[Media Invite] Exquisite Japanese-Italian Omakase Dinner at Monte Risaia @ 59 Duxton Road

Monte Risaia is located at 59 Duxton Road and specializes in Japanese-Italian omakase dinner, meticulously crafted by Chef Taizo and team using premium ingredients and seasonal ingredients.

The counter seats could accommodate about 12 pax and it is where one could watch all the action that goes into each of the dishes served. There are two private rooms as well if you prefer so.

Chef Taizo Yamada in action

edible flowers

are we going to get those juicy tomatoes on vine?

first course and it involved torching~

finishing touches

 Mozzarella Al Forno

For the first course, one could choose between Signature Uni Pudding or the  Mozzarella Al Forno. I had the pudding but that wagyu looked so good! Didn't get a taste but it had aged Akagi wagyu, eggplant and avruga caviar ontop of the cheese. It already sounded delicious!

Was comforted by the solid whole pieces of sea urchin beckoning for a taste. So curious about the pudding. Was informed that the ingredients for the pudding were yellow eggs, cream and milk. Texture that was like tofu, creamy and non-funky. Lovey savoury flavours. 

Signature Uni Pudding

Then, the kitchen got really busy and there were larger plates laid out for our next dish.

assembling in progress

finishing touches on the Antipasto Misto

Antipasto Misto

The Antipasto Misto looked gorgeous. Like a picture! There were 5 components on the plate and Chef Roy would explain each components. "Have the cold seafood first, then followed by the seabream, the prawn arrabiata, the San Danielle ham with strawberry and finally, the fried gnocchi."

Sakoshi Bay oyster, yay! I lurrrve this oyster because it's so plump and fresh! Want to have this again.

Antipasto Misto - Sakoshi Bay oyster with ikura

Was pleasantly surprised by the seabream in shallot sauce. On first bite, one would have noticed the crunchy texture, which we later learnt is the shark cartilage. I think it was brilliant to use this. The sauce itself was mildly sweet, and tangy. The fish was firm and sweet. So good. This became my favourite piece.

Seabream with Shallot Sauce

The Prawn Arrabiata was also smile inducing. It was decorated with chrysanthemum petals, and what a lovely sauce it had. A tiny bit spicy and a whole lot tomato-ey. I liked this.

Prawn Arrabiata

Ice plant is an interesting plant, with stems that are dotted with tiny crystal lookalike, making it look as if it had been surviving in the Arctic for some time. It is edible and tasted crunchy, with a bit of water and tiny bit salty/acidic. The fried gnocchi was soft and nicely golden. Loved the cheese sauce underneath.

Fried Gnocchi with Ice Plant

After all eating all the gorgeousness, it was time for something more substantial. Chef would be cooking us pasta after the appetisers.

plating in progress

stirring the sauce

everything together now

 Signature “Shiso and Omaru Dashi” Pasta

The very first noticeable thing about the pasta was of its lingering fragrance. Loved the taste of shiso that's refreshing in a pasta dish.

lovely fragrance

guess what these are

The final course, was a meat item. Not just one meat but two! Grilled Iberico pork and sirloin beef duo. My goodness. The pork was awesome! This was the first time that I had preferred pork over beef. Such tender texture that was so gentle to chew on, and on-point flavours.

Grilled Iberico Pork and Sirloin Beef

The above 4-course omakase dinner set is priced at $98++ while a 3-course set is priced at $68++. Top-up $12++ to end the meal with a dolce.

Thank you Jennifer from JY Consulting for the invite and Monte Risaia for hosting the dinner. Special thanks to Chef Taizo Yamada, Chef Roy for the delicious food and Patrick for taking care of us.

Monte Risaia

Address: 59 Duxton Rd, Singapore 089523

Contact: 6970 0067

Reservation: https://www.chope.co/singapore-restaurants/restaurant/monte-risaia

Business Hours:

Mon to Sat : 6pm to 12am

Closed on Sundays.

[Media Invite] A Lavish Christmas Brunch @ Roots Mediterranean

Here's another idea on where to celebrate the festivities, and where one could be spoilt for choice because Roots Mediterranean does Italian, Spanish, Greek and Levantine cuisines! We had a sneak peak into Roots' Christmas Brunch menu and boy, what a treat it was. Thank you Jennifer from JY Consultancy for the invite and Roots Mediterranean for hosting the brunch tasting.

awaiting for the feast... I mean for other guests to arrive

assorted breads and pastry

Started with an assortment of breads and I was besotted with this one. Not sure what it's name was, but it sure was delicious! Crispy puff with a dusting of icing sugar. There was a thin layer of custard in it.

favourite pastry

Tried the Octopus Gallego Carpaccio from the "Tapas, Mezze and Antipasti" selection. It was a beautiful plate. Thinly sliced flattened octopus, and drizzled with olive oil, lemon juice and with a scattering of herbs. Its texture was tender and only required a gentle chew. An interesting plate.

looks like art

look, how thinly sliced this was

One could walk around the stations setup inside the restaurant and pick-out your favourite cheeses, salads, or more mezze!

hi there!

my plate

From the Carving Station, one could get the Wellington Fillet and the Roasted Lamb Leg. For any roasted/baked items, the outer layer would be slightly more cooked than the center. Meat was rather lean for both the lamb and beef.

Roasted Lamb Leg, Wellington Fillet

Wellington Fillet Center view

slicing done

Wellington Fillet (beef)

slicing the lamb

There are also items served to your table during the Christmas Brunch, such as Oysters with Cava, Pizza Lobster and Prawns and Roasted Wild Range French Yellow Chicken.

oysters

Cava

Roasted Wild Range French Yellow Chicken

I must say that the roasted wild range French yellow chicken was my favourite meat for that day. Natural flavours with some super tender meat and lovely aroma from the skin. The skin was lightly brushed with truffle butter. The roasted potatoes was a crowd favourite and I particularly liked its wrinkled skin.

look at those juicy flesh

Take a break from all the meats and hear the oohs and ahhs, when the Pizza Lobster and Prawns is served. Succulent and well cooked prawns and lobster meat on pizza integlia alla romana.

Pizza Lobster and Prawns

front view

And, of course there would be dessert. The festivities would not be complete without some Panettone!

cheese for dessert

dessert galore

lemon cake

chocolate tart, yoghurt cake and berries cake

The chocolate tart was excellent with its rich dark chocolate flavour on light crust. The yoghurt cake was surprisingly good too and best paired with a cup of coffee.

The Deal

The Christmas Brunch: $78+ with soft drinks and $98+ with Prosecco and Chianti. 

Kids aged 8 to 12 enjoy the special price of $35+. Kids below the age of 8 years dine free. 

The Promo

For my dear readers, remember to quote "Purple Taste" when making your reservations for Christmas Brunch at Roots and you'll receive a complimentary bottle of Prosecco to take home. Cheers!

quote "Purple Taste" when making your reservation!

For reservations, please call +65 6463 4206 or email info@therootsrestaurants.com.

Roots Mediterranean

Address: 2 Greenwood Avenue, Singapore (289189)

Contact: 6463 4206

Reservation: Hungrygowhere

Business Hours:

Mon-Thu: 11:30am-2:30pm, 5-10:30pm

Fri-Sun: 11:30am-10:30pm

[Media Invite] Have a Merry Season @ FrapasBar By Saveur at The Cathay (Festive Sets available from 20th December – 25th December 2019)

Regardless if you're a 2-pax or 4-pax party, FrapasBar has got you covered for the festive season. We had a jolly good time at FrapasBar previewing their Christmas Feast menu. Party of 6? No problem, just order up the 2-pax and 4-pax sets and we're good to go!

Let's start slow with fried food. The Crab Croquette came looking good with the snow white toppings of coconut and mayo. Tasty but we were so ready for something more substantial.

Crab Croquette

Duck Breast

The next plate was duck breast. Pan seared french duck breast, served with roasted potato, a side of greens and glazed with bigarade sauce. The piece of meat that I had, had this annoying tendon and that made it tough to chew.

Burrata Tomato

To balance the meat, the festive set for 4 pax included Burrata Tomato in pesto sauce. The burrata was rather firm and the pesto sauce was mildly refreshing.

Garlic Prawns (4 pax set)

Garlic prawns could be one of my favourite dishes at FrapasBar! Look at those colours, so vibrant so eat-able! But wait till you break off a chunk of that bread (looked a bit chao tar but its flavours was yum!) and roll it around in the sauce before popping this flavoursome piece into your mouth. Love love the smokey flavours.

Foie Gras

Foie Gras has been a staple at Saveur since its beginning, along with duck confit and Saveur pasta. It delivers and pretty consistently too. Wobbly, rich and creamy.

foie gras up-close

The 2-pax set came with grilled scallops. It came looking like a pearl from the sea, sitting gracefully in its shell.

Scallops

sweet sweet scallops

The other croquette that we tried was the Truffle Potato croquette. Nothing beats a freshly fried croquette. Don't leave it out for too long!

Truffle Potato Croquette

good flavour and texture

For Christmas, let's enjoy some traditional turkey breast and ham. Slices of turkey breast (skin on) and ham, plated with brussel sprouts, heirloom carrots, stuffings and cranberry jam. This felt like a traditional festive plate. I actually enjoyed the turkey breast as it was not dry and had each small bites with the jam, stuffings and sprouts. Yummy.

Turkey Breast and Ham (2 pax portion)

For the meal, I had a glass of mojito. It is less sweet here and it was served in a nice big mug. Tiara and Rachelle had Sangria and it was a rather large glass! Impressive.

Mojito @$12++

Sangria @$14++

The next dish that we had, was stuffed squid with French Onion rice. I'm guessing that this dish as french onion soup inspired. Ikameshi! Mild seasoning on the squid. Squid itself was tender with a lovely smokiness.

Stuffed Squid

pretty looking

If you hanker after a little carbs, you'll be happy to see the Saveur Pasta, an all time favourite dish of capellini, sakura ebi, pork sauce, chive, shallots and truffle oil. Another of my favourite dish here.

Saveur Pasta

The most impressive looking item in the Christmas Feast menu has gotta be the Beef en Croute. If you are like me and wonders about the difference between Beef Welling and Boeuf en Croute, here is the wiki link to it.

Beef en Croute

ta-dah!

A whole piece of beef fillet wrapped up in some sort of vegetable leaves with morels/porcini minced/paste and then encased in pastry and baked, resulting in meat with a very pink center. Can't be help that the outer sides of the beef were more cooked than its center but overall, happy to report that the meat was tender and natural tasting!

beautiful

Thank you Kris for the invite and FrapasBar for hosting the tasting. It was a hearty meal! The place gets very busy during TGIF and weekends, hence do make your reservations prior.

Christmas Feast @ FrapasBar

Set for 2 pax @$85++ (5 dishes)

• Turkey Breast & Ham
• Duck Breast
• Beef en Croute
• Hokkaido Scallops
• Truffle Potato Croquette

Set for 4 pax @$190++ (8 dishes)

• Turkey Breast & Ham
• Duck Breast
• Stuffed Squid
• Beef en Croute
• Foie Gras
• Garlic Prawns
• Burrata Tomato
• Crab Croquette

FrapasBar @ The Cathay

Address: 2 Handy Road, #01-11/12 S229233
Website: https://www.frapasbar.sg
Contact: 6735 1141
Business Hours:
Sun-Thur 12pm - 1am
Fri & Sat 12pm - 2am
(Food last order 9.30pm)