Sushi Kou

Nestled in between 2 very popular restaurants at Orchid Hotel, Sushi Kou feels almost like the forgotten middle child. What a pity because my meal here was pretty good!

My go-to order at any Japanese restaurant - chirashi don. I just can't get enough raw fish + rice

The chirashi set came with chawmushi and strangely a side of sponge cake which I didn't touch cos it was full of cream. 

Such a beautiful presentation with the raw fish all nicely fanned out and so colourful too! I love how Japanese food is always so aesthetically pleasing, a lovely plate makes me happy

Everything was fresh and sweet. I love the rice especially, warm and just the right amount of acidity. The best part - only $26! 

One of the better chirashi I have had.

#01-16 Orchid Hotel, 1 Tras Link, Singapore 078867 

+65 6444 8433

Lucha Loca

 I love this place, great food and a beautiful courtyard to dine in, so much so that I came here twice in a very short period of time. 

chips with salsa and guacamole. Mmm that guacamole was sooo good, I could eat spoonfuls of it on its own.

crab toastaditas with avocado,  tiny but flavour profile was all there, everything tasted really fresh too

Selection of various tacos, they are not big I recommend 2 per pax.

My favourites were the Baja Fish taco, pork belly and chorizo. (Skip the scallop one)

I dont know much about Mexican food but almost everything we had were delicious.

And you can't go to a Mexican restaurant without drinking! 

Tequila shots with tomato juice, I never had tequila with tomato before but I am a convert now. The warmth and sweetness of the juice was a great complement to the sharp alcohol.

Mango margarita, quite unlike the usual ones served here. An acquired taste I must say. 

Do grab a seat outdoors, the courtyard with twinkling fairy lights is such a lovely place to dine in. The service staff can be really fun and boisterous and do come prepared for a fun time (I was there for a hen's night and we had a really great surprise from the staff)

15 Duxton Hill

Singapore 089598

62263938

Mikuni, Round 3

I am aware that at this pt, my must-try list probably consist of just everything Mukuni but I can't help going back again and again cos the food here is just darn good. More here and here

So we happily strolled into the restaurant without a reservation (of course it was full) and stubbornly plonked ourselves down at the waiting area to wait for an available table. The chef and waitresses were so apologetic they gave us free appetitzer (with service this good, how can you not like this place?

A tin of truffle kampachi each, so fresh and deliciously marinated.

Now we have already formed our own omakase menu of our favourites at Mikuni so no more set menus.

This is as good as it gets. Last meal worthy platter, esp that otoro 

Wagyu ribeye tepenyaki

and the best foie gras ever. 

This time round we got a round of the signature lobster and chanko nabe (seasonal seafood in miso soup). Both were great, the soup especially was delightfully sweet and fresh. But if you have to choose, go with the beef and foie gras. 

The sweet chef also gave us complimentary desert. Some kind of pudding that I wasn't much a fan of unfortunately. Too much milk.

Mikuni 

Fairmont Singapore Level 3

80 Bras Basah Road

64316156

Nosh

Another wedding recce and I loveeeee this place.  I always wanted to get married outdoors but Singapore's unpredictable weather makes finding an outdoor venue pretty risky. The outdoor dining area of Nosh is lovingly sheltered (with overhead fans so its not hot!) and really pretty with the white picket chairs and sweet pink cushions. The glass bar and archway feature were bonus points.

I could see myself getting married here. Alas, we seem to be having really bad luck with wedding venues, Nosh is still trying to sort out some lease issue and cant confirm the dates soooo back to more scouting sigh.. 

Anyway dinner at Nosh was good. 

complimentary fried bread. 

Very refreshing cocktail (watermelon, lemongrass and gin)..sigh this would have made a really good welcome drink for guests

 Started with the seared scallops, a decent portion and very nicely cooked. 

The parsnip puree in particular was delicious (i love baby-type food)

Kurobuta Pork Belly with sweet potato mash. The mash was the star of the dish (what did I say about baby food eh). I couldnt stop spooning the mash into my mouth, the pork was nice but if I had the option of replacing the pork with more of that mash, I would gladly agreed. 

I really enjoyed the food here, pity about the lease if not our venue issues would have been settled sighhhhh

9 Rochester park

Singapore 139220

67794644

Boss BarBQ

Walked past this place too many times and finally decided to try it. With neon lights and loud korean music, BossBarBQ was somewhat tacky but oddly suited for Korean cuisine although I am not a fan of places where I have to talk loudly to be heard.

Fortunately, the food was good. 

BBQ chicken in soy sauce. Chicken coasted with thick sweet sauce and sesame seed and throw in some onions. Very tender and tasty. Great bar food

The seafood pancake was extremely flavorful and chocked full of ingredients. Best korean pancake I have had so far

Tender grilled beef, damm good with the lettuce and bbq sauce.

Only gripe was the prices, darn were they high! Almost 30 bucks for the pancake plus charges for tea and kimchi.

3C Clarke Quay

River Valley Road #01-04
Singapore 179022
6336 3393

Ippudo @ Mohamed Sultan

Not too sure whats the big deal with Ippudo, this tonkotsu ramen was a salt-bomb. Had to down too many glasses of water to quench my thirst after.  Much prefer the ones at Santouka/Keisuke

Mitsuba

 So since the chef at Chikuwatei moved to Mitsuba, I figured you cant go wrong with the chirashi don.

With the sashimi and rice served separately, it was admittedly not as visually stunning but the thick slabs of fish had all the trademarks of Chikuwatei and Wasabi Tei eh

 Really good and fresh

 Salmon don with its very generous serving of the pink fish

Price-wise it is slightly more expensive than the other 2 restaurants I mentioned earlier but I guess with a river view, this place has better ambience.

6 Eu Tong Sen Street
#03-88 The Central
Singaproe 059817

Brasserie Gavroche

We were all craving for steak frites so we popped into the nearest French restaurant. Quaint decor with traditional looking booths and menu = sign of authenticity?

This was the grass-fed sirloin ($38) that comes with a bucket of fries. Unfortunately I didnt think much of the steak, it was tough and did not have much flavor though the cross-section looked pretty darn good. Fries were crispy-good though. L'Entrecote's cheaper version is much better.

One plus side - the waiters here are pretty darn cute. Throw in a couple glasses of wine and I am sure most of the diners will be reduced to giggling school girls.

66 Tras St

Singapore 079005

6225 8266

Tamarind Hill

Checking out Tamarind hill as a potential venue for our wedding. This place is gorgeous - a large colonial style house nestled in the middle of Labrador Park, really romantic and classy.  There are not many restaurants in Singapore that make you feel like you have been transported to another country, but this one really does from the large airy dining space to waiters in fisherman pants greeting you at the door. 

Food wise - the best way to describe it would be 'Atas' Thai food. Think classic thai dishes with good quality ingredients.  (Pardon the poor quality pictures, lightning was almost non-existent)

Started dinner with this refreshing cucumber cocktail. The bar is really lovely btw,  with a "chandelier" and a large mirror overlooking the entire place. I can imagine doing our wedding toasts there.

We settled on the classics - tomyum soup, green curry and stir-fried beef. Everything was aptly done and delicious though at the back of my head, I feel that nothing beats good thai food at a road side stall. 

Maybe because fine-dining creates such delicateness in the dishes hence the robustness of the thai spices are somewhat lacking. 

In the end, we decided not to go with this place for our venue. Personally, I thought it was a tad too classy (I prefer a more casual ambience) and I wasnt a fan of the many walls/pillars that 'closed up' the dining space.

So the search continues...

30 Labrador Villa Road

62786364

Fika Cafe

Before I found out about Fika, the only place I could think of that offers swedish food was Ikea. 

We came here expecting Ikea variety of food but Fika's menu was much more extensive (so much so I had a hard time deciding what to eat).  Best of all, its a halal establishment so great for group outings.

The grilled chicken crepe ($17.50) was huge. In fact servings here are big so do share if your a small eater. 

Chockfull of chicken and oozing cheese, a very satisfying crepe.

Will come back to try their deserts. And yes they do serve meatballs. 

257 Beach Road

63969096