Tried the festive menu - appearlicious! First up, their all-time favourite Poulet Roti (it’s French for “roast chicken” not our local understanding of “roti bread”) with caramelized apple sauce (S$17.90++ for 1/2 and S$30.90++ for whole). If you enjoyed their original Poulet in brown sauce with bacon and mushroom, this will surprise you with a tinge of sweetness. The fresh chickens are still brined for a full day in the Chef’s secret recipe but the sauces caters to different taste buds.

One word – I like all their Poulet Roti dishes I tried thus far; no wonder it’s their speciality. Try this for a change during the festive season!

And of course, every meal has to end with dessert! With us this season is the Rustic French Pear & Apple Tart (S$8.90++). Sandwiched between 2 crispy puff pastry is a generous serving of classic French Vanilla Ice-cream with pear and apple bits. Of all the desserts on the menu, this is actually my favourite! It might be the feel-good Christmas spirit, but anything that has strong contrasting textures always go down well with me. GREAT combination I say!

For full review: http://evespiration.com/2014/11/17/poulet-appearlicious-festive-menu-chance-to-win-a-tour-in-france-when-you-dine/

I joined a group of OpenRicers for their handcrafted mooncakes tasting. There were the usual classic baked white lotus seed paste mooncakes with/without egg yolks and the more extravagant ones which I will share more later.

The evening started with some specialities of Xin Cuisine in the form of finger food. It were small little bites but they definitely left us wanting to come back to try more! The highlight of the evening is the pairing of wines with their newly revealed mooncakes. Commonly, we drink Chinese tea with mooncakes as this is a tradition from eons ago. But who’s to say you cannot pair mooncakes with WINE! It’s a unique and refreshing idea for those who enjoy that nice glass of wine.

Personally, I do enjoy that occasional glass of sweet and dry wine but at this stage of my life, I don’t want my little baby to be drinking liquor-infused milk! Thus I only had very little sips of whites for the evening. I must say those whites really suit my tastebuds! These are award-winning, fruity wines. I liked the light bodied, floral notes, crispy sparkling sparkling Riondo Proecco Spagp D.O.C. The clean and slight dry aftertaste complemented the sweetness of the snowskin mooncakes. It’s almost like the matt-taste of Chinese tea washing down the coyness of mooncakes. Surprisingly good pairing that you should try!

I didn’t managed to take a photo of Xin’s Signature Mini Egg Custard with Egg Yolk ($52) (because it was all gone when it came out!!) Possibly that’s enough said of it’s popularity? Heard that it’s one of the most well-received mooncakes among Xin’s selections.

Let’s take a look at the fillings of the others: Green Tea Lotus Paste with Chivas Chocolate Mooncake ($50)

This is an easy favourite for me. I liked the tea-infused lotus paste taste and the mild sweetness of the chivas chocolate. Tea and chocolate – how to go wrong? I ordered a box of this for my family.

Black Sesame Paste with Peanut and Chocolate Snowskin Mooncake ($50)

This is made especially for those who enjoy Reese Peanut Butter Cups! It is almost an exact replica of that! Buttery Peanut and chocolaty – a little too similar to Reese for me to enjoy it as a mooncake.

Soursop & Chocolate Crunch Mooncake ($50)

Errmm… this one is a big surprise! Surprisingly sour with soursop pups! It’s like eating soursop and chocolate crunches all in one bite. Possibly suitable for those who like their mooncake sour? or those who just want something different.

Passion Fruit Paste Mooncake ($50)

Once again, this is a good option for those who wants something uniquely different. There is chockfull of passion in this one.

Champagne Chocolate & Pandan Lotus Paste Mooncake ($50)

In my opinion, this is a cousin of the Green Tea Lotus Paste with Chivas Chocolate Mooncake. Very close in taste, but I prefer green tea than pandan.

Peranakan Durian Mooncake ($50)

This photo probably doesn’t do justice to it’s real taste. We greedy folks attacked this one like how we do it at the durian stalls! But seriously, just like durian ice-cream cake, you will need to wait for such frozen products to thaw nicely before tucking in. This little gem is actually naturally flavoured with the Blue Pea flower commonly used in Peranakan food. Taste-wise; if you are getting it for that uncle/auntie who love durian, it can’t go wrong.

Teochew Yam Paste with Single Egg Yolk Mooncake ($52)

This Teochew speciality is only available at Xin Cuisine and not at their promotion road shows. Being a Teochew myself, let’s just say I have very high standard of a flaky crust with not-so-oily yam paste. It’s not easy to get such textures correctly done to a T and to a Teochew-nia standard. Xin’s is not bad; but by far honestly, not the best I have tried before.

Happy Sweet Mid-Autumn Festival to one and all!

For full review and more photos, please visit http://evespiration.com/2013/08/25/sweet-mid-autumn-starts-with-mooncakes-tasting-xin-cuisine-chinese-restaurant/

I have a weakness for Japanese cuisine. Or rather a soft spot for it.

And so when Estelle from Openrice sent an invite for a food tasting at the popular ramen restaurant – Ippudo – I could not resist to accept the invitation!

I arrived and saw this looooooooooooong queue. If there is anything worth queuing in Singapore, it’s good food.

Ippudo SG opened shop in Singapore on 12th Dec 2009 and is the second overseas venture after Ippudo NY. Its’ history hail from Japan’s ramen capital – Hakata – and is creating a stir all over the world. Besides 65 Ippudo restaurants in Japan, they have international stores in Hong Kong, Taiwan, Seoul, Sydney, Malaysia and China.

We were invited to the Mandarin Gallery branch and the ambience is very typical buzzing Japanese restaurant. Loud greetings, semi-see-through kitchen, bowls and bowls of hot steaming ramen.

Seating is limited to 57 seats with a small private VIP room. Be prepared to come early during lunch and dinner hours or simply come after peak hours.Appetisers & Sides:

Goma Q – Fresh Japanese cucumber with a special sesame sauce. It’s a great cold appetizer to start with. The fragrant sesame sauce added spice to the otherwise plain crunchy cucumber. I like the presentation and the precision in cutting each slice into almost equal sizes. As usual, hats off to the Japanese culture of fine presentation.

Crispy Corn – I have no clue how this is done. It seemed deep-fried with a light batter to a crisp and sprinkled with some addictive paprika-herb-alike powder. One is probably not enough. I had two! (or was it three? I lost count).Spicy Shrimp Mayo – Big succulent prawns deep fried with a light batter and served exquisitely with a home-made spicy mayonnaise sauce. Home-run type of combination. What is there not to like about such a dish. Yummy!

Beef Tataki – My favourite of the night. Pan –seared tender beef slices served with a tangy sauce and special dip. Best eaten with the bed of non-pungent fresh onions. I went home dreaming of going back for this again.

Finally – the stars of the night – RAMEN!

First up: Shiromaru Motoaji – a white pork-based broth ramen. My preferred choice of the night. I like it straight forward; classic Hakata-style. Light broth without porky taste. Chashu is tender and cabbage is aplenty.

Next up: Akamaru Shin-aji – a bolder red broth seasoned with garlic oil and Ippudo’s secret paste (Umami-dama). Decent choice if you are in the mood for an enhanced type of ramen.

Last ramen dish – Karaka-Men. This is the original tonkotsu broth with spicy miso and ground pork. If I go in a group, I will get someone else to order this so I can get a spicy kick while maintaining my loyalty to the classic choice.

This is a place that I think you won’t need to break the bank to dine here. It’s comprehensive menu ensures that there will be something for everyone; even the picky eaters. Swing by to enjoy some oodles of hot noodles and a modern ramen brassière experience.

Thank you to Openrice and Ippudo for their kind invitation!