Tag: Celebrations

Turning 28 At Nieuw Amsterdam

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Turning a year older is no doubt a special occasion. But this year, it was really special to me. Next year, I will be celebrating as a mum! (: Can’t be any more excited about that! As we get older, birthdays just become a time where we head out to have good food. No longer did we have the huge celebrations, just quiet ones now, which I actually enjoy more! Just a small intimate affair with my loved ones. hehe

Nieuw Amsterdam

Address : 106-112 Hardware Street

Melbourne Vic 3000

Website

Nieuw Amsterdam has been on my to-go list for a while now, so I knew exactly where I wanted to go to celebrate turning a year older! Absolutely loved the atmosphere when we stepped into this American Bistro, and the wait staff were really friendly as well!

Our drinks

Being pregnant, I couldn’t have any alcohol, so I ordered lemon lime bitters instead. The sister-in-law couldn’t resist the cider and the Mr had a dark beer (sorry I didn’t get the exact name! haha). The food at Nieuw Amsterdam are mainly sharing plates and that’s exactly what we did! Although we did order quite a bit. haha We were definitely hungry (:

New York Sour Dough

The night of food started with a loaf of New York sourdough with some beautiful creamy butter! It had a really crispy outer crust and the bread was still soft in the middle. We definitely wanted more of it, but was reserving our stomach space for the food we ordered! hehe

Pig trotter and ham hock nuggets

These little gold nuggets were absolutely delicious! With a great crunch with every bite, the mixture of pig trotters and ham hock just melts in your mouth and you wouldn’t be able to resist going for more! Sitting on the nugget is a thin slice of a pickled radish, which cuts through the richness of the dish. AMAZING!

BBQ Scallops with mango gazpacho, avocado and chilli

Our second appetiser is perfectly cooked BBQ scallops sitting in mango gazpacho, with avocado and chilli! Scallops are one of my favourite ingredients of all time. I could have it in any way – sashimi, pan fried, grilled. Give it to me! haha Though it seems like there is a lot of flavours going on, but everything worked together!

Chicken waffles

I was craving for waffles for the longest time, so when I saw this on the menu, I couldn’t resist! A thin waffle topped with chicken terrine, pate and a super crispy chicken skin! YUM! Don’t worry, I didn’t have my pate hehe but it was still delish! The small but mighty chilli jam just brings the whole dish together and the flavour of sweet and spicy just bursts in your mouth! I was one happy girl! hehe

Southern style pork belly chops

This, my dear readers, was the best dish of the night. Tender and melt-in-your-mouth pork belly which was just full of flavour, topped with pork crackling and sauerkraut! Couldn’t get enough of it and just wanted to devour the whole bowl!

Southern style pork belly chops

Absolutely divine! A definitely most order dish when you do head there! (:

Jerk chicken

The Mr chose the jerk chicken dish with crispy rice and black bean puree! The jerk chicken was tender and had a good chilli kick to it and went really well with the crispy rice! The only down part of this was the pineapple salad, which really was just pieces of pineapple, and was a tad bit sweet for my liking.

Smoked beef brisket

I chose the last main : Smoked beef brisket with carrot remoulade! I requested for the beef to be cooked through, and it wasn’t tough! Wheee! (: So thankful that the chefs were happy to accommodate to my dietary requirements!

Dutch potato fries with spiced garlic mayo

As a side, we got the dutch potato fries with a side of spiced garlic mayo! Can’t turn down crispy thick cut fries. Simple but delish!

The Nieuw chocolate bar

As we were all quite full by the time we finished our appetisers and mains, we decided to share just one dessert. The one that caught my attention is the Nieuw Chocolate Bar! When it came, I couldn’t be happier with my choice! A rich and decadent chocolate bar topped with banana cake, brûlée bananas and tonka bean ice cream! It was so yum I wanted to have another, though there wasn’t much space left in my tummy. haha

 It was definitely a great night and I can’t thank the Mr and sister-in-law enough to celebrate this special day with me! Nothing beats celebrating with loved ones and having great food is just the icing on the cake! Will definitely be back to try the other dishes on the menu! hehe

Nieuw Amsterdam on Urbanspoon

 

Have a great weekend everyone!

Remember to always cook and bake with love! 

Celebrating a Marriage : Anada

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Karen's big day!

A couple of weeks back, I was lucky enough to attend a friend’s special day and it was beautiful (: After the ceremony, we went for a small celebration and I was asked to find a place that would be fitting for the occasion. I think I found the perfect place!

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Anada has been on my to-go list for the longest time, and I was so glad we headed there to celebrate their beautiful day! It’s such a cosy place and the ambience was perfect! Not to mention how delicious the food was! I’ve not had spanish food ever since I came back from Barcelona, and that was almost a year back! How time flies!

We were seated at the long table by the window and I was seated at the sofa seats, facing the restaurant. I love being able to see the hustling & bustling of the kitchen, staff and the bar. Just makes the night even more interesting!

Drinks of the night

Of course, I couldn’t have any drinks that night. I stuck to my water. But our friends ordered a couple to try! You can’t really go wrong with ordering Sangria at a Spanish restaurant. The cava sangria had a good balance of cava and citrus, just what a sangria should be! The newly weds ordered the cocktail – papa doble. It was refreshing and had a really good citrus flavour! Definitely something I will try once I can have a drink (or two haha)

As for the food, we decided to order some tapas, a main and a couple of paellas to share among the 6 of us. We were actually quite filled up by the end of the night!

fried cauliflower

The first tapas we had was the fried cauliflower with zataar and house yoghurt. This was my favourite tapas of the night! The cauliflower was nicely caramelised on the outside, soft and tender on the inside. Together with the tangy house yoghurt, it was absolutely delicious!  Wanted to order one all for me (and bub)! hehe

fried aubergine

Next up, the fried aubergine with a dollop of labne, chilli and mint! This was really flavourful but would have been even better if the aubergine was slightly warmer. It went really well with the labne though!

Bone marrow on toast

The last tapas we ordered was the bone marrow on toast with wagyu cecina. I’m not a huge fan of bone marrow and I couldn’t have the cecina, so I gave this a miss. However, everyone else said that it was a very delicious small treat! They definitely enjoyed this a lot cause they were still talking about it at the end of dinner!

Crispy pork belly

This, ladies and gentlemen, is hands down the best dish of the night! Crispy pork belly with meat that melts in your mouth, sitting on a bed of smokey aubergine. I was definitely in pork heaven after my very first bite! The crackling was so crispy and perfectly seasoned, I wanted more!

Chicken and seafood paella

After all the tapas and pork belly, we were definitely looking forward to the paellas! Haven’t really had good paella in Melbourne so I was really hoping this place would be it! And it sure didn’t disappoint! The chicken and seafood paella was flavoursome and the rice was al dente, just the way it should be!

arroz negro paella

The squid ink paella was also really delicious, and there is just something sexy about the black rice against the seafood. haha but it might just be me thinking that! I have to admit though, I do prefer the chicken and seafood one. I think it might be because I have a constant craving for tomatoey food! hehe

Anada

We definitely enjoyed ourselves at Anada, and I can definitely say that I will be back again for the fried cauliflower and the crispy pork belly! Can’t wait!

Añada on Urbanspoon

Would just like to congratulate Karen and Patrick on their beautiful marriage. May you have endless years of love for each other, and may it continue to grow every single day! (: Hope your week is going well dear readers, remember to always cook and bake with love! Till the next post, xx

{SG} One Year On

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One year anniversary dinner

Time really flies, especially when you’re enjoying every second of every day. It’s already been 1 year since I married the love of my life! I can still remember the moment I said I do, and how he passed all the games set by my bridesmaids and opened my room door. I could still remember the smile on his face the moment he lifted my veil. Beautiful memories that I would always remember, and be thankful for. (: To mark our first year of marriage, the mr planned a romantic dinner at Salt Grill & Sky Bar. It’s located at the top of Ion (one of the newest shopping malls in Singapore) and has an amazing view! We went through a secret walkway to a pair of private lifts that lead us to the 55th level! The moment we exited the lifts till we were walked to our tables, I couldn’t stop saying wow in my head! haha

View from Salt

Just breath-taking! Couldn’t get enough of the skyline. Thankfully we had a window-seat, so I could take in the whole view, all night long (: Salt Grill & Sky Bar is opened by Luke Mangan, and not surprisingly, the mr chose a place that serves Modern Australian cuisine. We’ve never been to restaurants by Luke Mangan before (his first Salt is in Sydney), so we thought, why not? hehe I have to say, the mr was spot on with his choice! We were served by a very warm and personal staff, who looked after our every needs through the night. He made it a point to make sure we were enjoying our food and also made sure it was a night for us to remember.

pan seared scallops

One look at the menu, and I knew exactly what I wanted. I have a habit (a good one I would like to think) to order scallops as my entree whenever I’m at a fine-dining restaurant. For some reason, the scallop dish is always one of the stand outs of the night. And this was no different! The scallops were cooked to perfection, so so tender and mildly sweet. It was a perfect match with the chorizo sausages too! I slowly savoured each one, but I wanted more. hehe

tempura quail breast

The mr ordered the tempura quail breast with roasted legs. When it arrived, you could immediately tell it had some japanese influence to it. The quail was cooked to perfection and was very tender and succulent. The good thing was it was cooked different ways and the tempura version added a good crunch to the dish. YUM!

Veal with foie gras and mustard crust

Then came the main. I had the veal that is seared and poached to a perfect medium-rare that had a yummy foie gras and mustard crust, served with a pumpkin custard and red wine sauce. I don’t usually have veal, but this was really good! Though it was a little rare for my liking, the flavours were sensational! The foie gras just melted in my mouth and the sweetness of the pumpkin custard balances the dish out.

Crispy skin salmon

Though I liked my dish, I loved the mr’s dish more! hehe Doesn’t that always happen? You tend to love the dish your partner orders, and secretly hope he would give you more. That was me that night! The salmon was cooked to perfection! Super crispy skin, and still pink in the middle. Definitely a very good choice made by the mr. Amazing! Definitely recommend this if you’re a fan of seafood.

our sides

And as if we didn’t have enough food on our table, we decided to order some sides to share : roast mushrooms in garlic butter and truffle oil & parmesan fries. We loved the mushrooms; they were just little explosion of flavours in our mouth! So so good (: The truffle fries were alright, didn’t have the wow factor, but having a side of fries just worked with what we had.

pear tarte tatin

Of course, we couldn’t not order sweets! A little digestive for the night. hehe One dessert that I cannot go pass is a tarte tatin. It would always be one of my first choice of desserts. The first one I had was at Mr Hive’s Kitchen & Bar and that blew my mind! This one was a little smaller, and was also really delicious! Puff pastry and soft poached pears all caramelised and topped with some creme anglaise and double cream. HEAVEN!

Creme brulee

As I ordered something I love, it’s only fair the mr did too. Without a doubt, he chose the creme brulee. Plus, they were serving it with his favourite salted caramel ice cream! So I knew he was gonna pick this! The pastry chef was so sweet to write Happy Anniversary on the edge of the bowl! Was a super touching surprise. hehe Love personal touches like that! (: Just makes the night even better than it already was.

My love

Just want to say Happy Anniversary to my dearest mr once again! (: This post is late, but just want to tell you that I had an awesome night, and I am so blessed and thankful to have you in my life. I love you! Thank you for being you.

Happy Mid Week everyone! (: Remember to always cook and bake with love!

A Sweet Affair

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Remember my last visit at Mr Hive’s Kitchne & Bar? Yes. I went back for more. This time I brought my mr and his family for a very special occasion: My in-law’s 29th wedding anniversary! I was so glad I decided to bring them there cause we were pampered from the very moment we were shown to our tables!

As I did let Mr Hive know, when I was booking the table, that we were celebrating a wedding anniversary, we were given a glass of champagne each to start the dinner off! I knew instantly that it was going to be a spectacular night! I couldn’t stop smiling and my in-laws were definitely really happy! (:

Mr Hive’s Kitchen & Bar

Address : 8 Whiteman Street, Southbank Vic 

Phone : 03 9292 8300

Though the service was exemplary for the whole night, the highlight of the evening was definitely when we adjourned to the dessert bar to fix our sweet tooth! I don’t usually have second posts for food reviews, but our experience that night is definitely worthy of my double post! Please do not get me wrong, the food was delicious, but we pretty much had the same dishes as my first visit, so I thought I would just focus on the desserts. Besides, who doesn’t like desserts? hehe Miss D would be with me on this! haha

We were lucky to dine at Mr Hive’s on a week night, so it was quite quiet and there was an empty dessert bar waiting for us! Having never seen a pastry chef plate desserts before, it was a great first experience for the mr and his family as well!

The moment we sat down, we were greeted by the friendly pastry chef – Chef Mario! We looked through the menu and ordered instantly. Then he started plating desserts. It was like watching a cook show right infront of our eyes! Although it was my second time, I still enjoyed it. You could tell he took pride in every single dessert he was plating.

He started plating individual portions of the yoghurt mousse with rhubarb compote and szechuan ice cream. We thought it was for another table, as we didn’t order actually this. Little did we know, it was a complimentary dessert for us as a gift for my in-law’s wedding anniversary again! Are they amazing or what? Not one but two gifts! The flavours just complimented each other. There was the lightness of the mousse with the slight hint of spiciness from the ice cream and crunch of the white chocolate crumble. NOMS!

Then came the apple tart tatin which had another surprise for my in-laws. They not only wrote happy anniversary on the board, but   also came with candles! That really made all of us smile! The tart tatin was perfect. The apples were so well caramelised and the tart was crispy and buttery. It was made to order, so it was still piping hot when served! Together with brandy cream and a scoop of vanilla ice cream. Match-made in heaven!

Chef Mario portioned it and even gave each of us a scoop of ice cream to go with our slice! It was so good, I could continue eating it the whole night! There’s just something about a dessert that had both cold and hot elements. Makes my taste buds tingle (:

Of course, I couldn’t not order the Mr Hive’s chocolate bar when I dine at Mr Hive’s. It’s rich and decadent and the base is crunchy! If you know me, you know I love desserts with different textures. This definitely tick all the boxes! hehe And you know what’s even better?

This.

Chef Mario took the plate before I could, and split it into 5 portions and re-platted them individually with a beautifully quenelled peanut ice cream! In fact, the one that was served with the whole chocolate bar melted slightly, and he threw that away and quenelled 5 more for us! That’s how much pride he takes in his desserts! We were so impressed! hehe

The last dessert we ordered was of course the ricotta cheesecake because my mr’s dad loves cheesecake! Plus it was one of the prettiest desserts I’ve ever seen!

Of course, Chef Mario presented the dessert and then took it and replated it into individual portions again! What’s more amazing is that there were only 4 pieces of cheesecake but he just added another cause there were 5 of us!

How pretty is the individual portions? Every single plate looked like that. How could you not be touched? I couldn’t stop saying “wow!” both verbally and in my head. haha

And just you think there can’t be more. He picks up 5 glass bottles and starts preparing the grand finale! He started squeezing some chocolate milk with milo powder and tops the glass bottles with a salted caramel truffle! Trust me. That’s like the best truffle you will ever have. You bite into it and there’s an explosion of salted caramel in your mouth. LOVE.

I absolutely adore the straws they give to slurp the delicious, thick chocolate milk. I really need to go get some from Wheel & Barrow! hehe (:

So I can definitely say it was a night we will definitely remember! And we left Mr Hive’s with happy bellies!

Happy Wedding Anniversary to my dearest in-laws! It was great to celebrate this special day with the whole family! (: Our compliments to the chef and staff of Mr Hive’s! Thank you so much for making this day even more special than it already is!

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