Craftsmen Specialty Coffee

It was a lazy weekend afternoon. We decided to find a quiet place to chill. Chanced upon Craftsmen Specialty Coffee at Mohammed Sultan Road and decided this café shall be it. Around for a few years, its presence can also be found at Central, Siglap and Thomson. Loved how the place is bright and spacious with white wall, high ceiling and light let in through the glass frontage (not sure if the lightbulbs would be sufficient at night though). Colourful bottles of soda and beer on wooden and black metal shelves, together with potted plants hanging from above or sitting on a surface, stood out against wooden tables and chairs with black metal legs on concrete floor. As my dining companions and I were not hungry, we shared a slice of cake and had a drink each. Could neither rave about the coffee nor fault its cake.

Eight Korean BBQ

Eight Korean BBQ opened its 1st branch on the 2nd floor of Central in 2013 and has since expanded to Shaw Centre. My dining companions and I visited the former for lunch on a weekday, and was surprised there was just another two tables occupied. According to the website, it is named after its 8 Colours Set – pork belly slices in wine, original, garlic, smoked, herb, curry, miso and gochujang flavours (from the lightest to the heaviest). Decided to order its Flower Pork Set of flower pork belly, pork neck steak and pork jowl to try different parts of the Mangalitza hog used here. A rare pig of Hungarian origin often mistaken for sheep due to its thick woolly coat, it can withstand harsh winter as low as -30^oC. Is this why the raw meat was red like beef with marbling twice that of regular pork? Was apprehensive about putting a piece of 100%-fat-looking jowl into my mouth but am glad I did as fats had never taste so good, possibly due to Mangalitza fats melting at a lower temperature than regular pork fats.

There was no gamely smell to both the fats and meat which were tender, juicy and sweet. Every set comes with raw leafy greens that you can use to wrap the grilled meat and mushrooms with kimchi and bean sprouts. And Seafood Bean Paste Stew that started a tad bland (though a dining companion thought it was flavourful enough), was just nice in the middle of our meal but too salty and thick at the end. Could neither rave about the clams nor fault the squids in it though the mussels were not fresh which the staff kindly changed for us. We also ordered a comforting White Ginseng Chicken Soup – taste of the chicken that could be easily torn apart with the Korean metal flat chopsticks and spoon, was accentuated with a dash of the salt and pepper that was served alongside. Of the banchan, our favourite was the thin slices of preserved radish. Oh, and did I mention that the grill plate was tilted to drain away the oil and that you can spray fabric freshener on your clothes before leaving the Korean restaurant?

Sugisawa

There are many Japanese restaurants at Robertson Quay, so much so that we were spoilt for choice and took a while to decide which to visit. The decision was made harder with no crowd in any of them and hardly any food (that other patrons were eating) for us to see if it looks good. It was too early for dinner and some places were just opening. In the end, we settled for Sugisawa as there was something for everyone. Could neither rave about nor fault the trio of appetiser, potato salad and smooth Chawanmushi. While the ebi tempura was not too oily, could not say the same of its deep-fried lady's fingers and pork that was also a tad tough. The yakitori was too sweet for my liking and its rice utterly disappointing – not only was it not Japanese rice, it was one of the worst I have ever eaten.

Imakatsu

One of us was tasked with the "job" of finding a good place for lunch and the place of choice was Imakatsu. The Japanese restaurant, which specialises in tonkatsu, has been around for 80 years in Japan with its flagship at Roppongi and presence also at Ginza. It was a weekday when my dining companions and I visited the branch at Boat Quay, its 2nd in Singapore after The Star Vista. While none of us have tried the place before, we were looking forward to a meal there due to the rave reviews online. However, reservations were not allowed so we decided to try our luck. As there were no available seats indoor, we settled for a table outside. No air-conditioner, just the fan and thankful for no haze.

Ordered Bite Size Pork Fillet and Chicken Fillet Cutlet Set from the lunch menu – comes with miso soup and pickled vegetables, unlimited rice and fresh cabbage. The katsu items had tender and juicy insides with a thin, crisp and evenly-coated layer of batter that was not too oily. Loved the sweet potato and preferred the pork to chicken fillet. Raw crunchy cabbage was perfect with sesame dressing especially when interspersed with deep-fried food. I could not complain about the soft-boiled egg I added, just like the lovely rice and pickled vegetables. Non-deep-fried food items on the menu include Oyako Don, Pork Don with Oroshi/Ginger Sauce and Cold or Hot Udon.

the BetterField

It was an impromptu lunch on a weekday at the BetterField, a café that opened at Waterloo last year and moved to The Treasury in May this year. There is no GST and service charge at this sparse space with wooden tables and chairs against high ceiling, white walls and cement floor. Ordered a lunch set, which comes with soup-of-the-day and drink (Seasons ice lemon/peach tea) – pan-seared sashimi-grade salmon with roasted potatoes and salad in vinaigrette. Soup on the day of our visit was mushroom soup. Served in a cup filled to the halfway mark, the peppery soup had a strong aroma of mushrooms and was not too creamy for me. Could neither rave about the salad nor fault the salmon though the potatoes were a tad oily and I did not like the accompanying mustard. While my order was the most expensive lunch set, was glad of my choice as dining companions who ate others were not satisfied with theirs.

Note: The café has closed.

Super Loco

One of my dining companions suggested catching up over dinner on a weekday at Super Loco, the more casual offshoot of Duxton Hill's Lucha Loco. Not all of us are familiar with Robertson Quay so we took a while – some more than the others, to find the colourful corner space it occupies by the river. Ordered a few dishes to share and all were good, especially the ceviche (so much so that we forgot to take any picture of it). As the fish or seafood is either raw or cured in lime juice, a few were apprehensive about ordering it. I convinced them enough to order the mango one, as the wild snapper would have been "cooked" by the lime. For most, it was our 1st time trying and we were pleasantly surprised by how delicious it can be. In fact, I was blown away by the perfect balance of taste and texture – sweet mango with sour lime, fresh and succulent snapper with crispy shallots and fragrant coriander. By the way, brunch is served at this Mexican eatery on weekends.

FOC

FOC is not free of charge but means fire in Catalan, a language spoken in the Barcelona region of Spain. Located on Hong Kong Street opposite Central, FOC is as synonymous with Catalan cuisine in Singapore as it is with hand-crafted cocktails by award-winning mixologist Dario Knox. According to its website, authentic flavours of the best local and seasonal produces are brought together to impeccably present traditional Catalan dishes in a contemporary format with an enthusiastic attitude. The collaboration between chefs Nandu Jubany, who received a Michelin star for his restaurant Can Jubany in Calldetenes, and Jordi Noguera reinvents recipes to the smallest details where the land or sea products find a balance of complexity and subtlety on the plate. This is an overdue visit and I finally dropped by for lunch on a weekday. Among the four of us, we shared six tapas (small plates) and one each of paella, main, dessert and cocktail – Blacked Out in Bangkok.

Mitsuba

I was back at the same restaurant for lunch within a week, also on a weekday but with another group of dining companions. It was definitely not because I was so impressed with its a-la-carte buffet during my 1st visit that I dropped by again to try other items on the menu. In fact, most of the food we ordered for the buffet was mediocre with a few not-too-bad dishes and only one that stood out. The Teba Karaage from the Age Mono menu, or deep-fried marinated chicken mid-wing, was crispy on the outside with succulent and well-marinated meat. We could not fault its Chawanmushi and Dobinmushi (Japanese teapot soup) though were divided over the tempuras and Teppanyaki Pork Shogayaki. Found the former a tad oily and its batter too thick for my liking while some of us thought the latter, pork in Japanese ginger sauce, had a gamely smell and taste.

Butahage

One of my dining companions chanced upon Butahage on the 2nd floor of Liang Court during one of the times we were there, and suggested having lunch at this Japanese place another day. So here we were on a weekday, a big group of us. Upon seeing how it could not accommodate all of us and that only butadon is on the menu, some decided to eat elsewhere. I stayed on, of course, and ordered mine with ontama. According to its website, butadon or grilled pork rice originates from Tokachi Obihiro in Hokkaido and Yumepirica is the sticky and sweet rice used in Butahage. Could neither rave about the thin slices of lean pork grilled at 850^oC nor fault the soft boiled egg. The former was not as tender as I would have liked it to be though together with its Tare sauce (a soy-based marinade), was reminiscent of homecooked food. While I am not a fan of miso soup, could not say the same of pickled radish – loved the accompanying tsuboduke.

Olivia Cassivelaun Fancourt (OCF)

Olivia Cassivelaun Fancourt, also known as OCF, is a French restaurant named after Sir Stamford Raffles' first wife. It is located on the 2nd floor of the Old Parliament House, which is The Arts House today. Started in 2013, it has been on my radar since. And with Singapore Restaurant Week from 14 to 22 March this year, I found a good reason to visit. The lunch menu includes an entrée of marinated asparagus, poached organic egg and smoked eel from Kaviari or Jerusalem artichoke velouté with Parmesan foam and truffles. While I could not fault the asparagus, the egg and eel was too salty for my liking. This was followed by main course of Iberian pork collar, glazed Jerusalem artichoke, vegetable purée and roasting Jus. Pork collar was surprisingly fatter than we expected, but otherwise good. I loved the artichoke reminiscent of potato but not the pumpkin purée. Dessert of whipped ganache with espresso ice cream was presented with hot moka poured over it.

Note: The restaurant has closed.

Clarke Quay Food Trail

Last Saturday, I joined other food bloggers on a food trail organised by Clarke Quay and Food & Travel magazine.

Bayang

Our first stop was at Bayang, a Balinese Indonesian restaurant located at Block A facing Block D. Choose between the air-conditioned indoors or alfresco outdoors, with bar stools along a high wooden table by the glass façade offering the best of both worlds – to people watch in cool comfort. Stepping in, I noticed decorative pieces that gave the spacious place with lots of wood (think wooden floor, tables and chairs with backrest) an Indonesian charm. On the wall behind comfortable bench seats with cushions, were Wayang Kuilt or Indonesian shadow puppets in white. Baskets of emping crackers with chilli sauce to dip in, and glasses of lime juice were placed on our tables. And as we settled in, the appetiser platter was served. Preferred the succulent grilled prawns and tender chicken satay to the begedil and fried spring rolls even though they were not oily.