And so it’s Chinese New Year again!

According to the lunar calendar, 2012 is the year of the Water Dragon, a powerful mythical creature that personifies creativity and brings promises of good fortune. I think most of us have already known that. To those of you who are trying for a Dragon baby, all the best (!!) and there’s still time of course.

But!

Never, never come winking at me asking me to try out for a Dragon baby girl. I bite. ;)

This year, Crystal Jade Lunar New Year Menu will be a mix of seasonal delicacies, festive favourites as well as introducing a couple of new dishes that combine traditional Chinese ingredients with regional and local influences.

HUAT ahhhhhhh!

At the recent media luncheon, we were given a sneak preview of some of the dishes that will available during Chinese New Year.

What’s more apt than starting our first course with lo hei, my first lo hei for this Chinese New Year. :)

What we had here was Golden Yu Sheng 金装发财鱼生 $88.80 (Large) that is good for 10-12 pax. Also, do take note that this will be available as takeaway too! So, plan ahead.

Double-boiled Quail Soup with Chinese Herbs 滋补药膳炖仙鹤, S$22 per serving & Steamed Sea Bass with Preserved Vegetables 甜菜蒸鲈鱼件, S$12 per serving

For someone who boils/pressure cooks her (Cantonese) soup on weekly basis, let’s just say, i’m usually not easily impressed.

1 sip later and i was sold. It was good. Really good. The flavour was intense and most of us commented we felt awesome immediately. LOL!

As for the Steamed Sea Bass with Preserved Vegetables, let’s just say i could eat just this and the rice. I was so taken by this innovative dish that the following week when it was time for the wet market, i bought a whole sea bass to replicate this at home! Sssshhh.. Errr, i also.. errrr shared my recipe with the parents! Heheheeeeeee!

Fr left : Braised Dou Miao with Assorted Dried Seafood 海中宝扒豆杯, S$12 per serving, Pagoda of Eight Treasures 开运八宝塔, S$88.80 & Glutinous Rice Cake with Coconut 椰丝年糕 & Fried Glutinous Rice Dumpling with Grated Peanut 脆米花煎堆仔, S$2.40 per serving

Some people need their meat and some need their daily caffeine intake. I, on another hand, need my vegetables. I’m not being biased or anything but damn, i love this braised dou miao quite a bit. This is something that isn’t hard to love especially when braised with assorted dried seafood. LOVE!

And finally, the most anticipated dish — Pagoda of Eight Treasures. Visually stunning. Inspired by the traditional Nasi Tumpeng served at festive occasions in Java, the Pagoda puts a Chinese twist on an Indonesian celebratory dish. A cone of fried glutinous rice with conpoy and mushroom is surrounded by other traditional “treasures” including preserved sausage, marinated octopus, sautéed shrimp and more. Each ingredient comes with its own symbolism and like Yu-Sheng, this is available to takeaway too!

All the dishes above are available at Crystal Jade Dining IN, VivoCity and Crystal Jade Palace Restaurant, Takashimaya from 26 Dec 2011 to 6 Feb 2012.

Thank you Crystal Jade and linea communication for the invite!

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Crystal Jade Dining IN @ VivoCity

#01-112
Tel: 6278-5626

Crystal Jade Palace Restaurant @ Takashimaya

#04-19
Tel: 6735-2388

Nope, that’s not me in the photo though it was something that i had wanted to do last year for our 10-year Anniversary.

Oh, and i’m not their wedding photographer either. Heh. This is the sort of scene you can expect when you are here at the Saddle Club. ;)

Following the success of the Marmalade Pantry in ION Orchard (Pantry in the City), the group’s second location is tucked within the lush greenery which surrounds Bukit Timah Saddle Club. The Marmalade Pantry at the Stables offers a refreshing family-friendly environment, an all-day bakery as well as a menu which showcases a reflection of the modern bistro’s all-time favourites in addition to new signature dishes.

One of my first few memories of Marmalade Pantry was at Palais Renaissance with the girlfriends. In fact, we went there a couple of times for someone’s birthday or simply, to meet up and chill. These days, when i think of Marmalade Pantry, i think of its famous Sticky Date Pudding, Foie Gras Burger and its huge, irresistible fries. The gfs and i heart this place quite a bit.

As for Pantry at the Stables, the restaurant ensures that it retains its modern and clean aesthetic while juxtaposed with the lush greenery of its natural surroundings. With a seating capacity of 64 indoors and 24 in the alfresco, the high ceilings and tall French windows keep the bistro casual and breezy throughout the day. Somehow, i have this strange feeling that this new place is so gonna be in our ‘frequent’ list soon!

From left, clockwise :

Crab Caesar Salad $22 – can’t quite go wrong with this one, can you?

Mexican Chicken Salad $22 – this is good. something different i would say and i love munching on those crispy tortillas!

Pan Seared Haloumi Salad $21 – after 2 salads above, i don’t find this that appealing anymore unless i am craving for haloumi on that particular day.

From left, clockwise :

Basque Chicken $30 – i didn’t try this one

Spaghetti Carbonara $24 : i quite dig the idea of having the poached egg perched atop a mound of spaghetti. Break the yolk and mix it in yourself. How fun!

Steak & Eggs $38 : gave most of this a miss too except for the mashed pea with truffle oil.

Pan Roasted Red Snapper $28 : excellent for those who are counting their calories. ;)

Whispering Angel $19

Then it was time for my favourite course of all time. :D

From left, clockwise :

Fluffy Coconut Cream Cake $8 : rather mediocre i’m afraid.

Sea Salt Caramel Cheesecake $8, picked specially by yours truly *wink* : MUST ORDER! ’nuff said.

Lemon Brulee Tart $14 and Granny Smith and Stem Ginger Pudding $13 : i must confess. after the cheesecake, nothing could possibly taste good anymore. Hahaha!

And cuppies for takeaway!

Oh, because this restaurant is in the Saddle Club, don’t be too shocked if you happen to see a horse or two, or three or more galloping away. If you have little children, be very sure that they’d be thrilled to bits (hey, even i do okaayy!). Way much better than staring into clothes boutiques methinks. :P

Thank you Sasha from FoodNews for the fun invite! :)

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Pantry at The Stables

55 Fairways Drive
Singapore 286846
Tel : 65-6467 7748

Operating Hours:

Tuesdays to Fridays – 3pm to 11pm
Saturdays and Sundays – 10am to 11pm
(Closed on Mondays)
Website : http://www.themarmaladepantry.com.sg

Spacious interior, high ceiling and a blend of traditional and modern oriental decor, Jade Garden is in good hands of Jenny and Chris Eng, a brother and sister team, who each have twenty over years of experience in the food and beverage industry.

Located at The Chevrons, Jade Garden features over 300 mouth-watering traditional Cantonese dishes and live seafood with a modern flair. With a friendly no pork or lard policy, Jade Garden is also one of the few Chinese restaurants to offer daily Dim Sum menu made entirely without pork.

Deep-Fried Yam Stuffed with Minced Chicken ($3.80 for 3 pieces)

To be honest, i’m not a huge fan of this particular dim sum dish. But my partner is. In fact, it’s probably one of his top most-ordered dim sum dish. He would even buy this to eat as a take-away. Yup, he loves it that much. So naturally, he’s the perfect person to rate this dim sum than me.

Darcy’s verdict : if there’s only 1 dish to pick from, he’d pick this. To him, not many places can whip this up well but Jade Garden totally nailed it down. And he can’t even tell it was chicken initially!

Siew Mai ($4.20 for 4 pieces)

Like any other decent siew mai, except it uses chicken instead of pork. :)

From top -

Chef Special Combination Platter ($12/pax)

I absolutely <heart> the wasabi prawn! Succulent, crunchy and nicely fried, this rather huge prawn was a delight to eat. I don’t mind 10 of this!

Braised Shark’s Fin with Crabmeat & Dried Scallop in Pumpkin Soup ($18/pax; $45 [small], $68 [medium], $90 [large]).

*Do note that the same dish can be requested sans shark’s fin. Chef gives more seafood like fresh crab meat.

While my other companions savoured theirs complete with shark’s fin and all, i had mine sans it. It was still all good. In fact, i rather the crab than the fins. Tastier! :P (i mean, we all know that fins are tasteless right?)

Cod Fish Baked with Miso & Sauteed Edamame ($14/pax)

One of the 2 dishes which will keep me coming back. Melt in your mouth texture. Period.

Braised Sliced Abalone, Dried Scallop & Vegetables in Tan Jia Sauce ($18/pax)

Perfectly braised abalone next to fresh seasonal vegetables, doused in a flavourful sauce unlike any other that uses the essence of duck, old hens and dried scallops as its base.

Fresh Crab Claw with Japanese Somen ($12/pax)

If there was 1 dish that my partner and i must agree on, this is it. I totally digged the ultra smooth and silky egg white. Truly epic, especially when it was paired with succulent crab claw and sluuurrplicious tasty somen. But i’ll request for zero ginger next time.

Combination Dessert Platter with Fresh Fruits ($12)

Breathtaking or what?

Trust me, you must order this — Freshly cut fruit on ice, with shot glasses of Mango Pudding, Cold Lemongrass Jelly with Sherbet and Pumpkin Sago with Vanilla Ice Cream. For just $12, it’s worth it. Or if you must, share with a friend. ;)

What i really like about this place is the good food with friendly prices which will not require you to break your piggy bank unlike most places nowadays. Most dishes are available in communal and individual servings, both ideal for family or business dining. With its location, Jade Garden makes a great dining destination especially for residents in the West and for business hubs in Jurong, Tuas and Jurong Island.

Oh, set lunches are available too. From $38++/pax for 6 courses to Executive Set Lunch for 4 pax at $88++ for 6 courses.

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Jade Garden
48 Boon Lay Way
The Chevrons
#03-06
Singapore 609961

Tel: + 65 6862 4931

Photo (bottom) courtesy of Halia

Set amidst the Ginger (Halia, in Malay) Garden of the lush Botanic Garden, The Halia Restaurant celebrates its 10th year with an exclusive “Celebratory Sparkling Wine Dinner” priced at $100+ per person. With a new facelift, menu and culinary team, the dinner showcases a few of the Chef’s signature creations together with canapés and champagne.

These dishes will be paired with six different types of sparkling wines and champagnes sourced by leading wine importers Top Wines and Culina. Uh huh, this noob alcohol drinker was again being introduced to the world of great wines and champagnes! Wheeeee! :P

Fr left : Vine cherry tomato with watermelon & cucumber granite, oyster bar : freshly shucked, tempura & ponzu, baby spinach with Pernod, nutmeg & parmesan gratin, ginger infused foie gras, balsamic, green apple and fresh fig and last but not least, pan seared Hokkaido scallop, micro cress, garlic and gelee of apple extract.

Ahem.

These were just the canapés!

I love love the oysters. In all honesty, i really would just go back for these, especially the baby spinach with Pernod, nutmeg and parmesan gratin version, yummehh. I don’t mind a dozen!

Oh.. by the way, the oyster bar will be free flow from 7-8pm during the dinner. Can you say, YAY?

Fr left : Tian of vine ripened tomato, pine nut, guacomole, mango salsa, shiso and braised courgette, Sauteed risotto soja with mascarpone and parmesan($42++), 300 days grain-fed Rangers Valley Black Angus tenderloin, truffle celeriac mash, panache of baby vegetables and red wine jus, and, Black and white sesame seed crusted blue fin tuna tataki marinated in soy.

Unfortunately, my sauteed risotto soja with mascarpone and parmesan ($42++) will not be in the menu during this anniversary dinner. The oh so kind Chef Reynaldo Arriola surprised me with this mind blowing carb-free risotto when i informed them that i’d not be having the beef and tuna — yup, no mains for me due to personal reason.

Carb free risotto?

Yup, i hear you. ;)

The rice grain that you see here is actually bean sprout bits. Can you believe that? Quite something isn’t it? Great for ladies and gentlemen who wants something light for their meal.

So did i have the tuna?

In the end, i did –  but, only after they assured me that the blue fin tuna used here is farmed in Australia. Nothing to do with the endangered species out there in the ocean right now. Phew!

After every dish, the sweet looking sommelier in training would appear next to the table and took pain in explaining every single wine served that night. Altogether, 6 wines mind you.

My favourite wine that night?
(from a noob’s palate)

Astoria Casa Vittorino Valdobbiandene Prosecco Superiore DOCG, Veneta Italy.

Varietal : Prosecco DOCG. Fine, elegant and persistent perlage. Pale straw yellow colour with greenish reflections. The bouquet is intense, clean cut and fruity. Dry, full, savoury and harmonious.

Fresh baked fig tart, bacon pear ice cream, almond date, brie cheese, sour cream sabayon, wild mountain honey.

Last but not least, my favourite course of all time!

To be honest, it was this dessert that got me sit up and paid more attention to the email when i received the invite. :P

Bacon pear ice cream?!?!

I was asked if i wanted to substitute this with ermm, meat-free ice cream? Tempted as i was, i shook my head. Seriously. Bacon pear ice cream! Who would in the right mind to substitute this? This is die die must try lorrr. I mean, how often do you come across bacon ice cream?!

So how did it taste like? Do i like it?

Mmmm.. honestly, you cannot ask me this question since i merely tried it out of curiosity. I just took one small spoon and pushed it to one side. Salty, but sweet at the same time, together with bacon bits in every spoonful (the kitchen is sure generous! ;)), it’s a love or hate affair. It’s either you hate it or you love it. Very personal methinks.

What i really loved about this dessert was the fresh figs and the brie cheese which i took my own sweet time to savour bit by bit when others’ plates were already been cleared. Grin. OH! And the wild mountain honey cream was LOVE.

Seeing how stuffed we were, we were promptly served Hot Halia Infusion (House specialty of sun-dried ginger & wild mountain honey) $10 to aid digestion.

Man, i sure don’t mind having this particular cuppa every day in between meals. ;)

10th Anniversary Celebrations Sparkling Dinner Menu

RSVP deadline is on Tuesday, 25th October 2011 – 4pm. To book, or if you’ve got any queries, kindly contact Alice Tang at 65-62870711, or email : alicetang@halia.com.sg

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Thank you Karen and Halia for the fun girls’ night out! (Calvin not counted :P)