Saturday, June 30, 2012

Teochew Porridge - Homely Taste

I have been wanting to try it but turned off by the forever long queue. I came on a Saturday evening and waited in queue for about 20 minutes to order. Some of the dishes that i ordered were Steamed Squids with Thai Chilli, Stir-fried Cabbage, Sweet & Sour Pork and Steamed Fish.





ANN HOO COOKED FOOD
Block 527 Ang Mo Kio Avenue 10
#01-126
SINGAPORE 560527
Operating Hours: 11.00 am to 10.00 pm
Closed on Friday

Thursday, June 28, 2012

Ye Lai Xiang Tasty Barbeque

This stall moved from the already demolished Margaret Drive Food Centre to Newton Circus before to the current location.

I went on a Saturday evening to visit them for the first time at this food centre. I recongized the 2 familiar faces right away. The brothers took over the business from their late father and using the same recipe that passed down from him to continue cooking different hainanese style western foods.

This was a really popular stall at Margaret Drive Food Centre, the waiting time could be upto 45 minutes or even longer if you come during their peak.

Self-service is expected here. I ordered then paid and waited for about 15 minutes to collect. They might be still new in this food centre and that explained a bit on the short waiting time.
Chicken Chop. It has been an old favourite. The nicely marinated chicken piece was grilled to perfection. It has got a nicely charred surface and still moist with juiciness still intact in it. A ladle of their special brown sauce was poured over the chicken chop before served. They served it with the thick cut fries and the mixed vegetable. A typical hainanese style.
Chicken Cutlet. Another must try. Though i am not quite a fan of their chicken cutlet but it tasted as good as the chicken chop. The well seasoned boneless chicken coated with a layer of bread crumbs before deep-fried. The same brown sauce poured over the chicken cutlet before served. Somehow, the brown sauce has compromised the crispiness of the chicken cutlet. It might be a better idea if they served the brown sauce separately.

YE LAI XIANG TASTY BARBEQUE
1 Kadayanallur Street #01-94 Maxwell Food Centre SINGAPORE 069184
Opening Hours: 6.00 pm to 9.00 pm
Closed on Wednesday and Sunday

Wednesday, June 27, 2012

Chocolate Mousse Cake by Emicakes

I was amongst the five chosen ones to get a 15 cm cake from Emicakes by Openrice Singapore! I was given a choice to choose in between the Chocolate Mousse Cake, the Black Forrest Cake and the Mocha Cake.

I went to the Ang Mo Kio outlet with the confirmation email issued by the Marketing Team of Emicakes. The staff was a little puzzled as no arrangement has been made for the cake to be collected. She attempted to make phone calls but to no avail. Even it was so, she still decided to give the cake to me. That is what i called a good service. 

The Chocolate Mousse Cake was taken out from the freezer. The cake is to be left in the fridge if it is to be consumed on the day itself as advised by the friendly staff.








The size of this 15 cam Chocolate Mousse Cake is good to be shared with 5 to 8 people. It is a nicely decorated cake. The cake itself is filled with thick chocolate mousse sandwiched in between the sponge cake. This is a 600 grams cake at an affordable price of $26.40. 



Pictures to be posted with this review. It was then refrigerated and kept for another few hours. The texture was hardened this time and easy to cut. 


Emicakes is famous for its different types of durian cakes so i did not expect their chocolate cake can be this good too. 

My chocolate-loving partner enjoyed the cake so much. He commented that was one of the better Chocolate Mousse Cakes he ever tried. The best way to enjoy such a cake is to have it with a cup of good coffee! 

Lastly, i would like to express my heartfelt thankfulness to Emicakes and Openrice Singapore for such a wonderful cake.

Cook and Dine at Brasserie Wolf


The ORTU event was held on a lazy Saturday at Brasserie Wolf. Brasserie Wolf has been around for a while before went through a revamp to give it a new style and new menu. The new menu is mainly the classic French cuisine at an affordable pricing. This French bistro has a cosy and relaxed ambience. 

The main highlight of the event was cooking with young, charming and passionate Chef Claudio Sandri. He has worked for certain famous restaurants including the Michelin-starred Nobu London before setting foot in Singapore. 

The event kick-started in the kitchen. Chef Claudio started by introducing the fresh white asparagus imported from Australia. The white asparagus are available for sale at $28 per kilograms at the bistro. We were involved in helping to peel the skin off the white asparagus before Chef Claudio demonstrated the correct way of chopping them up. He was then proceed with the preparation of making our first course - White Asparagus Volute and Poached Egg with our assistance.


Chef Claudio demonstrated the preparation and the cooking of the next 2 course - Grilled Barrumundi, Harrisa Sauce & Marshed Potato and Homemade Lemon Tart. Through the deomonstration by Chef Claudio, we were taught the methods in preparing and cooking the Poached Egg, Harissa Sauce, Marshed Potato and also a step-by-step guidance in making the homemade Lemon Tart.


After the exciting cooking session with Chef Claudio, we finally gotta taste and appreciate the 3 course prepared with our efforts. 


White Asparagus Volute and Poached Egg: We were fortunate as the white asparagus is in season. It was a cream based soup made up of white asparagus, white onions, bay leave, butter, chicken stock and cooking cream. The white asparagus goes nicely with the rest of ingredients that led to the robust and rich full-bodied flavour. The poached egg beneath was a pleasant surprise. It was drizzled with a little olive oil then decorated with caviar together with an edible flower before served.



Grilled Barrumundi, Harrisa Sauce & Marshed Potato: Chef Claudio mentioned that the supplies for the fish usually obtained from Malaysia or Singapore. He emphasized rather strongly that his choice of using local ingredients in preparing the dishes. The fish was cut into chunky pieces then set it to grill in the reputed Josper Grill from Spain, the pride of Chef Claudio. The Josper Grill allowed soft cooking using the white charcoal to provide consistency and to retain the natural flavours. A smoky aroma is obtained during the cooking process. 


The Barrumundi was grilled perfectly with a moist texture as well as a little charred and slight crisp on the outer layer. The fish was then placed on a pile of smooth marshed potato. Chef Claudio explained on how he prepared the meshed potato in his special way to ensure smoothness of the texture. The dish was served with homemade Harissa Sauce made of red peppers, red wine vinegar, chopped garlic, chopped coriander, chopped mint etc. We were taught to prepare this homemade sauce and the spiciness of this sauce can be adjusted in accordance to one's preference. 


Homemade Lemon Tart: I love the robust lemon flavour of the filling. The tart was served chilled with raspberry sauce and whipped cream together with mint leaves. The filling made from milk, corn flour, sugar, egg yolks, lemon juice and lemon zest was cooked over the medium heat. It required continuous whisking of the filling to prevent the overcooking of the egg mixture. It was chilled then poured into a mixing bowl to whisk further before filled the tart shells. It was then chilled before serving.



There are set lunches on Weekdays going for $21.90 for 2 course and $31.90 for 3 course from 12 pm to 3 pm. There is also an Early Bird dinner set for $35++ per person on weekdays from 6.00 pm to 7.30 pm. 


Lastly, it was a pleasure meeting with Chef Claudio and fellow Openricers.


NOTE: Restaurant has already closed.

BRASSERIE WOLF
80 Mohammed Sultan Road The Pier at Robertson #01-13 SINGAPORE 239013