Roasted meat from Che Lau Ban (Casuarina Road)

A friend of mine took me to eat the roasted meat (i.e. "siu yoke" in Cantonese) from Che Lau Ban at 134 Casuarina Road (next door to Casuarina prata) near Peirce Reservoir two years ago. This friend is a roasted meat connoisseur; he LOVES his roasted meat. Well, his love for it infected me as well over time. As the chinese saying goes, 近朱者赤，近墨者黑 (jin zhu zhe chi, jin mo zhe hei to literally mean: One who mixes with vermilion will turn red, one who touches pitch shall be defiled therewith; to figuratively mean: Good companions have good influence while bad ones have bad influence). Well, I grew to like roasted meat as a result of his enthusiasm and his constant sharing of his love for that meat.

One of his favourites is this stall at Casuarina Road, 车老板. The owner is an immigrant from Hong Kong, and I must say his roasted meat is always crispy, even at night! Most stalls' roasted meat becomes soft at night or if you take it home. But this stall's roasted meat stays crisp and crunchy even when we buy it back to accompany our red wine, during our RMRW (i.e. Red Meat Red Wine) gatherings. Very nice! Definitely worth a trip or two once in a while.

Picture taken from http://photos-h.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc3/hs193.snc3/20068_288092529237_689539237_3217768_7474934_n.jpg

Fine Cuts! at Central

I LOVE steaks! But because of my weak stomach, which cannot stomach any form or uncooked food, the steaks that I eat must be VERY well-done! And therein lies the problem. Many cooks / chefs are puzzled about this. They will grill the steaks the way they feel should be done. Sometimes I wonder if they are paying for my steaks!!! I am the customer, I pay for the steaks, but I don't seem to get the steaks done in the way I need it to be done! I have been to a few steak places, such as Angus Steakhouse on the top level of Takashimaya (which reputedly serves excellent steak which I don't really think so! But that's my opinion), the ubiquitous Jack's Place (which in my opinion is ... we'll just leave it as that), Outback Steakhouse, among others. None of them, and I repeat, NONE of them have been able to give me the steak well done in the way I like it and in a way that still retains it's natural fragrance.
Fine Cuts at Central basement is in my frank opinion AWESOME! It's cheaper than the rest, and your clothing will reek of oil (due to its poor ventilation) after your satisfying meal. So, it might be a good idea to go to this place just before heading home.
Fine Cuts serves Kobe beef, the American version. It used to have the Japanese version, since they are a first and foremost a supplier of meat to restaurants / hotels in Singapore. Anyway, they are the only ones that have been able to grill the Kobe beef in the way I like it - well done and absolutely heavenly. The fragrance, succulence and tenderness are retained even though it is well done. Absolutely delectable!
Of course, if you order the Kobe version, you might have to pay $60-$70-odd depending on its weight. If you ordered the non-Kobe versions, it will cost around $20-$40-odd, which is quite reasonable considering its size. I wouldn't recommend getting the set. The a-la-carte version is the REAL thing! Absolutely fantastic! But hey, that's my opinion!

Photo taken from http://yumyumformytumtum.files.wordpress.com/2010/04/p1000748.jpg

Curry rice from 888 Plaza Woodlands

Perhaps I have cheap taste buds, but I find that a satisfying plate of curry rice, or economical rice as it is more commonly termed nowadays, is more worth it than a meal at an expensive restaurant. I remember I LOVED the curry rice my grandfather bought for breakfast on Sunday mornings when I was young. It had the most fragrant curry and extremely crispy and tasty fried pork chop strips. I never had such a satisfying dish of curry rice until I discovered it by chance at a coffeeshop at 888 Plaza Woodlands. It's located at Woodlands Drive 50 / Woodlands Avenue 4. It's just next to the NTUC Supermarket.

It is a nondescript economical rice (to use the current common term), that hires quite a number of Chinese (i.e. migrants from People's Republic of China). I believe the cooks are from Malaysia because of the Malaysian chinese accent that they have. Anyway, most of the foodstalls in Singapore hire Malaysian Chinese because they are willing to work in the heat and in a very uncomfortable environment; many Singaporeans choose not to because of the conditions mentioned. (So sometimes there is reason to wonder why Singaporeans are complaining so much about these foreign talents when Singaporeans themselves don't want to do many of such jobs! If we don't hire these foreign talents to do these jobs, who is going to? Perhaps Singaporean spirits???)

Apologies for the digression; back to the food.

The deep fried pork chop strips are crispy and tasty! I have not tasted anything quite like that since I was young. Many other economical rice stalls, such as the VERY over-priced Scissors Rice, have such pork chop strips, but they don't quite have that taste, that texture, that fragrance. Usually my wife and I will have that particular dish as one of our food dishes in our packed economical rice. It's a must have for me and my wife. We have similar taste with regard to this dish. Writing about this makes my mouth water. Maybe I should pop by the stall for some economical rice!

Applebee's at Triple One Somerset

I had  Applebee's at Triple One Somerset (i.e. the former PUB building at Somerset next to a once famous banana fritter / "goren pisang" stall) two weeks back with my wife. The decor looks good, and the food on the menu looks appetizing. Initially, I thought there might be some sort of famous apple dishes, such as apple pie, apple strudel, etc. To my surprise, when I scrutinized the menu, there was no such dish! So much for the "apples"! I have a soft spot for apple pies, if you don't know me.

Anyway, when we tried to order, the service was ... lacklustre. No smiles; just a glum look as if she were not really interested in taking our orders. Hmmmm.... If it were jam-packed with customers, I can still understand this sort of "reluctance", but there were only a few tables occupied. It was not crowded by any standard. Oh well.

We ordered, and the food came. I ordered pork ribs, since I thought if it is satisfactory, I could take my dad to try it. After all, he likes pork ribs. My wife ordered a dish of pasta. The food was ... less than satisfactory. It was not worth a trip to an area that is slightly out of the way, and certainly not worth the cost - around $60!

Neither my wife nor I will want to visit the place again, even though we got a $6 voucher as a result of paying more than $60 for that meal. Service and food overall did not even meet a basic satisfactory standard, in our opinions.

But if you are interested to try, here's the address:

Photo taken from http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v218/cknewsstand/228faa34.jpg
Applebee's Triple One Somerset
111 Somerset Road
#01-11/12 Triple One Somerset
Singapore (238164)

Hello, world!

Had drinks with Jane at The Fullerton's Post Bar last Friday. We were once regulars to that lounge, to the extent that the lounge manager, the waiter who attended to us (since we nearly always sat at the same table), and the bartender recognised us by sight.

Anyway, we had not been there for nearly a year, so when we went last week, we were surprised that the lounge manager remembered us, or rather me, due to the fact that I have cropped facial hair. The bartender had now become the bar manager, and was no longer fixing drinks. In fact, he was the one barking orders at the other bartenders now! Cool!

I ordered a glass of Australian red wine, and my wife ordered her favourite Malibu Bay Breeze. We both enjoyed our drinks, and ordered a second one after finishing the first drink.

I then ordered a French red, and it proved to be a mistake. I did not like it. On retrospect, I have never really French wines, save the expensive Chateau Lafitte Rothschild which a close friend introduced to me and Jane many years back. It cost over S$700 then, and it was the drink that created a fascination for red wines in me. But other than that red wine, I have never really liked any other French red, no matter the region.
Maybe it's because the French reds I have had over the years have cost less than S$100. It seems that cheap French reds are not to my taste.

On the other hand, Australian reds, especially their inimitable Shiraz has never failed my tastebuds; not once, regardless of how cheap it is. Australian reds are good, even when they are cheap! I especially like the Yellowtail label. They have never failed my taste buds! Cheap and AWESOME tasting!