Rubato Italian Kitchen and Bar @ Greenwood Avenue

Located at 12 Greenwood Avenue, Hillcrest Bukit Timah. The restaurant space was formerly occupied by Othello. Last visit to this vicinity was in early 2013. Time flies.

wine menu

al-fresco dining area

It's a comfortable familiar place, though out of the way for me. Not feeling very hungry, we got ourselves oysters and grilled squid as starters. Mushroom risotto as main and a dessert. Choice of drink? Prosecco. If you'd like beer, the current promo is one pint (Erdinger, I think) for $12.90++.

prosecco @$9++

For oysters, there are two types. Tried the Australian ones from Coffin Bay @$4.80++ per piece.

oysters

The oysters were fresh, clean tasting with a hint of metallic tang. I think I like plumper, creamier ones with a stronger taste of the sea.

closer view

Food here in general, arrives fairly quickly.

Mushroom & Co - risotto @$17.90++

Grilled Squid @$13.90++

Grilled squid was nicely smokey, and drizzled aplenty with olive oil. Citrus plus smokey with a dash of salt and pepper on seafood, equates to good flavours. Likeable.

risotto - closer view

The risotto was a winner for us. No grain was wasted. Creamy, well cooked and served hot. Very comforting.

For desserts, had the Modern Tiramisu. Hmm, it sure looks different from traditional ones. Taste wise, well, one can immediately taste that it is tiramisu without a doubt. But, it was pricey.

Modern Tiramisu @$15.90++

Service staff was friendly, and helpful. Cosy ambiance and pets allowed at the al-fresco area.

Spent $121 for the meal for 2 pax.

4 Fingers Crispy Chicken @ Westgate

Located at Level 2 of Westgate, Jurong East. Felt like eating fried chicken, so ended up in a queue. Not that long, just about 12 pax ahead of mine. So half the queue was inside the shop, and the other half was outside.

queue for fried chicken

after queueing for 10 minutes...still queueing...

For one pax, 6 chicken wings with fries might be enough for a small eater. But had wanted to try drumstick too, so got the 1 drumstick and 3 wings ala-carte @$7.95.

With just one cashier counter, the process of getting the food orders keyed into the system was painfully slow.

Every patron will be given a beeper after payment has been made. After which, just wait.

beep when ready

Queued for 20 to 30 minutes to order, and then another 10 minutes for food to be ready.

take-away chicken

drum senior and drum junior

Had tried soy garlic prior and this time round tried the hot mix. Hmm, soy garlic was tastier or maybe the Plaza Singapura branch was more generous with the glaze?

The chicken seemed much bigger when it was just fried. At home, it looked a tad smaller. Since I went shopping for a short-while after buying it, it was cold and limp when I got home. Into the toaster these wings went, and it was crispy again in no time!

Bavarian Radler (less than $4 from Fairprice supermarket) - refreshing with fried chicken

Marché Mövenpick @ JEM

Located at Level 1 of JEM, Jurong Gateway Road. Been walking past and thought its ambiance was quite nice.

interior

dinner menu

Ordered just a pizza and spicy drumlets for food. Marché has this 1-for-1 Kölsch beer, all day long promo so we got that.

Kölsch beer

spicy drumlets @$9.90++

Spicy drumlets wasn't really spicy. Thought it looked quite pale and indeed, flavours were also a tad muted. Based on observation, almost every table ordered pizza.

service staff helping to 'cut' th pizza

smoked duck breast @$22.90++ with hoisin sauce, spring onion and red chili

Duck breast pizza was served piping hot, and tasted asian.

duck breast pizza

Do request for cheese topping. It's not given by default.

cheese topping

Dinner and drinks cost a total of $52+.

Milagro Spanish Restaurant @ Orchard Central

Located at Level 8 of Orchard Central. It's at the opposite end of Kiseki. Milagro was one of those places that caught my attention soon after it opened for business. Had waited for quite a while, and thought it was now a ripe time to visit.

weekend lunch specials menu

dining area

nice decor

For weekend brunch, they have shakshuka. However, that's Tunisian-styled. Plenty of pasta on its weekend menu too. Too bad there isn't any small portion of paella to try.

Started with some cold drinks. Beer and sangria. Tried Estrella Damm, touted as the best selling lager from Barcelona. Golden coloured, tasted refreshing at first but had a slight bitter aftertaste.

Estrella Damm @$11

golden in colour

Sangria is more my kind of drink. When the glass was brought to the table, was thinking that it had too much fruit inside. Indeed. It had grapefruit, lemon and apple slices. Drink has a pleasant fruity fragrance but personally, I'd prefer it to be sweeter.

Milagro Sangria @$10 (Happy Hour price, usual $12)

Too much to drink, and none to eat? Let's rectify that. Spicy buffalo wings with Valdeón cheese dip. Yes, buffalo wings sounds pretty American, but the blue cheese is Spanish, from León. Liked the flavourful wings. Tasted of deep fried, well-coated with sweet, tangy sauce with just a hint of spiciness. A bite of chicken, a swig of beer equates to enjoyment.

Buffalo Wings with Valdeón Cheese (Spicy) @$13

four wings served piping hot, garnish with olives, pine nuts and chopped tomatoes

Valdeón cheese dip

Blue cheese dip always had this smokey, pungent taste and likewise for this Spanish blue cheese. But, the dip has a sweet aftertaste and was quite likeable when eaten with the tasty wings. Too bad there weren't any crudités to go along with it.

For main course, had the Australian wagyu steak done medium rare. The plate was pretty looking with all the colours! Meat was rump part, and those nearest to the fats were the best bits. Sundried cherry tomatoes gave bursts of sweetness with its intense concentration of flavour. However, the taste of the sauce was lost as the truffle oil from the mash was a tad too overpowering. Mash potato on its own was tasty and smooth. Liked the mushrooms too. A nicely presented, tasty dish that's value for money.

wagyu steak @$25

truffle mash, rump steak, sundried cherry tomatoes, sauteed peppers

medium rare

And, of course one ought to try Spanish desserts. Fried milk sounds interesting, so got one of that. Also had a cup of lungo. Served in a tiny cup, along with housemade biscotti. The biscotti can also be purchased @$1 a piece.

Lungo @$4

The Spanish fried milk fritters or Leche Frita, looked like churros actually. Though not as skinny. Dusted with tiny bit of icing sugar and cinnamon. The orange whipped cream was really light and refreshing. Paired well with the hot crispy fried milk fritters. Sweetness level was just right.

Leche Frita @$6

crispy outer, soft white milky center

Overall, we liked the food and the dining experience at Milagro Spanish Restaurant. Relaxed, casual and reasonable prices.

A 3-course meal shared by two pax with an alcoholic drink each costs about $35 per pax. There's no GST nor service charge, but please feel free to leave a tip. Currently, they have UOB credit card promo where diners get 10% off the bill (not to be used in conjunction with other promo).

Purrfect Cat Cafe @ Georgetown Penang

This cat cafe has been included as one of the itinerary items during my Penang visit early this month. Moreover, there's one wall mural that's at Jalan Muntri. So it ties in well with the plan. Explore, explore!

store sign

Was there on a Saturday noon. As you walk into the shop, you'll see a display of cakes. Rainbow cake, crepes and more. Upstairs is where you'll find the cats. Downstairs sells merchandise such as tshirts, mugs, pens, cushion covers, soft toys etc that's related to the feline or Penang's famous wall murals.

There's no cover charge to see the cats, but one does need to order something from the cafe before going upstairs. Got myself a sparkling peach drink @RM13+ after GST.

Then, you'll be required to wash your hands and take off shoes before heading upstairs, with the receipt/order chit.

narrow, narrow steps

Once upstairs, slide open the glass door and pass the chit to the staff. There are two dining sections, outer and inner. Inner section is where the cats are. If you have ordered lots of food and doesn't want the cats to 'kacau' or disturb you while eating, then choose the outer area first.

Naturally, I'd sit with the cats. Quietly slides open another door and choose a spot.

where the cats roam

There weren't many cats let loose that day. Only about 6 and all were napping. Cutest things ever, so took pictures of sleeping cats.

all curled up

cute paws

my bro said this looks like garfield

just forty winks

There's only another couple in there, we're just like waiting for the cats to wake up and hopefully, to play with.

grouchy cat: I'm awake, now what?

look into my eyes

The gray cat looks fierce but actually quite amiable, allowing humans to pet its body. It was only mildly curious at us humans.

grooming in progress

There's actually another enclosed area where there are some cats quarantined in there. One managed to climb out of it and started leaping from shelf to shelf. Quite interesting.

assessing the distance

looks like a small leopard

taking picture of someone else taking picture

looking for me?

90% of the cats there aren't interested in humans. They're more curious about things that we brought into their territory.

cat burglar in action: Ooh, smartphone in backpocket? I'll take it

postcard worthy

why so cute?

All in all, it was a fun experience getting up close with the various cats. Nice way to rest the feet after half-a-day of walking, searching for wall murals.