Re-visiting Lao Chen Ji (老陳記)

S'been a while since the last time. Oddly, not tasting much of that chilli today in the noodles.

The other one on the side you could help yourself with was also good though. They aren't the same are they?

Alice Boulangerie & Restaurant, Raffles City

Came across Alice Boulangerie & Restaurant (#1-22A Raffles City, 252 North Bridge Road, tel : +65 8083 5315) by chance and we were ushered in by an subtle yet not fully understood force while looking at the menu. They're French-y, not French with pretty attractive looking pastries/confectionary/breads, some food and drinks.

Grabbed a few items from the bakery...like the banana tart, a pistachio cream bun with a light and pistachio-y cream and a not too sweet nama matcha chocolate bun. All pretty good tasting.

That chocolate banana tart had layered sliced bananas, banana cream and chocolate ganache within the buttery pastry.

Pretty impressed with their lychee macchiato. Loved how the lychee paired with their espresso. Menu mentioned lychee jam.

Not bad tasting beer battered haddock. Tartare sauce is house made, could taste perhaps a hint of horseradish and capers in it. Mushy peas were bright tasting, redolent of green pea flavour.

Fish was pretty thick.

Didn't think much of their maple cinnamon latte though - latte's a little thin. Tasted like something I could make at home.

PST (Pizza Studio Tamaki), Tanjong Pagar Road

Pizza Studio Tamaki (38 Tanjong Pagar Road, tel : +65 8072 9512) is apparently a name in Tokyo known for their Japanese Neapolitan pizza. Never knew of them until recent months when the usual social media machinations cranked their gears for the hype train.

They have their fluff. Gemini mentions numerous accolades, including multiple listings on the Michelin Guide Japan's Bib Gourmand list in 2022 and 2023, four consecutive years on the Michelin Guide Japan list, and multiple wins in the 50 Top Pizza World and 50 Top Pizza Asia-Pacific awards as of 2024. And then, there's also their unique blend of flour, 30 hours aged dough and blah blah......

What's also alluded was that the chef behind it, Tsubasa Tamaki, was mentor to Eddie Murakami of Beyond The Dough, another Japanese Neapolitan joint that set up shop not that long ago here. Word out was that it was hard to get a table, but we managed a walk in.  

We were served complimentary cold potato onion soup.

Meatballs were not bad. Love the grind and that these weren't overly soft, draped with a fresh tasting tangy tomato sauce.

Our first pizza was their seasonal tomato kakigori pizza. That's right, kakigori and pizza. Never had them together before. This was awesome.

We were guided to spoon in the kakigori with basil, followed by a squeeze of lemon and a drizzle of olive oil. By slice. Flavour from the kakigori was intense tomato which formed a chilled layer over the warm cheesy pizza profiled with basil and olive oil. Like they also said, great for our weather. Nice! 👍🏼  

The other pizza we got was their Diavola. Did not look like how we imagined. Not spicy as well. But the olives and sausage flavoured it nicely.

Vanilla ice cream with olive oil.

They obliged our request for more olive oil. Nice. 

Espresso here was intense and bitter.

Hup Kee Delicious Food (合记), Bukit Merah Central Food Centre

Only noticed Hup Kee Delicious Food (#02-15 Bukit Merah Central Food Centre, 163 Bukit Merah Central) not long back even though I've been in the area numerous times. Bee hoon flavour's decent but seemed to be a bit too greasy.

Re-thinking the nasi lemak at Katong Laksa Holland Village Nasi Lemak

After having had nasi lemak from Malaysia over the past year, this one from Katong Laksa Holland Village Nasi Lemak has lost its limited allure. Rice wasn't as tasty and even their fried chicken thigh felt subpar. The sambal belachan is also no longer available. 😔

Half and half from Pakistani Dum Biryani Sg

Apparently, one can request for half biryani and half pulao at Pakistani Dum Biryani Sg. While the mutton I got today was tender, it was also one that was lean and stringy. The dal helped but I'll see if I can request for less lean cut the next time.