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

The Brunch Series

when one of the nicest ways to start a weekend is to sleep in and then wake up to a late saturday brunch, i figure a series on the chicest and yummiest brunch places is most apropos.

but first, i need a coffee... say, the piccolo at Jones the Grocer.

stay tuned.

Bali Eats

i blame the Arien side of me for the huge lack of updates - always beginning and struggling towards the end. anyhow, hello again y'all, its been a while :)

but yes, Bali. it wasn't too long ago that I was there to spend a large portion of it ensconced in a private villa. but with colleagues like mine, I was armed with 11 pages worth of Bali eats to try. way too many choices for the three days I was there unfortunately. nonetheless, there were definitely some highlights:



the shrimp down at Bubba Gump down in Kuta. not mind-blowing but definitely full of addictive garlicky goodness. i could do some real damage with these if this was any closer to where we were hiding in Seminyak. the restaurant itself is quite a fun place, especially if you're partial to all things Forrest Gump. i'm sure you get it if you've ever been to any Bubba Gump before :)



the crispy duck at Warung Eropa. happily for us, this place was literally located not 2 minutes from the doorstep of our villa. the other highlight of this place was definitely the sate. the best friend and I definitely bought back many a pack to our villa and it was a great snack for watching F1.

and to cap things off, we decided to treat ourselves on our last evening there right down at the beach in Seminyak. no, not at Ku De Ta, but its quieter and more sedate neighbour - The Samaya. i can honestly say that that dinner at Breeze, which is The Samaya's main restaurant, was quite possibly THE dinner of 2009 for me.

a beach front table, a really really good mojito, the trademark golden Bali sunset, the yummiest foie gras since Le Normandie as an entree and the freshest moistest local snapper with a light seafood broth and risotto on the side.



divine.

we didn't actually have that much variety of food while there to be honest, we were so busy bumming (the Sanyas Suites - definitely worth checking it out. great service and the coolest outdoor bathroom). plus - breakfast is served at our own dining patio every morning at your requested time. there are only so many meals in one day really. but in case you might want to drop by where we did:

Bubba Gump Shrimp Co.
Komplek Pertokoan Kuta Centre, Blok A1 No. 1
JL Kartika Plaza No. 8X,
Kuta, Bali

Warung Eropa
Jln Cendrawasih, Peti Tenget,
Seminyak, Bali

Breeze at The Samaya
Jl. Laksmana, Seminyak Beach, Seminyak, Bali


i have traveled since (back to taipei again hah!) and i am definitely in the mood for more traveling soon. lets hope the next you check back, this one's still up and running. gold coast and melbourne here i come!

Quan An Ngon, Ho Chi Minh City

i obviously did not take the time to focus on this one haha. pictured in the foreground is the most fabulous (words fail me) pho with tomato and herb soup.

this was definitely one of the best things i had there though, along with the grilled squid. OH. MY. GOSH. even for a soup and squid lover like me, this was really right up there as some of the best food i've ever had. i would actually consider going all the way back again to HCMC just for the food. really.

another notable mention would be the pho at Pho Hoa Pasteur. no location details though, its mighty hard to keep track of something when it doesn't sound remotely like what it looks like.

would actually like to go back now.