Dining with a view [Part 2]: Me@OUE has a brand new Executive Chef

Quickly scanning through the brief introduction sent across via email, my eyes hitched upon "The 33-year old Penang native, now helms the restaurant and oversees the Japanese, French and Chinese kitchens." Almost immediately, the universe began sending me messages. Don't. However, if the story were to progress in that imminent direction, you wouldn't be reading this meritorious review I'm about to expound.


One highlight of the meal being Kumamoto Wagyu A4 which isn't much of an off-script move but resulted in a chimera of narratives, which in actual fact happened in cosmic silence, implementing only audible sighs at the table, as the two of us polished off the charcoal grilled striploin sitting cosily in pumpkin puree. That's a romantic tale I would avouch for again later.

Dining with a view [Part 1]: Stellar at 1-Altitude presents their special Tajima Wagyu program

Clearing my throat and attempting to get rid the ear barotrauma that had developed from the swift elevator ride up to 62nd floor of One Raffles Place Building; the cool gust of air that greets me at the tip of the spacious natural light awashed dining room worked wonders in refreshing the senses instantaneously.

The purpose of my visit, to explore Chef Christopher Millar's brand new nip tuck culinary program featuring Tajima Wagyu which the restaurant now painstakingly sources and wait for it... rears their own cattle at Australia's premium Wagyu farm Tiana Park (NSW). Talk about dedication to curating the best produce! This process devising a canny way of getting back in the media again. We're talking the opportunity to feature a myriad of cuts (both secondary and premium) in mixed fashion and with the added flexibility of dry-aging at your own will; Chef Christopher Millar has definitely got it all figured out.

Steamroom with The Pillar and Stones: A Three-In-One Dining Experience

With the news abuzz these days with how retail in Orchard Road is experiencing a decline in footfall and tourists receipts, it's no surprise that tenants in the vicinity are devising new ways to entice consumers to shop, dine or simply chill out over a cup of coffee; or in this case, a freshly brewed pot of tea. At Steamroom with The Pillar and Stones (SRPS), that's where you can experience a unique three-in-one concept, that's part 'kaffatea' room or Steamroom, part restaurant - The Pillar, and art space - Stones; hence the name.

Pretty and Instagram-worthy desserts in Singapore to satisfy your sweet tooth

IMAGE CREDIT: Instagram user / @Alexwanderlusts

As much as I disapprove of coloured confetti sprinkles and unicorn dusted sweet nothings. The old saying that we eat first with our eyes rings true here. The dash to document your meals (even before physically partaking in it) is a cathartic luxury that I myself indulge in most of the time. Truth be told, it is more nourishing and rewarding (in most cases) as the final product itself.

So here goes nothing, a list of some of the most instagrammable desserts for you hungry, media-centric foodies. Please feel free to gnaw at your screens.

Monti Festino @ Monti: Longest Sunday Brunch by the Bay

Mundane and serene our lives had been, Monday to Saturday that is, every hour garlanded with chain emails and accompanying politics. Sundays don't have to be about that. Just saying.

Cocoon yourself within Monti's cool, natural light draped interiors without the interruption from the bustle of the city outside (apart from the occasional sampan that wanders a little too close for comfort near the glass walls). Monti Festino is a spruced up version of the usual champagne brunch varietal, this bad boy continuing from the brunch table to the roof top for spun-beats till sundown then persevering to Sunday soiree mode with the jazz crew taking you all the way til the stroke of midnight.

BITE: The new date-and-dine app that will find you love (or at least a great meal)

Navigating the dating waters can be enormously intimidating at times, so what better way to lighten the mood than meeting over a meal?

The cross-table interactions, both verbal and non-verbal, are powerful ways of fostering genuine connections between two individuals.

Bonus: When the food is excellent.
But then again, bonding over disastrous meals might just bring foodies/picky eaters together.

Dating apps these days don’t usually encourage you to get off the app and meet in real life, just calling for you to make initial judgements and connections through a screen.

But Bite is a new date-and- dine app that lets you meet new people while eating delicious food, all in one great application. A no-brainer since Singaporeans are thinking about food all the time! Now there’s the added convenience of meeting someone online and fast track to taking them out for a meal! Perfect for foodies like me (and you!)

Download Bite (www.bite-official.com) now on your Android or Apple device.

UNA: Spanish fare under a fairy-lit canopy

Like Botanico, UNA's kitchen brigade is run by Executive Chef Antonio Oveido who favours the authentic seafood themed gourmet finds from the South of Spain and tries to blend that with heartier cuisine from the North which avoids fussing and tweaking. The result - an innovative and contemporary menu that exudes the regular wholesome fervour of Spanish fare but founded by modern cooking techniques.

UNA is anything but low-key, it's dreamy landscape complete with shower curtains of fairy lights and banquet like soft cascades of fabric from wooden beams affecting a certain sort of formality. Step through a plush garden, as represented by most other establishments in the Rochester Park vicinity and be transported to a different dimension. Between it's white-washed patio area and grandeur of colonial bungalow, the whole experience of being seated can be a bit overwhelming.

Menya Sakura: Nagoya Style Ramen that you'll be fantasizing about (way past your bedtime)

It's that witching hour again, when fantasies of piping hot bowls of fat-laced ramen cloud the mind with tall cumulonimbus structures too high even for the countdown sheep to leap over. Either that, or you're pushing through the drinks quota so hard, as if planning for your demise and higher destiny. Both things, you'll live to regret the next morning; sunglasses, coconut water and vitamin c being the best weapons against the pulsating headaches. The idea of a sultry bowl of ramen might not be a wild departure as well.

Tonkatsu Ginza Bairin: Third Generation Japanese Breaded Pork Cutlet restaurant launches new menu items!

You've heard of Tonkatsu Ginza Bairin in B4 of Ion Orchard? Lucky you, because it took me a whole 8 years since its setup in 2009 to chance upon its existence. The relentless search for Singapore's best Tonkatsu never once leading me to the food basement of this human-overrun commonplace. Fortunately for me, this bane was recently overhauled when a photo assignment brought such unexpected pleasures to my senses, after my first apprehensive bite of the Katsu sandwich. A third generation breaded pork cutlet recipe sandwiched between white bread is a no-brainer winner. This idea spawned by Nobukatsu-san during World War I when faced with the dire situation of severe rice shortage - nothing short of genius and we're glad it's a staple on the menu.

Tonkatsu Ginza Bairin remains steadfast to its roots, the menu not deviating far from it's superstar product, the tonkatsu. However, that is soon to change as the kitchen buzzes with additions to the menu.

[UOB Dining] Royal Pavilion: Good Cantonese fare at the fringe of the city

Settling in to certain opulent and grandeur settings in Royal Pavilion's main dining room may be a bit intimidating. But the solid and stalwart service standards immediately fixes that and put us at ease. In line with their modern Cantonese out take, courses are dished out in individual portions, each presented with finesse and looking just a little too pretty to eat.