[Tasting] H&C halycon & crane @ Paragon Shopping Centre

Was invited to H&C at Paragon to try some of the items from the new menu. Thank you Kris and Eugene for the invitation. This time round, we went during dinner time. 

cosy interior

nice seats to watch the world go by

some nibbles before getting the mains?

how about some fancy teas?

Fancy Teas

Since weather was hot and humid, I opted for "Cold Brew Orchid Pu'erh Tea". This was the only cold tea from the fancy tea series. Staff informed that the tea is steeped daily and in limited volume. Ok, let's try it.

Cold Brew Orchid Pu'erh Tea @$10.90

cheers~

Loved the deep amber hue of the Pu'erh tea. It was indeed refreshing and enjoyable.

For teas prepared via the siphon pot, one could watch the tea preparation at the coffee/tea/bar area. These would be the "Beau-tea-ful You" and "Tea-rriffically Healthy".

aesthetically pleasing

Once the tea is ready, staff will bring over the brewed tea to your table (minus the siphon). Staff informed that the volume of water served is optimal for the tea-leaves used.

"Tea-rrifically Healthy" (Buckwheat and Chrysanthemum) @$14

"Beau-tea-ful You" (Mixed Dried Fruits, Rose, Strawberries, DragonFruit) @$14

Buckwheat tea was nicely nutty with toasty notes (unsweetened) while the one with the mixed dried fruits and rose, was mildly sweet and lovely rose fragrance.

Nibbles

Let's nibble on some appetisers while we sipped the teas. 

Crispy Squid @$18

Crispy squid was lovely as the squid was nicely tender. It actually doesn't pack any heat although menu listed it as '1 chili' spicy level. More sweet than spicy.

Hot & Sour Gyoza Soup @$14

Chicken gyoza was decent and the sauce is similar to 酸菜鱼 (sour vege fish) albeit less on the sour scale. Tangy and appetizing.

Sticky Pork Ribs @$15.50

The pork ribs had some crisp bits on first bite with overall flavours from the classic sweet vinegar glaze. Longan was nicely plump and sweet.

Tomato Beef Stew (served with sourdough) @$19.50

Oh, I might have found my new favourite nibbles and that's the tomato beef stew. Hearty, tangy plus beef with some fats? Bring it on! Plenty of tomatoes and potatoes in there too.

Pasta

For the mains, there are noodles and there are grains to choose from. Let's try a few.

Low Cal, Avocado Scallion Capellini @$22.50

Important thing to note is that keep the photo taking moments (if any) to a minimum if you had ordered the pasta.  We took a tad too long and the capellini had begun to dry out a little. So we made the most of the onsen egg to moisten it again once more, before we tucked into it. Hehe.

The scallion capellini had yummy mushroomy flavours that I liked. And, towards the end, I added some beef stew to the noodles to change it up a bit and I enjoyed that too!

Hot Sauce Prawn Pasta @$27.50

But my favourite pasta that night, was the prawn pasta. The prawns were cooked the way I liked. Moreover, it was served with deep fried kale. I'll gladly eat this vege.

that perfect bite

Grains

Squid Mixed Grains Rice Stew @$26.50

First time seeing squid mixed grains rice stew. Have you tried one before? It was a novelty for me. 

interesting

Salmon and grains were served with slightly charred/roasted romaines, sliced avocado, cherry tomatoes, sprinkling of nori and of course, a piece of well cooked salmon. I'm all for the salmon skin. Crisp and packed with flavours.

Salmon and Grains @$34

But who would've guess, that I'd fall for the stone bowl grains. Same mixed grains as the rest but there's a slight smokey flavour from each spoonful of this. Besides mixed grains, there's potato, mushrooms, chickpeas and fried kale.

Humble Grains Stone Bowl @$16.50

Special thanks to Chu Chu who took care of our table that night, and Chef Eugene for recommending us the dishes.

Read more on our past brunch experience here.

H&C halcyon & crane

Address: 290 Orchard Rd, #03-09 Paragon Shopping Centre, Singapore 238859

Website: https://linktr.ee/halcyonandcrane

Contact: 97275121

Business Hours:

Daily: 9 am–8:30 pm

[Tasting] New Menu @ 51Soho Telok Ayer

Am a huge fan of their Lobster Stew Rice (read about it here) and when I heard about the upcoming change in menu, was excited to try out the new items and it was a relief that the Boston Lobster Grains Risotto (@$38++) is still available!

new menu

of grains and stews

For the new menu, the focus is on hearty and comforting dishes. Think wholesome grains, stews and pasta. The restaurant's staple of meat skewers remains on the menu with newer items added to the skewers selection. 

Are you hungry yet? I am, so let's eat!

freshly shucked French oysters @$2++ per piece (promo)

Started with French oysters for just $2 a piece. Ahh, that's because there is a promotion for these tasty mollusks. Usual price would be $30 for half a dozen. Oh, excuse me while I devour a few more of these.

This time round, we finally tried the Prosperity Cup, that came complete with its signature edible 'money'.

51Soho Specials - Prosperity Cup @$88++ for 9 cups, $100++ for 12 cups

Next up, usually one would get the skewers or 串串 (chuan chuan in Chinese). The skewers were done up in house marination and coated with addictive spice dust. 

Skewers (price ranging from $1.50++ to $5.50++, depending on type)

We tried chicken skin, pork rectum (?), mantou (?), chicken meat and pork belly. Ok, I ate the chicken skin without having a photo of it, but it was a really skinny stick with the skin done up ultra crispy. Addictive indeed.

The pork rectum sounded like a fear factor item but it tasted just like intestine. Not as crunchy as the chicken skin as it retained a slight chewiness similar to intestine. Nice.

I didn't know fried mantou could be a skewer item! Interesting. It was quite likeable, in fact. But I think my brain had been wired to the need of a dipping sauce for fried mantou.

mantou (held up), with chicken skin directly underneath it and the rectum skewer on the right (top)

Enoki Mushrooms @$5++

Let's try something brand new in the menu for the next appetiser dish. Did you know that you could get Beef Bone Marrow for just $12 at 51Soho? Presentation of the dish was on point and dig out a good chunk of that creamy, rich marrow, spread it onto the bread. Take a bite and tell me if that doesn't impresses you.

Beef Bone Marrow @$12++

marrow awaiting

All of us were impressed by the value of the dish and the amazing bread that was paired with it. So yummy.

amazing bread

One more appetiser before we move on to the mains. This plate is strongly flavoured with the base of creamy sesame dressing. Soy marinated lava egg, asparagus, crispy silver fish toppings and sweet pea forms up this delicious plate. I liked and will gladly eat all my vegetables if it was like this plate!

Grilled Romaine Lettuce and Vegetables @$14++

At this juncture, don't you feel kind of thirsty? Let's get some more drinks! We got the namesake drink - 51Soho. Of plum wines, rose and lychee. My favourite, actually. Sweet and such a nice scent by using the lychee.

51Soho @$88++ for 9 cups, and $100++ for 12 cups

pouring me a cup, again

Let's get some more food into our bellies, shall we?

what's smoking?

Classic French Chicken Cassoulet @$24++

First time having the Classic French Chicken Cassoulet. According to Wiki, it is a rich, slow-cooked casserole containing meat and white beans (haricots blancs). The chicken (two large pieces and nicely browned) inside this casserole has soaked up all the good flavours and it was so delightfully tender! Wished there was more chicken meat though. The sauce was so so good. Hearty meal indeed. One gets very full from eating all that beans!

Chicken and Mushroom Stew @$18++

The Chicken and Mushroom Stew was really interesting with its flavour that I thought was pretty familiar much like the chicken and mushroom broth that we make at home to cook flavoured porridge with. 

This was of a lighter flavour as compared to the cassoulet and had lots of grains in it such as the black rice, oat groats , barley, carrot, button mushrooms and kale. Again, lots of grains to munch on and it is a filling dish. I can imagine myself having this if am feeling under the weather or just to get comforted by the homely flavours.

let's get pasta

We got an Italian Carbonara to try. This one is without cream. Took a few bites and wow, this one's a heavyweight in terms of punchy flavours! The noodles texture was on-point.  If you love cheeses, then this carbonara is for you. I won't be able to finish this plate on my own as the flavours from the cheeses were really strong.

Italian Carbonara @$17++

Stronger flavours requires a stronger drink. What's better than a "Dancing in the Moonlight"?

51Soho Specials - Dancing in the Moonlight @$88++ for 12 cups and $120++ for 24 cups

Took a whiff and whoa, this one's a strong drink! Looked harmless with a bit of white fungus swimming at its surface of golden yellow hue. Reminds me of chrysanthemum which it was not.

Introducing Jiangxiaobai (白酒) - Joyouth 

The liqour is concocted with baijiu from the Jiang Distillery. The Joyouth (from 40% collection) is used here. This is an award winning chinese wine in 2017.

One was supposed to down it in one shot but I was too chicken. Took a sip and boy, it was strong! The throat would still be feeling some heat from the pathway the liquor took while travelling smoothly down. 40% alcohol yo, so drink responsibly!

Ok, now we are ready for desserts. Something cold, yes? A plate of greens was placed infront of us. Uhm, we didn't ask for salad again, did we?

Apple, Cucumber and Yoghurt @$10++

another angle

It was love at first bite. Ahhh, such refreshing flavour! Choya marinated cucumber and apple (pickled with plum wine? ooohhh), cucumber granita, and that deliciously light and wobbly greek yoghurt panna cotta, and topped with crumble. We attacked this dish relentlessly till not a drop of crumb was left. It was that good. Try it for yourself.

For pretty looking dessert, there's the Strawberry and Balsamico plated dessert. The vanilla ice-cream was really good and topped with a layer of salted cheese blanket (ya, like those bubble tea...).

Strawberry and Balsamico @$10++

51Soho is about 3 minutes walk from Telok Ayer MRT station, hence if you are around the vicinity, do drop by to try some of their foods.

For spending above $60, you could redeem a pasta or grain stew free of charge. And this redemption could be for the same day use as well.

voucher with every $60 spent

Thank you Kris for the invite and Chef Eugene, 51Soho for your generous hospitality. Kudos to the kitchen team for the delicious meal.

Dinner with Ivan, Tiara and Kris.

beautiful space

promotion

51 Soho

Address: 51 Telok Ayer St, #01-01, Singapore 048441
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/51soho/
Contact: 9755 1058
Reservation: https://www.chope.co/singapore-restaurants/restaurant/51-soho
Business Hours:
Mon to Fri:   8am to 11pm
Sat:            10am to 11pm
Sun:           10am to 10pm