Garibaldi - Fantastic, Glorious, Authentic Italian Brunch

A newsletter from Angra Wine got me to take a look at Garibaldi's Ferragisto Weekend Brunch, and I like what I see on the menu, and so here I am!

The brunch spread here is so glorious, full of lots of authentic Italian classics, with hints of twists to keep things exciting. Yes, the dishes are all delicious. I love it that there is huge variety of appetisers, pastas, mains and desserts all served à la carte to the table and all comes in small portions so I can enjoy all the dishes while ordering more if I want to savour more of the free flow dishes.

The place has this classy fine dining interior, with an Italian lightness to it. Think white linen, modern dark wooden furniture, table mats with golden bronze tint, soft yellow lights, modern paintings and full-panel windows with translucent curtains. Thus the space feels impressive with hints of idyllic feel, perfect for enjoying my brunch.

The service here is impressive: being professional, friendly and responsive.

I'm so looking forward to enjoying a lovely, idyllic, satisfying, sumptuous brunch at here again.

Poached Japanese Toretama Egg, Smoked Salmon & Hollandaise Sauce is creamy and Savour with buttery umami. Love this.

Fresh Oysters has this fresh saline sweetness, and tastes refreshing with the lemon and exciting with the tabasco.

Fluffy Bread with Crispy Crust goes so well with the Olive Oil has the tint of herbal aroma.

Crispy Breadsticks that is good on their own and goes well with the olive oil too.

Australian Wagyu Beef Carpaccio, Rucola & Parmesan Cheese has light meaty sweetness of wagyu, going very well with the nutty savoury taste of the Parmesan.

Fresh Burrata Cheese from Puglia is such a luxurious treat, being creamy, milky, juicy and refreshing.

Cold Cut Platter of Speck, Parma, Spicy Salami and Mortadella are savoury with hints of meaty sweetness, featuring different taste profiles. A real treat.

Crispy Deep-Fried Crab Cake is briny sweet, and its taste is lifted up by the creamy zest in the aloli.

Aperol Spritz is refreshing, sweet, with a lace of bitterness for the smooth mouth feel.

Spaghetti "Vongole" in a White Wine & Parsley Sauce is light on palates while rich in taste because of all the different kinds of briny sweet flavours packed within. My favourite among the pasta.

Fettuccine with Minced Italian Pork Sausage in Spicy 'Nduja Sauce' tastes exciting, due to the tomatoes, and meaty because of the sausage. Fettuccine has good texture for good mouth feel and catches the meaty sauce within its curls for good enjoyment of the pasta together with zesty meaty sauce.

Ricotta Cheese Tortellini in Truffle Porcini Cream is pure creamy, earthy goodness.

Seared Salmon & Passion Fruit Yogurt Sauce features salmon that is juicy and tender. The zest in the sauce cut through the distinctive taste of salmon for balanced taste.

Grilled Black Angus Beef 'Tagliata' & Fried Polenta Cake is so meaty sweet, tender and succulent, layered with the beautiful taste of char. So good that I get a second order of this.

Dark chocolate lava cake is so decadently good and intense.

Almond tart is surprisingly super good, with a smooth sweetness that comes out when biting into this dessert. The almonds add lovely earthy aroma of nuts to highlight the sweetness.

Light, airy and divine in taste.

Thoughts: Fantastic Brunch that I totally Enjoy.

36 Purvis Street #01-02

Hoshino - Lovely Fluffy Omelette

When I first passed by Hoshino, I was attracted by the vibes of old world tempered with modern Japanese sensibilities here. Dark wooden furniture, intricate trimmings, dainty ornate lamps and plush chairs, create the cosy yet modern feel. I wanted to dine here but I thought that this was a coffee house, so I didn’t go for it at that time.

After that, I got to find out that there are mains available at this cafe. So when I pass this quaint cafe again, I jump right in. And I’m so glad that I make this choice because the specialty Omu Soufflé is a must-try.

Omu Soufflé Lobster Bisque Risotto is packed with the briny goodness of the lobster. The risotto grains are of good bite while soaked with the bisque, giving that satisfying feel when savouring it. Cubes of mozzarella cheese added for that extra melty, stretchy texture to make it even better.

Omu Soufflé is oh-so-good, being full of savoury, eggy goodness, and have this cloud-like fluffy texture that makes such a delight to enjoy.

Thoughts: Fantastic, Unique Omu Soufflé

Tenshima - Awesome Tempura Feast

Actually I have been wondering about how good tempura, a very satisfying treat, can get. And I get my answer at Tenshima, a restaurant with an unique specialty of Tempura Omakase. Yes, this place is all about tempura, which is freshly and lovingly prepared by Chef Takahiro Shima at the open kitchen. So, can tempura be varied in taste and excites the palates? Yes, at here. Best Tempura here? Absolute Yes!

From the fresh prawn, scallop, clam, shark fin to choice produce such as corn, eggplant, shiso and asparagus, each is coated with an incredibly thin layer of super crispy, light, deep fried, delicate batter. I love that contrast in texture between the batter and ingredients. And instead of just using tempura sauce for pairing, each ingredient is recommended to go with a different type of sauce for the individual flavours to shine through. And it works brilliantly.

The restaurant has this calm and clean Zen vibe with pine wood furnishings, partitions made with reeds and shelves decorated with sake bottles, Japanese floral arrangements and Japanese pottery. I love this extra space between the entrance and dining room that gives this feeling of stepping into a different world from the busy city landscape outside.

Service here is wonderful, being meticulous, friendly and quick to responses. And also very knowledgable, going into details about origin and taste profile of the ingredients. I totally enjoy my time here. This is a must-try for the ultimate tempura experience.

Surprise of the day is uni tempura. Actually, I do wonder how to reinterpret uni in tempura form when Chef Takahiro Shima presents the ingredients for the meal, which includes uni. My question answered when the uni is served on tempura seaweed and sprinkled with sea salt. It works beautifully. The distinctive creamy umami of uni remains pure and pronounced, with the extra texture of crispy seaweed.

First appetiser of the day features super plump juicy prawn whose lovely mild brininess is elevated up by the savoury dashi and tangy yuzu. It is an awesome marriage of the sweetness from the sea, earth and fields.

Second appetiser of Anago Sushi is toasty. briny and creamy. This is so good and make me realize that I miss the taste of well-prepared anago more than I actually know.

Palate cleanser of Bonito with ginger flower and shiso is so refreshing, exciting and simulating in taste. I love it.

Specially curated sauces to pair the tempura dishes with.

Premium ingredients to be used for the Tempura Omakase

First tempura served is curiously a deep fried prawn head. It is unbelievably crispy and light. And the briny sweetness is highlighted by a simple dash of sea salt and lemon juice.

The best tempura prawn I ever have is right here. It is firm and succulent in texture, juxtaposing perfectly with the crispy batter. It tastes so sweet with the addition of sea salt and lemon juice.

When Shark Fin tempura is served, I can’t believe my ears. This is like one of the last few ingredients from the sea that I can imagine being prepared to become tempura. And I have to say this is the perfect way of preparing shark fin. Yes, move aside shark fin soup! Springy, moist strands of shark fin makes for very good texture. Tempura sauce brings excitement to the subtle flavours of the fin.

Another surprise of the day is sweet corn tempura. It is so crunchy, packed with pure milky sweetness, accentuated by the sea salt. A combination of white corn and yellow corn used to achieve that lovely balance of sweetness and aroma.

When dipped with curry powder, the taste is interesting, exotic and exciting. I love it too.

Tempura fish is creamy and has this soft, mild briny sweetness. Taste so good with tempura sauce.

The scallop has firm, springy texture that contrasts so well with the crispy batter. I pair half with sea salt and lemon to enjoy the natural sweetness of the scallop, and then another half with plum sauce for an exciting bite.

Tendon is prepared al dente, which goes very well with the sticky texture of the grated mountain yam. Very refreshing treat.

No fibres in the tempura asparagus here! Unbelievable! The asparagus from Hasegawa Farms, given the tempura treatment, is most probably the best asparagus. It is cooked just right to retain the juiciness and crunchy texture. The clean vegetal taste goes exceptionally well with the curry powder.

The end part of the asparagus is usually sweeter and more fibrous, so Chef Takahiro deep fried this for a longer time to break down the fibres. And yes, the end part is just as crunchy and fibreless, while being sweeter, going better with the milder tempura sauce.

Chewy, milky clam tempura is so good with sea salt and lemon.

Eggplant tempura is so juicy and its spongy texture juxtaposes so well with the crispy batter. I'm not an eggplant person, but I sure love this eggplant tempura.

Donburi of premium fluffy smooth rice topped with tempura mix of chopped prawns and shiso makes me have the blessed yet uniquely uplifting feeling of happiness. The multitude of flavours is so exciting. And the soufflé feel of the tempura wins my heart over totally.

Pickle and dabs of sauces added to the rice for simulating flavours.

Sweet comforting bowl of white miso soup

Actually I do briefly wonder if the dessert will be in tempura form while waiting for the dessert to be served. So when tempura sweet potato with Hokkaido milk ice-cream sprinkled with snowflake salt is presented. I am squeaking in delight in my head. This is so crispy and creamy in texture, earthy and milky in taste. Simple yet well executed.

Beautiful Sake glasses for choosing

Thoughts: Different, Delicate, Dedicated and Delicious. Tempura at its Best.

9 Raffles Boulevard

Millenia Walk #01-09