Praire by Craftsmen - Beautiful, Quaint Secret Cafe

Bukit Timah is keeping a lovely, quaint secret in the form of Cluny Court. And within Cluny Court is a secret garden cafe called Prairie by Craftsmen. Hidden at the side of both Cluny Court and French Embassy, the walk along the wooden pathway framed by the willow trees to the cafe is such an experience in itself. And the pathway leads to a courtyard filled with lots of potted plants, stylish courtyard tables and black n white rattan chairs. This is like the perfect getaway from the bustle and hustle of city life.

The menu features a great variety of proteins, ensuring that one can definitely find something that catches your fancy. To make it even better, the chef adds a good dose of novelty into the food and drinks, for that uniqueness I embrace, thus making the trip here worthwhile for both the ambience and the food. The service here is friendly and helpful. One of the best places for gathering.

WOK-HEY SEAFOOD CONCHIGLIE of pan-seared scallops, prawns, live venus clams, capers and prawn bisque broth is so rich in flavours and light on palates that I finish this whole big bowl of goodies in a flash. And I still crave for more despite the generous portions of seafood and seashell pasta added. The seafood is so fresh and briny sweet. The prawns have this wok hey char aroma that makes it even better. 

White Chocolate Mousse Passionfruit Cake comes in a super cute sleeping panda bear. The white chocolate mousse is light while showcasing a very distinctive cocoa aroma and hint of bitterness, which is somewhat unique, and I like it. The passionfruit jelly ganache hidden within has the right amount of tangy taste to add hints of excitement to the smooth creamy mousse.

Light, creamy, earthy, I absolutely love the unique Taro Latte here. This is worth a special visit here.

CRAB BISQUE, despite its looks, hits all the sweet spots for me. It is so full of the creamy briny sweetness due to the generous portion of blue swimmer crab, cream and prawn bisque broth. I also love the starchy, slightly bouncy gnocchi, which I do have craving for.

Christmas Special Drink of Real Orange Juice, Mint and Soda is so refreshing and good.

Crispy Cauliflower is really crispy and tasty, making for a great snack.

Thoughts: Beautiful Secret Hideout

501 Bukit Timah Road Cluny Court #01-05C

Nature's Drop - Appreciation of Nature, Subtlety and Life

Food is actually a celebration of culture, nature and life, which is why I’m so into it. And Tea Appreciation is definitely part of food culture, with the additional subtlety. So when I found out about an exclusive session on Tea Appreciation at Nature's Drop, I immediately looked up on this quaint little teahouse. Impressed with the setting and philosophy of the place, I did not hesitate to sign up for the session.

This teahouse serves excellent Chinese tea blends in a modern setting. And premium Chinese teas is well-loved for a good reason: unique, subtle aromas, smooth texture, right balance of astringent bitterness. In order to bring out these delicate properties in the tea leaves in measured amount,  preparation of the tea is done in certain way, such as whole leaves, optimal temperature of the water, heating up the pot first, seep the leaves for specific amount of time. It is a joy to prepare our own cups of tea, especially when it tastes so good. Yes, the three tea blends we have for the night each have distinctive, unique flavour profile, soothing and refreshing, in a subtle way.

Jasmine Red Tea is mild with light sweet flora aroma. Pu Er with glutinous rice is full of earthy goodness. The Floral blend is fruity with touches of floral scent. There is definitely a tea here that can pleases one's palates.

The teahouse has this tranquil zen atmosphere with willow plants, cherry wooden wall panels, spruce wooden furniture and white-washed walls. It is perfect for a relaxing, calming, soothing tea appreciation time or for a lovely gathering with friends or family.

The owners of Nature's Drop are very friendly and passionate about their teas, going into detail on the origins of the teas and the preparation of the teas. I really enjoy my time here. Appreciation of subtle things in life is so uplifting! Definitely one of my top choices to go for a relaxing good time.

A delicate, pretty, modern tea brewer.

Thoughts: Lovely Appreciation of Nature, Subtlety and Life through Cups of Tea

1 Jalan Anak Bukit Timah

Bukit Timah Plaza #02-34

Baker & Cook (Greenwood Ave) - Wholesome breads

This place is all about bakery goods and it is obvious, once stepped inside the place. The whole counter, including the wall behind it, is lined with breads of various variety, serving to delight any bread lovers.

Though I do have a problem with the way the scones and some other food are placed on the counter top, with no covering over them, and everyone is standing over these food, making their orders. I cannot imagine how much "essence" the food has absorbed from patrons.

The place is quite cramped, but one good thing is that there a long bench for patrons who want to avoid the sweltering heat of sun. The service is ok, but nothing great.

As for the food, all are delicious but are also quite expensive, and some are not fantastic to warrant such pricings. The egg benedict is delicious, mainly because of the slightly chewy and sweet, aromatic bread, and the chewy bacon. There is nothing special to shout about the eggs though (So I was surprised when 2 patrons besides me, ate the eggs and bacon only, not even touching the bread a bit. Hey, they were missing on the best part!). The carrot cake is nice and moist, filled to the brim with warm smelling cinnamon, but I prefer Cedele's one. The danish pastry with berries is one of favourites from this bakery since the freshly made pastry has strong aroma of butter, and the cream and berries add dimension to the overall taste. The custard doughnut is sweet, but not overly sweet, exactly how I like it, but for its steep price, it did not make me go "I'm Bakery Bliss" at all, which is quite a disappointment.

All in all, I still like this place, I'll like to try other bakery goods in their selection.

My Thoughts: Nice!

Nearest car park: Open air car park at Greenwood Ave

Nearest MRT: None, serious.

77 Hillcrest Road
Greenwood Ave
Singapore
Contact No: 64698834

Kinsa Sushi - Great Find in the Heartlands

Closed

Just when I thought that it is almost impossible to find a decent restaurant in the heartlands since those malls are usually populated by chain restaurants and franchises, I found some rare gems in Ang Mo Kio and the latest cool find is Kinsa Sushi!

Located in the quieter part of Ang Mo Kio, Jubilee Complex, the restaurant ambience is cosy, comfortable and quiet, away from the buzz of the crowd. I had passed by it several times before and was tempted to go in to try the food since I am usually more into trying out small establishments than those chain restaurants (based on personal experiences, the food is generally much better and more unique in those humble little shops). I'm glad that I finally did.

The huge slab of hotate on top of the little mould of sushi rice (I love it when there is more meat and less rice in a sushi) is unbelievably fresh and silky, and for $2.80 only; it is a dish I can keep on ordering when I'm there for a meal. 

As for the sashimi, I was pleasantly surprised to find that the akami does not have any fishy smell (most akami I had tried in many places have that hint of fishy smell except in the likes of Kaiho and of course, the supreme haven of Japanese cuisine; Shinji) and even the mekajiki tasted okay (I normally cannot stand the taste of this fish but the one in Kinsa does not have that typical fishy smell at all). Ika and Ama ebi taste good also. The salmon belly is needless to say; fresh, creamy (due to the higher fat content) and smooth; pure delight to one's palates. I especially like the seasoning sprinkled onto the rice; looks insignificant but this little touch counts a lot in my opinion and it helped to enhance the taste of the rice. The appetizer in a little small glass bowl is very flavourful also and performed its role effectively to whet my appetite. 

Their maki rolls make for pretty good bites.

One of the must try is the prawn tempura temaki because the piping hot, freshly cooked prawn tempura wrapped in crisp, fresh seaweed and vinegared rice is simply heavenly in taste and texture.

The service is very good; very prompt responses to requests and friendly. Especially an uncle in there who will take the effort to query about customers' opinions on the food—make one feels important as a customer. And found out that some Japanese patronize this restaurant; a sign of the quality of the food there since I personally know that Japanese are particularly fussy about the standard of Japanese food they eat (a reason why one will never see a Japanese dining in one of those commercialized Japanese restaurants).

Now, I do not always have to trudge down to Cuppage to satisfy my cravings for quality and affordable Japanese food (and Shinji is more for that occasional sinful indulgence) since there is Kinsa (and another two restaurants, though for raw fishes, Kinsa is the choice). 

In fact, I actually prefer this place over Aoki and even one of my old favourities, Kaiho since I find the quality to be almost the same—special note: the special complimentary appetizers in Kinsa wins the one in Aoki, hands down—but there is a difference in price. While I can only get ordinary types of sushi, such as akami, tamago and ebi in a sushi set lunch in Aoki and Kaiho, with the same amount of money spent, I can order more premium items, along the lines of hotate and amaebi, in Kinsa by ordering individual sushi items off the menu.

With the set meals at less than $20, I can afford to patronize this restaurant often. Have to admit that the ala carte items are too tempting to resist either.

My Thoughts: It used to be one of my Favourite Haunts when located in Ang Mo Kio

This restaurant is no longer in operation.