Archive for the ‘Taste Buds’ Category
Regular readers will know I have a weakness for pasta and sushi. So when I read about the delicious lobster pasta from Otto Ristorante, an Italian restaurant that had been established for about a year or so now, I made a mental note to visit because the recommendation came from the , a lady whom I have never met before but am quite positive our taste buds more or less synchronise.
It made the perfect lunch spot when a girlfriend surprised me with her shout-out to meet for lunch. There, I found good service from Shar, a familiar face previously from Garibaldi Group, who was very accommodating with our various requests when placing the orders. In the end, I opted for the set lunch just so I don’t have to think too much given I knew I had to have the pasta as my main course. The regular set lunch costs a reasonable $35++ but I topped up some to make a switch.
Now, I shall not waste too much time talking about the appetizer and dessert, both of which were average at best. Onto the main course that I had been wanting to try, while I cannot proclaim the pasta to be the best that I had, Otto’s was quite well executed. I would have preferred it spicy as stated in the description, but what I was served, definitely had no heat at all.
Having said that, the al dente linguine pasta, a generous serving at that, was coated with a most moreish sauce and there were fresh lobster chunks dotted all over though I did find myself wishing there was more! I was stuffed after all that carb but I am already eyeing the other pastas on the menu!
28 Maxwell Road
#01-02 Red Dot Traffic Building
Singapore 069120
Tel: 6227 6819
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This post is for my friend, J, who was policing my blog and reminded me I was not updating fast enough 
So, Sui Japanese restaurant is first introduced by my friend D. Initially put off by this hidden amongst a row of shophouses near Chinatown/Tanjong Pagar border because it is a little inconvenient to access for me, but it was after all close to town and I was motivated to find a restaurant to replace my old haunt, Tomo Japanese Dining, which is now defunct.
The kind of familiarity between my taste buds and the sushi chef is very important to me and a couple of visits later, I am pleased that I feel fairly positive about this place and the Chef/Owner Andy. He is very passionate about his food and tries to be creative with his sushi.
His sashimi was fresh and sliced thickly with clean cuts. If I had to pick bones, they were sliced just a bit too thick, reminding me of Wasabi Tei’s version. But to give benefit of doubt, we were the only customers for lunch and since he was preparing the sashimi fresh from whole fishes, he could have been more generous that normal since he believes that the fresh fish should be eaten within 1-2 hours and not be kept.
One can still find traditional sushi from the regular menu. However, going omakase allows you to experience Chef’s creative sushi. He loves being innovative and is constantly trying to find new ways to serve and garnish his sushi with different ingredients that would excite the tastebuds. He can be a little heavy handed with salt but nothing a gentle reminder could not solve.
I am not a big fan of ankimo but the little ball looked so cute I just ate it. I am glad that he made the sushi small and used a citrus dressing to cut the richness. The result was very yummy and I could easily have another.
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Chez Patrick, a chef-owner restaurant with two branches in Hong Kong. Chef Patrick was a really earnest guy, going around the tables to share on his menu and the daily items.
The concept is simple – one chooses either the 3- or 4-course (with cheese) set dinner.
Starter – Goat’s cheese roll-ups with grilled zucchini (cold), red bell pepper and anchovies mousse cake (warm).
I thought the goat’s cheese mousse tasted slightly spicy and I wondered if my taste buds were off until Chef Patrick was explaining to the table next to ours that, of course, there was chorizo in the goat’s cheese. So that explained the slight spiciness and again, I was convinced I simply oculd not run away from pork in HK!. That aside, the warm mousse cake was quite interesting though it reminded me of otah.
Main – Bouillabaisse with fresh king prawn, seabass and snapper (a bit fishy) and (turned) potatoes
Now, the broth was rich and comforting. We were served a platter of thin toasts that we left aside after a bite. Chef Patrick actually came by to enquire if anything was wrong with the bread. He was not looking too happy and I wished I could joke and tell him I was on low-carb diet but I thought he would definitely blow up. As it turned out, the bread was not crunchy because they were air-dried. That would allow the bread to soak up the broth without turning into a mess. Ah! I felt enlightened after his lecture.
Desset – Warm chestnut cake with dark chocolate sauce and burnt caramel ice cream
I really enjoyed dessert becaue there was a subtle hint of chestnuts in the chocolate cake plus it was not too sweet. The ice cream was also very good, smooth and thick.
Overall, I enjoyed the dinner very much. The food was decent and the atmosphere was just very homely ( I loved its old colonial style toilets with octagon marble tiles!).
Chez Patrick
G/F, 26 Peel Street
Central, Hong Kong
Tel: 2541 1401
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We had an opportunity recently to attend a food review that is out of what we have covered till now. Up to now, PenangTuaPui has limited posting on Indian food which we are beginning to cover for more. We are lucky to be in touch with Karaikudi Restaurant to do a food review about their Indian Cuisine as well as to understand more about indian culture and indian food.
There are two Karaikudi outlets in Penang with this one at Market Street, which is inside Penang’s Little India itself while the second outlet is at Tanjung Bungah. The chefs for these two restaurants are different although it is handled by the same management.
We have the upper floor for the food review purpose so that our presence will not disrupt the present business operations below. In fact, we were there during the dinner so the tables below were pretty much packed anyway.
Most of the decorations inside Karaikudi are imported from India to imitate the environment of the original Karaikudi city, the capital of Chettinad. The painting above is also an import from the homeland of Chettiyars.
Meet the fellow bloggers , , , , , and . Where is PenangTuaPui? As usual, the 4 of us are at the lower right of the picture 
We are lucky to have Hafiz (Marketing Manager) and Lakshmanan (Restaurant Manager) to be our hosts for the food review. Both of them provided lots of explanation and background about Karaikudi and the dishes we had to enable us understand more about Indian Cuisine.
For a start, we decided to do something different on the food review with the use of an evaluation form. This form actually helps us to jot down our taste and perception at the moment we taste it when things are still clear in the mind. It will also let the restaurant know of the so called customers’ feedback.
Mango Lassi (RM4.00) was the drink of the day which came in medium height glass. Any Indian restaurant you go to will tell you that their Mango Lassi is good and this one is no exception either. The mango lassi is thick and full of flavour but less creamy (less butter taste) compared to Passions of Kerala.
Chettinad Style Vegetable Soup (RM3.00) is a home made vegetable soup with spices and the yellowish colour on the soup is because of the use of dahl. The soup is watery type and not as thick as the western style while the taste is not that strong either. Perhaps, this is not just our style.
Bittergourd chips (RM6.00) is an addictive appetizer served with fried chilies and curry leaves. The bittergourd used is smaller type which is much bitter compared to its bigger brother.
Taking the first bite of this bittergourd, one can feel the spiciness surrounding the bittergourd snacks but gradually the bitterness taste becomes more evident and the effect seems to linger for some time. The spices used have encapsulated well the bitter taste at the begining but tingling your taste buds with spiciness before letting the bitterness sets in.
The crispy bittergourd can be quite addictive too despite the bitter taste. Each time after we finish one chip, there was a mix feeling for spiciness and bitterness that somehow tempting us to take the next bites. The Kashmir Chili used was quite crispy as well but not too hot in taste. Still the spiciness flows down the throat as we swallow it.
Chicken cutlet (RNM6.00) comes in a lovely shape that bring smiles among some of the bloggers. Want to take a guess why? Because it is made into the heart shape specially for us…hehe
The boneless pieces of chicken is marinated with eggs and bread crumbs before being fried. It contains chopped green chili and coriander as well.
The chicken cutlet is quite tender without sign of being overfried and taste a little bit, (yes, just a little bit) spicy because of the chili. Tam Ciak said it feels like eating the spicy KFC chicken nugget….
We thought this is supposed to be a dessert but Chettinad Special Dosai (RM4.00) can just be a sweet dish to have with main dish.
The dosai (thosai) is actually a favourite among the kids because of its colourful and sweet taste. It has cut dried cherry on top as well as sesame seeds. Once you open the inner part, it reveals the dessicated coconut in different colours red, green, yellow and original colour.
We initially thought nutmeg was included as well but we got it wrong. The dosai can be eaten on its own or it goes well with the dishes we have too.
Chicken Briyani (RM9.50) comes in a typical Indian container that we normally see in the movie except this is much smaller. The briyani uses basmathi rice which is longer and more fragrant compared to normal rice. One piece of chicken drumstick is included in the briyani rice with an egg served on top of the rice.
Sometimes we just cannot help ourselves laughing when we see the names although we know this is how each dish is called. Yes, our bad for being such mischievious… Chicken Kothu Paratha (RM9.00) is essentially Prata (bread) that has been chopped and served together with cooked chicken. This dish looks simple enough with nothing to be amazed yet perhaps it is the simplicity of this dish that makes it special at Karaikudi.
Some of the dishes we have, clockwise from bottom left; Mutton Chukka Varuval, Chicken Briyani, Chettinad Potato Masala, Kadai Vegetable and Ladies Finger Pepper Fry. To know more about each of this dish, stay tuned for next post~!
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I learned to enjoy fresh mozzarella from my hubby’s Italian colleagues. The Italians pronounced it – Boo fah loh mot zah rrreallla! Otherwise, I wouldn’t touch those packets of cheese swimming in murky, milky water. You can find fresh mozzarella cheese from the cheese section. Usually, they are packed with water and it looks kind of turn off to see a blob of very white cheese in murky water. The normal brand I buy is Santa Lucia and if I am not mistaken it is about RM22 per ball.
To serve the cheese, I usually make a simple vinaigrette with olive oil, lemon juice, salt, freshly grinded black pepper and fresh basil (and chopped garlic if you don’t mind the strong smell). The oil to lemon juice is about 2 : 1. I.e. one teaspoon of lemon juice, two teaspoons of virgin olive oil. The rest are put according to taste.
If I can afford it, I usually buy Australian tomatoes which are sweeter and juicier. Otherwise, our local tomatoes will do. Slice the tomatoes and cheese to about the same thickness. Drizzle the vinaigrette dressing and enjoy.
In Italy, these are serve as appetizer. I had eaten some good fresh buffalo mozzarella in Italy and they are served in this manner too.
As for the above, the fresh buffalo mozzarella is from Langkawi Island. I am not sure this is a project of Pak Lah or Tun M. I saw Tun M’s photo on the banner at the exhibition at PISA.
The cost of the packet of fresh buffalo mozzarella is RM17 per pack (but was RM15 at the food fair). Though the name buffalo is there, the cheese does not smell like the kerbau at the bendang. Fresh mozzarella has very mild taste, milky and the texture is a bit chewy and firm. It does not have the cheesy flavour or creamy taste like the more mature cheeses.
For this Langkawi cheese, I have no idea what it tastes like because my taste buds are dead due to flu. I cannot even tell salty from sweet, what more the subtle tastes of the cheese. My hubby has gone to sleep so my children walloped all of them. Is it good? I don’t know.
.gif "That Tun M or Pak Lah Fresh Buffalo Mozzarella from Langkawi")
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