Author: Ardi

Oven-Baked Avocado and Egg
My wife got this dead-simple recipe from somewhere on the net (apology for forgetting the link – I’ll update it here when I found it again).

It will only take around five minutes of preparation time and you can leave it until it is cooked 15 minutes later.

Let me repeat myself: it’s easy, it’s fast, and it’s super yummy!

So what do we need for making this Avocado and Egg?
1. Avocado – it’s pretty obvious, isn’t it?
2. Egg
3. Salt
4. Pepper
5. Garlic Granules
How do we make this Avocado and Egg?
1. Pre-heat oven to 200^o Celcius. The term pre-heat means you leave it on for around 5 minutes in that temperature before you put in your avocado.
2. Cut the avocado in half
3. Throw away its seed (not really edible!).
4. Crack open the egg on the avocado concave (it’s the hole left by the seed).
5. Sprinkle salt, pepper and garlic granules with a combination of your liking.
6. Put it in oven for 15 minutes on a fan-forced oven. This time frame might vary depending on the oven’s power.
A little tips to make a perfect avocado and egg?
1. Scoop a bit of its meat out if your avocado is too small as the egg whites would overflow.
2. Leave it a bit longer if you want your egg to be well-cooked – I strongly advise against this as I’d rather see a gooey egg yolk.
Oven-baked Avocado and Egg

Did you know?

In Indonesia, avocado is rarely used as a savoury dish like salad and we don’t even eat it as a fruit. Indonesians love to make what we called Avocado Juice. It’s essentially an Avocado milkshake with a sprinkle of chocolate and/or condensed chocolate milk. The variance to that is avocado milk shake with sweet coffee syrup.

Another typical Indonesian dish with avocado was something called ‘Es Teler‘ (literally translated into Drunk Ice). Es teler is a shaved ice and condensed milk with a combination of fruits such as coconut, jack fruit, and avocado (cubed).

For more recipe by All About Food blog, please check out our small (but growing) section of recipe.
Jun 14, 2013
Jumbo Seafood Restaurant

Rating:

8 / 10 Taste: 8.5/10

Price: S$208++ set menu for four

Place: 7/10

Review:

Jumbo Seafood restaurant is one of the household names in Singapore. They even had the motto ‘The big name in Seafood’ to illustrate how famous they are. Last year when I visited Singapore, I wanted to go to Jumbo restaurant but they didn’t open in the afternoon. Hence, this time around I must go!

Jumbo seafood have quite a view branch and we went to the one in Riverwalk, a nice river-side location in Clarke Quay, Singapore. When we saw the menu, there were a whole bunch of seafood dishes to choose from and it was quite hard to decide. In the end, we chose the set menu for four people, priced at S$208++. There are five dishes (with optional mantou that we took) and a dessert.

Our first dish of the day was Superior Seafood in Thick Pumpkin Soup. This was the first time I ever tasted a pumpkin soup combined with a whole lot of seafood goodies and mushrooms. It quickly built up my appetite and expectations (a good thing considering it was already sky high!) through the roof!

The second dish Jumbo presented us was Fresh Scallop & Squid Fillet in XO Sauce. Unfortunately this one was a bit spicy to my liking and I was kinda worried that the chilli crab would be this spicy! In terms of presentations, they had a balanced combination of seafood and vegetables on a deep fried noodles ‘plate’.

Our next dish fell in the category of ‘as expected’. It was the traditional-looking Roasted Duck. Although it was in the ‘nice’ end of the scale, it was still a regular roast duck with sauce, tender meat and crispy skin.

Then came the dish that I’ve been dying to try for ages, Jumbo Chilli Crab. It was presented in a wok, possibly not the one they are cooking it from as the crab was too immersed in the soup. I was extremely pleased that the Singaporean chilli crab wasn’t actually as hot as I would have imagined them to be.

Jumbo seafood’s signature dish came with an optional deep-fried mantou which I strongly recommend to take (or add some more!). The mantou really enhanced the chilli crab’s taste.

Similar to other Chinese restaurants, they served the rice last. In this case, it was Seafood Fried Rice with Silver Fish. It was staple food good to fill up tummy that wasn’t really full, like mine 🙂

It was a really yummy dessert to end the night, Chilled Mango Sago with Pomelo. It was condensed milk on crushed ice with toppings of mango sago and pomelo.

The final verdict for Jumbo Seafood Restaurant

I must say I am very pleased with my visit to Jumbo Seafood Restaurant. They might command a slight premium value to the average Singaporean Restaurant, but it was thoroughly justified with the dishes they presented. Its Singaporean Chilli Crab also lived up to my expectations.

Details:

20 Upper Circular Road #B1-48

The Riverwalk, Singapore 058416

+65 343435

http://www.jumboseafood.com.sg/

Jun 11, 2013
Restoran Sederhana – Masakan Padang

Rating:

7 / 10 Taste: 7/10
Price: Rp 10k – Rp 35k per plate
Place: 7/10

Review:

Let’s kick off our holiday reviews with this uniquely Indonesian restaurant, Restoran Sederhana. This restaurant is now a well-known franchise throughout Indonesia and each restaurant has a pretty similar dishes. They serve ‘Masakan Padang’ (Padang-style) which originates from Sumatera and is known for its distinct spices that are almost curry-like (they called it ‘gulai’). I should probably tell you how the restaurant works first.

As soon as you sit on your table, there will be people coming over to your table delivering all kinds of things, like rice, various dishes, hot tea, even desserts. Your table would end up like the picture below.

‘It’s shocking!’ might be the usual response for first-timer, because within minutes all kinds of dishes are ready in front of you. You don’t need to be afraid as you are not obliged to buy all of them. The way it works was that you eat what you want to eat and leave the ones you don’t eat untouched (except for the purpose of moving the plates around).

The two dishes I loved in this place are Gulai sotong (Curry of Whole Squid) and Gulai kikil (kikil is a meat between cow’s hoof and leg). I would never miss either of them whenever I visit a restaurant with Masakan Padang. In a decent restaurant, the squid should be easily shredded and not chewy, the same goes with the kikil.

They have quite a few vegetable selections, like the hot and spicy potato and eggplant, quite a few seafood and chicken options. I think it’s better to refer you to Wikipedia for the relatively complete list: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Padang_food.

If you can read Indonesians, there are literally dozens other dishes on the menu and you can order like you normally would in a restaurant. I would suggest Sate Padang (Skewers of meat with special Padang-style sauce) with rice cakes. There is also the infamous Ayam Pop (not a big fan, personally), it’s a pale-coloured chicken that is said to be boiled, then fried. If you feel a bit more adventurous, perhaps you can try its Gulai Kepala Ikan (Fish Head Curry). I really love it but it gets too expensive to my liking.

You might then be compelled to ask ‘What about hygiene and stuff?’… well, if you have ever eaten from a buffet bar, I can’t see the difference.

The final verdict for Restoran Sederhana

The best thing about Restoran Sederhana is its uniformity. It can deliver delicious Padang dishes in all of its restaurants. It also features a unique presentation in which all dishes are displayed in front of you.

Did you know?

For those of you Indonesian readers, I suggest you read this article about the founder of Rumah Makan Sederhana. I think it’s pretty inspiring in his will to continue on and say no to giving up!

Restoran Sederhana in Indonesian means a simple/humble restaurant. It might be true 30 years ago, but I think it’s more for middle (or even mid-upper) class people.

Details:

Multiple Locations

We went to the one on the highway rest area between Jakarta and Bandung.

May 31, 2013
50 best restaurants in the world 2013

50 best restaurants in the world 2013 has a new winner in 2013.

El Celler De Can Roca of Spain has dethroned the top restaurant for the last three years, Noma of Denmark. Originally from Girona, Spain, El Celler De Can Roca is not an anonymous name. Spearheaded by chef Joan Roca (with his two brothers), they’ve been a runner up to Noma for the last two years. They have also been in the list for the last eight years and steadily climbing up the ladder. According to theworlds50best.com, eating at El Celler is truly uplifting, with the warmth of the family dynamic all-pervasive.

I am actually more suprised by Attica‘s rise to prominence. Attica is Australia’s Top restaurant in 2013 and is located in Melbourne, Victoria. They are the highest new entry for the year at number 21. In 2012, Attica was only sitting at number 63, well below Quay at 29 and Marque at 61. This year Quay is still on the list at number 48, while Marque and Tetsuya are out of top 100. Sydney’s top restaurant according Good Food Guide, Momofuku Seiobo, is the only other Australian restaurant in top 100 at number 89.

50 best restaurants in the world 2013 in Asia

Asia’s top restaurant is Narisawa from Tokyo, Japan. Named after its head chef, Yoshihiro Narisawa, this restaurant has a French technique with Japanese ingredients. Tetsuya’s other restaurant, Waku Ghin of Singapore, is sitting at number 11 on the list.

Surprisingly, my home country has ONE restaurant in the top 50 Asian restaurants called Mozaic in Bali. It is located in Jl. Raya Sanggingan, Ubud, Gianyar – Bali 80571. The restaurant is described as Franco-Indonesian, a fusion of French and Indonesian cuisines. Its current signature dishes are suckling pork with pig’s trotter ravioli and babi guling emulsion.

This is one restaurant I will definitely go to test! 🙂

Apr 30, 2013
Societe Food and Wine Bar

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Unfortunately, Societe has closed its doors for good.

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Rating:

6.5 / 10 Taste: 6.5/10

Price: $15-$25 for breakfast

Place: 7/10

Review:

Societe Food and Wine Bar is the latest upmarket, modern Australian restaurant. We went there for breakfast, towards lunch time. I can see they have a lot of tapas, but we didn’t order them.

Let’s start with my order: Societe BIG benny. Along with Societe big breakfast, it was the biggest and most expensive serving dish on the menu at $ 25.5. Directly taken from the menu, it was smoked salmon, haloumi, poached eggs, avocado, spinach & hollandaise sauce on Turkish bread… a whole lot of stuff for a breakfast! It was beautifully presented and pleasing to see. The salmon and eggs were nice but forgettable hollandaise sauce and pretty salty haloumi cheese.

On a lighter note, there was Euro Bruschetta for $15.9 or $3 more for one poached egg. Without the egg, it would be a nice vegetarian dish consisted of avocado, basil, tomato, grilled haloumi and drizzled with olive oil on Turkish bread.

Not so very different than these two, my friend ordered B.L.A.T. ($16.5). It stands for Bacon, green Leaves, Avocado and Tomato. It was prepared on a wooden chopping block with aioli on Turkish bread with chips.

Breakfast is incomplete without a cup of coffee, I ordered Latte like I always did. The best thing of the day came in the form of babycino. It was frothed over the top and sprinkled with hundreds and thousands.

The final verdict for Societe Food and Wine Bar

There was really nothing outstanding for Societe Food and Wine Bar to command such a premium price on their breakfast menu. The only redeeming factors about the restaurant were their dishes’ presentation and my son’s happy face looking at babycino.

Details:

1/ 9 – 15 Danks Street

Waterloo NSW 2017

+61 2 9698 8899

Apr 16, 2013
Braza Churrascaria

Rating:

8 / 10

Taste: 8/10

Price: $47 All you can eat

Place: 8.5/10

Review:

I wanted to say Braza Churrascaria is just another all you can eat Brazilian restaurant that’s been flooding Sydney over the years… but I just couldn’t!

Why?

I’ll skip the part of explaining what Churrascaria is (you can look at the ‘Did you know?’ section) and let you know why I think you MUST visit this place. Look at the menu below or in this link and see an extensive list of things you can eat (including side dishes).

Let’s start with the obvious Rump Cap or Picanha. Seriously, if a Brazilian restaurant doesn’t serve a great picanha, don’t return! Picanha is the core element of a churrascaria. Still in the beef department, they also have flank, rump, hump and Scotch Fillet. The meat quality in Braza restaurant was incredible.

I have limited knowledge of food from the pork department. They have an assortment of Neck, Leg, and Belly. From the look of it, they were the least appealing in the restaurant. Strangely enough, you also got a chance to see a whole pig / pork meat sitting on the wooden trolley. They only have two lamb dishes: Leg and Rump. Both were nice and cooked correctly (i.e. no smelly lamb taste).

We’re now on to the white meat of chicken. They have a decent range from chicken with bacon to chicken hearts. They also have Chicken Drummetes and fillet. Personally, I love chicken hearts and can easily have a dozen of them.

Braza’s seafood range was extensive on easter with the addition of mussels and octopus. However, they were only limited to Fish and Prawns in a normal day. However, if you see the fish plate, please ask as much as you can. They were heaps good! I am not a big fan of the Chorizo in Braza. I think they were quite dry and tough.

So now we are on to the best part: Braza Churrascaria’s ribs. They prepared the ribs in a slightly different way. They would wheel around gigantic slab(s) of ribs on a wooden trolley and slice the meat in front of you. The ribs were really the highlight of the day. They were succulent, juicy, and best of all, not burnt! You can have an option of Beef ribs, Pork ribs, or Lamb ribs.

They have Halloumi Cheese, Pineapple and Garlic Bread as the main churrascaria offered. I had no less than five slices of fabulous pineapple throughout the night. You might want to slow down on the cheese and bread if you didn’t want to be full too fast.

They handled the side dishes quite differently. Instead of circling around the table, you will need to order them specifically. My favourite was Polenta chips. They were really nice and crunchy. We also always have a supply of Brazilian Chilies, Farofafa, and Tomato Salsa because I like a bit more flavour on my meat.

The final verdict for Braza Churrascaria

Braza Churrascaria is hands down the best Brazilian restaurant in Sydney. The assortments and quality of meat are unrivaled to those other Brazilian restaurants in Sydney. The only downside to their otherwise excellent review was the unavailability of complementing sauce. It’s a very minor item but unfortunately I like sauce on my meat.

Did you know?

When we were there on Saturday at around 8 PM, they had a Brazilian dance a la Carnaval de Rio with very loud Brazilian drums.

For those of you new to the concept, Churrascaria is a place where meat is cooked in Churrasco style. The meat is grilled to perfection with an iron skewer on a fireplace. The waiters and waitresses would then go around the table offering those meats and you could decide whether you wanted it or not (no obligation to take everything they offered!).

Details:

1-25 Harbour St, Darling Quarter

Darling Harbour NSW 2000

+61 2 9386 9534

http://www.braza.com.au/

Apr 8, 2013