Gramona Wine Dinner at Tinto - Fantastic Experience

Gramona Wine Dinner at Tinto organised by ewineasia.com immediately got my attention and I immediately jumped on it. Because I love the food at Tinto, it features that distinctive taste of authentic Español cuisine, defining it from other European cuisine. I really feel like I’m transported to Spain when dining here.

And this turns out to be one of the best experiences I have. Talking to the winemaker himself, Leon Gramona, really deepens my appreciation of the wines made. When paired with the amazing food, it’s “wow, wow, wow” moment. I also love how different types of wines (bubbles, signature, white, red, dessert) are brought into the picture to keep things varied and exciting. I can say Gramona wines are definitely my favourite now. And Gramona III Lustros is the best Bubbles. 

The food is my-oh-my delicious and unique. So robust, balanced and harmonised in flavours. Definitely evokes my love for Espanõl food again.

Gramona, Imperial Brut 2018 is lovely bubbles that refreshes the palates with a base note of creamy mousse.

Super fluffy bread with stretchy texture that goes perfectly with the olive oil.

Mini Cevichito Catalan, packed with lots of goodies such as Marinated Red Snapper, Romesco Tiger's Milk and Cherry Tomatoes, is refreshing, tangy and surprisingly creamy. The well-balanced multitude of flavours perk up and spellbind the palates. The Toasted Almonds add a good crunchy texture and earthy tone to this awesome starter.

The bubbles in III Lusteos, 2015, are so fine that they cannot be seen by naked eye. But I can feel them when drinking the wine. So smooth yet so exciting. This kimd of bubbles is formed through 15 years aging of the wine. The quality truly shows here. This is a must-try.

Vieiras Gratinada incites the “oh-my, this is unbelievablely good” reaction from me and wverat the table. Roasted Scallops on the shell, topped with Butter, Cava, Ibérico Ham Cinco Jotas and finished with Gratinated with Machego Cheese is so creamy, savoury and conplex. It’s nothing like I tasted before! It is so amazing in taste with so many distinctive taste notes yet all are harmonised. The mild briny sweetness of scallops actually comes through the myriad of flavours and nutty meatiness of ibérico to be even better.

This is the moment I’m so glad that I sign up for this Wine Dinner.

Taco De Pulpo features Grilled Spanish Octopus with Soft Corn Tortilla, Lemon Aioli, Pickled Spanish Onions and Coriander. So meaty, so flavourful, so exciting in taste. When topped at some of the specialty aromatic spicy sauce, it’s fiery and tantalising. I love this too.

Mas Escorpi is the white featured for the day. And it goes so well with the spicy Taco. It’s a very refreshing experience to feel that aromatic intense spiciness spreading in the mouth and then immediately cooling it down with this wine.

Paella Latina Con Chanchito is a a medley of Bomba Rice, Ají Panca Chiila, Ibérico Pork Jowl, Cured Chorizo, Pork Cracklings and Habanero Chilli Mayo. And it works brilliantly. The texture is awesome in that the fluffy, delicious, starchy rice juxtaposes so well with the crunchiness of the Pork Cracklings and chewiness of Pork Jowl and Cured Chorizo. The taste is robust, bursting with lots of flavours, yet very well-balanced at the sane time.

L'Enclos De Paralba Vi Fi De Masia Negre 2020 has that light aroma of oak that perks up the taste without overwhelming the palates. Yes, I got this too.

Suspiro De  is Traditional Passion Fruit Custard with Meringue and a touch of Cinnamon. This is tanginess, sweetness, creaminess and spiciness rolled into harmony to yield an exciting, lovely dessert.

Dessert wine, Gramona Vi De Glass 2023, is mellow and very balanced in sweetness, exactly how I like it. And yes, I got a bottle of this because it is so good.

Thoughts: One of the best Experiences!

10 Dempsey Road #01-21

Culina - Where the Freshest, Best Ingredients do their Magic

I'm definitely no stranger to Culina, a place of premium groceries and delicious wholesome food. My story with this lovely grocer started from big gatherings, then moved on to smaller gatherings. Now I’m so excited to come here again to try the food here of entirely my own choosing and just enjoy the atmosphere at entirely my own pace. I’m pretty confident that the experience will be a good one based on past experiences, and oh boy, it is better than good, it’s awesome!

As a premium grocer, the ingredients featured in the bistro are of choice quality. The natural sweetness, umami and aroma, excellent texture of the food speak for themselves. Simply coupled with some condiments, herbs and lemon juice, the food here tastes so wholesome and satisfying. It’s lots of moments of “wow” when I have my first bites of each dish here.

High ceiling, white-washed walls, giant modern geometric hanging lamps, stylish black n white rattan chairs, shelves of wines and groceries and full length windows showing the verdant greenery outside, this place feels like a lush family restaurant located beside a vineyard. It has this hint of elegant undertone that makes great for dates. But it is also one of the best places to have family gatherings. They even have a kids’ menu!

Service here is efficient, helpful and friendly, including the staff manning the fresh produce sections. Especially the staff at the seafood section, who gives good advice on the order of jumbo prawns.

This is definitely a place I recommend to enjoy wholesome food made with choice ingredients and just have a relaxing good time.

The first bite of the Scallops in Half Shell amazes me on how creamy and briny sweet it is. This got to be the creamiest scallops I ever have and I totally love it. The taste is further perked up with exciting flavours of garlic, pistachio, herbs and lemon. Best scallops? Yes!

Tender juicy squid squares coated with crispy, super thin batter tastes so good on its own already. It is even better with a dash of spicy espelette pepper, a splash of tangy lemon and a dip of creamy aioli. An absolutely delightful treat.

Fluffy, springy bread with crispy exterior is lovingly served warm and it tastes good!

The oysters here are so fresh and delicious. It tastes amazing with Culina’s specialty sauce and Tetsuya’s sauce.

Plump and succulent, the Jumbo Prawns features that lovely briny sweetness made exciting by the unique pungency of seared garlic cream and fermented chilli plus the tang of lemon.

Thoughts: It is such a joy to enjoy the dishes made with the best ingredients!

8 Dempsey Road

#01-13

Blu Kouzina - Greek Feast

Greek cuisine is one of my favourite cuisines since its food is full of flavours, healthy and exotic. So it's a matter of time I visit the popular Greek restaurant Blu Kouzina at Dempsey. And it's a rainy day, thus green landscape and the rows of restaurants converted from barracks at Dempsey looks so scenic and refreshing.

The food here is so hearty and carries that distinctive taste of Greek cuisine not present in other European dishes. And almost all the dishes features EVOO, which is short form for Extra Virgin Olive Oil, and which is cold-pressed and unrefined, retaining the rich flavour of olive.

The place is like a Greek Tavern, especially the main area, with tall red brick pillars, Greek inspired decorations, deep blue wooden tables, wooden furniture and soft yellow lights (will need to hold the camera still for 2 seconds after snapping the pictures to yield clear images.  Flash looks bad in photos, so avoid it). The area at the side feels like a lovely Greek cafe with white furniture. The outdoor area, looking out into a huge stretch of field, has the idyllic feel.

The service is very good and friendly. And one of them, an Indian guy, makes good recommendations on food and taking into account that I'm solo diner, says that I can add on dishes anytime if I want 👍

Garides is Grilled Jumbo Prawns drizzled with lemon and EVOO. The prawns are oh-so-good. Succulent flesh with full bodied flavour of the sea, the aroma of char and the exotic taste of Greek herbs and condiments, I love it.

The menu showcases so many dips that I decide to get one to try. Grilled Pita with Sea Salt and Oregano is flat and fluffy, having that nice, slightly chewy bite. I easily finish it.

I have no doubts that I will love Tzatziki, which is the refreshing mix of cucumber, yoghurt, lemon juice, garlic and of course, EVOO! But I decide to try something different as I had tried Tzatziki before at another restaurant. So introducing Harissa, which is a dip made from Spicy Tomato, Greek Yoghurt and Walnuts. Very earthy and creamy in taste, the spiciness and zest are of just the right amount. Will be cool if there are more chopped walnuts in there for that variation in texture.

Prawn Manestra also comes with the grilled prawns, and yes, I finish 4 huge prawns in this single meal. This dish is definitely worth a try because it has the delicious Garides and orzo pasta soaked in prawn broth and EVOO and peppered with garlic and onions. So many harmonised flavours working together for a rich, satisfying meal.

I had orzo pasta before in a Sicilian restaurant and absolutely loved it. And this Prawn Manstra brings back the lovely feeling of savouring this short-grain-like pasta that has texture of the most silky rice with a nice bite at the core. Due to its shape, more umami-rich sauce are trapped between the pasta grains to yield bursts of flavours with each mouthful.

Rizogalo is an interesting and nice Greek rice pudding with cinnamon and zests. Very creamy and rich, I like it. The rice soaked in the smooth custard gives a nice additional texture to the dessert.

Due to the large space, different themes between areas and high ceilings of the restaurant, there are so many instagram worthy spots to take photos of. And the food is very good to make the trip to there absolutely worthwhile. By the way, it is pretty crowded even on a weekday afternoon. So reservations is a must for peak periods.

Thoughts: Found another awesome Greek restaurant!

10 Dempsey Road #01-20

Nearest MRT: Napier

Morsels Restaurant & Private Dining at Dempsey Hill - Lovely Meal at a Lovely Cottage House

Going down to lush greenery surrounded Dempsey Hill, I'm just looking to try Morsels' latest set lunch that looks promising, and in the midst of a nice ambience. But when I slide open the door of a barn-like building and then step inside, I go, "Wow!" So homely, so quaint, so lovely, the place's interior is so different from those of other restaurants in Singapore. This is like a rustic cottage house, filled with pretty handmade crafts, cute ornaments, lots of real fresh blooms (I love fresh flowers ...), seashells, glowing soft lights and solid wooden furniture. This is like the ultimate place to get that feel of being in countryside, with all the comforts. So yes, I end up taking lots of pictures.

Awesome ambience aside, what matters most is still the food here, and it definitely matches up to the ambience, delivering subtle surprises with a myriad of clean and unique flavours. Various techniques of curing and fermentation are employed to extract different kinds of flavours for use in the French dishes, and it works beautifully. I love every course of the set lunch.

Service is outstanding: being very friendly, patient, thoughtful and knowledgeable about the food. Needless to say, I thoroughly enjoy myself here.

The pretty trio of appetisers are:

Fresh Seasonal Oyster soaked in citron green tea kombucha vinaigrette and olive gel. Refreshing in taste, with loads of umami and hints of zest. This oyster packs so many harmonised flavours. A very good start.

Second appetiser is Sanchoku Corned Vegetable Cream. Original version is beef, they nicely changed it to vegetarian version due to  my dietary preferences. Within the crispy pani puri contains a delicious lava-like, creamy, savoury custard, perked up by the tanginess of cornichon, a small pickled cucumber.

Mushroom Garum Broth is so comforting to sip on. It is made from extract the essence of fermented mushrooms, resulting in a clear broth that tastes so meaty and earthy. The puff pastry twisty, spinkled with powdered herbs, is a nice crispy accompaniment to the broth.

The Multi-Grain Bread here is filled with the aroma and goodness of grains. The texture is so great, being crispy on the outside and fluffy on the inside. The taste of grains is instantly perked up by the simulating flavours of fermented green chilli butter spread. I love the novelty of the spread here.

Cured Stolt Farm Turbot Carpaccio is clean in taste, highlighted by the array of subtle flavours of smoked zucchini dashi, fermented cucumber gel and 8Gems Caviar. The crunchy texture of iceberg vegetable is such a nice contrast to the carpaccio.

Tender Jeju Abalone with light briny sweetness & also tender Sakura Chicken goes very well with the lightly flavoured multigrain risotto (Japanese rice, California Shortgrain, Bali Rice ...). Puffed rice scattered on top gives a nice crunch to the texture. When trying the risotto on its own, I can fully appreciate the deep flavours of Morsels 4YO doenjang and pickled beets.

Primrose Farm Pork Tenderloin is unbelievably sweet and tender! It goes so well with sauce Rockerfeller, and especially so with kumquat red pepper kosho that lifts up the whole taste. The baby gem is crunchy and delicious too.

Classic French hospitality with sightly sour, nice palate cleanser served.

Apple is one of the best Panna Cotta I ever have. The rice whipped panna cotta is creamy yet light at the same time due to the addition of apple lemon balm kombucha. And the shiso granita is what makes this dessert simply amazing. The refreshing flavour of shiso cuts through the creaminess to elevate the entire taste.

Yummy Petit Fours, and I especially love the creamy and slight chewy nougat with cherry and raisins packed within.

Nice French wine recommended to go with the set lunch.

A very special barn-like door as the entrance to this quaint restaurant. Take note of the sign hanging off the door handle to know if the restaurant is open for business already.

Actually I had heard of Morsels a long time, but didn’t got around to come here. The new set menu introduces a fresh breath that makes me sit up and take note of this hidden gem. Chef Petrina Loh’s unique and creative take on preparation of the food really impresses me. I look forward to savour more.

Thoughts: Wonderful Experience like no Others

25 Dempsey Road #01-04

Nearest MRT: Napier