[Tasting] Akanoya Robatayaki 红乃家炉炭烧 @ 1 Tanglin Road

I think I might have passed by this restaurant at some point in time, but yesterday was my maiden visit, thanks to the invite from Kris. Located next to Orchard Rendezvous Hotel (I made a mistake by searching for it within the hotel initially!), Akanoya looked kind of imposing from the outside with its huge signboard.

restaurant entrance

If you're curious about robatayaki cooking style (炉端焼き), here's the wiki link to read more about it. 

The first thing one notices upon entering the restaurant was the robatayaki counter. Diners would be seated around it, and one could observe the chefs in action via the open kitchen. 

Chef preparing kinki fish

The lovely smell of grilled meats would waft around and we look forward to the arrival of our orders. Pro-tip: Best seats would be away from the door.

robatayaki counter seats

ingredients sourced from Japan

Otoshi お通し

appetiser - nanohana (菜の花), sakura ebi (桜海老), crab roe (蟹籽), grilled pumpkin (かぼちゃ)

This was the tastiest otoshi that I've ever eaten. Ate it separately, ate all components together, it worked. The pickled vegetable in there suits my taste! Those crisp bits of sweet savoury sakura ebi contrasted well with the soft slightly 'seafood-dy' crab roe.

Bread パン

soft bread

seafood butter

Bread was like a prelude to our actual course meal, and am not one to complain especially if it came with a generous serving of their specialty seafood butter. Can't help but to spread the love~ I mean, the buttery goodness onto the soft bread. The local gal in me was thinking of how good that bread would be, if I dipped it into kopi-o...but I digress...hahaha!

Hakken

Agemono 揚げ物

paired with ginger and passionfruit tea (background photo)

crab croquette, liver sauce, ikura

Croquette was well fried to a golden brown and it was an overall balanced starter. The slightly carbonated ginger and passionfruit tea added a touch of sweetness to the agemono.

Nimono 煮物

meat and potatoes

I think my mind could not comprehend which one was the 'simmered' food when the nimono dish arrived. Was it the potatoes, or the chicken? Hmm, doesn't matter as I enjoyed it all the same.

Potato was done two ways; mashed and simmered/baked (?). Loved the subtle taste of the truffle slice. Chicken was well marinated and with firm texture.

Osuimono お吸い物

fish roe, prawn, mushrooms

The clear soup was prepared from extractions of dry-aged fish-bones and it had a clean, and mildly sweet taste to it. I think it helped to 'reset' the palate after the first few courses.

And, it was at this stage that I no longer felt hungry.

Kushi 串

served from the paddle

It was an experience to receive the dishes that were served via the boat paddle. If you needed an insta-worthy photo or video, the friendly Chef would wait patiently for you to be ready with your camera, before handing the food over to you.

(left to right) grilled; pork belly, chicken thigh, Ōmi beef (近江牛)

The grilled meats were served with 3 dips; yuzu mayo (creamy savoury), black miso garlic (savoury sweet) and yuzu kosho (tangy with mild spice). However, the meats were already flavourful without additional sauces required besides those that were already glazed during cooking.

kushi paired with Lady Grey tea (bergamot) and sudachi syrup

Brisket was used and Ōmi wagyu texture was likeably meaty tender. Served chunky and satisfying for the carnivores in us. 

ohmi wagyu beef

I liked the burnt bits of the chicken skewer for that burst of smokey flavours. Pork belly looked a tad dry but it wasn't. Overall, good mouthfeel for all the skewers.

Yasai

asparagus, green pepper, onions (served with onion miso puree)

Balance the meal with a serving of vegetables. The onions retained its slight crunchy texture and the onion miso puree was delectably sweet. Grilled broccolini, I like.

Sakana さかな

braised snapper, fish liver

The surprise in this dish was the liver. So good, so creamy. Leaves you wanting for more.

paired with darjeeling tea infused with black pepper

cheers~

Black pepper and black tea, together. Who would've thought? Try it for yourself when you're here.

Nikku ニク

Ōmi gyu beef cheek, on a bed of mashed potatoes

with golden sprinkles of fried garlic bits

The portions served for each of the course were indeed generous. Satisfied with this last savoury course of Ōmi beef cheeks.

Donabe 土鍋

sakura ebi, butter, rice

Donabe refers to the earthenware pot and for the last course, it was a rice dish. Staff brought over the pot for us to view and then proceeded to portion it out.

My individual bowl was packed to the brim!

pretty in pink (rice loaded with sakura ebi)

Loved the slices of abalone with its springy, tender texture. Rice was glistening from the butter and its flavours came predominantly from the butter, sakura ebi and ikura.

And, if you're still not full by this time, I salute you! Sincerely. I was struggling to finish my bowl of rice.

Just let the staff/Chef know that you are still not full after the rice course.

hot somen

Was rejecting this bowl of noodles as I was feeling full but quickly changed my mind after having a taste. Wow. The soup simmered from katsuobushi (bonito flakes) was so so flavourful. It was playing tricks on my mind making me believe that I could actually finish the whole bowl of hot, comforting noodles (we shared this bowl, by the way if you're wondering...)

Warabi Mochi

mochi, brown sugar, milk foam

The dessert was enjoyable and the brown sugar caramel lifts the taste by quite a bit. Texture of mochi was very likeable.

Mugicha (麦茶) soda

My favourite tea for the night was the Lady Grey tea with sudachi (スダチ) syrup. My first encounter with sudachi was on the ANA (All Nippon Airways) flight to Japan. It is a green lime-like citrus fruit and I remembered it as being extra sour when I had it that time. It was like an immediate 'wake-me-up' kind of drink! The syrup version at Akanoya was all sweet and fragrant lime flavours.

Lady Grey with sudachi syrup

more syrup please

Another interesting pair/tea discovery for that evening, was the Darjeeling tea with black pepper.

The Hakken menu is priced at $168++ and additional $38++ for the tea pairing, at this time of writing. Please enquire at the restaurant for more details.

Experience

The overall experience was good and as per Google reviews, one could expect great service from the friendly and caring service staff at Akanoya Robatayaki. A big thank you to Yen and Edward who took care of our party for that evening. 

Special thanks to William Liou (General Manager) who took time to introduce the cuisine, interesting anecdotes and overall, lighthearted interaction with guests. 

Thank you to Brandon Teo (Head Chef) for the delicious menu and for coming over to chat with us. Not forgetting the Robatayaki Chefs whom answered all our curious questions about the food.

Of course, good food is best enjoyed with good company, and that evening was well spent with my food buddies; Kris, Tiara, Hence and Ivan.

Akanoya Robatayaki 红乃家炉炭烧

Address: 01-01 Orchard Rendezvous Hotel, 1 Tanglin Rd, Singapore 247905

Website: https://akanoya.com.sg/

Contact: +6567321866

Business Hours:

Fri - Sun: 12–2:30 PM, 5:30 PM–1:30 AM

Tue - Thu: 5:30 PM–1:30 AM

Trattoria da Mimmo Restaurant and Pizzeria @ Clover Way

"Let's have something healthier." That was how we came about choosing this place for our lunch. Italian fare it is.

restaurant's entrance

I was a tad late, so the others arrived earlier. The interior was cosy and spacious.

interior

table setting

online menu

Pretty extensive menu and one of the staff rattled off a long list of Specials for the day. Our first time at the restaurant, so we decided to get the Special Pizza, two appetizers and two pastas. Once our order was captured, a bread basket was immediately brought out.

complimentary bread

olive oil and balsamic

with butter

Staff asked us if we would like the food to be served all at once or to serve the appetisers first. We smiled and said, "all at once". But little did we know that the plates are pretty big, so very quickly our table were full!

Burrata Pugliese con Parma @$56++

hello parma~

It has been quite a long while since I last had any burrata or parma ham. Loved the sweet tomatoes! The burrata was our healthier plate. The small side dish that looked like pickled vegetable was a curious thing. Taste-wise, it definitely does not taste like szechuan vegetable. Staff helped us to enquire from the chef and came back with the answer. Eggplant! Ok, it didn't taste like eggplant too.

smooth burrata

Prosecco @$13++

Trippa della Casa @$24++

The tripe was served piping hot, so be careful. We used the bread to mop up the sauce. I liked it as it was cooked till tender, and its tomato based sauce was comforting.

Gnocchi al Formaggi @$29++

Am always in search for gnocchi that could rival the one that I really liked from Club Street, many years ago. Lucky me, my friends allowed my indulgence and we got a plate to try. However, am on the fence for this one as it had a heavy cheese flavour to it. Maybe I should've ordered the tomato based version?

Pappardelle al Cinghiale @$36++

I was skeptical at first on the wild boar pappardelle (Pappardelle al Cinghiale) but it had a likeable robust flavour. Strong flavours, lovely pasta texture and not overly gamey. In fact, I think it wasn't gamey at all. This was one dish that I kept going back for more!

Special Pizza @$42++

The Special Pizza came looking kinda cute with all the mini cheese balls on it. Mini burrata? Hehe. Liked that the crust is neither too thin nor too thick, as it was just right. The sausage meat on it had an interesting texture and overall flavours were enjoyable. I can finish 2 slices of these.

lemon sorbet @$12++

For dessert, we had the lemon sorbet served in an actual frozen lemon. Keke, first time seeing ice cream presented this way.

And, we did try their tiramisu as well. Light and gone in a jiffy!

tiramisu @$15++

light and yums

The sparkling and still water were charged at $7.50++ per bottle. I saw the other tables having their water poured from a jug, so I guessed the tap water option is available as well.

Service was efficient and we enjoyed the light hearted banters with Isabelle, who attended to us that day.

Thank you Ivan, Tracy, Hence and Shermaine for a lovely catch-up, and for the hearty lunch. Till our next adventure, stay safe.

Trattoria da Mimmo Restaurant and Pizzeria 

Address: 3 Clover Wy, Singapore 579078

Website: http://www.trattoriadamimmo.com.sg/

Contact: 90882659

Business Hours:

Closed on Tues.

Wed - Sat: Monday, 11:45 am–2 pm, 5:45–10 pm

Sun: 11:45 am–2:30 pm, 5:45–10 pm

Blanco Court Prawn Mee @ Beach Road

It is an old establishment and I tried it when my previous workplace was at Gateway. That's a good many years ago.

There's two stalls in this coffeeshop. One that sells the fried fritters (ngoh hiang or wu xiang) and the other one that sells prawn noodles. It is a good pair, and I'd totally recommend to order both.

Stand at the front of the queue line and once the staff take notice of you, he'll quickly assign a table. Move on and take a seat. Remember the table number as you'll need that info when ordering from the prawn noodles stall.

Is it worth it to get the bigger prawns version at $12+? Am not sure, as the flavours are the same as the 'smaller' prawns so typically I'd just go for the $7 version. Save some $$ to buy the fritters. Hahaha!

Make payment and the prawn noodles will be delivered to your table when it is ready.

As for the wu xiang, take a plate, pick out your favourites and hand them over to the uncle. He'll quote you a price and make payment. Then he'll hand you the buzzer. Head back to your table and pick up your order when the buzzer buzzes.

prawn noodles @$7

wu xiang 五香 @$8+

I have selected 4 items for the deep fried; guan chang (灌肠), prawn fritters, liver roll and fish paste roll (I think it is this, but then I don't know).

The most expensive should be the pink coloured meat roll (guan chang), and my go to pick is the liver roll. Don't know why but I always get one of these. The prawn cracker/fritter is a must for that crunchy crunchy feels. And the version here, was superbly crunchy!

two sauces

Anyone knows why the wu xiang is always eaten with the starchy pink/orange sweet sauce?

yums

I asked my friend why not the stall just peel off all the shell from the prawns since the prawns were all pre-cooked anyway. She said, "for aesthetics". Probably true.

One need not choose the noodle type here. The default is this type of firm bee hoon (rice vermicelli) that's thicker than the normal thin type.

Broth was flavourful but it is not those deep umami type. Sufficient, I'd say. I felt that the noodles were on the smallish side, so the pairing with the extra fried stuffs was a good match.

Blanco Court Prawn Mee

Address: 243 Beach Rd, #01-01, Singapore 189754

Contact: +6563968464

Business Hours: 

Closed on Tues.

Wed - Mon: Thursday, 7:30 AM–4 PM

Konditori Artisan Bakes @ Bussorah Street

The shop front looked like a quaint shop, and a window for passerby to take in the view of their wonderful bakes. I wanted to get some pastry/cakes for my late lunch / tea-break after a heavy breakfast and was around the Kampong Glam area.

When I was there, I saw a small group of tourist with their local guide standing outside of the shop, and the guide was explaining a little bit about the shop. From the outside, I could see that there are about 4 pax in the shop (excluding the shop staff) choosing their breads, so I went in to do the same. 

Then I realised that the shop space is really small. Buying customers will likely be standing in-front of the bread/pastry counter which starts right at the door and if you're standing behind that person trying to catch a glimpse of the  baked good, then you will be blocking whoever that wants to enter the shop.

I like how the baked goods are displayed, and everything looked like they'd going to be delicious. Hahaha, luckily I did my homework and went online to see what I think I'd be getting, made a list and went to the shop to then actually get it. Once the staff acknowledge your presence after they'd finish serving the initial customer, it was time to get to the front and pick out your choices. I only spotted one of the item that I wanted; Black Pepper Beef and Honey Mustard Croissant. For the rest of my choices, I just rattled off the name and the staff will think for a bit and point it out and then I'd nod and said, ok I'll be getting those.

cruffins and more

Items were swiftly packed and made the payment, and I was a happy shopper.

time to enjoy

Black Pepper Beef Honey Mustard Croissant @$6.10 and Peanut Butter Jam Brioche @$5.40

good sized croissant

I liked how substantial the black pepper beef croissant felt when you hold it. Adequate slices of beef inside and the honey mustard sauce helped to moisten the overall bite. Flavours are strong in this one. Loved the pickled chilies too.

Peanut Butter Cruffin @$4.70

Basque Burnt Cheesecake @$8.70

I liked their savouries more than the sweet ones. Also tried the Truffle Beef Salami bread ($5.50) and it was delicious after heating it up in the air-fryer for 2 minutes. Think oozy cheese center....yums!

All in all, loved the options available, choose wisely (because one simply can't buy everything!) and you should be able to find a favourite over here. Enjoy~

Konditori Artisan Bakes

Address: 33 Bussorah St, Singapore 199451

Website: https://www.konditori.sg/

Contact: +6562098580

Business Hours: 

Daily: 10.00 am–6.00 pm

Walking Around Kampong Glam Area

It's been a long long while since I last visited this area, and took some time to take in the sound and sights again.

Headed straight to Sultan Mosque to view one of the iconic landmarks in the area.

towards Sultan Mosque

stalls lining up outside the mosque

Weather was super hot and initially wanted to try the foods at the Ramadan Bazaar but ended up with none.

ventured into the back alleys

cool art

There were plenty of restaurants offering Turkish/Lebanese foods in the area and the staff standing at the front of the shops in the hot sun are pretty friendly. 

went inside to dabao breakfast

Some 17 years back (plus minus), when my office was at Gateway, sometimes we'd be having our lunch or birthday celebrations for our Muslim colleagues in this area. Fika restaurant was our go-to for birthdays while Kampong Glam cafe was our hangout for cheap lunch and some of those nasi padang stalls around that area. I remembered eating at Bumbu but can't recall if we had tried Sabar Menanti.

beef rendang, brinjal and omelet @$10

Ok, and yes I was influenced by recent media as Sabar Menanti was featured in Youtube. Unfortunately, the beef was tough. I liked the rice although some said that it was too soft and overall flavours were balanced.

Walked past a shop called 'Ratu Lemper' and bought the beef version to try. An Indonesian dessert and overall taste was sweet savoury.

beef lemper @$8

It was nice revisiting the area again. Plenty of shops around to explore!