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| FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 21, 2018 | THE STRAITS TIMES | happenings life D5 FOOD Tan Hsueh Yun Food Editor recommends PROMOTIONS FISH CURRY A HIDDEN GEM Picks After watching the stunning win Korean Delights At Melt Cafe by Singapore-born Sashi Cheliah in Start with the seasoned spinach, MasterChef Australia, my friend and spicy cucumber salad and kimchi at I decide to celebrate with fish curry, Melt Cafe’s inaugural Korean feast. Food one of the dishes he cooked in At the live gourmet station is an the finale. elevated version of the Korean We could have gone to any number seafood pancake featuring prawn, of places, but I have never been to squid, scallop and lobster. Other Karu’s, which people rave about. And highlights are tteokbokki (hot and now, having had the fish head curry spicy rice cakes), Korean ginseng there, I wonder: Why has this banana chicken soup and braised short ribs leaf restaurant not been beeping with kimchi. Desserts include Korean wildly on my food radar? strawberry cake and tteok mochi. PHOTOS: SE7ENTH, THYE MOH CHAN It has been in Bukit Timah for 25 years and is on the fifth floor of what WHERE: Level 4 Mandarin Oriental used to be called Sime Darby Centre. Singapore, 5 Raffles Avenue MID-AUTUMN FESTIVAL MRT: Promenade WHEN: Till Sept 30, Fish Head Deluxe (right, from $24 Discount Vouchers, Free Tea for small) arrives in a metal pot, with a 6.30 - 9.30pm PRICE: $78++ (Sun - Thu), $88 (Fri & Sat) a person Leaves From Thye Moh Chan tomato and half a lime on top. The Celebrating 75 years of heritage this snapper head is just cooked, but TEL: 6885-3500 INFO: E-mail mosin-dining@ mohg.com year, Thye Moh Chan has introduced what takes my breath away is the red bean mochi with salted egg yolk smoothness of the dish. There are no (above) to its classics selection, sharp edges, no burning heat or 1919 Waterboat House Power Shots alongside favourites such as inappropriately assertive spice. All is salty/sweet tau sar with salted egg The 1919 Waterboat House’s Power fine and mellow. The okra and chunks yolk/melon seeds, Teochew classic Shots – juice shots using ingredients of brinjal are tender, but not mushy. double delight, Mao Shan Wang with specific health benefits – are To go with the fish, we have biryani durian and yam with salted egg yolk. housemade with no artificial rice, which comes with two papadum, a Each box has a $3 discount voucher flavouring, colouring or sugar. serving of cabbage cooked with lentils and the purchase of two boxes The four shots include The All-In-One and another of bittergourd stewed entitles customers to a free canister (red dragonfruit, green apple, young with tomatoes ($3.70 a person). of Chinese tea leaves worth $5.80. Deep-fried pieces of fish roe ($7.30 ginger and juniper berries) and WHERE (MRT): B1-11/12 Paragon, for small) are good to have alongside, The Detoxifer (sorrel and pineapple). 290 Orchard Road (Orchard); but skip the curry sotong ($5.70 for WHERE: 03-01 The Waterboathouse, 01-45/46 Chinatown Point, 133 New small). The squid is unpleasantly 3 Fullerton Road MRT: Raffles Place Bridge Road (Chinatown) WHEN: Till tough and chewy. WHEN: Weekdays, noon - 2pm Mon, 10am - 10pm PRICE: $33.80 - Masala tea ($3), with a heavy kick of PRICE: $2++ ($5++ for three shots) $43.80 (box of four pieces) ginger, is just perfect to end the meal TEL: 6538-9038 INFO: E-mail TEL: 6732-8858 (Paragon)/ and to toast Cheliah’s win. [email protected] 6604-8858 (Chinatown) WHERE: Karu’s Indian Banana Leaf INFO: thyemohchan.com Restaurant, 05-01, 896 Dunearn Road Swensen’s Gourmet Burgers MRT: King Albert Park Western chain restaurant Swensen’s Pu Erh Tea And Multigrain TEL: 6762-7284 OPEN: 10.30am has introduced a Gourmet Burgers Flavours At Marina Bay Sands to 10pm (Tuesdays to Sundays), menu. The Stuffed Beef Burger with Besides the traditional single yolk closed on Mondays Sambal Butter ($15.90) has a mash-up white lotus paste mooncakes, Marina INFO: www.karusindian of butter with housemade sambal Bay Sands is introducing pu erh tea restaurant.com served between brioche buns and and multigrain flavours. In its with pickled Japanese cucumber snowskin range, the spotlight is on slices. The Avocado Prawn Burger the new Strawberry Yoghurt ($15.90) comes with creamy avocado Champagne, which features a DELIGHTFUL aioli, topped with fruit salsa. combination of tangy strawberries, VEGGIE WHERE: Swensen’s outlets sugar-free green bean paste, a TART island-wide MRT: Various WHEN: Till champagne truffle and fizz candy. Yes, I know the Oct 30 PRICE: Burgers: $15.90 each The Japanese Sweet Potato snowskin focus is on bread. INFO: Go to swensens.com.sg/ mooncake, made of Okinawa sweet That fact is singapore for the list of outlets potato with gula melaka and azuki red trumpeted on beans, is said to be packed with the menu at White Rose Cafe Teochew Muay vitamins and antioxidants. Lowe’f. Just Diners who go for the Teochew WHERE: SweetSpot, Hotel Lobby under the name porridge promotion can mix and Tower 3, Marina Bay Sands, are the words match dishes from the a la carte 10 Bayfront Avenue MRT: Bayfront “pronounced menu, such as sliced fish with ginger WHEN: Till Mon, 7am - 10pm as loaf”, in case and spring onion ($12++), braised mui PRICE: $78 nett (box of eight there is choy with pork belly ($10++), chap snowskin or four traditional any doubt. chye ($9++) and chye poh omelette mooncakes) TEL: 6688-8588 But my ($9++). There are also set menus for INFO: E-mail SweetSpot@ favourite thing on two people which come with free-flow MarinaBaySands.com the menu at this cafe is not a sandwich – it’s Garden steamed rice and porridge as well as a Tart (above, $11), a vegetarian thing of beauty I could eat choice of hot chng tng or tang yuan in OKTOBERFEST every day. The crisp tart shell, also used for Lowe’f’s ginger-flavoured syrup. HORFUN WITH GOOD WOK HEI Dark Chocolate Tart ($5.50), is filled with brioche foam WHERE: White Rose Cafe, Lobby Level, German-Austrian Flavours Just when I thought I had tried every and crammed with veggies. York Hotel Singapore, 21 Mount At Blue Potato good stall at Alexandra Village Food The version I have is filled with braised red cabbage, Elizabeth MRT: Orchard WHEN: Oct 1 - At Blue Potato, tuck into Centre, a friend finds yet another leeks, cherry tomatoes, baby potatoes, edamame, Nov 30, 11.30am - 10.30pm PRICE: A la Semmelknodelsuppe ($12++) – reason to go there. mushrooms, pickled carrot and spinach and showered carte dishes: $6++ - $12++; Sets A & B: Bavarian bread dumplings handmade Hor Fun Premium turns out plate with toasted sourdough breadcrumbs. $29++ each TEL: 6737-0511 using day-old bread – and other after plate of wide rice noodles full of Textures and flavours come at warp speed. Soft and INFO: E-mail whiterosecafe@ Oktoberfest specials such as grilled what is becoming so elusive – wok hei, yielding versus snappy. Zingy versus savoury. And the yorkhotel.com.sg bratwurst with sauerkraut ($18++), the expert charring of food in a crazy tart dough is delightfully short, which is to say it has a German sausages made with veal, hot wok. good fat-to-flour ratio. In the middle of it all is that beef and pork, and roast Mui fan is also on the menu, brioche foam, full of umami. This is alchemy that works. schweinshaxe ($34++), roasted pork but why bother? Go for the horfun Of course, the sandwiches, which form the bulk of the knuckle with mashed potatoes, (above, $4.50 or $7), which can be menu, call out to me. sauerkraut and gravy. From Austria is topped with sliced fish, a mix of Salted Beef Brisket ($16) tastes better than it looks. the wiener schnitzel ($30++, chicken) seafood or beef. The shreds of beef look grey, but pack a lot of flavour and its national desserts, apple The toppings don’t matter much to from a five-day brining. Better yet, the slices of rye strudel ($12++) and Sachertorte me and, truth be told, the fish could be Pullman are properly toasted and crisp. Grain mustard chocolate cake ($12++). fresher. Really, the star of the show is for any kind of deep-fried chicken. provides the required lift. WHERE: Level 2 Swissotel Merchant the horfun. Its smokiness is off the So, roast meats at Lau Phua Chay, Porky Pig ($15) would be perfect if the slices of pork Court, 20 Merchant Road MRT: Clarke charts and I wish the cooks would not soya sauce chicken noodles and giant belly had more meat. The fat is wobbly and delicious, no Quay WHEN: Till Oct 15, noon - 3pm, blanket the noodles with so much shrimp dumplings from Xiang Jiang, doubt, but it is impossible to eat all three slices plus the 6.30 - 10pm PRICE: $12++ - $34++ sauce. I shall urge restraint the next Old Punggol Satay or Hor Fun brioche bun without needing a nap after lunch. TEL: 6239-1847/1848 INFO: E-mail time I eat there. Premium? Of course, you could fight that with Super Lemon Tart dining.merchantcourt@ And possibly order a large platter of The only thing certain is that I’ll be ($5.50). The lavender flowers and shavings of white swissotel.com har cheong kai, or prawn paste washing my meal down with an chocolate do not distract from what makes this a great chicken (right above, $8 to $12).