Last Mookata of the Year

This truly was our last Mookata for the year. 

Because we had it in the afternoon of the last day of the 2022 year. 

I had been a little surprised when my friend told me we were going to a new place for Mookata. 

I had thought we might be going to (some) of our regular ones. 

But he had discovered this place, and he had said that it was a good deal.

So we went. 

I don't know the name of this place.

But I know it sits in the food court of this office building we call CT Hub located somewhere between Kallang Industrial Estate and Lavender Road. 

This place would've been crowded on weekdays, but what with today being a holiday, it was nearly empty, save for a senior couple, whom on account of the holiday, had dabaoed a small feast (from elsewhere) and were relishing their meal at one of the tables at the back.

The place, however, didn't stay quiet for long. 

It began filling up just as the ingredients for the Mookata arrived at our table. 

I was delighted at how pretty everything looked.

No haphazard, half-hearted toss anywhere- everything had its own little place on its own little tray, all thoughtfully dropped, all carefully arranged.

It being New Year's Eve, we ordered a lot of meat. 

Lots and lots of meat.

To be honest I can't quite remember what they were, but I think we had pork, pork belly, chicken, beef(?) and some other meats marinated and unmarinated otherwise. 

When it came to the seafood we decided not to go for the prawns, crayfish or even the mussels, but stuck to scallops and scallops alone. 

There were quite a bit of veggies though. 

And of course, the typical foods I call standard hotpot fare. 

It was a lovely meal we had. 

My friend worked the grill, continuously placing chunks of pork lard, crab sticks, and slices of meat. 

I, on the other hand, dunked the sweet corn, the green leafy vegetables, the mushrooms and the cheese tofu into the moat. 

For a while we considered dropping the scallops into the moat as well, but then decided it nicer to have them grilled instead. 

I loved hearing the sound of meat sizzling on the grill. 

I also loved seeing the colors of green, white and yellow contrast with the browns of the meats.

They made the Mookata look so fresh and pretty!

Perhaps some might say that I should set my expectations to glasses of champagne and red wine, that I am worth celebrating the new year in air-conditioned environments.

But, why must I, when the atmosphere here was friendly, the vibe was fun, and it felt great to be amongst like-minded diners sitting in the canteen-like food court, enjoying what can only be described as a shiok, shiok meal?

Christmas with The Nikon

Coming to Orchard Road during Christmas time is an annual pilgrimage for me.

Growing up I don't think there was a year where we didn't come down to see the lights. 

That was a time when shopping centers along the stretch went all out with their decorations to win the "Best Dressed Shopping Center" (something like that) accolade and prize. 

It tended to be Centerpoint (I don't know why).

As the years went by, we came down to Orchard Road for different things.

Sometimes we shopped here for presents.

Other times we shopped here for wrapping paper.

Eventually we made special trips down to Orchard Road just for Christmas coffees and Christmas lights. 

We haven't been here in recent years, but I like my traditions, I like to keep them that way and it's always fun to share (unedited) pictures with them in any case. 

Last year's route took me from somewhere outside Plaza Singapura all the way past Somerset and finally to Tangs Plaza on the other end of the road.

So my pictures here (unexpectedly) look a little cyberpunk, but trust me, they didn't look like that on Orchard Road, and certainly they weren't intended to be this way.

With a better camera I could have done better, prettier pictures. 

(A poor workman quarrels with his tools)

But we'll make do with these. :)

Along the way that evening I made a couple of pit stops.

First one was by 313 Somerset- for their glittery, shiny, nicely decorated entrance, their Christmas tree (right outside Typo and Fancl) and their shops.

After that I went past the present Hilton Hotel towards Ngee Ann City where I stopped to soak in a bit of atmosphere in the outdoors Christmas Village and then the towering Ralph Lauren-sponsored Christmas tree.

Stopping by these places meant a bit of an extra walk, of course, plus the bit about fighting the crowds inside the malls jostling to take pictures, but how does one walk past a tree like this and not want to take a picture of it?

And how does one not want to at least take a detour through the Christmas Village at the Civic Plaza to soak in the atmosphere of the food booths, the kiddy rides and all the lights?

It's not possible. 

At least not for me. 

I'm the sort who doesn't like to miss a festive occasion, especially those that hold deep significance to me.

It can be on a smaller scale, a quieter scale even, but I aim never to miss it.

Whether it be birthdays, Chinese New Year, Easter, Christmas or just about any occasion that speaks to me, I leap into it all. 

And for Christmas, well, it is, after all, at the close of the year, just once a year, and no matter what, the trees, the lights, the food and the winds are well worth a season of celebration, a season of joy, and a season of smiles. 

Zenso Mookata in December

This was not our last mookata for the year. 

But it was the last we had at Zenso in Sunshine Plaza.

The mookata set here probably has to be one of our most favorite food discoveries of the year. 

It is at this place where we decided that we didn't necessarily need unlimited servings of beef, pork, chicken, crayfish, crabs, prawns or hotpot foods to call it a good mookata.

Neither did we need a free flow supply of drinks or fruits or ice creams for dessert. 

All we needed was a suitable portion, a good selection of variety, and a fun dining atmosphere. 

Zenso has it. 

I've come to appreciate the food here. 

No, that's not true.

I fell in love with it after the very first time. 

One thing I truly appreciated was how aesthetic they had made the ingredient tray out to be. 

Everything was beautifully arranged, nothing like those places where the meats are dumped so untidily that the customer feels like they're eating raw leftovers frozen twenty times over.

 They didn't stinge on the portions either, and best of all, everything came out fresh and chilled from the freezer.

Over the months we've figured out how best to eat some of the foods presented on this tray.

It's almost automatic.

First thing we put in the center of the dome are pieces of the frozen lard.

After that we lay out some of the meats, quick-cook ones first (because we're usually hungry)

Following that we chuck most of the lala clams into the clear chicken soup. 

Around this time the first batch of meats are ready and we start eating.

More meats on the grill immediately follow. 

So do the prawns, which, to my surprise, cook really fast and are really sweet.

The crabsticks we place at the corners of the dome. 

And the sausages we line them all along the edge so they don't roll off.

We've made several new discoveries along the way.

Like how sotongs are better cooked when you boil them in the soup before placing them on the grill.

And you can place your corn in the soup or on the grill, it's nice either way.

There're some foods that go straight into the moat.

Like the fish balls- because grilled ones somehow become hard and dry.

And cheese tofu- because it's quite nice seeing them all plumped up after they're boiled. 

I tend to boil the dory fish as well- they're less dry and softer that way.

And of course, nothing beats interposing your palate of freshly grilled meat with a steaming bowlful of mama instant noodles, a heap of lettuces, cabbages, mushrooms and green leafy vegetables, and some warm, tasty, lard-enhanced, naturally-flavored soup.

Maybe one day I'll try placing some of these little mushrooms straight onto the grill. 

Or maybe I'll keep some of the unmarinated meats for the moat and cook them in the style of shabu shabu. 

Either way I think they'll make the meal taste just as good. 

Christmas @ Home 2022

Looking through these pictures of our Christmas celebration at home last year, it's kind of interesting that there're more pictures of our little Christmas tree as compared to previous years. 

I don't know why.

Maybe the light that afternoon was good. 

Maybe because Christmas trees have always had a significant place in our household and it always warms our heart when we see one.

And maybe because we remember the large tree that used to stand by the door.

Putting up the Christmas tree was always a big thing between The Parents and I.

Never mind that we had the same decor, and the same lights for years. 

But then one day we decided it time to switch to a smaller tree and so got this one from Takashimaya's Christmas fair instead. 

I fancy trees like these. 

You can't really see it but there's decor of charming little ribbons, cute little gift boxes, and rich red apples. 

We added the mini golden streamers  and the colorful pail ourselves.

Christmas lunch this year was celebrated the same way we'd been doing for several years past. 

I know how people like to say that you're supposed to have the creamed soups, the roast, the potatoes, the ham, even the salmon, the log cake, and the minced pies.

Maybe one day I'll buy back the little log cakes I once used to buy.

But these days we skip the fish and chips, the grilled chicken, the cocktail fruits and even the ice cream. 

Instead we opt to have our favorite dishes bought up from the coffee shop downstairs. 

And we opt to have things like frozen lor mai kais got from the supermarket that we throw into the rice cooker. 

And siew mais- which are a long-term favorite of mine and so always have them at the table.

This year we decided to get some fried rice from the zichar stall downstairs, throwing in a couple of lettuce leaves, seafood wantons and hot dogs into the mix.

Then afterwards we had a bit of soup with tomatoes, lettuce, cuttlefish balls and more hot dogs thrown in. 

And after our meal, for dessert, we chose to have little cups of vanilla ice cream together with familiar brown cups of coffee. 

It's a simple meal. 

It looks like a simple meal.

But not really so either. 

Especially when I consider who it is I'm eating with more important than what it is being served at the table. 

A Fengshan Hawker Dinner

Always a delight it is when I get to have a good meal at one of my favorite night time hawker centers in the country. 

Blk 85 Fengshan, or Fengshan, as it's more commonly known, is one of the most popular hawker centers in the East for afternoon lunches, meals and late night suppers. 

I've not been there very much for afternoon meals.

Nor for supper either.

Dinner, I guess, is more my thing. 

It is the usual case that we have bowls of pork and century egg porridge whenever we come here. 

But sometimes, like today, we try for other foods.

Having vacillated between porridge, Ah Balling tangyuan in peanut soup, and ngoh hiang, we decided to forgo all of them and try out one of the zichar stalls instead. 

I don't know which stall it is my friend went to, but our order came back as a whole plate of salted egg chicken. 

And it was good. 

Was it oily? 

Yes, of course- you could see the layer of oil on the lettuce shimmering brightly under the white glare of the lights above. 

But it didn't matter.

Salted egg chicken is one of those dishes that must have the shiok factor. 

Otherwise it's a waste of tummy space, money and time. 

I'm a little particular when it comes to my zichar dishes, especially ones like these. 

Because I've had salted egg dishes where the seasoning is but a mere scatter and there's hardly any satisfaction at all. 

But when done well this dish will grant you that balance of crisp and taste combining the best of flavors- salty, rounded (from the egg), and with a faint distinctive taste of sweet. 

It's very appetising.

What's more, we didn't just go for the zichar alone. 

It's not possible to come to a hawker center like Fengshan and have just one dish.

No, one must support local. 

So we ordered more food in the form of satay, and char kuay teow. 

The satay was good- grilled so well that you could taste the slightly smoky, slightly burnt feel on each skewer of mutton and beef meat.

One thing I wasn't expecting though was to have the smokiness lingering on the palate but there were all these raw onions on the plate in front of me, and their natural spicy taste easily dispelled it all.

If it was the satay that I liked, it was the kuay teow that I enjoyed.

Maybe because I'd really missed it.

It wasn't a small plate, mind you.

In fact it was rather large, the portion, and fairly well fried, with a hint of sweet, a lot of salty and infused with a lot of wok hei. 

One little thing I did wish for, however, was that they'd have more of the kuay teow than the noodle. 

(I'm a kuay teow type of girl.)

But there be hawker stalls and hawker centers for you, and they're not places that you- at your whim and fancy- can go up to the stall owner and comment. 

Especially since each hawker has their own style, their own technique, even their own gauge of portioning, so it's up to you the diner to go about hunting for your (most) apt one.

Talking about local food oft turns into a fierce discussion when one really gets down to it. 

But not for all dishes, and not always all the time either.

Unless you're talking about chicken rice, bak chor mee, prawn noodles, fried Hokkien noodles, ayam goreng, mee rebus and, these days, sometimes, even the (varying) standards of kopi.

Eve of NYE at ESTATE

Eve of the eve of New Year's Day 2023 saw us having dinner at one of the new favorite discoveries that we had made during the course of the year.

It was lovely- it really was.

Because I had (quietly) hoped to end the year with a meal at Hilton Orchard's ESTATE. 

Why, or what, it is that has made me appreciate the buffet here at this restaurant, I don't exactly know.

But we've been here a couple of times, and I'm still happy to come. 

Their ambience, perhaps, plays a part.

As well as the light, clear duck consomme soup served at one of their stations.

It's amazing what a bowl of warm, clear soup can do for you.

Especially when you're hungry but you don't know yet what on the buffet line you want to eat. 

There was a time in my life when I'd begin my dinner with a bowl of creamed soup and a bread bun thickly spread with butter.

But I don't do that anymore. 

Buffet dining has instead become something more strategic, and I like heading straight for the chilled seafood station before the rest of the crowd comes. 

ESTATE is no stinge when it comes to their seafood. 

In the couple of times I've been there, there've always been a mountain of freshly-shucked oysters, another mountain of fresh, chilled prawns, and large serving trays filled with ice upon which balance scallops, mussels, and sometimes those little crayfish we call xiao long sia.

My friend likes his plate full of nothing but oysters, oysters and oysters.

I however like to fill my plate with a combination of oysters, scallops and prawns.

When it was I started enjoying prawns chilled this way, I don't know, but since then I've always found myself taking a prawn or two and eating it with mayonnaise, or Thousand Island, with a little squeeze of lemon.

I've also started eating scallops the same way. 

Maybe one day I should try it with vinegar- something less creamy, more Asian-like. 

Then again, maybe I won't.

I'm not very particular to the kind of cuisine that I take when I'm at a buffet like this one.

Depending on what's on the menu, I  can swing towards the Continental, or I can be more Asian.

There have been times when I've gone for sweet potatoes, baked salmon, baked broccoli, zucchini, and stewed meat.

There also have been times when I've gone for the dim sum selections (hello crystal paus) and a chunk off their block of fried chye tow kuay aka radish cake.

Today's menu saw me taking a blend of foods.

On one hand I took a couple plates of their signature truffle roast duck.

On the other hand I took several slices of roast beef, sweet potatoes, a skewer or two, and pork belly cooked Continental/European style. 

I don't know why I took the pork belly (curiosity maybe) but I certainly know why four plates of truffle roast duck were there in front of me. 

And it didn't include my companion's share.

Another five belonged to him.

Besides the roast duck (which you must have- the meat's so tender and the skin's so full of flavor) today I found myself taking a couple slices of their French bread and some of their brioche.

It's not often that I take this much bread. 

But appetites fluctuate, and between us we had six slices all generously spread with their regal-looking unsalted French butter. 

There was salmon belly sashimi, of course, from the sushi station, and is a dish that you're recommended to go for.

Not because there aren't any salmon belly sashimi sold elsewhere, but because they serve it up all nice and chilled and cold and it's so popular that it runs out super fast and you have to make a special request to the aunty wielding the knife to help you cut some.

Most of the time she asks us to wait.

And we do. :)

There are times when I take unusual foods simply for the reason that they look so pretty in their serving bowls.

Like these yellow cherry tomatoes, which although I have boxes of them at home, I decided to grab a handful. 

(They reminded me of the yellow cherry tomatoes The Parents always buy)

Together with these sweet tomatoes I decided- on impulse- to get a tongful of fried noodles to eat with the fried soy cubes that came with the truffle roast duck. 

I think the combination worked rather well. 

After all the mains came, of course, dessert. 

Which, by the way, requires a bit of strategic planning over here at ESTATE. 

First thing you must (and live live die die will want) to go for are these little glass jars of specially packed dessert. 

I don't know what this dessert is called. 

I can never remember the name.

Heck, I cannot even recall precisely what flavors they are.

All I know is that there's one with citrus and meringue, there's one with hazelnut-something, there's one with some sort of marsala wine, and then there's a tiramisu. 

If I'm not wrong there's one with a blueberry compote in there somewhere.

Diners who can finish five jars of dessert impress me.

But leave room, however, for the signature Hilton cheesecake.

Yes, it's a little bit of a small cute slice, but it's rich enough, and it is pretty good. 

Today I took two jars of those desserts, and then after that, went for a little bit of hazelnut-chocolate cake, a little bit of red velvet cake, some frosted cake which I cannot remember what it actually was but I know it was a piece so small I finished it in one bite.

You know, it's been a few months since I've had this meal here at ESTATE, and much in my life has changed, but the thought of coming back here is always pleasant, always charming, and also, something I look forward to.

Perhaps I don't get to go there as often as I'd love to (diet, mood and all) but just like Christmas which comes year after year, may there be more oysters, more scallops, and more of those little jar desserts in 2023 too. :)

META Expo @ MBS

Coming here to Marina Bay Sands for the META Expo one weekday afternoon I found myself wondering how different things would have been had it been held at, say, a year or so ago.

See, crypto, blockchain, gamefi or defi (for that matter) has not had the best of years.

This isn't bias..

It's in the news. 

How far it's affected the metaverse and the worlds linked to it, I don't know, but from the looks of it, there's definitely a bit of lull and much of the crowd that I saw seemed slightly more cautious, less woke, and maybe a tad more severe. 

It's not just crypto or defi.

META hasn't had the most fantastic of years either.

Perhaps it affected the layman's general interest in the metaverse. 

Perhaps not. 

That's not to say that the metaverse and multiverse and blockchain is solely influenced by META. 

Of course not. 

Multiverses, parallel universes, and the concept of it have been around for a very long time. 

That being said, I'm not being biased against Horizon Worlds either.

They're there.

They will continue to be there. 

Except that, perhaps, at some point or another there'll be the expected competition, the expected directions and the expected definitions. 

No one's really sure how the year(s) ahead for metaverse and multiverse will be, but if there's one thing they're doing, they (and the crew) are definitely keeping their heads up working hard to maintain its flow. 

I liked some of the opinions that were shared. 

Didn't matter that I'd heard some of them before. 

Didn't matter either that they were a little vague about their thoughts. 

I just liked the fact that they were continuing to develop gamefi, continuing to develop material and content to keep the gamefi, and not undermining efforts to what the technology, and markets were about. 

Would've been better, of course, had there been more people to discuss the present situation, the possible solutions. their opinions and trending views. 

They just weren't there this year.

(I guess that's why there wasn't coffee...)

But it's a season of caution. 

And so we saw a conference (about future tech) with a very, very different atmosphere. 

I wouldn't consider it a bad thing, however. 

There were sharings I valued- like how the term Web 3.0 had been coined by (someone) in Microsoft more than twenty five years ago, 

You know, there's hardly an industry in the world that has never seen a lull. 

Maybe the speakers and the sponsors might have mostly come from one territory this year, but there's no saying that there won't be more sponsors next year, and there's no saying that they won't be coming from other territories in another year. 

Pizzamaru's Chicken (and Pizza)

The first time we ate at Pizzamaru was at JEWEL where we ordered their pizza.

The second time we ate at Pizzamaru we ordered two types of chicken, plus their pizza. 

It's quite easy to forget that Pizzamaru offers both chicken and pizza. 

Maybe because they tend to talk about their pizza more than they talk about their chicken. 

But best it is not to forget they have it. 

Because their chicken (and their pizza) is really, really good. 

Being in Bugis Plus this evening, we were trying to decide between Turkish, waffles or sushi. 

Then my friend suggested Pizzamaru. 

(They had a good deal!)

So we went. 

I was secretly hoping to have two types of fried chicken (because I like both yang nyum and honey butter and they do it good) but then I looked over to the next table and realized that each basket had, like, five pieces of the bird each and two types of chicken would mean ten pieces altogether for just the two of us and that seemed a little too much.

So we decided on a pizza, and a basket of chicken instead. 

Their pizza is a must when you're at their place. 

It don't matter what kind of pizza you order. 

They're all good. 

The last time we had their pizza I think we chose a broccoli and mushroom (or something) with green tea dough.

So we got a Hawaiian this time.

I was pleasantly surprised when the pizza arrived at our table. 

You know how some Hawaiian pizzas come served with the cheese all over the place, hams all over the place and in some cases, a miserable few chunks of hard, dry, tasteless pineapple that fall off at first bite?

Not so here. 

Not only were there juicy sweet chunks of pineapple skillfully attached to the soft, melty, gooey cheese, there were medium sized chubby shrimps above little circles of ham all around the pizza. 

It's as if you were meant to have both the shrimps and the ham together. 

And it's as if you were meant to have the pineapple and the cheese together.

I liked how the pineapple didn't fall off the cheese. 

I also liked how the ham added a little bit of saltiness to the shrimp and the bread and the cheese with that feel of meaty chew without it being too overwhelming. 

Perhaps the most notable thing about the pizza was the crust. 

Some pizza breads tend to leave you feeling very jialat. 

This one here, however, was light, doughy, chewy and (if you were all dressed up and trying to be girly), nibbly as well. 

You know, now that I think about it, it was the same with the chicken as well.

Their chicken is one of those things where you can be feminine and girly (hair tied up in hair bands, hair clips and all) yet still eat heartily because it will be an absolute waste if you don't relish eating a chicken this good. 

I've never really known how they do it but Korean fried chicken is in a world of its own. 

The aficionados will have their own descriptions and their own words, but let me just say that their chicken pieces are never small (I've never seen a winglet), they're marinated nicely, breaded nicely, and have got that crunch that you wont' quite find in other types of fried chicken in other cultures elsewhere.

Maybe it's the way they bread it.

Maybe it's the way they deep fry it. 

I don't know. 

But eating their chicken is a multi sensory thing. 

The solidness of the chicken in your hand, the sound of crunch that reaches your ears, the feel of crisp skin and warm, tender flesh in your mouth, and the flavor of whatever you've ordered all over your lips, your mouth, and your tongue.

Every piece makes you want more. 

Every piece makes you want to wipe up the flavoring with whatever you have on hand, relish that shiok shiok feeling you have, and think about switching your cup of cold barley tea for a mug of beer.