Food News

Interesting stuff has been happening around the world...here are some of the noteworthy ones this week

1. Malaysia's No 1 Char Siew is coming to Singapore. Kay Lee's - watch out!
2. Oyster Bar boss at Customs House turns violent on customers?
3. Interesting eats at Cluny Court
4. 1 for 1 dinner buffet at Greenhouse, Ritz Carlton for ladies on Weds nights
5. Food for a dollar in New York- v good photography..makes me feel like doing a Singapore version

Life at the other side

This week, we officially started work at our new office premises in Marina Bay Financial Centre.

View from my spanking new office

It's a refreshing change from the hustle and bustle of Raffles Place. Unfortunately, this also means a longer walk (15 mins!) from Raffles Place MRT every morning and a dearth of cheap and good eats. I miss Say Seng Mee Pok from Golden Shoe Carpark!

Since I was feeling a little lazy this week, most of my lunch hours were spent lounging around the spanking new Marina Bay Link Mall, which is just below my office building. Ever in search of a good bargain, I was pleasantly surprised to discover that:

- from now till 31 Dec 2010, you can park at the mall for free from 6pm onwards with any amount spent (simply present your receipt at the concierge).
- spend SGD30 at any shop and get a SGD5 mall voucher from the concierge
- spend SGD80 at any shop and get a SGD15 mall voucher from the concierge
- while redeeming for the vouchers, you will also be presented with complimentary christmas gift wraps and tags.

I think I must have redeemed at least SGD50 worth of complimentary mall vouchers already!

Most of the shops in Marina Bay Link Mall are F&B outlets. There's quite a wide range to choose from e.g Toastbox, Din Tai Fung, Paradise Inn, Polar, Starbucks, Soup Spoon and Ichiban Boshi. Unfortunately, if you are looking for more economical alternatives, you would have to walk quite a distance either to Lau Pat Sat, Amoy St or Raffles Place to buy your chow..

Many restaurants are running opening promos- Toastbox being no exception

For toiletries and snacks, chi chi shoppers will probably enjoy browsing atas supermart Four Seasons Gourmet Market (for the rest of us, there's always good ol Watsons located just a few doors away). Dessert lovers will find heaven at the Marble Slab Creamery, which serves up a delectable range of customized ice creams.

Enjoying a SGD9 cone of S'mores ice cream from Marble Slab Creamery during lunchtime. So expensive but oh so yummy...

I suspect it will only be a matter of time before the mall gets more crowded (given the increasing number of companies relocating to this area). In the meantime, I fully intend to explore every corner of the mall until the novelty wears out. Watch out for my reviews!

Cheesy Pizza Hut

Every Christmas and Chinese New Year, Pizza Hut always out does itself by coming up with the weirdest looking pizzas in celebration of the season's festivities.

This year is no exception.

Introducing the Cheesy 7 Pizza. I suppose the "Christmassy" part of the pizza lies in its Italian herb outer crust coating which happens to come in a suspicious red and green hue. Also they use turkey ham instead of normal ham as one of the toppings...

My favorite shopping centre

Its been a great weekend.

For the first time in a long while, I felt well enough to venture out on my own on a balmy Saturday morning.

Raffles City immediately came to mind.

Christmas is definitely in the air and I'm not complaining.

I love the husky voice of Nat King Cole and Frank Sinatra serenading me as I peruse wines and candy in the Market Place. Santa claus shaped chocolates, peppermint snowballs and candy canes never fail to stir the Christmas mood in me.

Though many segments of the basement are still under renovation and resemble a maze of sorts, it felt nice to get lost and discover little pockets of activity. Certain old favorites are still there, like the giant Cocoa Tree outlet (where I purchased a 5kg tub of Nutella for my sister in law's birthday), Toast Box, J Co Donuts, Din Tai Fung and Mos Burger.

Check out this 5kg baby...

As I ventured further, I chanced upon Royce chocolate boutique and happily scooped up a miniature box of my favorite nama milk chocolate. Service unfortunately fell short and the lady who took my order looked disinterested and unhelpful.

Undaunted and feeling slightly peckish, I walked on and stumbled upon a most pleasing sight- sizzling Takopachi balls from Gindaco. Gindaco's takopachi ain't exactly cheap at SGD6.80 for 8 balls (I topped up a further SGD1.20 for ice lemon tea) but taste absolutely delish when eaten piping hot.

A few stalls down from Gindaco is dessert.cup, a funky looking sweet boutique selling the prettiest cupcakes, italian iced drinks and gourmet desserts. (Quick Update: Looks are deceiving! Smitten by the attractive shopfront, I ordered desserts from the shop for a dinner party a few days ago and was mighty disappointed. The appearance of the final product was crummy and totally miles apart from what was featured in the display. Though some of the items tasted nice, there were also some which grossly failed the taste test . Do NOT order the avocado rum and raisin- it has an air freshener aftertaste)

Soldering on, I stepped into a noticeably downsized MPH. Selected cookbooks were going at 20% off and I wanted to purchase a copy of "The Silver Spoon", a highly popular and well loved Italian cookbook which has been selling like hot cakes ever since the English version was released. Unsurprisingly, it was not available.

After emerging from the bookstore, I took the escalator down towards Esplanade MRT and found myself surrounded by yet another line of new shops. Most of these comprised of nail boutiques and cosmetic shops. Boring. Just as I was about to turn around, my eagles eyes caught sight of a spanking new Dunkin Donuts outlet. The range of donuts was so tempting that my initial resolve to order 3 donuts quickly dissipated. Within 5 mins, happy me straddled out of the outlet with a box of 6 donuts (buy 5 get 1 free), SGD7 poorer.

The lunch crowd was starting to swarm in by now and I was starting to feel slightly tired. Needing a quick pick me up, I went up the escalator and headed back to Raffles City again where I ordered a cup of ice milk tea from Gong Cha. Despite its Chinese origins, the shop is staffed largely by a bunch of heavily made up Malay ladies, with slightly bossy attitudes. You can opt for varying levels of sweetness. I chose "50%" but found it a little bland for my liking. Will go for 80% next time. Pity pearls were out of stock at that time - perhaps it was still too early.

Buying Hubby's lunch was next on the list. Feeling too lazy to think, I popped by Toastbox and bought him a tub of mee siam. Toast Box's mee siam is thick and nutty- just the way Hubby likes it. To supplement his meal, I also ordered a piece of Mos chicken from Mos Burger next door.

No trip to Raffles City would be complete without a quick swing by Marks and Spencers on the second level. Christmas spirit was definitely in the air. The food section was stocked with pretty Christmas themed biscuit tins containing the yummiest shortbread and chocolate cookies. Christmas promotions were also abound. As my hands were pretty full by then, all I could do was soak in the atmosphere.

Raffles City is definitely one of my favorite places in Singapore. After the facelift, it seems bigger and better than ever. If only Singapore had more shopping centres like these.

Baumkuchen

Of late, French inspired Japanese confectioneries have been sprouting out all over our sunny little island like grasshoppers. There's the immaculate Kki at Ann Siang Hill, the more homely Glace Patissiere at Icon Village and most recently Flor Patissiere at Duxton.

Strangely, while the pictures look drool worthy, I have yet to be seized by any pressing impulse to check out any of these shops.

Then comes Wheat Baumkuchen. Its like nothing I've ever heard of. Even the name has an enticing lilt to it. I am intruiged. The circular discs of multi layer cakes look like an abomination of the ubiquitous donut and come in suspiciously similar flavors too (green tea, nutella, oreo, chocolate and strawberry). Each piece is affordably priced from SGD2.80 onwards and is apparently selling like hot cakes, attracting a loyal clientele ranging from Japanese housewives to Toa Payoh aunties.

Is this going to spawn a donut-like craze in Singapore again? Only time will tell.

Wheat Baumkuchen
Blk 190, Toa Payoh Lorong 6
Tel: 6356 5529
Website: www.wheatbaumkuchen.com

Spanish escapades

If you have some moolah to spare and an appetite for all things Spanish, the promotion below might just be the right one for you.

Afterall, what is life without a little wanderlust?

Click to enlarge

What has Stanley Ho got to do with durians?

Casino magnate Stanley Ho apparently has a penchant for Maoshan Wang durians too!

Click below to find out the lengths he went to obtain his prized stash.
http://www.soshiok.com/article/12492

Fantastic 10

In the past, Singaporeans’ vocabulary in bread was limited to baguette and kaya toast. Things changed when BreadTalk came into the picture.

Singaporeans suddenly took a liking to the very addictive Floss Bread. Massive queues started forming and 1 Flosss bun was sold every 30 seconds. With time, (and as is the case for all fads in Singapore), the fervor eventually died down. Thankfully, BreadTalk managed to reinvent itself by coming up with different types of bread to suit the tastebuds of the most fickle Singaporean. Along the way, it even managed to earn itself a listing in SGX and introduce other successful brands like Din Tai Fung and Food Republic to forever hungry Singaporeans.

In celebration of its illustrious 10-years in business, Breadtalk has rolled out its “Fantastic 10” selection showcasing its proudest creations from 2000 to 2010. These “icons” are prominently displayed in various Breadtalk shops. I spotted some of them while shopping at Novena Square yesterday and couldn’t help taking some pictures. Who would have imagined that a local homegrown brand could achieve so much in a short span of 10 years?

2000- Flosss. A Breadtalk signature. The bun that launched a thousand ships (and copycats)

2001- O’ Sambal. Spicy prawn and cheese bun with a Peranakan twist

2002- Dinosaur Bun. Introduced to coincide with Jurassic Park 3

2003- Bull Run. Flosss with feelers! (or horns) Introduced by the founders to mark the Co’s listing in SGX.

2004- LuvBite. Concocted as part of a charity tie up with Singtel.

2005- 9.0. A plain looking bun coated with bonito flakes which raised close to SGD90k in aid of the victims of the Indian Ocean tsunami. Singaporeans certainly have big stomachs and hearts.

2006- Kim Cheese. Introduced when K-pop fever was at its peak. Looks quite gross on hindsight.

2007- Hairy Crab. An edible mascot of the Singapore Food Festival. Yet another mutation of the Flosss bun- this time with pincers


2008- Peace Panda. An edible panda bun which tugged at the heartstrings of many Singaporeans. In support of victims of the Sichuan earthquake.

2009- Ferraberri. The first fruity creation to make it to the chart. No prizes for guessing the shape of this bun

2010- Leonardo and Merrily. Introduced in line with Singapore’s hosting of the Youth Olympic Games. Errr..is that supposed to be a lion?

Our Botched Ferran Adria date

Having bungled up the dates for Ferran Adria's speaking engagement, Hubby and I got a shock when we entered the Grand Ballroom in Capella Hotel only to find ourselves the only "participants".

After forking out a SGD6 entrance fee into Sentosa and burning SGD100 bucks on our (now wasted) tickets, we not content to just drive out just like that. So we decided to explore the island a little and check out the much talked about casino and Universal Studios.

After strolling past Universal Studios and stealing a glimpse of Woody Woodpecker from afar...

I chanced upon a most glorious sight- Hershey's Chocolate World. A chocoholics heaven, this shop is stocked with a mind boggling array of confections and souvenirs proudly stamped with the Hersheys and Reese logo.

Let's start off with the Reese display first. Swathed in an eye catching orange, these were the first to catch my attention

Reese is for folks who dig peanut butter.


However, thanks to clever packaging, non peanut butter lovers like me couldn't resist getting my hands on these


Reese teddies and cushions looking for a home

Reese bunnies in celebration of easter

Peanut butter easter eggs that scream "EAT ME"


Traditional metal tins containing the beloved peanut butter cups that make Reese so famous


Moving on to the Hershey section

World's largest chocolate bar...now I regret not buying one of these...


Stacks of dark chocolate, milk chocolate and nut studded chocolate slabs

Check out the huge bottles of chocolate sauce. They even have it in Strawberry flavor

Not forgetting the cutesy souvenir tins

Anyone for candy scented candles?

Hershey's kisses -who could live without these?


And of course, the Hershey chocolate plushies...

Before heading home, here's one picture I just HAD to take as a momento...

15 Food Cravings

Is it possible to crave 15 different kinds of food at one time?

To me, it is.

Here's my list:

1) Durian puffs from Goodwood Park Hotel & Mao Shan Wang Durian from 717 Trading

Limited stock. Catch em while you can

Stinky and superb

2) Penang Laksa and Nonya Mee Siam from Mama Chin at Circular Rd

Sweet, sour and salty all rolled into one

Simply sedap

3) Mala Steamboat from The Chinese Feasts

Addictive and spicy. More mushroom and fish glue please!

4) Grilled Mackerel Set with Grated Yam Rice from Ootoya

A healthy yet delicious treat

5) Grilled Brinjals, Ayam Buah Keluak and Lamb Devil Curry from Baba King

Nonyas rejoice

6) Negitoro Don from Botan @ Far East Square

An accidental find which I have since grown to love

7) Royce nama chocolates

Sweet Dreams are made of these

8) Pork Knuckles from Tawandang

Sinfully yours.

9) Roast pork crackling from Ember

Best Roast Pork. Ever.

10) Cheese Nachos and chili from Chilis

Comfort food

Comfort food multiplied by two

11) Mango clams from Ah Yat @ Turf City

Sweet and succulent

12) Yong Tau Foo from Golden Shoe Carpark

Worth braving the queue and the humid weather for

13) Char Siew from Kay Lee's

One plate is never enough

14) Pulut Hitam Ice Cream Coconut dessert at Peach Garden

Bliss

15) Molly Malone's Fish and Chips

Golden and glorious

What's yours?

Cooking Craze

With the Good Friday long weekend just around the corner, I couldn't resist but sign myself up for a cooking class conducted by a distinguished French chef.

Here's what we will be learning (and I'm drooling as I am typing):

1) Moules Marinieres
Steamed mussels in white wine, cream & fresh herbs

2) Confit de Carnard
Crispy duck leg confit with de puy lentils

3) Coq Au Vin
Chicken braised in casserole with garden vegetables & wine

4) Ratatouille
A healthy & easy stew made with garden vegetables

5) Escargot in vol au vents
Snails cooked in garlic, butter and fresh herbs in a savoury puff pastry case

With the exception of the escargots (which I still lack the guts to try), all the other dishes sound darn good to me! Better still, there will be complimentary wine served during the class.

I can't wait!

Today's Trivia

Everday, I try to learn something new.

Today, I thought I'd share what I've learnt -FAT is the new sixth sense!

Click here for details

Top 10 grossest food in Singapore

As complied by CNN.

Items include pigs fallopian tubes, turtle soup, century eggs, stinky tofu and hashima. Gross meh?

Century old butter anyone?

Your food might actually outlive you if you stay in the Antarctic.

Julie & Julia

A must watch for foodies, Julie & Julia is a movie chronicling the culinary exploits of food legend Julia Child and Julia Child-wannabe Julie Powell.

Throughout the movie, Meryl Streep (who stars as the burlesque Julia Child) and Amy Adams (who stars as urbanite Julie Powell) play with animal parts, recite recipes and cook up a feast.

Little wonder that after watching the movie, I have resolved to do the following

1. Buy the cookbook " The Art of French Cooking" written by Julia Child herself and learn how to make that infamous bouef bouguignon featured in the show (Note: Borders at Wheelock has run out of stock for this book)

2. Buy myself a Le Creuset cast iron "french oven" (it must be orange)

3. Learn how to perfectly poach an egg.

4. Wear pearls while cooking.

2 (not so) new food sightings in Singapore

Sakura and Cordyceps Chickens

I have a hunch the chickens we eat are hormonally enhanced to yield more succulent fleshy meat. However, the plot seems to have thickened. Our chickens now also listen to Mozart and are fed with cordyceps!

These prized chickens retail at thrice the price of a normal chicken in major supermarkets and seem to be selling well. Looks like Singaporeans are a pretty cultured lot! =)

Black Garlic

The packaging proudly coins it "Black Gold", thus giving rise to its hefty price tag of over 60 bucks for a few bulbs. Its actually just normal garlic which has been fermented over high temperatures. The final product purportedly contains twice as much antioxidants as normal garlic and is supposed to boast a melt in the mouth texture with tangy sweet undertones.

Anyone game for a meal of black garlic roasted cordyceps chicken?

Flasher!!!

This is my favorite picture of the week!