Kathleen's 5, Shanghai

We discovered this lovely place quite by accident while we were trundling past People's Square in downtown Shanghai and stopped mainly because (i) the lunch set was quite reasonable (in SGD terms at least), (ii) the menu looked good, and (iii) it was getting rather chilly on the streets. February in Shanghai is still a bit on the nippy side of winter.

But yes, the price - RMB168 for a two course set lunch or RMB188 for a three course set lunch. Have it with a wine, like we did, and that will set you back another RMB48. That said, I think it was well worth the RMB236 or so (yes, I got the 3 course - reward for cruel and unusual suffering of being dragged through Taobao).

In any case, you get to choose a main and two other courses. The lovely tuna nicoise salad you see below was my pick - and I really enjoyed it. The tuna is done just nicely, as you can see, still a touch of pink in the centre. The dressing is tart, the baby potatoes just on the right side of salty, and the cherry tomatoes very sweet. Really, really good.




My lunch mates had the soup of the day (cauliflower I believe) and the beef caparccio with parmesan cheese and arugula salad. They certainly had no complaints.





Next up - the mains. Definitely not a let down by any means.



The roasted lamb looked too much on the medium side for me (as opposed to rare of course) but that said, it was a mouthwateringly tasty morsel that I had off June's plate.



This was Rae's seared live sea bass with shelled clams, dill, baby carrots, potato mash and clam butter sauce. She cleaned it up totally and she's a bit more of a picky eater than I am. I'll take her word for it that it was good :)



This was my Australian wagyu beef bolognaise with fresh herbs and parmesan. I really liked this actually, although I could be a wee bit biased with my assessment. This bolognaise had just a touch of ginger you see, and I'm absolutely partial to bolognaise with some ginger in it. To me, it adds just that extra dimension to it. My own variation also has bites of ginger in it but one thing it doesn't usually have, I'll grant you, is the buttery melt-in-your-mouth taste of wagyu.


And so, after a deliciously slow main course - and we were savouring it - we rounded it off with our pick of desserts:



the vanilla creme brulee with raspberry jam and creamy coffee ice cream;



the flourless chocolate cake with mixed berry compote and vanilla ice cream; and



the orange pudding and grapefruit with raspberry sauce and lemon sorbet.

Guess which I had?

I'm not a fan of creme brulee nor flourless chocolate cakes in general, but I think both were fairly good. Of all of that, I'd specially mention the coffee ice cream though haha. As to my orange pudding, I was pleasantly surprised at how light it tasted, even though it retained its zing enough to balance our the tartness of the lemon sorbet. The light sweetness of the grapefruit was surprising not overwhelmed by all the rest as well so I'm fairly impressed. I'd recommend this as an alternative to the usual dessert choices.



All in all, it was a great lunch in a really pretty space on the roof top of the Shanghai Art Museum. Set in a glass house like structure which I think would be really nice in spring or autumn (perhaps a little too warm in the summer), was absolutely heaven in the winter. Warm and cosy but yet affording you a view of the busy Nanjing Road down below, gloomy and wet in the winter rain, this was definitely one of the highlights of the lunches we had in Shanghai.

I'd definitely recommend this place, at least for lunch, if you're in the area.


5/F, Shanghai Art Museum,
325 Nanjing Xi Lu,
near Huangpi Bei Lu,
南京西路325号5楼,
近黄陂北路

Osteria Mozza

was absolutely lovely.  

sigh.

i'm feeling all warm inside thinking about it again actually. a restaurant hasn't really inspired that in me in the longest time but its a little surprising that its this one. surprising because i really really liked Osteria Mozza, but find the Pizzeria really quite... meh.




we started the evening with the Grilled Octopus with leek, celery and potatos. a lovely little antipasti this one, though i found the octopus a tad on the salty side. the saltiness was tempered somewhat when taken with the greens and - never thought i'd say this about potatos but - the delicate pieces of baby potatos. but if this was intended to get the taste buds going, i'd say it worked then.



alongside the grilled octopus, we also had something from the famed Mozzarella Bar. yeah, i'm sure you could tell we weren't feeling too adventurous with the antipasti but i found the mozzarella with the proscuito pretty good. simple, unpretentious and satisfying.

as was the rosato i had to start the evening. hic. 



what wasn't simple nor unpretentious sounding though, was the Iberian Pork Chops that my dinner mate had. but man was it so good. hands down, the best pork chops i've ever had - so far anyway. no but seriously, all that hype about Iberian pork chops? at Osteria Mozza, it is not hype. it has been proven as fact.

they recommend that you have it done medium, with it still a little pink in the middle. and it comes out exactly just right. it is so amazingly tender that it almost felt like it was melting in my mouth. and no, not because of fact, mind you. the herb crust was power packed goodness that really went so well with each bite of that crazy tender pork without overpowering.




but while i am probably very likely to have the Iberian Pork Chops as MY main the next time i make it to Osteria Mozza, i would also absolutely recommend what i had this time around - the Rabbit with veal sausage, sitting on a bed of an amazing spinach cooked down in the juices of the rabbit.

it was brilliant. no, seriously.

i'm sure some of you have heard the whole jazz about how rabbit tastes like chicken. well, its true. it even looks like chicken on the plate, but man it tastes so much better. so succulent and tender, its like an ultra fine chicken, really. but it was those juices on the plate and the spinach and roasted garlic that really made the dish work and work spectacularly. definitely a must try and if you've never had rabbit before, i promise you won't be disappointed by this.

by the time we polished off our mains, we were feeling more than happy with ourselves. but alas, Wicked does not wait for the greedy. and so with about 10 to 15 minutes left till we had to leave for the show, the only thing that we were both really thinking of at this time was to have a great little cuppa coffee to finish off the brilliant dinner.

i am pleased to report that the cappucino and the latte did not disappoint. in fact, it was actually really good, if a little on the strong side. and it really hit the spot in terms of the way it ended of the food part of the evening. i really had a lovely time.
 
so. if you're looking for a lovely time for yourself as well, do try out Osteria Mozza at MBS. again, do be prepared to part with a pretty penny for the awesomeness but i also think that as dinners such as these come and go, this was waaay up there as one of the meals to beat in 2011.


Osteria Mozza
2 Bayfront Avenue
Level B1- 42/46
The Shoppes @ The Marina Bay Sands

The Brunch Series: Group Therapy Cafe

this place is also known to me as the place with a pretty eclectic mix of chairs.



blue chairs, white chairs, plastic chairs, leather couches, fabric couches, high chairs, metal chairs, so many different chairs!



but all those chairs aside, there was also food. and Group Therapy Cafe's menu was fairly refreshing in the you're not really sure what you're gonna get kinda way. their menu, printed on plain white paper, is artful but very obviously temporary. its as though the chef doesn't decide whats on the menu till the day itself.



that said, the food comes as pretty and quaint as the space (and those chairs!) in which it is served. we tried the Croque Madame, the Eggs in a basket and probably the star of the day, the Poached Eggs on thick toast, smoked salmon, gruyere and hollandaise.

behold:



i had it served with a fairly good cappuccino. it was pretty good, if a little artery-choking. i liked it that it was essentially eggs ben on thick toast (as opposed to a muffin say) but i must say eggs ben with salmon is not my favourite. as it usually does, it turned out a bit too salty because of the salmon. but that's probably just a peeve of mine. the others certainly had no issues with this.

i also tried a bit of the Croque Madame. also good in the artery-choking way, not for the faint of heart. the french toast was a little on the sweet side, so if you're a swalty fan, this is probably your dish.

eggs in a basket: a pretty novelty - the eggs come in two little hollowed out bread rolls. but i reckon you could probably give that a miss unless you're the kind who likes hard breads. my jaw certainly had a bit of a workout just munching on the lids of one of those little "baskets" (basket!).

but all in all, it was a fairly all right dining experience set in a pretty, artful little place in Duxton. a great place for coffee and chilling out with groups of friends (hence the name), but i think i was looking for a bit more food wise.

Group Therapy Cafe
49 Duxton Road
#02-01

Aorangi Peak Restaurant, Rotorua

This was probably one of the best rack of lambs I've ever had - perhaps second only to the Crown of Lamb at Vanilla Pod. Moist, succulent and rich in flavour, it is importantly not too gamey. The roasted potatos and simple brown sauce, and the simple garden salad, sets off this little beauty very well. Actually, simple is the order of the day here - here being Aorangi Peak Restaurant.



This little restaurant is perched at the top of Aorangi Peak just on the outskirts of Rotorua, New Zealand. Small and quaint, each table afforded a fairly broad 180 degree view of Lake Rotorua and the town down below.



The menu is simple and uncluttered - the restaurant seeming to opt only to serve a few good things rather than many not-so-good things. I can also vouch for their steak. Whilst a thinner fillet than would probably satisfy those of us more carnivorous, it definitely more than made up for it in taste, tenderness and reasonable size. That steak fillet definitely packed a powerhouse punch taste-wise. You could taste the marinate in every bite. Sorry no pictures, we absolutely inhaled that one.

We also had the clam chowder and mushroom soup. Of the two, I'd recommend the latter (perhaps Rotorua's just a little bit too far from the sea).






All in all, with its friendly service, quaint decor and french cafe music on the radio, I'd rate this as one of the best meals we had on our NZ sojourn. I'd definitely recommend this if you're in the area.

The Brunch Series: Scones on the Great Ocean Road

 

Sorry it was so good that I only remembered halfway to take a picture for posterity. Find this at Airy's Inlet along the Great Ocean Road, Melbourne. It's at the little cafe right by the light house.

Great weather, best scones on the road and good Melbourne coffee - bliss.

Finally back! and db Bistro Moderne

Sorry it's been an age - things have just gotten a wee bit out of hand! I'm back now, and hopefully for good. Thing's seem to be more exciting on the food front in Singapore over the last year, not least with the opening of the various celebrity restaurants at Marina Bay Sands. More fodder for the blogger :)

Anyhow, back to business - db Bistro Moderne. As of today, I've been there a couple of times now and I must say I've enjoyed both occasions. The first was a late girl's night out and the second, a lunch with a couple of colleagues. Fairly different occasions I'd say, but I had a lovely time both times.

The Grilled Foie Gras (pictured above) was divine. The trademark Original db Burger, not so. While definitely flavourful, the patty, stuffed with foie gras and shredded braised short-ribby goodness, was a tad on the dry side. I'm not saying it was bad, it just that it might have been a victim of the hype. The Traditional Coq Au Vin, so very rich and strong on taste, tempered nicely by the spaetzle that was just nicely done. One of my favourite coq au vin's thus far.

For entrees, you can consider the Assiette Lyonnaise, a platter of house made terrines and cured meats. It made for a lovely start to the second meal I had there.

Of course, given the location and celebrity restaurant status, be ready to part with a fair amount of moolah for a meal at db Bistro Moderne. Having also had a chance to visit Mozza just next door (more on this later), I must say however, that I've had a better time at db Bistro Moderne. It is a lovely restaurant.

now to try more of those restaurants at MBS.

DB Bistro Moderne
10 Bayfront Avenue, B1-48
Marina Bay Sands

A971 Cafe

not good. not if you're there for drinks and to catch up with a bunch of friends and chill. it felt as though they weren't sure if they wanted to be a pub, club or restaurant and hence tried to be all three.

the drinks, and - while I can't vouch for it as we didn't eat there but at the rather more established Tampopo across the river - apparently the food also suffers the same unfocused fate. fusion with occasionally exciting or promising descriptions, we found that the only real focus they had was this: to deliver your drinks with fairly minimal hints of alcohol save for one cocktail and bottled beers.

you can pass on the Irish Strawberry (unless you're up for a light foamy strawberry milkshake) and definitely the Roppongi Sling unless cherry vodka is quite your thing. cocktails wise, we found that the Strawberry D'light was perhaps the only delight of the night, save that it came only half a champagne glass full.

so yes, not a place that's high up on my list of places to recommend - unless you have a small group of about 15-20 and need a little space inside for a party. the music's really pretty decent but as i said, not quite a club, pub or restaurant.

maybe you all had a better experience there?


A971 Cafe
30 Merchant Road
Riverside Point
Singapore 058282