Finally introduced Jr to The Spot! The Spot was one of my highly recommended restaurants of 2018 and i'm so glad that Chef Lee Boon Seng is still dishing up his creative European dishes using SEA ingredients! Trust me, you wouldn't regret making your way to Marina One for a meal. Plus there's a good selection of drinks with bottles with 1855 (i spend all my wine money there) and specials from the Macallen boutique. 

We were there for restaurant week and dinner featured mostly items from their main menu. To start, the cheese bread (a Pao de Queijo) with unsalted butter & paprika sea salt ($8) is the perfect savory bite that packs a punch. Lovely crust with a dense center, perfect with butter. 

Market garden greens with a pan seared, panko-like crusted foie gras that cuts like butter. sweetened with a wild stingless bee honey, a little blue cheese was snuck into this one as well to go with the greens.

The Char-grilled Octopus with preserved green papaya slaw, mint, peanut aka miso emulsion showcases Chef Boon Seng's clever take on modern Asian-European cuisine. The peanut aka miso is all too familiar, like our local rojak sauce and the association with Thai and Vietnamese cuisine is also strong with the use of the pickled fruit and herbs. Of course, the star is the smoky octopus. I always associate grilled octopus with Spanish cuisine, do you?

I was wowed then and i'm still impressed with the Grilled Hamachi ($38), which comes with a spring onion chimichurri, Ratte potato, white clams, in a coconut clam broth. The broth is a pseudo Thai Green curry and the sweet clams really shine in this dish. 

Kaya and Gula Aren Cream Choux bun. That's how i first got to know about Allium, which is surprisingly not a cafe/pastry shop. This sleepy little restaurant hidden in Kensington Square is helmed by Dillon Ng, formerly of The Humble Loaf and GastroSmiths, and his wife Lulu who is the pastry master here. Stepping into their 16-seater restaurant felt like someone's home and i kept mixing them up with some other private dining turn commercial place.

The food is all about sustainable produce though i could not figured out their cuisine focus, except that modern (presentation?) came up several times during my meal there. There's no need to put people/things into boxes of course but it does help a little with dining expectation. Nevertheless, if you like surprises, Allium's monthly menus with revolving cuisines would be your cup of tea (i guess that's why i kept thinking they did private dining before).

We had the prix fixe lunch menu ($58/pax nett) for July, which was inspired by the couple's memories of Japan, featuring Japanese home-style dishes. The meal was served the Teishoku way, as a set and all at once, which is perfect for a quick (or leisurely) lunch. The cold sides were a delight- a kombu-like Sustenir Kale tossed in a sweet-ish goma sauce, an umami julienned lotus root, and chunky slices of pickled daikon.

Jr and i are fans of Paradise Group. #notsponsored. We can always count on them for some hearty ramen from their casual LeNu (man i love their wantons and tonkotsu broths), or fatty char siew and delectable morsels of dim sum at Canton Paradise. Oh and Beauty in The Pot is my favorite hot pot place (except i wish it doesn't break the bank every time i visit)! 

From now till end of August, be greeted by some of your seasonal favorites at the Paradise Group. Do we hear a Shrimp Broth hot pot calling our name? Or a wicked but appetizing Nagano Pork Belly with Mala Tomato Soup Ramen? 

Now now our favorite rainbow xiao long bao place Paradise Dynasty has a special “Shanghai Night” lined up for us. And it has taken their signature soup dumplings and turned it into a Sheng Jian Bao. The thin-skinned dumping is given the hot oil treatment on its bottom and emerged all puffed up and crispy but juicy nonetheless. The Crispy Original Xiao Long Bao ($7.80/4pcs) is a keeper. Please don't take it away!!

What was your virgin meal post Circuit Breaker? Phase 2 coincided with our #fridate and i was craving for a good fresh burger and that led us across the island to Burger Labo, by Ken Loon of Naked Finn. The burger lab has been experimenting on burgers to produce one of the best burgers i've eaten, the Basic Burger, which is not at all basic #humblebrag LOL

The Basic Burger (120g single/ 240g double, $18/$25) has gone through so many iterations from 2015 and the current version features a patty made with a blend of Black Angus beef & Toriyama Umami Wagyu A4 patty, grilled on cast iron griddle. Damn this is one juicy beast. Go for the double btw, you wouldn't regret it. The condiments all contributed to the perfect bite- crunchy pickled and also jammy caramelised onions, sharp American cheese, house-made bone marrow ‘butter’ and house-made shio kombu mayo-based sauce. Holding it all together is a glistening glossy brioche bun that made the angels sing. The buns are from Brera Bakery, a favorite of mine.  

Wash it down with an alcoholic milkshake. Boy that chocolate bourbon one was wicked!

Now sadly, the Chicken Burger (150g, $20) was sold out by the time by the first seating. SOBS. The recipe is by Julien Royer of Odette and showcases a GG French Poulet boneless leg marinated in yoghurt & spices, grilled on cast iron griddle. I'd probably have to go back for this, and another Basic Burger again.

WHO: The Gyu Bar. Contemporary Yakiniku dining and bar concept that specializes in premium Wa-Oh Japanese beef from Kumamoto. I've been here before for dinner and wanted to kick myself for forgetting to make an advance reservation for the omakase dinner. 

WHAT: Special wagyu dons are available now. 

Wagyu Uni Chirashi don ($48)- I was attracted by the pretty cubes of food but was also kind of disappointed with the overall mix of flavors for this one. I blame myself for being seduced by the uni. Well, cubed wagyu don't go very well with uni and i thought the rice could be more flavored. It was only slightly sweet.  

Yakiniku Wagyu Foie Gras don ($48)- this bowl is worlds' apart from the wagyu uni chirashi don that was rather plain. Very big flavors with a charsiew-like sauce and garlic chips. But of course there's also the rich buttery battered foie gras on seared wagyu. Such decadence. 

WHAT ELSE: I'd probably want to try Sukiyaki don ($32) or Hokkaido Butadon ($28). Hopefully the flavors are more balanced in these.

HOW: Place your orders on https://smartweb-2.tabsquare.com/intro for delivery or pickup at 30 Stevens Road, #01-08, Singapore 257840

WHO: Jiggy & Pony Group's Humpback seafood restaurant. One of my long time favorites that i need to visit more once CB is over. Also one good thing that came out of the CB is that i'm reminded to support my fav F&B outlets.

WHAT: Humpback's Seafood Sharing Meal for 2 ($78)

Smoked Salmon Dip, served with Ritz Crackers- not overly salty which is great.

Barramundi, with charred corn, garlic mashed potatoes- Lightly seasoned to allow the natural flavors to come through. 

Ah Hua Kelong Lala, olives, yellow onion, saffron broth- slightly creamy broth with notes of pickled mustard leaves (probably from the olives). Would order this again. Am also going to place some orders from Ah Hua himself. Did you see his giant clams??! 

Cabbage (v), with herb cheese, crispy quinoa, chilli oil- simple delicious. The vegetable dishes at Humpback are my all-time favorites.

Flourless Chocolate Cake (gf), with jameson whiskey, sea salt- airy poofy goodness with a twang of citrus

WHO: Birds of a Feather, modern Sichuan cuisine. I'm a repeat customer. Enuff said. Read more here.

WHAT: Food Bundle Set for 2-4pax ($68) for variety's sake even though. This is definitely good to share among 3. 

Find The Chicken in the Chilis- Flavorsome crispy chicken bits with sesame seed and tons of dried chili and peppercorn. The numbing spice kicks in after a couple of bites so do alternate it with the other dishes. 

Spicy Oriental Bolognaise- the noodles are beehoon like and i do love the pull of the noodles. They also held up well during the delivery and wasn't too dry or clumpy. The chili oil of the tangy, pickled chili bolognaise helped. 

Tender Chicken Grains Bowl- a healthy bowl that is big on flavor. I love the mix of grains which were chewy and sweet. I mistook the chicken for oyster mushrooms at the start because they looked so smooth and boy were they tender too. 

Fried Pig's Intestines- the porky flavor was a bit strong or perhaps i'm not accustomed to it since i haven't eaten this in a while. The dried chili powder helped to mask the gaminess a bit. 

Bird's Brown Sugar Fresh Milk Boba Pearl 
x2- BOBA. That's all. 

WHAT ELSE: I struggled because i really wanted to eat the Baked Eggplant with Fried Mantou ($16). This is one of my favorite dishes at Birds of a Feather. Please order it for my sake. You won't regret it. 

HOW: Order from https://www.birdsofafeather.com.sg/en_SG. Minimum order of $50, $5 delivery fees.

 WHO: Singapore's favorite chicken rice Chatterbox and 2 Michelin Star Shisen Hanten

WHAT: 50% off all items from Mandarin Orchard. Chatterbox's world-famous Hainanese Chicken Rice is only priced at $13.50 now. Features tender-boiled chicken, jasmine rice, and chicken soup, served with homemade chilli, ginger, and dark soya sauce. 

Get yourself a DBS/POSB card and enjoy 1-for-1 deals.

Chatterbox Signature Bento ($34 for 2 sets)- Mandarin Chicken Rice, Braised Bee Tai Mak with Abalone, Tauhu Goreng, and Rojak. The sides change over time. The earlier set we had featured abalone ko lo mee which was fab. My mum had the bee tai mak recently and said it wasn't good. I'd recommend the chicken rice for sure. Oh and get another portion of the refreshing rojak! 

Shisen Hanten Bento  ($34 for 2)- Gave the Chen's Mapo tofu another try in this bento and still did not enjoy it. Too one dimensional with the numbing spice but it wasn't like spicy either. The bento was a lot less satisfying than the Chatterbox one. Give this a miss.

HOW: Place your orders on https://shop-orchard.meritushotels.com/en_SG. Free delivery over $80. Free parking for 30mins if you're taking away. 

WHO: One Michelin Star restaurant Basque Kitchen by Aitor. Also the best Michelin takeaways that i've had so far (yes better than Burnt Ends)

WHAT: Basque food (from Northern Spain) where they do pintxos and not tapas. 

Sharing Set for 2 ($98)- also the best 98 bucks i've spent on food this CB. 

Whole homemade sourdough bread with smoked French butter- da bomb! This made me soooooo happy. One freaking gorgeous loaf of sourdough that was still warm after a 30min travel home. Such fantastic thin crust with a chewy open crumb and THAT SMOKED BUTTER. We've not finished a loaf so fast (we had it for dinner, breakfast, and lunch) and i'm still rationing the smoked butter. 

Txaka- Sweet Jumbo crab meat with egg and mayonnaise. It's a great addition to the smoked butter on sourdough.

Croquetas de Bayonne ham, Espelette aioli- the thin crust of the balls erupted and released silky creamy center peppered with smoky bits of ham. The engine-red pepper aioli provided just that sufficient hint of spice 

Iberico Pork Ribs- the other highlight of the meal even. It may seem like a small portion but these sticky fork-tender fatty ribs satiated our appetite with its big flavors.

Catch of the day- flaky juicy fish battered with a savory mix. It's a good contrast to the rich ribs.

Classic mash potatoes- smooth and silky as expected.

Basque rice pudding, Japanese rice vanilla- it's lighter than you would think a rice dessert would be and reminded us of a Peruvian rice dessert that we had. Hints of spices and lemon in this. 

Guanaja" chocolate custard, dark chocolate & salted caramel pearls- i liked that the chocolate custard wasn't too sweet and the pops of salty caramel crunch broke the sweetness.

With a min order of $50 and if you pick up your food, you will get a free slice of their Signature Basque Cheesecake worth $16. The Idiazabal cheese provides a slightly more savory note and the cake wasn't that creamy. Jr preferred my version haha. 

HOW: Visit https://basquekitchenbyaitor.oddle.me/en_SG. Pre-order 1 hour in advance. Free Delivery for $100 and above. Surcharge of $3 will apply for eve of and on public holidays.

WHO: 8Crabs. Chinese tzechar with their specialty AAA premium Sri Lankan sourced wild crabs. Apparently they said that they are the only restaurant selling this grade of crabs. 

WHAT: BIG, JUICY, and MEATY crabs that are caught, flown, prepared and delivered to you within 12 hours plus you get your crabs delivered an hour after ordering. 

Award-Winning Chilli Crab ($68- 125)- We had the extra large which is about 900g-1kg at $88. The pincers were HUGE and the meat was really fresh and sweet. My MIL thought it was better than Jumbo Restaurant's. 8Crabs may be right about that triple A guarantee. However the sauce was a little on the sweeter side. 

WHAT ELSE: 

Signature Coffee Pork Ribs ($15-28)- I was surprised that the meat was boneless because that wasn't how it was presented online, but i didn't mind it at all. The meat was very tender and juicy with a smoky coffee flavor. 

Mee Goreng ($6-18)- thicker flat yellow noodles were used instead of what was shown online (again). This Chinese style mee goreng has more spices and is more savory compared to the Indian ones. I'm no mee goreng expert given how little i eat them but Jr on the other hand prefers Jumbo's though. I didn't mind this though.

Yang Zhou Fried Rice ($6-16)- quite regular. Small portion is good for 2 full portions or 3 slightly smaller portions. 

HOW: Visit https://8crabs.com/ to order. Free delivery above $120.