2015 - Remembering Ordinary Moments

2015 was such a truly memorable year. This year was particularly poignant for many reasons - our second child arrived earlier than expected; we became united in grief as a nation; I officially entered the 30s club; we took our first trip as a family of four to Tokyo; and experienced many more happy, sad, crazy and frustrating moments together. 

Can't wait to see what 2016 brings us!

Bacchanalia, Hong Kong Street

We rarely have time for date nights and these days, even our ice cream dates have been hijacked by the kids. Having the last 2 weeks of the year to ourselves was great; I am sad just thinking about going back to reality. ANYWAY, to make the best out of holidays, KW and I treated ourselves to a nice meal at Bacchanalia, a restaurant that we would like to try but never had the impetus to for some reason. 

I am happy to report, Bacchanalia moved to Hong Kong Street some time in August this year, and with that, spots a pleasantly neutral decor that is shades less distracting than their former outlet. For those of you who love food porn and open kitchens, strap in for the ride, my friend. 

Unlike most restaurants, the bread and butter isn't complimentary. You pay $8 for bread and butter but it money well-spent. House-made sourdough with a crispy crunch and bouncy insides, paired with savoury mushroom butter. I am still thinking about that mushroom butter. AHH! Then, I realised it reminds me of one of my childhood loves - Campbell's Cream of Mushroom soup. 

scallops, borlotti beans, cacao ($7 supplement)

cauliflower, aligot of white truffle and cheese, herb gremolata

The starters were lovely - KW's scallop all plump and precious, while my cauliflower "aligot" was luscious and dreamy. My trusty mate, Wikipedia, shares "aligot" is cheese blended into mash potatoes, which explains why it tasted soo good.

grass-fed, dry-aged beef striploin steak, romanesco, black lime, cabbage buds, charred spring onion purée ($12 supplement)

barramundi, soy beans, kohlrabi, salsa verde

Mains-wise, I enjoyed my perfectly-poached barramundi, and the unusual pairing of pickled kohlrabi and salsa verde. KW's striploin was good but not mind-blowing. Well, it 's tough to beat the steaks he prepares at home these days so he only has himself to blame for the disappointment. 

pre-dessert: basil marshmallow, candied lemon peel and basil

heirloom pineapple poached in caramel, pistachio and white chocolate crumble, Tahitian vanilla ice cream

dark chocolate ganache, grapefruit jam, pecans, assam tea ice cream 

I would say I was less enamoured with the desserts, but maybe because I prefer traditional combinations so I felt there was quite alot going on, without the eventual climax of what dessert should bring.

Nonetheless, it was a great meal, complimented with friendly service. Thank you for the memories!

Xmas 2015

Christmas felt a little quieter because we didn't hold our annual Christmas party due to upcoming plans, but it was definitely sweet to enjoy these moments with my family.

On Christmas Eve, we chucked the turkey and had steamboat at my parent's place. Simple but wonderful. 

One of our desserts was a log cake from Patisserie Glace brought by my elder sister. 

What a precious shot of my parents and their two grandchildren - and on their wedding anniversary

Lucas' first Christmas and he developed a love for Christmas tree

On Boxing Day, we attended a party thrown by Uncle PG and Auntie CM, and I made a Christmas bouquet for them. 

Can you guess the theme? Yes, Harry Potter! 

And they went all out... 

Ferrero Stich, anyone?

You've got wizard mail

Can you tell we tried to dress up our boys? KW even made capes for the boys from a very old pair of pants. 

It was such a lovely time! Always thankful to be a part of such festivities. 

Happy Holidays!

Sole Pomodoro Trattoria Pizzeria, Quayside Isle

After a failed attempt to get into Gardens by the Bay, we drove over to Quayside Isle to hang out. We didn't want to have dinner at Kith as the food is so-so at best, and by process of elimination, we had dinner at Sole Pomodoro Trattoria Pizzeria. And it was a surprisingly good dinner.

Vibrant set-up, exuding Mediterranean charm

The complimentary olive foccacia was right up yummeh. Fluffy, olive-y and perfect for sopping up the roasted red pepper dip. 

CALAMARI FRITTI

Of course, we had calamari. Good ol' crispy, chewy deep-fried calamari. Love em'

SOLE POMODORO  

We had their namesake pizza, made with mozzarella, semi-sun-dried tomatoes, crispy potatoes, sliced onions and Italian sausage. Tasty... very tasty.

 TORTIGLIONI AI FUNGHI

This was from the Kid's Menu but it was perfect for us adults. Al dente, creamy but not too creamy, and absolutely unctuous.

INSALATA CAESAR

Why am I posting a salad last? Because it was served last... I know what you are thinking? How could it possibly take longer to prepare a salad? On top of it, this most $21.90 - major ouch. I've done the math in my head but I still don't get it. Mind-baffling. 

Is it me or are the brothers starting to look more alike?

Wedding lunch at St. Regis

I love weddings. Apart from my own, I really really really love attending weddings. However, it dawned on us recently that we have 8 weddings to attend over the next 13 months. While we thrilled about being able to celebrate with our family and friends, my bank account balance is not going to look too good. Not good at all.

To kick things off, we attended my cousin's wedding at St. Regis last weekend. It's our second wedding there and both times (the food) have been great! I took some pictures of the food but not every dish, especially those that I could't wait to tuck in. Each portion was individually served, which meant no second helpings =( 

Smoked duck, prawn ball with banana sauce, and roasted pork belly 

I was starving by the time they served up the first dish, and could definitely have done with more of that salty, fatty roasted pork belly to tide through the Best Man and Maid of Honour speeches. 

Double-boiled chicken soup

So glad there was none of that fakey shark's fun. This double-boiled chicken soup was seriously good. Clear, aromatic and comforting. 

Deep-fried cod with mango salsa 

This cod fish dish, along with the herbal chicken wrapped in lotus dish, had us wooing and aching. Even Lucas got in on the action, much to his joy. 

Stir-fried fish noodle with scallop and prawn 

Points for creativity though not my favourite carb. At least it wasn't ee fu noodle *gag*

The only shot I got of the wedding couple. Great speeches, by the way.

The way to my heart - chocolates. I secretly wish someone would give out the old-fashioned fruit cake. #Nostalgia

Russell held up surprisingly well, given that lunch was nearly 4 hours long.  

Papa and Tubbs

Love my 'do

A family shot - we will keep trying to get a half-decent one

Ishinomaki Grill & Sake, Palais Renaissance

You can tell alot about a Japanese restaurant from their chawamushi and miso soup. Normally, both side dishes would be one-dimensional, pedestrian, and plain forgettable. It is not every day when you would find a restaurant that adds orange peel to chawamushi for that added fragrance, and fish head to make their miso soup more robust - and that's why we like Ishinomaki.

From the set lunch menu, I had the Premium Bara Chirashi, which came with additional uni and Ikura, compared to the usual Bara Chirashi. KW had the unagi and sashimi set, while I ordered assorted tempura for Russell. The dishes were all well-made and very satisfying - I was seriously fighting food coma during my manicure after lunch.