It’s hard to get grilled octopus right and @focpimpam achieves that.

One of my favourite tapas at FOC is the Octopus Galician-Style ‘A feira’ (S$28++) which is a popular dish in Spain. The octopus has good bite without being too chewy. The octopus is doused in oil, sprinkled with pimentón and rests atop a fluffy bed of crushed potatoes. It’s too easy to wipe this dish clean.

I had heard great things about Blue Label and I was not disappointed with my visit!

The ambience was great and is ideal for dates or small groups. The food was spectacular! My favourite pizza of the night was the “Dr. Pepperoni”. It had the perfect ratio of ingredients to crust. Ingredients included a special red sauce, toasty sesame seeds, wonderfully melted mozzarella, savoury capers, singeing chilis with delicious pork and beef pepperoni slices. But what truly gets me was the crust. You gotta try it to believe how good it was.

I had heard great things about Blue Label and I was not disappointed with my visit!

The ambience was great and is ideal for dates or small groups. The food was spectacular! My favourite pizza of the night was the “Dr. Pepperoni”. It had the perfect ratio of ingredients to crust. Ingredients included a special red sauce, toasty sesame seeds, wonderfully melted mozzarella, savoury capers, singeing chilis with delicious pork and beef pepperoni slices. But what truly gets me was the crust. You gotta try it to believe how good it was.

One of the best places for braised duck!

You can’t miss this stall at Ghim Moh Food Centre as it usually sports a long snaking queue of people ordering its duck rice ($3/4/5). It isn’t unwarranted though as the duck meat is cooked to perfection. It’s wonderfully tender while having that nice bite. The flavourful thick sauce is also what makes the duck here so desirable.

One of the best places for braised duck!

You can’t miss this stall at Ghim Moh Food Centre as it usually sports a long snaking queue of people ordering its duck rice ($3/4/5). It isn’t unwarranted though as the duck meat is cooked to perfection. It’s wonderfully tender while having that nice bite. The flavourful thick sauce is also what makes the duck here so desirable.

Legendary cronuts from Dominique Ansel Bakery!

I arrived when trading hours began and there was already a short queue for these beautiful sweet pastries.

The bakery sells the cronuts with a different flavour each month. Was lucky enough to try out the honey rosemary & fig flavour. The pastry was soft, crispy and flaky and the same time but what really sold it was the magical honey ganache filling with a hint of rosemary, mixed with homemade fig jam. Totally recommend if you’re around SoHo in New York.

A wonderful standout.

The uni and lobster paella was incredibly rich and robust with flavour. There was just the perfect amount of char on the rice that added a crisp umami contrast to the sweet creamy uni. The saffron aioli elevated the dish to a level of sophistication you do not get elsewhere in paellas.

Pretty damn good beef noodles

I’ve been looking all over for some good beef noodles since other places’ standards have been dropping. Glad to have come across The Beef Station and tried their Hainanese beef noodles (from $7) The beef slices are udder-ly tender and the sauce that comes with the dry version is magnificent. I’d like to add slices of chilli padi to give it a lil kick. My absolute favourite part is actually the broth that comes in a separate bowl. Every slurp just bursts with so much flavour. I’ll definitely be back to have more of my new favourite beef noodles.

Pretty damn good beef noodles

I’ve been looking all over for some good beef noodles since other places’ standards have been dropping. Glad to have come across The Beef Station and tried their Hainanese beef noodles (from $7) The beef slices are udder-ly tender and the sauce that comes with the dry version is magnificent. I’d like to add slices of chilli padi to give it a lil kick. My absolute favourite part is actually the broth that comes in a separate bowl. Every slurp just bursts with so much flavour. I’ll definitely be back to have more of my new favourite beef noodles.

If you’re ever in Jurong, do check out The Carving Board for restaurant quality food at affordable prices. I really love the atmosphere as it’s located at a coffee shop, non-pretentious, well-illuminated and bustling with fellow diners.

Whenever I’m there, I usually order the carbonara ($12). The pasta has a nice texture with bite and it’s loaded with many of the typical ingredients like a runny golden egg yolk, bacon and mushrooms.

I heard the steaks are great so that’ll be my next to-try dish there!

If you’re ever in Jurong, do check out The Carving Board for restaurant quality food at affordable prices. I really love the atmosphere as it’s located at a coffee shop, non-pretentious, well-illuminated and bustling with fellow diners.

Whenever I’m there, I usually order the carbonara ($12). The pasta has a nice texture with bite and it’s loaded with many of the typical ingredients like a runny golden egg yolk, bacon and mushrooms.

I heard the steaks are great so that’ll be my next to-try dish there!

How pasta was meant to be.

My dinner slot at Ben Fatto 95 was booked way back at the start of the year. Naturally, expectations for the meal were running high but I have to say, Chef Yum Hwa exceeded them.

There were four main pasta dishes and it was exciting to see how they varied so much. There was the hearty tortellinis in a chicken consommé, which I would consider as the perfect hangover dish. But the tortellinis were beautifully intricate that it’d be a shame if one was drunk and unable to admire them in their full glory. There was an amazing tortelli bathed in a deceptively simple sauce of butter and water. It had the perfect ratio of pasta to stuffing which was a rich mix of mascarpone and parmigiano-reggiano. There was the usual suspect, the ragu pappardelle which many consider king. It had a grittier texture than your usual run-of-the-mill pastas which allows the pasta to retain and absorb the sauce better.

However, my favourite would have to be what’s in the first picture. It’s a pasta that is relatively unknown to the world outside of Sardinia and that one day could possibly be lost. The squid ink lorighittas were coated in a lovely seafood bisque with chunks of octopus. The pasta apparently is the easiest to make but takes a heck lot of effort according to the chef. It has a wonderful softer bite and it retains so much of the wonderful bisque that makes it such a joy to eat.

It’s been a while since a meal conjured up so many emotions in me and I can’t wait for the opportunity to come back. I would probably need to wait another 6 months though.