TGIF

I have been feeling bothered lately so I am hoping for a relaxing weekend. Have a lovely weekend, folks!

Desserts from Food for Thought, National Museum

After a day of strategy discussions, we hopped over to Food for Thought at National Museum - out of convenience - for dinner. I was surprised by how pleasant it was, given I don't like what they did with the 8Q branch and I have heard of how chaotic the Botanic Gardens outlet can be. So yeah, low expectations equals low disppointment. Also, they hung these cute buntings across the ceiling that gave me serious wedding/ party envy immediately. Best  of all, it was amazingly tranquil on a Friday evening.

I only took pictures of the desserts as I didn't want to be that oddball going around taking pictures of people's food.

I was a kid who ate Milo powder by the spoonful so you can only imagine how delighted I was with the Milo Godzilla Pudding. Settle a baseball-sized scoop of vanilla ice cream on top of a super fudgy chocolate pudding, scatter Milo cookie crumbs and powder around it, and sweeten the deal with a drizzle of condensed milk.

Another pleasing sweet treat is the Old School Banana Coconut Tart. Caramelised bananas encased in at buttery tart shell, topped with toasty desiccated coconut; accompanied by another huge scoop of vanilla ice cream that sits on almond slices that should have been toasted.

With two winners in the bag, we had to have a third dud. I am sorry to report the red velvet cake was one dry disappointment and it tasted a little "off." Too much time spent in the chiller? Too much zing in the cream cheese? Yeah, I am not a red velvet person and this slice reminded me to not fall for style over substance.

Happy midweek folks!

Paul, Takashimaya

I had lunch with my mother-in-law the other day. Or rather I had a favour to ask of her but she ended up treating me to lunch at Paul.

I had this incredibly yummy roasted salmon and leeks croque monsieur, which kept me filled up all afternoon. There was alot to like about this sandwich - cheesy, heady, not too bread - but the price tag - $18.90++ - was not one of them.

Surprisingly, I didn't even feel drowsy though I'm sure the super thick kopi had some part to play.

Lolla, Ann Siang Road

Small plates.... Hmm, a seemingly hipster fadish approach that seems so 2013. Yet, I absolutely love the concept, especially when each dish is punctuated with rich and assertive flavours. 

For KW's annual bonus treat to his parents, we had lunch at Lolla - a place I will admit we only went to by process of elimination. Lolla opened to much fanfare last year so it made sense - to us, at least - to visit the restaurant post-hoopla. Thankfully, it lived up to its hype and we really enjoyed the grub churned out by the three light-footed beings behind the kitchen counter. 

"Better than Esquina," whispered KW. 

I felt a surge of national pride when KW said that; patriotism kicks in at the oddest of times, I guess. I nodded - I would have continued the conversation if I hadn't been busy lapping up every bit of squid ink pudding.

Just about everyone orders the sea urchin pudding at Lolla. And I wonder how many were just as taken aback by I was at the size of the bowl. Yet its diminutive size was quickly forgotten as we sank our spoons into the dark creamy abyss of squid ink-based pudding. Delicious.

The bottarga-topped scrambled eggs was delectably luscious and savoury - breakfast at its Mediterranean finest. I usually scoff at brunch food but this happily make me eat my words. 

The gratinated leek fondant was a cubby little pot of cheesy, unctuous deliciousness. 

The Spanish tortilla, stuffed with duck fat potatoes and topped with smoked eel, was a dressed-up filler. It was unusual but not something I would order again given how good the other dishes were. 

One of the specials of the day was a winter salsify salad that had been roasted and dressed in a gorgeous gremolata. It seemed so simple yet I found myself going back for more and swiping the plate clean of any vinaigrette. 

As I have mentioned before, with my in-laws, it hardly counts as a celebration until a bloody piece of steak presents itself for sacrifice. 

While it can't be compared to the dry-aged beauties at speciality steakhouses, the grass-fed ribeye steak was spot-on pink and satisfying to a tee.

It might seem odd to show you a picture of the baguette and Echire butter but halfway through the meal, we realised bread would have been an extremely useful tool in mopping up every damn thing. Get yours at the start of the meal and save yourself the pain of seeing sauces and smears gone to waste. 

We continued with desserts elsewhere as our corner seats were given away and the counter seating plus Top 40s hits made it hard to converse. Nonetheless, Lolla is a lovely spot to check out if you only have a plus-one or you feel just one-derful on your own.

Popiah from Qi Ji

Yes, I can eat two rolls at a go...

After the bitter disappointment at Kway Guan Huat Joo Chiat Popiah, I was in serious need of a popiah kiss-and-make-up session. This popiah from popular chain Qi Ji provided immediate comfort as the Rochor Road branch is a mere 10-minute walk from my office. I am not about to pull out the Best-Popiah-Ever card yet but at least I can keep calm and roll with it.

Kway Guan Huat Joo Chiat Popiah @ Tangs

Man, I have heard so much about Kway Guan Huat popiah - Bob Blumer even made a trip slash show-and-tell there when he dropped by Singapore. But at $4 a pop, this popiah turned out to be an inflated disappointment.

Roland Restaurant, Marine Parade

You know the food is good when you know what to order on your next visit.

You know the food is good when there are people celebrating some bub's first month birthday and another group celebrating someone's 91st birthday.

You know the food is good when someone proclaims she will stage her wedding dinner at that particular restaurant even without an engagement ring or boyfriend in sight.

That's my younger sister for you. And she picked Roland Restaurant to do her birthday meal - her fifth visit in less than a year, if I may add. 

Roland claims his mum invented the chill crab and you know what, its a mighty fine specimen. There is a whole lot going on in the flavour department, and the mantou munchkins are just begging to be dunked - any end first - into the thickish eggy sauce.

Not to be outdone, the salted egg crabs offered much desire, especially with its more-than-generous serving of deep-fried yam stripes.

I will be honest and say crabs aren't really my thing. Too much effort for too little meat and I am most certainly not keen on double dunking in that 1980s washing bowl?

Prawns, however, are a different story altogether. I looooove prawns. Love love love.

One of my favourite dishes, the signature pumpkin prawns were incredibly and incredibly moreish. Oh the eggy batter that crowned those plump sweet morsels would easily make anyone forget any social decorum of leaving behind the last piece. It was so good I even ate up the lonesome lettuce that was cloaked in pumpkin sauce and fried (sigh!) batter.

The pork ribs were not particularly unique but still delicious in a bone-sucking, finger-licking way.

With a smattering lot of lard bits, the samba lang kong was devilishly good. 

Another must-order is the baby squid and you char kway combination platter. 

If you need help getting over alien thrillers, this deep-fried baby squid critters dish would be your go-to dish. The squid-stuffed you char kway (or crullers) was a throwback to one of the many carb-y things I loved as a kid. One tip: Grab them while they are hot.

If I had to choose my favourite noodle dish, the seafood mee goreng would easily be one of the top three (right behind san lor hor fun and Penang char kway teow). Admittedly, it is not easy to find a good rendition but Roland does a mee-n version, packed with goodies and every strand coated in eggy bits.

The orh nee, supposedly another one of their specialities, was decent though forgettable. 

To end off, we had a passionfruit meringue tart from Carpenter & Cook to celebrate my sister's birthday. Love the puckerish twang of the passionfruit and short pastry tart shell!