Li Bai is well known for its wide range of Cantonese cuisine. I meant the restaurant located at the basement level of Sheraton Towers Singapore, not the famous Chinese poet. The cosy restaurant is popularly known for their dim sum but the other Cantonese dishes were stellar as well, which i found out after sampling some dishes from their Chinese New Year menu. 
Little appetizers were served and we couldn't stop snacking on the candied chestnuts with sesame seeds. The seasoned dried scallops with chili and dried shrimps had me ask for seconds (sans chili oil). I think there's some XO sauce added to it and it's certainly a good seasoning/accompaniment to the mains.

As with any CNY dinner, Yusheng is a must.

Instead of the regular salmon, we had the Turbot fish, whose name in Chinese means 'many treasures'. There are fried taro and pumpkin slices in the mix, which gave the dish some added crunch.

Next, the Braised Superior Bird's Nest with Crabmeat and Crab Roe. I was delighted to see that Li Bai uses birds' nest as a replacement for shark's fin. Well at least bird's nest can be sustainably farmed so it's the lesser of two evils. I liked the clean and light taste of the birds nest (Li Bai was extremely generous with the bird's nest), which was served with a copious amount of crab roe. Ask for the XO sauce, we heard from the PR girls that it's great with the soup. 

Next, the Lobster done two ways: Salted Egg Lobster and Sautéed fillet of lobster with greens. Surprisingly, I preferred the sautéed fillet even though anything served with salted egg is faultless. The sweetness of the crustacean could be tasted better with the ginger garlic sauce. The texture was superb as well, with the meat being springy instead of chewy.

Stewed "Eight Treasures" Chicken with South African 5-head Abalone and Sea Cucumber is the perfect dish to be eaten with a bucket of fragrant steamed rice. Much effort has gone into the preparation of the chicken, which was first stuffed with chestnut, mushrooms, barley, lotus seed etc, then fried and browned, before stewing it for 2 hours to achieve that fall-off-the-bone quality. Abalone was briny sweet and tender too. 

Our wonderful chef for the night, Chef Cheung.

We ended dinner with traditional Chinese desserts with a twist. This Pan-fried Nian Gao had coconut in it and was more like the Malay kueh. The Water Chestnut Cake hearts were a refreshing end to the dinner as well. Li Bai will be serving 9 reunion set menus that caters to various group sizes from 17 Jan to 24 Feb 2014. Do make a reservation in advance to prevent disappointment!

Li Bai is certainly a Chinese restaurant that I will keep coming back to. Great service, environment and food. Mums will definitely love this one! 

Li Bai Cantonese Restaurant
Sheraton Towers Singapore
39 Scotts Road
Tel: +65 6839 5623
Mon-Sat: 11.30am - 2.30pm, 6.30 - 10.30pm

Sun: Dim Sum 10.30am - 2.30pm, 6.30 - 10.30pm

Eating clean has become a regular feature in my life (i've been eating homemade salads on weekdays for a couple of months now). Call it a part of being a yogi or the fear of becoming really fat. I mean, with all the food tastings and growing old, maintaining my current physical state is almost like a full time job.

Real Food has been around in Singapore for some time now but i've never tried the food there #Confessionsofacarnivore. I'm really not a vegetarian fan because i love my meat too much to give it all up. So after going green, i was interested in sampling the veg options available in Sg.

I tried the food at both the Killiney and Central outlet. Given the philosophy that there is no shortcut to good quality food, Real Food does not microwave or use pre-packed, processed or pre cut ingredients. Everything is prepared fresh on the spot. So be prepared for slow food (like they said). However we were all not prepared for how slow that is. It took them a good 20mins to serve us our juices at the Kiliney outlet. Central fared a little better wrt waiting time.

Baby glasses of juice cost $6-8 a pop. My my. And it wasn't like some special juice.

I had the Orange and Pumpkin Salad with Vinaigrette ($10.80) which was a disappointment. Because I've been making my own salads, I'm highly aware of the prices of ingredients and this is seriously a ripoff. Honestly, I make better salads and they fill me up way better than this one.

I decided to give RF a second chance at their Central outlet. The Beet (Millet) Burger ($12.80) wasn't too bad. The handmade patty is made from beetroot, carrots, onions, millet and zucchini. Taste wise, it was alright though lacking in substance (literally) Some increased density and fibre would be great though.

My favorite would be the Dry Dumpling Noodles ($8.80). It tasted like any simple homemade noodle dish except for the use of organic ingredients. The organic brown rice udon was more springy than the usual udon and the dumplings were succulent and juicy. Chili packs a punch too. By far the tastiest of the lot.

Sadly, eating clean is an expensive deal in Singapore (or in any developed country) and frankly, I think it's absurdly ridiculous. Everyone should be entitled to fresh and healthy produce at an affordable price. Well for now, I'll just continue making and eating my salads.

If you have any good vegan/healthy food options, do share with us!

Real Food 

110 Kallang Road

Tel: +65 6737 9516

Also at:

The Central #B1-52-53

Square 2 #B1-105/106/129

West Coast Plaza #B1-06/07

It's the lunar new year season soon and that only means more feasting! I recently checked out the CNY offerings at one of the Park Hotel Group's properties, Grand Park City Hall. Award winning Park Palace has been lauded for it's authentic Cantonese gastronomy and this is about as traditional Chinese banquet style as it gets.

We had the super luxe Imperial Five Treasures Golden Shunde Yu Sheng which is priced at an auspicious $888. So what goes into a yu sheng aka Chinese salad that costs this much? Abalone, Lobster, Geoduck Clam, Salmon and Hamachi, topped with Caviar and Fish Roe. Top that up with 24k gold foil and there you have it.

In place of the traditional salad of radish, carrots, pickled ginger and pomelo, crispy fried vermicelli was used. Not the best substitute in my opinion unless you really love fried food. The crispy silver fish that was added had us fishing around for the treasured pieces. That said, I can see how this dish would appeal to middle aged Chinese businessmen.

Toss toss toss! The massive yusheng feeds close to 30 pax. Order of the Imperial Five Treasures Golden Shunde Yu Sheng must be made at least seven days in advance. If not, go for the regular Yu Sheng with Salmon ($55/75), or with Abalone ($75/85).

I gave the Shark's fin with Chicken wanton soup a miss because I don't support the shark's fin trade (I don't think you should too). Pen Cai, a flavorful meat, seafood and veg casserole braised in stock, is my favorite CNY dish. The Pen Cai with Nourishing Pig Trotters ($298nett for 6pax / $488nett for 10 pax) has three layers of 18 ingredients: Sliced Abalone, Sea Cucumber, Whole Conpoy, Prawn Balls, Roasted Duck, Roasted Pork Belly, Soya Chicken, Fatt Choy, Black Mushroom, Lotus Root, Broccoli, Radish, Beancurd Skin, Gingko Nut and Black Fungus. Hearty, comforting, delicious. The portion is very generous too. This dish is available for takeaway.

Lobster Gems in Dual Style – Live Lobster sautéed with Fresh Lily Bulbs, Asparagus & Wolfberries, surrounded with Deep-fried Cheese Lobster Balls. I preferred the sautéed lobster as one would be able to taste the freshness of the meat. That said, oozy cheesy fried seafood can never go wrong.

The Roasted Whole Suckling Pig ($255 nett) was stellar IMO. The style was served similar to Peking Duck. The combination of steamed skinny mantou, sweet sauce and crackly skin was just mind blowing. You could choose how you want the rest of the meat prepared. We had it roasted with the sweet sauce and it was juicy and delicious.

Dessert was a wickedly rich fried durian parcel with decadently creamy and sore throat inducing durian flesh. Make sure you drink plenty of water or herbal tea after this one!

Park Palace CNY Dinner set menu is available in their Grand Ballroom on 30 Jan and is priced at $558 for 6pax, $858 for 10pax. There are also 8 different set menus available, catering to varied group sizes. The CNY menu is available till 14 Feb 2014.  

Park Palace, Grand Park City Hall

10 Coleman Street Singapore 179809
Tel: +65 6432 5543

Common Man Coffee Roasters has been creating waves on the coffee scene. Well, with the partnership of indie coffee father Harry Grover of 40 Hands, Australia’s Five Senses Coffee and the lifestyle conglomerate Spa Spirit Group, it is no wonder why and how CMCR is drawing in the crowd.

Located at 22 Martin Road, Common Man Coffee Roasters join the many artisan coffee shops e.g. Kith Cafe, Toby's Estate, Smitten in the Robertson enclave to provide us, brunch hungry Singaporeans with a reason to wake early on weekends. Be prepared to wait for your table but be thankful that breakfast doesn't run out because they serve an All Day Breakfast menu. 

The decor and vibe is very Aussie. I like the cool bar seats which plays with varying heights. And those spotlights sure do make me feel like i'm on Broadway.

I can't help but notice the sign behind the bar that says "Free Coffee and Doughnuts for the Unemployed". Well i don't see any doughnuts on the menu and you definitely would be paying an arm or leg for the pricey food that is served at CMCR. Really there is nothing Common Man about the prices. I mean god.. what did eggs become so expensive in Singapore?

Ignoring the little dishes for breakfast, the heartier options like the Common Man Full Breakfast, Turkish CM Breakfast are all in the mid 20s range. I have no qualms with spending 30 bucks on brunch with coffee but even i am feeling the pinch here. Expect higher prices for the lunch menu. Desserts also go at a whooping $12.

Organic Eggs Benedict ($24) with two poached eggs on top of tender braised ox cheeks and lightly toasted artisanal sourdough toast. This has been raved about by many. Well, at least it is a fresh take on the typical (but always satisfying) Eggs Ben.

The meat was very tender, the eggs flawlessly poached and the hollandaise sauce was rich and creamy in terms of texture. Everything felt rich i.e. on the oily side but it was a bland dish. I was expecting the braised ox cheeks to be more umami but it was just meaty. The hollandaise also lacked the tangy citrus taste. The richness of the dish was a little discomforting towards the end of the meal so it was a good thing that the portion is small?

My Mocha ($6) was stellar. W judges V and i and anyone who orders mocha because he feels that it conceals the quality of the coffee with the cloying sweetness from the chocolate. However, this mocha was nicely perfumed with the intense chocolate aroma and i thought it enhanced the flavor of the smooth coffee.

Common Man Coffee Roasters isn't for the common man but it's ok to indulge in an expensive plate of eggs once in a while i guess.

Common Man Coffee Roasters
22 Martin Road Singapore 239058
Tel: +65 6836 4695
Daily: 8am - 7pm 

Kovan is becoming a hipper place for people living in the North East! I know we have Serangoon Gardens and all but that area is seriously too congested for my liking. Recently, the brothers and i checked out Lola's Cafe, a fairly new joint located at Simon Road, just a stone's throw away from our regular Punggol Nasi Lemak haunt (i don't like it btw). 

Lola's Cafe is a cheerful cafe with a limited seating capacity. I reckon it sits about 20 to 30 pax. And they are really popular. Go early, put your booking down on the iPad booking system and be prepared to wait.

I've heard good things about the brunch menu (available from 10am - 3pm on weekends) but i've yet to try it. Friends that i've sent in Lola's way enjoyed the Avocado Eggs Benedict very much. All my favorite ingredients in 1 dish, you bet i'd order that next time.
We met late for supper and picked from the bites section. The Truffle fries with grated Parmesan cheese ($12) was MEH. I'm a fan of soggy fries but this style is simply not compatible with truffle oil. The fries were bland and lacking in the truffle aroma.

My favorite is the Honey and Paprika Crispy Wings ($9). You have to order this! This is an order from the Tummy Ministry. I loved the light crispy batter which stayed crunchy throughout the meal. The meat was nicely marinated and went perfectly with the light touch of honey which coats it.

Their homemade desserts are apparently quite popular here but both desserts that we tried were less than satisfactory. The Dark Chocolate Sea Salt tart with Kahlua coffee cream ($5) sounded more delicious than it tasted. Filling to tart ration was off (too much tart) and the tart lacked in the butter department and was simply too crumbly (and i don't mean it in a good way). The tart tasted like one of those factory manufactured pastry shells. Meh. 

Sticky Honey Apple cake with French Vanilla ice cream ($7). According to the brothers, who aren't very picky with food,  Swensen's apple crumble tastes better and i concur. 

I had the Matcha green tea latte ($6) which was worse than Starbucks. It was terribly bland. Will never order this again.

I was hoping that i would be head over heels in love with Lola's Cafe but i wasn't. Hopefully their brunch will change my opinion about them. Till then.

Lola's Cafe

5 Simon Road Singapore 545893
Tel: + 65 6343 1808
Tue: 3pm - 11.30pm
Wed - Thu: 10am - 11.30pm
Fri - Sat: 10am - 12am
Sun: 10am - 11.30pm

If you're nuts about everything beef, then Fat Cow would be your beef heaven. They really do live up to their name and serve lots of Fat Wagyu Cows, which happens to be my favorite kind of animal!

After savoring the Wagyu no Kakuni during the FijiWater Signature expedition some time back (read about it here), I knew I had to feed my beefy addiction.

There have been mixed reviews on the restaurant and one thing I heard was that the food doesn't justify the price. However, with the downward revision of the already affordable lunch sets, I don't think anyone would be deterred from checking FC out. Each set comes with salad, chawanmushi, miso soup and dessert with your choice of mains. Pick from the 12 mains which are priced from $25 to $48. Don't worry if you're not a beef fan, there are sashimi, pork and chicken on the menu too.

The chawanmushi was topped with a light tasting crab sauce and it has prawn, mushroom and scallop in it.

We ordered the Kinoko ($14), assorted Japanese mushrooms braised with sake, lime and butter. Honestly, it tasted like normal stir fry with a tinge of lime. A disappointment really. And it was a rather small portion.

We also tried the Nasu Dengaku ($10), barbecued eggplant glazed with honey miso. This is a tiny baby Japanese eggplant and it certainly isn't worth the price tag. There was a plum undertone in the salty miso which didn't sit well with the girls.

We had the 2 hot favorites at Fat Cow, which is the Fat Foa-Gura Don ($42) and The Fat Cow Donburi ($38). It was a tussle between the 2 choices but here's the flavor profiles so that you can decide for yourself! The Fat Foa-Gura Don has the rich and buttery glazed foie gras chunks and grilled wagyu beef cubes. The sauce was a little on the sweet side but the overall flavor is strong and heavy. I liked the toppings on this one but i found the rice to be a little on the dry side and it acted like a sponge, soaking up all the oil from the goose liver..

The Fat Cow Donburi is a simpler dish in comparison but it has its own merits. Charcoal grilled Wagyu Beef with a light garlic flavor, with onsen egg and shiro negi. The first thing we noticed about the dish was its truffle aroma.

Break the egg and mix everything together and enjoy the moist and flavorful rice. Absolutely delicious.

Dessert was a scoop of ice cream. Even though chocolate ice cream sounds boring, the texture of this ice cream was smooth and milky. There were nutty bits in it as well. Quite a good ending to the meal.

If you want to enjoy a great beef bowl without breaking the bank, i'm all for Fat Cow.

Fat Cow
#01-01, 1 Orchard Boulevard, Camden Medical Centre,
Tel: +65 6735 0308

Mon - Sat: 12 - 3pm, 6 - 11pm

If you frequent the Robertson area, you would probably have seen or heard about District 10 at UE Square. My impression was that it is a cool bar that does drinks and the usual bar grub and hence it piqued my curiosity when i was invited to brunch by the nice folks at District 10.

When i stepped into the restaurant, i noticed that the decor has changed. The place is now bigger, brighter and certainly classier. The direction has been steered towards a gastrobar concept with separate indoor and outdoor space. The al fresco area provides a casual ambience for customers who would like to chill out with some bar bites while the Dining Room provides a more elegant environment and cuisine. 

What is brunch without some eggs? 

We had the District 10 Eggs Benedict ($16). I was a little confused because they turned out to be Eggs Florentine. Anyhow, lovely poached eggs on fluffy toasted muffins with a nice crisp on the outside. I found that the hollandaise sauce was well balanced with the flavors from the sautéed spinach and smoked salmon.

We had the interesting Pandan Coconut Pancake with Gula Melaka Syrup ($9) which tasted like the traditional Malay kuehs. The pancakes are on the dense and chewy end with crispy shredded coconut on top (the browned parts). I couldn't stop soaking the pancakes into the brown sugar syrup. Lovely. But only if you like kueh.

Next, we moved on to the heavier items. The Hoegarden Battered Fish & Chips with mint mushy peas and tartare sauce ($22). The fish was satisfactory crisp but had its limelight stolen by the amazing natural cut fries. Hell they can be a main on their own. Love the salty batter! 

The District 10 Brunch Beef Burger ($20) comes paired with the fries too. Hooray! Charcoal-grilled Black Angus patties topped with fried egg, crispy back bacon, cheddar cheese on a sesame bun. You can never go wrong with the egg bacon cheese combination but i thought the patty was a little dry. Well, at least you know they don't use unknown cow bits in this one. 

Do not miss the thin crust pizzas by Italian Chef Luca Pezzera. Love the crust that crackles with each bite. The Portobello Mushrooms pizza ($26) with Portobello mushrooms and a generous serving of truffle oil on top was earthy and delicious.

For something with a local twist, there's the Wagyu Beef Cheek Rendang pizza ($29). The meat was flavorful but somehow it was very gelatinous. The sauce however was pretty spot on for an Italian creating a local favorite. Thumbs up to Chef Luca but could we have more toppings please.

For those looking for something less casual, the Dining room offers a more refined menu. Start with Pan-fried goose liver with wild berries sauce and balsamic syrup, and Burratina cheese with peas, sun-dried tomato puree and extra virgin olive oil. Then move on to Grilled Kurobuta pork chop and homemade angel hair pasta with lobster, peperoncino, basil and fresh tomatoes. Pair your meal with some prestigious European wine labels such as Antinori and Tenuta.

For a more intimate setting, you could also book the private room which seats a small party of 12. There is also an adjoined alfresco lounge for your party's use. 

Thank you District 10 for hosting the brunch. 

District 10 Bar & Restaurant 
81 Clemenceau Avenue, #01-15/16/17
UE Square Shopping Mall, Singapore 239917
Tel: +65 6738 4788

Mon - Thu: 11.30am -11pm
Fri: 11.30am - 1am
Sat: 11.00am - 1am

Sun: 11.00am - 11pm

Weekend brunch till 3pm