My first reaction to a friend's invitation for afternoon tea at 313 Somerset was a 'No'.
It wasn't because I didn't like high tea.
It wasn't because I was busy.
It was that I felt underdressed for such and such a meal, and I would rather wait for another time than to have a high tea session sans makeup and accessories.
But the afternoon tea wasn't at any fancy place, my friend explained, it was at TSUTA- on the ground floor of 313 Somerset facing the MRT entrance and the 24-hour walkway, so I agreed.
You know how it is that most afternoon tea places tend to cater to the female/feminine crowd?
Not so here at TSUTA, which, I'm glad to say, seems to lean towards the gender neutral side.
How do I know it?
Ambience, and Menu.
TSUTA is not one of those places where you get pristine white tablecloths, elegant, fine crockery, armchairs with carved armrests to prop your elbows on, or prettily painted plates of porcelain.
Here you'll be seated at a wooden rectangular table on benches similarly made of wood in a booth-like style.
Very casual, very fun, very unladylike.
But they've got a Menu, and they've got food.
Which, I must tell you, are of an offering a far cry from your regular expectations of an afternoon tea menu.
This is a place to not expect scones, jam, and clotted cream.
Instead, be prepared to face a Menu that brings you a variety of Mazesobas, Dons, Gyozas and Makis.
We were surprised to see that amongst the variety of Dons available, there were Kakiage Don, Soboro Don, Wagyu Don, Salmon Don and Teriyaki Chicken Don.
Not just that, from the Mazesobas, there were Onsen Egg, Mala, Kurobishio, Teriyaki Chicken, and Vegetable.
It was hard to decide but eventually my friend got a Wagyu Don and I decided on a Mazesoba Kurobishio.
Then, because this meal was becoming more like a dinner than a high tea, we ordered an ala carte Salmon Don as well.
It wasn't just the Savory that appealed to us.
The Bites too were just as good.
Two types of gyozas, eight types of makis and some other little dishes like Salmon Carpaccio and Ebi Fry made for a most challenging choice.
I wanted the Maki- the Negitoro Nami Maki and Avocado Ebi Nami Maki sounded really good- but then there on the Menu there was this Aburi Niku, this Teriyaki Chicken Bao, and this Ebi Fry, all of which seemed just as good.
So we took the Chicken Kaarage, the Aburi Niku and the Teriyaki Chicken Bao.
All of our orders came together at the same time, including the desserts of Black Sesame Bavaro and Matcha Bavaro.
The meal was good.
I enjoyed everything on the table this late afternoon at TSUTA.
But can I say that out of everything it were the Teriyaki Chicken Bao that left a deep impression on me?
At first I'd thought it might have been the typical dim sum char siew bao kind of bao.
But, no, what we got instead was the Kong Bak Bao kind of bao, where, instead of a piece of braised pork belly that you stuffed inside the puppet-mouth shaped bun, you got a chonky piece of tender grilled chicken, and a leaf of lettuce that you stuffed in the same way.
It is a creative (almost kosher) spin on a familiar, homecooked dish that TSUTA has done.
And somehow I think their team has done it rather well the same way how they've done it with the Mazesoba Kurobishio.
A person acquainted with mazesoba and kurobishio would know precisely just what the standards of this dish are.
But I don't.
And so I'm just going to say that it was a bowl of 'soba dry style mixed with loads and loads of Black Garlic Oil' that reminded me of bak chor mee.
But as much as this is, technically, pork noodle, it isn't quite either, and honestly, it doesn't really matter at all.
Let's just say that this was my first time having Black Garlic oil with noodles, and, guess what, it's not going to be my last.
I had a lovely time savoring my soba with all the tiny little bits of meat.
I had an even better time mixing everything up with the oil at the bottom of the bowl, reminding myself to eat it as slow as I could.
Sometimes life isn't so much about dressing up, being seated on a comfortable cushioned armchair having little cakes, cucumber sandwiches, tarts, scones, sipping on a cup of coffee or tea.
But it is, always, a time to appreciate the moment, to appreciate the company you are with, and to appreciate quality food prepared with creativity, sincerity and heart.