B Bakery - A Quaint Little Find

Some time back I visited this quaint little restaurant (less than 10 tables inside and 4 outside) in Bussorah Street which is within the Arab Street network for a friend's birthday dinner. The food was pretty decent and I liked the fact that the owners took effort to ask for the group's (10 of us) food order in advance so that they can handle the orders, as well as providing a non-public menu for our selection. Not too sure if this menu is now printed, so when you do go, ask the staff about it.

The food was served rather quickly thanks to good planning by the restaurant even for such a small group. These are what I managed to try.

Grilled Vegetables & Hummus Platter - $5

A very interesting starter. Deceptively simple in preparation. All the vegetables used were grilled just right for that soft mashable texture. Though some of the vegetables were quite badly charred, like the onion on the 9 o'clock position. But still worth the mention was its surprising sweetness and the absence of spiciness. The hummus in the middle was great with the default basket of bread. A colourful, cheerful, healthy appetiser. I do wish that the portion would be larger. But at $5, maybe I will order 2.

Water Melon, Feta Cheese & Rocket Salad - $5

I almost forgotten about photographing this! Nevertheless, I must say is is a wonderful salad that cleverly combined watermelon with feta cheese. The strong taste of the former was nicely complimented by the refreshing crunch and sweetness of the latter. Both together made the salad eating extra enjoyable and fun. Clearly another happy and comforting dish.

Braised lamb shank in wine sauce, mashed potato, sauteed vegetables - $20

What's this thing about braised lamb shank that every restaurant seems to be serving? Not that I am complaining, though. Anyway, the one here tasted pretty much like every other decent braised lamb shank with exception to the wine sauce which tasted sharper and might take a little getting used to. The fibres of meat could have been more tender and moist, but if the texture is your thing, it was done just right. I do wish the lamb shank had a little bit more of the tendons though.

Salmon papilote (oven baked in paper), vegetables, capers - $18

The salmon was nice, moist and flaky thanks to the way it was prepared. Unfortunately, zesty sauce used was not necessarily the best thing to go along with it, in my opinion. The saltiness from the pickled capers masked taste the fish by a bit too.

As for ambience, I like it for being small, quiet and personal. Perhaps the name, B Bakery also wanted to suggest its humility.

Lastly, the recommendation is to make reservations and order in advance as their inventory for dinner is quite limited.

Also note that they are open for dinner from Thursdays to Saturdays, 6pm - 10pm only.

I made pancakes

Getting from this...

...to this...

...is surprisingly simple.

Just add milk and an egg, mix everything up into a batter and heat up a non-stick pan. Then you'll need a bit of patience to finish cooking all the batter.

Making New Friends Over Food

Some weeks back, I got an email from a stranger asking me out for a meal in the neighborhood...

It raised my eyebrow quite a bit. At first it was like, Woo~ I got a fan stalker fan stalker fan/stalker...
A fan because she found my food reviews on Choa Chu Kang through Google,
a stalker because she knows of The Girlfriend, i.e. she reads my stuff in detail. (Just kidding)
Needless to say, this is a first for me to be asked out by a lady stranger for a meal. It's like an online blind date, except both parties are to bring their own partners... Ok, it's not really online dating, the option of sensationalizing the topic that way was a cheap thrill.

Anyhow, this required the consultation of the wise girlfriend. To which she also agrees that we should let curiosity lead us accordingly. So we took up the offer and I suggested crabs at Sunshine Place. Both parties only managed to meet up after 2 weeks, when the jet-setting lady stranger finally returns home. So we quickly rushed to plan the dinner outing at the predetermined place.

With the formalities of introduction complete, we took our seats and proceeded to peruse the menu. It is pretty different ordering this time rather stressful in fact, especially when I needed to consider about the new friends' expectations. What if they had have better stuff elsewhere? Eventually, we settled for Crab Tang Hoon and Jin Xiang Crab. I didn't go for the regular chilli crabs or black pepper crabs for the possibility of comparison.

At the same time, the wise girlfriend reminded me of the disclaimer I should make: I find that the crab here is good because the stall consistently serves up fresh, firm and solid crabs... Thankfully, when the food came, it didn't disappoint. Maybe there will be another outing soon.

It was nice to make new friends this way. Perhaps this is the way friends are made in this day and age.

What's after donuts?

How about homemade muffins and scones?

And I'm not talking about chains like Mrs Fields and Famous Amos, those are just too sweet for my liking. Neither are they able to tweak their recipes to reduce the tons of sugar they put in.

So it is a great to find an independent shop like Wooden Spoon which makes uniquely great muffins that are moist, dense but fluffy and full of flavor. Plus, it tastes of less sugar and more of the ingredients. The sweetness comes mainly from natural ingredients like raisins and bananas, just the way the health conscious would like them. No more having to deal with muffins loaded with tons of sugar! Another feature I like is the absence of the paper cups, so no more peeling off those cups and you can just eat everything.

Particularly, their banana walnut muffins, when broken open, reveals the generous amount of banana mashed into the little package, like banana walnut bread.

Also try the scones. Bite onto the crunchy exterior to reveal the buttery and soft insides with a zap of natural sugar from the raisins baked into it. Goes perfectly with your favorite warm, caffeine-laced drinks.

Besides their muffins and scones, Wooden Spoon also makes a variety of cookies, brownies, cakes and so on. However, note that everything here is produced in limited numbers and they will close shop once everything is sold out. It was already closed when I came by just past 6pm on a weekday. So if you are interested, do come by earlier for a true homemade fix.

Wooden Spoon 100 Beach Road #01-24 Shaw Leisure Gallery Singapore 189702 Tel: 6297 8839

Review: The Pump Room

The girlfriend's pals were gracious enough to let me in on their gathering at The Pump Room. So we got there early to get ourselves a table.

For the uninitiated, The Pump Room is a microbrewery and bistro. So we ordered our beers and sides first while we waited for the rest to arrive. We were ushered to a table and presented the menu. I took my time to look through the menu for something that might inspire me...

Beer

Personally, I prefer dark beers whenever come to a beer place. I have this preconception that dark beers from a place specializing in beers would offer something interesting. Plus dark beers usually meant more dimensions in terms of the flavor, which would be better experience compared the fizzy, foamy, bitter and pale stuff.

I settled for their Scottish ale, a dark beer with a nice taste of roasted malt. It goes down slightly more bitter at first, but ends sweetly.

Sides

Our appetite was growing as we waited for the others. So we decided to order some sides to keep our mouths occupied. I was disappointed that there wasn't anything like buffalo wings on the finger food menu. The best they could muster were a few potato-based sides and garlic bread. The rest of the table did set their eyes on something else...

Creamy Mashed Potato was pretty good. I did wish there was some bacon crisps mixed into it. Would have been a great combination of textures.

Sauteed Shitake Mushrooms with herbs was nice too. Although it was on the salty side. The chunky garlic was a nice touch which I liked.

Still waiting, I decided to entertain myself and the "early-birds" with my camera...

More of the interior

And the fascinating "optic fibre" lighting which changes color...

Service

We were rather taken aback when we realized that the staff had failed to inform us about their special offers for their brewed beers. We thought fine, since we never asked.

Then we got really annoyed that many of the wait staff were selective of who they wanted to serve. There was this group of Caucasians that took the table in front of us and were given a VIP treatment while the other tables like mine were conveniently neglected and ignored. I then realized the wait staff were consistently tipped by that table for every item served. Talk about spoil market!

But I guess I shouldn't harp on that. I mean, there are other stuff to be peeved by. Like the wait staff's snail-like and begrudging response times for plain water. It seems like they convenient forget your requests. Not like we won't order other stuff, right?

Main Courses

I found the Linguine with Prawns, Mussels, Scallops and Squid Aglio Olio style was pleasantly spicy with black peppercorns. The seafood was fresh done just right, with the exception of the mussels which were really raw. I think it is because we are so used to the well-cooked mussels in chilli.

One can hardly go wrong with The Pump Room's Special Steak Burger with Salad and Chips. But it does lack the necessary punch to live up to its "Special" status.

Beer-Battered Pacific Dory with Chips, Tartare Sauce and Mesclun Saladwas nothing special, though the chips were pretty good.

My order was the Hickory smoked BBQ Baby Back Ribs in Special Beer Marinade. It was a rather standard and ordinary quality. nothing to shout about.

The verdict for mains collectively would be somewhere between mediocre and average.

Desserts

The plan had been to stay to catch the live band perform. So we needed to "buy ourselves some more time" in the form of desserts.

The Warm Chocolate Pudding with Vanilla Ice Cream was fantastic! The warm, thick chocolate pudding was probably oven toasted to achieve a crispy outer crust with a slightly charred taste. Every mouthful of the thick melted chocolate and the crispy crust was a luxurious experience.

Soft Centered Pavlova with Tropical Fruits and Passionfruit Curd was a light, zesty dessert thanks to the fruits involved at the sides. Pretty enjoyable if you just love the sugar. Personally, I found it a little too sweet, but nevertheless, it had a good mix of textures to be experienced with every little bit placed into the mouth.

There is a sudden realization that one can't really go wrong with a Cheese Platter. With very distinctive textures and tastes, it will instantly turn one into a cheese connoisseur.

By the time we wipe off everything on the plates, the band started their act. Plenty of 80's and 90's music to dance the night away.

Last but not least, the toilet was pretty decent, a good thing to have with all the booze going around.

Tom's Palette

Tucked in a quiet corner of Shaw Leisure Gallery is a little surprise called Tom's Palette which sells home-made ice cream.

When curious me entered their premises for the first time, I was greeted by sincere counter staff who are really proud of their little ice cream parlour and their flavours. That pretty much scared me away, plus I had no intention for ice cream that day.

So a few hours ago, I decided to go for it. I stepped in to the ice cream parlour, got greeted by the rather sweet lady boss (I think), tasted the Oreo Cheesecake flavour, which was good, but settled for their Pisang Honey Walnut and Horlicks flavours in a small cup. You get to taste 2 flavours in a small cup at no extra charge and each cup is $2.80, which is considerably cheaper than other ice cream places. I thought it is a good tactic, to create a sense of value that the customer can taste 2 flavours for the price of one. It definitely helps those who can't decide between flavour 1 and flavour 2.

Their ice cream is definitely one of the better ones I've tasted. Rich in flavour and really smooth texture, slightly creamier than the Japanese ice creams. I really enjoyed their Horlicks flavour which I believe had extra amounts of the ingredient to pack the extra punch. The Pisang Honey Walnut though only managed to leave a mild impression with a weak banana flavour. But at least they were generous with the walnuts. The Cherry Almond was a refreshing mix which I really enjoyed. The Apple Pie lived up to its name with real chunks of apple, pie crust and a rich undertone of cinnamon. And if you love cheesecakes, their Blueberry Cheesecake and Oreo Cheesecake are to die for.

Anyway, overheard a conversation between the staff and a customer, there was apparently a batch of cockles flavoured ice cream... see-hum ice cream? Ice cream mai hum? mai hum, mai hum, hai hum...

Address: 100 Beach Road, #01-25 Shaw Leisure Gallery Singapore 189702

Blackhead Bread

Earlier in the day, some friends and I had gone to visit Lionel at his resting place. Thereafter, a bunch of us left for their destinations while Zengrong and I went to visit Wei Jeah's new place around Kim Keat for an informal house warming. On our way back to the main road, we came across an old bakery run by some middle-aged to old men. I was thoroughly fascinated by their products. With the camera in hand, these are some of the snapshots of what I saw.

I seem to be always attracted to the old, disused, forgotten things around us. I think these things give a certain life, character and identity to the place they are found. I probably caught on this fascination when Zengrong brought me to the old ST James Power Station before it was refurbished into what you will see today. Above all, it is literally a refreshing sight from the usual Orchard Road.

As for the bread from this traditional bakery, what attracted me first were the loaves of "blackhead bread" stacked on the racks to cool down. Not to mention I love the colours too.

Of course, we also wanted to have a taste of the freshly baked "blackhead bread", so we shared to buy a loaf, which was only $2.20.

Then, I gave it a try... And it was the most wonderful plain bread I had tasted! The bread was moist, soft but firm on the bite. It didn't dissolve into a mess in the mouth and you can savour every bite you take slowly. It is no wonder the bakery still stands today.

Anyway, besides the "blackhead bread", the colourful trays which they use also caught my eye.

Vibrant colours.

Really glad we made the trip to Wei Jeah's place, otherwise I would have missed out such a lovely place in the equally lovely area.

Airline Food Tasting - Jet Airways

This entry is written for youth.sg

So you want to travel to India to soak up the culture. Here's a suggestion, start off with a flight on Jet Airways for a completely Indian holiday. Especially since it has recently gone through an extreme makeover of sorts. New aircrafts, new cabins, new cabin crew uniforms, better comfort, better in-flight entertainment (Bollywood movies included) and new menu.

I am not trained as a traditional media writer, though I contribute my 2 cents worth in a bid to improve the quality of food in Singapore. So when Youth.sg provided an opportunity to cover an airline food tasting session, I volunteered to cover it. Of course, this being a Media Lunch, there was an overload (at least for me) of information in the form of the press kit/media junket or whatever you might call it. From what I gather at the event and according to the press releases, Jet Airways is expanding, buying new aircrafts, revamping its image, zhng-ing its cabins (i.e. making their cabins for spacious and comfortable) and whipping up new food for their passengers.

For the uninitiated, Jet Airways is an India-based airline. So to provide a unique experience, the menu they serve is authentic Indian food. Curiosity was also one other reason why I went for this. I was thinking, "How good or bad can Indian airline food get?"

The Media Lunch would be held at the SATS Inflight Catering Centre 2. For practical reasons which I am ignorant of, security clearance was required. After filling out the indemnity form to certify that I am free from germs and contagious diseases, I exchanged my IC (with very old and chubby picture) for a visitor pass and proceeded to a press briefing room.

The speaker proceeded with the briefing which informed the attendees about important numbers, strategic plans and details of changes to the airline. Basically it got the audience pretty excited about flying to India with daily flights, more comfort in all classes of seats, better in-flight entertainment and better food. With that we were ushered to the food displays for an introduction to the new menus that will be served on board the flights.

The chef starts off with the economy class food. Jet Airways is known for the Indian cuisine served on board their flights. So it didn't come as a surprise that they also put in a lot of effort to revamp the menu. From taste to aesthetics, we were pleasantly surprised to see what was offered. Ok, less talk, more pictures.

If the economy class wasn't appealing enough, the chef carried on to present to us their Club Premier menu. Every dish is meticulously set on exquisite plates and bowls for the mile high fine dining experience. So for some of us who have never travelled on first class, this is a glimpse of what it will be like.

First up, the Club Premier breakfast on the Singapore-Chennai flight.

And then the menu on the Singapore-Delhi flight

Finally, the menu on the Singapore-Bombay flight, which we will be tasting.

Can't wait! But the kitchen was still busy getting the food ready. So in the meantime, some near-press-quality pictures, with the help of a more experienced photographer.

We then proceeded to the dining area. Unlike the actual cabin, we had the luxury of a dining table as well as the freedom of a buffet.

Jet Airways is renowned for the Indian cuisine they serve on board and a revamped menu is something that the attendees were really looking forward to, especially since it had been a see-no-taste affair earlier and well, it was the only tangible thing the attendees were going to get about the Jet Airways experience on that day.

I started out with the puree of green asparagus, a smooth, creamy soup with bite-sized stalks of crunchy asparagus. The sweetness of the asparagus in the soup with the crunchiness of the stalks was a pleasant match. Despite the creamy texture, it was not too heavy.

I proceeded to the hot snacks, as stated in the menu handouts. There were 2 options, vegetarian and non-vegetarian. Of course, here, I got to try them both. All the items were surprisingly spicy but not over-powering. I could fully taste the spices and at the same time taste the original taste of the main ingredients. Truly a work of art.

Next up were the main courses, again with the option of vegetarian and non-vegetarian. Very good stuff as well. I never knew mushrooms could taste so good spicy or chicken and spinach could marry so well together as a dish.

A little bit of questioning revealed that trick was to use the whole spices or coarsely ground spices instead of powdered or processed spices as the latter will effect the ingredients too quickly, resulting in an overpowering spiciness that will have you rushing for water. Whole spices and coarsely ground spices on the other hand, work more slowly, retaining the taste of the ingredients for longer, perfect for the in-flights meals.

The international fare received many compliments as well, the non-vegetarian set was a like a fusion of Chinese and Western food and the vegetarian was oriental-styled noodles and stir-fried mushrooms and vegetables. Both equally pleasant on the palate.

I was also curious about the how altitude might alter the taste of food. As it turns out, altitude either dulls or intensifies its taste, which is the another reason for the choice of spices used in the preparation.

It is apparent that Jet Airways is selling an experience of a New India. Curiosity thus got the better of me when I had to ask, "Do you show Bollywood movies since Jet Airways seems to be all about a unique Indian experience?"

It got one of the spokesperson rather excited as she shared that it was exactly what Jet Airways had intended and some frequent flyers would even consult the entertainment guide before determining when they would fly so that they can get to watch the shows they never had time to go for on the ground!

Finally, dessert! A slice of banana cheese cake topped with a halved strawberry, complimented with mixed berry compote and coconut sauce. The taste of banana uplifted the usually heavy nature of cheesecake. When paired with the compote and coconut sauce, the only possible descriptions were heavenly and divine. It was definitely the best dessert I have had ever. And like a typical Singaporean, I wished I had asked for takeaways.

Speaking of desserts, some attendees noticed the omission of Indian sweets, especially since the meal had demonstrated the quality Indian food served on board. The spokesperson replied that it was being considered. The topic of sugar also led to a short discussion on their special meals, diabetic meals, vegetarian meals and even religious meals which cater to passengers who travel for pilgrimages. Best of all, all dishes, including the perennial ones are low in fat, salt and sugar. Plus, you can have the meal on demand, eat some for now, save the rest for later. So gorging is not required.

As with most meals, the dessert marked the end of a unique meal and the Jet Airways experience. Now all that's left is the actual flight to India. Any takers?