Lunch today was at Kuriya dining-fine japanese cuisine tucked away at a corner at Great World City, level 2. Its wood-swathed decor is aesthetically pleasing, with a zen touch and the dim lightings provided a nice ambience for the restaurant. And the open concept kitchen allows diners to watch the busy chefs at work.

The food is, of course, wonderful and fresh. The have all the old favourites like sashimi, tempura and sushi as well as many other types to suit different palates. You can choose either from the ala carte or the set menus.The presentation of the food is done very nicely as well. I recommend their set menu as its pretty value for money. I ordered the grilled cod in teriyaki sauce which came with piping hot miso soup, chawan mushi, appetiser, salad, rice and even dessert(which is my favourite part). The cod meat was done until it was melt in the mouth and the sauce had the right consistency and taste.

The tempura was really good. It was fried to a lovely golden crisp. The batter was delightfully light and crispy and not greasy at all. I loved the mushroom tempura. Even after being soaked for a while in the soy sauce which came with the tempura, it still maintained its crispiness.

The grilled fish that we ordered(which was more expensive than the set), was the highlight of lunch, I supose. Though I do not appreciate fish all that much, I have to say it was grilled to perfection, the meat being fresh and tender. It did not come with any sauce, so the sweetness and flavour of the fish was really apparent.

Like I mentioned, the highlight for me was the dessert. Normally in japanese restaurant, what you get is probably green tea ice-cream or the likes. But here, the dessert that came with the set was really extraordinary. Very exquisitely presented and delicious, you have to take a moment to appreciate it before eating it because the portion is quite small. They have a different dessert each time we came. Today, it was a lovely mocha mousse cake with a small scoop of chocolate mint ice-cream the size of a tennis ball, and decorated with a small slab of white chocolate and fruits..

It is really a lovely japanese place with a good standard of food. Expect to pay at least $30 per person though, depending on what you order. Like I said, stick to the set menu and you can't go wrong. Though for the more adventurous and money to spare, the restaurant has many other delicious offerings.

Desserts at Coffee Club

Yesterday night, I went to Coffee Club for the second time that day, this time for desserts, with Dad and Aunt aubrey. We went to the one at Hotel Rendezvous, which was a nice chill out place, but we were bitterly disappointed as many of the cakes we wanted were sold out, like chocolate truffles, rum and raisin truffles, brownies etc...in the end, we settle for tiramisu mudpie(my choice), and chocolate peppermine cake(dad's choice),which turned out to be a poor choice. And dad ordered a tiramisu latte, and of course I ordered the house special which is the iced mocha vanilla.

The tiramisu mudpie consisted of a base of sponge followed by chocolate ice-cream and topped with mascarpone. It was nice and rich, though they were also ice in the ice-cream, home made ones are like that, I suppose. The chocolate peppermint cake paled in comparison with the mudpie. It consisted of layers of flourless chocolate sponge with peppermint cream in between. The peppermint layer could have been softer and I thought the chocolate taste was pretty non-existent, though it could have been because I didnt like sponge as well..

Dad's tiramisu latte had tia maria and marsala(I think) in it,it was really nice but abit too sweet for my liking, though I think alcohol and coffee goes really well together. And my own ice mocha vanilla was deliciously thick with a scoop of vanilla ice-cream on top. My only complaint is that there was too much ice in it...hahah

Verdict, I still prefer the muddy mudpie, chocolate truffle and chocolate a la mode. And I think the outlet at Ngee Ann city is still the best, with the widest selection.

ps: Picture were taken with my nokia phone, pardon the poor quality and the size of it ;)

Ever since HP came back from Shanghai, we have been eating out alot, and all nice places too, like Cafebiz, Crystal Jade, Empire Cafe...etc...and today, we went to Coffee Club, one of my favourite dining place. Its a pity my parents do not really support my piture taking of the food I eat, so I cannot post much pictures of food in this blog, so you just have to rely on words. Everytime I see nice food with a lovely presentation, I just have this strong urge to go trigger happy..sigh..

Anyway, for me, the most memorable thing about Coffee Club has got to be its desserts, especially its gigantic muddy mudpie which my dad and I are most fond of, with a layer of coffee ice-cream and a layer of chocolate ice-cream atop a chewy oreo crust sprinkled liberally with cookie crumbs and drizzled generously with chocolate sauce, and also its brownies a la mode(which I think I have mentioned before), the New York cheesecake is a sight to behold too and really yummy, I really wonder how they make its so nice and smooth at the top,without any depressions or bumps or dents whatsoever. One of these days, I am going to bake cheesecake again, after my not very successful attempt at chocolate swirl cheesecake quite some time back. Sure, it tasted good, but it also looked very ugly. And aesthetically pleasing food is very important.

I digressed again..hahah.. We went to the outlet at Ngee Ann city, and set at a table with a very nice view of the christmas tree and the constant aroma of coffee. I ordered a swiss melt sandwich today, not wanting to have a heavy lunch, and it was a very good choice. It is creamy stewed mushrooms with melted swiss cheese inside two soft and fluffy focaccia buns. (Ripped the picture from the Coffee Club website..hah.It tasted as good as it look) Mum ordered the set which came with Pumpkin soup that was deliciously thick and creamy and sweet, and its so healthy(think of all the antioxidants in pumpkin), and Penne with salmon sauce with vodka. It was pretty nice, with a cream based salmon sauce, but I still preferred my sandwich.

After lunch, there was another surprise. We went down to the food hall as Mum and HP wanted to buy a box of chocolates as they were going to a friend's house for dinner tonight. They bought a big box of Godiva chocolates which cost $77. And when I was busy looking longingly at the chocolate truffles in the glass display, HP bought another box of Godiva 50% dark cocoa caraque. Its supposed to be for us, but since I am the only one who actually appreciates chocolate at home...heeehee..guess I would be the lucky one finishing it. Man, I am so going to slowly savour every piece. I do so love dark chocolate. I just bought a piece of 72% cocoa Lindt dark chocolate and have been eating it everyday, a piece a day. When it comes to good chocolates, a piece is more than enough to satisfy...mmm

An indulgent day

Methinks I overindulged today. All the sugar in my body. I really ought to stop, shouldnt I? Problem is, I cant!!! Haha,lets see my 'damage' for today.

#1: I went to the orchard library today and studied at Cafe Galilee after school. And while I was there, I ordered a cocoa mocha ice-blended coffee(it wasnt very nice to sit there and not order anything...hahah) It was very nice and icy and refreshing, and of course chocolatey, though it didnt pack much of a caffeine punch

#2:Meiji Hi- Cacao almond bitter chocolate which was on sale at NUS Coop, at the price of $3 for 2 packets, how cheap can good chocolate get? And I only finished one packed by myself.. Only :)

#3: After dinner of Tiong Bahru Char Siew rice(with all the thick brown sauce), I met steph at Great world city, supposedly to watch a movie to do a review for one of our module, but hmm, apparently we had a different agenda. We went to Cinnabun Cafe. The only cafe in singapore(that I know of), that sells cinnamon buns, and very nice ones too. We shard a walnut cinnabun and a bread and butter pudding which I had been eyeing for very long(and was not disappointed) and we also a large frothy steamed vanilla milk...ahh...life the way I like it

And lastly, as if all those were not enough, the last and most serious damage, I started eating peanut butter from the jar, by the spoonful. Yeah, skippy's chunky peanut butter is the best. I think exam stress is getting to me...hahah.

Oh, and guess what, Ben& Jerries outlet is open at Great World City. Gone are the days of buying tubs from supermarket. I do so love the cookie-dough and butter pecan ones, actually I like everything, but thats besides the point.

I have just been tagged by Cheryl of She Bakes and She Cooks on the topic of "Childhood food memories". Its the first time I have been tagged,so I am pretty excited...hahah.. How does this meme work?If you are tagged, here's what you do: Remove the blog at #1 from the following list and bump every one up one place; add your blog's name in the #5 spot; link to each of the other blogs for the desired cross-pollination effect.

1. FoodCrazEE
2. Jan's Kitchen
3. Play-play in the kitchen
4. She Bakes and She Cooks
5.TreSSa loves baking

Here goes:

#1: Chocolate swirl cheesecake from Coffeee Beans: That's probably where my love of cheescake originated from. I remember mum used to bring me to the one at Scott's shopping centre for a treat, and I would always order that. Very rich, very sinful, and with just the right amount of chocolate layer which complemented the plain layer perfectly. Unfortunately, they don't have it anymore, and I have yet to find the replacement. Now, my weakness would be Blueberry hazelnut cheesecake from Cedele, soft baked and very moist, veyr rich cheesecake with whole blueberries and hazelnut topping.

#2: Durian cream puff: My auntie, who used to babysit me when I was a child, had a bakery right at home, pretty small scale, but the things she could come up with were amazing. Her kitchen was messy and full of baking stuff, and the house perpetually smelled, well, like a bakery..hahah. Many a times, I would wander in and pop something into my mouth when she wasnt looking(shhhh). Her specialty was and is mini durian cream puff. Made from the real stuff, it packed all the punch that it should, with a light choux pastry filled with rich and yummy and creamy durian cream, definitely her best-seller. She also bakes the most amazing chinese new year goodies, pineapple tarts, almond cookies and cashew nut cookies are 3 of my favourites. And even now, every chinese new year, we would order these from her and no one else. She has since 'retired' and only bakes for leisure and family and church. I hope one day she would pass all her secret recipes to me, after all, who better than her niece to pass on the legacy :p

#3: Fish head curry: I used to tag along with my mum when she went for lunch with her ex-colleagues at Marina South. They had a stall there which sold the most amazing claypot fish head curry. It is still etched fondly in my memory. The thickness and aroma of it and the sheer spiciness, which was enough to make the most seasoned curry eater to go "shiok ah". There even had freshly toasted baguette to go with it, and I would drench mine in curry sauce. Thats probably where I got my love of spicy food from, and also my love of curry

#4: Steamed egg custard:Ahhh, I remember with fondness these treats I had when I was young. I always looked forward to this almost weekly affair. It is such a simple dessert, just egg, water and sugar, but I loved it, and still do. Simple though it may be, it is hard to achieve the perfect texture and smoothness. I always marvel at how they do it in restaurants, consistently soft and so smooth it just slides down your throat. cos the few times I tried making it, it turned out either too hard or still in its liquid state. So I have given up, and just content myself with eating it outside. Chinatown has got quite a few nice ones, though I didnt take note of the names, and also Dessert Hut at Peace Centre at Selegie.

#5: Tang yuan, also known as glutinous riceballs with stuffed peanut or sesame fillings. I remember making it with my grandma. I had great fun making it, but of course it was nothing fanciful and certainly out of shape, and we used orange sugar as filling instead of sesame. I was very young back then, and I just loved biting into the tang yuan to find the filling oozing out. Now, tang yuan is still one of my favourite food, it just brings back the nostalgic memories. There is a great stall at Clementi, which is convenient for me as it is so near to school. I can eat it even when I have no appetite for anything else, and also when I want something warm and comforting.

There you have it, my top five childhood food memories. Note that 4 out of 5 are sweet stuff...hahah.. I have an incurable sweet tooth, so there. Now, I have to pass on the baton, but I am not aquainted with any other food blogger, so I shall tag 2 friends whom I know love food. Adrian and Jan, you are next...hahah...

I discovered a new gem of a place today called Island Creamery. It was as recommended by a friend who raved about its teh tarik ice-cream,and being adventurous, me and steph decided to go try it out. All we knew was it its opposite Adam road market, and after some walking, we found it at Serene Centre, a nondescript place that we would have overlooked had we not been looking for it. Its quite a small and desserted place, perfect for chilling out. And the ice-cream is great!!

The ice-creams are pretty no-frills as well, served in a plastic bowl, with your choice of Horlicks or Milo topping, or add an extra 50cents for toppings like nuts or chocolate rice etc. They had many interesting and unique flavours for the local tastebuds like Teh tarik, kopi-o, bandung, kahlua latte, horlicks, burnt caramel, pulau hitam, durian. We tried the teh tarik(of course), burnt caramel and kahlua latte. The teh tarik ice-cream tasted exactly like the real thing,but in ice-cream form, and packed quite a punch. It was creamy, but not overly sweet. Just perfect for a hot day. The burnt caramel one was quite a treat as I like caramel...I found it really yummy. I liked that their ice-cream portion was pretty generous, and at the price of $2.50 per scoop, or $4 for double scoop, it was really worth it. Ahh, what a treat, escaping from the stress of life and indulging in such great stuff, I savoured every mouthful of my ice-cream...delicious!!

We also did a little exploration of Serene centre and found this supermarket called Tierney's Gourmet,which you can guess from its name that it sells gourmet food. I was so excited when I saw it, and we just had to go in. They sold lots and lots of different sausages and the likes, and also meringues, chocolates, biscuits etc. They also had quite abit of baking stuff. I walked out of the place with only a packet of Nestle Hot cocoa mix- double chocolate meltdown. Even buying that was quite hard cos there were so many flavours to choose from, like milk choc, rich choc, s'mores, marshmellows, french vanilla and even Butterfinger hot cocoa. The double chocolate meltdown was pretty thick and chocolatey, but a bit too sweet, and I still think the hot cocoa mix from Swissmiss is still the best, especially the chocolate sensation flavour. But of course, nothing beats the old fashioned way of melting chocolate in hot millk to make hot chocolate. That brings to mind Suckao from Max brenner...mmm..now, thats an indulgence. My own version is to microwave milk and hershey's chocolate morsels together until the mixture is smooth. Thats a quick and simple chocolate fix...

What would I do without chocolate? Haha