It’s been so long since I first wanted to try Ember that I had almost forgotten about it! When the occasion presented itself, we decided to head down the narrow lanes of Chinatown to Keong Saik Road and give this restaurant, located on the ground floor of the boutique hotel Hotel 1929, a shot.

We were there to try their set lunch, priced at $38++ for a 3-course lunch plus coffee, tea, or a “welcome drink” which would be a specially concocted fizzy drink of sorts.

It took quite some time for our complimentary bread to be served (it about about the same time as our starter), but when it hit the table, I realised the reason for the wait and any misgivings completely vanished. The Sundried Tomato Focaccia is hot out of the oven – and I mean hot. The bread must have been baked freshly upon our arrival! And the bread was addictively good, throughly aromatic, with a crusty exterior and pillow-y soft insides. One of the best complimentary breads around. Gosh I could polish off another loaf!

My appetizer for the day was the Pan Seared Foie Gras with caramelised apple and clove, port and raspberry glaze (additional charge of $6). A healthy (or should I say, very unhealthy) sized slab of foie gras, though it did not meet expectations. The foie gras was a tad overcooked, leading to a rubbery texture instead of the meltingly wobbly one I love. There was also a number of stringy bits that shouldn’t be there! Ruined the texture and delight of the foie gras.

My partner’s choice was the Pan Seared Foie Gras with fresh orange segment, orange and passionfruit reduction (additional charge of $6). Now this one was completely up to par! As opposed to my slab, this was everything you want our of your foie gras – crispy exterior, wobbly, buttery innards that just melt in your mouth. Perhaps it was due to the part of the liver that we got – his was thicker, while mine was wider (which may be more difficult to avoid overcooking). I loved the candied orangie strips on the top that were little nibbles of sweetness.

To be fair, no fault can be found with either preperation fo the foie gras – both were excellent, I just wish my slab was better cooked.

I chose the Marinated Cod with Black Miso, accompanied by sweet peas and herbed potatoes. Would you look at that hunk of beauty? A good-sized, thick piece of cod was served, and completely covered in the miso paste. The waitress asked “do you like sweet things?” when I ordered this. True enough, this is really for those who don’t mind a sweet main course – the beautifully laquered cod was sweet with miso, that worked almost like a teriyaki sauce coating the buttery, fresh fish. I enjoyed it for sure.

The partner’s Yam Crusted Vealloin with selected dips, Japanese salsa, and miso vinaigrette was a star in its own right – think perfect tonkatsu, with its crispy batter that distinctly tasted of yam, and the medium done veallion inside that was so tender and juicy. It’s blushing pink! I’ve never quite been a fan of breaded, deep fried cutlets since so much can go wrong – often overcooked and dry, took much breading to too little meat etc, but this is delish.

For dessert, we first had the Sticky Date Pudding, which wasn’t on the menu but the waitress recommended to us as a new item. The warm cake is not too sweet, and full of the distinct flavours of dates, ginger, and other spices. Unlike others which drench their cake with a bucket-full of toffee sauce, that component is not overwhelming here. The Grand Marnier ice cream pairs surprisingly well with it. Personally, I still prefer my sticky date at Boomerang Cafe, but that has to do with my extra sweet tooth

The Warm Valrhona Chocolate Cake with Vanilla bean ice cream was brilliant. Served hot, I was delighted when the flood of molten chocolate came pouring out the moment we dug into it. Put it on too many dismal experiences with molten chocolate cakes that simply aren’t molten, or aren’t even warm. While I’d like to see a crispy exterior, the thin wall of sponge was good too. Thick chocolate-y goodness! The speckled vanilla bean ice cream just lended the much needed cold note to this hot cake and ended the meal well.

Generally excellent food and friendly service, I don’t know why it took me so long to get here, but I’ll be back (soon, hopefully!). The great thing is the surprising variety of choices one has for the set lunch - there’s at least 8 different options for appetizers, mains and desserts, which means that you can come over and over again and not have to eat the same thing/combination twice!

The star here seems to be the Half Chicken ($23.95), which is served with three sauces and three side dishes. The chicken itself was a surprising delight – I always fear whole chickens to be dry at some part or another, but our whole half-bird portion was moist and tender throughout – even the breast meat was acceptable (this from me, who avoids breast meat whenever possible). The spice blend marinade that was left to soak into the chicken for 16 hours before roasting gave great flavour to the juicy chicken. Charly T’s pride themselves on using fresh, chilled chickens only – chickens that were still running around the day before and none of the frozen stuff. The little touches seem to truly make a difference – way better than old timer K Rogers.

The three sauces we chose were Charly T’s original #2 Spicy sauce, #3 Hot sauce, and Chimichurri. In all honesty the chicken didn’t need any sauce at all, and I ate most of the chicken without the sauces so as to fully appreciate the well marinated chicken. However, I did take the breast meat with the sauces (breast meat is breast meat afterall). Don’t let the labels “spicy” and “hot” fool you, there’s little kick to the sauces, nothing like what you get on hot wings. The Chimichurri is probably my favourite, with the parsley, red wine vinegar and red pepper creating a tangy mixture good for the blander breast meat.

A new addition to the Charly T’s menu, the Sloppy Joe ($6.50) was what actually drew me in. We chose the beef version, although they also make a chicken version. Sloppy joes are a completely underrated type of burger! Instead of a solid patty, the filling is a mixture of ground beef and onions, held together with a slightly sweet tomato sauce, and all topped off with a slice of cheese that’s completely melted over the messy filling. You can see why this thing’s called a sloppy joe – it’s supposed to get all messy upon eating. I loved every bite of this wet, messy burger, with the sauce making the hamburger buns soft and slightly mushy. It’s not for everyone, but for me this tasty burger will hands down beat a dry hamburger anyday.

The biggest disappointment of the day was probably the dessert of Honey with Fig and Dates waffle ($4.95) accompanied by a scoop of vanilla ice cream (add $2). The waffle was plain and tasteless, with no hint of honey or fig or dates other than some small bits found here and there. The scoop of ice cream was tiny and not spectacular, so the whole thing was pretty much a waste of stomach space.

All in all, I’ll definitely be back for the chicken and the sloppy joe, but perhaps not the dessert options.

Yigloo’s another recent startup in the local froyo scene, occupying a little shop space at the basement of Vivocity, boasting cute decorations, an interior designed almost to look like someone’s little house and yet another froyo concept.

So Yigloo works like this : enter the shop, star at the scrolling LED lights for the available flavours, ask one of the staff to get you a sample if you wish, decide on the flavour/flavours of your choice, go to the cashier and ask a staff for your desired cup size (small, medium, large) and they will proceed to swirl the cup with the flavours of your choice. Prices are fixed according to cup size – not weight, not number of toppings. Once you have gotten your unadorned froyo and paid up, you then proceed on to their toppings bad to load your cup up with whatever toppings you wish, in whatever quantity you desire, all at no additional charge. Then grab some napkins and spoons, and start eating!

I was rather surprised at first since I assumed that the customers get to swirl their own froyo since the machines are displayed out in the open for easy access. However, I’ve learnt from previous experiences that the fun factor of doing your own swirling is but a small factor int he froyo experience. I actually enjoyed the froyo at Yigloo quite a bit! I chose a medium cup ($5.50), filled it up with original (my default), and topped it with some diced tangerines, blueberries and strawberries. The froyo itself – the make or break factor – was pretty decent, quite remenicent of Red Mango (my favourite) actually! Smooth, slightly creamy, not too sweet and very light – twas an enjoyable cup.

The way I see it, Yigloo has several things going for it – a wide range of flavour choices, a fixed price, a range of toppings for a one-time free-flow loading, and a cute environment. All that makes for a fun and stress-free experience (no worrying about how heavy the cup’s going to be and how expensive it’ll be!) with decent froyo too. The only down side would be that the shop feels very… open and exposed. Sitting there on a weekend afternoon with the heavy traffic moving by the open concept shop wasn’t exactly very relaxing or good for hanging around at. Nonetheless, I’ll be back for a cup to-go should I be around the area!

With a bold sign and an even bolder proclamation, meet the new kid on the block boasting well, the best fries (for)ever? Situated in teen-bopper mall Cineleisure, Best Fries Forever is a new store selling – what else – but fries! Reminicent of the now defunct Yella Fellas that used to be at Bugis Junction, Best Fries Forever prides itself on fresh hot fries and accompanies it with a variety of sauce choices (6 in total).

First up, we tried one of their most popular choices, the Gusto Garlic ($3.90 for regular-sized). The fries themselves were above average, and pretty good actually. Made from russet potatoes, the fries are hand cut and fried only upon order, ensuring that your fries will always be fresh and piping hot from the fryer. Cut chunkily enough for a crisp exterior and soft white fluffy potato insides, they taste great. I like that the skin’s also left on, adds that extra layer of crisp. The garlic and mayonnaise sauce is a wonderful accompaniment to the fries, providing a cool, garlicky touch that’s strong enough for a distinct garlic flavour in every bite, but not overwhelmingly potent.

The Wow Wow West ($4.20 for regular-sized) has a beef-chilli sauce as well as a cheese sauce loaded atop the fries. Don’t expect chunks of meat inside, but other than that, this is another winner. Oozy nachos cheese sauce makes everything good!

Best Fries Forever serves their fries in two sizes – regular and large. The fries remind me much of Yella Fellas – which I miss – but best fries forever? I don’t think so. New York Fries, which I had the opportunity of trying while in Hong Kong, were tastier and with much better toppings (poutine is my holy grail of all fries). However, this beats all the fries you get at fast food restaurants here, and I’m very happy that someone has decided to specialise in fries – the standard of fries in Singapore is pretty dismal. It makes for a really good snack, and would satisfy cravings in an instant.

Opened by a group of friends, the glass-walled cafe has a small indoor seating area (seems to sit about 20 or so pax) and a more spacious al fresco area.

We trotted down during lunch time and both had the set lunch, which comes with a starter, main, and choice of drink.

My starter of Salad comprised of a healthy portion of salad greens, some fresh cherry tomatoes and sundried tomatoes. A light start, though nothing extraordinary. I liked the concentrated, slightly salty and fruity sundried tomatoes though.

For my main, I ordered the Shredded Beef with Buttered Rice ($14 for the set lunch), which was recommended to me by the staff. The beef, that was sauteed with onions and green and red bell peppers, was disappointingly tough and chewy. I had to leave more than half the beef untouched. The buttered rice however was fluffy and went very well with the peppery sauce the beef was cooked in – for a non-rice eater I actually finished all the rice.

We had the choice of coffee, tea, or soft drink for the set and chose tea, which surprisingly came as a fruity peach and passionfruit tea.

From what we tried, Raindrops Cafe doesn’t seem to offer much in terms of food quality. On the other hand, it could also be that their set lunch simply offered up items that are not their forte – I spotted more enticing choices like pan-seared Tataki Tuna which were not in the set. Plus, I believe they also have a greater variety of choices during dinner time – I think it’ll take a second visit before a better verdict can be passed.