Enjoying some leisurely time, albeit temporary, can be really therapeutic. This time, we ticked off Lawry’s Royal Tea off our checklist. The fine dining establishment exudes old world charm and is decked with majestic 4-metre height floor to ceiling windows, offering panoramic views of Orchard Road. Afternoon tea is a more relaxed affair compared to dinner; service was unobtrusive and generally fine, contrasting with the formal butler-like style during the evenings.

Royal Tea is available from Mondays to Saturdays from 2.30-5pm, at $48++ for 2 pax. The set includes a choice of Gryphon Artisan Tea, freshly brewed gourmet coffee or homemade steeped ice tea for each person. Mocktails and Cocktails are also available with a top up of $3 and $8 respectively.

Savory morsels, namely, Prime Beef Yorkshire Roll up, Shrimp Croissant, Chicken Bruschetta and Cucumber Finger Sandwich occupy the upper tier. The most outstanding of all was the Shrimp Croissant, which was buttery and flaked beautifully. The Chicken Bruschetta was lovely too- tasty succulent chicken nesting atop a crisps bread base.

Petite desserts arrived in the form of Raspberry Cream Cheese Pancake, Carrot Cake, Banana Chocolate Parfait, Strawberry English Trifle and Homemade Scones with Devonshire Cream. The superbly moist Strawberry English Trifle gets my vote for the best sweet, followed closely behind by the decadent Banana Chocolate Parfait. Sadly, the scones were failed to enticed as they were markedly doughier than the norm.

Although Lawry’s Royal Tea did not rock my world, it was nonetheless decent and great value.

For pictures and full review, pls visit:
http://madamechewy.com/2014/09/24/high-tea-at-lawrys/

For pictures and full review, pls visit:
http://madamechewy.com/2014/09/18/forest-%E6%A3%AE/

Restaurant week is just around the corner, I’m sure most of you foodies are just as excited as I am. From 25th Oct to 22nd Nov, top restaurants shall offer 3 course lunches and dinners at $25++ and $35++ respectively. For some restaurants, an additional charge of $15++ for lunch and $20++ for dinner is applicable. For American Express card holders, priority booking begins on 22nd Sept while booking for the public starts from 27th Sept.
During Restaurant Week earlier this year, Hubby and I visited Forest 森, and opened by local celebrity chef Sam Leong. Every aspect, from the ambiance, service and food, were excellent.

After some manoeuvring in RWS massive car park, we finally arrived at Equarius Hotel. The tranquil lobby fitted with a towering screen displaying a running waterfall, sets a calm tone to our afternoon.

Upon stepping into Forest, one cannot miss noticing the ornate “theatre” kitchen. We immediately feel at ease in this restaurant; absolutely loved dining under a forest canopy inspired ceiling, amongst lush greenery with an abundance of natural light streaming in. We felt in touch with nature, sans the sweltering Singapore heat and creepy crawlies.

The dishes at Forest blossom with Asian flavours, each one skillfully executed. Our amuse bouche was a tangy cherry tomato, plum and osmanthus sauce teaser which whet our appetites for more to come.
Duo Magnificent features huge, fresh prawns, prepared in 2 different ways. The burn in the Wasabi Mayo Prawn was just right, preserving the sweetness of the succulent fried prawn under the crisps golden coat. The Butter Lemon Prawn didn’t achieve full marks unlike its Wasabi Mayo counterpart. While its flavor is more unique compared to the wasabi mayo, the lemon so overwhelming that we could not detect any hints of butter.

With meat so well marinated I could taste the flavour right in the middle, the slow-cooked Pork Rib drenched in Sweet Vinegar sauce was divine! Adding contrasting texture to the fork-tender meat were crunchy rice pops glittered atop.

Braised Rice Vermicelli with sliced fish and preserved vegetables fared well too. Arresting our senses was the prominent ‘wok-hei’ flavour. We added in some chilli padi for mild heat and savoured each strand with delight.

Although the 3-course set lunch ($40++) didn’t include a dessert, it was still great value. As I was famished that day, we picked another 2 items from the ala carte menu.
The star of the XO Vietnamese Rolls ($18) was undoubtedly the XO sauce. Our taste buds reveled in the abundance of flavor from robust sauce. Perch prettily atop were small slices of lobster, which were so paltry that they failed to provide bite amongst the vegetables.

To end off on a sweet note, we had chilled Cream of Avocado ($13)- a play of textures consisting of silky smooth soya bean curd pudding, walnuts, sago and red beans. I could have seconds of this elegant and healthy dessert without feeling any guilt!

For pictures and full review, pls visit:
http://madamechewy.com/2014/09/06/jones-the-grocer-2/
It’s the long awaited weekend and off we went to Jones the Grocer for the much-needed refueling. Located on the 4th level of Ion, the 140 seater café and food emporium looks striking from afar. Not only does Jones serve breakfast, lunch and dinner, its also well stocked with a wide range of fine foods and confectionery sourced internationally.
ones ceases serving breakfast fare after 12 noon, so we could only order from the lunch menu, which was a simple 2-pager. Not a lot to choose from but the dishes were well thought out, featuring fresh, quality ingredients. Service was very friendly, in line with my café experiences in Australia.
Long Black ($5) and uniquely refreshing Orange Earl Grey Iced Tea ($7.50)
Whenever there’s angel hair pasta, I’ll surely order it. Yes, I am that blatant for my love of this carb. Jones Angel Hair Pasta ($28) comes with a crown of sweet blue swimmer crab, chilli, rocket, garlic and grana padano (Italian cheese). Individual flavors can be tasted separately and they worked extremely well on the whole. A mild, healthy-tasting dish that is satisfactory. Personally, I felt that more chilli could be used to lift the flavor.
Tempura Barramundi ($28) paired with Jones chips and Asian tartar. Enveloped within deep-fried crisp batter lies dense, flaky meat with a mild butter flavor. A joy to savour but do be careful of tiny bones. Comes with lackluster chips.
The folks here are serious about their beef burger, and they do a very good one. Australian Wagyu Burger ($28) is accompanied with bacon, gruyere, truffle mayonnaise, pickles, mustard, bois boudran sauce and caramelized onions. The sauce was not overpowering which allowed one to enjoy the true natural flavor of the beef. Thankfully,it came with a tangy salsa dip which spruced up the boring chips.
Delectable Black forest cake ($9) with potent kirsch punch, fluffy chocolate sponge, sitting atop an ethereally light mascarpone base. Pricy, but it’s worth it!
Baked Lemon Cheesecake ($7) is something I’d like to eat over and over because it’s gratifyingly rich, yet not at all cloying because of its tangy notes.
Cotton-candy hued Salted Caramel Macaron ($2) was crisps and slightly chewy with a gooey salted caramel centre. White Chocolate and Olive Macaron ($2) was terrible-hard like a rock!
 

I have been meaning to try French inspired Becasse for the longest time. Last weekend, we spent a leisurely afternoon at its first outlet at Ion, a bakery as well as a full-service restaurant.
Since Becasse was brought in by the folks behind Jones the Grocer, I had high expectations. Glad to report that I wasn’t disappointed! Overall, brunch at Becasse is decent, with more hits than misses. Brownie point for the reasonable prices!
Generally vibes are good-I love the stylish setting. Service is great as well. The manager took time to approach every table to check if everything was ok.
Croque Madame ($16) arrived with a bubbling mini casserole dish of truffle eggs. Sandwiched between the golden crusted pillow-y brioche are savory slices of smoked leg ham and Gruyere cheese. Soft flowy eggs are what we always need on the weekends! What’s best is the prominent truffle flavor. Dip a piece of sandwich into the eggs and savor the lovely combination of flavors. Do try to finish the eggs quickly, because it will be further cooked by the hot casserole dish and solidify.
Hubby was rendezvous and wanted something more filling. Becasse’s Entrecote with frites ($24) was hearty and satisfying. Choose from Horseradish and Dijon butter, creamy mushroom sauce, black pepper sauce or Becasse secret sauce to accompany the moist, tender 300g Scotch steak. Fries were a tad too dry though.
Salted Caramel and Chocolate Tart ($4.90) was delectable and very value for money. Because the salted caramel (black flakes) is concentrated in the centre, I recommended a little stirring with a fork before tucking in.
If you like your lemon desserts face-scrunching sour, skip Becasse’s Lemon Curd Tart ($4.90). The lemon curd was too sweet and lacked that refreshing sourish punch. Tart base was not as buttery or crumbly as I’d preferred, leaning more towards doughy texture.

For pictures and full review. pls visit
http://madamechewy.com/2014/08/30/becasse/

Windowsill in the Woods, more commonly known as Windowsill Pies is a suitably casual and cherry place to spend a lazy afternoon catching up with friends or with a lovely book. Upon pushing open the wooden door, you’ll be greeted by an vibrant display of eye-catching pies. They specialize in artisanal pies; all the pies are sweet but I’m not complaining!

The setting of the cafe reminds me of something you’d find a page of a children’s story book. Lively vibes with lots of chatter and friendly staff chirping away at the counter. Its self-service here-order at the counter and collect your mains from the kitchen booth when your buzzer beeps. There’s no GST or service charge.

Savory menu changes fortnightly. Selection is limited and we were quite disappointed with our choices. Texture of my Roast Beef Yorkshire Pudding($14) was too tough, because the meat was overcooked. Lightly seasoned, I could taste the natural flavor of the beef, which went well with the caramelized onions and Yorkshire pudding. However the corn chips were so bland, I was struggling to finish them (I don’t like to waste food).
M’s Handmade Burger ($18) fared better. Seasoning was spot on, but there were some dry areas within the beef patty. Chips were boring and we felt that $18 was too pricy for such a small serving.
W was starving and needed her dose of carbs. She went for Baby Octopus and Chicken Heart Pasta ($14), which was tossed in a spicy tomato base.
Using the Entertainment coupon, we enjoyed a one for one set of pie and pot of tea. We took some time to settle for 3 pies (oh choices, choices). The Gryphon Moscato Blanc (grape) an Aloe Vera Rooibos ($6 each) complemented the sweet pies well.

For adults only, the Banana Almond Brittle ($7) is a symphony of cognac cream, airy banana mousse on a almond brittle base. Salted caramel and crunchy nuts and another dimension in flavor and texture. Although I am not a fan of banana, I was quite fond of this particular pie.
Designed to represent a field, White Chocolate Truffle Pie ($8) was quite a complex explosion of flavors. A tango of sweet white chocolate and woody truffle, graced by a layer of cookie crumble and meringue (which represented soil and a mushroom respectively). Personally, the raisins and candied thyme kinda spoilt it for me. Upon biting into each raisin, the truffle flavour was overwhelmed and the candied thyme was just weird. Too many things going on at the same time IMHO.

Awake your senses with face-scrunching tartness of the Strawberry Lemon Pie ($7), completed with soft torched meringue. Tangy and refreshing, it’s a perfect perk-me-up in Singapore’s sweltering heat.

For pictures and full review, pls visit:
http://madamechewy.com/2014/08/20/windowsill-pies/