Restaurant Review – With a Pinch of Salt

 With a Pinch of Salt

297, Tanjong Katong Road

Singapore 437080

+65 6348 2297

I came across the restaurant named “With a Pinch Of Salt” when looking for a dinner place on Saturday night. It was recommended by Lady Ironchef and is located in the Katong, one of my favourite neighbourhoods to dine out. So what could go wrong? Well, maybe I should have lent more credibility to the 51% vote on hungrygowhere, but most of the voters there complained about issues with Groupon and the fact that With a Pinch Of Salt charges 30 cent for water. I don’t have a gripe with that, and since all alcohol-free drinks there are very reasonably priced, I think it’s acceptable.

When we arrived, we realized that there were not one but 2 birthday parties going on in the café, with one small table free in the middle between the two parties. No one had told us this when we called to make our reservation, and luckily I wasn’t planning on a romantic night out. Accordingly, it was rather noisy and sitting in the middle of all this activity was not very relaxing. The café/restaurant looks very family-oriented, with wall decorations like you would expect in an American nursery, including short fairy tales about the dishes they offer. I reckon it’s fine if you’re out with kid, though as an adult it does feel a little strange sitting in a room full with pastel colored, striped walls. Then again, the motto at With a Pinch of Salt is “It’s only a café, don’t take it so seriously’.

In my mind, they should stick to this, and rename the place, as salt & flavour was exactly what the food (or most of it) was missing. The iced mocha I ordered was very watery, and one of the worst I’ve had in Singapore. Usually not a drink anyone could do wrong, but this one was definitely sub-par. To eat, we ordered one Chicken Cordon Bleu and one Old Uncle Mac’s Farm Platter (which comprised sausages, fried fish, steak and fried  chicken). When the food arrived, some of it was lukewarm. For both the Cordon Bleu and fried chicken/fish, the breading was so thick you had to search for the meat, and it was only edible doused with ketchup. The steak was streaky. The mashed potatos and few vegetables sprinkled in between were the best parts, yet not very plentiful.

Uncle Mac's Meat Platter

 

Cordon Bleu

On the plus side, staff was nice, food arrived relatively quickly (must have been re-heated) and was relatively cheap (less than SGD 50 for one beer, one iced mocha and the two mains). Even so, I would not come back, and cannot quite understand the laudable review by Lady Ironchef (then again I have to yet read one of her reviews where she didn’t like the food).

2/5 Stars

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Guide to the Singaporean Taxi System

If you're in Singapore, chances are that sooner rather than later you'll be in a situation where you require a cab, and while just winging it might get you where you want to go, it definitely helps if you know some Singapore-specific taxi essentials.

There are 7 different taxi companies in Singapore: Comfort Taxi, SMRT Taxis, CityCab, TransCab, Premier Taxis, Smart Cab, Prime Taxi and Yellow-Top Taxi. They’re all about the same, and it's a lottery whether you get a decent driver or not, with 3 noticeable exceptions: First thing most people find out the hard way is that the black Chrysler taxis (often the only green ones on the street) charge you almost double the regular fee. Even at the airport, where visiting ang-mos surely have no clue about this, the valets point to them and it's up to you to say you want a regular cab. Black Chrysler taxis will also stop if you're standing at the curb trying to flag a cab down, so you can just wave them on. Second, if you want to ride in style, you're better off trying for one of the white Mercedes taxis. Flag down fee for these is only about a dollar more than for a regular taxi, and the fee per km is only 2 cent higher, while the drivers are usually very friendly and know their way around. Third, the old Toyota taxis are the cheapest, and offer the highest chance of an "interesting" ride, which may include you having to tell the driver where to go and how to get there.

Every building in Singapore has its own postal code. This is quite useful when you need a cab, as you can just send your booking via SMS. Comfort Taxi is the biggest cab company in Singapore, so chances are highest that you will get one of their taxis. For a Comfort SMS booking, just send a message to +65 71 222 saying “Book XXXXXX”, where XXXXXX is the 6-digit postal code of whatever building you are at. This way, at restaurants, just ask for the postal code (or for them to call a taxi for you). You will either get a booking confirmation, together with the taxi's number plate, or a message telling you that all taxis are taken and to try again.

There are a number of apps out there for Singapore taxis. Some of these are quite handy, such as ComfortDelGro Taxi Booking (includes a map where you can see the real-time location of the taxi you ordered), Others, I don’t find very useful, such as SG Taxi Fare (fares are regulated, drivers don’t tend to overcharge and the only significant difference is with Chrysler cabs), Singapore SMRT and Taxi Guide 1.3, or Taxi Meter.

Use gothere.sg to plan your trip. Sometimes, taking a taxi might not be the smartest choice, as MRT or busses might get you there faster (say if you can’t get a cab during peak hours). Gothere will give you the best routes as well as estimated travel times for each of these modes of transport.

For a surcharge, you can pre-book a taxi to pick you up at a given place and time. This makes particular sense if you are in an area where there are few taxis and you need to go someplace during peak periods. Usually, you will easily get a taxi, but on weekends and during peak hours it may take you up to an hour to get a taxi, depending on your location, and weather (if it pours, free taxis will pull over and wait for the rain to stop).

Avoid the queue. At very touristy places, such as Clarke Quay and Boat Quay, the designated taxi stands will have very long queues on the weekends. If you can’t be bothered to wait, just walk a few hundred metres and flag down one of the many green taxis on the way to those taxi stands.

While overcharging is illegal in Singapore, nothing stops cabbies from sometimes taking a ridiculously long route to get you to your destination (talk about driving around the block). This may just be because they don't know any other way. If you know the fastest way, it is by all means a good idea to tell the driver which way to go. On the positive side, some drivers will ask your preferred route to your destination, and will give you advice on how to avoid surcharges for PIE, ERP and whatnot.

Speak your mind. On occasion, your taxi driver will not exactly exhibit common sense, or possibly just cannot be bothered to act in your best interest (i.e. get you where you want to go fast and cheap). When pulling up to a traffic light on a 3 lane road, such a driver may just stay on the middle lane, where there are say 10 cars, a bus and a few trucks ahead of you, instead of changing to the left or right lane, where there are only 3 or four cars each. In such cases, feel free to tell your driver to change to the less crowded lane, and they will do as you say (though sometimes not without grumbling about it).

Come prepared. If you don’t know the way to your destination, and if you don’t have a real-time map app, it’s a good idea to make a print-out of where you want to go (and possibly the best route). Again, I recommend gothere.sg for this. Many of the taxi drivers will be older gents, non-locals (from China, India or Malaysia), not fluent in English, or new on the job. Worst case is a combination of all of these. I had drivers tell me to get out of the cab because they didn’t know the destination, and I have had more than a few that I had to guide turn by turn because they were new, so coming prepared definitely helps.

Lastly, I would like to thank this one driver, who provided me with the most relaxing cab ride of my life. It was one of these night after 11pm, and I stumbled out of the office, totally beat and wanting to go home. I walked up to the curb, and as soon as I stretched my arm out to try my luck he stopped. For once, Comfort made god on its name, the interior of the cab was clean, the music was soothing, and the Malay driver was a true, service-oriented gentleman. The ride home passed quickly thanks to a nice conversation underlined by low-playing classical music, and we said our goodbyes with a smile on our faces. This was a taxi ride as good as it gets anywhere in the world and, alas!, not the rule in Singapore. I tip my hat to you, Mr. Unknown Driver.

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Restaurant Review: Violet Oon's Kitchen

Violet Oon's Kitchen

881 Bukit Timah Road
279893 Singapore

+65 6468 5430

If you're thinking about visiting Violet Oon's Kitchen, it's probably because someone mentioned this restaurant to you, or you read about it someplace. You're unlikely to stumble across it, as it is a rather small, out-of the way and inconspicuous eatery. Even so, it made it into the NY Times, a fact Ms. Oon doesn't fail to mention to her guests. Ms. Oon has been much lauded and talked about in Singapore, being a celebrity chef and even Singapore's Food Embassador.

I hadn't heard about Violet Oon's Kitchen until a colleague told me, and even with his detailed description it was a chore to guide our taxi driver there, as actually it is located in a little side alley running parallel to Bukit Timah Road. When we arrived, we were wondering why it was so crowded and noisy for a restaurant, until we figured out that we had actually gone into Bar Bar, which is right next to Violet Oon's Kitchen.

With Bar Bar as it's next door neighbor, dinner at Violet Oon's Kitchen is not a quiet affair, at least not sitting outside on the weekends. Aside from that, the atmosphere is rather relaxed and casual. The staff is friendly, and Ms. Oon and her son make the rounds with guests to chit-chat and to ask if everything is in order, a nice touch.

Appearances are not everything. Even though Ms. Oon's creations sounded good on the menu, and were indeed nicely presented, I unfortunately have to say that I don't understand the hype. Reinventing and adjusting Peranakan cuisine is a great idea, but none of the three dishes we tried at Violet Oon's Kitchen was a revelation.

All in all it was a decent dinner, with good service, for a just-ok amount of money, but nothing that I would deem outstanding. Also, I don't quite get the concept of putting shepherd's pie on the same (rather limited) menu as beef rendang. Portions are reasonable, and after 3 mains and desert we were actually stuffed. That said, neither the mains nor the dessert were truly great-tasting food. The mixture of Nonya with Western food might be working, but it's not the holy grail of Peranakan it is made out to be in many blog reviews. Our bill came to SGD 120, and for less money I can get better Straits food, therefore I doubt I will visit again.

3/5 Stars

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Restaurant Review: Botan Japanese Restaurant

Botan Japanese Restaurant
37 Pekin Street
Singapore 048761

+65 6536 4404

Botan Japanese Restaurant in Singapore is located in the hustle and
bustle of Pekin Street, right next to another Japanese restaurant named Shin Kushiya and close to Sushi-Tei on China Street. You can easily miss Botan, and as indeed I did when I first came to check out the Japanese food in Pekin Street, ending up at Shin Kushiya instead. Shin Kushiya and Sushi-Tei are both noticeably bigger than Botan, and a notch higher in terms of elegant interior design. However, Botan has its very own charm, and it is very noticeable that the restaurant is run by a Japanese owner (whom you can watch preparing seafood dishes from the main dining area. So, if you want to have the “real-Japanese” feel, Botan is the way to go.

Ambiance apart, and in terms of food served, Botan plays in totally different league. Both Shin Kushiya and Sushi-Tei are typical Singapore-Japanese restaurants, with dishes that are tasty, but not the kind of quality food you’d get in Japan. In contrast, and as my Japanese friends have assured me, Botan is the real deal. If you want your Japanese food to taste exactly like it would if you ordered it in the land of cherry blossoms, go to Botan.

I never go during lunch hour or early evening because the place is too packed, as there is a lot of people coming over from China square, Raffles Place and the Bank of Tokyo Mitsubishi. If you want to go around these times, better reserve a table. If you go in the late evening though, you will most likely get a place.

The menu is extensive, yet Botan makes it hard for you not to order something from the first page, as their value-for-money offering is just too compelling, especially in Singapore. For around SGD 20 you get a complete dinner set, served on tray laden with delicacies. My favorites are the Tonkatsu set and the Grilled Salmon Set, the Grilled Chicken set is also quite yummy.

Botan Japanese Restaurant Grilled Chicken Set

 Besides the main course of your dinner set, you will get an assortment of sashimi (usually 3 different types, including salmon and tuna), miso soup, Japanese pickles, daikon or other vegetables with chicken in a delicious homemade sauce, chawanmushi (egg custard), noddles, and of course rice. To add variety, some of the side dishes change from time to time. 

Botan Japanese Restaurant Grilled Salmon Set

Taste-wise, this is some of the best Japanese food I have ever eaten, and you immediately notice that it is made by a food artist. Whatever dishes you try, there are always new and interesting flavors flooding your mouth, and from experience I know this is what home-cooked Japanese food tastes like.

The staff is friendly, fast and knowledgeable. Little details matter, and the hot towels before and after the meal as well as the complimentary lemon-flavored iced water add to the experience. Definitely one of the best dining experiences in Singapore.

5/5 Stars

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Restaurant Review: Dolce Vita Mandarin Oriental Singapore

Dolce Vita Mandarin Oriental Singapore

5 Raffles Avenue, Marina Square

Singapore 039797

+65 6338 0066

Dolce Vita is an Italian restaurant located at the poolside of the Mandarin Oriental Singapore with a view of Marina Bay Sands and the skyline. Even on weekends the restaurant is rarely booked out, but if you want a more quiet and out of the way table, it might be a good idea to call beforehand. If the weather allows for it, or in the evenings, sitting outside next to the pool is very chilled, especially as the pool itself is not frequented a lot.

While you might want to enjoy the chilled atmosphere outdoors, the indoors area of Dolce Vita is more dignified, with stone floors and wall, a big bar and a cozy/stylish Italian air. The staff is impeccably professional (even though sometimes it might be a little hard to get their attention) and very friendly and accommodating. On our first visit, we were greeted by Jan Immoff, the recently appointed restaurant manager of Dolce Vita. It’s always a nice touch if management takes 5 minutes to say hello at your table, no matter where you go.

The food at Dolce Vita is not cheap, but it’s among the more decent Italian restaurants you will find in Singapore. Some of Dolce Vita’s signature dishes include a wide selection of yummy thin-crust pizzas, penne with osso bucco ragout and beef tenderloin with foie gras. A very nice starter or palate cleanser in between courses is their oven-fresh bread with olives. If you’re wine connoisseur, you will appreciate the wide selection on offer.

Complimentary Gazpacho at Dolce Vita

Complimentary oven-fresh buns at Dolce Vita

Penne Carbonara at Dolce Vita

Tris di Pasta at Dolce Vita

Tris di Pasta at Dolce Vita

At times, Dolce Vita invites guest cooks that stay for a week or so (when we were there two cooks from Norway were visiting and we were invited to try some complimentary smoked salmon). During these times, guests have the opportunity to sample special menus/dishes at very reasonable prices.

4/5 Stars

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