Ikkoten Omakase - An Awesome Carefully Crafted Feast for the Senses

Being a regular at Ikkoten Omakase, where I get constantly delighted by special, awesome, unique gastronomic creations, I’m expecting lots of lovely surprises this time round. And Chef Brandon definitely delivers on this and adds an extra special highlight with the live Hokkigai 🤩 I always trust him to prepare the fishes in the ways I like it (yes, I’m very particular about eating fishes) and this time he set the bar even higher 👍

I’m off to a great start with a super refreshing yet amazingly creamily sweet Hassun of Spearhead squid and thinly sliced cucumber. The special housemade mustard miso sauce is the magic here, whose unique pungency of mustard cut through the flavours for a balanced, complex taste.

Lightly seared with premium Japanese charcoal, Binchotan, the Shima Aji is full of that aroma of seared meat, highlighting the sweetness of the fish. The earthy goodness of mushrooms and spinach add the nuanced variety to the taste.

Shirako is meticulously prepared to remove all the tendons to yield a smooth, briny sweet custard, whose creaminess juxtaposes so well with crispness of the tempera batter.

Giant Hokkaido Hokkigai sashimi is a feast for both the palates and the eyes. Chef Brandon specially got it live to prepare the sashimi right in front of me. The slight milky briny sweetness of hokkigai is beautifully accentuated by the zest of thr housemade yuzu jelly. And the cool refreshing vegetal taste of cucumber amazingly makes it even better by lifting up the taste of the shellfish. And being super fresh, the meat is crunchy with a good bite. Love this dish!

Aichi Winter Buri is oh-so-good that my first thought is “Why is this so delicious?” Cooked in two ways, the succulent fish has a toasty goodness layered on top of its briny sweet meat. Truffle Caramel adds an earthy savoury sweetness. The result is that this dish carries a unique, beautiful taste that I have never experienced before. And I totally love it.

Takiawase features Ebi Chawamushi made with prawn bisque. The silky smooth chawamushi is packed with this balanced unique briny sweetness that tease and please the palates. Ebi Imo and Yamaguchi Kuruma Ebi add on the hearty bites.

Tempura tonight showcases super tender Chiba Kuro Awabi coated with Tempura batter and soaked in the excellent Kimo Sauce. Served in piping hot claypot, the presentation is 100% on the point, and so is taste and texture. Crispy exterior and full of umami due to the kimo sauce. The tempura onion ring is perfect match with the special rice topped with lots of goodies due to savoury zest of the rice being cut through by the refreshing pungency of the onion. The awabi has mild briny sweetness and is incredibly tender, nicely contrasting with the crispiness of the tempura batter. I never have awabi this way and it totally works.

Shiisakana of Hokkaido A4 Wagyu Beef served Sumiyaki style is super succulent and juicy, with a smooth meaty sweetness highlighted by the Merlot Reduction. And it goes perfectly with the wine, harmonising the taste and accentuating the juiciness of the meat.

Shizuoka Takaashigani Donabe Meshi is bliss manifested in a satisfying pot of starchy rice packed with super briny sweetness. One of the best Donabe I ever have.

Housemade Ume Shu Jelly is zesty with a touch of umami.

Thoughts: Wonderful Gastronomic Experience that engages all my Senses

86 Telok Ayer Street

The Divorce Party! by Dream Academy

After seeing snippets of The Divorce Party! on instagram, I decide to go for it since a show centering around celebration of divorce is quite a novelty, not to mention food is served too as part of the experience.

And I totally enjoy it. This show is so fun and interactive. We are, interestingly, seated at the round tables, reminiscent of the guest tables at a wedding banquet. And then the team will present the show on the stage in front, sometimes weaving between the tables for a more engaging experience. It is like the whole banquet hall is their stage. I like this uniqueness of the show and the closer proximity to the quirky characters.  In addition, I love the interactive nature of the show where we, the show-goers, are part of the show. We have a part to make this Divorce Party a riot that it is meant to be. And there are even games to make it even more fun.

The actors do very well to hype us up for participation in the show, and they manage to stay in character the whole time throughout the whole show.

The food is, surprisingly pretty good, even though it is not the main star of the show.

While this is a fun and entertaining show with a straight-to-the-point storyline, it also has this artistic value of reflecting the changing societal expectations in Singapore regarding marriage and divorce.  And I love it that it is packed with lots of local flavours and references to have that "Truly Singapore" flair.

A must experience for a locally fun time.

Zesty and briny sweet, a refreshing starter with plump succulent prawns.

Vegetarian mains is surprisingly good. It is juicy and tastes a bit meaty actually. Though the portion is too big.

There is a good spread of good quality desserts for the dessert buffet. Chendoh Panna Cotta is the dessert I go for second helping.

Thoughts: Highly Recommend for a Fun Time!

Seasoned Okra and Mokuzu Seaweed

I found another breakfast, near the pizza section in Don Don Donki! This is so tasty and has the sticky consistency. Goes so well with Japanese rice.

Country of Origin: Japan

Where to get this: Don Don Donki

Takumiya Daifuku

I think I found the best Daifuku, aside from the Daifuku my imouto got from USS Osaka Japan. And it is Tamikuya Daifuku! I got this because of the Chinese New Year packaging. But when I took the first bite, I was amazed by how good it is. This dough skin is exactly like that of the Daifuku from my imouto. The skin is incredibly soft, sugary and has a hint of soufflé-like quality, which is the best for Daifuku. The cream inside creates a lava-like consistency for the filling, which is exactly how I love it. The black bean paste adds a hint of earthy taste to balance the mild sweetness.

I went back to buy three more boxes on another day!

Country of Origin: Japan

Where to get this: Don Don Donki

Omakase@Stevens - Totally Wowed by the Intricate Dishes here

I’m so excited to be back at Omakase@Stevens, a restaurant that promises intricately prepared unique dishes that hit all the sweet spots perfectly on the taste spectrum. And Chef Kazuki Arimoto has up his game again with the exploration of new harmonised tastes and textures that make me go “wow”. And together with host Jose and team, they has again made the dining experience here a wonderful one.

Scallop with Wasabi, Vegetable Consommé makes such an exciting start with its simulating, dynamic flavours. The distinctive briny sweetness of scallop takes the center stage, transformed into an awesomely unique, clean and clear taste when soaked with the pungency of capsicum and shiso.

Squid, Caviar, Monaka nicely shifts the taste profile of its exciting predecessor to a softer, richer type. This dish is creamily sweet with hints of complex excitement.

Wagyu, Egg Yolk, Salted Pepper takes things in a differently good direction to feature juicy meat that actually tastes light and clear, completed with a super meaty sweetness that is highlighted by the pepper. The homemade pastry shell adds a good crunchiness to contrast with the texture of the meat.

Inaniwa Udon is beautiful dish topped with the Treasures of the sea, such as snow crab, bafun uni, ebi and caviar. Every thin flat strand of udon is soaked with briny sweetness galore that is full of complexity. The bafun uni sweetness is beautifully tempered with a savoury goodness for a well-balanced taste. Usually when the treasures of the sea cone together in a dish, it tends to be heavy and rich in taste, but the Inaniwa Udon here is amazingly light in taste while packing lots of subtle flavours. I’m thoroughly impressed.

Shirako here tastes so amazing too. Cod Milt with Balsamico, Hollandaise Sauce and a pretty biscuit sprinkled with seaweed powder is the custard of the sea. It is creamy and super, super, unbelievably sweet that amazes me. The hint of briny savoury taste adds on to the awesomeness. The shirako was meticulously prepared, with all the veins removed to yield a smooth silky texture that makes it so good.

The Abalone here is the most tender abalone I ever have. Cod Fish sandwiched with the abalone further enhances the texture. This dish packs a lot of harmonised flavours from briny sweetness, milky sweetness, savoury sweetness and baked sweetness of the pie crust. It works beautifully. And the fishes swimming around the pool of sauces look so cute.

Signature Beef Cutlet tastes even better this time as Chef Kazuki Arimoto changes things up by doing wet aging on the beef this time. Paired with Red Miso and Madeira, the succulent beef features that lovely meaty, creamy sweetness, while being lighter in the palates yet is full of complex flavours. It also got a lovely extra smooth sweetness, most probably from the precise aging to yield the perfect balance of texture and taste.

Signature Donabe is as good as ever: the rice being starchy and smooth, packed with the briny sweetness of snow crab and balanced by earthy goodness of the mushrooms. I really love snow crab …

The first dessert is Mikan, Marigold and Coconut. And after a taste of this, I realise that mikan goes perfectly with the coconut snow! Who could have thought that? The nutty milkiness tamed the citrusy taste of mikan for a more well-rounded floral, slightly tangy taste. This is so good!

The next dessert, the beautiful Deconstructed Strawberry, making up of chopped pieces of strawberries packed with cream, genoise, candy shell and soufflé, works perfectly to bring out the flavours of strawberries without overwhelming the palates with the tart taste of strawberries. This is one good Strawberry dessert.

Intricately made petit fours here, which are Raspberry Macaron, Plum Wine Gummy and Seaweed Dark Chocolate, are so unique and good in taste. And the Plum Wine is aged for at least 3 months to yield a balanced sweet and sour taste in the gummy.

Sake going very well with the meat.

Lovely sweet wine that is perfect pairing with the dessert ❤️

Thoughts: Amazed all over again!

30 Stevens Road

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Gardens by the Bay - Christmas Train Show 2025

Just when I thought that the year end theme of Flower Dome will be centered on Poinsettas again, Gardens by the Bay surprised me with Christmas Train Show instead. Yes, there are lots of beautiful Poinsettas, but the star of the event is the miniature trains sets showcasing various landmarks of USA and one of Singapore. They look absolutely lovely!