Rather New Restaurant: Moosehead Kitchen & Bar

Had dinner with the boy at this restaurant that's been on my radar for awhile! The chef here used to work at FoodBarDada and I was quite fond of the food there so I was q excited about dinner that night! 

Pictured below is the restaurant, do take note that it is at the beginning of Telok Ayer Street if you're driving in and its on your right :) Was quite surprised that it is such a small restaurant! 

The interior! Dimly lit, quite romantic? Even though its small, privacy isn't compromised which is good :) Buttttt it also means that photos would likely be of low quality, so please do forgive the photos below! And forgive my amateur photo shooting + editing skills! I only use iPhoto to edit!

Scrambled Eggs, smoked porcini, summer truffle

$16

The menu presented to us said "scrambled eggs" but we got a sunny side up when the dish arrived. We just took it as it is, broke the runny yolk and mixed everything up :) The mushrooms were quite nice, but its hard to go wrong right? I thought this dish was rather okay, average at best. Cant really taste any truffle. The truffle slices itself weren't all that fragrant as well. The baguette was a bit chewy for me, not crusty enough and many parts were charred, carcinogenic no? 3/5

Chargrilled Asparagus, leeks, garlic miso dressing

$12

Now this, this was the STAR of the night!!!! Wonderfully juicy crunchy asparagus with the umami dressing, the first mouthful of this dish will just make you yearn for more! Its wonderful with the leeks as well, because the leeks provide a textural contrast against the heavenly asparagus! Please please order this. I would say you'd love it even if you dont like veggies! As I type this, I'm still reminiscing this excellent simple dish done superbly well! Initially I was skeptical, how good can chargrilled asparagus be? But I realised, the fat juicy asparagus, the magical savoury dressing and the leeks are what makes this dish work! 5/5 

Iberian pork "Presa", pickled portobello, shishito peppers

$34

We were quite surprised when this dish was served because the plate used is usually associated with Chinese tse char restaurants! I really loved the pickled portobello mushrooms in this dish Its kinda like preserved mushrooms. Not quite sure how the pork was done but basically it was cut into small sizeable portions. Minimal fat in the pork and it was not too tough/chewy/difficult to bite, rather it was beautifully cooked (see pic below). Although seasoning was a bit bland for me, the mushrooms were a great pairing with the "heavier" pork. Shishito peppers somehow werent as fragrant as I wanted/remembered them to be. 4.1/5

Pitsachio tart, yuzu creme fraiche

$10

Do note that this is NOT a tart!!!!! Its more of a crumbly cake, there's no tart crust/pastry cream etc. I felt that the cake itself was a little bland but it was still good in terms of texture for me - slightly crumbly but not overly so, and moist enough for my taste! The yuzu creme fraiche is, like what many others have raved, an ingenious creation! It makes a cream-adverse person like me want and willing to eat cream! It goes very well with the cake! Cant really discern any pistachio anywhere. There are pistachio nuts studded here & there. 3.6/5

Service: very friendly, prompt and smiley. Water was constantly refilled. Was q surprised when the chef himself served us some of the dishes. Definitely satisfactory service!

When we were there (10 sept), the guy said that they were changing their menus soon! So by now, it is possible that their menu is different. 

Moosehead Kitchen & Bar

110 Telok Ayer Street

6636 8055

Mon-Sat 11am-11pm (note that their lunch menu is a bit smaller than dinner and there are some items that're in the lunch menu thats not in dinner menu)

Happy hour: Mon-Fri 4-7pm 1-1 selected wines/spirits etc 

Facebook (do check for their menu, they upload it sporadically)

Food Tasting: New Menu at Stranger's Reunion!

Hi!

Thanks to Nuffnang, I was invited to taste Stranger's Reunion's new menu! I've never been to Strangers previously but have heard lots about it. They've recently expanded but according to a few of the bloggers there with me that day, the new area is less cosy/homely, more minimalistic and they didnt really like that feel! 

Anyhow, here are some photos and a review of the food!

The exterior

Some interior shots below:

Too full that night to try their cakes but they look gooooooood! Melissa says that the carrot cake is quite good!

The new improvised menu! Sorry if its unclear! Some of the food portions below I believe are smaller portions of the actual size but the price I put there is the price of the actual sizing! I'll also put in brackets the 'category' the dish comes under!

Lotus Root Chips

with spicy aioli

(light bites)

$12.90

We had 2 tables of food tasters so 2 bowls of this and the taste + texture for both bowls were different!

Bowl 1: saltier + crispier

Bowl 2: less salty but more chewy & less crispy

So quality isnt consistent! They're really addictive though. Best if they can achieve crispy + less salty! But the texture + salt level differs from person to person. Some are okay w the salt level, some like the chewy one more, so it really depends man. The aioli isnt spicy at all! 3.7/5

Green tea

$8

Very light green tea fragrance

Iced latte (5.90)/mocha (6.90)

Egg Net Tempura Soft Shell Crab

with spicy kewpie mayo & corn in a brioche bun

(all day breakfast)

$21

The egg net tempura is basically fried egg! We felt that the soft shell crab wasnt crispy enough? It could possibly be due to us taking photos of the food then it becoming a lil soggy. Once again the mayo isnt spicy although it says so in the description but of course the mayo goes wonderfully well with the burger and just binds the tastes together I feel. The flavours are quite refreshing and doesnt feel oily despite the fried interior. Bun is rather fluffy though could be slightly more toasted for me. 

Rockets are q dangerous cos many ppl dont like them! 3.6/5

Corn & Zucchini Fritters

with avocado, poached egg & spicy tomato relish

(all day breakfast)

$18 ($21.50 if you add bacon)

This photo is how the dish will look like if you order it (portion wise I am not sure)

But this was what we got instead for tasting! So I dont really know how it'll taste w the bacon + poached egg! You cant really taste zucchini in the fritter, more of the corn dominating. The tomato relish went q well with it and if you're afraid of avocados, the taste is somehow masked in this dish. This was an average dish imo 3.4/5

Crispy Pork Belly

with truffled mash, ginger beer, apple & date chutney

(from noon till late)

$24.90

This is their signature dish! And I think manyyyy of the bloggers + nuffnang staff agree!! All I could hear after they ate the pork skin was "mmmmm the skinnnnnnnnn" and people wanted more of the skin!!! Super crispy super fragrant :) The meat is tender and juicy, very flavourful too. This is a dish done well! 

Didnt really taste dates in the chutney though, more like apple! Which I think went really well with the pork cos green apple is sour so I really like the contrast in taste! Perhaps a bit more green apple would be good :) 

Truffled mash was not bad too! But pork totally overshadows it haha 4.4/5

And girls listen up!!! The guy said that they force out all the fats from the meat so dont worry about it! 

THE SKIN

Za'atar-spiced Eggplant Fritters

with lemon yogurt

(light bites)

$12.90

Some people dislike the taste of eggplants but fret not, you absolutely cannot taste eggplant in this dish haha which is kind of a bad thing in my dictionary cos you dk what you're eating! All you taste is some spice that reminds you of Indian food and a bit of creaminess from the yogurt which doesnt taste of lemon. 2.8/5

12-hour Braised Lamb Shoulder Flat Bread

with quinoa tabouli & hummus

$19.50

I really liked this dish! Very middle eastern in concept and even after eating so much previously, I finished this dish! The lamb doesnt have the smelly lamb taste dont worry and it was tender + juicy and the spices wasnt too heavy. But I think a bit more ingredients for a wrap that size would be good! Again not sure the portions for the actual dish! 4.5/5

Truffle fries 

with truffle aioli & parmesan cheese

$12.90

The girls at my table really loved the truffle fries!!! I thought the truffle taste could be a bit stronger though. 4.3/5

Buttermilk Waffles

with artisan greek yogurt & fresh fruit

$11.50

What most people come here for!!! The waffles were a little bit crispy at the edges but got soggy super fast! Didnt enjoy it as much as Wimbly Lu's but I finished it anyway, talk about being a pig! The greek yogurt is not as tart as the ones I've tried commercially. Wouldnt pay 11.50 for this though! 3.5/5

Buttermilk Waffles

with vanilla ice-cream & fresh fruit

$11.50

The vanilla ice cream is a little artificial tasting so I didnt really like it :/

Homemade jam

They made jam for us! I apologise but I have yet to try the jam but it was freshly made! Like it was still hot when they first put it out!

Service: I cant say anything about service cos it was just us two tables and it was an invited tasting. But the people there are friendly!!

Ambience: I think its okayish but not very cosy like what the other bloggers mentioned

Once again, thank you nuffnang!!! If not for nuffnang I wouldnt have been able to go for this tasting and wouldnt have met so many nice bloggers that night and made new friends! :)

Strangers Reunion

37 Kampong Bahru Road

Mon: 9am-10pm

Wed-Sun: 9am-10pm

CLOSED ON TUES

62224869

Parking: there's some parking around the restaurant but its limited

MRT: take to outram mrt, get out at exit G (the one to police cantonement complex!) and turn right then walk through/past the police complex then just continue walking straight till you see neil road and like spot the okb sign to your front left, diagonally. Then just crossover to okb and continue walking down the stretch of shophouses till you see what I posted above! 

Rather New Restaurant: Shelter in the Woods

Hello!

Happy holidays to those on holidays and to those working, hope you have a great day! :) Short weekend ahead to look forward to!

The Greenwood Avenue area has been busy I'd say, 3 new restaurants sprung up recently and here's one that piqued my interest.

The entrance and the decor feels like you're going into someone's den or something outta Goldilocks & the 3 Bears haha. Its cosy, with dim lighting (pics here are edited) but not so dim till you cant read. I already had a good impression of them because the person I spoke to over the phone for reservations was so friendly and polite! 

We were seated at the bar and was hosted by this really really friendly guy and funny too but I'm sorry I cant remember your name! Is it Freddie? 

Pan Seared Foie Gras, Confit Grapes & Fresh Apple

$20

Now I was craving for foie gras that day and I even asked over the phone if they had it and thankfully I could satisfy my cravings! I would have liked a stronger taste of the balsamic & a bit more seasoning on the foie else it was done rather beautifully in terms of searing. Like that it was paired w fruits. 3.8/5

The interior

Special: Smoked Eel with Crushed Potatoes & Sour Cream Sauce

Sorry I dont rmb the price and my receipt's gone! But shld be about $20? Just a guess

They have specials which they'll tell you about when presenting you the menu. This was special indeed. Loved the smoked eel, I have loved smoked eel since I first ate it few months ago! Have been on the lookout for them ever since and when I heard it was served here, I knew I'd order it! Its not like your typical Jap eel, its a little salty but not overly so unlike smoked salmon/fish. I love the taste and the texture too. You gotta eat it to try it.

Sour cream was a BEAUTY to eat with in this dish, I mopped it up and left the boy with bits haha and he wasnt really happy about it but ohwell just goes to show how yummy it was! Potatoes were done really nicely too, first time in a long while I'd really eat my potatoes. 4.5/5

Cassoulet of Duck Confit, Lamb Leg, Pork Belly and Garlic Sausage

$26

They gave me this instead of my order of the fish and I pointed this out and they were super apologetic and professional about it, gave me a great impression. They gave us this with compliments and assured us that the fish would be coming right up. This was so so homey and warm. Something you'd love on a rainy cold day! Well since the restaurant's air-conditioned, you are in a cold place anyway. So yup this was full of meaty goodness, soft but not too soft and juicy. I liked how all the flavours just mash up into one and its so complex that I dont know how to describe it. I couldnt really differentiate btwn duck and lamb though haha and I dont think I ate any garlic sausage! 4/5

Crispy Skin Suckling Pig Marinated with Aromates

$35

We saw them roasting this pig right after we ordered! The whole pig was on the spit roasting away. The skin was super crispy and the flesh tender + aromatic. Mash was good too. The boy said it was fantastic! 4.6/5

Whiff Fish Braised in White Wine and Tomato Sauce Duglere-Style

$23

This was what I originally ordered but I dont think its that nice. Cos the fish was kinda a little overcooked for me cos it was slightly chewy/tough. The sauce also had a strong butter taste that I dont like (personal preference! So if you do like this kinda buttery sauce then this is for you!) 3.5/5

Lemon Tart

$7

I generally dont like meringue cos I like my desserts tart so I swept the meringue off! So I'm sorry but no comments abt the meringue. The lemon curd was tart but not very so its suitable for people who dont really have a sour tooth. Crust was not bad as well. 3.7/5

Tiramisu

(Guessing should be $7 too cos all their desserts are $7)

I didnt like the looks of this when it was served cos it looks so uneven (its slopes down to the back and completely slumps down on the plate). It was well boozed, not overly soaked. Well I wouldnt pay $7 for this though. 3.4/5

We were also given a complimentary shot of Indonesian Mango Rum, which is quite choking on the first sip but after that it gets better. Cant really taste mango though! They have SO many different types of rum all around the bar and with many interesting flavours too! Like passionfruit x chilli, nutella x banana, green tea x sweet bean and many more!

Service: really really friendly, funny and polite. Prompt too. So it was an enjoyable night!

Ambience: mentioned before

Value: Ok portions are a tad small for the price, but I emphasize, a tad only but you'll get full still, the boy did!

This place is super busy and they constantly have walk-ins, people calling for reservations so I do suggest you reserve early! Parking can be a bitch cos lots are so limited but you have 2 options. 1) Valet parking 2) Park opposite near the private houses!

Shelter in the Woods

22 Greenwood Ave

6466 6225

Dinner (Tues-Sun) 6-10.30pm (till 11pm on Fri & Sat)

Lunch (Sat & Sun only) 11am-2pm

Closed on Monday

Menu 

Kaiseki Yoshiyuki

Upon knowing that a new Kaiseki restaurant has opened in Singapore, I quickly called to make a reservation for my family and I. I called on a Weds/Thurs and wanted to book for dinner that Saturday but it was already full! The restaurant only has 14 seats you see. Hence I quickly made a reservation for next Saturday's dinner. The restaurant is located next to Watson's in this obscure corner near the escalators!

Entrance of the restaurant

Very unassuming and the interior is not very welcoming when you first enter imo. Everything's really dark haha

The seating area of the restaurant from where we sat!

That's Chef Yoshi Kashiwabara who used to work at the Japanese Embassy! He's really polite and smiley, his English is quite good too!

They'll give you a welcome sake in that small cup :)

Menu for the night

This is the ONLY menu for now, $288++.

Sakizuke 

(means appetizer similar to amuse-bouche)

Homemade sesame tofu

You can really taste the sesame that was used to make this but the taste is not like super strong till you think you're eating sesame curd or something. Its more of a subtle sesame taste. Very light viscous broth to go along w the tofu. Quite average this dish. 3.5/5

Hassun

(this course sets the seasonal theme, typically one kind of sushi and small side dishes)

Top left: Persimmon with Tofu Dressing

Bottom left: Eggplant w sweet miso

Middle: Ika Chrysanthamum Sushi

Top right: Chestnut & Gingko Nuts

Persimmon w Tofu Dressing: honestly you cant tell that you're eating persimmon at all? 2/5

Chestnuts: this was super super fragrant + sweet! It tastes like it was steamed. Very good chestnut!! Reminds me of Japan. 4.5/5

Gingko nuts: lightly salted on the outside, this was q average haha. But not as soft as the gingko nuts in chawanmushi though which I liked. 3.5/5

Ika Chrysanthemum Sushi

I really liked the way they moulded the ika into the shape of a chrysanthemum! That's a blob of wasabi on top fyi. Ika was not too chewy, quite QQ (crunchy but soft kinda texture) and fresh. 3.7/5

Eggplant w sweet miso

This was very normal only 3/5

Suimono

Tai w tamago and Matsutake in Clear Soup

Tai is a type of fish. The tamago was more like a steamed egg. The soup was light, seafood broth kind of taste you'd associate with Jap soups. Fish texture was something in btwn of rough and smooth but definitely not a chore to eat. Simple soup 3.5/5

Tsukuri 

Part 1 :Katsuo Tataki

Semi-seared katsuo fish. This came w a sauce for you to dip it in and I felt the sauce went really well with the dish 'cos the sauce is sourish and somehow brings out the flavour of the fish! I like it w the sauce instead of without. Nicely seared. Sth like seared tuna kinda texture/taste. 3.7/5

Tsukuri

Part 2: Hirame, Maguro

Hirame is flounder and its the one on the left. It was wrapped arnd cucumber and something else which I couldnt tell. Slightly crunchy in texture, slightly sweet, this was not bad. But we felt that the rendition we had at Tatsuya was better. 3.7/5

Maguro is tuna and this one though smooth and without tendons, it wasn't sweet tasting nor did it have any particular taste! What a letdown :( 3.5/5

Yakimono

Grilled Kamasu

I've never seen this kinda fish before and I was truly intrigued to try it! Doesnt it seem like it'll have a melt in your mouth, fatty kinda texture? But this totally isnt the case. It's kinda like grilled mackerel but a little softer!

I preferred the side dishes for this dish though haha. The pumpkin was very sweet and below the pumpkin was this green shishito pepper that was insanely good. I love the smokiness from the grilling and the light veg taste of this pepper. All of us loved it :) 3.8/5

Nimono

Chrysanthemum Turnip with Hokkaido Crab

Cant taste any chrysanthemum in this dish though the turnip was definitely quite good, not too soft like those in yong tau foo as it still retained a certain degree of crunchiness! Hokkaido crab in the middle wasn't particulary sweet or anything, more like textural contrast only. 3.6/5

Shizikana

Pork Kakuni

This was good! One of the better dishes of the night. Look at the amount of fat on that piece though. Nevertheless, a damn good stewed pork dish. The texture of the flesh is not like melt-in-your-mouth but this is definitely not a bad thing 'cos it still retains some of the rough kinda texture you'd associate w eating meat but just a littttttle bit, overall its soft. I like this instead of the steamed san ceng rou (3 layered pork) you get in hokkien mee or dimsum which is the same throughout texturally. The fat provides the melt in your mouth part of the meat and complements the flesh very well. Definitely go for the pieces with the good fat:meat ratio. Think the kitchen shouldnt have served that one w the fat >>>> flesh piece!! 4.4/5

Accompanying the pork are yam pieces which barely tasted like anything and some long beans which were crunchy. 

Do note that we asked for our menu to be no beef, hence we got this pork dish. Otherwise the standard dish served here will be beef!

Agemono

Scallop, tofu skin

The main star was this fat plump scallop wrapped w tofu skin and deep fried. This was a little too oily for us and the scallop barely had any taste. Only redeeming factor was that it was plump and kinda juicy. 

The other star was of course the shishito pepper which appeared again :) That's a tempura eggplant to the back which was average. 3.4/5

Before the rice dish was served, another type of green tea was served to us, this one was roasted brown rice tea I assume (the cup at the back). The one in front is the green tea that comes when you order it at the start.

Pickles to the left to accompany the rice dish.

Mixing the rice dish in front of the customers before serving it. It was mixed in a pot reminiscent of clay pots that the Chinese use! But the aroma loses to that of Chinese claypot rice haha. This one's much lighter in terms of seasoning and taste!

Shokuji

Ayu rice, Miso Soup, Pickles

The rice wasn't v sticky, ayu fish that accompanied the rice didnt have much taste. Subtle sweetness to the dish as a whole. 3.5/5

Gourd shaped tofu in the miso soup!

The rice in the claypot served to your table will definitely be more than enough and the chef will shape them into onigris and wrap them in a banana leaf for you to bring 'em home! Super innovative and a nice way to be environmentally friendly :)

Mizugashi

Japanese Sweets & Matcha

I loved this dish! Those are poached figs that were so soft and quite sweet. The jelly on it was like slightly sour, so a good contrast of tastes! The cakes in front are sweet potato cakes!!! Liked this cos of the sweetness of the sweet potato and the smooth texture. 4/5

Matcha tea to end the meal which came w the dessert.

This is a hallmark that the restaurant's kaiseki is traditional, the frothy green tea. The one we had at Goto is more bitter though so am not sure what its supposed taste like! But I liked the Goto one better to complement the sweet dessert!

Interior decor of the restaurant on the "other" side!

The restaurant as a whole is actually quite big, but the seating area for dinner is just what I've shown you on top. The rest is something like a bar? Wasnt in use when we were there though. And there was like another room or something adjacent to where we were all seated and the voices coming out of there were quite loud, and we could totally hear them during dinner. 

One thing I dont really like about the restaurant is that even though its shaped in such a way that you can see what the chef is doing and how your food is prepared, food is not really prepared much in front of you. Most of the time, everything is already done in the kitchen/pre-prepared and the chefs just bring them out to the front and then plate it. So most of the time, the chef's not really in front and you dont really see him in action. Even the ika sushi was already done and just plated. So I think this concept doesnt really work here. 

Service on the whole was polite and friendly. Some overlaps in service eg someone alr served us the welcome sake, then another waitress came over and introduced the welcome sake to us and asked if we wanted any? Then sometimes the green tea isn't topped up and dishes served arent explained.

Overall, we felt that the dinner was quite average, enough to satisfy but not enough for us to go back.

Kaiseki Yoshiyuki

B1-39 Forum The Shopping Mall

8188 0900

Tues-Sun 7-11pm

Website

Call the number to make reservations! Do note that you have to provide your credit card details upon confirmation of reservation and that there is a policy whereby you have to notify them of any changes (time, no. of pax, cancellation etc) at least 2 days before else charges will be incurred!!