Tucked away at 52A Amoy Street is a cosy bar where the handsome Vijay and his charming team concoct some highly creative drinks using spirits and ingredients from across this region. They obviously know what they're doing because they've just been voted one of "Asia's 50 Best Bars"!
The "Pineapple Arrack", my first cocktail here, made a great impression on me. In the mix were Ceylon arrack (a traditional spirit distilled from coconut flower sap), pineapple skin, old coconuts and Sri Lankan spices. It was garnished with a big slice of frozen pineapple that'd been covered in sugar and lightly torched. I found a bite of the sweet, icy-cold fruit to be a lovely sequel to each sip.

Vying for seconds of the sweet aromatic Maple-Pecan Cronut, what we called the "very naughty" Negroni Creme Brûlée and the sinfully indulgent White Chocolate Peanut Butter Cigar. One of the better ways to shrug off all stress with this Sunday brunch hour, where only adults are permitted entry, free flow of delectable delights, the alcohol game's strong and you'd probably be more than just tipsy after the meal. Why not. [Special thankyou to @burpple and the lovely Andreana, Chef Nicolas of @manhattan_sg for organizing this brunch.]
Sundays only 1130hrs-1530hrs
150bucks++/adult

#burpple #burpplesg

If quality pasta, pizza and desserts in an intimate spot is your idea of a good date night, then this is undoubtedly the place for you. The menu is unpretentious and so appealing in its simplicity, and it is this approachable vibe of Cicheti that makes for a perfect first date or a no-brainer, regular date night. Start with the Insalata di Rucola e Pera ($11), a well-balanced salad of grilled sweet pear with salty gorgonzola, refreshing fennel, peppery arugula and an umami finish of balsamic reduction. Then, have the comforting handmade Pappardelle al Ragu with lamb shoulder ($26), a wood-fired Bismark ($23) pizza topped with an oozy egg, or the Cioppino ($29), seafood gently stewed with tomatoes, garlic and chili. Don't leave without sharing a dessert, this is one of the few places that maintains excellence across the entire menu. For the perfect ending, go for the luscious molten Salted-Chocolate with pink sea salt, or the Cold-Smoked Cheesecake (both $12.50) that is exquisitely creamy and gently kissed with smoke. If you have the space, have them both. Enjoy the warm, inviting glow of the restaurant as you chat your way through your wine, thoughtfully priced at just $12 a glass, while bottles start at $55.

Ambience: Cosy and charming
Price: Avg $80 per couple, without drinks

This Sea Urchin Carbonara: the very first carbonara I was willing to try, and the only one I fell head over heels in love with. Back then it was served as a much smaller portion, with a thicker uni cream sauce and way more bacon. Today though, portion's larger, bacon's lesser, and uni cream is sweeter and more buttery than I recall. The pasta's still as fantastic as before, perfectly al dente with a nice bite to it; but the sauce I fell in love with ain't the same no more. Biggest annoyance: the butter separates halfway into my meal.

Expected a little more... Duck was average, dim sum was dry and the pork was too oily. Expected a little more from this franchise.

Top - Butter pork ribs (medium size=8 pcs)
Bottom left - 3egg spinach
Bottom right - Drunken cockles
Not in picture - Tofu with golden mushroom, 2 bowls of rice. Total cost $38

Third visit this time. Must order their butter pork ribs and 3egg spinach. The pork ribs are generousy covered with milk powder. Spinach was cooked till the right texture - soft and chewy. Druken cockles was a new dish attempt for us - precooked cockles refrigerated then added with garlic, chilli padi and other condiments (ps it does not have strong alcohol taste although it is name as drunken). Another new dish attempt is tofu with golden mushroom- a puny salty though..

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This is the ultimate hidden gem of the year. On their sign board, all you saw was their prawn Mee but everyone near the stall was eating steamboat. .
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Hidden dish in their menu -Steamboat for 2 or more. One crab Two prawns, pig tails, ribs and endless count of clams. My guess was that the owner used sugar crane to bulk up the taste. Because of the fresh ingredients he used, just a little pinch of salt was all the soup need. .
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All recommend to bring your own ingredients over to shabu shabu. Nowadays such generous owner is really hard to find.

But I can't really taste any beets haha. The desserts are totally worth it though! And the cosy, kinda out-of-this-world feel of this place 😁

Can't imagine they have such good waffle,outside is crispy and tender inside.Icecream is soft but strawberry was sour

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I didn't make any reservation and reached about 12pm to a short queue in front of me. When I left 10mins before 1pm, there was no queue. So if you are interested, I say just go and queue during lunch!
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Kabayaki Teishoku S$26.80++
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I get why many people like this. While waiting, you are treated by the waft of charcoal aroma whenever their doors are opened. Then once inside, you can see the chefs preparing your unagi in the open kitchen right in front of you. And most importantly, their unagi (especially the skin) is grilled until really crispy and charcoal fragrant.
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But, unfortunately, the kabayaki unagi was too salty for me. I am not sure if it was the sauce or if they added extra salt, but it was so salty I couldn't finished the unagi. Not even their freshly grated wasabi could help.
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The thing is I'm probably one of the rare ones who think so. As I squint my eyes from the salt overdose, I instinctively look around me to find consensus. What I saw were mainly satisfied faces and empty plates/bowls.
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I suppose people like me who have a lighter palate and who usually ask for less salt at zichar stalls should avoid this. Otherwise, you probably will enjoy this. For me, I prefer Bonta Bonta.
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Man Man Japanese Unagi Restaurant
1 Keong Saik Road #01-01, S089109
Mon to Sat, PH: 11.30am to 3pm, 6pm to 10.30pm
Sun: Closed
Tel: +65 6222 0678

B U R P P L E E A T U P
It's damn tough deciding on the winner between these two dishes by @ChefShenTan that are available only at @RevolutionCoffeeSg.
Team BKP (Buah Keluak Pasta) will argue that the buah keluak paste coating the al dente ribbons of tagliatelle has a rich earthiness that can kick the ass of all other flavourings. Furthermore, the dish possesses a stealthy but potent spiciness from chilli padi and boasts big, thick slices of superbly tender twice-cooked pork belly, minced prawns and pork.
Team BCMP (Bak Chor Mee Pasta), however, will counter that the this creation of Chef Shen captures the essence of a classic hawker dish and ups the ante with its modern interpretation and chunks of five-spice pork confit.
You'd think the price would be the tie-breaker but nope, they are each priced at $19.90 nett. And both have bits of crispy pork lard!
But I know which team I support. Do you? 😊

This particular Tung Lok Seafood outlet at Orchard Central offers a lesser known Chinese and Japanese lunch buffet that might just be right up your alley. For just $26.80 on weekdays and $28.80 on weekends, there are fresh, thick cuts of salmon sashimi for the seafood fanatics in your family, comforting dim sum for the folks and the crowd favourite of salted egg yolk fish skin to munch on in between changing plates. It's best to gather a larger group for this (there's also a minimum seating of four persons) so you can try more items on the menu! Other note-worthy items include the Crispy Eggplant with Pork Floss, Fried Beancurd Skin Rolls with Shrimps and Deep-fried Prawns with Crispy Oats. End your meal with the refreshing Herbal Jelly with Honey — if you still have space, that is!
Avg Price: $35 per person
Photo by Burppler Elvina Alim