A Quiet Lunch @ Araya Singapore, Duxton

My cousin-in-law recommended this place when I told her I was doing a staycation at Mondrian last year, so when the opportunity arises again, decided to give Araya a try.

Since I was available on a weekday, decided on the Business Lunch menu ($58++). A three-course menu comprising of bread, starter and a main. Decided to upgrade the starter to Rainbow Ceviche (+$12) and chose Duck as the main. Both the starter and main options were chosen as part of the reservation process. 

entrance

Was a few minutes early for the lunch appointment and was just looking at the entrance to figure out if this is the right place when suddenly the door opened, and the hostess gave out a soft greeting of "Hola~" Hehe, I guess she can see who's standing at the door.

Once the guest name was ascertained, I was quickly ushered to my seat. Ah, counter seats.

beautiful space

Once seated, Vikram introduced himself and I was presented with the business lunch menu and also the  beverage options. Empanada was highly recommended as additional add-on (+$12), so I went with the recommendation. 

Discovered that there is a wine package ($48++) that would be good pairing to accompany the food and for me to get acquainted with Chilean wines.

ready for lunch

Hand sanitizer was offered prior to the start of the meal.

Montes Sparkling, Central Valley Chile NV

just a little sip

fresh and crisp

my POV

LA PANERA / BREAD

with merkén chilli butter and cochayuyo seaweed butter

Chef introduced the merkén chilli in its ground(ed) form, and I also got to see it in its pepper form. 

merkén chilli

cacho de cabra

left to right: bocado de dama, marraqueta

interior of the marraqueta

Marraqueta has a crusty exterior much like a baguette. According to Wiki, marraqueta is the most widely consumed bread in Chile.

with lots of merkén chilli butter

The bocado de dama or nori-wagyu roll, is a soft roll flavoured with nori. I liked the softness of this bread. Both flavoured butter were lovely but my favourite was the merkén chilli butter with the soft roll.

cute tiny flowers - close up view of cochayuyo seaweed butter

cochayuyo (kelp)

Was rather intrigued by the cochayuyo on the table. Normally fresh kelp looks green in colour but cochayuyo is a brown kelp. 

Bread and butter, with sips of crisp Montes Sparkling Angel wine; was a good start. I had a few bites when the starter arrived.

ENTRADAS / STARTERS

RAINBOW CEVICHE

Ceviche Rainbow (+$12)

The Ceviche Rainbow dish has Hokkaido scallops, oca, daikon, leche de tigre and avocado sorbet.

oca (root vegetable native to the Andean highlands of South America)

Oca is said to be somewhat similar to small potato with a tangy, nutty flavour. Chef advised to mix everything together to enjoy the Rainbow Ceviche.

closer view of the scallops

The avocado sorbet was creamy and the sweetness from the scallops was made more prominent with the Sauvignon Blanc.

Los Vascos Sauvignon Blanc (Casablanca Chile 2022)

CHEF'S FAVOURITES (Add-On)

EMPANADA

Wagyu beef, pebre (+$12)

PRINCIPALES / MAINS

DUCK

Duck (aged cacao sauce, seared foie gras, cherry chimichurri)

Los Vascos Cromas Carmenere Gran Reserva 2021

The cacao sauce was interesting tasting with more of the bitter profile at the fore, and balanced with the rest of savoury-sweet. Loved the lightly seared foie gras that's soft and wobbly texture, with that bit of crispy from the buckwheat. "It tasted like mini popcorn." I thought.

closer view of foie gras and duck

POSTRES/ DESSERTS (Add-On)

RHUBARB & WILD STRAWBERRIES 

Rhubarb & Wild Strawberries (+$12)

delightful morsels

The rhubarb dessert was not what I had expected initially (maybe I was thinking more of rhubarb pie or something?). It has a slight tartness and overall not too sweet. The dessert came with a small cup of sweet tea.

dessert tea

My first time having a cacao infused pisco and I liked it.

cacao infused pisco

Somehow, in Araya, one loses track of time. As the meal came towards an end, staff brought out the cake with candle and a continuation of well wishes.

happy birthday~

Thank you to all whom I met at Araya especially Vikram, Cecelia and the two lovely Chefs who emerged from the kitchen; lovely Chef who introduced the breads and another Chef who enquired on overall meal experience. Not forgetting Chef who was at the counter seats. 

Thank you for the good meal and for the well wishes.

chocolate bon bons (coconut coated was my favourite)

ps: I needed a nap after all the feasting and drinking

Araya

Address: Mondrian Singapore Duxton 83 Neil Road, Duxton Hl, #01-08 Access via, 089813

Website: https://www.arayarestaurant.com/

Contact: 88700871

Business Hours:

Sun: Closed

Mon: 5:30–11 pm

Tue - Sat: 12–3 pm, 5:30–11 pm

[Travel] In the Heart of Bangkok - Lunch at Biscotti @ Anantara Siam Bangkok Hotel

It was my last day at Anantara Siam Bangkok and as am only going over to the next hotel to meet up with Hence and Tracy at 5pm, I do have time for lunch at Biscotti, an Italian restaurant within the hotel.

Decided to go for their ala-carte menu as I have eyed a dish that I wanted to try; Gnocchi Ai Funghi Selvatici. I like a good gnocchi. The best thus far, was at Club Street, a taste that I had aeons ago (translated as more than 20 years ago). Next was at Garibaldi but the gnocchi there was more of an accompaniment rather than a main.

There were two staff at the entrance of the restaurant and one of them led me to a table. The place was not too busy and I noticed that the table next to mine, was almost done with their lunch.

sparkling water

Also got myself a glass of red wine, as I couldn't resist when the wine list has Amarone by the glass.

2020 Amarone della Valpolicella, Villa Loren @฿680++ (per glass)

smooth, low tannin, berries

From what I've read, Amarone is not usually paired with pasta but the staff says, "Go for it. Up to individual preference!" And, so I did. 

housemade crispy bread, served with eggplant and pepper dip, olive oil with balsamic, sea salt

Was served the crispy bread (complimentary) right after wine was served. Initially surprised to see such a generous amount even for a solo diner, but I did enjoy this dish by quite abit and voila, none left by the end of lunch. Except some loose crumbs. It was that good.

Gnocchi Ai Funghi Selvatici @฿450++ (small)

Two sizes of pasta is available; small or large, and I opted for small. Just for a taste. 

Those cute little balls of pillowy dough were good. Overall, strong flavours, earthy tones from the wild mushrooms and perfumed by a little bit of thyme made a strong impression. I also loved it as the dish was served hot.

Spoonfuls after spoonfuls of deliciousness went in, and suddenly, there was only a few left. Then I had the idea to break some pieces of those crispy bread into the gnocchi dish, and yass to the contrast in texture with two equally flavourful counterparts. Is this what we called, carbs on carbs? Haha!

crispy and soft combined

looking at the open kitchen where the delicious foods came from

Next, it was time for dessert. Staff says the most ordered dessert is the amalfi lemon and so, that was what I had.

Amalfi Lemon @฿420++

Visually stunning and looked pretty much life-like, like an actual lemon.

Ivory white chocolate mousse, confit Amalfi lemons

Enjoyable dessert, served with a small scoop of icy limoncello sorbet. The green leaves on the lemon is for decorative purpose. Just saying.

Hmm, I think I still have room for another dessert and hence, asked Mameaw (one of the staff) for her recommendation. She said I must try the tiramisu. Alright, let's go for it!

By now (around 2pm), the restaurant was fairly relaxed but I was wondering why the tiramisu is taking its time to arrive... Then, a small table was setup next to mine. Eh, table-side service for tiramisu? Keke.

what's this?

Staff said he will serve a bigger piece for me. Oh, thank you~

Biscotti Tiramisu @฿450++

yummy

Tiramisu was lovely and by now, am feeling full. But then, Chef Giuseppe Bonura (Biscotti’s Chef de Cuisine) came by to the table again and we talked a bit on the food and he mentioned about his childhood summer food which happened to be on the dessert menu; Brioscia & Sorbetto Al Limone. He asked me if I wanted to try. 

Orange Brioche with lemon sorbet @฿300

soft and fluffy

Chef shared that one breaks apart the soft brioche, and scoop some of the sorbet inside to eat together. Orange brioche was served slightly warm, with sugar dust and combined with the icy tangy sorbet, I can understand why it's the perfect summer breakfast. Thank you Chef Giuseppe for the treat!

Overall, it was an enjoyable solo dining experience at Biscotti Bangkok. The service was good, food was delicious and appreciate Chef Giuseppe who took time to talk to guests when the kitchen is not too busy.

Spent around SGD94 and yes, even I couldn't believe that I had 3 desserts in one sitting. Wow.

Biscotti บิสก็อตติ

Address: 155 Lumphini, Pathum Wan, Bangkok 10330, Thailand

Website: https://www.biscottibangkok.com/

Business Hours:

Daily: 12–2:30 pm, 6–10:30 pm

Guccio Ristorante by Chef Marco @ 20 Gemmill Lane

Am a supporter of Restaurant Week organised by DiningCity for a while now and recently made reservations for their Chef's Signature event at Guccio. It is actually within 2 minutes walking distance from The Clan Hotel, which I was staying for that weekend. Events such as this, would be a nice opportunity to try new places without having to think too much about what to choose as the set menu is usually pretty limited choice and is meant to showcase the specialty cuisine of the selected restaurant.

I arrived on time for the 1.30pm slot, which I think would be pretty late for lunch? A quick look revealed that most diners were nearing the end of their meal.

Was given a choice of sparkling or still, but I am with Bernice and the choice is clear, because why pay for still when you could get sparkling? Hahaa!

sparkling @$10++

Chef's Signature Lunch Menu

Wendy arrived shortly after I had quenched my thirst, with refreshing taste of sparkling with a slice of lemon.

Bread was served after we placed our orders. Requested for balsamic as it was not offered by default. The bread was cold when served.

Was happy when our appetizer was appeared. The Calamari, came looking colourful and succulent. The olive coloured blobs were actually eggplant puree. The poached baby calamari was tasty and soft but not mushy. Each component on the dish played a part but the star of the dish was still the unassuming yet flavourful calamari.

Calamari

  

Next, was the Gamberi - New Zealand prawns 'tartare'. I think this would be my first time having any prawns 'tartare'. The sprouts on it was rather cute. The green pea puree was fragrant (because I do like green peas~). Not sure why but there was a light hint of citrus on this dish and it was a refreshing taste with mild sweetness.

Didn't enjoy the trout roe as much because it was of an awkward size. Was bothersome (for me, not sure if anyone else shared the same sentiment) because it was not big enough to 'pop' nor was it small enough to ignore and swallow.

Gamberi (supplement $10++)

Next, was our main course. Pork and fish.

Salmone

The pan-fried Norwegian salmon was Wendy's choice. The blobs of red that I thought was tomato, was actually beetroot cream. The seasonal greens on the plate was tasty. Fish was good although we would have preferred it to be slightly more pink.

Salmone - side view

I had the Maialino, slow-cooked Spanish suckling pig belly. Lovely plating. There's red apple compote and berry sauce.

Maialino (supplement $10++)

lovely layers

The skin was not of the crispy crackling kind, but the meat inside was lovely. The downside, was that the meat had stronger flavours of pork, hence a glass of wine would help. Nevertheless, I enjoyed the flavourful meat with lovely textured layers of lean and fats.

And then, we were at dessert. The choice was obvious. Of course, we got to try Chef Marco's mom's signature Tiramisu.

Tiramisu

Just be careful not to inhale while trying to get that spoonful in. I was careless and choked a bit on the cocoa powder. Both of us thoroughly enjoyed the tiramisu.

The Chef's Signature event menu is a good way to try some of the signature dishes on their regular menu without doing too much damage to the wallet. Guccio's Set Lunch Menu @$38++ had similar mains offered as well.

The Chef's Signature lunch set was good value and portions were adequate. Compliments to Chef Marco and his team.

Spent about $68 per pax.

Guccio Ristorante 

Address: 20 Gemmill Ln, Singapore 069256

Website: https://www.guccioristorante.com/

Contact: 6224 1684

Business Hours:

Tues to Sun: 11:30am–2:30pm, 5:30–11pm

Closed on Mondays