Maison Ikkoku

My dining companions and I were in the vicinity when we decided to check out Maison Ikkoku, located at Kandahar Street. It was dinner time and we were not interested in its rooftop bar, which supposedly commands a view of the Sultan Mosque in Kampong Glam. Waited a while for seats at the ground floor café instead, and managed to get two tables for seven. Though this place has been around for years, most of us have never been here. Ordered a cuppa espresso macchiato – bitter and medium-bodied with a subtle aroma of roasted coffee beans but too acidic for my liking, to go with my choice of Break of Dawn from its weekend all-day breakfast menu. Could neither rave about the pork bratwurst and greens (loved the almond flakes), nor fault the crispy bacon and cherry tomatoes. I did not like the scrambled eggs sitting on top of, and making the sliced toast soggy.

Platyptus Kitchen

Was looking for dinner on a weekday at Raffles Place when I chanced upon Platypus Test Kitchen, tucked away in a corner on the second floor of Clifford Centre, but it was closed for the day. According to the website, Platypus is a Singapore based restaurant group with nine branches in Singapore including Platypus Gourmet2Go at Golden Shoe and Platyptus Lobster Shack at China Square. Having seen drooling pictures and rave reviews on its food, I decided to try Platyptus Kitchen at Bugis Junction on another day. Ordered The Traditional Lobster Roll where sweet and succulent butter-poached lobster meat, tossed in roasted garlic mayonnaise with chives and a sprinkle of sea salt, was stuffed into a perfectly grilled soft bun and served with sides. Could neither rave about the small mesclun salad in honey lemon vinaigrette nor fault the crispy French fries with a faint aroma and subtle taste of truffle. Other items on the menu include handmade pastas and gourmet risottos.

Gunther’s

Located opposite Saveur on Purvis Street, Gunther's was named New Restaurant of the Year in the World Gourmet Summit Awards of Excellence 2009 as well as Restaurant of the Year and Outstanding Caterer of the Year at the World Gourmet Summit Excellence 2012. Opened by award winning chef Gunther Hubrechsen who helmed Les Amis for more than five years, the fine dining restaurant was also voted into the prestigious San Pellegrino World's Best 100 Restaurants 2010 and has been one of Asia's Top 20 Finest Restaurants in The Miele Guide since 2008. While the place had an all-glass frontage, there were curtains to prevent eyes from prying in to see diners inside. Dimly-lit with dark ceilings and walls, it exuded elegance and opulence without (surprisingly) the stifling ambience. Though, I must say, the entrance was more intimidating than welcoming. Visited on the eve of a public holiday for dinner and were brought to our table with comfortable leather chairs.

Ah Chew Desserts

After dinner in the Bugis vicinity one evening, my dining companions and I dropped by Ji De Chi for Mango with Pomelo Sago. This was many years ago and there was no turning back since. I have subsequently visited both branches at Liang Seah Street and Jurong Point (there is another one at Plaza Singapura) and tried its Durian with Pomelo Sago, Mango Baked Puff Rolls and Durian in Sticky Rice Rolls. However, there was a long queue when I was there yesterday so we decided to try Ah Chew Desserts on the same street instead. Not that there was no queue, but it seemed shorter and I recently saw drooling pictures and rave reviews on its desserts. It was a short wait before we were seated at a hard ebony wood table with a menu pasted on it underneath a glass cover. Upon deciding what to eat from the dazzling choices available, we proceeded to join another queue at the order counter in the shop space next door.

BeansTalk and BlackBall

As I read The Sunday Times review on BeansTalk, I thought $2 for Taiwanese beancurd with 6 toppings was a good deal. No harm trying if I happened to be in Toa Payoh and have stomach space for it but alas, months have since passed me by. So when I saw another branch at Jurong East Temporary Interchange, decided to try it. Known as BeansTalk Signature, it was topped with grass jelly, pinto beans, red and green beans, roasted peanuts and taro balls. Silky beancurd was mediocre and left a strange taste on my tongue. Atop was grass jelly, beans and nuts I could neither rave about nor fault. Preferred BlackBall's grass jelly made with Mesona grass from Guan Xi, Taiwan – smooth and slippery enough to glide down my throat, not too sweet though some might find it a tad bitter. BeansTalk's colourful taro balls were chewy, just like that from BlackBall which also came with sweet potato balls. Though they were good, better ones could be found at Malaysia's Snowflakes.

Update: BeansTalk has been rebranded as Nine Fresh Desserts Taiwan.

Mooi Chin

Who would have expected that a split-up between partners of a restaurant business, set up in 1925, could become Singapore's oldest Hainanese restaurant today? Founded by Hai Chin, Mooi Chin opened in 1935 at the corner of North Bridge Road and Purvis Street serving western food. Chinese cuisine was added after World War II and the restaurant currently shares space with the lobby of Landmark Village Hotel (formerly known as Golden Landmark Hotel) at Victoria Street. With no ambience to speak of, the simply furnished restaurant looked dated. Our order of Hainanese Mutton Soup was thoughtfully portioned into individual bowls for us with the remnants in the large bowl placed on our table. For someone who does not usually take mutton, the soup was surprisingly pleasant and not oily, with an herbal taste that stopped short of coming across as an herbal soup. Ingredients included red dates, wolfberries, crunchy black fungus and tender meat.