Akashi @ Vivocity (Part II)

Located at B2 of Vivocity, this is a restaurant that I've visited quite often and mostly for lunch. Most of the lunch sets have increased its prices by a dollar since first visit (sometime in May). What used to be $15++ is now $16++, previously $12++ is now $13++.

Recent visit saw my friends ordering appetisers from the ala-carte menu. We tried the deep fried white bait, and a pork dish.

whitebait

very crispy whitebaits

pork with miso sauce

tasty thin slivers

As usual, the ala-carte prices are on the higher side. For vegetarians, there is not much choice here. We were informed that the sauce for soba and tempura has cuttlefish mixed in it. So, in the end, one of my friend who is a vegetarian, took the yasai tempura (ala-carte order) and one white rice. Thank you to the friendly service staff who explained to us which dishes that might work for diners with special dietary needs.

udon set lunch (quite a big pot, with poached egg that still has runny yolk!)

For me, I'd take either the gyu teriyaki or the chicken wakadori set lunch. Noticed that the gyu (beef) teriyaki doneness seem inconsistent. Sometimes, it was nicely medium rare, other times it was done medium or medium well.

chicken wakadori set (@$16++)

clear soup

yummy juicy chicken

Liked the copious amount of shredded cabbage (drizzled lightly with plum sauce) that came with most of the sets.

The Tastings Room @ Marina Square

Located at Level 1 of Marina Square, at the road level (small lane between Raffles Link and Marina Square). Bought the Groupon voucher, so needed to utilise it before end of the year.

wine menu

indoor seats

set meals

The voucher (priced @$39 nett per pax) entitles for a 3-Course Meal + 110ml glass of Drotsdy Hof Cape 2010 Red Wine. Only 2 choices available, so we tried both.

For starters, we had the Seafood Smoked Vine Tomato Soup and the Prosciutto de Parma with Texture of Melon.

Seafood Smoked Vine Tomato Soup

has a slice of fish, a prawn and a squid ring

The soup was pretty sour and robust. Certainly wakes the taste buds up! Tasty and seafood was fresh.

a dash of pepper for the soup

Prosciutto de Parma with Texture of Melon

loved the drizzling of balsamic vinegar

Liked the rocket leaves, melon and prosciutto. Gladly ate all the greens! The melon wasn't that sweet though. But am not sure whether this portion is the same size for ala-carte starters. If yes, then $17.90++ seemed like a high price to pay for this portion.

Service crew was friendly but somehow lacking still. Our wine went missing and didn't appear till half hour later, and that was after reminding the staff about it. The interval between the starters and main course were about 39 minutes apart.

red wine

The wine was drinkable, not too spicy and not too tannic. Nice. The 110ml drinking portion seemed quite little. Hahaa, more wine please.

After quite a wait for the main courses, was feeling rather famished.

18-hours slow braised beef cheek

nice cheeks

duck confit

The beef cheek is nicely tender. Liked the parts with abit of fats. Flavour was good, and fully absorbed into the meat. The duck confit was served with mashed potatoes, french beans, peach slices and dried cranberries. Yummy and doesn't feel oily at all. However, the beef cheek had stronger flavours so that became my favourite for the mains.

For desserts, we had the Tiramisu and the Mango Jivara Mousse Cake.

Mango Jivara Mousse Cake

Tiramisu

The dessert portion was also small. The Tiramisu turned out to be sponge cake layered with ice-cream. So, it's like eating ice-cream cake. Preferred the Mango Jivara Mousse Cake. Subtle mango flavour on moist cake.

Perhaps their usual Set B (@$38++) would be more enticing if diners can choose their own starters, mains and desserts that are not limited to just 2 options.

Launch of the Kronenbourg Eiffel Beer Tower @ The Coastal Settlement

Was invited to witness the unveiling of the Kronenbourg 1664 Eiffel Beer Tower, an iconic innovation by Carlsberg Singapore. The launch party was held at The Coastal Settlement (TCS) a new establishment (casual dining restaurant, cafe and bar) located at 200 Netheravon Road. The date: 14th December 2011.

arrival at The Coastal Settlement

restaurant, cafe and bar amidst lush grenaries

the stage is set

 Had some time before the launch, so went around exploring the restaurant.

chandelliers lighting the bar area

ice-kachang maker at the bar?

knick knacks

retro looking stuffs

there's a bicycle in the shop

sturdy bench

Christmas is around the corner~

wine bottles

thirsty? How about a BLANC?

Got myself a bottle of Kronenbourg BLANC 1664 (yup, the blue bottle, so pretty!), a specialty white beer that has a clean refreshing taste. Carbonated, light, crisp and citrusy. Just don't forget that it still has an ABV of 5%. Kronenbourg 1664 beers are brewed from Strisselspalt hop (also known as 'caviar of hops') and water from Vosges Mountains., hence the clean smooth taste.

my BLANC

small cute cone savoury canapes, tasty morsels these ones

Soon, it was time to gather for the much awaited launch and all eyes were upon the stage.

Left to right: Mr Bart Lim (General Manager of Carlsberg Singapore), Mr Lee Choon Khim (Managing Director of The Coastal Settlement), and the lovely Ms Kelly Latimer (emcee for the night)

moment of the launch!

Upon the light up, confettis fell from the ceiling and dancers suddenly rushed in.  Can-Can dance performance! My first time seeing one too. Shrieks, twirls, colours and lots of skin and legs. Ahem.

a blur of colours from the energetic dancers

Can't show you too many pictures of the can-can dancers. This is a food blog after all! Hahaa! Let's play nice, shall we.

After the dance performance, the Kronenbourg 1664 Eiffel Beer Tower was finally revealed for the first time, in the world. This iconic innovation is a 1m tall replica of Eiffel Tower and holds 3L of beer, and has four taps instead of just 1! Woohoo!

ta-dah!

Let's take a closer look.

illuminated tower, with blinking lights at the top

ready, get set, pour!

four taps, four times the sharing fun!

cheers!

The Kronenbourg 1664 has a much stronger taste of bitter lager. Dense and smooth as well. Yums.

The night was filled with music, merry making, good food and lots of Kronenbourg beer!

talented Ms Joanna Dong and her accompanist

belting out Jazzy tunes

Went to explore abit the outer side of the restaurant. The area seems quite big. Alfresco and indoor dining are available.

restaurant facade

for moms and kids to take a breather?

Then, it was time to head back indoors for some more food and beer.

bottoms up!

bevy of pretty Kronenbourg girls

5 lucky draw winners went home with their own Kronenbourg 1664 Eiffel Beer Tower!

Almost too quickly, the night came to an end.

cheers to good beers and a new iconic beer tower

Thanks to the good people of Communications DNA, especially Denise, Deva and Shirlynn, for the invitation!