Togi Korean Restaurant

20 October 2010

I was super excited when I spotted this Korean restaurant near my workplace. I had been observing the dinner queue on a few nights and suspected that it is authentic stuff. And my guess was right when I walked in to order takeaway one afternoon. The restaurant is owned by a Korean family who was conversing in Korean when I was there. The set-up is simple, but similar to what I experienced in Seoul a few months back.

Cold noodles $15.90

One thing I missed a lot since coming back from Seoul is their cold noodles. After a quick look-through of the menu, I ordered this and waited for quite a while for them to assemble the above. Back at my work place, I eagerly opened the plastic bag and laid out the sumptuous set-up.

Cold noodles before the ice was poured in

The bowl was filled with noodles, a large tomato, beef slices, turnip, carrot, cucumber and I think there were pear slices. It was a welcoming package. 

Silly me...I didn't ask how I should put the meal together but again with my top-notch guesswork, I opened the package that was filled with ice and poured into the bowl of noodles. Then I opened two small containers that seemed to contain mustard and vinegar and poured some into it. And then I mixed it well.

The well-mixed noodles

I knew I got it right at the first bite. Phew. 

This was the flavour I've been missing from Seoul. The chewy tangy cold noodles with the crispy raw vegetables and Korean chilli paste. I relished beautiful memories of my travel as I struggled with the chewy noodles, intersperse every bite with fresh vegetables and nipping pieces of the sides.

And what is Korean food without their famous side dishes? I was given bean sprouts, chye sim, braised potatos, spicy ikan billis, kimchi and preserved cucumber. They were all good. Perhaps it was because it sparked good memories, as you know, that enhances the whole experience. I don't care anyway, because I enjoyed every bite.

I couldn't finish them all and kept them for dinner. By then, the noodles have turned soft and easier to eat, but the taste is still good.

Now I know where to get my Korean food fix.

Togi Korean Restaurant

11 Mosque Street

Walking distance from Chinatown NEL station

Don Pie

12 October 2010

I heard that there is a famous pie shop somewhere near Chinatown Square so I decided to pop by after work one night for a quick bite.

Vegetable Pie $5.80

Being health conscious that night, I decided to order the vegetable pie.

The messy inside

The pie was filled with shitake mushrooms, celery, potatoes and a half hard-boiled egg. The crust was light and fluffy. The use of shitake mushrooms is more of an Asian-inspired addition, which works for me, although may not be as "authentic" as using buttoned or field mushrooms.

When I was there, a few tables ordered the crab noodles, which smelt really good. That seems to be something worth trying the next time I'm there.

Don Pie Club

20 Cross Street, #01-34/35/36

China Square Central

http://donpieclub.com.sg/

Itacho Sushi

8 October 2010

My friend and I popped into this popular Japanese restaurant in ION Orchard mall before the dinner crowd flood the queue line. Even then, we were relegated to counter seats in the already-full restaurant. 

The paper table mat shows you how to eat a sushi properly.

We ordered several items, but here are some notable ones for blogging's sake.

Roasted Foie Gras Sushi $6 for one

Crisp, fatty and sweet in one mouthful. This non-traditional mix is a winner for us, and had us relishing the taste after the meal.

Whole Sea Eel Sushi $6

This is not your usual japanese-flavoured eel from the frozen food section of the supermarket. For one, the eel is seasoned differently. The frozen version tends to be sweet and masks the natural taste of the eel. This one is seasoned just nice, giving space for the eel to impress your tongue and its soft texture differs from the somewhat chewy frozen version. The lump towards the end is the sushi rice, which tells you how long the eel itself is.

Roasted Dorsal Fish Sushi $2.50

I like how the rice is slightly burnt due to the roasting. The dorsal fish has a natural sweetness which blew me away in one mouthful. This is one that I'll order again.

Fatty Yellow Tail $8.10 & Fatty Tuna Sashimi $21.60

The name says it all. "Fatty". But it's good fat, a small voice in my head protested. I agreed silently and chewed into the fatty sweetness, groaning inwardly lest I scare the neighbouring customers. It's good fat you know.

The two of us spent a total of $77.20, including a few other dishes not shown here; edamame, chawanmushi, salmon sashimi and roasted jack mackerel sushi. I felt it was quite worth the money for the quality, and also because we chose the more expensive dishes. We just wished that the sushi chef at the counter was friendlier.

Itacho Sushi

B2-18 ION Orchard

www.tasteofjapan.com.hk/

Cocotte

6 October 2010

After walking about 15 minutes from Little India NEL station, I finally reached a quaint boutique hotel Wanderlust, which houses the French restaurant Cocotte. Wanderlust is a designer boutique, with each of it's four floors designed by well-known local designers. My friend and I went for a tour after lunch, and was impressed by its design.


So, with that expectation, Cocotte delivers in creating a designer space of concrete-meet-wood-and-glass, which carved out a relaxing environment from the messiness outside along Dickson Road. It impressed my friend who felt she was transported into another world as she entered.

The table layout says it all. It's rustic countryside French cuisine, which is ironic because the price tag is higher than what you would call "rustic". The set lunch is a good deal, which I recommend. For two ladies, I'd suggest to share one set lunch and another main course from the ala carte menu. That was what we did and the amount of food was more than enough as we left feeling very full.

The complimentary bread basket came with three buns. I ate one before I took a photo. It was warm and crisp on the outside, and soft inside. I love the stick of salted butter than came with it. It promised good things to follow.

Pear Bleu D'Auvergne Salad

As part of the set, my friend chose the Pear Bleu D'Auvergne Salad served with arugula, lemon and hazelnut dressing. It was light and refreshing. Being a cheese lover, I found the cheese a wonderful accompaniment to the salad. The pear lends a sweet touch to the arugula's (or wild rocket) sharp aftertaste, and the nut (hazelnut?) gave a nice contrast to the texture.

Pan-seared Sea Bass

My friend's choice of main course under the set lunch menu. She enjoyed it tremendously and found the portion sufficient. 

Daily Special: Pâté de Campagne

I got a terrine of pork and bacon, served with a delightful salad, bread basket (not featured but same as the complimentary bread basket) olives, cornichons and a mustard-like spread. I enjoyed the saltiness of the terrine on the bread, paired with olives, or cornichons, or with the spread - whatever the combination I felt like. Eaten alone, the pâté would be too salty, but with it's condiments and the bread, it provided a hands-on experience that was at home with it's designer environment. When my friend asked me how it was, my best summary was it tasted like "French luncheon meat". Haha...

Chocolate Souffle Cake

My friend and I stared at the two small pieces when it was presented to us. As a rough guide, the height of the cold chocolate cake (pictured left) is half the length of a fork's prong. We wondered if a souffle cake was meant to look like that as we thought it was a puffy cake. And the portion made us wonder if this was worth it.

Minute later, our doubts were cleared. The hot and cold duo was sinfully chocolately and rich. One small bite can bring you to chocolate heaven in an instant. Being full from our previous courses, we couldn't finish these two small cakes, but we both agreed that it was worth the try. I popped one of the halved brandied cherries and was surprised at the burst of brandy as I bite into the well-soaked fruit. 

The set lunch alone cost close to $50 after taxes. Although a bit pricey, I felt it was worthwhile because of the food quality and portion, great ambience and extra-mile service. When my friend asked a waiter about the hotel, he initiated and arranged for us to visit the rooms. I was impressed.

Cocotte Restaurant

No. 2 Dickson Road (in Wanderlust)

http://restaurantcocotte.com/