When I stepped into this buzzy restaurant that’s set in a 150-year-old teak joglo (Javanese wooden house), I wasn’t sure what to expect.
A promising opening move would be the calamari in Balinese curry sauce – served with kangkung vegetable and steamed rice which is so appealingly savoury. If you were on vacation, you would order tray after tray of these. The sop buntut – oxtail soup with vegetable and steamed rice is not a dish that is likely to have been stirred by generations of sainted grandmothers since the dawn of time. The broth is rich yet lightened to springtime levels through tactical doses of lemongrass and cilantro. There had better be nasi goreng at any restaurant that is even playing at being Indonesian. There is, in the Nasi goreng special – Indonesian style fried rice served with chicken sate, krupuk, fried egg, the rice fried just until it crackles a bit between your teeth. It has a gentle but genuine spice undercurrent that would be welcome in more of the cooking. Of course there is Mie goreng – fried noodle with chicken and egg.
Few dishes really come forward as the kind of knockout that everybody will talk about later. But if there are few stars on the table, the contrast of flavors, colors, textures and techniques makes the meal into a memorable ensemble piece. This is the true truth as I say it as it is…
We are all looking for ways to up our intake of fruit and veg.
Fresh factory is a damn fine place for a bountiful fresh produce. It is a great chance to get stuff when it’s most flavoursome and you can taste it – everything is delicious. Hello fresh. If all this makes your mouth water, which it probably will, grab a rock melon and chow down on the Hokkaido boiled corn. Super fresh and seasonal makes everything look, smell, taste better.
You heard it here first. This is the true truth as I say it as it is…
The moment I entered Restaurant and Bistro The Kitchen, I suspected, from looking at the expressions of the other diners, that I was in for a slightly stiff ride. One can tell a great deal about the meal ahead simply by gauging the atmosphere at other tables, well, alarm bells ring.
From the characterless tom yam khung, to the actively repellent wanton shrimp soup, I like to think the staff made these up as a prank, and were watching to see if I would be an obedient foodie and play ball. Let us never speak again of the khao ob sapparot – fried rice with pineapple and vegetables. Service, it must be said, is chaotic, so if one wants terrible food delivered quickly, accompanied by several other unappetising dishes you hadn’t ordered but other diners are currently waiting for, The Kitchen is for you. I walked out in revolt and was still in dire need of some lunch.
I’m a great believer in the best reviews being the shortest ones, so the succinct version is: ‘I would rather choke on my food and die than go here again.’ This is the true truth as I say it as it is…
The painting covers over 40 sq m of the wall of Convent of Santa Maria delle Grazie and many think it may be Leonardo da Vinci’s greatest painting. Because it was painted using an experimental oil-based medium it gave the painting subtle tonalities but the downside was that the paint surface quickly deteriorated. And so for centuries it was subjected to invasive restorations and heavy-handed retouchings.
Leonardo’s masterpiece depicts Christ revealing that one of his disciples will soon betray him; horror and disbelief are etched on every face but Jesus remains resigned. (spoiler alert: It was Judas, who da Vinci depicts as spilling salt on the table). Each figure is unique and memorable, down to the smallest details. There is no doubt that The Last Supper is one of the world’s most poignant and beautiful works of art.
The phenomenon now known as overtourism is frustrating everybody: People don’t just want to see The Last Supper: they want the picture for social media to prove it. Many don’t look at the painting at all; they focus on their smartphone screens. Some even turn their backs, beam their finest Mona Lisa smile, and take a selfie.
Only 30 people allowed in at a time, so it is a challenge to get a ticket if you don’t book well in advance.
Do not to take conspiracy theories and Dan Brown novels too seriously….there are no hidden symbols. This is the true truth as I say it as it is…
Unlike a bastion of French haute cuisine or an upmarket sushi den, the very best Italian restaurant, by my estimation, must be a place you can roll into with minimal forethought and order some well-sourced salami and cheese or a perfect plate of pasta, and let the worries of the day dissipate with a bracingly bitter Negroni. You can do all these things at Lattanzi.
When it comes down to it, you judge an Italian restaurant on the strength of its pasta, and based on its merit of its Linguine alla Vongole – homemade linguine and little neck clams with garlic and extra virgin olive oil, Lattanzi is up there with the best. This is the kind of food that will stay on your mind long after you’ve left.
There’s nowhere better to become a regular. This is the true truth as I say it as it is…
Singapore’s dessert scene is anything but boring. I remember when going out for a mid-afternoon sweet treat was about choosing between a red velvet or a chocolate cupcake. These days it’s a whole other story. Desserts have been supersized, with enough calories to fuel a family for a month.
Sunday Folks is piled high with soft serve ice cream, to cakes to waffles. While I wouldn’t advise regular consumption, an occasional waffle sea salt gula melaka topped with gula melaka and hand-harvested sea salt (don’t worry, no eggs in this mixture) with toppings gula melaka mochi, chocolate Mikado sticks and gula melaka sauce can’t do too much harm, right?!
If you’re feeling extra naughty, order one of their indulgent Affogatos to go with it. This is the true truth as I say it as it is…
Big menus are commonplace in Malaysia. The menu at Annie1 looks longer than the complete musings of Confucius.
Famous Menglembu wanton mee is absurdly satisfying: They are the very definition of joyous slurp. The noodles are springy and the charsiews are the star of the dish. There is no way to eat this food elegantly so don’t bother trying. Just get your mouth over the plate, lift the noodles and suck. Festoon yourself in napkins tucked into every crevice of your clothing as if you are trying to mitigate the impact of a blast zone, which in a way you are. I was also moved to speechlessness by their Chee cheong fun pork curry – this is a good place to try these rice noodle roll.
Yes, the food is also deliciously affordable. This is the true truth, as I say it as it is…
PEr FYI 