One of the good things about living in Singapore is that there are so many restaurants around. Even though I eat out quite often, it is still impossible for me to try all of them.

The new Graze at 38 Martin Road (sister to the original Graze at Rochester Park) is a relatively new restaurant, and I’ve been wanting to go there since my visit to KHA next door.

Graze is actually quite close to my ideal restaurant. It is classy, elegant, sexy, romantic, and modern. It’s the kind of place where you can go for a business luncheon, a romantic date, a laid-back weekend brunch, and even a private party.

There are some restaurants that offer a huge variety of options, but they mostly end up serving mediocre food. I like the fact that Graze kept it simple; there are only a few dishes under each section of the menu.

We started with a salad and Sumac Seared Scallops ($19). They were enough to keep us occupied while waiting for the mains to come.

Graze is known for their grilled items. Go for the 240g Wagyu Rump Steak ($64), or even better, the 1kg Black 250 day grain-fed Angus Rib ($128) if you are feeling hungry. Otherwise, the other main courses like the signature Pan-Seared Barramundi ($34) and Oven-Baked Sea Bass ($32) are worth a try too.

I was actually eyeing the Wagyu Rump Steak, but ended up getting the Jumbo Tiger Prawns ($34) as my dining companion was craving for seafood. Luckily, it turned out to be quite good. The prawns were juicy and meaty, and the skinny frites were equally addictive.

“How are we supposed to finish this?” I thought to myself, as this humongous monster arrived on the table. We watched as the butter slowly melt on top of the 300g Victorian Berkshire Kurobuta Pork Chop ($45).

I lurveee the roast vine-ripened cherry tomatoes that came along as a side. They were extremely sweet, and when I bit into them, they shot a gallon of juice into my mouth. Kurobuta pork with vine-ripened tomatoes? I think I’m in love.

The two of us shared four desserts: Pina Colada ($14) – coconut parfait with crispy wafer; Apple Tarte Tatin ($13) – served with a scoop of vanilla ice cream; Black and White ($15) – Valrhona dark chocolate cream paired with vanilla bean ice cream; and Steamed Dark Chocolate Pudding ($15) – somewhat like a pudding version of Chocolate Lava Cake.

Among them, my favourite was definitely the Apple Tarte Tatin ($13). Every bite was better than the previous one, and before we knew it, we’d pretty much scraped the plate clean.

Graze at Martin Road (near Robertson Quay) is one of those places that I’d classify as semi fine dining: you pay fine dining prices to eat decent food in a slightly casual (and cosy) environment. As much as I like the ambience of the place, the price is not exactly affordable; I’ll most likely go back for dinner during a special occasion, but I definitely want to try their brunch on weekends.

Singapore Food Blog Review
Graze restaurant
38 Martin Road
Tel: +65 6509 1680

Lunch: Tue to Fri 12pm – 3pm
Dinner: Tue to Sat 6pm – 11pm
Brunch: Sat & Sun 10am – 4pm

Note: This was an invited media tasting.

Regular readers know that I am a big fan of the Prive Group by restaurateurs Yuan Oeij. After trying their new Josper Grill menu recently, I am convinced that Prive Restaurant at Keppel Bay is one of the best restaurants in Singapore.

The Josper grill is favoured by many well-known chefs around the world. The system has a greater heat control, and the dual function of oven and grill signficantly reduces the cooking time of the meat.

There are 8 items on Prive’s Josper Grill menu, with options like seafood platter, kurobuta pork, lamb rack, ribeye and tenderloin. Naturally, prices are slightly steeper. The rack of kurobuta pork is available for $52, while the 280g Ribeye Cap is $75. The normal ala carte menu, on the other hand, is much more affordable. Prices range from $13-24 for appetisers; $24-35 for main courses; and $10-16 for desserts. Prive Restaurant also offers a 3 course set lunch during weekdays at $35.

Between the three of us, we shared 3 appetisers, 4 main course and a dessert platter. For appetisers, we started with the Grilled Watermelon Stack ($15). The sweet and juicy grilled watermelon was great, but I’m not sure if I’d pay $15 for it. I’m not a big fan of salad, but we had a pretty decent Apple, walnut & Brie Salad ($13). For me, the highlight from the appetiser menu was the Pan Seared Foie Gras ($24). Yummy goose liver with caramelised banana strudel, baby spinach and raisin brioche.

After having three appetisers and a glass of wine, we proceeded with the main courses.

To be honest, I thought that the Capellini with Sakura Ebi tasted like bee hoon – an atas $24 bee hoon. Having said that, it was done just right, and the sakura ebi added an additional dimension to a tasty plate of bee hoon.

We also had the Double Rib Lamb Rack ($58) which you see in the photo above. It was actually quite good, but I was preoccupied with the kurobuta pork and ribeye.

I was delighted to see the Rack of Kurobuta Pork ($52) on Prive’s Josper Grill menu. I love pork. The 280g corn-fed U.S Snake River Farm Kurobuta Pork (the first picture of this post) was gorgeous. I’d gladly give up a steak for this rack of kurobuta pork anytime.

“Our steak is better than CUT Steakhouse”. Yuan told us at the start of dinner.

Having heard raved reviews about the steaks at CUT Marina Bay Sands (my foodie friends boldly proclaimed that they have the best steaks in Singapore), I was a little sceptical initially.

My partner and I were left speechless when we had our first bite of the steak. It was SO GOOD – definitely one of the best steaks I’ve had. And you know what? I wouldn’t exchange this steak for any kurobuta pork.

There are four steak options on the Josper Grill menu: the premium Black Angus Tenderloin ($58), 340g Centre-cut Ribeye ($58), 280g Ribeye Cap ($75) and the humongous 450g Thick Cut Ribeye Steak ($90).

The Dessert Platter ($32) is a great way to end the meal on a sweet note. It offers 6 mini version of the ala carte desserts. Clockwise from top left: Lychee Granite, Valrhona Chocolate Mille Feuille, Cinnamon Apple Strudel, Lemon Meringue Tart, Ice Cream Profiteroles, and Sticky Date Pudding.

While you are paying fine dining prices for the experience at Prive Restaurant, the food is hardly so. It is unpretentious and uncomplicated. Prive is definitely in my list of must-go restaurants in Singapore.

Singapore Food Blog Review
Prive Restaurant
2 Keppel Bay Vista
GF Marina at Keppel Bay
Tel: +65 6776 0777
Note: This was an invited media tasting.

There’s no other meat that can get me excited like kurobuta pork, not even wagyu. I know the Japanese beef is great, but my heart is already stolen the first time I had kurobuta.

I was skeptical when I saw that Grill-out is offering the kurobuta T-bone as part of their set lunch at only $11.50. Admittedly, the cut is T-bone and not the prized collar bone, but still, it’s kurobuta – the pork version of Kobe beef. Is this some gimmick? No, wait, cancel the last part.

Ho ho, just look at that piece of meat up there! It looks so sexy right? All my doubts were gone the moment I had the first bite. The pork was everything you could ask for; tender, juicy, with the fats providing the melt-in-the-mouth sensation: it was good!

You have to try kurobuta pork unless a) you absolutely hate and will not touch pork, or b) you want to save it for me. Aww.. Jokes aside, I think it’s important that you understand my point – get your hands on a piece of kurobuta pork, now!

Despite being very hungry, we only ordered one main course to share as we had an eye for the desserts next door. But I will definitely come back for the other premium meats they offered. If you are a meat-lover, here’s the place for you!

Grilled-out!
Blk 106 Clementi st 12
Sunset way #01-38E
Tel: 6774 7001

The best of everything. The sashimi platter ($120) was the highlight of our meal and we started with a bang; there’s tuna, pink prawns, hirame, uni (sea urchin). Every slice was so fresh, I could see the glitter in my dining companions eyes. While I’m not a big fan of “raw fish”, it’s definitely a feast for the eyes and treat for the palate to have it prepared so exquisitely.

The Sakura set dinner ($58 per set) which included appetiser of assorted braised vegetables Japanese style, spicy dynamic oyster, sushi roll. For sashimi there’s tuna, salmon and oyster, and this was followed by a steamed dish of chawanmushi, with a deep fried tofu from the land behind. The two mains would be grilled chicken and wagyu beef burger, if that’s not enough, there’s hot udon served with kakiage. And finally rounding off the meal with a chef’s special dessert.

The four of us ordered two sets to share because there was so much else to order from the ala carte menu!

Fortunately, the assortment of sashimi from the set menu came early, and an innocent question “more sashimi?” led to the fantastic sashimi platter you saw on the first photo.

I love eggs, all kinds of them; fried, half boiled, scrambled, sunny side-up, poached ones, anything – except steamed eggs. There are bits of chicken, crab stick, boiled prawns, ginko nuts, and shitake mushroom within the Chawanmushi.

The deep fried tofu and cheese wrapped with soy bean skin is up next, at first sight the sticky cheese looked promising, but upon tasting there wasn’t much wow – the cheese’s not enough and the whole taste was subtle, bordering on bland.

Our first main course of the menu came piping hot, the grilled chicken was served on a hot stone which was specially brought back from Mount Fuji, to ensure the meat retained its optimum temperature – while we took photographs!

Umami’s rendition of wagyu beef burger came in the form of two “meatballs”, while there was nothing spectacular of its appearance, the meat was sure tasty!

Hot udon served with kakiage was the last item on the Sakura menu before dessert. The tasting portion of the menu covered a variety and was decent, there’s two other set dinners at $88 and $128.

And now it’s where the real dinner starts, our selections from the ala carte menu.

A simple deep fried dried cuttlefish ($8) brought us back to the appetiser stage, and prepared us for all the food coming.

I enjoyed the Grilled cod wrapped with lettuce ($16) tremendously. The fish was lightly grilled on the outside and tasted good on its own. But it’s when we wrapped it within the lettuce, Korean-style, and the crunchiness of the lettuce supplemented and enhanced the freshness of the cod.

Clearly, the spicy dynamic oyster ($16 for 3) was everyone’s favourite. Befitting of its name, it had us on first bite in the Sakura menu and we ordered again. The tangy sauce was oh my god, so good! We slurped down the delicious oyster, and did not waste a single drop of the sauce. The best oysters in Singapore, and no, it’s not raw.

The comprehensive sushi menu made it difficult for us to choose from, but in the end for the love of salmon, we went for the Avocado salmon roll ($12). An elongated plate with eight pieces of makis, was indeed value for money.

A whole chunk of it, right in front of our eyes. The scared foie gras ($33), grilled with teriyaki sauce. Oh-oh-oh! Lightly grilled on the outside yet retaining a soft pink within, I swallowed it down – gulped, and wish that time stood still at that moment.

We were all excited by the Japanese beef – Umami served top grade wagyu! A sizzling sound signal the arrival of something magnificent, the marbling was so rich & dense that the meat literally melted in our mouth. I looked around and tried to speak, but no words came; I just allowed myself to quietly finish the meat, and inside I was secretly hoping there was more of this. It’s like totally God’s gift to mankind. Our jaws dropped when we heard that it’s a current promotional price of just $38 instead of the usual $60.

My previous encounter with Kurobuta pork was enough to tell me it’s good stuff, so when we browsed through the “from the land” menu, I immediately ordered the Braised kurobuta pork belly ($12).

“Eeekk!” The girls exclaimed when it was served. The fatty layers were enough to scare off the others, but not me. One bite of the braised pork belly, and one sip of beer, what more can you ask for?

The Rolled omelette with truffle oil ($8 for 5 pieces) was also one of Umami’s signature dishes. You like Japanese omelette? You will like this.

Like what the manager Nigel had mentioned, although the US Black Angus beef ($38) is great, but it’s not in the same league as the Japanese wagyu; the former is like human while the latter is god. The Angus tasted ordinary considering we had gone to heaven with the wagyu – the marbling was just not the same. But it’s not that the Angus wasn’t good, but because we had tried the wagyu first.

And finally after a very long and satisfying dinner, desserts came in the form of home made kurogoma brulee ($6), and home made custard pudding ($6). The former was a sesame version of creme brulee that I didn’t quite take to, but I love the home made custard pudding!

Umami has been around at Liang court since April and I have to admit I did not notice their presence previously when I went to Liang court. The very posh and club-like entrance made it rather intimidating for diners to step in, and they are currently making changes to the front decorations. There’s a current DBS 1-for-1 promotion for their $18 and $25 set lunches.

My appreciation to Lynda from DBS, Cherylene & Seema from Eurorscg, and the Nigel & his staff from Umami for the wonderful dinner. My third and final restaurant with DBS Foodster will be at Xin Cuisine, Holiday Inn Atrium, you can find out more information about the DBS Indulge Series here.

177 River Valley Road
#01-26 Liang Court
Tel: 6333 1166

I will have never imagine myself shelving out thirty bucks at a coffee shop.

But that’s what I did, for a piece of Kurobuta pork ($28), at Big D Grill. Oh man, I don’t know what to say, but I did that. I always have a thing for you, all the more I couldn’t miss it when so many people had praised you to the sky; now that I’ve you, I’m not so sure.

You were great that night, I couldn’t help gaping at your assets; they were huge. I carefully took a small nibble to start our foreplay, I moved downwards and craved for more, I took bigger bites; it was good, but the thing was, I’m not sure whether that justified the high price I’m paying for.

I’m sorry, but I’m a visual creature. I love sitting in nice, pretty ambience, sipping my drink and enjoying the food. I’m a sucker I know. But somehow, you lacked the “wow” factor that I so desired, maybe the lack of ambience was the reason.

We opted for the crabmeat linguine ($10.90) for our second main. It was hot, it was red, spicy, fiery hot. The crabmeat was overflowed generously; spicy crabmeat and linguine, I would prefer it to be slightly wetter though.

And for the only dessert available, the bonet ($4). I was half expecting chocolate lava to ooze out in the middle, but it wasn’t Instead, you got a very good chocolate pudding, served cold.

* * *

Now I’m not saying the kurobuta pork wasn’t worth the money, or for any of that matter, I’m not against stalls in coffee shop selling restaurant food, on the contrary I thought it’s good to have more options. But somehow I guess I still can’t fix my mentality to accept paying thirty bucks at a coffee shop. If, I had this at a restaurant, I’m sure it will be pretty much worth the money.

And frankly speaking, I really can’t see people shelving out thirty to forty bucks for premium meat, at a coffee shop, at least not yet. It’s only the crazy folks like us who will really pay top money for food, but I will definitely go back to try some of the other cheaper items on the menu.

Read Maureen’s post when she blog about it here.

Big D Grill
Blk 46 Holland Drive
#01-359
Tel: 96627040

The first of the many to come, Wan Hao Chinese restaurant at Marriott hotel.

Now what can I say? I totally love roast pork belly! The dish is often an indicator of the standard of a Chinese restaurant; Wan Hao’s rendition was nicely done – crispy top with a thin-and-nice layer of fats. “One cube definitely wasn’t enough”, I protested! But hey, there’s still thirty more dish to go!

Although I couldn’t exactly tasted which seven spices were use, but the combination was seductive to the palate, the Seven spices sea perch fillet.

And just before you are thinking Chinese restaurants are boring and served the usual-you-know-what food, the Hokkigai and salmon sashimi would certainly prove you wrong! Just look at the thickly-and-generous slices of the fresh sashimi. It-is-to-die-for.

For the tasting at Wan Hao, only Catherine of Camemberu fame and myself was present among the five of us. And she absolutely loved the Jelly fish with cucumber. Tangy and Q, it was a refreshing appetiser.

Like the no-smoking campaign slogon which asked you to say ‘No‘ to cigarettes, I could never say no to roast duck. My interpretation of a good roast duck: crispy skin with a layer of fats and tasty duck meat. This one had it all, and say it with me, Oomph-la-la!

Vermicelli with pork fillet. There wasn’t anything spectacular but this is just one, good, comfort food, which stood out among the delicacies we tried.

Beef tendon with white radish

In my humble opinion, Wan Hao has the best Ha Gau among the four places that we tried. All of them used top-quality fresh prawns, but what made the one here stood out was the the skin; some places would do it too thick, and some too thin – it was done perfectly here. Bravo!

I actually preferred the spring roll filled with smoked duck meat to the roasted duck. The smoked duck meat lived up to its name – the very smoky taste within the crispy spring roll.

While some people found that the addition of fish roe to the top only served as an adornment; I thought that it’s fine so long the tiny orange eggs wasn’t in excessive to overwhelm the taste of the siew mai.

I ain’t a big fan of asparagus – the word alone put me off; but I had to try this translucent pretty-looking asparagus dumpling, which tasted decent.

The sea perch fillet with garlic appeared squeaky-fresh; it seemed to be flipping on my plate! The golden mushrooms and tofu were integrated with the sea perch, and I love it!

I knew it was close. I could smell it. The strong alcohol scent. You can smell it from far away. The drunken prawns were as suspected, very strong in liqueur taste; the prawns were big and fresh. I must emphasized, the quality and freshness of the ingredients at Wan Hao was really what set them aside.

Bean curd sheet filled with shrimps

The presentation of the Scallop and asparagus with spicy XO sauce was faultless. Succulent and juicy scallop.

The mere presence of duck shreds greatly enhanced the flavour of the congee. And not to mention there’s sliced fish maw, squid too! All the natural goodness in the bowl of Congee.

It was sensational. Tender, let me tell you, the whole experience: the chewing and swallowing, we couldn’t speak. There was a lump stuck in my throat; I just allowed myself to quietly finished the meat, and inside I was secretly hoping there was more of this.

I was struck in awe of the flavour and texture of the meat, this was certainly my most memorable and favourite dish of the meal. And I couldn’t bear to speak of its name, Kurabuta pork, all the way from Americaaa!

The meal was a late boomer. Just when I thought that the few dishes in front were all good, it got better and better. Or maybe they were saving the best for the last, either way, the Chilli prawns with crispy buns had the “made in Singapore” brand stamped all over it. Spicy, fresh, with the mini mantao bun to dip in to the sauce, it was a superb interpretation of prawns done in our local favourite Chilli crab. A Singapore classic.

I could not, believe how tender the meat actually was. It literally melted in my mouth – I know this phase sounded exaggerating and often over-used, but trust me, it’s true for the Beef tenderloin with black peppercorns. Oh my! I would gladly go back another time just for the kurobuta pork, chilli prawns, and the beef tenderloin alone.

All right, back to the basics. Not many places can do a mean version of the Ee-fu noodles. All of us agreed that this one was just right in terms of the oilyness and bite. Not too oily, not too dry, just exactly how we liked it.

For the first time, I was actually sorry to see the desserts coming – for it signalled the end of the wonderful meal. But Wan Hao dessert did not disappoint as well, the first to arrive, the Lemongrass jelly with lime sherbet was equally pleasing in aesthetic senses. Very refreshing, and a fine finish for us.

There was a big fan of the mango pudding among us, and he was right! I took a nibble without adding in any milk for the original taste; even eaten alone the smooth and creamy texture of the aroma mango was evident.

If you know me, you must know that I’m an anti-durian person. For the sake of sharing with everybody, I popped one durian mochi inside – the mochi was very sticky, the smell of the fabled durian king of the fruits wasn’t very apparent until I took a bite of it, and that’s when I say, Shit!

I love egg tarts, and I always questioned the fact why Chinese restaurants always do their egg tarts in mini sizes. And like the manager of Wan Hao put it, the small bite was just right, anything bigger it would be too much. Crisp golden brown pastry with equally good egg fillings.

* * *

I must admit, I’m impressed with Wan Hao Chinese restaurant. The freshness in the quality ingredients, with the management’s emphasis on this, plus the service of the staff, were all top-notch. I’m not talking about their good service because it was a tasting session, after we finished our meal, we went down to their bakery; the staff was very knowledgeable about their bakes and was very professional.

The 31 items which we tried for this tasting session was half of their weekend brunch buffet which had 70 items, priced at $55 per head. For the sheer quality and variety, the sum is fair, will I be back? Definitely, See you there!

I entered the Marriott hotel on an empty stomach, and I left with a full one; I’m a happy man. My appreciation to the folks from Wan Hao for hosting us, and Cuisine & Wine Asia for the invitation.

Read Catherine’s review on Wanhao here

Wan Hao Chinese restaurant
320 Orchard road
3F Marriott hotel
Tel: 6831 4615

Wan Hao is listed as one of ladyironchef’s favorite restaurants in Singapore