Canton-i, City Square, Johor Bahru

The main reason why we dropped by Canton-i (Lot J1-22 & J2-31, Johor Bahru City Square, 106 & 108, Jalan Wong Ah Fook) was for their char siew. In retrospect, that honey marinated and caramelized strip of barbecued pork with wobbly soft fat married with bitter accent of burnt ends was probably the only thing that we would ever be coming back for. Good stuff.

We did order some dim sum which I hadn't bothered with photos. Most of them were unexpectedly mediocre for Hong Kong styled food. Their har gao was sad and their fish maw low in quality. Special mention goes to the noodles with prawn roe which was nothing like what we imagined. I'm not sure what's the deal with the squares of sliced carrots and canned mushrooms that was thrown in with that gloopy sauce. This rendition appeared to be a mediocre knock off of a simple noodle dish. We know where to find better.

More of that ban mian from Toa Payoh Central...

This would be the "Chinese tagliatelle" option for noodles. So to speak. I'm more favourably disposed towards ee mee which was more toasty over this noodle which was slightly floury tasting. I'm not saying that I dislike this bowl, I just prefer the other much more. The ingredients as usual, are generous and good.

Luke's Oyster Bar & Chop House, Robinsons Orchard

I've been waiting for the opening of this new outfit of Luke's Oyster Bar & Chop House (#03-02, Robinsons Orchard, 260 Orchard Road, tel : +65 6733 4813) for a while and it's finally happened.

Honestly, I'm as impressed with this place as the original one down at Gemmill Lane. Even after the anticipation.

The Bloody Mary was one of the better ones I recall having while the starter of their crab cakes were delicious and packed with flavours of both the crab and the spices. Now, those were indeed a balance of flavours. 

I could go on about the nicely salted bits of lobster wedged in the heavily buttered and toasted rolls. Or the crusty & crisp on the outside beef patty with perfect (I'm entitled to this word) dusky pink medium doneness from their burger which seemed better than I last remember them. This one, is ahead of the little beast at Morton's on the flavour and is, I daresay again, one of the best few burgers one can get in this country. I recommend them without the additional kurobuta bacon because I think that the bacon does absolutely nothing making it any better.

And yes, I'm not forgetting that subtle stout shake that came with chocolate chip filled soft baked cookies.

Gyoza-ya, Robinsons Orchard

This was the newest shop (#B1-02 Robinsons Orchard, 260 Orchard Road, tel : +65 6737 5581) set up by the home grown Akashi Group. Of course they do gyoza. And what kind of gyoza? Apparently ones with ingredients imported from Japan, machine filled and crimped upon order so everything is freshly made.

Their gyozas were actually pretty good. The exterior of the dumpling was crisp; fillings were tender, juicy and it was all sufficiently flavoured. We tried the yaki ebi, yaki buta and even a sui buta ones. What was was mediocre was the fried rice. Nowhere close to the standards of some of the good ones that can be found in town. Enjoyed that bean sprout dish with minced meat. The tori nankotsu which was salty and crunchy.

With prices at Akashi going visibly northwards, I guess Gyoza-ya looks to be bucking some of that trend. Some. Let's hope it lasts at least for those gyozas. To footnote, I actually found the entire experience at the Gyoza King much more satisfying and less costly. 

The Fiery Mala Burger from McD

Recently, McD has had some sort of spicy challenge publicity going on and this Fiery Mala Burger was revealed to be the spiciest of four that was part of the challenge. I'm pretty sure that this was actually the spiciest burger that McD has ever made and the heat was kind of respectable. Of course, one shouldn't really be expecting the fragrance of real mala spices in their marinate. Still, but it still provided a kick tempered with some aioli like sauce over the top. I didn't expect that I would actually enjoy it.

On the other hand, it's shamefully expensive for a sandwich with a small piece of chicken and some shreds of lettuce.

Hill Street Tai Hwa Pork Noodles 2014

Here's a bowl of reaffirmation for this year from Tai Hwa (#01-12, Tai Hwa Eating House, 466 Crawford Lane, tel : +65 6292 7477). There's definitely a good reason why this place is better than the others. And it's good to know that the noodles are still savoury-licious with a vinegary punch.