Full review on http://www.nahmj.com/2016/01/06/elements-and-co-cafe-singapore-cecil-street-tanjong-pagar/

The space is pretty industrial as it uses lots of wood material and green, hence it provided a softer touch. And it has high ceilling, therefore, you will the cafe spacious. It has a mixed of bar tables and normal dinning table which was thougthful.

I went for takeaway, to share with my sister who’s florist shop is a stone throw away. Aloha Crab Cakes with Papaya And Basil Sauce ($11.50) makes a good light lunch. I didn’t think the papaya and basil sauce paired well with the crab cakes. I enjoyed better eating the crab cakes by itself, without the sauce. I would certainly prefer this dish with more salad.

The Moroccan Souk Kebabs ($14.00) was the second dish I ordered from the All Day Menu. I love the lamb mince kebabs. The spice marinate was great for the kebabs. The quinoa with pumpkin, chickpea and sultana bed was filling. I felt it was a little too sweet contributed by both the pumpkin and sultana.
Cappuccino ($4.50) was more than decent. A well balance cup with medium to low acidity and full body. It has a good nutty, milk chocolate and dark berry tone.
Elements And Co Cafe Singapore is a good add to the area for tasty healthier option. Since it opened early, a good breakfast place option too.

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Full review is up at http://www.nahmj.com/2016/02/11/ji-xiang-ang-ku-kueh-everton-park-outram-singapore/  

Most must have known about the famous Ji Xiang Ang Ku Kueh, one of the most talk about in town. It is located at Block 1 of Everton Park. My family has been enjoying this Traditional Chinese delicacy ever since we know them. I don’t even remember when it was. It must have been many years ago. Lol. Importantly, the quality has been consistent and has maintained over the many years. By the way, Ang Ku Kueh when it is literally translated, it is known as Red Tortoise Cake.Ji Xiang Ang Ku Kueh outlet is very much an unassuming shop. If I am correct, they occupied 2 units at the ground floor of Everton Park Block 1.Traditionally, Ang Ku Kueh is in Sweet Bean 甜豆沙 and Peanut Paste 花生. My personal favourite is the Sweet Bean Paste. The best part of the Ji Xiang Ang Ku Kueh is the skin of the cake is thin. And I like the sweetness level. Perfect for my tastebud.The other lesser known traditional flavour is the Salty Bean 咸豆沙 Ang Ku Kueh. Those who like sweet and savoury food such as the salted caramel would probably enjoyed this.The remaining flavours available at Ji Xiang Ang Ku Kueh are introduced laterr. There are Coconut 叶子 Ang Ku Kueh, Corn 玉米 Ang Ku Kueh and Yam 芋头 Ang Ku Kueh. Yam is the other flavour that I enjoyed.There is also a seasonal flavour, durian.All its Ang Ku Kueh is priced at $0.80 except for the Yam at $0.90 and Durian at $1.30.

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Full review on http://www.nahmj.com/2016/02/23/chot-nun/


Chot Nun has a very interesting tag line. ❄ Soft as first snow. Remember our first time ❄ OMG! So romantic. Like calling out all the couples on their first date to have a cup of Chot Nun Bingsu.Bingsu is very common in Singapore. One after another keep introducing it. It seems to no longer a trend food but a Korean dessert here to stay. Chot Nun introduces the Bingsu as takeaway cups. It operates out of a kiosk at the basement of Far East Plaza, the favourite hang out of youth. This could be a draw for the shoppers at Far East Plaza. One could grab a Bingsu on hand as one continues to shop.

Chot Nun offers a total of 12 Bingsu flavours. There are the classic flavours such as Pat Cup, red bean bingsu ($6.50) and the Injeolmi Cup ($7.50). Some usual flavours such as Cookies & Cream Cup ($7.50) and Chocolate Cup ($9.50). If you prefer the fruity version, there are Strawberry Cup ($9.50), Mango Cup ($9.50), Durian Cup ($9.50) and Melon Cup ($9.50). Some usual flavours such as BB Cup ($7.50) comprises of Bacon and Bread while Breakfast Cup ($7.50) consisting of cornflakes and marshmallow, Honey Comb cup ($9.50) and lastly Peanut Butter Cup ($7.50)The kiosk is divided into 2; the kitchen and the order cum collection counter. When the kitchen is done with the cup of bingsu, they will hand it over to the counter through the small window. The front crew will get a larger cup add both water and dry ice into it, then place the bingsu cup over into the bigger cup containing the dry ice.We were so fascinated over the dry ice effect as it was extremely worthy for the squre. And we have completely overlooked the practical purpose of it. That is to keep the bingsu cold; prevent it from melting fast. So even though it is instagram worthy, don’t focus on the it and missed out the important factor.We tried 4 flavours. 3 fruity and the chocolate cup. The 3 fruity flavours were Mango, Strawberry and Durian. The fruit used were fresh and the shaved ice was fine and soft, indeed resembling first snow. The entire cup was lightly sweetened. Each bingsu cup has layers of biscuit crumbs or red bean laced in between to enhance the savouring experience. The chocolate has the oreo crumbs, strawberry has the red bean while both mango and durian has it with biscuit crumbs.Most of the flavours has a soft serve on top of the bingsu cup. Personally I like it with the soft serve. Out of the 3 fruit flavours, Durian overwhelm the lightly milky bingsu flavour while Mango and Strawberry complemented well.I kind of regret not choosing something usual such as BB cup to try. I am sure I will pop by to try the savoury flavour next.

Chot Nun takeaway bingsu is no difference from the many Korean owned bingsu. In fact, I am hoping to see creativity from the owners who are introducing bingsu next. Such as having true flavoured bingsu. Since the shaved ice are sweetened milk, what about using Banana Milk or even Strawberry Milk for example. And introducing DIY toppings and so on.

For more reviews, visit http://www.nahmj.com/

For more reviews, visit http://www.nahmj.com/

Since Whitegrass wasn’t opened on Monday, I settled for my second choice, El Mero Mero with no regret. Likewise, it is located at CHIJMES too. I was glad it turned out well since it was a birthday treat for a beloved friend. My friend enjoyed the food so do I.
Since the name El Mero Mero has a meaning of best in Mexican lingo as such it aims to excite and delight diners with the very best contemporary Mexican cuisine.El Mero Mero offers both indoor and al fresco dinning to diners. Interior is decked in contemporary theme. The tables were placed neatly in a repeated pattern but a little too close with almost no privacy. A Bar is suited outside the restaurant with a direction facing the restaurant.
On its menu were 5 main categories, namely Botanas (Small Plates), Tacos, Quesadillas, Josper Charcoal Grill Oven and Dessert. We tried to order one dish from each category but failed to as we didn’t order any from the Quesadillas.We started with the Small Plates. First was the El Mero Mero Ceviche ($18) filled with diced raw Octupus, Prawns, Wild Fish, avocado soaked in bloody Mary sauce. Bloody Mary is basically spiced tomato sauce. The contents are in a glass chilled in a bucket of crushed ice. A piece of crispy taco covered the glass and topped with more avocado and a lime. We were informed by the service crew to break the taco and allow the avocado to get into the glass of sauce. Followed by squeezing the lime. And now, we are ready to enjoy. It was sourish and yet refreshing. The bloody mary didn’t mask the sweetish of the seafood instead complemented it. I suspect some may find the dish a little too sour for their liking. But my guest and I enjoyed the dish.The second small plate was the Street Corn Sampler ($14). This small plate is made up of 2 items; the grilled baby corn and Huitlacoche Donut. A tube of Cotija & chili Mayo was provided and you could bring home if you like. I enjoyed the donut more than the grilled baby corn. The donut was soft, spongy, fluffy, bread like and lightly sweet. ($16) was absolutely heavenly. The grilled chicken together with Guacamole, Pickled Red Onion, Spicy Popcorn sat on the freshly made Corn Tortilla. All the ingredients harmonises and bringing each to its best.Moving on to the Josper Charcoal Grill Oven, 4 out of 11 were beef selection. But we went for prawns and we chose Enchiladas Verdes ($24). The tiger prawn was rolled in the corn tortilla topped with melted mozzarella soaked in a bed of spicy creamy Tomatillo Salsa. We felt this dish was disappointing. First the ratio of prawns to tortilla wrap was low. Next, we could savour the prawn flavour. The prawns were dry and skimpy.Desserts choices were limited but were attractive. We were contemplating between Churros and Chocolate sauce ($14) and the Mexican Chocolate ($16). We find favour in the latter. The Mole Chocolate Ganache with a Passion Fruit Milk and Sesame Tile was served in a Cocoa Pod looking Ceramic bowl. The chocolate ganache was lightly bittersweet. It was the Passion Fruit Milk that elevated the tasting experience.Last but not least, the Chocolate with Tequilia was served to end with a sweet note.

We were very pleased with the El Mero Mero dishes in general except for one of our order. We enjoyed the food, the service and the ambience too. I am so glad that my friend enjoyed as much as me since it was a birthday treat for her.

More review on http://www.nahmj.com/

Boruto means vault in Japanese since the unit was formerly occupied by a bank. You could still sight traces of bank such as the safe boxes at the second floor. Boruto is suitated along South Bridge Road; offering both Japanese Tapas and Sake to diners. It is opened by Chef Patrick Tan who owns another restaurant, Tamashii Robataya, around the same place. Boruto is currently helmed by Chef Angus Chow who has worked for various big names including FOC.
Occupying 2 level, with entrance at the ground floor is the Tapas Bar while on the second level is the Sake Bar both section offers diners casual dinning environment. The entire design is mainly chic industrial.Sake Bar
At the Sake Bar, located at level 2, is where Boruto offers a private room with cushy leather sofa for diners to sit back and chill out with their favourite drink. This private room is made available for reservation with a minimum charges.

One might very quickly notice the Sake vault with the safe boxes as backdrops.Besides the sake and bespoke cocktails, the Japanese Plum Wine is also offered. Customers could purchase a bottle and store it with Boruto and pop over to enjoy whenever they feel like it.

Tapas Bar
The Tapas Bar features a bar counter facing the open kitchen. Diners could enjoy the food while watching the chefs in action. Boruto offers mainly bar table seatings with a few normal dinning tables as an alternative option.Currently, Boruto offers 5 Salads, 10 Small Bites, 6 Cold Tapas, 14 Hot Tapas, 6 Carbs and 5 Sweets.

Small Bites
We didn’t try any of the 5 salads. Instead we jumped straight into the Small Bites priced from $6.80 to $15.80. Among the 10, we tried only the Crispy Rice Cracker Tacos ($12.80). It is one of the 2 recommended dish for Small Bites. Pulled pork is sat on crispy rice crackers, topped with guacomole & chilli salsa. A flavourful dish with creamy smooth guacomole enhancing the dish and chilli salsa to spice it up. This is one of my top favourite dish at Boruto.In case, you are wondering what’s the second recommendation, it is the Teba Gyoza ($15.80).

Cold Tapas
Coming to the Cold Tapas, we tried 2 out of 6 dishes. Saga Gyu Tataki ($28.80) is one of the very well received dish among the group of taster of the night. Including myself, I thought well of it too. The perfectly seared Japanese Beef with some seaweed and saffron was served with some lovely edible flowers laced on the edge of the plate. Not only it is appealling in sight but certainly flavoursome to the tastebud.Ahi Tataki ($12.80) is the second cold tapas of the night. The Yellowfin Tuna block is slightly pan-fried on the outer before slicing it and served on the plate with chopped black olives, Japanese leek, chilli and wasabi yuzu dressing to whet the appetite.Both the cold tapas we tried were the recommended dishes at Boruto.

Hot Tapas
Tori-Take Roll ($15.80) is a North-eastern Chinese (Dongbei) inspired dish. Crispy chicken roulade with stuffed shitake jam drizzled with Chinese sauce concoction. My other personal favourite. Personally, I like the combination of the shitake jam with chicken.Personally, I thought it was a tough fight with the Saga Gyu Tataki.
Among the 14 Hot Tapas, beside the Tori-take Roll, there are 4 others recommended tapas namely Hotate to Cauliflower no Grill ($15.80), Beef short rib 58°C ($18.80), Kurobuta “Sio Bak” ($20.80) and Zuwai Gani Sausage ($30.80).

Carbs
Knowing that some diners might need carbs to complete the meeal, Boruto introduces 6 dishes to the menu with 3 recommended dish. We tried one of them, the Uni Pasta v1.1 ($35.80). It is known as version 1.1 as it is an improved dish from the original recipe which was with a Aglio Olio based pasta.The version 1.1 has its pasta cooked in seafood broth topped with fresh sea urchin roe and Hokkaido white wasabi. So expect an extremely strong seafood flavour from the dish. You either love it or hate it. I belong to the latter. Personally, I find the flavour too pungent.

Sweets
Desserts are always welcomed even after tons of food. My stomach could always make space for them. Starting from the lightest in taste is the Warabi Mochi ($8.80). A sweet soft to the chew and lightly sweeten, is made from bracken starch and coated with kinako. Most of us find that it lack of the chewiness which is present in mochi.At Boruto, they served the classic Creme Brulee with truffle infused, the Truffle Creme Brulee ($8.80). Though the texture is a little to liquefied but was flavourful, filled with nice vanilla flavour and truffle augmented the dish. But certainly this may not appeal to everyone. As there are some factor of acquired taste I suppose.Finally, the strong in taste is the Chocolate Surprise ($12.80). Half cake, half souffle with molten chocolate in the centre and served with 2 scoop of homemade vanilla ice cream and lastly topped with some crushed peanut.Chocolate fan, you are in it for a treat. Rich and strong chocolate aroma filled this dish. It is tough for me to reject this dish as one of my fave sweet at Boruto.

Final thought ... At Boruto, there are some outstanding dishes while a few pale to comparison. In short, there are hits and misses.