Restoran Soo Kee (Redux)

this is turning out to be a night for reduxes - but it goes to show how if its good food, we should go back for more!

in this case, Restoran Soo Kee. i first reviewed this back in 2007 and five years on, nothing much has changed. the chicken is still as smooth like you cannot believe, still bathed in that yummy oyster sauce, and the horfun is also still a winner.

probably, the only thing that has changed is that i've probably grown sideways.

anyhow, just the photos, for posterity.


view from the inside


waiting


oh hello there.


and hello to you too.



*hearts*

Bistro Soori (Redux)

Round three - and still going well. I love this place.

Another 7 course degustation on the menu this time and still no repeats save for the Butter Lobster in that absolutely lovely tamarind sauce and fennel.

To start us off:  a tuna tataki done just right, lightly coated with a tempura batter, served with flying fish roe, wasabi mayo and cherry tomatoes.



simply done and depending largely on the flavours of the base ingredients, save for the wasabi mayo. i'm not usually a fan of wasabi, but this wasabi mayo i can do. i liked this.

next up: seared foie gras with fig compote



what surprised me about this one was the fig compote. the sweet richness of it actually worked pretty brilliantly with the foie gras, and you could adjust the amount you liked. i personally am not a fan of sweets in general so i didn't actually take that much of the compote, but enough to make it work for me. i really liked this.

next up: the star of the evening for me - the pork belly with yuzu



remember all that i said about sweet stuff? that's all out of the window when it comes to this dish. this is absolutely brilliant. i am in love with it. the pork belly is slowly braised and slathered in a heady concoction of yuzu and i do believe it is honey. slightly sticky, fairly sweet and yet, despite the heavy flavours and the taste of pork, made fresh on the palate by the twist of the yuzu. fave rave!

moving not so swiftly on after the pork (i was given to linger on that one), was the truffle and caviar risotto



good stuff - and also a reminder again why good things come in small packages. i think if this had been in any bigger a portion, i'd have been absolutely destroyed by the end of the evening. the risotto is done just right, al dente with a bit of bite, and it is made rich and flavourful by the truffle and caviar. as risottos come and go, this was good but not the best i've had from them. i think the best is still the uni risotto from my first visit. that was something else altogether.

things slow down again for me in the next course: the butter lobster in tomato tamarind sauce and fennel.



this is a gorgeous dish and it is really the tamarind sauce really makes this work. slightly tangy, rich and almost like a bisque, it makes the lobster (which is already really fresh) stand out even more. happy marriage of tastes this one. my dinner partners have been known to mop up the sauce completely on this one.

and the final main course of the night: beef baby!



medium rare and juicy, topped with some roasted vegetables and a balsamic reduction for the sauce. lovely.

aaand finally: the sweets - the pandan souffle



i've been waiting a while to try this and i must say i really like this, even though i'm not usually that much of a dessert / sweets person. light but with that asian twist, it had us scrapping the bowl clean. i loved it.

so yes. all in all, still probably one of my favourite restaurants this year.

Food For Thought, SBG

and so, i was at Food For Thought at the Singapore Botanic Gardens a couple of weeks ago for a small group outing.

once a quiet, really beautiful place to chill out in the gardens with fairly decent food at okay prices, its now transformed into a bustling, super busy space filled with people from all demographics. the oldies on the way to / from a garden walk, couples on a date, young people on a group outing (kinda like us, i'd like to think hehhehheh - obviously the word young is in question here) and multi-generational families with kiddoes going crazy at the play area.

i think the concept behind Food For Thought doesn't hurt at all either.

but all that aside, i actually do really like this place and i really love the space. as i was telling my friends, i could absolutely see someone booking out close to the entire space for a cool, casual, afternoon wedding reception. any takers? there's decent parking too.

anyway, all that aside, lets talk about the food.

this time we were there for a late lunch. for me though, having woken at about noon, this was brunch. and appropriately, i had this:



simple, uncomplicated eggs and toast. for about S$6 i think. i'm not much a bread person but this one was pretty good. thick, crust at the sides and soft in the middle, i enjoyed it. eggs were ok i suppose. but i think the real star of the day was this:



chocolate and raspberry pancakes. also for about $6 i think. these were really, really quite good. sinful and rich and not too sweet. really comforting food for a brunch out.



we also shared a plate of fried chicken wings on the side, also for about the same price. now that was good value for the money and the yum.

so yes, all in all - Food For Thought hasn't blown my mind food wise as yet and i'm guessing it might never will, judging from the mains that my friends had. but i can still see myself heading back again and again. its a convenient and pretty stop for visitors to the gardens or people just there for a bite on the weekend.

what main course would you recommend from Food For Thought?