Not Your Usual Places

Again the choice of buns were differently paired with the proteins. Here, there was the pork belly with fried golden bao that reminded me of those we usually eat with chili crab and the scallop with steamed charcoal bao.

The melt-in-mouth stewed pork belly was really tender although slightly fatty, and had yet another umami finishing touch by the spicy shrimp sauce. While I was looking forward to the scallop bao most, I thought the tempura scallop wasn’t as juicy as expected but the addition of Thai baby asparagus for its crunch and the tobiko and flavorful adobo sauce were much welcomed. It was probably the sauces in their baos that were magical.

At @juhuataisg, it’s not just about cocktails and craft beers. A good pairing to the drinks would be their selection of food that includes skewers, bar snacks and baos which I highly recommend. They are no ordinary baos, firstly by size. You could probably turn it into a decent main dish with 2 baos, since they are way bigger than sliders. The bao platter of 6 is a good choice for sharing in order to try all the available flavours.

Each flavour is meticulously paired with the type of bao, such as this crispy chicken bao with steamed sesame bun. The fusion element is rather evident here in each of the sauces. Well-marinated fried chicken complemented by the lao gan ma mayo that enhances spice, umami and tang. You can request for the baos to be cut for your convenience.

New menu at @avenue87.sg! Celebrating Asian flavours with contemporary twist, the new menu is pretty technique-driven using laboratory equipment like the rotavap. Maybe next time I should borrow it at work for cooking or cocktails? 😂 Just kidding.

To start off, we were served delectable snacks which comprised the Rojak Kueh Pie Tee, differing from the one in the previous menu inspired by Assam fish head curry. In fact, this was crunchy and refreshing for the palate considering the sharp green fruitiness, rounded off with a fragrant nuttiness. My favourite of the lot had to be the prawn broth with caviar and Sakura shrimps. Its shape somehow reminded me of the Japanese raindrop cake. An umami explosion (literally too as it bursts upon biting) of the prawn stock essence, elevated further by the caviar and sweetness from the Sakura shrimps. While I was hesitant to eat the entire torched Brie at a go, I was told “Ma’am, it tastes better using your hand, all in a bite”. 😰 Alright, trust the profesh. Surprisingly it wasn’t as earthy and rotten vegetable tasting as how I recognise it to be, perhaps the smokiness helped, but an interesting combination with the mango chutney.

The first course - Fresh Amberjack from Japan served with ponzu, Kohlrabi pressed with cloudy apple juice, mustard sorbet, sesame powder. I needed some help with this dish although I must say the Amberjack was really fresh. It was my fault for forgetting to inform them that I am not a raw-fish eater but at least it’s not as fatty as Salmon. So please do remember to state your dietary preferences! What stood out for me here were the sesame powder, which we felt as though we were having a bowl of sesame paste and the fried banana shallot, impactful pungency with mild sweetness. True to a flavor reminiscent of both onion and garlic.

It is the chai tow kway or fried carrot cake we all know, except that this was made and served in slabs instead of how it’s usually cut into pieces. Wrapped within a layer of fried egg, the radish cake is also fried alongside some savoury preserved radish. Slightly oily, but this is definitely gonna load your carbs intake high yet bland on the tastebuds. Consider requesting for chili to inject some flavour.

Say what, a $6 chendol? It’s a single portion too, by the way. Keep in mind the elevated hawker fare here are served at the touristy Clarke Quay. A usual shaved ice drenched with coconut milk, palm sugar and topped with kidney beans and green chendol. Excluding the fact that it’s pricey, I like that it wasn’t overwhelming with coconut milk but could also do with more palm sugar as it is indeed just that bit you see in the center of the shaved ice. Would say that the amount of kidney beans and green chendol were pretty generous.

Of the sharing sides that we had, I would highly recommend the prawn paste chicken wings. Despite their unassuming looks, a bite into the crispy batter revealed how flavorful and juicy they were. The fermented prawn paste taste came through pretty strong but not overly fishy nor salty. Only downside, it’s pricey for $2.50 per piece of mid wing.

We also had the sambal sotong served on a hot plate with watery sambal chili like an acidic yet tomato gravy. Would have preferred the sambal to be of the usual thicker consistency and slightly more spicy. The sotong, though, was chewy and of reasonable portion.

Awww, just look at that luscious egg yolk sitting right in the middle of the hor fun. Precisely the reason why we wanted to try this. Just like the CKT, flat rice noodles were stir fried in a savory sauce reduction with bean sprouts, chives and sliced onion, yet again missing the smoky wok hei. I stole a bite off the prime beef slices; how tough it was to tear them apart.

Looking very much like its hawker version, Yum Sing serves this CKT that’s fried using flat rice noodles with Chinese sausages, chives, bean sprouts, sliced fish cake, eggs, prawns and cockles in a soy sauce mix. Surprisingly, I found quite a handful of small cockles in this single portion. Prawns were pretty fresh too. While the basic taste of the dish was on point, it was missing the crucial element - wok hei. Disappointment can be expected.

Dining at the newly opened @yum.sing by Putien felt like I traveled back in time with the neon lights, old-fashioned iron window grilles, and even a counter that looked like a pawn shop in place. Waves of nostalgia set in when I saw merry-go-round horses on the ceiling at the dining area with marble tables and rattan chairs, in front of the stage meant for live performances. Truly living up to the restaurant’s concept inspired by the New World Amusement Park.

Paying homage to true blue Singaporean cuisine, Yum Sing serves a variety of single portion hawker dishes at pretty affordable price on enamel plates. Additionally for it’s Hokkien Mee stir-fried with meat and seafood, one would be delighted to spot the traditional opeh leaf. I would usually look at how ‘wet’ a fried hokkien mee is; for this one, it was slightly wet but not drenched in the broth. My friend felt like it had a strong meaty taste, but I could do with stronger umaminess from a richer broth. While the sambal chilli packed a punch, it was also tangy.

Now this is no longer about fear factor, but erm, crocodile’s dick? Let’s just say the bunch that night was all out for some exotic food. Dishes like this fits just perfectly to the speakeasy theme of The Dragon Chamber, which really pushes diners out of the comfort zone.

A chicken and pork based herbal soup double-boiled for 6 hours, featuring the crocodile’s penis. Expectedly, everyone was looking forward to a piece of the dick. Honestly, there wasn’t much taste to it. Again a slimy texture, this time round reminded me of some fats. Soup base was lightly sweet, with some Chinese herbs. For first timers, I would recommend sharing.

How often do you have crocodile served on the table? If you are an adventurous foodie, this one is not to be missed! I had my reservations but my curiosity got the better of.

The Singapore farmed crocodile foot braised in a thick herbal sauce, served on a bed of kale. With the sides lit-up around with fire, I applaud them for the dish presentation.

Now, the taste. Started off with the herbal sauce, which was quite salty actually. Slowly and carefully, I took a bite off the webbed-skin which was slimy, but would remind me to be one that’s collagen rich. Tore off the meat underneath; was I tasting some tender herbal braised chicken meat? A true surprise to find out crocodile meat would actually taste like some lightly-flavoured white meat.