The Artichoke Fried Chicken

That's the fried chicken from Artichoke which was basically their take on a Southern fried chicken plate with a Mediterranean/Middle Eastern twist. It featured chicken that's been brined overnight and then massaged with a shish taouk marinated before being fried and getting a veneer of honey lemon glaze. The slaw on the side is flavoured with tahini, there's paprika fries and Lebanese pickles, a toum on the side and chutney like thingy...yada. 

One must surely be wondering about the verdict. The savoury flavoured batter was crisp and the meat was juicy. It was also more salty than I had expected. But that worked since the sodium element was really low for everything else on the plate. There was a wing, a drumstick and a thigh and the portions were pretty generous. The only thing that I couldn't quite reconcile was the tahini slaw. The flavour profile doesn't quite scream tahini. Would have been great if there were more of that fragrant sesame.

Miso hire katsu from Tonkichi

Wow, this was actually quite impressive. Today's hire katsu featured a very robust crisp sans excessive oil and the tender fillet was juicy. There is definitely differences in the quality between this shop at Ngee Ann City versus the one at Shaw House. We also got to try their kaki katsu which I recall being recommended from some time back (yes, it sure took a long time to happen). Those were fat and creamy specimens that were served. That simply means another option for fried oyster fixes.

Hot Reuben now with Asahi Kuronama beer bread at Nassim Hill Bakery

I was really looking forward to revisiting their Grimbergen Ambrée beer bread that impressed me previously when I noticed that it's now Asahi Kuronama beer bread as stated in the menu instead. Seems like I'm running into a bit of the Asahi Black lately. What got my attention too was that that the Grimbergen Ambrée is off the tap as well. Are they rotating or did that last brew not work out for the bakery? While I enjoyed this particular bread as well (it's still a nice tasting bread) and probably can't tell what were the subtle differences, I do feel that the older beer bread left a deeper impression.

Kazu has updated

Kazu has changed. Well, visibly so since it hadn't changed very much from the first time I had visited. The place is looking a little more sleek these days with a very visible varnished wooden counter hewn from a single cross section of some tree. That came accompanied with elevated stools to match, replacing the old setup. Cabbage is no longer free and the main grill seems to have gotten an upgrade as well. There're now black curtains along the windows and Asahi Kuronama on tap to match. Yay for the last part!

Well, the menu has changed some. The almost always available ankimo is noticeably missing from the menu along with the Brussels sprouts with cheese that we had from the last visit that I was really looking forward to. The majority of the staples remain and rightly so since those are the consistently good items that has kept us coming back. The tori hatsu and lamb chops are still awesome.

And I've pretty much said all there is to say about the food save for the occasional seasonal item and perhaps, a new thing which I haven't tried previously like the soy braised fish innards which consisted of fish intestines and stomach. That was really good and would make the perfect pairing with rice. Enjoyed their salted chocolate ice cream too. The only thing that we would give a pass on the next time is probably those bacon wrapped lobsters. There's too little of the lobster to really tell and most of the smoky salted flavor came from the bacon anyway.

home made aosa tofu with aburi-ed uni

tomato

lamb chops

fish innards stewed in soy broth

hotaru ika with asparagus

lobster in bacon/oyster in bacon

scallops and prawn

tori hatsu and zucchini with cheese and minced chicken

Australian wagyu gyutan and tontoro ringo

ahem!

sweet potato

glistening sweet potato porn

salted chocolate ice cream

salted, bitter and not too sweet

More Punggol noodling

This time round, we headed down to the stall earlier because I was determined not to be the last customer again. As things would turn out, the noodles didn't quite taste as satisfying as the previous visit. I couldn't quite say what about this visit that didn't quite check out as nicely. Everything seemed to be in order. Perhaps, it was their meatballs that seemed to be more bland.

Dissecting Li Xin fishball noodles

Here's a true story. I've eaten at this stall several times. I've had it at the stall at ION and also tried them a couple of times at their outlet at the foodcourt at JEM. I surprised myself at that because I was never really big on fish ball noodles. Certainly wouldn't help one of them stalls tithe their landlords by paying $5.50 for a bowl. And I disliked them as a kid.

Back to the true story. Throughout the visits, I've had them with all the condiments (chilli, ketchup and vinegar). I would have omitted the ketchup if I had known then that they use them, but that's history. I've also had them with chilli and vinegar and no ketchup just to see the difference. Had them with chilli and nothing else because I heard the chilli sauce was good. Seemed that the best tasting set-up for me, was the one with nothing added on. Just the regular portions of deep fried lard that they spooned into the bowl of noodles. This was the ultimate bowl for me. The flavour of the lard came through, had a savoury ring and was unmasked by the really just average condiments which didn't do it for me. 

Just remember to ask for more noodles if you eat like man. I have this feeling that the sweetness from bloody ketchup makes one feel more filled up than you really are. Having none of the rest of those condiments also makes one realise how stingy they are with noodles.