Relish

As far as I can recall, Relish was one of the first few local burger places in town a few years ago. Then came the 'Burger Boom', which saw joints of its like sprouting up all across the island.

While today many take them for granted, the uprising of these burger places has undoubtedly changed the way we look at gourmet burgers, otherwise seen as just another 'McDonald's' experience.



I vaguely remember how many times I have visited Relish, located in Cluny Court which is one of my favourite haunts. The word 'relish' itself carries many meanings, one of which is the strong appreciation for something, based on my understanding. When it comes to the hamburger, it refers to a cooked or pickled (or both) ingredient which is typically used as a condiment (Soruce: Wikipedia). Quite an apt name for a burger joint I suppose.



Loved their chalkboard menu and hilarious slogan.



Bacon and Cheese Beef Burger (150g, $15.5) was not my main. My companion liked the beefy patty which was substantial and juicy, and was done perfectly medium rare too.



My Grilled Portobello Tofu Burger ($17.5) was not bad but unfortunately didn't meet my expection. The grilled tofu steak was satisfyingly firm. The lack of taste in the portobello mushrooms however let me down. Not very encouraging for one who wants to go healthy.



What can be a better way to celebrate weekends than relishing your favourite brunch dishes? On any relagar weekend, brunch is served as early as 10.30am.



Eggs Wild Benedict ($18.8) wasn't not that impressive. I didn't like bacon that was tough and seemingly overdone. Then there came my companion's WoW (Word of Wisdom) of the day: Do not judge a ramen shop by its sashimi, so she spoke.

Eat the fries while still warm, as you find them turn soggy pretty quickly.



While everyone loves their scrambled egg smoked salmon for breakfast, Chef Willin's idea of doing it with a bagel was simply transforming.

There we had Rosemary Smoked Salmon Bagel ($19.8), made extra savoury with Scallion cheese and a perfect touch of seasonings.

I wished I could have some freshly cut avocado to go with it.



This curious guy next table stared at us for a while, long enough for me to pick up my camera and took this shot. How I wished someone could have given him a piece of napkin.


Relish by Wild Rocket
#02-01 Cluny Court
501 Bukit Timah Road
Mon - Fri, 12pm - 3pm, 6.30pm - 11pm
Sat - Sun, 10.30am - 11pm
6763 1547

Iggy's @ Hilton Hotel

Well, as promised here is the new review of Iggy's at its current location in Hilton Hotel.



Even though it was during an "off-peak" month, but reservations were still almost 80% full on weekends. So this is a place where you want to reserve first before coming.



Guests who arrive early will be ushered to this colourful corner called the "red room" because most of the furniture in this corner is red.



Owner of Iggy's, Mr Ignatius Chan, was there at the restaurant when we were there. He is a pretty hands on guy, who has to try out all the new improved creations the chefs created before giving his stamp of approval to be served.



Even though we managed to get a table in the main dining hall, but when we decided to check out the kitchen bar where we can see all the actions from the kitchen.



Iggy's has spent a huge sum of money on the ventilation in the kitchen to ensure that it is free from all smells, oil and dirt. And we can confirm that we didn't smell like any of their food because we decided to sit along the kitchen counter to see first hand their chefs at work.

For our dinner, we had the Gastronomic Menu - S$250++




First up was Iggy's Pinot Noir (S$30), a house wine of Iggy's.



Our first Amuse Bouche was the Butternut ice cream with sweet potato. Sweet, cold and delicious.



Next, we had the creamy Foei Gras lollipop which had a light crisp crust on the outside.



Plus the super sweet and fresh Squid with uni and dashi tea (Japanese seaweed stock)



The bigger appetizers we had was this Kohada fish with Tomato, Clementine, Mango, puffed Quinoa and beef. This reminds diners that spring is near.



Bread rolls with butter and shaved cheese.



I was surprised by the Hokkaido Scallop with celery, bacon foam, granny smith apple. Especially the bacon foam. Even though you can "eat" foam, but you can still taste a strong bacon taste in it.



The service staff lay down a Fish knife and fork. And you know the next dish is a fish dish.



Indeed, the fish dish we had was the Lightly cured Himi Kan-Buri (winter amberjack from Himi, Japan) with baby leek, pepper and wasabi powder. Initially, I was not sure how strong the wasabi powder was, but to my surprise, the wasabi powder was very light, in fact almost non-existence.



This beautiful "dumpling" was the Raviolo of duck, egg and yam and dehydrated vegetables. The duck was inside the Raviolo and mashed yam underneath it.




We were given a small cup of Duck consommé, cooked from the duck meat.



The mains for the beef dish was the Wagyu with Nanohana flower, heirloom carrot and rosemary. Beef was tender and juicy.



The only dish we didn't like that much was this Vacherin Mont D'or - mashed Yukon gold potato, mache and Alba black truffle. It sounded good, but perhaps it became a bit too rich. Especially when it came towards the end of the meal.



To lighten things up, we ordered a glass of Torbreck Bothie (S$15)



Our pre-dessert was this beautiful Gorgonzola cheese in disc



plus the Strawberry with vin cotto sphere. The vin cotto was injected into the delicate crisp sphere and when you bite into it, the liquid flows out. Yummy.



The chef preparing our next main dessert.



"Winter" - Chestnut, coconut powder, coffee and lemon. Looks can be decieving. This ordinary dessert actually tasted pretty good.



The best best part of the meal, was when the dessert chef brought out this dessert bento box. Petit fours selection offered in bento box and diners choose anything they want, or in case you cannot make up you mind, how about one of each.



We did that! Everything was deliclious. You can even have more if you really want.



To wash down all the yummy food, we had a Pot of tea (S$10)




and decaffeinated coffee (S$6)



Iggy's was one of the highlights for our 2011 even though it is still early in the year. And with such standards, I think it is not difficult for Iggy's to squeeze in to the Miele's Guide once again for 2011.


Iggy's
581 Orchard Road
Level 3
Hilton Hotel Singapore

Iggy's @ The Regent (RELOCATED)

Recently, we did a visit to Iggy's new location at Iggy's. I was doing some spring cleaning and found out that we missed out on a review of Iggy's back at The Regent hotel. So here it is, a 2 reviews special on Iggy's past and present restaurants.



Most people who have been to Iggy's will remember this wooden entrance just outside the restaurant which was named few months ago as the best in Asia by Miele Guide.



It's quite dark inside, and the only "bright" spot are the seats around the counter. From here, you can see the actions in the kitchen through a glass window.



Iced water for my set lunch at Iggy's.



We were served a warm toasted bread with extra virgin olive oil.



The chef presented the Amuse Bouche of the day, while we selected the 5 courses lunch at S$80+++ with choice of 3 Hors D'oeuvres + 1 main course + 1 dessert.



The first was the fresh and sweet Blue Fin Tuna - Seared Tuna with baby leeks, ginger flower, chives potatoes, french beans and mirin dressing



Next was the mushroomy Mushroom flan and fricasse of mushrooms



I enjoyed Iggy's egg dish - Slow cooked egg, bacon, mushrooms with pinot jus. Just by looking at the ingredients, you know it is pure comfort food.



I had a Foie Gras (additional order) - Pan-fried foie gras. warm pear soup, mango and brioche crumbs. The quality of their Foie Gras was good, and the sweetness of the fruits brought out the tastes of the foie gras.




This is one of Iggy's signature dish - Cappellini (Sakura Ebi Cappellini with konbu and home-made scampi oil). Although the portion is not big, but every bite of this wonderful cappellini is very satisfying.



Our meal ended with a Sesame dessert - Warm Pound Cake, milk foam and white-sesame ice-cream.

As everone knows by now, Iggy's has relocated to its new premise in Hilton Hotel. And, the kitchen at the old and new Iggy's are helmed by different chef-de-cuisine. Do watch out for our next review on Iggy's at their new premises in Hilton hotel.


Iggy's (RELOCATED)
#03-00
1 Cuscaden Road
The Regent

Nazt Bistro Lounge

Contrary to the noisy and crowded pubs that line Club Street, Nazt Bistro Lounge offers a cozy ambience suitable for a quiet night out. The dim lighting, however, did make food photography a rather arduous task.

Warm and fluffy slices of herb bread and white bread were served after we placed our orders, I preferred the former.

Seafood Delight ($22++): Oven baked fillet of sole, grilled prawn & clams served with clam chowder, caviar & crab oil

Cooked to flaky doneness, the mild-flavored sole proved to be a good match with the rich clam chowder perfumed with crab oil.  The caviar-topped freshwater prawn that was the centerpiece of this dish didn't disappoint either, with its fresh and sweet flesh.

Rachel ordered the pan fried red snapper ($18++), which was accompanied by savoy cabbage, parsnip mash & thyme cream sauce.

 

Pan Seared Watermelon ($8++): Caramelized watermelon with berries & ice cream

Warm watermelon's not my thing but I certainly enjoyed the delicious scoop of honey ice cream. This was made all the more delicious when paired with crunchy bits of buttery crumble.

While the friendly and unobstrusive service would be ideal for couples, I've got to admit that it was difficult to attract the waiter's attention when it was time to pay the bill! For those watching their wallets, there is also a $18++ three-course set lunch available at Nazt.

Nazt Bistro Lounge

54/56 Club Street

Opening hours: 11.30am-3pm (Tues-Fri), 6pm-12am (Tues-Sun)