Maison Kayser - Boulangerie & Patisserie

When I saw this bakery from a far, I can almost tell that I'll be spending some money on good bread.  Since childhood I have always been a huge fan of breads and pastries.  Growing up around my grandfather's bakery, the smell of freshly baked bread is home.  So whenever I see a bakery or just passing along one I always end up checking what they have and more often than not, walk away with a bag of bread.

Hubby and I came about Maison Kayser on our way for brekkie at Wild Honey.  Maison Kaiser is located at the basement of the new Scotts Square Mall just right next to Fairprice Finest supermarket.  We came really early to avoid the crowd at Wild Honey as it's almost always have a long queue.  Unfortunately, we are not that early and the waiting time was 30 minutes!  So, we decided to have croissants and coffee instead at Maison Kayser and I'm so glad we did!  

All breads are freshly baked on location and since we came early some are still baking in the oven!  If only I can try them all!  I'll definitely be coming back.  

Oh My Crab Bee Hoon!

This has been brewing in my draft box for weeks and imagine if this is real food stored in my draft box it'll start to smell already!  Eeek!   Anyway, I only had Crab Bee Hoon twice at the same restaurant and really I've got nothing to compare it with.  So, note to self -- to try other Crab Bee Hoon!  I hope this post will also help me find other yummy Crab Bee Hoon to try through the help of my not so many readers or followers.  

Just our luck we got a female crab with lots of roe! The gravy is not too thick and just perfect for the bee hoon. If you don't want to get your hands dirty, this is not for you.  I'm lucky I have a husband who does all the cracking and shelling for me...haha!

The best part is when the bee hoon get all soaked up and absorbed the yummy goodness of the gravy.  Slurp away!

Pique Nique - All Day Breakfast

I finally get to try Pique Nique! 


Whenever hubby & I are in town I always keep in mind to either have breakfast or lunch at Pique Nique but more often we kinda end up having a grub somewhere else.  So finally one weekend, we decided to have a quick bite to eat before heading home.  

We came at such weird timing I think it was close to 4pm...I was torn between having breakfast (after all they serve all day breakfast) or just try those that I know are yummy based on what I read on reviews & whatnot. Unfortunately, the popular mac & cheese was no longer available for the day...ugggh!  I was so looking forward to it.

So I decided to try the French Toast with salty caramel sauce which was delish by the way, while hubby had the Hottest Dogg (pork sausage, hot meat sauce, relish, shredded cheddar cheese & homemade bun).  My French Toast was surprisingly very good!  I love the soft homemade bread it's very light & fluffy.  I would definitely have it next time. 

Momofuku - Thanksgiving Croissants

Just want to share this video from Serious Eats...I wish I'm in NYC right now so I can try one of these yummy croissants!!!  

Bak Chor Mee

I love Bak Chor Mee!   I always order mine with extra dash of black vinegar and slices of liver.   Like Wanton Mee, you can most likely get it at any hawker centres, kopitiams or food courts.  Bak Chor Mee comes in many variants and I've tried a couple of the best ones as well.   There are a lot of good stalls around its just a matter of finding one!

I got my bowl of goodness at a Kopitiam in Tampines One.  I had it for brunch with my hubby on one of those lazy Sunday trip to the supermarket.  But more often my hubby would drive me to the one at Seng Kee at 316 Changi Rd. which I think is the best I ever had.  We were just there last night but not for the Bak Chor Mee!  We came to eat Crab Bee Hoon and the wonderful Fish Maw soup which I'm going to post real soon!

Have a great weekend everyone!  

Wanton Mee Please!

It's been a while since my last post and as usual I've got a lot to share that's been brewing in my drafts folder. Anyway, I hope my writing streak will continue on and will try my best to post at least 4 entries a month. I've got a lot of time this weekend to post as much as I can.

Let me start off with a favorite "Wanton Mee". There are a lot of places that sells wanton mee in Singapore, it's everywhere and finding the best is kinda hard to pin point.  Almost everyone has their own favorite hawker! Each has it's own signature taste and different ways of serving it. Hubby & I tried quite a few places and mostly all of them never disappoint.  How can you not love these bowls of goodness!

We had our wanton mee fix at the Old Airport Road Food Centre.  Please note that there are 3 wonton mee stalls there and two of them are just right next to each other.  One is called Hua Kee Hougang Wanton Mee and the other Cho Kee Noodle.  Both have queues but Hua Kee seems to have the most queue.  We tried Cho Kee's noodles instead because when we are hungry, we have no patience to wait and queue.    

I thought I'd be disappointed but I was wrong.  At first glance it looks like the char siew pork is a tad bit dry but once you mix everything up the wonderful sauce underneath made a lot of difference.   It was perfect!  

The deep fried wantons are so crispy beyond imagination.  You see, some wantons I've tried the skin tend to be a bit hard.  These wantons are just wonderful,  it melts in your mouth!

I would love to go back and try the other stall's Wanton Mee. I'm very keen on finding out the difference between the two.    Wait for my Wanton Mee, Part Two!

My Top 10 Wishlist

Here are my Top 10 Wishlist for the coming holiday season:

1. Kitchenaid Stand Mixer 

It has to be the red one or the sleek looking matte gray.  

2.  A basket full of my favorite Lavazza Coffee.

3.  Bodum's Travel Press Coffee Maker

I love the idea of having freshly brewed coffee anytime...anywhere!

4.  Macaron by Pierre Herme Book

5.  Goodie bag filled with Assorted Royce Chocolates

6.  Le Creuset Dutch Oven

7.  Anya Hindmarch Light Grey Canvas Market Tote

8.  Molton Brown Goodies 

I love their hand lotion!

9.  Maison Du Chocolat

10.   Nespresso Pixie.  

So there, my top 10 wishlist I'll be the happiest even if I only get one or two on my list.  What's yours?

Lunch at Waterloo

I was a bit irritable & moody this past few days.  In fact, I felt that I had a horrible week..maybe not enough sleep or it could just be one of those days.  What better way to channel my irritation and frustration is to write about...food glorious food!  Food always makes me happy and cheery!  My hubby always say that when I am moody, 90% I am hungry.    

So, last week hubby fetch me from work and we decided to grab a bite to eat somewhere near my workplace. As usual we cannot decide on what to eat but hubby suggested a good chicken rice stall behind Waterloo Street.  So chicken rice it is!

We came at about 3-ish in the afternoon & good timing also as the lunch crowd has long been gone.  Went to the Soya Sauce Chicken Rice stall where it's known for the yummy ginger chicken rice.  The stall got newspaper clippings so I would say that it's a guarantee you can get a wonderful yummy meal here.

I have had Chicken Rice all over Singapore & this probably became one of my favorites.  I love the generous amount of ginger & you can actually taste a hint of Chinese black vinegar on the chicken drippings or sauce. 

Not the healthiest thing to eat but I have to give in at least once in a while.  I love Char Siew Pork, who doesn't?  Just look at those charred grilled bits, sweet & savory, melt in your mouth yumminess!  It's not easy to watch your weight when food such as these are readily available to you.  

We also had the Soya Sauce Chicken Rice which is just as delish as the rest.  You can taste the star anise spice, not too sweet & again the chicken is very tender.   Overall, hubby & I left with happy tummies.  It was a nice meal & will definitely come this way again!

After a wonderful meal, we had to at least burn what we ate...ok maybe not today!  We walk around Waterloo Street & there's a different vibe here like you are not in Singapore.  With the temples, the scent of joss sticks, Chinese fortune tellers, flower vendors &  interesting trinkets on sale, it is such a lively vibe.

   

Kabe no Ana Pasta

One sunny weekend hubby & I decided to check out Nex Mall at Serangoon Central.  It's our first time there as it's kinda out of the way from where we are staying.  We figured might as well check out what they have to offer when it comes to food.  Walking around plus the weekend crowd made me a bit giddy & hungry.  

Tucked-in the corner end of Basement 1 are chains of small Japanese restaurants.  Ichiban Boshi, Shimbashi Soba (http://melodyindisguise.blogspot.com/2011/06/my-weekend-part-two.html), Fish Kuriya Market, Ya-Tai & Kabe no Ana.  There's also an interesting Japanese bakery called Green Pumpkin which you guys might want to check out.

We love Mentaiko Spaghetti & have not had it for a long time so, we decided to chow down some real Japanese pasta.  Kabe no Ana literally means "hole in the wall" & is known as the Original Spaghetti House in Japan.  It was established in 1953 starting from a hole in a wall restaurant in Showa. Takayasu Matsunari invented the  "MentaikoSpaghetti" which was a real yummy treat in my belly!  

I had Mentaiko with Shrimp & Mushrooms.  Yummy to the last bit!   

Hubby had the Mentaiko Carbonara.  It's creamy, amazing savoury bacon flavor you just can't get enough of & it's not swimming in carbonara sauce.  I love the poached egg!

This shows how much I enjoyed my Mentaiko.  All pasta dishes are made to order & it takes about 15-20 minutes or so.  I say it's worth the wait.

We also shared some Japanese Potato Salad which by the way is delish!

Kabe no Ana http://www.kabenoana.com.sg/ is located at 23 Serangoon Central B1-80 NEX Mall.  I hope they would open a branch somewhere nearby like in town perhaps or East Coast.  But for now I have to go all the way to Serangoon just to satisfy my Mentaiko cravings.  

   

Okonomiyaki

I love Vimeo!  This video is from ROFILMS.  I check out all sorts of food videos here & amazed at how good they are producing such videos.  I wish I can do stuff like this.


okonomiyaki {japan Vol.01} from ROFILMS on Vimeo.

My Love Affair with Assam Laksa

I had my first Assam Laksa in Malaysia (KL & Penang) and after my first bowl of noodles I knew that this will become one of my favorites.  My first bowl was at KL Pavillion's food court that has become a regular thing for me whenever hubby & I are in Malaysia.  I have also tried the ones at Little Penang Cafe which also serves a pretty mean Char Kway Teow.   The Penang Assam Laksa is actually ranked 7th of the 50 Most Delicious Food in the World...need I say more!

For those of you who have not tried Assam Laksa it's not for everyone. It's actually an acquired taste like eating blue cheese or bagoong (shrimp paste) perhaps.  It may not be delish for some but for me, I love it the first time and yes it's fishy but in a good yummy way.  I craved for it every now and then.  Assam Laksa is a fish broth noodle soup that is spicy, tangy, pungent & full of wonderful flavors. The key ingredients of this bowl of goodness are Tamarind or Assam in Malay, Daun Kesom/Daun Laksa also known as polygonum leaf (Vietnamese mint) & the aromatic ginger flower. It has julienned cucumbers, chunks of fresh pineapples and shredded mackerel.  Did I tell you that it comes with dark shrimp paste on the side.  Yum!

So when I get a sudden craving for Assam Laksa in Singapore I go to "Penang Asam Laksa" at 76 Geylang Lor 25A  near Aljunied MRT Station.  It's probably one of the closest (flavor & taste wise) Assam Laksa to the one I had in Malaysia.

SMEG Vintage

This fridge has been on my wish list for the longest time.  I always wanted to have one even when we were still residing in the Philippines.  At that time it just doesn't go with our kitchen and even now.  I guess the only time I'll ever get one of these is when we move to a new place or renovate the entire kitchen just for this cool vintage looking refrigerator.

The red is such a beauty and it stands out but I like the green one better.  These vintage beauties also comes in pastel colors from blush baby pink to pastel green and will cost you  from S$2000-S$3000.    

Pink is pretty cute too.

Love the pastel green!

They remind me of the Le Creuset Pots I want.