Societe canteen and Laneway

Made grand plans to have brunch at either Supprette or Sarnies but it all boiled down to the lack of time in the end; rushed rounds and changes then headed home towards somewhere nearby- either simply bread or here but I'm quite glad we settled for Societe canteen at Cluny court. After the cramped parking at Serene we headed over to the place all smelling of toast and coffee ;) and its a great place to have some quiet time to read and browse, or catch up.

We ordered the eggs Benedict ( my picture got lost - and so did the people pic) and the baked eggs(which needed 20 minutes- we almost didn't have this cos we had no time !). We ordered the eggs florentine which came with mushrooms and spinach- it came atop a lovely brioche bread and two extremely long and skinny leeks on them.

We also ordered the baked eggs and it looked gorgeous - you'd like it if you like a tomato base. Lotsa cheese and spinach to top it all.

Quickly headed to Laneway where J dropped me off to queue and it was sweltering hot. Kinda missed a bit of kings of convenience ( great audience rapport) but they played for a whole hour! Other highlights were bats for lashes, kimbra, monsters and men( king and lion heart awesome possum ) and of cos the last bit of gotye. Can't say too much of the food though... We had the wraps again- him the kebab and me the senor tacor(lotsa rice and cheese).

It was quite a chase for the shade- first the flag then the leeching the VIP shade. Thank goodness for the bottle and the mat;)

Indochine Gardens by the Bay

We finally made it here on a day when rain or full bookings have been deterring our visit here. Parking was a breeze at the main car park but finding our way there was quite tricky .. Was trying to make our way here before sunset so that we can catch the day night transition.

Little did we know that there were 2 levels to the place ! We were hanging out at the restaurant and alfresco dining area - this level was higher than the ocbc walkway, and the views were framed by the branches of the super trees. But it was lovely peering through the branches ( and the see through grilled floor of the alfresco dining area !) to the picnicking families on the grasslands at the base of the trees and of cos the lovely scenery.

The dining menu was a fusion Asian genre of cuisine- we had the Vietnamese rice rolls with salmon, red fish carpaccio and beef carpaccio and the greens platter. We were submerged in the lights during the super trees light show but somehow we couldn't really hear the music ( thought sound travels up) but the blinking lights and changing colors were quite nice. Finally we overheard some diners talking about the roof top bar area so we shifted up too - a stair climb up

Here the views were unobstrtucted and the views was awesome. Looking at the bay being perched on the super tree having the 360 look around and the MBS light show from here was quite different. Didn't do drinks but had the coffee creme brûlée, my second brûlée today lol, after cafe g. Love this place will be back.

Cafe Gavaroche

The weekend before I hit clr the Paris girls met for a photo exchange and some catching up. Found a lovely gem in this place at tras street ( with a very discrete entrance !).With the sunlight streaming through the central courtyard, the tiled artwork, Parisian posters, the place was pretty damn gorgeous. Great service to boot too.

I was drawn to this place cos I thought they served the traditional French breakkie ( 8 euros- comprising of baguette, croissant, fruit juice and coffee) but we ordered eggs instead. I had the eggs Benedict with salmon instead and the girls had the baked eggs. Best eggs Ben With a lovely pepperish hollandaise sauce, and fried potatoes. Desserts of creme brûlée and chocolate pots x2 to end, with mocha to down it all we felt almost back in time to those good old days.

Lolla's

Pre hobbit on a rainy evening I ended early and trained to tp to shop and ended up with a green work dress from the xchange.couldnt really figure out the way to 100am- but initially we planned for the ramen. Glad we settled for Lolla's in the end. Snagged a seat by the counter very much Japanese style watching the chef in action. It was most entertaining and you are just setting yourself up for getting tempted by everything that is whipped out.

We started with the sea urchin pudding ( j liked the yellow and I liked the black- squid ink, cream and yolks!), scallop carpaccio ( kinda regret not going for the tuna instead), scrambled eggs with fish roe( lovely with baguette x 2 orders one with butter and the other one with a fresh tomato purée), and j's tripe which is what led him here in the first place. Think he was a fan.

The couple next to us seemed to order up the whole menu and so did this cauc double couple ( their beet root salad and tomatoes and mushrooms looked interesting)..no privacy here.

So alas we got tempted by the omelette with smoked eel and we loved it ! Looking at the eel glistening makes me wanna eat it again. It should never be adulterated with teriyaki man.

And I fell asleep again. Late movies x 2 is really a test of my stamina lol. It felt so real I felt like I was in a set! IMAX 3 d is the real deal.

Paris Baguette

Last Friday the last op free day I managed some time off to head to the ion bucks to read while waiting to Qian to knock off and collect the tix to les m at Lido. It was heavy downpour outside so we couldn't head to Far East so we hung around Wisma and found Paris Baguette a quiet place to hang out. Qian wanted to bring me to an udon place in taka but we were afraid it was gonna be as packed as Koh sushi so we settled for this.

We sat next to the bread section and Qian ordered an assortment of breads and pastries while I had the 3 cheese omelette. Yes think I can prob do a fry up like this at home, minus the crisp potato wedges...

Les m sure doesn't beat the musical but I imagine life would be very difficult if we were to break into a song everytime we tried to converse with someone... !! Nice to see familiar actors sing the oh so familiar songs indeed..

Baker and cook

Thurs freeish post scopes ( pulled out 4! But plenty of red out time ) mr c drove c and I out to Baker and cook at Martin Road . Missed out on this with the mountains at Greenwood cos they didn't do dine in at that time. Had the eggs Ben with a very pepperish hollandaise sauce and super thin toast. Mr c's pasta salad was a joke so he had a apple tart after but was already hungry on the drive back. Long story of the horror theater story about the stent the night before and the butt of all jokes the apitome being the dept shirt during the walkabout and the mr brown video. Hope for more coffee and eggs man( heard this place is a regular hang out !!)

Paradise pavilion

Last weekend of the year with grams, post extremely cheem sermon ending early we headed down to Paradise Pavilion at Marina bay financial centre for a Chinese lunch ( in a long long time ) to wrap up the year .

Between us we don't think we could have finished their famous apple wood Peking duck, and we weren't much of a dim sum mood - started off with fire swordfish with salt and pepper ( which is her favourite dish of the day), our usual trio of eggs with poached spinach and finally the braised seafood bee hon with egg( the last of which I really wanted to check out after I saw Yi xiao's pic of it !) The last dish is also my favourite and the best thing about bringing grandma along to check ur Chinese food is that she can replicate it at home ! She says she can ! Lots of scallop in the vermicelli.. Somehow I think a dallop of truffle oil will elevate it to new heights .. So grandma when are u acquiring the bottle of truffle oil ? Haha!

Symmetry

Thanks to the reg for a weekend off I got to meet Pek and zj at symmetry - pity about short post call and xuan on call ! Parking was non existent on this end of the road and was ridiculously side slammed by another car passing by... Blindness..

Symmetry was very homely and cosy, was a nice hideout esp when the rain started... And for zj to capture us by the windowsill:p rock with johns and he geometrical arrangements of the utensil s makes it über personal.

We started with the truffles fries and the crab cakes but never got to the eggs- Pek had to go for a wedding( day of double weddings). The truffle fries were really good stuff, crisp and airy with truffle scented +++. There were two crab cakes - one in batter and one not. The diced apple slices were an interesting touch.

Had the coconut and brioche for desserts. Must say the coconut was interesting -the coconut was in the ice cream and was good with the cake base, and the barley some distance away. Having the brioche makes me miss deans or spruce's French toast somehow! The cuteness of the wooden forks were a highlight;)

'twas nice catching up, and thanks for the ride Pek to collect my pics ;) note to self: societe canteen at Cluny for a quiet brunch soon.

Taratata

Pre zouk out when chongs ended at 8 ( and I slept till 630 pm post avicii... Zzz) picked up chongs and headed over to initially planned Esquina but no luck with that and again more ill luck at keong saik snacks so we landed at the relatively emptier Taratata ( cos she was game for some steak)

Started with a lobster bisque. This has gotta be the most crustacean smelling thing I've had... With chunks of lobster. Tastes lovely soaked with the baguette.

I had the veal which was in a creamy broth as well it was almost like a stew. Rice resembled that of our local chicken rice!

And we both loved the steak ! Medium well and it's smokiness went well with the caramelised onions. Good stuff.

Great service helping us charge up her phone... And we at least had some luck with the parking ( though it was mighty hefty at the beach car park later 15 bucks gosh !!). The double digit rest served me well that night ! Missed the Jill though.. Above and beyond rocks and man they really appreciated the crowd. Love the group therapy to bits. They were doing a south East Asian tour and due to spin at KL on sunday.. I wish I can tag along being a groupie ;)

Los Primos

After the secondary school gathering, had some time to kill pre hobbit (at 1am!!) so we ended up at Los primos (Club street) - we were 5 min too late for the last order 11.15pm at Lollas.

Los primos is opened by the cousins behind Cugini(cousins in Italian). Yes Los primos is cousins in Spanish, opened just a few doors down heir Italian counterpart and they do bar food/hot tapas and cold tapas till late. Too bad no paella for us! The paella we saw at La cicala their neighbor looked so good too!

We started with a cold Tuna and egg pie( brings back some memories of that cold pie in the London market). It's a cold Ang Moh curry puff minus the spice.. A bit fishy and some getting used to but I guess it grows on you..

Things got better when the wonderful tortilla came by, possibly the best rendition I've had.. Layers of potato with egg and some onions and the sauce to top it all. Love the layers of texture and taste.

The cold grilled veggies too! A favourite. And the cheese with (extremely hard) baguette to go along,. We liked the middle row, plenty of character ;)

Watching hobbit in 3d IMAX in lido makes us feel like we are in a set - not really scenic and surreal per se. Too real for its own good! But still was quite an experience. Missed the downpour and timid us escaped the bawl. 2nd weekend off feels awesome possum!

1st two pictures courtesy of j's flashy cam and the yellow ones mine. Tortilla, veggies, Tuna pie and Cheese platter

Five and dime

Post 1pm sat round with practicals like ia and chest tube ! And chilling at the island, found five and dime with the secret backyard parking and incredible window seats, enjoyed the lobster Mac and cheese ( suspect its prob the same mentaiko sauce!), flamed salmon wrapped in arugula leaves, and sharks fish and chips. They coated the fries with the same yummy crisp batter and the tartare was x 3 cos we loved how it tasted like an egg mayo salad...

And we were yet again just on time for skyfall on I max.. Super centralized.. Super immersive go pro experience.. Beautiful cinematography and a flashback on a masterpiece of a painting.. Love the subtlety of the soundtrack

And thanks for the collage ;)

Red dot microbrewery

On a Friday when my dad and I ended work at the same time we hit the drinking holes - Robertson quay/ Martin road looked crazy with bomba and baker&cook packed to the brims.. We headed to the quieter red dot at Dempsey ( think a newer outlet just opened at boat quay !) where we easily got a seat and didnt look out of place in my scrubs and his uniform. Heh it exuded that much comfort and casuality that we were comfortable in our own skin- or uniform.

White bait seems to be the new favorite bar food, and we also had a smoked salmon, avocado, roe
And cheese to share. The cashew nuts with lime was also yums with the 4.5% pale ale dad ordered.

Tgi(father)!

And the band only starts at 1030! Old folks have to sleep early !!

Mitsuba by Yurine

Nazi chef has shifted to central ! Intending to bring family here previously ( ended up in fika instead cos everyone was at the IT fair), brought them here on actual day of bros birthday ( after the yummy popiah dinner over the weekend ).

Mummy had their signature chiraishi don lookin as good as ever, dad the sashimi-udon set, bro the salmon-swordfish set and sis the beancurd udon.. I have a thing for hot pots now the last time the chef was at chikuwa tei I tried the cod hot pot this time I tried the salmon head hot pot- their nabes come in either a fish based soup or miso base. I chose the former and it was great.. Guess the sweetness from the salmon head did add to the umami of the soup !

Rushed to fix my specs and wanted to hang out at the heli pad but it was not open yet ! On a wed night not open at 10pm ?? Hmmm... Only when we zoomed down the car park did we see people lingering at the entrance..1 altitude shall be the next fixture !

Don Quixote

Thanks R, for all the priceless time and patience with us all through those dire times. Will never forget the surprise macs, awesome possum views (the only daylight tutorial!), the breaking of silence while u go into your r mode.. We will pass it on ;)

And to the food, paella don Quixote special was really tasty !! Love the morsels of grain each soaking up the sea food stock. Tapas were egg and prawn, asparagus and grilled prawns.. Nothing beats the paella !!

And an afternoon of baking in jones in the corner with realists and dreamers ( case in point: chicks on flip board and their fried ancestors lol) and spotting our bosses prof s!! And mr p.. It's wonderful talking about anything else but facts ;) and the shopping at haji!! Uncontrollable Pek was astonished at my self control ( and my liking of everything).

Night feat this year was miniature flying acrobatics though the clear pool of synchronised swim- gym was quite Coolbeans..

Last of all, red bull coffee coke and I was still stoned at tbc! Sorry Chong will improve during the REAL full moon !!

Fika (Millenia Walk)

Last weekend off at team 2 before I'm off to cts.. A quiet slow simple one amidst 2 exploding birthday gatherings ( not as if we were not celebrating too !) after a night at tbc and night fest and the afternoon of fiddling with the cello and it's new buddy the tuner (thanks j !)

Herring for starters, not as salty as I last remembered it to be.. The biscuits were like a cross bred with a form of rye.

The seafood and ribs platter were massive. You can choose between the cream, tomato or aglio based and we chose the latter, for the seafood platter. Fish, scallops, prawns , mussels, squid and crayfish lie on a bed of pasta.

Ribs were tender and doused in BBQ sauce and presented on a wooden platter with mash and salad.

The above reminds me of the trend towards communal dining and sharing platters a la disgruntled chef or one Rochester.. Guess I will check out platters at club street soon!

Also had the open faced fika style sandwich with shrimp, roe and scallop , served with salad. This was their cold sandwich and they had hot options s well..

This is my second visit to Fika but first at the millennia walk branch.. I think I was reminiscing about my 21st at a now defunct Scandinavian restaurant here at millennia walk!

And I always have to remind myself about the insane parking surcharges whenever comex is being held..

Club Street Social

 Goats Cheese, Honey, Thyme crostini - yummy morsels !!

 All day breakfast - truffled egg toast

 Pan seared Lobster, Yuzu, avocado Panini

Nutella Bread pudding

Crazy crash in or with scc mand returning and an actively bleeding hepat , I ended being the porter of the day, with m and m summaries late into the evening with short salvaging her exploding hern. With tapas options like salt and esquina we ended up heading to club street and ignoring her jap booking simply cos I felt like homely hearty casual bar food and her turning back on la cicada. We landed up finally in Club Street Social (Gemhill Lane) I'm glad we did cos I've found a new favourite appetiser in crostinis - very yummy morsels of crisp toast and the amazing flavours of sweet honey and pungent goats cheese. Truffled toast was rather blahh, much prefer the one at Over easy. And the lobster panini that I specially came here for..had just too little lobster !! Donated all my avocados to short. Nutella Bread pudding was much of a hyperglycemic parade. Love this hole in the wall gem we found.

Othello

Night before was beer fest and trouse brothers, so got off to a late start on sunday morning, sorry girls yq had to cancel Pilates and j on her friend and me on cello !tried the Taiwanese lychee beer and the yummy sothesby cider that came with the admission. Thank goodness the stand up comedy was not much of a flop. We noticed while e whites loved racism and sex jokes e Singaporeans love their digs on politics and our infamous laws.

 Anyhow we landed in hillcrest again cos I wanted to try baker and cook but when we reached there they said they were not doing dine in that day! Ugh really tough luck with that area. Plus pepperonis was full house so we ended up by default at Othello, cos. tried bronte before. Good for me cos I was craving eggs. I always crave eggs, makes me feel like I'm actually having a weekend when I tuck into my poached eggs. It was a happy occasion cos jas was announcing her proposal, and how logistics wise it can be quite a painful affair, when you come to talk about the practicalities of a wedding. Anyhow, its a happy busy that I'm sure she doesn't mind ;) Had my eggs benedict with mushrooms which is a first for me. Somehow I miss my eggs being drowned in the creamy hollandaise. This was also on a normal toasted bread instead of a muffin. Jas had a cordon bleau while Qian had a vegetarian pasta. Othello is great for having lotsa space and sunshine and basically nice to hang out at on a Sunday afternoon.

After the brunch I headed to family day at universal studios with the family and by George, I was so happy to have my turkey leg!! Don't find it here, last I had it was in Disney land, prob with kels. Mummy was stunning (to my nervous system) and transformers was nauseating. Think I'm at an awkward Age when I'm too old for shrek and Madagascar but I'm too hum ji for battle star galatica :(

Sapphire, Jewel Box

Mother's Day was a post night of showers (it was an almost with sied van dyl ;( ), and hence a cooling misty morning when I companied gran to church, and thereafter a vegeterian lunch before we headed out to Jewel box at Mount Faber. Originially intended for Hort Park (after Southern Ridges passerbying), but missing the turn landed us in Mount Faber. Even then I had to circle around and ascend it twice (thanks for changing the shock absorbers, dad) before we reached the coach carpark (cos I refused to valet for 5 heh) and climbed up.

Awesome possum view from the alfresco area, the architecture was equally amazing. The alfresco area seemed sprawling, and from where we perched ourselves, we had a elevated view of Sentosa and beyond. There was also an indoor glass box. They only served the buffet (and special Mothers day buffet brunch) but they made it special for us allowing us to have coffee there. Just as well cos there was space. Its a good place to go with good view sans the crowd..thanks for the lovely carnations (for gran!)

Headed to cello, then home to pick up the bikes (trio but all taken) and then from Macs to start of Changi Beach, before the lagoon put us off to dine instead at our River Valley zi char. Second time after till midnight (while the Man city vs QPR was going on), to Flyer/Kallang where an absolute of a gem of peaceful still waters lie. Love the reflection of the under-bridge, the smooth pavement of the F1 pits, the connector that leads to nowhere( at least, until the gps works). Dislike the smoggg, the endless traffic lights, the turning vs straight lanes, and gotta ditch the pedestrian mentality to battle the roads.