If you enjoy alresco dining in a idyllic garden setting, then GRUB is probably gonna be up your alley. This restaurant is right smacked in the middle of Bishan Park, far from civilization (it's a walk from the ulu busstop so i'd suggest driving or cabbing) and amidst the greens and rocks and wildlife (mosquitoes). What's good is that the Cookyn Inc. folks are very picky on using natural ingredients and eating responsibly so you can eat without guilt. Also, your wallet will not be emptied as most dishes are priced below $15. 

Well i was under the impression that GRUB was still adopting a no-reservation policy but when i visited, groups without reservations were frowned upon. So make sure you call them up just to make sure anyway. S and i decided to give their brunch a shot and the options included the regular eggs and sausage combi along with a number of burgers.

I heard much about the Crispy Fish Burger ($12) and GRUB uses either Monkfish or Haddock, both of which are sustainable white fish. My first thought was that this is a fish and chip dish masquerading as a fish burger! Actually it would have done better without the empty bun that was way too light tasting (i couldn't taste the bread at all). 

The fries and that homemade remoulade (they make their own mayonnaise) was simply amazing. Top it up with mentaiko sauce for an additional $2 and this would be the perfect fish and chips. 

I liked that the fish meat is dense and fresh and the portion extremely generous. 

I wanted to order the Slow cooked Pork Belly ($17) that is sous vide and seared and served with sauteed leeks and sweet potato mash but was disappointed to know that it is only available for dinner! BAH.

The Belgium Waffles with maple syrup and butter ($6.50) was a terrible mistake we made as a result. The batter was undercooked in the middle and it was also tasteless. The watery syrup (probably maple flavored and not real maple syrup) did little to enhance the flavor. I would rather have Prima Deli's cheap waffles which taste much better than this.

Churros ($8) was highly recommended but the portion seemed too huge for us to tackle and i didnt think it'd be nice if we took it away. Well, you guys try it and let me know.

Here's the weekend brunch menu. Liberty coffee is served at GRUB and priced at about $4-5. 

I wouldn't mind eating at Grub if there isn't a queue but the inaccessibility may be a deterrance.  

Grub

510 Ang Mo Kio Ave 1 Singapore 569983

Tel: +65 6459 5743

Tue-Fri: 11am - 3pm, 5.30 - 10.30pm

Weekends & PH: 9am - 4pm, 5.30 - 10.30pm

Closed Mon and last Tue of the month

I used to hang out around Thomson when I was in sec school. Its lovely laid back charm is quite like Siglap, Serangoon Gardens and Holland V. Not forgetting to mention, it's another food enclave which now offers more cafe and brunch options like One Man Coffee, Habitat Coffee. Joining them is OZ Specialty Coffee, an independent coffee boutique located just slightly off the main Upper Thomson Road, in the haphazardly organized Thomson V Two.

OZ is a really (really) small outfit but it provides a wide variety of beans from Brazil, Ethiopia, Guatemala, Indonesia, Thailand etc. Pacamara Coffee Roaster beans are used here.

You know they are serious about their coffee with the arsenal of brewing products on sale. Japanese Kalita home brewing products are available here and other commercial coffee equipment as well.

I had the House Blend latte which had notes of milk chocolate, ripe fruits, roasted nuts with mild floral hints. It's mellow and smooth. Go for this if you want something strong.

Light bites are also on offer, including waffles (from $7) and sandwiches (from $8.50). Their breakfast dishes look run-of-the-mill though. I spied on the next table's scrambled eggs, which seemed runny enough but everything else was just heated/pan friend and thrown in I guess.
What you must definitely have is OZ's Belgium waffles! I swear it was actually a compressed croissant masquerading as a waffle. I died and went to waffle heaven when I bit into the dense buttery pastry (yes I can call it that!). The browned parts had a puff pastry exterior while the inside had the pull of a well made croissant. And that salted caramel was rich and thick without being cloying. Commercially produced New Zealand Natural vanilla ice cream was paired with it but even that didn't take its shine away. Ok NZ Natural isn't that bad I guess (there could be worse).
I really dig their waffles but the hole in the wall is too small a spot even for the little me. An indoor bar top against the wall seats 5 uncomfortably (it's a squeeze). There're about 6 tables for bigger groups along the sheltered corridor but do go prepared with your own mini fans or other cooling devices you may fashion out of paper napkins. Guess it's good that OZ opens till late at night.

So go forth and have the insanely delicious waffles with a cuppa. It's the best Belgian waffles I've had so far. :)

OZ Specialty Coffee
#01-13 11 Sin Ming Road
Thomson V Two, Singapore 595629
Weekdays: 12pm - 12am
Weekends: 9am - 12am

When i feel like i'm in need of a dose of calcium, i would have ice cream and i love the full cream sort (sorbet is not my thing). The fuller, the creamier, the better. However, i know of poor souls out there who are lactose intolerant or vegans who can't get to enjoy the full smooth sweet dessert made from moo juice and eggs. Well, here is Brownice to the rescue, the first Vegan Ice Cream parlor in Singapore that does organic, dairy free frozen treats that will satisfy any sweet tooth out there.  

Their ice cream is made organic brown rice milk, fruits and nuts. Absolutely no cream, no milk, no eggs and Au-natural flavors. For the weight conscious folks, eat up without worrying about the extra pounds. These low fat desserts are absolutely guilty free. #TrueStory

If all that health nut stuff is putting you off, you really need to reserve your judgment on this one. I guarantee you it tastes nothing like what you envision healthy ice cream to be. Brown rice milk is a great substitute for cream and it still provides the creamy smooth texture. It tastes exactly like normal milk. You wouldn't know the difference unless someone tells you that. 

The flavors here change daily (they keep the best sellers and rotate the others) and they have quite a range. The French Chocolate is very delicate and has a powdery mouth feel to it. In my memory, it simply sublimed after i took a bite. The Dark Chocolate is very rich in comparison, it's like eating a chocolate bar. The Pumpkin Coconut is extremely unique and it really tastes like Chinese dessert paste! Very smooth and rich flavors in this one! Eating the Apple Cinnamon is like having candied apples and the Peanut Butter Caramel is almost out of the jar. I was thoroughly amazed at how real all the flavors are. 

If you can't decide what to have.. well, just get everything! 3 scoops will only set you back by S$7! Or have an Ice Cream Bowl with 4 scoops of ice cream and 4 toppings of your choice. Every additional scoop will only costs S$1.50. Whee!! The servers are also very generous with the treats!

Pick from fresh roasted walnuts, organic raisins and cranberries, syrups and all. I highly recommend the caramelized sea salted almonds for the extra crunch in your guilt free dessert (S$1 per topping). Brownice also does waffles and brownies if the toppings aren't enough to satisfy you. The brownies looked really rich and moist. 

If you are in the Sin Ming area and a little sick of Udders, Salted Caramel or Scoopz, why not give Brownice a shot. Great place for a fat free but tasty snack after all that supper. S highly endorses this. He thinks he can eat all the ice cream he wants now but he has obviously forgotten about the sugar... 

Anyway, just enjoy the dessert and then work it off later. Life is too short to be counting calories really. Enjoy this hidden find! :)

Brownice

8 Sin Ming Road, Sin Ming Centre #01-03

Singapore 575628

Tel: +65 6456 6431
Mon-Thu: 1pm - 11pm

Fri-Sun: 1pm-12am

As promised, here is part 2 of my invited media tasting by Irvin's Live Seafood House.

LeBan HK Café just began operation last month (June 2012) and is located just beside Irvin's at 2 Jalan Leban. The food served is very different from the parent restaurant. LeBan focuses on the Hong Kong Cafe style of simple snacks and dishes. I would consider this to be quite the perfect supper hangout because they open till 2am daily! The place was packed by the time we finished dinner at 10pm! Very popular with the Thomson crowd i must say and it's obviously for a good reason.

Hong Kong cafes are famous for their thick toasts but there's the option of a Crispy Butter Bun with Condensed Milk (S$4.00). The buns were nicely toasted all around which gives it that nice brown crust and the delightful crunch with each bite. Ok now i feel like having some condensed milk toast!! Argh.. should never write about food at night!

Savoury French Toast Bites with Ice Cream (S$4.90). This is one of my favorites at LeBan! Deep fried breaded cubes served with a scoop of New Zealand Natural ice cream. Immediate stamp of approval! See those awesome black specks of vanilla beans? Oooh yea. I love the pillowy texture of the bread and how it soaks up the creamy vanilla. Perfect combination of hot and cold. There's quite a selection of ice cream flavors- Choc Fudge Brownie, Cookies n Cream, Vanilla Classic, Green Tea, Boysenberry Dream, Mango Sorbet and Strawberry Surprise. Greedy me asked for more ice cream to go with the bread cubes. 

Potato with Corned Beef Hash and Egg (S$5.50) is that sort of simple home cooked dishes that goes extremely well with porridge. I've never had Corned Beef before this. We usually do luncheon meat at home. :P So anyway when it was served, i thought it's the black carrot cake at the hawker centers. Doesn't it look like that? This is quite a savory dish and it doesn't taste bad but definitely not something that i'd order on its own. 

Seafood Baked Rice in Cream Sauce (S$9.80). The prawns were plump and crunchy but i think they could be a little more generous with the seafood. Though i must say that we should set our expectations right with the price as well. I like that it's fried rice instead of plain rice so that it's more savory. The cream base is a little bland but there's a nice light hint of corn in the sauce (which i love). Cheese lovers would love this one. Tomato base is also available.

Sizzling Crispy Noodles with Jumbo Prawns (S$8.50) from Leban. I love my Crispy Seafood Egg Noodles but this is not that. If you love the Sweet and Sour Pork sauce, you'd love this one but i didn't like it. The sauce was really overpowering and sweet for my liking. Melissa finished the whole thing though! While the noodles are really crispy, it felt too airy and lacked in the texture aspect. 

You can give the Cheese Fries a miss as well. There wasn't enough sauce on ours and the fries were a little stale (perhaps all that food photography spoiled it). I thought it was too dry and the cheese hardened too quickly.

The Sun Fried Ice Cream (S$4.00) is a must eat over here. Huge fried breaded ice cream topped with chocolate rice, hot on the outside, cold on the inside. I like how there is a mix of textures. Again, quality ice cream from NZ Natural is used here. You get to choose from a selection of Vanilla, Cookies n cream, Green Tea and Choc Fudge Brownie. The green tea flavored one wasn't very intense though. I think the Japanese does it better.

Another great dessert to have is the Affogato (S$4.80). I'm not sure about the coffee beans used here but the creamy ice cream really helped in making this a smooth dessert. My original plan was to have 1 by myself but the everyone decided to share it. :( Should have asked for another one. Loved this dessert. And that's Derrick sneakily finishing off the dessert! HOR! 

Food: 4/5 Most of the dishes that we tried were good. Should have ordered my usual instant noodles though. That's like my must eat at HK cafes.

Another discount special for my readers!
Quote "Funky Food" when making payment and be entitled to 10% discount at Leban HK Cafe. Available from now till end July 2012. Ngom ngom ngom!

LeBan HK Cafe
2 Jalan Leban, Upper Thomson Road, Singapore 577547
Daily: 4pm- 2am
Tel: +65 6257 8801

Was invited by the awesome folks at Irvin's Live Seafood House for a tasting so i rounded up the foodies Sgfoodonfoot, CelestialDelish, Melicacy and Alexis to join me on a tasting tour. I love eating with friends because there would be a greater variety and there're always people to finish the food! ;)

Some of you will know about Irvin's Live Seafood House. It was formerly known as Irvin's Seafood Cze Char and was located at River Valley Road. You may recognize it as the restaurant with the HUGE crab signage. Sounds familiar now? If you were wondering where they have moved to, they are now at the Upper Thomson area, 4 Jalan Leban (since Dec 2011). This is the bigger and better version with air-conditioning and 2 VIP Rooms for private dinners (reservation required, no additional cost. 8pax or more). They have also gone into the HK cafe business with the opening of LeBan HK Cafe (just next door) in June 2012. More on that later.

Chef Yap Kim Fatt was in charge of our meal for the night. He's the mastermind behind many awesome dishes we had and the most delicious of all had to be the Salted Egg Crab!

This is an OMG awesome special recipe by Chef Yap That golden custardy liquid is packed with a generous amount of salted egg. It's even yummy when it's cold! I was just drinking the gravy. Love the creamy and buttery viscous sauce. Irvin sells the sauce for $12/box that is made fresh upon order. This is a MUST BUY. Just imagine cooking any ingredient in this. -Melts- 

We also had the Belachan Crab which was stir fried with a fragrant blend of shallots, shrimps, chili and curry leaves. I liked the crunchy bits but the crab didn't absorb much of the taste and the meat was a tad dry. Definitely pales in comparison to the Salted Egg Crab!

Salted Egg Crab - $23.90 (S), $33.90 (M), $48 (per 1kg)
Balachan Crab - $19.90 (S), $29.90 (M), $48 (Per 1kg)
Small and medium size crabs are charge fixed prices while large crabs are charged by weight. Irvin offers both Indonesian and Sri Lankan crabs. I find that the crabs are skinnier as compared to the typical Sri Lankan ones that i absolutely adore.

We were all swooning over the Salted Egg Yam Chips (S$9.80). This is a crowd pleaser and way better than cheese nachos! The sliced yam chips are of the right thickness and when coated with the rich salted egg sauce, it's just heavenly! Chili padi is added to add but i hardly tasted the spice. Warning: this is very addictive.

Another highly recommended dish is the Red Tilapia with Special Sauce (S$32). 

This is on their Special menu; it's not listed! But yes, you can order this! I am not a fish fan but this has wowed me over. I love the light and refreshing bean paste with chili sauce which is very similar to the Thai chili sauce. There are plenty of crunchy bits in the red sticky sweet gravy, which i suspect to be minced fruits and garlic. I could not expect the refreshing and juicy taste otherwise.

Another favorite is the Damn Good Pork [$12.80 (S) $18.80 (L)] 

It is really DAMN GOOD. The crispy battered pork ribs was well marinated and the centre was tender and juicy. Accompanied with the savory butter sauce and some chili padi and curry leaves to lift the taste, all we could say was 'damn good' again and again. This is Irvin's favorite dish too! There is the Chicken alternative, the plain ol Butter Chicken [S$15.80 (S), S$20.80 (L)] which was equally good.

We also had the Claypot Pumpkin Prawns [S$13.80 (S), $22.80 (L)]

Prawns coated with a generous amount of pumpkin sauce, served in claypot. This is slightly sweeter and starchier. Didn't really like this. The prawns were dry and a little shriveled in their shells. 

Anyway by then, our taste buds were a little confused. Everything tasted pretty much of salted egg yolk. They even look like the same sauce! I suppose that's because the base sauce is the butter sauce and then the other variants like salted egg or pumpkin and cream is added in for differentiation. It got a bit boring after a while since everything tasted pretty much the same. :/

The Hot Plate Tofu with Special Minced Pork (S$12.80) wasn't anything fantastic. The tofu is the supermarket white tofu which is fried on the outside. I think this is passable.

Irvin's also does a lunch and dinner buffet too with a DIY steamboat section for dinner but personally i would just go for the seafood dishes. :)

Food: 4/5 Stick with my recommendations and order some staples to fill you up. Can't go wrong with that. 

Atmosphere: 3.5/5 The main dining area is simply furnished and functional. If you want more comfort, i highly recommend the VIP rooms.

Special offer for my dear readers!
From now till the end of July 2012, simply quote "Singapore's Most Handsome Restaurant" at the cashier and be entitled to 10% discount at Irvin's! Enjoy!!

Irvin's Live Seafood House
4 Jalan Leban, Upper Thomson Road, Singapore 577548
Tel: +65 6836 5020
Daily: 11am - 11pm

I guess i was an honorary Thomsonite (if there's such a term). Spent many of my younger days hanging out in the Thomson area. Thursday and Saturday nights were spent at the Community Centre honing my Taekwondo skills and burning calories in preparation for our after class supper escapades. I grew up eating the prata from Prata House and whenever prata craving kicks in, i'd still head to Thomson without a second thought. Anyway, i'm liking how the stretch is turning into a food and chill out enclave. As compared to the past when there was only Prata House, Macs and a couple of coffeeshops, there are a gazillion restaurants, cafes and desserts places now! YAY! 

Of course i was one of the first few to notice and try the ice cream at Salted Caramel when it opened. How can i not? It is just next to Prata House. Prata and ice cream is the best combination for supper. Or lunch... Or dinner.. Or maybe bunch even! (Read about my sweet and savory quirk here).

I love the ice cream at Salted Caramel. My favorite flavors? Salted caramel for sure! And Chocolate stout. And Earl Grey. And Horlicks. And.... (you get my drift). The flavors are intense and the ice cream is creamy enough (no icy centers). The chocolate stout has a strong alcoholic flavor and somehow the bitterness of the stout goes very well with the milk chocolate. I also have a soft spot for tea infused ice cream so earl grey is a must have when the caffeine addict in me acts up. What i love best about SC is that the ice cream is very reasonably priced! $3 a scoop, $5 for double and a mere $7 for triple and that's for ALL flavors. Take that Udders and your ridiculous pricing and weighing of your scoops! BOO. 

To improve your ice cream experience, go for the waffles with ice cream. It only costs an additional $3.50 for a light crispy batter with a slight tinge of saltiness. Each waffle is made to order and served piping hot with ice cold cream on top and your choice of maple/chocolate syrup. I like that the centre is not too floury and spongy (if not i'd OD on flour). 2 scoops of ice cream is perfect to cover every waffle cube- that's how i eat my waffles. I'll cut the ice cream into little cubes and fill up the holes before eat each square individually. It's just more fun this way. :) Oh and the good thing about getting the waffles is that you can skip the queue and order at the cashier right away. Another incentive!

The ice cream parlor is not very big and it gets really packed at night when all the Thomsonites finish their dinner and head out for some sweets. Not a place for chilling out especially when it's packed. I would not hesitate to give you the evil eye if you hog the seats during peak hours. As for me, i do my part and try not to hang around for too long after i'm done with my desserts. :)

Food: 4/5 Love the ice cream. They have interesting flavors like Avocado as well. :))
Service: 3.5/5 Average. Could be a little faster when it comes to clearing the tables
Atmosphere: 3/5. Could get pretty noisy. Not a place for hanging out.

246F Upper Thomson Road
Sun-Thu: 12pm - 11pm
Fri, Sat, Eve of PH: 12pm - 2am

We always look back to our younger years with fond memories and by association, Bukit Timah will always hold a special place in my heart. The old school Coronation Plaza was one of our hangouts after school (No points for getting my school right). Back then there weren't that many options for us. It was Ke3 Ai4 Ji1 for the chicken cutlet rice, cosy corner for Japanese food or Prince for the $6 Western food set with free flow drinks. I remember mugging for our O level Chinese paper at Venezia at 6th Avenue. There's that ice cream prata place that closed down too. Serene Centre used to have a 2 storey MacDonalds which has since been downsized. Just like how memories fade and we create new ones, new food establishments have taken over/sprung up in the area and i've come to count on some of them as my comfort food source. 

The latest addition to the Greenwood eateries is Baker & Cook, an artisan bakery and food store opened by Global Baker Dean Brettschneider. The month old bakery produces its own brand range of jams, cookies, cakes, homemade granola and more. Just the selection of breads alone will leave you stupefied. It took me a long while to finally decide on what i want. 

The set up kinda reminds me of Simply Bread which is located at Guthrie House at 6th Ave but B&C has more of a pastry and dessert selection. The 20-odd seater fills up pretty quickly and space in the air conditioned section is hard to come by. Expect to jostle for attention if you want to satisfy your hungry tummy! To make things easier, check out their menu on their website and place your order immediately upon arrival. :)

I had a blind taste test of their bagel prior to coming to the bakery and it is the best i've tasted in Singapore. It is chewy without being overly tough on the jaw and i love how there is this tinge of saltiness to the dough. Very New-Yorkish. The blueberry bagel ($2.35ea) is a dessert in itself. The berries would simply burst when you sink your teeth into the bagel and act as a fresh jam to sweeten each bite.

Sandwiches are available at $8.50 and what's available is dependent on the Chef's mood. There were only 2 options and that makes life a lot easier for indecisive eaters. Ham And Cheese Turkish Pide Sandwich ($8.50) was my choice for my Tinner (Tea+Dinner). The bread is tough on the outside, the toasted part is almost like a pizza crust and it crackles with each bite. However, it's pillowy soft on the inside. Love the black sesame seeds on top. They added on a smoky dimension that is oh-so-fragrant. Eat it fast though. It really gets the jaw going when it's colder.

Z was raving about the quiche even before we got to the bakery. For $7.95, you get a slice of the pie with a salad of your choice. I'm not a big fan of vegetables but this is very fresh. The burst of colors of the fresh greens and reds really helped whet our appetites. The eggy centre was extremely moist and creamy. I've hit the Quiche jackpot! The pastry is not very crispy because it has absorbed all the essence of the fillings. 

Before leaving, i simply had to express my disappointment at missing out on the meat quiche (Only the Veg was available). A Quiche Lorraine would be oh-so-perfect. The Chef immediately went to check if there's another pie for the next day and WALA! Wish granted! It always helps to look extremely sad and pouty. Heh. :P (Great idea for a T-shirt design). Anyway, it was equally moist, so it's not purely the contribution of the vegetables.

The wide array of colorful desserts were hard to resist. We started off with the lemon tart. I like the crumbly and buttery texture of the crust. The curd is a little more fluid and sticky and also leaning towards the sweet side. I would prefer it to be a tad more sour (it's a lemon tart afterall!). In the end i emptied the golden cup of its content and focused on the tart while Z happily ate the curd. 

Had the mochaccino and it was a liquid chocolate-expresso fantasy. For $5.50, a huge mug of fragrant chocolatey dream is served. The texture is smooth and the foam was really thick and it held up the sugar for a really long time (i'm gonna start timing next time). Anyway, it's almost like drinking hot chocolate but the sneaky caffeine gave me an energizer-bunny buzz for the rest of the night. This is like downing cocktails without realizing how strong the drinks are and then getting pretty drunk. Caffeine is my alcohol.

The cakes look very yummy, especially the cheesecakes. They look especially moist and dense. Whole cakes go for about $23-25. 

Z doesn't like cheesecake so we settled for the chocolate cake which was quite a disappointment. There is no denying that the texture was quite perfect- dense and thick. However, it seems to lack in the chocolate department, it just wasn't rich enough. On the whole, it was pretty dry.

Packed the shortbread home. Every mouthful was a cranberry explosion. Z thought it was too much as it's hard to enjoy the true taste of the shortbread. I thought the shortbread was a little bland and the taste fell flat. Thankfully the cranberries revived it a little. 

So yay! More brunch options in the Bukit Timah area. Don't say i never share! Now off to yoga!

Baker & Cook
77 Hillcrest Road, Greenwood
Tel: +65 6469 8834
Sun - Thu: 7am - 8pm
Fri - Sat: 7am - 10pm