Putien has changed

The menu at Putien  (一, 二, 三, 四, 五, 六, 七, 八, 九, 十, 十一, 十二, 十三, 十四) has been streamlined. Some new dishes have emerged and and a bunch of others are no longer available. Even their corn juice has been removed. The vibe felt different as well.

This sambal white water snowflake (叁巴水莲) was one of the new items. Crunchy and not much intrinsic flavour from the vegetable. Tasted much like sambal kangkong. Good with rice.

Oyster festival is back so we got some la zi oyster (辣子鲜海蛎). Greasy crunch on the exterior and creamy on the inside. Much like how they were the last time we had them.

From the oyster festival menu was a black truffle oyster noodle (黑松露海蛎烧豆面). Not much of the black truffle flavour. Noodles were slippery and chewy. Not bad tasting.

Geylang Abalone Chilli Noodles (芽笼鲍鱼辣椒面), Broadway @ Sim Lim Square

The signature abalone noodles from Geylang Abalone Chilli Noodles (#B1-08/26 Sim Lim Square, 1 Rochor Canal Road) looked better on their menu. The actual bowl appeared a little underwhelming. Chilli was savoury and has a slight mala-esque heat.

Their meatball were those that has another meatball inside. They're slightly sweet. Not a fan. The rest of the ingredients were pretty ordinary. Mee pok was soft and without the bite that makes them enjoyable. At least now I know.

Henry Charpentier, Great World

Have passed by Henry Charpentier (#01-K103 Great World, 1 Kim Seng Promenade, tel : +65 6235 6303) here numerous times. First time sitting in for cakes.

White peach shortcake was delicious. Both the cake and cream were light and silky. Love those peaches.

Their rendition of the Black Forest gateau was also nicely done. It's not the same as the alcohol infused ones like the defunct Stuttgart Blackforest Boutique S-Café or The Corner Grill or Atout. This like the white peach shortcake had that trademark lightness that Japanese cakes tend to have.

Tsujiri Premium, Great World

Tsujiri Premium (#01-117/118 Great World, 1 Kim Seng Promenade, tel : +65 9830 5988) took over the spot that used to be The Dark Gallery. It's mostly matcha beverages, confectionary and desserts here if anyone was wondering. Their matcha as I've read are harvested from the Uji region of Kyoto and Gemini mentions good quality tea leaves with rich flavour and aroma.

Left's matcha cappucino and right's matcha latte. Visually a little different with the foam but I couldn't really tell the taste apart. Maybe one was a little milkier? I like the lightly sweetened latte better at Maccha House.

Pistachio basque cheesecake was a little nutty and mostly creamy. Didn't dislike it but I don't think it's pistachio-y enough that I'd want to get it again.

We were intrigued by their koji croissant with matcha fillings. The croissant was described as being infused with the essence of koji.

Couldn't tell if it was. Tasted like a regular croissant. Flaky, crispy, a little buttery and all. The creamy bittersweet green tea filling was nice.

Sin Ming Roti Prata Faisal & Aziz Curry Muslim Food, Sin Ming Road

 

I've heard of Sin Ming Roti Prata (#01-51, 24 Sin Ming Road, tel : +65 6453 3893) and their mention for years. Have finally gotten to try them recently.

Their coin prata is apparently talked about. Closest to a croissant I've had as pratas go. Firm with layers, nicely browned and crispy. Kinda nice with sugar.

Cheese plaster's pretty good too. It's the plastic square cheese here so the milky saltiness comes through the prata and egg. Nice. 👍🏼

Competently done kosong they have too with a bit of crisp and a good chew to the texture. Old school-ish. Like.

Got a bunch of sides to go with the prata. The fried chicken's outstanding. Great flavouring and moist meat underneath that dry-ish looking crunchy skin.

This was a Milo kopi from the coffeeshop, not from the prata stall. Shockingly Unexpectedly nice. Both Milo and coffee were thick. Did not see that coming. It's a better mocha than many mocha out there, albeit a local rendition. 

Ssada Gimbab (싸다김밥), Great World

From what I've read described of Ssada Gimbab (#01-109/110 Great World, 1 Kim Seng Promenade, tel : +65 8267 3730), they appear to be to Korea what cha chaan teng are to Kong Kong. Their food a recognizeable array of ubiquitous fare with minimal frills.

This was their fire tonkatsu - the one with buldak sauce. On the side - mayo-ed salad, spicy bean sprouts, a mound of rice, kimchi and takuan.

Meat's a little dry and not the most tender around. Something I managed to easily looked past because of the hot sauce.

Gimbap's were...well, the restaurant's named after them. The ones here were pretty big and well stuffed. This has aged kimchi and tuna. Not bad. Will not mind coming back to try others.

Appreciated the free coffee. It's not great but it's sweet and hot.

One week later......

Ssada Gimbab also has an unexpectedly moreish kimchi jjigae. I liked that there was enough spicy sour from the kimchi with flavour of anchovy in the stew. Such good pairing with the rice. The slices of pork in there were relatively tender.