Update (Tue, 20 Dec 2011): Two winners have been picked! See bottom of post for names of winners.

nydc's Hearty Christmas Roast Platter for 4

I was invited by nydc to sample their Christmas 2011 menu. Their special offering this year is this Hearty Christmas Roast platter set (S$98++) for 4 people. It consists of:

• 1 herbed roasted chicken
• marbled sirloin steak
• 2 spicy bratwurst & 1 pork cheese sausage, served with sauerkraut
• onion rings with BBQ sauce
• baked potato gratin
• mixed salad greens

Also included are 4 Passionately Fizzy Drinks and 4 slices of log cake.

I was joined by hubby and two of our foodie friends — Joanne and Sean. Here are our comments:

Marbled sirloin steak, medium rare (recommended doneness)

Marbled sirloin steak:
Hubby: Flavor, texture, doneness — everything’s perfect! Can we have more?

Joanne & Sean: Very impressed, one of the better steaks we’ve tried! The beef is very fresh.

Me: I’m not a beef lover, but fell in love with this. The meat is well-seared, juicy, and has good bite. The madeira sauce is tasty too. We were told this is chilled Australian airflown beef.

Juicy sausages, succulent herbed chicken, and mouthwatering sides

Rest of the platter:
Hubby: I like the aroma of the herbed roasted chicken. Both sausages are tasty. The spicy bratwurst isn’t that spicy.

Joanne: The chicken is a bit salty in some parts, but overall still ok. I really enjoy the potato gratin!

Sean: Chicken breast meat is usually more dry and stringy, but here, the breast part is tender and moist. The mixed salad is a nice accompaniment. How come there’s only 1 cheese sausage for 4 people to share?

Me: The spring chicken is succulent and well-marinated. But I would have preferred a bigger, meatier chicken. The onion rings are addictive!

Passionately Fizzy Drink

Passionately Fizzy Drink:
Hubby: Refreshing and not too sweet!

Joanne & Sean: Usually, any drink with cranberry reminds us of cough syrup, but this one doesn’t! The orange and cranberry surprisingly go very well together.

Me: This fizzy and citrusy drink is appetizing and complements the meat items.

"Yule Love It" Chocolate Log Cake & "Divine White Chocolate Cheese" Log Cake (background)

Log cakes:
Hubby & Joanne: Both are just as good, but the white chocolate log cake is more unique. It’s a great alternative to the usual dark chocolate log cake!

Sean: Gimme dark chocolate anytime!

Me: nydc is famous for their desserts, and these two log cakes are testament to that. The dark Belgian chocolate log cake is sinfully bittersweet and rich. The white chocolate version is silky smooth, not too sweet, and has an intriguing flavor profile.

To sum up:
We were all very impressed with the taste and presentation of the main course, dessert and drink.

Portion-wise, the amount is just enough for 4 average eaters. For those with bigger appetites, the platter is more suitable for 3 people to share.

At S$98++ for 4 persons (about S$29 each), this meal is reasonably priced and offers excellent value.

nydc’s Christmas 2011 menu is available from 1 Dec 2011 to 1 Jan 2012.

Festive log cakes!

The two log cakes are also available whole in 2 sizes — S$32.00 for 500 gms, and S$51.00 for 1 kg.

Cinnamon Mocha Elephanccino, S$7.80++ (available iced or hot)

We also tried the hot Cinnamon Mocha Elephanccino. It’s very thick and chocolatey, with hints of cinnamon and raspberry. It was a little too sweet for our liking. Perhaps the iced version would be less sweet.

The Christmas Roast Platter is also available for 2 persons at S$56++. For seafood lovers, there’s the Captain’s Catch Seafood Platter for 2 (S$56++).

Besides indulging in good food, you can help the children of M.I.L.K.! For every order of the festive platters, nydc will donate S$1 to the M.I.L.K. (Mainly I Love Kids) Fund. Or buy the Christmas log cake for a 50¢ donation.

You can also take part in nydc’s FaceBook event — Santa’s Secret — to redeem 1-for-1 vouchers or participate in their weekly December 2011 lucky draw. Simply:

1. Go to nydc Facebook page
2. Click on Santa’s Secret event on the left panel
3. Click “Like”

You should then see this page:

You can redeem 1-for-1 vouchers for nydc’s Christmas platters or ala carte items. Only limited numbers left!

Or buy a log cake and join Santa’s Missing Stockings to win prizes in the weekly draws. Details available here.

I have two S$20 vouchers (expires 30 June 2012) to give away, courtesy of nydc Singapore.

Just complete the following statement and leave your answer in the comment box:

“I’d love to share nydc’s Hearty Christmas Roast Platter for 4 with ___________”

Two readers will each win a S$20 nydc gift voucher. This draw is open only to those residing in Singapore, and closes Thursday 15 December 2011 (23:59 hrs). Please leave a valid email address so that I can contact you. Good luck!

Many thanks to nydc Singapore and Caelan & Sage for the invite.

Update (Tue, 20 Dec 2011):

The two lucky winners are Indra and Josephine. Congratulations! You each win a S$20 nydc voucher. Thank you to all who participated in this draw!

Big Breakfast Set, S$18.40++

If you’re looking for another place to add on to your list of all-day breakfast, here’s one. This was our brunch on a late Sunday morning.

We opted for poached instead of scrambled eggs for a healthier option. With tender whites and lava yolks, the poached eggs were flawless.

Sausages, bacon rashers, mushrooms, white sesame toast, and salad leaves made up the rest of this plate. Nicely executed but nothing terribly exciting. The sausages were pretty bland.

Cedele’s Big Breakfast Set comes with a choice of coffee or tea.

Caramelized Banana Pancakes, S$12.90++

What really got us going ooh and ahh was the caramelized banana pancakes. Sweet, melty bananas embedded in soft, moist, and fluffy pancakes — hubby and I agreed that this is definitely something worth returning for!

Cedele by the Bakery Depot (Great World City)
1 Kim Seng Promenade
#01-01/02 Great World City
Singapore 237994
Tel: +65 6836 1427
URL: www.cedeledepot.com

Opening hours:
Mon – Thurs: 9.00am to 10.00pm
Fri: 9.00am to 10.30pm
Sat & Eve of Public Holidays: 8.00am to 10.30pm
Sun/Public Holidays: 8.00am to 10.00pm

Recently, Osia was named Best Dining Experience at the Singapore Experience Awards 2011, organized by Singapore Tourism Board. To celebrate this win as well as other awards that Osia has received over the past year, new creations have been added to the menu. At a recent media lunch, I sampled some of their signature dishes as well as a couple of new additions.

Stonehearth flatbread, S$9.00++

Fellow foodies who have dined here have raved about Osia’s stonehearth flatbread, so I was really looking forward to trying it out for myself. They’re right, it’s truly fabulous!

Freshly baked upon order, the flatbreads are baked in a specially constructed stone hearth oven (with live flames). The bread was delightfully crisp on the exterior, but gorgeously airy and chewy on the inside. You can choose from a variety of toppings — our loaf was a half-and-half of macadamia pesto and truffled kalamata olive. Both were equally scrumptious!

The flatbread is served with butter, extra virgin olive oil, and one of Osia’s signature “toothpaste” tube dips. Gimmicky? Nay! This is indeed a nifty way of controlling the amount of dip you want and where you want it!

They make their own dips in batches and rotate the flavors one at a time. The one we got that day was “smoked eggplant”. Actually, the flatbread on its own is so tasty that I nearly forgot to eat it with the dip!

Ceviche of Petuna Ocean Trout, S$20.00++

If you watch Top Chef, you’ll know that ceviche is the “in” thing in the culinary world right now. Actually, this appetizer has long been popular in South America where it originated from.

Traditionally, ceviche is raw fish marinated in citrus juices. The acid “cooks” the fish without heat. Variations involving other seafood like prawn or scallop can also be found.

Osia has a lovely selection of ceviche, one of which is Petuna Ocean Trout. Specially bred in Tasmania, this species is a cross between the rainbow trout and the Canadian steelhead trout.

Lightly cured in sea salt, the salt was barely discernible. Instead, it masked the rawness of the fish, imparted a subtle brininess, and brought out the natural sweetness of the trout.

The sweet and piquant honey-pineapple salsa was an excellent dressing for the silky, fatty flesh of the trout.

Seafood Ice Experience, S$32.00++

Another signature dish — the Seafood Ice Experience — features 6 shooters of flavored crushed ice topped with seafood. Besides being a great palate cleanser, it’s also very fun to eat. It’s like slushies for adults!

From left:

1. Lychee Martini Ice, Oyster
2. Sourz Apple Ice, Tasmanian Salmon Trout
3. Pineapple Coconut Ice, Southern Blue Fin Tuna
4. Quandong Orange Campari Ice, Amaebi Shrimp
5. Calamansi Mojito Ice, Diver Scallop
6. Carrot “Pokka” Ice, Lobster

My favorite was number 4, made with the native Australian quandong fruit. Tangy, sweet, with hints of bitterness — it had a most intriguing flavor profile, and went very nicely with the sweet amaebi shrimp.

Australian Grain Fed Beef Short Rib, S$60.00++

And here’s the main course — one that sent us to heaven for the duration it took for us to polish off this dish! Braised in sous-vide for 8 hours and seared just before serving, the beef short rib was unbelievably moist, tender, flavorful, and — for lack of a better term — divinely melt-in-the-mouth. We didn’t even need a knife to cut the meat!

Accompanying the star of the dish were interesting sidekicks like creamy rutabaga (Swedish turnip) hash, horseradish creme fraiche, and a truffled pecorino macaroon.

Inspired by the dessert macaron, this macaroon is distinctly different. Flavored with Pecorino cheese, the crunchy macaroon shells are lightly milky, sweet and salty all at once. The two shells are sandwiched with a filling of truffled whipped cream.

Macadamia Nut Tart, S$22.00++

A nutty-licious macadamia nut tart, accompanied by tomato pineapple sorbet, figs, and raspberry crumble, provided the sweet ending to a most impressive meal.

House Ginger Beer

We also enjoyed immensely their house ginger beer — a refreshing blend of lemongrass, ginger and honey. It’s just the thing to quench one’s thirst on a hot, sunny day!

The man himself - Chef Scott Webster

Here’s the man behind Osia — celebrated Australian chef Scott Webster — who had flown into town to talk to us about the inspiration behind his dishes. Chef de Cuisine Douglas Tay also gave us informative insight into the cooking process and ingredients used for the dishes we had that day.

Open-concept kitchen

Here are some shots of the restaurant interior.

Dining area

The dining area has a modern, classy, but relaxed ambience.

Osia entrance

There’s also a bar section, which stocks a selection of premium New World and Old World wines from Australia in addition to international wines, champagnes, liquers, and cocktails.

Many thanks to Osia and Resorts World Sentosa for the kind invitation and hospitality.

Osia
8 Sentosa Gateway, Level 2
Crockfords Tower (FestiveWalk)
#02-140/141
Singapore 099958
Tel: +65 6577 8899
URL: www.rwsentosa.com

Sun to Wed: 12 – 3pm, 6pm – 10pm
Thu – Sat: 12 – 3pm, 6pm – 10.30pm

Yup, CBTL’s breakfast sets are available all-day, and include coffee, tea, or iced tea with free refills till 11am daily. We usually stick to the Brek ‘O’ Day (chicken chipolata sausages, scrambled eggs, salad, and toast with butter and jam). But they were out of sausages that day, so we were forced out of our comfort zone to try other items.

Salmon Scramble, S$8.90

Hubby ordered the Salmon Scramble – scrambled eggs with smoked salmon on toast. I didn’t try it cos I was busy feeding the baby.

Egg Club Sandwich, S$8.90

If you’re feeling ravenous, the Egg Club Sandwich is guaranteed to fill you up! It’s a hearty assembly of toasted ciabatta with two poached eggs, ham, and melted cheese, accompanied with salad.

Poached egg, ham and cheese on toasted ciabatta

The ciabatta was nicely airy and lightly crisp on the exterior. The sandwich was rather salty from the ham and generous amount of cheese. Thankfully, the salad was there to serve as a palate cleanser.

By the way, I always look forward to the side salad. Although it’s an unassuming combo of Romaine lettuce, cherry tomato, dried cranberries and toasted almond flakes tossed in a light lemon juice and oil dressing, it’s really likeable!

After eating half the sandwich, I was already feeling full. The Egg Club Sandwich is probably filling enough to be shared by two light eaters.

There are also other popular breakfast items like pancakes, eggs benedict, and oatmeal. Click on the thumbnail to see the full breakfast menu.

The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf (Resorts World Sentosa)
26 Sentosa Gateway
#01-202 Resorts World Sentosa (The Forum, Level 1)
Singapore 098138
URL: www.coffeebean.com.sg

Sun – Thurs, PH: 8am to 12am
Fri, Sat & eve of PH: 8am to 2am

The images in this post were shot with Sony NEX-C3 with SEL1855 lens (on loan from Sony Singapore).

Western Breakfast Set, S$13.50 nett

Now that the food court has ceased operation, the next most pocket-friendly F&B outlet in Botanic Gardens is Casa Verde. It’s also the only place that serves early breakfast (7.30am to 11am daily). The breakfast menu consists of Western fare such as English breakfast, French toast, waffles, as well as local dishes like chicken congee and mee siam.

Bread basket - part of Western breakfast set

Hubby ordered the Western Breakfast Set — fried/scrambled eggs, chicken sausages, bacon, grilled tomato, hash brown, mini croissant, 2 slices of toast served with butter & jam, fresh fruit/orange juice, and coffee/tea.

The food was competently executed but predictable. In fact, hubby commented that the food wasn’t piping hot enough.

But the Western Breakfast Set was definitely very filling, and we thought, rather value-for-money. In fact, it’s probably hearty enough to share between two light eaters.

Colazione Della Mamma, S$12.50 nett

“Colazione della mamma” means “mom’s breakfast” in Italian. In this case, it was Italian sausage frittata, toast, and coffee/tea.

Frittata = Italian omelette

Regretted my choice of frittata aka baked omelette. It was overcooked, which resulted in rubbery and dense texture. Taste-wise, it was rather bland too. Definitely not worth the $$.

Casa Verde = "green house" in Italian

While the food was just average, its pleasant surroundings more than made up for it.

Al fresco dining area

Most diners prefer to chill out in the patio, where one can enjoy lush greenery and gushing sounds of nearby mini fountains and waterfall.

Super adorable West Highland white terriers!

Being a child-friendly and pet-friendly joint means that this is a very popular destination for families. There’s a kid’s menu for little tikes, and water bowls are available for furry paws!

Casa Verde
1 Cluny Road, Singapore Botanic Gardens
(Casa Verde is located next to Visitor Centre)
Singapore 259569
Tel: +65 6467 7326
URL: www.lesamis.com.sg

Open daily: 7.30am to 11pm (last order at 9.30pm)
Breakfast hours – 7.30am to 11am
All-day dining – 11am to 6pm
Dinner – 6pm onwards

Earth Hour — held annually on the last Saturday of March — aims to raise awareness of climate change by asking households and businesses to turn off their non-essential lights and electrical appliances.

Earth Day — celebrated on 22 April every year — is intended to inspire awareness and appreciation for the Earth’s natural environment.

1st course - "Earth"

This year, Novus Restaurant has launched an exclusive menu to commemorate Earth Day. Specially created by Executive Chef Stephan Zoisl, it incorporates organic ingredients and supplies from sustainable sources and revolves around the four elements of Mother Nature – Earth, Water, Air and Fire.

Says Chef Stephan, “This menu will showcase the beauty of nature on a plate. We want to trigger the appreciation of Mother Earth through the diner’s senses – taste, sight, smell and touch.”

"Earth" - Truffle Underground & Morning Dew

My senses were indeed triggered from the moment the first course was presented. The contents of this bowl looked like it came straight from the garden! Look at the micro greens sprouting from the “ground”! The “dark soil” is made of black truffle, black sesame, and molasses. Its gritty texture feels like real soil!

Beneath the edible “soil” is Jerusalem artichoke puree, and at the bottom is a layer of jellied mushroom consomme.

In terms of taste, sight, smell, and touch, this was indeed a very earthy dish! The intense earthiness of the truffle proved a bit too overwhelming for me, but truffle lovers would definitely appreciate this dish.

2nd course - "Water"

Like the first course, presentation was an integral part of the second course. The dish was placed on heated seashells and water to create the scent of the sea, and also to keep our food warm.

"Water" - Canadian Scallops & Sea Elements

I enjoyed this course a lot more than the first. Loved the juicy scallops, as well as the accompanying “Sea Elements” like borage leaves, salted fingers, seaweed, oyster leaves and caviar d’ Aquitaine. The dish isn’t flavored with salt, because the accompanying ingredients like salted fingers (a sea plant that’s refreshingly crunchy and salty) impart a natural sea salt flavor to the dish.

Amazingly, the oyster leaves really tastes like fresh oyster! It’s my first time trying oyster leaf, and it’s a real eye-opener. You’ve got to try it to believe it!

"Air" - Snow Cod & Zucchini Flower

The third course is another light and clean-tasting dish. Thinly-sliced baby zucchini are carefully arranged on the cod to represent fish scales. The shellfish foam and potato & saffron espuma embody the “airy” components of this dish. On the side is a stuffed zucchini flower.

4th course: "Fire"

The final course — and the most dramatic of all — is a fiery dessert!

"Fire" - Burning Sorbet

After pouring a shot of Grand Marnier over champagne jelly topped with elderflower sorbet and fresh berries, we set our dessert on “fire”!

I absolutely love the multitude of flavors and textures of this dish. You get the heat of the booze, the refreshing iciness of the sorbet, the tang of the berries, and the sweetness and creaminess of the jelly (tastes more like vanilla bean custard to me). Of course, it’s visually stunning as well!

Chef Stefan, if you’re reading this, thank you and hats off for a such a spectacular menu! You’ve definitely managed to “showcase the beauty of nature on a plate” for each of the four elements, and all my senses were definitely engaged.

Maameemoomoo and Keropokman with Momo were my companions at this media tasting session, and they were just as wowed as I was.

It’s a pity that Novus’s Earth Day Menu is available only for a limited period — from 15 April to 23 April 2011. But I had a look at their daily menu, and they offer very attractive set lunch (S$40++ for 3 courses) and degustation dinner.

Bread basket with Sicilian olives, butter, and olive oil & balsamic vinegar

One reason I wanna make a return visit is for their delectable bread basket!

Yes, it sounds crazy, but their freshly-baked bread is really awesome! There’s a mix of mini baguette, soft butter roll, and rye bread.

I also like how they serve butter with crunchy sunflower seeds. The green Sicilian olives are just as appetizing. Normally, I don’t enjoy olives (those that come in martinis), but these ones taste fresh (they’ve got this sweet corn kernel flavor), crunchy, and aren’t too salty.

Cheese platter

Novus also has a comprehensive range of cheeses (selection for cheese platter is rotated) to go with their collection of fine wines.

The bar

Here’s the bar section, where you can chill out over drinks before or after dinner.

The dining area

The dining area is grand and classy, yet has an intimate, cosy atmosphere. Quiet and elegant, Novus is popular destination for business lunches (it was full house when we were there for the media tasting at lunch time).

Novus Restaurant
93 Stamford Road, #01-02
National Museum of Singapore
Singapore 178897
Tel: +65 6336 8770
URL: www.novus.sg

Open Monday to Saturday
Lunch: 11.30am-2.30pm
Dinner: 6.30pm-10.30pm

Going by the increasing number of upmarket joints in town, it’s clear that Singaporeans love a good burger. Here are five of them, tried and tested!

Scrambled egg, bacon & cheddar toasties (S$5.50) and long black coffee (S$3.80)

Today’s breakfast was at this quaint hidden cafe in Robertson Quay that’s garnered several rave reviews on local food blogs and magazines. The menu is small but down-to-earth. Think expresso-based beverages, gourmet Gryphon teas, simple sandwiches, and homemade cakes and muffins.

Toasties, cross-sectioned.

They also have an all-day Big Breakfast set, but we were in the mood for something light and wholesome today.

No surprises about the toasties. Pleasant to munch on, but no wow moment. The green apple chunks were a nice touch. Surprising, they were atypically sweet. Seems like they had been lightly macerated in sweetened orange juice.

Brioche with strawberries & yogurt (S$7.50), and a pot of Gryphon Earl Grey Lavender tea (S$4.50)

With raisin and orange peel embedded within thick, pillowy, and chewy bread, the rustic brioche proved to be more memorable. *Heart* the gorgeous butter that came with it, as well as the sweet plain yogurt with fresh strawberries.

In addition, I requested for some of their homemade strawberry jam, which is more like a watery, tangy compote rather than jam.

Front of cafe.

Seating is very limited, both indoors and outdoors. We highly recommend sitting al fresco, as the indoor ventilation is rather bad.

This is the view from the front of the cafe.

Even though it was a hot sunny day, it was still far more pleasant to sit outdoors facing the river as there was sufficient shade and breeze.

No complaints about the food and beverages. Though they weren’t anything fancy, they were made with quality ingredients.

Hubby’s only complaint was the limited number of seats, plus they weren’t too comfortable. But I guess that’s part of Kith Cafe’s laidback charm.

Kith Cafe
7 Rodyk Street
#01-33 Watermark@Robertson Quay
Singapore 238215
Tel: +65 6341 9407
URL: www.kith.com.sg

Open daily: 7am to 7pm

This edition of Tried & Tested goes on a hunt for the best American-style breakfast pancakes. Click here to find out where you can find the most divine pancakes in Singapore!

Full Works, S$18.00+

There’s an increasing number of F&B outlets serving all-day breakfast daily, and Food For Thought (Queen Street) is one of them. They’re usually full-house on Sundays (no reservations, walk-in only on Sundays), so we were very lucky indeed to get a table upon arrival.

Hubby had the Full Works. Comments on each component of the dish as follows (clockwise from eggs):

1. Scrambled eggs: Sufficiently light and subtly creamy, but not as fluffy or velvety as Spruce’s.
2. Toasted brioche: Texture is too cake-like. Tasted more like a dry pound cake rather than brioche.
3. Roasted tomato: Tasted more like fresh rather than roasted tomato. But we ain’t complaining. Makes a refreshing side to the other components.
4. Bacon: Thin and very crispy. I liked it. Hubby didn’t.
5. Chunky chicken sausage: The sausage was cut into chunks and then deep-fried. This made the sausage chunks crisp on the exterior, but juiciness was thus compromised.
6. Hash brown: Their “hash brown” is actually pommes noisettes, which are deep-fried bite-sized balls of mashed potato with crisp shell. Nice!
7. Garlic mushrooms: A bit too garlicky and peppery for our liking. Portion was generous.

Hits and misses here and there, but overall, it was a hearty and reasonably-priced breakfast. Kudos to the warm and efficient staff, and their “no service charge” policy, which made us even more inclined to leave a tip.

Prices not inclusive of 7% GST. Breakfast menu available from 9am to 5.30pm.

Food For Thought
8 Queen Street
Tel: +65 6338 9887
URL: www.foodforthought.com.sg

Opening hours
Mon – Sat: 9am – 10pm (Last orders 8.50pm)
Sun: 9am – 9pm (Last orders 7.30pm)