I love Cuppage Plaza despite it's shadiness, seediness and sleaziness. It rates pretty high up there on my dubious index, the one topping the chart being Orchard Plaza with all the nightclubs and Thai disco bars (i was recently dragged there by my wonderful friends). Anyway back to Cuppage Plaza. The reason why i would overlook all that under-table/behind-closed-doors activities in the background is that they have really good Japanese food! Nijumaru, Ohsumi, Nagomi and the list goes on. I have been to Nijimaru a couple of times and they serve decent and reasonably priced bentos (shall review it sometime). My goal is to try every notable Jap restaurant there. Should be too hard since i love the cuisine.

S suggested we try Kaiho Sushi when our previous craving kicked it. This is really a hole-in-the-wall kinda restaurant. The shopfront doesn't look appetizing at all- plain boring green banner with a simple font stating the name of the place. No pictures on the menu :( Absolutely no atmosphere of any sorts. A simple bar counter that seats 9-10 patrons and another 4-5 dining tables. This is not a place that you would come to for a chillaxing meal. BUT. The chunky fresh slices of sashimi and bottles of Ume wine sitting on display are enough to guarantee fresh and hearty Japanese food and Kaiho didn't disappoint in that aspect. 

All sushi/sashimi dishes are lovingly prepared by Chef Bernard Tang. It takes a while for food to be served when the place is packed but it's certainly worth the wait. A must try is the Salmon Aburi Sushi ($3 each). This is where i fell in love with the Aburi style.  I usually have a problem with the searing. When it's overcooked, it feels like i'm eating a half cooked/half raw piece of meat. I never knew what perfect Aburi is until Chef Tang and his perfect torching technique came along. The fish seamlessly transits from the cooked to raw texture which simply melts in your mouth. The Japanese Mayonnaise and sweet sauce gave it an additional buttery smoothness that simply glides down the throat. The Hotategai Aburi Sushi ($9) was great even without the heat. Couldn't really tell the difference though and I love it raw anyhow.

 

Being the greedy me as usual, i went ahead with the Kaiho Bento ($28) (Gotta love bento sets for their variety!) Stewed veg- love the pumpkin which was braised in sweet and light stock. I usually don't take the whole shrimp with shell and all but these were so nicely fried and crispy that i simply munched on them one after another. If you follow my blog closely you'll realize that i'm not a fish fan other than salmon and cod but this grilled fresh saba was so simple and yet yummy. It tastes of home- that sort of simple home made dishes cooked with love, seasoned with sea salt and splashed with lemon for that final touch. Love it.

A silky smooth chawanmushi came along with our sets and this i swear is like beancurd but the savory version. Nicely flavored with stock for that savory flavor. Each spoonful revealed chunks of surprises within- crab meat (the stick sort though :/), Unagi, mushrooms etc. I would say the texture is better than Lao Ban!

My set also came with the sushi/sashimi platter! I thought the cut of salmon was pretty weird. Seems like it's from some leftover piece of fish. Boo. Love the rest of the dish though. The rice was nicely flavored with vinegar and the fish to rice ratio was just right. The rice is better than Meii though it was a little more on the sticky side as well. Hotate was slightly on the sticky side. I noticed this problem with most hotate that i eat in Sg. Perhaps i compare it too much to that freshly shucked live scallops that i had in Sapporo. Nothing compares to that boing boing texture of fresh meat. Sighs.

S chose the Chirashi Set ($28). Just look at all those chunky pieces of seafood that covered the top of all that rice! I love the mixture of colours though i must say i'm not really a Chirashi fan. I like my sashimi/sushi but i love them better when there is a mix of hot dishes to go along with it. I'm a traditional Chinese girl that way. Anyhow, you get thick and juicy pieces of tuna, sweet shrimp, hamachi, mackerel, scallops, unagi and the tender snow crab leg. All for $28? Worth-it chop stamped!

Desserts were a delight as well! Japanese ice cream that is really from Japan! I had the Chestnut flavored one which was very light and nutty. Could taste a hint of caramel with little bits of Japanese chestnuts. S thought this was a little bland only because he ate his sesame one first. His sesame one was extremely fragrant with coarse bits of sesame as though it's freshly grounded. Really satisfied with the desserts! This is unlike the cheapo sorta ice cream that's typically served at the regular restaurants.

If you would like something more, you could also go for the Lunch/Dinner 8 Course Set for $60++ or the 7 course Omakase for $100++. The Omakase set includes Salmon head soft bone, toro, salmon and scallop sashimi, Nameko soup, Grilled fish dish, Kisu tempura, 5 pcs of Nigiri sushi and ice cream!

Kaiho Sushi is indeed a hidden gem. I wouldn't have gone in if i didn't know about the food. So here it is, don't say i never share! :))

Kaiho Sushi Restaurant
#03-01/02 Cuppage Plaza
Tel: +65 6738 1315

Tue–Sun: 12pm – 2.30pm, 6.30pm – 11pm
(Closed on Mon)

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

Whenever i go to Song Fa for dinner and hang around the area after, i have noticed this Chinese zi char (cooked food) stall-ish kinda place just farther down the road. It used to be pretty empty (at least my memory of it). Obviously i didn't pay much attention to this. Not really my idea of a zi char stall because the best ones usually don't have the best dining conditions-- non airconditioned, loud and dynamic and located in the most remote heartlands.

Was surprised when Will and S suggested this particular place to satisfy a claypot rice craving. We would usually go to Geylang Claypot rice (i swear that is heavenly) but we were in an adventurous mood that day. It was only then that i found out that it's called Le Chasseur (such a pretentious name for a Chinese zi char place). Reminded me of those regular Viet restaurants in Saigon that gave themselves French names but sell nothing remotely French. I don't really care about what they call themselves as long as the food is worth it.

The place was packed to the brim! There were no seats indoors or outdoors. Took us about 30minutes to get a table, mainly because there is absolutely NO SEATING SYSTEM! Trust me, it's ridiculous. Even the zi char stalls in the heartlands do better than them in terms of seating their customers.

While we waited, our eyes feasted on the pictures of the dishes that were displayed prominently on the glass doors. We were starving by the time we got our seats and were dying to try the "famous" claypot rice.

'

Apparently the Crispy Pork Knuckle, Claypot Rice and BBQ Live Prawns are the bestsellers. Despite our rumbling tummies, we decided not to over order in order to save space for desserts. BUT GUESS WHAT! It took another 40ish minutes for our dishes to be served! I'm not being unreasonable here. I understand and appreciate the time taken to cook a pot of claypot rice from scratch BUT 40ish minutes to serve our cold dish and drinks??!! How long does it take to slice tofu and chop century eggs?! Ridiculous. So anyway it took us an hour (after we got a table)to be served our meal, even though we placed the order immediately upon arrival. Extremely bad service. They need to hire more helpers if they are shorthanded.

The tofu with century egg was refreshing. Can't go wrong with this combination. The egg could be in bigger chunks though. Can hardly taste much of that.

The coffee pork ribs were nicely charred on the outside. Nice smokiness that went well with the bitterness of the coffee sauce. Like the touch of crunchy almond slices to complement the texture of the meat. The ribs were tender enough (didn't break my jaw chewing), though they required quite a bit of manhandling or i would say sporkhandling to get the meat off.

I could be sure that the rice was cooked from scratch in the pot because it took so long. I don't know if it's really worth that waiting time though. Nice burnt and crispy rice bottom of the pot. Flavorful Basmati rice that was simmered in chicken stock and cooked over charcoal for that additional taste and smoky flavor. Interesting choice of the long grains because Basmati rice doesn't stick to each other and are light and fluffy when cooked.

The chicken meat was tender but it wasn't deboned (troublesome to eat). Love the sweetness of the lup cheong (preserved chinese sausages) and saltiness of the salted fish. My main complain is that there isn't enough ingredients. :( I ended up eating more of the flavored rice than anything else. BOO.

The food at Le Chasseur isn't bad. But the bad service is enough to deter me from going back. I was so tempted to walk off to Song Fa which promises yummy BKT that is served promptly.

Food: 3.5/5
Service: 1/5 Really bad and slow service. Staff were unfriendly and hostile.
Atmosphere: 3/5 Average. Nothing to boast about.

Le Chasseur
31 New Bridge Road
Daily: 11.30am - 3pm, 5.30pm - 10.30pm
Cash Terms only

For a work trip to Kuala Lumpur some time back, i managed to find some time for a spot of tea and cakes. Guess i didn't get enough when i was in KL the last time (more of my Malaysia/KL escapades here). Stopped by Mid Valley on the way back to Sg and i spotted some really delicious looking cakes at Delicious cafe. Obviously i had to drag my colleagues in with me. Didn't take a lot of effort to convince them to have desserts for lunch (they seem to think tt i'm the food expert because of my blog). Plus, i found out that R is a desserts fan! Funny thing for a big dude. First thing he asked was if they serve brownies. Haha.

The selection of desserts were quite amazing and they all looked very promising sitting there behind the glass walls. Took me a long while to decide what i wanted because everything looks drool worthy. I made sure it's something different from my companions' selections so that i can steal some of theirs! One of my food strategies. Heh.

Quite a cozy set up, warm lights, comfy seats that moulds to your behind, perfect for resting the legs and bum after a day of shopping. Liking the bird cages but it's not as sophisticated as those i've seen in Saigon.

My huge cup of mocha. Great coffee making techniques. Dense and thick foam that held my sugar crystals very well. No complains about the coffee but nothing particularly spectacular.

The Chocolate brownie (RM12.90) with vanilla ice cream and chocolate sauce sent us straight to chocolate heaven. It's quite a huge slab of brownie which had a nice brownish crust on the outside. My favorite kind of brownie is the sticky chewy sort with a moist centre and this is absolutely it. The chocolate was dark and not too cloyingly sweet. Love it when the ice cream melts and swirls in with the rich brown sauce. Sadly it's not real vanilla ice cream (NO VANILLA BEANS!).

I ordered the hazelnut cheesecake (RM14). Dense and rich cheese, absolutely yummy and creamy. This is slightly of the crumbly sort as compared to the other cheesecake we had. I was trying to place what's different about it, then i realized that there is some tinge of citrus in my cake. I can't taste that much of the hazelnut actually but it's a good cheesecake nonetheless.

KS ordered the macademia nut cheesecake (RM14) which was quite very different from the Hazelnut cheesecake. On the toppings- it tasted very much like Garette's popcorn! Love the butterscotch caramel taste of savory nut. The cheese base is a lot creamier and smoother than the hazelnut (you can see the difference in the pictures). This is more of a salty cake. I guess they are going for the salted caramel taste. It's a little weird tasting the salt in the cake but it's an interesting dessert.

Delicious also serves other hot food- pasta, burgers, sandwiches and Western European mains. What interests me more would be the Afternoon Tea Set for 2 (RM60). 3 tiered tea set that comes with scones (Jam & Pure Cream), Assortment of Finger Sandwiches & Duck Confit in Filo Pastry, Strawberries with Chocolate Dip &
Hand-rolled Chocolate Truffles, Rosemary & Cheese Cookies, a slice of any one cake on display and 2 cups of hot tea or coffee.

It was only after the trip that S told me there's a Delicious branch in Sg. It opened not too long ago and is located at Scotts Square Level B1. However, i heard that the food is a far cry from the Malaysian parent. :/ May try it someday just to make sure.

Delicious
Kuala Lumpur, Penang, Singapore (Check out the website for locations in Malaysia)
#B1-16 to19, Scotts Square
Tel: +65 6636 0903
Daily: 8am - 10pm

Malaysia on Dwellable

S took me to another of his 'secret finds' near Duxton. I thought we'd be heading to some of the nice Duxton restaurants i've been meaning to try but we ended up under some HDB block at a nondescript, hole in the wall Japanese restaurant called Meii Sushi. Apparently, it's one of Makansutra's K.F. Seetoh's favorite Japanese Omakase meals. For a mere $100, you get an 8 course set which consists of wasabi-spiked marinated octopus sashimi, de-shelled oysters in a soy-laced vinaigrette, sumptuous grilled yellow tail fish cheek, smelt fish tempura as well as sashimi, sushi Value for money? You bet.

The set up is very small, the bar seats 8-10 people and there's another corner that seats another 8. Do make a reservation in advance. Affordable sushi and sashimi sets with a selection of sake.

S and i went with the Sushi set ($25) and Sashimi set ($25). Each  set came with a shredded cabbage salad. The light sesame sauce was citrusy with a tinge of tartness. The sauce brought out the sweetness of the vegetables and despite the initial rawness (i'm obviously not a veg fan), it was very refreshing after a few bites.

We ordered the Agedashi tofu ($8) for starters and i love the light batter which soaked up the flavorful dashi stock. It was sweet, savory and light at the same time. I love the silkened tofu that was soft but did not crumble under the pressure of the chopsticks. The spring onions, wakame and bonito flakes added more dimension to the dish. S was drinking the stock afterwards. Super yums.

For his Sashimi set, S was served 10 chunky pieces of fish which includes salmon, tuna, scallop, octopus, sea bass and sea bream. The salmon sashimi is so buttery and smooth! It was really good. The tuna was ok (Ok is a big deal in my tuna dictionary because i don't like the fishiness of the fish). The sashimi was served with warm rice coated with furikake (Japanese seasoning). I love furikake! I could just have rice balls with that. You could buy them in satchels (available at good supermarkets) and pour over your plain rice for any meal.

The fish was undoubtedly fresh, i have nothing to complain about. Fresh and succulent meat and sweet hotate (it was kinda sticky though..).. The issue was with the fish to rice ratio. Everything was too big. You must be wondering wth am i complaining about right? Sushi is meant to be bite sized, even for little mouths like mine. I was struggling with stuffing the entire piece into my mouth (that's the right and only way to eat sushi). So yea.. it was too big.

The fish was sliced really thick and each piece is huge (longer than my index finger which is 7cm tall). In the end i gave up and ate the fish separated from the rice (i didn't eat much of the rice actually. Read on to find out why.).

I don't like the rice at all. Huge bolus of rice which were waaaaayy too sticky and tending on the dry side. I would say this is hard to stomach. The taste of the rice also didn't complement the fish particularly well, would prefer a little more vinegar in them (they were pretty plain).

Afternote: Meii Sushi has relocated to International Plaza.

Meii Sushi
#02-54, 10 International Plaza
Tel: +65 6220 3466
Mon - Sat: 11am - 2.30pm, 5 - 10.30pm

Been in another one of my insatiable Japanese food craving that had me eating Japanese food for almost a week. Thank god the boy shares my love for Japanese food as well. It's something we will not get sick of because of the variety and styles available. :)

S wanted sushi and sashimi for dinner (just the day after Tatsuya) and obviously i said no, since my tummy was satisfied in that aspect. Then he grumbled about me having Tatsuya without him. Hello! The tummy waits for no one. :P Convinced him to do a different style and so we headed to Parco at Millenia Walk where they have a section on Japanese food. Settled on Saboten and then a turn of events and more friends decided to join us.

Anyhow, we've tried Saboten a couple of times by now. It's not that the tonkatsu is spectacular but it's better tan the average that you get? Tonkichi is another crowd favorite but i haven't tried that before (tonkatsu isn't my favorite jap meal. It's kinda too fried, even by my standards).

Saboten opened its very first shop back in 1966 in Shinjuku, Tokyo and has since flourished into the largest Tonkatsu chain in Japan with over 500 shops. Overseas franchisees include Hong Kong, Korea, Taiwan, Singapore and Thailand. Expect crispy and tender grain-fed pork loins coated with bread crumbs, eaten on its own or with the special home made Tonkatsu sauce or with the curry. If you are not a porkie fan, they have seafood tonkatsu as well. Sets are priced between $19- $26.

Each set comes with free flow of shredded Japanese cabbage which can be dressed with a refreshing vinegar- based yuzu (citrus) sauce or creamy sesame dressing. My favorite is the sesame sauce of course! I have a bottle of this at home for my salads. Yummy!

I decided to go with something different this time and chose the Ishiyaki Soboro Rice Set instead. Kinda like the Jap version of bimbimbap minus all the spice. The sauce served is a sweet teriyaki-ish brown sauce which i generously drenched my rice in. The minced meat is well marinated and sweet and the spring onions adds a refreshing touch to the dish in general.

As part of the set, i chose the shrimp and crab croquette (since i made S order the tenderloin). I love fried fresh crystal prawn and this has a firm texture that is sweet and savory at the same time. The crab croquette is very creamy, moist and dense. The crab cream ought to have a stronger seafood taste though and i think they should add corn kernels to it. That would be the perfect combination.

S had the curry tenderloin tonkatsu. It may look very plain but the curry is so deli. Some Japanese curry lacks the punch because it's too sweet. This has the right amount of spice and tanginess. The viscosity of that gravy coats the crispy bread batter instead of soaking it, which is perfect because i still want the crunch of the patty. Anyway what i'm trying to say is that i would gladly finish a pot of rice with nothing else but the curry.

If you have a larger appetite and you want to try a mix of their fried food, go for the Saboten set which comes with a mini loin, mini tenderloin, crab croquette and shrimp. The twin set has more variety with cheese asparagus and ham and cheese roll (i think).

Food: 4/5 Love the curry

Service: 3.5/5 A little slow and not particularly attentive though the servers are quite knowledgeable about the food.

Ambience: 3.5/5 Regular Japanese restaurant. Nothing special.

Saboten

#P3-01 Parco Marina Bay, Millenia Walk
Tel: +65 6333 3432
Daily: 11.30am – 10pm

Level 3 Departure Hall, Changi Airport Terminal 1
Daily: 8am- 10.30pm

Whenever people mention Japanese food, one of the first names that would come to mind would be Tatsuya. I have been meaning to try their food but their booking for Restaurant Week is always snatched up (even for pre booking!). Of course, i'm not one who would simply wait for a cheap deal to visit the restaurant of my choice. Why do we need an excuse to have good food? Good thing Ben suggested Tatsuya for lunch and we managed to score a last minute reservation at the 23-seater sushi bar for 3, albeit the 1h time limit imposed on us.

Helmed by Chef Ronnie Chia, 2 time Award winner for the World Gourmet Summit's Asian Ethnic Chef of the year in 2007 and 2008, Tatsuya serves one of the most exquisite sushi meals in Singapore. Is it any wonder that they fly in fresh and exotic offerings direct from the renown Tsukiji fish market in Tokyo? No worries people, the fish is safe. Though I honestly don't care if radiation kills me as long as i get the yummiest sashimi! 

We decided to go with the Lunch Bento sets which were reasonably priced at $26 to 30++. Actually i would say that it's darn cheap. Somehow i had this idea that a meal at Tatsuya would cost a bomb (though we have paid a lot more for Japanese before). 

Ben and Sue decided to go ahead with the Sushi Bento ($30.90). Given my lousy recognition skills of sashimi, i believe that it's salmon, tuna, swordfish and hamachi (i think?) sushi. Along with california roll and tamago, as well as tempura prawns and pumpkin. YUMS! That together with the silky smooth chawanmushi which had a refreshing taste to it- they added some orange peel! Interesting touch indeed.

I love the Iwate sushi rice which was springy and bouncy with the right amount of stickiness. The balance of vinegar and saltiness as well as the sweetness that comes after chewing was perfect.The fish to rice ratio was obviously faultless as well. I hate it when i'm served with a huge bolus of rice with a small piece of meat and worse when it is clumpy! No such issue at Tatsuya of course. :)) The fish was nothing but the freshest as well.

A little while into the meal, Ben's bento was taken away from him! We were a little bewildered. Then the chef explained that he's rearranging the position of the sushi so that it's easier for him to handle (as Ben is a leftie). How thoughtful and observant! Thumbs up for good service!

As for me, i went with the Ladies Lunch ($26.80) which consisted of a Japanese potato salad, Chawanmushi, Prawn and Veg Karaage, assorted sushi and tamago with a chilled udon.

I love chilled udon, especially if it's Inaniwa udon! Yums. Very cold and chewy texture that is oh so refreshing. The slender and translucent noodles when dipped in the soba sauce is absolutely appetizing. I would choose chilled udon over hot ones in a heartbeat.

I'm not a big fan of vegetable karaage. I think there's usually too much flour and hence the dish isn't as crispy as the tempura version. Tatsuya's version is surprisingly light with a slight moisture. Juicy chunks of prawn coupled with thinly shredded carrots and onions fried to a light golden brown.

Needless to say, we left with happy tummies. I am pretty sure i'd be coming back soon and the next time i wanna try the Kaiseki ($165) and Omakase ($200+) course! Now off to my Sunday lunch and all these talking about Jap food is making me crave for it again. I could eat this everyday for the rest of my life. :))

Food: 5/5 I was very happy. 'Nuff said.

Service: 5/5 Pleasant, efficient and extremely thoughtful even though they were very busy.

Ambience: 4/5 Authentic and fuss free Japanese restaurant setting.

Tatsuya
Goodwood Park Hotel
22 Scotts Road
Tel: + 65 6737 1160 (Reservations required)

Daily: 12pm - 3pm, 6.30pm - 11pm

Put 2 skinnyfat girls together and you'll usually wind up with a food crisis because they would eat so much despite not having planned for it. That was exactly what happened yesterday. Z and i headed to the CBD area with all intention to check out some cafes that we would usually miss out on the weekdays. The first was Black (i tried it at Triple One and it was BAD) and i dissuaded her from going in. Dimbulah is available at Robertson so it wasn't of pressing nature to visit. Then it struck my mind and i absolutely had to bring her there! Just across the street at Fullerton Bay Hotel was one of the best  Afternoon Tea that i have had in Singapore and it was The Landing Point.  

Once you step into the Hotel, you will be welcomed by the perfumed lilies. I love lilies and i think natural flower fragrance is the best way to freshen up the space. The spacious interior decorated with colonial and modern elements was welcoming more than overwhelming, though Z was quite confused by the mixed of oriental cabinets with colonial high backed arm chairs. From our vantage point above the 13-metre long bar, we could look out to the outdoor waterfront terrace (and of course the waters). Nice beginning to a wonderful afternoon.

Other than for Afternoon Tea, they are also open for breakfast, lunch and light refreshments throughout the day. I heard that the bar does some interesting bespoke cocktails of 3 different themes- The Clifford Collection (Contemporary); The Anderson Collection (Timeless vintage) and The Old Fashioned Cocktails (Customized 19th century drinks) You can enjoy a selection of typical bar food e.g. Wagyu Burgers (or not so typical) and other sandwiches and Asian delights.

S first brought me to the Landing Point early last year (knowing how much i love my Afternoon Tea) and i thoroughly enjoyed myself. I could still remember certain canapes and the explosion of taste in my mouth. I was raving about the food to Z. She had seen the pictures before and wanted to give it a try but i guess we both forgot about it. We sat back in the plush plum and aqua green couches which nicely enveloped our petite behinds and prepared us for the goodies to come.

Afternoon Tea is served daily and presents an array of delightful light bites! From the top tier to bottom (left to right)- Creme Brulee, Chocolate Tart, Cucumber sandwich, Brie on Biscuit, Parma Ham Mini Bagel, Truffled Egg Mayo, Smoked Salmon sandwich, Lobster horn, Mini Ham and Cheese Quiche, Duck confit in Crepe, Kueh Lapis, Canele, Tarte Citron and Chocolate Éclair. Any tea is incomplete without English Scones of course and they were served with Strawberry Jam and Clotted Cream (YAY!). A fine selection of fresh tea and infusions by TWG is available e.g. Eau Noir Tea, Honeyed White Tea, Tea Party Tea etc. 

Most Afternoon tea at hotels usually fail in one department, either the sweet or savory or worst, both. The Landing Point however excelled in most of their bites! The only thing we would find fault with was the use of certain supermarket quality breads for the sandwiches. I left my cucumber sandwich alone and ate the fillings of the other sandwiches. 

First up- Savories. The Parma Ham bagel was light and had a pillowy centre. Truffled egg Mayo was not bad, i mean it was simple to make. Smoked Salmon was so so as well. I'll now introduce you my favorites!

The Lobster horn- Fragrant sesame pastry roll with sesame oil mayo lobster filling. Chunky pieces of meat (not too sure if they were really lobster meat but it couldn't be crab or prawn), juicy and succulent. You can taste the sea in your mouth. The use of the sesame oil seems to suggest some Japanese influence but it's a great choice nonetheless.

Duck confit in crepe- moist, buttery and salty paste with shredded duck meat. Z thinks it's more like a pate but i beg to differ. It doesn't have the paste-like quality and dryness of a pate and was more like a blended confit paste. The crepe reminds me of the Chinese Peking Duck dish. Another "fusion" of sorts.

All the pastry tarts were faultless. Crisp, crunchy and buttery goodness. If only the ham and cheese quiche were bigger. The egg center is moist and flavorful, unlike many of the disappointing quiches available around. These were so yums we went for seconds (you can get refills! Ala Carte buffet style). This is O so awesome! 

Now on the sweets. They were all very thoughtfully made and the quality was superb. The Canele is the best in Singapore (as claimed by Z. Her second best would be Antoinette's). Anyway, this brought Z back to France, onto the cobbled stones along Champs-Élysées). Nicely burnt caramel crunch on the outside and a moist interior. Authentic ones would have a hint of rum in it. We weren't sure if that was present though.

The Creme brulee in chocolate tart was perfectly executed. There was a lingering chocolate taste from the crunchy base and a smooth and light egg center. Mine had the caramel sauce dripping all over my fingers while i ate. The Caramel Chocolate tart was also a surprise- sea salt flakes to complement the light chocolate filling with a kinder surprise caramel centre. YUMS.

I have to say their scones are one of the best, perhaps only second after Regent's. A raisin and a plain scone were served and both were buttery and dense with a moist center. I love both of them! Z prefers the plain one because it tastes more scone-ish (no raisins to distract her from the taste).

I love their clotted cream, i could have it on any bread. The jam was not too cloyingly sweet and went well with the clotted cream. Z made hers swirl before popping them into her mouth.

The Lemon tart is out of this world! The refreshing tangy curd helps to break the monotony and heaviness of the other bites and cleanses the palate. We could so eat more after a bite of this. Fantastic tart to curd ratio. Wobbly and liquid center with the right amount of flow. The curd simply melts into a lemon jus after sending it into your mouth. And that perfumed fragrance that embraces and lingers on was just so uplifting.

I had too much tart (and carbs) by then so i resorted to slurping the lemon filling from the pastry shell. How ingenious!

So here you go! The superb Afternoon Tea at the Landing Point. CBD folks who are tired of working or are looking for an excuse to chill, you can always "bring a client out for tea" at the Landing Point. We have seen some working types at tea time before. Enjoy!

Food: 5/5 See how i was raving about it? AWESOME.
Service: 4/5 Attentive but not particularly warm.
Ambience: 4/5 Comfortable but it was really quite cold. The tea became cold after a while.

We paid about $50 per pax. It's a little pricy but the food is too nice to be missed!

Wanna have a tai tai day out? This is the place for you. Some people watching too, I spotted Jade Seah the first time i was here. Highly recommended by the one and only ms-skinnyfat. :))

The Landing Point
The Fullerton Bay Hotel
80 Collyer Quay
Tel: + 65 6597 5277