Ho Chiak

Party favourites: Seared tuna with asparagus and carrots

2012-01-26T08:10:00.000+08:00

Seared tuna

A little photoessay on a dish I learnt to make at Cookyn Inc...seared tuna, garnished with ribbons of asparagus and carrots.

First but some tuna...shown here, two slabs of sashimi grade maguro.

It is important to use sashimi grade tuna, even though we are going to sear the tuna, as you shall see later, only a small outer surface of the tuna gets cooked.

Slice the asparagus longitudinally using a potato peeler:

Next, apply a coat of cooking oil. Peanut oil or vegetable oil is fine. Lard is also ok. Olive oil is not so good as it has a low smoke point.

Season the tuna with pepper, and a little salt. Careful with the salt. Too much will cause the moisture to wick out of your tuna, and cause a dry tasting fish.

Then with a standard blow torch, sear the outside of the tuna, turning over so that all 4 sides gets seared...get the one used in kitchens for making creme brule or searing meat.

After searing, the block of tuna looks like this

Then plate and serve

Enjoy.

Keong Hee Huat Chai

2012-01-22T15:33:00.001+08:00

May the year of the Water Dragon bring you happiness, prosperity and health.

The Water Dragon Object d'Art by Parmigiani Fleurier

Enfant Terrible? Or just very talented chef: Andre

2012-01-19T15:52:00.000+08:00

Enfant Terrible or Talented Chef: Andre

Chef Andre Chiang is known...at least in Singapore. The talented chef used to helm the kitchens at Jaan, but decided to set out on his own...with a restaurant, totally conceptualised, designed by him...and aptly named Andre.

Everything in the restaurant bears his touch...from the raw timber used as the table above, branded by burnt marks with is name, to the flower decorations and of course the cuisine.

Reputed as one of the best restaurants in Singapore, Andre sits on its own building, just off Majestic Hotel in the hip Bukit Pasoh area.

We started with a dish he calls Seafood on Arrival

A tomato salad on the side (not pictured), and a chilled langoustine risotto. Marvellous. The lobster was fresh, had a nice bite. Tasted sweet with a wonderful flavour. Very nice. Accompanying are slices of very fresh, lightly cooked...almost sashimi squid, and a beautifully pan fried piece of fish.

For mains, I had the slow roast short rib of beef.

The beef was cooked to perfection. Perfect medium rare:

And truly tender, melt in your mouth. With a great flavour of beefiness, the dish was supreme. It was supported by the wild mushroom polanta and potato and onion praline.

Dessert was an unusual "tarte au chocolat"

A scoop of milk marmalade ice cream, and a milk pudding with a gorgeous filling of semi-molten chocolate. Divine.

A truly excellent restaurant for the refined palate. Expensive, but worthy of a place for that special occassion or special person.

Restaurant Andre

41 Bukit Pasoh Road, Singapore 089855

Tuesday – Friday Lunch

Tuesday – Sunday Dinner

Closed on Mondays and Public Holidays

+65 6534 8880 reserve@restaurantandre.com

Ramen Champion at Iluma: Ikkousha

2012-01-16T07:33:00.000+08:00

Ramen Champion at Iluma, Singapore: Tetsu

More on ramens...at the same Ramen Champion stadium at Iluma. Today, I tried the Ikkousha.

I made my order to what I think is a Japanese cook...and unlike the other times at Ramen Champion, he asked me to wait instead of giving me the buzzing device to call when the ramen is ready. But he was fast, and the ramen came quickly...

I order the special (extra chasu) and 1.5 noodles

The egg was perfect. Nice, flavoured. Gooey inside, almost firm whites. The large slices of chasu almost completely concealed the noodles from the viewer as it was plated. The chasu was flavourful...not as fat as most, and cooked such that it was so tender it fell apart when poked with a pair of chopsticks.

The noodles were the thin, almost wiry hakata style noodles. I prefer the fatter ones served by Bario and Tetsu.

With 4 down...and 2 more to go, my verdict on my favourite is still Tetsu's Super Rich Paitan Tsukumen. Slurp. BTw, many bloggers reported that the Paitan dipping sauce can be heated up with a hot stone placed in the bowl. This was not the case as one of my lunch partners requested one for his sauce. The cook came with a heated piece of iron, shaped like an egg...dipped it into the sauce...causing the sauce to boil with wild abandon. And heating the sauce. Nice touch.

I will come back perhaps to try the last 2...soon, I hope...but as this post goes online, I am in Geneva...and will return with coverage of some more Swiss dining.
Ikkkousha Ramen Champion 201 Victoria Street 4F Iluma

French Cuisine in SGP: Bistro du Vin.

2012-01-12T07:15:00.000+08:00

French cuisine in Singapore: Bistro du vin

It is not always that I can recommend a French restaurant in Singapore...which serves authentic, non-pretentious Provonce style cooking. Many of the French restaurants in Singapore too often serve only haute cuisine and not enough serve authentic, traditional bistro fare. Sebastian's was one...and now apparent its successor...Bistro du Vin is another.

From the decor of the place, and the providence that Sebastian's which was in Hillcrest used to belong to the Les Amis group, who also own Bistro du Vin...it looks like this is the successor to one of my favourite French restaurants in town.

The set menu is particularly interesting. Unlike many places where the set lunch is a watered down version of the real menu degustation, here the set lunch is quite a good selection. This is a 3 course menu, with entree, main dish and dessert with coffee or tea...all for S$30++. Quite good value if the food is good...and good it is...no, I take it back...it is excellent French cuisine.
I had the chunky leek and potato soup with Burgundian escargots as a starter.

This was a foretaste of the excellence which was to come. The soup was excellent. The potatos were chunks floating in the in a rather clear, though creamy looking soup, which is beautifully flavoured. The escargots were plump and nice. Very good soup.

Kin had the Pan Fried veal head terrine, sauce gribiche and pine nuts.

This was excellent too. I found the salad's rockets a bit bitter. But the terrine (not visible in the photograph above, as it hides behind the salad) of pan fried veal head was very good. Gelatinous, tasty, and great mouth feel. Certainly not for the diet concious. The pan fried roll of veal is particularly crisp and beautiful.

For mains, I had the lamb shank, which was slow cooked with white onion and cherry tomato confit. A S$6 supplement for this main.

And worth the supplement...every penny. The lamb was tender...literally fall off the bone. I imagined the fats to be drained through the slow cooking, as what remained was just muscle and collagen. Beautiful mouth feel, and great flavour. The confit of white onions and cherry tomatoes were an able support team, providing a bit of acidity, and punch. The tomatoes were particularly sweet and ripe. Superb dish...I would certainly rank this as one of the best lamb shanks I have eaten.

Kin had the baked Norwegian salmon, parsnip cream, horseradish and roasted almonds:

Also exquisite. The salmon looked like it had been cooked sous vide instead of baked...the flesh was cooked just so...a bit rare inside. And still extremely moist. The cream was excellent foil to the salmon. And the roasted almonds toped the dish.

For dessert, Kin opted for the Creme Brulee

Excellently done...but for me, I thought it was a bit uninspired....a touch too ordinary. Especially after the spectacular starter and main course we have just had. But technically, nothing to fault. The glazed caramel was perfect. The creme within was smooth, creamy, nice.

I had the chestnut cake, with vanilla ice cream.

To say this is good, is an under statement. To say it is spectacular, is an over statement. This cake lies somewhat in between good and great. The chestnut cake was moist, tasty. The vanilla ice cream was strong, flavourful. Very nice. And all went well with the cream. Great dessert.

We both had the coffee...which, given the state of the third wave coffees available in town these days was dismal. I don't know why chefs go to such great lengths with the ingredient selection, preparation and cooking of the meals to produce such spectacular meals, have great sommaliers who select only the best wines to complement the cooking...but yet, the final cap of serving a decent cup of espresso...they fail. The coffee was too acidic, sour even. Dismal.

But overall I loved this restaurant. The cooking is as fine as I have tasted in France and Switzerland. And the ambience was excellent...nice relaxing. I forget to mention the baguettes which were served with unsalted butter before the entree...this was one of the best baguettes I have eaten in a long time...crispy, crusty exterior...soft, smooth, almost creamy bread within. Wonderful.

And the service was excellent. Catherine Piong and her team were knowledgable, cheerful...none of the "sparking or still" and frown on an "iced water" request. Great service. Bravo!

Certainly a fixture on my lunch calendars for years to come. Bistro du Vin 1 Scotts Road Shaw Centre #02-12 (address sounds like second floor, but it is street level)

Espresso Joints: Maison Ikkoku

2012-01-09T07:02:00.000+08:00

Espresso Joints: Maison Ikkoku

Continuing series of espresso joints in Singapore. The third wave espresso places are sprouting out everywhere, and often helmed by baristas who cut their teeth elsewhere...many of them with 10 years of pulling coffee under their belt. Maison Ikkoku is one such place.

With an interesting French/Japanese inspired name...I am presuming...Mr. Google pointed out that this was Japanese manga. The location of the cafe, in the middle of the Malay/Arab enclave of Kandahar is also interesting. Surrounding shops are more likely to offer Middle Eastern cuisine or Nasi Padang (indeed two of our island's most famous nasi padang stores are on the same street...Minang and Sabar Menanti).

Some 10 qualified baristas serve this maison. They don't roast in the facilities, but they roast off site. Interesting to me that some of the beans are quite old...the oldest bearing a roasting date of 20 December 2011...it was 4 January 2012 when I visited.

But the proof of the pudding is in the tasting...so here is my macchiato:

I was not sure of the age of the beans, so I shyed away from ordering my usual double ristretto and went for something with a touch of milk. Turned out I didn't have to worry about the espresso. It was thick, viscous. The marking by the foamed milk was perfect. The concoction held a teaspoon of sugar afloat for nearly 20s.

The mouthfeel was near perfect. The viscousity, the body of the espresso was apparant. There was an inherent sweetness of the coffee and this was apparent. I will venture to order a double ristretto next time.

Lionel's picollo latte looked just as excellent. The latte art was nice, finely drawn...I didn't taste it, but if my macchiato had anything to make reference to, it would be great.

Nice homey feel at the cafe...Relaxing. With free wifi (need a password from the barista though). Nice place. Throughly enjoyable.
Maiso Ikkoku 20 Kandahar St

Ramen Champion at Iluma: Tetsu

2012-01-05T09:33:00.000+08:00

Ramen Champion at Iluma, Singapore: Tetsu

Last week, I sampled the offering by Iroha and concluded it to be too salty for total enjoyment. Today, I went back to Ramen Champion, and tried the ramen from Tetsu. Tetsu serves the ramen tsukumen style...meaning, the noodles are served separately from the broth. The method of eating is to dip the noodles into the sauce and savour.

The stall offers a fairly wide selection of ramens and side dishes. I opted for the Very Rich Paitan Ramen in its original stock of pork, chicken and seafood. They created a special version for Singapore without the seafood...but I wanted to sample the original.

I added a flavoured boiled egg. Rather expensive at S$2 methot.

The noodles were thick, dense, very nice springy consistency...a little chewy, though not quite. Perhaps just a nice bite. The dipping sauce was really super rich...almost viscous. And superb flavours of pork, chicken and bonito. And the best part is it is not too salty. This comes as a small surprise, pleasant though, as I had expected it to be laden with salt. But the balance was perfect.

The egg was nice too...though just a bit over...just a tad over, mind you...I would have preferred a slightly more runny yolk.

The egg was very tasty. The chasu was a bit fat, and dark...suggesting that it had been marinaded for a while.

It was rather tender...and as it was sliced thinly.

Dip the noodle into the sauce, and slurp it up. The noodles seemed able to pick up the sauce well. And the combination is very good. Oishi! When you have finished the noodles, and there is some sauce still left, go back to the store, and add hot dashi. And drink it all up. Delicious. Btw, if half way through the noodles, the sauce gets cool...as the noodle is cold...you can bring the bowl back, and the staff will put in a hot stone to reheat the sauce/soup. I didn't try that though.

This is my favourite Ramen Champion so far. I did sample Bario's offering on two separate occassion...my lunch friend: Dr Mycroft and Lionel both had ordered the Bario ramen. And I had a little sample. Interestingly, the Bario broth was thicker and more salty last week with Mycroft than today's.

I will be back to sample the 4 other ramens, but somehow, I think Tetsu's offering will draw me to it many more times. Excellent.
Tetsu Ramen Champion 201 Victoria Street 4F Iluma

Ramen Champion at Iluma: Iroha

2012-01-03T09:28:00.002+08:00

Ramen Champion at Iluma, Singapore

Ramen. Pulled noodles, in broth. Delicious. Those are the words that come to mind when one mentions ramen. The mecca of this evovled cuisine (the Japanese adapted and improved on the Chinese creation of the pulled noodles...also known in Mandarin as La Mien) is no doubt Japan. Tokyo, Osaka, Hokkaido et al, have their own interpretation of this delectable meal in a bowl. Ramen Champion is the innovative itenerant setup...where 6 famous Japanese ramen stalls compete for the prize of Ramen Champion rolled into Singapore in July 2011, after a successful stint in Bangkok.

The setup is simple and quite ingenious. Take 6 of the best ramens from Japan. Put them together in a large food court. And create a system for patrons to sample all and vote on who they think is the best. After 6 months of operation...so as to allow the original masters who were here for the launch, and for the skills of ramen making to be fully absorbed into the local cooks who dish up these bowls daily, I visited for the first time.

I tried Menya Iroha as the first stop.

Looking much like a typical ramenya in Japan...especially those under bridges near railway stations, where a hot, steaming delicious bowl of ramen is probably the cheapest eats in town. It is not unusual to find standing only ramen-yas selling a bowl for Y300 or Y400.

The most famous and award winning style of Iroha is the Negi Tama ramen, which I tried.

The broth was black, thick...flavourful. Perhaps too flavourful...well actually not...but way too salty. It tasted like the base stock was indeed salty shoyu, and reduced by hours of simmering with the soup's ingredients of mixed seafood, chicken and vegeables. For me, this was the killer. Too salty to enjoy.

On the other hand the chasu and egg was excellent...the chasu was very tender. And the egg was almost runny inside, but nice and firm surroundings. It was also marinated completely, and totally infused with the flavours of the shoyu sauce.

The noodles were like the lor mee we use locally. Thick, but nicely cooked. Smooth and goes down well. Quite satisfying.

Not a bad bowl of ramen, but I think this is seriously too salty. I cannot imagine tHat it is not detrimental health effects if you drink up the bowl.

I will be back to sample the others. But for me, this is the last time for Menya Iroha.

Menya Iroha
Ramen Champion
201 Victoria Street
4F Iluma

Eating in Berlin: Food for the soul and the body

2011-12-29T10:14:00.001+08:00

Berlin. What a city! 24 hours a day. Cinemas, cabarets. Bars...yes, the bars are amazing. As are the truly fantastic museums. And after a day walking, absorbing, interacting...what's better than to seat down with a good friend for a spot of dinner. borchardt is a place to see and to be seen...and the food is quite good too.

I have visited and eaten here at borchardt (like ee cummings, always spelt sans capitals, I don't know why) many times. But this time, the service was a bit lacking. Hurried. Curt. Not the worse I have encountered, but not as nice as usual. The place is a social epicenter, so to speak. Tables are crowded together...much like Parisian bistros, where the waiter has to pull out the table for one to get in.

But I was told, movie star and pop artise spottings are as common in this hall as are politicians. Even Angie Merkel has been spotted here once or twice.

I started with a rather large lobster bisque:

Beautiful. The soup had packed all the flavours of the sea and the lobster. Powerful. Lightly seasoned to bring out the crustacean. Nice!

My friend Dr. M had the wildlachs...wild salmond...

I did not taste it, but he assured me it was very good. Both the soup and the salmon went down very well with a coupe of champagne. Ruinart, I believed.

Both of us elected to have the steak...which was served with french fries at the side.

I had ordered mine in my usual style...Chicago medium-rare...charred on the outside, pink and medium-rare on the inside. I am not sure if the waiter understood me...though he presented me with an English menu, and appeared to speak English...but steak was medium-rare, no charring.

Like most European steaks, the meat was lean...but this was reasonably tender...perphaps some micro-marbling. And tasty. The fact that it lacked a nice burnt crust was overshadowed by the full beef-iness of the meat. Nice.

And to accompany, a nice St Emilion Grand Cru...Chateau Haut Pontet.

Reasonably priced at €53 for the bottle...nice, smooth tannins, though 2008 might seem young for a St. Emilion. But nice berries, ripe, ripe fruit. And an mild nose reminiscent of plums and blackberries.

And for dessert...Profiteroles

Quite nice...but profiteroles are always nice...so these are nothing special.

Nice place...but I liked it better the 2 or 3 times I was there for lunch than this time, when we came for dinner.

borchardt Restaurant
Franzosische Strasse 47
am Gendermenmarkt
10117 Berlin
Germany

Eatery hopping in Hong Kong

2011-12-27T10:40:00.000+08:00

I have written an article about restaurant hopping in Singapore once...where we did each course of a meal in a different restaurant...drawing from the specialities of each. Recently, I had a try of this in Hong Kong

.

click on the Hong Kong skyline above for a larger photograph.

A good friend/makan buddy and I found ourselves in Hong Kong at the same time for different reasons...and we decided we needed to have at least one meal together. After much deliberation...as foodies are bound to do...we have poor resistance to the lure of good food...we decided on Yixin. This is based primarlily on the recommendations of Jason Bonvivant a foodie bloger in Hong Kong whom I have been following for a while.

But I planned to have a cuppa ristretto first before going for dinner, so on my way out of the Star Ferry at Central, I stopped at an old favourite which I found several years ago while searching for beans in HKG...Zambra.

A double ristretto

A bit long for a ristretto. More like a double espresso...and even that a bit long. But nonetheless tasty, and nice mouth feel. Fixed the coffee needs for the day.

A short walk away is the traditional Yixin restaurant

We zoomed in on the 3 famous dishes...we had a vegetable dish as well...dou miao.

First the duck...

Pipa ya as it was called...featured a nice delicate crisp skin hiding the juicy succulent duck meat within. The serving above was for half a duck.

we also had the char siew that Jason raved about

But I found this to be a disappointing. The meat was very fat...we discussed this with the waitress later, and she confirmed that this was their best cut, and very popular with the Hong Kong people. I guess, our taste buds differ here. There was no crisp, burnt bits. The meat which was there was very fat (yes, I did mention that before), though very tender.

And the interesting dish called Fried Fresh Milk with crab meat.

I am not sure how this is done. But this turned out surprisingly tasty. Light, without the slightest hint of grease. The fried milk tasted very nice. And complemented the crab very well. Nice dish. Reminds me of the egg yolks and scallops I had at Restaurant Ten some time ago. BTW, the wonderful Restaurant Ten at Purvis Street is now sadly closed...the owners decided to ply their trade in China.

Back to Yixin...the servings were very large...too large for 2 grown, hungry men. Perhaps we needed to be a table of 6 to consume what we ordered.

But yet, we needed to look for dessert...and I remembered a dessert store I chanced on when I was in HKG last...somewhere along Pacific Place...to ease the large dinner, we walked...and found Xi Yan's dessert place.

Somewhat nondescript, but almost fully packed. The place served full meals...but we had ours. So I ordered a poached pear with tofu ice cream.

Quite exquisite. The tofu ice cream was quite a nice flavour...unusual, but for me excellent. The pears were nicely poached in syrup. And nice.

Interesting dinner...starting with a coffee at an old favourite which turned out to have lost some of its glitz, to a restaurant picked from a blogger's recommendation, and dessert in a place I have had great experience in the cooking in Singapore. Not bad for a night in Hong Kong.

Cafe Zambra
Shop 1. G/F.
239 Jaffe Road,
Wanchai, Hong Kong

Yixin Restaurant
G/F Shanghai Industrial Investment Building,
48-62 Hennessy Road, Wanchai, Hong Kong

Xi Yan Sweets
Shop 1, G/F, 8 Wing Fung Street, Wan Chai Hong Kong
2833 6299

Feasting in Switzerland: Les Mossettes

2011-12-22T11:16:00.000+08:00

When good friends invite you over to lunch at a restaurant where their sister is chef and the sister's husband is the sommelier, you don't think twice. You get up early for the 2 hour drive from Lausanne, and go.

So when Marco and his lovely wife Veronique asked me to join them for lunch at Les Mossettes...a restaurant in the mountains, where Veronique's sister has just taken over...and earned a respectable 12 Gault Millau points on the first year...I jumped at it. We were also joined by another good friend and gourmand: Alex and his lovely girlfriend Sophie. Makes wonderful company.

It was late November, up in the Swiss mountains...when in most years, it should have been covered in snow and freezing temperatures. But 2011 is an unusual year. And there we were, basking in the sunshine. At about 3pm, we got up to continue lunch inside the restaurant, after eating and drinking al fresco since noon...not because it was too cold, but because the onslaught of the sun was merciless...and it was getting too hot (!!!). But promptly at 4:30pm when the sun set, it became quite cold.

A quaint little cottage, almost in th emiddle of nowhere. As we drove up to the restaurant, we passed the Abbey of Valsainte...the monks who bottled the water we were to drink...and who are silent monks. The Abbey has been there for perhaps 700 years. And the Abbey complex was quite large and beautiful...especially considering that the community who lives within numbers about 20.

Anyway, this was an unforgettable lunch. Not only the food was unusual and only vaguely familiar to me, as all the ingredients were sourced locally. But the wines were also superb, well selected and quite unfamiliar to me as well. The wines turned out to be the star of the afternoon for me. All superb.

We started with some deep fried leaves...a bit of grease stuck on to the leaves, but it was crisp, light and seasoned with a little salt, very nice.

And the aperetif to go with this was a beautiful bottle of Pouilly-Fuisse...the only wine whose domaine I recognised that afternoon...

The starters were some seafood...

Well, I guess not all ingredients are from the area...we were up in the mountains, hundreds of kilometers from the oceans...so the scallops must have been flown in. They were juicy, and sweet. Fresh. The fish, I understand is from the neaby lake - Lac Noir.

We had an intermediate white...a Premier Cru from Nuit St. George...an unfamiliar domaine for me, but the wine was gorgeous:

And for mains, quail

Very nicely roasted, perfectly done. The quail had a slightly gamey flavour, but remained very mild, more like chicken with a bit of bite...and smaller. Very tasty.

To accompany...two reds...

All the wines were organic..and from vineyards who practice sustainable agriculture. And they were magnificent. All were chosen by the sommelier, Georgie (I am not sure how we spell his name...but it sounded lime geor-gee)...

And the cheese...

Being close to La Gruyere, of course it featured a large slice of the famous cheese. Magnificent.

And we went inside for desserts...too hot...

Fresh, light, and very nice. But the dessert wine was the surprise

Sparkling! yes...see the bubbles...but not from grapes, but from 20 different types of pears...

This was magnificent. Like a beautiful champagne...dry, beautiful bouquet. And the tingling bubbles, which were small, well formed and quite vivacious. Made only in magnums, and in very small quantities. This was a great treat. Truly memorable.

Magnificent trip. Beautiful food. Wonderful wines. And fantastic company. Plus what a great weather in November. What more can a man ask for.

La Pinte des Mossettes
La Valsainte, Cerniat 1654 , Switzerland
+41 (0) 269272097

Feasting in Switzerland: Restaurant de la Croix Ouchy

2011-12-19T10:36:00.000+08:00

Eating with friends are the best. Absolutely! Good friends make a meal much more memorable, and much more enjoyable. This visit to Switzerland, I had the fortune of the company of my Italian Swiss friends...and of course, we eventually ended up at an Italian restaurant.

But not before experiencing some magical bartending at the bar of the Lausanne Palace.

Angelo, the attending barman is a sort of a legend in these parts. The bar was decorated like the set of a 1930s movie...I am almost expecting to see Hemmingway stroll into the bar and nod at Angelo for a drink...young Ernest did spend many a winter in Lausanne, and I would imagine he might have had a drink or two at this bar.

Angelo would ask you what you feel, and magically concoct up something which will soothe and suit your mood.

But it was getting late, and we were getting hungry. So off to the port of Ouchy...to a little bistro, serving home made Italian cuisine...Restaurant de la Croix Ouchy.

When we arrive...the place was jam packed...to the brim!

We thought we have had too much meats and fish, so we opted for 3 servings of carbs...two pasta and a risotto. And we did the communual thing and shared all 3 dishes. The pictures are the serving size of our individual portions...

First the pappardelle:

Beautiful, fresh prawns. Wonderful home made pasta. Al dente. Cooked perfectly.

Next, ravioli with stuffed veal

Again, magnificent. Done the traditional Italian way, the sauce was enough...but not drowning the pasta...as it should be.

But for me, the star of the evening was the risotto...

I have a soft spot for good risotto. And this one hits the spot for me. The rice was perfectly cooked...each grain absorbed the broth and was bursting with the flavours. The tomato sauce was wisely balanced...the right touch of acidity with the perfect balance of sweet and spice. And the prawns were magnificent. Really good risotto.

For me, this meal was a return to the basics in Switzerland this trip...where gastronomic indulgence was the order of the day. And perhaps its the little boy in me, but I do feel a good pasta (or noodle, or ramen) makes my day. Two thumbs up for the restaurant, and to Marco and Alex for bringing me there.

La Croix d'Ouchy
Avenue d'Ouchy 43 CH - 1006 Ouchy
Lausanne, Switzerland
0216162233

Feasting in Switzerland: Le Poisson at Auvernier, near Neuchatel

2011-12-15T07:01:00.002+08:00

Neuchatel. Lovely city. Pearched on the lake, it enjoys the mountains on one side, and the lake on the other. However, being a little lower in altitude, and by the lake, it does get quite a lot of fog.

Click here for a wide pano from the mountains looking over Lake Neuchatel. The Alps in the distance, and the fog over the city.

In the evenings, it is a bit more lively than most Swiss cities. But a short drive away, in the little village of Auvernier, lies this wonderful fish restaurant...its namesake in French Le Poisson (meaning fish).

We started with a glass of champagne and oysters. I cannot imagine a better combination for fresh oysters.

Fresh as it can be. Sweet, delicious. With a whiff of the fragrance of the distant sea.

And of course, I had fish...sole, pan fried with butter, and a serving of shoe string fries.

Needless to say, the sole was fresh. Firm flesh, white creamy. Pan fried to perfection...thin, slightly crisp on the outside. Smooth, rich, moist inside. Beautiful.

And the fries...superb. Crisp covering...and a creamy interior. I imagined the fries to be deep fried in tallow or a mix of tallow and butter to give it the rich, creamy mouthfeel. Sinful, but oh, so good.

For desserts, I had a small scoop of ice cream...pistachio

Home made. Delicious. And...

a triple decked decadence of pear and cream within crisp pastry. Heavenly.

Truly a magnificent place to dine in or near Neuchatel. We went to the restaurant on a Monday evening, and it was brimming...full. Merely 5 days later on Friday, we had a magnificently catered meal at a private residence attended by the chef of Poisson himself labouring in the kitchen.

He moves fast, this man.

Needless to say, it was a magnificent meal, featuring one of the best langoustines and veal dishes I have had in a long time.

The meat was superb. Sous vide, and expertly browned. Tender to melting. Smooth, creamy mouth feel. Superb.

Washed down with these magnificent wines.

I cannot begin to describe the Chateau Cheval Blanc. The first bottle (yes, we had 2 bottles) was superb...truly magnificent, in its prime. The second was still excellent, and had it not been the wonderful palate and nose of the first, we would have hailed it as a beautiful drink. But in comparison, it was perhaps a bit over in terms of aging. Perhaps a month earlier. But both bottles were superb. All its touted to be.

And for desserts, home made glazes...the marron was particularly wonderful.

Again fully confirms that this is one of the best restaurants in the land. Superb.

Restaurant Le Poisson
Rue des Epancheurs 1,
Auvernier 2012, Switzerland
032 / 731 62 31
www.lepoisson-auvernier.ch/

Feasting in Switzerland: Auberge de L'Onde

2011-12-12T10:18:00.000+08:00

I recently had some extremely good gastronomic experiences with my Swiss friends. So in my two weeks in Switzerland, I ate well. Very well indeed. Allow me to start with L'Onde. An extraordinary restaurant in a small town (compared to Asian towns and cities, Swiss towns and even cities are miniscule. But each with character, and pride.).

It garnered its first Michelin star for 2012, I believe...and currently has 16 Gault Millau points. Housed in a two storey building, with a full grill on the upper floor, the restaurant is bright, and airy.

The pastry chef is remarkable. All the pastry churned out in the restaurant is lovingly hand made by him. The bread platter is no exception

Exceptional. Light, fluffy. And yet very tasty.

I started with the lobster soup...made from Boston lobster.

Exquisite. The meat was firm yet yielding, tasty, and sweet. The broth had a wonderfully aromatic crusteacean flavour. Excellent.

And to accompany, a crisp, French white wine...

Beautiful. Dry, crisp, very fine. The nose hints of vanilla and spices. On the palate, its refined, composed even...and very smooth, delicate. Flavours meld. And goes extremely well with shellfish. Perhaps 2010 is a little young, but still delicious.

And for mains, a nice, juicy steak...Australian Angus

As usual, I am not particularly fond of the red wine reduction sauce...should have remembered to ask for the sauce on the side. But the steak was very nicely done...perfect medium/medium rare.

And a great bottle of red from the area...

Swiss wines are an interesting bunch. Less famous than their neighbours...France and Italy (and even Germany), they do nevertheless make some excellent wines. Full bodied, more a Bordeaux style than Burgundy. Ripe, luscious with strong hints of berries and a very light bite of tannins. On the nose, a floral bouquet sends its greetings. Nice.

And for desserts, a selection of ice creams and sorbets...all home made.

A truly superb meal. Beautiful surroundings. Magnificent wines. Great food. And most importantly, wonderful friends. Thanks Marco and Veronique.

Highly recommended if you are in the Lausanne area.

The Auberge de l'Onde
Village Centre
1071 St-Saphorin
Tel. +41 (0)21 925 49 00
Fax +41 (0)21 925 49 01

Another brewhouse in Munich: Augustiner Brau

2011-12-08T05:21:00.001+08:00

And you thought Monday;s brewhouse in Munich is old when it was founded in 1589. Today's entry is about a brewhouse which is even older.

The Augustiner Brau has been existance since 1294...more than 700 years! I visited the establishment in the pedestrian district of Munich one evening

Inside, it was large as well...huge halls with rows on rows of tables.

Looks like this is the style of Bavarian beer houses. So the beer?

I had the Edelstoff...a bright beer...sparkling, refreshing. Very nice.

And the food? I had a roast chicken...

Well, it felt like a whole chicken...when in fact it was half...the bird was huge, but expertly roasted. Crispy skin, smooth, tender meat. Great chicken.

And another beer house in Munich worth visiting...and not just on Oktoberfest.

Augustiner am Platzl
Orlandostr. 5 | 80331 Munich
Tel: +49 89 2111356 | Fax: +49 89 21113577
www.augustiner-am-platzl.de

Business hours: daily from 10:00 am to 12:00 am
Restaurant: from 10:00 am to 12:00 am

Beer in Munich: Hofbrauhaus, of course!

2011-12-05T06:53:00.005+08:00

Hofbrauhaus in Munich is an institution. That's it. A real institution. Still family owned and operated since 1589...now owned by the Spreger family since 2004, but founded by Wilhelm V, Duke of Bavaria. This brewhouse in the heart of Bavaria has been serving millions of liters of excellent beer and hearty food for nearly half millinium. Wow, now that's a long time.

And beer it is. One liter, please...cold, refreshing. The barmaids are equally famous...this was just after Oktoberfest, so they are just relaxing from fetching 12 one liter mugs each time...here one is carrying 2 large and 2 small beers...

But imagine, 12 one liter jugs...6 in each arm...each weighing more than a kilo...(1 liter of water weighs 1 kg...but add the mug, which is quite substantial in weight too). And she's fast!

At one corner, I spied rows and rows of lockers...for regulars who own and use their own mugs to lock them up, after they have had their drink.

To rouse up the mainly tourist, but also locals, an ompapa band plays on one corner of this huge establishment...

And the food? Standard Bavarian fare...schweinshaxe, sausages, and schnitzel...

If I said this was the best schneitzel I have ever eaten, I'd be lying. But its rather enjoyable. The meat was cooked well, nice crisp breaded exterior...

But we are not here for the food...nor the beer, which is bloody good, I must say. But to soak in the atmosphere. The huge, cavernous beerhouse has plenty to offer...and has been doing so for almost 500 years. So be a sport. Have a liter or two when in Munich at the Hofbrauhaus.

Hofbrauhaus
Platzl 9 80331 München, Germany
089 290136100

Time out

2011-11-29T01:40:00.002+08:00

Apologies, no publication this week, as I am travelling on work assignment shooting watches in Switzerland.

Will return next week on some amazing meals in Switzerland.

Have you cooked in a 1 star Michelin kitchen? Well I have...read on...

2011-11-21T07:02:00.000+08:00

Bulow Palais...home away from home...I have perhaps stayed at this Relais & Chateaux hotel more than 20 times over the last 10 years...previously at the Residenz, as smaller, boutique hotel, and now at the larger Palais. The restaurant Carousel, previously helmed by Stefan Hermann, and now by the able Dirk Schroer, has earned and retained its Michelin star for many years....as long as I remember.

Anyway, after countless times experiencing the cusine here, this time, I returned to the kitchen...did I say kitchen? Yes, to prepare our own meal:

A "Drei Gang" three course, menu...complex French techniques...were we up to the task?

To relax my group...I lead a group of collectors to the Lange manufactory once every 2 years, we had some champagne at the bar...

Then, a breifing by the chef and sous chef

And we go!

Cutting potatos, Russian style. Note swiftness of Dmitry's handling of the sword...um...knife.

And me? Of course I was up to the task...Chef handed me two large black truffles...wow!

And how did I do...of course, well...

Unlike many other kitchen experiences, we were in the actual 1 Starred Michelin kitchen...not some instructional kitchen. And we actually prepared the food, including the more complicated and delicate processes like browning the beef:

closeup:

No one was spared. Even Lange's CEO Wilhelm Schmidt did his time in the kitchen.

Interestingly, chef Schroer does not use open flames in the kitchen. Only induction heaters...cooler, he says...sous vide machines, and ovens.

When the cooking was done, it came time for tasting...but first the welcome by Wilhelm

And the meal:

An amuse bouche which we did not prepare...hmm, maybe he does not trust us with this...

Soup

We prepared and mashed the pumpkin, cooked it. Prepared the chicken. Taste? delicious...what else do you expect from a 1 star Michelin kitchen?

The main course, complicated recipe...but we did well...pat on our backs...

The puff pastry was perfect...light, crisp. The spinach wrap wonderful. And the meat, as you can see, seared nicely, but medium rare within. My gosh we were good! I asked the chef if he would give us jobs as sous chef...his response was this.

We still had dessert to go...tarte tartin with vanilla ice cream

Superb experience. Wonderful dinner.

Restaurant Carousel
Bulow Palais
Dresden, Germany

Airline food: Singapore Airlines First Class

2011-11-17T09:31:00.003+08:00

Some say PPS (Singapore Airlines' Priority Passenger) get treated like gods on board SQ flights. I am not so sure. I have been a TPP (Top Priority Passenger...their Solitaire class...currently the highest being offered by the program...one starts with Krisflyer Silver, then Gold, then PPS, then TPP. They used to offer LPP (Lifetime Priority Passenger) as a higher level than TPP, but withdrew that. LPPs do not have to re-qualify annually by spending S$25k on First and Business class flights...yes, no how much Economy flights you take on SQ, you will never go beyond KF Gold.) I find the treatment of TPPs varying at best. Sometimes, we get the recognition, sometimes, we are just treated like any other passenger.

One of the privellages of a TPP is access to the SQ First Class Lounges at Changi regardless of class of travel. In fact, they should rename this Solitare Lounge...as full fare paying First Class passengers get access to a special lounge within. But I digress.

Anyway, my work has allowed me enough flying to be TPP...and have been for 13 years. More than a million miles clocked on SQ tails. I never book on First Class, but travel on Business Class often enough to qualify. And seldom...in my 13 years, I can count on the number of times SQ has upgraded me to first. Once to Shanghai, once on return from Zurich. And just a few days ago, on my return flight from Frankfurt.

The seats on the 77W First Class is not too different in width from the Business Class seats. But a bit more pitch (airline lingo for length of the seat translating to legroom). There is no hump from the seat in front...but there are no overhead storage in First...so the bags stay under the seat.

Note new unisex toiletery kit (still Salvatore Ferragamo) right of the TV, and the new Givenchy pajamas (track suit) just left of my boots.

Krug is the champagne of choice in First, though, on request Dom Perignon is also available. I prefer Krug anyway...

And dinner? We started with a fairly large dollop of caviar with toast and accompaniments...nice. No pic of that, sorry.

And a very beautiful pork soup...nicely done...tasty, hot.

For mains, I selected the coconut chicken curry with rice

Rich...extremely rich coconut milk...perhaps cream...the spices are nicely balanced, though slightly overpowered by the richness of the cream. The rice was nicely done, long grained, fragrant. Overall, quite enjoyable...especially after 10 days of weisswurst, schweinshaxe and rich French meals (two of those will be featured in the next blog entries...both Michelin starred meals...and one with a twist).

And the dessert? White choc...

Needless to say, service was superb...um...first class! Attentive, always with a smile, always addressing me by name. Suberb.

SQ325 Frankfurt to Singapore
Seat 2A, Nov 12
First Class on Boeing 777.

Espresso Joints: Toby's Estate

2011-11-14T11:19:00.000+08:00

Continuing on the series on Third Wave Espressos...we now come to Toby's Estate...an Australian concern, helmed by the efferverscent Suhaimi Sukardi, who started and manages the "I am a Barista in Singapore" Facebook page...where I am a member.

The place is rather hidden, tucked in a new residential building in Rodyk...by the river. Nicely located, but not the best for visitors who drive...as there is no parking in the building. Gotta park at Robertson Quay area.

Anyway, the cafe is large, airy. Nice. Pride of place is a huge, and I really mean huge roaster...

Definitely the largest amongst the 3W gang...some 15kg per roast.

The work bench and barista area is occupied by the large Mazzers and Speedster.

The coffees?

I had the espresso doppio:

A little dark, slightly forboding. But good mouth feel...rich, thick, heavy. A bit bitter. Crema is light and dissipates quickly.

The latte featured a nice, well defined art...

Nice smooth feel in the mouth. Rich...milky, creamy. A tinge of the espresso offers some bite.

Overall, a worthy place to hang out for 3rd Wave customers...nexct time I will try the food..

Toby's Estate
8 Rodyk st. #01-03/04. Singapore 238216 +65 66367629

Szechuan in Beijing

2011-11-07T18:23:00.000+08:00

As this post goes online, I will be having a very busy week in Munich and Dresden...so just a short one today...one pic, one para...

Szechuan cuisine...hot, spicy...this is a typical mixed platter...you order the level of heat, and the ingredients...we had at mutton, chicken and at least 6 different vegs going on in here...medium heat. With the "ma la" peppercorns...its quite lethal...even with my chilli padi seasoned tongue...

Not sure where in Beijing...

Appetite for China: Muslim cuisine in Beijing: Donglaisun

2011-11-03T06:45:00.003+08:00

Muslim cuisine is rather well developed in Beijing...interesting, considering that Muslims make a small minority. But their cuisine featuring lamb is very popular, and have established a long tradition.

I remember eating at a shuayangrou restaurant the first time I visited Beijing in 1994. This was a hot pot, where you cook the lamb yourself. The lamb itself is sliced thinly, each slice the serving portion, and rolled up, frozen. I relish the taste...and have been looking for something like this kind of food ever since. So when I saw one Muslim restaurant right at Wang Fu Jing, and a well known one at that...Dong Lai Shun is an old restaurant, serving up good food for nearly a century.

We returned to the restaurant twice...because the first two times, it was full, and won't take us. On a nice Wednesday morning, we went at opening time...11am, and were rewarded with a table.

We ordered the premium lamb cut...the lamb rib...each portion is RMB78. And another cut which the menu calls Gold Medal cut...also RMB78. Both are for 200g.

The ribs were darker, and well marbled.

And the gold cut was rich pink in hue, and less fat

We also ordered some Chinese cabbage, and noodles

A soup base was ordered, and left to boil in a charcoal hot pot.

The fire went furiously, and soon the soup was boiling...we threw in the ingredients...

when cooked, dip in the dipping sauce...based on sesame...each shuayangrou shop in town boasts of its own dipping sauce...made from secret ingredients...

Extremely delicious. The flavour of the two different cuts of meat was apparent. The ribs were somewhat sweeter, more flavourful. The gold cut was more sinewy. Both were very tender, and very nice. The resultant soup was superb to be drunk just like that.

Excellent meal. We loved it. We thought of going back for a second round, but was distracted by another shuayangrou place in APM Mall...not as good...but I will blog about that experience next week.

Donglaishun Muslim Restaurant (Wangfujing Branch)
Location: No.198, Wangfujing Dajie, Dongcheng District

Appetite for China: Da Dong Beijing Roast Duck

2011-10-31T17:35:00.000+08:00

When in Beijing, one must at least sample the world famous Peking Duck...or what the locals call Bei Jing Kao Ya...Beijing roast duck.

Much has been written about these ducks...the species, I am told is special, particularly succulent, just the right size. And there are roughly two methods of roasting them...one is the traditional way of pumping the duck up with air, and left to dry overnight, and then roasted in an oven, and another is to coat the skin with maltose and hanged in a hot wood fired oven. Quang Ju De is one of the former, and I tried the roast duck at their huge restaurant in Wang Fu Jin. But I was unimpressed. The duck was very fat, the skin crispy, but not spectacularly so. The restaurant, which is quite large...I suspect can easily seat 1000 diners at one go, was quite traditional, and...in a way rather plain. I did not take photographs, as I had just returned from the Temple of Heaven and only had the Hasselblad in my camera bag.

I had, the day before sampled the more avant garde Da Dong. Covered in his interesting documentary "In Search of Perfection", by 3 star Michelin chef Heston Blumenthal, Da Dong's approach is different. And the restaurant in the fashionable Jin Bao Place is also equally fashionable. It looked more like a Michelin starred restaurant...with the duck ovens, all 4 of them, each capable of roasting 10 ducks at a time taking center stage. Quite a fanfare in delivering the ducks that are carved at your table (at Quang Ju De, you pay more for this privillage). The decor is modern. And the place impeccable.

Ducks roasting in the wood fired oven.

Interestingly, the prices are very similar. RMB240 approx for a whole duck.

We started with the Doumiao...which is rather difficult to find good, fresh, large leaved ones in Singapore...this was very nice...even the presentation was given a good thought, rather unusual for a China restaurant, in my experience

Excellent. Loved it.

During the first visit, we also ordered some noodles and a foie gras fried rice

The lobster noodle was ok. The soup was mildly tasty of lobster, with two lobster meat chunks within. The noodles were typical Beijing la mien...cooked a bit too soft for my liking. But was still rather tasty.

The liver rice was fragrant. The bits of duck liver was fairly liberally over the rice, which was long grained fragrant rice.

On our second visit, we had the fried millet with eel, which I found to be rather spectacular, if a bit greasy.

The eel was nicely fried with the millet, and the dish was very delicious.

But we came for the duck...so how was it? Quite spectacular I must say.

We ordered half a duck, which was roasted in the demonstration kitchen right in the middle of the restaurant, in full view of the patrons. I counted each roasting was 10 ducks, each hanging within the ovens till it was roasted to perfection.

There were perhaps 5 chefs attending to the fires of the wood oven, and carefully removing the ducks when they were done. It was brought to the center, where the serving chefs...who ceremoniously carry the beautifully roasted duck to be carved at your table are awaiting. The liquid within the duck is released, the beak broken off with a quick snap, and the duck is paraded through the restaurant till your table.

A slice of skin is first carved from the belly. This is then carefully squared, and suggested to be eaten with a sprinkling of plain cane sugar.

The rest of the duck is deftly carved into a neat pile of meat and skin...the head is halved, so the brain is presented, and the leg is presented whole. This was for an order of half a duck.

One needs to order the garnishing separately:

From top left clockwise, red radish, grated garlic, cane sugar, sweet black sauce, white spring onions, grated radish, beans and julianned cucumber.

The rest of the duck is presented to be eaten in two ways. First, with the garnishes in a crisp skin bun, which is empty within.

This was an interesting way to eat Beijing Duck. The sesame on the bun's crisp, light skin goes well with the rich duck, sauced and garnished.

The traditional way of eating it within a steamed pancake was also offered

The pancake here is a bit springy, nice texture. Smooth, and a light wheaty taste. Goes well with the duck. The meat of the duck itself was a succulent, while not fat at all. The skin was wonderfully crispy.

Coming back to the skin, the belly skin, which was carefully prepared in the first step of the carving is to be eaten dipped in the cane sugar...

This was perfect skin...no fat, only a bit of crisp, maltosed skin. And not surprisingly, goes well with just sugar...

Here, the flavours meet...the skin was so superbly light and crisp...the sugar bringing up the caramalised maltose. Perfect!

A duck bone soup was also served with the duck...I found this to be a bit heavy on the duck flavour...but grew to like it quite a bit as a savoury, rich soup

We were offered a free sesame dessert the first time we visited, but the second visit, they did not offer this to us...

But both times, a fruit platter was offered gratis:

The melon was very sweet, the watermelon was reasonably sweet...and the fresh hawthorn an unusual treat for us who live in South East Asia.

Overall, a superior Beijing Duck meal. And though considered an expensive meal in Beijing, by Singapore standards are very reasonable. I much prefer the taste of the duck and other dishes of Da Dong when compared to Quang Ju De. Ambience and service...for me hands down much better at Da Dong. Though I must mention the variable service in the two visits I made to Da Dong...the first time, we were offered a sesame dessert, the second time round no hot dessert. The first time round, the waitress offered to show us how to eat the duck in the various methods...the second time, we were left to our devices...perhaps we looked like we were experienced diners by then.

But highly recommended for Beijing Duck when in Beijing.

Da Dong
5/F, Jinbao Dasha, Jinbao Jie, Dongcheng District
Daily 11am-10pm
8522 1234

Jiang Nan Chun...old favourite

2011-10-27T06:55:00.000+08:00

Hotel cuisine can be extremely good, or rather passe. This is an example of one which is very good. Suffice it to say that all dishes were very good, and a few outstanding.This was a banquet, recently organized by The Hour Glass and Moser (a very unique watch manufacturer based in Schaffhausen, Switzerland).

The starter is a two piece combination of a prawn in a mango sauce and a pancake of roasted duck.

The prawn was fresh, of course...crunchy, and the rich mango sauce complemented it very well. The duck pancake reminded me of Peking Duck, but the within there was a crispy bean curd, and instead of a piece of crisp duck with skin, the duck was roasted nicely, with a great aroma, but I did not detect the crisp skin. Nice nonetheless.

The soup was a di regeur of a shark's fin soup with conpoy and shreded chicken.

This dish was not exceptional, but was deftly prepared by the chef, and tasted good.

We next had the fish, which I declared a total winner

This is a baked cod in a miso sauce. The fish was superbly fresh, cooked just right...and the sauce, as we already know from other samplings elsewhere, goes very well and plays accompaniment to the fish...allowing the fish to shine, but complementing always.

The braised pork ribs were next:

This was again quite normal. I found the pork to be a bit too fat. And the lean parts of the meat not as tender as I would have liked. The mantou was excellent...good flavour, soft and moist within with a nice crisp crust.

The rice was next

Quite nicely fried. No oily texture. The rice was beautifully fragrant. Bits of prawn and scallop liberally found within. The addition of chilli padi lifted the dish for me.

And finally the dessert...a bit avant garde...

Chilled mango sago with lemongrass jelly...nicely finishing the meal.

Definitely worth revisits, with some outstanding dishes, and some good, but not spectacular ones.

Jiang Nan Chun
Four Seasons Hotel
Singapore

Simple meals: unagi in Nikko

2011-10-25T08:20:00.010+08:00

Sometimes, the simplest foods are the best...after a morning of hiking to photograph the sights in Nikko, I was rather tired...so just dropped into the nearest restaurant.

And the unagi caught my eye...normally I wouldn't have ordered unagi in a non-specialist restaurant in Japan...but I was tired, and the picture looked good...There is actually a famous unagi restaurant on the same road (Route 190), but I couldn't find it, and with my 12kg camera back begining to take its toll...I decided to eat at this restaurant.

But first, a refreshing beer...Kirin is superb.

Ahhhh....good...

And the unagi?

Superb. The meat was light, ultra tender...and beautiful...rich creamy on the palate. The skin was almost crisp, but just shy...beautiful.

Somewhere in Nikko..just opposite Shinkyo. The restaurant is on the second floor.

p.s. Some readers will know that as this post goes on line, I am in Beijing...I am not sure, but many people tell me that I will not be able to access blogspot and facebook while there...but anyway, I am putting this post online on Friday evening before I leave to be published on Tue.