Le Croissant Shop : Your Neighbourhood Croissant Shop

With so many pedigreed dough-punchers everywhere in Japan, Le Croissant comes off as the down-to-earth neighborhood bakery where people takeaway the bread and have them on the go. The hottest item is of course, the original croissant that is 100% made with Hokkaido wheat and brushed with a sugar syrup concocted in-house. 

Available either in petit sizes (¥40 each) in a bucket of about 6 or regular sizes, these buttery treats are airy and chewy but short of the crisp flakiness in the outer shell. Perhaps these would taste better fresh out of the oven. 

There is plenty of savoury flavours to choose from as well. I was disappointed that the Egg Mayo Stick (¥210) that I ordered was not from the display batch but pre-wrapped in a plastic sheet, resulting in the steam from the warm bread to condense within the wrap and made the stick soggy and bad. 

Furthermore, there was a lack of consistency as our stick had fewer eggs than those on displayed. Fortunately, the Mentaiko Stick (¥160) could withstand the moisture invasion, probably because it was pretty hard like a baguette in the first place. This is good and probably the best item out of all the sweet + savoury I've tried from this shop.

Unless you carry an oven during your travel or lucky enough to catch the freshest ones out from the kitchen, it is difficult to enjoy the potential deliciousness of the bread. Better head to their cafe outlet in Tennoji Abeno where you can sit back and enjoy a breakfast from 
7.30am 

Le Croissant Shop ル・クロワッサン ショップ

Various outlets including Shinsaibashi, Kyoto

2-7-25-1F Shinsaibashisuji, Chuo Ward, Osaka, Osaka Prefecture 542-0085, Japan

TEL: 06-6211-9603

Daily 11am-9pm

http://www.le-cro.com/

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META: Avant Garde Cuisine @ Keong Saik Road

The most wonderful thing about the full 8-course menu here is that it includes not 1, but 3 desserts. 

It's a good healthy number since most lunch/dinner courses end with only one or no dessert at all, hanging my heart (and stomach) in mid-air without a sweet ending to a meal. Opened only in end October last year, Meta is dedicated to modern avant garde cuisine without the pressure and rigidities of fine-dining. 

The 30-seater space is sleek, black and evokes the industrial punk vibes. Unless you wish to indulge in some lovey-dovey private space at the small tables, I figured the best position is none other than the row of bar seats, which allows a full perspective of the young rebellious kitchen team in action minus the heat, grease or what so ever that makes you feel uncomfortable.
Instead of going in chronological order, let me starting talking about my best dish, Wagyu Beef Tartar + Pear Kimchi + Egg Jelly + Rice. It sounds like an alien combination but it's the least alienating dish of all. Inspired by Head Chef Sun Kim's hometown dish Bimbimbap, the juicy raw beef is marinated in bulgogi sauce which imparts the sweet and salty flavors. 

There is some unexpected tartness, possibly due to the not-spicy kimchi juices that trickled down from the julienned pear. Just as I was enjoying the beef with the crunchy rice puffs, the gelatinous egg yolk balls rolled into the scene and adds more feel-good homeliness to this dish. 

Deep down I was shouting for a sunny side fried egg and warm rice to go with the beef (which I didn't of course). But I realized it was comfort soul food at best as I reluctantly placed the utensils on the empty plate and moved onto the next few dishes. 
It's not to say that the food before and after this beef tartare was not pleasant. They were truly delicious and remarkable in their own leagues. From the miso scallops to the seabass to the 30-hours braised short beef, the chef went very light on seasoning, allowing the natural sweetness and taste of the meat to shine forth. But I thought the food was similar to restaurants such as the Rabbit Stash or even Artemis Grill. That's why perhaps I had an instinctive fondness of the Beef "Bibimbap" earlier because it was an apt representation of street food taken to fine-dining stage. 

Since Chef Sun Kim used to be train at Waku Ghin and Tetsuya, a infusion of Korean elements into modern French cuisine would make this place stand apart from the mass. After all, I haven't notice any modern Korean-French avant garde restaurants in the Singapore food scene yet. 
The remaining 3 dessert dishes are taken care  by Pastry Chef Tammy Mah who is quite experimental about her sweets. Here, you get real desserts, not cakes waffles or ice creams but the authentic original plated works that are demanding on techniques. For example, the golden orb (or what some dubbed as the Quidditch Ball in Harry Potter) is a whimsically light cheese cake embedded with two hemisphere-shaped chocolate filled of blood orange sauce. 
But this is not as impressive as the latter two. One is mini white chocolate dome with tangy yoghurt ice cream but the wasabi was too elusive. Meanwhile, the Rock is a good introductory door to molecular gastronomy to layman like me. It's quite fun to have smoke emitting profusely from your mouth and nostrils but the pricky feeling that jabbed the tongue can be quite nasty, just like the touch of dry ice  with bare hands. 

There are currently 3 types of menu; 8-course ($128), 5-course and a vegetarian course. With a small kitchen team, limited seatings and quality modern cuisine, this may very well be a successful local story of "Giro Giro" if they could offer the exact same dining experience at a more affordable pricing. 

META

9 Keong Saik Road

Tel: 6513-0898

Mon-Sat: 5.30pm to midnight (including PH except CNY 

closed on Sunday
http://metarestaurant.sg/

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World's Richest Matcha Ice Cream Now in Tokyo

Look no further than Tokyo Asakusa for the richest matcha ice cream in the world! Yes, you are not reading wrongly. It's Tokyo and NOT Kyoto. Shizuoka's famous green tea gelato parlour Nanaya has collaborated with Tokyo tea shop Suzuki En 壽々喜園 (since 1848) to sell its famous matcha ice cream in varying degrees of intensity. 

Tasting is believing as the No.7 matcha gelato is outrageously rich in matcha taste. The first lick left me dumbfounded for words and it took me a while before I came to realize that this IS reality, NOT a dream. Named as the world’s richest matcha ice cream, this dark emerald green scoop was indisputably "超抹茶!" 

Yet it did not overpower on the bitterness that some would shy away from. The matcha flavour shone through the cream effortlessly, with smooth echoes of sweetness in the background, making it a supreme gelato from the average soft serve. Not a surprise as this is made from a batch of Shizuoka tea leaves which has won the MAFF award for consecutive 3 years. 

The matcha gelato here ranges from 1 to 7; No. 1 is the average matcha gelato sold everywhere, No. 2 is twice the intensity, No. 3 is the same level of intensity as the tea from Suzukien, No.5 is known as "the boundary of richness", the level which artisan gelato makers argue as impossible to go beyond for any gelato. 

And now you can roughly picture the strength of No.7, which is sold for the first time in Kanto area and NOT even available at the main outlet in Shizuoka. In short the higher you climb, the greater the satisfaction especially if you are a matcha lover. Try ordering different levels and you will experience the difference instantly.

Meanwhile, the other flavors such as Houjicha and Genmaicha are no less exceptional. My heart smiled upon a lick of the black sesame gelato; so irresistibly toasty and compact. Opened since 29th Dec 2015, this place has shot to fame and expect to see lines forming outside the shop. Not to worry as it moves quite fast. 

However, do go early if you like to try the No.7 matcha gelato as it is always the fastest to disappear from the display window. 

Now you don't have to travel far for the world's richest matcha gelato. 

Just be prepared for a life-changing experience. 

抹茶ジェラートショップ壽々喜園×ななや

9.30am-5.30pm daily

3-4-3 Asakusa, Taito-ku, Tokyo

TEL：03-3871-0311

Access: Walk straight up to Asakusa Shrine and bypass the hospital behind the shrine to a main road. Cross the traffic light and you’ll see the tea shop壽々喜園

Shop blog (Japanese): http://suzukien.blogspot.com/

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Kikunoi Kyoto Kaiseki on Singapore Airlines

I used to think that airplane meals are unpalatable or even tasteless but I now take my words back after having a delicious Kaiseki dining experience on-board the Singapore airlines business class flight from Narita (Tokyo) back to Singapore. In fact, I recalled that having similar in-flight kaiseki meal back in 2012 and looks like improvements have been made to the meals.

Kaiseki or any Michelin-star restaurant, is not a top priority for me when I travel in Japan. And thus, I have never been to any of the highly rated expensive spots like Nihonryouri Ryujin or Kikunoi, of course not even Sushi Jiro. I think I’ll be happier with a convenience store onigiri or excellent cakes from talented patissiers. That said, I won't say no if I have the opportunity to try a full Kaiseki course.

Hence, it only took me less than one second to decide between the Japanese or the International selection this time round as the Japanese selection, Hanakoireki, was created by Yoshihiro Murata of Kikunoi Kyoto. I'm a fan of Kikunoi after learning so much of his food philosophy and passion towards preserving the traditional Japanese cuisine. Being an on-board meal, the Kaiseki course is served as two main parts rather than one dish at a time.

The first box contained the following: Sakizuke (persimmons and vegetables tossed with sesame seed ginger); Shiizakana (egg omelette, seasoned chrysanthemum flower leaf and flower); Cold Somen; Hasun (crab meat rolled in turnip, stuffed lotus root with karashi mustard, skewered Fishball with shishito pepper and yam with minced quail miso sauce) 

The second box consisted of the warm and main dishes, though Sunomono (vinegared dish of Spanish mackerel and ginger) should be theoretically served in the first box. Takiawase (simmered duck, duck dumpling, marinated spinach with yuzu zest); Kuchitori (Cod Roe and black bean cake, toasted chestnut mash with candied walnut, smoked salmon rolled in turnip); Yakimono(grilled yellowtail with Sansho flavor, turnip, chrysanthemum leaf); Gohan (flavored rice with chicken). Dessert of Pumpkin mousse with Green Tea Chantily and Raspberry was the best mousse cake I've ever eaten on a flight.

In-flight entertainment controller has become touch screen! Yay! It's touch small screen and not touch big screen
While this on-board Kaiseki experience is probably not as authentic as a real visit to the restaurant, I enjoyed it tremendously as there isn't a need to be concern about any manners or rituals. Afterall, how many chances can one feast on Kaiseki while watching movies at the same time? 

Meanwhile, the international section that started with canapé of Singapore chicken and beef satay. In fact, this was available to guests who chose the Japanese selection as well. Next, the appetizer was Foie Gras Duck Confit with Balsamic Apple Dressing on Asparagus and Mizuna Salad. Main course was a choice between Red wine roasted beef, Teriyaki chicken roll and steamed rice with mushrooms (pic below) or Baked Fillet of Cod in Sambal Sauce. 

To end of the meal on a sweet note, there was not only chestnut ice cream in chocolate sauce but also cheese platter (Bleu des neiges, pepper jack and mimolette cheese with grapes and nuts) as well as my favourite chocolate pralines. 

The best way to try both kinds is to travel with a companion and select a different meal. I am glad to have tried both and completed my travel journey with a truly unique dining experience. 

Available for Narita Tokyo-Singapore day flight on Singapore Airlines 

www.singaporeair.com

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Strawberries Sweets 2016 @ Grand Hyatt Tokyo

February is the month of love, chocolate and .......strawberries. My eyes instantly lit up at the gorgeous display of pink pastries, which left me highly anticipating for the spring season after the chilly winter. Since I won't be in town for Sakura, why shouldn't I live the moment and catch the freshest strawberries when they are in season? Running from now till mid-March, the strawberry sweets is an annual affair at Fiorentina Pastry Boutique that takes full advantage of these highly prized berries when they are at their sweetest. 

シュー生地でクリームと苺をサンドした人気のパリブレスト

Besides common pastry items like Paris Brest (¥650), there is the exquisite glass of Strawberry and Spumante Verrine (¥750), which contained ONE WHOLE premium strawberry! This is a practical way to enjoy those expensive ichigos as we don't have to splurge on the entire box. 

Strawberry Spumante Verinne 苺とスプマンテのベリーヌ

スプマンテのゼリーの中に大きなフレッシュストロベリーが丸ごと入ったベリーヌです。

Plus, anything that contains alcohol (in this case, it is infused with Italian White wine that is typically known as Spumante) is a bonus and not surprisingly, this was my mum's favourite as well. The smooth, wobbly jelly is so light yet boozy, making it a great low-calorie dessert for those who usually stay away from sugar. 

Fragola Grande ラゴーラ グランデ　

くり抜いた苺の中に自家製いちごジャムや生クリーム、コンデンスミルクなどを詰め込んだ、いちごミルク味のスイーツです。 

I must confessed I might not have bought the Fragola Grande if I had not carelessly overlooked the price tag of ¥1200. This was constructed of two hollowed-out strawberries filled with homemade strawberry jam, fresh cream. Since the Japanese usually dip ichigo in condensed milk, the chef has coated the berries in condensed milk, dried ichigo chips and arranged on strawberry chocolate crunch slab. 

Is this worth the price? YES! The strawberries were tremendously sweet and firm, which made me curious the source of these ichigos as it is stated that the price of this pastry varies according to the type of ichigos available @_@

Fiore Fragola フィオーレ フラゴーラ

アーモンド生地に苺ジャムを入れて焼き上げ、フォンダンをかけた焼菓子です。

Last but not least, the Fiore Fragola (¥1200), a moist strawberry cake on a sable base and coated in fondant. It was a pleasant surprise to find the rare pairing of a crunchy base to these kind of bundt cakes. It’s admittedly on the sugary side but perfect for washing down with a cup of hot ocha.

*Fragola Dolce : Strawberry Fair is available till March
*Check out previous sweets from Grand Hyatt Tokyo here

Fiorentina Pastry Boutique @ Grand Hyatt Tokyo

6-10-3 Roppongi, Minato-Ku, Tokyo, Japan 106-0032

Daily 9am-10pm

http://restaurants.tokyo.grand.hyatt.com/fiorentina-pastry-tokyo/index.html

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Green Tea Restaurant 1899 Ochanomizu: Where Everything Turns Green

You may have seen all kinds of matcha desserts but how about having matcha in savoury dishes? Although I have written previously about the Japanese Tea Kaiseki Meal at Fukujuen Tokyo, that experience wasn't as "extreme" as the experience at 1899 Green Tea Restaurant. As the name suggests, this place is all about infusing Japanese cuisine with "ocha". This couldn't be a more appropriate theme for this restaurant that is opened by the prestigious Hotel Ryumeikan which has more than 100 years of history since its establishment in Ochanomizu. 

自家製一夜干し（ほうじ茶）

Most of the dishes here are infused with either tencha, matcha or houjicha, albeit a clear bias towards matcha. Unlike the Kaiseki experience at, this casual dining place is similar to a mid-priced izakaya serving grilled dishes, salads, rice bowls and alcohols, including green tea beer.

Highly recommended dishes include the Green Tea Potato Salad 抹茶ポテトサラダ (680 yen) and Tamagoyaki with Green Tea Miso 抹茶味噌入り出汁巻き玉子 (880 yen). The former was served with smoky sweet Tonkatsu sauce, which was quite redundant given that the dish was delicious on its own. Meanwhile, the Tamagoyaki was executed with precision and amazed everyone at the table with the oozing lava that contributed to its tastiness. 

But incorporating Japanese tea into savoury dishes is an even more challenging task than working it into desserts. It can easily be masked by the umami or saltiness and thus not all dishes turned out equally successful. For instance, the Wagyu Sirloin baked in seasonal onions 和牛サーロインと旬野菜の玉葱釜焼き was rather disappointing as the matcha sauce tasted incongruous with the beef, even though the onion was utterly soft and sweet. Skip the soggy Kale Pizza as there was nothing remarkable about it.

銀だら西京焼き、大山鶏塩焼き　抹茶おろし添え、抹茶鍋、鍋の〆ご飯

Speaking of this ingenious hot pot, it is prepared by working Uji Matcha into the chicken broth and served with Gunma prefecture pork. Surprisingly, it wasn't bland at all and quarantined of heavy seasonings. The matcha imparted some tea fragrance and taste to the broth, bringing it one step closer to Hakka Lei Cha but in a more palatable manner. 

It's available in single pax and include seasonal vegetables and Gunma prefecture pork. Towards the end of any hot pot meal, there is always "shime-no-gohan" but the rice was elevated with Chirimen which made them very tasty without the need to pour the soup. 

For something simpler, the Salmon Ochazuke お茶ずけ will suffice for a light and healthy meal to end the night. 

Green Tea Restaurant 1899 Ochanomizu

3-4 Kanda Surugadai, Chiyoda, Tokyo 101-0062, Japan

Lunch 11am-3pm

Cafe 2pm-4.30pm

Dinner 5.30pm-11pm

3 min walk from JR Ochanomizu Station

http://1899.jp/ochanomizu/

Facebook:  1899ochanomizu

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Spinacas: Hearty Salads Delivered

I am a huge vegetable lover and those who have dined with me would know that I am always the one who clear up any remaining side greens on the plate. Hence, I don't run away from any vegetables or find it a chore to consume salads. 

Nonetheless, finding the right place that offers nutritious salads that does not skimp on ingredients has been quite a hassle until I was introduced to Spinacas, an online salad delivery service started by Phyllis Chua to busy working crowd. 

The concept is very straightforward--high protein, low carb salads which are great for paleo and primal dieters. Well, if the words paleo and primal sound greek to you (and to me initially), trying Spinacas salads will give you an inkling on what they are all about. 


Basically, the salads are low-GI as refined high GI carbohydrates such as bread, pasta and potatoes are fully absent. Yet, each salad comes with at least 100g of meat and I didn't have to worry about the other toppings, as they are pre-decided. These toppings include honey cherry tomatoes, broccoli, hard-boiled egg, nuts, seedless grapes and a seasonal surprise ingredient. 

Not to forget the surprise cheddar cheese inside each box as it imparted natural flavors without depending too much on the dressing. All I have to do is to select the meat preference (or the vegetarian option) and size (regular or petit). The website here also explains clearly how one can select their salad choice that best meet their dietary preferences! 

Out of the 4 types which I've tried, I enjoyed the Pulled Pork which delivered a smoky, peppery taste to the salad naturally, as well as lightly seasoned tofu pattie that is suitable for those who prefer salads to be meat-free. Moroccan Chicken is topped with fiery Chilli peppers but the spice level is well within manageable limits. Meanwhile, I find the Espresso Ribs to be slightly too sweet and short of bitter coffee notes. 

Nonetheless, I truly enjoyed such a wholesome and delicious meal that saved me both the time and trouble to prepare it. In fact, one regular size salad was sufficient to keep me full for hours till the next meal, unlike most salads that I've tried. 

It was also thoughtful for Spinacas to keep the meats, dressing and greens in different containers to ensure that the salad stay fresh and crisp until consumption. While the meat options are currently limited to poultry animals, I hope that the menu can gradually expand to seafood for fish lovers like me! 

Price starts from $9 for salads and $1 for add-ons.

*Latest News* Spinacas has launched a new side of Cauliflower rice (carb-free, rice-like texture, uses 100% cauliflower florets, deliciously sauteed with olive oil until light and fluffy, tossed with coriander, sesame seeds and cashew nuts) and partnered with Coco Water to offer refreshing coconut water over this CNY! 

Spinacas

195 Pearl's Hill Terrace

#01-55

Singapore 168976

Tel: +65 97707039

Delivery from Mondays to Fridays

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/spinacas

Website: http://spinacas.com/

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BAKE Revisited : Valentine's Day Special

Looks like BAKE has rapidly expanded its territories not only in Japan but also overseas. Nonetheless, there is always long queue for its one and only item on the menu-Cheese Tart. It's Jiyugaoka outlet is a sleek white two-storey building with cafe seats on the 2nd floor. 
Something not usually found in other outlets in the Tokyo Milk Soft Serve (¥400), a spiraling "Eiffel Tower" that sat precariously on a delicious crunchy cone. It's smooth,  creamy and quite resilient to temperatures. This was quite sweet and would be better if they could come up with a cheese soft serve instead. However, the most disappointing moment was the cheese tart during this visit turned out even sweeter than i expected. Perhaps they have accidentally dumped a bag of sugar into the cream cheese and tart dough batter. 

Fortunately there was the limited Valentine's Day chocolate edition which was much enjoyable with its mellow edge. So good that it could justify a permanent spot on the menu.

BAKE 

http://bakecheesetart.com/

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