Bread Street Kitchen at MBS

Certainly Gordon Ramsay is a controversial figure. His on-screen persona on various TV shows shows a dynamic personality oft given to explosive outbursts, but also one who is totally passionate about cooking and the restaurant business. When he opened his Bread Street Kitchen in Singapore, it made waves...like most celebrity chefs tend to do in our small island.

So the big question is, is it worth the hype? Prior to going, I spoke to some friends who have been there, and read some of the reports on the blogosphere. Mixed reviews, mostly. We called up to make a reservation for a weekday lunch two days before, and were told they had to put us on the waitlist. Hmm. Are they that popular? The morning of our lunch, they called and said they can sit us at our requested time.

When we arrived, the restaurant was not empty, but not full either. Next to us, 3 tables were empty throughout our lunch. So much for a wait list. The decor was rather impressive. The restaurant is spread over two levels, with a rather long flight of stairs connecting them. We sat at the upper level.

Three of us shared two starters and two desserts, and we each had our own main course. For starters, we had the seared scallops

Nothing really special. The scallops were rather ordinary. The searing was done well, and the carrot puree sauce it sat on was nice. As was the touch of bacon bits, apple and celery cress. 

Next, was the patted salt beef brisket in grain mustard, piccalilli and caraway crackers

The brisket was pulled, and mixed with a sauce which is mildly spiced with grain mustard. The crackers was reminiscent of curry - the caraway (a kind of cumin) showing itself. One of my lunch companions rather liked this dish, while I and the other remained neutral.

For my mains, I had the slow roasted Dingley Dell pork belly

I have read a few positive reviews on this dish. The cracking was very nicely done. The pork itself was only slightly fat, with a thin sliver of fat under the very crisp skin. The meat was nicely done. But at $28 a serving, it struck me that it was rather expensive. I preferred the version offered by Keith Crackling Roast at Pasarbella, where for the same money, the serving would be a bit larger. But would not have the accompanying spiced apple puree. 

My lunch companions had the Dingley Dell pork chop and the risotto with girolle mushroom, peas, green asparagus and aged parmesan.

The pork chop looked like a princly cut. 10 oz, and on the bone. It was grilled beautifully, and done almost nicely medium...slightly pink on the inside, and moist and tender. 

The risotto was a bit of an interesting dish

Looking rather small, and plain, it was in fact rather delicious. The rice was nicely al dente, and creamy sauce smothered it well. The vegetables were very nice, adding great flavours. The peas, asparagus were particularly fragrant and came out well. The cheese was very light, perhaps a bit mellow as it was aged. Nice dish.

For desserts, chocolate fondant with salted caramel and mint chocolate chip ice cream

For me the star of the lunch. The molten chocolate lava flowed easily, was nice, thick, and not very sweet counterpointed with a rich, slightly bitter after taste. Went very well with the salted caramel and the ice cream.

The banana sticky toffee pudding came with muscovado caramel and clotted cream. We found it to be a bit too sweet, but the flavours were excellent. 

We found the service to be attentive and very good, despite many reports that it was rather spotty and can be a bit snooty. Our waiter was all smiles, and ready with recommendations, and was happy to pour us glsses of plain water.

Overall, a rather nice lunch. But given the hype of Gordon Ramsay, I must say I am underwhelmed. The dishes were rather safe, and not innovative...though it must be noted that it was not Gordon's aim to be innovative in Bread Street Kitchen, but rather to serve the staples. And this they did well. I feel the prices are a tad pricey, though no doubt due to the high rental Marina Bay Sands area.

The Family Stove and The Family Wok

Home cooking is the best. But sometimes, it is not practical or even possible. This is where substitures are called for. I do have my favourites. Hui Cui is one, and Cafe de Hong Kong another. And today, I chanced on this place...The Family Stove and The Family Wok

Tucked at the back of Orchard Towers...a kind of sleazy place, especially in the evenings, this is a rather new Food Court, where a Taiwan Porridge restaurant used to occupy...directly above Jasons Supermarket.

The unassuming stall occupies the first lot on the right as one walks into the Food Court. Taking a corner lot, one side is the Family Stove - serving apparently western food, and the other Family Wok - for Chinese food. But try as I might, I thought they were similar.

I first saw pics on a friend's facebook...and thought that since he (my friend) was a connoisseur (of almost everything...amazing fellow), it must be good. So I popped in one day to try...and I was pleased...very pleased.

I ordered the day's special roast pork with yam rice.

This came as a set, with vegetables, and yam rice. The rice was nice, yam fragrant. The veg was reasonable. But the roast pork was a killer!

The meat was smooth, warm. The crackling was superb. Very crispy...though at some places it tended to be a bit harddened...only a few spots, but kind of spoils the experience. And what an experience. Where there were no hardenned spots, and I mean almost all of the crackling...it was one of the best I have eaten. Very crisp, beautiful mouthfeel and aroma. The meat itself was very tender. If I had another small criticism, it was the sliver of fat was a tad too much...but only a tad. But in mitigation, the fat gives flavour...and this was a great, flavourful piece of meat. Excellent +++.

Amazing quality to be found in a Food Court. I will be back for more.

The Family Stove and The Family Wok
1 Claymore Drive (Food Court), Singapore, Singapore 229594
Mon - Fri:12:00-21:00

Roast Meats at Canton-I

I have eaten at Canton-I, a Malaysian owned Cantonese restaurant at Orchard Ion many times. The first time I blogged about them, I was less than impressed. But revisits had me eating the roast meats. And the char siew is certainly one of the best around.

Oops, let the cat out of the bag right at the start...but in all seriousness, this is a classical Malaysian, KL style char siew...darkly marinaded, roasted crisp, sweet, fat. Glistening.

Truly superb. Ultra fat, but wonderful crisp, burnt crust. Magnificent. Really good char siew.

We also had some roast meat on the side

Very good too. But not my best experience of roasted pork. The skin was super crisp, but I yearn for a little less fat under the crispy skin, and perhaps a bit more flavour on the meat...but this is splitting hairs. This sio bak is superb.

A bowl of succulent wanton in soup...

A full, succulent, fresh, crunchy prawn lurks within each wanton. Very good.

A group of 4 of us shared the above...and each individual had his own noodle dish...I chose the ngau lam mien...beef brisket with noodles.

The sauce is a touch salty, but the tendons are superbly done. Soft, delicate. The noodles are done just right.

I now heartily recommend this restaurant for the traditional roasts, wanton mee, and ngau lam mien. Excellent. A bit pricey, but not unusually or unwarranted for an prime Orchard Road location.

Canton-i Restaurant
2 Orchard Turn
#03-14 ION Orchard
Tel: +65 6509 8368
http://www.canton-i.com.my/
Daily: 11am - 10pm

Oversea Restaurant in Singapore: perfect char siew at last?

Oversea Restaurant in KL is one of the grande dames of roast meats in Malaysia...in particular, the wonderful char siew, and sio bak is amazingly luscious, and seductive.

I wrote about them in 2009 on a food trip with some of my good friends. They were fantastic that day. See the KL Oversea Restaurant review for more info. But suffice to say, one of my top two best experiences with charsiew.

So when I heard they are opening a branch in Singapore...wow! Must try. I did not take any chances, and when we made the reservations, we made sure we had a large serving of char siew and a large serving of sio bak.



We were eight people, and within a minute, the gorgeous char siew was inhaled by us.



But also, the large serving was not particularly large...and at S$50, I think a tad pricey...though, if you served the best in town, you pretty much have the right to charge high prices. As evidenced by the crowded dining hall on a Tuesday lunch.

The char siew, characteristic of the Oversea style came with a layer of thick fat between two layers of succulent meat. Marinated in a sweet, sticky sauce, and barbecued in a charcoal oven to perfection. The meat was just as tender and nice. Though if I had to make a comparison, I felt the KL version was a tad better. For one KL char siew was more charred, most of the char siew's exterior was coated in a crisp char. The Singapore version is slightly less charred in comparison. I also felt the meat in Malaysia is more tasty, perhaps the texture of the meat was more resistant, providing a bit more bite but still very very tender.

I speculate this is due to the fact that the pig, whose meat was char siew for lunch was slaugheterd that morning in KL. While in Singapore, the pork is either imported as chilled meat from Australia and Brasil, or even if freshly slaughtered, AVA requires post-mortem inspection, and as I understand it fresh chilled pork from Singapore abattoirs are at least a day old.

But even comparing amongst Singapore offerings, where the same handicap of the freshness of pork is applicable, Oversea's char siew is certainly the best I have eaten in Singapore. So apparently technique of roasting the meat also plays a large part.

The sio bak is equally good...



The skin is super crispy, very crunchy. The meat very tender. A layer of fat lies below the crispy skin, a bit sinful, but oh, so good.

The waitress recommended the braised beancurd with petola.



Petola is a gourd...also known as loofa...the gourd is soft when ripe and cooked well, as is the case here. The tofu is also quite specatacular. Very fragrant. Deep fried to create a crispy, tough exterior, the tofu is then braised in a very tasty, savoury braising liquid. The crisp skin itself melts into a springy skin, and protects the super soft tofu within. Very tasty.

For greens, we had kailan fried with garlic:



This dish didn't really do it for me. The vegetable was a bit tough and chewy. Though the chef probably just stir fried it very quickly on a hot wok, there was no apparent wok hei. I would also have preferred if the garlic was fried till golden brown before the kailan was added to the wok. In this case, the garlic was still a bit undercooked, and did not reach the stage of perfumed fragrance yet.

We also ordered the stir fried sotong:



This dish also didn't quite make it for me. The squid was sliced up, stir fried, and served in a hot plate lined with aluminium foil. When the dish arrived, it hinted of bad body odour...we thought it was the waitress who had brought this fragrance, but when the dish was set on the table, it was clear it came from the sotong. However, on closer examination and smelling, the stronger fumes coming directly out of the piping hot dish was not more intense in the foul odour, but instead was masked by the fragrance of the shallots and onions. The dish tasted ok. The squid was a little too tough.

The next dish was a winner.



Beef short ribs, cut with some bone, marinated and seared in charcoal before being cooked on the hot cast iron plate. Reminds me of kalbe in Seoul. The marinade was very strong. But meat tender, and sweet. The onions and garlic, left to toast was also marvellous.

And finally, we had the Beggar's Chicken:



Not quite I had in mind when I ordered it...I had imagined chicken, stuffed, and marinated. Wrapped in a cellophane, and covered with clay, and baked. But what arrived was a whole chicken, in a thick sauce in a claypot. The chicken was cooked till it disintegrated at the prodding of the chopsticks. The meat was very soft, and carried the fragrance of the marinade. The thick sauce was wonderful...a bit sticky from the collagen, it was very tasty.

Overall for me, this restaurant delivers the goods for the char siew and sio bak. Both best in class in Singapore. The other dishes, particularly the beef ribs, chicken and tofu were very good. But these were cze char standards. The other dishes we sampled were sub-par. With this combination, and the high prices, I think only justified for the char siew and sio bak. Service was a bit slow when we were there during peak lunch time...12 to 2, with the dishes being served one after another banquet style, but with minutes of pause between courses.


Oversea Restaurant
100 Beach Road, #01-27-37
Shaw Leisure Gallery, Shaw Tower

Canton-i: a gem or not?

with Alan T and friends

I have blogged about the Catonese inspired, Malaysian owned Canton-I restaurant at Ion when it first opened. See this entry for my first views. I have been revisiting the restaurant as a de-facto place to eat with my friend Alan T...who runs two shops in Ion and seldom have time to travel further for lunch...and Canton-I is like his private dining room.



While I found the restaurant to be ok, but not spectacular the last time round, this time, I found it to be quite good.

Especially good was the roast duck and the char siew.



I did find the duck to be rather good the first time round...and in every subsequent visit including this one, Canton-i showed me that they were indeed masters in roasting duck. The skin was glistening, crispy...hiding the smallest sliver of fat to provide the umami punch, and the meat was beautiful...slightly powdery like it should be, and very tender...tasty and flavourful.

I did not find the char siew up to the highest standards the first visit, but this time, they redeemed themselves. The char siew was superb:



Requisite in high fat content, the meat was marinated well...and fully infused with lovely flavours. The roasting was done just right...tender, juicy inside, almost charred though not quite on the outside. The marinate was more Hong Kong style...meaning the taste was led by saltiness rather than the sweet, sticky ones from KL. But nonetheless excellent.

The roast pork was rather good too...though slightly behind the shadow of the other roasts:



The skin was thin, crispy, the fat hiding below the skin was just a sliver...and the meat was wonderful in aroma and done just right, so it is still juicy though had a slight bite.

We tried the Teochew tofu...as we had two Teochew Ahiah in the group:



And it turned out to be a winner. The tofu was very tender, soft...breaking at the slightest prodding with a pair of chopsticks, and had to be scooped up with a spoon. This was a good thing...in the mouth, it was silky smooth, and very nice. Even our famous Dr. Mycroft who doesn't eat vegetables and tofu, gobbled down his share...he still doesn't eat vegetables, but he gave half a thumbs up for the tofu...which is saying a lot! BTW, yes, he is a real medical doctor...

And the finale was wonderful



Fried rice, served in a stone bowl. I suspect the rice was flash fried in a super hot wok...and scooped into this stone bowl for additional smoking and cooking and crusting. The aroma of the wok hei was superb. The rice nicely done. Embellished with bahu, and chicken, it was a great dish. Excellent. Shiok!


Canton-i Restaurant
2 Orchard Turn
#03-14 ION Orchard
Tel: +65 6509 8368
http://www.canton-i.com.my/
Daily: 11am - 10pm

More KL Char Siew: Oversea

with Larry, Luckee, Prof Horolographer, SJX and Kin



The last time I wrote about Oversea Restaurant at Jalan Imbi in KL, I had wanted to feature their famous Char Siew, and also introduce it to my Italian friends. But alas, when we arrived, it was sold out. This time round, we made a reservation the evening before, and also reserved a medium portion of char siew.

We were rewarded when we arrived for lunch:



Glistening in its fats...the char siew was still warm.



It was gorgeous. As can be seen, the cut is relatively fat, which imbues the meat with flavours, and also made it very juicy and tender. The meat was covered in a thick, sweet sauce, parts of it purposedly and masterfully charred to create a crisp exterior. Wonderful.

Immediately the next lunch after eating at Meng Kee, a comparison is rife. Both are extremely good, and I would call it a draw, but if forced to decide one, I would give the very slight edge to Meng Kee. The Meng Kee portion had a bit more oomph, a bit more X-factor than the Oversea.

We also sampled the exquisite sio bak, or roast pork:



Again, perfect.



That lunch, the sio bak was outstanding. Even better than the last time I had it. The skin was crispy to a fault; really amazing in its texture, and crunch as one bites into it. A small sliver of fat lingers under the crisp skin, and from thence a piece of lean meat. The overall effect of the crisp bite on the skin, to the melting fats, and the firm bite of the lean meat is excellent. Definitely rivals the 1 Michelin star Lei Garden offering in Hong Kong.

We also had their salt and pepper prawns:



The prawns were very fresh. The light batter clinging onto the shell was a bit salty. But deshelling the prawns, the meat was just right.

The vegetables were also interesting that it was cooked with macademia nuts instead of the more common cashews:



The vegetables were done just the right side of al dente...still crunchy, and lightly seared in the hot wok. Lovely.

We also had a hot plate of venison:



This was somewhat more average, but nonetheless tasty.

And also my favourite tofu:



Home made tofu, cubed, deep fried so that a slightly crispy skin develops, and then drenched in braising liquid in a claypot, so that the crispiness turns into a springy texture in some parts while retaining some crisp on others. Not spectacular, but very nice.

I have been told that Oversea is known to overcharge. But in my experience, I have never been charged what I judge as fair for the quality and quantity of the food. But caveat emptor, as I avoid ordering items on the menu listed as market price. The plate of totally awesome char siew was RM40, compared to a similar plate at Meng Kee at RM15; but totally different ambience. Oversea was a proper restaurant, air conditioned, and I can feel relaxed to enjoy the meats. Meng Kee is a dirty, greasy coffee shop, but with overwhelmingly wonderful char siew.

For me, both are mainstays for char siew in KL. And a must try for every visitor.


Oversea Restaurant
84 - 88 , Jalan Imbi
Kuala Lumpur
Tel No: 03 - 2148 7567

Race for best char siew: Singapore fights back: Alex Eating House

with Prof. Horolographer, Prof. Massi, Dr. Mycroft and SJX

I have written about Meng Kee...the superb char siew from KL, and the recent revisit. Meng Kee is still king in my eyes and tastebuds. But a recent revisit with some good friends to Alex restores faith in Singapore.



Roasted to a bright red exterior, the initial reaction is mixed...the red suggests that the meat is not caramalised or Maillarded sufficiently, but the glistening fat shows promise. But on closer examination, there appears to be parts of the char siew which exhibit charred, crisp sides. And tasting those parts, brings my mind back to Meng Kee. Close. There were sufficient fats, well browned, caramelised, Maillard reactants. But just a bit held back. I suspect this is because Meng Kee, in Malaysia has access to fresh pork, whilst Alex has to settle for chilled pork. I didn't ask where the pork originates, but in an earlier discussion with Fatty Cheong, he said his pork was frozen from Brasil, and fresh pork was impossible to get in Singapore. I would suspect Alex uses Indonesian chilled pork, because it taste a bit sweeter than Fatry's.

The roast pork...siew yoke, was also something to behold.



The skin was scored/scoured, very very crispy. Dr. Mycroft approves. As one bites into the pork, the crisp skin delights, and the layer of fat just below explodes, releasing flavours into the mouth. Superb.

The roast duck was also a significant achievement.



Prof. Horolographer loved the duck. Crisp skin, almost no fat below the skin, and nice, juicy tender meat. The meat has a powdery mouth feel...this is how roast duck is supposed to taste like. No gamey taste, as some duck is apt to be like. Mycroft, of course was less than orgasmic because of lack of fat, but generally approves. I loved the taste...soft, tender meat, counterpointed with a crisp skin. Nice.

We ate with noodles.



The noodles were not as good as those found in KL...Malaysian noodles, and Hong Kong ones are probably hand made, and have a texture and springiness that the factory made Singaporean noodles lack. The spectacular roast meats were let down by a mediocre, pedestrian noodle.

We also had a bowl of sui kow.



The dumplings were plump, sweet. The filling was tasty enough, as was the broth. But the skin of th sui kao, lacks the texture and elasticity found in those in Hong Kong. The HK varieties are so much better. I don't know why this is so, but no local version even compares.

This certainly puts Singapore on the map again for roast meats. Fatty Cheong and Kay Lee were the only challengers, and I had placed both below Meng Kee and Overseas in KL. Now Alex joins the fray. Still a bit behind in the taste, but I think the trio of Kay Lee, Alex and Fatty Cheong (my ranking), Singapore should be proud of our roast meats. I will blog about Kay Lee soon as a revisit is in the works.


Alex Eating House
87 Beach Road
#01-01

Tel: 6334 0268
Open: 9am till 6pm (or until they are sold out)

Oversea Restaurant, KL.

with Prof Massi and Prof Francesca in KL

Oversea Restaurant has been a KL institution since its founding in 1977...I barely remember when was the first time I ate here, but it was a long time ago. Memories sometimes have a way of fading...and what remains are the great times we have had, and the feelings. Overseas left an imprint in me, with many pleasant memories about the wonderful food.

I returned many times, each time to re-affirm that this was a great restaurant, worthy of being an institution. In December 08, I took both my Italian friends to a taste of Malaysia.

When we arrived, the signature dish of char siew was high on my list...and even thinking of it makes me salivate. Amongst Overseas, Meng Kee and Soo Kee (by reputation as I have yet to try) are the holy trinity for char siew...in KL, and by extension Malaysia and possibly the world. The simple char siew is elevated to an art in these establishments. Kay Lee and Fatty Cheong's come close in Singapore, but my cigars go to the vaunted KL establishments. As I have blogged rather extensively in my Meng Kee post, the sticky, sweet, fragrant, tender roasted meat is supreme.

But as early as 2pm on a Sunday afternoon...they had already run out of char siew...rats! Disappointed, but still there were treats galore from their a la carte menu.

We started with an Assam Prawn Curry.



Served in a claypot, this was a piquant, fragrant, sour, pungent and spicy dish. The prawns were fairly large...curled up in their cooked state about 3cm in diameter. And they were very fresh...my test of freshness - crunchy to the bite, hinting on the fragrance of the sea, sweet was passed with flying colours.

Next by special request of Francesca, we had the Braised Eggplant.



The eggplant was rendered very tender, soft. And the various spices and braising sauce made this dish very pleasing and delicious. Francesca thought it was rather delicious...special. I agree.

The Home made tofu was also delicious.



The tofu was very fragrant...but this standard of tofu is common amongst top restaurants where the chefs make their own tofu. It was also very soft, tender...almost spilling out, but encased in a rather more robust skin. A braising sauce similar to that of the eggplant was used, and made for a great dish. Very nice dish, but not special.

In lieu of char siew, and to somewhat calm our disappointment, we had the roast pork and roast duck combo.



Typical of roasteries that specialize in roasting meats...they have perfected the techniques of brining, drying, slow cooking and charring. And most meats done by these specialists are of a standard too high to aspire to for more ordinary restaurants. The gold standard set by Oversea for their char siew made expectations for their roast duck and roast pork soar.



They delivered with the siew yoke (roast pork in Cantonese...spoken widely in the Klang Valley). The skin was super crispy. A thin layer of fat lay below to provide umami support as one bites into the meat. And tender meat below that providing the body and substance. This was very good roast pork. A more robust version of the very elegant roast pork served at Lei Garden in Hong Kong...a restaurant recognized by the cognicenti by a Michelin Star; but the Overseas version was equal in all aspects of taste, fragrance, mouthfeel, and shiokness.



The roasted duck was slightly disappointing. Don't get me wrong, this is very delicious roast duck. But with the competition as stiff as that provided by Kay Lee in Singapore, and Yung Kee in Hong Kong (albeit roast goose), this one fails to make the very top grade, and as a result fails to impress in a comparison test. The meat was a tad, mind you only a tiny tad, tough. The skin could have been crispier, and the fat layer below the skin could have been drained by more thorough control of the fire. Only with a comparison can one appreciate the fine differences. This is by most standards, very very good roast duck. If this was a French restaurant, say in Lyon, and coupled with the fanfare and pomp typical of the French restaurant - excellent service, beautiful ambience, I can imagine the restaurant to be at least a Good Eats award.


The accompanying sauce was top drawer. Spicy, very fragrant, piquant, it balances out the oily mouth feel of the roasted meats extremely well. I will highly recommend it as a dip for the roast duck, and possibly also the roast pork. Though, had the char siew been available, no dip or sauce should be prescribed, as this would mask the taste of the pork and thick smouldering sauce already covering the char siew...but I digress.

Overall, this restaurant has earned its laurels as a mainstay in KL restaurant scene. Were my fond memories of great food at Overseas well founded?...yes, they are safe...I will return to this restaurant again and again. The food is well cooked, and tastes excellent. And for Singaporeans travelling to Malaysia, very good value given the current exchange rates.




Oversea Restaurant
84 - 88 , Jalan Imbi
Kuala Lumpur
Tel No: 03 - 2148 7567