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Wednesday, November 27, 2024
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Breakfast and Dessert

Two chefs in Singapore are reimagining two iconic Australian snacks.

Vegemite on Toast

Christopher Millar, Executive Chef of Stellar, has tackled the spread that separates the nation. You either love it or hate it, but on the 62nd floor you’ll get to try the Melbourne-born chef’s interpretation of the yeast extract, as part of the newly launched Antipodes Menu.

The world’s nickname for Australian and New Zealanders, the Antipodes menu is a reflection of both Millar’s heritage and career. Big on seasonal ingredients, the menu pulls cuisines from all over the globe – the key element of contemporary Australian cooking.

Keeping in line with the playful nature of contemporary Australian cuisine, the starting dish is a small glass jar, with toasted sourdough pockets. Inside is a runnier paste with subtle hints of Vegemite – remember that it’s an acquired taste – and more like a light miso paste. Taking a bite of the small sourdough pocket, diners can scoop the Vegemite into the hole and devour it almost like salsa to a corn chip.

The spread, which was developed as a way to make use of the dumped yeast from beer making, is now an iconic Australian taste. It seems only fitting to try and recreate that taste in a refined setting like a fine-dining restaurant.

The full eight-course Antipodes Menu is priced at $190++ per person, and is available for dinner only. Plans are for the menu to last until at least the end of January, so if you’re interested, give it a go.

Stellar
1 Raffles Place, level 62, 048616
6438 0410
1-altitude.com

Deconstructed Tim Tams

The biscuits with the uncanny ability to disappear from the packet sitting in fridges around Australia are heralded as the ‘biccies’ of choice with a cuppa in hand. The Tim Tam Slam – biting the ends of a Tim Tam and drinking a hot drink to melt the biscuit to a gooey mess of deliciousness – is a favoured way to enjoy the chocolatey treat.

Some may even have the habit of deconstructing the biscuit by biting it piece by piece. But what about a complete deconstruction? We’re talking about taking apart the ganache, milk chocolate cream filling and the melted biscuits and devouring them like a civilised adult.

Head Chef of contemporary Australian-Italian restaurant Salted & Hung, Drew Nocente has created a dessert that does exactly that. The Aussie chef with a passion for curing and smoking meat has created a menu of dishes that make use of different cuts of an animal – from pigs to fish.

No matter what kind of meat you find the best, when it comes to dessert, the deconstructed Tim Tams ($16) should be a no-brainer for diners. You’ll get to try peanut butter ganache and feuilletine, milk chocolate ice cream, chocolate pearls and homemade biscuits – as well as a fully formed homemade Tim Tam.

Nocente has also made a home version of the Anzac biscuit ($6), with a dollop of salted caramel on top to take away.

Salted & Hung
12 Purvis Street, 188591
6358 3130
saltedandhung.com.sg

Xiao Ya Tou

Xiao Ya Tou

6 Duxton Hill, 089592
6226 1965
xyt.sg

Duxton Hill has a habit of rejuvenating itself every six months with fresh ideas. With vivid colours, bright paper lanterns and a lot vintage posters and toys, the new restaurant quoted as ‘naughty modern Asian cuisine’ is a delicious love letter to local flavours and tip-of-the-hat to Western tastes. There’s a lot on offer, from short ribs and pork belly to Chinese bun-inspired sliders.

The crispy Otak-Otak Rolls ($12) were thin spring rolls with the familiar fish-paste filling one would find being sold wrapped in banana leaf, with a peanut sauce underneath to dip.

The three meatballs ‘Takoyaki Style’ ($9) with a tare glaze, brown butter mayo and cabbage shaving was delicately soft – not the kind of dry meatball that relies on its sauce to moisten.

The wok-fried rice of duck leg ($13) with pickled mustard leaf, Shaoxing wine and dried onions isn’t your stock-standard rice. Pieces of duck meat, shrimp and fried onion add that bit of oomph.

The cocktail menu has an interesting play on local drinks, like the Milo – a mixture of vodka, chocolate liqueur, evaporated milk and an ice ball made of Milo, heaped with the powder on top. -GW

Simply Mamam

Simply Mamam

52 Blair Road, 089952

6592 0054

instagram.com/simplymamam

Replacing Chotto Matte on the corner of Blair Road, Simply Mamam is a new restaurant serving a mix of local dishes – for example, prawn laksa, beef rendang and nasi lemak – and Western favourites like steak, fish’ n’ chips and lamb chops.

Despite being quite modern, from its mismatching chairs and low-hanging lights, the restaurant itself has that old-fashioned vibe to it; allowing it to fit well with the shophouses that take up the rest of the street. The interior feels very homely and relaxed – due to the small space it takes up – and the staff is extremely friendly, giving you more information about meals and additional options that can be added.

The restaurant offers a large set of dishes, including brunch, soup, salads and other mains – along with a selection of hot and cold drinks. I ordered the charcoal fish’ n’ chips ($16), the beef rendang ($11) and the Thai milk tea ($7).

The Thai milk tea came out in a mason jar and was sweet but a little small, considering the price.

When the charcoal fish’ n’ chips arrived – having not properly read the description of squid ink covered batter – I was surprised to find the fish batter was black. As a whole this dish was flavoursome, though I felt this dish was trying a little too hard – the fish was well-cooked and the batter was just the right amount of saltiness, but the truffle fries didn’t really tie in well with the dish.

The size of the beef rendang, served in an angled bowl, was fairly small with just two slices of toasted bread for dipping. That aside, this dish was great, with the sauce not too heavy, and the flavours of coconut and the chili aftertaste well-balanced. Inside, the slow-cooked meat was soft and perfectly cooked.

Simply Mamam is a wonderful little restaurant offering good food in a handsome neighbourhood. With the staff and relaxed ambiance, this is a lovely spot to enjoy a nice meal. -CW

Strong, Fresh and New – Art

Singapore’s neighbourhoods have evolved so quickly over time that it’s hard to know where to go. We’re revisiting the top spots to go in Singapore, from old favourites to places brand new.

Standing strong: Asian Civilisations Museum

Across from Boat Quay you’ll be able to spot the ACM’s building as a mixture of colonial and contemporary architecture. Inside this building however is 5,000 years of Asian culture under one roof. Situated along the inconic Singapore River, the gallery traces the history of Southeast Asia, China, West Asia and South Asia, and Singapore’s part within. The most recent exhibition, Cities & Kings: Ancient Treasures from Myanmar, is a collection of artefacts from Myanmar history from as early as 4th Century. You’ll find a fascinating collection of porcelain treasures, bronze statues and patterned robes – the in-house curators give some insightful tours of the museum, and are recommended if you want the most out of what you’re seeing.

Always fresh: ArtScience Museum

Iconic in its shape, and memorable in its exhibitions, the white hand outside of Marina Bay Sands is a celebration of art and science coming together. There are travelling exhibitions that come through regularly to celebrate this melding of two fields – most recently the NASA – A Human Adventure and Big Bang Data – as well as the museum’s first permanent exhibition, Future World. The museum has been trying different ways of harnessing a young person’s fascination with technology with interactivity, while delivering big-concept ideas like the Large Hadron Collider to a wider audience.

New to the game: National Gallery Singapore

The architecture doesn’t scream ‘new’, but it’s what’s on the inside that counts. Housed in the former Supreme Court and City Hall buildings, there is an incredible amount of space inside to house galleries from all over. With the largest public collection of Singapore and Southeast Asian art in the world – as well as international contemporary exhibits coming through, including Picasso – there’s a lot of potential for this space. It doesn’t hurt that there’s also gorgeous restaurants on the rooftop overlooking Esplanade and Marina Bay to gawk at for a bit of real-life art.

Strong, Fresh and New – Gardens

Singapore’s neighbourhoods have evolved so quickly over time that it’s hard to know where to go. We’re revisiting the top spots to go in Singapore, from old favourites to places brand new.

 

Standing strong: Fort Canning Park
The amount of history that sits on the green hill above City Hall, Dhoby Ghaut and Clarke Quay is incredible. Sir Stamford Raffles built Singapore’s first botanical garden here back in 1822 – you can find a replica of his garden at the Spice Garden, with clove, nutmeg and curry bushes. The Battle Box was a bomb-proof command centre built during the Malayan Campaign during the World War II – and now hosts a museum you can visit to learn more of the bunker’s final days during the Battle of Singapore. There’s a bit of artillery lying around as well, like the 9-pound cannon. The large grassy area of Fort Canning Green is a staple home for music concerts, festivals and outdoor cinema screenings.

 


Always fresh: Singapore Botanic Gardens
Being crowned Singapore’s first UNESCO World Heritage Site back in 2016 is just the icing on the cake for the botanic gardens. A large oasis of green flanked by the bustling streets of Singapore, the 74-hectare park is gorgeous both day and night. When the sun is up, picnic-goers will find solace under the shades of tropical trees. By night, the cooler air and warm-coloured lights transform the jungle to a peaceful place to take a stroll. What makes Singapore a special place is feeling safe walking around a park as vast as this one. There is a constant stream of concerts at the Shaw Foundation Symphony Stage, and the scenery never gets old.

New to the game: Gardens by the Bay
When the Marina Bay Sands first opened up, you had the choice between a room facing the city and a room facing the soon-to-be garden – otherwise known as a giant construction site. With the Gardens by the Bay finished and its plants fully grown in its new 101-hectare home, there’s a huge draw towards the highlights. Supertree Grove, a towering collection of 25 and 50-metre high metallic trees, is a sight to behold at night – especially if you take the elevator up to the OCBC Skyway – twinkling in sync to a soundtrack every night. The Flower Dome and Cloud Forest are amazing glass greenhouses showcasing a plethora of stunning flora – and is absolutely refreshing after being in the hot sun outside.

Strong, Fresh and New – Hawker Centres

Singapore’s neighbourhoods have evolved so quickly over time that it’s hard to know where to go. We’re revisiting the top spots to go in Singapore, from old favourites to places brand new.

 


Standing strong: Lau Pa Sat
Now that taking photos of food has become an expectation rather than out-of-place, it helps if the environment can have a bit of style to it. In the downtown area of Singapore is the octagonal building with Victorian cast-iron roofing and
Come down from 7pm and you’ll see one side turn into a strip of outdoor satay stalls, tables and chairs. This is a classic suggestion for newcomers to hawker centres as it perfectly combines the look, feel and taste of what we’ve all come to love about Singaporean food.

 

Always fresh: Timbre+
You wouldn’t know it when first walking in, but this collection of shopping containers, caravans and hawker stalls is the perfect mix of young and old. Uncles serving mee rebus and strong kopi brew are placed next to food trucks serving American diner grub and a bar with over 120 craft beers and ciders. There’s even a stage complete with lights for bands to perform. In an attempt to find the synergy between affordable hawker food and modern-day hipster eateries, the atmosphere seems a lot more lively – the music that comes on at night-time is a perfect example of this.

 


New to the game: The Bedok Marketplace
Inspiring young people to start a hawker stall is an increasingly hard sell. The pressure to continue the recipes of past generations is also stifling any kind of creativity for new dishes. This is an ongoing discussion in Singapore, but in the meantime, this hawker centre is hosting a handful of stalls to show what a modern-day hawker could be. The décor looks as if it was bought from vintage stores around town, and adds to the charm of it all. The stalls serve everything from classic dishes like wanton noodles and chicken rice to contemporary plates like yakitori, meatballs and pies.

Strong, Fresh and New – Nightlife

Singapore’s neighbourhoods have evolved so quickly over time that it’s hard to know where to go. We’re revisiting the top spots to go in Singapore, from old favourites to places brand new.

 

Standing strong: Clarke Quay
If you were asked years ago where to go for a night out, chances are Clarke Quay was first on the list – not because it was necessarily highly recommended, but that it catered to the widest audience. You could sit on a boat-turned-restaurant and eat Chinese food, grab a couple plates of tapas, then head to a microbrewery. The riverside quay that looks like an ‘X’ on the map was home to restaurants, bars and clubs of all sorts, and still is. One of Singapore’s most quintessential clubs, Zouk, moved from its Jiak Kim Street location to Clarke Quay last month – and with it, bringing its status as one of the top ten clubs in the world with it.

 


Always fresh: Telok Ayer
This neighbourhood cannot sit still. Like playing a game of Red Rover, every time you visit the neighbourhood near the CBD, something has changed. The home of work lunch rushes and after-work drinks has also turned into a favoured weekend spot. All sorts of fusion restaurants, cocktail bars and healthy lunch bowls have appeared to cater for every taste imaginable. There’s a few great Aussie places to try, like café Sarnies and restaurants Cheek by Jowl and Fat Saigon Boy.

New to the game: HongKong Street
While the spread of cool haunts and unique restaurants have been appearing all over the country, this particular street has been getting all sorts of attention for its restaurants and bars. In 2016, hidden cocktail bar 28 HongKong Street was named best bar in Asia, Spanish tapas bar FOC had so much success on HongKong Street that it has a space in Sentosa, and The Kitchen at Bacchanalia won a Michelin star. What this proves is Singapore has not only taken on the challenge of fostering talented chefs and mixologists, but not relying on the same location to draw people in. The taste buds always find a way.

Strong, Fresh and New – Shopping

 

Singapore’s neighbourhoods have evolved so quickly over time that it’s hard to know where to go. We’re revisiting the top spots to go in Singapore, from old favourites to places brand new.

 Standing strong: Orchard Road

Most likely the most well-known street in all of Singapore, the strip of giant luxury malls beside giant discount malls is still a frequent haunt for new visitors. Where else can you go to a high-end mall like ION Orchard for Louis Vuitton and Prada, then head down the road for big bargains in Far East Plaza? Shut off traffic from the ends of the road and you could call it a town on its own, with a mixture of high-end and bargain shopping, award-winning restaurants and entertainment. The smartphone game Pokémon Go was a great draw for the younger crowd last year with the incentives offered by physically being on Orchard Road, but since then it’s had a bit of a quiet spell. This isn’t to say there isn’t a reason to visit – quite the contrary. Recently UNIQLO and Victoria’s Secret opened their flagship stores – and Apple is set to open in Knightsbridge Mall in the next month or so.

 

Always fresh: Haji Lane
Nowadays people are seeking for something special and unique. You couldn’t find a better place to start than the road most consider to be where the newest shops pop up. Haji Lane has always been looked upon as the independent boutique’s dream space. Inhabited by the young, young at heart and anyone else with a love for art, the Kampong Glam neighbourhood surrounding the street is always busy.

 

New to the game: Kallang Wave Mall
While being open for two years, since The National Stadium opened its doors – and retractable roof – Kallang Wave Mall has now become a home for the sporty. The proximity to the stadiums and sports centres means having a convenient place to run in and grab all sorts of sports gear – even the FairPrice Xtra is selling bikes and sports equipment.

5 New Hobbies

1. Drone Racing
Where: Singapore FPV Fun
meetup.com/dronesg
Not just to capture pretty video footage, there are even racing drones to fulfil those high-speed Top Gun fantasies. Join a drone flying meetup and see what it’s like to fly one of those things.

2. 3D Printing
Where: 3D Printing Studios Singapore
3dprintingstudios.com.sg
The possibilities of this tech are endless – but it’s also a lot of fun too. Create your own toys, mock-ups for work or an artistic expression. There are some free beginners classes to give you a head start.

3. Sign Language
Where: The Singapore Association for the Deaf
sadeaf.org.sg
If you’re already talking with your hands, try talking with just your hands. An incredible skill to have up your sleeve, this relaxed environment will give you a great life skill and a better appreciation of your senses.

4. Perfume-making
Where: Je t’aime Perfume
jetaime-singapore.com
Specialising in native orchid oils of Singapore, the workshops have over 400 ingredients to create your bespoke perfume. There’s a course to create a perfume based on your personality.

5. LED Kite Flying
Where: Promontory @ Marina Bay
goflykite.com
Wind won’t determine whether you can fly with these modern kites, rigged with motor propellers. The kites put on quite a show flying – head down to Promontory @ Marina Bay Friday and Saturday night from 8-11pm.

Inside the Rotunda

The National Museum of Singapore’s opening the doors of its famed Glass Rotunda after two years of renovation.

For two years a section of the National Museum had been out-of-bounds. The iconic Glass Rotunda by the rear of the museum had plans to be a space where artists could create 360-degree installations. The museum’s 130th birthday fast approaches, and what better way to prepare for it than finally opening its doors with a special exhibition.

Japanese art collective teamLab, the group responsible for ArtScience Museum’s first permanent exhibition Future World, has returned to deliver Story of the Forest – an interactive art installation featuring flowers, plants and animals native to Singapore. Based off of the watercolour botanical drawings of the William Farquhar Collection – a series of images commissioned back in the late 18th Century to chronicle the plants and animals of Malacca and Singapore – the exhibition brings together historical documents with new technology.

The darkened entrance leads to a sky bridge with night-time projections of flowers and stars covering the curved walls. Onward is a long spiral pathway along the edge of the rotunda called the Passage – a projected stretch of digital Singaporean forestry, which changes depending on the time of day you visit. For those with a smartphone handy, downloading the Story of the Forest app is a neat little extra. Any of the nearby animals running across the 170 metre-long projection will appear on the screen, and can be captured with your phone’s camera – then the animal’s information pops up.

At the end of the spiral pathway is the inside of the rotunda – with the roof 15 metres high. This is where the projection comes together in a serene night-time spectacle. Much like the projections of Future World, standing still near the walls long enough will attract animals towards you – make any sudden moves, and you might startle them. All the projections are created in real-time, meaning what you see will always be different.

At the bottom of the rotunda is a photography exhibit created by local artist Robert Zhao. His series, titled Singapore, Very Old Tree, is a reference to an old postcard he found in Singapore’s National Archives dating back to 1904 – on it is a photograph of a man stands next to an incredibly tall tree, emphasising its height. The exhibition is part of an exploration between the nation’s identity as a Garden City, and the personal relationships between people and trees. Showing 17 of the 30 images Zhao created, the exhibition goes into detail of the stories discovered behind each tree. Most of the trees were found by Zhao and his team, and talking to historians and locals who had stories behind them.

One particular story comes from Madam Quek, who is the self-appointed caretaker of the Monkey God Tree at Jurong West Street 42. The tree was named as such after a car that scraped the bark of the tree in the accident back in 2007 revealed an outline of two monkeys. This led to the belief the tree was a manifestation of the Taoist Monkey God, or the Hanuman in Hinduism – leading to a lot of praying, and reportedly lottery wins using the numbers from the licence plate that hit the tree.

Admission to the National Museum of Singapore is $15 for adults and $10 for students. Singapore citizens, PRs and children aged 6 and below enter for free.

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