ever had. Ever.

I had an amazing experience trying to replicate the art of plating by Jasmin, and learning about how the science of food can be put into such use to elevate the aesthetics and introduce new textures! Certainly an eye-opening experience for me, and stay tuned in August for my review on their brand new Constellations Menu!

How to get there?
One Raffles Place
62nd Floor
Singapore 048616

Mothers’ Day Special: Din Tai Fung’s Culinary Workshop and High Tea!

I know this post is a little late, but no matter how late it is, it’ll always be in time for Mother’s Day next year as Din Tai Fung organizes a Culinary Workshop and High Tea session for you and your beloved mothers every year for Mother’s Day! Hehe! Just to prepare you for next year’s Mother’s Day celebration, and entice you to take part in this amazing workshop, here’s a rundown of my experience this year!This year’s culinary workshop is held in the outlet at Seletar Mall, the newest addition to the chain of DTF outlets in Singapore! That makes… their 19th branch here!

Every sign-up not only assures you of a whooping fun time, learning how to make XLB from the master chefs in the DTF kitchen, delicious food for the high tea, it also entitles you to a goodie bag worth more than $50! The goodie bag consists of an apron, DTF pen, flask, notebook, some products from their sponsors, like facial products, honey and also a box to store your very own handmade XLB!  Each table has been prepared a XLB making kit, with all the ingredients and tools needed to fold your XLBs. The balls of stuff on tiny plates are red bean paste, to my dismay. Cause I thought they were chocolate and nearly popped the entire thing into my mouth. Here’s my “omg this one is your sister ah?”- looking mum. She was initially a little reluctant to knead the dough and all because of her PRECIOUS nails, which she spends 5 hours every 2 weeks to get someone to do it for her. But, she eventually got so immersed in kneading and folding the XLB that she forgot about her nails!

This year, DTF has invited Desmond Koh to host the event. Here’s a selfie he took with us, which my mum did not hesitate much to upload it on her instagram, and got so happy that she gained 7 likes for this photo on Facebook.

Upon hearing Desmond’s voice in real life, I was all like WALAO EH! No wonder he’s a DJ and an emcee, cause shit, that was the best and smoothest sounding voice I’ve ever heard in my life. Listening to him made me feel bad about my own voice.

The first part of the event was watching the chefs who have all undergone at least 15 months of training just to perfect the 18-folds of the XLB, demonstrate the folding of this delicate bao. And then, it was hands on session!
This pair of nimble hands belongs to chef himself, and easily did the 18-folds so swiftly, I was left flabbergasted. Wow. Just wow.
 Mrs “omg my pretty nails” got to work pretty quickly, shoving her housewife skills all over my face. Okay, maybe not, cause she has been a tai tai since 10 years ago, never do housework for 10 years already. But she still got skillz, with the kneading and folding.
 Here’s me, trying very hard to achieve my most demure and delicate self. Obviously failed as the chef simply laughed at how clumsy I was with my fingers. She really damn pretty. What the hell. I’m really picked up from the rubbish bin. The best take away from this program was looking at this smile on her face throughout the event, and really getting to spend time with her doing something we’ve had never had the chance to do before. It was really fun and meaningful, for us, at least.Foreground, presenting to you Chef’s masterpiece, background, OURS. ALMOST there. Got potential.
Gleeful me with my QUITE there XLB. Actually looks quite legit what.

After which, we cleared up and it was time for HIGH TEA! The dishes served were shared amongst a table of 4. There was enough food to get around, so don’t worry about that!

These were the 10 dishes we got to enjoy for the High Tea segment of this event, and it was indeed really filling. The quality of DTF dishes never fails and, my mum and I walked out of this place feeling closer than ever before. Even though we were already very close to start with. HAHA!

Thank you Din Tai Fung for the invite and this opportunity for me to do something with my mum on this Mother’s Day. It was by far the most meaningful time that I’ve spent with my mum, and definitely an eye opener to learn how to knead and make XLB on our own. I’ll definitely recommend this activity to any one who’s interested and not to worry, I’ll remind you guys about this when the opportunity arises again! Till then!

Krispy Kreme: Spreading its glaze to Resorts World Sentosa

Krispy Kreme has made Resorts World Sentosa even sweeter with its brand new opening here in June 2015!

Nestled within the close proximity of the best place in Singapore, Universal Studios, and just above the Casino, they will definitely be hard to miss!

A fully air-conditioned 32-seater cafe where one could seek shelter from the merciless heat, and enjoy a sweet break from all that running around in Universal Studios. The full array of their doughnuts and beverages are also available in this outlet.

What makes this outlet at RWS special is the NEW ICE CREAM FLAVORS for their Kool Kreme creations!

Kool Kreme? Huh? A Kool Kreme is basically your choice of Krispy Kreme doughnut, with a scoop of ice cream, or two! The Kool Kreme creation is also available in all the other Krispy Kreme outlets islandwide. However, they do not have the flavors available here, like the Green Tea, Raspberry sorbet, Salted Caramel etc.  A much needed dessert for the persistent hot weather, and you could also get creative with your Kool Kreme dessert by adding your very own toppings (you go buy yourself from the 7-11 nearby of course HAHA)!I thought the ice cream were very rich and I especially loved the sorbets as they are sour enough to balance out the sweetness of the doughnut. Mmm.. Get me some of that right now!

Also available islandwide is their NEW KRISPY KREME MINI ASSORTED DOUGHNUTS!I know we all have moments when we want to try SO MANY of the flavors of doughnuts at once, but a full serving is already so filling and sinful. Thank goodness for this ingenius creation! Now I can eat more and feel less fat!

Currently, these mini doughnuts are only sold in pre-packed boxes of 12, with 3 doughnuts of each of the 4 flavors: Mini Original Glazed (OMG), Mini White Chocolate Coconut Praline, Mini Dark Chocolate Raspberry Ring and Mini Mocha Crisp. So you can’t mix and match the flavors, but trust me, this is good enough!

The flavors were all great, however most of which tended on the sweeter side, even for a doughnut! The flavor I enjoyed the most was the White Chocolate Coconut Praline, which had a myriad of flavors, alternating between chocolate and coconut with every bite, and it was the least sweet of the lot! These mini doughnuts are definitely great for sharing, picnics and even, parties! More seasonal and limited edition flavors would be launched in the future for these little doughnuts, and I know I am very excited for that!

The 7th and the newest outlet of Krispy Kreme opens its doors at Resorts World Sentosa on 29 May 2015. Hooray to yet another outlet for us to get our doughnut fix!

Opening Hours:
Sundays to Thursdays: 8am to 10pm
Fridays and Saturdays and eve of Public Holidays: 8am to 11.30pm

Just in case you’re wondering, the other 6 outlets are at: TANGS Orchard, Changi Terminal 2, Income at Raffles, Great World City, Jurong Point 2 and Suntec City Mall!

New Zealand Fair @ Cold Storage

The Cold Storage New Zealand Food Fair is now on from 18 May to 24 May at Plaza Singapura’s Atrium! Did you know that Cold Storage has 3 to 4 of such food fairs showcasing food from different parts of the world that they do stock up on their shelves?! Well.. I never knew that! But now we all know!

In this showcase, you can expect to find a selection of over 150 delicious fresh products, healthy snacks, interesting ciders, beers and wines, together with free food, wine and cider samplings, where they will find themselves in good hands with the ever-patient promoters explaining their products and also answering any queries. Not forgetting the great offers and discounts at the fair, as well! (:

If you’re familiar with the New Zealand brands, you would be excited to know that Anathoth, New Zealand Honey Co., Harrways, Delisio, Annie’s Fruit Bar, Mother Earth, Monteiths, Ceres Organics, Coral Tree, Flaxbourne and Orchard Thieves ciders will be making their appearance in this fair, and are available at selected Cold Storage outlets!

Here’s what to look out for at the fair and at the stores!
* Prices reflected are what you can expect off the shelves of Cold Storage!

1. Coral Tree Apple Bee Honey and Apple Cider Vinegar Health Drink – $6.50
The first organically certified apple cider vinegar producer of New Zealand! These are made from a variety of tree ripened organic apples and are naturally fermented in mature oak barrels! What you should expect from each bottle is 100% apple cider vinegar, featuring a perfect blend of apple cider vinegar (of course), NZ honey, water, apple juice and a hint of zesty lime. I feel so healthy drinking this, and did you know that ACV can help in weight loss by prolonging satiety after eating?

2. Abe’s Bagel Crisps – Marmite Flavor ($5.20)
 This is probably the biggest take away for me from the fair, because I’ve now found my all-time favorite snack! Did you know? These bagel crisps are 50% less fat than potato chips and are also free from artificial colors, flavors, preservatives and MSG!!!! I APPROVE. I feel healthy eating these too.
The marmite flavored one just blew me away with its savoriness and distinct marmite taste. If you’re a fan of marmite, trust me, you’d better stock these up because they are gonna be gone in a day.

3) Harraways Honey Toasted Muesli – $5.95
The honey toasted flavor featured in the fair is a new product at Cold Storage! Made with quality wholegrain oats toasted with golden brown honey and blended with dried fruits and seeds, it makes oats less boring tasting, like I always find them to be! This would definitely serve as a power packed breakfast or a mid-day snack!

4) New Zealand Honey Co. Manuka Honey UMF 5+ – $43.95
Manuka Honey has anti-bacterial properties, which is gaining worldwide recognition for its unique healing properties. This yummy honey can be used as a spread on breads, or added to your cooking as a substitute for sugar as a healthier option! Mmm..

5) Kiwigarden Apple Slices – $7.65
 These apple slices are JUST APPLES! Using quality apples like the Royal Galas, Pacific Queen, Fiji etc. apples, they are sliced with their skins to preserve the nutrients and then freeze dried to retain their natural flavors, vitamins and minerals.
This applies to their other products as well! Moreover, there are no preservatives or flavorings, and they are all naturally sweet, and what’s more, they are gluten free! A great healthy, natural and low-calorie snack! I personally loved the Banana and Honey Yogurt Drops which has textures like the banana, and it feels almost like having bananas but in the shape of little drops!

6) Bluebird Delisio Gourmet Caramelized Onion and Balsamic Vinegar Chips – $3.95
Made from PREMIUM quality NZ potatoes, these chips are of the perfect crunch! The Caramelized Onion and Balsamic Vinegar is the latest flavor of Bluebird Delisio’s chips! Do try the other flavors as well, like the Sweet Chili Relish and Green Tzatziki! All of which are light and flavorful, a very delightful snack!

7) Orchard Thieves Blackberry and Elderflower Cider – $6.90

Best served with a tall glass of ice, this blackberry and elderflower flavor is the newest flavor from Orchard Thieves. I thought this was a perfect thirst quencher, and something I would definitely look forward to after a meal! YUM!

8) Ceres Organics Raw Tropical Fruit Bar – $4.35
 Yet another natural and healthy to-go snack! Ceres Organics bars are packed with wholesome organic goodness of raw superfoods like coconut and chia seeds! Not only a convenient snack, these are also vegan, grain-free, soy-free and paleo friendly! Here’s another one for you, my health conscious friends!

9) TastyPot Co. Soup – $6.99 and Dad’s Pies – $4.99
2 of the BETTER tasting instant food of all time. TastyPot Co. Soup are made up of 100% natural ingredients that are low in saturated fat and high in fiber. Besides its convenience of being ready to eat (microwave on high for 75s), these pots of soups pack LESS THAN 500 CALORIES! What a great diet food!

Dad’s pies is yet another convenient and wholesome meal! Simply pop it into the oven and heat at 180 degrees for 18 minutes for a crispy finish, otherwise you could do a real quick one by popping them with the packet on, in the microwave for 3 minutes on high! How easy is that??! Besides, most of these pies are less than 500 calories, I simply can’t believe it! There are even dessert pies like the Apple and Cinnamon pie for all you sweet tooths!

10) Nature’s Best Farm Fresh Eggs – 6 for $7.95 | 10 for $12.95
 Look at the orangey yolk! I’m hungry looking at these already! These aren’t ordinary eggs! These are eggs that have come from chickens that are left to roam stress free in HUGE barns! Besides the new-found freedom, they are also fed on a high nutrient multigrain feed with added protein and calcium to assist in growing healthier and stronger hens! Happy chickens = AWESOME eggs = Happy us, goes a long way right? What’s more, these amazing eggs are NOT subjected to hormones, antibiotics or any other growth enhancers! They are definitely perfect for a quick meal or a good breakfast!

11) JAZZ Apples – $1.40 each
These HUGE, juicy and crunchy apples are NOT genetically modified, but are a cross varietal between the Royal Gala and Braebum varietals! They are the product of good genetics and really hardworking bees, which spend a lot of time and effort to allow cross pollination to occur!

Here are the other items that are available at the fair and in stores too!

If you do not have time to pay this fair a visit on its last day tomorrow, here’s a list of 24 stores, which are currently carrying the full range of New Zealand Products! Now you no longer have to worry about where to get your NZ fix!

1. Cold Storage Jelita
2. Cold Storage Holland Village
3. Cold Storage United Square
4. Cold Storage Northpoint
5. Cold Storage Takashimaya
6. Cold Storage Bugis Junction
7. Cold Storage Parkway Parade
8. Cold Storage Guthrie House
9. Cold Storage Novena Square
10. Cold Storage Compass Point
11. Cold Storage Cluny Court
12. Cold Storage Vivo City
13. Cold Storage Kallang Leisure Park
14. Cold Storage West Coast Plaza
15. Cold Storage Tampines One
16. Cold Storage Serangoon NEX
17. Cold Storage Siglap Village
18. Cold Storage Causeway Point
19. Cold Storage Great World City
20. Cold Storage Eastwood
21. Cold Storage Plaza Singapura
22. Cold Storage West Mall
23. Cold Storage Tripleone Somerset
24. Cold Storage One KM

Dilmah Real High Tea Challenge 2015

I was recently invited to witness the Dilmah Real High Tea Challenge 2015, and what an eye-opening experience it was!
 I’ve always been more of a coffee person, rather than tea, and the only kind of teas I enjoy are milk teas. Yet, after attending this event, I’ve gained a new found respect for tea as a drink, as well as a brand new appreciation for this humble and unassuming bunch of leaves, in terms of it’s benefits and flavors. Guess what, my room is now stocked up with so much teas, I enjoy sipping on them while doing my work, and well, even while writing up this post.

I’m sure we all kinda know the benefits teas have for us, such as that of it having a large amount of antioxidants, how it plays a part in cancer prevention, lower risks of heart diseases, aids in digestion, so on and so forth. Yet as a foodie, do you know that teas can be paired with the types of food you’re having to emphasize the flavors of food, mute certain tastes, and just brings your entire dining experience to a higher level? And this was what the annual Dilmah Real high Tea Challenge is about!

Dilmah Real High Tea Challenge

Held at Grand Copthorne Waterfront hotel this year, 11 teams from various renowned F&B and hospitality establishment competed with each other for the opportunity to represent Singapore in the global Dilamh Real High Tea Challenge held in Sri Lanka this July, as only one of them could emerge as the winners.

Out of these 11 teams, including Shatec and RWS, 8-months old Tess Bar has outdid its competitors to be crowned as the champions of this event.

Pardon the poor quality pictures, but here are some snippets for you guys to let you be blown away by the process, just like how I had been. Each team was required to create a tea-inspired menu using Dilmah’s tea, with deep consideration of how each of their food menu could be complementary to the types of tea they decide to brew. The teams were judged by Director of Dilmah Tea and son of Brand Founder, Dilhan C. Fernando, Black Hat Chef, Bernd Uber and InterContinental Singapore Executive Eric Neo.
The teams were judged on tea preparation and brewing techniques, tea mixology (WHAT?!), the correct pairing of of tea with food, and how well tea was used as the main ingredient in the tea inspired cuisine, as well as the quality and creativity of overall presentation.Teams were tasked to brew a minimum of 4 varieties of tea: a traditional black tea, a hot tea mocktail, a chilled tea cocktail, and a chilled non-alcoholic tea mocktail, and serve complementary high tea food items with each type of tea. WHAT A TALL ORDER. And is it me, or have you ever heard of things such as a chilled tea mocktail etc?!
Team IBIS (Bencoolen) with them doing their tea mixology. I was genuinely taken aback by the preparation because this was my first time witnessing this! What an amazing experience!
 If you guys already know this, please dont judge. I actually never knew that the temperature of the water, the purity and acidity affects how the tea tastes. Afterall, my teh bing is always made with boiling water. Anyway, this is the ONLY type of water they use for brewing their teas, and apparently the acidity of the water helps to bring out the taste of the tea better. WOW.
     
Here are some of the presentation pieces from the different participants in this challenge. SO PRETTY RIGHT?! And I  even heard that the Capella did a TCM themed presentation. Ah, I’m just so blown away!Presenting to you, the winners of the Dilmah Real High Tea Challenge 2015!

Right after witnessing this cool competition, we were then introduced to the art of Tea Appreciation and Pairing session by Dilhan, the son of the founder of Dilmah tea! We were all given 3 teas to try, and in the background is a cute hourglass thingy that has different timings to brew the different teas. SO cute right! And I am glad that we got to keep them with us!*CHUA not Chia by the way.

This was the first time I actually realized and learnt how effective tea pairing was, and how it really does enhance the flavors of the food with the right tea pairing. Amazing, amazing experience. For example,
This slider was paired with the English Breakfast tea, and it was supposed to help you separate the layers of oil and fat from the patty, so that it elevates the taste of the patty and rinses off the oil. And that was indeed what I felt with the fats being separated from the patty and it tasted so much better, not to mention, less oily as well!
  This Moroccan Mint Tea went so well with this decadent chocolate cake, I actually felt that this piece of average cake was one of the better ones of all chocolate cakes I’ve had.

At the end of this event and experience, I really gained a new found appreciation for teas, and I’m still amazed at how versatile teas can be. I’ve always thought that teas can only go with pastries, like what we see in high teas, but little did I know, how well they could actually go together with savory items like the Beef Slider. Amazing.

Thank you Dilmah for the invite and thank you Grand Copthorne for hosting us!

Review: Float @ The Bay – A Unique Dining Experience

Planning for a romantic night out? A birthday celebration? Anniversary? Or may be just looking for a twist in your dinner dates?

Look no further. Float @ The Bay is Singapore’s first luxury floating dining concept. Cruising along Singapore River, admiring the Singapore’s skyline at night, with a drink in hand, and a fork in other to attack your plate. What could be a more amazing experience than that?

The View

We all know how amazing the view is at Clifford Pier. Trust me, it looks even more amazing when you’re on Singapore River.Eh sorry, wrong view.
 This is the cruise from the exterior (the one on the right). The interior of the cruise. A simple set up, but I thought it was pretty romantic! Ah!
This is how the cruise looks when night falls.
I just couldn’t stop snapping pictures on board! Singapore is indeed so damn pretty!

The Food

The menu from Float @ The Bay are subjected to change, but this was the menu we had that day!

A 4-course meal, a drink, and a great ambience to boot at just $88 nett. TAKE MY MONEY! Pan Seared Scallop with Caviar, with salad served on side. Supposedly. But our food was served otherwise. Salad topped with Pan Seared Scallop.
 We thought the taste of the scallop was being overwhelmed by the thousand island dressing they used, and thousand island with anything, just cheapens the food, in my opinion! They have since made amendments to the dish, and I would definitely head back to try it, because this was actually pretty satisfying, despite the thousand island dressing! A drink by the river. We got a mocktail because I am health conscious, like this. Wild Mushroom Soup.
  With a generous serving of mushrooms. I loved this so much, I slurped it up to the very last bit!  Grilled Chicken with Mushroom Ragout, served with pumpkin puree.
A HUGE serving of chicken, because even I, explodingbelly, couldn’t finish it. I didn’t quite like the pumpkin puree because it was sweet, like it should be. Haha! Personal preference. The boy loved the puree with the chicken though. I thought they could do more with the sides, as well as the seasoning of the chicken.   Roast Lamb Leg with Mashed Potatoes, served with Mint Sauce. Lamb dishes are definitely not my thing because I don’t like the lamb-y taste from lamb. However, I got hooked on to this dish after trying a mouthful from the boy. This was actually pretty good, and hey mint sauce!
Chocolate Lava Cake
Ending it all of with a sweet note. This was actually pretty good too! And the lava DOES flow! It would be better if the whipped cream served, could be replaced with a scoop of ice cream by the side though. Nevertheless, YUM.

Closing Remarks

After my experience on Float @ The Bay, I thought $88 for this experience is quite a steal! They have recently revamped the menu and hence, there are inevitably some hiccups along the way. However, the staff on board were really sincere and eager to receive our feedback, and I guess that’s a very good sign for future improvements! I would definitely recommend this experience to anyone who is looking for a unique dining experience, or maybe your first date, or any other special occasions!

The dinner cruise is available on every Thursday, Friday and Saturday, and the boat departs at 3 different time slots, 6.30pm, 7pm and 7.30pm. There are 4 pick up points, Clifford Pier, Raffles Place, Marina Bay Sands and Marina Bay Gallery. You got to call them to make a reservation and decide upon your boarding time and place!

Apart from the dinner cruise, the Float @ the Bay do run daily from 4pm to midnight, for some wind down drinks. Do check out their website, https://floatatthebay.com.sg/ for more details!

Lastly, thank you Ysabel and Float @ The Bay for the invite and making my dream dinner date come true!

Time Out Singapore Dine Out 2015!

 Note: Picture heavy post! STOP LOADING THIS ON YOUR PHONES IF YOUR DATA IS EXPLODING!

Dine Out 2015 promises to be the dining experience of the year, which would put a smile on our bellies. Organized by Time Out Singapore, 15 restaurants and bars have been invited to take part in this event, held at Custom House Terrace on 5 March 2015. Overlooking bay front, with the breathtaking sky scrapers surrounding the area, a real scenic spot I would say!
  Entry tickets for this atas “buffet” spread were priced at $55 per pax or $70, with free flow alcohol. I’ve been eyeing this event since the start of the year, but the tickets were all sold out before I realized that they were on sale. However, I was very honored to be invited by Thomas to this event. You can’t imagine how elated I was when he sent me the invitation!

Participating Restaurants

This is the list of food offered from the various restaurants participating in the event! Please pardon the poor quality, I was busy stuffing my face with one hand, and snapping pictures with another!

1) The New Black

The New Black is a place you would want to go if you’re serious about your coffee. These guys serve artisan coffee that suits your taste profiles, using the taste wheel here, because coffee can be as complex as wine.
(Taken at New Black’s flagship outlet at circular road) Despite his cheeky demeanor, with the incessant attempts to photobomb, this guy right here knows his stuff and is in fact, very serious about his coffee.
Making sure that the coffee is brewed to perfection. The 2 blends we tried on that day were spot on with their taste profiles given, we were totally mind blown. There was one which promised to taste like Red berry jam and candied fruit, and that was exactly what we tasted from the unassuming brew. Head on down to their flagship outlet if you’re intrigued by how cool this concept is!
The New Black
1 Circular Road
Singapore 058400 
Opening Hours: Weekdays 8am to 6.30pm, Saturday 8.30am to 4.30pm, closed on Sundays!

2) DOJO
We unfortunately didn’t have a chance to try their sliders because they weren’t ready when we were first there, and there was a snaking queue right after. Since we’ve had their burgers before, we decided to give it a miss! You can read about our experience here!
Dojo
72 Circular Road
Singapore 049426

3. The Prime Society
Where you can get the PERFECT steak. Enough said.
Beer Braised Short Rib, Truffle Buckwheat Dressing and Burnt Onion. Hands down, the best dish we had in this event. SUCH SUCCULENT AND JUICY SHORT RIB.
 Marinated Scallop, Grilled and Pickled Cucumber and White Miso Butter  Intense Chocolate Pudding with Salted Caramel Popcorn and Peanut. Thank you chef for dumping a huge chunk of salted caramel popcorn on my plate! Hahaha!

The Prime Society
10 Dempsey Road
Singapore 247700
Opening Hours: Monday, Tuesday – 6pm to 10.30pm, Wed to Sunday – 12pm to 10.30pm

4. Lewin Terrace
A Japanese-French fusion concept restaurant, located within the scenic fort canning park. Innovative mix of cuisines, with a damn good view. First date to impress? Lewin Terrace is probably the place.
 Dragon Fruit Carpaccio with crab meat Foie Gras Terrine. The juiciest chunk of foie gras I’ve had, ever.

Lewin Terrace
21 Lewin Terrace Singapore
Singapore 179290
Opening Hours:
Monday to Sunday: Lunch:12pm – 3pm (Last order at 2pm), Dinner: 6.30pm – 11pm (Last order at 9.30pm)

5. UNA
If you are looking for Spanish and European flavors, with a good ambience to kick, UNA would be a haven for you! Seriously, one of the best paellas I’ve had.
 Seafood and Chicken Paella. They had one dish to offer, and that one dish just did it for us.

UNA
1 Rochester Park
Singapore 139212
Opening Hours: Mondays to Saturdays, 5pm to 11pm

6. Morsels
Located on the outskirts of little India, Morsels is a cosy place that exudes the feeling of home. Morsels do not categorize their menu because they believe in the freedom to mix and match your little morsels of food. Yes, that means I can have my ice cream with pizza.
  House Smoked Turkey Taco, mmm… Generous servings of turkey and that tangy spiciness, my palates were intrigued and screaming out for more, despite the protests by my bloated belly.
 House smoked Salmon Canape. Order this 2 when you’re there. 

Morsels
35 mayo street
Singapore 208316
Opening Hours: Tue to Thu: 6:00 pm – 10:00 pm, Fri – Sat: 6:00 pm – 10:30 pm

7. :Pluck

:Plucking is the act of sharing a plate with your closest mates, according to :pluck. Head on down to Club Street to eat, drink and be merry!
  24 Hour Braised Short Ribs
Swordfish Tartare, which I only realized on that very day that I did not quite fancy swordfish.

:pluck
90 Club Street
Singapore 069458
Opening Hours: Mon – Thu: 9:00 am – 12:00 am || Fri: 10:00 am – 1:00 am || Sat: 5:00 pm – 1:00 am

8. Cicheti

Everything is written in Italian, so here’s a translation: Seafood broth. SO DAMN GOOD AND COMFORTING.   Tomato meatballs, if there wasn’t a queue, I would have popped 10 in my mouth straight.

Cicheti

52 Kandahar Street
Singapore 198901
Opening hours: Mondays to Fridays: Noon to 2:30 pm, 6:30 pm to 10:30 pm || Saturdays: 6:00 pm to 10:30 pm

9. O Comptoir

Known for their crepes, and galettes, these people bring authentic French food to your table. Being a French Creperie aside, their marinated salmon is the BEST i’ve had, which is only available on their weekend brunch menu. I’ll do up a post on them soon!
  Homemade salted caramel crepe: their salted caramel sauce is DA BOMB.

O Comptoir
79 Circular Road
Singapore 049433
Opening hours: Mon – Sun: 11am to 11pm

10. The Clifford Pier

Clifford Pier is the answer if you are sick of having your local cuisine in kopitiam, and want to have your chicken rice while admiring Marina Bay.
This chicken rice is honestly NOT BAD. The chili sauce was surprisingly good too!

The Clifford Pier

The Fullerton Bay Hotel
Singapore 049326
Opening hours: A lot of different timings. Please check!

11. Town Restaurant

An all day dining restaurant, overlooking Singapore river. Another place to head to if you want to have your non-atas food at atas places.

Town Restaurant

1 Fullerton Square
The Fullerton Hotel
Singapore 049178
Opening Hours: daily, 6.30am to 11.30pm

Phew! This is by far the most tiring post to date! But yes, that sums up my Dine Out 2015 experience! Thank you Thomas and TimeOut Singapore for the invite, and really all these restaurants featured in this event is top notch. I hope the information given for each of these places suffice! Enjoy!

And seriously, the view was breathtaking!
Eh? Wrong view, I meant the one below!

One Night Stand Cafe – 24 Hours Only

Nope, that isn’t the name of a cafe. Actually, it is. Kinda. It is what it is. A cafe that only exists for 24 hours here in Singapore, 7-8 February, 11am to 11am.  The Growell Pop Up event is a collaboration between One Night Stand and Edible Gardens. The Edible Gardens champions the “Grow Your Own Food” movement, through growing food at underutilized places in Singapore such as rooftops and sidewalks. The Pop Up event, hence features the dishes made from Edible Garden’s backyard. Hey! That sounds like my parents trying to grow chili and bellpeppers outside my house! This One Night Stand event has got many people from different places working together to make it happen for us, foodies! We even spotted the chef from Ah Bong’s Italian working hard at this event!

Located at 109 Rowell Road, the Growell Pop Up was quite a challenge to find,  because I’ve never heard of this place before. Ever. Yet, when we arrived at 10.40pm, the place was entirely packed. I guess that is the power of social media!
The interior was a little dingy when we walked in, with the dim, colorful lights. The first thing that crossed my mind was, CRAP! How am I gonna snap the pictures of my food! Hahaha! That dingy outlook was just a facade. As we proceeded further into the space, we realized that the pop up occupied 2 units. There was an opening on our left; a brightly lit space with the growing produce of Edible Gardens, and MORE SEATS! This reminded me a lot of the fish aquariums though!  There were a variety of produce grown on both the left and right aisles, such as the mustard plant and rocket leaves. What an eye-opener it was to be able to admire the work of such a worthy cause by the Edible Gardens!

It took us a good 10-minute wait for available seats, and we were all ready to order!
To our dismay, most of the items which we wanted to order were unavailable. The Iced Gula Melaka Milk Tea was out, so were the Kong Ba Pau, and Pork Porridge. That left us with only 2 food items to order, that is, the Kaya Toast and Cup Noodles.

After 20 minutes of waiting, and starving, our cup noodles finally arrived. This Instant Noodles consists of housemade dehydrated egg noodles, dehydrated mushrooms, housemade luncheon meat, Growell’s urbanfarm microgreens, egg and lastly, all these are being topped with a tasty superior chicken broth, served in a pot! 
 First, we are being served with a bowl of noodles, dehydrated ingredients and an egg.
 While adding the dehydrated ingredients into our noodles, we were both surprised to find the egg soft boiled! I thought it was a pretty good idea because I prefer the egg whites to coagulate more in my noodles, instead of being scattered in the broth!  Adding the broth into our instant noodles. I had to get him to add more broth to ours, just for this shot. Thanks for the cooperation, albeit the lousy picture! HAHAHA!
 I loved the handmade noodles in this. The texture was springy, pretty much reminded me of Ban Mian, and it’s really.. Yum.  However, I thought that the microgreens tasted a little extraordinary. It had a weird aftertaste to it, even after we tried to soak it in the broth!The egg and luncheon meat in this dish reminded me a lot of the Gong Zai Mian from HK. It is the kind of instant noodles I always love from the Cha Chaan Tengs, except for the dehydrated veggies and mushrooms. The broth was pretty addictive too! Overall an interesting experience for me because of the concept of this dish. Albeit the pretty high price tag of $8 for this little bowl of noodles, it was really the experience that mattered and I even had quite a lot of fun just assembling my own food! Yes, I am instant noodle deprived.

Our kaya toast only arrived 10 minutes after we finished slurping our noodles. The long waiting time got us feeling a little impatient, but the taste of this dish, made up for it! The bread was toasted over charcoal, and served with housemade kaya made with foraged pandan and pork butter, 63 deg eggs, and housemade luncheon meat. Maybe they had to take a long time to toast the bread over charcoal.   The kaya in this toast was not the usual ones we get at home or the kopitiam. I just can’t point a finger to it, but it tasted really, really good! Crisp on the outside and fluffy on the inside. I loved this so much, I wish I could have it for breakfast everyday!

The experience to the Growell Pop Up was quite an exciting one, since it’s the first-ever 24 hour only cafe in Singapore! I don’t admit that the availability of food was a little disappointing, together with the ridiculous waiting times. I really wanted to try the other 2 items on the menu. Besides, at the time we were there, it was only half way through their opening hours.. I guess they should have been more prepared with the amount of ingredients in the future if they are intending to go for such a large scale event, to avoid disappointments like this. Nevertheless, I applaud the efforts of each of the individuals that has played a part in making this happen, and to spread the idea of Edible Gardens to the masses. They did a pretty damn good job out of it! So, it’s time for a rest guys, and we all hope to see you guys back, bigger and better!

Éclairs For A Purpose event @ Artistry Cafe

There’s no better way to eat when you can eat for a purpose. Now, that’s an excuse to be off your diets. This February, the Shiok Collective have collaborated with Artistry Café and L’ÉCLAIR Patisserie to screw up your diets and make you feel like a good person at the same time. For 3 weekends, Jan 31 & Feb 1, Feb 7 & 8, Feb 14 & 15, from 3.30pm to 7.00pm, the ever popular Artistry Cafe will be where all these action would be going on. Besides, they will also be serving coffee from their menu ($5 and below), together with an assortment of exclusive éclair flavors from L’ÉCLAIR Patisserie!

The tickets to this event are priced at $35 nett/set for 2, and this includes:

8 Assorted Mini Eclairs
1 Chicken and Bacon Pie
2 Coffee/Tea (priced $5 and below),
which I thought was really affordable for the variety and the entire experience itself! 20% of all proceeds will go to Bettr Barista Coffee Academy, which delivers specialized coffee training to youths at risk and marginalized women. A really good cause, in my opinion, especially with the bustling cafe scene in Singapore these days!

 The folks from Shiok Collective will have their booth set up outside Artistry at about 3.15pm. Feel free to register with them to get your SHIOK! stickers to claim your free drink, and subsequently, your eclairs and pie!
Cute SHIOK! mascot!

Below are pictures to each of the 8 flavors! I am very tempted to review the flavors but I shall not spoil the experience for you guys, because it was really exciting for me to unveil the flavors on my own!  This is what you will receive in all!
Dark Choc & Cocoa Streusel
Vanilla & Pecan
Kaya Pandan (Exclusive Artistry Flavor) Ispahan  Lemon Meringue Gula Melaka (Exclusive Shiok! Flavor)  Banana & Walnut Streusel
 Matcha
 OOH! Look at the match filling!
Here’s the complimentary cup of latte, and I must say that the chicken and bacon pie was one of the best I’ve had. A perfect combination of sweet and savory, and you go to try it to know what I mean.

If you haven’t signed up for this event, head on to eclairsforapurpose.peatix.com to book your tickets, strictly no walk-ins are allowed!
One word of advice: go there early to get good seats for the event! What we did was to have our brunch at Artistry before the event, and we got nice sofa seats instead of the communal table, which can get a little too squeezy! Think PB&J french toast and RED VELVET CAKE. Mmm… Sweet dreams are made of these. 

A first look at Lion City Kitty: The Cat Museum, Muses & Mansion

UPDATE: June Holidays Special!

Inclusive of their usual operation hours (Scroll to bottom of the post), they are now open at these additional dates too!
Tuesday(2^nd, 9^th, 16^th, 23^rd of June): 10am – 1pm

There will also be a Kiddie Cats Camp in June, which aims to educate children on proper and responsible cat care, as well as to change any misconceptions or stigmas they have about cats and show them why they are so easy to love! The camps are on:

Sign up here: http://thecatmuseum.com.sg/?page_id=627

The following consists of what you should expect at Lion City Kitty:

This post contains a rather complete rundown of Singapore’s first ever cat museum. Is it worth the entry fee of $9? Read and decide for yourselves! Lion City Kitty: The Cat Museum, Muses and Mansion officially opens on 9 January 2015.

I’m usually not the museum kind of person. In fact, I’m a museum’s worst nightmare because I love to touch everything in sight. Yet, this time I made a reservation for the sneak preview to Singapore’s first cat museum without any hesitation after I saw an article on it, because they had REAL CATS available for us to play with in the museum (pretty much like a cat cafe), and most of all, my boy is a ailurophile (this was one of the cool things I’ve learnt from my visit to the cat museum), i.e. a cat lover.

So, we paid Lion City Kitty a visit on its last day of its sneak preview on Sunday (28/12/2014). Do not expect anything much, like a large scale museum, such as that of the ArtScience museum, or Asian Civilization museum, with fancy entrances and an entire building dedicated just for them. This was pretty much what I envisioned before visiting the museum, and well.. I was very surprised when we arrived.

Nestled along Purvis Street, a few doors away from the ever popular French restuarant, Saveur, lies a flight of stairs in a random hole in the wall.
 We would have totally missed the entrance to the museum if not of this little poster. Besides, even after seeing it, we were still pretty unsure if we should climb up the flight of stairs because it seems rather unorthodox to have such an entrance to a museum, according to the schema of our past visits to other museums on school excursions and what not.  So, here’s the entrance, which we only decided to climb after being warmly welcomed by the greeter from the museum.
Quotes like these about cats can be seen all around the museum, and this was just one of the many we spotted on our way up.

When you reach the top of the flight of stairs, it is a really small space, where the staff from the museum would require you to remove your shoes to put them in the lockers provided. Do remember to prepare either a new $1 coin or old 50 cent coin for you to operate the lockers. The coins are fully refundable after you are done with the use. The removal of shoes is to ensure cleanliness and hygiene to keep the environment clean for the cats in the museum.

After removing your shoes, you would be led into a rather narrow path into the museum, where posters of cats are put up, and you would then arrive at the counter where you will have to pay the entrance fee of $9 per pax.
Some infographics about how to interact with cats before you enter the museum.

Here’s the map as an overview to the cosy cat museum:

Level 2: The Museum

Here, you would be introduced by the staff to the museum, as well as to the various artworks of felines and cats by artists, which are up for sale. Interesting stories about cats and their owners are also put up for your reading interest. For example, 
The art pieces and photographs which are up for sale!
There are also nuggets of interesting facts available interspersed amongst the art pieces.
Cute kitty soft toys are also put on display, such as cosplaying cats in Elsa’s outfit and these cutie pies.   That is about it for the 2nd level. As you proceed to the 3rd level, it is where all the community cats are being housed. These are cats that have been selected by the Cat Welfare Society to put up for adoption. This level is designed to allow people to socialize with these cats so that it is easy to find a match between the potential adopters and the little felines!

Level 3: The Muses Gallery

This level is set up to match the social mission of the museum to educate and encourage people to adopt cats, instead of buying them. It also exhibits posters that trace cat’s lineage throughout the Singapore history, from the Japanese occupation, colonial times and to the present day. They even have a huge map of Singapore, where cat owners are encouraged to pin a photo of their cats on their location of residence. They also have bite sized info on the various cat species found on that level!

Here’s a look at some of the cats on the 3rd level! From our experience from the various visits to the cat cafes at BKK and the one in Singapore, the time which we visited them at about 3pm, was their napping time because cats are nocturnal! Hence, some of the cats there were all fast asleep, or have that annoyed look because we woke them up specially to get a picture of them. Hahaha!
 This cat was sleeping like a sleeping beauty because LOOK AT THAT. I would love to sleep forever on that furry mat too. This is the entirely black cat which I couldn’t quite catch it in color because it just looks like its silhouette.
Sleepy handsome cat.

Level 4: The Mansion

The Mansion houses the resident cats, including Harry, the cross-eyed cat, who happens to be the mascot of the museum because of its special appearance. Here, there are 9 cats who were rescued and have their background stories blown up on posters hanging on the walls of the museum on this level.
This level has all the toys and scratching posts, as well as cat nips, every cat in the world could ask for. There’s no wonder why it’s called The Mansion. Here’s a look at the resident kitties!

 Here’s Harry who was sleeping soundly when we approached him. We didn’t realize it was Harry until he opened his eyes and we got the most pleasant surprise of our lives to find that he’s actually Harry and REALLY REALLY CROSS EYED. I’m so thankful that he woke up and held his pose for a good 10s, before snuggling back to sleep.
 Angie, the Mainecoon, looking so pretty with her leopard prints.  This is Brad, the resident grumpy cat who weighs a hefty 8kg, and sleeps whenever and where ever he wants.

And I guess we were lucky to have caught Georgie humping on Julia right in front of a crowd. Animal instincts right on point. Hahaha!

It is unfortunate that we were unable to get pictures of all the cats, nor have the chance to play with all of them because they were either fast asleep or there were just too many people surrounding them in a small area. We just had to wait around for the crowd to clear before playing with some of them, or head down to visit the cats at the Muses before heading up to the Mansion, or vice versa.

It was nevertheless a great experience at the Cat Museum, and I have never had such great fun visiting a museum. Paying just a mere fee of $9 to play with these cats, and to learn more about cats and their history was definitely worth the time and the money. This place is the perfect place for cat lovers to visit and hang out. Even for the non cat lovers, this museum may very well just change your opinion of cats! A word of caution though, it may get really crowded when it opens officially, and that may hamper your experience, a teeny bit. 

Just thought this fun fact from the museum would be the perfect ending to this purr-fect experience that we’ve had at the museum. It’s just so difficult to pass up on the chance to use the word purr-fect eh? 

How to get there?

8 Purvis Street
#02-02
Singapore 188587

Opening Hours (from 9 January 2015)

Fridays: 4:30pm – 7:30pm

Saturdays and Sundays: 12:00noon – 3:30pm, 4:30pm – 7:30pm (Closed from 3:30pm – 4:30pm for Kitty Kat Nap)

Entrance fee: S$9 (free for kids aged 6 & below)
Payment mode: Cash only